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And when YOU become governor, you can have your own beach
It’s day 3 of the New Jersey government shutdown, and it’s getting heated on the shore. Gov. Chris Christie and his family are enjoying his state-owned residence at Island Beach State Park for the holiday weekend. The problem is, this beach is closed to the public, because of the shutdown. «Well, I’ m sorry … they’ re not the governor, » Christie said Monday. Burn. «Am I supposed to move out and stay in a hotel?» he added. These critics wouldn’t mind. So, how’d we get here? The New Jersey government shutdown began Saturday after feuding factions in the Democratic-controlled Legislature could not reach a deal to send Christie a $34.7 billion budget for his signature by the July 1 deadline. The impasse prompted Christie to close non-essential government services. If you need him, he’ll be on the beach.
Maria’s meningioma
Getting the news that you have a brain tumor is hard enough. Getting the news that you have a brain tumor while your mother is also battling Stage 4 brain cancer, that’s a whole other story. And it happens to be Maria Menounos’. The E! News host told People magazine she was diagnosed with a benign brain tumor, which she underwent surgery for last month. The good news is that Menounos said 99.9% of the tumor, called a meningioma, was removed, and a recent MRI shows her mother’s cancer is stable. There’s a 6-to-7% chance Menounos’ cancer could come back, but she says she’ll «take those odds any day.” Menounos is leaving E! to focus on her recovery.
Hate in America
On Tuesday, we celebrate the birth of our nation. But Monday, we’re forced to confront the hate that still divides it. Vandals hung a banner with an anti-Semitic slur over a Holocaust memorial at a synagogue in Lakewood, N. J., just a few days after 14 people in the ultra-Orthodox community were arrested on welfare fraud charges. Hate fliers were also spread around the township over the weekend. In 2016, the Anti-Defamation League in New Jersey received 157 anti-Semitic incident reports, a 14% increase from 2015.
Those stress-free meal kits are stressing out your supermarket
Blue Apron. HelloFresh. Purple Carrot. There’s a good chance you’ve tried a meal kit (one out of four American adults did in the last year) . Fans like the convenience, healthy options and built-in variety: A box arrives on your doorstep filled with packets of ingredients to make an exciting recipe. Critics say there’s too much packaging (can you even recycle this container?!) and the instructions are complicated. Regardless, meal kits are now a $2.2 billion business and continue to gain speed. And that’s freaking out grocers and restaurants who are already suffering from low food prices, thin margins and online and big-box competitors. And grocers are missing out on your impulse purchases, to.
This is a compilation of stories from across USA TODAY.
