I want to share MRC’s research with you. It’s all about Bidenomics and how well it’s working to bury the middle class, especially people on fixed incomes. Gas prices have surged, real wages have declined, mortgage rates have more than doubled, savings have plunged, consumer prices have risen far more than under Donald Trump, and […] The post Bidenomics Is Even Worse Than You Thought appeared first on www.independentsentinel.com.

A squatter charged with murdering a Utah teenager has officially pleaded guilty to the crime. James Brenner was charged in the 2022 disappearance of 19-year-old farmer Dylan Rounds, whose remains were found last month after Brenner told authorities where to find the body. On Wednesday, Brenner formally pleaded guilty to Rounds’ murder, the Box Elder County Attorney’s Office said in a press release. Brenner had reached a plea deal with prosecutors that required him to tell authorities where Rounds’ body had been left. “In exchange, Brenner received a reduction from first-degree felony aggravated murder to second-degree felony murder. The second charge, desecration of human remains, was dismissed,” the attorney’s office said. Brenner also pleaded guilty to two counts of possession of a firearm by a restricted person. His plea agreement closed three cases, two of which related to Rounds. The third case involved an aggravated assault and was not related to Rounds. Under the plea agreement, Brenner will be sentenced for each charge and will serve his time consecutively. His sentencing hearing is scheduled for July 1. Rounds disappeared in 2022 after speaking with his grandmother on the phone, the New York Post reported. “On April 9, 2024, skeletal remains presumed to belong to Dylan Rounds were recovered in the remote western Box Elder County area of Lucin,” the Box Elder County Sheriff’s Office said on Facebook. “The FBI assisted the Box Elder County Sheriff’s Office by processing the area for evidence and recovering the remains.” CLICK HERE TO GET THE DAILYWIRE+ APP Brenner was squatting on land next to Rounds’ trailer when he allegedly murdered the teen, East Idaho News reported last year, and was charged with one count of aggravated murder and one count of abuse or desecration of a human body. Brenner had a violent criminal history and had been arrested on outstanding warrants in June 2022 before authorities announced that he was a suspect in Rounds’ disappearance. During a hearing last year, Brenner appeared with a limp, prompting Rounds’ parents to accuse him of attention-seeking behavior. “He’s despicable. His whole act of limping around is a complete act,” Rounds’ mother, Candice Cooley, told East Idaho News at the time. “I don’t know if it’s so we think he’s going to die or make him some sort of deal but he wants people to feel sorry for him.” “He looks for attention to have people feel sorry for him. That’s all. I think it’s an act,” Rounds’ father, Justin, told the outlet. “Our hearts go out to the family of Dylan Rounds,” the sheriff’s office said. “We offer our sincerest condolences for the loss of their family member. We understand that the pain of their loss is immeasurable, and we want to express our deepest sympathies to them. It is our hope that they can find peace moving forward.”

