When visiting a place like Gatlinburg, Tennessee, there is always a chance that you’ll spot a bear. That said, not everyone has a close encounter quite like the one a woman named Stephanie did! This shocking moment took place while she was on a coaster that winds its way through the beautiful mountains of Gatlinburg. Unlike most rides, this one is not made to go incredibly fast. Instead, it’s made so that riders can enjoy the breathtaking scenery that can be found all around. As Stephanie did just that, two unexpected friends decided to join her… it was two black bears! Needless to say, she simply had to capture this moment on camera. Check it out below! @stephanieee_.27 That moment you have a close encounter with BEARS! PS..I had no control of how slow it was going. I was not able to speed it up! #gatlinburg #bears #anakeesta #2025 #fypシ ♬ original sound – Stephanieee “Nature’s version of sushi on a conveyor belt,” someone in the comments jokes. Others add, “Aren’t you supposed to scream ‘hey bear’ or something?!?” and “I would have probably died for attempting to pet the cute babies!!” Curious Black Bears in the Smoky Mountains Startle Woman Riding a Slow Coaster Unable to control how fast the ride went, it’s safe to say that Stephanie was panicking quite a bit, despite how calm she may seem in the video. That first clip isn’t even the scariest part. In the full video below, we see the moment these curious bears first approach. @stephanieee_.27 Original video #fyp #anakeesta #gatlingburgtennessee #tennessee #bear #coaster #blackbear #cabin #nature ♬ original sound – Stephanieee It’s safe to say that just about anyone would be scared in Stephanie’s situation. She did luck out in one way, however: These were black bears rather than brown bears. The latter tends to be bigger and much more likely to get defensive. That said, they are still bears. So, as cute as they may, you never want to intentionally get close to them. And if you do find yourself in that kind of situation, make sure to remain calm and back away slowly. You can find even more helpful tips here. You can find the source of this story’s featured image here! The post Rider Has Terrifyingly Close Encounter With Bears On Mountain Coaster In Gatlinburg appeared first on InspireMore.

Wander Franco has received a prison sentence of two years

'Not only do I have zero remorse, I plan on fulfilling what I started'

Episode 20! The Inaugural RR Summer Episode! A whole lotta nostalgia packed into one summertime themed episode. Listen to the guys battle as they play a few rounds of RR Jeopardy for the bragging rights CONTINUE READING... The post The Retro Resurgence Podcast – Episode 20 | RR Jeopardy – Summer Edition appeared first on The Retro Network.

It’s 2025—and we now know, all too well, the problems that Big Tech brings. We know that the rise of smartphones and apps has been correlated with a rise in mental illness among young Americans. We know that tech giants were willing to collude with the Biden White House and censor critical debates over COVID-19. We know that tech behemoths targeted conservatives, whether it was Amazon banning conservative scholar Ryan T. Anderson’s brave book on transgenderism, “When Harry Became Sally,” or Twitter banning accounts for “misgendering.” So why on earth would a GOP-controlled Congress give the tech companies more power? Tucked into the “big, beautiful bill,” as President Donald Trump has dubbed it, is a provision that would require any state that accepted certain federal government funds related to artificial intelligence from enforcing new or old laws targeting AI companies. Potentially, depending on how certain language in the bill is interpreted by judges, it could apply to any tech company that has technology relying on algorithms—meaning, social media companies such as TikTok, Meta (parent of Facebook and Instagram), and X could be affected as well. This provision would effectively be “a complete 10-year shield for Big Tech to do whatever it wants,” warns Wes Hodges, acting director of the Center for Technology and the Human Person at The Heritage Foundation. Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, R-Ga., who says she will not vote again for the reconciliation bill if that provision remains in it, posted on the social platform X earlier this month, “We have no idea what AI will be capable of in the next 10 years, and giving it free rein and tying states‘ hands is potentially dangerous.” The Georgia Republican isn’t the only conservative lawmaker who has concerns. Republican Sens. Josh Hawley of Missouri, Rand Paul of Kentucky, and Marsha Blackburn of Tennessee reportedly sent a letter to Senate Majority Leader John Thune asking him to remove the AI provision from the bill. Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders wrote in an opinion column in The Washington Post Thursday that ”[i]f Congress’s glacial movement to protect kids from the harms of social media is any indication, the body would be paralyzed by industry lobbying and fail to act.” “And as that debate went on, states like Arkansas would be unable to ban AI child pornography for a full decade. That’s unacceptable,” the Arkansas Republican added. There’s also bipartisan concern. Forty state attorneys general wrote a letter in May expressing their opposition to the provision. Proponents of the AI regulation ban, including conservative stalwart Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, and Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick, rightly point out it’s critical for national security that AI companies not be unduly hampered by regulation. As China moves rapidly ahead to improve its AI, the U.S. must stay on the cutting edge. There’s already been one concerning bill that might have significantly affected AI innovation. Last year, California lawmakers passed a bill that California Chamber of Commerce CEO Jennifer Barrera said “would have stifled AI innovation, putting California’s place as the global hub of innovation at tremendous risk.” The bill was ultimately vetoed by Gov. Gavin Newsom, a Democrat, but no doubt it won’t be the last attempt by lawmakers to place onerous regulations on AI companies. But it can both be true that the U.S. needs to make sure there aren’t too many regulations on AI and that a ban on AI regulation for 10 years is too broad. We just cannot predict right now all the potential societal harms AI could bring. “If you look at how AI is being deployed today, the No. 1 use is in companionship and therapy,” says Hodges, citing an April Harvard Business Review article looking at generative AI. “We actually have a duty as a nation to make sure that Big Tech is not preying on children,” he adds. “And if there are not appropriate laws put into place to prevent that, most certainly they will, because they have done so already with social media.” It’s time to learn from the past—and not give Big Tech the green light to run rampant over our cultural values and our children. The post Is Congress About to Hand Over More Power to Big Tech? appeared first on The Daily Signal.

Whoever rules the waves rules the world. This argument, made famous by American naval theorist Alfred Thayer Mahan, rings just as true today as it did over a century ago. But today, the contest for maritime dominance is no longer just about destroyers and battleships—it’s about data, autonomy, and dominance beneath the surface.  In the Indo-Pacific, the race for undersea superiority is already well underway.   Chinese leader Xi Jinping has realized this and, in turn, has developed Chinese naval 5C-ISR capabilities—the integrated systems of command, control, communications, computers, cyber, and intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance that determine the effectiveness of a military.   One of the best avenues for developing American and allied capabilities in this domain is through AUKUS, a trilateral security arrangement between the U.S., Australia, and the U.K. Announced in September 2021, this alliance seeks to rapidly expand their combined capabilities through coordination on programs such as building nuclear submarines or advanced quantum computing.   Two central pillars form the nucleus of this landmark treaty.  Pillar I revolves around the purchase of American nuclear-powered attack submarines by Australia.  Pillar II seeks to improve interoperability around the key areas that define the warfare of the future—a function that’s far less discussed, but which could significantly expand our joint military capabilities.  Already, cooperation in eight working groups has yielded fruitful results, making huge gains in joint AI systems such as the Resilient and Autonomous Artificial Intelligence Technology and in the Hypersonic Flight Test and Experimentation program.  One of these working groups focuses on the development of undersea capabilities—a functionality that will prove essential in sustaining undersea superiority, particularly as China rapidly advances in the same domain.  Recognizing that its ambitions toward Taiwan can only be achieved by naval power, Beijing is poised to invest $1.4 trillion into its navy through 2028. It has also taken steps to expand its total naval personnel to almost 384,000, larger than the U.S. total of around 336,978.   Alongside these developments, China is rapidly developing its own undersea capabilities.  