Joining the United States military can be a rewarding experience‚ one that can connect people with a high-paying‚ six-figure job. Of course‚ there’s a lot of skill and dedication involved. From a dental laboratory technician or pharmacist to a music composer or social worker‚ take a look at some of the military’s highest-paying job opportunities. According to My Future... Source

'Is There ANYTHING You're Willing to Draw a Line in the Sand on and Say 'We Will Fight?'' Hello? Mitch?

A Strippers' Bill of Rights in Washington

EU Considering Sanctions Against Tucker Carlson for Interviewing Putin

Gov. Newsom Sends 120 CHP Officers to Oakland to Do Something About Crime

Yup‚ it’s happened again. Megan Pauline Jordan‚ a 25-year-old now-former teacher in the Richmond area of Virginia‚ pled guilty to four counts of carnal knowledge and one count of indecent liberties of a minor according to WRIC‚ a local news station.  Jordan reportedly engaged in sexual relations with her 14-year-old student from the Hungary Creek Middle School during the 2022-2023 school year. She’d visit the young boy in his home‚ sneaking into his bed to rape him. Reports indicate that her DNA was found on the victim’s bedsheets according to attorney Shannon Taylor of the Henrico Commonwealth area. It looks like Mrs. Jordan took the phrase “Virginia is for Lovers” a wee bit too far. Related: Another Teacher Pleads Guilty To Sex Acts With Her Students The New York Post indicated that other students admitted that they thought the relationship between Jordan and the 14-year-old student was odd.  “The student wouldn’t do any work and she wouldn’t bat an eye‚” one user wrote on social media‚ “I noticed subtle flirting and teasing‚ the tension between them was insane. She deserves a life sentence for grooming this poor kid.” Jordan was arrested this past summer when the student came forward. Jordan’s sentencing date is set for May 20 and she faces up to 50 years in prison. “I must recognize the brave action of those who brought this matter to the attention of Henrico Police Division. We are always asking people if they see something unusual‚ or not quite right‚ to say something‚” prosecutors said in a statement. “Because of their efforts‚ this predator is off the streets‚ out of our schools‚ and will be held accountable for her actions.” I really hate that these stories are becoming all too common. If you needed another hint as to why homeschooling might be a good option‚ this is it. Follow us on Twitter/X: "Have you ever seen this much chocolate leading the city of New York?" No‚ because we have the Civil Rights Act of 1964. pic.twitter.com/MiWTQbVTVD — MRCTV (@mrctv) February 6‚ 2024

