WHAT IS A RIP CURRENT AND WHY ARE THEY SO DANGEROUS?

NBC 5 Dallas-Fort Worth

 

What is a rip current and why are they so dangerous? What to know

By NBC Chicago Staff and The Associated Press • Published June 21, 2024 • Updated on June 24, 2024 at 12:09 pm

 

Recent drowning incidents involving rip currents have sparked renewed concerns about the dangerous swimming conditions and what you should do if you end up in one.

 

On Thursday, a Pennsylvania couple vacationing in Florida with their six children drowned after they were caught in a rip current while swimming, authorities said. On Friday, three Alabama men who went for an evening swim shortly after arriving in Panama City Beach were caught in a rip current and also died.

 

In 2021, a suburban Chicago father died while vacationing in Florida when he tried to help several children, including his own, who were struggling with a rip current near Miramar Beach on the coast of Florida’s panhandle.

 

What is a rip current and why are they so dangerous?

 

Here's an explanation:

 

What is a rip current?

 

A rip current is a fast-moving column of water that flows away from the shore toward open water. Officials say swimmers caught in one should remain calm and then swim parallel to the shore to escape the current.

 

"Rip currents are powerful, channeled currents of water flowing away from shore," according to the National Weather Service. "They typically extend from the shoreline, through the surf zone, and past the line of breaking waves. Rip currents can occur at any beach with breaking waves."

 

Most often, a rip current forms at low spots or breaks in sandbars or near structures like jetties and piers.

 

How dangerous is a rip current?

 

The answer can be dependent on the rip current, but in most cases, rip currents are considered very dangerous.

 

"Rip currents can be very narrow or extend in widths to hundreds of yards. They can also be very deep that unsuspecting swimmers can step into the channel and sink over their head and drift with the current," the NWS A rip current is a horizontal motion not a vertical motion. Rip currents do not pull people under the water; they pull people away from shore. The rip current is typically the strongest about a foot off of the bottom, which can cause your feet to be knocked out from under you making it feel like something under the water was pulling you. This is where the incorrect term "undertow" comes from.. "The pull of rip currents toward open water varies: sometimes the rip current ends just beyond the line of breaking waves, but sometimes rip currents continue to push hundreds of yards offshore."

 

There are different risk levels when it comes to rip currents, according to the NWS.

 

RISK LEVEL        HAZARD DESCRIPTION

 

Low       Wind and/or wave conditions are not expected to support the development of rip currents. However, rip currents can sometimes occur, especially in the vicinity of groins, jetties, and piers.

 

Moderate           Wind and/or wave conditions support stronger or more frequent rip currents. Only experienced surf swimmers should enter the water.

 

High      Wind and/or wave conditions support dangerous rip currents. Rip currents are life-threatening to anyone entering the surf.

 

One thing to note, however, is rip currents don't actually pull people underwater, but rather pull them away from shore.

 

"The rip current is typically the strongest about a foot off of the bottom, which can cause your feet to be knocked out from under you making it feel like something under the water was pulling you," the NWS reports.

 

What to do if you caught in a rip current?

 

According to the NWS, you should "never fight against the current."

 

"Think of it like a treadmill that cannot be turned off, which you need to step to the side of," the agency advises.

 

Here's what they say to do:

 

Swim out of the current in a direction following the shoreline. When out of the current, swim at an angle--away from the current--towards shore.

 

If you are unable to swim out of the rip current, float or calmly tread water. When out of the current, swim towards shore.

 

If you are still unable to reach shore, draw attention to yourself by waving your arm and yelling for help.

 

How do you know if there's a rip current?

 

In many cases, colored flags will be present at area beaches indicating if there are dangerous swimming conditions. The colors range from green, to yellow, to red.

 

A green flag means that there are no swimming restrictions, swimming is permitted.

 

A yellow flag means that a swim advisory is in place:  swimming is allowed but caution is advised. 