Jerry Seinfeld’s days of “yada yada yada” are over. The comedian behind “the show about nothing” is getting serious of late, sharing sober advice with college graduates, supporting the state of Israel and explaining why comedy ain’t what it used to be. The latter, inexplicably, caused him the most grief. The 70-year-old told The New Yorker podcast that the “extreme Left” is responsible for the modern decline in comedy. “It used to be you would go home at the end of the day, most people would go, ‘Oh, ‘Cheers’ is on,” he told the publication. “‘Oh, ‘M.A.S.H.’ is on, oh, ‘Mary Tyler Moore’ is on. … You just expected, there’ll be some funny stuff we can watch on TV tonight. Well, guess what? Where is it? This is the result of the extreme left and PC crap, and people worrying so much about offending other people.” The reaction was wildly predictable. Conservatives, who by and large want comedians to say whatever they please sans filter, cheered the proclamation.  The media and the Left — but we repeat ourselves — threw a fit. For example, CNN published an essay capturing the author’s “growing unease” with the squeaky-clean comic. Seinfeld’s “observational comedy” leaves no resonances or echoes in its wake; it doesn’t startle or upend expectations. And unlike the epochal sitcom David and Seinfeld brought forth together, Seinfeld’s routines don’t leave you with any perceptions of substance about what is truly mortifying about Being Human. Jamie McCarthy/Getty Images for Good+Foundation Why is “observational comedy” in scare quotes? Is that an inaccurate term? Better yet, why does every yuk have to come with a socially progressive message? Slate weighed in, too, with a comically titled piece, “What’s the Deal with Jerry Seinfeld?” His crime? He isn’t singing from the progressive hymnal. “…he’s even started embracing his Judaism more publicly, and in December traveled to Tel Aviv to visit the families of Hamas hostages. Who can fault a Jewish celebrity for calling attention to the dead and missing of Israel? Yet he’s notably not commented on the Netanyahu government, condemned the war, or discussed the suffering of Gazans.” Had he done the latter, this “think” piece wouldn’t exist. Other attacks on the comic legend proved pathetic. He’s old! He’s white! He’s out of touch! The Washington Post whined that he should “wake up” and realize “mean-spirited humor isn’t cool anymore.” Except Seinfeld is the opposite of “mean-spirited.” He’s so clean you could eat Spam off his stand-up set. Plus, the media doesn’t mind mean-spirited gags that target a certain former President or MAGA nation. Or Christians. It’s a dodge. All of it. Why? Seinfeld was right, and he hit a nerve so deep it explains the extreme reactions. “Seinfeld,” one of TV’s greatest sitcoms, routinely is labeled “problematic.” That means some of the gags are now offensive/racist/sexist/name-the-ist. Salon cited 10 classic episodes for condemnation. And it’s far from alone on this front. Seinfeld himself cited one example, recalling an episode where Kramer (Michael Richards) suggests using homeless people as rickshaw-style drivers. He said they couldn’t make that episode today, and few would disagree. Joey Delvalle/NBCU Photo Bank/NBCUniversal via Getty Images Hollywood happily glamorizes professional assassins (take a bow, John Wick) but cringes at George Costanza noticing a teen girl’s chest.  That captures woke culture to a T. It makes no sense. We saw extreme attacks on comedy following the March 2020 death of George Floyd. Beloved shows like “The Golden Girls” and “30 Rock” memory-holed select episodes with visuals evoking blackface. The former episode featured a beautician-style mud treatment, suggesting how extreme the comedy attacks were at the time. The eighth and final season of “Brooklyn Nine-Nine” got overhauled following Floyd’s death. The sly show’s swan song genuflected to the BLM movement. Main character Jake, who adores being a cop, ditched police work for full-time parenting.  Laugh riot, no? Hilarious, R-rated comedies no longer flood the cineplex. Comedy titans like Jack Black, Will Ferrell, Melissa McCarthy and Seth Rogen now toil on the small screen or accept more serious roles. Todd Phillips is not a household name, but he’s the comic director behind “The Hangover,” “Road Trip” and “Old School.” He made the darkly serious “Joker” in 2019, explaining why he shifted from comedy to comic book fare to Vanity Fair. “Go try to be funny nowadays with this woke culture…There were articles written about why comedies don’t work anymore — I’ll tell you why, because all the f***ing funny guys are like, ‘F*** this s***, because I don’t want to offend you.’” Will Ferrell took grief for 2015’s “Get Hard” for allegedly peddling racist jokes alongside co-star Kevin Hart, who is black. Why wasn’t Hart offended? Amy Schumer got pummeled by the woke Left for both “Snatched” (2015) and “I Feel Pretty” (2018) for similarly “problematic” content. She hasn’t led a movie comedy since. And if you don’t believe Seinfeld, what about Mel Brooks? The maestro behind “The Producers,” “Young Frankenstein” and “Blazing Saddles” insists over and again that the latter couldn’t be made today. Does anyone disagree? The revered western satire skewers racism at every turn by turning the “n-word” on its users. If you’d like to watch it again on Max, be ready for an explainer/trigger warning. Warner Bros./Courtesy of Getty Images Comedy always works best that way. Brooks doesn’t excoriate the Left while explaining why his classic comedy wouldn’t be possible now. He just acknowledges the new abnormal, and we all nod in agreement. Seinfeld’s complaint rings inarguably true, but it could have a short shelf life. Rebel comedians like Tim Dillon, Shane Gillis and Ryan Long are on the rise, and the recent Tom Brady roast on Netflix spent several days as one of the platform’s most viewed TV shows or specials. And no comedian apologized or lost work for telling those cruel, cutting jokes. Maybe comedy is on the comeback trail. If so, its resurgence only strengthens Seinfeld’s point.

Scottie Scheffler, the No. 1 golfer in the world, released a statement shortly after he was arrested by Louisville, Kentucky, police and charged with multiple crimes, including a felony, on Friday morning. Scheffler was arrested after he attempted to get into the Valhalla Golf Club to prepare for the second round of the PGA Championship. However, a fatal accident involving a pedestrian resulted in a large police response just outside the club, preventing the golfer from getting to the entrance. The accident was unrelated to Scheffler’s arrest. Scheffler wrote on Instagram that “a very chaotic situation” caused a “big misunderstanding of what I thought I was being asked to do.” “This morning, I was proceeding as directed by police officers,” he said. “It was a very chaotic situation, understandably so considering the tragic accident that occurred earlier, and there was a big misunderstanding of what I thought I was being asked to do.” “I never intended to disregard any of the instructions. I’m hopeful to put this to the side and focus on golf today,” he added. “Of course, all of us involved in the tournament express our deepest sympathies to the family of the man who passed away in the earlier accident this morning. It truly puts everything into perspective.” According to ESPN reporter Jeff Darlington, Scheffler attempted to drive on a median to get around the scene of the accident, but a police officer told Scheffler to stop. Scheffler, however, allegedly continued to drive another 10 to 20 yards toward the Valhalla Golf Club entrance, angering the officer, who “attempted to attach himself to Scheffler’s car” before Scheffler stopped his car. Scheffler is charged with second-degree assault of a police officer, third-degree criminal mischief, reckless driving, and disregarding traffic signals from an officer directing traffic, according to a court document, The New York Times reported. The second-degree assault charge is a felony while the others are misdemeanors. CLICK HERE TO GET THE DAILYWIRE+ APP The golfer was booked into jail at 7:28 a.m., according to the Louisville Metropolitan Department of Corrections, and released a little over an hour later. He was initially scheduled to tee off at 8:48 a.m., but his tee time was moved back to 10:08 a.m., which he made on time. Scheffler, who entered the second round tied for 12th at four under par, birdied on his first hole after his arrest. ??? #BIRDIE — After being arrested earlier this morning, world #1 Scottie Scheffler is BACK firing darts at Valhalla. He is now -1 thru 1 and fans are chanting his name. @SchefflerFans pic.twitter.com/VtU93hKx2p — NUCLR GOLF (@NUCLRGOLF) May 17, 2024

