Former “American Idol” judge Simon Cowell credited his kid with saving him from a very dark time in his life after the reality star lost his parents and became what he called a “ridiculous workaholic.” Speaking on “The Diary Of A CEO” podcast, Cowell opened up about how his 10-year-old son Eric helped him get to a place where he could be “happy again” after Cowell said he had been on a “downward spiral” following the loss of his mom in 2015 and his father years earlier, People magazine reported. “I think particularly when I lost my mum, I was on a downward spiral at that point,” Cowell told the host. “I lost everyone, you know, I’ve lost my parents. It’s finality now. What I said about the material things I’ve got, everything just meant nothing at that point.” Simon Cowell credits his son Eric for saving him amid a ‘downward spiral’ after his parents’ death: ‘It changed everything in my life. It made me happy again.’ https://t.co/5LzBFv44sK — Entertainment Weekly (@EW) June 10, 2024 “I was desperately unhappy, I wasn’t particularly enjoying my work and I just thought you know what I’m just going to become a vampire then, and I would work through until 7:00 or 8:00 in the morning,” he added. “I would wake up at 2:00 or 3:00 in the afternoon and I actually got addicted to that kind of lifestyle. I just loved the intensity. It was almost like because of the loss I’d had, I’ve got to find something else to fill it. And it was I’m just going to be a ridiculous workaholic, and I was very successful but I wasn’t happy, I really, really wasn’t happy.” Cowell, who tied the knot in 2013 with Lauren Silverman, recalled the day he got the call that she was pregnant.  “When I got the call from Lauren, which starts, any call that starts with, ‘Are you sitting down?’ You know what‘s coming next. It was like, ‘Are you sitting down?’ ‘Yes,’ ‘Well,’ and she told me. And yes it did absolutely change, it changed everything in my life,” Cowell said. “It made me happy again.” “For me, it was perfect because like we were talking earlier about our childhoods, it was brilliant. Fantastic,” he added. “I remember the first time I watched ‘Jungle Book’ [with him] and I’m looking over and seeing the joy he had watching that movie. It was like, oh my God I remember how I felt when I saw ‘The Jungle Book.’” When the host pressed the “America’s Got Talent” judge if he would say his son “saved him,” Cowell replied, “Without question, without question. I really, really had reached the point where nothing mattered.” Cowell and Silverman welcomed their son to the world in 2014.

'My termination was a breach of my academic freedom'

'When they are trying to get down from subway surfing, the train conductor may step on the brakes a little too hard and that's when they lose their balance and can slip and get crushed by the train'

'A conflict between the very same people'

Senate Republicans Back Big Change To Prevent Repeat Of McConnell Era

Thin Lizzy was the first major rock band that I ever saw in concert. The group was opening for Queen in 1976 at Madison Square Garden in New York City. You never forget your first time, and so this band holds a special place in my rock and roll heart. I remember Phil Lynott standing center stage with his bass pointing out to the audience as the band broke into the song “Jailbreak.” It was wonderful. This Thin Lizzy’s Best Song On Each Of Their Studio Albums article presents a showcase of what I believe was the best song from The post Thin Lizzy’s Best Song On Each Of Their Studio Albums appeared first on ClassicRockHistory.com.

