Current Events
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Source: WADE VANDERVORT / Getty / Cybertruck
New details are emerging about the suspect behind a Tesla Cybertruck exploding in front of a Las Vegas Trump Hotel.
Local news affiliate ABC13 KTNV Las Vegas is sharing new details in the Las Vegas Cybertruck explosion that left one person dead (the suspect) and multiple people injured.
The news website reports that following federal search operations in Colorado Springs, the suspect behind the explosion rented Elon Musk’s latest monstrosity via the Turo app.
NEW: Video shows Tesla Cybertruck explosion at the Trump Hotel in Las Vegas. No word yet on the cause pic.twitter.com/tR9UabrsH4
— BNO News (@BNONews) January 1, 2025
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Investigators have identified the suspect as 37-year-old Matthew Livelsberger, who is linked to multiple addresses in Colorado Springs.
The FBI and ATF are currently searching one of Livelsberger’s townhome residences.
What’s raising eyebrows is the possible connection to the fatal Las Vegas attack that left 15 dead and as many as 30 people hurt.
ABC13 KTNV reports that Federal sources say the suspect in Las Vegas and the suspect behind the fatal attack in New Orleans were both in the military. Another connection is that they both use the Turo app to rent the vehicles used in separate incidents that could have been acts of domestic terrorism.
Social Media Reactions To The Cybertruck Explosion
The immediate reaction to Livelsberger allegedly turning the vehicle into a bomb filled with fireworks, camping fuel, and gas tanks was immediate.
In a post on X, formerly Twitter, Musk used the moment to highlight how the suspect chose the “wrong vehicle” as a bomb, praising his Cybertruck’s ability to contain an explosion, writing, “The evil knuckleheads picked the wrong vehicle for a terrorist attack. Cybertruck actually contained the explosion and directed the blast upwards. Not even the glass doors of the lobby were broken.”
The evil knuckleheads picked the wrong vehicle for a terrorist attack. Cybertruck actually contained the explosion and directed the blast upwards.
Not even the glass doors of the lobby were broken. https://t.co/9vj1JdcRZV
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) January 2, 2025
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One user pointed out that Phony Stark shouldn’t be so quick to glaze himself, alluding to the fact that the suspect’s poor bomb design, not the vehicle, prevented the explosion from worsening.
People are using the Las Vegas bombing to show the quality of the Cybertruck, when it reality it shows the quality of the explosive device that was used.
From the photo it looks to be poorly constructed and poorly thought out and that’s good for the people in the area. Thank… pic.twitter.com/cLcFYDwqyW
— Happy Captain (@EODHappyCaptain) January 2, 2025
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Another user pointed out a possible design flaw: the suspect couldn’t even get out of the vehicle. This hints at why Elon Musk and the DOGE (Department of Government Efficiency) are so eager to abolish the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau.
The only person to die in the Cybertruck fire outside of Trump’s hotel in Vegas was the driver, who couldn’t escape. If I was the billionaire manufacturer behind it, I’d want to eliminate the US consumer protection bureau too. pic.twitter.com/6w6Jk1fzqQ
— Brandy Bryant 🏳️⚧️ (@InkMasterbator) January 1, 2025
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Other reactions point out that a Cybertruck exploding in front of a Trump hotel is a fitting way to start the year because of Musk’s involvement in the incoming Trump administration.
If this image isn’t setting the tone for 2025 I don’t know what is… pic.twitter.com/PAOBOGsdcd
— Travon Free (@Travon) January 1, 2025
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Welp.
You can see more reactions in the gallery below.
1. Before they go blaming an undocument immigrant for the attack, peep his profile
2. Poetic indeed
3. Eyewitness accounts
4. Homebred terrorism at play?
5. America is cooked
6. You couldn’t make this stuff up if you wanted to
7. 2025 is going to be a very interesting year
8.
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Robert Brooks, an inmate at a central New York state correctional facility, died after he was savagely beaten by officers while restrained and the entire incident was seen by the wider public via bodycam video footage. As a result, the FBI and other agencies are investigating the death of Robert Brooks as the family seeks answers and justice.
