29 of the most powerful pieces of writing by women in 2016

There were moments during 2016 where it was easy to wonder whether women were valued at all in this country. When a serial sexual predator can become the president of the United States, do women’s voices and stories even matter? But even in those darkest moments, we could count on those voices and stories to pull us all through.

Moving into the next year, lifting up quality journalism ― specifically quality journalism written by women and members of other marginalized groups ― will be all the more vital.

To that end, for the fifth year in a row, we’ve curated a list of pieces that made an impact on us as readers over the last calendar year. To make the list, an article had to be (1) published in 2016, (2) written by a woman and (3) be available online.

Below are 29 pieces of writing (though by no means is this an exhaustive list) to put on your reading list ASAP. They will make you think, laugh, cry ― alternately break your heart and put it back together again. Remember: Words still matter, perhaps now more than ever.

Hillary Clinton’s Nomination Is A Victory For The Smart Girls

No, Hillary Clinton did not become our first woman president. No, she did not shatter that "highest, hardest glass ceiling." But she sure as hell got closer than any woman before her did.  And this alone, as Jill Filipovic argued in July, is a victory ― not just for women as a whole, but especially for a particular breed of ambitious, smart girls who have long been told those qualities which are virtues in men make them "unlikable." "There was Hillary on stage," writes Filipovic, describing Clinton’s speech at the DNC. "A go-getter, a hard worker, not immediately likable, uncool, but still, just maybe, the future president. A girl-nerd turned lady boss. One of us."

When an anonymous man wrote to author and comedian Sara Benincasa to ask why she had gained weight, she decided to answer him honestly. Her response will have you cheering the entire way through. Sometimes women gain weight ― and don’t care! ― while they’re busy kicking ass. As Benincasa writes: "Anyway, during The Fattening, nobody who hired me or who wanted to hire me ever said that I was too fat. Do you think they were just being polite? I should ask. I will go through my union or one of my agents. I have several. I also have a manager. I should ask her. I could ask my lawyer, my CPA, my personal wealth manager, or the very handsome man who cleans my home in Los Angeles. He’s really nice even though he probably looks in my fridge and goes, ‘Oh my God, this kale is fattening!’"

Following the deaths of Alton Sterling, Philando Castile and five police officers this summer, our country was broken and grieving as the black community and allies tried to make sense of injustices that feel unfixable. In an essay for Marie Claire, Roxane Gay writes about how ally-ship alone will not solve any problems. "Black people do not need allies. We need people to stand up and take on the problems borne of oppression as their own, without remove or distance. We need people to do this even if they cannot fully understand what it’s like to be oppressed for their race or ethnicity, gender, sexuality, ability, class, religion, or other marker of identity. We need people to use common sense to figure out how to participate in social justice."

After nearly 20 years of being treated like a punchline, Marcia Clark’s story got a feminist re-examination thanks to Ryan Murphy’s "The People vs. O.J." The miniseries shed light on the misogyny that dominated much of the coverage of Clark when she was prosecuting O.J. Simpson. She was called hysterical; the press and judge criticized her hairstyles and outfits; a tabloid published topless photos sold by an ex. Two decades later, these incidents read as so obviously disgusting that they require a reckoning. Clark deserves to (finally) have a voice, to tell her story on her own terms. So why reexamine Clark’s treatment now? As Traister surmises: "It’s not as if the swift judgments of social media have banished sexist bullshit from the land. In fact, I suspect that it’s an unconscious awareness of our contemporary hang-ups that prompts us to chew on the past." Indeed.

Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie, Gloria Steinem, Rashida Jones, Jon Meacham, T Magazine

In a gorgeous cover story for T Magazine, four authors (including one man, who we’re breaking our own rules for here a little bit) wrote thank you notes to Michelle Obama, "a woman," they write, "who has spent the past eight years quietly and confidently changing the course of American history." Each author has a personalized take as they outline FLOTUS’ impact on them and on society. As Gloria Steinem writes, "We will never have a democracy until we have democratic families and a society without the invented categories of both race and gender. Michelle Obama may have changed history in the most powerful way — by example."

The main character in Jessica Knoll’s hit novel Luckiest Girl Alive holds a secret: as a teenager, she was the victim of a gang rape. In a gut-wrenching essay for Lenny in March, Knoll revealed that the inspiration for her character’s storyline had in fact come directly from her own life. "I’m not fine. It’s not fine," she writes. "But it’s finally the truth, it’s what I know, and that’s a start."

The Night That Obama And Hillary Created ISIS

After Donald Trump proclaimed that Obama literally founded ISIS with the help of Hillary Clinton, Liz Meriwether imagines what that first conversation between the two of them must have been like in an (obviously) fictional piece for New York Magazine. Months after Obama thought of the idea for ISIS at Coachella, Meriwether writes, he decided to tell Clinton of his plans over popsicles. "Hillary was breathing hard. She walked the length of the kitchen, then walked the width of the kitchen, and then surprised herself by doing the first tumbling pass in Aly Raisman’s floor routine. Obama knew it was dangerous to tell someone his secrets, but it was such a relief."

On the political stage, abortion is often disconnected from the women who get them. Some politicians don’t consider the many, many reasons women might seek abortions when they’re pushing legislation that would block access. To situate these laws within the complex, and often heartbreaking human stories of the women they impact, Catherine Pearson interviewed four women who got abortions for very different reasons under very different circumstances.

Solange Knowles beautifully breaks down the insidious message at the core of subtle racism: "I do not feel you belong here." Framing this larger point within a single incident at a Kraftwerk concert, Knowles explains that as a black woman with a black family living in a white supremacist society, simply asserting the right to take up space and express joy can be a radical act. "We belong. We belong. We belong," she writes. "We built this."

Here Is The Powerful Letter The Stanford Victim Read Aloud To Her Attacker

Emily Doe, to BuzzFeed’s Katie J.M. Baker

In June, BuzzFeed published a letter that a victim of sexual assault, referred to as Emily Doe, read to her attacker, Brock Turner ― now a household name ― in court. Her statement spread rapidly across the internet, igniting a national conversation about campus assault, rape culture and victim-blaming. The letter gives a voice to so many silenced victims, culminating in a powerful proclamation: "Finally, to girls everywhere, I am with you. On nights when you feel alone, I am with you. When people doubt you or dismiss you, I am with you."

In Secretive Marijuana Industry, Whispers Of Abuse And Trafficking

Shoshana Walter does a deep dive into the sexual abuse that occurs in the marijuana industry, which has largely remained under the radar. "The forests also hide secrets, among them young women with stories of sexual abuse and exploitation," writes Walter. This one’s a long read, but well worth the time.

Play The Woman Card And Reap The Rewards

"Frankly, if Hillary Clinton were a man, I don’t think she’d get 5 percent of the vote. The only thing she’s got going is the woman’s card," Donald Trump said during the primaries. In a brilliant funny-because-it’s-true piece for the Washington Post, Alexandra Petri lays out all of the benefits that come with a so-called "woman’s card." For example: "Present the Woman Card to a man you have just met at a party and it is good for one detailed, patronizing explanation of the subject you literally got your PhD in." Sigh.

I Cannot Take Nate Parker Rape Allegations Lightly

Actress Gabrielle union begins her brave LA Times op-ed by describing her violent rape two decades earlier. She writes about how her own experience led her to accept a role in Nate Parker’s "Birth of a Nation" and how the news of the rape allegations against him shook her to her core. She writes: "Since Nate Parker’s story was revealed to me, I have found myself in a state of stomach-churning confusion. I took this role because I related to the experience. I also wanted to give a voice to my character, who remains silent throughout the film. In her silence, she represents countless black women who have been and continue to be violated. Women without a voice, without power. Women in general. But black women in particular. I knew I could walk out of our movie and speak to the audience about what it feels like to be a survivor."

Why Snapchat Is Hell For The Brokenhearted

Any woman who has gone through a breakup in the age of social media will understand exactly the type of pain that Alana Levinson so eloquently pinpoints in this essay. "When you lose someone completely, there’s a kind of sick comfort in still knowing some things about their life, even if it hurts like hell," she writes. "So we often don’t unfriend or unfollow, choosing instead to keep the lifeline open, just in case." Having a digital window into a lover’s life builds intimacy when the relationship is happening, but once it ends, our phones become emotional landmines.

Before women across the country decided to take back the word "nasty," Andi Zeisler called on us to take back "bitch." Could a term that plagued "unlikable" Hillary Clinton for years be turned into a cheeky, powerful badge of honor? As Zeisler writes: "The power of ‘bitch’ to shame is, with a perspective adjustment, also its power to shine. All that’s required to reframe the word is to point out that the things bitches are often guilty of can be both unexceptional and necessary: flexing influence, standing up for their beliefs, not acting according to feminine norms and expectations."

To All The Straight Women Who Love Gay Men: Your Safe Space Is No Longer Their Safe Space

In the wake of the Orlando massacre, Melissa Harris-Perry examined the way straight women take the safety of gay male spaces for granted ― something gay men themselves can never fully do. "Straight girls love gay male public spaces because they feel like safe spaces," she writes. "The Orlando massacre reminds us this safety is an illusion of our relative privilege. Not even gay public space is safe space to be gay." And if straight women bask in the gorgeous glow of these queer spaces, they should also be the loudest allies to the queer community, using their privilege to fight homophobia and the effects of toxic masculinity. As Harris-Perry points out, "gay public space cannot be my safe space until all public space is safe for those who are gay."

