A fast-moving bush fire that has already burned through 200 acres in Santa Clarita, California has forced the evacuation of nearly 1,000 people.
Around 1,000 people and 500 homes in Santa Clarita and Newhall were evacuated, Los Angeles County Sherriff"s Department Commander Mike Parker told reporters. An additional 30 horses were being taken care of at the Hart Park emergency animal evacuation centre.
Another 200 people from Wildwood Canyon Road and about 100 people from the Crescent Valley Mobile Estates were evacuated. Officials also asked residents to leave from La Salle Canyon Drive, Oakbridge Lane, Pine Street and Champagne Lane.
Officials set up an evacuation centre in Santa Clarita at West Ranch High School.
Los Angeles County Deputy Chief John Tripp told reporters that the Calgrove fire was 25 percent contained. Firefighters were able to contain parts of the fire, but not before it damaged one garage.
The fire, which is on the verge of destroying hundreds of homes, began around 1.10pm local time on 24 June near the 5 Freeway, the Los Angeles Times reported. The interstate briefly closed but was reopened later on Wednesday (24 June), the California Highway Patrol announced.
Fire investigators were creating a grid along the interstate to determine the cause of the fire, an Tripp said.
According to the LA Times, around 450 firefighters were tasked with protecting structures in the Wildwood Canyon Road neighbourhood. Officials said four fixed-wing aircraft were dropping water on the fast-spreading fire. However, ABC7 reported that five helicopters and fixed-wing aircraft were dropping 1,000 gallons of water on the flames.
Fire officials told reporters that a firefighter and an inmate fighting the fire had suffered minor injuries. The firefighter, who slipped and burned his hand, was taken to a local hospital.
Ready to Rule Music Video | Elena of Avalor | Disney Channel
Like many kids born sometime in the mid-80s, I grew up watching (and rewatching) the golden-age trifecta of Disney movies: The Little Mermaid, Aladdin, and Beauty and the Beast. I knew every line and every lyric of these films, and was the proud owner of a Little Mermaid sleeping bag and lunch box. These classics will always hold a dear place in my heart, but as an adult, Ive come to terms with the fact that these movies often projected a pretty terrible message to young girls.
Think about it: Princess Ariel gave up her voice (and later her family) after falling in love at first sight with the dreamy-eyed Prince Eric. Princess Jasmines greatest achievement was the fact that she refused to marry royalty and instead settled for the good-hearted yet poor villager, Aladdin. And while Belle was a nonconformist book lover, the movie puts its emphasis on her beauty, not her intelligence.
Aside from its feminist issues, Disney has also faced criticism in recent years for its lack of diversity. As of now, there has only been one black princess in its animated canon, Tiana from The Princess and The Frog. And earlier this year, a campaign to have the first-ever gay Disney princess, Elsa from Frozen, took off after the hashtag #GiveElsaAGirlfriend started trending on Twitter. Then in January 2015, Disney announced it was introducing its very first Latina princess, Elena of Avalor, in a new TV series on the Disney Channel. The news was met with overwhelming excitement.
As a Latin-American mother of a young daughter, I was curious to see how the show, which melds a variety of different Latino cultures together, would hold up. I was hopeful that this cartoon would allow my daughter to see her parents culture reflected on TV. Thankfully, the first episode of Elena of Avalor, which premieres tonight, presents a multitude of Latino traditions in a fun way, without ever falling into the trap of stereotypes. The opening song is a catchy merengue tune like the ones I grew up dancing to back in Venezuela. A few of the characters, such as Elenas grandparents, have noticeable accents, similar to the ones my parents have. And most of the people who live in Avalor have Spanish names like Mateo, Luna, and Francisco.
Aside from the tasteful cultural representation, Elena of Avalor also wins big points for the positive and feminist portrayal of its titular heroine. After losing her parents to an evil sorceress, Elena, a sixteen-year-old princess, is busy trying to figure out how to rule the land of Avalor. In the first episode, she displays bravery when attempting to rescue her younger sister, and later learns the benefits of diplomacy in times of crisis. Despite being only a teenager, Elena also displays a healthy confidence in her ability to rule over the kingdom. And when shes tasked with choosing a grand council of advisors to help her lead, she takes a page from Canadas Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and appoints a gender-equal cabinet.