According to several reports, including local outlet Utica Observer-Dispatch, Robert Brooks, 43, has been jailed since 2017 and serving a 12-year sentence at the Mohawk Correctional Facility for stabbing a woman multiple times and took a plea deal to have a second-degree murder charge dropped.
As the Observer-Dispatch adds, the release of the bodycam footage by the New York State Attorney General’s Office showed Brooks being cooperative with the correctional officers and was cuffed as the officers used brutal force. From what we did watch, the officers used their hands and feet to administer heavy blows to Brooks, who never once appeared to resist. Brooks would later succumb to his injuries at a Utica hospital on Dec. 10. Admittedly, we could not finish the video but the footage can be viewed by following this link. We do urge caution before opening.
New York Attorney General Letitia James held a virtual press conference on Friday, Dec. 27 regarding the Brooks matter and offered a statement.
“Mr. Brooks had been incarcerated at Mohawk Correctional Facility and was transferred to Marcy on Dec. 9. During the incident, he was handcuffed with his hands behind his back,” James said. “I don’t take the release of these videos lightly. But as attorney general, I release these videos because I have a responsibility and duty to the Brooks family and their loved ones and all New Yorkers with transparency and accountability.”
CNN added in its reporting that several elected officials and organizations spoke out after witnessing the footage, including New York Gov. Kathy Hochul and the ACLU. The organization says that they have monitored reports from the Marcy Correctional Facility of inmate mistreatment by officers.
As the matter of Robert Brooks continues to develop, we will take note of all happenings and share them with the readership.
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Photo: Getty
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Elon Musk and Vivek Ramaswamy have been vocal proponents of the incoming administration of President-elect Donald Trump and their proposed Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) office along with their stances on H-1B visas. After feeling the wrath of the MAGA faithful, Elon Musk shifted his tone while Donald Trump showed support for the visa program for foreign workers which has angered the many figures within the GOP and the wider base.
On Christmas Day, Elon Musk and Vivek Ramaswamy made their case for the support of H-1B visas with the suggestion that the program allows business leaders to find the best engineering minds possible. Ramaswamy found himself in the thick of it when he casually suggested that Americans and the media they consume might be contributing to their lack of engineering or intellectual excellence. Musk, a recipient of an H-1B visa himself, likened the recruitment of the foreign workforce to selecting the best players of the NBA, which too has several foreign-born players who are near the top of their class.
Over the weekend, Trump joined the fray and expressed his approval of the aforementioned visa program.
“I’ve always liked the (H1-B) visas, I have always been in favor of the visas, that’s why we have them,” Trump said in an interview with the New York Post. “I have many H-1B visas on my properties. I’ve been a believer in H-1B. I have used it many times. It’s a great program.”
This comment from Trump was an exaggeration of facts as reports came forth that many Trump staffers who work at his properties on visas did so through the H-2B visa program, which gives companies the ability to recruit foreign workers for temporary jobs such as hospitality work. According to a CNN report, Trump last used the H-1B visa program in 2022 in order to hire a data analyst for the Trump Media & Technology Group Corp.
This has sparked right-wing infighting with key figures such as former Trump strategist Steve Bannon and Laura Loomer aiming at both Trump and Musk for walking back the campaign promises of the so-called America First agenda that focused on mass deportation and the hiring of more American workers at some of the top companies.
Elonn Musk has been defiant in his unique way and issued a profane reply on X towards Christian conservative Steven Mackey, who criticized Musk’s endorsement of the H-1B visa program.
“The reason I’m in America along with so many critical people who built SpaceX, Tesla and hundreds of other companies that made America strong is because of H1B. Take a big step back and F*CK YOURSELF in the face. I will go to war on this issue the likes of which you cannot possibly comprehend,” Trump wrote to Mackey.
The Tesla founder has since softened his rhetoric, writing on his X platform, “Please post a bit more positive, beautiful or informative content on this platform” which garnered several passionate and colorful responses. This also sparked a still unproven rumor that Musk is using X under the “Adrian Dittman” alias.
We’ve got X comments regarding Elon Musk, Donald Trump, Vivek Ramaswamy, H-1B visas, and the MAGA kerfuffle below.
