thehuffingtonpostuk--2020-08-25--Why Face Masks In Schools Could Be Boris Johnson's Next U-Turn

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Boris Johnson is under increasing pressure to make face masks mandatory for schoolchildren in England as the country becomes an increasing outlier both nationally and internationally over the policy.
There are even signs that children across England may find themselves subject to different rules.
On Tuesday, the PM said the guidance that masks are not required in England’s schools could be altered if the medical advice changed, but for the time being was sticking to a no-mask policy.
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He told reporters: “On the issue of whether or not to wear masks in some contexts – you know, we’ll look at the the changing medical evidence as we go on.
“If we need to change the advice then of course we will.”
The position puts him at odds with an increasing number of groups, including:
The World Health Organisation
The World Health Organisation advises children over 12 should wear masks, and when asked why he was not following the advice, Johnson said: “The overwhelming priority is to get all pupils into school.
“And I think that the schools, the teachers, they’ve all done a fantastic job of getting ready and the risk to children’s health, the risk to children’s wellbeing from not being in school is far greater than the risk from Covid.
“If there are things we have to do to vary the advice on medical grounds, we will, of course, do that. But as the chief medical officer, all our scientific advisers, have said, schools are safe.”
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Scotland
Pupils in Scotland will be required to wear a face covering when moving around schools, Holyrood’s education secretary has confirmed.
Secondary schools will be given “obligatory guidance” that pupils should wear face coverings in corridors and communal areas in schools in Scotland from August 31, John Swinney said on Tuesday.
Wales
Also on Tuesday, Welsh health minister Vaughan Gething announced a review into the country’s stance.
He said: “In light of the update to World Health Organisation advice on the use of face coverings for children over 12 – and the decision by the Scottish government to introduce wider face covering wearing in schools – I’ve asked the children and schools advisory group... to consider the current guidance here in Wales.”
London
In a sign of an internal rebellion in England over the issue, mayor of London Sadiq Khan is “moving towards” a position that teenagers should wear masks in schools where they cannot socially distance, the PA news agency reported.
A source told PA that Khan is continuing to consult with health experts to ensure that London is following the most up-to-date advice and will do so ahead of children returning to schools.
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The wearing of masks could apply to corridors and communal areas, but may not be as necessary in classrooms where it is easier to socially distance.
It is understood Khan has also asked his team to consult with colleagues in Scotland where schools have been back for two weeks.
Teachers
While any guidance is only likely to affect secondary schools, Ellie Boyd, a teacher at the Hartest Primary School in Suffolk, told HuffPost UK it’s a “tricky” issue.
“I don’t think the little ones would cope with it, but for the older ones I think it makes sense,” she said.
“It seems a bit crazy that it would be the only job where you’re expected to work without any kind of PPE, but then you’re also stood at the front of a classroom with all the pupils facing you.”
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Academies
Steve Chalke, founder of Oasis Community Learning, which has 52 academies across England, said giving pupils visors and masks for moving in between lessons made schools “as Covid-safe as possible”.
“Oasis is responsible for 32,000 children, and around about 4,500 staff, not just teachers but all staff in schools,” he told PA.
“And we are responsible to make those schools as Covid-safe as possible.”
He added: “This isn’t about our primary schools, and it’s not about our secondary schools in lessons, and it’s not about the bubbles, it is about transition in schools.
“And we all have a responsibility to one another, as the prime minister said, ‘hands, face and space’. So this isn’t in rebellion against the prime minister, this is trying to enact what Boris has asked us to do. We’re trying to work out the details of the big picture.”
Deaf children
The National Deaf Children’s Society said that schools and colleges must be ready to meet the needs of deaf pupils – such as investing in clear masks.
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Ian Noon, chief policy adviser, said: “Face masks in education would have serious consequences for the UK’s 50,000 deaf children.
“For many, there may be little benefit in even attending school or college because they won’t understand their teachers and classmates, with loneliness and isolation a tragic result.
“Public health must always be the priority, so if face masks are introduced, schools and colleges must be ready to meet deaf pupils’ needs by investing in clear face masks, making every reasonable adjustment possible and urgently discussing the best way forward with specialist teachers, parents and deaf pupils themselves.
“Education is a right, not a privilege, and this does not change because you’re deaf.”
The bigger picture
If the government U-turns on the issue of masks in schools, it will be yet another instance of Boris Johnson’s government abruptly changing its mind on a major policy during the coronavirus pandemic.


thehuffingtonpostuk--2020-08-25--These Are The 16 Symptoms Of 'Long Covid' Identified By MPs

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We’re here to guide you through the coronavirus pandemic. Sign up to the Life newsletter for daily tips, advice, how-tos and escapism.
Lasting breathing problems, purple-coloured toes, exhaustion – these are just some of the symptoms of long Covid identified in a list shared by MPs.
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‘Long Covid’ is a non-medical term used to describe illness in people who have
either recovered from Covid-19 but still report lasting effects of the infection, or have had the usual symptoms for far longer than would be expected.
Earlier this year, it was suggested that most people recover from Covid-19 after two weeks – however research since then has found around one in 10 people are left with debilitating symptoms for months on end.
Research from the Covid-19 Symptom Study in the UK, led by Professor Tim Spector of King’s College London, shows after three weeks of first reporting symptoms, a group of people continue to experience fatigue, headaches, coughs, loss of smell, sore throats, delirium, and chest pain.
People with mild cases of the disease are more likely to have a wide range of symptoms that come and go over an extended period, Prof Spector found. And these people are often flying under the radar because they’re not in hospital.
Some patients, who were previously healthy and active, have been left using wheelchairs or forced to move back in with their parents due to being unable to return to work and financially sustain themselves.
The all-party parliamentary group on coronavirus has heard from 550 people who have suffered continuing health problems due to Covid-19. These people want recognition of long Covid and the fact it affects all ages, and to shifting opinion from the widely-held belief that people are either hospitalised with the virus or better after two weeks. They also want support in their recovery,
Research is only just beginning to scratch the surface of the long-term effects of the virus. One study from the University of Leeds and Leeds Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust identified a pattern of longer-term symptoms likely to be experienced by people hospitalised with the virus. Fatigue, breathlessness, psychological distress – including problems with concentration and memory – and a general decline in quality of life are commonly reported in those who end up hospitalised and suffer long-term symptoms on release.
Another study found almost three quarters of people admitted to a hospital with coronavirus suffer ongoing symptoms three months later. Again, researchers found 81 out of 110 patients discharged from Southmead Hospital in Bristol were still experiencing symptoms such as breathlessness, excessive fatigue and muscle aches when invited back to clinic three months later.
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MPs identified 16 common symptoms of long Covid experienced by the people they spoke to. These include:
Lasting breathing problems Purple toes Chills Disorientation Hallucinations Muscle/body ache Insomnia Arrhythmia (a problem with the rate or rhythm of the heartbeat) Tachycardia (where the heart beats more than 100 times per minute) Exhaustion Vomiting Diarrhoea High temperature Hair loss Cognitive problems - memory loss, brain fog, confusion Chest pain
People struggling with the effects of long Covid often had to use a wheelchair, they said, and symptoms would recur after getting better. One submission read: “I’ve experienced sixty-six symptoms to date.”
The cross-party group of MPs has demanded that the UK government steps up support for those suffering from long Covid, describing them as the “forgotten victims” of the pandemic.
A poll from the Netherlands found that almost three months after the first symptoms of the virus, more than nine in 10 people reported having problems with simple daily activities. And 85% of respondents said their health was good before the virus, falling to 6% afterwards.
Of the 1,622 people with suspected coronavirus who took part in the survey, conducted by Longfonds (a lung foundation in the Netherlands), 91% hadn’t been hospitalised, and 43% hadn’t been diagnosed by a doctor. Common long-term symptoms included fatigue, shortness of breath, chest pressure, headache and muscle pain – all of which were also identified by the UK’s all-party parliamentary group


thehuffingtonpostuk--2020-08-25--The One Show's Alex Jones Pays Heartfelt On-Air Tribute To Colleague Charlie Mott

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The One Show presenter Alex Jones had an emotional moment at the end of Monday night’s show, as she paid tribute to a crew member who had died days earlier.
Alex said she and the team had been left “absolutely devastated” by the death of researcher Charlie Mott.
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“Now, before we go, we just wanted to pay tribute to one of our colleagues Charlie Mott, who sadly died at the weekend,” she explained.
“Everybody on the team is absolutely devastated. He was hugely talented and such good company. We miss him so much.”
Alex Jones BBC
Becoming choked up, Alex concluded: “Our thoughts are with his family and we are sending lots of love from all of us here. Good night.”
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No further information about Charlie’s death was given.
In lieu of the show’s usual theme tune, The One Show credits then rolled in silence, in memory of Charlie.
A clip of Alex’s speech was then posted on The One Show’s social accounts, which led to a response from Kevin Duala, a reporter on The One Show.
Posting a picture of himself and Charlie on location, Kevin tweeted: “A lovely man, great professional always smiling on location with the world at his feet. My condolences go to all the family.”
This was just over a week ago! I can’t believe it! A lovely man, great professional always smiling on location with the world at his feet. My condolences go to all the family. 😔#ripcharlie 😔 pic.twitter.com/0WCWKWsyCn — Kevin Duala (@kevduala) August 24, 2020
Olympian Iwan Thomas also said: “Totally devastated, one of the nicest people I have met in this industry, always brought a smile to my face when I saw his name on the call sheet knowing I’d spend time with him.
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“Talented, kind & funny, taken far too young. Will miss you Charlie boy.”


thehuffingtonpostuk--2020-08-25--Can Trump Win In 2020? Listen To Running Mate, Our US Election Podcast For Brits

