Ghost students are creating an 'agonizing'
problem for Calif. colleges
Posted By: sunset, 5/7/2025 1:26:59 PM
When the pandemic upended the world of higher education, Robin Pugh, a professor at City College of San Francisco, began to see one puzzling problem in her online courses: Not everyone was a real student. Of the 40 students enrolled in her popular introduction to real estate course, she’d normally drop three to five who don’t start the course or make contact with her at the start of the semester. But during the current spring semester, Pugh said she had to cut 11 students. These “ghost students” are artificially intelligent agents or bots that pose as real students in order to steal millions of dollars of financial aid.
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President Donald Trump urged the Supreme Court on Thursday to slash legal pathways for over half-a-million migrants from Cuba, Haiti, Nicaragua and Venezuela who are temporarily in the U.S. for humanitarian needs. Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem revoked the Biden-era special parole program in March, but a federal judge blocked the Trump administration from making any changes for now. Trump pushed the justices to reinstate Noem’s policy and correct a “recent, destabilizing trend in immigration cases. “When lower courts have disregarded Congress’s commands in the INA and usurped the Executive Branch’s control over immigration policy, this Court has not hesitated to intervene and has repeatedly granted complete or partial stays
The pharmaceutical industry estimates President Donald Trump’s new drug pricing proposal could cost drug companies as much as $1 trillion over a decade, its largest trade group is telling members of Congress.
The idea, first floated last week by the White House as a way to help pay for the president’s tax cut plan, blindsided the pharmaceutical industry and has prompted a furious lobbying campaign. Specifically, the White House asked House Republicans to tie prices for medicines in the Medicaid program to lower prices foreign countries pay,
When the pandemic upended the world of higher education, Robin Pugh, a professor at City College of San Francisco, began to see one puzzling problem in her online courses: Not everyone was a real student. Of the 40 students enrolled in her popular introduction to real estate course, she’d normally drop three to five who don’t start the course or make contact with her at the start of the semester. But during the current spring semester, Pugh said she had to cut 11 students. These “ghost students” are artificially intelligent agents or bots that pose as real students in order to steal millions of dollars of financial aid.
The Justice Department has opened a civil rights investigation into the Minneapolis-area Hennepin County Attorney’s Office’s new directive for its prosecutors to consider race when negotiating plea deals with criminal defendants. Attorney General Pam Bondi, Acting Associate Attorney General Chad Mizelle and Assistant Attorney General of the Civil Rights Division Harmeet Dhillon informed Hennepin County Attorney Mary Moriarty in a letter that the Justice Department is opening a probe into whether the Hennepin County Attorney’s Office "engaged in a pattern of practice of depriving persons of rights, privileges or immunities secured or protect by the Constitution or laws of the United States."
George Simion, the leading candidate in the upcoming Romanian presidential election, told Breitbart News that if he wins and if a similarly conservative anti-globalist candidate wins in Poland in presidential elections in May that President Donald Trump will have two major new allies in the European Union. Romania had elected hardline conservative anti-globalist Calin Georgescu late last year, but the election was called off and nullified after he was accused of being pro-Russian. Romanians scheduled a new election for May, and Simion—who has promised Georgescu a position in his government if he wins—has emerged as the front-running candidate.
Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth moved to cancel a program that promoted the participation of women in national security, claiming the initiative is “woke,” “divisive” and distracts troops. The Women, Peace and Security Act was signed into law in 2017 by President Donald Trump to recognize the role that women have in achieving security objectives, especially in situations overseas in which men for cultural reasons might not be able to question women or men for religious regions would not have direct access to women. The intent of the act was to increase women’s participation in preventing and resolving conflict, countering violent extremism and building post-conflict stability.
A bill that would decriminalize welfare fraud under $25,000 in California for simple administrative errors is being pushed by a Democratic lawmaker.
State Sen. Lola Smallwood-Cuevas introduced Senate Bill 560, which would delete criminal penalties for welfare fraud below $25,000, and delete a provision for criminal penalties for any attempt at welfare fraud below $950, according to the legislation, which was introduced in February.
"California’s safety net should lift families up, not trap them in poverty," Smallwood-Cuevas told Fox News Digital. "Right now, a missed deadline or paperwork mistake can lead to felony charges that tear families apart — even when there’s no intent to deceive."
