American justice

I wonder if Epstein meant it as a compliment or something else?

Study Reveals Why People Believe Lies, Especially From Friends

The roots of gullibility

By Society for Neuroscience 

Why do people believe lies? The answer may lie in how our brains process social connections and rewards. Recent research led by Yingjie Liu at North China University of Science and Technology suggests that our willingness to believe false information depends not only on what is being said but also on who is saying it.

By examining how people interpret messages from friends versus strangers, the study reveals that trust, emotional bonds, and the promise of potential rewards all play crucial roles in shaping whether we accept or reject a lie.

According to their JNeurosci publication, the research team used neuroimaging to study 66 healthy participants who interacted through computer screens while seated across from each other. When the exchange of information resulted in a positive outcome for both participants, it was labeled a “gain,” while information that produced a negative outcome was categorized as a “loss.”

Contributing author Rui Huang says, “The key reason we chose ‘gain’ and ‘loss’ contexts is that they illustrate how people adjust decision-making in response to potential rewards or punishments.”

Help your child live a longer, healthier life

Too much screen time in youth may set the stage for future heart and metabolic diseases.

American Heart Association

Research Highlights

• More time using electronic devices or watching TV among children and young adults was linked with higher cardiometabolic disease risk, including high blood pressure, high cholesterol and insulin resistance, based on data from more than 1,000 participants in Denmark.
• The association between screen time and cardiometabolic risks was strongest in youth who slept fewer hours, suggesting that screen use may harm health by "stealing" time from sleep, researchers said.
• Researchers said the findings underscore the importance of addressing screen habits among young people as a potential way to protect long-term heart and metabolic health.

Screen time tied to early heart and metabolic risks

Children and teens who spend many hours on TVs, phones, tablets, computers or gaming systems appear to face higher chances of cardiometabolic problems, such as elevated blood pressure, unfavorable cholesterol levels and insulin resistance. The findings are reported in the Journal of the American Heart Association, an open-access, peer-reviewed journal of the American Heart Association.

A 2023 scientific statement from the American Heart Association reported that "cardiometabolic risk is accruing at younger and younger ages," and that only 29% of U.S. youth ages 2 to 19 had favorable cardiometabolic health in 2013-2018 National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey data.

Trump wants to zero out this anti-terrorism program

White House Calls This 9/11-Era Fund ‘Wasteful.’ Red and Blue States Rely on It.

Don Thompson 

Boston Marathon bombing, 2013

Donald Trump’s push to eliminate a federal disaster preparedness program threatens a fund used by state health systems from Republican-led Texas to the Democratic stronghold of California.

The Hospital Preparedness Program was created more than two decades ago in response to the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks on New York City’s World Trade Center and the Pentagon, and the deadly anthrax attacks that began days later. The fund has provided nearly $2.2 billion to states, territories, major cities, and other entities over the past 17 years to ready health care systems for the next pandemic, cyberattack, or mass-casualty event.

Recently, that money has been used to combat the bird flu that has sickened at least 70 people in the United States, killed at least one, and remains a threat. The funds also have been used to respond to crises such as hurricanes, tornadoes, mass shootings, floods, and heat waves.

But the budget request sent to Congress by Trump’s budget director, Russell Vought, proposes eliminating the program, saying the effort “has been wasteful and unfocused” and that cutting it would allow states and cities to “properly” fund their own preparedness plans. Any action is currently stalled by the government shutdown, which stems from a partisan dispute over expiring health care subsidies that affect many of the 24 million Americans who buy coverage from Affordable Care Act marketplaces.

Red and blue states say the hospital preparedness funds are essential and could not be readily replaced with local funds. It’s an example of how the White House’s efforts to reduce its role in responding to public health and natural disasters have imperiled state and municipal reliance on federal resources to meet community needs.

The program “is the main source of government funding for disaster preparedness among hospitals, EMS providers, and other parts of the health care system,” Texas Department of State Health Services spokesperson Chris Van Deusen said.

There is Still Time to Call in the Mental Health Doctors!

Trump's impairment is irrefutable

Bandy X. Lee

“Emotional overstrain” is the phrase the official spokesperson of the Russian president used to describe Donald Trump’s state. How diplomatic!

