A look at everything that's been done so far to prevent another Parkland. Seriously.

Stores are changing their policies; companies are bucking the NRA.

 Parker Molloy
03.01.18

There's been a lot of change since the Feb. 14 shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida, and it's come from unexpected places.

In the week that followed the massacre of 17 teachers and students, people across the political spectrum came together in an effort to do something.

And that's a big deal.

Too often, the end result of a mass shooting — whether it's 49 people killed at the Pulse nightclub in 2016, or the slaughter of 58 people in 2017's Las Vegas shooting — is for most Americans to simply shrug, accept that nothing will ever change, and go about our lives.

But the teen survivors of Parkland weren't about to let that happen again. They've marched, made appearances on TV, and somehow managed to rally nearly the entire country around the issue of gun violence in a way that hasn't been seen in years.

Most of all, they started a thoughtful conversation — no longer accepting "thoughts and prayers" as the only answer to the epidemic.

Students returned to class on Feb. 28, two weeks after 17 students were gunned down. Photo by Rhona Wise/AFP/Getty Images.

Already, a number of corporations have made big changes to their policies around guns and who they will sell them to.

On Wednesday, Feb. 28, DICK's Sporting Goods announced immediate plans to stop selling "assault-style rifles" from their 35 Field & Stream specialty stores (they'd previously stopped selling them at their main stores after the Sandy Hook shooting). They also removed high capacity magazines from their inventory, raised the minimum gun-buying age to 21, and recommitted to their decision not to sell bump stocks (which were used in the Las Vegas shooting).

"In light of recent events, we’ve taken an opportunity to review our policy on firearm sales," reads a Walmart press release announcing plans to increase the minimum purchase age for firearms and ammunition to 21.

"We are also removing items from our website resembling assault-style rifles, including non-lethal airsoft guns and toys. Our heritage as a company has always been in serving sportsmen and hunters, and we will continue to do so in a responsible way."

The next day, Kroger announced that its Fred Meyer department stores would no longer sell firearms or ammunition to people under the age of 21.

The moves by these major gun retailers follow weeks of students and activists successfully urging companies associated with the NRA to cut ties.

The National Rifle Association is a gun rights organization, but in recent years, it's become more extreme, resisting even the smallest changes to gun laws and fighting to protect legal loopholes. They also have a lot of clout in political circles, making their resistance to change that much more difficult in pursuit of sensible reform. A #BoycottNRA movement popped up on Twitter soon after the shooting, and within a week, a number of corporate sponsors gave second thought to the decision to offer things like discounts or NRA-branded Visa cards to the group's members.

A couple days later, Delta and United Airlines joined in, announcing plans to discontinue their NRA relationships.

Car rental companies Enterprise and Hertz ended NRA discount programs, each putting out short, simple statements on their Twitter pages.

MetLife, Paramount Rx, and Starkey Hearing, a hearing aid company, severed ties with the group, as well. Insurance company Chubb, which had previously offered NRA-branded insurance policies, announced an end to that program.

And home security company SimpliSafe announced an end to its NRA discount program, which offered members two free months of its service. Cyber security company Symantec made a similar announcement via their Twitter page.

A man aims a semi-automatic AR-15 at Good Guys Guns & Range on Feb. 15, 2018 in Orem, Utah. An AR-15 was used in the Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School shooting in Parkland. Photo by George Frey/Getty Images.

Not all companies have felt moved to take action or distance themselves from the NRA.

FedEx decided to continue its discount programs for NRA members, noting that the group was just one of hundreds of associations offered reduced shipping rates. The company clarified that while it does not donate to or sponsor the NRA in any capacity, the program would remain.

Still, FedEx tried to clarify that the discount program was not meant as an endorsement of NRA policy positions:

"FedEx Corporation’s positions on the issues of gun policy and safety differ from those of the National Rifle Association (NRA). FedEx opposes assault rifles being in the hands of civilians. While we strongly support the constitutional right of U.S. citizens to own firearms subject to appropriate background checks, FedEx views assault rifles and large capacity magazines as an inherent potential danger to schools, workplaces, and communities when such weapons are misused. We therefore support restricting them to the military. Most important, FedEx believes urgent action is required at the local, state, and Federal level to protect schools and students from incidents such as the horrific tragedy in Florida on February 14th."

