President Donald Trump invited the Dodgers to the White House. Many of their fans feared that the team, by accepting, would humiliate themselves and betray the team’s large Latino, Asian and African-American fan base. Dodgers controlling owner Mark Walter, along with co-owner Magic Johnson, have proposed a solution. Trump has promised that if he can keep the championship trophy, the Commissioner’s Trophy, he will end all seizures and deportations of immigrants.   read more

The researchers tested 96 substances and found about 30% of them disrupted the way sperm functioned and their ability to fertilize eggs. The problem is high calcium levels in the sperm, which causes poor swimming and early release of enzymes needed to break into an egg. “This is really the first report on the direct effects of endocrine disruptors on sperm function,” said Niels Skakkebaek. “The effects we see could explain these not-uncommon cases where people cannot have a child....”   read more

Nearly 20 million Americans suffer from alcoholism, but most have never been prescribed medications that can help people with their addictions, a new study shows. Research found two drugs which were approved over a decade ago to treat alcoholics are rarely given to patients with drinking problems. Both are designed to adjust a person’s brain chemistry to reduce cravings for alcohol. “Our findings show that they can help thousands and thousands of people,” said Dr. Daniel E. Jonas.   read more

Automated warfare machines, or “killer robots,” do not exist. But the possibility of them in operation—in the near future—is enough to worry many world leaders and Nobel laureates who have called for a ban on such technology. South Korea already has deployed surveillance robots that can fire built-in machine guns without a person in control. Israel is working on a drone that can choose its own targets, and the U.S. has its armed unmanned drones.   read more

Roanoke County supervisor Al Bedrosian wants to change a rule that permits anyone to offer a non-sectarian prayer prior to board meetings. He wants only Christians to offer prayers. “The freedom of religion doesn’t mean that every religion has to be heard,” he said. “If we allow everything, where do you draw the line?" He said denying non-Christians “does not infringe on their freedom of religion. The truth is you’re trying to infringe on my right, because I don’t believe that.”   read more

Director of National Intelligence James Clapper has issued another edict that prohibits intelligence employees from referencing news reports that contain unauthorized leaks. The rule follows an order that prohibits speaking to the media, which is defined so broadly that it might include anyone who has shared a story about an intelligence agency on Facebook. “You’re basically saying people can’t talk about what everyone in the country is talking about,” said former staffer Timothy Edgar.   read more

Global warming has already produced a point of no return for a mammoth section of the Antarctica ice sheet, whose melting will help significantly raise sea levels in the coming centuries, according to two teams of scientists. “This is really happening,” said NASA's Thomas Wagner.“There’s nothing to stop it now." The consequence of the ice sheet melting could mean an increase of 10 feet in sea levels, which would pose a crisis for coastal cities and communities around the world.   read more

American voters aren’t too excited about the upcoming election, and don’t seem to think the occupant of the White House has much effect on what happens to the country. A new survey shows voter enthusiasm for the November election is lower than it’s been for a midterm election in 20 years. As for the 2016 presidential race, most Americans don’t seem to be putting much stock into who wins, and most young people think volunteering will do more good than choosing the next president.   read more

The ruling came in response to a lawsuit filed by the National Association of Manufacturers, which argued the EPA had overstepped its regulatory bounds in reducing permissible soot levels. Federal officials said it was important to reduce soot in the air due to its harmful effects on human health, particularly the heart and the lungs. Following the ruling, the EPA issued a statement saying it was “a resounding victory for public health.”   read more

Redlining, the discriminatory practice using information such as someone’s neighborhood to discriminate, has not died despite laws designed to eradicate it. It just moved to the Internet. With so much data swirling about online, it’s easier for businesses or individuals to discover demographic information about people and to use that to discriminate against them. Anyone armed with a computer and algorithms can do it, and probably get away with it.   read more

An investigation into the 2012 recall campaign that targeted Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker for alleged illegal campaign activities has been temporarily derailed by a federal judge. In response to a lawsuit, Judge Rudolph Randa ordered the special prosecutor to destroy all evidence obtained so far during the probe. “I have never heard of another situation in which a federal judge has intervened in an ongoing state investigation of possible law violations,” said law professor Ben Kempinen.   read more

Secret Service agents assigned to guard the area around the White House were pulled from their posts and told to help the assistant of the agency’s director. The agents went sent in 2011 to the home of Lisa Chopey--an hour away--where a neighbor had supposedly harassed the woman. “Prowler is there for a reason, and it shouldn’t be pulled when the president is on the move,” said former Secret Service agent Dan Emmett.   read more

The town of Orono, with about 8,000 residents, adopted an ordinance last December prohibiting wind energy conversion systems within its zoning districts. That move upset resident Jay Nygard, who’s suing Orono, claiming state law allows local governments to regulate small turbines but not ban them completely. The city’s position was that his property is too small to safely house the wind turbine. The turbine was placed within five feet of his neighbor’s land, officials say.   read more

Refugees aren’t just found in the developing world or war-torn countries. They’re also found in the U.S., where people are moving to states where they may legally buy marijuana for medical use. Realm of Caring Foundation, which produces “Charlotte’s Web,” a nonpsychoactive cannabis for pediatric epilepsy patients, says it knows of more than 100 families who moved to Colorado to access medical marijuana—with another 200 families on a waiting list to relocate when supplies increase.   read more

In 1997, Texas Disposal Systems was competing with Waste Management of Texas for trash-hauling contracts in Austin and San Antonio. At one point, Waste Management issued an “alert,” which was distributed to Austin community leaders, calling into question the environmental safety of Texas Disposal’s landfill. Texas Disposal sued Waste Management. The original trial court found Waste Management’s statements to be false.   read more

Massachusetts’ highest court on Friday rejected the challenge of an atheist couple who claimed their three children would be socially marginalized or treated differently because they didn’t say the Pledge of Allegiance in class because it includes the phrase “under God.” The court said the couple, who remain anonymous, failed to show that their children had been treated any differently because they didn’t say the pledge.   read more

Republican Senator Rand Paul of Kentucky, with eyes on the 2016 presidential nomination, has said that for every person in his state who signed up for insurance under the Affordable Care Act, 40 other Kentuckians had their plans cancelled. Not so, says Politifact. When contacted by The Washington Post about the 40-to-1 cancellation claim, Paul spokesman Brian Darling said the figures used in making the claim were out of date.   read more