Aimee Carrero, an actress of Dominican and Puerto Rican heritage currently starring in Freeforms Young and Hungry, provides the voice of Elena. Shes tenacious and flawed and funny and compassionate, she said over the phone. One of my favorite things about her is that when she fails, she always, always tries again.
Perhaps the most progressive aspect of Disneys Elena of Avalor is that there are no plans to have a romantic interest for the princess. While there are plenty of male characters in the mix, Elenas relationship with all of them will be strictly platonic. Shes her own hero, Carrero explained. I think its a derivative of whats happening now in our generation. People are finding partners later in life; theyre settling down later. Elena is just focused on her job and on her personal growth and I think thats true for young women today.
For the past few years, researchers have been studying the effects the Disney princesses of yore have had on kids, and most of all on young girls. Well have to wait a couple of years before we find out what kind of an impact Elenaa strong, female leader, who also happens to be a princesswill have on this new generation of children. For now, it seems like a step in the right direction. I, for one, will definitely be buying my daughter an Elena lunch box as soon as shes ready.
Alternative media mogul Alex Jonesone of the most prominent opponents of the New World Order, scientific dictatorship, and the secret society that controls the policehas come a long way since he started his first radio show at KJFK in Austin, Texas.
The Alex Jones Show, which peddles far-right and libertarian leaning political and social views to its emotionally-invested listeners, is syndicated on over 160 AM and FM stations across the country, carried by the Americas Talk channel on internet radio juggernaut iHeartRadio, and distributed as a popular podcast on iTunes. His website Infowars, which runs various news stories and serves as a hub for his show, gets around 6 million unique visitors per month, according to web analytics firm Alexa.
He also seems to be doing a healthy business in dietary supplements.
Infowars Life: Because theres a war on for your life, reads the tagline.
The Infowars Store first appeared online in 2006, when Jones started selling a few books and other products. It now sells an impressive range of products, from books with titles like Bloodlines of the Illuminati and Controlling the Human Mind, to doomsday prepping gear like Survival Seed Vaults and radiation-eliminating water bottles. But perhaps the most curious expansion of the Alex Jones brand is the line of supplements branded Infowars Life.
The banner for Infowars Life. Image: Infowars Store
Some of the products are merely overpriced versions of supplements you could buy at nearly any natural foods store or pharmacy in the country, wrapped in fear-mongering marketing. On the Infowars site, the pages for Infowars Life products rarely provide scientific data or studies, often citing Joness own stamp of approval as the only reason to purchase the product. The other sources often cited are simply links to episodes of Joness show, usually with his go-to science guy, the naturopath and chiropractor Dr. Edward Group.
Dr. Edward Group, whose doctorate is actually in chiropractic medicine, is an alternative and holistic medical practitioner who runs the Global Healing Center. Quackwatch.com, a medical fraud watchdog site, lists the GHC in its Questionable Organizations list. Dr. Group has collected a number of degrees, but only in alternative medical areas and business and management programs. He also listed himself at one point as having earned a full Doctorate of Medicine from the Joseph LaFortune University School of Medicinethe same school that was sued by the Florida attorney general for defrauding nursing students who didnt realize the university wasnt accredited in the United Statesbut the degree was scrubbed from his website in mid-2015.
The reason the FDA has banned colloidal silver, Jones claims, is that its a threat to the pharmaceutical companies and a threat to doctors visits, because it works so good in the body.
Alex Jones and Infowars did not respond to repeated requests for comment. A spokesperson for the Global Healing Center addressed the various supplements discussed in this article, as Dr. Group promotes and recommends them in Jones videos. They noted, in response to iodine in particular that they wouldn"t discount the importance of research but would also throw in the caveat that there are financial reasons studies happen and financial reasons they dont.
Infowars Life sales pitch #1: Corporations have engineered a condition that makes you sick, therefore you need this product.
Whats amazing about Infowars Life is how well it integrates into the greater Infowars narrative. Take the $29.99 per bottle Secret 12, for example, which is simply liquid vitamin B12. This is a vitamin that plays a key role in the human body, affecting protein metabolism as well as the formation of red blood cells.