Running Mate is a US election podcast – just for Brits. In our first episode, we look at whether Donald Trump can win a second term as US president.
The polls do not look good. No surprise, maybe, when more than 170,000 people have died under his leadership, with his handling of the coronavirus pandemic panned by all but his own party.
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But Trump’s unexpected 2016 election win stops many commentators from writing off his 2020 chances completely.
Running Mate HuffPost UK
We speak to SV Dáte, HuffPost’s senior White House correspondent – who recently made headlines of his own by asking Trump about his lying.
He thinks that Trump’s strategy, to paint Joe Biden as “so much worse” than himself, is a “tough sell”.
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“They just have to show that somehow Joe Biden would be utterly unacceptable,” he says. “Well, the guy was vice president for eight years when things were relatively good.”
Also on the show is Ariel Edwards-Levy, HuffPost’s polling editor in the States. While she says 2016 polling shows that “unlikely does not mean impossible”, Trump is faced with more than just a health and economic crisis.
“I do think the issue for Trump this time around, in addition to everything else, is trying to define Biden negatively in the way that he was able to do with Hillary Clinton,” she says.
Our third guest is Republican strategist David Kochel, who has worked on the presidential campaigns of Mitt Romney and Jeb Bush. A Trump “agnostic”, he still thinks it would be foolish to write Trump off.
On Trump running as both the incumbent and a Washington outsider, he says: “He’s also a New York billionaire who in 2016 ran as a man of the people who told it like it is. He is kind of unique in his ability to run a message that is absolutely counter to what you might expect, given where he comes from, who he is, how much he’s worth, and the fact now that he’s been president for four years. He still has that ability to incite opposition to Washington among people in his base.”
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thehuffingtonpostuk--2020-08-25--Priti Patel Must Recognise Channel Crossings Are Not A Crisis Of Movement But Of Cooperation

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Last week, a young man named Abdulfatah Hamdallah lost his life trying to reach safety in the UK.
His death was not the first, and without action, it will not be the last.
Home Secretary Priti Patel tweeted that this was an “upsetting and tragic loss”. Her response shows she still doesn’t understand that she alone could have prevented this tragedy.
If Priti Patel really wanted these dangerous crossings to end, to tackle people trafficking and stop people from dying – all she needs to do is check her inbox where she would find a letter sent by 100 civil society organisations which outline the very solutions which she refuses to acknowledge, let alone commit to.
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Without these changes, further loss of life is tragically inevitable.
Year after year, successive governments have abdicated responsibility, trying to push the blame back on to European countries – particularly France, spending millions on wire fencing and denying people their rights by demolishing campsites, and attempting to make the route “unviable”.
The government has been told time and time again by grassroots organisations, the French authorities, and migrants themselves, that this strategy will only result in more deaths and will push people further into the hands of people smugglers.
“This isn’t rocket science. Channel crossings are not a crisis of movement, they are a crisis of co-operation.”
Since she entered office, Priti Patel has allowed the conversation to be dictated by far-right hysteria and knowingly engaged in the same failed strategy that every Home Secretary before her has tried. This isn’t rocket science. Channel crossings are not a crisis of movement, they are a crisis of co-operation.
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What we are witnessing is political peacocking between the British government and French authorities – a strategy founded not on a willingness to end crossings once and for all, but on maintaining the upper hand over our European counterparts.
The Home Secretary herself was a member of the Foreign Affairs Committee in 2019 when it warned that “a policy that focuses exclusively on closing borders will drive migrants to take more dangerous routes, and push them into the hands of criminal groups.” There couldn’t be a starker warning that more deaths would arise if urgent action wasn’t taken.
It is ironic then that in 2019, Priti Patel stated that Channel crossings would become an “infrequent phenomenon by 2020” while simultaneously engaging in the same startingly unoriginal, tired myths and inaccuracies which demonise migrants – resulting in more dangerous crossings, and driving people directly into the hands of people smugglers.
If the government really wanted to tackle the root causes of channel crossings, they would recognise that it is illogical and impractical to have in place a system which says that people can apply for asylum in the UK, but only if they are already on British soil. The government must ask themselves why the stakes are high enough to risk your life in the back of a lorry, on the undercarriage of a train, or in a 3ft dingy for the sake of a 15-mile journey. The crux of the problem is not the small number of people trying to reach the UK, it is that they are not being allowed a way to do so safely.
Over and over again, civil society organisations have to tell ministers how the law works and explain their own system back to them. It’s shocking that the government doesn’t understand that it is always legal to claim asylum, in any country of your choosing and that there is no requirement under any law to do so in the first country that you enter.
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Conversations too around the “safety” of France or other European countries miss the point. For all of us, safety is far more than being on safe ground. Safety is about community, family, work, about not being isolated, and about being allowed to get on with your life in a manner of your own choosing. Safety is not a country; it is an innate sense of belonging and wellbeing. It makes sense that people with family and friends in the UK, who speak English, and come from countries which have historical, colonial ties with the UK would want to seek sanctuary here.
It is high time that the government implements what they already know - that the only way to bring an end to dangerous crossings once and for all is to introduce safe and legal routes of entry to the UK, engage with the French authorities in a constructive way and take a pragmatic approach which reflects the experiences of people seeking refuge in the UK. And it’s also time that we recognised the humanity of those seeking sanctuary in the UK,; that we start seeing them as people making difficult decisions which end up being the difference between life and death – and that no one should be forced to have to make those decisions in the first place.


thehuffingtonpostuk--2020-08-25--It Doesn't Matter Who Wins The Lib Dem Leadership. The Victor Faces An Uphill Struggle

Undated file photos of Sir Ed Davey and Layla Moran. The Liberal Democrats face a "sink or swim" moment as voting starts in the party's leadership contest, Moran warned. PA
Whatever else might be said about Jo Swinson, she won’t be a hard act to follow. I’ve got to know both Ed Davey and Layla Moran well over the past few years, and, whichever one my fellow Lib Dem members elect to be our leader later this month, I’m confident the party will be in eminently safer and more mature hands.
The victor will, however, face a formidable task. We are back into single figures in the polls, we are demoralised, if not depressed, and we feel, for the most part, profound guilt about our recent history.
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We all know only too well that Swinson made a historic blunder when she allowed Boris Johnson his general election and the thumping majority he craved.
The opposition parties could, of course, have denied him that, but instead we allowed the electorate to go to the polls in December knowing dangerously little about Johnson and his judgment.
“What our party needs now is a grafter, an individual of humility who is willing to listen once again to the members and who can regain first their respect and then that of the electorate at large.”
To everyone conversant with the art of the politically possible, it was always obvious what would happen and I know a great many pleaded with Swinson to bide her time.
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John Bercow, at the time the Speaker, told me it was the saddest day of his entire parliamentary career when the election was called. It came at the very moment traction had started to build behind a second referendum.
Tragically, Swinson’s part in making the general election happen – with her absurd, vainglorious dream she could become prime minister – means my party, which has always prided itself on its liberal, pro-European tradition, has been complicit in reinstalling the most hard-right government of all time, with more power than ever, and apparently intent on delivering a no-deal Brexit.
Neither Davey nor Moran can be blamed for that decision, however, and, whichever one of them wins, needs to begin with a healthy sense of contrition and remove from positions of authority all those in the party who played along with Swinson’s delusion.
More than that, the new leader must show a willingness to listen to – and mend fences with – our party’s grassroots. In her brutally honest report into what went wrong for the party at the last election, the Lib Dem peer Dorothy Thornhill highlighted the “rift” that had opened up between our high command and the ordinary members on the ground.
“Our new leader must accept that this isn’t just about us any more. It’s about the country, which is eminently more important.”
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The Labour Party and the Conservatives have also of course managed to antagonise their traditional supporters in recent years, but for this to happen in the Lib Dems – which has always sold itself as the party that is willing to listen – is especially shocking.
It was no more obvious than in Canterbury, where I stood as the party’s candidate in the election. Labour’s position on a second referendum had shifted between my adoption and the election. The overwhelming majority of the local association had come to the view I should withdraw lest I divide the Remain vote between myself and Labour’s Rosie Duffield and thus gift the seat to an especially strident Tory.
When no one in charge of my party seemed willing to listen to our concerns, I took the unilateral decision to stand down. It was the irony that I couldn’t handle: the party I’d joined specifically to stop Brexit expected me to help to replace a Labour Remain MP with another of Johnson’s disciples.
What I did has not of course endeared me to my party’s head office – they could probably also do without a piece such as this – and it remains to be seen if I will ever be selected to fight another constituency.
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This is, however, a time for plain-speaking as the rift that Thornhill alluded to remains as wide as ever. In the same month her report came out, the Lib Dem federal board high handedly took it upon themselves to put the leadership election on hold for a whole year, ostensibly so the party could focus on their response to the coronavirus.
The members understandably reacted with fury to the idea we could be left rudderless and drifting for such an inordinately long time and it’s thanks to them the election has been brought forward to this month.
If there is more truculence than usual in the ranks of the Lib Dems, it’s because a great many of us joined the party with fire in our bellies immediately after the vote to leave the EU. We were not people who were ever going to play politics by the cosy old rules. We’d joined with one objective, and, while we were willing to pitch in and work hard, we expected in return intelligent, strategic leadership from our party.
“The Lib Dems have, of course, been written off before and come back, and, for all that’s happened, we still occupy strategically important ground on the political landscape.”
In that regard, we have been bitterly disappointed. Some of the new members I met at the first party conferences I attended have defected to Labour after Keir Starmer replaced Jeremy Corbyn.
Others have allowed their memberships to lapse and the experience has left them wanting nothing more to do with politics. They talk about the Lib Dems looking irrelevant, that we had our chance and we blew it and they can’t understand any more what it is the party stands for or what it is it can realistically achieve.
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The Lib Dems have, of course, been written off before and come back, and, for all that’s happened, we still occupy strategically important ground on the political landscape.
There are always going to be seats that Labour can never win, but the Lib Dems could. The opposite is also true. If the new leader of the Lib Dems can come to an accommodation with Starmer, then, even with all of the iniquities of the current voting system, there will be hope.
And in the unlikely event our new leader wants any advice from me, I’d say forget all about the vacuous showmanship and empty ambitions of Swinson’s brief and disastrous period in office and get back to brass tacks.
What our party needs now is a grafter, an individual of humility who is willing to listen once again to the members and who can regain first their respect and then that of the electorate at large. Above all things, he or she should accept that this isn’t just about us any more. It’s about the country, which is eminently more important.


