Credit: Liberty Films, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons Amazon Prime cut out a crucial scene in their “abridged” version of the Christmas classic movie It’s a Wonderful Life, leaving viewers both baffled and outraged. Especially viewers who can’t help but notice that the scene was the most heavily Christian-themed in the film. We get producing an “abridged” version for time-saving purposes by cutting out scenes unnecessary to advance the film’s plot. But Prime cut out the entire crux of the story – an explanation of how George Bailey’s guardian angel, Clarence, earns his angel wings. Not to mention, there is…
Author: Team_Benjamin Franklin Institute
HUNDREDS ORDERED TO LEAVE NORTH GAZA HOSPITAL Bursh said the army had ordered 350 people to leave Kamal Adwan for a nearby school sheltering displaced families. They included 75 patients, their companions, and 185 medical staff.Abu El-Rish said soldiers were transferring patients and medical staff to the Indonesian Hospital, which had already been put out of action by heavy damage and had been evacuated by Israeli forces a day earlier.Footage circulating on Palestinian and Arab media, which Reuters could not immediately verify, showed smoke rising from the area of Kamal Adwan.Much of the area around the northern towns of Jabalia,…
The 2000 holiday classic “How the Grinch Stole Christmas” almost had a very different face behind the iconic green fur as “Full House” star John Stamos revealed he once auditioned for the lead role.On the December 23 episode of the “‘Tis The Grinch Holiday Podcast”—hosted by “Saturday Night Live” star James Austin Johnson and produced by Wondery in collaboration with Dr. Seuss Enterprises—John Stamos shared a surprising revelation, explaining why his opportunity to play the Grinch ultimately fell through.Article continues below advertisementWhy John Stamos Couldn’t Play The GrinchMEGAStamos, now 61, shared that during a makeup test, he suffered an allergic…
DEM Party expected to hold face-to-face meeting with Abdullah Ocalan, who has been in prison for 25 years.Turkiye will allow parliament’s pro-Kurdish party to visit the jailed founder of the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) on his island prison, setting up the first such visit in nearly a decade. The Justice Ministry approved a request by the Peoples’ Equality and Democracy Party (DEM Party) to meet Abdullah Ocalan, who is serving life in solitary confinement, a DEM spokesperson said late on Friday. Justice Minister Yilmaz Tunc confirmed the move in remarks to the TGRT news channel. “We responded positively to DEM’s…
Navy accomplished something mighty Alabama couldn’t on Friday: beat mediocre Oklahoma.The Midshipmen downed the Sooners, 21-20, in the Lockheed Martin Armed Forces Bowl, busting the Crimson Tide’s case as a College Football Playoff snub.After all, any team that lost to the Sooners in the regular season — like Alabama — had no business sniffing the CFP.If college football’s highest-paid and most prominent talking heads were to be believed, Alabama was unjustly snubbed for a CFP berth over Indiana (11-2) and SMU (11-3). Following the 12-team reveal on Dec. 8, ESPN college football analyst and former Alabama head coach Nick Saban…
Jeff Bezos owns at least three properties in Miami’s exclusive Indian Creek enclave, for which he’s paid about $237 million, per the New York Post.Now, a 1.84-acre empty plot of land at 9 Indian Creek Island Road (and right next to the Amazon founder’s property) is up for sale for $200 million, the outlet reported—and the neighborhood has definitely seen a Bezos price bump.Courtesy of Reznik GroupCourtesy of Reznik GroupListing broker Ilya Reznik, of the Reznik Group, told the Post that the sellers bought the land for $27.5 million in 2018.Related: Jeff Bezos Becomes His Own Neighbor, Purchases $78 Million…
Some researchers propose counteracting global warming by reflecting more sunlight into spaceShutterstock/Pablo Joanidopoulos With the world set to blow past 1.5°C of warming, researchers are increasingly studying possible methods of cooling the planet by modifying the atmosphere or the oceans. More geoengineering research is planned in 2025, such as projects aiming to make clouds reflect more sunlight and efforts to remove carbon dioxide from the atmosphere by tweaking ocean chemistry. Such tests have long been controversial. Opponents of research on geoengineering – itself a loaded term – see it as a hubristic distraction from pressing efforts to slash greenhouse… Source…
In early April, scores of revelers gather in the city of Kawasaki, about 30 minutes south of Tokyo, to celebrate Kanamara Matsuri – Japan’s infamous penis festival, with a name translating roughly to Festival of the Steel Phallus. Kanamara Matsuri’s main festivities have taken place on the first Sunday of April since 1969 (yes, seriously). At the festival centering on the um, organ and fertility, attendees get to erect gigantic penis statues on handheld shrines, enjoy penis-shaped lollipops, buy penis-shaped candles, and (obviously) dress as penises. There’s a seemingly endless array of phallic merch!“Amazing. So fun, so unique, such a different…
BBCOn a cold day in November, hundreds of people flocked to an arena in Coventry, which has previously hosted gigs by Oasis, Rihanna, and Harry Styles, for an event of a very different kind.The 500 people who turned out – some from as far afield as Mongolia and Canada – were taking part in an activity less known for drawing in crowds: the Rubik’s UK Championship in “speedcubing,” or racing to solve puzzle cubes at terrific speed.Rows of tables were laid out in the arena and 15 events took place over three days. Some involved solving the puzzle one-handed, others…
This article is an on-site version of our FirstFT newsletter. Subscribers can sign up to our Asia, Europe/Africa or Americas edition to get the newsletter delivered every weekday morning. Explore all of our newsletters hereGood morning. Today I’ll be covering:Junior lawyers’ bumper year-end bonusesJoe Biden’s attempt to bolster his green credentialsBoeing’s “brain drain”And FT journalists’ worst financial mistakesRussia’s experimental “Oreshnik” ballistic missile, which it fired at Ukraine last month, was made by companies that still rely on advanced western manufacturing technology, according to analysis by the Financial Times.Two developers of the weapon, the Moscow Institute of Thermal Technology and Sozvezdie, have…