Oregon prosecutors say a FedEx driver acted in self-defense after he responded to another man’s violence and “racist vitriol” with a punch that proved fatal.

Timothy Warren will not face charges for punching Joseph Magnuson on Sept. 26, in Portland, Multnomah County District Attorney Rod Underhill announced Monday. 

Magnuson, who was in poor health, later died in what was ruled a homicide. However, the investigation found no indication that Warren intended to kill Magnuson.

A disagreement about the speed at which Warren was driving his FedEx delivery truck led to the confrontation, prosecutors say. The investigation found that Magnuson initiated and escalated the situation, believing that Warren was driving too quickly. A memo published by the DA’s office cites witness accounts saying that Warren was driving at a safe speed.

The investigation found that Magnuson had acted aggressively, repeatedly taunting Warren with racial slurs and later punching Warren in an ensuing confrontation.

A memo published by the prosecutor’s office says that Warren’s actions were “in kind” to Magnuson’s escalation. Witnesses said that Warren had attempted to discuss the matter before things became violent and that he appeared “exhausted.”

Warren punched Magnuson “a single time above the left eye, which caused Mr. Magnuson to fall to the ground and briefly lose consciousness,” a release says. 

Nov. 22: Man arrested after anti-Semitic rant on plane, reportedly saying ‘all Jews raise their hands’

Nov. 1: Indiana woman allegedly left racist note saying ‘this is a white neighborhood’

The wound caused by the punch was “superficial and not fatal,” Senior Deputy District Attorney Adam Gibbs is quoted in the release. However, Magnuson’s fall following the punch aggravated pre-existing conditions, leading to his death, authorities found.

While Warren could have retreated from the alleged abuse and could have likely prevented Magnuson’s death by doing so, the prosecutor’s memo says Warren had no legal obligation to leave the situation.

“Mr. Warren was within his right to exit his vehicle and verbally challenge the manner in which Mr. Magnuson was addressing him,” Gibbs’ memo reads.

A FedEx Ground statement on the incident issued to USA TODAY on Thursday reads: “FedEx Ground fully cooperated with law enforcement during the investigation of this unfortunate incident. We extend our condolences to all those affected.”

The statement says the company would not comment on Warren’s current employment status: “We do not share details concerning the personnel of contracted service providers.”

Contributing: The Associated Press

 

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This article contains spoilers for The Lion King, if you’ve never seen it, if that’s possible.

The first teaser trailer for Disney’s live action version of The Lion King dropped on Thursday, and one particular scene has dredged up painful memories we’d long pushed to the bottom of our hearts.

James Earl Jones’ iconic voice returns as the king of the pridelands and Simba’s father, Mufasa, in director Jon Favreau’s forthcoming film.

Jones’ resonant tones echo over one particular moment in the trailer, which, at around the 0:30 mark, shows the stampede scene. 

You know the scene. In Disney’s original 1994 animated film, it’s the brutal turning point for Simba’s journey, as an evil play from his diabolical uncle Scar results in Mufasa’s tragic death.

It’s one of the most devastating movie scenes from many of our childhoods, watching Simba nestle into his father’s mane, tug at his ear, and try to wake him as the dust settles. As a six-year-old, I cried for days, inconsolable and unable to get Simba’s words out of my tiny head.

“Get up, we’ve got to go home.”

And this moment, folks on Twitter pointed out, might be so much more real in Favreau’s live action film.

Honestly, I don’t think it’s going to be any easier this time around. Take a buddy.

ARLINGTON, Texas — Hello, Amari Cooper.

And hello to a working Cowboys offense, a defense that creates turnovers and Ezekiel Elliott in rookie form.

Three touchdowns in 7 minutes and 36 seconds and three interceptions were among the highlights on an explosive Thanksgiving Day for Dallas in a 31-23 victory over Washington.

A Cowboys offense so broken in the NFC East rivals’ October game appears fixed. Credit, in part, the trade for Cooper that the Cowboys pulled off a day after that loss to Washington.

Here are three things we learned during Cooper and Dallas’ big day:

About that Amari Cooper trade: Dallas moves to 3-1 since trading its 2019 first-round pick to the Raiders for Cooper. Cooper was key to Dallas scoring on its opening drive of the game, twice converting on third down. But he did more than just move the chains and aid his teammates. In the third quarter, Cooper capitalized on a tripped defender to gain 35 yards after catch on a 40-yard touchdown. The next drive he did it again – racing 69 yards after catch for a 90-yard score, the longest touchdown pass of Dak Prescott’s career. Per NFL research, Cooper’s 180 yards on eight catches were the most for a Dallas receiver since Dec. 23, 2012 (Dez Bryant, 224 vs. the Saints).

