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Twin Tiers Living

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  1. Quote

     

    More than a dozen years ago, Renee Sutton-Snyder was among a group of people pushing to create a public education alternative in the Elmira area, a free charter school that would become known as Finn Academy.

    Despite initial opposition from the Elmira City School District, which felt a charter school would draw students — and state funding — away from the district, Finn Academy was approved for a state-issued charter and officially opened its doors in September 2015 with 212 enrolled students.

    This year, Finn Academy, which had a 2024-25 school year enrollment of 410 students in kindergarten through 6th grade, is celebrating its 10th anniversary. It also hit another milestone — students from the very first class enrolled at the academy graduated in June from Elmira High School.

     

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  2. Quote

     

    WASHINGTON (AP) — The controversy over President Donald Trump ’s handling of records from the Jeffrey Epstein investigation entered a new dimension Thursday as his administration struggles to make good on its promises to release details on the sex trafficking case involving a one-time friend of the now-president.

    Trump promised a lawsuit after The Wall Street Journal described a sexually suggestive letter that the newspaper says bore Trump’s name and was included in a 2003 album for Epstein’s 50th birthday. Trump denied writing the letter, calling it “false, malicious, and defamatory.”

    It came after Trump in recent days has berated as “weaklings” supporters vying for more records from the Epstein probe, after years of courting political support from those who have stoked claims of a coverup in the case to protect wealthy friends of Epstein, who died by suicide in 2019 awaiting trial on federal charges of trafficking of underage girls.

     

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  3. Editors note: While we would typicall only share a portion of this article, we feel that our friends at WSKG would be grateful that we share it in its entirety in this case. 

    UPDATE July 18 12:35 a.m: The House narrowly passed the rescission request package in early hours of Friday morning. The bill now goes to President Trump for his signature.


    ****

    In the early hours of Thursday morning, the Senate narrowly passed President Trump’s rescission request package. It is now in front of the House of Representatives for final approval. 

    The proposal would claw back previously approved funding to the Department of State, the USAID, the United States Institute of Peace, as well as the Corporation for Public Broadcasting (CPB). 

    Twenty-one percent of WSKG’s annual budget—or $1.3 million—comes from the CPB. 

    WSKG News Managing Editor Phoebe Taylor-Vuolo spoke with WSKG CEO Natasha Thompson about the potential impact of federal funding cuts.

    *This transcript has been edited for clarity.

     

    Phoebe Taylor-Vuolo: We spoke about this back in early June, when President Trump had just sent the rescission request to Congress. 

    As this vote has gotten more and more imminent, can you tell our listeners about what WSKG, as a station, has been doing to prepare for these changes?

    Natasha Thompson: So there's the advocacy side of things and then there's just the budget side of things: really working to try to prepare the organization for a potential loss of 21 percent of our operating revenue, which is not insignificant.

    PTV: The Trump administration has said that CPB funding should be cut because of what he says is left-leaning political bias on the part of National Public Radio (NPR). 

    In the scheme of all of this, NPR gets just about 2 percent of this CPB funding, and it's small, local member stations like WSKG that will be most impacted by this particular cut. 

    Can you explain the relationship and the difference between NPR and NPR member stations for people who maybe hear the headlines, but don't quite understand how all of this works?

    NT: Ostensibly, the whole point of this rescission was, as you said, to kind of punish NPR and PBS—mostly NPR, I think—for being “left leaning.” But what's happening is that it's really stations like WSKG that are bearing the brunt of all this. And I think for the local stations, I mean, we pride ourselves on being objective and providing people with an objective source of local news, and it's just incredibly short sighted, I think, and unfair, really.

    PTV: What can listeners do to support WSKG and other member stations who are going through this right now?

    NT: Well, right now, we are pivoting to fundraising mode, and one of the things that we are looking to do is increase the number of sustaining members who are giving at a level of either $1 a day, so $365 a year, which seems very reasonable. If we are able to bring on 100 new members at 365, 250 is our goal, that would be huge for us.

    And so I think right now, that's what I would ask from our listeners, from people who understand the value of public media and the importance particularly now in this fractured media landscape.

    We are locally owned and operated. We answer to a board of trustees. We have a community advisory board. We're not-for-profit, we're not falling into a lot of the weird incentives that some commercial media entities fall into. We're not trying to ride the algorithm for clicks.

    So I do think that that's worth protecting, that's worth saving, it's worth strengthening. And so, if folks are out there who believe the same way as I do on this, and they haven't yet become a member of WSKG. I do think now is the perfect time to join and make your voice heard and help us get through this next phase.

    PTV: Natasha Thompson is the president and CEO of WSKG. Thank you so much for taking the time, Natasha.

    NT: Thanks, Phoebe.


  4. Quote

     

    Health insurance premiums are going way up next year for people who buy their insurance on Healthcare.gov or the state-based marketplaces, according to an analysis out Friday.

