During a night out in London on Valentine’s Day, singer Harry Styles had a frightening run-in with a knife-wielding mugger. Styles was with a friend at the time and both escaped physically unharmed.
The unnamed man approached Styles and “demanded cash” — a request that Styles calmly complied with.
“Officers were contacted on Saturday, 15 February regarding the incident which happened at 23.50 hrs on Friday, 14 February. It was reported that a man in his 20s was approached by another man and threatened him with a knife. The victim was not injured however, cash was taken from him.”
According to reports, Styles was able to keep himself and the mugger calm while he handed over the cash. Afterward, he was understandably shaken. Styles has not publicly commented on the robbery.
Rod Blagojevich, Wendy Williams, Kenan Thompson, Martha Stewart, Jeff Bezos Climate, Lizzo, Ryan Newman: HOT LINKS
CRIMINAL MINDS. Trump pardons Rod Blagojevich, Michael Milken, Bernard Kerik, and Edward DeBartolo: “President Trump commuted the 14-year prison sentence of former Gov. Rod R. Blagojevich of Illinois, the Democrat who was convicted of trying to essentially sell Barack Obama’s vacated Senate seat for personal gain, and pardoned the financier Michael R. Milken and Bernard B. Kerik, the former New York City police commissioner, the president announced on Tuesday.”
2020. Major Nevada Latino group backs Sanders: “Mijente, a grass-roots organization that mobilizes Latinx and Chicanx voters, decided to make its first-ever presidential endorsement in response to President Donald Trump’s rhetoric and policies targeting Latinos. The endorsement adds to the growing collection of progressive groups coalescing around the Vermont senator, after earlier expectations they would be divided between him and Elizabeth Warren.”
PACKING PETE SUPPORTER OF THE DAY. Click through to the full pic on Twitter for the pronouncement.
Buttigieg supporter
No blaring MAGA hat or thundering words. Just a very pleasant Democratic pronouncement. pic.twitter.com/UUijgnutHY
CLIMATE PLEDGE OF THE DAY. Amazon founder Jeff Bezos pledges $10 BILLION to fight climate change: “Today, I’m thrilled to announce I am launching the Bezos Earth Fund. Climate change is the biggest threat to our planet. I want to work alongside others both to amplify known ways and to explore new ways of fighting the devastating impact of climate change on this planet we all share. This global initiative will fund scientists, activists, NGOs — any effort that offers a real possibility to help preserve and protect the natural world. We can save Earth. It’s going to take collective action from big companies, small companies, nation states, global organizations, and individuals.”
RYAN NEWMAN. Daytona 500 driver seriously injured in terrible crash.
Scary finish at #DAYTONA500 when leader Ryan Newman flipped right before the finish. Denny Hamlin wins but all thoughts on Newman right now. pic.twitter.com/Fltj5w5d2g
Over 1,800 Parents Sign HRC Letter Condemning State Legislation Attacking Trans and Non-Binary Youth
Today, more than 1,800 parents of transgender and non-binary children from all 50 U.S. states and Washington D.C. issued an open letter organized by HRC condemning the spate of anti-transgender legislation proposed in legislatures across the country. There are at least 20 bills filed in state legislatures across the country attempting to criminalize or severely limit access to gender-affirming care for transgender and non-binary youth.
“In all 50 states and D.C., parents of transgender and non-binary youth are standing up and making their voices heard. And as we saw in South Dakota, we will make a difference in defeating these abusive bills that attempt to legislate transgender and non-binary people out of existence,” said HRC President Alphonso David. “The proponents of these dangerous bills are spreading misinformation that these parents — more than 1,800 of them — know to be blatantly false. A child’s health care needs should be a conversation had by that child, their family and a medical health provider, consistent with best practices. Lawmakers who want to disrupt that relationship show that they do not care about their constituents or American families, but would rather legislate hatred to rally a small minority of people who seek to harm transgender people.”
The parents, speaking for the thousands of families of transgender and non-binary children across the country, write, “We know better than anyone what our children need in order to thrive: access to best practice, evidence-based gender affirming health care. Such care, administered by qualified professionals, is literally life-saving for our children… We cannot and will not stand by while lawmakers play politics with our children’s lives. It is time for legislatures to stand down on these attacks, and leave the care of our children in our hands and in the hands of our trusted medical providers.”
Research has shown that when gender-expansive youth have access to gender-affirming services, competent care and affirmation, their risk of depression, anxiety and other negative mental health outcomes is greatly reduced. Several medical associations and organizations have spoken out against this legislation, including the American Medical Association, the Hormone Health Network, the American Association of Colleges of Pharmacy, the World Professional Association for Transgender Health and the United States Professional Association for Transgender Health.
To read the full letter released, click here. If you are a parent who would like to add your name to this letter, do so here.
Growlr issues mass account suspensions without explanation
Social media has erupted with a massive growl of anger following mass account suspensions on the popular dating app Growlr.
Growlr, which caters to bearish men, launched in 2012 and claims to boast more than 2 million users. The mass suspensions appear to have begun February 17, and have caused a massive outcry on Facebook and Twitter. At the time of this writing, the company has yet to comment publicly on the reason for the suspensions, or the steps it is taking to resolve the issue. It also remains unclear just how many users were suspended.
This morning’s funniests posts, unintentionally or not, are about Growlr banning everyone from its app. It’s like someone turned on the lights in the backroom and people are angry that they now have to interact.
Media speculation has noted that the company–which sold to the straight-owned The Meet Group for more than $11 million last year–may have signaled its demise. At the time, CEO Geoff Cook said “We are thrilled to add Growlr to The Meet Group portfolio. Similar to what we have done with our other acquired properties, we plan to be aggressive in bringing our video model to Growlr. We expect to begin rolling out livevideo on Growlr in the fourth quarter of 2019. We also see opportunities to grow advertising revenue on the app, and we plan to further invest in user acquisition to expand brand awareness and reach.”
Widespread suspensions on @Growlr tonight. Who else got suspended? My current count is eight.
Just hopping on here to see how much of my timeline is fellow bears/cubs/daddies/chubs and otters affected by the Great @Growlr Profile Rapture….. Yep, pretty much everyone! #Growlr#GrowlrPurge#GrowlrGate2020
