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US Coast Guard returns 273 migrants intercepted off Florida Coast to Cuba

January 9, 2023 Published by CNN

CNN
—

The US Coast Guard says it repatriated 273 Cuban migrants Sunday after intercepting a number of boats off the Florida coast on New Year’s Eve and New Year’s Day.

The migrants were returned to Cuba aboard the Coast Guard Cutter Mohawk, according to a news release.

“The Coast Guard continues to interdict and rescue migrants from grossly overloaded, unseaworthy vessels,” said Lt. Cmdr. John Beal of Coast Guard District Seven.

“These illegal voyages are always dangerous and often deadly. We are working closely with partner agencies to save lives and prevent illegal entry to the United States via our southeast maritime border,” Beal said.

The migrants were intercepted on several occasions on December 31, 2022 and January 1, 2023, the release said.

One of the vessels had capsized when a “good Samaritan” alerted the Coast Guard to its presence in waters about 35 miles north of Havana, it said.

According to the Coast Guard, once the migrants were aboard a Coast Guard cutter, they received food, water, shelter and basic medical attention.

The Coast Guard said its crews interdicted 4,795 Cubans since October 1, 2022, compared to 6,182 Cuban migrants in all of fiscal year 2022, 838 Cuban migrants in fiscal year 2021 and 49 Cuban migrants in fiscal year 2020.

On Friday, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis signed an executive order activating the state’s National Guard and directing law enforcement and other state agencies to provide resources to support local governments responding to the influx of migrants, his office said in a news release.

Last week, the National Park Service announced it was temporarily closing Dry Tortugas National Park in the Florida Keys to the public due to an influx of migrants from Cuba.

In a news release, the service said the park would be closed for several days “while law enforcement and medical personnel evaluate, provide care for and coordinate transport to Key West for approximately 300 migrants who arrived in the park over the past couple of days.”

The park is about 70 miles (113 kilometers) west of Key West and is only accessibly by boat or seaplane.

“Like elsewhere in the Florida Keys, the park has recently seen an increase in people arriving by boat from Cuba and landing on the islands of Dry Tortugas National Park,” the park service said.

The park’s closure “is necessary for the safety of visitors and staff because of the resources and space needed to attend to the migrants,” the park service said.

The agency announced Sunday the park would reopen at 8 a.m. Monday January 9.

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Guys who don’t feel pain seem more muscular

January 8, 2023 Published by Futurity (National Geo)

People perceive men described as insensitive to pain as larger and stronger than those who were sensitive to pain, research finds.

Before any physical conflict, people assess their opponent’s features to determine if the ideal tactical response is to fight, flee, or attempt to negotiate.

Throughout evolution, bigger, stronger animals have won fights with smaller, weaker animals. Because of this, when people think about the features that determine who will win a fight, they summarize those features by adjusting a mental picture of their opponent’s size and strength.

According to a new study co-led by Wilson Merrell, a doctoral candidate in psychology at the University of Michigan, and Daniel Fessler, professor of anthropology at UCLA, how we picture an opponent is affected by a psychological feature of the opponent—namely how sensitive they are to pain.

Because it allows people to persist longer in violent conflict, insensitivity to pain can be a valuable characteristic when it comes to winning fights, and this is reflected in how we picture an opponent, the researchers say.

Merrell and Fessler conducted three studies with nearly 1,000 United States online crowdsource workers.

In the first set of studies, participants read about a man who was either highly insensitive to pain (e.g., someone who didn’t feel pain very strongly during events like getting an injection at the doctor or stubbing their toe) or highly sensitive to pain (e.g., someone who felt excruciating pain during those same events).

Participants who read about the pain-insensitive man envisioned him to be taller and more muscular than participants who read about the pain-sensitive man. As the researchers expected, knowing that someone is insensitive to pain causes that person to be seen as more physically imposing.

In a final study, the researchers tested whether a man’s access to a tool that could be used as a weapon affected how sensitive to pain he appeared to be. Participants either saw a picture of a man holding an object that could be used to hurt someone (like a kitchen knife) or an object that could not (like a spatula). The men holding dangerous tools were seen as more insensitive to painful situations like getting a paper cut or bumping their head on a piece of furniture than men holding harmless tools.

