Uncategorized

Today in Congress, California’s Rep. Katie Porter did something incredible. She was questioning Robert Redfield, the director of the Center for Disease Control and after breaking down the average cost for an uninsured person in America to go through the process of COVID-19 testing, she brought up a statute that allows Redfield himself to authorize payment to make testing for the virus free for everyone, regardless of their insurance coverage or lack thereof.

Porter was pushing the director to commit to doing that, to making diagnostic testing free for every American.

Redfield tried to demure a few times, saying they’d do everything they can, they’re working their hardest, blah blah blah. If you’re familiar with Porter (and you should be!) you know that these kinds of answers don’t satisfy her.

In just five minutes, she gets the CDC director to commit to free testings. It’s truly incredible to see.

I did the math: a full battery of coronavirus testing costs at minimum $1,331.

I also did the legal research: the Administration has the authority to make testing free for every American TODAY.

I secured a commitment from a high-level Trump official that they’d actually do it. pic.twitter.com/RmolCtmNbG

— Rep. Katie Porter (@RepKatiePorter) March 12, 2020

“Everybody in America, hear that,” Porter said at the end of her time, after Redfield gave her an unequivocal “yes.”

“You are eligible to go get tested for coronavirus and have that covered, regardless of insurance,” she said. “Do not let a lack of insurance worsen this crisis.”

Katie Porter is a national treasure and what she just did will save lives. https://t.co/bznHGHG8Qn

— Jon Favreau (@jonfavs) March 12, 2020

How many lives did Katie Porter save today using a whiteboard, a bullshit detector, and an ability to retain focus? https://t.co/kRAw56xF5m

— Hart Hanson (@HartHanson) March 12, 2020

Katie Porter is doing what the President is too incompetent to do https://t.co/ID8XEB1BIu

— Jemele Hill (@jemelehill) March 12, 2020

Holy shit. Katie Porter holds the CDC Director’s feet to the fire and gets him to commit to FREE TESTING for coronavirus for ALL AMERICANS.

Watch every second of this.pic.twitter.com/dQMbhR5Oaa

— Brian Tyler Cohen (@briantylercohen) March 12, 2020

Katie Porter actually does what grandstanding useless Congressmen think they’re tricking people into believing they’re doing https://t.co/7nIEVXqO0Z

— Erin 🧼 Ryan (@morninggloria) March 12, 2020

Le’s see what else is out there today.

• A certain someone just lifted Thor’s hammer and we’re wondering how that’s even possible. (via CBR)
• There’s a Scream reboot coming our way from the Ready or Not filmmakers. (via The Hollywood Reporter)
• A helpful bit of science:
  

  Lots of science-y folks are posting this graph. But if there is one thing I have learned from being on the internet, it is this:

  Data/graphs: Not compelling to many.

  Kitties: Compelling to many.

  So I present: #Catteningthecurve.#scicomm #epitwitter pic.twitter.com/Cr1xQXMppr

  — Anne Marie Darling (@amdar1ing) March 11, 2020

• How coronavirus fears are affecting the sex industry. (via HuffPost)
• This is some good news nestled in among some bad news:
  

  All cast members (employees) will be paid during the month! They usually get paid week-by-week, so this is extremely good to hear!! https://t.co/82yGnOV7FE

  — Julia Alexander (@loudmouthjulia) March 12, 2020

• Here’s a sneak peak of a behind-the-scenes Schitt’s Creek documentary featuring the most devastating scene of the season so far.
  

  On April 7th, the #SchittsCreek series finale will be followed by an hour-long special – Best Wishes, Warmest Regards: A Schitt’s Creek Farewell

  Join us from the ~earlier time~ of 8pm (8:30NT) on @CBC.

  Here’s your first look at the special: pic.twitter.com/4j8nluYXcV

  — Schitt’s Creek (@SchittsCreek) March 12, 2020

What did you all see out there today? Anything slightly less devastating?

(image: Alex Wong/Getty Images)

Want more stories like this? Become a subscriber and support the site!

