Tag Archives: did you know

‘The Game Is Rigged’: Matt Damon Puts POTUS On Blast Again!!

He’s promoting his new flick and wasn’t holdin’ back on his frustrations with politics. According to the Daily Mail , Matt says he lost hope that the movie would even have some damn impact in Washington: ‘We’re at a point where politicians don’t really get any benefit from engaging with long-term issues,’ he said, according to Politico. ‘Instead, it’s all about the next election cycle. Those guys in the House don’t do anything now but run for office. So unless they can find some little thing that zips them up a couple of points in the polls, they’re not interested.’ Damon’s soured attitude toward the American political system has been a couple years in the making. He made headlines last year when he famously criticized Obama’s first term, even though Damon is a Democrat and supported Obama in 2008. ‘I’ve talked to a lot of people who worked for Obama at the grassroots level. One of them said to me, “Never again. I will never be fooled again by a politician,”‘ Damon said in 2011. ‘You know, a one-term president with some balls who actually got stuff done would have been, in the long run of the country, much better.’ But Damon told Playboy that he voted for Obama in November, despite his criticisms of the president. ‘I assume there will be some Supreme Court appointments in this next term; that alone was reason to vote for him,’ he said. Damon was also asked about Clint Eastwood’s performance at the Republican National Convention. ‘I heard the backlash, but I never saw the whole thing because I just didn’t want to see my friend … you know,’ he said. ‘Look, his knowledge of filmmaking is so vast and deep that he can wing it beautifully on the set. What he did at the RNC was an unrehearsed bit he decided to do at the last minute. You can’t go onstage and do 12 minutes of stand-up completely unrehearsed. But I agree with what Bill Maher said — Clint killed it at the convention for 12 minutes, and the audience loved him. I wouldn’t do that unless I spent a month rehearsing.’ Asked what politics were behind his new movie, he said, ‘We went to the studio saying, “Who f**king wants to go see an anti-fracking movie?” and were all in agreement. When we were working on the script, it was about wind farms, but we changed it to fracking — a good issue because the stakes are so high. That sh*t is real. They’re debating about letting it happen in New York now. To us, the movie was really about American identity. We loved the characters because they felt like real people making the kinds of compromises you have to just to live your life.’ Do you think Washington can’t be changed?? Images via tumblr/facebook

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‘The Game Is Rigged’: Matt Damon Puts POTUS On Blast Again!!

Tell ‘Em Why You Mad Son! Study Shows People Who Vent Their Anger Live Longer Lives

Here’s a lil FYI for ya! If you mad be mad cuz it might add an additional two years to your life! A new study published in the Health Psychologies journal by a team of German researchers shows that people who release their anger live an average of two years longer than those who hold their tempers in. The study followed 6,000 people, primarily Italians and Spanish folks and found that “repressors,” the patients who internalized their emotion, often experienced an elevated pulse which increases the risk of high blood pressure, heart disease and other medical problems. In findings published in the journal Health Psychologies, the analysis of 6,000 patients showed those who internalized anxiety ran the risk of an elevated pulse — increasing the risk of high blood pressure, heart disease and other ailments. On a positive note, repressors were found to recover from illness more quickly — likely due to their discipline. Shutterstock

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Tell ‘Em Why You Mad Son! Study Shows People Who Vent Their Anger Live Longer Lives

A Lil’ Positivity: Young Jeezy And His Street Dream Foundations Hand Out Hundreds Of Toys!! [Photos]

Tis’ the season… For the fifth year in a row, Young Jeezy and his Street Dream Foundation hosted their annual Toy Giveaway and kids in need in the Atlanta area were blessed with a truckload of new toys. More than 800 goodies were handed out on Christmas Eve and the Street Dream Foundation teamed up with the Light House Foundation and V103 to put together an afternoon filled with games, music, food, and entertainment for the little ones to enjoy. Celebrity guests came out too and signed autographs. Hit the flip for more shots from the event…

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A Lil’ Positivity: Young Jeezy And His Street Dream Foundations Hand Out Hundreds Of Toys!! [Photos]

Did You Know?? Pregnant Beached Whale Left Stranded In Breezy Point To Die!