The research suggests that representations of physical characteristics like height and muscularity are also subject to assessments of psychological traits, like pain sensitivity.

“Perceptions of others’ sensitivity to pain may play an important role in a variety of social interactions,” Fessler says. “When I first started exploring this topic, I was surprised that so little research had been done outside of medical contexts.

“It was particularly exciting to discover that the relationship between how intimidating someone seems and their sensitivity to pain works both ways—knowing that someone is insensitive to pain makes them seem more formidable, and, conversely, knowing that someone is intimidating makes them seem less sensitive to pain.”

Merrell says the relationship between assessments of pain insensitivity and physical size may have implications for social contexts where judgments about pain, size, and threat influence decision-making.

For example, future work could explore how stereotypes about high pain tolerance, which are often applied to Black men in the United States, play into stereotypes about physical size and influence decision-making in power-imbalanced situations, such as health care and policing.

The study’s other authors are from the University of California, Merced and the University of Michigan. The findings appear in the current issue of Evolution and Human Behavior.

Source: University of Michigan

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Texas man accused of throwing White Claw at Ted Cruz no-billed by grand jury

January 8, 2023 Published by Fox News

The man accused of throwing a can of hard seltzer at Texas GOP Sen. Ted Cruz during the Houston Astros World Series victory parade was no-billed by a grand jury.

Joseph Arcidiacono was charged with aggravated assault after throwing the drink at Cruz.

Video of the incident showed the can flying through the air toward Cruz as he was on a float celebrating the Astros’ victory in November. Another person on the float blocked the can from hitting the lawmaker.

MAN WHO THREW WHITE CLAW AT TED CRUZ SAYS HE WANTED SENATOR TO ‘CHUG IT’

Joseph Arcidiacono was charged with aggravated assault after throwing the drink at Cruz.
(Houston Police Department)

“As always I’m thankful for the Houston Police and Capitol Police for their quick action,” Cruz wrote on Twitter after the incident. “I’m also thankful that the clown who threw his White Claw had a noodle for an arm.”

Arcidiacono’s attorney said in a statement following his arrest that political violence is “never acceptable” but that the drink thrown at the parade “was not political violence nor ‘aggravated assault with a deadly weapon.’”

COURT RECORDS REVEAL NAME OF SUSPECT CHARGED WITH CHUCKING CANS OF ALCOHOL AT TED CRUZ

Video of the incident showed the can flying through the air toward Cruz as he was on a float celebrating the Astros’ victory in November.
(AP Photo/Michael Wyke)

“We have seen various videos and understand why Senator Cruz’s security detail was alert for potential violence,” the attorney wrote. “Instead, this was an Astros fan trying to toss drinks from his cooler to the Senator during a championship parade and not realizing how it would be perceived until he saw security’s reaction. The night before the parade, Joey texted a friend, ‘My dream would be to throw one of the players a beer. Doubt it would happen haha but that would be epic.’”

“Many generous, fun, semi-stupid, legendary moments have happened during Astros Championship Parades,” the statement continued. “Hopefully, many more of those moments will happen in the years to come. Fans throw cans to people in championship parades all the time. That is a widely known thing. To get them to chug.”

The attorney described in the statement some of what happened during the celebrations on the day of the parade, highlighting that the Houston Astros shared a video of pitcher Ryne Stanek chugging a beer a fan threw to him, and that the fan posted his own video showing how thrilled he was that it happened.

The man accused of throwing a can of hard seltzer at Texas GOP Sen. Ted Cruz during the Houston Astros World Series victory parade was no-billed by a grand jury.
(AP Photo/Jose Luis Magana)

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“That was stupid, good fun,” the attorney said of the moment with Stanek and that fan. “This ended up as not fun.”

Arcidiacono “apologizes for how his actions alarmed Senator Cruz, his family, and his security detail and put a damper on an otherwise beautiful celebration for millions of Houstonians. With this fuller context, we ask for grace and hope Senator Cruz declines to maintain charges,” the attorney wrote.

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Avalanche in Colorado leaves one person dead, another still buried, sheriff's office says

January 8, 2023 Published by Fox News

One person died in an avalanche in Colorado on Saturday and rescue teams are still searching for another victim buried in the snow.