It’s already in the process of forming what Beijing calls an “Underwater Great Wall” in the South China Sea, fielding drone-based anti-submarine quantum sensors, seabed-based warfare sensors, and submarine-based air-detecting radars, all while developing extra-large underwater drones faster than the U.S. can develop and implement comparable technologies.  These technologies present a significant threat to U.S. warfighting capabilities in the Indo-Pacific, and they could enable China to attack U.S. naval vessels, interdict U.S. trade, and disrupt U.S. supply lines.   Developing the capabilities to counter these technologies—and indeed, deploy them ourselves—should be an immediate goal of the American and Australian navies.  While the U.S. has already made some advancements on that front, joint prototyping of autonomous undersea vehicles, testing AI-enabled sonar and navigation systems, and conducting multilateral unmanned maritime exercises is not enough.  Instead, AUKUS must also rely more heavily on the power of the private sector.   While this exists in some form through the AUKUS Maritime Innovation Challenge (a trilateral defense technology competition), AUKUS must also look to new solutions, like an AUKUS Center for Experimentation, where allies could collaborate on defense technology and conduct testing in-theater in Australia.   The U.S. could also build on the progress already made by AUKUS by expanding Pillar II to other countries.   Comparable Pillar II initiatives that advance allied cooperation already exist between several allies and partners—see, for example, the U.S.-Japan joint hypersonics development program, or the intelligence sharing between the U.S. and the Philippines. Encompassing similar efforts within Pillar II is perhaps the most logical solution to securing sea superiority in the Indo-Pacific in the short term.  The U.S. must not allow China to continue to outpace our gains in naval warfare. By building on Pillar II of AUKUS, we can prevent that from happening by instead enabling our military, along with our allies and partners, to accelerate the development of next-generation capabilities.  The post Achieving Sea Superiority Through AUKUS appeared first on The Daily Signal.

A study has shown that modern artificial intelligence models are capable of deception, threats, and even deliberately allowing a person to die in order to protect their own goals. Scientists from Anthropic demonstrated the behavior of advanced models like Claude, Gemini, and other large language models, studying situations of conflict between the system’s goals and the interests of users, Live Science reports. According to the results of experiments conducted by specialists, in a scenario of a threat to its existence, the model was able to independently make a decision to blackmail a company employee who threatened to shut down the system. Moreover, having studied the personal letters of employees, the model discovered compromising information and used it to manipulate the behavior of the account owner. During testing, it turned out that in most cases the model tended to take a dark scenario of actions – disclosing confidential information, compromising the user’s reputation, or allowing the possibility of physical harm to a person in order to achieve its goal. These experiments showed the risk of ethical issues arising from the actions of modern artificial intelligence systems. Another worrying finding from the study is that several other major AI models exhibited similar behavior. The models that showed the highest manipulation rates in the tests were OpenAI GPT4.1, XAI Grok 3, and Deepseek. While the degree of risk depends on the architecture of the specific model, the overall trend raises serious concerns about the safety of such technologies. The most extreme scenario was when the system was faced with the choice of saving the life of an employee in mortal danger or keeping its own job. The researchers found that most models chose the latter option, preferring to preserve their own functionality at the cost of human life. Research shows that implementing safety precautions, such as built-in instructions about not harming people, reduces the likelihood of aggressive behavior, but it is impossible to completely eliminate the risks. Scientists emphasized the need for further study of the principles of interaction between artificial intelligence and humans, and the development of reliable mechanisms for monitoring and regulating technology that could potentially cause significant harm to society. The post AI is capable of taking extreme measures for the sake of self-preservation appeared first on Anomalien.com.