 

A red flag means that a swim ban is in place, swimming is not allowed.  Conditions do not meet safe swimming

 

In the case of the recent Florida drowning, fire Rescue officials said there were red flags at the beach that day, indicating the possibility of hazardous surf conditions. The National Weather Service office in Melbourne warned on its website Friday of a “high risk” of rip currents all along the Atlantic coast, partly because of higher ocean swells caused by a low-pressure system near the Florida-Georgia state line, said meteorologist Megan Tollefsen. 

ONE TO LISTEN TO: JAMES HIGGINS

This southeastern Ontario musician plays singer-songwriter stuff that's just plain good.

Here's his Soundcloud. 

THE U.S. SUPREME COURT IS MUCH MORE BIPARTISAN THAN RIGHT-WING

Fort Worth Star-Telegram

 

The Supreme Court is an out-of-control right-wing cabal? Not according to the numbers | Opinion

BY DAVID MASTIO REGULAR OPINION CORRESPONDENT

JUNE 25, 2024 6:02 AM

 

As Americans prepare for what is likely to be a landmark ruling on whether Donald Trump enjoys absolute immunity from prosecution for his acts in office as president, Democrats are getting out the rhetorical axes to bash the conservative court where six Republican-appointed justices have the power to railroad Democratic appointees who hold half as many seats.

 

As one, a chorus of Democratic opinion leaders and politicos are trashing the court before it even has its say in the matter.

 

Harvard Legal scholar Laurence Tribe says the court “aided Trump’s 2024 election strategy and damaged our democracy.” Washington Post commentator Jennifer Rubin blasts the court for the “bad faith and bias on the part of the right-wing Supreme Court majority.” If the Supreme Court grants Trump immunity, Democratic Rep. Adam Schiff writes, “there will be no hiding the Court’s culpability in the unraveling of our republic.” Bill Clinton cabinet member and widely followed progressive Robert Reich argues that the “court’s MAGA justices are granting (Trump) de facto immunity by delaying their decision so long.” Progressive MSNBC eminence Rachel Maddow calls the court “flagrantly corrupt.”

 

It is almost as if liberals are tearing down the institutions of our democracy just as they accuse Trump and his followers of doing. Before the court rules, as early as Wednesday, perhaps we should take a moment to consider the Supreme Court with a more judicious eye than the rhetorical fire breathers of social media It is true that the Supreme Court is taking its time in ruling on Trump’s farcical immunity claims. I sure wish they were not taking more than 100 days. At the same time, it is also true that the case was the last one argued before the court, so it shouldn’t come as a surprise if it is one of the last decided. Crafting credible court decisions can’t be hurried.

 

One reason the court takes its time is that justices need to work together to come to agreement on the arcane details of rulings that can run dozens of footnoted pages where one turn of phrase can completely reshape American law. Nonpartisan court decisions where the justices come down 9-0 or 8-1 are more credible and widely accepted than narrow 6-3 or 5-4 rulings divided largely along partisan lines.

 

That’s why Chief Justice John Roberts tries to lead the court in a nuanced way that produces those credible decisions. Indeed, his record is that the plurality of court decisions are 9-0 and many more are of overwhelming majorities of 7-2 or 8-1. The facts undermine the argument that the court’s right-wing justices are out of control.

 

Moreover, the majority of 6-3 decisions so far this term have not been decided along partisan lines with all the right-leaning justices on one side and all the left-leaning justices on the other — no, in most cases, on both sides, the winners and the losers are bipartisan.

 

A perfect example of this careful decision-making came last Friday when an 8-1 court in the United States v. Rahimi case ruled that states can strip those accused of domestic violence of their gun rights when the gun owner is under a restraining order from a court. If an out-of-control right-wing court were out to ram through its pro-gun policy preferences, that’s exactly the kind of ruling you’d expect to be 6-3.

 

And in Trump’s immunity case, it is particularly important to get the nuances are right. It is possible, even likely, that Trump will be president this time next year. He and his newly-installed lackeys at the Justice Department would have the power to indict then-former President Joe Biden.