    The average person who buys Affordable Care Act insurance will be paying 75% more for their premium, according to the analysis from KFF, a nonpartisan health policy research group.

     

    Read more here


  5. file-20250708-56-kp16na.jpg?ixlib=rb-4.1

    Hate and mental illness fester online because love and healing seem to be incompatible with profits. Ihor Lukianenko/iStock via Getty Images

     

    by Aarushi Bhandari, Davidson College

    In 2001, social theorist bell hooks warned about the dangers of a loveless zeitgeist. In “All About Love: New Visions,” she lamented “the lack of an ongoing public discussion … about the practice of love in our culture and in our lives.”

    Back then, the internet was at a crossroads. The dot-com crash had bankrupted many early internet companies, and people wondered if the technology was long for this world.

    The doubts were unfounded. In only a few decades, the internet has merged with our bodies as smartphones and mined our personalities via algorithms that know us more intimately than some of our closest friends. It has even constructed a secondary social world.

    Yet as the internet has become more integrated in our daily lives, few would describe it as a place of love, compassion and cooperation. Study after study describe how social media platforms promote alienation and disconnection – in part because many algorithms reward behaviors like trolling, cyberbullying and outrage.

    Is the internet’s place in human history cemented as a harbinger of despair? Or is there still hope for an internet that supports collective flourishing?

    Algorithms and alienation

    I explore these questions in my new book, “Attention and Alienation.”

    In it, I explain how social media companies’ profits depend on users investing their time, creativity and emotions. Whether it’s spending hours filming content for TikTok or a few minutes crafting a thoughtful Reddit comment, participating on these platforms takes work. And it can be exhausting.

    Even passive engagement – like scrolling through feeds and “lurking” in forums – consumes time. It might feel like free entertainment – until people recognize they are the product, with their data being harvested and their emotions being manipulated.

    Blogger, journalist and science fiction writer Cory Doctorow coined the term “enshittification” to describe how experiences on online platforms gradually deteriorate as companies increasingly exploit users’ data and tweak their algorithms to maximize profits.

    For these reasons, much of people’s time spent online involves dealing with toxic interactions or mindlessly doomscrolling, immersed in dopamine-driven feedback loops.

    This cycle is neither an accident nor a novel insight. Hate and mental illness fester in this culture because love and healing seem to be incompatible with profits.

    Care hiding in plain sight

    In his 2009 book “Envisioning Real Utopias,” the late sociologist Erik Olin Wright discusses places in the world that prioritize cooperation, care and egalitarianism.

    Wright mainly focused on offline systems like worker-owned cooperatives. But one of his examples lived on the internet: Wikipedia. He argued that Wikipedia demonstrates the ethos “from each according to ability, to each according to need” – a utopian ideal popularized by Karl Marx.

    Wikipedia still thrives as a nonprofit, volunteer-ran bureaucracy. The website is a form of media that is deeply social, in the literal sense: People voluntarily curate and share knowledge, collectively and democratically, for free. Unlike social media, the rewards are only collective.

    There are no visible likes, comments or rage emojis for participants to hoard and chase. Nobody loses and everyone wins, including the vast majority of people who use Wikipedia without contributing work or money to keep it operational.

    Building a new digital world

    Wikipedia is evidence of care, cooperation and love hiding in plain sight.

    In recent years, there have been more efforts to create nonprofit apps and websites that are committed to protecting user data. Popular examples include Signal, a free and open source instant messaging service, and Proton Mail, an encrypted email service.

    These are all laudable developments. But how can the internet actively promote collective flourishing?

    An open laptop resting on green grass, surrounded by yellow and pink flowers.

    What if Wikipedia were less the exception, and more the norm? Andriy Onufriyenko/Moment via Getty Images

    In “Viral Justice: How We Grow the World We Want,” sociologist Ruha Benjamin points to a way forward. She tells the story of Black TikTok creators who led a successful cultural labor strike in 2021. Many viral TikTok dances had originally been created by Black artists, whose accounts, they claimed, were suppressed by a biased algorithm that favored white influencers.

    TikTok responded to the viral #BlackTikTokStrike movement by formally apologizing and making commitments to better represent and compensate the work of Black creators. These creators demonstrated how social media engagement is work – and that workers have the power to demand equitable conditions and fair pay.

    This landmark strike showed how anyone who uses social media companies that profit off the work, emotions and personal data of their users – whether it’s TikTok, X, Facebook, Instagram or Reddit – can become organized.

    Meanwhile, there are organizations devoted to designing an internet that promotes collective flourishing. Sociologist Firuzeh Shokooh Valle provides examples of worker-owned technology cooperatives in her 2023 book, “In Defense of Solidarity and Pleasure: Feminist Technopolitics in the Global South.” She highlights the Sulá Batsú co-op in Costa Rica, which promotes policies that seek to break the stranglehold that negativity and exploitation have over internet culture.