—The Mary Sue has a strict comment policy that forbids, but is not limited to, personal insults toward anyone, hate speech, and trolling.—

The school festival squads final run through is lookin good. Bakugo is being the most extreme metalhead in UA history but this bound is about to put in some work! Ashido and Jiro have this dance and musical performance handled and I’m excited to see it all come together. While I will always take fists to faces and quirk flexxin, you enjoy these innocent moments and that isn’t some small feat.

Oh and if you really want to talk about finesse, who would’ve expected a wannabe Youtuber could ever keep the villain equilibrium at a respectable level after the fervor that Chisaki exuded?! Not me. Not never. And in struts Gentle Criminal sippin that marvelous tea, stuntin on fools in a Victorian era Dracula cloak, pimp cane, pinstripe pants, TWO belts and purple scarf! Maaaannn, I’m anxiously awaiting his party crashing scene.

Being the caring soul that he is, it’s like midnight and all Deku is concerned with is the wear and tear of the rope he’s been using to maneuver a twinkling Aoyama, the human disco ball, around. Of course he decides to get a new one in the morning to be safe during the showcase. After a nice 5:30am training session with All Might, where Hatsume delivered the specially requested gloves for young Midoriya, he heads out to the convenience store for this ridiculous rope purchase. Have I mentioned how unreal this whole setup is?

As expected, the store is next door to the cafe that Gentle Criminal stopped by for the Gold Tips flow. Deku recognizes his voice after nearly bumping into him and decides to be the best young hero in training he can be.

Deku presses the man with the tea dining ritual and the showdown begins. Words of courage and determination spill out of our boy’s mouth because doesn’t want Gentle to make a move on his school, for Eri and everyone’s sake…but mostly for Eri. A quick look around is all the One For All inheritor needs to get staticky. It’s Saturday morning so there aren’t many people out. Gentle asks Brava to start filming and he does his vlog intro before Deku gets the smoke.

After all this time, we get to see Gentle Criminal’s powers in action. Little did I know, we’d be dealing with Hisoka’s long lost nen brother but boy was it an interesting power. The master of elasticity puts the work in on Deku! After trampolining the kid about 200 feet into the air, the gentlemanly villain and his “honey” use his powers to spring through the sky and get ready to pounce on UA.

As Deku is flying through the sky he remembers how excited Eri had become, and how much he wants to spend time with her and Mirio, so he regains his composure, mid tumble, lines up the hand yopper and let’s off his patented new air cannon finger blast like BLOAW!

After the rush of the success and progress, Deku realizes it wasn’t enough. The young buck gets Gentle Criminal cornered inside an unfinished building and we get to see the impressive ways Gentle’s quirk can used. He bounces off elasticized steel beams and air pocket trampolines to avoid any more finger gun air blasts. It was cool and reminiscent of Gran Torino’s jet moves during Midoriya’s training. Just when Deku finally has him dead to rights, Gentle resorts to the cowardly villainous move of endangering a civilian down below.

Deku stops the steel beam from falling and has to let the criminal flee. As he struggles to keep the beam from slipping out of his grasp, my boy does a one armed beam press and fires off one last air cannon shot like a fuckin CoD sniper!! It barely misses Brava and Gentle, but his tenacity allows Brava to come to terms with the fact she’ll have to use her quirk to stop the young man with a heart of a lion. What her quirk is I can only imagine!

69 minutes until the School Festival and the concert crew is officially getting a little worried about their buddy’s classmate. Good job team. While this arc is nowhere near as exciting as the last, I’m pretty hype to see how it’ll all shake out next episode.

Want to get Black Nerd Problems updates sent directly to you? Sign up here.
Follow us on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram.

The post My Hero Recap: Gentle Criminal vs. Deku appeared first on Black Nerd Problems.

Writer: Bryan Hill / Artist: Dexter Soy / DC Comics

Okay, it’s been a minute since we’ve checked in on Batman and the Outsiders, but the moment you turn the page and see Ra’s Al Ghul’s hired hands opposite of the Outsiders and Lady Shiva, you kinda have to get hype.