thehuffingtonpostuk--2020-08-25--EastEnders Bosses Have Come Up With A Seriously Inventive Way To Get Around Kissing Scenes

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EastEnders bosses have come up with an inventive way to get round the challenges of social distancing while filming kissing scenes.
While you may have thought any saucy shenanigans between the Albert Square residents would have to be implied with longing looks and lusty dialogue, they’ll now be able to display their affection thanks to the help of a perspex sheet.
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Speaking at the virtual Edinburgh TV Festival on Monday, BBC drama boss Piers Wenger explained the “ingenious” technique that allows the characters to get up close and personal, while the actors keep a safe distance.
Ben and Callum kissing in an EastEnders scene recorded prior to the pandemic BBC
He revealed how some cast members have been kissing each other through a plastic pane, which is then edited out of shots in post production.
This technique could prove to be especially handy if rumours about a new affair storyline are to be believed.
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The Sun reported back in May that two Walford residents will be embarking on an illicit tryst when the soap returns to screens in September.
EastEnders fell off the air for the first time in its 35-year history in June when it ran out of episodes that were recorded before the coronavirus pandemic shut down production in March.
Filming resumed in July when new safety measures were introduced, while it has also been confirmed coronavirus will feature in upcoming storylines.
The EastEnders cast returned to filming in July BBC/Kieron McCarron
The TV industry is slowly beginning to find its feet again after experiencing a widespread production shutdown at the start of the pandemic.
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Strictly Come Dancing’s team of professional dancers are currently all in isolation together in order to record all of the group dances for the upcoming series.
Filming on the new series of The Great British Bake Off saw all contestants, cast, crew and production staying together in a “bubble” at a hotel for the duration of the six-week shoot.
Meanwhile, the US version of Love Island has moved from Fiji to a Las Vegas hotel in order to get round travel restrictions.


thehuffingtonpostuk--2020-08-25--Fear Over Hope At The Republican National Convention

Fear Over Hope At The Republican National Convention
President Donald Trump is leaning hard on fear as a key strategy for November.


thehuffingtonpostuk--2020-08-25--'No Safe Level' Of Caffeine For Pregnant Women, Study Suggests

The latest review, led by Professor Jack James, from Reykjavik University, Iceland, disagrees. Prof. James looked at 48 observational studies on the topic, linking caffeine consumption to six major negative pregnancy outcomes: miscarriage, stillbirth, low birth weight and/or small for gestational age, preterm birth, childhood acute leukaemia, and childhood overweight and obesity.
As this was an observational study, it can’t establish causation, and Prof. James points out that the results could be impacted by other factors, such inaccurate recall of caffeine consumption, cigarette smoking and pregnancy symptoms.
Still, from the possible links identified, Prof. James believes the current health recommendations concerning caffeine consumption during pregnancy are in need of “radical revision.”
“Specifically, the cumulative scientific evidence supports pregnant women and women contemplating pregnancy being advised to avoid caffeine,” he says.
Dr Luke Grzeskowiak, a pharmacist at the University of Adelaide, Australia, disagrees and called the research paper “overly alarmist”.
“There are so many dos and don’ts associated with pregnancy and the last thing we need is to cause unnecessary anxiety,” he told the BBC. “At the end of the day, women should be reassured that caffeine can be consumed in moderation during pregnancy.”
Prof Andrew Shennan, professor of obstetrics at Kings College London, added that the official guidelines are “unlikely to change” as a result of the study.


thehuffingtonpostuk--2020-08-25--How The Republican Convention Accidentally Highlighted Trump's Failure To Change America

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When accepting his new job as the most powerful man on earth, Donald Trump promised his fellow citizens that he would save them from “American carnage”.
In front of an infamously small audience at his 2017 inauguration, the president decried “mothers and children trapped in poverty in our inner cities”, “rusted-out factories scattered like tombstones across the landscape of our nation” and “the crime and the gangs and the drugs that have stolen too many lives and robbed our country of so much unrealised potential”.
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He declared: “This American carnage stops right here and stops right now.”
Nearly four years later, the first night of the much-vaunted Republican National Convention repeatedly highlighted the fact that not only did most of those problems remain, but many had worsened.
Despite being billed as “very optimistic and upbeat”, speaker after speaker listed grievance after grievance and painted a picture of a United States reeling from... well, carnage.
Almost the entire message of the DNC was a reminder that America is a burning dumpster fire that will only get worse if Trump wins again--or did I miss something? https://t.co/cwUN71gEtv — Bridget Phetasy (@BridgetPhetasy) August 25, 2020
Those taking the stage and speaking to virtual audiences repeatedly laid the blame on Democratic governors, and said a Joe Biden victory in November’s election would only make things worse.
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Then they regaled the audience with examples of societal break downs and failures - by listing events that had happened on Trump’s watch.
Hell of a way to announce American Carnage Part 2 — andi zeisler (@andizeisler) August 24, 2020
Mark and Patty McCloskey, two lawyers who were charged with gun offences earlier this year after they pointed guns at peaceful Black Lives Matter protesters, said: “We’re speaking to you tonight from St Louis, Missouri, where just weeks ago you may have seen us defending our home as a mob of protesters descended on our neighbourhood.
“What you saw happen to us could just as easily happen to any of you who are watching from quiet neighbourhoods around our country.
“Make no mistake: No matter where you live, your family will not be safe in the radical Democrats’ America.”
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So correct me if I'm wrong, but it seems that they key takeaway from the RNC is: "Look at how terrible America is right now, vote for 4 more years!" — Naomi Biden (@NaomiBiden) August 25, 2020
Kimberly Guilfoyle, the Fox News personality and girlfriend of Trump’s son Donald Trump Jr, gave one of the darkest and most intense speeches of the night, becoming in an instant meme with a bizarre shouting monologue.
'The best is yet to come!' — Kimberly Guilfoyle could not stop yelling in her address to a literal empty crowd at the 2020 Republican National Convention pic.twitter.com/LODhvb2Snu — NowThis (@nowthisnews) August 25, 2020
She decried “the socialist Biden/Harris future for our country,” and said Democrats have turned California into “a land of discarded heroin needles in parks, riots in streets and blackouts in homes”.
What she did not mention was the White House’s ineffective and much-criticised plan for a surge of federal law enforcement to deal with such issues.
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Guilfoyle continued: “In President Trump’s America, we light things up, we don’t dim them down. We build things up, we don’t burn them down. We kneel in prayer and we stand for our flag!
“They want to steal your liberty, your freedom. They want to control what you see, and think, and believe, so they can control how you live”
She added: “This election is a battle for the soul of America. Your choice is clear.”
Trump himself claimed, without evidence, that Democrats were trying to steal the election, despite an ongoing campaign from the president to undermine the US voting system.
It feels like things are falling apart for Trump on a lot of different fronts, which means he will be even more willing to do whatever it takes to win the election, given the consequences of losing. — Joyce Alene (@JoyceWhiteVance) August 24, 2020
And on the topic of coronavirus, Republicans attempted to paint a rosy picture of Trump’s response, despite it being responsible for “millions and millions of American workers... left behind”, closed factories and “poverty in our inner cities” that the president promised to help in 2016.
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Instead, a montage of videos praised Trump’s leadership and handling of the pandemic, saying his “historic” actions “saved lives”.
The US currently leads the world with more than 5.7 million confirmed cases and over 177,000 deaths, figures that were unmentioned on Monday night.
Also omitted were Trump’s repeated dismissals of the severity of the virus, how he said it would disappear, his praise of China’s handling of the disease, his push for states to reopen prematurely, his conjecture that injecting disinfectants could be a cure and his inaction as severe testing shortfalls persisted months into the crisis.
In response to the convention’s opening night, Biden’s deputy campaign manager Kate Bedingfield, said: “What you heard tonight was a parade of dark and divisive fear-mongering designed to distract from the fact that Donald Trump does not have an affirmative case to make to the American people about why he should be re-elected.”


thehuffingtonpostuk--2020-08-25--Magic Launches 100% Christmas Station In A Bid To 'Combat Covid-19 Blues'

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If the last six months have left you feeling a bit down in the dumps, then Magic just might have the solution for you.
Yes, with four months to go until the big day, and the summer almost over for another year, Magic Radio has announced it’s launching its new Christmas station a little earlier than usual, in a move they’re saying is an attempt to “combat Covid-19 blues”.
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Magic 100% Christmas will be playing non-stop Christmas music from today until the festive season comes to an end in December, citing surveys that claim many Brits are “fearing a second coronavirus spike” and “worried about not being able to see friends and family” as their reason for launching a little on the premature side.
The Queen of Christmas herself, Mariah Carey Vevo
Ronan Keating, who hosts Magic’s breakfast show, said: “2020 has been a hard year for us all – what better way to lift our spirits than bringing Christmas forward a few months?
“One of the most fulfilling parts of working at Magic Radio is to be able to connect with our listeners and bring a smile to their faces, so I can’t wait to launch Magic 100% Christmas and turn up the Christmas cheer!”
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For those who don’t feel like August is too early for a bit of festive crooning from Michael Bublé – or indeed a near-hourly blast of Mariah Carey’s All I Want For Christmas Is You – Magic 100% Christmas is available on smart speaker, online on Magic’s website and on the Magic Radio app from now until Christmas Day.
Is it too early for this George Michael classic? Vevo
But Magic aren’t the only ones getting in the festive mood a little early, with Dolly Parton unveiling the first cut from her forthcoming Christmas album last week.


thehuffingtonpostuk--2020-08-25--Schools Would Be The Last Premises To Shut In Local Lockdowns, Minister Says