One of the hardest hit areas during Hurricane Sandy had another natural disaster today. According to The Daily Mail , the pregnant mother was already sick and injured when rescuers came to it’s side: A live beached whale washed ashore in New York’s Breezy Point but it may not stay that way for long. Firemen and rescue workers are spraying the whale with water in hopes of keeping it alive, but when marine mammal experts arrived on the scene they said that it would be best to let the sick whale die naturally. ‘The whale is severely emaciated. It’s in very bad shape. It’s a very sick whale,’ said Kim Durham, a representative from the Riverhead Foundation in Long Island. ‘Picking it up…would be inhumane at this point,’ she told Newsday. ‘Probably we’ll let nature take its turn with this animal.’ The whale is thought to be anywhere between 30 and 50 feet in length and most likely is a female humpback. The whale is thought to be pregnant, but that has not been confirmed. ‘I haven’t seen a whale like this in Breezy since I was a kid,’ local Joan Washington told The New York Post. The Breezy Point neighborhood in Queens has had its share of emergency activity this fall, as it was one of the hardest-hit areas during Hurricane Sandy. The whale was called in around 10.40am on Wednesday morning and volunteer fire fighters responded as best they could. ‘They couldn’t get the pump going so I was using a bucket to keep her nice and wet,’ said Ed Manley, a man who came from Florida to help out at Point Breeze ever since the hurricane. The whale was reportedly moving its flippers and opening its mouth which a biologist told The New York Times were signs of stress. ‘When large whales strand, it’s very difficult,’ Mendy Garron from the National Marine Fisheries Service told the paper. The whale was reportedly spotted by Lou Bassolino, a 66-year-old Breezy Point resident who regularly drives to the beach in the morning searching for his boat that washed away months ago. This morning, he told Newsday that he got his wife and grown daughters to help try and save the whale by doing the first thing Google suggested: pour water on it. ‘We’ve been through so much devastation here, we just wanted to save something. We wanted to save that whale,’ Mr Bassolino said. With all the violence that’s been going on, we’re glad to hear some people out there are doing good things. Images via twitter/tumblr

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Did You Know?? Pregnant Beached Whale Left Stranded In Breezy Point To Die!

Kush Chronic-les: New Study Finds All That Green Yahmean Smoke Isn’t Harmin’ Our Brains Afterall

We already knew this but we’re glad someone ‘ official ‘ finally came out and said it. According to The Huffington Post , alcohol has a higher affect than good ‘ole mary does when it comes to our brains: A teen who consumes alcohol is likely to have reduced brain tissue health, but a teen who uses marijuana is not, according to a new study. Researchers scanned the brains of 92 adolescents, ages 16 to 20, before and after an 18-month period. During that year and a half, half of the teens — who already had extensive alcohol and herb-use histories — continued to use mary-jane and alcohol in varying amounts. The other half abstained or kept consumption minimal, as they had throughout adolescence. The before-and-after brain scans of the teens consuming typically five or more drinks at least twice a week showed reduced white matter brain tissue health, study co-author Susan Tapert, neuroscientist at University of California, San Diego, told HuffPost. This may mean declines in memory, attention, and decision-making into later adolescence and adulthood, she said. However, the level of herb use — up to nine times a week during the 18 months — was not linked to a change in brain tissue health. The researchers did not test performance; they only looked at brain scans. The study was conducted by researchers at UC San Diego and is scheduled to be published in the April issue of the journal Alcoholism: Clinical & Experimental Research. The damage occurs because white matter brain tissue develops throughout adolescence and into a person’s 20s, Joanna Jacobus, postdoctoral fellow at the UC San Diego, and co-author of the study, told HuffPost. Part of that still-developing brain tissue is where decision-making ability comes from, which can exacerbate substance use. “It becomes a cycle. If teens decrease their tissue health and cognitive ability to inhibit themselves, they might become more likely to engage in risky behavior like excessive substance use,” Jacobus said. The researchers are not sure why alcohol had an effect and that ‘green yahmean’ did not. They said the study results cannot be considered definitive without more research. They also said they do not know if the reduced brain tissue health is permanent. Because the researchers followed the subjects for 18 months, they were able to at least partially monitor preexisting differences in the two groups. But Jacobus conceded that eliminating other factors — such as genetics, home environment, and even minimal use of other drugs — is very difficult. Each teen in the study received brain imaging, a detailed substance-use assessment, and toxicology screening at the beginning of the study and at the end of the study — as well as substance-use interviews every six months. Do you think this study, along with the legalization of mary in more states, will cause more and more teens to start smoking at earlier ages?? Images via shutterstock

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Kush Chronic-les: New Study Finds All That Green Yahmean Smoke Isn’t Harmin’ Our Brains Afterall

