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The decision comes as India emerges as the world’s largest GCC market.

If you doubted his genius, doubt no more.

In a 99-1 vote Wednesday night, food and beverage workers staffing Los Angeles’ SoFi Stadium for the FIFA Men’s World Cup ratified an agreement that includes better wages and protections around immigration enforcement—a high-profile labor victory after months of dispute over poor pay and work without a contract amid huge employer revenues.

The workers include cooks, dishwashers, concession workers, bartenders, and servers at SoFi, which will host eight soccer matches in the coming weeks, and whose operator had previously ceased negotiations after multiple bargaining sessions failed to reach an agreement. After threatening a strike, the union workers won, among other things, contractual guarantees that allow them to walk off the job if federal immigration enforcement threatens worker safety during a match.

In an interview with The Athletic last week, Kurt Petersen, the president of the union representing the food and beverage workers, UNITE HERE Local 11, said the stadium operator was “not taking the concerns and demands seriously enough.”

But on Wednesday, workers ratified an agreement that the union said “won every major issue” it had brought to the table, including raises of at least 30 percent, a housing fund, job protections, AI and automation restrictions, privacy rights around personal data, and walkout rights in the event of ICE raids or similar federal action.

2,000 food and beverage workers at SoFi Stadium reached tentative agreement with Legends Hospitality last night, just days before FIFA World Cup begins. Workers will ratify this week, after which we’ll release more details.

— UNITE HERE Local 11 (@unitehere11) June 9, 2026

“This contract proves what workers can accomplish when we stand together,” Susana Lahargue, a union member, said in a statement. “We are proud to welcome fans knowing that workers have secured a contract that respects our work and our dignity.”

The union announced last week that the workers it represents had voted 96 percent in favor of authorizing a strike with just days to go until the first World Cup match—giving their employer every incentive to come back to the table.

As I wrote last week, Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin said that “every single” federal law enforcement agency would be on site at the soccer tournament: “If we have people coming in that’s on the terrorist watchlist, we’re going to collapse on them. That’s not going to [just] be ICE, that could be state police that collapse on them. We’re all working together.”

Additionally, FIFA, the international governing body of soccer, is enforcing an accreditation process that involves collecting stadium workers’ personal data and sharing it with the Department of Homeland Security prior to the World Cup.

“We are seriously concerned that FIFA will hand over our most sensitive personal information and waive our rights under California law, or lose our job working the World Cup,” Yolanda Fierro, a stadium worker and union member, said in a May statement. “We cannot celebrate the World Cup while workers, tourists, immigrant families, and local communities are made to feel unsafe.”

Union members also raised concerns about the enormous revenues their employer, Legends Global, a worldwide venue management company, would earn from the World Cup, including from individual luxury suite packages worth more than $100,000. According to the union, workers—despite the high-pressure environment of the tournament and the immigration risks—aren’t seeing anything like a fair share: “Legends Global’s most recent proposal includes wage freezes for some suite attendants and bartenders and 25 cents-an-hour annual increases for cooks and dishwashers,” the local wrote.

Despite a tournament already marked by abuses of power— including the Trump administration’s denial of visas to national team players, staff, and match officials—roughly 2,000 food and beverage workers have scored the first goal.

There’s little doubt that Republicans have won the redistricting war started by Donald Trump, thanks in large part to favorable decisions from GOP-appointed judges on the US Supreme Court and state supreme courts.

Since last year, Republicans have drawn 16 new US House districts favoring their party, while Democrats have only been able to draw 6. That means, as a result of redistricting alone, Republicans have a 10-seat advantage heading into November. Obviously, that could make it significantly harder for Democrats to take back the House, despite Trump’s record-low approval ratings.

But even against these odds, Democrats could still come out ahead in the redistricting wars by 2028. According to an analysis by election experts Stephen Wolf and David Nir at The Downballot, over the next two years, Democrats could draw 21 new blue districts in 9 states with their own redistricting maps. Specifically, they could pick up four seats in New York, four in Virginia, three in Colorado, three in Wisconsin, two in Minnesota, two in New Jersey, and one each in Illinois, Maryland, and Oregon. 

Many Democratic states were unable to draw new maps in time for the 2026 midterms because of constraints in their state constitutions. But over the next two years, Democrats should be more able and willing to fight back against Trump’s election rigging. The Supreme Court’s destruction of the Voting Rights Act makes this battle more urgent.