Another target of activists' ire has been the NRATV digital streaming channel, available on outlets like Apple TV, Amazon Prime, YouTube, and Roku. The channel, which recently aired a clip of one of their hosts smashing a TV with a sledgehammer, an interview in which one of their correspondents said liberals have "so much in common with ISIS" and "hate America," a segment blaming the Parkland shooting on the Obama administration, another segment that compared the Parkland shooting to Benghazi, and one playing host to a former sheriff who said the Parkland survivors "use the same kind of language" as Hitler.

To be sure, the channel is controversial and incendiary, which is why activists have called on Apple, Amazon, YouTube, and Roku to drop it. To date, none of the four have.

Members of activist organization Code Pink protest the NRA's Wayne LaPierre in December 2012, one week after the Sandy Hook massacre. Photo by Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images.

There's still a very long way to go in the fight to address gun violence. It's time the government took a note from the people and did something.

The discussion about guns and their place in society isn't going to fade into the background. The brave teens of Parkland are making damn well sure of that. It's time the government actually did something about the problem instead of throwing its hands up and shrugging it off. Yes, President Donald Trump did meet with members of Congress to discuss potential action to discuss possible action, but it seems unlikely that they'll actually make meaningful change without continued public pressure.

We don't have to live in a world where there are just a certain number of acceptable losses to gun violence, and it's time we elected leaders willing to step outside that defeatist mindset and get things done.

Dick’s Sporting Goods is a sponsor of Good Media Group, but did not pay for the content of this news article.

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Florida city forecloses on man's home after fining him $30,000 for not mowing his lawn.

Youtube

Should a man lose his home because the grass in his yard grew higher than 10 inches? The city of Dunedin, Florida seems to think so.

According to the Institute of Justice, which is representing Jim Ficken, he had a very good reason for not mowing his lawn – and tried to rectify the situation as best he could.

In 2014, Jim's mom became ill and he visited her often in South Carolina to help her out. When he was away, his grass grew too long and he was cited by a code office; he cut the grass and wasn't fined.

France has started forcing supermarkets to donate food instead of throwing it away.

But several years later, this one infraction would come back to haunt him after he left to take care of him's mom's affairs after she died. The arrangements he made to have his grass cut fell through (his friend who he asked to help him out passed away unexpectedly) and that set off a chain reaction that may result in him losing his home.

The 69-year-old retiree now faces a $29,833.50 fine plus interest. Watch the video to find out just what Jim is having to deal with.

Mow Your Lawn or Lose Your House! www.youtube.com

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Michelle Obama named 'most admired woman in the world,' because of course she is.

The world can't get enough Michelle.

Jimmy Kimmel Live/YouTube

The world officially loves Michelle Obama.

The former first lady has overtaken the number one spot in a poll of the world's most admired women. Conducted by online research firm YouGov, the study uses international polling tools to survey people in countries around the world about who they most admire.

In the men's category, Bill Gates took the top spot, followed by Barack Obama and Jackie Chan.

In the women's category, Michelle Obama came first, followed by Oprah Winfrey and Angelina Jolie. Obama pushed Jolie out of the number one spot she claimed last year.

Unsurprising, really, because what's not to love about Michelle Obama? She is smart, kind, funny, accomplished, a great dancer, a devoted wife and mother, and an all-around, genuinely good person.

She has remained dignified and strong in the face of rabid masses of so-called Americans who spent eight years and beyond insisting that she's a man disguised as a woman. She's endured non-stop racist memes and terrifying threats to her family. She has received far more than her fair share of cruelty, and always takes the high road. She's the one who coined, "When they go low, we go high," after all.

She came from humble beginnings and remains down to earth despite becoming a familiar face around the world. She's not much older than me, but I still want to be like Michelle Obama when I grow up.

Her memoir, Becoming, may end up being the best-selling memoir of all time, having already sold 10 million copies—a clear sign that people can't get enough Michelle, because there's no such thing as too much Michelle.

Don't like Michelle Obama? Don't care. Those of us who love her will fly our MO flags high and without apology, paying no mind to folks with cold, dead hearts who don't know a gem of a human being when they see one. There is nothing any hater can say or do to make us admire this undeniably admirable woman any less.

When it seems like the world has lost its mind—which is how it feels most days these days—I'm just going to keep coming back to this study as evidence that hope for humanity is not lost.

Here. Enjoy some real-life Michelle on Jimmy Kimmel. (GAH. WHY IS SHE SO CUTE AND AWESOME. I can't even handle it.)

Michelle & Barack Obama are Boring Now www.youtube.com

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France has started forcing supermarkets to donate food instead of throwing it away.

via EarthFix / Flickr

What will future generations never believe that we tolerated in 2019?

Dolphin and orca captivity, for sure. They'll probably shake their heads at how people died because they couldn't afford healthcare. And, they'll be completely mystified at the amount of food some people waste while others go starving.

According to Biological Diversity, "An estimated 40 percent of the food produced in the United States is wasted every year, costing households, businesses and farms about $218 billion annually."

There are so many things wrong with this.

First of all it's a waste of money for the households who throw out good food. Second, it's a waste of all of the resources that went into growing the food, including the animals who gave their lives for the meal. Third, there's something very wrong with throwing out food when one in eight Americans struggle with hunger.

Supermarkets are just as guilty of this unnecessary waste as consumers. About 10% of all food waste are supermarket products thrown out before they've reached their expiration date.

Three years ago, France took big steps to combat food waste by making a law that bans grocery stores from throwing away edible food.According to the new ordinance, stores can be fined for up to $4,500 for each infraction.

Previously, the French threw out 7.1 million tons of food. Sixty-seven percent of which was tossed by consumers, 15% by restaurants, and 11% by grocery stores.

This has created a network of over 5,000 charities that accept the food from supermarkets and donate them to charity. The law also struck down agreements between supermarkets and manufacturers that prohibited the stores from donating food to charities.

"There was one food manufacturer that was not authorized to donate the sandwiches it made for a particular supermarket brand. But now, we get 30,000 sandwiches a month from them — sandwiches that used to be thrown away," Jacques Bailet, head of the French network of food banks known as Banques Alimentaires, told NPR.

It's expected that similar laws may spread through Europe, but people are a lot less confident at it happening in the United States. The USDA believes that the biggest barrier to such a program would be cost to the charities and or supermarkets.

"The logistics of getting safe, wholesome, edible food from anywhere to people that can use it is really difficult," the organization said according to Gizmodo. "If you're having to set up a really expensive system to recover marginal amounts of food, that's not good for anybody."

Plus, the idea may seem a little too "socialist" for the average American's appetite.

"The French version is quite socialist, but I would say in a great way because you're providing a way where they [supermarkets] have to do the beneficial things not only for the environment, but from an ethical standpoint of getting healthy food to those who need it and minimizing some of the harmful greenhouse gas emissions that come when food ends up in a landfill," Jonathan Bloom, the author of American Wasteland, told NPR.

However, just because something may be socialist doesn't mean it's wrong. The greater wrong is the insane waste of money, damage to the environment, and devastation caused by hunger that can easily be avoided.

Planet

Single dad asks his daughters for fashion advice before a date and strangers on social media responded with some helpful suggestions.

The world is dark and full of terrors, but every once in a while it graces us with something to warm our icy-cold hearts. And that is what we have today, with a single dad who went viral on Twitter after his daughter posted the photos he sent her when trying to pick out and outfit for his date. You love to see it.




After seeing these heartwarming pics, people on Twitter started suggesting this adorable man date their moms. It was essentially a mom and date matchmaking frenzy.

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