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Coronavirus has changed everything. Make sense of it all with the Waugh Zone, our evening politics briefing. Sign up now.
Schools would “absolutely” be the last premises the government would look to shut down in a local lockdown, the business secretary has said.
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But Alok Sharma did not rule out the idea of introducing a rota system for school pupils if there is a coronavirus outbreak in their local area as a way of keeping their education going.
It follows reports that the government is considering making secondary schools operate on a rota basis if they are in an area under local lockdown after classrooms begin to reopen next week.
Asked about the idea, Sharma told BBC Radio 4’s Today programme: “We’re going to have to look at local lockdown issues on a case-by-case basis, the priority though is to get children back to school.”
He went on: “I think if we were in a local lockdown, schools would be absolutely the last sector we would want to close.
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“This is about the life chances of children, making sure they get the start that they deserve in life.
“That’s why I think there is a moral duty as the prime minister said to get schools back up and running.”
Sharma meanwhile refused to budge on the issue of face masks, despite Nicola Sturgeon preparing to recommend that secondary school pupils in Scotland wear coverings in corridors and communal areas.
The business secretary underlined Public Health England advice that face coverings are not necessary if other hygiene measures are in place as pupils and staff will mix in “consistent groups”.
It came as the founder of the Oasis academy chain Steve Chalke said he had booked visors and masks for all school staff and masks for secondary students for “transition in corridors”, as well as booking extra space.
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thehuffingtonpostuk--2020-08-25--Young Woman Who Was Declared Dead Found Breathing At Funeral Home

An emergency room doctor at a nearby hospital declared the woman dead via phone, relying on medical information provided by the fire department, which is normal procedure, a spokesperson for the Oakland County medical examiner’s office told People magazine.
The medical examiner determined the woman’s body could be released to her family, and the family made arrangements with the funeral home. The city, county and Southfield Fire Department have all launched investigations.
“The Southfield Fire and Police Departments followed all appropriate city, county and state protocols and procedures in this case,” fire officials said in a statement.


thehuffingtonpostuk--2020-08-25--Normal People Star Daisy Edgar-Jones Admits 'Disappointment' Over Emmys 'Snub'

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Normal People star Daisy Edgar-Jones has admitted she was disappointed to have missed out on an Emmy nomination for her performance in the hit show.
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In a new interview with Grazia magazine, Daisy revealed that she was “initially disappointed” when her name was absent from the list of nominees, but quickly added: “I’m only 22, I’ve still got to earn my stripes.”
Daisy Edgar-Jones David M. Benett via Getty Images
Paul Mescal previously told Vulture of the snub: “If it was me I would have given her all the love in that category.
“I can’t speak highly enough of the work she did on the show.
“I know there are extraordinary actresses nominated in that category, but I think Daisy’s work is just phenomenal in this.”
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Daisy and Paul in character in Normal People BBC
As well as Paul’s recognition, Normal People received a total of four nominations at the upcoming Emmys, including Outstanding Directing For A Limited Series, Outstanding Writing For A Limited Series and Outstanding Casting For A Limited Series.
Daisy and Paul were recently reunited at the TV Baftas, posing on the red carpet with a tape measure to show they were sticking to social distancing guidelines.
She noted that despite Normal People’s global success, this marked the first time she and Paul had “done an event together, because everything else we’ve done has been over a laptop camera”.
Paul Mescal and Daisy Edgar-Jones at the TV Baftas earlier this year David M. Benett via Getty Images
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“It was so lovely to see Paul, from two metres away,” Daisy added.
“We had a quick drink afterwards, but we are still desperate to properly celebrate with the whole crew,” she said.
Read Daisy’s full interview in the new issue of Grazia magazine, on sale now.


thehuffingtonpostuk--2020-08-25--No.10 Rubbishes 'Nonsense' Claim By Cummings' Father-In-Law That PM Will Quit In 6 Months

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Downing Street has dismissed as “utter nonsense” claims that Boris Johnson is set to quit within six months due to continued ill-health from Covid-19.
No.10 sources ridiculed a report by The Times diary column that quoted Dominic Cummings’ father-in-law as suggesting that the prime minister was ready to step down because of the lingering effects of contracting the virus earlier this year.
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The paper cited journalist Anna Silverman, who had last week visited Chillingham Castle in Northumberland, which is home to Sir Humphry Wakefield, father of Cummings’ wife Mary.
Sir Humphry is said to have “merrily informed her that Boris Johnson is still struggling badly with having had Covid-19 (as if being a new father and needing to babysit Gavin Williamson isn’t tiring enough) and will stand down in six months”.
“A keen rider, Wakefield compared having the virus to being gone in the fetlock. ‘If you put a horse back to work when it’s injured it will never recover.’”
But Johnson himself hit back at the suggestion. Asked about the report on a visit to Appledore shipyard in Devon, he replied: “It’s absolute nonsense. I am feeling, if anything, far better as I’ve lost some weight.”
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A No.10 source earlier told HuffPost UK that the claim about Johnson preparing to quit was “utter nonsense”.
Johnson was admitted to the intensive care unit at St Thomas’ Hospital in London in April, when his condition worsened 11 days after he showed coronavirus symptoms and tested positive for the virus.
He was moved back onto a general ward after three days in intensive care, later praising the nursing staff who watched him round the clock.
During the PM’s hospitalisation, first secretary of state Dominic Raab took over his main duties and ran the government.
In a video following his discharge from hospital, Johnson thanked health service staff for saving his life.
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He said he did not have the words to properly thank the staff at NHS for “saving my life”. He lauded two nurses Johnson said stood by his bedside for 48 hours “when things could have gone either way.”


thehuffingtonpostuk--2020-08-25--Sheridan Smith Candidly Details Past Struggles With Addiction As Part Of New Documentary

Sheridan Smith has spoken candidly about her struggles with substance abuse, revealing she was rushed to A&E in 2016 after she abruptly stopped taking anti-anxiety medication to which she had become addicted.
The Bafta-winning star has filmed a new documentary for ITV about mental health, during which she details difficulties she’s faced in her own personal life.
In the documentary, Sheridan recalls an incident after the 2016 TV Baftas, during which a joke made at her expense led to her immediately stopping taking the pills she was addicted to, with dangerous consequences.
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She explains: “Graham Norton was hosting and made a joke at my expense about me being a drunk… I was so humiliated. It’s a room full of your peers, people you want to work with or have worked with.”
Sheridan at the press night for Joseph And The Amazing Technicolour Dreamcoat in 2019 David M. Benett via Getty Images
Sheridan continues: “That night, for me, was like the final straw before my brain totally went off the deep end.
“What people didn’t realise is that I’d become addicted to anti-anxiety tablets. That night I took myself off to a hotel on my own. In my crazy mind, I thought, ‘I’ll [stop taking the tablets] myself’. I went there and just stopped my tablets.
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“Weirdly, a friend of mine had rung me and she came to the hotel. It’s a miracle she did. It’s like someone was looking out for me because what I didn’t realise is that if you stop these tablets abruptly, you seizure.
“I seizured five times and got rushed to A&E and she’s the one who got me breathing again.”
Sheridan Smith on the night of the TV Baftas in 2016 Stuart C. Wilson via Getty Images
Sheridan – who welcomed her first child earlier this year, while the UK was on lockdown – says the aim of her documentary was to help women concerned about past mental health issues resurfacing during pregnancy.
The documentary follows her throughout her pregnancy, attending scans and pre-natal classes as well as sessions with a specialist therapist.
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“At the start of my pregnancy, I’d just got myself to a good place and I thought, ‘Please don’t let this be a turning point where things change for me’,” Sheridan says.
“That was my biggest worry.”
Sheridan Smith: Becoming Mum airs on Tuesday 1 September at 9pm on ITV.
Useful websites and helplines
Mind, open Monday to Friday, 9am-6pm on 0300 123 3393.
Samaritans offers a listening service which is open 24 hours a day, on 116 123 (UK and ROI - this number is FREE to call and will not appear on your phone bill).
CALM (the Campaign Against Living Miserably) offer a helpline open 5pm-midnight, 365 days a year, on 0800 58 58 58, and a webchat service.
The Mix is a free support service for people under 25. Call 0808 808 4994 or email help@themix.org.uk
Rethink Mental Illness offers practical help through its advice line which can be reached on 0300 5000 927 (Monday to Friday 10am-4pm). More info can be found on rethink.org.


thehuffingtonpostuk--2020-08-25--France Could Begin Quarantining Brits 'In Coming Days'

People wearing masks to prevent the spread of coronavirus walk at Trocadero plaza near Eiffel Tower in Paris, Saturday, August 8. ASSOCIATED PRESS
France is looking to impose mandatory quarantine on Britons arriving in the country in the coming days.
People who arrived in the UK from France after August 15 are already required to self-isolate for 14 days due to rising numbers of coronavirus cases in France.
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And France’s secretary of state for European Affairs Clement Beaune suggested those travelling from the UK to France could soon face similar requirements.
He told France 2: “There will be reciprocal measures so that Britons don’t close the border in one direction.
“For travellers returning from the United Kingdom, there will probably be restrictive measures decided in the next few days by the prime minister and by the Defence Council.”
Meanwhile, Switzerland could become the next European country to be subject to quarantine measures by all four nations of the UK, according to latest figures.
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A seven-day rate of 20 Covid-19 cases per 100,000 people is the threshold above which the UK Government considers triggering quarantine conditions.


thehuffingtonpostuk--2020-08-25--The Batman Trailer: Fans Already Solved The Riddler's Cryptic Puzzle In First Teaser