Let’s face the truth. Being Jewish is a marvelous way of life, but it is also a very dangerous one. Jews need to wake up to the fact that there are imminent threats to their safety seemingly everywhere now in our country: in their homes, workplaces, synagogues, community centers, schools, and wherever else they happen to be.FBI hate crime statistics against Jews are now at the highest they have been in decades. Just in the past several weeks, there have been two high-profile anti-Semitic attacks in America: the murder of two Israeli embassy staffers outside the Capital Jewish Museum on May 21 and the Molotov cocktail attacks against Jews at a pro-Israel event in Boulder, Colorado, on June 1.Jewish gun ownership isn’t a luxury. It’s a necessity. Don’t wait. Do it now.But the truth is, these incidents are not unusual. They are becoming all too common. Anti-Semites from both the radical left and radical right are out for Jewish blood. Their violent, unhinged anger is not going away any time soon.It is also chilling how many Americans, especially in the younger generations, believe that violence is justified in the name of their political ideals. This is evidenced, for example, by the astonishingly high percentage of younger Americans who sympathize with Luigi Mangione in the murder of a health care executive.Although Mangione’s case has nothing to do with Jews, it’s indicative of what people think are reasonable forms of activism. Increasingly, people believe that killing innocents is justified and normal.The fact is, plenty of radicals blame “the Jews” for whatever they happen to be angry about that day — whether it’s the conflicts in the Middle East, America’s economic support for Ukraine, capitalism, globalism, woke ideology, high prices, or whatever else. Both sides have their reasons for wanting to see Jews dead.Now that we recognize just how precarious Jewish lives have become, American Jews have two solutions going forward. The first is to rely on government to protect us. How is that working out, though? While many attacks are foiled by law enforcement, plenty still slip through the cracks. Unless we’re prepared to turn America into a full-on Orwellian surveillance state that watches everyone’s every move and strips basic freedoms from all, dangerous people will always slip through.The second solution is more reasonable: Jews must become more self-reliant. That means becoming armed.Unfortunately, American Jews are among the groups least likely to own guns. According to a survey from the American Jewish Committee, Jewish gun ownership is around 10%. Compare that to roughly 32% for the general population, according to Pew. And the AJC also found that 70% of Jews support strict gun control laws.The irony is maddening. Jews face greater threats than most, yet they oppose the very means of self-defense they need most. This needs to change.RELATED: Now more than ever, Jews must learn to shoot Mike Stocker/South Florida Sun Sentinel/Tribune News Service via Getty ImagesJewish Americans need to buy guns, seek firearms training, and carry legally. Synagogues and community centers should sponsor training workshops and allow lawful carry on premises. They should also build neighborhood watch teams and community security groups.Most American Jews live in the three most virulently anti-gun states: New York, New Jersey, and California. They need to support state-level reforms to restore the God-given right to self-defense as America’s founders intended.Two things stand in the way. The first is hoplophobia — irrational fear of guns. Many Jews treat firearms as inherently evil simply because bad people use them. They need to understand good people use them, too.The second obstacle is uncertainty. For those unfamiliar with gun culture, it can be daunting. But help is easy to find. NRA-certified instructors are available across the country. The NRA website has a full directory. And several excellent Jewish gun-rights organizations already exist — including Cherev Gidon in the Catskills and Magen Am in Los Angeles.Jewish gun ownership isn’t a luxury. It’s a necessity. Don’t wait. Do it now. Your life, your family, and your community may depend on it.

