MiXinG TuBe StuDiO: September 2021

Thursday, 30 September 2021

Pelosi delays vote on trillion-dollar infrastructure bill after hours of negotiations

Pelosi's decision came after hours of intense negotiations, including a call with President Joe Biden and a crush of meetings and calls with members of the ...

source https://www.cnn.com/2021/09/30/politics/house-infrastructure-negotiations-vote/index.html

Statewide Residential Eviction Moratorium Ends – No Change for Oakland

Got Rent Problems? Tenants and property owners in need of financial assistance for past due rent may be eligible for the Emergency Rent Assistance Program.

source https://www.oaklandca.gov/news/2021/statewide-residential-eviction-moratorium-ends-no-change-for-oakland

Pelosi delays infrastructure vote as Democrats struggle to reach deal

Speaker Nancy Pelosi pushed off a planned vote on a bipartisan infrastructure bill late Thursday after top Democrats in the House, Senate and the White ...

source https://www.politico.com/amp/news/2021/09/30/pelosi-push-infrastructure-vote-514805

Democrats grit their teeth after Manchin lists demands

Senate Democrats spun away Manchin's utter rejection of their $3.5 trillion spending dreams and embrace of a $1.5 trillion plan as a positive development, ...

source https://www.politico.com/news/2021/09/30/democrats-grit-teeth-manchin-demands-514836

Fall 2021: Check out these festivals, trunk-or-treats, haunted houses in San Angelo area

Where: Circle S Corn Maze and Pumpkin Patch, 7305 Bean Road in Wall. Cost: Entry for the corn maze is $8 for adults and $5 for children older than 2 years old.

source https://www.gosanangelo.com/story/entertainment/2021/09/30/san-angelo-halloween-trick-treat-oktoberfest-corn-maze-pumpkin-patch/8258171002/

CNY school district going remote because too many bus drivers have Covid-19

Rome, NY — The Rome City School District is going remote starting Friday because too many of its bus drivers are home with Covid-19, the district announced.

source https://www.syracuse.com/schools/2021/09/cny-school-district-going-remote-k-12-because-too-many-bus-drivers-have-covid-19.html

New CPS CEO says he'll explore remote learning options but makes no promises

In his first comments as the leader of Chicago Public Schools, new CEO Pedro Martinez committed Thursday to exploring the possibility of expanding remote ...

source https://chicago.suntimes.com/education/2021/9/30/22702738/cps-ceo-pedro-martinez-testing-remote-learning-covid-dashboard

Biden Signs Funding Bill, Avoiding A Shutdown, But Other Standoffs Persist

The Senate and House sprinted Thursday afternoon to pass the legislation, which will keep the government funded through Dec. 3. The bill also includes $28.6 ...

source https://www.npr.org/2021/09/30/1041867660/senate-house-avoid-shutdown-continuing-resolution-funding-congress

US Fish and Wildlife Service declares 23 species extinct

The U.S. government is declaring the splendid ivory-billed woodpecker -- and 22 more birds, fish and other species-- extinct. It's a rare move for wildlife ...

source https://www.kpax.com/news/u-s-and-the-world/u-s-fish-and-wildlife-service-declares-23-species-extinct

VP Kamala Harris Is The Least Transparent Elected Official In The Nation

However, President Biden's White House, the federal executive agencies, all 50 states, and at least 80,000 local units of government are legally required to ...

source https://www.forbes.com/sites/adamandrzejewski/2021/09/30/vp-kamala-harris-is-the-least-transparent-elected-official-in-the-nation/

Saving Grace urges C. Oregonians to 'Take a Stand' during Domestic Violence Awareness Month

BEND, Ore. (KTVZ) -- Domestic violence impacts millions of people each year, but it can be prevented. It requires the collective voice and power of ...

source https://ktvz.com/community/community-billboard/2021/09/30/saving-grace-urges-c-oregonians-to-take-a-stand-during-domestic-violence-awareness-month/

Bloober teases new Layers of Fear project, heading back to the easel

Bloober Team, the developer behind the psychedelic horror chills of The Medium, Observer, and Blair Witch, is teasing a new project in its Layers of Fear series.

The original Layers of Fear launched in 2016, taking players on a surreal first-person horror trip through the ever-shifting home of a tortured painter, and its 2018 sequel, Layers of Fear 2 - inspired by the golden age of Hollywood - followed a brand-new protagonist on an avant-garde journey through the innards of an ocean liner and their troubled past.

The Latest: 2nd hospital in Alaska begins rationing care

Rationing of care had already been imposed by Providence Alaska Medical Center in Anchorage, which is the state's largest hospital. Coronavirus infections in ...

source https://www.wrex.com/news/national/the-latest-2nd-hospital-in-alaska-begins-rationing-care/article_eb2a691a-243c-5176-a432-0cecdb23fd67.html

Biden nominates 10 more federal judges amid diversity push

BOSTON, Sept 30 (Reuters) - President Joe Biden on Thursday continued his push to bring greater diversity to the federal judiciary with 10 new nominees to ...

source https://www.reuters.com/legal/legalindustry/biden-nominates-10-more-federal-judges-amid-diversity-push-2021-09-30/

Planned Parenthood asks Texas Supreme Court to allow more than a dozen cases against Texas' abortion law to resume

A panel of five judges indefinitely blocked the lawsuits last week upon the request of an anti-abortion group.

source https://www.texastribune.org/2021/09/30/planned-parenthood-texas-supreme-court/

Ted Cruz's challenge to campaign finance reimbursement law reaches Supreme Court

Under a 2002 federal law, no more than $250,000 in contributions collected after an election may be used to repay a candidate's loans to their campaign.

source https://www.texastribune.org/2021/09/30/ted-cruz-election-law-supreme-court/

The Game Awards officially returns as "full-scale" in-person event this December

Geoff Keighley's annual end-of-year spectacular, The Game Awards, is officially returning for more celebratory escapades and video game reveals on 9th December

This year's show - in a bid to return to the glitz and glamour of previous, pre-pandemic years - is planned to be an "full-scale", in-person event and will be held at Los Angeles' Microsoft Theatre. Expect the usual mix of awards, world premieres, and musical performances - Keighley has already confirmed The Game Awards Orchestra will be back on-stage for another melodic turn - with the whole thing being streamed live for the viewing pleasure of all.

Pelosi declares infrastructure bill on track, as Congress races to avert a government shutdown.

Speaker Nancy Pelosi on Thursday vowed to push ahead with a House vote on a $1 trillion infrastructure bill that passed the Senate with bipartisan support, ...

source https://www.nytimes.com/2021/09/30/us/politics/government-shutdown-congress-infrastructure.html

The Justice Department will argue against Texas' abortion law Friday. Here's what you need to know.

The U.S. sued Texas after the Biden administration vowed to oppose Texas' new near-total abortion ban. The lawsuit joins several legal challenges already in ...

source https://www.texastribune.org/2021/09/30/texas-abortion-law-legal-challenges/

Sony buys Demon's Souls remake developer Bluepoint Games

Bluepoint Games has joined PlayStation Studios following Sony's acquisition of the developer.