The Demon’s Head has been playing the game over the last four issues, courting Duke Thomas and targeting Jefferson Pierce’s personal life. Cassandra Cain has had a rushed reunion with her mother Lady Shiva, and Kaliber pulled a face-heel turn which means Katana has a bit of a vendetta. And while the Outsiders are at the forefront of the battle, Batman’s in the background with Sofia trying to be the Big Good to Ra’s Al Ghul’s Big Bad. All of the miniature story arcs that have been developing come to a climactic battle, and while the arc is far from over, there are plenty of awesome moments as the multi-pronged melee commences.

You got to give it up to Hill and Soy for beautifully marrying emotional rawness with visceral physicality. Each of the three fights going on has very cleanly summarized emotional resonance captured with clean splash pages. Black Lightning wanting vengeance for his dead friend. Signal and Orphan getting their rematch with Karma. The aforementioned Kaliber and Katana duel. Lady Shiva lending assists. And the best part is that after Hill sets everything, he lets Soy do the bulk of the work, and Soy is very good at what he does.

The focus of this issue is action, and Soy goddamn delivers. This is some of the most beautiful fight sequences I think I’ve seen in a superhero comic, and there is a sheer variety of combat going on. You got some of the best hand to hand fighters flexing. You got metas letting loose. And after the action, you got rising stakes that make you that much more invested in the story.

The “A League of Their Own” doesn’t put Batman and the Outsiders in a league of its own, but it does remain a very solid superhero comic that gives its characters ample opportunity to shine. Hill’s very good at imparting ethos into the script, and Soy masterfully brings it to life. As the arc races towards its conclusion, you have to wonder what the actual final battle is going to look like with all of the machinations and chess games between Batman and Ra’s Al Ghul going on, and I’m ready for it.

9.4 “Symbols” out of 10

Reading Batman? Find BNP’s coverage of the Dark Knight here.

Want to get Black Nerd Problems updates sent directly to you? Sign up here!
Follow us on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram!

The post Batman and the Outsiders #11 Review appeared first on Black Nerd Problems.

Toni Braxton sang the praises of Uncle Bud’s CBD-Infused health products during an appearance on Cheddar.

Braxton, who is a brand partner with Uncle Bud’s, made an appearance with the brand’s brainchild, 23-year-old entrepreneur Garrett Greller on Cheddar to discuss the benefits of CBD and how the use of its products have been helping her.

The hemp-healthy brand specializes in skincare, personal care, and pain relief products, and are an essential part of Braxton’s daily routines. She has long suffered from the painful and debilitating effects of lupus. After being diagnosed over 10 years ago, Braxton thought it would end her career in music since lupus is a painful inflammatory disease that attacks the tissues. After discovering CBD, a legal cannabinoid extract, it vastly improved the quality of her life and provided the relief necessary for her to continue touring.

“I knew nothing about CBD, I’m going to be honest. I actually found out about his product by default,” the Grammy Award-winning artist told Cheddar. One day Braxton couldn’t find her regular lupus medication and just happened to stumble on an Uncle Bud’s product which was under the sink. After applying the product to her knees, there was immediate relief. Her concerns about the product making her high were dispelled once she learned that it wasn’t like THC, the active component in cannabis that creates a “high.” She became hooked and became a regular user and champion for CBD.

“Having lupus, I always try to be positive, but sometimes I have bad days like everybody else,” Braxton said. “All of a sudden, I put this product on and it just makes me feel better.”

Greller, who is the co-creator of Uncle Bud’s, was suffering from painful arthritis in his knees, back, hips, and ankles for years. He was wasting thousands of dollars on over-the-counter and doctor-prescribed pain-relief medicines that didn’t work or often had unpleasant side effects. Greller worked with an FDA-registered lab to formulate a natural, hemp-based solution that could provide relief to millions of Americans who suffer from daily aches and pains, which turned out to become Uncle Bud’s Topical Pain Reliever.

Uncle Bud’s products specialize in pain relief, personal care, and skincare, and it includes a topical pain reliever, body wash, sunburn soother, and hand and foot creams.