Russian and Chinese leaders are very careful with the language they use in public, quite the opposite of the mentally- and emotionally-disturbed American president.

Yet, there is no doubt they, and so many other world leaders, are well aware of the dangerous psychological disturbance in the Oval Office—and consulting their own experts! There is no doubt that these leaders have their own psychiatric consultants who have very seriously profiled, thoroughly assessed, and even diagnosed Donald Trump. We would do so if we were dealing with any other such leader in the world.

There is no doubt that these leaders have been professionally counseled on how to manipulate and maneuver a man so emotionally vulnerable—who they should also rightly fear is, in addition to everything else, the commander of the most powerful military on the planet who has instant control of the second largest stockpile of nuclear weapons.

As I have been writing and speaking about for years, persons with mental issues such as Donald Trump are extremely manipulable—and malleable if managed in the right way. We may have taken advantage of this and convinced him to step down voluntarily early in the first Trump presidency (many do not believe this, rightfully so, but it is true!). Or we may have imposed severe limits on him and forced him to step down early in this presidency (harder to do, but more possible than many believe!).

Instead, we yielded to corruption and cowardice, not minding the inevitable catastrophe that lay ahead, and enabled and emboldened his weaknesses instead of managing and remedying them. To this day, we are controlled and conned, rather than making use of medical expertise to control and take charge of an all-too-common condition, well-known in forensic psychiatric settings.

When the mentally-impaired are at the helm, they are by definition capable of actions that are tremendously irrational, inconsistent, incompetent, and endangering, and no matter how they wish to believe otherwise.

I have therefore emphasized for many years that, unless such a person is properly understood, the danger assessed, and the violence risk contained, they will proceed to do things that are more and more dangerous, outrageous, and unstoppable.

The Pedo Protection Squad at your service

Can't pay? Off with his head!

"Community Conversations" in Wakefield

 

Dashka Slater Accountable - Google Docs Hosted by SK School Social Worker Jonathan Sigman and Compass School Counselor Katie Garvin.  Funded by a grant from NEA South Kingstown. FREE to attend! FREE snacks! FREE book! FREE childcare (age 3-10) Registration link

Why Cats, Dogs, and Even Whales Are Getting Human Diseases

Look to human causes

By Society for Risk Analysis

Across the globe, animals from household pets to marine wildlife are developing chronic diseases once thought to primarily affect humans. 

Dogs, cats, dairy cows, and sea turtles are showing increasing rates of cancer, obesity, diabetes, and joint degeneration. 

Understanding what drives this rise in non-communicable diseases (NCDs) is essential not only for protecting animal health but also for improving human well-being.

Despite the growing urgency, comprehensive and interdisciplinary research on animal NCDs remains limited.

HIV knows no borders, and the Trump administration’s new strategy leave Americans vulnerable

Protecting public health abroad benefits Americans.

Robin Lin Miller, Michigan State University

In a globalized world, diseases and their social and economic impacts do not stay within national boundaries. Increased rates of untreated HIV in any part of the world increase the risk of transmission for U.S. citizens.

Changes made in the first year of Donald Trump’s second term to address the global HIV epidemic, however, may not keep Americans safe.

In September 2025, the U.S. Department of State announced its America First Global Health Strategy, a plan that aims to make “America safer, stronger, and more prosperous” by encouraging other governments to take responsibility for their citizens’ health and to promote U.S. commercial and faith-based interests. 

It includes the commitment to purchase and distribute the breakthrough HIV preventive drug lenacapavir for up to 2 million people – principally pregnant and breastfeeding women – in 10 countries heavily affected by HIV.

However, the plan does not ensure the most vulnerable will be able to access HIV care. It comes on top of eliminating billions of dollars of U.S. financial support to global health programs. And it undermines one of the most effective foreign assistance programs in U.S. history, the U.S. President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief, or PEPFAR.

I have spent four decades evaluating HIV programs and have studied barriers to HIV prevention and care in the U.S. and in other countries. The Trump administration’s strategy not only reverses decades of progress toward international targets to end AIDS by 2030, I believe it also puts Americans at risk.