Women Know Why Donald Trump’s Accusers Stayed Silent For So Long

When women come forward with allegations of sexual assault, harassment or abuse against a powerful man, especially if time has passed since the violating incidents, the question asked is always the same: Why didn’t she speak up sooner? As Rachel Sklar explains, the answer is quite simple. Women who experience sexual harassment, assault or abuse ― which is most women ― often have a choice: "Should I stand up for myself and risk everything, or let an awkward moment fade into the past? For many women, the answer is to set our jaw and move forward, and say to ourselves: We have worked hard to get where we are. It is not fair what you did to us, but it is even less fair to let you stop us."

When They Go Low, Can I Still Say Like One Bitchy Thing?

During her speech at the Democratic National Convention, Michelle Obama told the crowd, "When they go low, we go high" ― a now famous quote that reminds us all to always be the bigger person. But, over on Reductress (a satire site that has been killing it all year), writer Gwynna Forgham-Thrift offered a more realistic take. "Can’t I just squeeze in like, one sick burn before I walk away? Just one?" she asks. "Does brunch count? I can still say what’s on my mind at brunch, right? Michelle Obama can’t possibly be nice for an entire brunch???"

Giving Up Alcohol Opened Up My Eyes To The Infuriating Truth About Why Women Drink

You don’t have to agree with every part of Kristi Coulter’s assessment of why women drink to find it important food for thought. As she writes: "Even cool chicks are still women. And there’s no easy way to be a woman, because, as you may have noticed, there’s no acceptable way to be a woman. And if there’s no acceptable way to be the thing you are, then maybe you drink a little. Or a lot." Worth considering when you see all the wine o’clock memes dominating Instagram.

Not Just Words: Why Donald Trump’s Lewd Talk Matters

Following the release of that hot mic audio heard round the world in which Donald Trump explained how he likes to "grab ‘em by the pussy," our now President-elect brushed off the convo as "just words." In a piece for Yahoo News, Lisa Belkin explained precisely how important it is to understand that words mean things. She wrote, "Linguistic history is the measure of why we change our words and what the evolution reflects about a society... Words are never merely words. They are always a reflection of where a culture stands. And of what we as a society are willing to think, say and hear."

Many women and men were moved by Beyonce’s stunning visual album "Lemonade," but there is no confusion about who this work of art is by and for: black women. Dominique Matti’s gorgeous piece speaks to this truth. It’s hard to find just one passage to highlight, but this one near the end of her essay quite nicely sums it up: "’Lemonade’ is for Black women because the world treats Black women as though they are difficult daughters, difficult mothers, difficult lovers, difficult friends, difficult workers, difficult strangers. They treat us like we are difficult, because it makes us easy targets. They treat us like we are difficult so that no one in the world will defend us. But now we are defending ourselves. ‘Lemonade’ was an act of self-defense."

In the U.S., more women are killed by their intimate partners than by any other group. Melissa Jeltsen puts faces to the grim statistics surrounding domestic violence in her harrowing multi-media project, "This Is Not A Love Story." And these statistics also hold a very important lesson. As she writes: "In the cases we examined, we found evidence that a large portion of the women killed had previously been abused by their partners. In many instances, there were signals that circumstances might turn deadly."

An early ‘90s episode of the sitcom "A Different World" re-imagined the 1992 presidential election if the Clintons’ genders and races were switched ― a black woman named Jill Blinton ran for president while her black male partner Hilliard is senselessly attacked by the press for having opinions. Nussbaum explains how this episode and the race/gender reversal serves as "a reminder of the many ways in which our interpretation of history can shift, as we change and the world changes."

Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie, New York Times Book Review

Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie gives us a glimpse into Melania Trump’s world in a fictional, yet very believable short story. In Adichie’s version of Trumpland, Donald copy and pastes his tweets into texts to show his wife, Ivanka secretly donates to Hillary Clinton and of course, Tiffany tattles on her for doing so..

Poor People Deserve To Taste Something Other Than Shame

Through a beautiful mix of personal experience and analysis, Ijeoma Oluo breaks down exactly why the dominant narrative that often surrounds poor people is so problematic. From memes to headlines to tightened government support, Oluo outlines how "the fear of poor people squandering the charity of hard-working American tax dollars" ultimately serves to limit "the ways in which poor Americans are allowed to live." When we shame those who are not wealthy for indulging in any bit of material happiness, we only diminish their humanity. As Oluo writes: "We deny them the opportunity to live like actual human beings worthy of dignity and respect. Everyone should be able to bring home a steak or a lobster, or a Boston cream pie, once in a while."

Hillary Clinton Didn’t Shatter The Glass Ceiling. This Is What Broke Instead.

Gutted. Broken. Shattered. These are the words used by so many of Hillary Clinton’s supporters to describe what they felt in the aftermath of election night. Clinton’s campaign staff, supporters and the press tasked with covering her campaign sat under a glass ceiling at the Javits Center on November 8. The symbolism, meant to be poignant, turned out to be painful. But as Traister so beautifully articulates, in a piece that has a 90 percent chance of making the reader cry, this type of disappointment is par for the American course: "This is normal — America as it has always been, not yet the better version we hoped it could be. But the half of America that lost is devastated. ‘Crying as if someone died’ is a text message I received from more than one friend last week. And it is as if someone died: a dream of what we could have been, of the president we could have had."

The Problem With Obama’s Faith In White America

If you have read Ta-Nehisi Coates’s powerful story "My President Was Black," published in The Atlantic, you absolutely must read Cottom’s equally powerful response. Cottom reflects on the visceral reaction she had reading Coates’s piece: "I screamed a lot," she writes. "When I was done reading and screaming, I cried." Coates wrote much about Barack Obama’s inherent trust of white people, a quality that perhaps both allowed him to become our nation’s first black president, and prevented him from seeing that the defense of whiteness (and white supremacy) would be what allowed ― or perhaps made inevitable ― the rise of Donald Trump. Cottom’s writing gets to the core of Obama’s blindspot: "Those of us who know our whites know one thing above all else: whiteness defends itself. Against change, against progress, against hope, against black dignity, against black lives, against reason, against truth, against facts, against native claims, against its own laws and customs. Even after Donald Trump was elected, Obama told Coates that all is not lost. He is still hopeful about the soul of white America. He said nothing about the soul of black America. That is where my hope resides. It is where my faith has always resided."

Early this year, writer Jia Tolentino began making a list of people who played themselves ― a term, she says, which "can be loosely defined as working against your conscious intentions." On the night of the presidential election, she realized that she too had played herself ― as so many of us did ― in believing that Donald Trump was unelectable. "I had thought that, within my small life, I was credibly serving the future that I wanted: one in which we would have our first female President, one in which truth mattered, one in which Trump represented the death rattle of old prejudices rather than a vessel for those prejudices made hot-blooded and new. I allowed some sense of personal righteousness to satisfy me, and I suppose that’s the beginning of where I went wrong." In 2016, we all played ourselves.

Masha Gessen, The New York Review Of Books

Two days after a painful, tumultuous, polarizing presidential election, Masha Gessen lays out how Americans can live under ― and resist ― a leader who has autocratic tendencies. It is an anxiety-ridden read if you are someone who fears what Donald Trump may do to this country once he takes office, but for that same reason it is an amazingly important one. Gessen’s rules are simple to understand and likely much more difficult to live by: Be outraged. Don’t make compromises. Remember the future. We plan to repeat that last one to ourselves over and over and over again.

29 Of The Most Powerful Pieces Of Writing By Women In 2016

Words matter, perhaps now more than ever.

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Man swallowed a microSD card and you won't believe what happened next...

PetaPixel is one of my favorite blogs. The writers there are passionate and knowledgable about their subject, and love diving into both the art of photography, and the technical gear available for photography.

Also, they just ran a story about a man who Also, they just ran a story about a man who swallowed a 64GB microSD card and then pooped it into a strainer so he could maybe recover the drone footage he shot on it.

The story is written in the first person by "John Doe," who is apparently embarrassed by the incident and chose to remain anonymous. And it’s not really important why or how he swallowed the card, containing the whole day’s worth of drone footage he’d just captured. What’s important is that he couldn't puke it back up, and therefore had to poop it into a pasta strainer and then plug it in to a computer to see if the client’s footage was intact.

Look, I don’t want to ruin this whole story for you. Does John Doe get fired? Do his colleagues make fun of him forever? Do some data recovery experts eventually discover that while the microSD’s controller was broken, the memory was still intact, and everything’s going to be okay John, don’t cry, please don’t cry?

Yeah. But man. He pooped a microSD card! I can’t believe it!

Man swallowed a microSD card and you won't believe what happened next!

PetaPixel is one of my favorite blogs. The writers there are passionate and knowledgable about their subject, and love diving into both the art of photography, and the technical gear available for...


The latest show to be canceled this season is ...

CBS has canceled "We Are Men" and will return "Mike and Molly" to the schedule on Mon., Nov. 4, the network announced Wednesday.

From Mon., Oct. 14, "2 Broke Girls" will move to 8:30 p.m. ET to replace "We Are Men," while repeats of "The Big Bang Theory" will air at 9 p.m. until Nov. 4, when "Mike and Molly" will take over the timeslot.

