An Americanist Briefing
Welcome to An Americanist Daily, your go-to solo podcast for a quick and snarky dive into the current events and politics shaping our nation! As a daily extension of the An Americanist blog, I’m here to break down the headlines that matter—Monday through Friday—without the fluff and filler.
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An Americanist Briefing
From TSA Changes to Meth-Fueled Joyrides: Tuesday's Wild News Roundup
Ever had one of those mornings where the news feels like a rollercoaster of emotions? That's exactly what we're tackling today as we dive into stories that range from eyebrow-raising to heartbreaking.
The TSA might be rolling back one of air travel's most annoying requirements – taking off your shoes at security checkpoints. While many travelers will celebrate this convenience, it raises important questions about whether we're too quick to forget why these security measures were implemented after 9/11. Are we willing to trade potential safety for a few moments of convenience?
Then there's the absolutely wild story of a 57-year-old Florida man who celebrated his birthday by hijacking a Key West sightseeing train while high on methamphetamine. Somehow, he convinced an employee to hand over the keys, left his car running with rock music blasting in the parking lot, and even picked up unsuspecting passengers along the way. The details of this bizarre joyride get more unbelievable with each turn.
On a tragic note, we discuss the heartbreaking deaths of a newly engaged couple who were overcome by carbon dioxide poisoning in their wine cellar when dry ice melted. This preventable accident serves as a sobering reminder about household hazards we might not consider.
We also explore the strange new Gen Z phenomenon called "bathroom camping" – where young people retreat to restrooms not to use the facilities but to escape stress by scrolling on their phones for hours. Rather than finding solace in a tiled echo chamber while doom-scrolling, why not try putting your phone down, stepping outside, and feeling the earth beneath your feet? Sometimes the simplest solutions are the most effective.
What's the first thing you check on your phone each morning? Your answer might reveal more about your priorities than you realize. Share your morning digital routine with us and join the conversation about finding better balance in our technology-saturated world.
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Well, hello, good morning, happy Tuesday. Let's see what do we have for you today. Well, we have some off-the-wall topics, some tragic, some maybe humorous, and some good news. All right, the New York Post. For those of you who do not think that we were attacked on 9-11 by terrorists, this should be happy news for you at long last. Tsa rumored to roll back dreaded security checkpoint rule as early as today. So, no more taking off your shoes at the airport, tsa, check in as you're going through the security. That should be happy for most people, right? I mean, you know, because it's such a hassle to take off your shoes. Um, yeah, okay, whatever, I don't want to hear any bitching and complaining the next time a plane explodes in the air. All right, you've been warned. All right, not that I'm gonna do it, that's not what I meant. Um, yeah, because you know, let's, let's lax the rules, you know, because we don't want to inconvenience you at all, my goodness gracious, all right.
Speaker 1:Florida man hijacks Key West sightseeing train for meth-fueled joyride on birthday and picks up passengers. People don't do drugs. People don't do drugs. A man in florida was arrested on his birthday, friday, after authorities caught him absconding with a trackless sightseeing train and even picking up passengers while high on meth. Oh, isn't that lovely. Jonathan patrick winslow was celebrating his 57th trip around the sun. You know, when you get to be that age, why are you still doing drugs? Oh, around the sun on a raucous Independence Day when he turned up at the Conch Tour train depot in Key West and allegedly weaseled his way into conducting one of their vehicles. Goodness gracious, he looks good for 57, though, even though he's a meth addict. In his mugshot here, not a lot of wrinkles, so I would not peg him for 57 years old, maybe 40-ish something. So maybe you know, maybe the meth is good for him when it's not.
Speaker 1:Winslow allegedly bamboozled a well-meaning employee into forking over the keys. After what, how do you do that? How do you bamboozle somebody, an employee, into forking over the keys after claiming he used to work at the company years prior and requesting a tour of the train, according to an arrest report? What? How do you? Okay, first of all, you need to fire this employee who gave the keys over. The confused employee was left in the dust when winslow allegedly sped away, thinking that surely the stranger must have had permission to take the train. Not, he did not have permission to take the train.
Speaker 1:Police said after officers responded to the depot when the stolen train was reported. It could be tracked via gps but was apparently already downtown. Oh my goodness. Authorities had a general idea of who they were looking for almost immediately, as winslowlow had left his Kia still running in the parking lot. Oh my gosh, so he's doing meth and he's driving his vehicle too. At least he has a car. I thought he'd be a homeless man or something. Oh my gosh. So he left his Kia still running in the parking lot of the depot, blasting rock music.
Speaker 1:According to an arrest report, police were able to nab Winslow and the train was intact. He'd somehow cajoled two oblivious strangers into joining him for the ride. What in the world? Oh my gosh. Winslow exhibited rapid speech and appeared excited, I'm sure. Even when police told him about the charges he'd faced, he claimed he only borrowed the train again, insisted he used to work for the company and noted that today is my birthday. Bless, bless his little heart. Oh my gosh. Winslow tried to insist it was a weed pipe, but authority said it was method meth, amphetamine pipe.