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Photo: Getty
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Source: The Washington Post / Getty
For all of the MAGA world’s griping about the ills of “left-wing media,” supporters of Donald Trump really should be thanking some of these supposedly left-leaning networks and publications for using soft language to water down the (alleged) consistent lies, blatant bigotry, idiocracy and general absurdity of the president-elect. From the Washington Post to the New York Times, there are a number of news outlets that are reviled by conservatives that also get blasted from the other side for needlessly normalizing Trump and his ilk by refusing to call a spade a spade, or, in Trump’s case, they refuse to call a diet fascist white nationalist idiot a diet fascist white nationalist idiot.
CNN is no different.
Over the weekend, Trump expressed renewed interest in acquiring Greenland, an autonomous Danish territory, which he had talked about wanting to purchase back in 2019.
“For purposes of National Security and Freedom throughout the World, the United States of America feels that the ownership and control of Greenland is an absolute necessity,” Trump posted on Truth Social. Trump also wants to violate a 1977 treaty by taking over the Panama Canal to reduce the high costs of ships passing through, and he recently told Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau that Canada should become a new “state” of the U.S.
Is it wild that Trump is out here talking about taking over other countries and territories (against the wishes of the leaders of said territories) in order to preserve “National Security and Freedom” in America? Hell yeah — or at least it would be if certain media outlets didn’t insist on treating Trump like he’s the new normal.
From Raw Story:
In reporting on these remarks, CNN was accused of “sanitizing” the story and “sane washing” it by reporting it as follows: “The president-elect has suggested a territorial extension into Panama, Greenland, and Canada. If he’s serious, it would rival the Louisiana Purchase.”
Election lawyer Marc Elias took to Blue Sky on Tuesday to shame the network and call it “hopelessly broken.”
“1. This ‘expansion’ would require military invasions of several allies in violation of international law. 2. It would violate several treaties. 3. The Louisiana Purchase was the sale of land by a colonial power (France). These are sovereign nations,” he said.
“So Trump wants to annex Greenland, Canada, and Panama, and invade Mexico. A whole lot of gullible people were telling me he was the antiwar, anti-imperial candidate,” remarked digital strategist Robert Cruickshank on X.
Melanie D’Arrigo of the Campaign for New York Health called out CNN for “manufacturing consent for Trump to attack and invade our allies.”
Film and television editor Michael Tae Sweeney said on Blue Sky that CNN is guilty of doing this over several years. It’s all an effort to “try to help Trump and fool their audience by lying to them.”
USA Today opinion columnist Michael J. Stern told CNN, “When one country tries to take over parts of another country it’s not ‘expansion,’ it’s an illegal act of war.” He linked it to another CNN story with the headline, “Trump is teasing US expansion into Panama, Greenland and Canada.”
Part of the reason Trump is about to be president again is that major media outlets and prominent lawmakers and other elected officials keep treating him and his antics like they are normal and acceptable. His supporters keep pretending their MAGA messiah is “anti-establishment,” but, honestly, it’s the “establishment” that they have to thank for his continued existence.
It’s not even irony, it’s just pure hypocrisy.
And it’s the American way.
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Source: Andrew Harnik / Getty
Elon Musk‘s X is now firmly the main meeting space for all things MAGA, offering a safe haven for the hateful and belligerent who fell in line with the movement. However, “First Buddy” Elon Musk and his DOGE Bro Vivek Ramaswamy are catching MAGA wrath on Musk’s social media platform.
To illustrate what is happening with the proposed DOGE (Department of Government Efficiency) coalition of Elon Musk and Vivek Ramaswamy, we look into their recent activity on X as the impetus of the critique both are receiving. On Christmas Day (Dec. 25), Musk posted a missive on X shooting down the idea that more American engineers should be hired over foreign workers, sparking a testy debate.
“The number of people who are super talented engineers AND super motivated in the USA is far too low. Think of this like a pro sports team: if you want your TEAM to win the championship, you need to recruit top talent wherever they may be. That enables the whole TEAM to win,” Musk wrote.