**Update**: Instagram Is Backtrackin’ After Users Put The App On Blast And Vow To Quit!

Complaints flooded in from celebs, bloggers, and the every day user. And according to CNN , Instagram was real quick to shut down the ‘confusing language’: (CNN) — Faced with a loud and angry backlash from some of its most active users, photo-sharing app Instagram backtracked Tuesday on new language that appeared to give the company ownership of their images. “The language we proposed … raised question about whether your photos can be part of an advertisement,” Instagram co-founder Kevin Systrom wrote in a blog post. “We do not have plans for anything like this and because of that we’re going to remove the language that raised the question.” An update Monday to Instagram’s terms of service had stated that data collected through the app can be shared with Facebook. That’s not a surprising move, considering Facebook paid an estimated $1 billion for the photo-sharing service earlier this year. But the language that upset some of the app’s more than 100 million users said that “a business or other entity may pay” Instagram for the use of user images and may do so “without any compensation to you.” Even CNN’s own Anderson Cooper was expressing some concern on the site. “#Instagram will now be able to use anyone’s photos in ads? Without consent?” he wrote on Twitter. “Come on! Is there another photo app people recommend?” Cooper wasn’t the only one considering his options. Bloggers also were spotlighting tools like Hipstamatic and Camera Awesome, as well as Twitter’s own new photo service that includes Instagram-like filters. A year-and-a-half-old blog post from photo-sharing site Flickr was also making the rounds. In it, Yahoo, which owns Flickr, uses language, perhaps aimed at Facebook, that says “(w)e feel very strongly that sharing online shouldn’t mean giving up rights to your photos.” Systrom said Instagram agrees. “Instagram users own their content and Instagram does not claim any ownership rights over your photos,” he wrote. “Nothing about this has changed. We respect that there are creative artists and hobbyists alike that pour their heart into creating beautiful photos, and we respect that your photos are your photos. Period.” It is, of course, too early to know how many people were fleeing Instagram on Tuesday. But anecdotal evidence suggested a movement was afoot. Instaport, a tool that lets users export and and download their Instagram images, was reporting overtaxed servers Tuesday morning. “Our servers are very busy right now, so it may show you some errors,” the company wrote to a user on its Twitter feed. “Please try again later or tomorrow.” So basically, they’ll still use your info and photos to target ads specifically towards you and your followers…and for now, they’re not going to sell your images to anyone, for free. Question is, do you care? Images via Instagram

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**Update**: Instagram Is Backtrackin’ After Users Put The App On Blast And Vow To Quit!

Sh*t Is Real: A Look Behind The Scenes Of The Real Life Plantation Tarantino Used To Film Django Unchained! [Photos]

These photos gave us chills… This is Evergreen Plantation down in Wallace Louisiana; situated on the banks of the Mississippi. It’s roughly located halfway between New Orleans and Baton Rougue and is currently operating as a privately-owned and working sugar cane plantation…but this haunted spot has a blood-drenched, 250-year history that dates back to the slave trade. And this was also where Quentin Tarantino chose to film portions of Django Unchained . Some 22 original slave cabins are still standing in historically ‘preserved’ conditions and were home to men, women, and children who worked outdoors in the searing southern heat and humidity six days a week. Records show a man named Lezin Becnel was listed in an 1860 census as the plantation owner along with his brother, and the official count of slaves at that point was 103 living in 48 dwellings. Wonder what kind of power and grief Kerry and Jamie must have felt while they were filming there?? Hit the flip for more…

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Sh*t Is Real: A Look Behind The Scenes Of The Real Life Plantation Tarantino Used To Film Django Unchained! [Photos]

Under Prseeure: Hasbro’s Launching A Black, Silver, And Blue Gender-Neutral Easy-Bake Oven After Petition!!