    “Digital spaces are increasingly powered by hate and discrimination,” the group writes, adding that it hopes to create an online world where “women and people of diverse sexualities and genders are able to access and enjoy a free and open internet to exercise agency and autonomy, build collective power, strengthen movements, and transform power relations.”

    In Los Angeles, there’s Chani, Inc., a technology company that describes itself as “proudly” not funded by venture capitalists. The Chani app blends mindfulness practices and astrology with the goal of simply helping people. The app is not designed for compulsive user engagement, the company never sells user data, and there are no comments sections.

    No comments

    What would social media look like if Wikipedia were the norm instead of an exception?

    To me, a big problem in internet culture is the way people’s humanity is obscured. People are free to speak their minds in text-based public discussion forums, but the words aren’t always attached to someone’s identity. Real people hide behind the anonymity of user names. It isn’t true human interaction.

    In “Attention and Alienation,” I argue that the ability to meet and interact with others online as fully realized, three-dimensional human beings would go a long way toward creating a more empathetic, cooperative internet.

    When I was 8 years old, my parents lived abroad for work. Sometimes we talked on the phone. Often I would cry late into the night, praying for the ability to “see them through the phone.” It felt like a miraculous possibility – like magic.

    I told this story to my students in a moment of shared vulnerability. This was in 2020 during the COVID-19 pandemic, so the class was taking place over videoconferencing. In these online classes, one person talked at a time. Others listened.

    It wasn’t perfect, but I think a better internet would promote this form of discussion – people getting together from across the world to share the fullness of their humanity.

    Efforts like Clubhouse have tapped into this vision by creating voice-based discussion forums. The company, however, has been criticized for predatory data privacy policies.

    What if the next iteration of public social media platforms could build on Clubhouse? What if they brought people together and showcased not just their voices, but also live video feeds of their faces without harvesting their data or promoting conflict and outrage?

    Raised eyebrows. Grins. Frowns. They’re what make humans distinct from increasingly sophisticated large language models and artificial intelligence chatbots like ChatGPT.

    After all, is anything you can’t say while looking at another human being in the eye worth saying in the first place?The Conversation

     

    Aarushi Bhandari is Assistant Professor of Sociology at Davidson College

    This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article.


  6. Quote

     

    CNN — President Donald Trump on Monday laid out a pair of steps intended to pressure Russia to end its war in Ukraine, including funneling new weapons to Kyiv and threatening economic punishment on Moscow if peace isn’t reached in 50 days, as he grows increasingly disenchanted with his Russian counterpart.

    Taken together, the moves amount to a markedly new approach to the conflict, which Trump has worked to distance himself from since taking office in January. Even as he delivered the announcement from the Oval Office, the president argued he wasn’t to blame for the prolonged war.

    Still, he appeared entirely fed up with Russian President Vladimir Putin. And he acknowledged American weaponry – however it is delivered – would be necessary if Kyiv is to stave off a full-bore invasion.

     

    Read more here.


  7. Quote

     

    A broken promise to release more information about the Jeffrey Epstein case has sparked outrage among some of President Donald Trump’s loyal supporters. 

    The Justice Department last week said Epstein, who was facing charges of sex trafficking, did not leave behind a “client list.” Attorney General Pam Bondi suggested in February it was on her desk, though she later said she was referring to the overall case file.

    Bondi also said officials were poring over a “truckload” of previously withheld evidence. The Justice Department concluded, however, that public disclosure would not be appropriate and that much of the material was placed under seal by a judge. That has angered right-wing influencers who were once bolstered by Trump’s own claims on this case, but are now feeling their demands are being squelched by his administration.

     

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  8. Quote

     

    The U.S. government said Monday it is immediately placing a 17% duty on most fresh Mexican tomatoes after negotiations ended without an agreement to avert the tariff.

    Proponents said the import tax will help rebuild the shrinking U.S. tomato industry and ensure that produce eaten in the U.S. is also grown there. Mexico currently suppliesaround 70% of the U.S. tomato market, up from 30% two decades ago, according to the Florida Tomato Exchange.

    Robert Guenther, the trade group’s executive vice president, said the duty was “an enormous victory for American tomato farmers and American agriculture.” 

    But opponents said the import tax will make tomatoes more expensive for U.S. consumers.

     

    Source


  9. The Chemung County Sheriff's Office announces the arrest of 36-year-old John C. Bowman of Lowman  for Grand Larceny in the Third Degree, a Class D Felony.

    According to Sheriff William Schrom, on May 7, 2025, the Chemung County Sheriff's Office Criminal Investigation Division was contacted by the Bradford County Sheriff's Office, in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, for assistance into a possible stolen fuel card from Moore Trucking that had been used in Chemung County.