This is a big boon for PlayStation. Bluepoints Games is renowned for its exceptional remasters and ports, many of which are PlayStation titles.

Reporting players who break the rules of Battlefield 2042 will be easier than ever before, developer DICE has said.

Writing today in the game's extensive community charter, DICE said its system to flag players would be faster than in previous Battlefield titles, and can now be completed in-game.

We finally have a decent look at Warhammer 40,000: Chaos Gate - Daemonhunters gameplay - and I'm getting a distinct XCOM vibe.

The video, below, shows off the turn-based combat, which sees the player control a squad of Grey Knights against the puss-packed followers of Chaos god Nurgle in a story penned by Black Library author Aaron Dembski-Bowden.

A listing for Grand Theft Auto: The Trilogy - The Definitive Edition has been spotted on South Korea's game rating board's site.

According to the details of the listing, the application for an official rating was made by Take-Two Interactive for an action game originating from the United States.

If you canvassed a bunch of people about why they like Frogwares' Sherlock Holmes games, it's probably not unreasonable to suggest combat wouldn't feature too prominently on any resulting list. In the run-up to Sherlock Holmes: Chapter One's November release, however, Frogwares is trying to change some minds with a fresh look at the series' revamped fisticuffs.

Frogwares says Chapter One's new combat system is built "to suit the character of Sherlock", meaning that while melee attacks and firearms are both present and extensively utilised throughout fight sequences, players won't be able to take much of a beating.

Capcom has just wrapped its big Tokyo Game Show presentation on all things Monster Hunter, giving us some new details on the recently announced expansion Sunbreak plus a release date and a bit more information about the much anticipated PC version of Monster Hunter Rise.

The PC port of one of the best games of the year so far - at least I thought so in our Monster Hunter Rise review - will be coming on 12th January 2022, with a demo arriving as soon as 13th October. There will be support for 4K resolution and ultrawide monitors, improved framerates and textures plus refined keyboard and mouse controls.

New UI Anti-Violence Plan addresses findings from 2021 Speak Out Iowa survey

Through its latest comprehensive anti-violence plan, the University of Iowa continues to enhance efforts to combat sexual misconduct (sexual harassment, ...

source https://now.uiowa.edu/2021/09/new-ui-anti-violence-plan-addresses-findings-2021-speak-out-iowa-survey

What you need to know as California eviction moratorium ends

After more than a year of waiting, landlords in California will once again be allowed to take their tenants to court over missed rent payments as the ...

source https://calmatters.org/housing/2021/09/california-eviction-moratorium-rent-relief/

California businesses face eviction as moratorium ends

But tenants and small business advocates fear that since many struggling businesses haven't been able to resolve lease and rent disputes, evictions are ...

source https://www.sfchronicle.com/sf/article/California-businesses-face-eviction-as-moratorium-16498077.php

US to declare 23 species, including ivory-billed woodpecker, officially extinct

Sept 29 (Reuters) - The ivory-billed woodpecker, whose last confirmed sighting was nearly 80 years ago, is one of 23 federally protected species that would ...

source https://www.reuters.com/world/us/us-declare-23-species-including-ivory-billed-woodpecker-extinct-ap-2021-09-29/

eFootball is clearly not ready for its bizarre launch

Last week, I said I was worried about eFootball. Now it's out, I'm afraid to say it's even worse than I expected.

eFootball is available to download now - for free - in extremely limited form. This bizarre launch for Konami's football game, which, let's remember, is two years in the making after PES took 2020 off, lets you play offline 1v1 matches against the computer and online 1v1 matches in a challenge event that expires in 10 days. And that's it.

Christopher Judge, the voice actor of Kratos, claims he was responsible for God of War Ragnarok's delay after needing time to rehabilitate from knee and back surgery.

Judge also praised developer Santa Monica Studio for its patience and support while he recovered.

With the Tokyo Game Show now in full swing, Microsoft just finished up its Xbox event with a number of announcements.

Among them was the news that Scarlet Nexus will arrive on Xbox Game Pass today.

Lucid Games, the developer of Destruction All-stars, is apparently working on a new Twisted Metal game.

That's according to a report by VGC, which claims that the UK studio has started early development on the new title.

Nintendo has issued a denial on a new 4K Nintendo Switch report.

Last night, Bloomberg (paywall) reported at least 11 companies, including Zynga, have "tools" from Nintendo to make 4K Switch games.

For years whenever I've been hunting around through books about old games and going over compilation discs, I've seen the words "Solomon's Key" and never been tempted. Intrigued, but not intrigued enough. It's an old game, right, maybe a bit puzzley? Ported a lot.

That ended yesterday. I was looking through the NES games on Switch for something to play, and there was Solomon's Key. After all this time, what is this game? Is it playable at all? A relic? Will it make me understand the lineage of another game a little better? I didn't know what to expect, but I'll tell you what actually happened: I fell in love.

The House Passes A Bill To Avoid A Debt Default, But It's Mostly Symbolic

House Democrats had originally passed a bill that would have suspended the nation's borrowing limit while also funding the government. Senate Republicans ...

source https://www.npr.org/2021/09/29/1041530284/house-passes-debt-limit-debt-ceiling

January 6 committee targets organizers of Stop the Steal rally in latest batch of subpoenas

(CNN) The select committee investigating the January 6 insurrection has issued its second round of subpoenas, this time targeting individuals involved in ...

source https://www.cnn.com/2021/09/29/politics/january-6-subpoenas-stop-the-steal-rally/index.html

The border control mess awaiting Biden's nominee

President JOE BIDEN called footage of border patrol agents on horseback appearing to confront Haitian migrants last week “beyond an embarrassment.” Vice ...

source https://www.politico.com/newsletters/west-wing-playbook/2021/09/29/the-border-control-mess-awaiting-bidens-nominee-494520

Manchin rejects Pelosi's call for deal on economic package ahead of key Thursday vote

(CNN) House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and West Virginia Sen. Joe Manchin are at a crossroads over President Joe Biden's agenda to transform the government's role ...

source https://www.cnn.com/2021/09/29/politics/infrastructure-negotiations-congress/index.html

Stimulus check details: Some states are sending more money. Here's what it means for you

Since the start of the pandemic, three stimulus checks have been sent. And many families are getting additional financial relief with monthly child tax credit ...

source https://www.cnet.com/personal-finance/stimulus-check-details-some-states-are-sending-more-money-heres-what-it-means-for-you/

Twitch officially unveils new verification tools to tackle hate raiding

Following reports earlier this week, Twitch has officially unveiled a new suite of verification-based tools intended to help combat the increasingly prevalent phenomenon of hate raiding.

Twitch's controversial raid feature was originally designed to be an easy way for streamers to share audiences by enabling them to redirect all viewers currently watching their broadcast to a target channel. Unfortunately, malicious users quickly began exploiting the feature, setting up dummy accounts and bots to flood the chats of often marginalised streamers and subject them to doxing, harassment, and attack.