For real tho…how many times did you wish you had a non-girly version for that special little man in your life?? Lot’s of people have 13-year-old McKenna Pope to thank after she launched a petition after shopping for an Easy-Bake for her four-year-old brother and finding them only in purple and pink. It was her call for gender-neutral toys that got more than 40,000 supporters, including celebrity chefs Michael Lomonaco, Manuel Trevino, and Bobby Flay, and inevitably changed Hasbro’s opinion of just who deserves to bake a dry azz piece of yellow cake! According to The Daily Mail , Hasbro says it will soon reveal a gender-neutral Easy-Bake Oven after meeting with a New Jersey girl who started a campaign calling on the toy maker to make one that appeals to all kids. McKenna Pope,13, of Garfield, New Jersey, got more than 40,000 signatures on her online petition at Change.org and the support of celebrity chefs including Bobby Flay, who backed her call for Hasbro to make a gender-neutral oven and to include boys in the ads. She was prompted to start the petition after shopping for an Easy-Bake as a Christmas present for her four-year-old brother, Gavyn Boscio, and finding them only in purple and pink. Hasbro invited McKenna and her family to its Pawtucket, Rhode Island, headquarters to meet with its Easy-Bake team today. During the meeting, Hasbro executives showed off a prototype of their newest Easy-Bake: one that’s black, silver and blue. Hasbro has been working on the new color scheme and design for about 18 months, and decided to invite McKenna to see it and offer her thoughts, said John Frascotti, Hasbro’s chief marketing officer. McKenna said the company is doing everything she asked, including putting boys in the ads. ‘I think that they really met most or even all of what I wanted them to do, and they really amazed me,’ she said, adding that Gavyn thought the new design was ‘awesome.’ Frascotti pointed out that the classic toy has had about a dozen different color schemes, from yellow to green to teal to silver, since first being introduced in 1963. The most recent iteration, introduced in 2011, is mostly purple with pink accents. He said it’s sold well since then, and that prompted the company to look for a way to update it and to broaden the consumer base by doing it in different colors. ‘It’s actually a product that’s played with by both boys and girls,’ he said. ‘We will continue to offer the existing product too because it’s so popular.’ Hasbro plans to introduce the new color scheme at the industry’s Toy Fair in New York in February. Frascotti said people are likely to see it on store shelves next summer. As for McKenna’s Christmas present for her brother, she said the TV show Inside Edition gave the family an Easy-Bake Oven after learning of her campaign. For Christmas, she said, she’ll probably buy him some mixes to bake in it. What do you think about Hasbro’s decision? Images via AP

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Under Prseeure: Hasbro’s Launching A Black, Silver, And Blue Gender-Neutral Easy-Bake Oven After Petition!!

Jay-Z Makes It Official As He Pops Bottles Of D’USSÉ Cognac At His Launch Party [Video]

Art wasn’t the only thing folks were celebrating in Miami during Art Basel weekend. Jay-Z hosted his official D’USSÉ Cognac launch party at LIV Nightclub on South Beach. In case you didn’t know, D’USSÉ is Jay-Z’s joint venture with spirits giant Bacardi and the party def didn’t fail to impress. Beyoncé tagged along and a host of their other friends, including Fabolous, Flo Rida, The Dream, Kelly Rowland, Paris Hilton, Young Chris, DJ Clue, Stevie J, Don P, Teyana Taylor, Memphis Bleek, Floyd Mayweather, Pusha T, and Claudia Jordan, were all in attendance for the launch. Check out the hot vid produced just for the event and let us know what ya think! Images via vimeo/tumblr

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Jay-Z Makes It Official As He Pops Bottles Of D’USSÉ Cognac At His Launch Party [Video]

Born This Way: Scientists Claim Homosexuality Can Be Hereditary “Gayness Can Be Passed From Mother To Son”

Are people born gay?? Scientists Uncover Possible Source Of Homosexuality Ever wonder why some lesbians like to dress like men? Or why some gay men love wigs, makeup and high heels? Well, scientists claim the answer may lie answer in the genetics, or how the expression genes are controlled by “temporary switches” known as epi-marks… Via NY Daily News reports: “Transmission of sexually antagonistic epi-marks between generations is the most plausible evolutionary mechanism of the phenomenon of human homosexuality,” Sergey Gavrilets, the study’s co-author, said in a release. Researchers have long believed that sexual orientation had some hereditary component. However, scientists say that homosexuality, in terms of evolution, cannot be solely genetic, because the trait would eventually disappear given that homosexuals aren’t expected to reproduce. Epi-marks, on the other hand, are thought to have an evolutionary advantage that keeps them within the population. For instance, some epi-marks work to protect a female fetus from becoming too masculine if testosterone spikes in late pregnancy. “These epi-marks protect fathers and mothers from excess or underexposure to testosterone — when they carry over to opposite-sex offspring, it can cause the masculinization of females or the feminization of males,” William Rice, the study’s lead author, told U.S. News & World Report. Rice said that epi-marks are “highly variable” and only those that are especially strong would potentially lead to homosexual children. The evolutionary biologist said that while his theory still needs to be tested on parents and their children, it is the most plausible explanation so far. Basically sex-specific epi-marks are usually “erased” from generation to generation. So, a mother’s gender specific characteristics can be passed to a son. Thus, his love for everything pink, glittery and attached to a peen. What do you think of this latest findings? Are people really born gay?

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Born This Way: Scientists Claim Homosexuality Can Be Hereditary “Gayness Can Be Passed From Mother To Son”