In a video from Alex Jones YouTube channel titled The B12 Conspiracy, Jones and Group explain the worldwide conspiracy that has led to a dire need for B12. Everyone is deficient in B12, Group says, because of all the pesticides and everything else thats been sprayed on the soil, 60 percent of the worlds soil is now deficient in cobalt, an ingredient in B12 formation.
Group and Jones cite a study from the Journal of Organic Systems about glyphosate, a chemical found in weed killers, causing various diseases. It mentions nothing about cobalt or B12. The two then digress into discussing the chemical war on America by corporations and the government: they know what theyre doing, theyre targeting us by foisting GMOs, fluoride, and other such chemicals on an unwitting public.
According to the NIH Office of Dietary Supplements, the adequate daily intake of B12 for an adult male is 2.4mcg, and it can be obtained through a variety of foods (fish, meat, poultry, eggs, milk) or through almost any multivitamin found in drugstores.
The Office of Dietary Supplements says that most people in the United States get enough vitamin B12 from the foods they eat although anywhere from 1.5 percent to 15 percent of the population could be suffering from a vitamin deficiency, mainly due to conditions such as aging that prevent the body from absorbing B12 from food.
But if youre an Infowars fan, however, why would you trust these institutions?
Infowars Life sales pitch #2: The government is suppressing this highly effective product because it competes with the pharmaceutical industry.
Jones also peddles Silver Bullet, an oral colloidal silver solution that Jones calls the survival silver [that] is the perfect fit for you and your family"s routine and emergency supply.
There was a big crackdown on the medical claims for colloidal silver when it was popular in the 1990s for treating common ailments. Jones is careful not to make any specific medical claims on the Silver Bullet product page, merely saying its unique and has applications for both preparedness and regular use. But its in his video, titled Government Suppresses Ancient Natural Antibiotic, that he and Group make their claims about colloidal silver.
In 1999, the FDA released its final rule regarding over-the-counter drugs containing colloidal silver and silver salts. These products were to be marked as not generally regarded as safe for human consumption, because FDA is not aware of any substantial scientific evidence that supports the use of OTC colloidal silver ingredients or silver salts for these disease conditions.
The banner for Secret 12. Image: Infowars Store
In the Silver Bullet video, Dr. Group says that the FDA raided his offices because he was selling colloidal silver; the reason the FDA has banned it, he claims, is that its a threat to the pharmaceutical companies and a threat to doctors visits, because it works so good in the body. They also claim in the video that the FDAs banning of colloidal silver is the government trying to shut down anybody thats producing silver, because they know how effective it is.
In the video, Group says that colloidal silver is an amazing anti-microbial compound. The controversy around it has more to do with how the product is made, he says. If you make it with tap water, lets say, or if theres any salts in the water, you can end up with silver nitrates, which Group blames for health problems in people who have taken colloidal silver supplements.
Scientists have concluded, however, that colloidal silver does not have health benefits and could be dangerous. We emphasize the lack of established effectiveness and potential toxicity of these products, wrote the authors of a 1996 Journal of Toxicology article.
Colloidal silver can cause argyria, a condition that can turn the skin a bluish gray color due to silver granules being deposited in the skin. There was a particularly high profile case of argyria in Paul Karason, known in the media as Papa Smurf, who consumed a homemade colloidal silver solution after reading about it in an alternative health magazine and used a topical silver treatment on his face.
In the Infowars video promoting Silver Bullet, Dr. Group says that silver nitrates are to blame for argyria and it was proved that Karason brewed his silver the wrong way and consumed far too much of it in order to turn himself blue to get media attention.
According to Group, any virus, any bacteria, any organism thats harmful to the body and its non-resistant to iodine, its non-resistant to silver. The chiropractor keeps it vague when talking about the solutions health benefits. User reviews say it works like a charm against infections, colds, and a spot on my foot that wouldnt heal.
Rather than explain why each specific claim regarding colloidal silver was wrong, Sonya Angelone of the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics simply told Motherboard that it is not recommended to take colloidal silver by mouth.