While they’ve largely been unwilling to put a spotlight on how bad the economy has been‚ due in large part to them trying to keep President Biden clean for the election‚ ABC’s Good Morning America and NBC’s Today discovered that inflation was causing people to pay more on their debt and shell out more money for fast food on Wednesday. Reacting to the cost of fast food‚ NBC co-anchor Craig Melvin declared “Now we care about inflation‚” meanwhile‚ his colleague made a joke out of high prices. On ABC‚ co-anchor Robin Roberts sounded the alarm. “Now to what could be a debt crisis brewing in our country. Household debt rising to record levels as more Americans struggle to pay the bills‚” she announced. Chief economics correspondent Rebecca Jarvis reported that Americans had taken on a record $17.5 trillion in debt. “Plus‚ more people are falling behind on their payments…” she warned. She also lamented that this was happening‚ “despite the strong jobs market‚ consumers are facing higher prices and much higher interest rates.” Jarvis broke down the numbers to reveal how much more Americans were being forced to pay on their debt: So‚ take a look at this. In just the last two years‚ the typical credit card has gone from 14.5 percent APR to now 21.5 percent APR. So‚ let’s say you’re carrying a $1‚000 balance on your credit card. Two years ago‚ if you were making minimum payments‚ it would have cost you $729 in interest to pay it off. At today's rate‚ you are paying almost $1‚200 in interest. That is a nearly $500 difference. At no point did ABC mention that this was happening despite Biden and his White House claiming the economy was amazing.     Over on NBC‚ inflation was apparently a joke to Melvin and senior business correspondent Christine Romans: MELVIN: Now we care about inflation! ROMANS: Oh yeah! Now we do! MELVIN: Now we care! ROMANS: Right‚ because inflation has come for your fast food menu! “Once upon a time‚ a few dollars could purchase a quick meal at a fast food restaurant‚” Romans quipped at the top of her report‚ followed by a clip from an old Wendy’s ad featuring founder Dave Thomas: “I think people should be able to eat good food without spending much money.” The eating and food puns were a constant throughout Romans’ report: But these days‚ grabbing a burger and fries takes a much bigger bite out of our wallet. (…) Once home to the dollar menu‚ prices at the Golden Arches leaving a bad taste in the mouth of consumers who just want value. Romans even seemed to make a reference to the “food at home” meme. “The price of food at home rose just 1.3 percent over the past year. But food away from home jumped more than five percent‚” she noted. And when they cut back to the live shot‚ there was a large plate with a pile of McDonald’s breakfast sandwiches on it. With a laugh‚ Melvin claimed it cost “$250.” To his credit‚ Al Roker grabbed the plate and handed them out to the studio crew. Co-anchor Savannah Guthrie then made a wisecrack that the crew had pitched the story to them in order to be fed. The transcript is below. Click "expand" to read: ABC’s Good Morning America February 7‚ 2024 8:02:52 a.m. Eastern ROBIN ROBERTS: Now to what could be a debt crisis brewing in our country. Household debt rising to record levels as more Americans struggle to pay the bills. Our chief economics correspondent Rebecca Jarvis is back now with more. Good morning again‚ Rebecca. REBECCA JARVIS: Nice to see you‚ Robin. And Americans are taking on more debt. $17.5 trillion overall‚ $1.3 trillion of that is a record amount and it's on credit cards. Plus‚ more people are falling behind on their payments because‚ despite the strong jobs market‚ consumers are facing higher prices and much higher interest rates. So‚ take a look at this. In just the last two years‚ the typical credit card has gone from 14.5 percent APR to now 21.5 percent APR. So‚ let’s say you’re carrying a $1‚000 balance on your credit card. Two years ago‚ if you were making minimum payments‚ it would have cost you $729 in interest to pay it off. At today's rate‚ you are paying almost $1‚200 in interest. That is a nearly $500 difference. So‚ there are some things you can do. You want to put your savings in an FDIC high-yield savings account so you're getting paid five percent instead of .5 percent. Check out sites like Nerd Wallet and Bankrate for your best options there. Also‚ check out CDs at your current bank. And if you are considering a balance transfer to a zero-percent-interest credit card‚ just make sure it is not a license to spend more money. Linsey. LINSEY DAVIS: But zero percent interest sounds like a good idea for so many. JARVIS: A lot better than 21.5‚ yes. DAVIS: You are so right on that. Rebecca Jarvis‚ our thanks to you as always. NBC’s Today February 7‚ 2024 7:38:18 a.m. Eastern HODA KOTB: This morning we are focusing on fast food. SAVANNAH GUTHRIE: Rising prices have popular chains under fire‚ this morning. Some customers are thinking twice about that quick bite to eat. CRAIG MELVIN: NBC’s senior business correspondent Christine Romans is here with more. Now we care about inflation! CHRISTINE ROMANS: Oh yeah. Now we do. MELVIN: Now we care. ROMANS: Right‚ because inflation has come for your fast food menu! And frankly‚ consumers are fed up with this. As some companies have become more creative with their menus‚ customers have become much more price-sensitive‚ they just want cheap. And those chains are hearing the complaints. [Cuts to video] Once upon a time‚ a few dollars could purchase a quick meal at a fast food restaurant. DAVE THOMAS (founder of Wendy’s‚ via old advertisement): I think people should be able to eat good food without spending much money. ROMANS: But these days‚ grabbing a burger and fries takes a much bigger bite out of our wallet. MOMALLDAY_ (TikTok user): Why we not talking about these fast food restaurants going up‚ too. REECYPIECES (TikTok user): Almost $9 for a Big Mac. ROMANS: Once home to the dollar menu‚ prices at the Golden Arches leaving a bad taste in the mouth of consumers who just want value. Going viral‚ the Big Mac meal priced at $18 at a Connecticut rest stop and an egg McMuffin selling for $7. Fast food companies are listening. McDonald's CEO says he's focusing on affordability this year. Telling analysts that customers making $45‚000 a year and less are ditching their McD's and buying groceries instead. You can see why. The price of food at home rose just 1.3 percent over the past year. But food away from home‚ jumped more than five percent. (…)