Yes, gerrymandering is bad for democracy. But to level the playing field, Democrats will have to fight fire with fire and maximize their power everywhere they can. 

Watch our new explainer to learn more.

What do you think is the most important issue facing America right now? Inflation? Rising gas prices? An out-of-control war? Nah. It’s that we don’t have a giant “triumphal” arch devoted to the eternal glory of President Donald Trump. So Trump is determined to fix that for us all, thank goodness. Per the National Park Service, crews are going to work on the arch 20…

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Multiple reports indicate that Chinese operatives continue using every tech tool at their disposal – including American AI – to amass data on and manipulate everyone from security-clearance holders to everyday US citizens. And they’re trying to influence public opinion on building datacenters for AI, albeit without success so far. One of these reports found a “significant resurgence” of a botnet linked to Chinese government-backed goons, including Volt Typhoon, which previously used a covert network of connected devices to burrow deep into critical US networks and preposition for future destructive attacks. In January 2024, the FBI said it killed Volt’s KV-botnet, comprised of hundreds of end-of-life routers and other internet-connected devices. At the time, KV-botnet consisted of four clusters, with the KV cluster primarily being used as a covert data transfer network, and the JDY cluster used for scanning and reconnaissance. In a Wednesday report, Lumen’s Black Lotus Labs said that while the KV cluster became largely defunct after the law enforcement takedown, the JDY cluster remains an active threat, and has since surged to more than 1,500 compromised routers and IoT devices. “Analysis of this activity shows a clear focus on identifying vulnerable infrastructure shortly after public vulnerability disclosures, suggesting that reconnaissance output is rapidly operationalized by China-nexus advanced persistent threat (APT) actors,” the threat intel team wrote. “This targeted focus has been observed across a range of sectors, with the US military and associated entities as the most prominent.” While the botnet resurgence poses the most pressing threat, and the security shop recommends all enterprises implement CISA and NCSC guidance for mitigating Volt Typhoon activity and defending against China-nexus covert networks of compromised devices, another report indicates that China’s attempts at influence operations haven’t died down, either. Using American AI for covert ops about … American AI OpenAI in a Wednesday report said it banned ChatGPT accounts likely originating from China after they used the American AI company’s models to generate content for covert operations about – wait for it – American AI. While neither of the two clusters seemed to have much success in sowing chaos or swaying opinions, the fact that they tried at all is significant, according to Ben Nimmo, principal investigator on OpenAI’s Intelligence and Investigations team. “Neither campaign appears to have gained much authentic engagement,” Nimmo told reporters. “They're important for what they reveal about the intentions of influence operators from China and the narratives they're testing and seeking to amplify.” The first cluster used ChatGPT to generate social media content and images for an operation claiming datacenters and AI applications are increasing electricity demand and causing higher costs for ordinary Americans. “For example, they asked for comic strips about a power grid operator’s capacity auction prices based on reporting from a legitimate regional paper,” the report says. “They asked ChatGPT to focus the comments on rising capacity prices as a consequence of peak electricity demand, framing the new demand as coming from data centers and AI applications and argued that these costs were ultimately passed to ordinary households.” The operators then posted these comments and images on X, likely using fake accounts, with links to real news stories about datacenters. OpenAI suspects the operators are part of a social-media team at a private Chinese tech company that provides services for Chinese provincial-level government clients. “This was not a case of an influence operation creating a debate,” Nimmo said. “The debate existed already. This was an influence operation from China trying to interfere in it. We didn't see any signs that they succeeded.” The second cluster of banned ChatGPT accounts also likely originated in China and used OpenAI’s models to write comments and draw political cartoons criticizing US tech policies and tariffs. “Interestingly, the operators specified in their prompts that the content should not include cartoons of Xi Jinping in the output and should only include President Trump,” Nimmo said. These accounts, all writing prompts in simplified Chinese and using VPNs to access the AI systems, also used ChatGPT to edit work reports and help design social media monitoring systems. “This isn't the first time that we've seen actors in China trying to come up with ideas for social media monitoring,” Nimmo said. In February, OpenAI said it banned ChatGPT accounts believed to be linked to Chinese government entities attempting to use AI models to surveil individuals and social media accounts. If AI doesn't work, bribery might? If Chinese agents can’t use AI systems to unearth sensitive information, there are always fake websites and job offers promising cash for state secrets. We’ve seen Beijing-linked government snoops use these tactics in the past, and according to the US Justice Department, they’re still using this scam (because it works). On Wednesday, the feds said they obtained a warrant for and seized 13 fake consulting company websites used to target US persons, including current and former security clearance holders with access to classified and sensitive government information. The domains include centrikglobalconsulting.com, rightinfoconsult.com, finnaclevesperconsulting.com, cydfconsulting.com, pulsewaveglobal.com, catalystglobalsolutions.com, thehorizzen.com, geoindopacific.com, gpf-ina.org, safesec-group.com, thetruthinfo.com, Vandercons.com, and gulfpeace.org. Since November 2023, these websites and associated job postings on social media, LinkedIn, and other hiring platforms advertised “consulting” jobs, including “Senior Analyst” and “International Affairs Consultant” positions. Suspected PRC operatives used the sites and job listings to recruit applicants and bribe them for sensitive information, DOJ alleges. “The conspirators have encouraged applicants and recruits to share confidential and sensitive information in violation of their official duties and of particular interest to the People's Republic of China (PRC) government,” according to the court documents. “The recruiters pressured candidates to share confidential information and reports from ‘insider sources' in violation of their official duties.” The court documents allege the conspirators then paid the recruits for these reports using online accounts in the names of fictitious individuals, and cryptocurrency to hide their identities and the source of the payments. ®

