These are the top maybe-not headlines from the past 84-hours presented by The Conversation Project from raw engagement data from our social media to the headlines posted over the past weekend.
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The 8 topics that our followers ranked as the most conversational are:
MASS SHOOTING AT HOMECOMING PARTY IN GREENVILLE, TEXAS
A mass shooting has left two dead and at least a dozen injured at a homecoming party in Greenville, just northeast of Dallas, local officials and witnesses say. No arrests have been made and a possible motive was not immediately known. The incident happened just after midnight on Sunday when officers were called for an active shooter at The Party Venue on Highway 380 in Greenville, a city in Hunt County. It’s about 45 miles (72 kilometers) northeast of Dallas. Hundreds of people were at the venue as an unofficial homecoming party with students from Texas A&M University Commerce was taking place at the time of the shooting. Graphic video from the scene showed blood and injured people on the floor as people screamed in the background. Two people were pronounced dead at the scene and 12 others were taken to area hospitals, where four of them remained in critical condition on Sunday afternoon. At least eight of the victims were shot and the others were injured while fleeing for safety. No arrests were made as of Sunday afternoon and there was no immediate word on a possible motive. Hunt County Sheriff Randy Meeks told the Dallas Morning News that the first victim may have been the gunman’s intended target, and the others may have been randomly fired upon.
[SOURCE: bnonews.com]
RUSSIAN SOLDIER KILLS 8 COLLEAGUES IN MASS SHOOTING AT SIBERIAN MILITARY BASE
Eight Russian servicemembers were killed in an apparent shooting spree at a military base in Siberia on Friday, Russia’s top law enforcement agency said in a statement. According to the statement from the Investigative Committee, a soldier allegedly opened fire on colleagues at a military garrison near the city of Chita, killing two officers and six enlisted personnel. A suspect in the case, Private Ramil Shamsutdinov, a member of Unit 54160, had been detained, the Investigative Committee said. According to the Russian defense ministry, the shooting occurred at around 6:20 p.m. local time during a change in a guard shift. Eight servicemembers were killed on the spot, and two additional military personnel were injured and taken to a hospital; their condition is not life-threatening, the ministry said. A commission of the Russian defense ministry, headed by Deputy Minister of Defense of the Russian Federation Colonel-General Andrei Kartapolov, flew to the scene of the incident, and an investigation is underway. The Investigative Committee said a criminal investigation had been opened in the case under Article 105 of the Criminal Code: the killing of two or more persons. A system of pervasive hazing was once common in the Russian and Soviet militaries, and bullied soldiers sometimes turned their weapons on colleagues. Such cases are relatively rarer today.
[SOURCE: cnn.com]
‘RESTAURANT FINED $90,000 FOR GIVING WOMEN DIFFERENT MENU WHEN THEY DINE WITH MEN
When you head out on date night, chances are you’re wanting to leave all the hum drum of life at the door and enjoy an evening connecting with your partner. Whether you hit up cheap food stalls or an expensive restaurant, you’ll still be mindful of what you’re spending just in case you end up going way over budget. But imagine sitting down at a restaurant and not know what anything costs. That’s what used to happen at a ritzy eatery in Lima, Peru, however it only applied to women when they dined with men. According to Fox News, La Rosa Nautica, in Miraflores, used to give women a gold menu that didn’t list the prices for any of its expensive dishes, while men would be given a blue menu that explained what everything cost. The restaurant denied accusations that the practice was discriminatory to the Associated Press, and defended its belief that the system allows its patrons ‘to enjoy a romantic evening with their partner without taking into account the cost of the services’. However, authorities didn’t see it that way. The National Institute for the Defence of Free Competition and the Protection of Intellectual Property challenged the practice and has fined the restaurant $90,000. The agency said women should have ‘access to the same list of dishes with prices included’.
[SOURCE: ladbible.com]
HONG KONG MEDICS JOIN PROTESTS AGAINST PERCEIVED POLICE BRUTALITY
Hundreds of Hong Kong medical workers and other anti-government protesters rallied in the Chinese-ruled city’s financial centre on Saturday (Oct 26), angry at perceived police brutality during more than four months of sometimes violent unrest. Pro-democracy activists have attacked police with petrol bombs and rocks and shone lasers in their eyes. One officer was slashed in the neck with a knife. Police have responded with tear gas, water cannon, rubber bullets and occasional live rounds, wounding several protesters, many of whom received treatment from volunteer first aiders at the roadside. A 26-year-old nurse, who gave his name only as Stephen, said police would often come into the hospital where he works on the Kowloon peninsula and stand outside the wards or search for protesters in the accident and emergency department. He said he worked as a first aider at protest sites in his spare time.