House Republican leaders mount all-out campaign to sink infrastructure

Both House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy and House Minority Whip Steve Scalise have been making personal calls to members and talking to lawmakers on the House ...

source https://www.cnn.com/2021/09/29/politics/republican-reaction-infrastructure-talks/index.html

Bonfire Peaks review - We'll burn it down together

He burns his belongings.

It's hard to imagine what has happened for a man to think there are no options left other than to take a box of his stuff - a box of cherished memories, I think, although we're never formally told - and shove it into a bonfire. It's harder still to imagine how it must feel to keep doing it, over and over and over again. Does it get easier, do you think? After the second time - the tenth time, the fiftieth time, the hundredth time - does it stop hurting? Do you stop feeling it? Or does every box stuffed into the flames make your heart ache just that little bit more?

DeSantis opens new fight with Biden over immigration

TALLAHASSEE — Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis on Tuesday escalated his fight with the Biden administration over immigration, directing Florida agencies to stop ...

source https://www.politico.com/states/florida/story/2021/09/28/desantis-opens-new-fight-with-biden-over-immigration-1391464

Manchin, Sinema leave Dems in lurch as Biden agenda teeters

Democrats wanted clarity Tuesday from Sens. Joe Manchin and Kyrsten Sinema after back-to-back meetings with President Joe Biden. They didn't get it.

source https://www.politico.com/news/2021/09/28/manchin-sinema-dems-biden-514574

Obama breaks ground on presidential library in Chicago

(CNN) Former President Barack Obama and former first lady Michelle Obama broke ground on the Obama Presidential Center in Chicago on Tuesday, beginning one ...

source https://www.cnn.com/2021/09/28/politics/obama-presidential-library-groundbreaking/index.html

DeSantis announces lawsuit against Biden administration over immigration policy

The Department of Homeland Security, Customs and Border Protection, and Immigration and Customs Enforcement are among the defendants named in the complaint. The ...

source https://www.cnn.com/2021/09/28/politics/florida-lawsuit-biden-administration-immigration/index.html

Democrats agonize over debt limit options amid GOP blockade

Democratic leaders keep ruling out what may be the only way to avoid a debt default, leaving lawmakers and financial markets uncertain of how a dramatic ...

source https://www.politico.com/news/2021/09/28/biden-debt-ceiling-strategy-514469

Tuesday, 28 September 2021

Five takeaways from senior military leaders' testimony on Afghanistan

(CNN) Top military officials warned Tuesday that the war in Afghanistan and the war on terror are not over, even if the US military no longer maintains ...

source https://www.cnn.com/2021/09/28/politics/five-takeaways-senate-afghanistan/index.html

The US debt ceiling: What it is and what happens if Congress doesn't raise it

The US government has never defaulted on its debts -- but actions by Senate Republicans are threatening to shatter the nation's financial track record.

source https://www.cnet.com/personal-finance/us-debt-ceiling-what-it-is-and-what-happens-if-congress-doesnt-raise-it/

Biden canceling Chicago trip as his legislative agenda hangs in the balance

(CNN) President Joe Biden is canceling plans to travel to Chicago on Wednesday in order to continue leading crucial negotiations in Washington over his ...

source https://www.cnn.com/2021/09/28/politics/joe-biden-chicago-trip/index.html

4WARN Forecast: Warm End to September

Pleasant and mild weather is expected tonight, with only isolated patches of valley fog forming. By morning, temperatures will generally be in the low 60s.

source https://www.wsmv.com/weather/4warn-forecast-warm-end-to-september/article_4b8f4552-2070-11ec-b292-63cbb3512e6a.html

Wake Students participate in National Voter Registration Day today

Wake Forest named to Washington Monthly's list of Best Colleges for Student Voting · Deacs Decide is a campus-wide effort focused on election issues and voting ...

source https://news.wfu.edu/2021/09/28/wake-students-participate-in-national-voter-registration-day-today/

Netflix acquires Oxenfree developer Night School Studio

Night School Studio, the developer behind acclaimed narrative adventure Oxenfree and its highly anticipated sequel, has been acquired by Netflix.

Night School has, of course, gained a reputation for creating engaging, sharply written narrative adventures across the four games it's launched since its founding in 2014. After 2016's critically lauded Oxenfree, Night School released a well-received Mr. Robot tie-in, 1.51exfiltrati0n, followed by pub-crawl-through-hell adventure Afterparty and the Apple-exclusive space escapade Next Stop Nowhere. More recently, the studio confirmed it's working on an Oxenfree sequel, Lost Signals, for release next year.

Microsoft says it will soon allow third-party storefront apps, including those of Amazon and Epic Games, to be discoverable via is Windows store.

"Just like any other app," Microsoft writes in a post announcing the new measures, "third-party storefront apps will have a product detail page that can be found via search or by browsing - so that users can easily find and install it with the same confidence as any other app in the Microsoft Store on Windows."

What The Government Shutdown Means For You

Here's what you need to know. Debt Ceiling and Government Shutdown. It's possible that the federal government may shut down — at least temporarily. Democrats in ...

source https://www.forbes.com/sites/zackfriedman/2021/09/28/what-the-debt-ceiling-and-government-shutdown-really-means/

Greg Abbott Is Suddenly Bending Over Backward to Find 2020 Election Fraud

Abbott's office says it has been reviewing votes in certain Texas counties “for months.” But others say the “mad dash” only started after Donald Trump demanded ...

source https://www.vanityfair.com/news/2021/09/greg-abbott-is-suddenly-bending-over-backward-to-find-2020-election-fraud

Milley defends Trump-era calls to Chinese counterpart in congressional Afghanistan hearing

(CNN) Top US General Mark Milley offered a full-throated defense of his behavior during the last days of the Trump administration, including a phone ...

source https://www.cnn.com/2021/09/28/politics/afghanistan-hearing-milley-austin-mckenzie/index.html

Man who killed 5 in Capital Gazette shooting gets multiple life sentences

Jarrod Ramos was sentenced to five life sentences without parole, plus one life sentence, plus 345 years, according to Anne Arundel County State's Attorney ...

source https://www.cnn.com/2021/09/28/us/maryland-capital-gazette-shooting-jarrod-ramos/index.html

Supreme Court Justice Samuel Alito to speak at Notre Dame on Thursday; how to get tickets

Justice Samuel Alito will speak at 12:30 p.m. Thursday at in the McCartan Courtroom at the Notre Dame Law School. His talk is entitled "The Emergency Docket.".

source https://www.southbendtribune.com/story/news/2021/09/28/supreme-court-justice-samuel-alito-speak-notre-dame-week/5901496001/

State of the City 2021

Dear Mayor Gaylor Baird,. The purpose of this letter is to commend you on your caring and compassionate citizens of Lincoln. While on our road trip from ...

source https://www.lincoln.ne.gov/City/Mayor/State-of-the-City

Netflix launches three more mobile games for subscribers in Poland, Italy, and Spain

Netflix's fledging foray into video gaming continues today as the streaming service launches three new games for subscribers in select European territories.

Back in July, Netflix confirmed it was "in the early stages" of expanding into games and that it would initially focus on mobile titles. The first fruits of its labours emerged in August, when it added a tiny handful of mobile games to its entertainment library - Stranger Things: 1984 and Stranger Things 3 - as part of an early Poland-exclusive test.

Gunman in Capital Gazette Shooting Is Sentenced to Multiple Life Terms

Jarrod W. Ramos had pleaded guilty to murder charges in one of the deadliest attacks on American journalists. In July, a jury found him criminally responsible ...

source https://www.nytimes.com/2021/09/28/us/jarrod-ramos-capital-gazette.html

Getting A Religious Exemption To A Vaccine Mandate May Not Be Easy. Here's Why

More and more employers are ordering workers to get vaccinated against COVID-19 without the option of getting tested instead. Now workers are pushing back.

source https://www.npr.org/2021/09/28/1041017591/getting-a-religious-exemption-to-a-vaccine-mandate-may-not-be-easy-heres-whyf

$23.3M in City Housing Support to Create and Preserve Affordability, Homeownership Opportunities

Charlotte City Council-approved Housing Trust Fund dollars will help preserve naturally occurring affordable housing, create homeownership opportunities ...

source https://charlottenc.gov/newsroom/cityhighlights/Pages/23_3M-HTF-Investment.aspx

Support Eurogamer to view the site ad-free - and much more

It's a big day! We've just opened a supporter program for Eurogamer, enabling readers - for the first time in the site's 22-year history - to pay to read the site without ads and with many other benefits, including exclusive articles.

Subscriptions come in two tiers: Standard, priced at £3.99 / $4.99 per month, and Premium, which costs £5.99 / $7.99. You can save by buying yearly subscriptions.

Disco Elysium comes out on Xbox alongside Nintendo Switch on 12th October, ZA/UM has confirmed.

Disco Elysium - The Final Cut launches on Xbox Series X and S and Xbox One on 12th October as a download, with a physical edition set for 9th November. It costs £34.99 from the Microsoft Store.

Universal Studios Japan's Super Nintendo World will be expanded with a huge new Donkey Kong-themed area, due in 2024.

The DK-themed land will boost the overall size of Universal Studios' Nintendo park by 70 per cent and include a new roller coaster among other attractions.

The PlayStation 5 is the fastest-selling PlayStation console in UK history with over 1m sold.

GamesIndustry.biz reports Sony's console shot through the 1m sold mark in August, just 39 weeks after launch - and three weeks faster than the PlayStation 4.

UPDATE 28/9/21: Disney Classic Games Collection developer Nighthawk Interactive has now confirmed a $10 (£UK TBA) upgrade path for owners of the previous Aladdin/Lion King collection. This will unlock the new additions of The Jungle Book and extra versions of both The Lion King and Aladdin - see below for the full list of included contents.

ORIGINAL STORY 23/9/21: Today brings a trailer for the Disney Classic Games Collection, which is set to release on Nintendo Switch, PC via Steam, PlayStation and Xbox this autumn.

Activision Blizzard has agreed to set aside $18m for employees who experienced harassment and discrimination at the company.

The fund's creation is part of a settlement between Activision Blizzard and the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, which we heard last week was one of a number of organisations currently investigating the company.

Black Friday is coming! If you're looking to supercharge your computing and storage power then we've rounded up the best discounts on the most powerful SSDs all right here.

We've got all-rounders like the Samsung 970 Evo Plus, great for giving gaming PCs that extra boost, plus punchy portables such as the Crucial X8. No matter what you're looking for, we've got you covered on the very best deals - all-time-low prices from SATA to NVMe to External SSDs, in the UK and across the pond in the US. We'll also be highlighting deals on PS5 compatible SSDs including the Samsung 980 Pro, WD SN850 and more

343 has made Halo Infinite's next multiplayer preview available to everyone on Xbox.

The build for this weekend's technical preview is available to download via the Xbox Insider Hub now - but you don't have to be a Halo Insider to get in on the action, 343 said.

EA has pulled Man City's suspended defender Benjamin Mendy from FIFA 22 while he is awaiting trial.

Earlier this month, Mendy appeared in court charged with four counts of rape and one count of sexual assault.

Dems may drop debt fight to avoid shutdown

Senate Republicans sank Democrats' plans to fund the government and raise the debt ceiling together on Monday evening, sending Democratic leaders scrambling to ...

source https://www.politico.com/news/2021/09/27/republicans-block-bill-shutdown-debt-ceiling-514405

Rep. Karen Bass Launches Campaign To Be The Next Mayor Of Los Angeles

In a statement announcing the 2022 mayoral bid, the Los Angeles native said she'll be focused on improving a series of crises facing the region. "Our city is ...

source https://www.npr.org/2021/09/27/1040906831/rep-karen-bass-launches-campaign-to-be-the-next-mayor-of-los-angeles

Navigate an arcane world in Potion Craft: Alchemist Simulator

Bertie: Do you remember the first time you realised magical potions weren't real? I was so surprised I had to take yesterday off work!

I believe potions are a staple of any fantasy game experience. Try thinking of one without them - I can't (don't think too hard just in case you do). Find a potion and you know exactly what experience you're in for. But how much time do you spend actually thinking about them, about their composition, about their cost? I don't expect it matters to you as long as you've got some healing potions sloshing around in your bag. How arrogant of you. Don't you ever stop to think about the stresses and strains of being the potion seller in town?

Now you can, in Potion Craft: Alchemist Simulator, a game about being the alchemist in town, and running your own shop. Every day, a collection of fantasy characters pop in hoping to find a concoction to help them out. Oh dear they've hurt their foot - I don't suppose you've got something to heal it? And oh gosh, rats - have you got any poison back there?

Cambria receives vets trust allocation

EBENSBURG — The Pennsylvania Veterans Trust Fund is awarding the Cambria County Office of Veterans Affairs $17,400 to help with the digitization of ...

source https://www.altoonamirror.com/news/local-news/2021/09/cambria-receives-vets-trust-allocation/

Canada and China in heated spat at UN over allegations of hostage diplomacy

United Nations (CNN) A heated back-and-forth between China and Canada kicked off in the final hours of the UN General Assembly Monday, after Canadian ...

source https://www.cnn.com/2021/09/27/world/canada-china-un-kovrig-spavor-intl-hnk/index.html

Liz Cheney's 60 Minutes Interview Shows She Still Won't Acknowledge the Truth About the Republican Party

Liz Cheney deserves credit for standing firm against Donald Trump. A staunch conservative from one of the country's most prominent Republican families, ...

source https://www.vanityfair.com/news/2021/09/liz-cheney-60-minutes-interview-shows-she-still-wont-acknowledge-the-truth-about-republican-party

Monday, 27 September 2021

Twitch reportedly launching new security tools to combat hate raiding

Twitch is reportedly preparing to introduce a range of new features designed to help tackle the increasingly prevalent phenomenon of hate raiding, including the ability for streamers to restrict chat commenting to those users whose accounts have been through phone verification.

Twitch's controversial raid feature was originally designed as a positive community tool that would enable streamers to redirect all viewers currently watching their broadcast to a target channel as an "easy way to share audiences". However, malicious users quickly began exploiting the feature, setting up dummy accounts and bots to flood the chats of often marginalised streamers and subject them to doxing, harassment, and attack.

Despite Twitch conceding it needed to "do more to address these issues", many streamers were unhappy with what they saw as a continued lack of meaningful response from the company, leading to a successful 24-hour protest last month. Now, however, Twitch is reportedly readying to roll out new security features designed to combat hate raiding.

Syracuse Mayor Walsh plans to see conditions firsthand at Van Duyn Nursing Home

Van Duyn Nursing Home administrators have invited Syracuse Mayor Ben Walsh and other officials to tour the nursing home to address concerns raised by ...

source https://www.syracuse.com/health/2021/09/syracuse-mayor-walsh-plans-to-see-conditions-firsthand-at-van-duyn-nursing-home.html

New York faces a showdown over vaccine mandates in schools, courts and health care

(CNN) Monday is the deadline for tens of thousands of New York workers to be vaccinated against Covid-19. Court orders, though, have thrown that deadline ...

source https://www.cnn.com/2021/09/27/us/new-york-vaccine-mandate-explainer/index.html

Gov. Wolf and legislators applaud new bill to support small businesses

HARRISBURG, Pa. (WHTM) — Governor Tom Wolf is hailing proposed legislation that will help small, diverse and veteran-owned businesses continue to receive ...

source https://www.abc27.com/news/this-week-in-pennsylvania/pennsylvania-politics/gov-wolf-and-legislators-applaud-new-bill-to-support-small-businesses/

Pony Island dev's deck-building horror Inscryption gets October release date

Inscryption, the "dark and disturbing" deck-building horror game from Pony Island and The Hex developer Daniel Mullins, will be shuffling onto PC just in time for Halloween, on 19th October.

Described as blend of deck-building rogue-like, escape-room puzzler, and psychological horror, Inscryption - a much-expanded version of Mullins' game jam title Sacrifices Must Be Made - traps players in the cabin of a sadistic stranger known as Leshy, forcing them to play a mysterious game using cards acquired through "draft, surgery, and self-mutilation".

At its simplest, the goal is to play cards, each depicting a woodland animal, onto a board consisting of four columns by two rows - your cards are played on the nearest row while your opponent plays to the rear. Each card will attack and take damage from any adjacent enemy cards at the end of a turn, but if there's no card to block an incoming attack, players will take damage directly. Whoever damages their opponent enough will win the game.

House Democrats to huddle amid simmering tensions over Biden's big economic agenda

Pelosi is trying to navigate her caucus through crucial decisions this week on taxes and spending. Listen to article. 3 min.

source https://www.washingtonpost.com/us-policy/2021/09/27/house-democrats-infrastructure-reconciliation/

Justice Department agrees to drop release restrictions for Reagan shooter John Hinckley Jr.

The deal would grant him "unconditional release," without restrictions on his movements or Internet activity, and would go into effect in June, his lawyer said ...

source https://www.cnn.com/2021/09/27/politics/john-hinckley-jr-reagan/index.html

Liz Cheney rebukes Republican critics: Trump 'doesn't believe in the rule of law'

"Those who think that by ignoring Trump, he will go away, have been proven wrong," Cheney told CBS News' "60 Minutes" in an interview that aired Sunday. "And ...

source https://www.cnn.com/2021/09/26/politics/liz-cheney-donald-trump-january-6/index.html

John Hinckley, Who Shot President Reagan, Wins Unconditional Release

A federal judge has approved the unconditional release next year of John Hinckley Jr., who wounded President Ronald Reagan and three others outside a ...

source https://www.npr.org/2021/09/27/1040872498/john-hinckley-unconditional-release

What Liz Cheney gets exactly right about Donald Trump -- and her party

(CNN) No matter what you think of Wyoming Rep. Liz Cheney, she spoke a truth that her fellow Republicans need to hear on Sunday.

source https://www.cnn.com/2021/09/27/politics/liz-cheney-donald-trump-rule-of-law/index.html

DF Weekly talks Nintendo Direct - and Sony has fixed PS4 CBOMB

Digital Foundry Direct Weekly takes on a retro-heavy theme this week as DFR mastermind John Linneman is joined by collaborator Audi Sorlie with special guest Coury Carlson - be sure to check out his amazing retro work on the My Life in Gaming YouTube channel. While a mighty chunk of this week's offering covers off the recent Nintendo Direct, elsewhere it's all about (or closely associated with) legacy gaming and preservation.

That starts with the thorny topic of the PlayStation 4's so-called CBOMB issue - a hot topic for those interested in games preservation. Essentially, the internal battery on the PS4 will eventually expire, taking with it the ability to play games but only if the console is unable to access a Sony server to validate the current date and time. This is obviously not an issue in the here and now, since Sony's servers are fully armed and operational - but what about in ten years' time? What about decades later? CBOMB didn't just impact digital purchases, but even physical releases too. The news this week is that Sony has fixed this issue with its recent firmware 9.0.

Beyond that, there are promising signs that Marvel vs Capcom 2 and Namco's classic Klonoa franchise may be resurfacing - but what does it actually mean? Meanwhile, the team report on news of an English translation for the JP-only Beavis and Butthead in Virtual Stupidity, while discussing the legacy of artist Mick McGinty.

Missed deadlines, GOP blockades and the week that makes or breaks Biden and Democrats

Every piece of Biden's agenda is on the line this week. The vote on his $1.2 trillion Senate-passed infrastructure bill has been delayed to Thursday. The policy ...

source https://www.cnn.com/2021/09/27/politics/state-of-play-biden-democrats-agenda/index.html

What China's coal phaseout means for the world

It took just one man — Chinese President Xi Jinping — to sound the death knell for the public funding of coal. But the countries that have most depended on ...

source https://www.eenews.net/articles/what-chinas-coal-phaseout-means-for-the-world/

PlayStation says it knows there's still many PS5 features to add

September's big PlayStation 5 system update brought several long-awaited new features to Sony's console. But PlayStation says it's aware it has a way to go before every feature fans want is included.

Speaking to the PlayStation blog, Sony's Hideaki Nishino, senior vice president of platform experience, said the company had compiled a "gigantic list of things" from before the PS5 launch it had wanted to do.

"There are interesting, exciting, fantastic ideas on the list," Nishino said. "At the same time, we launched PS5. So, we are receiving a bunch of feedback from the community through social networks or system telemetry, as well as the media, my family, my friends. We have tons of lists of the feedback."

Halo Infinite's latest technical preview took place over the weekend, and of course the dataminers had a field day.

Those willing to dig into what Halo Infinite, which was playable on PC as well as Xbox, has to offer unearthed everything from strange helmet attachments to memes.

Redditor marcopolo444 posted links to a long list of images hosted on Imgr showing stuff that wasn't available in the technical preview, such as a red nose reindeer helmet attachment clearly set to launch this Christmas.

When you've been waiting some 15 years for a game, I think it's probably fair to express a little bit of trepidation going in. Metroid Dread was first conceived as a Nintendo DS sequel to Metroid Fusion, back at a time when not only had the series served up a 2D offering that could stand shoulder-to-shoulder with Super Metroid, but we were also in the midst of the brilliance of the Prime series. Whatever your take on the likes of Metroid: Other M, Federation Force or Samus Returns, it's fair to say that the series has been far from its prime ever since.

You can forgive long-time Metroid fans going into the first original game since 2010's somewhat divisive Other M for having some nerves, then. But, after a couple of hours with the opening of Metroid Dread, I have wonderful news. This one looks set to be the real deal - a classic 2D Metroid, delivered with some serious production values and all the polish you'd hope for from a game that's helping launch Nintendo's latest Switch hardware, next month's OLED refresh.

Set shortly after the events of Fusion, Dread sees Samus once again responding to a mysterious signal beckoning her down to a hostile planet surface in her latest attempt to wipe out the X parasites. And, once again, events conspire to strip her of all her abilities - this time by way of a powerful figure donned in Chozo armour you encounter on the surface of planet ZDR, who subsequently defeats Samus in what leads to a bout of 'physical amnesia'. The result is Samus waking up groggy-headed and effectively empty-handed deep in the bowels of the planet, tasked with working her way up to her ship that's waiting abandoned on the surface as she rediscovers her old powers and a few new ones besides - a sort of neat reversal of Super Metroid's adventure which had you burrowing down into the planet Zebes.

Capcom classic Resident Evil 4 will be relaunched in its new VR version on 21st October.

For now at least, it's an Oculus Quest 2 exclusive.

A fresh trailer shared by Oculus today shows off the work of Recore studio Armature, which has converted the aging survival horror into a virtual reality experience.

No game pulls off the feeling of stabbing a zombie in the head quite as well as The Walking Dead: Saints & Sinners. Somehow developers Skydance have managed to conjure up an incredibly real sense of impact, literally out of thin air.

You can really feel the zombie's head crack as you plunge your blade into it, and the way the skull clamps onto the knife blade after the fact requiring you to tear it free with all your might? Well that creates a sense of immersion that's pretty much absent from any other VR game I've played.

This is just one of the many reasons why I proclaimed The Walking Dead: Saints and Sinners to be the best PSVR game released in 2020, but with last week's release of the free Aftershocks expansion there's never been a better time to give it a try. Or in my case, return to the game after a fair few months away.

I know 343 has done something right with Halo Infinite multiplayer because I was still playing at 4am this morning.

Over the weekend, 343 held limited-time matchmaking sessions for 4v4 arena. These included just a few core multiplayer modes (Slayer, Strongholds and Capture the Flag) on just a few maps (Live Fire, Recharge, Bazaar and, for Sunday only, Behemoth), but it was enough for me to come away convinced Halo Infinite's multiplayer could be something special.

A lot of it has to do with rekindling that classic Halo multiplayer feel. What is video game fun? It's hard to pin down, but during Halo's heyday it could be summed up by the "golden triangle" design. This is Halo's combat, crystallised: shoot, grenade, melee - each method of damage-dealing playing its part in the eternal Spartan dance.

Expect to see plenty more from the world of The Witcher on Netflix in the coming years - including a mysterious family-orientated spin-off.

This weekend's Netflix Tudum event, a Nintendo Direct-style announcements livestream, included confirmation of a third season of The Witcher (the second starts airing this December), plus a sneak peek of the upcoming spin-off series Blood Origin, which you can watch below.

Next, The Witcher showrunner Lauren Schmidt Hissrich popped up to confirm two further projects - a second anime film, following this summer's Nightmare of the Wolf, and a Witcher show for kids.

Congress Faces A Week of Critical Deadlines

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., has promised that the House will vote on the bipartisan bill this week and insists the government will not shutdown. "Let ...

source https://www.npr.org/2021/09/27/1040509243/congress-faces-a-week-of-critical-deadlines

Best SSD for PS5 2021

As of September 2021, Sony has finally added the ability to install your own SSD to expand the storage of your PS5. This was previously only possible with a beta firmware, released in July, when Sony also confirmed the strict requirements for PS5 SSDs. Before this, only external drives could be used on the PS5, and these were limited to playing last-gen games. Now, it's easy to add gigabytes or even terabytes of storage for PS5 games in just a few minutes - and this article shows you how.

This explainer is necessary because, unlike Microsoft, Sony isn't making its own official drives in a unique form factor. Instead, standard PC NVMe SSD drives from a wide range of manufacturers will work - as long as the drive is fast enough and physically fits inside the PS5. This should make upgrading your storage cheaper in the long run, but the requirements are a little complicated - so we've prepared this blog to recommend the best SSDs for the PS5. We've also covered the best PS5-compatible heatsinks, dug into the requirements in more detail and answered your questions - all accessible via the quick links below.

Before we get into the PS5 SSD recommendations, let's take a look at the requirements. First of all, only the fastest solid state drives are officially recommended: NVMe PCIe 4.0 SSDs with a sequential read speed of 5500MB/s or faster. (Drives this fast have only been available since last autumn.) These drives use a compact M.2 form factor and measure 22mm across, and can be anywhere from 30mm to 110mm long (most consumer drives are 80mm long, a form factor also known as 2280). So far, all pretty straightforward - but the tricky part is yet to come.

Naughty Dog has given a brief update on its upcoming multiplayer project, two years to the day since it confirmed The Last of Us Part 2's multiplayer mode was no longer part of the main game.

"In short, we're working on it," the studio's senior communications manager Rochelle Snyder wrote yesterday in a blog post for the franchise's annual The Last of Us Day. "We see the community comments as many of you clamor for multiplayer and want updates. For now, we'll say that we love what the team is developing and want to give them time to build out their ambitious project, we'll reveal more when it's ready!

"To that end, we've been busy growing our team inside the kennel since The Last of Us Part 2 launched and are currently in full swing of hiring for MP-related positions (hint hint), so if you or somebody you know qualifies for anything you see on our jobs page, apply!"

Naughty Dog has released the first official photo from the set of HBO's upcoming The Last of Us, showing Joel and Ellie in costume.

Fans of the series will immediately recognise the duo - even if the photo doesn't show their faces - dressed in their familiar outfits.

"When I first saw them on set in full costume, I was like: 'Hooooooly shit! It's Joel & Ellie! [Crying emoji]!'" Naughty Dog's Neil Druckmann wrote on Twitter.