    Screenshot 2025-07-14 at 2.22.27 PM.png

    As a result of the investigation, it was determined that Bowman, who had worked for Moore Trucking, had used the company fuel card to make numerous personal fuel purchases from July 2020 through May 2025, at multiple different locations throughout Chemung County.

    These fraudulent purchases had a total value of $15,778. BOWMAN was subsequently arrested and charged with Grand Larceny in the Third Degree.

    Bowman was arraigned in the Town of Horseheads Court and released. He is set to appear in the Town of Big Flats Court at a later date.


  10. Quote

    The Buffalo Bills open training camp in less than three weeks at St. John Fisher University.

    The team returns intact primarily after a run to the AFC title game in 2024. Bills general manager Brandon Beane reshaped the defensive line with several moves in free agency and the NFL Draft. The offense features a few new faces but will primarily rely on familiar ones, led by reigning NFL MVP quarterback Josh Allen.

    What should fans expect when the Bills roll out the footballs for camp?

    We’re predicting the biggest storylines of the summer by making a few big, bold predictions for training camp. Please let us know your thoughts on our predictions and share any additional insights you may have.

    Check it out at https://www.newyorkupstate.com/buffalo-bills/2025/07/buffalo-bills-bold-training-camp-predictions.html

    And don't forget, if you're a Bills fan we have a "Bills Mafia" group on iElmira.com!

    • Like 1

  11. file-20250701-68-ry6tkp.jpg?ixlib=rb-4.1

    Migraines can be debilitating – and frustrating when triggered by weather you can’t control. fizkes/iStock/Getty Images Plus

     

    by Danielle Wilhour, University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus

    “Is it just me, or is there a storm coming?”

    If you are one of the 39 million Americans in the U.S. living with migraines, there’s a good chance an intense headache will begin when the weather shifts.

    You aren’t alone. Studies find 30% to 50% of people with migraines identify some type of weather change as a trigger, making it the most commonly reported migraine source.

    Yet, it’s also one of the most puzzling.

    Some people are more sensitive to weather

    As a neurologist and headache specialist practicing in Colorado, a place with frequent weather shifts, patients often tell me that weather is one of their biggest migraine triggers. The results can disrupt work, school and social plans, and create a sense of helplessness.

    Doctors still don’t fully understand why some brains are more sensitive to environmental changes.

    What we do know is that people with migraines have especially sensitive nervous systems, and that certain environmental changes – like shifts in air pressure, temperature, humidity and air quality – can activate pathways in the brain that lead to pain.

    What’s going on in the brain during migraines? TEDx.

    Key ways weather can trigger migraines

    Weather triggers can vary from person to person, but there are a few common migraine culprits:

    Barometric pressure changes, or changes in atmospheric pressure, are among the most commonly cited triggers.

    When a storm system moves in, the air pressure drops. Some scientists believe this change may affect the pressure inside your head or how blood vessels in your brain dilate and constrict.

    One theory is that changes in barometric pressure may cause a small imbalance in the pressure between the inside of your skull and the outside environment. That might directly stimulate pain-sensitive nerves in the head, triggering inflammation and the start of a migraine.

    Others point to inflammation, the way the brain processes sensory input, and changes in serotonin levels – which play a key role in activating migraine.

    Temperature extremes, with very hot or very cold days, or sudden changes in temperature, can throw off the body’s internal balance. High humidity or rapid shifts in moisture levels can have a similar effect.

    Air pollutants like ozone and nitrogen dioxide can cause inflammation in the nerves that play a role in migraines.

    Bright sunlight can also be especially bothersome, likely due to heightened sensitivity to light and an overactive visual processing system in the brain.

    Lightning and strong winds may also be linked to migraine attacks in certain individuals.

    In short, weather changes can act as stressors on a brain that’s already wired to be more sensitive. The exact triggers and responses vary from person to person, but the research suggests that the interaction between weather and our biology plays a significant role for a subset of patients with migraines.

    Steps you can take to reduce the pain

    You can’t change the weather, but you can be proactive. Here are a few tips to help weather-proof your migraine routine:

    1. Track your migraines and watch the forecast: Use a migraine diary or app to track when attacks occur, along with weather conditions. Patterns may emerge, such as attacks a day before rain or during temperature changes, that will allow you to adjust your schedule or medication plan.

    2. Develop healthy eating, sleeping and exercise habits: Dehydration, poor sleep and skipped meals can magnify the effects of weather triggers, so keeping your body on an even keel helps reduce vulnerability. Regular exercise and a healthy diet can also help.

    3. Create a migraine-friendly environment: On days when the sun is harsh or the humidity is high, stay inside. Sunglasses, eye masks or even blue-light glasses can be helpful. Some people find that certain earplugs are able to reduce pressure changes felt in the middle ear.

    4. Try meditation, mindfulness techniques or biofeedback, which teaches people to moderate their physiological responses, such as muscle responses and breathing. These strategies can help your nervous system become less reactive over time, which can be especially helpful when dealing with uncontrollable triggers like weather.