Canada’s Liberal Party won a fourth consecutive election, giving a mandate to former central banker Mark Carney after a campaign in which he pledged to boost economic growth and stand up to US President Donald Trump in a trade war. Liberal candidates were leading or elected in 135 of the 343 seats, ahead of the Conservative Party with 88 as of 10:14 p.m. Ottawa time. The Liberals will secure enough seats to try to form a government, but it’s still unclear whether they’ll win a majority or be forced to work with other parties to pass legislation, according to projections from major TV networks.
As countries around the world try to bargain with US President Donald Trump over tariffs, longterm adversary Iran is pitching its sanctioned economy to him as an investment opportunity.
With talks between Iran and the US over the Islamic Republic’s atomic activity showing signs of progress, top Iranian officials are for the first time in decades overtly promoting their economy to the White House to secure a lasting and more effective nuclear accord. If Trump wants a deal that’s better for the US than the one he jettisoned in 2018, the Iranians want the same for Iran.
A massive explosion at an Iranian port
linked to missile fuel shipment kills
18, injures some 800 14 replies
linked to missile fuel shipment kills
18, injures some 800 14 replies
A massive explosion and fire rocked a port Saturday in southern Iran purportedly linked to a shipment of a chemical ingredient used to make missile propellant, killing 18 people and injuring around 800 others. Helicopters and aircraft dumped water from the air on the raging fire through the night into Sunday morning at the Shahid Rajaei port. The explosion occurred just as Iran and the United States met Saturday in Oman for the third round of negotiations over Tehran's rapidly advancing nuclear program. Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi acknowledged that ''our security services are on high alert given past instances of attempted sabotage and assassination operations
U.S. Education department probes New York's
mascot ban after Trump backs Massapequa challenge 7 replies
mascot ban after Trump backs Massapequa challenge 7 replies
The U.S. Department of Education announced Friday it has launched an investigation into the New York State Board of Regents to determine if the threat of withholding funds from schools with sports teams that continue to use Native American imagery and references violates civil rights laws. The announcement came after President Donald Trump took to social media to say the Massapequa school district should be allowed to keep its name and logo. The education department’s Office for Civil Rights will assess whether the state is discriminating against Native Americans on the basis of race and national origin by demanding Massapequa change the name and mascot of the "Chiefs" sports teams
The debate over parental rights and religious freedom returns to the Supreme Court this week in a case testing whether families have a right to pull their kids from public school lessons featuring LGBTQ+-themed books at odds with their religious beliefs.
The lawsuit over storytime and books with titles such as “Uncle Bobby’s Wedding” and “Love, Violet” touches on the type of diversity and inclusion efforts the Trump administration has targeted on college campuses, and in government and private businesses. It is one of three major religious-rights cases on the Supreme Court’s docket this term.
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Michelle Obama says she’s back in therapy as she begins her “transition” to the “next phase” of her life.
I’m not kidding; that’s exactly what People magazine is reporting.
According to the article, during a recent appearance on Jay Shetty’s "On Purpose" podcast, Obama opened up about her current focus on mental health. She revealed that after years in the spotlight — including eight in the White House as first lady — she’s now turning to therapy to help guide her through this personal transition.
“At this phase of my life, I’m in therapy right now because I’m transitioning, you know?” Michelle said, according to the magazine. “I’m 60 years old,
Jill Biden Lands a New Gig
29 replies
Former first lady Jill Biden landed a new gig at a California-based think tank following her departure from public life.
The Milken Institute announced late last month that it launched a new women’s health network and Biden would serve as its chair.
“A renowned champion for women’s health, Dr. Biden will play an important role in galvanizing participation, collaboration, and shared action in the Women’s Health Network to improve women’s health and wellbeing,” the statement announcing the initiative said. “This appointment follows Dr. Biden’s leadership on the White House Initiative on Women’s Health Research, a first-of-its-kind effort that fundamentally changed how our nation approaches and funds research on women’s health.”
Habemus papam — we have a pope, and progressive Catholics will likely be pleased. And for the first time ever, the pope is an American.
Cardinal Robert Prevost, now Leo XIV, is an American who also has Peruvian citizenship. He was a favorite of the late Pope Francis but has often kept a fairly low public profile, meaning that while his tendencies indicate a less traditional and strictly doctrinal perspective, his likely actions as pope have yet to be clearly predicted. But his first speech ominously seemed much in line with progressive rhetoric.