Speaker 1:The short-lived conductor faces charges for burglary. Oh my gosh, oh my gosh, okay. Well, there you go, only in Key West, right, all right, this next story is kind of is not kind of tragic, it is tragic. Oh my gosh, this is a horrible, horrible story that I'm can do here Turn. Uh, sorry, show reader, all right.
Speaker 1:A newly engaged couple have been killed in their wine cellar after melting dry ice built up a lethal amount of carbon dioxide carbon dioxide Wine lovers. Deborah Putska-Tucci, 67, and Kevin Willis, 68, were found dead after neighbors called 911 to their home in the Ritzy River Oaks area of Houston. This is horrible. Firefighters noticed the fumes soon after they arrived about 7 pm on Friday and needed respirators to enter the cellar where the bodies were discovered. Tetchy and Willis were selecting wines from one of their frequent parties, this time for Independence Day. Oh man, when they were overcome by the deadly gas oh, this is horrible. Oh such, I mean senseless. There was dry ice being stored in the wine cellar. Houston Police Lieutenant Larry said when dry ice melts, it turns into carbon dioxide. Unfortunately, it appears the two people who went into the wine cellar were overcome. Willis and Tushy got engaged earlier this year and threw an engagement party oh this is horrible, how awful. And through an engagement party oh this is horrible. How awful Uh touchy was.
Speaker 1:A lawyer and an accountant posted dozens of photos of her wine collection to social media. Oh, this is horrible. It's from the UK, it's daily mail. If you want to go read it, I have it out there. So my last story here is from the New York post.
Speaker 1:This is kind of weird. What is bathroom camping? Why viral trend is the new raw dogging therapy at work a safe place. So the gen zers are going to the bathroom to escape their stress at work. At least they had, at least they have a job. If they have a job, but they're going and spending hours in the bathroom, how come their bosses are not saying anything? All right, this puts the rest in restroom. Thank you, new york post. You're so clever.
Speaker 1:Taking bathroom breaks without actually using the toilet might seem strange. However, beleaguered general gen z-ers, I Zers are increasingly sequestering themselves inside the lavatory to scroll social media, listen to music and otherwise shut out the pressures of the outside world. What pressures do you have from the outside world? As detailed in viral TikTok videos, I mean, I can see maybe some pressures of the young people. Oh boy, I don't know, though. I had a lot of pressures as a young person, but I managed to survive. Dubbed bathroom camping this bizarre form of toilet therapy can be performed in both public and private restrooms and can last hours on end. Okay, now there's a problem. Restroom camping gotta be one of the top five investments I made when I was nine. Admitted TikToker Calm minute. I can't even pronounce his stupid handle. I'm a restroom camper, declared TikTok user. Hendo in another viral clip with over 135,000 views.
Speaker 1:Every time something gets overstimulating in my life. Where I'm at a party or something, or even when I'm at home, I feel overstimulated. Let me go to the bathroom and let me refresh a little. What do you mean overstimulated? What does that even mean if, even if you're at home and you have to run to the bathroom because you're overstimulated, what does that mean exactly?
Speaker 1:The chicago I don't know if I want to know the chicago tick tocker, who claimed he's been restroom camping for 20 years, admitted that sometimes he'll be in the bathroom for a couple of hours, literally just thinking about life. Oh hon, oh, you need to go talk to somebody. There's nothing going on in the bathroom, he said. There's no windows to look at, it's just straight me and me in that bathroom. Okay, y'all this is sad. He even urged people to start investing in bathroom time, as not only it is an effective form of mental detox, but, as he points out, no one's going to bother you while you're in the bathroom. Well, that is true, you're right about that. Unless you have kids, you know, then your kids don't care if you're in the bathroom or not.
Speaker 1:This prompted TikTok commenters to cop to their lavatory lounging ways. I'm on the toilet just watching TikTok. Rn, said one, while another wrote go to the bathroom and either jam music or doom scroll, so you're making. So why, why? So this is why you're over. This is why you're stressed out, because you're doom scrolling, but yet you need to go to the bathroom to do it. Okay, no, no, I'm not even going to finish this. This is ridiculous. I mean, what do y'all think? I don't even know what to say. These poor kids, I don't even know. Do I feel sorry for them or do I admonish them for it? Y'all need to learn how to deal with stuff.
Speaker 1:Take your, put your phones down and go outside. How about that? Just put your phones. But here, here's a, here's a good idea. Put your phone down, take your earphones off your head, take your shoes off and go outside and stand in your yard, put your feet on the earth and just stand there and feel the sunshine on you and the earth beneath your feet.
Speaker 1:There's how you can de-stress. How about doing that? Go for a walk, leave your phone, go. Put your phone in your pocket. Don't look at your phone. Put your phone down. That's the way to do it, all right. Or perhaps you could pray and meditate to do it All right. Or perhaps you could pray and meditate, read a book. There are lots of other ways that you can de-stress, instead of going to the bathroom to scroll on your phone. This is pitiful and sad. All right, question of the day. Well, speaking of phones, what is the first thing you do in the morning when you finally eventually grab your phone? What's the first thing you look at in the morning on your phone? Mine is probably twitter. Then I'll check my mail and then I'll go to facebook, and then, of course, I go to the new york. Then I go to my news apps to find stories to talk about on the podcast. All right, gotta go. Thanks for listening. Love y'all, bye.