Infowars Life sales pitch #3: Our secret stash of a common product will stop the government from secretly poisoning you through the water supply.
Similar to Silver Bullet, another Infowars product called Survival Shield X-2 boasts a lot of claims that, in the end, dont say much of anything at all.
This product is a solution made with what Jones calls nascent iodine. In an Infowars video called The Iodine Conspiracy, Jones describes Survival Shield X-2 as a product that will block fluoride and other members of the halogen family that are so bad for you. Jones says that the government has been practicing eugenics by putting those products into the water supply, and that nascent iodine will protect you from it.
Of course, one of Jones top experts on the product is Dr. Group, whose Global Health Center page is the first Google result for nascent iodine. The GHCs page on nascent iodine says that the body can seamlessly absorb and utilize nascent iodine for metabolic and detoxification processes, making it more effective as a supplement for the body.
Not only is there no research to support nascent iodines supposed effectiveness or special fluoride-blocking characteristics, its supposed chemical makeup is not possible
Just as Jones refers straight to his expertise, Dr. Group provides no concrete data or research to back such claims. A spokesperson for the GHC told Motherboard that "[t]he importance of iodine is pretty well accepted but studies specific to nascent iodine, as I"m sure you"ve found, are light."
Dr. Group references a holistic health book called Iodine: why you need it, why you cant live without it by Dr. David Brownstein, which says nothing about nascent iodine but rather just addresses the basic, well-known role of iodine in the human body.
His second reference, a book on womens health from a Dr. Christiane Northrup, does mention nascent iodine, but only in passing and as just another way to consume iodine. Dr. Northrup makes no claims about nascent iodine being any better for womens thyroid health than another product. She links to www.thyroidnascentiodine.com, a broken website that isnt associated with the medical community. Dr. Northrup did not respond to a request for comment.
The final reference that Dr. Group has on his nascent thyroid page is to one of the only other names that tends to be associated with the product, a Dr. Edward Sircus, the founder of the so-called International Medical Veritas Association. Quackwatch.com lists the IMVA under its list of questionable organizations.
Jones. Photo: Sean P. Anderson/Flickr
Not only is there no research to support nascent iodines supposed effectiveness or special fluoride-blocking characteristics, its supposed chemical makeup is not possible. Sonya Angelone of the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics referred Motherboard to ConsumerLab, an independent health and nutritional product testing group, which addressed nascent iodine in this post. They note that nascent iodine, which promotes itself as being a free, unbound iodine particle rather than diluted in a solution, is impossible if its in liquid form. To be in a liquid supplement like most nascent iodine is sold, it would no longer be atomic as many of these promoters label it. Therefore, if you are buying a supplement promoted as "nascent iodine", it is most likely sodium iodide or potassium iodide, she said.
Iodine is undisputedly essential to a healthy, working human body. Angelone explained iodines role to Motherboard as a key nutrient required by the thyroid gland. It helps convert T4, the inactive thyroid hormone, to T3 the active thyroid hormone. Most people get iodine from iodized salt, but those that dont may need supplements like Survival Shield X-2. But the Infowars product will have the exact same effect as most other iodine supplements on the market.
Whether or not Alex Jones truly believes in the products he sells is unclear, but this much is true: he knows his audience will throw money at anything he endorses. Many Infowars Life products are devoid of any real scientific data, and those that do have corroborating research to be found elsewhere are simply fancy packaged, branded, marked up supplements that can be found elsewhere online or at local vitamin stores. The rest, as we can see, is snake oil.
Alex Jones chief research buddy is a chiropractor with a similar allergy to scientific data and a penchant for charisma and marketing. Survival Shield X-2 wont save you from a nuclear holocaust, and Silver Bullet wont magically cure your immune system. But it will pad the pockets of Alex Jones and help him scheme up new ways to scare you into paying him all over again.
A Tectonic Shift in Conservative World: Trump Accepts Nomination as Roger Ailes Ousted from Fox News
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Fox chairman and CEO Roger Ailes announced today that he"d be stepping down from his roles at the company, effective immediately, following multiple allegations of sexual harassment and misconduct. He had held his positions for two decades, building Fox into the conservative media behemoth it is today.