[SOURCE: straitstimes.com]
KATIE PRICE, LAUREN GOODGER AND GEORGIA HARRISON INSTAGRAM POSTS BANNED
A trio of influencers have had Instagram posts touting diet products banned by the UK’s ad regulator. TV stars Katie Price and Lauren Goodger promoted a BoomBod shot drink on their accounts, while Georgia Harrison showed off Protein Revolution’s weight loss gummies. The Advertising Standards Authority said the influencers’ posts were irresponsible. BoomBod claims its “10-calorie shots” stop people from snacking or overeating, while Protein Revolution says its V24 gummies keep cravings at bay thanks to a vegetable extract. The ASA also banned several posts posted by BoomBod and Protein Revolution via their own accounts. “It was clear from the ads that the influencers did not need to lose weight in order to achieve a healthy weight,” the ASA wrote in the BoomBod ruling.
[SOURCE: bbc.com]
MLB CONDUCTING WIDER PROBE OF ASTROS AFTER EXEC FIRING
Major League Baseball is conducting a wider probe of the Houston Astros that goes beyond the assistant general manager who was fired this week for inappropriate behavior, concerned about the team’s initial denial. Houston terminated Brandon Taubman on Thursday, saying he directed inappropriate comments at female reporters during a clubhouse celebration following Game 6 of the AL Championship Series last weekend. Sports Illustrated reported Taubman repeatedly yelled toward a group of female reporters about closer Roberto Osuna, who was suspended for 75 games last year for violating MLB’s domestic violence policy and then was traded from Toronto to Houston. Taubman shouted, “Thank God we got Osuna!” according to SI, which said he made similar remarks several times during Saturday night’s celebration, punctuating them with a profanity. Houston issued a statement Monday accusing the SI reporter of making up the story. Taubman apologized for his language in a statement Tuesday, and MLB and the team started an investigation. Astros general manager Jeff Luhnow apologized Thursday for the team’s initial response, saying it was wrong, and the team apologized to the SI reporter, the magazine and people who saw the incident, and to those who were offended. Manfred said MLB’s investigation began because of concern over the initial statement but was ongoing. Manfred said MLB intends to have conversations with Houston owner Jim Crane.
[SOURCE: apnews.com]
ONE MILLION CHILEANS MARCH IN SANTIAGO, CITY GRINDS TO HALT
As many as a million Chileans protested peacefully late into the evening on Friday in the capital Santiago in the biggest rallies yet since violence broke out a week ago over entrenched inequality in the South American nation. Protesters waving national flags, dancing, banging pots with wooden spoons and bearing placards urging political and social change streamed through the streets, walking for miles (km) from around Santiago to converge on Plaza Italia. Traffic already hobbled by truck and taxi drivers protesting road tolls ground to a standstill in Santiago as crowds shut down major avenues and public transport closed early ahead of marches that built throughout the afternoon. By mid-evening, most had made their way home in the dark ahead of an 11 p.m. military curfew. Santiago Governor Karla Rubilar said a million people marched in the capital – more than five percent of the country’s population. Protesters elsewhere took to the streets in every major Chilean city. Some local commentators estimated the Santiago rally well over the million mark, describing it as the largest single march since the dying years of the dictatorship of Augusto Pinochet.
[SOURCE: reuters.com]
NEW JERSEY IS TRYING TO REVOKE THE LIQUOR LICENSE FOR A TRUMP GOLF CLUB AFTER A MAN KILLED HIS FATHER IN A 2015 CAR CRASH
New Jersey prosecutors wants to revoke a liquor license for one of President Donald Trump’s golf clubs in the wake of a fatal 2015 car crash, according to documents obtained by The Washington Post. In a letter addressed to the Trump National Golf Club Colts Neck and dated October 21, the New Jersey Attorney General’s office says the club served alcohol to a man who was “actually or apparently intoxicated” and wrongly sold alcoholic drinks other than beer on the golf course through a cart service. The documents say that the golf club’s alleged offenses would normally trigger a 25-day suspension of its liquor license. “Due to the aggravating circumstances in this case, the Division will seek revocation of the license based upon the total circumstance,” Andrew Sapolnick, New Jersey’s deputy attorney general, writes in one letter. The documents said the golf club has 30 days to contest the move. If New Jersey does revoke the license, the Trump organization could challenge the decision in court, according to The New York Times. The 2015 incident in question involved a man named Andrew Halder, who drove out of the golf club and soon flipped his car on a highway ramp, sending his father, Gary Halder, flying out of the passenger seat. Gary Halder later died of his injuries in hospital, NJ.com reported. Court records show that Andrew Halder pleaded guilty last year to vehicular homicide. He was sentenced to three years probation and 100 hours of community service.
[SOURCE: insider.com]
Eight Things To Talk About uses the raw engagement data from the social media engagement from The Conversation Project to generate the top-ranking headlines over the course of a weekend.
A full weeks’ data (from Friday to Friday) is compiled, weighed, and sorted to produce the content for the Wrap-Up Show with J Cleveland Payne, published every Saturday as a podcast available at ThisIsTheConversation.com or wherever your favorite podcasts are found.
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