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| [Dementia] Vaccines do more than prevent diseases–they can prevent dementia. What about this don’t Florida’s leaders get? In fact, scientists have discovered that several routine immunizations seem to prevent cognitive decline, especially in older people. Those shots include the flu vaccine, the immunization for RSV (short for Respiratory Syncytial Virus) and the Tdap vaccine (a combination shot for tetanus, diphtheria and pertussis — a.k.a. whooping cough). |
 [Irish Hairdresser and ICE] During my seven years living in the U.S., “I never even had so much as a parking ticket,” said Lee Stinton. Yet I was grabbed by Donald Trump’s immigration police and held for a month in vile conditions. An ICE agent stopped me on a Florida street in June while I was on my way to work at a hair salon. “You look Mexican,” he sneered. “I am not,” I replied. “I am from Northern Ireland.” But that didn’t matter——I was now caught up in the Trump administration’s immigration crackdown. Federal agents crammed me and about 100 others into a cell built for 10 at Krome Detention Center in Miami, where there was one toilet, and we were barely fed. They had a doctor surgically remove my subdermal piercings without my consent while I was shackled to the bed, and when the pain meds wore off during the procedure they just laughed at me. Everything was done to intimidate and torture. One man who had been begging for his heart medication for days “literally dropped dead from a heart attack in front of my eyes,” a sight that haunts me to this day. Finally, they deported me on the excuse that I had once overstayed a visa, in 2018——even though I was at the time of my arrest in the process of getting a green card. The whole experience was the most inhumane thing ever to happen to me. |
 [“Dragonfly migration season”] When I was just a little kid all of us were terrified of dragonflies. We called them “sewing needles” and thought they would sew our lips shut if they landed on us. If we saw one we would run away, crying and screaming. |
| [New iPhone] Apple’s new iPhone Air, is a third thinner than other models. I have yet to locate anyone criticizing an iPhone for being “too thick,” nor do I believe “consumers will care about thickness when they learn the iPhone Air means sacrificing upgrades to the battery life and the camera, although it does contain Apple’s latest A19 Pro chip. Apple sort-of admitted the battery-life deficiency by selling a $99 external battery pack for what the company calls “life’s busier days.” Plus, at $999, a thinner iPhone is $200 more than the more powerful iPhone 17, released the same day. Is that a good deal when you’re only going to stick this phone into a case immediately anyway? |
 [This week’s Darwin Award] Sean O’Donnell, 46, of Harris County, Texas, was charged with murder in late August. When deputies first responded on Aug. 17 at O’Donnell’s home, they found Aaron Pratt, 34, with a gunshot wound to his head. He died from his injuries. Authorities first believed his death was a suicide, but then said “things weren’t adding up.” Allegedly, O’Donnell and Pratt were taking turns shooting each other in the head with a rifle while wearing a Kevlar helmet (and while being under the influence of alcohol). O’Donnell was held on $300,000 bond. |
| [Society] A general interest and preoccupation with politics is the surest sign of a general decay in a society. ~English philosopher Michael Oakeshott |
 [October Blood Drives] Blood donor gifts in October are an eerie-sistible Southernmost Halloween Blood Donor T-Shirt plus a $20 eGift Card/Publix Card depending on the drive location. Please schedule your appointment at the link below by entering your zip code and date range. Thank you to those who donate life saving blood during this ghoulish month. Link |
| [?] I noticed in a previous edition that someone could salvage a P30 1976 Chevy Van. |
 [Several Cartoons] Pardon My Planet by Vic Lee. Link |
| [Fake Amazon Reviews] Here’s how to spot the real ones. Use these tips to identify untrustworthy reviews and avoid wasting my money. Link |
 [‘Is this gun loaded?’] Say any of these things and you’ll be instantly banned from the gun range. Link |
| [Shooter of the Week] Michigan murdered kills 4 and burns Mormon church. Video Cisco: “A church burned!” Poncho: “Ooh, holy smoke! |
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| [Astrophotography] A ‘tornado in space’ and the ISS shine in these inspiring examples of the best in astrophotography. Link |
 [School Shooting Of The Week] Support the 2d Amendment or school shootings will stop. There have been at least 47 school shootings in the U.S. so far this year, leaving at least 19 people dead and 77 others wounded. School shootings have climbed sharply in recent years, rising from 44 in 2018 to more than 80 in 2022, 2023, and 2024. From 2008 to 2015, no year saw more than 40 school shootings and four years saw fewer than 2. |
| If the government shuts down, Florida’s economy will be significantly impacted. It would disrupt federal services, furloughing thousands of workers, delaying vital funding, and harming the state’s important tourism and real estate markets. |
 [Clark’s Nutcracker] From the Northern Rocky Mountains, to the Northern Sierras and Cascades, whitebark pine trees grow in some of the harshest and most spectacular mountain ecosystems of North America. These long-lived trees are impressive in many ways, but what’s most remarkable is that their entire existence depends on an ancient relationship with the bird that plants their seeds– the Clark’s Nutcracker. Video |
| Submit a post Contact Us What are you afraid of? |
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| [Old Eyeballs] Most people are using their phones to document the good times in their lives. I am at the age where I use my phone to take pictures of labels that I can’t read and use my phone to enlarge the print so that I can read it. |
 [Escalator-gate] More shocking video footage from the UN escalator debacle. Was it ‘sabotage’? Not for the faint of heart. Video |
| [Politically Correct] Sounds like somebody didn’t have any friends as a kid. Anybody play “cops and robbers” or “cowboys and Indians”? |
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| [Missing Ants] I was just visiting my brother-in-law and commented on how he had no small ants in his kitchen this year. He said he used to put out traps but decided they attracted the ants so he put them outside under the house. It worked so well I suggested he put them by his neighbor’s houses. |
 What owning a cat does to your brain (and theirs). If you’ve met a cat, you know they can be a bit subtle with their love. Link |
| [Rebel] I’m still going to take the Tylenol Rapid Release, the Epstein files medicine. I’m demanding the release for Charlie Kirk. |
 Tropical Storm Imelda began to pull away from Florida Monday afternoon, taking its blustery winds and heavy rains with it. |
| The current Coconut Telegraph was published on 9/30/25 at 8:47 am. |