According to the Grand County Sheriff’s Office, Search and Rescue teams responded to a report of an avalanche at around 2:15 p.m. on Saturday on Corona Pass near the Town of Winter Park.

Two snowmobilers were left buried in the avalanche, the sheriff’s office said.

Emergency responders and citizens in the area assisting in recovery efforts were able to locate one of the victims. The 58-year-old male was pronounced dead at the scene and was transferred to the Grand County Coroner’s Office.

AVALANCHE BURIES UNIVERSITY OF NORTHERN COLORADO PRESIDENTT, KILLS SON AMID DANGEROUS BACKCOUNTRY CONDITIONS

One person died in an avalanche in Colorado on Saturday and rescue teams are still searching for another victim buried in the snow.
(Grand County Sheriff)

Rescuers failed to find the second victim, a male, and were forced to retreat from the area because of weather and safety concerns.

The sheriff’s office said Search and Rescue teams would return to the area early on Sunday to continue recovery efforts.

UTAH NEFFS CANYON AVALANCHE: OFF-DUTY FIREFIGHTER RESCUES BURIED SKIER CALLING FOR HELP

Emergency responders and citizens in the area assisting in recovery efforts were able to locate one of the two victims.
(Grand County Sheriff)

Officials have been in contact with both victims’ families and are providing support.

“Unfortunately, this is the second fatal avalanche that we have experienced this season in Grand County,” Grand County Sheriff Brett Schroetlin said in a press release. “Our thoughts are with the family and friends of the victims. We encourage those recreating in our backcountry to regularly monitor the conditions and follow the advice of our avalanche professionals at Colorado Avalanche Information Center (CAIC).”

Rescuers failed to find the second victim and were forced to retreat from the area because of weather and safety concerns.
(Grand County Sheriff)

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The decedent’s identity and cause and manner of death will be released by the Coroner at a later date, the sheriff’s office said.

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Mexico City subway train collision kills at least 1, injures dozens

January 8, 2023 Published by CNN

Mexico City
CNN
—

Two trains collided on Mexico City’s subway system Saturday, killing at least one person and injuring 57 others, the city’s mayor said.

In a news conference, Mayor Claudia Sheinbaum said a train driver was in a serious condition following the incident at the La Raza and Potrero stations on metro line 3.

Four other people were hospitalized after they were rescued in an operation involving the Defense Ministry, Navy and the Civil Protection agency, the mayor said.

“As always, our priority is the victims and also that justice will be done,” she said.

Mexico City’s prosecutor’s office wrote on Twitter that it has started a government-authorized investigation into the collision.

The city’s subway is one of the busiest public transit systems in the world, serving a metropolitan area home to an estimated 20 million people in the densely populated capital.

Rescue personnel work near the area where two subway trains collided in Mexico City on January 7, 2023.

Paramedics assist a woman following the train collision in Mexico City on January 7, 2023.

The collision is the latest deadly incident to hit the Mexico City metro following the May 2021 collapse of subway Line 12 that killed 26 people and left dozens injured.

According to a 2021 report by the city’s government, construction flaws led to that collapse.

The investigation suggested that deficient welding of metal studs, which apparently were not well connected to steel beams supporting a concrete slab and the elevated train rails, was among a number of issues that contributed to the incident.

The report said missing metal studs in some sections of the structure, different kinds of concrete used for the slab and unfinished or badly welded joints were some of the other factors that caused the raised railway to buckle, sending two subway carriages plummeting to the streets below.

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The Tunnel That's Failing New York City

January 8, 2023 Published by GrilloCOM Grab

This might be New York’s most important tunnel, and it’s crumbling. See how tools like Autodesk Build are streamlining …

After long decline, stroke deaths are rising again

January 8, 2023 Published by Futurity (National Geo)

An analysis of stroke deaths in the United States from 1975 to 2019 finds both a dramatic decline and the potential for an important resurgence.

Stroke mortality (per 100,0000) plummeted from 88 to 31 for women and 112 to 39 for men between 1975 and 2019 in the United States.