Trump Pardons His Co-Conspirators in 2020 Coup Attempt

If you are a Republican, you can do anything

Stephen Prager for Common Dreams

Donald Trump has given a “full, complete, and unconditional” pardon to a long list of allies who conspired to help him overturn his loss in the 2020 election.

Late Sunday night, Justice Department attorney Ed Martin posted a list of over 70 people who would receive pardons. Many of the figures included were named as unindicted co-conspirators or charged at the state level for their roles in the plot to knowingly spread false claims of widespread voter fraud in an attempt to push states to reject former President Joe Biden’s victories in key swing states and pressure Vice President Mike Pence into stopping the certification of the election.

Among those pardoned are Trump lawyers Rudy Giuliani and Sidney Powell, who publicly promoted baseless claims of a vast conspiracy against the president to the public, claiming that the election was stolen by a cabal of foreign infiltrators and scheming election officials. They later faced defamation lawsuits for these claims, and in legal proceedings, Giuliani conceded he made false statements about election workers, while Powell’s lawyers argued that “no reasonable person” would conclude her public claims were statements of fact.

Trump also pardoned former chief of staff Mark Meadows, who acted as a facilitator between the president and state officials he attempted to bully into saying he won the election. Aside from the president himself, Meadows was the highest-ranking White House staffer on the phone call in which Trump asked Georgia’s Republican Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger to “find” him enough votes to be declared the winner of the election.

Also receiving pardons were attorneys John Eastman and Kenneth Chesebro. They were part of what Pence called Trump’s “gaggle of crackpot lawyers,” who concocted the tortured legal theory that the vice president could declare Biden’s victory in swing states illegitimate and anoint Trump as the winner. Eastman privately admitted to Trump that the scheme was illegal but pressed ahead with it anyway, culminating in the January 6, 2021, insurrection at the US Capitol, during which Trump supporters chanted, “Hang Mike Pence,” and tried to stop the election results from being certified.

Charlestown Town Council Candidate Jill Fonnemann tells Patch what she stands for

Along with commitment to the environment, Fonnemann wants to focus on small business, fair taxes, affordable housing and the economy

By Will Collette

Endorsed Democrat Jill Fonnemann gave an extensive interview to Joseph Hosey, local Patch Staff. Without the CCA’s non-resident cash reserve to pay for glossy mailers, this was a welcome opportunity for Jill to tell us more about why she is the best candidate running in Charlestown’s December 2 special election to fill the Town Council seat vacated by the untimely death of CRU’s Rippy Serra.

Here are some key excerpts from Jill’s interview, edited for clarity.

Age: 42

Party affiliation: Democrat

Family: Mother-Christine Fonnemann, Father- Francis Fonnemann III, Brothers-Mark Fonnemann, Brian Fonnemann. I live with my beloved animals being my dog Zsa Zsa, Vega my cat, my bearded dragon Javier and my elderly adopted corn snake Raphaello who had a rough start in life.

Education: 2001 Westerly High School Graduate-Senior, Superlative-Class Individualist

Occupation: Beverage director at the Charlestown Rathskeller Tavern

Previous or Current Elected Office: Charlestown Parks and Recreation Commission, January 2023-Present, as well as The Parks and Recreation Office Subcommittee

Describe the other issues that define your campaign platform. The most time sensitive issue facing our ward is the repair of the western wall of our breachway. This will avoid future damage to our aquatic life, estuaries, oyster farms and ecosystem.

The reconstruction of the breachway is imperative to the people of Charlestown and to the economic health of our town. We rely on summer vacationers to visit while supporting local restaurants, shops, beaches and all of our other adjacent businesses. This directly hits home given my work in the restaurant industry.

