A <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/nashville" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Nashville</a> school district became the latest education system to sue several social media companies over growing mental health concerns among students, joining more than 40 nationwide districts demanding accountability from big tech.
The Clarksville-Montgomery County School System (CMCSS) reportedly filed a lawsuit against Meta, Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, Snapchat, Google, WhatsApp, and YouTube due to the &#8220;damages and growing mental health crisis among students.&#8221;
&#8220;Over the past few years, we have observed and experienced a rise in mental health issues, threats of school violence, cyberbullying, inappropriate content, and other challenges, damages and disruptions linked to students&#8217; use of social media – and the lack of protections and controls thereof,&#8221; CMCSS Director Dr. Jean Luna-Vedder said in a news release reported by <a href="https://fox17.com/news/local/lack-of-protections-tennessee-school-district-sues-social-media-companies-tiktok-facebook-instagram-snapchat-google-news-legal-students" target="_blank" rel="noopener">local media</a>.
&#8220;Without cooperation and support from social media companies, CMCSS has been fighting an uphill battle. We need to protect our children, our schools and our society,&#8221; Luna-Vedder added.
Attorneys at the Lewis Thomason law firm representing the district said the issues from such social media platforms had caused further disruptions, increased costs, and safety concerns in the school district.
&#8220;The Clarksville-Montgomery County School System is taking a brave and proactive step to seek accountability and marked changes in the way social media giants interact with children,&#8221; Chris McCarty of Lewis Thomason told a local Fox affiliate.
According to a Daily Mail <a href="https://www.dailymail.co.uk/health/article-11982323/More-40-school-districts-America-suing-social-media-giants-mental-health-crisis.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">analysis</a>, more than 40 school districts across the U.S. have filed lawsuits against social media giants, including Facebook, Snapchat, and TikTok, alleging the platforms knowingly cause harm to children with &#8220;malicious&#8221; algorithms.
Children have been subjected to dangerous social media trends, including the &#8220;Blackout Challenge,&#8221; which persuades minors to strangle themselves. Other trends promote self-harm content, such as suicide, self-injury, and eating disorders.
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Earlier this year, Seattle Public School District officials filed a 91-page-lawsuit in a U.S. District Court against Facebook, TikTok, Google, Snapchat, and YouTube, arguing that the platforms have caused a public nuisance affecting the district.
&#8220;Defendants have successfully exploited the vulnerable brains of youth, hooking tens of millions of students across the country into positive feedback loops of excessive use and abuse of Defendants&#8217; social media platforms,&#8221; the lawsuit <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/seattle-public-school-district-sues-big-tech-over-mental-health-crisis-among-youth" target="_blank" rel="noopener">reads</a>. &#8220;Worse, the content Defendants curate and direct to youth is too often harmful and exploitive.&#8221;
Such content alleged in the lawsuit accuses social media companies of promoting a &#8220;corpse bride&#8221; diet, eating 300 calories daily, or encouraging self-harm. Other mental health harms the lawsuit accuses big tech of cultivating among the youth include anxiety, cyberbullying, and suicide.
U.S. Surgeon General Vivek Murthy issued an advisory in May, citing a link between spending time on social media and the nation&#8217;s mental health crisis among the youth.
“I’m issuing this advisory because we’re in the middle of a youth mental health crisis, and I’m concerned that social media is contributing to the harms that kids are experiencing,” Murthy told <a href="https://thehill.com/policy/healthcare/4015544-surgeon-general-issues-advisory-that-social-media-is-contributing-to-youth-mental-health-crisis/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">The Hill</a>.
According to a <a href="https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jamapsychiatry/fullarticle/2749480" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">2019 study</a>, adolescents between the ages of 12 and 15 who spent over three hours on social media per day had double the risk of developing symptoms of depression and anxiety, and the blame should not be placed entirely on parents who attempt to manage a healthy dose of social media for their children.
“It’s an unreasonable expectation because prior generations never had to experience and manage the rapidly evolving technology that fundamentally changed how kids thought about themselves, how they thought about their friendships and how they saw the world,” said Murthy.
Antigone Davis, head of safety at Meta, told the Daily Mail that the platform aims to reassure every parent that it has developed more than 30 tools to support teens and their families with safe and supportive experiences online.
Such tools include allowing parents to decide when and for how long their teens use Instagram, age verification technology, automatically setting accounts belonging to those under 16 to private when they join Instagram, and sending notifications encouraging teens to take regular breaks.
Other technology the company claims it has invested in assists in finding and removing content related to suicide, self-injury, or eating disorders before users report such incidents on the app.
&#8220;These are complex issues, but we will continue working with parents, experts and regulators such as the state attorneys general to develop new tools, features and policies that meet the needs of teens and their families,&#8221; Davis said.
A Snapchat spokesperson said the company curates content from known creators and publishers and uses human moderation to review user-generated content before it can reach a large audience, which the company claims reduces the spread and discovery of harmful content.
&#8220;Nothing is more important to us than the well-being of our community,&#8221; the spokesperson told the Daily Mail.