An X user fired back with, “There are over 330 million people in America. Surely, there must be enough among them to build your ultimate team? Why would you deny real Americans that opportunity by bringing foreigners here?” to which Musk fired back and doubled down with, “Your understanding of the situation is upside-down and backwards. OF COURSE my companies and I would prefer to hire Americans and we DO, as that is MUCH easier than going through the incredibly painful and slow work visa process. HOWEVER, there is a dire shortage of extremely talented and motivated engineers in America.”
The H-1B visa, which allows foreign nationals to work for American companies in special capacities, has been criticized by President-elect Donald Trump in the past and he has shown his preference in hiring American workers first.
Ramaswamy added fuel to the proverbial fire by siding with Musk, who is an immigrant, and pushing the concept of hiring outside of the United States to bring a standard of excellence to the nation. It was a lengthy post from Ramaswamy and we’ll share a portion below.
From Vivek Ramaswamy’s X account:
The reason top tech companies often hire foreign-born & first-generation engineers over “native” Americans isn’t because of an innate American IQ deficit (a lazy & wrong explanation). A key part of it comes down to the c-word: culture. Tough questions demand tough answers & if we’re really serious about fixing the problem, we have to confront the TRUTH:
Our American culture has venerated mediocrity over excellence for way too long (at least since the 90s and likely longer). That doesn’t start in college, it starts YOUNG.
A culture that celebrates the prom queen over the math olympiad champ, or the jock over the valedictorian, will not produce the best engineers.
A culture that venerates Cory from “Boy Meets World,” or Zach & Slater over Screech in “Saved by the Bell,” or ‘Stefan’ over Steve Urkel in “Family Matters,” will not produce the best engineers.
The posts from Musk and Ramaswamy have created quite a firestorm of comments from the likes of Laura Loomer and other conservative figures who believe that the pair are getting this wrong. You can read one of Loomer’s X replies to Musk here.
On X, observers are taking note of the MAGA infighting and potential for implosion within the incoming Trump administration and he hasn’t even been sworn in yet. We’ve got reactions below.
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Photo: Getty
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Source: Jerod Harris / Getty
Jamie Foxx is not taking his safety lightly. Sources say he is looking to press charges against the Jackass staffer who allegedly threw a glass at him.
TMZ is exclusively reporting that the multi-hyphenate is making sure that the individual who apparently tossed glassware at him at a Los Angeles hotspot will not get away scot-free. The celebrity news website says a source close to Jamie Foxx has confirmed the actor is indeed working with the local police on the matter. While LAPD have to formally name the suspects TMZ reports that the man they want to question is Jasper Dolphin.
The man born Davon Lamar Wilson is listed as a founding member of Rap collective Odd Future and is credited with working as a stuntman on the Jackass series. Earlier this month Jamie Foxx was celebrating his birthday with friends and family at Mr. Chow’s. Upstairs though the staff of Jackass were hosting their yearly holiday party. Apparently one of the jokesters flashed a penis shaped light at his table prompting the “Blame It” singer to go upstairs to confront the crew. It seems things got tense between the two parties after words were exchanged resulting in someone apparently throwing a cocktail glass at Jamie.
Jamie Foxx nor Jasper Dolphin has yet to formally comment on the matter.
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Source: US Customs & Border Protection / US Customs & Border Protection
It looks like the block might be dry somewhere for some time—as $1.1 million worth of cocaine was found near the U.S.-Canadian border just a few days ago.
USA Today is reporting that United States border patrol agents in the Blaine Sector in Lynden, Washington, stumbled upon two black backpacks that contained enough cocaine to turn the average man into an overnight millionaire last week. Finding the backpacks in a wooded area near the border, agents were surprised to find that they contained 30 bricks of a “white powdery substance” that ultimately tested positive for nose candy. Both backpacks were carrying 78 pounds of perico in them. How big were those backpacks?
USA Today reports:
“Thanks to the vigilance of Blaine Sector Border Patrol agents these dangerous narcotics were prevented from reaching our communities,” Chief Patrol Agent Rosario “Pete” Vasquez said in the news release. “Our agents work tirelessly day in and day out to protect this nation, and this seizure highlights that crucial commitment.”
The drugs were given to the United States Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA).