Sen. Eric Schmitt (R-MO) blasted the Biden administration’s obsession with censorship amidst revelations of a multimillion-dollar government campaign to silence free speech.  Schmitt reacted to news of the National Science Foundation spending millions towards developing artificial intelligence (AI) censorship tools to fight so-called “misinformation.” Schmitt accused President Joe Biden’s administration in an X (formerly Twitter) post of being “addicted to censoring Americans' speech” with its new machinations. While serving as Missouri’s attorney general‚ Schmitt was one of the filers of the landmark free speech lawsuit against the Biden administration‚ Missouri v. Biden (2022). He cited the importance of this case‚ which will be heard by the Supreme Court‚ in his post. “Biden was the architect of the biggest censorship enterprise we've ever seen‚” Schmitt said on X (formerly Twitter)‚ in response to a new Congressional report. House Judiciary Committee Republicans announced the report this week exposing the Biden administration’s latest censorship efforts. The goal‚ as summarized by New York Post‚ is to design anti-“misinformation” tools to provide to Big Tech platforms to suppress free speech. “That's why MO v. Biden is the most important free speech case in American history. It's time to stop this once and for all‚” the senator insisted.The Missouri v. Biden lawsuit cites exclusive MRC Free Speech America research from its unique CensorTrack.org database. The case is pending before the Supreme Court. Last year‚ a U.S. district court judge issued a temporary injunction to restrict the federal censorship efforts the lawsuit exposed. An appeals court then upheld part of the injunction. Conservatives are under attack. Contact your representatives and demand that Big Tech be held to account to mirror the First Amendment while providing transparency and an equal footing for conservatives. If you have been censored‚ contact us at the Media Research Center contact form‚ and help us hold Big Tech accountable.

A group of Stanford researchers found that frequent users of "passthrough video" and "mixed reality" headsets can often induce sickness‚ hinder depth perception‚ and cause social issues.The researchers‚ who described themselves as "headset veterans‚" said they encountered significant hurdles when using them for "relatively short periods of use."The 11 researchers spent at least 140 minutes in two or three sessions using Meta's Quest 3 headset‚ released in 2023. As SCNR reported‚ the participants engaged in normal activities like conversations‚ walking outside‚ cooking‚ and eating. All headset users also had a chaperone living in normal reality‚ for safety reasons."We took an observational approach‚ more akin to naturalists‚ and really dove into the medium in an exploratory way‚" said James Brown‚ a co-author of the study.In their press release‚ depth perception and distances to objects appeared to be the most challenging for the headset users. Movements such as high fives or bringing a spoon to one's mouth proved difficult‚ even when the spoon appeared to have reached the user's lips."Even though the world you are looking at is real‚ it certainly has a video-game-like ‘otherness’ to it‚" Brown noted.While the researchers soon learned to account for the distances‚ they were concerned that the overcompensations could cause lasting effects after prolonged headset-wearing."The companies making these headsets want you to wear them all day‚ but what are the aftereffects and how long do they last?" said Jeremy Bailenson‚ a Stanford professor. "A plausible scenario could be walking down a flight of stairs and you miss a step‚ or driving a car and you misjudge distances."The visual aftereffects‚ according to the study‚ included lapses in judgments of distance‚ simulator sickness‚ and interference with "social connection‚" also called "social absence."The social issues included inability to discern distant facial expressions and the simple fact that users can become absent from their surroundings."People in the outside world became very absent‚ as if we were watching them on TV‚" Bailenson added. "The person walking or cycling by or sitting near you didn’t feel physically real."Despite this‚ the study admitted that the technology is improving with every new headset‚ although it still falls short of a human's visual capabilities. Slower‚ grainier‚ and distorted were words used to describe some of the experiences‚ which sometimes cut off a large portion of a user's field of view.Like Blaze News? Bypass the censors‚ sign up for our newsletters‚ and get stories like this direct to your inbox. Sign up here!