Group of Young Adults Looking at Phone

Tennessee School District Sues Social Media Companies Over Growing Mental Health Crisis Among Students

Big Tech

Mental Health

Nashville

Public Schools

Social Media

U.S.

Singer <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/kesha-attorney-defamed-dr-luke-with-claim-about-lady-gagas-rape-judge-says" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Kesha</a> revealed during a recent interview that her anxiety once got so intense that she actually believed she might be experiencing a psychotic break.
The popular &#8220;Die Young&#8221; singer sat down with Apple Music&#8217;s Zane Lowe, and during the course of a <a href="https://pagesix.com/2023/05/24/kesha-reveals-she-mistook-her-intense-anxiety-for-a-psychotic-break/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">wide-ranging conversation</a>, the topic turned to mental health and what it meant to &#8220;act normal.&#8221;
WATCH:
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The &#8220;Praying&#8221; songstress explained the situation, saying, &#8220;I went through this crazy psychedelic spiritual experience in the midst of the anxiety … it was pure anxiety. My brain felt like … I thought maybe it was the process of having a psychotic break or something.&#8221;
&#8220;I’m a triple Pisces, I love weird, unexplainable, spiritual, supernatural stuff,&#8221; the singer continued, explaining that she hadn&#8217;t really found peace on a personal level until she really dove into her own spirituality until she felt comfortable with herself.
&#8220;So after this happened to me, I went down a total — it’s my rabbit hole I’m currently in, is just the paranormal and also different spirituality, different things people believe in. I’m just trying to read about it because I feel like we’re all talking about a similar thing,&#8221; she said.
The singer said that she often felt as though her &#8220;social graces have gotten a little rusty,&#8221; adding — when Lowe laughed and asked her to provide a &#8220;playful example&#8221; — that she found herself discussing intensely personal things with strangers.
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&#8220;When people start doing small talk, I start telling them about my like psychedelic experience and then they&#8217;re just like, &#8216;I just wanted to ride the elevator with you&#8217; and it&#8217;s just impossible now,&#8221; she said. &#8220;I&#8217;m like &#8230; full-blown.&#8221;
&#8220;This is also — the question in my mind is, &#8216;How do you act normal?&#8217; Like what does that mean?&#8221; she continued.
She went on to describe just how crippling her anxiety had been at times, noting that her initial image was so loved that she felt as though she couldn&#8217;t show all sides of herself.

Ke$ha

Singer Kesha Says Her Anxiety Once Got So Bad She Thought She Was Having A Psychotic Break

Singer Kesha Says Her Anxiety Got So Bad She Thought She Was Having A Psychotic Break

Mental Illness

Music

Music Industry

U.S. <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/surgeon-general" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Surgeon General</a> Vivek Murthy issued an <a href="http://dailywire.com/topic/health" target="_blank" rel="noopener">advisory</a> on Tuesday warning that <a href="http://dailywire.com/topic/social-media" target="_blank" rel="noopener">social media</a> use among minors can severely damage <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/mental-health" target="_blank" rel="noopener">mental health</a>.
The <a href="https://www.hhs.gov/sites/default/files/sg-youth-mental-health-social-media-advisory.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noopener">advisory</a>, which noted that social media use is “nearly universal” for young people, noted that there has never been a robust safety analysis for the technology among minors, a reality which comes as mental health declines considerably among the demographic. Murthy prompted lawmakers, technology companies, and families to take action.
“The most common question parents ask me is, ‘is social media safe for my kids.’ The answer is that we don&#8217;t have enough evidence to say it&#8217;s safe, and in fact, there is growing evidence that social media use is associated with harm to young people’s mental health,” Murthy said in a <a href="https://www.hhs.gov/about/news/2023/05/23/surgeon-general-issues-new-advisory-about-effects-social-media-use-has-youth-mental-health.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">statement</a>. “Children are exposed to harmful content on social media, ranging from violent and sexual content, to bullying and harassment. And for too many children, social media use is compromising their sleep and valuable in-person time with family and friends.”
Some 95% of minors between 13 years old and 17 years old report using social media, while 40% of children between 8 years old and 12 years old said the same despite the minimum age requirements for the platforms. The advisory added that frequent use of the technology is associated with changes in the development of the amygdala, the region of the brain responsible for emotional learning and behavior, as well as the prefrontal cortex, which is responsible for impulse control and the moderation of social behavior.
Murthy said in an <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/u-s-surgeon-general-warns-13-years-old-is-too-young-to-join-social-media" target="_blank" rel="noopener">interview</a> earlier this year that children younger than 13 years old should not be able to join social media platforms. “You have some of the best designers and product developers in the world who have designed these products to make sure people are maximizing the amount of time they spend on these platforms,” he commented. “And if we tell a child, ‘Use the force of your willpower to control how much time you’re spending,’ you’re pitting a child against the world’s greatest product designers.”
Members of Congress have indeed noted the addictive properties of social media services and their deleterious effects on mental health. One lawmaker <a href="https://www.rubio.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/2022/12/rubio-gallagher-introduce-bipartisan-legislation-to-ban-tiktok" target="_blank" rel="noopener">described</a> TikTok, presently the most popular social media network for young people, as “digital fentanyl,” a reference to the addictive characteristics of the limitless stream of vertical videos offered by the platform.
Children and teenagers spent an average of 99 minutes per day on TikTok as of two years ago, far exceeding the amount of time spent on other rivals, according to <a href="https://techcrunch.com/2022/07/13/kids-and-teens-watch-more-tiktok-than-youtube-tiktok-91-minutes-in-2021-youtube-56/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">data</a> from Qustodio.
TikTok, which currently faces additional regulatory <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/extraordinary-and-unprecedented-tiktok-sues-montana-over-statewide-ban" target="_blank" rel="noopener">pressure</a> due to the company’s ownership by a Chinese technology firm, recently <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/tiktok-creates-new-default-time-limit-for-users-under-18" target="_blank" rel="noopener">announced</a> measures that will prompt young users to create a daily screen time limit if they spend more than 100 minutes on the platform each day. Parents and guardians will be permitted to more easily view screen time on a dashboard and customize limits for their children based on school schedules, holidays, and other commitments.
American officials have also noted that Chinese authorities seem to <a href="https://mp.weixin.qq.com/s/zp43DhzwanDApoPCIgCvJQ" target="_blank" rel="noopener">understand</a> the effects of TikTok: children under 14 years old who use Douyin, the version of TikTok available in China, are only permitted 40 minutes of screen time each day and cannot access the platform at night.