    5. Consider pretreatment: If you know a storm is likely to trigger your migraines, you can keep rescue medications close by or even preemptively treat yourself during weather events.

    6. Look into preventive treatment: If weather triggers frequent migraines, talk to your health care provider about preventive treatments – medications, supplements or neuromodulation devices – which can be used on a regular basis to reduce migraine occurrence.

    The bigger picture

    It’s important to remember that while weather can be a trigger, it’s rarely the only one. Migraine is usually the result of a perfect storm of factors: genetic susceptibility, hormones, stress, sleep, food and, yes, the weather.

    That’s why identifying your personal triggers and building a plan, if necessary, with the support of a medical provider, can make a big difference in managing migraines.

    Weather-related migraine can be one of the most frustrating triggers because it feels completely out of your hands. However, with knowledge, tracking and the right treatment strategies, you can take back a sense of control.The Conversation

     

    Danielle Wilhour is Assistant Professor of Neurology at University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus

    This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article.


  12. file-20250708-56-mr80kk.jpg?ixlib=rb-4.1

    Rev. Jimmy Swaggart preaches at the Los Angeles Memorial Sports Arena on March 29, 1987. AP Photo/Mark Avery, file

     

    by Diane Winston, USC Annenberg School for Communication and Journalism

    Jimmy Swaggart, one of the most popular and enduring of the 1980s televangelists, died on July 1, 2025, but his legacy lives.

    Along with Jerry Falwell and Pat Robertson, he drew an audience in the millions, amassed a personal fortune and introduced a new generation of Americans to a potent mix of religion and politics.

    Swaggart was an old-time evangelist whose focus was “saving souls.” But he also preached on conservative social issues, warning followers about the evils of abortion, homosexuality and godless communism.

    [Swaggart also denounced] what he called “false cults,” including Catholicism, Judaism and Mormonism. In fact, his denunciations of other religions, as well as his attacks on rival preachers, made him a more polarizing figure than his politicized brethren.

    As a reporter, I covered Swaggart in the 1980s. Now, as a scholar of American religion, I argue that while Swaggart did not build institutions like Falwell’s Moral Majority or Robertson’s 700 Club, he helped to spread right-wing positions on social issues, such as sexual orientation and abortion, and to shape the image of televangelists in popular culture..

    Swaggart’s cousins

    Born into a hardscrabble life in a small Louisiana town, Swaggart grew up alongside his cousins Jerry Lee Lewis, the future rockabilly pioneer, and future country singer Mickey Gilley.

    All three loved music and singing. They polished their playing on an uncle’s piano and sneaked into African American nightclubs to hear the jazz and blues forbidden by their parents.

    A man playing the piano in front of a huge crowd.

    Jimmy Swaggart delivering a sermon at the Flora Blanca Stadium in El Salvador. Cindy Karp/Getty Images

    While Gilley and Lewis turned their musical talent into recording and performing careers, Swaggart felt called to the ministry. He dropped out of high school, married at 17, began preaching at 20 and was ordained at 26.

    He was licensed by the Assemblies of God, a Pentecostal denomination that believes the Holy Spirit endows believers with spiritual gifts that include speaking in tongues and faith healing.

    The glory years

    Pentecostals were nicknamed Holy Rollers because of their tendency to shake, quake and roll on the floor when feeling the Holy Spirit. Their preachers excelled at rousing audiences’ ardor, and Swaggart commanded the stage better than most. He paced, pounced and poured forth sweat while begging listeners to turn from sin and accept Jesus.

    Starting small, he drew crowds while preaching on a flatbed trailer throughout the South. His following grew, and in 1969 he opened the Family Worship Center in Baton Rouge.

    A man holding a briefcase in one hand stands next to a sign on a wall that says, 'Jimmy Swaggart Evangelistic Association.'

    Evangelist Jimmy Swaggart leaves his office complex in Baton Rouge, La., on Jan. 7, 1977. AP Photo

    At capacity, the church held 10,000 worshippers, who represented a broad swath of America: young girls and grannies, white and Black, bankers and farmers. His sermons began calmly but built to a fever pitch. CBS newsman Dan Rather once called him the “country’s greatest speaker.”

    During services, Swaggart also sang and played piano. In 1982, Newsweek magazine noted his musical chops, naming him the “King of Honky Tonk Heaven.” His music crossed gospel, country and honky-tonk – songs with a strong rhythmic beat – and he sold 17 million albums over his lifetime.

    By 1975, Swaggart’s on-stage charisma powered the launch of a television ministry that would reach millions within a decade. Viewers were captivated by his soulful tunes and fire-and-brimstone sermons. At its height, Swaggart’s show was televised in 140 countries, including Peru, the Philippines and South Africa.