Biden's multi-trillion bet to change America is in peril as Trump waits to pounce

(CNN) President Joe Biden's $4 trillion bid to change America is in genuine danger as deep divides among Democrats threaten to gut his domestic agenda and ...

source https://www.cnn.com/2021/09/27/politics/biden-infrastructure-spending-bills-debt-ceiling-shutdown-democrats/index.html

FIFA 22 review: morally bankrupt monetisation lets the side down once again

I'd say I sound like a broken record but at this point I may as well chuck out the record player. FIFA 22 is a game with plenty of solid improvements, but it is - once again! - let down by morally bankrupt monetisation.

I'm going to start with the good news because I like to kick things off with a positive. FIFA 22's gameplay is a crowd pleaser. It's slightly slower, more considered, with less emphasis on ridiculous skills and more emphasis on passing. It is a reaction to FIFA 21's high-scoring fun, which by the end of that game's life had become something of a joke within the hardcore FIFA community. FIFA 22, then, plays harder.

That is to say, it's harder to score and harder to win for a raft of reasons. The goalkeepers are much improved. In one-on-one situations they're all prime Buffons, with an annoying habit of getting a hand to shots from inside the box that would almost always go in in last year's game. There are some new animations for the keepers and you'll see them quite often. They'll reach across with their strong arm to save shots now, and pat strong shots to the ground before gobbling up the ball. Defenders with low pace are more viable because they have a habit of blocking shots and passes in the final third. They feel stronger, too.

Pelosi sets infrastructure vote as Dem leaders struggle to unify caucus

Speaker Nancy Pelosi on Sunday announced the House will vote Thursday on President Joe Biden's infrastructure bill, as Democratic leaders race to unify ...

source https://www.politico.com/news/2021/09/26/nancy-pelosi-vote-infrastructure-514321

Freed from Canada, Huawei executive Meng Wanzhou hailed as hero upon return to China

Hong Kong (CNN) Huawei executive Meng Wanzhou, who spent nearly three years in house arrest in Canada, returned home late Saturday, ending a prolonged ...

source https://www.cnn.com/2021/09/26/china/meng-wanzhou-china-arrival-intl-hnk/index.html

Marvel's Avengers' Spider-Man will have his own story and cutscenes

Marvel's Avengers developer Crystal Dynamics has confirmed that long-awaited roster addition, Spider-Man - who will only be available on PlayStation consoles - will "for sure" have his own story mission and cutscenes.

It should be good news to fans of the action-adventure game who have seen little about Spidey's pending arrival up until this point, even though he's expected to release by the end of the year.

As spotted by MP1st (thanks, TheGamer), Crystal Dynamics' Dan Matlack responded to a question on the game's Discord server that enquired whether or not Spider-Man would have his own story.

CASEY: Predict the number of votes Glenn Youngkin will garner in Roanoke

Democratic gubernatorial candidate and former Governor Terry McAuliffe, left, gestures as Republican Glenn Youngkin listens during a debate in Grundy on Sept.

source https://roanoke.com/news/local/govt-and-politics/casey-predict-the-number-of-votes-glenn-youngkin-will-garner-in-roanoke/article_acca4a06-1d7d-11ec-8a74-bf493fdfd45d.html

Knockout City's season 3 "Hacked" introduces a new map and battle pass

Knockout City's third season, Hacked, will drop on 5th October, 2021, complete with hacking, motorbikes, a battle pass, and a brand new map, too.

"Season 3 is just a short way away, and we've got a lot to cover with everything that's goin' on around here," developer Velan teased in an update on the official EA website.

"Speaking of, it's a little... different out there. Seems like the DJ isn't the only one who's been paying attention to what's going on in Knockout City - looks like we got an extra visitor here with us. Keeps poppin' in and lookin' around, calls themself Z3R0. Not sure how they got here, but pretty sure it's got something to do with this Season's theme. They've taken over the airwaves and it sounds like they're here to stay."

Double Fine has revealed what happened to Ford Cruller at the end of the original Psychonauts game.

While initially shared only with the game's crowdfunding Fig backers a month ago alongside the sequel's highly-anticipated release, the video is now available to all via the studio's website.

Yes, there are spoilers - so be wary if you've yet to play the first instalment - but as spotted by PCGN, the three minute teaser video explores what happened to ex-Psychonaut - and mentor - Cruller immediately after the credits on the first game rolled.

Oh look, the PS Plus free game line-up has leaked again. Rumour has it the upcoming freebies will include Hell Let Loose for PS5, and Mortal Kombat X and PGA Tour 2K21 for PS4.

The information once again comes courtesy of French forum Dealabs, which correctly posted September's offerings before they'd been formally confirmed by Sony last month. And once again, the moderation team says it satisfactorily reviewed evidence of the leak in order to let the post remain online (thanks, VGC).

Hell Let Loose - a multiplayer tactical first-person shooter video game that sees players fight in battles of the Western and Eastern Fronts of World War 2 - has been out on PC since the summer, but isn't coming to consoles until next month.

The second season of Netflix's The Witcher show might not have been released yet, but that hasn't stopped Netflix from announcing a third series.

Showrunner Lauren Hissrich confirmed the news by tweeting, "Season Three. Let's do this, baby" and including the updated animated logo for the next season.

We also got three new teasers for the upcoming second series, too; check out the "Road to Season 2" trailer above, which summarises what's happened in the show thus far, whereas below, you can get a first look at Geralt and Ciri in the second season, as well as another "first look" at Nivellen.

Anti-cheat software BattlEye and Easy Anti-Cheat have confirmed they will support Valve's handheld Steam Deck.

BattlEye - which is used in games like Destiny 2, Rainbow Six Siege, and PUBG - announced that as well as running on Linux and MacOS, it also supports Wine and Proton, the latter of which is used in Steam's upcoming handheld device.

"BattlEye has provided native Linux and Mac support for a long time and we can announce that we will also support the upcoming Steam Deck (Proton)," BattlEye announced on Twitter (thanks, PC Gamer). "This will be done on an opt-in basis with game developers choosing whether they want to allow it or not."

SUV containing body believed to be Nadine Moses found in St. Clair River

The mystery over the disappearance of an 84-year-old St. Clair County woman may have come to an end with the discovery of a vehicle containing a body from ...

source https://www.macombdaily.com/2021/09/25/suv-containing-body-believed-to-be-nadine-moses-found-in-st-clair-river/

Saturday, 25 September 2021

Alaskan Hospitals Are In Crisis As The State Deals With A COVID Surge

NPR's Scott Simon speaks with Anne Zink, Chief Medical Officer for the State of Alaska, about how the state's hospitals are dealing with the current surge ...

source https://www.npr.org/2021/09/25/1040669110/alaskan-hospitals-are-in-crisis-as-the-state-deals-with-a-covid-surge

Migration will continue as long as inequality persists, says Haiti's prime minister as Del Rio bridge crisis ends

Addressing the border crisis before the UN General Assembly on Saturday, Henry pointedly reminded the world that "many countries which are prosperous today have ...

source https://www.cnn.com/2021/09/25/americas/ariel-henry-claude-joseph-haiti-chile-brazil-migrants-intl-latam/index.html

Elder energizes California GOP but steers party against the tide

OAKLAND — California voters' staggering rejection of the Gov. Gavin Newsom recall was bad enough for the state's Republicans. Now the party has to navigate ...

source https://www.politico.com/states/california/story/2021/09/24/elder-energizes-california-gop-but-steers-party-against-the-tide-1391295

Friday, 24 September 2021

US-India Joint Leaders' Statement: A Partnership for Global Good

President Joseph R. Biden welcomed Prime Minister Narendra Modi to the White House today for their first in-person Leaders' engagement, renewing their close ...

source https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefing-room/statements-releases/2021/09/24/u-s-india-joint-leaders-statement-a-partnership-for-global-good/

Covid-19 and schools: When do quarantines kick in for Onondaga County students?

