Community, Diversity, Sustainability and other Overused Words

Articles from the January 30, 2025 edition


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  • A Transgender Pilot Named Jo Ellis is Alive And Was Not Involved in the Incident at Reagan National Airport

    Stan Greene, Observer Staff Writer|Updated Feb 1, 2025
    11

    Update 2/1/25: The Defense Dept. with parental permission has identified the pilot of the downed Blackhawk as Army Cpt. Rebecca Lobach. CWO Jo Ellis, a Pilot for the Army National Guard, has posted a Proof of Life video, proving she was not involved in the Blackhawk collision Wednesday at Reagan National Airport. Her "Proof of Life and Statement" may be seen here: https://x.com/MrAndyNgo/status/1885354282234392671 This despite many erroneous reports otherwise. "It is...

  • #Blackhawk Helicopter Shut Off Its Transponder Before Deliberately Colliding With a Passenger Plane Over Reagan National Airport

    Stan Greene, Observer Staff Writer|Updated Jan 30, 2025
    2

    It seems increasingly likely that Wednesday's accident 400 feet above Alexandria Virginia, was a deliberate set up. The US Army Blackhawk helicopter had its transponder off, and seems to have flown directly into the commuter jet carrying 64 passengers from Wichita KS to Reagan National Airport. Just 9 days after Trump was sworn in, a Bombardier CRJ700 with 64 on board collided with a Blackhawk Army helicopter carrying 3 Army personnel. The accident at Reagan National Airport...

  • A sporting way to build community

    Stacker, Anna Patton for Reasons to be Cheerful|Updated Jan 29, 2025

    When Elliott Blackmore discovered Mental Health Swims, it felt like home. Swimming and paddleboarding alone had felt lonely; other groups seemed a little unwelcoming. This community felt "totally, 100% nonjudgmental," he says. At Mental Health Swims, volunteer hosts around the U.K. organize meetups at the beach, lakes, rivers, or outdoor pools, so that anyone can benefit from, as the organization puts it, the "healing power of cold water and community." For Blackmore, a...

  • Which Cities are America's Healthiest?

    Stacker, Jaclyn DeJohn, CFP|Updated Jan 29, 2025

    While poor health can eat into your finances with higher medical costs and reduced wages, good health is generally correlated with higher productivity, increased earnings, and lower health care expenses. Healthier habits and outcomes can also reduce long-term costs on aggregate populations, and improve quality of life for local residents in a multitude of ways. With this in mind, SmartAsset ranked 100 of the largest U.S. cities based on 10 health factors, including...

  • Valentine's Day gift guide: Jewelry for every relationship

    Stacker, Kimberly Zerkel|Updated Jan 29, 2025

    While flowers and chocolates are a good start, no Valentine's Day gift is as unapologetically romantic as fine jewelry. For many couples, gifting something as long-lasting and thoughtful as jewelry is a way of showing their commitment and devotion. But is jewelry the right choice for every relationship? What designs should you choose for your first Valentine's Day—or your fiftieth? VRAI, a fine jewelry brand featuring lab-grown diamonds, breaks down which styles are right f...

  • How young is too young to have a smartphone? 5 of the biggest parenting questions about smartphones, answered.

    Stacker, Sheeka Sanahori|Updated Jan 29, 2025

    Smartphones are an everyday part of our culture, but research on the effects of screen time might give parents pause when it comes to giving their children one of their own. Even so, smartphones allow parents to reach their children in an emergency, students to access educational materials at the stroke of a finger, and kids to find community, especially when peers of certain identity groups may be hard to find locally. Of course, with each benefit comes a new digital risk. Pa...

  • Private firefighters are increasingly popular with insurers. But do they pose a risk?

    Stacker, Felicia Mello for CalMatters|Updated Jan 29, 2025

    Robert MacKenzie is an assistant fire chief—but not the kind who works for your local fire department. As the Palisades Fire bore down on Southern California last week, the private fire crew he oversees headed out to help defend homes for their customers: Insurance companies that offer wildfire protection to wealthy homeowners and others with the coverage built into their policies. Working with lists of high-risk properties provided by insurers, the team from Capstone Fire a...

  • Never married and never happier? How attitudes about marriage are changing among singles in America.

    Stacker, Tiffany Moustakas, Data Work By Elena Cox|Updated Jan 29, 2025

    More Americans are getting married later in life—if at all. That's according to a 2023 report by the Pew Research Center, which analyzed Census Bureau data to reveal that a record-high share of Americans over 40 have never been married. One in 4 40-year-olds had never tied the knot as of 2021, up from 1 in 5 in 2010. Forty-year-olds holding a bachelor's degree or higher were more likely to be married than those without a four-year college degree, the report found, and men w...

  • New study reveals what Americans perceive as ideal weight

    Stacker, Lauren Panoff|Updated Jan 29, 2025

    The average American woman weighs about 170 pounds and stands about 5 feet, 4 inches tall. But it's important to remember that these averages are mathematical calculations. They don't represent what's typical or healthy for everybody There are so many factors that make all bodies unique—size, shape, proportions—that comparing one body to others is rarely helpful. In fact, it often leads to negative self-talk and other harmful behaviors (thanks, Instagram). That said, it may...

  • When retirees go rural, They Don't Miss the Traffic

    Stacker, Pat Raia for The Daily Yonder|Updated Jan 29, 2025

    When Karen Sicner and her husband John made the decision to relocate from metro Atlanta to build a new home on a two-acre homesite in rural Sylva, North Carolina, moving closer to their daughter and her family in Tennessee was a major factor. Since then though, they've discovered that there are other perks connected to trading city life for country living that have nothing to do with getting geographically closer to family, The Daily Yonder reports. "I've been downtown...

  • Post-partum depression is costing us billions. Can cities help?

    Stacker, Rachel Somerstein for Next City|Updated Jan 29, 2025

    Amaryllis Castillo gets to work at 7:45 a.m. for her job as a certified home health aide. The mother of two, who is 26 weeks pregnant, works a six-hour shift caring for elderly patients, taking them to activities and out for lunch. At 5 p.m., she clocks in for her second job providing customer service, which she works until 9 p.m. She does that from home, which allows her to be with her children, who are 12 and two. But despite working these two jobs—for a combined 50 or m...

  • Mexican Drug Cartels Shoot, Wound Hiker in Southern California

    Stan Greene, Observer Staff Wrtier|Updated Jan 29, 2025

    A group of American Hikers were shot at 1.23.25 in S.California by Cartel Smugglers who have crossed the US/Mexican Border in order to bring in a group of illegal immigrants. One of the hikers was wounded and airlifted to a US hospital. The smugglers were able to retreat back to Mexico. Separately, the Mexican government has begun suppressing caravans of immigrants in Southern Mexico, per agreement with the Trump administration. A caravan of 8000 Central American immigrants...