It is unfortunate that the new pope was a favorite of the late Pope Francis, who prioritized leftist politics
New York City previously tore down a historic Thomas Jefferson statue only to now erect a 12-foot bronze statue of an "overweight black woman," which many blasted as “tasteless” and more.[Snip] Times Square called the “pose of the woman’s body and ease of her stance” in the statue a “subtle nod to Michelangelo’s David” and that it “confronts preconceived notions of identity and representation.” It was comments like how the statue provides a “stark contrast" to the two current Times Square statues of “white men” on pedestals that got social media users upset.
Former US President Joe Biden don give im first in-depth interview since e comot from di White House for January, for toks wit di BBC about im legacy, foreign policy and im view of President Donald Trump first 100 days.
E tok say e get few regrets, but e offer serious warnings about global affairs as Europe mark 80 years since di end of World War Two on di continent.
Biden bin spend much of im time in public office – as a senator, vice-president and president – wit focus on US foreign policy, and e remain a top concern.
Governor Tim Walz (D-MN) said Wednesday on MSNBC’s “The Briefing” that President Donald Trump will wear a military uniform soon because he was taking the United States toward authoritarianism.
Host Jen Psaki said, “Let me ask you, you said something in the New Yorker in March I thought was really interesting. I mean, you said we should prepare for the worst case scenario. I think many of us feel that way. We’re just over 100 days in, and I guess, are we in the worst case scenario right now or what are you exactly preparing for as governor?”
Walz said, “No I think it gets worse.
The pharmaceutical industry estimates President Donald Trump’s new drug pricing proposal could cost drug companies as much as $1 trillion over a decade, its largest trade group is telling members of Congress.
The idea, first floated last week by the White House as a way to help pay for the president’s tax cut plan, blindsided the pharmaceutical industry and has prompted a furious lobbying campaign. Specifically, the White House asked House Republicans to tie prices for medicines in the Medicaid program to lower prices foreign countries pay,
An alligator attacked and killed a woman who was canoeing with her husband on a central Florida lake Tuesday afternoon, authorities said, after her spouse tried unsuccessfuly to fight off the predator.
The attack occurred near the mouth of Tiger Creek into Lake Kissimmee, south of Orlando, the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission said. It's near the same location as a March alligator attack in which a woman was bitten on the elbow while kayaking.
At a news conference Wednesday, FWC Maj. Evan Laskowski said the woman was sitting in the bow of a 14-foot canoe when the attack happened. She and her husband were in about 2.5 feet
The Jeffrey Epstein saga may be years in the unfolding. There are hundreds of people involved, perps and victims; some very fancy folks have been implicated, and there is the matter of protecting the victims' privacy to take into account. But the public also has a right to know what happened, and the Epstein files should be released as soon as the victims' considerations are taken into account.
In a press briefing published on C-SPAN, Attorney General Pam Bondi stated that the FBI is reviewing those files now.
Three GOP members of Congress are demanding answers as to why Judge James Boasberg, Chief Justice of the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia, keeps getting assigned to cases having to do with President Donald Trump.
Representatives Jim Jordan (R-OH), Darrell Issa (R-CA) and Chip Roy (R-TX) have sent a letter seeking answers to Angela D. Caesar, the Clerk of the Court for the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia.
(snip)At issue is whether Boasberg is being assigned to Trump cases on a random basis or not.
Wild viral footage has captured Frontier Airlines gate agents getting into a bust-up with a passenger who had sniped, “I’m never flying this sh—y airline again” after being hit with an unexpected $25 fee just to check in.
The caught-on-camera saga erupted when the male passenger — a 45-year-old married father of three — was trying to check in for his Frontier flight from Raleigh, NC, to Boston last Friday after a week-long business trip.
The passenger, who didn’t want to be identified, told The Post he’d arrived at the airport with roughly 50 minutes to spare but wasn’t able to check in on the electronic kiosk because,
White smoke billowed from the chimney of the Sistine Chapel and the great bells of St. Peter's Basilica rang out on Thursday, signaling that a new pope—the 267th leader of the Catholic Church—had been chosen on just the second day of the conclave. At precisely 6:07 p.m., local time, the smoke rose into the late afternoon sky, sparking an emotional eruption from the tens of thousands gathered in St. Peter's Square. Cheers rang out as priests made the sign of the cross, nuns wept, and the crowd shouted in unison, "Viva il papa!" Flags from across the globe waved above the masses as they anxiously awaited the identity
Comments:
Without being physically present and proving one's identity, no one should be afforded tuition assistance nor a degree.