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Can someone please show Batman how to see his Twitter mentions?
Although the first footage from director Matt Reeves’ The Batman premiered just days ago at DC FanDome, Twitter users have already cracked one of the teaser’s mysteries: the Riddler’s cryptic message to the caped crusader (played by an oh-so-emo-looking Robert Pattinson).
In the trailer, Riddler (Paul Dano) leaves a note addressed to Batman at a murder scene.
The message apparently asks, “What does a liar do when he’s dead?” and includes some puzzling symbols to decode like a game on the back of your cereal box.
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A still from The Batman trailer Warner Bros.
And it did not take long at all for two Twitter users, Andrew Lane and game designer Mike Selinker, to seemingly crack the code arriving at the same answer.
So, what does a liar do when he’s dead? “He lies still”, apparently.
So hyped for Matt Reeve’s Batman Movie, I decided to solve The Riddler’s code. #TheBatman pic.twitter.com/vsxVxucedv — Andrew Lane (@TheMasterD101) August 23, 2020
Lane first wrongly supposed that the word Batman would appear in the message before focusing on replacing repeating symbols with commonly used letters.
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This didn't work because the symbols that I substituted with letters in the first phrase didn't line up with the same symbols in the second one. So I went to my next thought process, which was replacing the matching symbols in the first phrase with "E" since it is the most used — Andrew Lane (@TheMasterD101) August 23, 2020
Selinker, on the other hand, first assigned numerical values to the symbols and then methodically went through the possibilities.
Check out the Twitter thread for future puzzle-solving tips:
In the new #TheBatmanTrailer, the Riddler leaves a card with the question “What does a liar do when he’s dead?” I could just solve it like a riddle (and did), but it’s a good opportunity to show how to solve a puzzle by brute force, so you’re sure of the answer. Here goes. (1/12) pic.twitter.com/sHveBmU2Pt — Mike Selinker (@mikeselinker) August 23, 2020
As Polygon points out, Reddit users were also quick to solve the puzzle, so as long as Batman has solid internet access, crime doesn’t stand a chance.
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thehuffingtonpostuk--2020-08-25--Sofía Vergara Breaks Silence On Ellen DeGeneres Amid Misconduct Allegations

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Sofía Vergara has broken her silence after a video surfaced earlier this month showing clips of Ellen DeGeneres’ purportedly mocking the actor’s accent to her face.
The video, which has nearly eight million views, is comprised of three appearances by Sofía on Ellen’s US talk show, and formed part of a longer Twitter thread based on the comedian’s past behaviour.
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In the beginning of the video, Ellen says she’s going to “teach” her guest an English word, telling the actor in the second clip that her accent “has gotten worse” and then, during a joint interview with Sofía and Reese Witherspoon, says that the Modern Family star’s English has “gotten better”.
Ellen conintually mocking Sofia Vergara’s Spanish accent pic.twitter.com/UuHEjqB4pw — Jess {fan acc} (@britneyxmariah) August 14, 2020
Sofía, who was born in Colombia, seemingly spoke out in reference to the viral video compilation in a recent tweet, attaching a YouTube video of her full appearance on Ellen’s show (seen in the beginning of the viral clip).
“Two comedians having fun with each other to entertain. I was never a victim guys, I was always in on the joke,” she wrote.
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To Sofía’s point, when celebrities appear on talk shows, the hosts (or their team of writers) will normally go over material and ask for stories beforehand to bring up during their appearance.
Still, the mocking of Sofía’s accent raised questions about the propriety of Degeneres’ jokes on social media...
Two comedians having fun with each other to entertain. I was never a victim guys, I was always in on the joke. https://t.co/mjUjPNRHlb — Sofia Vergara (@SofiaVergara) August 21, 2020
Ellen’s interactions with guests and her own staff have come under intensifying scrutiny after a bombshell Buzzfeed News report alleged that her employees “faced racism, fear, and intimidation” at work and that the show allowed rampant sexual misconduct.
Following the claims, the NBC show’s distributor, Warner Bros., began conducting its own internal investigation.
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Ellen DeGeneres on the red carpet of the Golden Globes earlier this year Daniele Venturelli via Getty Images
Three of the show’s producers, Ed Glavin, Kevin Leman and Jonathan Norman, “parted ways” with the show last week, according to CNN.
Ellen also apologised to staff and promised to “correct the issues” in an email obtained by Variety.


thehuffingtonpostuk--2020-08-25--Donald Trump Jr’s Loch Ness Monster Dig Has People Defending Nessie

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Some of Donald Trump Jr’s critics on Twitter have a message for him after an unusual speech on Monday night: Leave the Loch Ness monster out of this.
The son of President Donald Trump name-checked the mythological beast during his speech on the first night of the Republican National Convention.
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“Joe Biden is basically the Loch Ness monster of the swamp,” he declared. “For the past half-century, he’s been lurking around in there. He sticks his head up every now and then to run for president, then he disappears and doesn’t do much in between.”
The reference caused “Loch Ness” to trend on Twitter, where Trump’s critics didn’t appreciate him politicising the famous cryptid, which is notorious for hiding from everyone, no matter what their politics:
Why is Donald Trump Jr trying to demonise the Loch Ness monster? In *Scotland, or so I’m told, she is considered to be a fairly benign creature that people just really want to see — Tara McKelvey (@Tara_Mckelvey) August 25, 2020
Loch Ness is lovely as are all the Scottish highland lochs and I will not hear their names uttered by the likes of that piece of rancid blood pudding DTJr. Photo: Sam Fentress pic.twitter.com/VMAvgclBE7 — Dr. Karen James (@kejames) August 25, 2020
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Sir, the Loch Ness Monster does not live in a swamp. — Person Woman Man Camera TV (@ClaraJeffery) August 25, 2020
The Loch Ness Monster is pure. Loch Ness itself is a body of freshwater, not a swamp. Do not drag Nessie into this campaign. Or into any more terrible, mangled metaphors. https://t.co/oCEkSajgQD #RNCConvention2020 — Tim Teeman (@TimTeeman) August 25, 2020
Look, Don Jr. called Biden "the Loch Ness Monster of the Swamp" and I just need to correct the record here. Nessie lived in a lake and she doesn't deserve this. — Jane Lytvynenko (@JaneLytv) August 25, 2020
Loch Ness is a lake not a swamp, it’s right in the name. — Matthew Yglesias (@mattyglesias) August 25, 2020
WHAAAAT??? "Biden is the Loch Ness Monster of the swamp"? You have a shitty golf club in Scotland and you don't know Loch Ness isn't a swamp?#Lochness pic.twitter.com/UK3vNAiltF — Jackson Tenorio (@JacksonTenori) August 25, 2020
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They promised a positive message at the convention. The president’s son just called @JoeBiden the “lochness monster.” Ok. — Michael McFaul (@McFaul) August 25, 2020
"#JoeBiden is the Loch Ness monster of the swamp"
- #DonaldTrumpJr
Does that mean Joe Biden doesn't exist, or that you believe in the Loch Ness Monster? I have so many questions... #Cryptozoology #Politics #CryptoPolitics pic.twitter.com/C86XOL2adu — J♦ (@jaydiamond) August 25, 2020


thehuffingtonpostuk--2020-08-25--Trump Tells Former Hostage Turkey's Erdogan ‘Was Very Good’ In RNC Segment

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President Donald Trump hosted a roundtable with six former hostages during the first night of the Republican National Convention, at one point telling a pastor held in Turkey for two years that Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan “was very good” despite the former hostage’s ordeal.
Trump made the comments to Andrew Brunson, an evangelical pastor from North Carolina, who was arrested in Turkey in 2016 on espionage and terrorism charges. US officials had long accused Turkey of using Brunson as a political pawn alongside nearly two dozen other Turkish Americans who were arrested following a coup attempt. The White House levied tariffs and upped political pressure on the Erdogan government, and the pastor was ultimately released in 2018 after the Trump administration personally raised the case with Erdogan.
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But despite Brunson’s detention, in the brief segment, Trump doubled down on his praise for the Turkish strongman, a regular theme of his administration.
"To me, President Erdogan was very good" -- Trump to Pastor Brunson, who was imprisoned by Erdogan's regime pic.twitter.com/1NmyU1tGOo — Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) August 25, 2020
Throughout his time in office, Trump has called Erdogan a “great ally,” a “strong man” and said he’s a “big fan” of the man despite criticism over the Turkish leader’s efforts to silence critics.
“We have six incredible people who were held hostage by various countries, and I am very pleased to let everyone know that we brought back over 50 hostages from 22 different countries, we worked very hard on it,” Trump said in the segment before turning to Brunson.
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“We had to get you back,” he continued. “I have to say, to me, President Erdogan was very good. I know they had you scheduled for a long time and you were a very innocent person, and he ultimately after we had a few conversations, he agreed.”
It’s unusual for a sitting US president to tout their efforts to secure the release of hostages for political purposes, and equally remarkable to do so during a party convention from the White House.
Brunson said he was grateful to the Trump administration for its efforts to bring him home, telling the president he thought “if you hadn’t done that, I think I would still be in Turkey.”


thehuffingtonpostuk--2020-08-25--US Republican Convention Embraces Anger And Fear, Despite Being Billed As 'Optimistic'

