Gene Weingarten: The Civil Bore

Just when you think you saw it all. The Guardian: When Érika de Souza Vieira wheeled her lethargic-looking uncle into a Brazilian bank, clerks quickly sensed something was amiss. “I don’t think he’s well. He doesn’t look well at all,” remarked one distrustful employee as Vieira tried to get her elderly relative to sign off on a 17,000 reais ($3,250) loan. Paulo Roberto Braga was indeed indisposed.

The NFL distanced itself from Kansas City Chiefs kicker Harrison Butker after he gave a controversial commencement speech last weekend at Benedictine College in Kansas and received backlash for comments deemed sexist and offensive. Butker, who was the commencement speaker at the private Catholic college, was applauded at the ceremony, but his speech later sparked outrage and controversy online for its conservative discourse—particularly his remarks on women.

(MADISON, Wis.) — Human bones found inside the chimney of a Wisconsin music store in 1989 have been identified as those of a man whose last known contact with relatives was in 1970, authorities said. The DNA Doe Project, a nonprofit that uses genealogy to identify unknown persons, announced this week that the bones are those of Ronnie Joe Kirk, who was originally from Tulsa, Oklahoma, the Wisconsin State Journal reported. [time-brightcove not-tgx=”true”] His bones and skull were found in September 1989 in Madison, Wisconsin, in a pile at the bottom of the narrow chimney of a since-demolished building that then housed a music store. Authorities tried unsuccessfully to identify the remains of the person, whom they called “Chimney Doe.” But in late 2018, Madison Police Detective Lindsey Ludden brought the case to the DNA Doe Project and hair samples from the skull were sent in 2021 to Astrea Forensics, a California-based DNA sequencing company that specializes in degraded samples. Gwen Knapp of the DNA Doe Project said it took more than two years to develop a DNA profile suitable for investigating genetic genealogy.

McDonald’s plans to introduce a $5 meal deal in the U. S. next month to counter slowing sales and customers’ frustration with high prices. The deal would let customers get a four-piece McNugget, small fries, a small drink and either a McDouble burger or a McChicken sandwich for $5 in most areas, according to a person familiar with the deal who wasn’t authorized to discuss its details. [time-brightcove not-tgx=”true”] The month-long deal is scheduled to begin June 25 and will be advertised nationally.

U. S. Rep. Matt Gaetz evoked language adopted by the far-right Proud Boys extremist group as he appeared at court Thursday to support Donald Trump at his hush money trial, reflecting the undercurrent of activist elements present among the presumptive GOP nominee’s supporters as he seeks a return to the White House. “Standing back, and standing by, Mr.

Many Maui residents have experienced a decline in their physical and mental health along with a decline in their economic stability after devastating wildfires scorched the island in 2023, according to a new Hawaii survey. Researchers at the University of Hawaii surveyed 679 people in January and February to study the impact of last year’s wildfires, which was the deadliest wildfire in the country’s history in more than a century.