TikTok

U.S. Surgeon General Issues Advisory About Kids’ Use Of Social Media

U.S. Government Issues Advisory About Kids’ Use Of Social Media

Surgeon General

<a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/celebrities">Nick Jonas</a> had an extreme reaction to making a mistake during a guitar solo he was performing with country artist Kelsea Ballerini in 2016, he said.
The 30-year-old <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/music">recording artist</a> and actor recalled the incident during an <a href="https://open.spotify.com/episode/0jGF65wCrSi2EgJgN1xwh2">episode</a> of the “Armchair Expert with Dax Shepard” podcast. Jonas described it as &#8220;a really tragic guitar solo debacle that happened on live TV.&#8221; 
This <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/entertainment">event</a> transpired during the 2016 Acadamy of Country Music Awards when he was slated to play guitar and sing a duet of “Peter Pan” alongside Ballerini. 
&#8220;In retrospect, I can kind of laugh about how big I thought it was. But it did travel more than I wish it would have, and it did cause me to go to therapy,&#8221; he said of making an error during the performance.
&#8220;I come out for my thing. I rehearsed it a million times. I&#8217;m feeling really confident about it — not even really thinking about it like it&#8217;s a thing that&#8217;s going to be problematic,&#8221; Jonas said. &#8220;I started off, it was fine and as I walked towards her, I just went completely blank and I hit a wrong note and blacked out basically and clocked that it was wrong and I couldn&#8217;t stop.&#8221;
Jonas described how much this mistake affected him despite his making light of the situation at the time.
&#8220;Til this day and hours after unpacking it, I can&#8217;t really figure out exactly what happened, but I was rushed to a car and rushed to a plane right after it,&#8221; the “Only Human” singer said. &#8220;I looked at my manager and said, &#8216;I think that was bad.&#8217; I was, like, in shock kinda. It was a really traumatic moment that shaped the pressure I put on myself to be perfect and to always be on.&#8221;
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&#8220;Just landed in London to all these posts from Sunday night&#8217;s performance,&#8221; Jonas tweeted of the performance in 2016. &#8220;So funny. Yes, I screwed up the solo thanks to a huge brain fart.&#8221;
Jonas told Shepard that the experience taught him not to put so much pressure on himself. The singer did another duet with Ballerini in 2021 and didn’t make the same mistake twice.

Nick Jonas Kelsea Ballerini

Nick Jonas Sought Therapy After ‘Tragic’ Mistake During Guitar Solo With Kelsea Ballerini: ‘Really Traumatic Moment’

Nick Jonas Sought Therapy After 'Tragic' Mistake During Guitar Solo With Kelsea Ballerini

Celebrities

Entertainment

Senator <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/pennsylvania-governor-shapiro-will-not-ask-fetterman-to-resign-despite-long-term-hospitalization-predicts-he-will-come-back-stronger-than-ever" target="_blank" rel="noopener">John Fetterman</a> (D-PA) clearly struggled to deliver his own line of questioning during Tuesday&#8217;s Senate Banking Committee hearing.
<a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/john-fetterman-says-his-depression-came-from-brutality-of-the-campaign-the-other-side" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Fetterman</a>, who just returned to the Senate after a lengthy hospitalization for clinical depression and anxiety, has also been dealing with the lasting impact of a near-fatal stroke during his Senate campaign that left him with auditory processing issues.
WATCH:
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="500" data-dnt="true">
John Fetterman asks a question to the former CEO of Silicon Valley Bank <a href="https://t.co/FOzRIS4NYY">pic.twitter.com/FOzRIS4NYY</a>
&mdash; Greg Price (@greg_price11) <a href="https://twitter.com/greg_price11/status/1658519364407119873?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 16, 2023</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
&#8220;Is it staggering — isn&#8217;t it staggering responsibility — that the head of a bank could literally, could literally crash our economy. It&#8217;s astonishing,&#8221; Fetterman began. &#8220;That&#8217;s like if you have — I mean like — and they also realize that — that now they have — it&#8217;s in — they guaranteed a guaranteed way to be saved by &#8230; [unintelligible] &#8230; how?&#8221;
Fetterman continued to struggle as he appeared to call for stricter regulations on banks as a general rule, adding, &#8220;Isn&#8217;t it appropriate that the — those kinds of — this kind of control should be stricter &#8230; to prevent this kind of thing from going? Or should we go on and just keep bailing and sailing whoever banks regardless of how &#8230; their &#8230; their conduct is?&#8221;
He then appeared to go off the track, saying that he would give the former CEO of Silicon Valley Bank an &#8220;example&#8221; — and going on to talk about the fact that Republicans want to attach work requirements to SNAP benefits.
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After suggesting that it was wrong to call for work requirements for hungry families, Fetterman pivoted and asked, &#8220;Shouldn&#8217;t you have a working requirement after we sail your bank — billions of your bank?&#8221;
In order to assist the Pennsylvania senator as he continues to recover from the stroke, he has been given a tablet so that he can use closed captioning to read the responses to his questions during committee hearings. When the full Senate is in session, according to a <a href="https://time.com/6251752/john-fetterman-stroke-recovery-assistive-technology/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">report</a> from TIME Magazine, &#8220;the Sergeant at Arms (SAA) has installed a permanent live caption display monitor at Fetterman’s desk in the Senate chamber.&#8221;
Instead of using Artificial Intelligence (AI), the Senate will use professional broadcast captioners to provide Fetterman&#8217;s captions — a move designed to ensure greater accuracy.

Senators Meet For Their Policy Luncheons On Capitol Hill

John Fetterman Clearly Struggles Through Questions At Senate Hearing

Congress

John Fetterman

Senate

The man accused of attacking two female staffers for Rep. Gerry Connolly (D-VA) on Monday reportedly has a long history of <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/mental-illness" target="_blank" rel="noopener">mental illness</a>, according to the man&#8217;s father.
Xuan Kha Tran Pham, 49, was arraigned Tuesday in Fairfax on charges stemming from an incident where he allegedly attacked the two staffers with a baseball bat, the Associated Press <a href="https://apnews.com/article/virginia-connolly-congressional-office-attacked-b054946db16043819b36b49695d3b49d" target="_blank" rel="noopener">reported</a>. He was also charged in connection with a hate crime for a separate incident an hour earlier where he allegedly bashed a car windshield and chased a woman after asking her if she was white.
Tran Pham&#8217;s father, Hy Pham, told The Washington Post that his son has been diagnosed with schizophrenia and that he has battled mental illness since he was a teenager. Hy Pham said that his son is not married and could not hold down a job because of his condition, which the Associated Press described as being &#8220;untreated.&#8221;
Hy Pham added that he has tried to get his son help, but has not been successful.
Tran Pham has been charged with aggravated wounding, malicious aggravated wounding, felony destroying property, and a misdemeanor hate crime.
The reports said that Tran Pham has had previous incidents with law enforcement, including as recently as last year when a police officer who was responding to a call involving him sustained minor injuries.
He filed a lawsuit against the CIA last year, claiming that the spy agency was torturing him “from the fourth dimension.”
The U.S. Capitol Police (USCP) said in a statement, “At approximately 10:49 a.m. on Monday, May 15, a man entered Representative Connolly’s District Office. Two Congressional staffers were assaulted with a metal bat and received non-life threatening injuries. Congressman Connolly was not in the office at the time of the assaults.”
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“The Fairfax City Police Department responded and arrested the suspect. At this time, it is not clear what the suspect’s motivation may have been. Based on what we know right now, investigators do not have any information that the suspect was known to the USCP,” the statement added. “Special Agents with the United States Capitol Police Threat Assessment Section were dispatched to Fairfax, Virginia. The Department simultaneously coordinated with our partners at the Fairfax City Police and the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s Washington Field Office.”

House Holds Hearing On Washington DC Oversight

New Details Released About Suspect Accused Of Attacking Congressman’s Staffers With Baseball Bat

New Details Released About Suspect Accused Of Attacking Congressman's Staffers With Baseball Bat