A former president and member of the Atlantic City Council who has already served time for bribery has been arrested and charged in connection with an alleged voter fraud scheme involving mail-in ballots.Last week‚ 64-year-old Craig Callaway‚ described as a "political operative" who also once served on the Atlantic City Council‚ was brought before U.S. Magistrate Judge Matthew J. Skahill in the U.S. District Court for the District of New Jersey. According to a press release from the U.S. Attorney's Office in the District of New Jersey‚ Callaway has been charged with one count of "depriving‚ defrauding‚ and attempting to deprive and defraud the residents of the state of New Jersey of a fair and impartially conducted election process by the fraudulent procurement‚ casting‚ and tabulation of ballots."For years‚ failed candidates in and around the Atlantic City area have accused Callaway of running a voter fraud scheme for their opponents. However‚ this latest charge against Callaway relates only to his alleged actions to rig the election in November 2022.That fall‚ Callaway began hiring people to act as "authorized messengers" for those wishing to cast votes by mail‚ the press release claimed. For $30 or $50‚ these messengers allegedly took anywhere from one to four vote-by-mail applications from Callaway‚ signed and submitted them to the county clerk's office on behalf of area voters‚ and then collected their designated mail-in ballots.However‚ rather than return those ballots to the voters as required by law‚ the messengers instead handed the ballots over to Callaway to fill out as he wished‚ the press release claimed. The allegedly victimized voters were none the wiser‚ as they apparently did not intend to cast a ballot. When approached by law enforcement‚ at least four alleged victims stated that they did not vote either in person or by mail in the 2022 general election. They also claimed they never authorized a messenger to collect a ballot on their behalf."Holding free and fair elections is a bedrock principle of our democracy‚" said a statement from U.S. Attorney Philip R. Sellinger. "As alleged in the complaint‚ the defendant attempted to deprive New Jersey residents of a fair election by fraudulently procuring and casting ballots. Today’s charges reflect our office’s commitment to hold to account those who try to undermine the electoral process."Whether Callaway submitted a plea during the hearing last week is unclear. He faces up to five years and a hefty fine if convicted.Callaway's attorney‚ Megan Davies‚ was unable to provide a comment to the AP when reached‚ and Callaway did not respond to the AP's request for comment.In the past‚ Callaway was largely suspected of engaging in voter fraud to help put Democrats in office‚ but lately he has been accused of assisting Republicans as well. In 2020‚ seven South Jersey Democrat county chairmen denounced Callaway's "long and shameful history of interfering in honest and fair elections" and called for fellow Dems to avoid soliciting his services.Former state senator and attorney for the Atlantic County Democrats Colin Bell seemed to agree. "I believe there was clear and convincing evidence that Mr. Callaway was involved in a voter fraud scheme‚" Bell said last year. "He has to be stopped from abusing the system."Callaway does have a track record of extortion and political corruption that goes back decades. While a city councilman in the early 2000s‚ Callaway was convicted of bribery and sentenced to 40 months in prison.Before he began serving that sentence‚ he orchestrated a sex sting to try to force another councilman to resign. In 2006‚ he rented two motel rooms‚ rigged them with recording devices‚ and hired a prostitute to perform a sex act on Councilman Eugene Robinson‚ who was also a Baptist minister.Callaway then attempted to blackmail Robinson‚ threatening to release the tape of the encounter with the prostitute if he did not resign. Robinson instead reported Callaway to the authorities‚ and Callaway was assessed an additional three-year prison sentence in connection with that incident. Callaway was released from prison in 2010‚ and Robinson has since passed away.The following video from June 2021 shows Callaway discussing his life as a Muslim convert: H/T: Timcast IRLLike Blaze News? Bypass the censors‚ sign up for our newsletters‚ and get stories like this direct to your inbox. Sign up here!