Cocaine is a schedule II drug, or chemicals that are highly likely to be abused, “potentially leading to severe psychological or physical dependence,” the DEA said on its website.
“These drugs are also considered dangerous,” the DEA said.
The drugs might be dangerous, but we’re sure so are the people who were expecting to make money off them, too. Why anyone would ditch such a large amount of the drug is anyone’s guess, but y’all know someone’s going to pay for this massive L. And it probably won’t be pretty. Just sayin’.
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Source: Pool / Getty
President Joe Biden is on his way out of the White House, but before leaving office, the 46th president is keeping things in line with his administration’s moratorium on the federal death penalty by commuting the sentences of most inmates on federal death row. And because those death row inmates are disproportionately Black (38%) and Latino (15%), many view the move as a good look towards racial justice in a legal system where racial justice is scarce.
https://twitter.com/WhiteHouse/status/1871284742231822546
“I’ve dedicated my career to reducing violent crime and ensuring a fair and effective justice system,” Biden said in a statement announcing that he would commute sentences for 37 of the 40 individuals on federal death row, according to thegrio. “Make no mistake: I condemn these murderers, grieve for the victims of their despicable acts, and ache for all the families who have suffered unimaginable and irreparable loss.”
Biden, who vowed to abolish the death penalty during his 2020 presidential campaign, did not extend this slew of commutations to the violent white supremacists and terrorists who are currently on death row. Those excluded inmates include Dylan Roof, who was sentenced to death in 2017 after he massacred nine congregants at a historic Black church in South Carolina.
From thegrio:
Only three death row inmates did not receive commutations from the president: Dylan Roof, who fatally shot nine Black Americans inside Mother Emanual AME Church in Charleston, South Carolina, in 2015; Dzhokhar Tsarnaev, convicted for the Boston Marathon bombing in 2013; and Robert Bowers, who shot and killed 11 Jewish Americans at Tree of Life Synagogue in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.
Yeah — no matter what side of the death penalty issue you stand on, we should all be able to agree that certain offenders simply are not worth fighting on behalf of.
Of course, it’s worth mentioning that Rev. Sharon Risher, the daughter of Ethel Lance and the cousin of Susie Jackson and Tywanza Sanders, all of whom were killed by Roof, disagreed that everyone isn’t worth saving and actually requested that Roof’s life be spared as well.
“I learned that my mother and my loved ones were gunned down by a white supremacist trying to start a race war. He is not an innocent man on death row, but he is a man. He has humanity, and I have been willing and worked hard to give forgiveness to [him],” Risher said. “I do not want him to die. To spend the rest of his life in prison? Yes. But not for him to die in the name of my family. We are urging you, President Biden. I hope you hear my words. I hope you get to hear the pain in my voice.”
Many people would say it’s fortunate Biden decided not to give Roof his life back despite Risher’s request. Black America would have been outraged, and rightfully so.
Meanwhile, advocates for abolishing the death penalty are celebrating the decision as a win for civil rights, especially for Black prison inmates who statistically receive harsher punishments than their white counterparts who commit the same crimes.
“By commuting these sentences, President Biden has done what no president before him was willing to do: take meaningful and lasting action not just to acknowledge the death penalty’s racist roots but also to remedy its persistent unfairness,” said Martin Luther King III, who publicly urged the president to commute the sentences of federal death row inmates. (thegrio noted that Donald Trump ordered the executions of 13 death row inmates during the final weeks of his first administration.)
Jamilla Hodge, CEO of Equal Justice USA, said President Biden’s commutation strikes a “blow against racism and a system that has always targeted Black people.”
“This action, aligned with your more recent pardons, reaffirms our shared belief in the dignity and value of all human life and the possibility of redemption in everyone,” Hodge continued.
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Source: picture alliance / Getty
Elon Musk has publicly backed a far-right political party in Germany on X, formerly Twitter, causing alarm to many observers.
