But, my wife is upset that 1990 is now 34 years ago. And our oldest adopted Daughter turns 40 this year which is amazing too because I still remember her going with us to Hawaii in 2000 to help us with our younger daughter who was 4 years old then. We went to Maui and Kauai on that trip. I hadn't been to Maui since I lived there in 1990 at that point. I lived in Hilo, Hawaii in 1974 with my first wife and baby son and in Maui in Hana and Paia with my 2nd wife and children including my son who lived with us as a baby in 1974.
So, anyway, if you were born around 1950 like I was it's now 75 years since 1950. Unbelievable!
I traced back 75 years from 1950 when I was 2 and that would be 1875!
Washington
— The FBI found the largest cache of "finished explosive devices" in
the bureau's history during the arrest of a Virginia man earlier this
month, according to court documents.
Federal prosecutors are
seeking to keep the man, Brad Spafford, in custody after his Dec. 17
arrest for allegedly possessing an unregistered short barrel rifle.
While executing a search warrant at Spafford's 20-acre farm in the
county of Isle of Wight, investigators found "a stockpile of more than
150 homemade improvised explosive devices" that were assessed to be pipe
bombs, according to prosecutors. They said some of the pipe bombs were
labeled "lethal" and "preloaded into an apparent wearable vest."
"Destructive devices" allegedly found at the home of Brad Spafford, seen in photos included in federal court papers.
FBI
Most of the devices were
allegedly found in a detached garage, while others were found in a
backpack in a bedroom "completely unsecured." Prosecutors said Spafford
also "acknowledged to keeping a jar in his freezer of HMTD, an explosive
material that is so unstable it can be exploded merely as a result of
friction of temperature changes." Investigators found the jar stored
next to food items and labeled "dangerous" and "do not touch,"
prosecutors said.
According to court documents, which were first reported by the website Court Watch,
the investigation began in early 2023 after Spafford's neighbor told
authorities that Spafford was stockpiling weapons and had lost three
fingers on his right hand.
"Even after losing his own fingers as a
result of his homemade explosive materials, he made the apparent
remarkable decision to keep an extraordinarily dangerous explosive
material in the home's freezer next to food items that could be accessed
by the entire family," prosecutors said, arguing the man "poses an
extreme danger to the community" and should remain in custody.
The neighbor also told authorities that Spafford was using photos of
President Biden for target practice at a local shooting range. The
neighbor said Spafford believed that "political assassinations should be
brought back" and that "missing children in the news had been taken by
the federal government to be trained as school shooters." After
President-elect Donald Trump was nearly assassinated in July at a
Pennsylvania rally, Spafford allegedly told his neighbor that "he hoped
the shooter doesn't miss Kamala," prosecutors said.
His attorneys
have argued he should be released pending trial, telling the court that
he has "no criminal record and no history of substance abuse or mental
illness."
"There is not a shred of evidence in the record that Mr.
Spafford ever threatened anyone and the contention that someone might
be in danger because of their political views and comments is
nonsensical," his lawyers wrote
in a filing on Tuesday. "In fact, the evidence proved that Mr. Spafford
is not a danger but a hard-working family man with no criminal record."
Caitlin Yilek is a politics
reporter at CBSNews.com, based in Washington, D.C. She previously worked
for the Washington Examiner and The Hill, and was a member of the 2022
Paul Miller Washington Reporting Fellowship with the National Press
Foundation.
Some Americans could get a break on their state
income taxes this year, with nine states kicking off 2025 with a
reduction in their individual income tax rates, according to an analysis from the Tax Foundation, a think tank that focuses on taxes.
The changes are part of a recent push to cut taxes at the state level that started during the pandemic
when many states found themselves flush with tax revenue. But the
left-leaning Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy (ITEP) has termed
the trend an "anti-tax playbook" that could eventually crimp public
services.
Lawmakers typically argue that lowering taxes can help
make their states more competitive, helping to draw businesses and new
residents within their borders. Seven of the states that are lowering
their individual income taxes in 2025 have legislatures that are
controlled by Republicans, as well as Republican governors.
"The
evidence of the past four years indicates that many states understand
and value the importance of creating and maintaining a stable,
pro-growth and competitive tax code," Tax Foundation analysts noted in a
blog post on the 2025 changes.
