Oregon plans to give 30,000 to new home buyers if they illegally enter the country. California plans to give 150,000  ]to illegal aliens who want to buy a home, and they will get a zero-percent loan. Meanwhile, only about 10% of Americans can afford a home. According to a Wall Street Journal/NORC poll of 1,502 U.S. adults, […] The post $150K to Illegals to Buy a Home Only 10% of Americans Can Afford appeared first on www.independentsentinel.com.

BY THE OPTIMIST DAILY EDITORIAL TEAM Imagine getting on the treadmill and knowing that every stride you take burns calories and helps keep the lights on. At Brown University, this is exactly what is happening. The Nelson Fitness Center has transformed exercise into a green energy initiative, owing to some very clever cardio gadgets that convert sweat into power. Yes, you read that correctly: students are physically powering their own gym by running, rowing, and cycling their way to fitness. Brown’s gym now houses a unique set of SportsArt cardio machines that harvest kinetic energy from workouts and feed it straight into the building’s power supply. “It’s like you’re a human power plant,” explains Elina Pipa, the Brown University student who spearheaded the idea. “When you hop on one of these machines, you’re not just doing something good for your body—you’re doing something great for the planet, too.” The gym already has eight of these energy-generating machines, but they’re just getting started. By next month, 17 additional machines will have joined the fleet, increasing the total to 25. This means that students will have more opportunities to convert their daily workouts into a sustainable energy source for the school. From the classroom to the real world This entire notion began as a simple classroom assignment—talk about extra credit! During her sophomore year, Elina Pipa, originally from Athens, Greece, enrolled in a climate solutions course. The course required students to develop a business case for a real-world climate solution. While some may have imagined distant, hypothetical scenarios, Pipa chose to focus on something closer to home: Brown University’s own exercise center. “I had this image of a hamster on a wheel generating energy, and I thought, ‘Why not us?'” Pipa explains. After looking around, she discovered SportsArt, a firm that manufactures gym equipment that converts human energy into power. It turns out that this idea wasn’t simply possible; it was already taking place at Ohio State University and Monkton Stadium in England. Pipa’s project was more than just brainstorming; she went all in. She spoke with sports directors from other campuses that had introduced comparable equipment, surveyed Brown students about their gym habits, and ran the statistics to see how much energy these devices could truly create. The results were encouraging. Pipa determined that by replacing just half of the gym’s cardio machines with these energy-generating equivalents, the fitness center could offset roughly two percent of its electricity needs—which is significant given that the gym already had solar panels doing the same function. “When you see that even your gym equipment can make a difference, it shifts your perspective,” Pipa says. “It makes you realize that everyday actions can have a real impact on the environment.” Pumping up the power: Expanding the energy-generating gym Pipa’s vision became a reality after months of research, presentations, and numerous gym trips. Her lecturer, Stephen Porder, assisted her in pitching the idea to Brown’s athletic department. The institution was so delighted that it announced a trial program with six SportsArt machines in the fall of 2023. Students’ feedback was highly positive. The devices were not only simple to use, but they also provided rapid feedback on how much energy they were producing. “It’s pretty cool to see how many watts you’re producing while you’re running,” the student states. “It definitely makes me want to push a little harder.” The pilot was so successful that Brown decided to extend the program. By the start of the fall 2024 semester, the gym will include 25 energy-generating devices. While the exact amount of energy produced is still being recorded, the expansion demonstrates the university’s confidence in the project’s potential. This incident has transformed Pipa’s life. She now knows that making a difference does not have to wait until after graduation. “You don’t need to reinvent the wheel to have an impact,” she exclaims. “Sometimes, it’s about taking an existing idea and running with it—literally!” As Brown University expands its energy-generating gym, it sends a strong message: sustainability can be a part of everyday life and does not have to be a chore. By converting workouts into watts, the institution demonstrates that caring for the environment is as simple as putting on your sneakers and heading to the gym.The post University students transform workouts into power with energy-generating gym equipment first appeared on The Optimist Daily: Making Solutions the News.