Total stroke deaths fell despite the rise in age-adjusted risk because stroke rates skyrocket as people get older. A 10% reduction in the fatality rate for 75-year-olds would more than offset a doubling of the fatality rate among 35-year-olds because strokes are 100 times more common in 75-year-olds.

However, barring further improvements in stroke prevention or treatment, the most recent figures demonstrate that total stroke fatalities will rise as millennials age. Age-adjusted stroke deaths per 100,000 people bottomed out in 2014 and climbed again during the last five years of the study period.

“Starting around 1960, the later you were born, the higher your risk of suffering a fatal ischemic stroke at any particular age,” says lead author Cande Ananth, chief of the division of epidemiology and biostatistics in the department of obstetrics, gynecology, and reproductive sciences at Rutgers Robert Wood Johnson Medical School.

“This study didn’t identify a cause for this trend, but other research suggests the main culprits are increasing rates of obesity and diabetes.”

The analysis used a comprehensive death-certificate database to identify virtually every adult under the age of 85 who died from a stroke during the 44 years—4,332,220 deaths in all.

It was the first stroke-death analysis to divide patients by their year of birth (cohort) and the first to identify the steady rise in age-adjusted ischemic stroke risk from the late 1950s to the early 1990s.

This “age-period-cohort analysis,” which further divided patients by their age at death, also allowed the study team to make two other novel insights:

Stroke fatality rates have fallen more for ischemic strokes, which occur when blood vessels to the brain are blocked, than hemorrhagic strokes, which occur when blood vessels leak or burst. The ischemic stroke fatality rate fell roughly 80% over the study period, while the hemorrhagic stroke fatality rate fell roughly 65%.
The disparity between male and female stroke fatality rates diminishes as patient age increase. At age 55, men are more than twice as likely as women to suffer a fatal stroke, but the disparity in the rates of fatal stroke is virtually identical at age 85.

“After nearly four decades of declining stroke-related mortality, the risk appears to be increasing in the United States,” Ananth says. “Our research underscores the need for novel strategies to combat this alarming trend.”

The study appears in the International Journal of Epidemiology.

Source: Rutgers University

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Massachusetts state troopers, police stop ground search for missing Cohasset woman

January 8, 2023 Published by Fox News

Authorities have stopped their ground search for missing Massachusetts woman Ana Walshe, following her mysterious disappearance on New Year’s Day, officials said.

The 39-year-old mother and real estate executive was reported missing after she had an early flight from Boston to Washington, D.C. on Jan. 1, and left her home but never boarded her plane, Cohasset Police Chief William Quigley said.

“The ground search by Massachusetts State Troopers and Cohasset Police Officers for Ana Walshe or evidence related to her disappearance has concluded,” the two offices said in a joint statement Saturday.

“Twenty Troopers from the MSP Special Emergency Response Team, a specialized unit trained in search and rescue operations, as well as three K9 teams and the State Police Air Wing searched wooded areas near Ms. Walshe’s home with negative results for the second straight day,” the statement added.

MISSING COHASSET WOMAN: TIMELINE OF ANA WALSHE’S MOVEMENTS BEFORE DISAPPEARANCE

Ana Walshe commuted from Massachusetts to Washington, D.C., each week to work at a real estate job, her friends told WCVB.
(Cohasset Police Department)

They continued: “State Police divers also searched a small stream and a pool with negative results. The ground search will not resume unless police develop new information that so warrants it.”

State police are continuing various investigative actions to find the missing woman and Cohasset detectives headed to D.C. Saturday to follow up on potential leads in coordination with D.C.’s Metropolitan Police Department.

“Regarding yesterday’s fire at Ms. Walshe’s former house on Jerusalem Road, the State Police Fire and Explosives Investigation Unit and local investigators have determined that the cause of the fire was accidental,” the joint statement also said.

Massachusetts State Troopers outside Ana Walshe’s home in Cohasset, Saturday, Jan. 7, 2023, and 39-year-old Ana Walshe, who has been missing since January 1.
(David McGlynn for Fox News Digital/Facebook/Ana Walshe)

Firefighters battle a blaze at 725 Jerusalem Road in Cohasset, MA on Friday, January 7, 2023. The home once belonged to Ana Walshe who has been reported missing, last seen on New Year’s Day.
(David McGlynn for Fox News Digital)

It concluded: “There is nothing further that we are reporting publicly at this time.”