Assault

Crime

<a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/dwayne-johnson" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson</a> recently opened up about experiencing <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/depression" target="_blank" rel="noopener">depression</a> multiple times in his life.
The “Jumanji” actor and former professional wrestler discussed his <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/mental-health" target="_blank" rel="noopener">mental health</a> during an <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MVc0592Je_o" target="_blank" rel="noopener">appearance</a> on the podcast “The Pivot.” Johnson said his first experience with depression occurred after a shoulder injury derailed his football career at the University of Miami.
&#8220;[I] didn&#8217;t want to go to school,&#8221; he said. &#8220;I was ready to leave. I left school. I didn&#8217;t take any midterms and I just left. But the interesting thing, at that time, is I just didn&#8217;t know what it was. I didn&#8217;t know what mental health was. I didn&#8217;t know what depression was. I just knew I didn&#8217;t want to be there. Wasn&#8217;t going to any of the team meetings. Wasn&#8217;t participating in anything.&#8221;
The Rock said he became depressed again after going through a divorce from Dany Garcia in 2008. Those first two times helped Johnson identify what was happening when he became depressed again in 2017.
&#8220;Years later, around 2017 or so, went through a little bit. Knew what it was at that time,&#8221; he said. &#8220;And luckily, at that time, I had some friends who I could lean on and say, &#8216;You know, I&#8217;m feeling a little wobbly now. Got a little struggle happening. I&#8217;m seeing a little gray and not the blue.'&#8221;
The 51-year-old actor said his three daughters were his “saving grace” to help him get through tough times.
&#8220;You look at them, and you realize, &#8216;Well, I mean, really, this is what it&#8217;s all about,’&#8221; Johnson said of being a father. 
The “Black Adam” star promoted the podcast interview on social media. 
He wrote in his Instagram post <a href="https://www.instagram.com/reel/CsIUVWLPSuG/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">caption</a>, “I&#8217;ve worked hard over the years to gain the emotional tools to work thru [sic] any mental pain that may come to test me. But years ago I didn&#8217;t know what mental health struggle was,&#8221; he wrote. &#8220;As men, we didn&#8217;t talk about it. We just kept our head down and worked thru it. Not healthy, but it&#8217;s all we knew.&#8221;
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&#8220;If you&#8217;re going thru your own version of mental wellness turning into mental hell-ness, the most important thing you can do is talk to somebody,” Johnson wrote. “It can&#8217;t be fixed if you keep that pain inside. Having the courage to talk to someone is your superpower. I lost two friends to suicide.&#8221;
&#8220;Talk to someone. Despite how you may feel, you&#8217;re never alone,&#8221; he concluded.
The National Suicide Prevention Lifeline is a free hotline for individuals in crisis or distress or for those looking to help someone else. It is available 24/7 at 1-800-273-8255.

The Rock

Dwayne ‘The Rock’ Johnson Discusses ‘Three Bouts Of Depression’ He Experienced

Dwayne 'The Rock' Johnson Discusses 'Three Bouts Of Depression' He Experienced

Depression

Dwayne Johnson

Less than two weeks after announcing his re-election bid, a new <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2023/05/07/president-biden-post-abc-poll/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">poll</a> shows the majority of Americans don’t think President Joe Biden is mentally or physically fit to serve a second term. 
The Washington Post-ABC News poll <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/tablet/2023/05/05/april-28-may-3-2023-washington-post-abc-news-poll/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">shows</a> that 63% of voters don’t believe the president has the “mental sharpness it takes to serve effectively as president,” while 32% believe he does, and 5% have no opinion. Twenty-one percent of Democrats <a href="https://www.axios.com/2023/05/07/biden-trump-age-election-poll">believe</a> the president isn’t mentally sharp enough for another term. Similarly, 62% of voters don’t believe Biden is in “good enough physical health to serve effectively as president,” while 33% disagree. 
Biden, 80, is the <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/biden-makes-reelection-bid-official-at-age-80" target="_blank" rel="noopener">oldest</a> president in United States history. If he were to win re-election and serve a full second term, he would be 86 by the time he left office in January 2029. Even some elected Democrats have expressed their reservations about the president’s age. In October, when asked about the prospect of a Biden re-election bid, Michigan Democratic Rep. Elissa Slotkin <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/democrat-rep-calls-for-new-blood-in-her-party-when-asked-if-she-would-support-bidens-re-election" target="_blank" rel="noopener">called</a> for a “new generation” of leadership, but added that she would support the president if he decided to run. 
“I have been very vocal, including with my own leadership in the House, that we need a new generation and we need new blood, period, across the Democratic Party, in the House, the Senate, and the White House,” Slotkin said. “I think that the country has been saying that.”
Shortly after announcing his bid for a second term, the president defended his age during a press conference with South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol. 
&#8220;With regard to age, I can&#8217;t even say I guess how old I am, I can&#8217;t even say the number. It doesn&#8217;t register with me,&#8221; Biden <a href="https://www.npr.org/2023/04/26/1172113846/biden-reelection-age">told</a> reporters. &#8220;I respect them taking a hard look at it — I&#8217;d take a hard look at it, as well. I took a hard look at it before I decided to run, and I feel good. I feel excited about the prospects,&#8221; he added. 
In the poll, President Biden’s job approval rating hit a low of 36%, with 56% disapproving. In February, that number <a href="https://www.axios.com/2023/05/07/biden-trump-age-election-poll" target="_blank" rel="noopener">was</a> 42%. Fifty-eight percent of Democratic-leaning adults believe the party should nominate someone besides the president, while 47% of Democrats want the president nominated again, and an equal number want an alternative. As for independents who lean Democratic, 77% want someone besides Biden. 
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For Americans under 30 years old, his approval rating is 26%. In the 2020 election, President Biden received roughly 60% of the vote for Americans under 30, <a href="https://fivethirtyeight.com/features/how-biden-lost-the-support-of-young-americans/">according</a> to Pew Research. 
Republicans appeared to fare better in the poll, which shows both former President Donald Trump and Florida Governor Ron DeSantis defeating Biden in a hypothetical matchup. According to the survey, 44% of Americans would “definitely” or “probably” vote for Trump in a Trump versus Biden race, while 38% would vote for Biden, and 18% were undecided or gave a different answer. In a DeSantis versus Biden race, 42% would “definitely” or “probably” vote for DeSantis, 37% for Biden, and 21% were undecided or gave another answer.

