via CNN:
Putin invite sends Washington into Russian twilight zone:
It was a jaw-dropping moment that embodied the utterly unfathomable, logic-defying and increasingly troubling twilight zone into which Washington has plunged since the Helsinki summit.
Director of National Intelligence Dan Coats was onstage at a security forum in Aspen, Colorado, when he was told by NBC’s Andrea Mitchell that the White House had announced on Twitter that President Donald Trump had invited Russian President Vladimir Putin to visit in the fall.
“Say that again,” Coats said, doing a double take and laughing in disbelief at the absurdity of the latest episode in the Russia saga. Once he had collected himself, he added: “Okaaaay. … That’s going to be special.”
Duck boat capsizes in Missouri, killing 11 people, some of them children:
A duck boat capsized and sank during a severe thunderstorm in Missouri, killing at least 11 people, some of them children, authorities said.
Stone County Sheriff Doug Rader said at least five people are unaccounted for and seven others were injured in Thursday night’s incident on Table Rock Lake near Branson. “I believe it was caused by weather, yes,” he said.
Video posted by Jennie Phillips-Hudson Carr and shot from a nearby larger vessel showed two duck boats rocking and tilting to the side as the lake’s ripples turned into massive waves.
“Oh my God, those poor people, oh no!” someone says in the background as the water crashes into the bopping boats.
Denis Ten: Olympic figure skater stabbed to death:
Tributes are being paid to Denis Ten, Kazakhstan’s Olympic medal-winning figure skater, who died Thursday at the age of 25 after being stabbed.
Ten, who became the first Kazakh figure skater to win an Olympic medal when he secured bronze at Sochi 2014, was stabbed as two men attempted to steal his car mirrors, according to news agency Kazinform.
The former world silver medalist was taken to the hospital after the attack in Almaty, the country’s largest city, but died later of his injuries.
Comic-Con kicks off amid period showing off fandom’s ugly side:
Comic-Con, we have a problem.
Once again, 130,000 pop-culture enthusiasts will descend on San Diego beginning July 18, immersing themselves in their favorite movies, TV and other pastimes for Comic-Con International, turning the sprawling convention into the center of the media universe.
Yet while the annual gathering is generally characterized by fans enthusiastically interacting with celebrities, a darker side of fandom has been in the headlines of late, reflecting the sort of distasteful minority that can give fans a bad name — and might eventually prompt some talent to think twice about how much exposure they want to that culture.
McDonald’s is giving away fries for the rest of the year … if you spend $1 on its app:
Say hello to Fry Fridays.
No that’s not the official name of the promotion, even if it would fit since McDonald’s will be giving away free fries every Friday for the rest of the year.
But there is a catch, of course. You get the fries as long as you spend at least $1 through its mobile app. (And you can only get one free order on the day.) That means downloading the software and registering.
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