Dear Former Trump Staffers Who Resigned After Wednesday’s Attack on the Capitol: F*ck Off

Think of the worst boss you’ve ever had. Maybe they were just a hard-ass. Maybe they underappreciated you. Maybe they were an HR nightmare. You know how you’d fantasize about one day storming into their office and screaming, “I QUIT,” before running out and stealing all the good pens?

Yeah, this ain’t that.

Following yesterday’s siege on the U.S. Capitol Building in Washington D.C. by a pro-Trump mob, several of President Donald Trump’s White House staffers resigned, like, in protest or whatever. This list so far includes:

This is the part, I guess, where they likely expect some respect—maybe even applause; a book deal if you’re offering—for handing in their two-weeks’ notice literally two weeks before their boss is officially fired. Nope.

Oil Futures Settle Higher For 3rd Straight Day

Crude oil futures ended higher on Thursday, extending gains to a third straight session, with the recent data showing a drop in stockpiles continuing to support prices.

Saudi Arabia’s decision to cut its output by additional 1 million barrels per day in February and March too continued to contribute to oil’s uptick.

Worries about outlook for energy demand due to continued to spikes in coronavirus cases in several countries and tighter restrictions on movements limited oil’s gains.

West Texas Intermediate Crude oil futures for February ended up $0.20 or about 0.4% at $50.83 a barrel, after hitting a high of $51.28 a barrel in the session.

WTI crude oil futures hit their highest level since January 25, 2019.

Brent crude futures were up $0.20 or 0.4% at $54.50 a barrel a little while ago.

Data released by the Energy Information Administration on Wednesday said crude stockpiles in the U.S. fell by about 8 million barrels in the week ended January 1 to 485.5 million barrels.

Michelle Obama Calls Out Right-Wing Media, Silicon Valley For Enabling Donald Trump

Former First Lady Michelle Obama issued a lengthy statement on the siege of the U.S. Capitol by supporters of Donald Trump, calling out right-wing media and Silicon Valley tech companies for enabling his behavior.

“The day was a fulfillment of wishes of an infantile and unpatriotic president who can’t handle the truth of his own failures,” Obama said. “And the wreckage lays at the feet of a party and media apparatus that gleefully cheered him on, knowing full well the possibility of consequences like these.”

She also said that tech platforms could do more to curb Trump by banning him from their platforms.

“Now is the time for Silicon Valley companies to stop enabling this monstrous behavior — and go even further than they have already by permanently banning this man from their platforms and putting in place policies to prevent their technology from being used by the nation’s leaders to fuel insurrection,” she said.

In the statement, Obama also noted that difference in law enforcement response to Black Lives Matter protests over the summer and the Capitol siege. “Seeing the gulf between the responses to yesterday’s riot and this summer’s peaceful protests and the larger movement for social justice is so painful,” she said. “It hurts. And I cannot think about moving on or turning the page until we reckon with the reality of what we saw yesterday.”

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Here’s How You Can Channel Your Rage Over the Capitol Riot Into Action

The January 6 attempted coup at the Capitol building reaffirmed the harsh truth that democracy is only ever one unhinged presidency away from crumbling.

A mob of pro-Trumpers stormed the historic building while members of Congress were meeting to certify the results of the electoral college. Video clips of the scene showed the insurrectionists scaling over walls, pushing through the Capitol police, and vandalizing government property.

Artificial intelligence app will use Alexa to enable people to talk to dead relatives

AN artificial intelligence app will enable ­people to talk to dead relatives — using Alexa.

The ghost bot can generate 3D images of a person and mimic their personality.

It uses recordings of them to copy their style, diction, tone, voice and intent to make what they say appear to be genuine.

Details from their social media accounts and letters could be mixed in to add to the effect.

App users could keep a loved-one’s memory alive with catch-up chats.

It is believed the technology could be used to interact with historical figures or dead celebrities.

The patent states: “Social data may be used to create or modify a special index  . . .  to train a chat bot to converse and interact in the personality of a specific person.”

It says a 2D or 3D model of a person could be generated using “images, depth information, and/or video”.

Microsoft has applied for a ­patent for the app, which could operate through smart devices like Amazon Alexa or Google Nest.

Some experts, however, consider the idea terrifying and have questioned the ethics behind the app.

It comes after rapper Kanye West, 43, gave wife Kim Kardashian a hologram of her late dad Robert for her 40th birthday.

Lawyer Robert, who died of cancer in 2003 aged 59, was brought back to virtual life as a surprise.

In a clip online, the hologram is heard to state that Kim is “all grown up” and Kanye is a “genius”.

NYSE Starts Delisting 3 Chinese Telco Giants To Comply With Trump Executive Order

The New York Stock Exchange said it has started proceedings to delist the securities of three Chinese telecommunications companies in order to comply with a U.S. executive order that imposed restrictions on companies identified as affiliated with the Chinese military.

China Mobile Ltd., China Telecom Corp Ltd., China Unicom Hong Kong Ltd. will be suspended from trading between January 7 and January 11, the NYSE said.

The companies have a right to a review of determination by a Committee of the Board of Directors of the Exchange. The NYSE will apply to the Securities and Exchange Commission to delist the Issuers and securities upon completion of all applicable procedures, including any potential appeals.

All three companies are also listed in Hong Kong.

U.S. President Donald Trump signed an executive order in November that prohibited U.S. investors from buying and selling shares in a list of Chinese companies designated by the U.S. as having military ties.