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A lawyer for the immigration officer who shot and killed Renee Good dropped out of the Minnesota governor race Monday, breaking with many fellow Republicans and calling President Donald Trumps immigration operation in the state an unmitigated disaster. Chris Madel’s surprise move comes amid growing calls from Republicans to investigate federal immigration tactics in Minnesota after a U.S. Border Patrol agent fatally shot Alex Pretti in Minneapolis on Saturday. Madel went a step further than most Republicans in his video, saying that while he supports the goal of deporting the worst of the worst from Minnesota, he thinks the Trump administration’s immigration enforcement operation in the Twin Cities has gone too far. I cannot support the national Republicans stated retribution on the citizens of our state, Madel said. Nor can I count myself a member of a party that would do so. Madel said that U.S. citizens, particularly those of color, live in fear. United States citizens are carrying papers to prove their citizenship,” Madel said. “Thats wrong. Madel said he personally had heard from local Asian and Hispanic law enforcement officers who had been pulled over by ICE. I have read about and I have spoken to help countless United States citizens who have been detained in Minnesota due to the color of their skin, Madel said. He also said it was unconstitutional and wrong for federal officers to raid homes using a civil warrant, rather than one issued by a judge. Madel was among a large group of candidates seeking to replace Democratic Gov. Tim Walz, who dropped his reelection bid earlier this month. Other Republican candidates include MyPillow founder and chief executive Mike Lindell, an election denier who is close to Trump; Minnesota House Speaker Lisa Demuth; Dr. Scott Jensen, a former state senator who was the partys 2022 gubernatorial candidate; and state Rep. Kristin Robbins. Democratic U.S. Sen. Amy Klobuchar has filed paperwork to run, but has yet to publicly launch a campaign to succeed Walz. Madel, in his Monday video posted on the social platform X, described himself as a pragmatist, and said national Republicans have made it nearly impossible for a Republican to win a statewide election in Minnesota. Madel did not immediately return a text message seeking comment. Madel, 59, was a political newcomer making his first run for public office. He got into the race on Dec. 1. Madel brought 30 years of experience as an attorney to the race, including cases taking on corporate corruption. Madel also defended law enforcement officers, including the 2024 case of a Minnesota state trooper who fatally shot a Black man after a traffic stop. Prosecutors dropped charges against Trooper Ryan Londregan in the killing of Ricky Cobb II, saying the case would have been difficult to prove. Madel often referenced that victory in his brief campaign for governor, including in his video dropping out. Republicans were expecting the race for governor to be focused on Walz, who at the time was seeking a third term amid questions about how his administration handled welfare fraud. But the race shifted dramatically on Jan. 5 when Walz dropped out. That same week, the Trump administration sent thousands of federal officers to Minnesota. ICE agent Jonathan Ross shot and killed Good in Minneapolis two days later on Jan. 7. Madel agreed to offer pro bono legal advice to Ross, although no criminal charges or civil lawsuits have been filed. Madel said he was honored to help Ross, particularly during a gubernatorial campaign. Justice requires excellent legal representation, Madel said. Madel announced his decision ending his candidacy two days after a Border Patrol officer shot and killed Pretti on Saturday in Minneapolis. By Scott Bauer, Associated Press
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E-Commerce
For todays young people, online content isnt a backdrop to daily lifeit is daily life. Streaming platforms, short-form video, and social media dont just entertain; they influence how young people see themselves, their health, and what behaviors are seen as normal or aspirational. Movies, television, and streaming content still have influence, but as the digital ecosystem expands, so does its power to shape choicesfor better and for worse. Take smoking, for example. The notion of cigarette nostalgia has unwittingly sparked a slew of recent news stories about the perceived increase in smoking on screens. The impact of that imagery? Tangible. While celebrities like Charlie XCX and Jeremy Allen White may not fully grasp the influence that their content is having on young viewers, research shows that when smoking is glamorized, it directly shapes youth attitudes and behaviors around nicotine, ultimately putting young audiences at heightened risk of addiction. IMAGERY MATTERS Our recent report offers that out of the top films in 2024, more than half include tobacco imageryan increase of 10% over the year prior. And nearly 17 million young people were exposed to tobacco imagery through popular streaming shows just in 2023. This imagery isnt without consequence. It can triple a young persons likelihood of starting to vape and make it harder for those already addicted to nicotine to quit successfully. Often dubbed the JUUL Generation, e-cigarette use is greatest among 18-24 year-olds. For Gen Z, the stakes are high, with one in five now risking long-term addiction. THE SCALE OF MEDIA CHANGED One thing that makes this moment different from past media eras is scale. Streaming platforms release entire seasons at once. Algorithms surface content repeatedly. Scenes dont disappear after a weekly airing. Instead, they live on through clips, memes, and edits that circulate far beyond their original context. A single portrayal can echo across platforms and get amplified in ways that creators or producers never anticipated. The impact isnt just for substances like nicotine, either. Similar outcomes have been seen among this generation when it comes to topics like body image and eating behaviors, violence, mental health narratives, and gambling or sports betting. Exposure to the portrayal of these issues can increase the likelihood of imitation and the effect can be life-altering. WE PLAY A ROLE The takeaway is that digital platforms, entertainment companies, and creators all have a role to play in protecting young audiences. The influence they wield on culture can shape norms on a population level. With that influence comes opportunity. Society has seen tremendous success by putting warnings on content containing domestic violence or suicide references, while making resources available to viewers. These practices should be used for tobacco tooincluding offering resources to help young people quit. Creators should not be unpaid spokespersons for the tobacco industry, or any other issue they are inadvertently promoting. Equally, platforms should have content that reflects reality: Addiction isnt beautiful, and quitting is difficult, but more achievable with support. Today’s youth are shaped by scrolling, streaming, and sharing. The question isnt whether online content influences behavior, but whether were willing to use that influence intentionally. This next generation deserves stories that inspire, transparency on issues that matter, and solution-forward thinking. At the end of the day, they deserve a digital landscape that takes ownership of the imagery it puts forward. And it should be done in a way that advances the healthier futures the next generation says they want, but also one mindful of the vision for the future that theyre being offered. Kathy Crosby is president and CEO of Truth Initiative.
Category:
E-Commerce
We have been taught to segment people into neat design personas: young versus old, able-bodied versus disabled, patient versus caregiver. Those categories may help on a spreadsheet, but they rarely reflect real life. Ability is not a fixed identity. It is a state that shifts across hours, seasons, and decades. Most people are not disabled or able bodied. They are navigating a continuum. A parent carrying a toddler, a traveler pulling luggage, a cook with wet hands, someone recovering from surgery, a person with arthritis on a cold morning, an older adult managing fatigue at the end of the day. These are not edge cases. They are the mainstream experience of modern life. If design is meant to serve people, then the next step is clear: Stop designing for categories and start designing for fluidity. FLUIDITY IS THE NEW ACCESSIBILITY Accessibility is often framed as a feature set for a specific group. That framing keeps it stuck in the margins. A better lens is to treat accessibility as the practical reality of everyday variability. Peoples abilities change with context. Lighting changes. Noise changes. Energy changes. Hands get full. Attention splits. Stress rises. Injuries happen. Bodies age. Life intervenes. Once you design for that reality, the business case becomes obvious. Products that work across more conditions work for more people. They become relevant in more moments, which increases adoption, satisfaction, and repeat use. DESIGN FOR ABILITY STATES, NOT DEMOGRAPHICS A useful shift is to map ability states instead of user categories. Ask not only who the user is, but the condition they are in when they use the product. Consider a few common states that literally affect every body: One-handed use, because the other hand is full. Low vision use, due to glare, darkness, or fatigue. Low dexterity use, due to cold, arthritis, injury, or stress. Limited mobility use, due to pregnancy, pain, aging, or recovery. Cognitive load, because the user is rushed, distracted, or overwhelmed. These states are not rare. They recur daily. Designing for them creates better products for everyone without forcing people into a label. MAKE ADAPTABILITY FEEL INVISIBLE One risk is that designing for everyone can become code for complicated. The goal is not to add settings and switches. The goal is to build adaptability into the form and interaction so it feels natural. Good examples are usually quiet: A handle that invites multiple grips without looking specialized. Controls that are intuitive without requiring instruction. Packaging that opens cleanly without brute force. A product that communicates how to use it through shape and touch. The best inclusive design feels obvious, not assistive. THE STRATEGIC ADVANTAGE Fluidity is also a brand strategy. When customers feel a product keeps up with them, it earns trust. It becomes the object they rely on through different phases of life. That is a deeper form of loyalty than preference. It is dependency in the best sense of the word. The future of inclusive design is not about creating more categories. It is about removing the need for categories altogether. If products are designed for life in motion, they will work for every body, more often, and for longer. Ben Wintner is CEO of Michael Graves Design.
Category:
E-Commerce
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