MISSING MOM ANA WALSHE’S FORMER MASSACHUSETTS HOME BURNS

Quigley said investigators believe Walshe left her home “early morning” on New Year’s Day, likely between 4 and 5 a.m. Her family was sleeping at the time, he said.

Ana Walshe, 39, of Cohasset, was reported missing Wednesday after leaving her home around 4 a.m. New Year’s Day to get into a rideshare heading to Logan International Airport in Boston, Cohasset
(Fox News Digital)

Walshe works for the real estate company Tishman Speyer in Washington, D.C., and her plan was to take a rideshare to the airport but she did not board her flight, according to the police chief.

MASSACHUSETTS MOTHER ANA WALSHE GOES MISSING, LAST SEEN NEW YEAR’S DAY

The flight to D.C. was originally booked for Jan. 3, but police said she left early for “some type of emergency” at work.

By Jan. 4, Walshe’s husband and her employer reported her missing.

Officers search Ana Walshe’s property in Cohasset, Mass., Saturday, Jan. 7, 2023.
(David McGlynn for Fox News Digital)

Individuals could be seen draining the pool at Ana Walshe’s home; Walshe has been missing since New Year’s Day.
(David McGlynn for Fox News Digital)

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Police have released a description of Ana Walshe saying she is 5 feet 2 inches tall and around 115 pounds.

Fox News’ Chris Eberhart contributed to this report.

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A traffic stop involving a deputy threatening to shoot a driver in the chest is under investigation, Los Angeles County police say

January 8, 2023 Published by CNN

CNN
—

A Los Angeles County traffic stop in which a local rapper was approached by a deputy who threatened that the man would “take one to the chest” if he failed to comply with exiting his parked vehicle is now under investigation, according to police.

Rapper Feezy Lebron was detained by two Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department patrol deputies on New Year’s Eve while sitting in his car in a South Los Angeles parking lot, according to his social media posts.

“If you don’t listen, you’re done,” the deputy can be heard saying on video from a body worn camera, which was released Friday by the sheriff’s department, along with a statement.

“During the contact, the deputies ordered the man to exit his car. One deputy displayed pepper spray, then drew his firearm and used unprofessional language, which later resulted in a complaint filed by that community member,” the LASD statement said.

“Sheriff (Robert) Luna has made it clear that he expects Department personnel to treat all members of the public with dignity and respect, and that personnel who do not uphold our training standards will be held accountable,” the statement said.

CNN has reached out to Lebron’s attorney for further comment.

It’s unclear what happened before the bodycam recording picks up, but LASD said in a release, “while on the scene, their attention was drawn to a man sitting in a car in the parking lot.”

In the video, one deputy is already at the driver’s open car door and can be seen leaning in toward the driver. When the deputy whose bodycam video was released approached, he initially threatened to spray the driver with pepper spray if the man did not get out of the car, and warned the first deputy to move out of the way.

Almost immediately, the deputy can be seen trading the spray for his weapon, pointing it at the driver, at which point he says, “if you take off in this car, I’m gonna shoot you. If you put this car in drive, you’re getting one right to the chest.”

“You’re gonna shoot me?” Lebron asked.

“Absolutely. Absolutely,” the unnamed deputy replied.

Throughout the interaction, the driver continually asks what he’s being detained for and whether he’s under arrest.

“It’s already been explained to you,” the deputy is heard telling Lebron. The deputy also stated that Lebron was being detained for refusing to comply.

Once out of the car, the man is placed in handcuffs and asked if he’s on probation or parole, to which he answers no. The deputy accuses him of smoking marijuana in his car and the man defiantly says that he did not smoke weed in his car, but does have weed in his vehicle, which is legal.

Eventually, the man was cited for a missing license plate, the LASD said.

James Wheeler, president of the Association for Los Angeles Deputy Sheriffs, a union representing officers at the department, said in a statement that their objectives “are to ensure there is a thorough investigation” and “to preserve due process for those involved.”