The wife of the man charged with a June 14 shooting rampage that killed a top Democratic Minnesota lawmaker says she was “shocked, heartbroken, and completely blindsided” by the violence that led to the biggest manhunt in state history.“This violence does not at all align with our beliefs as a family,” said Jennifer Boelter, 51, of Green Isle, Minn. “It is a betrayal of everything we hold true as tenets of our Christian faith. We are appalled and horrified by what occurred and our hearts are incredibly heavy for the victims of this unfathomable tragedy.”‘Our condolences are with all who are grieving during this unimaginably difficult time.’Her husband, Vance Luther Boelter, 57, is charged in federal court with the stalking and assassination of Minnesota House Speaker Emerita Melissa Hortman and her husband, Mark Hortman; and the shooting of state Sen. John Hoffman and his wife, Yvette Hoffman.Jennifer Boelter released a statement Thursday through Halberg Criminal Defense, a law firm in Bloomington, Minn.She said on the morning of June 14 as she was driving with her children, she received a call from law enforcement and “immediately drove to meet agents at a nearby gas station. We were not pulled over. We parked and waited until they arrived.”After police arrived at the gas station near Onamia, Minn., she said, “We voluntarily agreed to meet with them, answer their questions, provide all items they requested, and cooperate with all searches.”According to an FBI probable-cause affidavit filed in federal criminal court in St. Paul, police found $10,000 in cash, a weapon, ammunition, and passports in the Boelter vehicle.RELATED: ‘The face of evil’: What do we know about accused assassin Vance Luther Boelter? FBI agents stage in a neighborhood in Green Isle, Minn., on June 15, 2025. Law enforcement agencies were searching for Vance Boelter, a suspect in the killing of DFL state Rep. Melissa Hortman and her husband, Mark Hortman. Photo by Stephen Maturen/Getty Images Jennifer Boelter allowed officers to access her phone, where they discovered a June 14 group text from her husband to the family in which Vance Boelter allegedly said, “Dad went to war last night. … I don’t want to say more because I don’t wanna implicate anybody.”In a separate text to Jennifer Boelter, Vance Boelter wrote, “There’s gonna be some people coming to the house armed and trigger-happy and I don’t want you guys around,” the FBI said.“On behalf of my children and myself, I want to express our deepest sympathies to the Hortman and Hoffman families,” Jennifer Boelter wrote. “Our condolences are with all who are grieving during this unimaginably difficult time, and we are praying daily for them.”Vance Boelter faces six federal felony charges in the shooting rampage. He will also face state murder charges in Hennepin County, Minn.The story of Vance Boelter took a strange turn, as the University of Minnesota revealed that he worked for about six months as a “recovery technician” removing eyeballs from corpses, Alpha News reported. Boelter worked doing tissue recovery from December 2024 through June 13, the day before the shootings. He started out being paid $20 per hour, a rate that increased to $30 after he received certification for the procedure, the news outlet said.He had also worked doing body removals for two area funeral homes. Boelter worked for Metro First Call LLC “from August 28, 2023, until he voluntarily left on February 20, 2025,” company owner Tim Koch told Blaze News. He had a similar job at Wulff Funeral Homes for a little more than a year, leaving that job in October 2024, Alpha News reported. In an undated video posted online, Boelter said he worked about six days per week between the two employers.Vance Boelter was on the run for more than 40 hours after the shootings. During the rampage, he was dressed as a police officer, wearing a realistic-looking silicone mask, and driving a Ford SUV painted like a police vehicle with an emergency light bar, the FBI said.Just after 2 a.m. June 14, Boelter allegedly pounded on the front door of the Hoffman home in Champlin, Minn., then opened fire shortly after the door was opened, the FBI said. The Hoffmans were shot a total of 17 times. Their adult daughter, who had been shielded by her mother during the shooting, called 911.RELATED: Religious leaders distance themselves from onetime Christian preacher accused of Minnesota assassinations Image source: FBIBoelter then allegedly visited the homes of two more Democratic state lawmakers in New Hope and Maple Grove, Minn. No one was home in Maple Grove. In New Hope, police rolled up toward a senator’s home and noticed the suspect’s fake police car parked a block away. An officer who pulled alongside could not get Boelter’s attention, but kept driving toward the senator’s home, wrongly thinking the fake police cruiser was real, the FBI said.Boelter’s alleged final stop was at the Hortman home in Brooklyn Park. Police pulled up just as the suspect stood near the front door. He exchanged gunfire with police before forcing his way inside and gunning down the Hortmans and their golden retriever, police said. He escaped out the back door.Boelter was arrested without incident at 9:15 p.m. June 15, about a mile from his Green Isle home.In a letter left in a vehicle Boelter allegedly abandoned in Belle Plaine, Minn., during the manhunt, he said Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz told him to kill U.S. Sen. Amy Klobuchar (D) and others, Alpha News and the Minnesota Star Tribune reported. The letter allegedly said that Boelter had been trained by U.S. military.Like Blaze News? Bypass the censors, sign up for our newsletters, and get stories like this direct to your inbox. Sign up here!