"Men" had an inauspicious start despite the lead-in from "How I Met Your Mother," earning only 6.4 million viewers and a 2.0 rating in the adults 18-49 demo in its premiere, slipping to 5.4 million and a 1.8 rating in its second episode.

'We Are Men' Canceled By CBS, 'Mike And Molly' To Return In November

CBS has canceled "We Are Men" and will return "Mike a...

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He Mixes Powder On A Plate... And Seconds Later, Things Get Completely Out Of Control.

Most of us pretty much did the same old science experiments when we were in school. There was the volcano, the potato-powered clock, the mold display, and not much else.

I really wish I’d known about this one, though.

Not only would I have won the science fair, I might’ve grown up to be an evil super-genius scientist!

This experiment is called ‘Pharaoh’s Serpent’, for obvious reasons. It looks more like a giant tentacle monster than a simple chemical reaction... I was completely mesmerized!

He Mixes Powder On A Plate.... And Seconds Later, Things Get Completely Out Of Control.

When Youtube user Nile Red burned mercury(II) thiocyanate (Hg(SCN)2, I never would have expected a weird tentacle monster to grow out of it!


Why middle-aged women are the most vulnerable on the internet

He was meant to be her happy ever after – a fairytale ending for the prolific children’s author consumed by grief. When Helen Bailey’s husband of 22 years drowned on holiday in Barbados in 2011, her world crumbled. Then Ian Stewart, 58, a "gorgeous, grey-haired widower" on an online bereavement group.

He had lost his wife and quickly they bonded over what they had both been through. Within a year, Stewart had proposed. The couple moved to Royston, Hertfordshire, and set up home in a seven-bedroom mansion. Bailey even changed her will so her fiance would inherit almost all of her £4m fortune if she died before they married. She was worried he’d be left vulnerable if their paperwork wasn’t in order.

But their cosy domesticity was short-lived. In July last year, the 51-year-old was discovered in a Victorian cesspit underneath the house, alongside the remains of her faithful daschund, Boris. Her body was so badly decomposed, she had be identified by her dental records.

On Wednesday, Stewart was sentenced to 34 years in jail for Bailey’s murder. The jury heard how he had been secretly drugging his partner with zopiclone, a sleeping medication, for weeks before suffocating her. Later that day, he watched his eldest son, Jamie, play bowls, taking him back home for a post-match Chinese takeaway. Afterwards, he changed a standing order from Bailey’s bank account to the couple’s joint account, switching the amount from £600 to £4,000.

In the months that followed (Stewart told concerned relatives Bailey had left a note saying she "needed some space") he renewed Arsenal season tickets and even flew to Spain for a holiday he had booked with his wife-to-be..

The grim final chapter in the life of a woman described by family as "immensely witty and talented" has once again exposed the seedy underbelly of the digital world. This time, however, it’s not the online exploitation of children that’s raising alarm bells – research suggests older women are, in fact, the internet’s most vulnerable.

This becomes even more apparent when they are going through difficult emotional times which come with this life-stage, such as divorce or bereavement when usual good judgement may not be so finely tuned and a lot of very personal information can be unloaded very quickly if they find someone to trust.

"The most successful scams are carried out on women between the ages of 40 and 60," says psychologist Emma Kenny, who explores the perils of internet dating in the Channel 5 documentary Dated to Death, out next month.

"Increasingly, older men are going out with much younger partners. A lot of middle-aged women find themselves incredibly lonely and this emotional vulnerability can cause them to make bad choices. Quite often, a woman will go for someone who validates her, and she might reveal a lot of personal information early on, which enables predators."

The number of people defrauded by online dating schemes has reached a record high, according to the National Fraud Intelligence Bureau – last year, almost 4,000 victims of "romance fraud" handed over a staggering £39m. Forget the well-worn trope of the wealthy widow, conned overseas by an unscrupulous lothario you could see coming a mile off – the danger now has moved closer to home, and can be much harder to spot.

Nancy*, a 37-year-old single mother was duped out of £300,000 by Marcello, a man she met on match.com. Within days, the attractive Italian, who claimed to be Manchester-based but working in Turkey, persuaded Nancy to move their conversations to an instant messaging service. After six weeks, he asked for a loan for his son, who needed surgery.

"It escalated unbelievably quickly, so straight away it was the medical fees, then money for food, rent and taxes to get them out of Turkey," she told the BBC. She’s now facing bankruptcy. "I wasn’t comfortable, and then I got in so far I couldn’t get myself out. You keep going in the hope this person is genuine."

It’s not just the betrayal of trust women like Nancy have to endure – a number of female victims of so-called "love scams" claim to have been excoriated for their perceived naivety. Like Bailey, the casualties are often smart, successful women who under other circumstances would know better.

One 68-year-old university professor I spoke to declined to be interviewed after she was trolled for publicly admitting to giving £140,000 to a con artist she met on a dating site.

"People haven’t a clue how clever and sophisticated these men and their scams are," she told me. Those who have suffered an emotional trauma, such as divorce or bereavement, are particularly susceptible to grooming, says Kenny. "My friend is widowed, so I checked out a couple of support forums for her. You could tell that not everyone on there had lost a spouse. It’s awful to say, but trust no one."

"It’s truly astonishing how much time and effort fraudsters will invest in building a relationship with someone," says Tony Neate, CEO of Get Safe Online.

"Starting a new relationship at a difficult time in your life can prevent you from noticing the signs of something more sinister. It is this vulnerability that they prey on, which makes it ever important to talk to your friends and family about your experiences online. They might spot something suspicious you don’t. Even if you feel you have become close to someone on the internet, you must remember that they are still a stranger."

It is also sensible to look check your privacy settings on all of your social media accounts to ensure that people can’t easily fish for details about your private life which they can exploit in ways further down the line.

Of course, for the majority, support forums provide a tremendous source of comfort during the worst of times. It was through a Widowed and Young (WAY) Facebook group that Annie*, 42, met her partner, Andrew*. They’ve been together for three and half years.

"You can’t assume that because someone has been through the same thing as you, they’re somehow 'safe’, but I did feel like I got the measure Andrew pretty quickly. People have made a lot out of the fact that [Bailey and Stewart] met on a widow’s group but I think that’s irrelevant. Sadly, you can meet bad people anywhere. I don’t think there was anyway she could have known."

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Do you use Microsoft’s Windows 7 operating system on your laptop or desktop? If you do, your system may be highly insecure and vulnerable to innovative cyberattacks that Windows 7 is fundamentally incapable of dealing with, according to Microsoft.

Microsoft just made the announcement on its German blog (which has since been taken down), warning Windows 7 users that the operating system is failing badly given the environment of online security threats circa 2017. Not only that, but Microsoft is also ending all official support, including updates and patches, for Windows 7 by 2020 -- eleven years after Windows 7 was initially released back in 2009.

The Redmond software giant’s painting a picture of utter doom and gloom for Windows 7. Markus Nitschke, head of Microsoft Germany had this to say about the situation, "Windows 7 is based on long-outdated security architectures," and that the OS "does not meet the requirements of modern technology, nor the high security requirements of IT departments."

What now for Windows 7 users? Does this mean you press the panic button and finally upgrade to Windows 10? Not so fast...

Microsoft may be over-exaggerating Windows 7’s problems after all, because it uses the same blog post to push Windows 7 users towards Windows 10 which the company claims is its most secure operating system till date. Ambitious sales tactic much?

2020 is still a long way away, and if you’re using a licensed, genuine copy of Windows 7, don’t worry, you’ll still be fine because Microsoft is obligated to provide the latest security patches and updates to Windows 7 to keep the almost decade old operating system in immaculate working condition. It’s not just consumers, but a lot of small and large scale businesses still use Windows 7, and don’t think they’ll shift to Windows 7 until their licenses run out in 2020.

Earlier this month, Microsoft had tried pushing users of old Windows operating systems towards Windows 10 claiming similar doomsday messaging -- use Windows 7 "at your own risk, at your own peril". But hey, that’s the same as your mom nagging you to take care while crossing the road when you were little -- sure, crossing the road was (and still is) dangerous, but then you took precautions. Looked left and right, formed human chains with other school kids, etc. It’s something similar with Windows 7. As long as you install an antivirus software and keep it updated through periodically released software patches and updates, Windows 7 should be good to use till 2020.

What’s really unprofessional on Microsoft’s part is the use of scare-tactics it’s deploying to push users towards Windows 10 and drive its adoption. Why can’t it just remain patient and realise that Windows 7 users will eventually only ever upgrade to Windows 10, whenever the need arises, and that they don’t need to be pushed until 2020?

Oh well. We know Microsoft well enough, and have been tracking it since the days of Windows XP, to know that this isn’t the first time (nor will it be the last time) it’s tried to pull one of these sales stunts.

Microsoft’s Scaring Windows 7 Users, Claims It’s Highly Insecure, But Don’t Worry

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Bryan Cranston Says He'd Love To Appear As Walter White In 'Better Call Saul', But There's A Catch

It's been three long years since the final episode of Breaking Bad aired, and ever since we've been slipping down a Walter White-less spiral.

Thankfully, last year Vince Gilligan, the creator of Breaking Bad, gave us Better Call Saul - a spin-off prequel series that focused on the much loved character and 'criminal lawyer' Saul Goodman.

The first episode aired in February, 2015, and ever since people have been crying out for appearances from Jesse Pinkman, played by Aaron Paul, and Walter White, played by Bryan Cranston.