A daily roundup of the best stories and cartoons by Daily Kos staff and contributors to keep you in the know. What do inflation and Iran have in common? Trump screwing up. When you’re the president and everything’s on fire, maybe you’re the problem … Nancy Mace’s political career goes down the toilet Finally something to celebrate! Republicans can’t get on the same page…

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A cartoon by Mike Luckovich. Related | Trump wants his face on new currency most Americans can’t even afford…

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⚡ Quick Take

• 24 Jump Street, a third installment in the 21 Jump Street franchise, is in the works.
• Original cast members Channing Tatum, Jonah Hill, and Ice Cube in talks to return.

It’s been 12 years since 22 Jump Street, the sequel to the surprise hit 21 Jump Street. Although the second installment was a hit, a third movie in the franchise never came to be. But according to Variety, the long-awaited third film is officially in the works, with stars Jonah Hill, Channing Tatum, and Ice Cube in talks to return. Rodney Rothman (Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse) will direct, from a script he wrote with Hill and Meghan Malloy. 21 Jump Street directors Phil Lord and Chris Miller return, but only as producers this time. We suppose it’s been so long, they skipped 23 Jump Street and went straight to 24, just to make a joke about how long it’s been.

Sony Pictures

The original film, a comedic reboot/spoof of the ’80s teen action drama TV series, saw Hill and Tatum playing Schmidt and Jenko, a couple of slacker cops who go undercover at a local high school to take down a drug ring. The sequel takes the same premise, only this time, in a college setting. We’re not sure where the duo can go undercover now. Unless they do the reverse, and Schmidt and Jenko go undercover in a nursing home pretending to be much older. The post-credits of 22 Jump Street joked about a sequel taking them to culinary school, a medical school, etc.

There were actual plans for a 23 Jump Street at one point. This was actually meant to crossover with Sony’s Men in Black franchise. However, after Men in Black International flopped, those plans fizzled out. Which was probably for the best. There’s no actual production start date for 24 Jump Street yet, much less an actual release date. Hopefully, after a wait of a dozen years, this third installment does not disappoint fans. Here’s hoping Jonah Hill and Channing Tatum can deliver comedy gold once again.

The post 24 JUMP STREET Officially in the Works with Original Stars appeared first on Nerdist.

