Many Trump agnostics, on both the Left and Right, have convinced themselves that a Ukraine peace deal is doomed. Never underestimate Trump. Envoy Steve Witkoff revealed the reality during his Sunday appearance with Jake Tapper. Witkoff spent extensive time negotiating with Putin during the previous week. Trump wouldn’t have invited Putin if a deal wasn’t in sight. Early in this administration, Witkoff was dismissed by media pundits as a naive and gullible dunce, taken to the cleaners...

It has always been hard to believe that the truck-bombing of the A.P. Murrah Federal Building in Oklahoma City on April 19, 1995, which killed 168 people, including 19 children at a daycare center, was planned by just one or two perpetrators acting alone. However, the official story states that the mastermind was Gulf War veteran Timothy McVeigh, and that the two others sentenced with him only helped him in various ways.

A terrible story out of Florida, on the opposite side of the country from where California governor Gavin Newsom busily plies his trade as one of America’s leading examples of political psychosis, nonetheless serves as a key data point for the collateral damage being done in the Golden State.

A lot of thought goes into choosing a baby’s name. Will other kids have the same name when they start kindergarten? Is the name too dull? Is the name too original? Will the name lead to bullying? Will the name look good on a job application? Could you run for president with this name?Popular TikToker Emily Windham, 23, from Birmingham, Alabama, is adding another question that parents should ask themselves: What will their initials be? Windham has gone viral for her video in which she reveals how disheartening it is when she has to write her initials, especially when they appear multiple times on a document. To put it simply, they are pretty yucky.“When you’re deciding what to name your kids, look at what their initials are going to be,” she says at the beginning of her video. “Every time I have to initial a document, I have to write 'EW.' All these little initial lines just say EW EW EW EW.” The situation is frustrating for Emily because her parents considered naming her Alexia, which would have been AW, which is sweet. “That’s so cute,” she said. @emwindham Easy em in tha house ?????? The post inspired other people with unfortunate initials to comment; some of them are much harder to live with than EW.“Yea… mine is XL,” Xitlali wrote.“Mine is ‘BLT’ because it was my dad’s favorite sandwich. Mom didn’t notice until it was too late I don’t even like blts,” Bryony Tally Art wrote.“Mine is ‘PP’ elementary and middle school was a blast,” Pais wrote.“I knew a girl in school whose name was Amy, and her initials were also AMY, and I’ll never forget because that’s so baller,” Charlie wrote.“My son's initials are BRB,” Ashleigh wrote.“My initials are EGG,” El-Glory wrote.“My initials spell EMO and I think that's awesome,” Elle wrote.“Mine is OG… now I’m getting married and it’ll be OJ. Can’t decide if I like an original gangster or Orange Juice more,” Olivia wrote.“Mine is ME, and when I sign out on duties at work, someone goes, ‘Can someone please stop signing ME and sign your initials?’ I’m like, those are my initials,” a TokToker named Madison wrote. @thesam_show sorry if i talk about this problem too much but it is HAPPENING AGAIN!! Emily’s story is similar to that of Samanta Hart, a woman who went viral on TikTok in 2023 because her name doesn’t exactly work well with modern email conventions. Clearly, her parents hadn't thought that her name would cause any trouble in the late '90s when email was a new thing. So, she made a video warning parents to think of their children’s future email addresses before selecting a name.“My name is Samantha Hart,” the 27-year-old said. “Most companies use the email designation of first initial, last name, meaning my email would be shart.” A shart is an accidental release when one assumes they only have gas, which is not exactly how one wants to be known in professional circles. Imagine sending an email to someone at another company and their name comes up as SHart. YOu might even think that someone is pranking you. “At every single workplace, I have received an email from HR the week before I start letting me know that my name does not exactly fit the company email structure as they would intend and [asked] would I mind if they gave me a different structure for my email,” Hart said. That's kind of the HR people to help Samantha save a bit of face when starting a new job, so the thing she's most known for, before meeting anyone, is her questionable email address. Sadly, Hart will probably have to deal with this whenever she gets a new job. Hopefully, she enjoys doing long stretches with her employers.This article originally appeared last year.