Shaquille O’Neal is an American icon. His acts of generosity and his overwhelmingly “nice” persona have made him a hero. Almost every American knows him simply as “Shaq.” His size, at 7-foot-1, is foreboding, but once that smile lights up his face, all the walls come down. Recently, Shaq told the story of his Master’s degree and how it all happened. . @Shaq wanted to get his masters degree in person at the University of Phoenix, but they couldn't make a class for just one person. They needed a minimum of 15 people.So he paid for 15 friends to get their masters with him pic.twitter.com/3X8fAlNUNB— ClutchPoints (@ClutchPoints) September 23, 2022 During an interview on the “Be Better Off Show,” he discussed some early business ventures. He was distressed because, during business meetings, they would say hello to him. Then, they would inevitably address the lawyers and accountants with the meat of the meeting. Shaq felt he was being “dismissed” because he didn’t have a degree. So the superstar decided to do something about that. You can watch the entire interview with Shaq on the “Be Better Off Show” on YouTube. Shaq was recruited after his sophomore year at Louisiana State University, so he didn’t graduate before joining the National Basketball Association (NBA) in 1992. Returning to LSU, Shaq completed his undergraduate program and earned a Bachelor’s degree in 2000. He also put numbers on the board as one of the greatest NBA players ever. Image from YouTube. He decided on the University of Phoenix to earn his Master’s degree. Phoenix is predominantly an online university, but Shaq didn’t want to take classes online—he wanted a real classroom. In speaking with the people at the university, Shaq discovered they needed 15 enrollees to teach an in-person class. He did what Shaq does and he made that happen. He paid the tuition for 15 other people to earn their Master’s degrees so the university would set up in-person instruction! Shaq Didn’t Stop Learning After Getting His Master’s Degree Shaq believes that education is an integral part of everyone’s journey. He went on to earn a doctoral degree in education (Ed.D.) in 2012 from Barry University Florida. The Ed.D. in Human Resources Development honors his mother’s strong emphasis on education. During his four years at Barry, Shaq maintained a cumulative GPA of 3.813. It is important to note that his doctorate was earned, and it is not in any way an “honorary” degree, as some might claim. He has become one of the most successful athletes who has turned to business ventures. Shaq continues to amaze the world with his business savvy and philanthropy. Whether you watched him play in the NBA or recognize him from TV commercials, his name is well-known. Understanding the work Shaq dedicated to earning his masters helps us to understand his drive and ambition to be a better person. If you enjoyed this, please share. You can find the source of this story’s featured image here. The post Selfless: Shaq Pays For 15 Of His Friends To Get Their Master’s Degrees appeared first on InspireMore.

There are lots of folks who work hard to keep an airport running smoothly. Unfortunately for Mitchell International Airport in Milwaukee, they just lost a beloved employee who went into retirement. Still, they couldn’t be happier for this hard-working pup! Rex, who is a German shorthaired pointer, has been working in the field for five years — that’s one year less than he’s been alive! While he very much loved his job, last week, it was time for him to start a new phase in his life. His handler and owner, Regina Eisenberg, played a part in his surprise party — because humans aren’t the only ones who deserve a celebratory farewell! But the surprise these clever folks had up their sleeves didn’t involve cake. Instead, Rex was given a decoy passenger’s bag to inspect. He alerted Regina, triggering a whole group of his human friends to toss lots of tennis balls and toys his way! @humankind Watch this TSA screening dog’s reaction to this adorable surprise at his retirement party. #animalkind #goodnews #dogsoftiktok #dogs #airport ♬ Happy Days – Lux-Inspira As you can see in the video above, Rex is loving all of the chaos. With so many fun toys to chase after, he’s not quite sure how to choose! TSA Dog Celebrates His Retirement With Lots of Toys, Pets, and Attention — As He Deserves! Then, once the storm of toys calms down, it’s time for Regina to remove his “Do Not Pet” patch. From here, guests and fellow employees alike are welcome to give this good boy all of the pets! Needless to say, this was a happy moment for both Rex and the humans involved. So, what are Rex’s retirement plans? Well, for starters, he’ll be staying with Regina. According to the TSA, other than that, he’s simply looking forward to a more laid-back life. I have a feeling this will include lots and lots of balls. You can find the source of this story’s featured image here! The post Hard-Working TSA Dog Gets The Retirement Party He Deserves After 5 Years On The Job! appeared first on InspireMore.