Every week this year, a billionaire is donating $1 million of his wealth.
Wow that’s a lot of money to give away
Granite Telecommunications is owned by Boston billionaire Rob Hale, and he and his wife have come up with a plan to give some of their wealth back while still doing a lot of good.
Every week of the year, he donates $1 million to a different non-profit organization, and each of the organizations says the financial support “has meant the world” to them.
Some nonprofit organizations will be able to grow their activities beyond what they had previously imagined was possible, while others will be relieved of their financial worries for a full year.
CBS reports that Rob and his wife Karen have made the decision to donate $1 million per week to a tiny nonprofit that would greatly benefit from having access to financing beyond their wildest expectations.
“We’re lucky and extremely fortunate, and our philosophy is that we should spread those good tidings as widely as profoundly as we can across the community,” he said.
There are so many important, smaller organizations in our neighborhoods that need our assistance.
Employees at Hale’s started the trend of charitable giving back in 2011 by having a casual Friday where coworkers could donate $3 and the company would match it.
The million dollars were “certainly our biggest contribution ever,” according to Sue Chandler, director of DOVE (Domestic Violence Ended), and they were considering using them to establish a new facility for their organization.
A million dollars may not be small change to most people in the world, but through funding smaller organizations, it has helped create an even greater impact.
Giving money to worthwhile charities like these, according to Hale, “makes you feel so good” and is “a gift we can actually obtain.”
Anyone hoping for a sizable handout if they ask gently is likely to be let down because all the money is going to non-profit organizations that Rob and his wife Karen have selected.
This kind of offer is undoubtedly well thought out, with a clear plan for how the millions will be distributed.
According to Forbes, Hale has already given $28.5 million this year to 29 different organizations, and another 11 are still owed money.
The pair is now left searching for another dozen worthwhile projects that they believe would benefit greatly from their financial contribution.
I wouldn’t say no if Mr. Hale were to ever find himself searching for a place to donate his next million and running out of options.
Whoopi Goldberg recently got into some trouble after calling the Romani people an insensitive name during an episode of The View.
“Wokeness” is complicated
The actor-turned-talk show host claimed during a discussion about the late President Donald Trump that his fans believed he was ‘gypped’ in the 2020 election.
Unbeknownst to Goldberg, the phrase “gypped,” which meaning “to rip someone off,” is probably originated from the word “gypsy,” an insult used to designate the nomadic Romani people, according to Merriam-Webster.
Social media users reacted angrily to Goldberg’s usage of the phrase as a result.
"The View" co-host Whoopi Goldberg used the term "gypped"–a slur for gypsies–while discussing former President Donald Trump. pic.twitter.com/iJcmQuKFHm
Whoopi Goldberg’s apology is well-deserved, according to one user. “Gypsies are a real class of people with their own unique hardships, and they are most often stereotyped by ignorant pretentious entitled elitists individuals like Whoopi Goldberg, and it shows,” the user added.
“I don’t know how many more’slip ups’ by Whoopi need to be done before the ABC Network takes a position,” a second stated. “I’m not even sure why The View is still there given the nonsense they’ve said and done. I guess they condone it to let it to continue.”
Shortly after the show aired, The View’s official Twitter account published an apologetic video in response to people criticizing the presenter.
You know, when you get to a certain age, you start using words you remember saying or knowing from when you were a kid. That’s what I did today, and I shouldn’t have.
“I should have thought about it a little longer before I said it, but I didn’t, and I should have said ‘cheated,’ but I used another word. And I’m really, very sorry,” the 67-year-old actor continued.
She apologized, trying not to smile as she said.
She received harsh criticism for her apology as a result.
“Don’t trust her. She’s lying yet again. She meant precisely what she stated,” one user commented.
Some social media users also noted that they were unaware that the term “gypped,” or the incorrect spelling “jipped,” was insulting.
In 2013, University of Texas at Austin professor Ian Hancock, whose Romani parents were born in Britain, described how the phrase affects people of Romani heritage to NPR.
Many frequently claim to him that they were unaware that the word “gypped” had anything to do with gypsies or that it is insulting, especially when the word is spoken rather than read, he added.
“That’s okay. You didn’t know but now you do. So stop using it. That may mean nothing to you, but when we hear it, it still hurts,” is my reply to them.
So there you have it.
Baby boomers who are ranting on social media about how the ‘awake’ world has gone insane, take note: it is no longer appropriate to compare Romani people to liars, cheaters, and thieves.
When you’re more than willing to hurt their feelings, don’t whine about how “wokeness” has wounded your feelings.
A man who spent 20 years in prison for crimes he didn’t commit has now received a settlement of $45 million.
The horrors he felt
Roger “Dean” Gillispie, 46, was released from jail three days before Christmas after serving 20 years in prison for rapes he insisted he did not commit.
This was made possible by the tenacious work of the Ohio Innocence Project (OIP), run by the UC College of Law. Students and professor Mark Godsey, the director of OIP and a former federal prosecutor, have steadfastly worked on the case since it became OIP’s first case nine years ago.