Tesla founder Elon Musk is once again causing controversy as he publicly backed the Alternative für Deutschland of Alternative For Germany Party (AfD) in Germany online. The tech billionaire did so by quoting a post on X, formerly Twitter, on Thursday (Dec. 19) by a right-wing German influencer, Naomi Seibt. The original post was a video criticizing the Christian Democrats party leader Frederich Merz and praising the libertarian Argentinian President Javier Millei. Seibt claimed that the German people should listen to Musk and Millei more than Merz, who saw its parliament dissolved earlier this month after a no-confidence vote. “Only the AfD can save Germany,” Musk wrote. He got an immediate response from AfD head Alice Wiedel, who wrote: “Yes! You are perfectly right @elonmusk!”
The AfD is a far-right populist party that has gained support within the past few years, despite being classified as a “suspected extremist party” by Germany’s judiciary. They were called out for a meeting with an admitted Austrian neo-Nazi and had one of its rising leaders fined heavily for using Nazi slogans during campaign stops in the country. Its platform is dedicated to the expulsion of immigrants from Germany and constantly spews anti-Islamic rhetoric. The party has seen heavy support in what once was East Germany, which has experienced prolonged economic struggles.
Musk was called out indirectly by German Chancellor Olaf Scholz in Berlin at a press conference. “We have freedom of speech here. That also applies to multimillionaires. Freedom of speech also means that you’re able to say things that aren’t right and do not contain good political advice,” Scholz said. Democratic Senator Chris Murphy of Connecticut was more pointed in his criticism in a post on X, formerly Twitter.
Germany is set to hold elections Feb. 23, 2025. The AfD has nabbed the second position in election polls, but most of the nation’s parties have publicly vowed not to work in coalition with them. Musk’s post is another public foray into influencing another nation’s politics, after his exchanges with members of the United Kingdom’s Labour Party through X. It also comes as the U.S. is looking at a potential government shutdown after his demands of Republican politicians led to the failure of a revised bill in the House of Representatives.
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Source: JC Olivera / Getty / Laura Harrier
Shameik Moore got trolled across the social media-verse after Hailee Steinfeld and Buffalo Bills star quarterback Josh Allen got engaged over the Thanksgiving holiday weekend. He can now add that engaged model/actress Laura Harrier called him out for some weird online behavior.
Laura Harrier, who just so happened to almost be the love interest of Tom Holland’s Peter Parker in Spider-Man: Homecoming, had time for Shameik Moore, who is the voice of Miles Morales from the animated Spider-Verse films.
In a since-deleted video, Harrier, who admits she likes to keep things private, didn’t name Moore while addressing a post he shared, which featured an old video of the two of them together.
“Hey, so I never talk on this thing… I’m a really private person, so I don’t really like to talk about relationships publicly or anything really personal publicly, to be honest,” she began.
Harrier explained that she felt compelled to speak out about the post only because she kept getting tagged in it. This led many to speculate about a potential relationship between the two actors. The video in question features both Moore and Harrier posing for photos, which she explains was over a year ago.
“When he first posted that video, a friend sent it to me and was like, ‘Did you know he put this up?’ And I was like, no,” Harrier says in the video. “That was taken a year ago at a party when somebody asked us to take photos together. I guess somebody was filming it. Not sure why you would post that now.”
Harrier Says She Reached Out To Moore, Telling Him To Take The Post Down
She reveals that she reached out to Moore directly to tell him to take the video down. “I texted him… I said, ‘Hey, can you take this down? Not sure why you would post that. Also, I’m literally getting married, and I don’t like this insinuation that there’s something going on between us.”
Frustrated that her request for the video to be taken down was not being honored, she lashed out to Moore, “It’s still up, which is f***ing weird. You’re a f***ing weirdo. I’m sorry, you’re a f***ing weirdo, and I’m f***ing annoyed.”
Welp.
As expected, social media is once again trashing our friendly, and seemingly weird neighborhood Spider-Man.
Shameik Moore is soooo fucking weird for this. im so glad laura spoke up because what the fuck is this clout chasing loser thinking?? pic.twitter.com/wrOxOisIEk
— lany✮⁷ (@iluvvlany) December 21, 2024
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Let’s hope this is where it ends. We don’t need any drama to prevent the release of Spider-Man: Beyond The Spider-Verse’s release. The film has already had its wig pushed back numerous times already.
You can see more reactions in the gallery below.