Cranston has not been shy about him being a fan of the spin-off show, and has now said that he'd definitely be up for making an appearance. However, there's a catch. There's always a fucking catch.

Speaking on The Rich Eisen Show, Bryan revealed that he'd love to appear on Better Call Saul, but would hate to be clued in on all the spoilers, ruining the show for him as a fan.

He said: "I owe Vince Gilligan so much. He was my champion to get this role. I was the guy coming off Malcolm in the Middle.

"If they were to call me and say, 'We have this idea, we'd like...,' I would say, 'Yes, you don't have to finish the pitch. I'm there, what do you want me to do?'.

"I'm a fan of the show and in order to direct, I need to know what no fan knows; and there's a part of me that says that would kind of kill it for me as a fan to peek behind the curtain, so I don't know if I am or not."

Sacrifice the spoilers Bryan, we all need some fresh Walter White in our lives. If Skyler White could be kept out of it though, that'd be great. She became far too annoying.

Anyway, I'm off to watch the entire box set of Breaking Bad and forget about life for the next week.


Cleveland will acquire this star to play alongside LeBron in a blockbuster NBA trade:

The Cleveland Cavaliers will acquire star forward Kevin Love from the Minnesota Timberwolves in exchange for two prospects—including this year's top draft pick, Andrew Wiggins—and a future draft choice, Yahoo's Adrian Wojnarowski reports. The trade can't be completed until Aug. 23 because of league transaction rules, so for now it is officially a Secret:

The precise deal terms have been agreed upon for weeks, but the teams and Love plan to stay silent about the particulars until the trade is announced in 16 days, sources told Yahoo Sports.

Love will join superstar LeBron James and Kyrie Irving to create the most devastating trio in the NBA and will instantly make the Cavaliers a frontrunner to win the NBA championship.

Love will reportedly also sign a new contract with the Cavaliers that will keep him in Cleveland through 2020.

Love and current Cavalier Kyrie Irving have played together previously in a quasi-Punk'd-style Pepsi commercial in which they play old guys who show up to the park and start kicking butt:

Cleveland Will Acquire Star to Play Alongside LeBron in Blockbuster NBA Trade

The Cleveland Cavaliers will acquire star forward Kevin Love from the Minnesota Timberwolves in exchange for two prospects—including this year's top dr ...

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Harrison Ford got paid how much for The Force Awakens?!

Amidst the flood of tidbits related to the new Star Wars films was that Harrison Ford earned many times more than any other cast member, with his estimated paycheck ending up between 10 and 25 million, depending on final box office numbers. Wow...that's all? He's Han f*cking Solo for pete's sakes.

Hollywood is known for creative accounting, and in an industry where so much is transparent, there are many financial elements that are never officially stated. It sometimes takes scandals (like the Sony hack) or lawsuits for the real paychecks of the stars to become known.

Take these all with a grain of salt, but here are the supposedly highest paid actors of all time (note: many of these fees include "producer" fees, which allows the creative accounting to allocate paychecks in different ways.)

Tom Cruise has made upwards of 290 million dollars for the Mission Impossible series.

Keanu Reeves made 262 million dollars for "acting" (come on – it’s Keanu, dude...acting?) in The Matrix Trilogy.

Johnny Depp has earned 185 million dollars for the Pirates of the Caribbean series.

Bruce Willis made 120 million for The Sixth Sense. I see rich people.

Tom Cruise made 100 million for War of the Worlds. Let’s see – that’s 290 for the M:I films and another 100 here – maybe Scientology really works after all!

Will Smith made 100 million for Men in Black III. Y'know, probably the worst Men in Black.

Robert Downey Jr. has made 78 million for the 3 Iron Man films (again, there’s no way to know precise dollar figures, but when all is said and done from all the various Avengers films and other places he plays Iron Man in the Marvel Universe, his final payday for playing Tony Stark is considerably higher.)

Sandra Bullock made 77 million from Gravity. Heavy.

Tom Hanks made 70 million from Forrest Gump. That’s a lot of boxes of chocolate.

In case you’re worried about poor old Harrison Ford making under 30 million for the new Star Wars, he made 65 million from Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull.

Jack Nicholson made 60 million as The Joker in Batman. Probably how he can afford all of those wonderful toys.

Adam Sandler made 60 million from Anger Management. If that doesn’t anger you, we don’t know what will.

At the end of the day, no matter what these stars are getting paid, we really just wish we could have a piece of that pie. Mainly for having to sit through some of these terrible flicks. C'mon, where's our settlements!

Hollywood's Highest Celebrity Paychecks And Pay Rates

Read Harrison Ford Got Paid How Much For The Force Awakens?! now. Also surf around Break to find other great articles, videos, and pictures.


GOP Rep: Isolationist GOP members are "damaging to the nation"

WASHINGTON -- Rep. Peter King (R-N.Y.) on Sunday slammed the "isolationist wing" of the Republican party, calling it "damaging to the party and to our nation."

Speaking on "Fox News Sunday," King predicted that if a vote were to be held today in the House to authorize the use of U.S military force in Syria, "it would be no vote." King's comments, and his disdain for those who would vote "no" on military action, offered a window into what is likely to be a bitter debate in Congress over the coming weeks.

A growing chorus of House and Senate Republicans in recent years have shied away from U.S. intervention overseas. Earlier this year, 13 Republicans voted on a bill introduced by former Rep. Ron Paul (R-Texas) to cut off U.S. foreign aid to Egypt. Sen. Mike Lee (R-Utah), Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) and Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) all sided with Paul, but the bill ultimately failed to pass.

President Obama and Secretary of State John Kerry plan to continue making a forceful case that the U.S. should strike key Syrian government targets, following President Bashar Al Assad's alleged use of chemical weapons to kill more than 1,400 people outside Damascus on August 21.

Opposition to U.S. intervention is led in Congress by Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.), who said Friday on Fox that Obama calling the Syrian regime's use of chemical weapons a "red line" was not a good enough reason to go to war.

Speaking on NBC's "Meet the Press" Sunday, Paul said that Secretary Kerry's personal experience fighting the Vietnam War should be enough to convince Kerry that military action in Syria was unwarranted. "I wish he remembered more of how awful war is," Paul said.

Both Obama and Kerry have repeatedly stated that any action in Syria would be limited to surgical strikes of key targets, and that there are no plans to put American "boots on the ground" in the country.

Congress returns from its August recess on Sept. 9, and House Speaker John Boehner (R-Ohio) has said he will schedule a debate and a vote on military action in Syria as soon as possible.

Peter King: Isolationist GOP Members 'Damaging To The Nation'

WASHINGTON -- Rep. Peter King (R-N.Y.) on Sunday slammed the "isolationist wing" of the Republican party, calling it "damaging to the party and to our na...

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17 badass historical LGBT women who gave absolutely no fucks

Everyone should know about 1930s drag king Gladys Bentley. *Swoons*

Tallulah Bankhead was an American bisexual actor who was romantically linked to Greta Garbo, Billie Holiday, and Marlene Dietrich, also actor Patsy Kelly confirmed that she had a sexual relationship with Bankhead as well. In 1933, Bankhead nearly died following a radical hysterectomy to cure an STI. Afterwards she said to her doctor, "Don’t think this has taught me a lesson." Badass.

This British landowner kept extensive coded diaries detailing her personal life. Her first relationship was with a schoolfriend called Eliza Raine, and was followed by an affair with fellow pupil Mariana Belcombe. She then got married (although it wasn’t recognised legally) to a wealthy heiress called Ann Walker, which caused uproar in polite society, but they were both rich and could do what they wanted so they DGAF.

Gladys Bentley was a blues singer during the Harlem Renaissance of the 1920s and ’30s. She would appear onstage as an openly lesbian drag king, and was later backed by a chorus line of drag queens. Her act involved making up her own (much raunchier) lyrics to popular songs and singing them to women in the audience in a sexy, gravelly voice. *Fans self*

After being abandoned by her husband, Snell disguised herself as a man and served in the British Navy from 1745 to 1750. While in Carlisle for manoeuvres, she was asked to find a prostitute for her commanding officer, but turned the tables and became intimate with the lady in question herself. She also reportedly slept with a bunch of women in Lisbon when her ship pulled into port there. Nice.

5. Marion Barbara "Joe" Carstairs (1900–93)

Joe Carstairs was the British daughter of a rich American heiress. Born in Mayfair in 1903, she used her money to build a career as a world-class powerboat racer. She was openly lesbian, dressed in men’s clothing, and had a relationship with Dolly Wilde, Oscar Wilde’s niece, who she lived with for a time in Paris. She also had affairs with Greta Garbo, Marlene Dietrich, and our good friend Tallulah Bankhead.

Alla Nazimova was a wild, beautiful silent movie star and stage actor who openly conducted relationships with other women. She held lavish, sexy parties at her Sunset Boulevard mansion, and coined the phrase "sewing circle" to describe closeted lesbian and bisexual women in Hollywood, with whom she had multiple affairs. She lived with fellow actor Glesca Marshall from 1929 until her death.

Ruth Ellis was the oldest-known "open" lesbian when she died at the ripe old age of 100. She came out when she was just 16, graduated high school in spite of considerable adversity, and set up a successful printing business. She met her partner of 30 years, Ceciline, in the 1920s, and their Detroit home became a welcome refuge for African-American gays and lesbians. What a legend.

Barney was an American playwright who lived in Paris, opposed monogamy, and devoted a lot of her time to getting it on with some of the most famous women of the era, including writer Élisabeth de Gramont, aka the duchess of Clermont-Tonnerre, and, once again, Dolly Wilde, Oscar Wilde’s niece (proving the lesbian world was just as small in those days as it is today).

Although possibly best remembered for her affair with Virginia Woolf, English poet Vita Sackville-West had an even more passionate relationship with her friend Violet Trefusis, documented in a series of heated letters between the pair. They eloped several times, once to Paris, and created quite a bit of scandal. They also forbade each other from sleeping with their own husbands.

This Parisian female clown and entertainer regularly performed at the Moulin Rouge in the 1890s. She was a favourite subject of artist Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec, who painted a variety of intimate scenes showing Cha-U-Kao with her female lovers. He was reportedly fascinated by her confidence, the fact she was so open about her homosexuality, and her decision to choose a "male" profession (clowning).

Roberta Cowell was a British World War II fighter pilot and Grand Prix racing driver who was born male and became (in 1951) one of the first people to undergo sex reassignment surgery. After her surgery she was no longer allowed to compete in Grand Prix racing, but she continued to be active in motor racing and won the 1957 Shelsley Walsh Speed Hill Climb. *Applauds*

12. The Ladies of Llangollen (1739–1831)

The Ladies of Llangollen were two aristocratic Irish lovers, Eleanor Butler and Sarah Ponsonby, who ran away from their upper-class households as teenagers. They set up home together in a Welsh mansion and devoted themselves to academic studies and gardening. Their fame gradually spread, and they were visited by writers like Byron and Shelley, as well as Anne Lister. Small world, etc.

Audre Lorde was an African-American writer, civil rights activist, and thoroughly badass lesbian who worked to confront issues of racism in the fledgling feminist movement. She was outspoken in her approach and wasn’t afraid to engage in open disagreements with notable white feminists, which led to some people labelling her an outsider, but she refused to be silenced and didn’t give up.

Mary Benson was a well-known hostess and society darling who was married to the archbishop of Canterbury. She also had multiple affairs with women, including a four-year relationship with a young, pretty composer named Ethel Smyth, who (DRAMA KLAXON) was also dating Benson’s daughter Nellie. But Benson magnanimously stepped aside in favour of her daughter. What a nice mum.

Jane Addams was a seismically huge and influential figure in the American women’s suffrage movement. She was also romantically involved with several women over her lifetime, most significantly with Mary Rozet Smith (pictured left, above), who she shared a house with. The women wrote to each other constantly when apart, and the letters show they saw themselves as a loving married couple.

Una Troubridge was the equally talented artist partner of the better-known lesbian writer Radclyffe Hall. Hall was dating Troubridge’s aunt Mabel Batton when they first met, but after Batton died they hooked up, lived together very openly, and remained a couple until Hall’s death in 1943, despite some serious lesbo drama in 1934 when Hall had an affair with a Russian nurse called Evgenia Souline. Damn, girl.

Mercedes de Acosta was a Spanish/Cuban-American poet and novelist who is possibly best-known for her deeply tempestuous, passionate, and long-term affair with Greta Garbo. De Acosta also proudly shagged her way around Hollywood during the silent movie era, was involved with Russian ballerina Tamara Karsavina, and is reputed to have said, "I can get any woman away from any man." Same.

17 Badass Historical LGBT Women Who Gave Absolutely No Fucks


"Friends" star helps NYPD solve alleged stabbing

"Friends" star David Schwimmer has been dubbed a hero for helping New York City police solve an alleged stabbing that occurred near his Manhattan home this week.

According to CNN, the 47-year-old actor invited the NYPD into his East Village townhouse on Monday, May 26, "to view his surveillance video of a bloody brawl that took place in the adjacent apartment building." The fight, which is said to have been sparked by the theft of a computer, reportedly involved three individuals, one of whom suffered stab wounds to the face.

The brawl began in a first-floor apartment in the neighboring building, the New York Post reports. It then "spilled into the hallway before the men smashed through a glass lobby door."

The Gothamist reports that one man was brought to a hospital for treatment following the incident and another was arrested. A third person -- believed to be a prostitute -- reportedly fled from the scene.

"Police said that prior to viewing Schwimmer's footage, they only had the stories of those involved to rely on for evidence," CNN writes.

Schwimmer had angered community members in years past by doing extensive construction of his East Village home. But thanks to his assistance in helping police solve the stabbing case this week, Schwimmer has reportedly won the favor of some of his neighbors.

"Four years ago, I would say David Schwimmer was the least popular guy on the block with the construction and all," neighbor Jayson Fillermutter told the New York Post. "But he has turned out to be a decent neighbor, and I am glad to hear he helped the cops with that stabbing."

David Schwimmer Helps NYPD Solve Alleged Stabbing, Wins Neighbors' Favor

"Friends" star David Schwimmer has been dubbed a hero ...

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Photographer takes clearest photo of the Loch Ness Monster yet

A shocked photographer claims to have snapped the clearest photo of the Loch Ness monster yet and best of all it doesn’t look like complete bullshit.

The photo appears to show three humps moving out of the cool waters of the Scottish lake and honestly looks like a long silver creature thrashing about – kind of like an eel.

The picture, which resembles mythical descriptions of the highland beast, was taken by photographer Ian Bremner, 58, who was shocked by his photo.

I’m normally a bit of a sceptic when it comes to Nessie and I think it’s just something for the tourists but I’m starting to think there is something out there.

Ian was trying to take pictures of red deer around the waters of Loch Ness when he took the picture but it wasn’t until he got home that he noticed the what could be the monstrous creature.

This is the first time Ian’s ever seen Nessie but he thinks it’d be amazing if he was the one to discover her .

Unfortunately for Ian one of his friends pointed out that he most likely snapped three seals jumping through the water and not the legendary creature.

The legend of the Loch Ness monster stretches back as far as the Seventh Century when an Irish monk was reportedly attacked by the beast.

Since then there have been numerous photos and encounters with the highland’s most famous resident, Nessie.

Only a few months ago the alleged remains of Nessie were found by the loch on a beach but it later emerged they were a prop for an upcoming ITV show.

Photographer Takes Clearest Ever Photo Of ‘Loch Ness Monster’

A shocked photographer claims to have snapped the clearest picture of the Loch Ness monster yet and it looks surprisingly real.


Jay Z's Made in America Festival featured standout performances from the likes of Beyonce, Kendrick Lamar, deadmau5, Public Enemy, A$AP Rocky, Nine Inch Nails and more. In the wake of the fest, however, one band is speaking out about the way it was treated.

Queens of the Stone Age frontman Josh Homme ripped into Jay Z during a Sunday radio interview with CBC Radio 2's Strombo Show, calling Jay a "kook," decrying extreme security practices and accusing the rapper of only giving the group champagne for the photo op.

"He has his security frisking the bands on the way in," Homme said. "I just told them, 'If you open up my bag, I’m not playing, so I guess it’s up to you whether we are playing or not.' The idea they frisked all my guys, means you’re in some different place, no-one has ever done that [to me]."

Intense security was hardly the only thing that rubbed Homme the wrong way. "He also gave us some champagne and wanted us to take a photo with it," the 40-year-old singer said. "And I thought that’s not a gift that is a marketing tool. So I destroyed it. Because I thought it was rude overall. And you shouldn’t frisk my guys, you should fuck off."

At press time, Jay Z had yet to address Homme's comments. The rocker's remarks stand out because much of the entertainment community is wary of criticizing Jay, perhaps given his place in the industry's food chain. When Jay Pharoah brought his Jay Z impression to ESPN's ESPY awards, pans to the audience revealed plenty of famous faces that seemed determined not to be caught as laughing at the "Tom Ford" rapper.

Jay most recently surfaced on a leaked version of Drake's "Pound Cake/Paris Morton Music 2," where he boasts about having an all-black Maybach with "insides whiter than Katy Perry's faces."

Queens Of The Stone Age's Josh Homme: Jay Z Should 'F--k Off'

Jay Z's Made in America Festival featured standout performances from the likes of Beyonce, Kendrick Lamar, deadmau5, Public Enemy, A$AP Rocky, Nine Inch ...

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We're always chasing something be it a promotion, a new car, or a significant other. This leads to the belief that, When (blank) happens, I'll finally be happy.

While these major events do make us happy at first, research shows this happiness doesn't last. A study from Northwestern University measured the happiness levels of regular people against those who had won large lottery prizes the year prior. The researchers were surprised to discover that the happiness ratings of both groups were practically identical.

The mistaken notion that major life events dictate your happiness and sadness is so prevalent that psychologists have a name for it: impact bias. The reality is, event-based happiness is fleeting.

Happiness is synthetic you either create it, or you don't. Happiness that lasts is earned through your habits. Supremely happy people have honed habits that maintain their happiness day in, day out. Try out their habits, and see what they do for you:

1. They slow down to appreciate life's little pleasures.

By nature, we fall into routines. In some ways, this is a good thing. It saves precious brainpower and creates comfort. However, sometimes you get so caught up in your routine that you fail to appreciate the little things in life. Happy people know how important it is to savor the taste of their meal, revel in the amazing conversation they just had, or even just step outside to take a deep breath of fresh air.

Getting your body moving for as little as 10 minutes releases GABA, a neurotransmitter that makes your brain feel soothed and keeps you in control of your impulses. Happy people schedule regular exercise and follow through on it because they know it pays huge dividends for their mood.

Research shows that spending money on other people makes you much happier than spending it on yourself. This is especially true of small things that demonstrate effort, such as going out of your way to buy your friend a book that you know they will like.

4. They surround themselves with the right people.

Happiness spreads through people. Surrounding yourself with happy people builds confidence, stimulates creativity, and it's flat-out fun. Hanging around negative people has the opposite effect. They want people to join their pity party so that they can feel better about themselves. Think of it this way: If a person were smoking, would you sit there all afternoon inhaling the second-hand smoke? You'd distance yourself, and you should do the same with negative people.

Bad things happen to everyone, including happy people. Instead of complaining about how things could have been or should have been, happy people reflect on everything they're grateful for. Then they find the best solution available to the problem, tackle it, and move on. Nothing fuels unhappiness quite like pessimism. The problem with a pessimistic attitude, apart from the damage it does to your mood, is that it becomes a self-fulfilling prophecy: if you expect bad things, you're more likely to experience negative events. Pessimistic thoughts are hard to shake off until you recognize how illogical they are. Force yourself to look at the facts, and you'll see that things are not nearly as bad as they seem.

I've beaten this one to death over the years and can't say enough about the importance of sleep to improving your mood, focus, and self-control. When you sleep, your brain literally recharges, removing toxic proteins that accumulate during the day as byproducts of normal neuronal activity. This ensures that you wake up alert and clear-headed. Your energy, attention, and memory are all reduced when you don't get enough quality sleep. Sleep deprivation also raises stress hormone levels on its own, even without a stressor present. Happy people make sleep a priority, because it makes them feel great and they know how lousy they feel when they're sleep deprived.

Happy people know that happiness and substance go hand-in-hand. They avoid gossip, small talk, and judging others. Instead they focus on meaningful interactions. They engage with other people on a deeper level, because they know that doing so feels good, builds an emotional connection, and is an interesting way to learn..

Taking the time to help people not only makes them happy, but it also makes you happy. Helping other people gives you a surge of oxytocin, serotonin, and dopamine, all of which create good feelings. In a Harvard study, employees who helped others were 10 times more likely to be focused at work and 40% more likely to get a promotion. The same study showed that people who consistently provided social support were the most likely to be happy during times of high stress. As long as you make certain that you aren't overcommitting yourself, helping others is sure to have a positive influence on your mood.

No one wakes up feeling happy every day and supremely happy people are no exception. They just work at it harder than everyone else. They know how easy it is to get sucked into a routine where you don't monitor your emotions or actively try to be happy and positive. Happy people constantly evaluate their moods and make decisions with their happiness in mind.

People's core attitudes fall into one of two categories: a fixed mindset or a growth mindset. With a fixed mindset, you believe you are who you are and you cannot change. This creates problems when you're challenged, because anything that appears to be more than you can handle is bound to make you feel hopeless and overwhelmed. People with a growth mindset believe that they can improve with effort. This makes them happier because they are better at handling difficulties. They also outperform those with a fixed mindset because they embrace challenges, treating them as opportunities to learn something new.

Happiness can be tough to maintain, but investing in the right habits pays off. Adopting even a few of the habits from this list will make a big difference in your mood.

Your habits create happiness more than anything else in life. These 10 habits will make you happier today.


This Rapper Almost Quit Hip-Hop For Good...And you won't believe why

For most rappers, quitting the game for good doesn’t usually come until they either reach a certain age or they get into a new career. While some just fade out of relevancy, and others go to a different aspect of entertainment, one young rapper almost parted ways with music for another reason. Fans were caught off guard after hearing why he almost quit hip hop forever.

After a lengthy wait for fans, ScHoolboy Q finally released his sophomore album this past week. Despite all of the horrible events going down throughout the country between police officers and citizens, the TDE rapper pushed music out for the fans as scheduled.

Even though the album finally came out this week, the rapper made a big revelation to fans. In a new interview, "After Oxymoron, I almost quit. I was gone for a year and a half. And then before that I was gone for a year. And then before that I was gone for six months. You get what I’m saying? That’s three years. My daughter’s seven."

He continued, "Like the first two years I didn’t raise her because I was dirt broke. Then I only got two years in with her. My daughter always lived with me, so I only got two years of raising her out of seven years. So it’s like I’m not about to be that rapper. I’m not about to be that person that puts his job, his business, his money over his family. I go out and I please everybody else, making this money and making other people money, meanwhile my kid, my family, they’re sitting back waiting for me to come home. That ain’t cool."

Fans are excited that ScHoolboy is back in the game and pushing out his music, but they are trying to prepare for his departure at some point. It looks like it may not be too long before he decides to step away from rap, as his daughter is getting older by the minute.

ScHoolboy Q finally released his sophomore album, but he revealed in a new interview that he almost quit rap for good prior to making it.

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Why Stephen Colbert Crashed The RNC Stage In Full ‘Hunger Games’ Attire

And on Monday night’s show, Colbert revealed the full fruits of that labor ― he was there for the "Hungry for Power Games."

"The Late Show" host, who was wearing a blue wig while he hijacked the microphone in the convention center to poke fun at presumptive GOP presidential nominee Donald Trump , quickly went viral.

Stephen Colbert crashed the Republican National Convention stage in Cleveland on Sunday, and now we know why.

"Welcome to the arena, citizens, so grand it can almost hold Donald Trump’s entire head," Colbert began, before going on to mock New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie , Trump’s anti-immigration policies and the absurdity of North Carolina’s so-called bathroom law

Colbert channeled his inner Caesar Flickerman — the character from "The Hunger Games" franchise who hosts the titular deadly competition ― to transform himself into a character called Julius. Julius, along with a (fake!) pet weasel named Caligula, showed viewers some behind-the-scenes action in the hilarious segment

"The red carpet, of course, is here to hide the rivers of blood that will eventually pour down from the cornucopia when Donald Trump, flanked by his two eunuchs, takes to the stage," he joked.

He clarified that by "eunuchs," he meant House Speaker Paul Ryan and Republican National Committee Chairman Reince Priebus, who both had "clearly checked their balls at the door this election."

Colbert later took to the stage to tease Trump and his running mate, Indiana Gov. Mike Pence, before being escorted away.

"I know I’m not supposed to be up here," he said as a security guard starts pushing him off the stage. "But let’s be honest: Neither is Donald Trump."

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Nearly six years ago, Bandra resident Mohammad Shams Aalam Shaikh's life centred around karate. A black belt holder and a qualified coach with over 40 gold medals to his credit, the mechancial engineer enjoyed a carefree life. Till he was diagnosed with a tumour in his spine.

Numerous surgeries later, his lower body was paralysed. On Saturday, he braved the sea and his immobility at Candolim beach in Goa to break his own record for the longest open sea swimming by a paraplegic.

It was a test of endurance for this 30-year-old, who swam 8km on the seas along the Sinquerim-Baga-Candolim belt in 4hours and 4 minutes. "I expected to complete the distance in two or two-and-half hours, but I had to swim against a very strong tide for a larger part of the course," said Shaikh, who used the break between his MBA final exams to come to Goa to achieve the feat.

"I want to prove that it is possible for persons with disabilities and spinal cord injuri es to push themselves beyond their limits," he said, adding that he would apply for the Limca Book of World Records, Asian Book of Records and the Guinness World Records.

"I was assessed with 100% disability in 2012. I didn't even have control over passing urine. Swimming the butterfly helped me a lot and today I don't need a catheter to relieve myself. This is a huge achievement for me and I was assessed as having 72% disability during the latest review, all because of swimming," he told TOI on the sidelines of the firstever wheelchair accessible beach festival being held on Candolim beach. It was swimming that helped him overcome depression and improve his mobility.

"People with disabilities should motivate themselves to come out of their homes, but for this we need the government's support to make spaces, buildings and transportation accessible," he said.

Shaikh is now gearing up for the 2018 Asian Games and is hoping to find the right coach to train him for the 2020 Tokyo Olympics and Paralympics.

Paralysed Waist Down, Bandra Man Swims To Cover 8-Km Distance In 4 Hours!

Paralysed Waist Down, Bandra Man Achieves Swimming Success At Sea


UCLA student body drops controversial term

The Undergraduate Students Association at the University of California at Los Angeles unanimously passed a resolution last week endorsing the "Drop the I-Word" campaign launched by the Applied Research Center and its publication ColorLines.

"[T]he racially derogatory I-Word endangers basic human rights including the presumption of innocence and the right to due process guaranteed by the U.S. Constitution," the resolution reads. It continues: "Human beings need to be central in immigration discussions in order to move toward a more civilized and humane tone in public discourse and policies on immigration."

The decision was influenced in part by the campus’ diversity and out of respect to the school’s undocumented students, according to the college newspaper Daily Bruin. The move also reflects concerns among the students about former Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano taking the reins of the state’s public university system.

Napolitano presided over the agency responsible for deporting a record number of undocumented immigrants under the Obama administration -- roughly 400,000 per fiscal year. She was selected as the president of the University of California system in July, though the position is normally held by an academic, according to the Los Angeles Times.

The Associated Press removed the term "illegal immigrant" from its style guide in April, marking a major shift in how the U.S. news media writes about the undocumented. The National Association of Hispanic Journalists and immigrant rights activists have long contended that the term is inaccurate and offensive because it criminalizes the people described rather than their actions.

Many media companies, particularly those that serve heavily Hispanic markets, including the Miami Herald, Univision and the San Antonio Express-News, had eschewed the term long ago.

The Huffington Post uses the term "undocumented immigrants" to refer to people residing without authorization in the United States.

UCLA Student Body Drops Term 'Illegal Immigrant'

The student government of a California university vowed to drop the term "illegal immigrant" last week.

The Undergraduate Students Association at the...

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One quality in men might be even more attractive than good looks and a sense of humor

But studies consistently show that altruism is a top quality women are drawn to when they are looking for a relationship.

And a new study in the British Journal of Psychology found that altruistic men may have more sex, too.

The researchers asked unmarried Canadian adults how much they did good deeds like giving money to charity or helping someone get their car out of the snow. They then asked the participants how often they had sex and how many partners they've had.

Men who reported more altruistic acts had more sex — and more partners. For those who were in relationships, good-hearted men were more likely to have had more sex in the last 30 days, too.

In the second experiment of the study, the researchers had undergraduate students say whether they would like to donate money that they might receive for participating to charity. Those who said that they would also tended to have more casual sex, more sex in relationships, and more lifetime sex partners overall.

Another study, published in January 2016 in the journal Evolutionary Psychology , presented 202 women with different men to choose from. The different combinations of choices were either attractive or not, and they either did a good deed or didn't.

The women chose the selfish, attractive men for a one-night stand. But for a long-term relationship, they chose the altruistic man whether he was attractive or not.

One Quality In Men Might Be Even More Attractive Than Good Looks And A Sense Of Humor

Most people would think that if it's not good looks that make a man most attractive to women, then it's definitely a sense of humor.

But studies consist


This crazy relaxing show from your childhood is finally coming to Netflix

The show we’ve all been waiting for has finally made it’s way to Netflix. It’s possibly the single most relaxing television show ever in existence, and we now have access to it whenever we want.. Get excited, because Bob Ross is back.

In case you need a refresher, Bob Ross made a name for himself with his show The Joy of Painting, which aired on PBS from 1983 to 1994. Ross’s soft spoken voice and his incredible painting skills made for the most calming TV experience one could ever hope for in the ’80s and ’90s. Not to mention his trademark curly hair that made him instantly recognizable.

But just so everyone’s clear on what to expect — Netflix isn’t streaming The Joy of Painting, but rather Beauty Is Everywhere, a series that was filmed in 1991 a few years before Ross died of Lymphoma at age 52. The format is nearly identical to the original show, the only difference is, you probably haven’t seen any of these 25 episodes.

Netflix is promoting the show with the completely accurate tagline, "His teachings are eternal. His hair is immovable. He is Bob Ross."

His teachings are eternal. His hair is immovable.. He is Bob Ross. #BeautyIsEverywherehttps://t.co/PCBk9M9LUO — Netflix US (@netflix) June 1, 2016

We know what we’ll be doing for the next 25 evenings — cozy PJs, a glass of wine, and our long lost love Bob Ross streaming on Netflix. Life is good, and beauty is everywhere.

The show we've all been waiting for has finally made it's way to Netflix. It's possibly the single most relaxing television show ever in existence, and we


Immigrants Explain What Shocked Them About American Culture

During one of my first Christmases in America, I remember watching intently as my sister-in-law pulled out a cylinder from the fridge, cracked it open, and scooped sections of white goop onto a baking tray. A few minutes later, steaming rolls emerged.

"Is that canned bread?" I asked her. The Americans laughed—what I called canned bread, Americans called Pillsbury dough.

I grew up in Australia—a country not unlike the United States—but I was completely floored the first time I visited an American grocery store. In Australia, there are only a few brands of milk, butter, and bread. Milk generally has one ingredient (you know, milk), the cheese isn't fluorescent orange, and bread does not come in a can. In America, options for a single product type barely fit into one aisle. It was my first major experience of culture shock—which can feel like a hurtful reminder that you're not "home" anymore..

I asked other immigrants about their first moments of culture shock in the United States. Here's what they told me.

"I had not seen or even heard of braces before [coming to America]. I had friends in Korea who had really messed up teeth, but it wasn't necessarily seen as any kind of defect.. I started seventh grade in the US and several of the kids had braces—the type with wires going across both upper and bottom teeth with a metal holder in front of each tooth. They looked almost like robots. I didn't actually find out what they were until maybe two years or so later, because I didn't have the language skill to ask about them initially. To me, teeth were just what you had. If you had good teeth, you had good teeth. Bad teeth, then bad teeth. It didn't seem like you could move your teeth like that. They felt very solidly planted in my mouth so the entire concept was foreign.." — Chae An, 45, attorney, South Korean

"It is so frustrating here. Nothing is easy. Nothing is efficient. To pay rent, you have to use a check? I have never written a check. The last time I got a check was maybe 20 years ago, from my granddad. Getting an apartment takes so long as opposed to other countries I have lived in where it's just a handshake. That's it.. I went to the post office yesterday, and I was waiting in line for maybe an hour—and there were only five people in front of me. I felt like I went from a Western country to a third-world country. People here with money have access to things. The rest of the people are just trying to survive." —Robin Zeitoun, 26, welder, French

"Once we got here, we ate corn dogs almost every day for lunch, little pizzas for snacks, and sugary cereals for breakfast." — Ben van den Heever, South African

"In the classroom, I experienced a lot of culture shock by how the students interact [with each other] and how they interact with [me, as] the teacher. American kids are very active in the classroom. They even say things before they raise their hand. Students eat in [my] classroom, which is forbidden in China. Often you are rewarded here for being an extrovert. Basically an introvert cannot survive in your classroom. In China, I don't have to clean [my] chalk board. It is the students' responsibility to clean the classroom. In China, teachers are very high ranking. You are very respected. Here, I don't think so. The income is not really above middle class here." — Niki Xu, 26, math teacher, Chinese

"Food-wise, I noticed us all getting these round faces from the bad food we ate. We did not realize it, because it was the standard and you think because it's advertised and readily available it can't be bad for you. We were so ignorant coming from South Africa, eating home cooked food every night over there. Then, once we got here, we ate those corn dogs almost every day for lunch, little pizzas for snacks, and sugary cereals for breakfast." — Ben van den Heever, 32, founder of Brooklyn Biltong, South African

"The whole paper towel thing struck me very strongly as soon as I came to the US. In Korea, paper towels were used for very few selective kitchen tasks, mostly to wipe off oil from frying pans. So I enter a US host family's house and they use paper towels for everything. They don't bother to even keep a rag. It's the same thing with schools—just big rolls of paper towels for when you spill something. But honestly, when I went to Korea last year, I noticed that things have changed. They now have paper towel disposals in a lot of bathrooms." — Chandra Edwards, 27, financial analyst, South Korean

"I was hugely shocked by all the street harassment. And as a queer woman, I didn't realize that I had to police myself in certain areas here. I thought NYC was supposed to be such a gay city, and it is if you're in Manhattan or Chelsea. When I first moved here I remember my girlfriend and I were kissing on the street outside of our apartment in Bushwick and a group of teenagers started yelling and jeering at us. It was kind of scary and very confusing. I've learned not to hold hands or display affection in certain neighborhoods because of it.. I don't really travel around the US, but I can tell you I definitely wouldn't hold hands in the south especially with all the crazy anti-LGBT legislation popping up." — Sarah Barnett, 28, radio reporter, Canadian

"[In conversations with Americans], I feel uncomfortable, like I am not communicating in the right way. I can't conduct a conversation in three minutes. Maybe I take ten minutes. I don't think in English. This is how an immigrant brain works. I talk in my head in Urdu, but then I have to speak in English. I am unable to change myself, because when I came here I was 40. It was in 2010. So do you think that a 40-year-old mature person who spent their adult life doing things one way, you think he can change within three years, five years, six years? Not possible." — Shahid Khan, 45, community organizer, Pakistani

"I've found Americans to be basically over friendly, which is weird because I'm Canadian and that's our stereotype. I've had cashiers ask how I am—that's normal. But they then ask things like what am I doing that day or something I find way more personal. And I don't know if it's the Canadian in me, but I always give a full answer, so maybe I am engaging too much. I need to learn how to make polite conversation that doesn't make others feel obligated to keep asking questions." — Allyson Power, 28, student, Canadian

"I am a gay man who came from Guatemala and it is very dangerous to be gay there. When you start to realize you're gay, the authorities, the religious organization and the gangs, they are against gay people. I came here and after a year and a half I applied for asylum as a client of Immigration Equality. It took me a while, honesty, to realize gay people could live a normal peaceful life here. My whole life I believed I was wrong and I would go to hell and I deserved the treatment I got. It was 2011, the first time I enrolled myself to march in the Gay Pride Parade. That made me feel proud, just proud to be who I am. Now, I feel that this is home." — Edy Meda, 29, server and fitness instructor, Guatemalan

"I had not seen or even heard of braces before coming to America. Several kids I knew had braces, and they looked like robots."

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The 5 WORST Exercise Mistakes That Are Destroying Your Metabolism, Keeping You Flabby, Weak & Injury-Prone

Never Do This Exercise... Plus: The 5 WORST Exercise Mistakes That Are Destroying Your Metabolism,

Surprisingly, not all exercises are good for you. In fact, research has discovered that doing isolated exercises (like bicep curls and tricep extensions) will NOT help you build lean muscle and get toned & fit.