In Ohio, Roger “Dean” Gillispie was found guilty in 1991 of kidnapping and raping twin sisters who were 22 years old and a 28-year-old lady, as well as committing aggravated robbery.
He was facing a further 56 years in prison but consistently maintained his innocence. After more than 20 years in jail, he was finally able to walk out in 2011.
He wasn’t actually found not guilty of the offenses for which he had been wrongly convicted until 2021, though.
After a judge ruled that “no physical evidence” had ever related him to the case and that there had been evidence suppression, it opened the door for Gillispie to start a civil trial in which he sought compensation for the period he had been imprisoned.
Justice delayed, is Justice denied
The biggest compensation in Ohio history, for $45 million, has now been given to Dean.
The Columbus Dispatch reports that a jury determined that Gillispie’s rights had been violated by investigator Scott Moore, who withheld information that would have aided his defense and exaggerated his size in photographs of a suspect lineup to deceive the victims.
The move was hailed but Mark Godsey, director of the Ohio Innocence Project, who campaigned to liberate Gillispie from his unjust imprisonment, said “nothing will recompense” the atrocities Dean had gone through.
The misery perpetrated on Dean, his family, and the town, he added, was difficult to comprehend.
“It was so upsetting how the authorities pushed for a conviction before fighting back and refusing to acknowledge a mistake. Nothing can make up for Dean’s horror.
“The jury’s decision sends a clear message that individuals in positions of authority ought to alter their behavior,”
Gillispie used the opportunity to demand justice for the thousands of additional individuals who had been unfairly detained and had lived a significant portion of their life in jail for crimes they had not committed.
I’m simply one of 3,199 persons in the United States of America who this happened to, he claimed.
They have accrued more than 28,000 years of incarceration for crimes they did not commit. This needs to end. It’s necessary to fix this system. My life was saved by the Ohio Innocence Project.”
The jury in Gillispie’s civil action, which resulted in a $45 million settlement, found that investigator Moore had falsely asserted that a witness in the case had positively identified him.
Later, after the investigator said the innocent guy had “dyed his hair,” he warned the victims that they would not recognize Dean when they saw him in court.
They were also presented supporting documentation that the investigator had withheld, such as receipts that showed Gillispie was in fact in Kentucky at the time of the crimes.
The eagerly anticipated big-screen rendition of Harry Potter and the Cursed Child might be released soon if the rumors are true.
Ah, what a time to be alive
Jack Thorne’s play, Harry Potter and the Cursed Child, was adapted from an original story by J. Thorne, John Tiffany, and K. Rowling. Nineteen years have passed since the events of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows when the narrative takes place.
The story centers on Harry Potter, who is currently in charge of the Ministry of Magic’s Department of Magical Law Enforcement, and his son Albus Severus Potter, who is about to begin his first year at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. The play is referred to as “the eighth Harry Potter narrative” by Rowling.
For its sorcery, deceptions, and stage wizardry, Harry Potter and the Cursed Child has won almost universal praise since it debuted.
The Palace Theatre hosted the opening night of the original West End play on June 7, 2016. At the 2017 Laurence Olivier Awards, it won nine honors, including Best New Play, and got a record-breaking eleven nominations.
During the 2018 Tony Awards, that production was nominated ten times and took home six prizes, including Best Play.
At the Mehr, the first non-English production debuted. theater on December 5, 2021, in Hamburg, Germany. On June 19, 2022, a Canadian performance debuted at the Ed Mirvish Theatre in Toronto. On July 8, 2022, a Japanese production debuted at the TBS Akasaka ACT Theater.
The play was initially intended to be seen in two parts over two evenings or on the same day (i.e., in the afternoon and in the evening). The play was restaged in June 2021 as a single, 3.5-hour production in preparation for further performances on Broadway in November 2021.
On February 23, 2019, an Australian production debuted at the Princess Theatre in Melbourne. On December 1st, 2019, a second American production debuted at the Curran Theatre in San Francisco.
Shut up and take my money!
The Wizarding World franchise’s production firm, Warner Bros, may be thinking about adapting the two-part play that serves as a prelude to the main story, according to sources quoted by the UK tabloid The Sun.
The Cursed Child is presently being considered for a big-screen adaptation by Warner Bros. They’ve had it in their sights since since the show became such a roaring success on the West End. The Fantastic Beasts franchise was delayed for a long due to the volume of work being done on it.
Although everyone wants Daniel Radcliffe, Rupert Grint, and Emma Watson to return, the source also told The Sun that the studio needs scripts in place before making an offer to the actors.
The trio was among many other actors and directors that appeared in the Harry Potter 20th Anniversary: Return to Hogwarts reunion episode from the previous year.
JK Rowling, the creator of this series, Jack Thorne, and John Tiffany worked together to create an original story that became the basis for Harry Potter and the Cursed Child. The events of the play occur 19 years before those in the concluding Harry Potter book, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows.