*AN INCONVENIENT TRUTH – Seven Refugees With Active TB Sent to Idaho:

LBN E-Lert Edited By Addison Beaulieu LBN E-Lert Disclaimer: 1.) The LBN E-Lert accepts no liability for the content of this email, or for the consequences of any actions taken on the basis of the information provided. The LBN E-Lert is not associated with any commercial or political organization and is transmitted via the web for the sole benefit of its subscribers. 2.) Unfortunately, computer viruses can be transmitted via email. The recipient should check this mail and any attachments for the presence of viruses.

*LBN-INVESTIGATES:

For almost a decade, humans have been wandering the planet with a small computer in their hands. And to see just how attached we are to our smartphones, researchers at dscout explored in-the-moment behaviors of 94 Android users. The study found that the average person swipes, taps and pinches their display about 2,617 times a day, for a grand total of one million times per year.

Republicans on the House Select Committee on Benghazi on Tuesday released their long-awaited report  about what exactly happened the night of the Sept. 11, 2012, terror attack in the Libyan city that resulted in the deaths of four Americans. According to the report, no new evidence of wrongdoing or shortcomings on the part of Hillary Clinton were uncovered. Investigators also affirmed that U.S. military forces could not have reached Benghazi in time to save the four Americans. They also said the military was not prepared enough to respond to such attacks, and accused the Obama administration of changing its narrative after the attack, “rather than tell[ing] the American people the truth and increas[ing] the risk of losing an election.”

Stunned by Britain’s vote to leave the European Union, leaders of the bloc’s member states converged in Brussels on Tuesday to respond to one of the greatest challenges ever to confront the 28-nation bloc. Before departing for Brussels, ChancellorAngela Merkel of Germany said she would use “all her strength” to prevent the European Union from drifting apart. In a 20-minute speech to the Bundestag, the lower house of Parliament, Ms. Merkel said she expected that Britain would want to maintain “close relations” with the European Union after it leaves, but also signaled that Britain could not expect business as usual. “Whoever wants to leave this family cannot expect to have no more obligations but to keep the privileges,” she said.

David Cameron was forced to face his fellow European leaders Tuesday after his humiliating defeat in Britain’s referendum on membership in the European Union. Cameron was due to meet Jean-Claude Juncker, the European Commission president, to discuss ways to proceed after Britain’s vote to leave. Speaking before the meeting, Juncker slapped down British suggestions that negotiations could begin before London formally triggers its exit from the EU. “They have expressed their view. Now there have to be consequences,” he said. “There can be no secret negotiations. No. No secret negotiations.” Britain had hoped to begin talks without the two-year countdown that would be activated once the British prime minister invokes Article 50.

*Egypt Says ‘Black Box’ Has Been Fixed:

The so-called black box from the crashed EgyptAir flight that disappeared over the Mediterranean in May en route from Paris to Cairo has been successfully repaired, officials said. The plane’s recorders, which contain flight data and voice recordings from the flight deck, were given to French officials when they were damaged and recovered from the wreckage. Egyptian investigators had not been able to download their information. The repaired data recorder is to be returned to Cairo for analysis, but the cockpit voice recorder is still being repaired. French authorities have said there is no evidence linking the crash to terrorism, after a preliminary investigation was opened. Agnes Thibault-Lecuivre, a spokeswoman for the prosecutor’s office, has said an inquiry was launched Monday to look into a formal accident investigation.

*WHO READS LBN? Singer / songwriter Jackson Browne:

*Seeking to Improve Ties With Russia, Turkey Apologizes for Downing Warplane:

Turkey continued its diplomatic fence mending on Monday, apologizing for downing a Russian jet near its border with Syria last year. In a letter to President Vladimir V. Putin of Russia on Monday, the same day Turkey announced a rapprochement with Israel, President Recep Tayyip Erdogan expressed regret about the November episode, in which Turkish forces shot down a Russian warplane that Turkey said had violated its airspace. The downing infuriated Russia and paralyzed relations between the two countries: The Kremlin ordered sanctions on Turkish food imports, stopped visa-free travel for Turks and barred Turkish tour operators from offering Russian tourists vacation packages.

*China Bans Lady Gaga Over Dalai Lama:

China’s Communist Party has added Lady Gaga to its list of foreigners banned from the country after she posted her meeting with the Dalai Lama to her Facebook account. The party’s propaganda department has reportedly banned her from entering mainland China. Websites and other organizations have been told to stop distributing her songs after she met the exiled Tibetan spiritual leader and recorded a 19-minute video of it. The two talked about meditation and mental health, but the recording garnered an angry reaction. Officials have called the Dalai Lama a “wolf in monk’s robes,” despite the fact that he claims he’s seeking autonomy for Tibetans. He was exiled in March 1959.

*Dr. M. Zuhdi Jasser to testify before Senate Panel in Hearing on Cover-Up of Islamist Terror by Obama Administration:

Dr. Zuhdi Jasser, President of the American Islamic Forum for Democracy will testify before the Subcommittee on Oversight, Agency Action, Federal Rights and Federal Courts at the Dirksen Senate Office Building in Washington D.C. in a hearing titled Willful Blindness: Consequences of Agency Efforts to Deemphasize Radical Islam in Combating Terrorism.” “The hearing will examine the Obama administration’s refusal to attribute the terrorist threats we face with radical Islam, hobbling our ability to combat the enemy. The hearing will specifically investigate how the federal government has not only refused to appropriately identify the specific threat of radical Islam, but has sought to undermine the people and information who have sought to highlight the threat.”

*LBN-BUSINESS INSIDER:   ***Volkswagen has solved one big problem stemming from its diesel emissions deception, as the carmaker agreed on Tuesday to pay up to $14.7 billion to settle claims in the United States. But the final financial toll — once the company deals with a long list of fines, lawsuits and criminal investigations around the world — will be far higher. The continuing fallout could leave Volkswagen vulnerable to billions of dollars more in expenses, at a time when profit is already under pressure and the industry is facing a period of technological upheaval. So far, Volkswagen has set aside 16.2 billion euros, or about $17.9 billion, for scandal-related costs.Matthias Müller, the Volkswagen chief executive, said less than two weeks ago that the amount was adequate. But the American settlement, with the government and car owners, will consume most of that money. And Volkswagen still faces more scrutiny in the United States and around the world.

*LBN-MUSIC INSIDER:   ***Marion “Suge” Knight has filed a lawsuit against Chris Brown and the owners of West Hollywood nightclub 1 Oak, where Knight was shot seven times at an August 2014 pre-VMA party hosted at the venue by the singer. The lawsuit, filed Monday in Los Angeles Superior Court, accuses Brown and club owners of failing to have adequate security and allowing entry to at least one armed individual.   ***Graham Nash has plenty of experience with the vagaries of rock & roll documentaries. Take Woodstock, for one: “There were three days of really good music and the movie was three hours,” he says, “so there are a lot of great performances that have never been seen apart from bootlegs.” No one knows that more than Nash, since Neil Young refused to be filmed during Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young’s career-making set at the festival. In the film, you’ll hear an announcer say, “Crosby, Stills, Nash” – but no Young. “Neil threatened to deck anybody who filmed him,” Nash says. “So I heard – after the fact.”

*LBN-NOTICED:   ***Scarlett Johansson and Paul Thomas Anderson seeing “The Humans” in NYC.   ***Warriors playerAndre Iguodala at Philippe in NYC.   ***“Vanderpump Rules” star Stassi Schroeder celebrating her birthday with series frenemies Kristen Doute, Scheana Shay and Katie Maloneyat Montauk Yacht Club Resort and Marina.   ***Aviva Drescherand her family at 1633 restaurant on the Upper East Side in NYC.   ***Sheryl Sandberg and her boyfriend, the billionaire video games mogul Bobby Kotick, dropped in for coffee at Soho café in NYC, Happy Bones over the weekend. The couple visited the coffee shop to see owners Kirsten and Craig Nevill-Manning who have been dubbed New Zealand’s Google-Facebook dream couple.

*LBN-R.I.P.:   ***Legendary women’s basketball coach Pat Summitt died early Tuesday from complications of early-onset dementia at the age of 64. “It is with tremendous sadness that I announce the passing of my mother, Patricia Sue Head Summitt,” Tyler Summitt said in a statement. “She died peacefully this morning at Sherrill Hill Senior Living in Knoxville surrounded by those who loved her most.” She was diagnosed with a neurological disease in August 2011. During her entire coaching career, Summitt had a 1,161-212 record, the most wins in NCAA Division I history.   ***Longtime NFL CoachBuddy Ryan passed away Tuesday at the age of 82. Ryan, a defensive guru, coached for 35 seasons in the league, including two stints as head coach of the Arizona Cardinals and the Philadelphia Eagles. As defensive coordinator for the unstoppable 1985 Chicago Bears, he was largely credited for the game’s best defensive squad ever, which carried the Bears to a Super Bowl win.*LBN-SEE IT:….Singer Sophie Beem:

*LBN-COMMENTARY by David Brooks: Anybody who spends time in the working-class parts of America (and, one presumes, Britain) notices the contagions of drug addiction and suicide, and the feelings of anomie, cynicism, pessimism and resentment. Part of this pain arises from deindustrialization. Good jobs are hard to find. But hardship is not exactly new to these places. Life in, say, a coal valley was never a bouquet of roses. What’s also been lost are the social institutions and cultural values that made it possible to have self-respect amid hardship — to say, “I may not make a lot of money, but people can count on me. I’m loyal, tough, hard-working, resilient and part of a good community.”  We all have a sense of what that working-class honor code was, but if you want a refresher, I recommend J.D. Vance’s new book “Hillbilly Elegy.” Vance’s family is from Kentucky and Ohio, and his description of the culture he grew up in is essential reading for this moment in history.

*LBN-SPOTLIGHT: “Inspired, impactful and important. The right message for our time.”—–Stephen Covey: http://www.BrokenWindowsBook.com

*LBN-A DIFFERENT VIEW:…

*LBN-OVERHEARD:   ***His marriage to Katy Perry only lasted 14 months — but that hasn’t put Russell Brand off getting hitched for a second time. The serial womanizer and former Bizarre Shagger of the Year has popped the question to long-term girlfriend Laura Gallacher.

LBN E-Lert Edited By Carey Greiner

LBN E-Lert Disclaimer: 1.) The LBN E-Lert accepts no liability for the content of this email, or for the consequences of any actions taken on the basis of the information provided. The LBN E-Lert is not associated with any commercial or political organization and is transmitted via the web for the sole benefit of its subscribers. 2.) Unfortunately, computer viruses can be transmitted via email. The recipient should check this mail and any attachments for the presence of viruses.

*SCOTUS Strikes Down Texas Abortion Ban:

The Supreme Court in a surprise 5-3 decision struck down a highly restrictive Texas law that would have closed most abortion clinics in the state. The decision in Whole Woman’s Health v. Hellerstedt means a lower court’s decision upholding the law is reversed.  “We conclude that neither of these provisions offers medical benefits sufficient to justify the burdens upon access that each imposes,” Justice Bryer wrote in the majority opinion. “Each places a substantial obstacle in the path of women seeking a pre-viability abortion, each constitutes an undue burden on abortion access.”

*Mateen Kept Killing After Cops Entered:

Fifteen of the people that Omar Mateen killed when he ambushed a gay nightclub in Orlando were in the bathrooms, and many of those murders occurred after police had the gunman cornered. In all, 49 people were slaughtered and 53 more were injured. Mateen reportedly moved between the two bathrooms, shooting people even after police had entered Pulse nightclub. Officials are still investigating the police response and hostage negotiations that took place over several hours that morning. According to The Wall Street Journal, survivors and family members of the victims have questioned why authorities didn’t raid the nightclub’s bathrooms more quickly. Officers entered the club about three hours before the hostages in the bathroom were rescued. “I just feel that with so many cops to one person, it should have been a little quicker,” said Albert Murray, whose 18-year-old daughter Akyra was killed in the women’s bathroom. During the early morning hours, Mateen had three phone calls with the crisis negotiators, and police believed he may have been armed with explosives. Authorities have said they rescued dozens of people from the club while Mateen was cornered in the bathroom.

*LBN-WHERE THE ELITE AND UNDERDOGS MEET:

*Panama Canal Celebrates $5.4B Upgrade:

The 50-mile-long Panama Canal celebrated the opening of a $5.4 billion expansion that will allow larger ships to pass at greater volumes. The work had focused on increasing capacity at two sets of locks, one at either end of the canal. A Chinese-owned container ship, Cosco Shipping Panama, was the first commercial vessel to cross through Caribbean-facing Agua Clara locks on Sunday, amid scenes of jubilation in Panama. The new locks are wider and deeper than their predecessors. Officials say the larger locks and a new lane will double the canal’s cargo capacity. The canal initially opened more than 100 years ago and could handle ships carrying about 5,500 cargo containers. With the expansion, it can handle more than 13,000.

*Israel and Turkey Agree to Resume Full Diplomatic Ties:

American Drivers Regain Appetite for Gas Guzzlers Says Media Expert Levine: 