Here are the states where income taxes will be cut starting on Jan. 1, 2025, based on the Tax Foundation's analysis.
Indiana
Indiana, whose state legislature is controlled by GOP
lawmakers and whose governor, Eric Holcomb, is a Republican, will shave
its income tax rate to 3% in 2025, down from 3.05% in 2024.
That's a fairly small savings for middle-class residents, according
to local news outlet IPB News, which estimates the reduction will
result in a tax cut of $33 for a worker earning $65,000 a year.
Iowa
Iowa,
which also has a Republican trifecta controlling its statehouse and
governor's office, is trimming its individual income tax rate to a flat
rate of 3.8% starting Jan. 1, down from a top tax rate of 5.7% in 2024,
the Des Moines Register reports.
The
new flat tax rate was signed into law by Gov. Kim Reynolds in May, who,
along with state lawmakers, have argued that the state was collecting
too much money from its residents, the publication noted.
Louisiana
Another state with a Republican trifecta in the
statehouse and governor's office, Louisiana is cutting its individual
income tax rate to a flat rate of 3% starting Jan. 1, down from a
graduated tax with a top rate of 4.25% in 2024.
Taxpayers in
Louisiana who earn between $30,000 to $40,000 a year, the largest number
of taxpayers in any bracket in the state, will see their state taxes
reduced by 50%, to $338 a year, according to analysis from RESET Louisiana, a nonpartisan public policy think tank.
However,
the state's sales tax will jump to 5% in 2025, up from its prior 4.45%
rate, partly to pay for the income tax cut, the Tax Foundation noted.
Mississippi
Mississippi,
which also has a Republican legislature and governor, will reduce its
individual income tax rate to 4.4% on Jan. 1, down from 4.7% in 2024.
That
might not be the last tax reduction for Mississippi residents, as Gov.
Tate Reeves is pushing to entirely phase out the state's individual
income tax, arguing that the move would help it to compete with Florida
and other states without income taxes.
"And if we want to continue
to see the kind of economic development successes that we've had, we've
got to be competitive from a tax standpoint," Reeves said in November.
Missouri
Another
state with a Republican-controlled legislature and Republican governor,
MIssouri will trim its state income tax to 4.7% on Jan. 1 from 4.8% in
2024.
The cut is the fifth income tax reduction
under Gov. Mike Parson, who in announcing the cut earlier this year
touted the state's economy, which he said added 70,000 jobs in 2024 and
ranks "first in the nation for job growth."
Nebraska
Nebraska
residents will see their income tax rate decline to 5.2% on Jan. 1,
down from 5.84% in 2024, the Tax Foundation said. The Republican Party
controls the state legislature, while the state's governor is also a
member of the GOP.
New Mexico
New Mexico represents the
only state with an income tax reduction on Jan. 1 that sports a
Democratic trifecta, meaning its legislature is controlled by the party,
while its governor, Michelle Lujan Grisham, is also a Democrat.
Starting
on Jan. 1, New Mexico's individual income tax brackets will be reduced
for all residents, with the biggest cuts aimed at low- and middle-income
taxpayers, the Tax Foundation noted. Gov. Grisham's office said in a
statement last year that a married couple filing jointly would save
about $303 a year under the new tax brackets.
The state will now
have six brackets, versus five in 2024, with rates ranging from 1.5% to
5.9%. Some tax rates will remain the same, but others will change. For
instance, the lowest bracket was 1.7% in 2024, according to local publication SourceNM.
North Carolina
North
Carolina, whose legislature is controlled by the Republican Party while
its governor is a Democrat, will cut its tax rate to 4.5% on Jan. 1,
down from 4.75% in 2024.
That's not the last reduction, as the individual tax rate will once again drop in 2026, to 3.99%, according to the High Point Enterprise.
West Virginia
West Virginia residents will see their income taxes reduced by about 4% after the state, with a Republican-controlled legislature and Republican governor, booked an annual revenue surplus.
The
top tax rate will be reduced from from 5.12% in 2024 to 4.82% on Jan.
1, according to the Tax Foundation. Gov. Jim Justice has also pushed for
steeper reductions, noting in July, that "we need to continue marching
toward eliminating the personal income tax."