    His ministry also became the largest mail-order business in Louisiana, selling books, tapes, T-shirts and biblical memorabilia. Thanks to the US$150 million raised annually from donations and sales, Swaggart lived in an opulent mansion, possessed a private jet previously owned by the Rockefellers, sported a yellow gold vintage Rolex and drove a Jaguar.

    The downfall

    Swaggart disliked competition and had a history of humiliating rival preachers. Wary of the Rev. Marvin Gorman, a Pentecostal minister whose church also was in Louisiana, Swaggart accused the man of adultery. Gorman admitted his infidelity and was defrocked.

    Gorman had heard rumors about Swaggart’s own indiscretions, and he and his son decided to tail the famed evangelist. In 1988, they caught Swaggart at a motel with a prostitute, and Gorman reported the incident to Swaggart’s denomination. He also gave news outlets photos of Swaggart and the prostitute. In a tearful, televised apology, Swaggart pleaded for a second chance.

    While his fans were willing, the Assemblies of God had conditions: Swaggart received the standard two-year suspension for sexual immorality. Defying the ruling, Swaggart went back to work after three months, and the denomination defrocked him.

    A woman lying curled up on carpeted steps with her head in her arms.

    A parishioner overcome with grief lies on steps to the altar after Jimmy Swaggart’s confession of sexual indiscretions. Thomas S. England/Getty Images

    Swaggart might have succeeded as an independent minister, but in 1991 the police stopped his car for driving on the wrong side of the road. Inside they found the preacher with a prostitute. This time, Swaggart did not ask for forgiveness. Instead, he informed his congregation, “The Lord told me it’s flat none of your business.”

    Afterward, Swaggart never regained his former standing. His mail-order business dried up, donations fell, and attendance at services cratered. But up until his death, he kept on, in his own words, as an “old-fashioned, Holy Ghost-filled, shouting, weeping, soul-winning, Gospel-preaching preacher.”

    Swaggart’s legacy

    Swaggart, like other 1980s televangelists, brought right-wing politics into American homes. But unlike Jerry Falwell and Pat Robertson, Swaggart was less interested in winning elections than saving souls. In fact, when Robertson considered a presidential run in 1988, Swaggart initially tried to dissuade him – then changed his mind and supported him.

    Swaggart’s calls for a return to conservative Christian norms live on – not just in Sunday sermons but also in today’s world of tradwives, abortion restrictions and calls to repeal gay marriage. His music lives on, too. The day before he died, the Southern Gospel Music Association Hall of Fame inducted him as a member.

    But his legacy also survives in popular culture. In recent years, both reality television and scripted series have starred preachers shaped in the image of Swaggart and his peers. Most exaggerate his worst characteristics for shock and comedic effect.

    Preachers of L.A.,” a 2013 reality show that profiled six Los Angeles pastors, featured blinged-out ministers whose sermons mixed hip-hop with the Bible. The fictional “Greenleaf” followed the scandals of an extended family’s Memphis megachurch, while “The Righteous Gemstones,” a dark spoof of Southern preachers, turned a family ministry into a site for sex, murder and moneymaking.

    But these imitations can’t match the reality. Swaggart was a larger-than-life minister whose story – from small-town wannabe to disgraced pastor, to preaching to those who would listen – had it all: sex, politics, music and religion.

    For those who want a taste of the real thing, The King of Honky Tonk Heaven lives on. You can see his old services and Bible studies streaming daily on his network.The Conversation

     

    Diane Winston is Professor and Knight Center Chair in Media & Religion at USC Annenberg School for Communication and Journalism

    This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article.


  13. Quote

     

    CNN — Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth did not inform the White House before he authorized a pause on weapons shipments to Ukraine last week, according to five sources familiar with the matter, setting off a scramble inside the administration to understand why the halt was implemented and explain it to Congress and the Ukrainian government.

    President Donald Trump suggested on Tuesday that he was not responsible for the move. Asked on Tuesday during a Cabinet meeting whether he approved of the pause in shipments, Trump demurred, saying only that the US would continue to send defensive weapons to Ukraine. Pressed again on who authorized the pause, Trump replied, “I don’t know, why don’t you tell me?”

    The episode underscores the often-haphazard policy-making process inside the Trump administration, particularly under Hegseth at the Defense Department. The pause was the second time this year that Hegseth had decided to halt the flow of US weapons to Ukraine, catching senior national security officials off guard, sources said.

     

    Source


  14. Quote

     

    You no longer need to take your shoes off at airport security.

    Kristi Noem, Secretary of the Department of Homeland Security, which oversees the Transportation Security Administration, announced in a press conference on Tuesday that the long-standing policy requiring most passengers to remove their shoes at TSA checkpoints is no longer in effect.

    “TSA will no longer require travelers to remove their shoes when they go through our security checkpoint," Noem said at the press conference.

    The change had been previously reported by other news organizations but was not initially confirmed by the TSA. 