President Biden Convenes Virtual Meeting Of Major Economies-Forum On Energy And Climate

Most Americans Don’t Think Biden Is Mentally Or Physically Fit Enough For Second Term: Poll

Most Americans Don't Think Biden Is Mentally Or Physically Fit Enough For Second Term: Poll

Elections

Executive

Joe Biden

Politics

Poll

Former child star <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/celebrities">Amanda Bynes</a> was reportedly released from the hospital in Southern California on Monday, following some three weeks of treatment.
Bynes was placed on a <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/mental-illness">psychiatric hold</a> last month after the actress was found roaming the streets of <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/los-angeles">Los Angeles</a> naked, <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/former-child-star-placed-on-psychiatric-hold-after-wandering-l-a-streets-naked-report" target="_blank" rel="noopener">The Daily Wire</a> reported. She was initially placed on a 72-hour hold, but that was extended until Monday.
“No one really recognized her or noticed her. She was walking tensely and by herself. A woman started walking with her and tried to help her. Amanda asked the woman to hold her,” an eyewitness <a href="https://etcanada.com/news/983867/amanda-bynes-reportedly-released-from-hospital-after-being-placed-on-psychiatric-hold/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">told</a> ET of the incident. “Amanda seemed to be in a loving, wholesome mood, [though she] seemed as though she was out of it.”
Bynes apparently then &#8220;asked to be dropped off at her friend’s place in Beverly Hills,&#8221; the witness said. &#8220;When the woman went to drop her off, Amanda’s friend did not answer.”
The actress &#8220;did not want to go home and noted that her boyfriend kicked her out,” the source added. “Amanda then asked to be dropped back off on Hollywood Boulevard, and the woman obliged.”
A judge last year <a href="https://www.nbcnews.com/pop-culture/pop-culture-news/amanda-bynes-conservatorship-expected-end-judges-tentative-ruling-rcna17979" target="_blank" rel="noopener">terminated</a> the embattled actress&#8217; conservatorship following a petition from Bynes to dissolve the arrangement. A personal conservatorship for Bynes lasted from 2013 to March 2022, and a conservatorship for the actress&#8217; estate was terminated in 2017.
Rick Bynes, the actress&#8217;s father, served as trustee, while Bynes&#8217; mother, Lynn Organ, controlled her daughter&#8217;s medical and personal matters.
The judge who ended Bynes&#8217; personal conservatorship <a href="https://www.foxla.com/news/amanda-bynes-conservatorship-terminated" target="_blank" rel="noopener">found</a> that the arrangement was &#8220;no longer required.&#8221;
&#8220;Lynn is so proud of Amanda and the progress she has made and looks forward to having a mother-daughter relationship with Amanda outside of the conservatorship,&#8221; a representative for Lynn, Tamar Arminak, <a href="https://www.foxla.com/news/amanda-bynes-conservatorship-terminated" target="_blank" rel="noopener">told</a> Fox News Digital.
After the conservatorship ended, Bynes&#8217; attorney, David Esquibias, told Fox News Digital, “Amanda is excited and looking forward to living independently.&#8221; He also told People magazine Bynes “believes her condition is improved and protection of the court is no longer necessary.&#8221;
The “She’s the Man” actress was scheduled to appear at 90s Con in Connecticut last month with other popular stars from that era, including cast members of “Beverly Hills 90210,” “Buffy the Vampire Slayer,” “Charmed,” “The Wonder Years,” and others. Bynes, though, canceled her appearance on the “All That” panel due to an unspecified illness.
The actress is headed back to her home, where she will partake in an outpatient treatment plan, <a href="https://www.tmz.com/2023/04/11/amanda-bynes-released-mental-hospital-treatment-walking-streets-naked/?adid=share-tw" target="_blank" rel="noopener">according</a> to TMZ.
Amanda Harding contributed to this post 
Related: <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/former-child-star-placed-on-psychiatric-hold-after-wandering-l-a-streets-naked-report" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Former Child Star Placed On Psychiatric Hold After Wandering L.A. Streets Naked: Report</a>

Celebrity Sightings In Los Angeles – August 25, 2015

Former Child Star Amanda Bynes Released From Mental Health Facility After Reported Naked Incident In L.A.

Former Child Star Amanda Bynes Released From Mental Health Facility

Hollywood

Senator John Fetterman is expected to return to work the week of April 17th, after seeking treatment for anxiety and depression at Walter Reed National Military Medical Center.
According to a <a href="https://www.politico.com/news/2023/03/29/fetterman-set-to-return-to-senate-00089519" target="_blank" rel="noopener">report</a> published by Politico on Wednesday, sources close to the freshman Keystone State senator have indicated that he recovered well and is ready to get back to work as soon as possible.
Fetterman <a href="https://dailywire.com/news/senator-fetterman-to-be-hospitalized-for-weeks-after-checking-himself-into-hospital/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">checked himself in</a> for treatment weeks earlier, stating that he had been diagnosed with anxiety and clinical depression — conditions that he had dealt with in the past but had only amplified after a near-fatal stroke, a senate campaign, and his first days in office.
CNN <a href="https://www.cnn.com/2023/03/29/politics/fetterman-return-senate/index.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">reported</a> that a source close to the senator had indicated he&#8217;d likely be &#8220;as good or better than his best days post-stroke,&#8221; adding, &#8220;He’s doing extremely well.&#8221;
Fellow Senator Bob Casey, also a Democrat from Pennsylvania, told <a href="https://thehill.com/homenews/house/3924575-fetterman-set-to-return-to-senate-week-of-april-17/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">The Hill</a> that he had visited Fetterman in recent days — and while he made it clear that he was not qualified to give a medical report on his colleague, he did say that he was pleased to see how well Fetterman appeared to be doing.
&#8220;It was just remarkable how good he looked, how good he sounded. My sense is he’ll be in better shape than he was even before his stroke. He’s really, really in good shape,&#8221; Casey said.
Senator Time Kaine (D-VA) said that in addition to Fetterman, he also expected to see Senator Dianne Feinstein (D-CA) return around the same time frame.
&#8220;That’s what we’re hearing,&#8221; Kaine said. Feinstein has been missing from the deliberative body since February, when she announced that she had been diagnosed with shingles.
Also missing from the Senate in recent weeks has been Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY), who suffered a fall recently and sustained a rib fracture and a concussion.

Sen. John Fetterman

Report Reveals When Pennsylvania Senator John Fetterman Will Return

Pennsylvania

While <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/colleges" target="_blank" rel="noopener">college</a> campuses are obsessing over &#8220;<a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/safe-spaces" target="_blank" rel="noopener">safe spaces</a>&#8221; and diversity, equity, and inclusion, one <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/professor" target="_blank" rel="noopener">professor</a> noticed that students are becoming less happy and much angrier.
Mary Gaitskill, a novelist who teaches creative writing courses as a visiting professor at several universities, made the observations in an article for the <a href="https://www.chronicle.com/article/the-trials-of-the-young?utm_source=Iterable&amp;utm_medium=email&amp;utm_campaign=campaign_6350713_nl_Academe-Today_date_20230309&amp;cid=at&amp;source=&amp;sourceid=&amp;cid2=gen_login_refresh&amp;cid2=gen_login_refresh" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Chronicle of Higher Education</a>. Gaitskill said that despite constant efforts to make campuses &#8220;safe,&#8221; students in her classes, especially white males, are writing violent and degenerate fantasies, and many students have spent time in mental institutions.
&#8220;Anyone who isn’t living in off-grid isolation is aware of the tireless efforts by hyperconscious campus administrations to create classrooms where everyone feels safe and as few people as possible will be made &#8216;uncomfortable,&#8217; let alone unhappy,&#8221; Gaitskill wrote, citing &#8220;trigger warnings&#8221; and training modules about rape and sexual harassment as examples. The college she wrote about doubled down on these practices: including fewer white male authors on syllabi, more training modules, more anti-racist teacher trainings, and more language rules.
Most people, even those affected by real incidents of hate and discrimination, &#8220;might fairly mock the corrective apparatus&#8221; as &#8220;ridiculous&#8221; or &#8220;dictatorial,&#8221; Gaitskill added. &#8220;The deeper trouble is that it is ineffectual and confusing.&#8221; She pointed to an instance where a white male student used the phrase &#8220;toxic masculinity&#8221; without knowing what it meant; the student told her that he learned it at freshman orientation, and to him &#8220;it meant entitled men treating women badly.&#8221; This student did not take issue with the idea of &#8220;toxic masculinity.&#8221; But &#8220;less confident, less sophisticated young men — those with the most vulnerable self-esteem — might find it disconcerting to be told, no matter how sensitively it was put, that the trait that they have grown up considering desirable, their most basic default identity, is now toxic,&#8221; she wrote. &#8220;This does not seem to me a minor side effect.&#8221;
Gaitskill then recounted the stories of several students in her class. One student, Luke, approached her for permission to write a story about violent rape, murder, and necrophilia, in the first person. She rejected the idea because such horrific material would get administration involved, and she didn&#8217;t want that. But moreover, she told the student that it was hard to empathize with such violent individuals. “You’re completely wrong,” the student replied. “They do understand why they do it.” 
That student eventually wrote a story with graphic depictions of self-harm. Another student wrote an account of an attempted suicide that turned out to be autobiographical. In all, four of the eight students in her class wrote about suicide: two wrote about their own suicide attempts; two wrote about friends, one of whom died; one was written by a girl who had known four people in her home town who had attempted or committed suicide, and she was trying to understand them. In all cases, Gaitskill recounted that the stories were filled with despair, either directed at a particular social issue, or simply personal, but &#8220;vivid&#8221; and &#8220;intense.&#8221;
Gaitskill talked with a counselor who had been working with Luke. During their conversation, the counselor said that &#8220;mental-health issues were &#8216;through the roof,&#8217; that a number of students had already been sent home in that calendar year to receive care; in some cases, their parents had to be persuaded to accept them back.&#8221; The counselor also said that mental health had been declining for years. Gaitskill then provided a disturbing email Luke had sent to her. The counselor said the email wasn&#8217;t enough to act on. So Gaitskill offered to forward her the email. The counselor said no, “[b]ecause if I see it, I’ll have to do something.”
Gaitskill concluded that the students feel this way because they are constantly exposed to large-scale social issues, such as mass shootings, climate change, police brutality, disinformation, and others. Instead, they are looking for a sense of safety by fixating on problems they can control, such as offensive words, gender ideology, and toxic masculinity, even though the apparatus built around solving those problems offers no safety. &#8220;The only thing I can say for sure is that the young deserve better,&#8221; she wrote.
The National Suicide Prevention Lifeline is a free hotline for individuals in crisis or distress or for those looking to help someone else. It is available 24/7 at 1-800-273-8255.