Must an entire class be quarantined after a student or teacher tests positive for Covid? Does it matter if a student is vaccinated? Do kids get quarantined if ...

source https://www.syracuse.com/schools/2021/09/covid-19-and-schools-when-do-quarantines-kick-in-for-onondaga-county-students.html

Longest-serving UTEP president, 'beloved icon' Diana Natalicio dies at 82

Her brother, Bill Siedhoff, confirmed Natalicio's death in an email to ABC-7. He didn't indicate a cause of death. "My sister loved El Paso, and she chose to ...

source https://kvia.com/news/education/2021/09/24/longest-serving-utep-leader-diana-natalicio-dies-at-82/

When is the deadline for the fifth West Virginia 'Do it for Babydog Round 2' vaccine lottery?

Eligible West Virginians have until 11:59 p.m. on Sunday, September 26, 2021, for their names to be included in the Monday, September 27 drawing of the “Do it ...

source https://www.wowktv.com/community/do-it-for-babydog/when-is-the-deadline-for-the-fifth-west-virginia-do-it-for-babydog-round-2-vaccine-lottery/

A sun-sational first weekend of fall is on the way

But it looks like the third attempt at some nice fall weather was the charm, with abundant sunshine, comfortably mild highs around 70 degrees, and refreshingly ...

source https://www.wfmz.com/weather/a-sun-sational-first-weekend-of-fall-is-on-the-way/article_b21cbc64-1d69-11ec-acf0-836a814bf009.html

In-Depth: New projections show Lake Powell levels could threaten power generation in 2022

Glen Canyon Dam can generate 5 billion kilowatt-hours per year at full capacity, enough to run about 470,000 average American homes. But if it sinks below 3,490 ...

source https://www.fox13now.com/news/utah-drought/in-depth-new-projections-show-lake-powell-levels-could-threaten-power-generation-in-2022

The bedwetting phase

Welcome to POLITICO's West Wing Playbook, your guide to the people and power centers in the Biden administration. With Allie Bice.

source https://www.politico.com/newsletters/west-wing-playbook/2021/09/24/the-bedwetting-phase-494466

Biden appoints 6 to Arctic Research Commission

The appointees — Michael Sfraga, Elizabeth Ann Cravalho, David Michael Kennedy, Mark Myers, Jackie Richter-Menge and Deborah Vo — will join the independent ...

source https://www.eenews.net/articles/biden-appoints-6-to-arctic-research-commission/

4WARN Forecast: Beautiful Fall Weekend!

A weak cold front will pass through Middle Tennessee tomorrow afternoon and help to mix in a few more clouds during the day. A shower cannot be totally ruled ...

source https://www.wsmv.com/weather/4warn-forecast-beautiful-fall-weekend/article_8cbfaad2-1d71-11ec-a7fd-3b3fb4091e58.html

100-year-old park ranger Betty Reid Soskin feted by national media, honored by WCCUSD

Soskin has been an activist in the Bay Area and a park ranger in Richmond for many years and shows no sign of slowing down. She's familiar to West Contra Costa ...

source https://richmondconfidential.org/2021/09/24/richmond-betty-soskin-100-ranger/

Officials: All migrants are gone from Texas border camp

Many face expulsion because they are not covered by protections recently extended by the Biden administration to the more than 100,000 Haitian migrants already ...

source https://www.politico.com/news/2021/09/24/migrants-gone-texas-border-camp-514198

The cause of our food and petrol shortages is Brexit – yet no one dares name it

Of course, it's not the sole explanation. Britain would have been more exposed than our continental neighbours to the gas shortage even if we'd stayed in the EU ...

source https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2021/sep/24/food-petrol-shortages-brexit-goods-johnson-botched-deal

Texas county officials call election audits an unnecessary partisan ploy while voicing confidence in 2020 results

Officials in some counties targeted by audits accuse Republican Texas leaders of pandering to conspiracy theorists and undermining faith in elections.

source https://www.texastribune.org/2021/09/24/texas-election-audits-county-officials/

Congress Is Seeking (Its Own) Permission To Borrow Another Trillion Or Two

Now, with the federal government bumping up against the limit once again, Senate Republicans are setting up a showdown. They know a debt ceiling bill will need ...

source https://www.npr.org/2021/09/24/1031701538/congress-debt-ceiling-explainer

First woman selected chief of Oklahoma higher education

Allison Garrett, the president of Emporia State University, will succeed longtime Chancellor Glen D. Johnson as the head of the Oklahoma State System of Higher ...

source https://www.oklahoman.com/story/news/education/2021/09/24/allison-garrett-emporia-oklahoma-board-regents-university-higher-education-chancellor/5831217001/

Crisis of Haitian migrants exposes rifts for Biden on immigration

(CNN) When members of the Congressional Black Caucus arrived to Vice President Kamala Harris' residence this week for an event marking the group's 50th ...

source https://www.cnn.com/2021/09/24/politics/biden-harris-texas-migrants/index.html

She became a park ranger at 85 to tell her story of segregation. Now 100, she's the oldest active ranger.

When asked how it feels to be 100 years old, Betty Reid Soskin gave a subtle shrug, smiled and said: “The same way I felt at 99.”.

source https://www.washingtonpost.com/lifestyle/2021/09/24/betty-soskin-park-ranger-100/

Acclaimed board game Gloomhaven's digital adaptation leaves early access next month

Asmodee Digital's video game adaptation of acclaimed co-op board game Gloomhaven is, after more than two years in Steam Early Access, getting its version 1.0 release on 20th October.

The original board game iteration of Gloomhaven, designed by Isaac Childres, is a sprawling, turn-based tactical dungeon crawler set in a persistent fantasy world that's packed with characters, items, and scenarios, all gradually unlocking over the course of a 100+ hour campaign. It's a thrilling, richly designed, and all-round fantastic RPG experience, and one that also happens to come in a box big enough to kill a man.

As such (plus the fact the original board game retails for around £100), the prospect of a cheaper, more manageable digital iteration of Gloomhaven is an enticing one indeed - and the good news is the PC release, developed by Flaming Fowl Studios, has been widely praised during early access. It isn't quite a 1:1 interpretation (which Flaming Fowl say is neither possible or desirable), but all differences have been discussed with Childres and the end result is a "very faithful adaptation of the original gameplay and design."

Thursday, 30 September 2021

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