“Our values are straightforward and universal, applying to the public and our members alike, regardless of the nature of the allegation. Regarding this specific encounter, ALADS has only secondhand information and an edited audio recording that doesn’t capture the incident in its entirety, and we are therefore currently unable to offer a definitive comment,” the statement said. “The Sheriff’s Department is conducting an investigation into this matter and we are awaiting the outcome of that investigation.”

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Biden's FCC nominee Gigi Sohn shared tweet calling Trump a 'raggedy white supremacist president'

January 8, 2023 Published by Fox News

President Biden’s pick for an open seat on the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) once shared a tweet labeling former President Donald Trump a “raggedy white supremacist president.”

In June 2020, Gigi Sohn retweeted a post from actress Issa Rae characterizing the former president as a white supremacist amid the unrest caused by the death of George Floyd in Minneapolis. Rae’s tweet added that Trump would prefer to “kill everybody” than to make progress on racial justice issues.

“Your raggedy white supremacist president and his cowardly enablers would rather kill everybody than stop killing black people,” Rae said in the post later shared by Sohn.

Earlier this week, the White House announced that Biden had nominated Sohn to fill the vacant seat previously held by FCC Chairman Ajit Pai. If the Senate were to confirm Sohn for the position, the FCC — a powerful independent agency with far-reaching regulatory powers over the tech and communications industries — would have a 3-2 Democratic majority.

WHITE HOUSE PRESS SECRETARY GRILLED ON TWEET CALLING 2016 ELECTION ‘STOLEN’

Gigi Sohn testifies during a Senate confirmation hearing examining her nomination to serve on the Federal Communications Commission on Feb. 9, 2022.
(Pete Marovich/Pool/Getty Images)

However, her nomination this week marked the second time Biden has nominated Sohn for the position. The president first picked her to replace Pai in October 2021, but various concerns surrounding her past social media posts and views on certain key issues prevented the Senate from ever holding a floor vote on her confirmation.

WHITE HOUSE, TWITTER SILENT ON WHY TWEET WITH VACCINE MISINFORMATION HASN’T BEEN TAKEN DOWN

“I think the average American, whether you’re Republican or Democrat is tired of this,” Sen. Dan Sullivan, R-Alaska, told Sohn during a Feb. 9 confirmation hearing hosted by the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science and Transportation.

“The number of Biden nominees who come out here and have tweeted about Republicans being white supremacists and racists, it seems like that’s how you get nominated in this administration,” he continued. “People are just tired of it.”

Sullivan asked Sohn whether she believed most Republicans were white supremacists. The FCC nominee answered that she “absolutely” did not believe most Republicans were racist, adding that she was not familiar with the tweet characterizing Trump as a “raggedy white supremacist president.”

President Biden nominated Sohn this week for the second time since October 2021.
(AP Photo/Andrew Harnik)

In addition, FOX Business previously reported that moderate Democrats had concerns about Sohn and that the White House, at one point, considered withdrawing her nomination.

Sohn has been a vocal proponent of net neutrality, has attacked Fox News as a threat to democracy and floated potentially stripping right-leaning broadcaster Sinclair of its FCC license. administrative law as a primarily impartial FCC commission. The Chamber of Commerce, the nation’s largest business industry group, has warned of Sohn’s “extreme views” and reiterated its call for the Senate to reject her nomination this week.

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“Last Congress, members of the Senate did not move forward with Gigi Sohn’s nomination to serve as FCC Commissioner due to concerns about her longstanding advocacy of policies harmful to consumers and America’s thriving communications sector,” Jordan Crenshaw, the vice President of policy for the U.S. Chamber’s Technology Engagement Center, said in a statement on Jan. 4.

“Her extreme views, such as regulating broadband like a public utility, establishing government-owned networks, and undermining intellectual property protections, have not changed and therefore the Senate should again reject her nomination,” Crenshaw continued. “Americans deserve an FCC that will ensure that consumers and the economy benefit from cutting-edge communication tools necessary for their success. The Chamber believes that the FCC and the public interest would be better served by a different nominee.”

FOX Business reporters Eleanor Terrett and Charlie Gasparino contributed to this report.

Thomas Catenacci is a politics writer for Fox News Digital.

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