Power outages are a frequent occurrence in our country, and it’s no wonder, given that the power grid is outdated and poorly maintained. The post Get these supplies before the next power outage appeared first on Survivopedia.

Just months after Republicans expressed concern over Arizona Gov. Katie Hobbs' apparent willingness to "circumvent the laws of this state, the Democratic governor realized their fears, violating the law and unilaterally appointing 13 of her henchmen to lead state agencies. A judge said as much in his Wednesday ruling, indicating that when Hobbs failed to legally get her way, she elected instead to run roughshod over Arizona law. Frustrated by checks and balances By law, the governor's Cabinet nominees can only be appointed with the consent of the Republican-controlled Arizona Senate. The Senate's Committee on Director Nominations, led by state Sen. Jake Hoffman (R) and established last year to "evaluate executive nominations," grilled 11 of Hobbs' 22 nominees, approved seven, and rejected a handful, including pandemic shutdown champion Theresa Cullen. Hoffman indicated in February 2023, "Now, make no mistake, this is a check on executive authority, but that is exactly what the legislature is supposed to do," reported the Arizona Mirror. 'Hobbs is the only person to blame for her nominees struggling to succeed under actual due diligence.' Unwilling to put up with scrutiny from a co-equal branch of government, Hobbs withdrew her agency director nominations last fall, including her partisan nominees for the Arizona Department of Economic Security, the Department of Child Safety, the Department of Housing, the Department of Gaming, and the Department of Administration. Hoffman called the move a "temper tantrum," suggesting in a statement that "Hobbs is the only person to blame for her nominees struggling to succeed under actual due diligence." Hobbs told the president of the Arizona Senate, Warren Petersen (R), in a Sept. 25, 2023, letter that it had "become apparent over the past nine months that the Senate's process for reviewing and confirming agency director nominees has devolved into a sad display of partisan obstructionism." Hobbs accused Petersen and his peers of engaging in a "political circus" and demonstrating an unwillingness to "carry out a valid process." The Democrat then proceeded to engage in an invalid process all her own. Circumventing the law Upon withdrawing her 13 nominees, Hobbs branded those lawmakers who would dare evaluate her nominees as "extremists" and noted on X that she aimed to "pursue other lawful means of ensuring the state government can work for Arizonans." 'This move by the Executive Branch showcases another prime example of an elected official who believes they're above the law.' The Democratic governor proceeded to nominate Ben Henderson to serve as interim director of 12 of the 13 agencies at issue for the purpose of enabling herself to appoint the withdrawn nominees as executive deputy directors of the agencies. Hobbs then instructed Henderson to "ratify and confirm" the deputies prior to resigning as interim director for each agency. Hobbs made her 13 appointments on Sept. 25, 2023, and all were installed as de facto agency heads. Petersen, who ultimately sued Hobbs over the scheme, said in a statement, "This move by the Executive Branch showcases another prime example of an elected official who believes they're above the law and will go to extreme measures to bypass the requirements of the law when they don’t get their way," reported the Arizona Mirror. 'The Governor willfully circumvented that statutory process.' Arizona Attorney General Kris Mayes (D) meanwhile defended Hobbs' play, stating that she was "well within her right to move forward with other legal means of keeping state government functioning and working for the people or Arizona." "No law prohibits the Governor from withdrawing a person's nomination for an agency director and re-appointing him or her as a deputy director of that agency," added Mayes. Judge Scott A. Blaney of the Maricopa County Superior Court was evidently of a different mind. Hobbs violated Arizona law In his Wednesday ruling, Judge Blaney reiterated that the law requires that the appointment of a director for each of the 13 agencies requires the consent of the state Senate — something Hobbs did not bother with. "The Governor willfully circumvented that statutory process and eliminated the Legislative branch from its oversight role," wrote Blaney. Blaney found that "these 'Executive Deputy Directors' are de facto directors — unilaterally appointed to their leadership positions without Senate oversight in violation of Arizona law." The court acknowledged that the deputy directors enjoy "all the powers and authorities that the agencies' properly appointed directors would have," have identical reporting chains, and "serve as the leaders of their respective agencies indefinitely at the pleasure of the Governor." Extra to acknowledging that the Democratic governor made a mockery of the law, Blaney declared that state law still requires the governor to fill the director position lawfully, meaning a return to the senatorial confirmation process. A separate evidentiary hearing will be scheduled next month or in August to further address the matter of Hobbs' illegitimate agency directors. State Sen. Hoffman said in a statement in the wake of Hobbs' judicial rebuke, "Today Judge Blaney correctly slapped Katie Hobbs' illegal attempt to circumvent the constitutional check and balance of the senate confirmation process." "I look forward to continuing our confirmation hearings in the near future now that much needed clarity on the law has been provided by the courts to Hobbs and her staff," continued Hoffman. "If Katie wishes to continue her petulant insults against me and to play petty political games, so be it; but I'm going to continue faithfully fulfilling my duty to the people of this great state to ensure that we have a sane government that works for every Arizonan." Like Blaze News? Bypass the censors, sign up for our newsletters, and get stories like this direct to your inbox. Sign up here!

