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Overnight Briefing & General Reality Check - Aug 26, 2015
August 26, 2015
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Getting up to speed:
Two members of a Virginia TV station were shot and killed early this morning by a former employee of the station. The 24-year-old WDBJ7-TV reporter, ALISON PARKER, and her 27-year-old cameraman ADAM WARD were in the middle of a live interview around 6:45 am when VESTER LEE FLANAGAN, who was fired two years ago by the station, walked up and shot the pair, as well as their interview subject, VICKI GARDNER, who survived.
After being identified, Flanagan, who also used the name BRYCE WILLIAMS on the air, posted video on the Twitter account and Facebook page for Bryce Williams, showing an outstretched arm holding the handgun and firing repeatedly at Parker as she tried to run away.Also posted with the video, other comments including:
--"I filmed the shooting see Facebook"
--"Adam went to hr on me after working with me one time!!!"
--"They hired her after that???"
--"EEOC report filed"
--"Alison made racist comments"The Roanoke Times reports Flanagan was hired at the station in the spring of 2012... WDBJ let him go in February 2013. In May 2014, Flanagan filed suit against the station in Roanoke General District Court, seeking money he felt he was owed and additional damages. His suit alleged discrimination... but in July 2014, the case was dismissed by a judge."
Flanagan was identified and police spotted his car on I-66 and attempted to stop him; Flanagan sped away and later ran off the road. When the police approached the vehicle, they found he'd shot himself.Culture Shock:
Thanks to the Ashley Madison hack and one Reddit user with too much time on their hands, we have a comprehensive list of the most faithful and unfaithful states in the union.
Three out of five of the most unfaithful states are located in the Northeast. In order, the most unfaithful states are:
5. Connecticut
4. New Jersey
3. District of Columbia
2. Colorado
1. Alabama
--o--
Conversely, two out of five of the most devoted states are located in the South. Alabama's neighbor, Mississippi, makes the list of most devoted, too.
5. South Dakota
4. Maine
3. Idaho
2. Mississippi
1. West Virginia
The full list can be found HERE.
Editor's note: West Virginia is the most devoted? Well, I guess when you've known your cousin your whole life, cheating is a bit low. What's most surprising is that Idaho is on the list... you wouldn't really suspect people from a state with the word "ho" in it to be faithful. (AB)On, off and way-off Broadway:
BENEDICT CUMBERBATCH officially opened as "Hamlet" last night in London. And, the reviews are in:
--The New York Times: "He is in fighting trim here, and brings energy and precision to every word and movement, including the climactic fencing match. Yet this Hamlet seldom seems to relate to anyone else onstage. In the big dialogue scenes, you're conscious of Mr. Cumberbatch riding Shakespeare's rushing words like a surfboard, as if saving his interior energy for the monologues."
--The Hollywood Reporter: "As the dust blasted from the wings at the end of the first half starts to settle, it's finally time to examine the production directed by Lyndsey Turner and its star performance, and deem them both… quite good. Neither is epoch-defining, but this modern-dress, light-on-gimmicks interpretation packs a strong supporting ensemble, while Cumberbatch's graceful, witty but somewhat self-effacing turn is certainly no disgrace."
--The London Guardian: "Cumberbatch has a gift for suggesting Hamlet's essential decency, but visual conceits take the place of textual investigation in this frustrating staging." (Marino)
--The London Telegraph (four stars): "Cumberbatch is, in truth, a blazing, five-star Hamlet trapped in a middling, three-star show."
--Deadline: "Cumberbatch is exceptionally good, merging character and actor without the latter dominating. This production knows Cumberbatch's star is going to draw people unfamiliar with Shakespeare, so the staging is broad and unsubtle; it doesn't bring anything drastically new or profound to the material. So what? Shakespeare wrote for nobles and commoners alike."
PS: Even though the show is sold out for it's 10-week run, it'll be broadcast live around the world to movie theatres on Oct 15.Human Nature:
Teen girls tend to lose friends after having sex, and gain friends for making out without having sex --while boys have the complete opposite experience. WebMD.com says the findings from the new study out of Penn State University shows that traditional gender biases about sex are alive and well in today's teens. The researchers looked at data from teens and pre-teens ages 11 to 16.
The investigators found that after having sex, girls had a 45 percent loss in peer acceptance, while boys had an 88 percent increase in acceptance. After making out, girls had a 25 percent increase in peer acceptance, while boys had a 29 percent decrease. The research was presented at a meeting of the American Sociological Association. (Bartha) -
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