It's pretty safe to say that in the United States, it's universally accepted that saying "please" and "thank you" are considered good manners. They're two of the first few words we're taught after baby babble starts becoming single-syllable words. Every household will vary on whether you should seek permission for something by saying "can I" or "may I," but "please" and thank you" will always be signs of politeness. A man named Noah Osborne was on a trip in the UK recently when he found a Chipotle restaurant. In a TikTok video, he excitedly brings the audience along as he orders food from this American restaurant chain in the land of tea and crumpets. Nothing seems amiss from the American viewers' point of view, but his seemingly very polite ordering technique bristled the Brits. According to a number of people across the pond, the main issue is that he was rude. Chipotle's inviting entrance, ready for customers to enjoy a meal.MiosotisJade via Wikimedia CommonsIn the video, Osborne's tone is light and friendly; he greets the workers upon entering and continuously says "please" and "thank you" throughout the ordering process. It's a seemingly overly polite interaction by someone who appears not to want to offend the locals. Since Chipotle is much like an assembly line, Osborne uses his manners before and after every added ingredient—something that might be a bit too much for an American Chipotle worker. "Guys, I just stumbled upon Chipotle in London, and now I feel like I have to try it on my last night here and compare, see which one's better," Osborne explains as he enters the restaurant. "Hi. Can I do a bowl, please? Here please," he says in response to the worker asking if he'd be dining in. "Do you have white? Ok, yeah. That's my only option," he nervously chuckles as she scoops brown rice into the bowl before she asks about the type of beans. "Let's do black, please." Enjoying coffee and conversation at an outdoor café.Photo credit: CanvaThe entire interaction is full of pleasantries to convey appropriate manners, but British folks thought the process from start to finish showed just how "rude" Americans are, with one person writing, "'Please can I have' must not be in the US language."Another says, "Maybe if you weren’t so rude you’d have gotten the portion size you wanted. 'I’ll do'. How about please may I have? Gross."One person asks, "Manners banned in the US?" While someone else throws out, "Maybe she gave you less cause you talked like that." @notnoahosbrne Chipotle in the UK vs the US @Chipotle #uk #ukfood #londonfood #americanfood ♬ original sound - notnoahosbrne It seems that the main complaint is the order in which he used "please," that riled up the British viewers. Apparently, in the UK, they prefer you to place the "please" at the front of the sentence. The other complaints were not only criticizing the placement of "please" but also his use of the phrase, "I'll do." It would seem that if you're ordering food in the UK, you should speak as if you're the titular character of Charles Dickens' Oliver Twist: "Please, sir, may I have some more?" In all seriousness, there are cultural differences in the United States itself. In southern states, you'll likely hear a lot of people say "May I," while in northern states, you'll hear more people say "Can I." If the phrases change from state to state, they're likely to change from one English-speaking country to the next, and Americans were quick to point this out in defense of a fellow American. A restaurant counter.Photo credit: Canva"Being rude is only relative to your own culture. I’ve been to the UK several times and I initially saw them as very cold, sarcastic, and judgmental. But I never was offended because I realized they had different cultural practices. Being introspective is an important trait," one American argues. "Thats how we order here guys relax different countries have different mannerisms, and here in the STATES thats considered good," another chimes in."A lot of you in the comments are insufferable my goodness do a lot of you not comprehend there are different ways that Americans learn what politeness is? And as long as he’s saying please and thank you why tf does it matter he was in no way shape or form being rude" one person responds. Frustrated woman reacting to text on her phone.Photo credit: Canva"It's completely acceptable that he's traveling and not going to use the same phrases as a native Brit. That expectation is completely unattainable. It would take several visits or longer stays to speak as a native would that goes for any English speaking country. Just like if a Brit visits the States we aren't going to expect them to automatically know how to speak as a United States English speaker. Also things to consider, we have a lot of different races and cultures here such as people who are native Spanish speakers and that also influences how people speak in certain regions. I'm sure this war with the Brits ended in the 18th Century and we should appreciate our differences rather than argue what is correct or not," someone else declares. Some sort of American Bat Signal must've been shone because Americans quickly outpaced the British in the comments to the point where new commenters are confused about what people are arguing over. The overwhelming defense by Americans, aside from frustratingly pointing out the double standard for when British people visit the States, was arguing cultural differences. We're all a little different from country to country, and that's okay. Osbourne has certainly learned a unique cultural lesson, and the Brits in the comments have learned to have a bit more grace for tourists.

