Free Republic

Controversy is flaring over this year’s Pittsburgh Pride festival after event organizers claimed that state officials prevented them from holding the annual celebration of the LGBTQ+ community at Point State Park in the Golden Triangle. The state Department of Conservation and Natural Resources, which runs the park, countered that there were problems with the group’s permit application. Pittsburgh Pride had announced in January intentions to host the annual celebration at Point State Park. On Tuesday evening, however, organizers wrote on social media that they were forced to change plans “in response to unforeseen circumstances.”

Artificial intelligence (AI) is becoming increasingly ubiquitous and is improving at an unprecedented pace...But there are risks in embracing any new technology, especially one that we do not fully understand. While AI could be a powerful personal assistant, for example, it could also represent a threat to our livelihoods and even our lives.The various existential risks that an advanced AI poses means the technology should be guided by ethical frameworks and humanity's best interests, says researcher and Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) member Nell Watson.In "Taming the Machine" (Kogan Page, 2024), Watson explores how humanity can wield the...

What amounted to a probing attack or skirmish on the part of Russian forces has caused chaos amongst the ukies

As Twitchy readers know, J.K. Rowling is once again under fire for 'comparing' a man to a man because he is a man (who claims he is a woman). This prompted a later post by Rowling where she addressed the claim that she, a slight 5-foot 4-inch 58-year-old woman, was bullying a beefy British football manager who identifies himself as 'Lucy Clark'. Calling a man a man is not 'bullying' or 'punching down.' Crossdressing straight men are currently one of the most pandered-to demographics in existence, and women are under no obligation to applaud the people caricaturing us. — J.K....

Silicon Valley billionaire Peter Thiel is throwing his financial muscle behind an “Olympics on steroids” — whose organizer boasts that athletes will dope “out in the open and honestly.” Thiel, who made his fortune as an early investor in tech startups like PayPal and Facebook, is backing the Enhanced Games, which will actively encourage athletes to use performance-enhancing drugs. The venture — aimed at aiding research into nutritional supplements and biohacks that push the boundaries of human performance — is the brainchild of Dr. Aron D’Souza, a lawyer by training who famously conceived Thiel’s lawsuit against Gawker Media. He plans...

I'm becoming a bit of an AI Whisperer.Here are some of my most recent creations.ROBO-JOKERWHAT HELL LOOKS LIKEEVIL BUNNIESRONALD MCDONALD THE FALLOUT 4 RAIDER

After Miss Teen USA, UmaSofia Srivastava, stepped down last week, the runner-up — Miss Teen New York, Stephanie Skinner — told The Post that she doesn’t want the crown either. “I ultimately came to the decision to decline it,” Skinner, 19 and from New Hartford, New York, said. “I didn’t feel like it was the right decision considering all the circumstances.” Over the past week both Srivastava, 17, and Miss USA, 24-year-old Noelia Voigt, abdicated their titles, while Miss USA Organization social media manager Claudia Michelle also resigned from her post. Sources told The Post that the women had been...

Jump forward to about 5:00. It's all good, but I really started to like it at that point.

Paul Joynson-Hicks and Tom Sullam set up the Comedy Wildlife Photography Awards a few years ago and were amazed at the success. This spurred them on to launch the Comedy Pet Photography Awards with a cash prize of £500 for the best overall photo. There are 30 finalists in the 2024 competition and you can vote for your favourite, click on your favourite image at this link: leave your email address, and that’s it. You will automatically be entered into a prize draw to win £100 and the overall winner will be announced on June 6. Our readers prefer cash;...

He played with such artists as Stevie Wonder, the Rolling Stones and David Bowie, and had several successful solo albumsDavid Sanborn, an influential saxophonist, who found success across the genres of pop, R&B, jazz and more, died Sunday. He was 78. “It is with sad and heavy hearts that we convey to you the loss of internationally renowned, 6 time Grammy Award-winning, saxophonist, David Sanborn,” reads a statement on his social media accounts. “Mr. Sanborn passed Sunday afternoon, May 12th, after an extended battle with prostate cancer with complications.” SNIP “By the age of 14, he was able to...

'I think it's a huge thing. I think a lot of people may say it's not about Black and white, but to me, it is,' Las Vegas Aces star A'ja Wilson said when asked in an interview with the Associated Press about the race element in Clark's popularity and before she recently signed two major endorsement deals.

Russia's First Channel openly urges Russian servicemen "not to wait for the drone" but to commit suicide themselves! "The significance of life is exaggerated," the propagandist argues. And he says that killing yourself on the battlefield is not suicide, but sacrifice.

The Vice President used profanity during a speech at the at the annual Asian Pacific American Institute for Congressional Studies Legislative Leadership summit.

U.S. — As former President Donald Trump continued to build a sizeable lead in a majority of swing states, the latest polls suggest President Joe Biden would need twice as many fake ballots to win the election this year. The startling poll results presented the Biden campaign with a sobering reminder that the standard number of fake ballots used in previous election years needed to be increased significantly for him to win again in November. "We've got to double our target number of fake votes this year," said a Biden campaign insider under the condition of anonymity. "In previous years,...

Washington CNN — Vice President Kamala Harris on Monday reflected on her experiences as a barrier-breaking public figure, telling a crowd in blunt terms that sometimes they need to take it upon themselves strive for their own opportunities and successes – even if others may doubt them. “We have to know that sometimes people will open the door for you and leave it open,” Harris said in a moderated conversation with actor and comedian Jimmy O. Yang in Washington. “Sometimes they won’t – and then you need to kick that f***ing door down,” she added, to applause and laughter from...

The surprise social media return of the trader who helped ignite the meme stock frenzy in 2021 sent GameStop shares skyrocketing Monday. The surge had nothing to do with the troubled company’s fundamentals — and everything to do with a cartoon of a gamer that the trader, nicknamed Roaring Kitty, shared on X. GameStop shares surged 74% on Monday after the account run by Keith Gill shared a meme on X, marking its first post in three years. The shares skyrocketed by more than 110% earlier and were halted for volatility several times on Monday morning. Short sellers have seen...

Harrison Butker, Place Kicker for the Kansas City Chiefs, and three-time Super Bowl Champion, received an Honorary Doctorate of Humane Letters from Benedictine College in Atchison, Kansas. He then delivered the commencement address for the graduating class of 2024.

A U.S. Army officer working at the Defense Intelligence Agency has resigned from the military citing his objection to Israel’s war in Gaza, according to an open letter he published online Monday saying he is distressed that his work has contributed to the deaths of Palestinian civilians.

– Contents of this video ---------------------------- 0:00 A Century of Underachievement 4:11 The Land of Silver 9:29 The Power Vacuum 11:16 The Pampas 14:42 As rich as an Argentine 19:30 The Decline of Liberalism 23:46 The Infamous Decade 27:20 The Rise of Populism 29:49 Isolation & Favoritism 36:31 Dynamic Stagnation 42:25 Fear, Secrecy and Sweet money 49:40 Democracy & Depression 57:33 A Nation Trapped by History

Crews are expected to conduct a controlled demolition Monday evening to break down the largest remaining steel span of the collapsed Francis Scott Key Bridge in Baltimore, a major step in the cleanup as officials seek to fully reopen the port’s busy shipping channel by the end of the month.