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Four Teen Suicides In One Week Plague Pennsylvania County — Not Bullying Related?

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As the school year begins, tragic reports of teen suicides seem to be growing, but this year, unlike in years past, there seem to be few details — even names and photos are conspicuously absent —  and most reports claim bullying was not a factor. Is this possible? Have we gotten so good at preventing school bullying? Or are school officials and local law enforcement getting better at keeping facts from the public?

In northeastern Pennsylvania’s Luzerne County, four teens in one week succumbed to suicide.

“Four teens ranging in age from 13 to 16 have killed themselves in a one week span in Luzerne County,” WITF reports today:

A 15-year-old Pittston Area School District sophomore killed herself Monday night. Hours later a 13-year-old from Hazleton was found dead.

A second Pittston student, 16, killed himself on Friday and a Greater Nanticoke Area eighth-grader killed himself Sept. 18.

Authorities say the suicides don’t appear to be related to bullying despite hearsay claims to the contrary from students.

Yes, “despite hearsay claims to the contrary from students,” authorities say bullying wasn’t involved.

“As students shuffled into class Tuesday, the Pittston Area school community grieved the loss of a 15-year-old sophomore from Avoca who killed herself in Duryea on Monday night,” PennLive.com reports today:

Hours later, authorities learned a 13-year-old boy from Hazleton had killed himself inside a Church Street home.

In one week, the lives of four Luzerne County schoolchildren had ended from suicide, a bleak time many veteran educators say they have never experienced in their careers.

A Greater Nanticoke Area eighth-grader, 13, fatally shot himself Sept. 18 inside his Nanticoke home. A Pittston Area junior, 16, killed himself with a hunting rifle Sept. 21 at his Jenkins Township home. Authorities did not name the most recent victims or disclose how they died.

Prior to the Hazleton teenager’s death, Pittston Area officials organized a public forum set for 7 tonight at the high school to address teenage suicide, inviting parents and students to talk about solutions with experts. The district, which had grief counselors comforting students the past two days, had become ground zero for the topic with two students dead from suicide.

The suicide in Hazleton reinforced the need for a call to action by everyone in the region, officials said.

“We need to respond. We just want to try to reach out to the parents in the community and make them understand we all need to work together. This is not a Pittston Area School District issue only. This is an issue that is bigger than the school district,” Pittston Area Superintendant Dr. Michael Garzella said early Tuesday afternoon. “This is a community issue. This is a national issue. This is a problem that has to be dealt with. The only way we’re going to be able to prevent these things from happening is if we all work together.”

A few hours later, the problem would criss-cross the county, with authorities being called to the Hazleton home where a 13-year-old boy was found dead from suicide.

Meanwhile, in Iowa last week, 17-year old Dustin VanLaningham also died by suicide, and his father claims he was not bullied either.

In Exeter, New Hampshire, 16-year-old sophomore Cody Brackett, a football player, died, apparently by suicide, although details, now two weeks later, are sketchy. Almost one year ago, “Connor Ball, a 14-year-old Exeter High School freshman, took his own life,” Seacoast Online reports.

“In southern Minnesota alone, there have been six teen suicides this summer, and thousands of teens across America commit suicide every year,” a Minnesota paper reported in an opinion piece last week.

Thousands of teens die by suicide every year, meaning several teens die by suicide each and every day. Rarely do they make national news, which keeps the problem local and separate.

But unlike in years past, these tragic, heartbreaking suicides of young teens, all at the start of the school year, seem to be especially ignored, with little response nationwide. Names, details, photos all seem to be missing, as if releasing this information would somehow harm their memory. Was bullying involved in any of them? We don’t know, and that’s a problem.

September is National Suicide Prevention Month. Suicide is never the answer. Our thoughts are with the families and friends of those who have lost loved ones. 

The Trevor Project: a 24-hour hotline for gay and questioning youth: 866-4-U-TREVOR (488-7386)

The U.S. National Suicide Prevention Lifeline is available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week: 1-800-273-TALK (1-800-273-8255) For Hearing & Speech Impaired with TTY Equipment: 1-800-799-4TTY (4889)

 

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Fox News Host Suggests Trump ‘Force’ Court to Throw Him in Jail – by Quoting Him

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April 19, 2024

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The Fox News host who targeted a juror serving on Donald Trump’s criminal New York trial is now suggesting the ex-president should violate his gag order and “force” the court to throw him in jail, by quoting the Fox News host.

Jesse Watters came under fire earlier this week for profiling juror number two, sharing possibly identifying information published by a myriad of reporters but then using that information to pass judgment on her ability to serve.

“I’m not so sure about juror number two,” Watters concluded on Fox News.

Jurors, at the judge’s direction, were to remain anonymous, for their protection and the protection of the trial.

The judge excused her, after she said she felt she was not able to be impartial because friends and family were calling her asking if she had been chosen to serve on the Trump trial, after the media blitz.

New York Supreme Court Judge Juan Merchan admonished the press for reporting the information, but some news outlets appeared to ignore his warning.

Watters on Wednesday “did a segment with a jury consultant, revealing details about people who had been seated on the jury and questioning whether some were ‘stealth liberals’ who would be out to convict Trump,” the Associated Press reported.

READ MORE: Gaetz: ‘Corrupt’ Republicans Could ‘Take a Bribe’ and Throw House to Dems, Blocking Trump Run

Trump later posted Watters’ quote on his Truth Social platform, leading some, including New York prosecutors, to ask the judge to cite him for allegedly breaking his gag order.

Judge Merchan ordered Trump to not mention witnesses, jurors, prosecutors, court staff, or the family members of prosecutors and court staff, CNN has reported.

New York prosecutors told Juge Merchan Trump has violated the gag order at least ten times.

“Prosecutor Christopher Conroy described the ‘most disturbing’ example as a social media message Trump posted on Wednesday evening quoting a Fox News host as saying, ‘They are catching undercover Liberal Activists lying to the Judge in order to get on the Trump Jury,'” Politico reports.

That host was Jesse Watters.

RELATED: ‘Afraid and Intimidated’: Trump Trial Juror Targeted by Fox News Dismissed

Friday afternoon, Watters appeared to egg Trump on, urging the ex-president to violate the gag order.

“I would make them put me in jail,” Watters said on Fox News. “I would have a tweet about something perhaps I said on ‘The Five’ or ‘Jesse Watters Primetime,’ and I would force them to throw me in jail.”

Watch Watters’ remark below or at this link.

 

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Gaetz: ‘Corrupt’ Republicans Could ‘Take a Bribe’ and Throw House to Dems, Blocking Trump Run

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April 19, 2024

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U.S. Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-FL) says some of his fellow House Republicans would “take a bribe” to throw the razor-thin GOP majority to the Democrats if a far-right faction calls up a motion to oust Speaker of the House Mike Johnson, allowing Democrats to hand the gavel to the Minority Leader, Hakeem Jeffries. he warned if that happens, Democrats would immediately declare Trump ineligible to be President, pack the U.S. Supreme Court, and pass numerous laws like the American Rescue Plan.

“I do believe in a one seat majority there could be one or two or three of my colleagues who would take a bribe in one form or another in order to deprive the Republicans of a majority at all,” Gaetz said Friday on his podcast (video below.)

He added, “the risk that one or two of my corrupt Republican colleagues might take a bribe, take a walk, feign an ailment and flip this thing to the Democrats is a risk that is too high for me at this time.”

Gaetz’s fellow far-right Florida Republican member of Congress, Anna Paulina Luna, told listeners, “I heard that when, if and when the motion vacate is introduced, that there will be immediate resignations of a couple of more moderate members of Congress. And in the event that that happens, that ultimately means it does go to a Democrat speaker.”

RELATED: Jeffries Vows Democrats Will Ensure Ukraine Aid Passes as Johnson Defectors Grow

U.S. Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-GA) last month filed a “motion to vacate,” which she can use at any time to force a vote to oust the GOP Speaker, Mike Johnson. U.S. Rep. Tim Massie (R-KY) and just today, U.S. Rep. Paul Gosar (R-AZ) has signed on as co-sponsors.

Congressman Gaetz told listeners if Democrats do take the House through a force vote to remove Johnson, Democrats would “be declaring Donald Trump an insurrectionist and setting up a barrier to him being able to become the president United States.”

“That’ll be their leadoff hitter, and then the chaser to that shot will be a massive spending package that looks a lot more like the American Rescue Plan. They will blow past every concept of every cap ever imagined. You’ll be looking at Universal Basic Income, you could be looking at packing the Supreme Court.”

Watch a short clip of Gaetz’s remarks below or at this link.

READ MORE: ‘Stop Bringing Up Nazis and Hitler’: Marjorie Taylor Greene Smacked Down by Democrats

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Jeffries Vows Democrats Will Ensure Ukraine Aid Passes as Johnson Defectors Grow

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9 hours ago

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April 19, 2024

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Democratic House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries vowed Friday the majority of Democrats will support Republicans’ Ukraine, Israel, Taiwan, and Gaza foreign aid legislation as Republican Speaker Mike Johnson lost support of another member of his conference to a faction determined to oust him.

“Democrats will provide a majority of our majority as it relates to funding Israel, humanitarian assistance, Ukraine, and our allies in the Indo Pacific,” Minority Leader Jeffries said. “It remains to be seen what Republicans will do in terms of meeting the national security needs of the American people, but it was important for House Democrats to ensure that the national security bills are going to be considered.”

Despite Republicans having a one-vote majority, more Democrats on Friday voted to move the critical and long-awaited foreign aid bills forward than did Republicans.

READ MORE: ‘Stop Bringing Up Nazis and Hitler’: Marjorie Taylor Greene Smacked Down by Democrats

The 316-94 vote included 165 Democrats and 151 Republicans voting yes, and 55 Republicans and 39 Democrats voting no.

Axios’ Juliegrace Brufke posted the list of Republicans voting against their party’s legislation.

Calling it a “rare” moment in modern congressional history to have to rely on opposition party votes to pass legislation, BBC News reports Speaker Johnson’s “hold on power is tenuous, and the legislators who oppose him – and his bid to provide aid to Ukraine – occupy some key positions within the House’s power structure.”

Amid the procedural vote to move the foreign aid funding bills forward, U.S. Rep. Paul Gosar, a far-right Republican of Arizona, announced he is joining Congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-GA), and Congressman Tim Massie (R-KY) in formally announcing their will vote to oust Speaker Johnson.

Gosar, like Greene, is reportedly a Christian nationalist. In 2022 CNN reported his “lengthy ties to White nationalists, [a] pro-Nazi blogger and far-right fringe received little pushback for years.”

RELATED: ‘Repercussions’: Democrats and Republicans Stand Against ‘Pro-Putin’ House GOP Faction

“We’ve been very honest in our assessment of the situation from the beginning,” Jeffries on Friday also declared. “At the appropriate time as House Democrats, we will have a conversation about how to deal with any hypothetical motion to vacate.”

“Moscow Marjorie Taylor Greene, Massie, and Gosar are quite a group. But central to our conversation is to make sure that the national security legislation in totality is passed by the House of Representatives.”

Watch the videos above or at this link.

 

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