Decluttering your home can be an exhausting undertaking. And while professional Marie Kondo's famous advice to get rid of anything that doesn't "spark joy" may be a helpful tip while decluttering, a mom who's been embarking on a two-year decluttering journey of her own offered her advice to help get you motivated.She shared her best decluttering guidance with fellow home organizers trying to get rid of unnecessary stuff called the "Use it or lose it" hack. She wrote, "I’ve been on a major decluttering journey for the past 2 years. And I honestly haven’t regretted, or even thought twice, about everything I’ve donated or thrown out in the process."On her journey, she realized that "the actual regret came from the realization that certain things really are use it or lose it. And not just those with expiration dates." It hit her that the things she never used that had been stuffed in her closets ultimately became useless over time, and, whether or not she wanted to, she had to throw them away. - YouTube www.youtube.com "The spools of stretchy string I’d been storing for who knows how long, just in case I started making jewelry again - brittle and discolored. A purse packed away for so long, it started flaking and crumbling in my hands. (That one hurt. My daughter would have loved it!)," she wrote. "A beautiful dress that I almost never wore when it actually fit me right. I should have considered every day the 'special occasion' for it."In the end, because she didn't "use it," these things deteriorated to the point where she had no choice but to "lose it." She continued, "So no, donating perfectly good items in hopes they will be loved again brought no regrets. When you have too much stuff, when you save things for just the right occasion, you may never really enjoy any of it. Having a curated collection of needs and wants that actually see the light of day is just a better way to live." Organize The Goldbergs GIF by ABC Network Giphy Her sage advice resonated with others struggling with guilt or regret about getting rid of perfectly good items during their decluttering. "This is exactly why I’m such an advocate of using the 'good glasses'… lighting the expensive candles… wearing your favorite clothes… you actually get to ENJOY your things and your life, just because! Rather than find them years down the line and feel sad that you never appreciated them when you could. Sometimes I put Pepsi in a wine glass just to feel fancy but I don’t want wine ?," one commented. Box Satisfying GIF by Extra Space Storage Giphy Another added, "This is a beautiful way to look at it, and gives me a bit of a better outlook while on my own decluttering journey! Every day is the day to put it to use, before it can’t be used at all! And if you can’t find a use for it now, give it away to somebody who maybe can :)."Many were grateful for the perspective. Another declutterer shared, "I feel this. It’s so true. Try to value what you own and use it. Live in the moment and don’t save your nice stuff for later - be kind to yourself you deserve the best! Not later- now." Another quipped, "You cracked the code! I say this a lot in here. It’s not wasting the item to give it away. It’s wasting it to keep it and not use it. Things should be used and enjoyed not stored away until they’re no longer useful. Keep it flowing. And don’t dust your candles. Burn them!"

Brands are constantly adapting to our ever-changing world in an effort to stay relevant and viable and, ultimately, make their bottom line. However, sometimes these attempts at gettin’ with the times are so out of touch they miss the mark completely. We call these instances marketing fails. One such marketing fail happened in 1974, when Gerber—the brand synonymous with baby food—tried, and failed, to rebrand itself as a food for college kids. As explained by Max Miller of Tasting History, in a short but sweet video (though maybe not as sweet as Gerber’s puréed mango-apple-banana flavor), the ‘70s saw a dramatic decline in marriages and births following the Baby Boom between 1946 and 1964. Less babies, of course, meant less need for baby food, and Gerber was looking for ways to combat a slump in its sales. Their solution? Rebrand their product as something for college kids. - YouTube www.youtube.com Using the logic of “We were good for you then. We’re good for you now,” Gerber rolled out full meals like "Beef Burgundy," "Mediterranean Vegetables," "Ham Casserole," "Creamed Beef," and even "Sweet and Sour Pork” placed in the exact same jars used to contain infant food. Though the idea itself might have been sound—convenient, all-in-one meals? What busy single person doesn't want that?— the biggest flaw was in the execution. Depressing, or condescending taglines like "Something to eat when you're alone" and "Look at you! All grown up!" didn’t exactly endear young folks to drown out their loneliness with a savory, lukewarm meat mush. Who doesn't wanna eat beef burgundy right out of the can?Wikimedia All in all, the failed product went off the shelves within only a few months of its launch. As many viewers pointed out, this very well could have been an idea too ahead of its time, because in today’s fitness-centric world, it could have been a hot ticket item.“There's a market for meal replacements, both for people with finite time and health buffs,” one person noted. Another echoed, “Honestly, just put it in a squeeze pack and market it for fitness and those sales will soar.”Others brought up the fact that the elderly, sick, or, as one person put it it, “the Soylent crowd who hate how the subsistence of their physical body interferes with the grindset,” could have easily bought into the product. But cool college kids? Not so much. Still, this probably doesn’t go down in history as the most out of touch market schemes. Certainly not in comparison to the infamous Kendall Jenner Pepsi Ad from 2017. - YouTube www.youtube.com Or the short-lived Dove Facebook Ad, also from 2017, where a Black woman takes off her shirt to reveal a white woman standing in her place. The idea was to imply that the product was for all women. The interpretation was that it promotes white ideals of beauty. Whoops. - YouTube www.youtube.com Or when the American Dairy Association made a translation blunder with their “Got Milk?” campaign, when it wrote “Tienes leche?” for its Spanish-speaking audience. This literally translates to “Are you lactating?”You could also put the recent Sydney Sweeny American Eagle blue jeans ad in this category. The highly controversial commercial might have boosted web site traffic, but sales? Not so much, according to sites like Adweek and Retail Brew. - YouTube www.youtube.com Bottom line: brands ultimately aim to serve themselves, and they do so by trying to tap into the potential emotional triggers of their customer base. We know this, but, let’s face it, even the most scrutinous among us might be swayed by the clever or heartfelt story told in an ad. When they majorly faceplant, however, it’s a lot easier to see their true intentions and a good reminder to take it all with a grain of salt.

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