More: NFL playoff picture as Week 12 begins: Bears solidify NFC North lead

MORE: Cowboys’ touchdown celebrations get crazy

Colt McCoy’s first start this season: Redskins quarterback Colt McCoy is Washington’s man behind center after Alex Smith suffered season-ending tibia and fibula breaks last week vs. the Texans. The Cowboys pass rush disrupted McCoy, first forcing a fumble Washington ultimately recovered and then intercepting him three times. McCoy still kept Washington in the game throughout, completing 24-of-38 passes for 268 yards and two touchdowns. Washington needed that production on a day when Dallas’ run defense limited Adrian Peterson to just 35 rushing yards. McCoy’s best throw was a 53-yard bomb to tight end Vernon Davis, on the first play of a second-quarter drive. McCoy also scrambled effectively at times. But in addition to the three interceptions, he also lost a fumble.

That holiday spirit, though: The Cowboys touchdown celebrations started early with Ezekiel Elliott donating $21 – his number – to the Salvation Army red kettle, two seasons after his celebratory jump into a kettle raised more than $200,000 in donations. Cooper followed next, lining his teammates up and mocking 76ers guard Markelle Fultz’s free-throw routine. Cap it off with Elliott throwing quarterback Dak Prescott into the kettle after Prescott shed two tackles to tumble his way into the endzone. To say the Cowboys were in the holiday spirit, a year after the Chargers beat them 28-6 on Thanksgiving at AT&T Stadium, would be an understatement. With its third consecutive win, Dallas returns to the top of the NFC East in a tie with the Redskins, though the Cowboys own the tiebreaker. Both are 6-5.

Twitter: @JoriEpstein

 

Image: Instant Pot

By NICOLE CAMMORATA AND LEAH STODARTMashable Deals2018-11-22 10:00:00 UTC

If you missed out on Walmart’s great deal on the 6-quart Instant Pot LUX back in July, we’ll do you one better: The 8-quart model is on sale for Black Friday and it’s only $59.

The 6-in-1 Instant Pot LUX usually goes for $99.99, which means you’ll be saving $40 on the largest model in the LUX line. Somebody pinch us because we’re dreaming.

SEE ALSO: All the best Black Friday 2018 sales, right in one place

The Instant Pot LUX programmable cooker is the most “basic” of the Instant Pot fam — though basic is far from accurate considering the number of things this puppy does. The LUX combines the functions of six appliances: It’s a pressure cooker, slow cooker, rice cooker, steamer, warmer, and sauté pan, and is one of two Instant Pots that does not make yogurt. But like, who needs to make yogurt that often, anyway?

It also features 12 built-in smart programs: Bean/chili, meat/stew, soup/broth, sauté, poultry, steam, congee, multigrain, rice, pressure cook, warm, and slow cook (which are also available in all other models).

Regularly $99.99, you can save $40 and snag the Instant Pot LUX for $59 during Walmart’s epic Black Friday sale here. (Confused about the difference between all of the Instant Pot models? So is everyone else. Check out our “Which Instant Pot should you buy?” guide here.)

 

Black Friday 2018 deals by store

Black Friday 2018 deals by category

• Gaming deals: Xbox One X, PlayStation 4, Nintendo, Alienware laptops, and more

• Laptop deals: Lenovo Yoga, Alienware, Dell, HP, Asus, and more

• TV deals: OLEDs from Best Buy, Amazon, Walmart, and more

• Smart home deals: Amazon Echo, Roomba, Google Home, Apple HomePod

• Instant Pot deals: Where to get the cheapest price

Taipei, Taiwan – China is spreading “fake news” via social media to swing Taiwanese voters away from President Tsai Ing-wen’s party and behind candidates more sympathetic to Beijing ahead of elections, Taiwanese officials said.

Beijing is test-driving its techniques in Taiwan, where it has a big stake in the politics and understands the language and culture, but deployed its cyber-capacities in the United States, Australia and other democracies, the officials said.

“We received propaganda warfare coming from China for years, but this is taking a very different form,” Foreign Minister Joseph Wu, from Tsai’s ruling Democratic Progressive Party (DPP), told Al Jazeera.

“It’s coming in not from newspapers or their propaganda machine but through our social media, online chat groups, Facebook, the zombie accounts set up, somewhere, by the Chinese government.”

Comments from Wu and other DPP officials are in line with growing global fears that authoritarian China, like Russia, is meddling in foreign elections. Last month, US Vice President Mike Pence said Moscow’s effort “pales in comparison” to interference from Beijing.

Beijing’s mission to the UN did not respond to Al Jazeera’s interview request, but Chinese officials have previously rejected such claims as “confusing right and wrong and creating something out of thin air”.

‘Orchestrate misinformation’

Taiwanese voters go to the polls on Saturday to choose mayors and others in mid-term elections that will reflect the popularity of the anti-Beijing DPP and Tsai, who is expected to seek re-election in 2010.

It will be Taiwan’s largest election ever with about 19 million voters, or 83 percent of the population, casting ballots for more than 11,000 officials. 

False stories can be traced to foreign servers and back to the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) and it’s so-called “50 Cent Army” of online trolls and commentators, DPP politician Lo Chi-cheng told Al Jazeera.

They typically undermine Tsai, the DPP or Taiwan’s autonomy from the mainland, while stirring up historic grievances by which some voters support the DPP and others back its main rival, the pro-Beijing Kuomintang (KMT).

“The US, Australia, Germany and other countries are also addressing the issue as to how countries like Russia and China use disinformation to influence domestic and electoral politics in democracies like Taiwan,” said Lo.

“It’s a more serious problem because China is so close to Taiwan, language-wise. They don’t have the cultural or language barrier and can easily fabricate news and they know the mentality of Chinese thinking, so it’s easier for them to orchestrate this misinformation.”

One story suggested that Tsai was flanked by armed soldiers when visiting flood victims in Chiayi County in August. Another said some of Taiwan’s last-remaining allied governments were about to abandon Taipei.

Another said China had bussed Taiwanese nationals to safety after typhoon Jebi killed 11 and injured thousands in Japan in September, and that Taipei had let its people down – a story that reportedly led to the suicide of a Taiwanese diplomat in Osaka.

Ahead of voting, police detained several suspects for malicious story-sharing but, for Wu, the focus is on Taiwan’s government to counter fake news with quick, factual corrections. For Lo, plans to tighten media laws are controversial as they could violate free speech rules.

‘Entertainment’ news

Not everyone fears Beijing’s media reach, however. Eric Huang, an independent analyst with links to the KMT, said Taiwan’s voters have high rates of internet penetration and are used to subjective news in mainstream Taiwanese media.

“Taiwanese news agencies are very editorial and opinionated along party lines already, so the people are used to biased news. They just view this information coming from China as entertainment,” Huang told Al Jazeera.

Justin Yu, a technology investor in downtown Taipei, echoed these thoughts, saying younger Taiwanese web-users are well acquainted with the competing narratives from Taipei and Beijing.

“When we were in elementary school, we were told we shouldn’t be so close to the Chinese government. Whenever we see the information, we hesitate and question whether it is real or not. I don’t think there’s a real problem and it doesn’t influence us much,” Yu told Al Jazeera.

Since the 2016 election of Tsai’s pro-independence DPP, Beijing has turned the screws on Taiwan, peeling away a handful of its remaining diplomatic allies, excluding it from global forums, and forcing airlines to classify Taiwan as part of China.

Three former allies – El Salvador, Dominican Republic and Burkina Faso – switched their allegiances to Beijing this year, and the Chinese military has stepped up encirclement drills around Taiwan, which Taipei has denounced as intimidation.

According to DPP officials, Beijing has reached deep into the breakaway island of 23 million people, sowing division and confusion through online disinformation, recruiting business figures, and funnelling cash to pro-Beijing politicians.

De facto independence

The Republic of China – Taiwan’s official name – relocated to the island in 1949 when Chiang Kai-shek’s nationalists fled the mainland after being defeated by Mao Zedong’s communists. It is now a democracy with de facto independence from Beijing.

Under its “one China” policy, the Beijing regards Taiwan as a renegade province that needs to be unified – by military force if necessary. Many analysts say China seeks to achieve the same end by flooding Taiwan with investment and buying off decision makers.

The opposition KMT marks a continuation of Chiang’s legacy. DPP supporters typically highlight atrocities committed during Taiwan’s “white terror” and decades of martial law and call for independence from the mainland.

Last month, thousands of pro-independence demonstrators rallied in Taiwan’s capital to protest against Beijing’s “bullying” and called for a referendum on whether the self-ruled island should formally split from China.

Follow James Reinl on Twitter: @jamesreinl

Ireland head coach Joe Schmidt says he will reveal next week whether he will commit his long-term future to Ireland or return to his native New Zealand.

Schmidt’s Ireland contract expires after next year’s World Cup in Japan and the 53-year-old admits he is still agonising about his decision.

“It’s a decision that will probably not be finalised until Sunday, certainly by early next week,” said Schmidt.

“But it’s a decision that’s been a long time coming,” added the Ireland coach.

“To be honest I’ve beaten myself up enough about this decision. I’m probably going to be the most pleased of anyone when it is finally made.”

Schmidt, who led Ireland to the Grand Slam this year, as well as Six Nations titles in 2014 and 2015, is believed to be front of the queue to step into New Zealand’s coaching ranks if he opts to return home.

The Kiwi has masterminded both of Ireland’s victories over New Zealand, including Saturday’s 16-9 win in Dublin, and guided his team from eighth to second in the world rankings in five years at the helm.

Ireland reached the quarter-finals of the 2015 World Cup during Schmidt’s tenure but will hope to reach at least the last four for the first time in 2019.

Prior to Saturday’s final autumn international against the USA the former Leinster boss conceded he continues to wrestle with what represents perhaps the biggest call of his coaching career.

“I know I can’t continue to go backwards and forwards. The family I have probably committed most to is this family that I live with in Carton House (Ireland’s training base) as much as it is the family I have at home.

“So we’ve put our heads together and tried to reconcile how we can best, maybe, cater for both.”

Analysis

Former Ireland captain Paul O’Connell speaking on Matt Dawson’s Rugby Show on BBC Radio 5 live:

“I have no idea. I mean I think that Ireland should be making it financially irresponsible for him to leave.

“He has a far-reaching effect – it isn’t just the national team. He’s very good at promoting the game here. He does a massive amount of charity work.

His coaching style and philosophy is filtering down into all the provinces, it’s filtering down into schools and into underage rugby. It’s having a massive effect on Irish rugby in general.

So it’s not just the results he delivers with the national team that the IRFU get great value, when they pay him whatever they pay him, it’s the effect he seems to be having further down the game as well.”

Another year, another Thanksgiving song from The National, in their annual collaborative tradition with beloved animated series Bob’s Burgers. But this one’s a real tear-jerker.

Recorded in Los Angeles, the track “Save the Bird” is characteristically heartbreaking by itself. But the video will destroy you, following a trip in the car with the band, who release a turkey into the sunset on Thanksgiving. Yeah, you’re gonna feel bad about your dinner.

“We’re honored to continue our Thanksgiving tradition with Bob’s Burgers with ‘Save The Bird,’ which was recorded at Public Hi-Fi in Austin and in my secluded dojo in Los Angeles,” frontman Matt Berninger said in a statement via Pitchfork. 

“It’s especially thrilling to have our brass section finally get credit for something. Also, I’d like to thank Tom for doing the dishes.”

Dolce & Gabbana abruptly canceled a major show scheduled in China after the Italian fashion brand faced backlash for social media posts many deemed disrespectful toward Chinese culture. 

The brand canceled their “Great Show” – billed as a “Tribute to China” – just hours before it was set to begin after several models and celebrities vowed to boycott the event over calls of racism.

“What happened today was very unfortunate not only for us, but also for all the people who worked day and night to bring this event to life,” Dolce & Gabbana’s official account tweeted Wednesday, acknowledging the show’s cancellation. “From the bottom of our hearts, we would like to express our gratitude to our friends and guests.”

The controversy all started with a series of promotional videos posted on Instagram by Dolce & Gabbana, featuring an Asian model eating Italian staples – including pizza, a cannoli and spaghetti – with chopsticks. 

Social media users alleged the fashion house was mocking Chinese culture by featuring stereotypical Chinese music, sound effects and lanterns. The fashion house also labeled chop sticks “stick shaped cutlery,” while the narrator mispronounced Dolce & Gabbana.

To add insult to injury, a screenshot of private Instagram messages allegedly sent from co-founder Stefano Gabbana went viral. He has since claimed that his “Instagram account has been hacked” and that he did not send the messages filled with derogatory remarks aimed at critics of the ads. 

The fashion house instantly faced backlash. 

Model Estelle Chen, who was scheduled to walk in the show, addressed Dolce & Gabbana on Instagram in a lengthy statement. 

“You don’t love China, you love money,” she wrote. “China is rich yes but China is rich in its values, its culture and its people and they won’t spend a penny on a brand that does not respect that.”

@Originalspin called the ad “PRETTY, PRETTY RACIST.”

@Wanger_Gavin said the videos were “filled with disgusting stereotypes and prejudice. This is racial discrimination.”

@LumingYin called the ad “one of the most misinformed and distasteful marketing campaigns I have seen in quite some time.”

Related: ‘Crazy Rich Asians’ premiere fashion: Asian designs shine on couture carpet

 

 

 

 

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