    According to Noem, the new policy goes into effect immediately nationwide.

     

    Source


  15. WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, Congressman Nick Langworthy (NY-23) announced that Chemung County has been awarded $248,815 by the Appalachian Regional Commission (ARC) for the Chemung Canal Connector. The funds will be used to construct a 7-mile connection between the Lackawanna Trail and the Catharine Valley Trail. 

    Specifically, the connector trail will route pedestrian and bicycle traffic through the Village of Elmira Heights and the City of Elmira, generating local economic impact from increased tourism. The project will result in a continuous 29-mile trail which will ultimately connect to the regional 580-mile Finger Lakes Trail System. By improving recreation access, this project will help the community attract new visitors, increase spending in the local economy, attract new businesses, increase property values, and support the region's tourism and outdoor recreation sector.

    “This investment in the Chemung Canal Connector is a win for our community, our economy, and our quality of life. By linking key trail systems through Elmira and Elmira Heights, we’re opening the door to thousands of new visitors, stronger small businesses, and a more vibrant outdoor recreation economy,” said Congressman Langworthy. “I’m proud to support a project that will benefit Chemung County for generations to come.” 


  16. The Chemung County Sheriff’s Office announces the arrest of 53-year-old Kevin J. Clark of Van Etten, NY for Criminal Possession of a Weapon in the Second Degree, a Class C Felony.

    Screenshot 2025-07-07 at 4.23.50 PM.png

    On Saturday July 5, 2025, a deputy from the Chemung County Sheriff’s Office Road Patrol Division conducted a traffic stop on State Route 34, in the Town of Van Etten, for violation of the NYS Vehicle and Traffic Law. While conducting the traffic stop, the driver and passenger appeared extremely nervous, and a further investigation was conducted. During the investigation, the driver and passenger were removed from the vehicle and a search of the vehicle was conducted. During the search, deputies located a loaded 9mm handgun in the vehicle and both the driver and passenger were detained.

    As a result of the investigation, Clark was arrested for Criminal Possession of a Weapon in the Second Degree, arraigned in the Town of Van Etten Court, and remanded to the Chemung County Jail.


  17. Quote

     

    “On Her Game: Caitlin Clark and the Revolution in Women’s Sports,” the title of USA Today columnist Christine Brennan’s new book about the WNBA star, is doing a lot of work. 

    On one hand, it’s about the game, right? Nobody can deny Caitlin Clark’s talent on a basketball court, where her rookie season stats with the Indiana Fever were eye-popping: 19.2 points, 8.4 assists and 5.7 rebounds per game while leading the WNBA in assists and 3-pointers made. On the other hand, why is Caitlin Clark the poster child for a “Revolution in Women’s Sports?” The WNBA’s been around since 1997 and plenty of female athletes are or were the very best at what they do, inspiring millions of young women to play all sorts of sports — from Serena Williams to Simone Biles to Lindsey Vonn.

    But there’s something more to the Caitlin Clark phenomenon, and it’s that something that Brennan’s reporter instincts sensed early, when Clark was filling the Carver-Hawkeye Arena in Iowa City for every home game, well before her remarkable first year in the WNBA.

    “What was going on?” writes Brennan in her introduction. “Was this because Clark is white and straight in a league that is 74% Black or mixed-race, with a sizable gay population?… Was it because of her eight-year $28 million Nike shoe deal?… Was it jealousy? Was it all of the above?”

     

    Read more here.


  18. Quote

     

    A Horseheads diner known for its big plates of breakfast and lunch specialties has served its final meal.

    Around the Square Diner, located at 114 John St. in the village, announced on its Facebook page over the weekend that the business is closing effective immediately.

    "We have decided to close permanently. It was a great run," reads the post. "Thank you all that supported us! We had a lot of fun."

    The business, owned and operated by Matthew Rogers and co-owned by his mother, Ronda Rogers, debuted on Dec. 20, 2024 at the site of the former Old Rosar Grill.

     

    Source


  19. Quote

     

    Camp Mystic, the girls summer camp on the banks of the Guadalupe River in Texas, has confirmed that 27 children and counsellors died in the flash floodsthat have wreaked devastation on the area since Friday.

    “Our hearts are broken alongside our families that are enduring this unimaginable tragedy. We are praying for them constantly,” a statement on the camp website read.

    The search continued for missing people, it said, adding: “We ask for your continued prayers, respect and privacy for each of our families affected.”

    The tragic news surfaced as Texas authorities confirmed at least 82 people had died amid the flash flooding, a figure that is expected to rise as more rain threatens to deluge the region.

    Camp Mystic is a nondenominational Christian institution that has hosted the children of some of Texas’s political elite over its 99-year history. Former first lady Laura Bush was a camp counselor there, and past camp attendees included the daughters of former US president Lyndon B Johnson and the former Texas governor John Connally.