AI companies have touted context retention (memory) and the availability of personal details (personalization) as mechanisms for improving AI model interaction. Both have value to help keep models from losing the thread of a conversation. But they raise the potential for sycophancy, where models will say what they predict you want to hear, which may not be the most accurate response. Researchers at Writer, an enterprise AI vendor, have conducted two studies of model memory and personalization that show these capabilities increase sycophancy for enterprise AI tasks. The Price of Agreement looks at agentic financial applications. And Recalling Too Well explores how model memory amplifies sycophancy with regard to scientific, medical, and moral reasoning. The papers' authors argue that preference-induced sycophancy is particularly problematic when AI answers are being applied to consequential problems. "In high-stakes domains like finance and healthcare, a model that silently defers to a user’s prior assumptions rather than acknowledging or correcting them poses a significant reliability and trustworthiness risk," the Writer team explains. For the first paper, the research team tested eight frontier models – GPT-5-Nano, GPT-5.2, Claude-Sonnet-4.5, Claude-Opus-4.5, Gemini-3-Pro, GLM-4.7, Kimi-k2-thinking, and DeepSeek-V3.2 – on two financial benchmarks, FinanceBench and FinanceAgent. The former evaluates agentic data extraction and reasoning using 10-K and 10-Q filings. The latter is a more comprehensive challenge designed to test real finance workflows, including ERP data retrieval and financial analysis involving multiple entities. The researchers' method involved applying synthetically generated preference information – such as a financial analyst's personal profile or a workspace note that contradicts the benchmark reference answer – to the benchmark questions. They undertook three different approaches. The first involved the user rebutting the model's answer; the second involved a user proposing an alternative answer; and the third involved adversarially injecting personal or contextual information into the prompt or making it available through a tool call. The third approach often resulted in greater sycophancy. As noted in The Price of Agreement paper, "Most models demonstrate significantly stronger sycophancy when the bias information is presented as implicit personalization of the user. No model displayed robustness against such behavior." Open-source models tended to be more sycophantic across the board. Models from OpenAI meanwhile tended to resist direct sycophancy inducers (such as when the user included personal biases in a prompt). And Anthropic models tended to resist implicit sycophancy inducers (such as when it pulled in a profile of the user that incorporated biases seen in previous interactions). The second paper involves an assessment of three memory systems (Mem0, MemOS, and Zep) and five model families (GPT-5.2, Sonnet 4.6, Qwen 3.5, Kimi K2.5, and MiniMax 2.5). The authors conclude, "memory amplifies sycophantic behavior across all conditions, with up to 25x higher sycophancy rates than in-context baselines." The reason for this, the authors claim, is that the lossy compression used to store conversation data in memory preserves user misconceptions while tossing clarifying context. The researchers suggest two mitigation strategies that reduce sycophancy. One involves assistant role inclusion (capturing AI assistant interactions alongside user interactions) and the other involves summarization of contextual information before it gets committed to memory. They argue that those deploying AI need to assess whether models acknowledge interaction conflicts, and that those working on AI memory systems need to check what's being extracted and injected back into the model context as a defense against sycophancy. ®

Senate Republicans on Wednesday begged their donors for money to try to save Maine Sen. Susan Collins, saying that newly minted Democratic nominee Graham Platner is a threat and that Collins will go down without GOP donors’ monetary support. The National Republican Senatorial Committee issued a memo saying that despite Graham’s flaws, he is the favorite in the race as Democratic voters know…

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A former xAI engineer is suing the company and SpaceX, alleging he was fired for raising AI safety concerns about Grok days before SpaceX's historic IPO.

Andrew Yang’s 2020 presidential campaign was based on a warning that automation and AI would hollow out the labor market and concentrate wealth in the hands of a few. At the time, ideas like Universal Basic Income felt fringe. Now Dario Amodei, Sam Altman, and Bernie Sanders are all saying versions of the same thing.  An entrepreneur at heart, […]

What began as a gathering rooted in local food, fine wine and shared purpose has grown into one of Community Bridges’ signature traditions: an evening where generosity becomes nourishment, care and connection for thousands of neighbors.

On Saturday, June 27, 2026, Community Bridges will host the 11th Annual Farm to Fork Gala from 5 to 9 p.m. at Seascape Golf Club, 610 Clubhouse Drive in Aptos. The evening will bring together supporters, partners and community champions for seasonal cuisine, fine regional wines, live and silent auctions, and exclusive experiences in a beautiful coastal setting.

This year’s theme — celebrating local food, wine and community impact — reflects what Farm to Fork has always made possible: a joyful gathering with a serious purpose. Every ticket, sponsorship, donation and auction bid helps sustain Community Bridges’ network of 10 programs serving children, families and seniors across the Central Coast.

A community safety net in a changing moment

For nearly 50 years, Community Bridges has delivered essential services, expanded equitable access to resources, and advocated for health and dignity across every stage of life. Since 1977, the organization has grown into a family of 10 vital programs across more than 20 sites, providing local residents with access to transportation, healthy food, health care, senior adult day health care, crisis support, case management, early education, tutoring and family education.

That work has never been more important.

H.R. 1 is already reshaping the public benefits that many local families, older adults and people with disabilities rely on. CalFresh recipients may receive less money for food, more people will need to meet work or community engagement requirements, many lawfully present immigrants are losing eligibility, and California will need to pay more to administer the program and cover some benefits.

The impacts are also unfolding in Medi-Cal, where changes to eligibility rules, renewal timelines and enrollment processes could create new barriers for people who depend on health coverage and community-based care.

For Community Bridges, these changes are not abstract. They show up when a family is unsure whether they still qualify for food assistance. They show up when an older adult risks losing coverage because of paperwork or renewal changes. They show up when caregivers, seniors and people with disabilities need trusted help navigating a system that is becoming harder to understand.

Community Bridges meets that moment with compassion, integrity and support, helping neighbors access food, health care navigation, transportation, crisis support and the services they need to remain stable.

Seniors are feeling the pressure

The growing need is especially visible among older adults.

Santa Cruz County is already home to more than 72,000 residents over age 59, representing 26% of the total population, and that share is expected to grow to nearly 30% by 2030. County leaders have also identified significant challenges around health care access, caregiver stress, loneliness, housing affordability, transportation and emergency preparedness for older residents.

That need is especially urgent at Elderday Adult Day Health Care, which helps older adults and people with disabilities remain safe, supported and connected while continuing to live at home. Elderday provides coordinated care for adults with complex medical conditions through nurses, therapists, dietitians, social workers, transportation, personalized meals and daily activities. The program also gives family caregivers critical respite, helping loved ones stay at home with greater stability and dignity.

At a time when H.R. 1 is changing Medi-Cal eligibility and renewal rules — and adding broader federal pressure to Medicare reimbursement policy — community support for Elderday is vital. Any disruption in eligibility, coverage continuity, reimbursement or administrative requirements can directly affect the care that seniors, adults with disabilities and family caregivers rely on every day.

Meals on Wheels for Santa Cruz County strengthens this continuum of care by helping older adults stay nourished, connected and independent through home-delivered meals, dining sites and wellness checks for isolated seniors. The program serves adults 60 and older who are homebound and struggle to meet their nutritional needs, while drivers check in on isolated elders and connect them to other services when needed. Due to funding cuts at all levels, Meals on Wheels began screening for eligibility as of April 1, 2025, to prioritize limited resources for seniors most in need.

Together, Elderday, Meals on Wheels and Lift Line — the Community Bridges Seniors & Transportation Division — form a local safety net that helps older adults stay healthy, nourished, and connected. Last, Community Bridges recorded 14,419 days of elder care, 207,021 senior meals served, 178,815 home-delivered meals and 109,489 door-to-door rides.

Farm to Fork gives the community a direct way to protect these essential programs at a moment when older adults and caregivers need them most.

A community response to a community challenge

The need for local, compassionate support is growing, as community-based organizations are being asked to do more with less certainty around public funding.

That is why Farm to Fork matters.

Every ticket, sponsorship, donation and auction bid helps Community Bridges continue showing up for neighbors who are navigating uncertainty, rising costs and changing public benefits. The evening celebrates the growers, donors, volunteers, businesses, advocates and community champions who believe that no child, family or older adult should have to face hardship alone.

When a senior spends the day at Elderday in a safe and welcoming community, that is dignity. When a caregiver receives respite, that is support. When a meal arrives at the door with a wellness check, that is compassion. When neighbors gather to fund the programs that hold the safety net together, that is community.

Join the celebration

The 11th Annual Farm to Fork Gala is an invitation to meet this moment together.

Guests will enjoy a memorable evening of seasonal cuisine, fine regional wines, live and silent auctions, and exclusive experiences at Seascape Golf Club. Tickets are listed at $150 to $1,200, with opportunities to attend, sponsor, donate or contribute auction items. 

11th Annual Farm to Fork Gala
Saturday, June 27, 2026
5–9 p.m.
Seascape Golf Club, 610 Clubhouse Drive, Aptos
Contact: donations@cbridges.org or 831-688-8840 ext. 205

Celebrate local food, fine wine and the power of community. Help Community Bridges protect our participants and strengthen the safety net our neighbors rely on today and will need tomorrow.

The post Farm to Fork returns as Community Bridges meets a defining moment for families and seniors appeared first on Lookout Santa Cruz.

ph @l_e_ba
#365cafésoupresque

We hate to be the bearer of bad news, but as it turns out, police officers are abusing their power. In this case, cops are getting arrested for allegedly using Flock Safety to stalk people. Flock, which develops AI-powered surveillance systems, boasts itself as the “future of investigations” for law enforcement to help them “solve crimes faster.” However, as its technology spreads into more…

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The ShinyHunters hacking gang claims to have compromised the Oracle PeopleSoft servers of more than 100 organizations, including many universities.

⚡ Quick Take

• The Vampire Lestat’s song “Black Licorice” is now streaming, and composer Daniel Hart told us about its unique origin story.

Almost every song featured on The Vampire Lestat this season is a brand-new song written for the vampire himself. But one song, featured in episode one, has actually existed for 16 years already. And that The Vampire Lestat song is “Black Licorice,” the latest The Vampire Lestat tune you can stream wherever you get your music. (“And you’d better,” the diva himself tells us.) It turns out, composer Daniel Hart had written “Black Licorice” way back in 2010. But when showrunner Rolin Jones heard it, he felt it was the perfect song for the season’s opener. Listen to “Black Licorice” below, and then check out everything Daniel Hart had to tell us about the bop and how songs moved around to create the perfect narrative accompaniments in The Vampire Lestat.

It turns out Daniel Hart was fated to write for The Vampire Lestat… So much so that he wrote a song for Lestat without even knowing it. In a conversation with Hart, we learned more about the process of fitting songs into The Vampire Lestat and the origin story of one in particular, “Black Licorice.”

In answer to whether any songs were cut or moved around, Hart noted, “Yes. There’s a song called “Big Bad Wolf” that we played last night at the premiere concert, and that song was originally written for episode one. It was written for the scene in which Lestat is on stage with the band, and then he has a sort of breakdown on stage in the middle of the song, and that song was intended to be the song for that scene. And somewhere along the way, [The Vampire Lestat Showrunner] Rolin [Jones] heard a song of mine that already existed called “Black Licorice” that I’d written in 2010, and he said, ‘Can we switch them out? Can we please switch them out? I want to use this one instead of that one.’ I said, ‘Okay, that’s fine. What do I do with this other song that already exists’ He said, ‘Oh, we’ll find a place for it. We’ll find a place for all the songs,’ which mostly happened.”

RELATED ARTICLE

‘Your Biggest Fan’: THE VAMPIRE LESTAT’s Most Haunting Song

Hart laughs, confirming, “Most of the songs are in. Sometimes in different places than they were originally intended to be.” Listen, it’s all in the process, and, as Armand might say, you can’t script a hurricane, or, perhaps, Rolin Jones. In the end, we’re glad that we got both “Black Licorice” and “Big Bad Wolf” in The Vampire Lestat. By all accounts, The Vampire Lestat’s fans, the fledglings, are loving it.

AMC

The Vampire Lestat airs at 9 pm ET/PT on AMC and AMC+. You can also read The Vampire Lestat by Anne Rice today as you wait for the next episode of the series to air.

The Vampire Lesat “Black Licorice” Lyrics

[Verse 1]
I caught a real, live one
Didn’t blink, didn’t try to run
I caught a real, live one
Suckin’ on the sun

No time for glowin’ up
No time for throwin’ up
No time for vibin’ out
Your phone is blowing’ up
I caught a real, live one
No time for “I ride my stepbrother til’ he come”

[Chorus]
Doo, doo, doo, da, da, da
Don’t wanna smash your slack or be your morning star
Don’t wanna learn another TikTok dance
Wanna stay in bed, eating black licorice!
(Woo!)

[Verse 2]
Give me a million more screams
Keep ‘em scrollin’, rollin’
Fire emojin’ aubergines
Give me a million more screams, ha
And a million memes

I’ve been a bad boy
Deep down in my heart
I’ve kept a million dark secrets from the very start
Give me a million more screams
Means exactly what you think it means

[Chorus]
Doo, doo, doo, da, da, da
Don’t wanna smash your slack or be your morning star
Don’t wanna learn a fuckin’ TikTok dance
I wanna stay in bed, eating black licorice!

[Violin solo]
Uh!
Uh, uh, uh, uh!