BY THE OPTIMIST DAILY EDITORIAL TEAM It happens to the best of us: you’re out in the world, going about your business, and a stranger’s rudeness rattles you. Whether it’s a stinging remark about your outfit, an aggressive driver cutting you off, or someone coming at you dramatically for a minor mishap, these interactions can hurt us more than we’d expect. But why do they affect us so deeply, and more importantly, how can we overcome them and protect our peace? Understanding the sting of rude interactions The increase in stress and anxiety in today’s world may be contributing to the rise of such unpleasant interactions. “The propensity for people to be rude to someone they don’t know has probably increased because people are distressed,” says Dr. Gail Saltz, a psychiatrist and clinical associate professor at Weill Cornell Medical College and New York Presbyterian Hospital. When people are on edge, their ability to manage social situations with grace suffers, resulting in more explosive reactions to little incidences. So, why do these exchanges hurt so much? Even when we know we’ll never see that person again, the unexpected animosity can shake us up. It’s because these circumstances often catch us off guard, and our natural reaction is a combination of confusion, anger, and even sadness. Understanding this, however, is just the first step toward dealing with these situations effectively. Steps for regaining control Create distance When someone’s rudeness surprises you, the first and most important thing to do is establish some distance. If feasible, physically remove yourself from the situation. According to Dr. Saltz: “This person’s a stranger, and you could escalate the situation in some way that will be worse for you.” Trying to reason with someone who is already upset is rarely beneficial and may put you in danger.  But what if you can’t walk away, say, because you’re stopped in traffic or sharing an elevator? Dr. Saltz recommends “emotionally leaving the room” by turning away, avoiding eye contact, and showing no expression on your face. This can help you de-escalate and remain cool. Acknowledge the fight-or-flight reflex Once you’ve gotten out of potential danger, the next stage is to relax your mind and body. When confronted with an aggressive stranger, your fight-or-flight reflex takes over, increasing your heart rate and clouding your judgment. This heightened state might lead to unwise actions, such as entering traffic without first checking or saying something you’ll later regret. “We have at least the ability to inhibit our own behaviors when we are in fight-flight mode,” Dr. Saltz says. To restore control, begin by recognizing the bodily symptoms of stress—perhaps your face is flushed or your heart is beating. Take a few deep breaths, inhaling gently and breathing out through your mouth to reduce your heart rate. You might also try muscular relaxation techniques, which involve tensing and then relaxing different muscle groups, or repeat a relaxing mantra to yourself, such as “It’s time to be calm now.” Later on, physical activity can be beneficial. “You need a physical release to complete a stress cycle,” explains Dr. Jody Thomas, a clinical psychologist and non-profit Meg Foundation‘s CEO. Moving your body, whether through a stroll, a jog, or a few stretches, helps burn off residual stress and keeps you from focusing on the encounter. Validate your feelings, then let them go It’s totally normal to have a range of emotions following such an encounter. You may even begin to question your own reaction, wondering why it bothered you so much or feeling ridiculous about how you responded. Dr. Thomas emphasizes the significance of not invalidating one’s sentiments. “If you said to yourself, ‘You know what? I’m being silly. I was acting ridiculous,’ you have invalidated your own emotional experience,” she says. It is critical to acknowledge that your reaction was a normal reaction to an unexpected and unpleasant circumstance. If you’re having trouble moving on from the incident, talking it over with a friend or family member can be really helpful. “Your friend can be like, ‘Oh my gosh. That’s crazy. Did you yell at her?’” says Dr. Thomas. This affirmation from a trusted source will help you absorb the experience and move on more efficiently. It’s not you, it’s them Finally, don’t take the encounter personally. Interactions with people you don’t know are inherently superficial; they have no idea who you are, and their rudeness is most likely due to their own bad day rather than anything you did. “Anything they’ve said is much more about them than you,” Dr. Saltz explains. This viewpoint can make it simpler to let go and not let the interaction haunt you. However, if you are still ruminating weeks later, it may indicate that something deeper is going on. “Ruminating is a symptom of something larger, like being angry, depressed, or anxious,” explains Dr. Saltz. In such instances, speaking with a therapist may help you understand why these interactions are impacting you so deeply and how to cope with them more effectively. Rude encounters with strangers are a regrettable fact of life, particularly in today’s high-stress environment. However, by recognizing why they affect us, trying to calm ourselves, and acknowledging our feelings, we can handle these circumstances more gracefully and avoid spoiling our day.The post How to shake off a stranger’s bad vibes first appeared on The Optimist Daily: Making Solutions the News.

Darius Slay has zero interest in going to Brazil

Our old colleague Kristine Parks at FoxNews.com notes the new movie Reagan, starring Dennis Quaid, is strongly liked by audiences with a 97 percent audience score on the site Rotten Tomatoes. But the critics are liberals, and among them, it only had a 26 percent score.   Compare that to the 2016 movie Southside with You, a biopic which gushed over young Barack and Michelle Obama. Both were positive movies, but the Obama film received rave reviews and a 91 percent score by critics (71 percent audience). Christian Toto told Fox News: "Film critics, by and large, lean relentlessly to the left, and they let that flavor their reviews. So, when a Michael Moore film hits theaters, the response will be glowing, by and large, regardless of the content. The recent projects tied to progressive heroes like President Barack Obama (Southside with You) and Ruth Bader Ginsberg (RBG) are similarly hailed even by those who use the term ‘hagiography.’" Nick Shrager of The Daily Beast used the H-word for Reagan:  "You may have suspected that this MAGA-tinged hagiography would be absolute trash, but it turns out you didn’t think low enough," he wrote. It’s “the worst movie of the year.” "Regardless of how you feel about Ronald Reagan the president, most will be united in finding this biopic a preachy, plodding, graceless groaner," he added. “McNamara’s film is so ungainly and transparent that it plays like embarrassing propaganda." Washington Post critic Ty Burr declared “Quaid offers a congenial impersonation with little depth, in part because depth is not what we wanted (or got) from Reagan.” Communism? Who finds evil in communism? Burr doesn’t: “Reagan organizes its narrative around its subject’s lifelong fight against the Red Menace, which it assumes we know is bad without being told why. Godlessness, mostly…” Burr concluded: "The faithful for whom Reagan was made aren’t likely to see that it’s a hagiography as rosy and shallow as anything in a Kremlin May Day parade. As pop-culture propaganda — popaganda, if you will — the movie’s strictly for true believers. As history, it’s worthless.” It's especially stupid to (a) suggest there's nothing provably evil about communism and then (b) compare the anti-communists to a Kremlin May Day parade. He's just trolling.  The movie review in the Hollywood trade magazine Variety was less brutal that these, but still characterized it as a "blatantly worshipful biopic." Hollywood Reporter critic Stephen Farber similarly summarized the film as an "overly reverential tribute to a controversial politician."

An Idaho Army National Guard officer is under fire for expressing his religious beliefs on social media, leading to his removal from command and a heated debate over First Amendment rights within the military, The Daily Signal reported.

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