The single most effective action that most Americans can take to help reduce the dangerous emissions that cause climate change? Buy a more fuel-efficient car. But consumers are heading in the opposite direction according to media expert and author Michael Levine (http://www.MichaelLevineMedia.com). They have rekindled their love of bigger cars, pickup trucks and sport utility vehicles, favoring them over small cars, hybrids and electric vehicles, which are considered crucial to helping slow global warming. “So far this year, nearly 75 percent of the people who have traded in a hybrid or electric car to a dealer have replaced it with an all-gas car, an 18 percent jump from 2015”, according to Levine.
*LBN-NOTICED:   ***New York City’s ultimate power-brokers attended a secret birthday party last Thursday for uber-business attorney Tom Ajamie at a Penthouse of Central Park South attended by Montana U.S. Senator Jon Tester. The theme was Montana in Manhattan and the cuisine included Bison burger sliders.   ***Power agent and entrepreneur Don Victor Cisternino held a power dinner party last Saturday night at the hot restaurant Trattoria Dell’Arte in NYC. Cisternino is in the process of opening a New York office for his talent agency and revealed at the dinner that he will soon open an acting school in Los Angeles.   ***Hillary Clinton at Ristorante Morini in NYC.   ***Sonja Morgan at Mamo in Soho in NYC.  ***Giovanni ­Ribisi at Aesop in the West Village in NYC.   ***“Hamilton” Tony winner Alex Lacamoire at Good Enough to Eat on the Upper West Side in NYC.   ***CommPro head Fay Shapiro having a late lunch at the Coffee Shop in Union Square in NYC on Saturday. Blink-182 drummer Travis Barker playing a 45-minute drum solo at PH-D Rooftop Lounge at Dream Downtown in NYC.   ***Singer Sarah Hayes playing Ivy Bar and Grill in NYC.   ***Jason Biggs at wife Jenny Mollen’sBeverly Hills book party for “Live Fast, Die Hot,” hosted by Planet Blue’s Ling-Su Chinn.

*LBN-BUSINESS INSIDER:   ***It’s time for the swingers who like swapping and orgies to take their last turns at Le Trapeze in NYC. Born in the shadow of Plato’s Retreat (which closed in 1985), the sex club has operated on East 27th Street since 1980, surviving recessions, AIDS and vice crackdowns. But the place can’t survive the booming real-estate market, and can’t afford a new lease. One visitor to the mecca for open-minded couples and single women (single men are banned) said, laughingly: “After the last night, they are giving away all the furniture and pillows, and the mats from the Mat Room.”  ***Sundar Pichai isn’t going to have a happy start to his week. The CEO of Google’s Quora account appears to have been hacked by a group called OurMine, which previously broke into Facebook boss Mark Zuckerberg’s Twitter and Pinterest accounts earlier this month. The three-man hacker outfit has been posting messages on Quora through Pichai’s account; it’s also connected to his Twitter account and as a result, OurMine was able to publicize their hack to all 508,000 of his followers. The tweets have now been removed.   ***The Chinese acquirer of the Waldorf Astoria is finalizing plans for an extensive overhaul that would shut the landmark New York hotel for up to three years and convert as many as three-quarters of its rooms into private apartments, people familiar with the matter said. Anbang Insurance Group Co.’s restoration plan calls for closing down the 1,413-room property in the spring, removing as many as 1,100 hotel rooms and eliminating hundreds of hotel jobs, the people said.   ***PepsiCo is creating a new diet beverage for fans of aspartame less than a year after pulling the artificial sweetener as part of a marketing move over safety concerns.

*LBN-MUSIC INSIDER:   ***Rapper 50 Cent has been charged with shooting off a dangerous weapon — his big mouth. The “In da Club” hip hop superstar — whose rap sheet includes past arrests for drugs and guns — was busted on the Caribbean island of St. Kitts on Saturday for using foul language during a show at a local music festival.
*LBN-INVESTIGATES: Among various studies linking friendships to well-being in one’s later years, the 2005 Australian Longitudinal Study of Aging found that family relationships had little if any impact on longevity, but friendships boosted life expectancy by as much as 22 percent.
*LBN-BOOK NEWS:   ***Former New York Times reporter and LA Times national correspondent David Cay Johnston has aDonald Trump book coming through Melville House with an August 2 pub date. The Making of Donald Trump investigates “Trump’s numerous ties to organized crime, his history of litigation, his family background including his father’s involvement with the Ku Klux Klan, his philandering, a close look at his actual skill in running casinos , constructing buildings and managing real estate, his numerous bankruptcies, and the questionable nature of his actual wealth.

*LBN-COMMENTARY by Neil Gallagher, PhD (Author, Financial Expert): The big problem with Medicaid is that you lose your control, money, independence and maybe proximity to your family. Don’t make it worse by getting bad advice. And you’d better be really broke in order to get Medicaid, because efforts are under way to make you sell your house now, to make you cash in everything now in order to put in your substantial portion before Medicaid kicks in. Forget about the old ways to “hide your money.”

*LBN-A DIFFERENT VIEW:….

LBN E-Lert Edited By Carey Greiner

LBN E-Lert Disclaimer: 1.) The LBN E-Lert accepts no liability for the content of this email, or for the consequences of any actions taken on the basis of the information provided. The LBN E-Lert is not associated with any commercial or political organization and is transmitted via the web for the sole benefit of its subscribers. 2.) Unfortunately, computer viruses can be transmitted via email. The recipient should check this mail and any attachments for the presence of viruses.