For a man who seemed "untouchable" at the top, his resignation comes about two weeks after former Fox News anchor and Fox & Friends cohost Gretchen Carlson filed a sexual harassment lawsuit against Ailes, her former boss. She alleged that "on multiple occasions Ailes directed her to turn around so he could leer at her posterior, made comments about her legs, and instructed her to wear more revealing outfits" and that "she experienced cuts in compensation, advertising support, and air time because of her refusal to give in to Ailes" advances." The lawsuit prompted Fox to begin an internal review of the charges.
Since then, more women have come forward with their own experiences with Ailes. The weekend following Carlson"s filing, New York magazine published six more accountspart of a group of more than a dozen women who contacted Carlson"s lawyer in the days after the news broke. The allegations date back to the 1960s.
Most recently, New York reported that the network"s star Megyn Kellywho at first had remained conspicuously silent on the matter, even as several of her male network colleagues rushed to Ailes" defensehad revealed to anonymous sources that she"d been on the end of unwanted sexual advances from Ailes when she was starting out as a correspondent in Fox"s Washington, D.C., bureau. It was speculated that, considering her growing presence and influence in the network, her testimony would be the "final element" needed to oust Ailes.
Rupert Murdoch, the CEO of News Corp (Fox"s parent company), will take over Ailes" duties, acting as chairman and interim CEO.
Tyler Posey doesnt make his debut as an official Disney prince for a while on Elena of Avalor, but that doesnt mean we didnt talk with him about it at 2016 San Diego Comic-Con.
The 24-year-old actor will voice Prince Alonso in the series, a charming prince from the Argentine-inspired Kingdom of Cordoba who will possibly lay his charms on Elena (Aimee Carrero). We mean, you cant cast Tyler and not have that outcome, right?
Im so excited to see it, Tyler told us on the press line for Teen Wolf. To voice a cartoon character is one of my dreams.
Suge Knight got emotional and lost his cool in court Friday saying he"s worried he"s going to die in jail.
The breakdown came as the judge on his murder case ruled he can"t get addresses for several key prosecution witnesses and will have to wait until a week before trial to get the names of three more confidential witnesses.
The delay was granted after prosecutors raised concerns he might try to intimidate the witnesses.
"My time is ticking some days because of the health problems I have, and right now I"m not getting a fair chance to prove my innocence," Knight told Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Ronald Coen.
Suge Knight"s harsh jail rules blamed on "massive scandal"
The co-founder of Death Row Records, 51, claimed he hasn"t been able to pay his lawyers, investigators or experts because he can"t call anyone other than his lawyers and can"t get visits from people outside his defense team, his parents and his four young children.
"If I don"t have the right to discuss my business or my own finances to take care of my own children, how do I have a right to defend myself? Because if I have no communication with the world, I cannot hire the right people," he said. "They"ve worked so far but they"re not getting paid."
He said it was "important" for Coen to listen to him because he feels he has "no one else to talk to."
"I hate to have to go through all this and die in jail," he told the judge.
Suge Knight seeks court approval to visit with sick mother
After his impassioned speech, Knight snapped at his lawyers in open court and could be heard raising his voice while waiting in a holding area during a break.
"I think all of this is just starting to take a toll on him both emotionally and physically. Obviously he"s been incarcerated over a year. He"s not getting the proper medical attention. And what you saw today was just a product of that," defense lawyer J. Tooson told the Daily News after the hearing.
In a filing opposing the defense team"s right to unredacted discovery, prosecutors argued that Knight is a dangerous criminal with gang ties who extorts a safety "tax" from rappers and once ordered a bodyguard to punch a woman.
In court, prosecutor Cynthia Barnes said she was worried that if Knight learns the identities of three confidential civilian witnesses in the case, he might go after them.
Suge Knight will be allowed to see sick mom after judge"s ruling
"The problem is, in county jail these reports get distributed and they have names in them. So if we give the defendant a report that has the name of a witness and he"s passing it around the county jail it puts that person"s name on blast to other gang members and other individuals that that person is a snitch and a potential witness," Barnes argued. "That creates more of a concern for the safety of that individual."
Knight"s fiancee Toi-Lin Kelly scoffed at the argument outside court.