National elections have been occasions for celebration for European conservatives in the past year, with victories in national elections in Portugal, Spain, and the Netherlands. Alongside those, European polling indicated continued growth for conservative political groups ahead of the recently concluded European Parliament elections, in which conservatives charged to victory. While the votes are still being counted, conservative parties gained ground in the European Parliament, mainly at the expense of the Greens and French President Emmanuel Macron’s centrist Renew party, which appears set to lose about 40 seats in the 720-seat European Parliament. Turnout in this year’s elections is estimated at 51%. If confirmed, that would be a 30-year high for European Parliament elections and would lend credence to voters’ concerns. In fact, owing to a crushing defeat of his Renew party at the hands of the National Rally in the European Parliament vote in France, Macron has already dissolved the French parliament and called snap elections. Thanks to their additional seats overall, conservatives will have greater influence on migration and climate policies and can contribute to a heightened respect for national sovereignty within the European Union. Perhaps the starkest message voters sent to the European Union was their rejection of Europe’s Green Deal, as the Greens are set to lose about a quarter of their seats. The Green Deal aims to make Europe carbon-neutral by 2050, in the most ambitious agenda of its kind, with dictates imposed by Brussels to force compliance. This push has featured the economic bulldozing of European farmers and the equivalent of billions of dollars in state spending to make progress on these unrealistic goals. With all conservative party groups poised to overtake the Greens, Europe has a window of opportunity to jettison the Green Deal’s unrealistic targets and bureaucratic dictates that ignore Chinese and Russian free-riding, disincentivize agricultural production, and fuel massive state spending. Not only does illegal immigration stand out as a lead issue in American voters’ minds, our transatlantic cousins also see illegal immigration, from Eastern Europe down across the Mediterranean, as a defining political issue. In prior years, Eastern European countries, such as Lithuania and Poland, have built border fences and reinforced border security patrols to prevent illegal migration, even in the face of European Union criticism. Sensing the direction of the political winds, the EU has recently expanded its border security force, Frontex, and signed legislation to speed up asylum-application processing at the borders of the European Union. Having now seen the popular support behind actions taken by countries such as Poland and Lithuania, as well as Italy, to curb illegal migration, often despite criticism from Brussels, conservatives’ victories in the European Parliament elections open the door for further enhancing border protection measures while reworking uncalibrated asylum systems. As they contemplate the outlook for their five-year terms, the newly elected conservative members of the European Parliament should work to reframe the bloc’s approach to national sovereignty. Philosophically, conservatives have long championed localism against centralization of power, arguing that turning from proximate decision-makers to far-off bureaucrats leads to worse policymaking. Yet, the European Union has steadily chipped away at national sovereignty in areas ranging from trade to defense policy, centralizing power in Brussels, and effectively demoting national lawmakers to bystanders. That centralizing tendency has fueled support for conservative parties reaching back even to the 2019 EU elections as conservatives have rejected this supranational overreach in favor of domestic solutions. Despite being bolstered by their success in the EU Parliament elections, conservatives should be wary of repeating recent history where electoral victories have not translated into governing victories. For example, after seven months of negotiations, the Dutch ended up with a technocratic prime minister, and both the Spanish and the Portuguese ended up with governing coalitions led by, or dependent on, Socialist parties. For that reason, it’s essential for newly elected conservatives to staunchly back their voters’ preferences when it comes to reducing illegal immigration, reworking climate policy, and respecting national sovereignty. The post France’s Macron the Big Loser as European Parliament Elections Take Right Turn appeared first on The Daily Signal.