     

    Read more here


  20. Quote

     

    By now, you might have heard that seed oils are bad for you — if not from social media wellness influencers, then from Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. himself.

    Kennedy has said these vegetable oils — extracted from the seeds of plants, like canola, soybean and safflower — are poisoning Americans and driving the obesity epidemic. Part of the evidence he points to is that obesity rates started to rise as seed oils began to dominate the American diet.

    Many nutrition and health researchers say that while seed oils might not be as good for you as olive oil, claims that they're harmful to health have been stretched too far.

    "This is one of the more studied topics in nutrition. So it's sort of extra bewildering to quite a few of us in the field that this is coming up," says Christopher Gardner, a nutrition scientist and professor of medicine at Stanford University.

    He says studies have consistently shown that replacing saturated fats, such as lard or beef tallow, with fats from plant oils leads to better health outcomes.

    Still, Kennedy celebrated when the fast-food chain Steak 'n Shake announced earlier this year that it would stop making its french fries with seed oils and use tallow — rendered beef fat — instead.

    When we reached out to Secretary Kennedy, his team pointed us to the MAHA report, which says that seed oils contribute to imbalances of fatty acids that play "a potential role in inflammation."

    So what is the science on seed oils? Let's unpack some of the criticisms.

     

    Read the rest here.


  21. Quote

     

    BRIDGEWATER, N.J. (AP) — Elon Musk said he's carrying out his threat to form a new political party after his fissure with President Donald Trump, announcing the America Party in response to the president's sweeping tax cuts law.

    Musk, once an ever-present ally to Trump as he headed up the slashing agency known as the Department of Government Efficiency, broke with the Republican president over his signature legislation, which was signed into law Friday.

    As the bill made its way through Congress, Musk threatened to form the "America Party"if "this insane spending bill passes."

    "When it comes to bankrupting our country with waste & graft, we live in a one-party system, not a democracy," Musk said Saturday on X, the social media company he owns. "Today, the America Party is formed to give you back your freedom."

     

    Source.


  22. Subject: Shooting at the Queen City Deli

    On July 5th, 2025, at approximately 1:12 AM, Officers of the Elmira Police Department were dispatched to the area of Broadway Ave and Mt Zoar St for a report of a large disturbance. While

    Officers were responding to the area, Officers were informed that a firearm was involved in the disturbance.

    Officers arrived at the scene within seconds to find a crowd of over 100 people gathered.

    Officers then observed a group of individuals in the intersection who were tending to a male that was laying on the ground, suffering from a gunshot wound to his abdomen. As other officers were arriving on scene, they observed a black truck leave the area at a high rate of speed.
     

    Officers followed this vehicle to the Arnot Ogden Medical Center, where they discovered that the male driver of this vehicle had also suffered a gunshot wound to his left thigh. Through the early investigation it was learned that the male found on the ground was the intended target of the shooting, and the other male was a bystander struck by a stray bullet. Both males are currently being treated at the hospital.

    Investigators from the Elmira Police were called to the scene as well as Evidence Technicians to begin investigating the incident. This incident is still under investigation and anyone with any information is encouraged to contact the Elmira Police Department at 607-737-5626 or the Tip Line at 607-271-HALT.

    The Elmira Police Department was assisted by the Chemung County Sheriff’s Office, ElmiraHeights Police Department, West Elmira Police Department, Horseheads Police Department, New York State Police, Elmira Fire Department, and Erway’s Ambulance.


  23. Screenshot 2025-07-03 at 3.50.24 PM.png

    Quote

     

    Star Wars actor Kenneth Colley has died at the age of 87, his agent has announced.

    The film and television performer is best known for starring in The Empire Strikes Back and Return of the Jedi as Admiral Piett, an imperial officer in command of Darth Vader's flagship.

    He died peacefully at his home in Ashford, Kent, on Monday after contracting Covid and developing pneumonia, his agent Julian Owen said in a statement.

     

    Source


  24. On July 2, 2025, the New York State Police at SP Horseheads announce the arrest of Grace E. Balthazor, age 33, from Elmira, NY and Devin G. Lavalley, age 37, from Burlington Flats, NY for Predatory Sexual Assault Against a Child (A II Felony) and Use of a Child in a Sexual Performance (C Felony).  

    The arrest was subsequent to an investigation into a sexual assault that occurred to a 1-year-old female victim and the video recording of the same.

    Screenshot 2025-07-03 at 3.45.11 PM.pngScreenshot 2025-07-03 at 3.45.15 PM.png

    Lavalley and Balthazor were arraigned in the City of Elmira Court, where they were remanded to the Chemung County Jail with no bail pending future court action.  

    The New York State Police in Horseheads were assisted in this investigation by the State Police Computer Crimes Unit and the New York State Police at SP Sidney Bureau of Criminal Investigation Unit.

    Police say this is an ongoing investigation. 

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