She noted prosecution witness Cle "Bone" Sloan testified under an immunity deal at a preliminary hearing - and apparently hasn"t been targeted.
"Bone already testified and he"s fine, right? There are no reports of him being threatened or even contacted," she said after the hearing.
Sloan, a former gang member, was caught on tape fighting with Knight in the parking lot of a Compton burger stand in January 2015 before Knight hit the gas on his truck and ran over both Sloan and local businessman Terry Carter killing Carter.
Knight"s attempted murder charge relates to Sloan. When Sloan testified at the preliminary hearing he insisted over and over that he wasn"t a "snitch."
The protective order now governing Knight"s jail stay was filed by authorities under seal, so it"s not clear what alleged evidence they offered to justify the strict curtailments on Knight"s access to phone calls and visitors.
When he spoke to the judge Friday, Knight said he"s in bad health with blood clots in his arm and neck that landed him in the hospital.
"The doctor confirmed the blood clot in his neck was the size of a golf ball," Kelly said after the hearing.
Arguing for Knight"s right to unredacted discovery, his lawyers claimed that prosecutors gave up their right to withhold witness information when they allegedly shared case paperwork with a man believed to be a jailhouse informant.
Tooson and his co-counsel Antoine Williams said in court that a defense investigator interviewed alleged informant Daniel Timms and believed Timms was able to review unredacted copies of Knight"s case information.
They said the District Attorney failed to publicly refute Timms" claims after they surfaced in court filings last April and argued that if Timms is telling the truth, prosecutors forfeited their right to redact their discovery when they shared discovery with a convicted criminal.
Barnes blasted the suggestion prosecutors were working with Timms.
"Daniel Timms is a liar and a joke," Barnes told Judge Coen. "He"s not a jailhouse informant. They"re completely misinformed."
Knight, 51, has pleaded not guilty in the case, claiming he was the victim of an armed ambush and feared for his life when he mowed down Sloan and Carter.
The former music mogul fled the scene but later agreed to meet with police to tell his side of the story. He was arrested, charged and hasn"t been able to post his staggering $10.5 million bail.
His time behind bars has been marked by a series of medical woes including an emergency appendix surgery in March.
Tooson said Knight is on medication for his blood clots and diabetes and was rushed to a hospital by ambulance last week because jail personnel allegedly underestimated the seriousness of his condition.
"I don"t want you to die," Judge Coen told Knight in court Friday.
The judge said he would be happy to sign any medical orders brought to his attention by Knight"s lawyers.
Kelly said she"s still worried.
"His attorneys are successful attorneys with business to attend to and he can"t always get them on the phone," she said. "And what if he"s too ill to make that phone call?"
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Sen. Elizabeth Warren, who was left off the initial rundownof Democratic National Convention speakers, will address attendees atnext week"s gathering in Philadelphia.
The Massachusetts senator,whose populistmessages about income inequality and the abuses of Wall Street earn her great admiration amongliberals, was added onThursday to the officiallist of speakers.
Warren, who is serving her first term in the Senate, recently visited with Hillary Clinton, the presumptive Democratic presidential nominee, about becoming her running mate.
In addition to Warren, Sen. Tim Kaine of Virginia, who isona short-list tobecome Clinton"s No. 2, will speak at the convention.
Clinton is expected to announce her running mate in next the several days.
Others speakers includeColorado Gov. John Hickenlooper andSen. Sherrod Brown of Ohio, who both represent key battleground states.
Next week"s primetime speaking line-up is as follows:
Monday: First Lady Michelle Obama, Vermont Sen.Bernie Sanders and Astrid Silva. Silva is a "Dreamer"from Nevada who will talk about her personal immigrationstory and her activism.
Tuesday:Former PresidentBill Clinton will be joined by Mothers of the Movement, mothers of black men and women who have been killed by gun violence or in police custody, including the mothers of Eric Garner, Trayvon Martin and Michael Brown.
Wednesday: President Obama and Vice President Joe Biden.
Thursday: Hillary Clinton and Chelsea Clinton.
Below are more prominentDemocratic names who were added to the list on Thursday and whowill address the convention:
