Latest news with #RonaldReagan
Yahoo
5 hours ago
- Business
- Yahoo
Letter: Critics have the wrong idea about 2017 tax cut legislation
To paraphrase Ronald Reagan, here we go again, now referring to the lies coming from the media, Democrats and opinion writers. The 2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs Act created tax cuts for every bracket, with the largest cuts going to low- and middle-income taxpayers. At the same time, it brought in record tax revenue. People should stop relying on the mainstream media and look for the truth on their own. It is very easy to find the true story by looking at the Statistics of Income Report published by the IRS. It details the percentage of tax decrease for every tax bracket. There are new deductions in the new bill that I don't see anyone writing about, like no tax on tips, overtime and Social Security payments and deducting car loan interest on vehicles built in America. I don't think there are any millionaires or billionaires who will be able to take advantage of these new tax cuts, I'm just saying. The Republicans are not cutting Medicaid benefits, they are trying to cut waste, fraud and abuse. Some of the things they are going to cut are removing over 1 million illegals immigrants, instituting work requirements for able-bodied people, stopping double payments and other fraud. President Donald Trump's favored nation drug plan will also reduce Medicaid costs. It truly is the golden age of America, and everyone who keeps criticizing the president should just enjoy the new America. Dennis Wasser Windsor Township
Yahoo
a day ago
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
John Oliver Calls Attention To Air Traffic Control Crisis With FAA Ad Spoof Featuring Lil Rel Howery, Keyla Monterroso Mejia & H. Jon Benjamin
Back after the Memorial Day weekend break, John Oliver wasted no time soaring through a topic needing urgent attention: the air traffic control crisis that has been looming and ongoing for years due to lack of investment. Beginning Last Week Tonight, the host made a quip about a 2023 headline concerning a FedEx plane that nearly crashed into a Southwest airliner in Austin. More from Deadline Nathan Fielder Calls FAA "Very Dumb" Over Response To 'The Rehearsal' John Oliver Delivers The "Hot Take" WBD Was Expecting On HBO Max's Rebrand, Comparing It To Gulf Name Change: "F-- You, Don't Tell Me What To Do" Keyla Monterroso Mejia, Comedic Standout On Everything From 'Curb Your Enthusiasm' To 'The Studio', Signs With Artists First 'Well, that is terrifying! Planes should definitely not be landing on top of each other and I say that knowing that there is a nonzero chance Tom Cruise will hear me and immediately greenlight a new Mission: Impossible to do exactly that himself,' Oliver said. 'I am not saying that he is trying to die on camera, I'm just saying the only way Tom Cruise passes away peacefully in his bed is if the bed is being dropped into an active volcano to somehow save the 'live moviegoing experience.'' Throughout the episode, Oliver outlined how the U.S. history of aviation has led to the problem, saying, 'as with so many things on this show, at least some of the blame lies with Ronald Reagan,' pointing to the 11,000 air traffic controllers the late president fired amid a massive union strike — a number that was never quite recuperated. From the Federal Aviation Administration's designation as discretionary spending and not mandatory to low success and recruitment rates, Oliver remarked that the challenging nature of the role itself — and the lack of funding the field receives — is 'like Squid Game if the prize of Squid Game was to just keeping doing Squid Game as a job.' Thus the segment culminated in an ad spoofing a real FAA spot played earlier in the evening, featuring actors H. Jon Benjamin (Bob's Burgers), Lauren Adams (Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt), Lil Rel Howery (Get Out) and Keyla Monterroso Mejia (The Studio) as beleaguered workers. What begins as a seemingly normal advert quickly descends into chaos as the staff deals with bats, bees and broken elevators (all real problems reported by air traffic controllers). 'My father was an air traffic controller, and I feel a real connection with him here at this job, especially because this is the exact same computer he used,' Benjamin's character remarks as he points to a sticker that reads 'Dukakis for President '88.' 'He had to retire because the doctor said he had more ulcer than stomach. What are you gonna do?' Meanwhile, in a moment parodying the real technology lag in control towers, Mejia's young worker is shown confused when faced with a floppy disk, opting to put it into the toaster. 'It's a lot like a video game, except we can never hit pause, there are no extra lives and instead of NPCs, it's you and your loved ones,' her character says. As the filming of the parody gets interrupted by power outages ('Dave, one flush, we talked about this!' Benjamin yells out to Howery's character), Mejia's plea to her colleagues to return from a photo op — 'I'm juggling like seven f—ing flights' — ends the sketch. Best of Deadline Sean 'Diddy' Combs Sex-Trafficking Trial Updates: Cassie Ventura's Testimony, $10M Hotel Settlement, Drugs, Violence, & The Feds 'Poker Face' Season 2 Guest Stars: From Katie Holmes To Simon Hellberg 2025-26 Awards Season Calendar: Dates For Tonys, Emmys, Oscars & More
Yahoo
a day ago
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
John Oliver Calls Attention To Air Traffic Control Crisis With FAA Ad Spoof Featuring Lil Rel Howery, Keyla Monterroso Mejia & H. Jon Benjamin
Back after the Memorial Day weekend break, John Oliver wasted no time soaring through a topic needing urgent attention: the air traffic control crisis that has been looming and ongoing for years due to lack of investment. Beginning Last Week Tonight, the host made a quip about a 2023 headline concerning a FedEx plane that nearly crashed into a Southwest airliner in Austin. More from Deadline Nathan Fielder Calls FAA "Very Dumb" Over Response To 'The Rehearsal' John Oliver Delivers The "Hot Take" WBD Was Expecting On HBO Max's Rebrand, Comparing It To Gulf Name Change: "F-- You, Don't Tell Me What To Do" Keyla Monterroso Mejia, Comedic Standout On Everything From 'Curb Your Enthusiasm' To 'The Studio', Signs With Artists First 'Well, that is terrifying! Planes should definitely not be landing on top of each other and I say that knowing that there is a nonzero chance Tom Cruise will hear me and immediately greenlight a new Mission: Impossible to do exactly that himself,' Oliver said. 'I am not saying that he is trying to die on camera, I'm just saying the only way Tom Cruise passes away peacefully in his bed is if the bed is being dropped into an active volcano to somehow save the 'live moviegoing experience.'' Throughout the episode, Oliver outlined how the U.S. history of aviation has led to the problem, saying, 'as with so many things on this show, at least some of the blame lies with Ronald Reagan,' pointing to the 11,000 air traffic controllers the late president fired amid a massive union strike — a number that was never quite recuperated. From the Federal Aviation Administration's designation as discretionary spending and not mandatory to low success and recruitment rates, Oliver remarked that the challenging nature of the role itself — and the lack of funding the field receives — is 'like Squid Game if the prize of Squid Game was to just keeping doing Squid Game as a job.' Thus the segment culminated in an ad spoofing a real FAA spot played earlier in the evening, featuring actors H. Jon Benjamin (Bob's Burgers), Lauren Adams (Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt), Lil Rel Howery (Get Out) and Keyla Monterroso Mejia (The Studio) as beleaguered workers. What begins as a seemingly normal advert quickly descends into chaos as the staff deals with bats, bees and broken elevators (all real problems reported by air traffic controllers). 'My father was an air traffic controller, and I feel a real connection with him here at this job, especially because this is the exact same computer he used,' Benjamin's character remarks as he points to a sticker that reads 'Dukakis for President '88.' 'He had to retire because the doctor said he had more ulcer than stomach. What are you gonna do?' Meanwhile, in a moment parodying the real technology lag in control towers, Mejia's young worker is shown confused when faced with a floppy disk, opting to put it into the toaster. 'It's a lot like a video game, except we can never hit pause, there are no extra lives and instead of NPCs, it's you and your loved ones,' her character says. As the filming of the parody gets interrupted by power outages ('Dave, one flush, we talked about this!' Benjamin yells out to Howery's character), Mejia's plea to her colleagues to return from a photo op — 'I'm juggling like seven f—ing flights' — ends the sketch. Best of Deadline Sean 'Diddy' Combs Sex-Trafficking Trial Updates: Cassie Ventura's Testimony, $10M Hotel Settlement, Drugs, Violence, & The Feds 'Poker Face' Season 2 Guest Stars: From Katie Holmes To Simon Hellberg 2025-26 Awards Season Calendar: Dates For Tonys, Emmys, Oscars & More
Miami Herald
2 days ago
- Automotive
- Miami Herald
Your Car Loan Just Got Cheaper as New Bill Allows Tax Write-offs on Interest
The U.S. House of Representatives has passed President Trump's sweeping tax bill, nicknamed the "Big Beautiful Bill," which includes an above-the-line deduction of up to $10,000 in car loan interest. In other words, taxpayers who itemize deductions or claim the standard deduction wouldn't pay tax on auto loan interest up to $10,000. However, your income and the vehicle type you purchase determine your eligibility. The deduction would be phased out by $200 for every $1,000 of modified adjusted gross income above $100,000 for single filers and $200,000 for joint filers, according to the Tax Foundation. Single filers earning above $149,000 and joint filers making over $249,000 wouldn't qualify for an auto loan interest write-off. Qualifying individuals or joint filers could receive the deduction for auto loans taken out in 2025 through 2028 each year until the temporary write-off expires, the Detroit Free Press reports. Additionally, the deduction only applies to cars with their final assembly in the United States. Qualifying vehicle types include SUVs, cars, trucks, vans, motorcycles, all-terrain models, and RVs. If the proposed legislation passes through the Senate and becomes law, drivers can expect to receive the highest deduction during a loan's first year since most monthly payments cover interest rather than principal. The average new car loan for May carries a 4.77% average interest rate for those with a FICO credit score ranging from 781 to 850, according to Bankrate. A credit score between 661 and 780 incurs a 6.40% rate, and the next-lowest tier, 601 to 660, jumps to 9.59%. Credit scores between 501 and 600 carry a 13.08% average interest rate on a new car loan, while 300 to 500 ratings incur a 15.75% rate. If the average driver pays $2,000 on auto loan interest in a year, they'd save $400 on their taxes. Leases, commercial vehicles, and salvage titles would not qualify for auto loan interest deductions. Whether the bill includes interest deductions for used vehicles or only new ones is unclear. While all Americans would welcome auto loan interest write-offs, Trump's bill also proposes that hybrid owners pay $100 more yearly to register their car, and electric vehicle (EV) owners pay a $250 annual registration fee. The fees are projected to generate around $40 billion over the next decade for the Highway Trust Fund (HTF), which pays for various transportation infrastructure projects. While many Americans would welcome auto loan interest tax write-offs, a deduction that hasn't been available since Ronald Reagan's presidency, the proposed legislation's impact appears relatively minimal. "I don't know of many people who would decide that they can buy a car because they're going to cut their taxes by $400. So, we don't think it's as exciting a proposition for driving more vehicle sales," Cox Automotive chief economist Jonathan Smoke said, according to Bankrate. Additionally, the expected sharp rise in already-high vehicle prices due to Trump's auto import tariffs would further offset any savings. Copyright 2025 The Arena Group, Inc. All Rights Reserved.
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India.com
3 days ago
- Science
- India.com
Inside ISS: Life At 28,000 km/h In Microgravity With Cosmic Research
The International Space Station (ISS) is a space lab that travels around Earth about 400 kilometers above the surface, moving at a speed of 28,000 kilometers per hour. Its main goal is to help scientists understand how living in space affects our bodies and health. This is important for planning longer space trips in the future. Besides studying how space affects humans, the ISS also helps scientists learn more about the universe. It carries instruments that study powerful space particles, which are tiny bits of matter flying through space at very high speeds. These particles, called cosmic rays, come from the sun and even from outside our solar system. They can be dangerous to astronauts and electronics, so it's important to understand them. The ISS also studies neutron stars, which are the leftover cores of giant stars that exploded in the past. Even though they are small—only about the size of a city—they are extremely dense, meaning they pack a lot of mass into a tiny space. One teaspoon of a neutron star would weigh millions of tons! Learning about them helps scientists understand how stars live and die, and how extreme space environments work. The space station has had astronauts living and working on it non-stop since November 2000. It's a joint project between five major space agencies: NASA (United States), Roscosmos (Russia), the European Space Agency, Japan's space agency (JAXA), and Canada's space agency As of May 2025, a total of 285 individuals from 23 countries have visited the International Space Station (ISS). This group includes both professional astronauts and private individuals. Among these visitors, 13 were private individuals, often referred to as space tourists, who traveled to the ISS through commercial arrangements. The ISS serves as a unique laboratory where scientists conduct experiments in microgravity, aiming to advance our understanding of space and improve life on Earth. What is the ISS ? In the mid-1980s, U.S. President Ronald Reagan asked NASA to build an international space station within ten years. He said this space station would lead to major progress in scientific research, helping scientists make big discoveries. At first, the United States up with Europe and Japan to build the space station. In 1993, Russia was also invited to join because it had the most experience running space stations in orbit. By 1998, five major space agencies from around the world had come together to work on the International Space Station project. The International Space Station (ISS) was designed as a group of connected, tube-shaped sections. It runs on solar power and uses special cooling systems with pipes that release heat into space. The ISS is made up of two main parts: the Russian Orbital Segment, managed by Russia, and the U.S. segment, which includes modules and technology from several other countries working together. The construction of the International Space Station (ISS) started in November 1998, when the first part of the station—the Zarya Control Module—was launched into space by a Proton rocket. 'Zarya,' which means 'sunrise' in Russian, was built to provide power, communication links, and help control the station's position in space. Today, although it no longer handles those tasks, Zarya is still used for storage and helping with movement of the station. Two weeks after the Zarya module was launched, astronauts on the U.S. space shuttle Endeavour, operated by NASA, brought a key American part of the ISS called Unity. This module is very important because it connects the Russian and U.S. parts of the space station, allowing them to function together as one large structure. The first team to live on the International Space Station (ISS) arrived on November 2, 2000. This crew included two Russian cosmonauts, Yuri Gidzenko and Sergei Krikalev, along with NASA astronaut Bill Shepherd. Today, the International Space Station (ISS) is as large as a football field in the U.S. It usually has at least three astronauts living and working there at any given time, but sometimes there can be up to six people on board. Both the U.S. and Russian sections of the International Space Station (ISS) produce their own power and have their own labs, living areas, and places for spacecraft to dock. These sections are connected, so astronauts can freely move between them. They are also attached to a large metal framework called a truss, which supports the station's solar panels and cooling systems that release heat into space. Also connected to this metal framework (truss) is the Canadarm2—a large robotic arm made by Canada. It works like a remote-controlled space crane and is used for many important jobs, such as moving equipment around the station and grabbing incoming spacecraft to help them dock safely. On the U.S. side of the space station, the biggest module is called Kibo, which means "hope" in Japanese. It's a science lab built by Japan. What makes it special is that it has an external platform, like a porch, where experiments can be done directly in outer space (exposed to the vacuum, meaning without air or atmosphere). Close to the Kibo module is Node 3, also called the Tranquility module. This section contains the cupola, a special viewing area built by Europe, which has several windows. It gives astronauts amazing and unforgettable views of Earth from space. In 2016, NASA added an inflatable room (a soft, expandable structure that grows bigger once it's in space) called the Bigelow Expandable Activity Module (or BEAM) to the space station for the first time. This special module might be a first step toward building inflatable space hotels or space tourist spots in the future. Why the ISS Matters ? All living things on Earth have adapted to survive in Earth's natural environment—not in the harsh and unfamiliar conditions of space, which can affect living beings in unexpected and difficult ways. The International Space Station is the best place to learn how to live and work in the strange environment of space. It helps scientists study how space affects the human body and other living things, which is important because our bodies are used to life on Earth. The biggest challenge of living in space is handling two major conditions: microgravity (which means there is almost no gravity) and high levels of space radiation. Both of these can seriously affect how the human body works, making it harder to stay healthy in space. Living in space also means adjusting to a small, enclosed space, having limited contact with people back on Earth, and facing stressful situations where astronauts must quickly work together as a team to stay safe. Astronauts must adjust to life where the sun rises and sets 16 times each day, as the space station travels around Earth every 90 minutes (16 sun rises and 16 sunsets) . To get proper sleep, they need to secure themselves to a fixed spot so they don't float. Also, they must exercise daily to keep their bones strong and prevent muscle loss caused by the low gravity in space. The International Space Station (ISS) astronauts have to deal with very hot and very cold temperatures as it orbits Earth. The side facing the sun can get as hot as 121°C (250°F), while the side facing away from the sun can drop to -157°C (-250°F). That's a huge difference of nearly 300°C, which is why the ISS needs advanced cooling and heating systems to keep everything working properly. In space, there's no up or down, so astronauts face many problems. They may feel dizzy or confused about direction, their blood and fluids move differently in the body, and many also have eye problems, which scientists are still trying to understand. In space, astronauts are exposed to more radiation, which raises the risk of getting cancer. To protect them, scientists on Earth are working on special spacesuits that can block harmful cosmic rays (high-energy particles from the sun and outer space) and keep astronauts safer during long space missions. Astronauts on the space station stay busy with many science experiments that help us learn how people might live in space for a long time. These include growing plants and human tissues in low gravity, finding out how germs behave in space, studying how space changes our DNA and genes, and even checking if humans can have babies in space—though that last part is still not fully known. While most experiments on the space station focus on how humans can live and stay healthy in space, some research done outside the station looks far out into space. These experiments help scientists learn more about the universe and the space environment where future space travelers might live. One of the tools on the space station, called NICER, is used to study neutron stars. These are the leftover cores of dead stars (what remains after a big star explodes in space). They are known to be the densest objects in the universe that scientists have discovered. Another device on the space station, called the Alpha Magnetic Spectrometer (AMS), is used in particle physics research. It tries to catch and study cosmic rays (tiny, high-energy particles from space) to help scientists learn more about how the universe began and what it's made of at the most basic level. In recent years, U.S. astronauts usually stay on the International Space Station for about three to six months. However, in 2016, NASA astronaut Scott Kelly and Russian cosmonaut Mikhail Kornienko set a record by staying in space for nearly one full year. Back on Earth, scientists are also creating similar space-like environments to study how isolation affects people's minds and behavior. This helps them figure out what kind of person is best suited for very long space missions in the future. Modern Journeys to ISS Until 2011, astronauts traveled to the International Space Station using either U.S. space shuttles or Russia's Soyuz spacecraft. But after the U.S. stopped using the space shuttle, the Soyuz became the only way to reach the ISS. This changed in May 2020, when SpaceX, a private company, successfully launched astronauts to the space station, bringing back another option for human space travel. SpaceX has been sending supplies to and from the International Space Station (ISS) since 2012. In 2020, the company also began flying astronauts to the ISS through NASA's Commercial Crew Program. The Dragon spacecraft, built by SpaceX, can carry up to 6,000 kg (13,228 lbs) of cargo to the ISS and bring back up to 3,000 kg (6,614 lbs) to Earth. So far, Dragon has completed more than 20 missions to the space station. Dragon is also built to carry up to 7 people to and from Earth's orbit. The pressurized part of the capsule is specially designed to hold both humans and delicate cargo that needs a safe environment.