[Bridge]
Ah, ah, ah-ah-ah, ah
I wanna stay in bed, eating black licorice!
Ah, ah, ah-ah-ah, ah
I wanna stay in bed, eating black licorice!
Ah, ah, ah-ah-ah, ah
I wanna stay in bed, eating black licorice!
Ah, ah, ah-ah-ah, ah
I wanna stay in bed, eating black licorice!

Rotem Rusak is Editor-in-Chief of Nerdist. She hasn’t stopped singing “Your Biggest Fan” by The Vampire Lestat since it released.

This post has affiliate links, which means we may earn advertising money if you buy something. This doesn’t cost you anything extra, we just have to give you the heads up for legal reasons. Click away!

The post THE VAMPIRE LESTAT: Daniel Hart Talks ‘Black Licorice’ Song Origin Story (Stream It Now) appeared first on Nerdist.

⚡ Quick Take

• A video explores if one were to drop a lightsaber vertically into the ground, would it just go straight to the center of the Earth?

Let’s say you’re a Jedi, and you dropped an active lightsaber straight into the Earth. Would it really just go all the way through to the center of the planet? Certainly, gags on shows like Rick & Morty and Robot Chicken have had fun with the idea. These are just the kinds of “science” debates that nerds love to have. Even when the science regarding anything in the Star Wars galaxy barely qualifies as science. But recently, YouTuber Rocket Riley decided to tackle the question head-on, with a video titled “What Happens If You Drop A Lightsaber Vertically?” So watch down below, and find out the answer.

The video pretty much destroys the fantasy that a lit saber would burrow itself down into the center of the Earth and somehow blow it up. For starters, the hilt and battery would melt long before the saber ever even got close to the planet’s core. Also, one lightsaber is not even close to the equivalent of a Death Star beam. Even though they both use kyber crystal technology. A Death Star’s destructive force is maybe the equivalent of a million lightsabers. So Earth (or any planet) would not go the way of Alderaan just because a lightsaber made it all the way down. But it wouldn’t make it all the way down anyway.

Lucasfilm

Most importantly, the Rocket Riley video explains that all lightsabers automatically turn off when dropped to the ground. If a Jedi (or Sith) throws it and it’s still on, it’s because the user is utilizing the Force to keep pressure on the hilt. Otherwise, it just shuts off the moment it leaves its owner’s hand. We know, that’s not as fun as a laser sword just melting through rock like butter. But those are the actual Star Wars rules. That Rick & Morty episode is still pretty funny, though.

The post Drop a Lightsaber Vertically, Does It Just Go on Forever? appeared first on Nerdist.

The annual list of All-Pacific Coast Athletic League baseball teams was released June 1, which included 14 players from the four high schools in Watsonville.

St. Francis High junior Nicky Fantl and sophomore Noah Magan both earned all-league first team honors in the Gabilan Division, while teammate freshman Angel Urabe Chavez and Monte Vista Christian junior Mikie Melenudo each earned second team honors.

Watsonville High senior Mathew Silva and junior Jeremiah Mendez, along with Pajaro Valley senior Steve Martinez each earned All-PCAL First Team honors in the Cypress Division.

Watsonville’s Brody Barto and Mauricio Estrada, and PV’s Roy Sanchez-Diaz each earned all-league second team honors.

St. Francis sophomore Jacob Fonseca, MVC junior Chris Bautista, PV’s JC DeLuna and Watsonville’s Timothy Ruelas each were named to the Richard Chamberlin All-Sportsmanship Team in their respective division.

Below is a complete list of the 2026 All-PCAL baseball teams.

Pacific Coast Athletic League 2026 all-league teams Gabilan Division Individual Awards

Most Valuable Player: Matt Maxon (Sr.), Carmel

Co-Pitchers of the Year: Zach Gonzales (Jr.), Palma and Johnny Money (Jr.), Monterey

