California politicians, including Gov. Gavin Newsom and majority party legislators, practically break their arms trying to pat themselves on the back for the fact that California has a large and unexpected budget surplus. According to last month’s report from the California Department of Finance, general fund receipts for the first seven months of the current fiscal year were $10.5 billion above the Governor’s Budget forecast. But government policies had little to do with the generation of this excess revenue. After all, more so than most other states, California imposed some of the most draconian lockdown laws (many pursuant to executive orders) in the nation. But California taxpayers continued to contribute to state revenue in large amounts, not because of these regulations, but in spite

The box office is heading in the right direction. This may have been the best weekend at theaters in almost a year. And initial signs are that even with reduced capacities, reopened New York City theaters responded encouragingly. With both “Raya and the Last Dragon” (Disney) and “Tom & Jerry” (Warner Bros.) grossed over $6 million (a first since March 13 last year, just before theaters closed), the top 10 grossed over $23 million, with the total take over $24 million. That is the same as December 25-27 (normally a massive weekend). This was also the best year-to-year performance since March, with business down “only” 76 percent compared to most weeks closer to 90 percent. Fact is: this is a low bar to exceed. Why? With the second week of Warners’ animation franchise reboot, and especia

SETH WENIG/AFP/GettyAfter a deluge of new reporting this weekend portrayed a culture of sexual harassment and bullying in his office, embattled New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo on Sunday embraced his defense of choice: tradition. "If customs change, I’ll change—the customs and behaviors," Cuomo said during a Sunday afternoon conference call with reporters, in response to an article published Saturday by The Wall Street Journal. In it, former staffer Ana Liss said Cuomo asked if she had a boyfriend, hugged her, kissed her on both cheeks, and grabbed her waist for a photo. “Did I take a picture with Ms. Liss? Yes, I took a pic with Ms. Liss,” Cuomo continued. “But taking a picture is commonplace.” Liss said the behavior was not appropriate, and that it reduced her to “just a skirt.” at The Daily...

Comparing Bryson DeChambeau's approach to long drives to the one taken by Adam Sandler's title character in Happy Gilmore isn't fair, since at first glance the real-life golf pro is making what looks like a normal shot using correct form. But DeChambeau is more jacked than most golfers and puts what looks like considerable upper body strength into such drives, and the end result is sometimes damn impressive. Enough to even impress the original Instagram "golf girl," blonde stunner Paige Spiranac. DeChambeau knows what he's doing with these drives and they're becoming part of his legacy. Golf.com has more on this one, which happened at the Arnold Palmer Invitational in Bay Hill, Florida: DeChambeau, during Saturday’s third round of the Arnold Palmer Invitational, took a near-direct line a...

Summary List PlacementNew York Gov. Andrew Cuomo on Sunday said he would not resign due to the mountain allegations against him, saying during a phone call with reporters that resigning due to allegations would be "anti-Democratic."  Cuomo, a Democrat who has served as New York governor since 2010, has over the past two weeks faced mounting claims of inappropriate behavior toward women. Five women so far have come forward with allegations against the governor, with accusations that range from his asking inappropriate questions to unwanted touching and kissing. "I'm not going to resign because of allegations," Cuomo told reporters Sunday. "The premise of resigning because of allegations is actually anti-democratic."  His former aide Lindsey Boylan was the first person to publicly accuse...

Even with Philadelphia’s Joel Embiid and Ben Simmons ruled out on Sunday afternoon because of contact tracing with the coronavirus, LaVine felt like the NBA did everything it could to honor the All-Star players and keep everyone safe. In an NBA season in which mental toughness and adaptability have been tested on a regular basis, of course Sunday’s All-Star Game in Atlanta wasn’t going to offer up any sort of reprieve for the players. In the morning, there was concern that 76ers All-Stars Joel Embiid and Ben Simmons had contact with a barber in Philadelphia who tested positive for the coronavirus. By the early afternoon, the two players were ruled out. Happy All-Star Weekend. “Yeah it’s just extremely unfortunate,’’ Bulls guard Zach LaVine said of the news. “And from what I’ve heard they d

Photo Illustration by The Daily Beast/Scouted/AmazonI never thought I’d say it but I’m tired of cooking. And when you’re tired, you make mistakes. My brother was a prep chef for a time, and would cut hundreds of onions a day, and inevitably, ended up with some knicks and cuts to his fingers. I’m not cutting hundreds of onions and veggies a day by any means, but my focus is, well, lacking. As a way to make sure I don’t make any costly mistakes while slicing, dicing, or even mandolining, I recently bought these gloves. The DEX FIT gloves look like gardening gloves, but I think they are better suited for the kitchen. They are supposed to essentially be cut proof (at least to a degree). This is measured by a machine applying a certain type of weight to the glove and seeing how much is require...

The Duke and Duchess of Sussex wanted to achieve ‘financial independence’ (Picture: Chris Jackson/Getty Images)One of the reasons Prince Harry and Meghan Markle decided to quit as working members of the Royal Family is that they hoped to achieve ‘financial independence’. In a January 2020 statement, the Duke and Duchess of Sussex announced their intention to stop receiving funds from British taxpayers – as the Royal Family do for their duties – and start earning their own income. It read: ‘The Duke and Duchess of Sussex take great pride in their work and are committed to continuing their charitable endeavours as well as establishing new ones. ‘In addition, they value the ability to earn a professional income, which in the current structure they are prohibited from doing. ‘For

A 33-year-old man is suspected of stabbing his grandparents and another member of his extended family at their home in Arvada Saturday night, police said. One of the victims, a man, died from his wounds. A woman was in critical condition Saturday and a second man survived with injuries that were not life-threatening, Arvada police Detective David Snelling said. The three victims have not been publicly identified. Arvada PoliceMichael KuhlowOfficers are searching for Michael Kuhlow in connection with the triple stabbing, which happened at about 7:43 p.m. at a home in the 8400 block of Chase Street. Kuhlow had been staying at the home, Snelling said. Police searched for him with dogs and drones after the attack, but did not find him. He is described as about 5 foot, 7 inches tall and 170 po...