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“Rioters must not be allowed to destroy our cities. Human, sex, drug traffickers should not be allowed to cross our border.”
“People of faith are under attack.”
“Look at what’s happening in America’s cities ― all run by Democrats. Crime, violence, mob rule. Democrats refuse to denounce the mob.”
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Those were all comments from speakers on Monday, the opening night of the Republican National Convention, which GOP aides had promised would be “very optimistic and upbeat.”
The tone was certainly not that. It seems President Donald Trump had not yet made America great, because speaker after speaker had plenty of grievances with the state of things. And all of these problems, they warned, would get exponentially worse if former Vice President Joe Biden defeats Trump in November.
“President Trump is fighting against the forces of socialism, communism and totalitarianism. And he will continue to do just that,” said Maximo Alvarez, a Florida businessman whose family fled Cuba. “And what about his opponent and the rest of the DC swamp? I have no doubt they will hand the country over to those dangerous forces.”
“Socialism” came up multiple times Monday night. Former United Nations Ambassador Nikki Haley said that Biden would be taking his marching orders from house speaker Nancy Pelosi and the group of progressive lawmakers known as “the Squad.”
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“Their vision for America is socialism,” Haley said. “And we know that socialism has failed everywhere.”
The first night of the Republican National Convention underscored that the GOP is running once again on a strategy of fear rather than hope.
Kimberly Guilfoyle gave a dark speech at the Republican National Convention Monday night. Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images
Kimberly Guilfoyle, the Fox News personality and girlfriend of Donald Trump Jr, gave one of the darkest and most intense speeches of the night, shouting as if talking to a packed convention center instead of the largely empty room she was in.
She decried “the socialist Biden/Harris future for our country,” and said Democrats have turned California into “a land of discarded heroin needles in parks, riots in streets and blackouts in homes.” (Guilfoyle did not mention that she was once first lady of San Francisco and married to Gavin Newsom, who is now California’s Democratic governor.)
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“In President Trump’s America, we light things up, we don’t dim them down. We build things up, we don’t burn them down. We kneel in prayer and we stand for our flag!” she added. “This election is a battle for the soul of America. Your choice is clear.”
A central campaign theme for Trump is crime, playing on racist fears of people from low-income neighborhoods taking over the suburbs.
I am happy to inform all of the people living their Suburban Lifestyle Dream that you will no longer be bothered or financially hurt by having low income housing built in your neighborhood... — Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) July 29, 2020
Mark and Patty McCloskey were supposed to be the embodiment of what could happen if Biden wins.
“We’re speaking to you tonight from St. Louis, Missouri, where just weeks ago you may have seen us defending our home as a mob of protesters descended on our neighborhood,” Mark said.
“What you saw happen to us could just as easily happen to any of you who are watching from quiet neighborhoods around our country,” Patty added. “And that’s what we want to speak to you about tonight.”
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In June, the McCloskeys, both lawyers, gained national attention for pointing guns at Black Lives Matter protesters who marched by their mansion in St. Louis. The couple now face felony charges of unlawful use of a weapon. No shots were fired.
Democratic St Louis Circuit Attorney Kim Gardner has described the protesters as “peaceful” and “unarmed.” The McCloskeys claim the demonstrators ignored “No Trespassing” and “Private Street” signs before breaking through a gate to get into the community.
“They are not satisfied with spreading the chaos and violence into our communities. They want to abolish the suburbs altogether by ending single-family home zoning,” Patty said in her speech Monday. “These are the policies that are coming to a neighbourhood near you. So make no mistake: No matter where you live, your family will not be safe in the radical Democrats’ America.”
Armed homeowners Mark and Patricia McCloskey stand in front of their house as they confront protesters, June 28, 2020, in the Central West End of St. Louis. Laurie Skrivan/St. Louis Post-Dispatch/Tribune News Service via Getty Images
One of the few exceptions to the angry tone was South Carolina’s Tim Scott, the country’s lone Black Republican senator. Scott gave the final speech of Monday night, using his own biography ― how he struggled economically and academically as a child, and his path to the Senate ― to argue that the Republican Party offers the best opportunity for growth and hope.
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“Our family went from cotton to Congress in one lifetime. And that’s why I believe the next American century can be better than the last,” he said. “There are millions of families like mine across this nation, full of potential, seeking to live the American dream. And I’m here tonight to tell you that supporting the Republican ticket gives you the best chance of making that dream a reality.”
A key topic on which the convention was relentlessly upbeat was the coronavirus. It didn’t focus on the people who have lost loved ones, how the United States leads the world in coronavirus cases ― or how the president insisted for months that the virus was a “hoax” that would just go away on its own.
Instead, the speakers and the videos produced for Monday’s event spun Trump as someone who showed “quick action and leadership.” The claims were so egregious that MSNBC cut away and went to its Dr Vin Gupta, a pulmonologist at the University of Washington, who rejected the gaslighting.
“A lot of that was hard to listen to. And that was not as a partisan, but as a clinician,” Gupta said. “Number one, for many weeks in the last six months, Covid-19... was the number one cause of death for Americans. Last week, it was the second-leading cause of death for Americans.”
“So to say that 170,000 souls lost in our country up to now is success, by any measure, is fantasy,” he added. “It’s disrespectful to the families who have lost loved ones, to front-line clinicians who put their lives at risk. It’s fantasy. It’s propaganda.”


thehuffingtonpostuk--2020-08-25--5 Takeaways From The First Night Of The 2020 Republican National Convention

Here are four other takeaways from the convention’s first night:
Republicans Paint A Rosy Picture Of Trump’s Coronavirus Response
The GOP convention aired videos that heaped praise on Trump’s leadership and handling of the Covid-19 pandemic, saying the president’s “historic” actions “saved lives” despite the US leading the world with more than 5.7 million confirmed cases and over 177,000 deaths ― which went unmentioned on Monday.
But the videos, which essentially resembled campaign ads, omitted Trump’s repeated dismissals of the severity of the virus, how he said it would disappear, his praise of China’s handling of the disease, his push for states to reopen prematurely, his conjecture that injecting disinfectants could be a cure and his inaction as severe testing shortfalls persisted months into the crisis.
A Subtle Effort To Make Trump More Palatable To Voters
Public polls show Trump is currently badly lagging behind Biden with suburban voters ― especially women. That’s why some speeches at the GOP convention on Monday night sought to sand down some of the president’s roughest edges by presenting him in a more positive context.
“President Trump sometimes raises his voice ― and a ruckus. He knows that’s what it takes to raise an army of patriots who love America and will protect her,” Gaetz said at one point.
Retired NFL star Hershel Walker similarly defended Trump, whom he counted as a friend for 37 years.
“He leaves nothing on the field. Some people don’t like his style, the way he knocks down obstacles that get in the way of his goals,” Walker said. “People on opposing teams didn’t like it when I ran right over them either. But that’s how you get the job done.”
Walker also said he felt offended by people calling Trump a racist. “He works night and day” to improve the lives of African Americans,” Walker said.
Trump Gets Involved ― And Uses The White House As A Prop
The Republican National Convention aired two videos of Trump interacting with two separate groups ― essential workers and freed US hostages. The short vignettes were filmed at the White House and, while technically the Hatch Act does not apply to the president, the move does raise ethical questions about the role of taxpayer-funded property being used as a campaign prop.
In one of the videos, Trump was met with six Americans who were freed from captivity during his administration, including Andrew Brunson, a pastor who was arrested in Turkey.
“I have to say that, to me, President Erdogan was very good,” Trump told Brunson, who was held in captivity by the government of Recep Tayyip Erdogan.
Policy Takes A Backseat To Culture Wars
Very few speakers discussed actual policies on the first night of the convention. In fact, the party didn’t write a platform at all this year, preferring instead to endorse Trump’s second-term agenda, as soon as he figures it out.
The event was instead aimed at riling up conservatives with red meat ahead of the November election with speeches from activists and lesser-known voices in the party. As NBC’s Alex Seitz-Wald noted on Twitter, the traditional GOP establishment confab resembled the Conservative Political Action Conference, an annual gathering of conservative activists and far-right segments of the party.


thehuffingtonpostuk--2020-08-25--Do CBD Beauty And Skincare Products Really Work?

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Listen to our weekly podcast Am I Making You Uncomfortable? about women’s health, bodies and private lives. Available on Spotify, Apple, Audioboom and wherever you listen to your podcasts
Right around the time everyone from my parents to John Legend started suggesting CBD as a cure-all, my inbox filled with emails from beauty brands about how the same elixir people were ingesting to sleep better at night could be put into a cream to make my skin look better, too.
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CBD is short for cannabidiol, and it’s most often derived from hemp plants. Unlike its counterpart THC, it won’t get you high. Instead, it’s marketed as a non-psychoactive alternative that can, among many things, calm the mind.
The benefits of CBD when taken internally are fairly well studied ― in 2018, the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved the first cannabis-derived drug, Epidiolex, which uses CBD for the treatment of epilepsy. And anecdotally, the benefits of CBD could range from better sleep to reduced anxiety.
In skincare, CBD most often claims to be a calming ingredient, with oils, serums and creams touting it as a way to reduce redness and soothe skin. On its own, CBD doesn’t sell for cheap, with prices dependent on the formula and strength. And when added to skincare, that cost carries over.
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IrenaV via Getty Images CBD is added to a number of skincare products, including oils, serums and creams.
But while beauty brands are marketing their CBD-based skincare products as a useful addition to your beauty routine, there’s no clear research that proves these products are worth your money. Many of the current studies on CBD and skin are preclinical, meaning they’ve been tested on cells and animals as opposed to humans.
“I would be cautiously optimistic about adding CBD to a skincare routine,” said Michele Farber, a dermatologist at Schweiger Dermatology Group in New York. “Although there is definite evidence that CBD has beneficial effects, studies are preliminary and CBD typically is not the strongest option available.”
Jordan Wang, a dermatologist at Laser and Skin Surgery Center of New York, echoes Farber’s sentiment that more research is needed to understand CBD’s role in skincare. “Claims for anti-aging benefits deserve the most scrutiny, but consumers should know that current research is still exploring the benefits of CBD,” Wang said.
There is, however, potential. When applied topically, CBD “has been shown to reduce inflammation, aid in pain relief, improve hydration and reduce oil production,” Farber said. “The anti-inflammatory and oil-reducing effects make it potentially helpful for acne.”
CBD’s anti-inflammatory ability seems to be where the most promising application lies. All of the experts we spoke to specifically called out skin conditions like acne, eczema and psoriasis as potentially benefiting the most from CBD products.
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“Cannabinoids, like CBD, are heavily involved in managing the immune response to infection and injury,” said Adam Friedman, professor and interim chair of dermatology at George Washington University and science adviser for TruPotency.
He explained that our body’s endocannabinoid system regulates inflammation, and scientists have discovered that cannabinoids are an important factor in actually clearing up inflammation. This is a big deal because many current treatments simply block inflammation signals themselves or their receptor site. CBD can actually fix the underlying problem rather than just managing symptoms, whether it’s applied topically or ingested, he said.
CBD has potential for acne treatment because of another role it can play in regulating oil gland cells. “In a single-blinded, split-face study, 3% cannabis seed extract cream decreased skin sebum and erythema content, demonstrating a potential treatment for acne vulgaris and seborrhea,” Friedman said. In other words, when applied topically, CBD could calm down oily skin and therefore reduce the potential for clogged pores and breakouts.
With all this potential, there’s still a need to be cautious. The unregulated world of CBD means the efficacy of each individual product can vary depending on the source of ingredients, additives, manufacturing process and formulation strength.
“The cosmetic world has witnessed a rise in topical CBD products,” said Wang, who co-authored a paper on CBD trends. “A lot of this is the result of large marketing campaigns and the push toward more natural ingredients, which makes it difficult for consumers to separate hype from fact. Much about CBD is still unknown, but it certainly has the potential to be a major player in the skincare industry.”
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Even with the lack of studies available, CBD is relatively safe when applied topically. Farber warns that although skin irritation or an allergic reaction is possible, it’s more likely to occur due to another ingredient in the product rather than CBD itself.


thehuffingtonpostuk--2020-08-25--What Happens If I Don't Send My Child Back To School?