Space debris weighing over 1,000 pounds reportedly crashes into village in Kenya
/ CBS/AFP
Kenyan officials
said Wednesday they were investigating fragments of metal, believed to
be from a rocket, that crashed into a village in the country's south.
The issue of space junk has risen in tandem with increased spatial traffic.
Kenya Space Agency (KSA) said
the object, a metallic ring roughly 8 feet in diameter and weighing
some 1,100 pounds, crashed into Mukuku village, in Makueni county, on
December 30 at around 3:00 pm local time (1200 GMT).
The KSA,
working alongside other agencies and local authorities, "secured the
area and retrieved the debris, which is now under the Agency's custody
for further investigation."
It said "preliminary assessments
indicate that the fallen object is a separation ring from a launch
vehicle," which are designed to either burn up upon re-entry to Earth's
atmosphere or fall over uninhabited areas.
"This is an isolated case, which the agency will investigate and address," the KSA said in a statement.
It said the object was not a threat to public safety, and praised the villagers nearby who had swiftly alerted authorities.
The KSA said they were working to identify the piece's origin.
Past examples of manmade human space debris hitting Earth include part of a SpaceX Dragon capsule landing on an Australian sheep farm in 2022.
And earlier this year, NASA faced a lawsuit from an American family whose Florida home was hit by a piece of falling metal. A cylindrical object tore through the home
of Alejandro Otero in Naples on March 8. He told CBS Fort Meyers, Fla.,
affiliate WINK-TV that his son called him about the crashing object
while he was on vacation.
"I was shaking. I was completely in
disbelief. What are the chances of something landing on my house with
such force to cause so much damage," Otero said. "I'm super grateful
that nobody got hurt."
China has also been criticized by NASA for allowing its giant Long March rockets to fall back to Earth after orbit.
Last February, the European Space Agency said a satellite -- weighing as much as an adult male rhinoceros -- made an uncontrolled return to Earth, re-entering the atmosphere over the north Pacific Ocean between Alaska and Hawaii.
"The
Sugar Bowl Committee has a 90-year history of being a good corporate
citizen for the city of New Orleans, and that's why this tragedy hurts
us as much as anybody right now," Sugar Bowl CEO Jeff Hundley said
Wednesday afternoon. "All parties and all agree that it's in the best
interest of everybody and public safety that we postpone the game for 24
hours."
The game, originally set for 7:45 p.m. Central time on Wednesday, will now be played at 7:45 p.m. on Thursday.
Hundley said officials were working to make sure the game would be "a safe, efficient, and fun environment for tomorrow night."
New
Orleans Police Department Superintendent Anne Kirkpatrick earlier said
police officers would work to ensure safety at the event.
The Sugar Bowl Committee said in a statement that it is "devastated
by the terrible events from early this morning," and said that it is in
ongoing discussions with authorities.
In a statement, the
University of Notre Dame said it was "working with law enforcement and
others to determine the full scope and impact of the tragedy."
Notre Dame also asked fans to "join us in prayer for those injured and lost in this senseless act of violence."
"Those
staying at the Hilton New Orleans Riverside Hotel are welcome to join
us for the previously scheduled Mass there at 11 a.m. Otherwise, we ask
that you join us in prayer from wherever you are," the university said
in a statement on X, formerly Twitter.
The University of Georgia released its own statement on social media.
"We
are horrified and saddened by the senseless act of violence that
occurred in the early hours of New Year's Day in New Orleans. University
personnel are working to determine if any UGA students, faculty, staff,
alumni or fans were among the victims. We offer our deepest condolences
to all the victims and their families, and we stand in solidarity with
the New Orleans community," the statement reads.
Parts of Bourbon Street have been closed off from Canal Street to St. Anne in the wake of the attack, the FBI said.
"There's
so much to enjoy about New Orleans... making sure that our routes and
the Superdome are safe today for the game," Kirkpatrick said. "We had
this tragic event, and we're sorry again to everyone in our community,
but we do want you to go about the day, just stay away from Bourbon."
"This man was trying to run over as many people as he
could," said Kirkpatrick, adding that two police officers were hit by
gunfire but were in a stable condition. A long gun was recovered from
the scene, law enforcement sources told CBS News.
Mayor LaToya
Cantrell referred to it as a likely "terrorist attack," and the FBI said
in a news release that they are investigating it "as an act of
terrorism."