College students walking on campus, rear view – stock photo

College Professor: Despite Campus Obsession With ‘Safe Spaces,’ Students Are Writing About Violent Fantasies, Suicide

College Professor: While Campuses Are Obsessed With 'Safe Spaces,’ Students Are Writing About Violence, Suicide

Education

Professors

Safe Spaces

Students

Suicide

Violence

First lady <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/jill-biden" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Dr. Jill Biden</a> scorned the prospect of her husband, President <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/joe-biden" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Joe Biden</a>, taking a competency test for elderly politicians.
During an <a href="https://www.cnn.com/2023/03/05/politics/jill-biden-nikki-haley-mental-test" target="_blank" rel="noopener">interview</a>, Biden called the proposal by Nikki Haley, who is running for the Republican presidential nomination, a &#8220;ridiculous&#8221; idea.
&#8220;We would never even discuss something like that,&#8221; she added when asked if her husband would consider such a test, <a href="https://www.cnn.com/2023/03/05/politics/jill-biden-nikki-haley-mental-test" target="_blank" rel="noopener">according to CNN</a>.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="500" data-dnt="true">
&quot;It&#39;s ridiculous.&quot;
First lady Jill Biden dismisses Republican presidential candidate Nikki Haley&#39;s calls for mental competency tests for politicians over the age of 75 <a href="https://t.co/nrIHMlR3UM">https://t.co/nrIHMlR3UM</a> <a href="https://t.co/C1bbTIEP4i">pic.twitter.com/C1bbTIEP4i</a>
&mdash; CNN Politics (@CNNPolitics) <a href="https://twitter.com/CNNPolitics/status/1631708561225941007?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">March 3, 2023</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
At 80, Joe Biden is already the oldest person to be president. Concerns have been raised in recent years about Biden’s physical fitness and mental acuity, even among those in his own party, spurred by moments in which the <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/biden-falling-on-air-force-one-steps-becomes-fodder-for-viral-ad" target="_blank" rel="noopener">president has tripped</a> or <a href="https://fortune.com/well/2022/09/20/biden-the-pandemic-is-over-omicron-covid-is-the-pandemic-over/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">fumbled his words</a>.
Haley appeared to take aim at Biden as well as former President Donald Trump, under whom she served as U.S. ambassador to the United Nations, last month with a push for younger leaders.
“In the America I see, the permanent politician will finally retire,” Haley <a href="https://thehill.com/homenews/campaign/3859468-haley-calls-for-mental-competency-tests-for-politicians-over-75/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">said at a rally kicking off her campaign</a>. “We’ll have term limits for Congress and mandatory mental competency tests for politicians over 75 years old.”
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One elder statesman who has also run for president, 81-year-old Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT), responded to Haley&#8217;s proposal by <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/bernie-sanders-says-nikki-haley-calling-for-mental-competency-tests-is-absurd-ageist" target="_blank" rel="noopener">calling it &#8220;absurd&#8221;</a> and encouraging people to fight against ageism.
Joe Biden says he intends to run for a second term but has yet to make such a decision official.
White House physician Kevin O’Connor <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/white-house-doctor-claims-biden-fit-to-serve-as-president-despite-no-cognitive-test" target="_blank" rel="noopener">said in a memo</a> following a physical last month that the commander-in-chief “remains a healthy, vigorous 80-year-old male who is fit to successfully execute the duties of the Presidency.”
Jill Biden, a longtime teacher who <a href="https://www.whitehouse.gov/administration/dr-jill-biden/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">received a Doctor of Education</a> in educational leadership from the University of Delaware, told CNN <a href="https://www.cnn.com/2023/02/27/politics/jill-joe-biden-reelection-2024/index.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">she is &#8220;all for&#8221;</a> another bid.
“It’s Joe’s decision,” she said. “And we support whatever he wants to do. If he’s in, we’re there. If he wants to do something else, we’re there too.”

Jill and Joe Biden

Dr. Jill Biden Refuses To Prescribe Competency Test For Husband Joe

2024 Election

Jill Biden

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