The other issues that also define my campaign platform are:

• Work to maintain Charlestown's low tax rate through fiscally responsible policies
• Support affordable housing initiatives that will allow Charlestown’s seniors and children to afford housing in our town
• Make our children a priority by supporting our schools, quality education, sports programs, and extracurricular activities.
• Continue to support our local businesses
• Work to protect our environment, open spaces and restoration of the Charlestown Breachway.
• I am a big supporter of our environment and dark skies. I am an avid hiker, camper and lover of the outdoors. I feel like I can actually breathe and be at complete peace when I am surrounded by nature.
• I will also promote rehabbing run down, vacant, eyesores of buildings in town.
• Preserve the historic aspect that the town encompasses. I live in one of the 10 oldest houses in town built in 1732

What are the critical differences between you and other candidates seeking this post? 

One example that sets me apart from the other candidates is that I am the only candidate that is known for organizing/executing large scale, well attended events that directly give back to our residents, more often than not, single handedly.

I realize that I don't have as much experience as the other two candidates possess, as they have been involved in commissions/councils and organizations much longer than I have. But I should say that one of the two candidates is 37 years older and the other 28 years older than I. I truly hope my past precedes me at my 42 years of age. I am a quick study and will delve into research to be well informed. I am not afraid of a challenge either.

I have a large presence in our community and am known for being kind and staying true to my word. I am a natural mediator/peacemaker, I will always fight for what I think is right

I refuse to join in on any nonsense that may rear its head in the next month. I am not intimidated and will refrain from fueling any upcoming negative tactics that may rear their ugly head in the next month. But I do know that if you give into being scared and freezing, you will never know how to learn and grow.

I feel like I have the ability to see different sides of a story by actually listening to people. These days everyone is shouting so loudly at each other, instead of hearing what people actually have to say. It costs nothing to be respectful of the fact that we are all different and people feel differently about things.

People know that they can continue to rely on me to lend a helping hand/shoulder to cry on/offer advice to anyone in need.

Nothing in life has ever been handed to me and I know what it is like to struggle. Everything I have achieved, I have earned myself through self teachings. I have to say that the person I have grown to be makes me proud. I strive to be the best version of myself that I can be, which of course is a lifelong practice.

I have the drive, motivation, creativity and unstoppable energy to put 100% into this endeavor. I am not afraid of a challenge, no matter how big or small and refused to be classified as a quitter. I am a quick study and will delve into researching a topic and educating myself. Working in the restaurant industry for over 28 years will teach you how to deal with every kind of person of all walks of life and grow the thickest skin.

I can talk to, relate, listen and create an instant rapport with most people. I am constantly putting out small fires through rational thinking, strategy, empathy and grace. I work well in high stress/hectic situations and thrive in that environment. I am a natural leader, my own person and dance, (not walk,) to the beat of my own drum. I have never been one to fold or conform to what social society teaches us to be if I don't agree with it. My high school superlative was class individualist and I haven't lost any momentum since.

Long story short, I truly hope to add to the existing positive momentum that we have seen with the Town Council for the past two years. I aim and very much look forward to working for the people in our town and working cooperatively with the Charlestown Town Council and the State of Rhode Island. If given the chance to be elected, I vow that I will ensure that all of this happens.

The Election has already begun

Early voting, in person at Town Hall, began on November 12. Mail ballots will soon be arriving for those who requested them. Mine arrived on Saturday, meaning Cathy and I will proudly vote for Jill.

Special elections like this rarely draw many voters – I’d be surprised if more than 1000 ballots get cast. Those of you who pay attention to town politics, such as most Progressive Charlestown readers, will make the difference.

While the Charlestown Residents United (CRU) will continue to hold at least four of the five Town Council seats, adding Jill will give Charlestown an excellent shot of new blood. As I’ve made plain HERE and HERE and HERE, returning CCA spokesperson Bonnita Van Slyke to the Council would be a terrible mistake.

While I am 76 and not dead yet, I often do feel my age and recognize that though Charlestown has a rapidly aging population, we need younger leaders. Jill has that youthful enthusiasm and drive to serve that are, for me at least, a distant memory.

I’m glad Jill brought up the issue of age. Typically, no one ever does in Charlestown elections given that, with some exceptions, most candidates are Boomers like me. Age cost Joe Biden the 2024 election and age is currently causing mayhem and chaos in our nation. It’s an issue that can’t be ignored.

I’m voting for Jill and for Charlestown’s future. Hope you will, too.

Thank you for your attention to this matter

Good and evil