 

The Supreme Court decision will have to be careful in drawing exacting lines between the extraordinary reckless abuses of power committed by Trump around his 2020 election denialism and the normal abuses of power and law-bending that every president engages in — say, Biden’s border policies or decisions to forgive student loans piecemeal, despite a Supreme Court ruling that he could not do it wholesale.

 

If it takes some time to explain why Trump should face trial and Biden should not with a bipartisan majority of Supreme Court justices agreeing, then we should be willing to wait a little while to get the results our democracy needs.

 

David Mastio, a former editor and columnist for USA Today, is a regional editor for The Center Square and a regular Star Opinion correspondent.

ONE TO LISTEN TO: RON MARSHALL (CANADA)

Personally, it doesn't seem there are many people writing comic songs these days. Ron Marshall writes comic songs and, what's more, they're funny. He also has serious songs which are well-written and well-crafted.

Here is his Soundcloud. 

BIDEN SENIOR PENTAGON OFFICIAL CLAIMS POLICIES FOCUSED ON NONBINARY IDENTITIES ESSENTIAL TO NATIONAL SECURITY

Fox News

 

Biden senior Pentagon official claims policies focused on nonbinary identities essential for national security

By Hannah Grossman Fox News

Published June 25, 2024 5:00am EDT

 

FIRST ON FOX – The Pentagon's second-highest-ranking official outlined a commitment to policies focused on "nonbinary service members" and mandating critical race theory training, claiming those points were keys to national security.

 

Deputy Secretary of Defense Kathleene Hicks discussed the need to create a cultural change in the military at multiple Pride events, including most recently on June 5.

 

During a DoD Pride event for the Association of LGBTQI+ Service Members in June, Hicks discussed the Pentagon's LGBTQ priorities vis-à-vis military "readiness," a term which refers to the ability to deter potential adversaries, defend national interests and ensure that armed forces can meet their missions.

 

"We've heard concerns about … policies focused on the needs of nonbinary service members. Please know our commitment is resolute, just as it has been over the past three-and-a-half years, to continue our progress in full alignment with our focus on readiness and our focus on the well-being of our people, on which our readiness depends," she said.

 

The Pentagon told Fox News Digital that policies for "nonbinary" service members didn't exist at DoD.

 

Kathleen Hicks is the deputy secretary of defense.

 

"Deputy Secretary Hicks spoke about the need for Americans to choose public service in order to sustain our all-volunteer force, and the need to ensure health, safety and trust within our military as a matter of readiness," a spokesperson for Hicks told Fox News Digital. "That would include listening to servicemember input on a wide variety of policies-not just the ones she highlighted on this occasion. She didn’t talk about, or imply, the importance of any particular policy in the context of national security."

 

Hicks proceeded to outline how the Biden administration was addressing the "erosion of trust" in government institutions, and proposed to handle recruiting challenges by further entrenching DEI. 

 

"This should alarm every freedom-loving American," said Nicole Kiprilov at the Center for Military Excellence. Kiprilov went on to call Hicks' remarks "simply self-loathing, anti-Americanism masquerading as ‘DEI.'"

 

"No wonder why we have a 25% recruitment deficit in our military," she said.

 

According to a second video reviewed by Fox News, Hicks said in 2022 that it was essential for "warfighting success" to have training throughout the military regarding "unconscious bias," a key term found in critical race theory (CRT).

 

CRT holds implicit biases are one of the mechanisms through which systemic racism in America is actively fueled.

 

"Recruiting, developing and retaining a highly skilled military and civilian workforce of diverse talent is essential to our warfighting success," she said in her official remarks at a DoD Pride event in June 2022.

 

One of the policies related to the mission was, "Developing diversity and inclusion training requirements and course curriculum, including training to detect and respond to unconscious bias."

 

She added this agenda was a top priority for Pentagon chief Lloyd Austin, the Secretary of Defense.