German automaker BMW attempted to explain why its social media page for the Middle East did not switch its logo to the Pride Month, rainbow-themed logo that it sports on its main page.BMW's low-effort virtue signal of using a multicolored version of its logo is present on the official BMW X page, BMW South Africa, BMW Motorrad USA, and others.An anonymous X user asked the car company on a post about a new vehicle why it doesn't use the same rainbow logo for its Middle East page. "How come you don't proudly display your logos pride colors on your middle east posts ???" the user asked.To its credit, BMW responded:"This is an established practice at the BMW Group, which also takes into consideration market-specific legal regulations and country-specific cultural aspects." — (@) 'It is at the discretion of our sales companies and independent distributors to decide if they wish to join centrally initiated communication.'Surprisingly, the "established practice" didn't make its way to the BMW UK page but managed to be used on the company's museum pages and even on the Japanese page.Still, by changing its main page's logo, BMW said that this was the company making a "clear stance" about its viewpoint. "In recognition of LGBTQ+ Pride Month, we have decided to take a clear stance and change the logo of our international communication and marketing channels (on behalf of all BMW Group markets and brands) until the end of June."In recognition of LGBTQ+ Pride Month, we have decided to take a clear stance and change the logo of our international communication and marketing channels (on behalf of all BMW Group markets and brands) until the end of June. (1/4)— BMW (@BMW) June 1, 2024 The move was further justified by BMW claiming that the international pages could be accessed worldwide and as such send an obvious message. Of course, all the other regional pages can be viewed across the world, as well."The international channels can be accessed worldwide and thus show the logo change in all markets worldwide," BMW wrote.For the pages that did not have the logo, BMW also said that independent distributors and their marketing teams are able to opt out of certain campaigns and communications initiatives."As is customary with such communication and marketing activities, it is at the discretion of our sales companies and independent distributors to decide if they wish to join centrally initiated communication and marketing campaigns or not."However, as is customary with such communication and marketing activities, it is at the discretion of our sales companies and independent distributors to decide if they wish to join centrally initiated communication and marketing campaigns or not. (3/4)— BMW (@BMW) June 1, 2024 The German company's response saw a lot of pushback from both sides of the aisle with some readers replying that they were insulted that BMW chooses to support gay pride only in some regions, while others called out the carmaker for being dishonest."As a lesbian, I would prefer you don't pretend to take a moral stance on my human rights that is dependent on market conditions. Just drop the flag and go sell some cars," Ani O'Brien wrote, a woman with 27,000 followers."So you're only a supporter of LGBTQ+ human rights if it doesn’t upset the customers in a country that hates [gay] people?" another sizable account responded.A woman named Lucy Stone described BMW's stance as "opportunistic virtue signaling," while a man named Adam Carter wrote that he would "probably have more respect for BMW if they were just honest and said 'We see the potential to make more money with a rainbow.'"I’d probably have more respect for BMW if they were just honest and said “We see the potential to make more money with a rainbow”.— Adam Carter (@adammcarter) June 2, 2024 Like Blaze News? Bypass the censors, sign up for our newsletters, and get stories like this direct to your inbox. Sign up here!

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Reports last fall said OpenAI CEO Sam Altman might be working on the "iPhone of AI", and it was not surprising. After all, ChatGPT needs a hardware device it can call home. It can't only be a third-party solution on iPhones, Androids, and PCs. Dedicated hardware is how OpenAI can offer true personal AI assistant features to users interested in it. Something else was surprising about those rumors, though: the inclusion of Jony Ive. Apparently, the two have had meetings for this mythical-sounding "iPhone of AI." That's certainly a big win for OpenAI. Having Jony Ive design a device that will compete directly against the iPhone, which is also one of his creations, would be massive. As I said at the time, I expect Ive to do more for a ChatGPT gadget than give it an iconic design. He'd give the product more credibility, possibly including some of the core Apple principles that influenced products during his career there. But what is this "iPhone of AI" going to look like? Is it going to be a smartphone? Altman has never confirmed that he wants to make a ChatGPT physical product, though he seemed to hint the reports were somewhat accurate. Of course, I wouldn't expect him to mention a form factor until they'd be ready to announce it. However, there has been a recent wave of reports mentioning the imminent partnership about integrating ChatGPT into iOS 18 to power some of the iPhone's upcoming AI features. Those reports might have mentioned what the "iPhone of AI" will look like: AirPods with video cameras. Continue reading... The post Is this what the iPhone of AI will look like? appeared first on BGR. Today's Top Deals Today’s deals: $150 Beats Solo 4, $55 HP printer, $248 Sony XM5 earbuds, 25% off eero Pro 6E, more Today’s deals: $189 AirPods Pro, $169 TP-Link WiFi 6 mesh system, $45 KitchenAid hand blender, more Amazon gift card deals, offers & coupons 2024: Get $355+ free Best Apple Watch deals for June 2024

Former President Donald Trump's polling numbers over President Joe Biden have shrunk slightly after Trump's guilty verdict last week in a New York criminal trial, according to a redo of a recent New York Times/Siena College poll.

President Joe Biden said Ukraine is not authorized to use U.S. weapons to strike targets deep inside Russia, including Moscow, ABC News reported.