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Parents must return their children to school full-time in September – or risk being fined, the government states.
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Education Secretary Gavin Williamson told LBC it’s “compulsory” for children to return – unless there is a very good reason, or a local spike. “We have to get back into compulsory education, and fines sit alongside that,” he said.
A Department for Education spokesperson told HuffPost UK this is because regular and full-time attendance at school is “essential” to help pupils catch up on time out of the classroom during lockdown.
“In all our decision-making, we have balanced the need to continue to control transmission of Covid-19 with the real and ongoing cost to children’s learning, welfare and health from being out of school,” she said. “Schools should work with families to ensure children are attending full-time from September.”
If you’re unsure about sending your child back, here’s everything you need to know.
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Will I be fined for not sending my child back to school?
Under current regulations, schools must put their children’s names on the admissions register. If a pupil doesn’t attend school, they’re marked as absent. This absenteeism can be either authorised or unauthorised.
If unauthorised by the school, the absence can be referred to the local authority who can issue a fine of £60, rising to £120 if not paid within 21 days. This fine was waived during the peak of the pandemic, but will be reinstated from September.
Could I challenge a fine on appeal?
If a fine is issued, there’s no right to appeal. If you don’t pay, the local authority can proceed to prosecution through the courts or withdraw the notice. However, Karen Holden, founder of A City Law Firm, told HuffPost UK that while parents could face fines for keeping their kids off school, it’s “unlikely” there will be an all-encompassing, strict approach. “The issue of local lockdowns and quarantining will probably play a part in the decision making,” she said.
“Fines are certainly possible, but it’s likely that an open dialogue with schools and the local authority will become the first point of call in order to build trust with families before hastening to fines.”
What if I just keep my child away from school, anyway?
Schools are required to inform the local authority of any child who is regularly absent from school. Together, they can use several legal powers to enforce attendance. These include: a fine, an Education Supervision Order (a supervisor will be appointed to help you get your child into education); a Parenting Order (this means you have to go to parenting classes); or a School Attendance Order (you have 15 days to provide evidence your child is receiving education).
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You could be given one or more of these, but the council doesn’t have to do this before prosecuting you.
What if I’m too anxious to send my kids back?
The guidelines state schools should bear in mind the concerns of families who are anxious about returning – and put the right support in place to address those concerns. If you’re worried about the return, book in an appointment with the headteacher to see what measures the school is putting in place.
However, the government’s stance is that it is parents’ “duty” to ensure those of compulsory school age are in school – unless a statutory reason applies.
What statutory exceptions are there?
Statutory exceptions include when a pupil has been granted a leave of absence; is unable to attend because of sickness; or is absent for a necessary religious observance. They can also include when they’re being educated off-site, when there is a medical appointment or when the child has been formally excluded.
What if my family is high-risk?
If your family is considered vulnerable, or high-risk, you should discuss your concerns with the school. This may include: pupils who have been shielding, but have been advised this is no longer necessary; those living in households where someone is vulnerable; or those concerned about the increased risk from Covid-19, including those from Black, Asian and minority ethnic backgrounds, or conditions such as obesity and diabetes.
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Schools should provide reassurance of the measures they are putting in place to reduce the risk of transmission.
What if I’m shielding?
Current advice states even if you’ve been deemed clinically extremely vulnerable, you do not need to shield at the moment because the rates of transmission of coronavirus have fallen significantly.
What if my child is self-isolating?


thehuffingtonpostuk--2020-08-25--Here's How Being Polyamorous Prepared Me For Parenting

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In my early 20s, I was passionate about polyamory, or “the practice of having multiple intimate relationships, whether sexual or just romantic, with the full knowledge and consent of all parties involved,” as Psychology Today puts it. There were times I had one “primary” partner and other more casual, “secondary” relationships. I was in a triad relationship where the three of us went on dates together and slept in the same bed. There was a year during which I maintained three serious relationships at once, where all people involved knew about each other, and two of them were also dating each other. It was like a self-studied master’s course in human dynamics.
At the time, it was the most liberating lifestyle I could imagine. But five years later, after navigating my fair share of dramatic break ups and having a time-intensive, full-time job, I found monogamy to be the approach to my romantic, sexual and family life that worked and felt best for me.
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I am now in a committed, monogamous relationship and a full-time parent with a ten-year-old daughter, 2 1/2-year-old son, and another baby on the way. Even though I am no longer practicing polyamory, I look back happily at that part of my life, and, what’s more, I’ve come to realise that being polyamorous actually prepared me to successfully be a parent.
Here’s what it taught me.
How to balance (and schedule) multiple people’s needs at a time
Being polyamorous taught me how to navigate the complex web of needs of multiple romantic partners. My partners and I spent countless hours discussing what we wanted ― more one-on-one time, a sleepover once a week, etc. ― and how to make it happen within the confines of our schedules.
Everything went smoother when we were clear with what we needed for our relationships to thrive.
In my family now, I have conversations with my partner and ten-year-old daughter that are similar to those I had with my romantic partners a decade ago. We’ve learned that my daughter needs a daily routine to feel calm and grounded, so we write her a list beginning with “brush your teeth” and ending with “get in bed.” My partner, the free spirit, appreciates having one full day per week when we don’t have anything scheduled so that we can do whatever we want as a family (and, ironically, we plan when that day will be). Our toddler needs to play outside every day or else it’s impossible to put him to sleep. And I need regular alone time to maintain my sanity.
The process of distilling our needs into practical, schedule-able pieces helps each person get what they need, and overall increases our family harmony.
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How to be in touch with my own feelings and prioritise them
Growing up, I — like many people who are socialised as female in our society — didn’t learn how to express and prioritise what I needed. I defaulted to making everybody around me happy first, then attending to my needs when everyone else’s were taken care of. Through practicing polyamory, it quickly became clear that that was not a workable way to exist in mutual relationships. If I wasn’t clear about my own boundaries around, say, safe-sex practices, all of my relationships suffered the consequences. Through trial and error, I developed the self-assuredness necessary to articulate what I felt and what I wanted.
I don’t want to be the kind of mother who sacrifices herself for her kids. I want my children to learn to value and express their own feelings and needs. I believe that modelling prioritising myself is the best way to do that.
When I feel overwhelmed or exasperated with motherhood (especially during the parenting-intensive experience that is living through a pandemic), I take care of myself. I turn on the TV for the kids so that they’ll leave me alone for 30 minutes so I can write my frustrations down in my journal or take a hot Epsom salt bath. I’ll ask my partner to step in so I can go on a walk through redwood trees, or call my best friend who is always open to hearing me kvetch about something.
I’ve learned that my primary relationship is with myself ― when I am taken care of, I can take care of others, and everyone in my family benefits.
It’s okay to have different feelings for different people
It’s not possible to feel exactly the same way about different people. While in many cases, I loved and valued my partners to an equal degree, the quality of our connections and what I appreciated about each relationship varied immensely. With one partner I loved to go out dancing until 2am, and she always knew how to make me laugh. With another, my favourite thing to do was drink tea and read poetry.
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I feel differently about my ten-year-old daughter, whom I met when she was five, than I do about my 2 1/2-year-old son, whom I’ve known since he was conceived. It’s not that I love him more — it’s just a different relationship. My son wants to cuddle with me all night and enthusiastically jumps into my arms after only an hour apart. My daughter wants to do science experiments and explain the complexities of the Harry Potter series to me.
There have been times that I’ve felt concerned about the different quality of connection I feel with each of my children, and mourned the loss of those first cuddly, oxytocin-rich years with my daughter. But I also know that our unique relationship has strengths that help me understand her and who she is becoming now, with fewer ties to the younger self she is growing out of. When we don’t expect to feel the exact same qualities of love and connection with our kids, we are free to see them as unique individuals and allow the authenticity of each relationship to thrive.
How to communicate effectively
Knowing how you feel is not always enough. During my years of polyamory, I practiced the art of communication with studious rigour. Healthy communication is not monolithic. Each of us carries traumas and stories from our past, and we often filter our experience through our baggage. For some, saying “I need a little space” feels like a clearly stated need. For others, it feels like a heartbreaking rejection.
Learning about my different partners’ expectations for communication helped me practice how to get my needs and emotions across without tripping over trigger words and falling into quagmires of misunderstanding.
The same skills apply to my relationships with my partner and children. They are all different people with varied ways of taking in information. I am learning to use measured, clear tones with my daughter that will help her keep her nervous system calm and won’t make her feel like I am criticising her. I am learning to talk to my son in simple toddler language, and how to communicate with my partner in ways that remind us that we are romantic partners and lovers, not just co-parents.
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Jealousy is an onion
While navigating various relationships at the same time, I learned that jealousy is a many-layered emotion. In order to understand our own feelings of jealousy, we must peel off the tear-provoking layers and examine what’s underneath. For me, often, the first layer under a heart-piercing feeling of jealousy was an unmet need for time or intimacy with a partner, and their connection with someone else was exacerbating my pain of wanting. Often under that feeling of unmet need was some deep-seated insecurity that dated back to my childhood and had nothing whatsoever to do with the present moment.
Understanding jealousy as an onion is enormously helpful in navigating sibling dynamics. I recognise that when my daughter gets jealous of the attention we give to our toddler that it’s not about him or about us as parents. I try to help her peel off the layers of the onion so we can get to the core of her pain and work to heal what’s motivating her feelings of jealousy in the first place.
The need to understand oppression dynamics
Race, class and gender dynamics matter. They affect each of us and have profound effects on our relationships. In my experience, relationships don’t work well in the long run if we make oppression dynamics invisible. In my polyamory days, my partners and I practiced acknowledging each other’s intersectional identities and tried our best to always keep these power dynamics top of mind.
As a white mother to Chicano children, I am constantly trying not to let racist ideas I absorbed from growing up in our society negatively impact my partner and children. I also try to remember that as a parent, I am in a position of power over my children. While it is often appropriate that I make decisions for them, it can also be oppressive (and infuriating to my increasingly independent tween). We acknowledge these disparate power dynamics in my family and always aim to proceed with justice and compassion.
How to navigate different love languages
Dr. Gary Chapman wrote a book called The 5 Love Languages which describes five fundamental ways that people in Western societies give and receive love. These love languages include: words of affirmation, acts of service, receiving gifts, quality time and physical touch. While there are many variations and nuances to how we love, I’ve found this framework profoundly helpful in both polyamory and parenting.
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I love words of affirmation. The card my partner wrote me for our third anniversary is one of my most precious possessions, and when we argue, I read it and it reminds me how much we love each other. Knowing how I most easily receive love helps me stay grounded in my connection to her.
I’ve learned that my daughter needs regular one-on-one attention to feel connected. So we schedule 10 minutes a day where she can have focused time with each of us and her brother won’t come in and distract us. When one of us cuddles our toddler for 10 minutes after he wakes up, he then feels ready to peacefully engage with all of us. When we keep these love languages top of mind, the kids get more of what they need, the family dynamic becomes more peaceful, and we parents have a little more room to breathe.
Navigating multiple relationships is like trying to complete an infinite puzzle where all of the pieces are constantly moving. In polyamory and in parenting, people grow, needs change, and relationships continually evolve. This is especially true for children, who grow physically and emotionally at super-speed. Humans are not static beings ― and I love us for it. I used to think polyamory was the greatest adventure in intimacy. Now I understand that it was, for me, a training ground for the 24-7, full-contact sport of parenting.
We speak to our ten-year-old about different relationship dynamics including polyamory. With two mothers and a sperm donor, she already knows that families look all kinds of ways. When my kids are ready, I will encourage them to explore whatever kinds of relationships they are called to. My only goal for them is that they engage in conscious, equitable and kind relationships ― romantic and otherwise ― throughout the rest of their lives.
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Marea Goodman is a writer, midwife and mother of two. This article first appeared on HuffPost Personal.