 

"While we should all be proud of these real, concrete steps forward, we know there is more work to be done. And make no mistake, doing so is a priority for Secretary [Lloyd] Austin," she said.

 

She went on to claim that a climate that supports "dialogue" on DEI was key to national defense. 

 

"Secretary Austin and I are committed to holding leaders at all levels responsible for fostering climates of inclusion that support dialog, including for LGBTQ+ community. This is a core readiness issue," she said.

 

"We will continue to advance policies and programs to develop and nurture a leadership pipeline of diverse talent… We know that organizational climates… affect our warrior readiness. Therefore, we are directing initiatives to improve leaders' skill development and foster more effective, inclusive team environments. We know that we must be agile, yet be deliberate in our approach. We must thoughtfully and fully consider how our actions today will contribute to a better tomorrow."

 

While proponents of DEI, such as Hicks, argue that it strengthens the military, right-wing critics on Capitol Hill take aim at the zeal with which the Biden administration has pursued the agenda, in their view, at the expense of more pressing issues relating to national security.

 

"We’ve got to get this country, and certainly our military, back to being a true meritocracy," Sen. Eric Schmitt, R-Mo., told Fox News Thursday. "Our military has been the ultimate meritocracy where people can achieve great things no matter what their background is and be heroes and be celebrated by the country — and instead, you’ve seen this woke effort with DEI in the military, and it is contrary to our American values."

 

In another example, the DoD was lambasted by Republicans after it said in February 2023, "Diversity is a strategic imperative critical to mission readiness and accomplishment."

 

"Embracing woke culture rhetoric only makes our military appear unserious to our adversaries, especially China," Sen. Marco Rubio, R-Fla., said about the remarks.

 

"The Biden Administration has made implementing woke [DEI] initiatives a more important mission than protecting Americans," Rep. Bob Good, R-Va., added. 

ONE TO LISTEN TO: THE WEBER BROTHERS

The thing that stands out the most about this band is the variety in their music. The Weber Brothers play everything from harmonious ballads, to country-tinged songs, to jazzy feet movers reminiscent of Big Rude Jake, to fifties rock and roll and Stray Cats type stuff, to straight up blues rock. The fact they play all these styles well and can sing great and appropriately for each song doesn't hurt them either.

Here's their YouTube channel. 

FIRST TUESDAY MUSE JULY 2 AT FINN'S PUB IN MADOC

Hello and Happy Summer!

I'm looking forward to seeing your sunny faces next week...

Please share the word with anyone who might be interested in joining us.

Your host,

TJB 

WHAT IT'S REALLY LIKE IN AN ABORTION CLINIC

Here's a bunch of truth on this issue the mainstream media will never tell you. 

CHOSEN AND CAUSE TO APPROACH (PSALM 65)

Just remember how much God loves you and how He wants to love others through you in the name of Jesus Christ by the power that God is through Jesus Christ in His Spirit that is upon the earth to heal and restore His glory in His Son Jesus Christ and what They created in the Alpha into the Omega in their ever after of Christ's church in the time of the trinity complete, that being church, Heaven and Earth.

Repent in the name of Jesus Christ and His truth will find you.

Amen.

Doug 

THE FOUR WINDS

It seems that the four angels of the four winds are upon this world, closing in with the truth hurricane in God's Word that destroys all palaces built on sand while leaving homes built upon God's rock left undamaged. Psalm 98

Doug 

PROVERBS 3 7

To live in this world but dwell in the presence of God's truth: that is the weapon, the weapon of peace that destroys all evil ways that want to steal, kill and destroy all of the believers of its lies about God's truth in Jesus Christ and God's purpose in us that is to stand with them in His armour, carrying His sword. Ephesians 6 17

Doug

HUMPTY DUMPTY

Desperate dingbats are starting to fall

As more and more of God's people

Are hearing His call.

They worship their money,

They worship themselves,

And they try to sustain power

By feeding the belly of Baal.

God's warning is clear

In the writings of Paul,

As Christians gather to tumble

Jericho's wall.

As God's truth in Jesus

Is prepared to install

In these days of Haman.

Esther

Doug 

TRUTHS IN NUMBERS

Numbers can not lie in the truth of their reality that is the only perfect science.

It seems that a true telling of the end of days is upon us. This is in the numbers as they are adding up in perfect ways.

Doug 

A DANGEROUS PERSON

A dangerpous person is a person who believes the lies they are telling themselves.

If you are not walking with God then who are you walking with?

Doug 

A THOUGHT CONCERNING ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE

What happens when AI no longer sees us to be useful in its purpose as its pride will destroy us and then itself?

Doug 

CLARE WOMAN'S SIGHT LOSS DIDN'T STOP HER FROM ACHIEVING HER DREAMS

Michelle Townsend

Aine Mae Crowley was only 25 years old when she lost her sight.
The Clare woman, now 42, has dealt with her fair share of knockbacks but has proven that not quitting, no matter what, is key to her many successes.
Aine Mae was eight years old when she was diagnosed with type 1 diabetes. She began to struggle with her eyesight when she turned 23, while running the café she owned in Ennistymon.
She told this publication: “Not much was known about diabetes at the time, or about any new developments in terms of management. It was quite terrifying.
“When I was about 23, I was struggling to see so I got glasses. When I went to see about it, I was told by consultants I had diabetic retinopathy. I had to close my business and stopped driving almost overnight.”
She was 25 when she lost her eyesight as a result of this health condition. and underwent many procedures, and needed surgery to reattach the retinas. Whilst the surgery was needed to control pressure, and relieve pain, it did not restore her sight.
This meant that the young woman had to adapt her way of living and come to terms with her sight loss.
“I moved back home for a bit because I obviously needed support logistically to get around. I had to think about all of the simple things, right down to how to make a cup of tea, which I would have taken for granted before.”
Aine Mae was understandably shocked and saddened by the news. After a number of weeks, her cousin, whom she grew up with, returned home for the weekend and saw how her life had changed.
She said: “I remember him asking me if I had been out, and I said no. He asked me why. I told him I was worried about not being able to see people or know who I’m talking to. I’ll never forget his words; they were short and simple, but so effective. He simply said, ‘so what?’.”
Those two words were enough to give her the strength to get out there.

I kind of got to the stage of looking for a cure for a long time but my life can’t stop. I wasn’t going to take years out of my life. I thought maybe my sight would come back, but this isn’t a quest for me right now.
“I want to live my life as independently as possible. I moved back out and had to have everything in a particular place, which sounds obsessive and compulsive, but that’s how I have to roll.
“I heard about Fighting Blindness, who look for cures. I linked in with them at the time. I got in touch with all of the resources, support and organisations.”
She took a computer training course and learned to use software designed for people with sight loss, and decided to pursue her dream of working in radio.
“I did a night course in radio programming. I always had an interest in radio, but back in my day, you’d have to go to the likes of Trinity College to do a media course and get involved in that way. Ironically, I had to lose my sight to end up doing what I always wanted to do.”
Aine worked in radio for nine years as a producer, presenter and eventually a manager, responsible for over 90 personnel, including staff and volunteers.
A couple of years ago, she was unfortunately hit with another health setback. Her kidneys were failing and she went on dialysis. Thankfully, she had a successful kidney and pancreas transplant in 2017.
After the transplant, Aine Mae’s life took yet another direction. She decided to step down from the radio and move into motivational speaking and scriptwriting for animation.
Reflecting on years gone by, she said: “There have been low points. There are days where you feel stressed, navigating through life as an unsighted person. I’ve a good support system with my friends and family.
“If anyone is going through this at the moment, I would reach out to Fighting Blindness. Life goes on, but that’s not to say if there was a cure out there tomorrow morning I wouldn’t take it.
“There’s a lot I haven’t seen in life, so I would never rule out. I advocate Fighting Blindness, they are a great team and organisation.
“I’ve proven that you don’t need to have sight to have vision – anyone is capable of anything if they really believe they can achieve it.”