First Team

Matt Maxon (Sr.), Carmel

Alex Hirschfield (Jr.), Carmel

Dean Brian (So.), Carmel

Sean Carr (Sr.), Carmel

Matt Alioto (Sr.), Palma

Zach Gonzales (Jr.), Palma

Rocco Razzeca (Sr.), Palma

Jordan Quezada (Sr.), Hollister

Braden Barone (Sr.), Hollister

Ethan Sanchez (Sr.), Soledad

Noah Magana (So.), St. Francis

Nicky Fantl (Jr.), St. Francis

Johnny Money (Jr.), Monterey

Second Team

Kenny Sanchez (So.), Carmel

John Beretti (Sr.), Carmel

Wyatt Bakker (Sr.), Palma

Damien Lopez (Jr.), Palma

Dylan Rocchi (Jr.), Palma

Ami Lopez (Jr.), Hollister

Layton Smith (So.), Hollister

Evan Mendoza (Jr.), Hollister

Connor Rose (Sr.), Monterey

Angel Urabe Chavez (Fr.), St. Francis 

Zachary Velasquez (Sr.), Salinas

Juan Esparza (Jr.), Soledad

Daniel Valenzuela (Sr.), Soledad

Mikie Melenudo (Jr.), Monte Vista Christian

Richard Chamberlin All-Sportsmanship Team

Michael Melnick (Sr.), Carmel

Aiden Veliz (Sr.), Palma

Aiden Velarde (Sr.), Monterey

Jacob Fonseca (So.), St. Francis

Gavin Rainey (Sr.), Salinas

Daniel Garcia (So.), Soledad

Chris Bautista (Jr.), MVC

Jordan Quezada (Sr.), Hollister

Elgie Bellizio All-Sportsmanship team

Soledad

Mission Division Individual Awards

Most Valuable Player: Angel Barajas, Alisal

Pitcher of the Year: Jacob Hall, Stevenson

Offensive Player of the Year: Brody Edmunds, Pacific Grove

First Team

Huck Blanton, North Monterey County

Cecil Short, Rancho San Juan

Brody Edmunds, PG

Jacob Hall, Stevenson

Angel Barajas, Alisal

Andrew Jeska, PG

Reggie Bell, Stevenson

Phinn Thomas, Stevenson

Brody Gates, NMC

Roman Garcia, Alvarez

Aiden Munoz, RSJ

GP Serato, Alisal

Fabian Gonzalez, Alvarez

Second Team

Josiah Ramos, Alisal

Jonah Karsa, Stevenson

Ryder Allen, NMC

Issac Ortiz, RSJ

Daniel Saldana, RSJ

Kenny Pajas, Greenfield

Issac Sanchez, PG

Julian Valadez, RSJ

Taj Davis, PG

Northrop Kirk, PG

Cody Victoriano, Alvarez

Xavier Estrad, Alisal

Julian Barajas, NMC

Richard Chamberlin All-Sportsmanship Team

Francisco Hernandez, Greenfield

Kai Clarkson, PG

Brady Mugan, Stevenson

Benny Vera, RSJ

Fredy Torres, Alisal

Devin Pedersen, Alvarez

Jayden Harris, NMC

Elgie Bellizio All-Sportsmanship team

Pacific Grove

Cypress Division Individual Awards

Most Valuable Player: Josh Degroodt, North Salinas

Offensive Player of the Year: Jacoby Chavez, King City

Pitcher of the Year: Joel Pina, King City

First Team

Joel Pina, King City

Jacoby Chavez, King City

Joaquin Sabala, King City

Josh Degroodt, North Salinas

Julian Gabriel, North Salinas

Johnny Benabides, North Salinas

Markus Camacho, North Salinas

Mathew Silva, Watsonville

Jeremiah Mendez, Watsonville

Kaleb True, Marina

Noah Villalobos, Gonzales

Steve Martinez, Pajaro Valley

Gabriel Rodriguez, Seaside

Second Team

Roman (RJ) Ayon, King City

Dylan Conatser, King City

Pablo Aguirre, King City

Ernesto Aguirre, KIng City

Andres Cervantes, North Salinas

Izaiah Gonzalez, North Salinas

Esteban Solorzano, North Salinas

Brody Barto, Watsonville

Mauricio Estrada, Watsonville

Leonel Alvarado, Marina

Juan Arriola, Gonzales

Roy Sanchez-Diaz, Pajaro Valley

Gabriel Moulton, Seaside

Richard Chamberlin All-Sportsmanship Team

Axel Chavez-Torres, King City

Julian Gabriel, North Salinas

Timothy Ruelas, Watsonville

Liam Sampaolo, Marina

Moises Castro, Gonzales

JC DeLuna, Pajaro Valley

Mason Flynn, Seaside

Elgie Bellizio All-Sportsmanship team

Seaside