thehuffingtonpostuk--2020-08-25--7 Women Reveal Why They Cheated On A Partner: 'It Felt So Freeing'

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Listen to our weekly podcast Am I Making You Uncomfortable? about women’s health, bodies and private lives. Available on Spotify, Apple, Audioboom and wherever you listen to your podcasts.
Women are increasingly cheating on their partners – or we’re becoming more likely to admit it. Since 1990, the amount of married women who admit to cheating has risen by 40%, according to researcher and psychoanalyst Esther Perel, author of The State of Affairs: Rethinking Infidelity. Meanwhile, the number of married men who report cheating is largely unchanged.
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A 2015 survey by YouGov backs this up, reflecting that the cheating gap has more or less closed. It found that the number of men and women who have had an affair is almost the same (20% and 19%).
In an episode of Am I Making You Uncomfortable?, HuffPost UK’s weekly podcast on women’s health, bodies and private lives, we look at the stories behind the stats.
We wanted to find out why women are cheating – not to put women on trial, or to excuse cheating, but to investigate how our attitudes to sex and relationships may have changed over time.
We speak to therapist Miranda Christophers about what she hears from clients who’ve cheated, plus chat to Tolani Shoneye and Audrey Indome, from The Receipts Podcast, to get their take on the topic.
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In the episode, Audrey shares her own experience of cheating on a former partner and we also hear from listeners about their experiences of infidelity. Here are just seven of their stories.
Richard Drury via Getty Images
‘Cheating doesn’t hurt everyone’
“I used to think people who cheated were appalling human beings. Now I do it.
“My life is great and my long term partner and three children adore me and I adore them. The problem is that I am not truly happy and want other people. I feel trapped and have spoken to my partner about it all, but he doesn’t want me to leave and freaks out and gets really, really upset. It kills me.
“I spent years questioning my feelings and have been batting away attention from other men for so long. One day it dawned on me, my emotions won’t stop, so what is the point? Just do it.
“I’ve engaged in two emotional affairs recently and kissed them but never slept with anyone. I might in future. I don’t feel bad, most of the time, which is surprising as I thought I would.
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“Here is my dilemma: Do I leave and utterly destroy my partner’s world and that of my children and wider family for passion and a deep connection I can’t get at home? Or do I stay like a beautiful doll trapped in a beautiful world, and at the same time hide a secret? The latter doesn’t hurt everyone.” - Anonymous
‘It was a last ditch effort to get a reaction’
“I cheated on my boyfriend of four years when I knew the relationship was headed down the drain. It was a last ditch effort to get a reaction out of him and see if he cared. He didn’t, so that gave me my answer.
“I was also in a lot of denial about the end of our relationship and terrified of the prospect of being single again, mostly because I’d been out of the game for so long and felt completely disconnected from the single life. I think I wanted to prove to myself that the dating world was still out there and it was still available to me and that there were men who would want me.
“I don’t recommend cheating as a way to find those things out, because it is messy and even if the other person acts like they don’t care, it’ll still affect them in some way, be it their ability to trust or their feelings about themselves. Just the act of doing it erases any justification you had for doing it, because you’re the bad guy by default. The cheater is always the dick in the end. But it did make me see cheating in a different way. That cheaters are not immediately evil, and it’s worth exploring someone’s motive for doing it. Even if it’s still a shit thing to do, being able to understand why someone did it is crucial to being able to forgive them and forgive yourself, and you can’t hope to move on or heal if you don’t understand that.” – Anonymous, 26, Manchester
‘It just felt so freeing’
“I think one of the reasons that I cheated is because I wanted to feel seen, I wanted to feel desirable. I’ve been married to my partner for two years, but we’ve been together for about nine. They’re really high achieving, they’re really accomplished. And so oftentimes, when we meet people or are hanging out with friends, it feels like it’s all about them and all the great things that they’re doing. It often felt like I fell into the shadows or I really assumed this role where people just saw me as, ‘Oh, that person’s wife.’
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“I think over time it just took a toll and so when I went on a holiday with one of my friends, it was just really nice to be seen as just me. I know that it was really selfish, but at the time it just felt so freeing and so I didn’t really think about what the ramifications would be.
“Also, I’m in a same-sex relationship and up until that point I hadn’t really been with a man before and that was really something I was curious about, so when the opportunity came about I went for it.
“It showed me there was a lot of insecurity and self-doubt I needed to deal with on my own. It was beneficial, because it really helped me see how unhappy I was with myself and that was impacting the relationship that I had with my partner.” – Anonymous, 28, London
‘I thought we were broken up’
“Years ago, I cheated on my now ex-boyfriend. We had been having some problems for a while, and during a work party one night we had a big fight. I thought we were broken up, and heartbroken went back into the club where my colleagues cheered me up with booze. My boss and I had been flirting for months, and a lot of alcohol and the sadness of the fight with my boyfriend ended up with me in my boss’s bed.
“The day after, my boyfriend called me and apologised, and said he wanted to work on us. Because we were technically broken up – albeit for less than 24 hours – I never told him about what happened.
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“We broke up about a year later, but we are still friends now. I will never tell him.” - Anonymous, 31, London
‘I love sex and he doesn’t’
“I’m turning 44 at the end of the month and a week ago today I cheated on my husband. We’ve been together 16 years.
“He’s perfect in every way apart from our sex life is non-existent. He’s never been into sex. I love sex and he doesn’t. I ignored his lack of interest because he was everything I wanted in a husband. We have two children. From the outside we look like the perfect family. He’s getting his needs met while I stay home with the kids bored, frustrated and lonely.
“I’ve always been outgoing and fun and I somehow lost my way over the years. I want the fun, sexy me back. I met someone online and agreed to meet him. The sex was amazing. I don’t regret it. Not one bit. I came back and spoke to my husband about how frustrated I am.
“We’ll stay together – for the moment, anyway. I love him, but I’m not in love with him. If I didn’t have my children I’d leave, but I know they would be devastated.” – Anonymous, 43, West Yorkshire
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“I was on a wedding juggernaut.”
“I cheated aged 31. Three months before my wedding, I started an affair.
“I felt like I was on a wedding juggernaut which I couldn’t stop, and wondered if what I had with my intended husband was ‘it’. He was very nice and kind, but not exciting or challenging. There was no passion. But I didn’t want to be alone and felt the weight of expectation with all the wedding invites out.
“The wedding was in July and in the April, I went to a meeting and sat next to someone I fell for instantly. A month later the affair began. He was everything my fiance wasn’t. I still got married, but I left my husband after nine months for the other man. We’re still together with two kids.” – Anonymous, 37, London
“I didn’t actually want to be in a relationship.”
“I cheated on my boyfriends when I was younger because I didn’t actually want to be in a relationship, I actually wanted to just have sex. But this was between 2005-2010, when there was a perfect mix of society’s expectation that women can only enjoy sex within a relationship, and my own young age and inability to identify that I didn’t want a relationship, I just wanted sex.
“The happy ending is that I finally realised this, let myself enjoy having various sexual partners for a bit before I made the conscious and deliberate decision to be in a real relationship. I do feel bad that I hurt my ex-boyfriends, but I try to not be too hard on myself.” – Anonymous, 35, Greater Amsterdam