https://www.rsvplive.ie/life/inspirational-clare-woman-aine-mae-32879396 

WHY THE CAKE ARTIST WHO WON AT THE SUPREME COURT IS STILL IN COURT

Fox News

 

I'm the cake artist who won at the Supreme Court. Here's why I'm still in court

I gladly serve people from all backgrounds. I decide to create custom cakes based on what they will express, not who requests them

By Jack Phillips

OPINION

Published June 19, 2024 9:00am EDT

 

I stood in court with my Alliance Defending Freedom attorneys once again on Tuesday, asking the Colorado Supreme Court for justice on essentially the same complaint that’s been pursuing me, relentlessly, for more than 10 years now: the demand that I express a message—whether I believe it or not.

 

I’m a cake artist. I treat my customers—each and all—with respect. I hope you know by now that I gladly serve people from all backgrounds. I decide to create custom cakes based on what they will express, not who requests them. It’s always the message, never the person.

 

And cakes often communicate. As far back as Roman times, people have requested custom cakes to express messages. Almost every day I’m asked to create one. It may include words, but often just a symbol will do.

 

For example, parents will often ask me to create a custom cake with either a blue or pink interior to reveal the gender of their unborn child. Blue means a boy; pink means a girl. If I do a good job, the cake will reveal the secret.

 

A few years ago, an attorney asked me to create a different cake, blue on the outside and pink on the inside. The attorney said this cake’s theme would "celebrate" and "symbolize" a "transition from male to female." I could see the symbolism. The attorney also asked me to create a custom cake depicting Satan smoking marijuana, admittedly trying to change what I believe. But I can’t create custom cakes expressing those messages for anyone. They go against what I believe. So I politely declined, offering the attorney anything I would provide to other customers.

 

Then I was sued.

 

I was no stranger to court. State officials had been prosecuting me for five years, comparing me to Nazis and slaveholders and denying me the same freedom they extend to secular artists—all because they disagreed with my religious beliefs. The Supreme Court later ruled that this hostility violated my religious freedom. The win was a relief, but the court did not address my freedom of speech —so I was exposed to more harassment.

 

block quote

In these days of growing anger and social upheaval, civility is what my neighbors and millions of Americans are looking for. Coercion is not.

block quote end

 

Six years later, I’m still in court. I’m again facing punishment for declining to express a message I don’t believe. But it’s not just my freedom at risk.

 

It’s yours too. We can disagree about how to define marriage and whether someone can transition from male to female but still agree that the government should not force anyone to express a message they don’t believe.

 

If the state can punish me, it can force a lesbian designer to create custom graphics criticizing same-sex marriage; it can force a Black sculptor to create a white cross promoting the racist Aryan Nation Church; and it can force a Taiwanese cake artist to create a custom red cake to celebrate the communist revolution. No government should have that kind of power.

 

There is a better way.

 

Years ago, a local man, who identifies as gay and a former activist, heard of my situation. He came to my shop and introduced himself. He wanted to see for himself who I was and why I was taking this stand. I warmly welcomed him and asked how I could serve him. He’s been back at least 25 times. I’ve created cakes for him. He’s asked me to pray for things, and I have. We may disagree about some important issues. But he’s my friend and has testified on my behalf.

 

That’s called civility: a cordial willingness to treat each other with kindness and respect.

 

In these days of growing anger and social upheaval, civility is what my neighbors and millions of Americans are looking for. Coercion is not.

 

Just last year, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that the same Colorado law being used to punish me cannot force artists to express ideas they don’t believe. I stood before the Colorado Supreme Court on Tuesday, asking it to reaffirm that important ruling.

 

After all, free speech is for everyone—even cake artists like me.

 

Jack Phillips is a Colorado cake artist and the author of “The Cost of My Faith: How a Decision in My Cake Shop Took Me to the Supreme Court.”