Baltimore 12-Year-Old (Yes... 12) Arrested for Assault, Robbery

Don't Paint Your Religious Symbols on the Street

On Monday morning, following another eventful weekend, The View took to the air to, once again, complain about Donald Trump, in their own words, “you-know-who.” The women reacted to a video recap of Trump's comments from a rally. Yet their confusion from the video should more accurately be attributed to the deceptive and chaotic editing, and not the delivery of the former President.  The soundbites in question came from Trump’s campaign rally in Las Vegas, Nevada and were stitched together with multiple cuts: TRUMP: I'm up here sweating like a dog. Secret service said, we have to make sure everyone's safe. I said, what about me? Oh, we never thought of that. [Cut] Are the teleprompters not working? Not even a little bit. Great job, and then I don't pay the company that does it, right? Then I end up with a story, Trump doesn't pay. I don't pay contractors that do a [ bleep ] Job, and that's a [ bleep ] Job. [Cut] They're in the boat and you have this tremendously powerful battery, and the battery's now underwater, and there's a shark that's approximately 10 yards over there. [Cut] The boat is sinking. Do I stay on top of the boat and get electrocuted or do I jump over by the shark and not get electrocuted? [Cut] I'll take electrocution every single time. I'm not getting near the shark. [Cuts back to Live] Its clear from the production, that properly informing their viewers, was not a clear intention of ABC News here. As the clip of Trump finished, no context was given as the hosts - clearly confused – launched into a ridiculous and uninformed conversation: SARA HAINES: What? WHOOPIE GOLDBERG: Okay. So y'all always concerned that I'm smoking something. What's he smoking? Oh my god.  (...) GOLDBERG: I don't know what is going on. I don't know. I don't know. I don't know. ALYSSA FARAH GRIFFIN: Okay so the first part, that literally sounds like me after, like, four espresso martinis, like, “shark, water, boat.” It's just. Bizarre. (...)     As a faux-conservative on the panel, Farah Griffin then used this clip to suggest Trump’s old age and decline, as equivalent to or worse than President Biden’s (Click “expand”): But this election has been a lot about mental acuity and the stamina of these two presidential candidates who are the oldest in history, and I have at times been critical of Joe Biden. But I think that if you’re going to be critical of Joe Biden, you have to look at the glaring warning signs about Donald Trump. (...) He's not where he once was. And, yeah exactly it's the look. I'm convinced that the stress of having lost the 2020 election, the legal, you know, the convictions, the indictments, all just piling up, and him finally maybe being held accountable. “And these pending trials I think they’re getting to him and I don't think he's as sharp as he once was, and I don't recognize how his voters don't see that more,” she huffed. Ana Navarro suggested that their video was enough evidence to “take him in for a neurological exam.” “Donald Trump is senile, incoherent, crazy, offensive, outrageous, disgusting, evil, and convicted,” she added. Truly a misplaced comparison, as Trump’s teleprompter difficulties had nothing to do with his own faculties, or mental capability. This has not been the first time The View has gone out of their way to highlight those who are “ageist” toward President Biden. Yet Monday morning’s segment made it clear that the ABC producers are not trying to explain any part of the story in a fair way. Instead taking every opportunity to twist the narrative, manipulate their audience, and further spread misinformation. The transcript is below. Click "expand" to read: ABC’S The View 6/10/2024 11:02:09 AM EST Total Run Time: 4 minutes 41 seconds WHOOPI GOLDBERG: So, when a candidate makes a public appearance, they usually lay out their vision for the future, and the policies they'll put in place, but then there's you-know-who. He held his first campaign rally since his conviction, and I think it was the 110-degree heat in Vegas that really got to him. Take a look. [Cuts to Video] DONALD TRUMP: I'm up here sweating like a dog. Secret service said, we have to make sure everyone's safe. I said, what about me? Oh, we never thought of that. [Cut] Are the teleprompters not working? Not even a little bit. Great job, and then I don't pay the company that does it, right? Then I end up with a story, Trump doesn't pay. I don't pay contractors that do a [ bleep ] Job, and that's a [ bleep ] Job.  [Cut] They're in the boat and you have this tremendously powerful battery, and the battery's now underwater, and there's a shark that's approximately 10 yards over there.  [Cut] The boat is sinking. Do I stay on top of the boat and get electrocuted or do I jump over by the shark and not get electrocuted?  [Cut] I'll take electrocution every single time. I'm not getting near the shark. [Cuts to Live] SARA HAINES: What? GOLDBERG: Okay. So ya’ll always concerned that I'm smoking something. What's he smoking? Oh my god. So a few days earlier, he hinted that he'd make payback a policy during a very bizarre interview with Dr. Phil. Take a look. [Cuts to Video] DR. PHIL: I know you got a thick skin. You're not one of those people that's afflicted with the need to be loved by strangers. I get that. [Cut] TRUMP: I think that's true. PHIL: You're a billionaire. You've got a great family. You're a very dedicated father. People may not see this in you a lot because you keep that kind of private. [Cut] You have so much to do, you don't have time to get even. You only have time to get right. TRUMP: Well, revenge does take time, I will say that. PHIL: It does. TRUMP: And sometimes revenge can be justified, but I have to be honest here –  PHIL: No TRUMP: – Sometimes it can. PHIL: But is the country better or worse for them going after you? TRUMP: I think the country is really worse for what they've done. [Cuts to Live] GOLDBERG: I don't know what is going on. I don't know. I don't know. I don't know. ALYSSA FARAH GRIFFIN: Okay so the first part, that literally sounds like me after, like, four espresso martinis, like, “shark, water, boat.” It's just. Bizarre. But this election has been a lot about mental acuity and the stamina of these two presidential candidates who are the oldest in history, and I have at times been critical of Joe Biden. But I think that if you’re going to be critical of Joe Biden, you have to look at the glaring warning signs about Donald Trump. Listening to him now doesn't sound like him in 2016. And he was not ever particularly eloquent. 2016 it's not like he was — SUNNY HOSTIN: That was really nice of you, that was said nicely. GRIFFIN: — William Shakespeare by any means, but I'm recognizing and seeing a decline in him, and others have said it. And I think that that matters because, I mean, from comparing Nancy Pelosi and Nicky Haley to confusing the president of Turkey with the president of Hungary, to confusing Obama and Biden left and right, he does this constantly. –  HAINES: Maybe ‘cause they look alike. GRIFFIN: – He's not where he once was. And, yeah exactly it's the look. I'm convinced that the stress of having lost the 2020 election, the legal, you know, the convictions, the indictments, all just piling up, and him finally maybe being held accountable. GOLDBERG: The 34 one? GRIFFIN: 34 convictions felony counts. GOLDBERG: I'm just, I’m just asking. GRIFFIN: And these pending trials I think they’re getting to him and I don't think he's as sharp as he once was, and I don't recognize how his voters don't see that more. ANA NAVARRO: You know I said during the trial that I thought being on trial was actually helping him because he was off the campaign trail and we weren't seeing the crazy stuff he says on a daily basis. Now it took him about ten days to get -- eight days to get back on the campaign trail. He was playing golf so, you know, for the first few days and now that he's back, we see –  HOSTIN: Yeah. NAVARRO: – the crazy things he says. Listen, if this was your uncle, if this was your father,  HOSTIN: Oh! NAVARRO: – you would take him in for a neurological exam. HOSTIN: Yeah. NAVARRO: So, people talk about Joe Biden being old. Yes, Joe Biden is old. So is Donald Trump, and Donald Trump is senile, incoherent, crazy, offensive, outrageous, disgusting, evil, and convicted. That's your binary choice, people. [Applause] (…)