The Daily Moth 2-20-2025
It is Thursday, February 20, 2025. Here are today’s top stories.
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Delta to pay $30k to each plane crash-flip passenger
Delta Air Lines said it would pay $30,000 to every passenger that were onboard on plane that crash-landed and flipped at the Toronto airport on Monday.
There were 76 passengers, so that’s over $2.2 million in payouts. Delta said the payouts has no strings attached and does not affect the passengers’ rights.
A legal expert told the NY Times that this payment does not mean the airline admits liability and if passengers later sue Delta and win compensation, the payment will be deducted from the sum.
https://www.usatoday.com/story/travel/news/2025/02/19/delta-to-compensate-each-toronto-plane-crash-passenger-30k/79238041007/
https://www.nytimes.com/2025/02/19/world/canada/delta-plane-crash-toronto-30000.html
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Former NFL punter arrested after protesting “MAGA”
Chris Kluwe, a former NFL punter with the Minnesota Vikings, was arrested while protesting against the Huntington Beach City Council on Tuesday night over a new plaque that is to be set outside of a library that spells out “MAGA” in an acrostic way.
The plaque is to celebrate 50 years of the library and you see “MAGA” here. Huntington Beach is well-known for being a conservative stronghold in a mostly liberal state.
Kluwe spoke before the council that MAGA is “a Nazi movement” and said he would do an act of “peaceful civil disobedience” and walked up to the council dias, where he was quickly detained by police officers.
Kluwe was jailed and charged with a misdemeanor for disturbing an assembly.
Kluwe is known for speaking up for people’s rights — when he was in the NFL, he voiced support for same-sex marriage.
Kluwe told the LA Times that he has a responsibility to step up and stand up for the oppressed.
A council member said it was scary to see Kluwe walking up to them and that he’s got his five minutes of fame. Another council member, Chad Williams, said Kluwe and others against “MAGA” are hysterical.
https://www.latimes.com/california/story/2025-02-20/ex-nfl-player-chris-kluwe-explains-why-he-got-arrested-over-huntington-beach-maga-library-plaque
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HeD6kqnvdFc
https://www.instagram.com/sealofgod/?hl=en
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Hamas hands over bodies of Bibas family
Hamas handed over the bodies of four deceased Israeli hostages, which tragically included a mother and her two young sons who are known as the Bibas family. The mother is Shiri and her kids are Ariel (4) and Kfir (9 months old). They were kidnapped from their kibbutz during the Oct. 7 attacks. Kfir was the youngest hostage. The fourth person was an elderly man named Oded Lifshitz (83), who was also taken from the same kibbutz.
Hamas claimed that the four were killed from Israeli airstrikes a month after the Oct. 7 attacks, but this has not been confirmed by the Israeli government.
News reports said Hamas fighters made taunts and anti-Israel slogans while handing over the bodies in black caskets to the Red Cross.
The Israeli PM Netanyahu said his country is united in unbearable grief and they all feel rage.
CBS News said Hamas will release six living hostages on Saturday in exchange for hundreds more Palestinian prisoners and release four more bodies next week and this will complete the current ceasefire’s first phase. There are still 60 Israeli hostages remaining, all men, and about half are believed to be dead.
***UPDATE: The Israeli military said the two Bibas children were positively identified but the body that is supposed to be mother is not Shiri Bibas. The military said it is an anonymous, unidentified body and are demanding Shiri’s return.
Sources: https://www.instagram.com/reel/DGTqUFbyEUN/
https://www.cbsnews.com/news/hamas-bodies-4-israeli-hostages-mother-2-young-children/
https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/clydwlxykzyo
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Sponsored video by Sorenson: www.sorenson.com
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Andrew Lester dies before sentencing in shooting of Black teenager
Andrew Lester, who was a 86-year-old man that shot a Black teenager named Ralph Yarl in Missouri in 2023, died yesterday. Lester shot at Yarl after he went to his house by mistake and rang his doorbell. Yarl, who was 16 at the time, was hit in the face and right arm but survived.
Last Friday, Lester pleaded guilty in a plea deal that reduced the severity of the charges he was facing. Prosecutors said they wanted a five-year prison sentence. He was supposed to be sentenced on March 7 but with his death, the case is considered concluded.
Yarl’s family said they have mixed emotions and do not feel like they received justice.
https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2025/02/19/andrew-lester-dead-before-sentencing-ralph-yarl/79218233007/
https://abcnews.go.com/US/ralph-yarl-shooting-suspect-strikes-deal-pleads-guilty/story
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SSA commissioner says it’s not true many dead people getting benefits
The acting commissioner of the Social Security Administration, Lee Dudek, made remarks saying it’s not true that there are many people older than 100 who are still receiving Social Security benefits.
Elon Musk made incredible claims just a few days ago that there were millions of people over the age of 110 that were getting SS benefits. Musk showed screenshots purportedly from the SS database and said this may be the biggest fraud in history.
President Trump said on Wednesday night that what’s happening with Social Security may be one of the great potential scandals in history.
Dudek explained that the data are people in their records with a Social Security number who do not have a date of death associated with their record. He said these individuals are not necessarily receiving benefits.
USA Today explained that a 2023 report from the inspector general for the SSA found that 18.9 million Americans born before 1920 were listed in the SS database but lacked death information on their records and that almost none of the deceased individuals were receiving payments.
So, hopefully that clears things up — there are millions of people who don’t have a date of death on SS records but it doesn’t mean they are receiving SS benefits.
https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/politics/2025/02/20/trumps-social-security-head-contradicts-claims-dead-recipients/79330447007/
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Kash Patel to be FBI director
The Senate, in a 51-49 vote, confirmed Kash Patel to become the next FBI director. He will be the FBI’s ninth director and the first Indian-American leader.
Patel used to be a federal prosecutor in D.C. and was a federal public defender in Florida. He worked in the first Trump administration in his National Security Council.
Patel is someone who is labeled as a “Trump loyalist.” There are a number of critics, including former Republicans, who said they’re concerned that he will use his power within the FBI to go after people considered to be Trump’s enemies. There are also concerns that Patel would fire FBI agents who investigated the Capitol riot.
Patel has denied that he’s someone who would pursue political enemies. Patel said he’s honored to become the next FBI director and promised that the FBI would be transparent, accountable, and committed to justice.
https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/rcna192842
https://apnews.com/article/trump-patel-fbi-justice-department-518329110ea230e2989095bfcbe34c59
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USA vs Canada in 4 Nations Face-Off Final
Tonight, Team USA will play against Team Canada in the championship game of the 4 Nations Face-Off Final, which consists of the top hockey players (NHL players) from their countries.
It should be an exciting game because both countries have a lot of pride in their hockey skills and tradition. They played against each other on Saturday and it was full of tension as there were three fights in the first nine seconds. USA won 3-1.
Canada will want revenge for sure tonight. The game will be in Boston at 8 p.m. I’ll recap tomorrow.
https://www.cbsnews.com/boston/news/4-nations-face-off-championship-team-usa-canada/
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That is all the top stories for today. See you tomorrow and stay with the light.