GOOD

Supreme Court Makes Billion-Dollar Decision In NFL Concussion Case

The settlement covers more than 20,000 retired NFL players for the next 65 years

 James Poulos
12.23.16

After putting players through years of concussions—and their costly health consequences—the Supreme Court effectively finalized the tab the NFL must pay to set things right in the eyes of the law.

It’s a big one. Rebuffing some challenges to the settlement plan, the Court greenlit $1 billion in payouts from the league. “The settlement covers more than 20,000 retired NFL players for the next 65 years,” ESPN reported. “The league estimates that 6,000 former players, or nearly three in 10, could develop Alzheimer's disease or moderate dementia.”

Growing awareness of the sharp dangers to brain health posed by pro football careers—and the years of top-tier play as a child and teenager that precede them—has contributed to a shift in public opinion that’s seen to put the future of the NFL into unexpected question. Ratings have been plummeting: they’re down by nearly a third across all major broadcast networks. The league has even had to bat away rumors that Thursday Night Football could be pared down or eliminated entirely. Still, the trend is undeniable.

And health concerns aren’t the only culprit. The rise of online entertainment, the increased politicization of football by players, an increasing crackdown against on-field celebrations, and other factors, including the presidential campaign, have all been fingered. Whatever unfolds in 2017, one thing is clear: football’s dominance atop the American sports heap is no longer a no-brainer.

Sports

Greta Thunberg's Greatest Hits: 10 times the teen activist unflinchingly spoke truth to power

She sugarcoats nothing.

Screenshot via Sweden.se/Twitter (left) Wikimedia Commons (right)

Greta Thunberg has been dubbed the "Joan of Arc of climate change" for good reason. The 16-year-old activist embodies the courage and conviction of the unlikely underdog heroine, as well as the seemingly innate ability to lead a movement.

Thunberg has dedicated her young life to waking up the world to the climate crisis we face and cutting the crap that gets in the way of fixing it. Her speeches are a unique blend of calm rationality and no-holds-barred bluntness. She speaks truth to power, dispassionately and unflinchingly, and it is glorious.

Keep Reading Show less
climate crisis environment activism climate change greta thunberg
The Planet

The EPA announced it will begin to phase out animal testing

It will be cruelty-free by 2035.

Ottawa Humane Society / Flickr

The Trump Administration won't be remembered for being kind to animals.

In 2018, it launched a new effort to reinstate cruel hunting practices in Alaska that had been outlawed under Obama. Hunters will be able to shoot hibernating bear cubs, murder wolf and coyote cubs while in their dens, and use dogs to hunt black bears.

Efforts to end animal cruelty by the USDA have been curtailed as well. In 2016, under the Obama Administration, the USDA issued 4,944 animal welfare citations, in two years the numbers dropped to just 1,716.

Keep Reading Show less
enviornmental protection agency humane society andrew wheeler Humane Society PETA epa to end animal testing
Science

A 22-year-old missing person’s case was solved thanks to eagle-eyed neighbors and Google Earth

The disappearance of 40-year-old mortgage broker William Earl Moldt remained a mystery for 22 years because the technology used to find him hadn't been developed yet.

Moldt was reported missing on November 8, 1997. He had left a nightclub around 11 p.m. where he had been drinking. He wasn't known as a heavy drinker and witnesses at the bar said he didn't seem intoxicated when he left.

Keep Reading Show less
google earth missing person cold case
Communities

BIll Maher started a debate about fat-shaming and James Corden finished it beautifully

Who do you think is right?

via Real Time with Bill Maher / YouTube and The Late Late Show with James Corden / YouTube

A controversial editorial on America's obesity epidemic and healthcare by comedian Bill Maher on his HBO show "Real Time" inspired a thoughtful, and funny, response by James Cordon. It also made for a great debate about healthcare that Americans are avoiding.

At the end of the September 6th episode of "Real Time, " Maher turned to the camera for his usual editorial and discussed how obesity is a huge part of the healthcare debate that no one is having.

"At Next Thursday's debate, one of the candidates has to say, 'The problem with our healthcare system is Americans eat shit and too much of it.' All the candidates will mention their health plans but no one will bring up the key factor: the citizens don't lift a finger to help," Maher said sternly.

Keep Reading Show less
fat-shaming obesity and health care bosy positivity Bill Maher james corden bill maher fat-shaming
Politics

People with low emotional intelligence are more likely to vote Republican, new study claims

"The results of this study were univocal."

via Gage Skidmore

The common stereotypes about liberals and conservatives are that liberals are bleeding hearts and conservatives are cold-hearted.

It makes sense, conservatives want limited government and to cut social programs that help the more vulnerable members of society. Whereas liberals don't mind paying a few more dollars in taxes to help the unfortunate.

A recent study out of Belgium scientifically supports the notion that people who scored lower on emotional ability tests tend to have right-wing and racist views.

Keep Reading Show less
psychology of republicans trump supporters cold conservatives authoritarians authoritarianism Donald Trump psychology low emotional intelligence republicans
Politics