When you do these "isolated" exercises, you’re only working one muscle at a time. The problem is that these exercises do very little to increase your metabolism.

Here’s why: In order to boost your metabolism, your heart rate has to be raised to a certain level. But when you’re only working ONE muscle at a time, it’s virtually impossible to recruit enough muscle fibers to increase your heart rate significantly, so you’ll never be able to spike your metabolism or maximize your calorie burn.

If you want to slim down and tone up fast, you need to do exercises that stimulate as many muscles as possible at the same time. On the next page, I’ll show you the most effective exercises that target every inch of your body—so you can replace flab with lean, defined muscle.

But first, here are the 5 WORST exercise mistakes you MUST stop making (if you want to burn off stubborn body fat and KEEP it off)...

If you’ve been doing cardio workouts to try and slim down, I have some alarming news...

Steady-state cardio (like jogging or doing the elliptical) increases the production of a stress hormone called cortisol. Cortisol causes weight gain and makes it more difficult to burn off stubborn belly fat.

That’s why no matter how much cardio you do, you can’t seem to raise your metabolism and you always hit a plateau eventually.

Even worse, too much cardio accelerates aging! When you put your body under prolonged stress, you start producing free-radicals, which damages your cells and causes inflammation...and inflammation is what makes you OLD. Yikes!

But, there is a RIGHT way to do cardio. Stick with me because I’m going to reveal what you can do to get insane results in half the time of your regular cardio workout—without causing unnecessary stress on your joints. (Once you learn this simple trick, you’ll kick yourself for not doing it all along!)

Mistake #2: Doing Crunches & Sit-Ups To Get Flat Abs

When you do ab-targeted exercises (like sit-ups, crunches or side bends), your muscles get sore, which makes you think you’re strengthening your abs. There you are, crunching away thinking it’s only a matter of time before you’ll be looking beach ready with your rock-solid core.

...Yet weeks after you’ve religiously been doing your ab routine, your belly looks just as bloated and soft as it did before. All that time and pain for nothing!

Your abs were not designed to crunch, twist, and bend. In fact, it’s the complete opposite! The real role of your abdominal muscles is to prevent your mid-section from crunching, twisting, and bending. That’s right, your abs are a stabilizing force designed to resist movement in order to protect your spine.

So even though you "feel the burn" when you do crunches and sit-ups, you’re actually putting unnecessary pressure on your back, causing much more harm than good. These ab-targeted exercises can cause lower back injuries by forcing your spine to flex too much, and they do very little to actually strengthen your abs.

The key to getting sculpted abs is to burn off that stubborn layer of belly fat that’s hiding them. In the next few minutes, I’ll show you how to burn away the "ab flab" while stimulating all 6 of your abdominal muscles simultaneously — so you can finally carve out those lean, ripped abs.

Those big, shiny machines sure make the gym look high-end, but truthfully, the only thing they’re good for is for sitting down while you tie your shoes or catch your breath!

The problem is this: Machines alter the way your body naturally moves, restricting your range of motion. This severely limits your ability to fully activate all of your muscles fibers, which means less fat burning and less muscle toning.

Worse yet, machines can cause muscular imbalance and excessive strain on your joints, leading to nagging injuries down the road.

If you want fast results, you MUST incorporate exercises that allow your body to move naturally with full range of motion so you can skyrocket your metabolism and put fat-burning on autopilot.

In a minute, I’ll explain the 6 primary movements that are the foundation of these exercises...and I’ll also fill you in on the best types of weights to use for your workouts (no big, clunky gym machines required!).

Mistake #4: Repeating The Same Workouts Over & Over

Repeating the same workout routine over and over is a surefire way to STOP getting results. We’re creatures of habit and we tend to stick to things we’re familiar with and good at. But when it comes to working out, if you want to make progress and keep seeing changes in your body, you’ve got to start switching things up.

You see, your body has an amazingly ability to adapt quickly and when it does, that’s when you hit the dreaded plateau and you STOP making progress.

In a few minutes, I’m going to tell you exactly how often you need to change up your workout routine so you can keep your body guessing, which will keep your metabolism running on high so you can kiss that spare tire goodbye...

Longer workouts do NOT equal better or faster results. If you’ve been slaving away at the gym and your body isn’t visibly changing, you can’t do more of the same thing and expect a different result.

When it comes to getting lean and fit, your body responds to quality over quantity. I’m going to tell you the #1 way to super-charge your workouts—this simple, yet overlooked method is the single fastest way to getting lean and ripped while cutting your workout time almost in half. This technique will open up a can of whoop-ass on your workout!

Alright, now that you know what NOT to do, here’s the good news...

Science has proven that there are specific types of exercises that trigger a potent fat-burning effect, which skyrockets your metabolism and boosts your fat-burn for up to 48 hours after your workout is over.

These exercises activate more of your muscle fibers, which creates a bigger metabolic boost, demanding more fat to be burned for fuel—so you can burn off the fat and KEEP it off.

These exercises also stimulate your youth-enhancing hormones so you can slough away old, dead cells — making you look and feel years younger!

Listen: getting a lean, defined body with a rock-solid core is easy once you know HOW to trigger the right hormones in your body (and stop the production of the bad hormones that are making you fat and old).

On the next page, I’ll show you the specifics behind this fast and easy method.

Soon you’ll be able to crank up your metabolism and turn on your youth-enhancing, fat-burning, and lean-muscle building hormones so you can finally shed that stubborn fat without exercising to death or starving yourself.

The 5 WORST mistakes that are destroying your metabolism (iso) G

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@TheKillers and M83 team with "Social Network" star for new video

A neon-lit love story comes to life in the new video for The Killers and M83's collaboration, "Shot at the Night." Set against a Las Vegas backdrop, the clip stars Bella Heathcote ("Dark Shadows," "Not Fade Away") as a hotel housekeeper and Max Minghella ("The Social Network," "The Internship") as the handsome lad who woos her into hanging out instead of cleaning rooms.

The song is one of two fresh tracks that will be included on The Killers' forthcoming greatest-hits album, "Direct Hits," out Nov. 11.

'Shot At The Night' Video Finds The Killers And M83 Fashioning Las Vegas Love Story

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This site shows everything that Google knows about you. It’s a disturbing amount

The new site collects every website you’ve been on, everything you’ve searched and many of the things you’ve done with your phone

Google has long allowed its users to see the kinds of information that is being generated as people use the company’s products, including letting people listen in on automated recordings that it has made of its users. But the new page collects them together in a more accessible – and potentially more terrifying – way than ever before.

The page shows a full catalogue of pages visited, things searched and other activity, grouped by time. It also lets people look at the same timeline through filters – looking at specific dates, which go all the way into the past, and specific products like Google search, YouTube or Android.

When users open up the page for the first time, pop-ups make the case for why it has been launched and why Google collects quite so much data. You can use the site to "rediscover the things you’ve searched for, visited and watched on Google services" and help "delete specific items or entire topics".

All of the information that’s used is how Google uses its ads services. By tracking people around the internet it can tailor those ads – but people can use the same site to opt out from the tracking entirely, or just delete information that they would rather wasn’t used for advertising.

Users aren’t automatically opted into the interest-based advertising tools, despite heavily rolling out the feature. The site asks people instead to turn it on – encouraging people to do so because it makes adverting more helpful and muting any specific ads that people don’t want to see.

Google My Activity shows everything that company knows about its users – and there’s a lot

Google has launched a new site that shows absolutely everything it knows about its users. And there’s an awful lot of it. The new My Activity page collects all of the data that Google has generated by watching its customers as they move around the web. And depending on your settings that could include a comprehensive list of the websites you’ve visited and the things you’ve done with your phone.


BERLIN, Sept 6 - A German firm has apologised for producing condoms marked with an offensive message that were used in a far-right party's campaign against immigrant births.

The contraceptives, ordered by the youth wing of the National Democratic Party (NPD), came in black boxes bearing the slogan "For foreigners and certain Germans". The activists sent them to lawmakers as a protest against "unchecked immigration".

The message had a particular resonance in the country where the Nazi party also tried to control childbirth, encouraging people considered pure-blood Germans to breed, while going as far as sterilising people from other groups.

The condoms came with a letter, telling lawmakers: "We are protesting against unchecked immigration and the resulting population change in our country.

"You are failing to provide the foundations for a family policy which will halt the demographic catastrophe facing our people," the letter added.

Volker Beck, a member of parliament from Germany's Greens party, complained to the maker of the condom's, R&S.

The company apologised and pledged to donate 10,000 condoms as well as the proceeds from the NPD order to a German foundation against right-wing extremism and anti-Semitism.

"We are very sorry that this major error happened and that our condoms were connected to such propaganda," R&S head Axel Roth said in a statement. "We should have been more careful when checking the printed material."

Germany tried in 2003 to ban the NPD, a party branded "racist, anti-Semitic and revisionist" by Germany's domestic intelligence service, but failed. Banning political parties is also sensitive in Germany, after the Nazi and Communist regimes silenced dissent. (Reporting by Sophie Duvernoy; Editing by Alexandra Hudson and Andrew Heavens)

Anti-Immigrant Condoms Spark Controversy, Makers Apologize

BERLIN, Sept 6 - A German firm has apologised for  producing condoms marked with an offensive message that were  used in a far-right party'...

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