Guilty verdict for Covid 19 fraudsters in Minnesota

March 20th, 2025

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SGT
March 20, 2025

Salty Ginger Talk Newsletter

March 20th, 2025

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CURRENT EVENTS

Guilty verdict for Covid 19 fraudsters in Minnesota

Our take: We have always been leery of government programs. The lax oversight and general lack of accountability in many government institutions creates the opportunity for fraud, waste, and abuse. Look no further than this story for exhibit 1 for the evidence of this.

A jury convicted the leader of a Minnesota nonprofit organization Wednesday for her role in a $250 million pandemic fraud scheme that "exploited" a federal child nutrition program, prosecutors said.

Federal prosecutors have called the scheme one of the nation's largest pandemic-related frauds. Aimee Bock, founder and executive director of Feeding Our Future, was one of 70 people charged in the case.

The jury also convicted her co-defendant Salim Ahmed Said, who was the owner of the now-defunct Safari Restaurant in Minneapolis, according to the U.S. Attorney's Office for the District of Minnesota. Bock, 44, and Said, 36, were charged with multiple criminal counts including conspiracy, wire fraud and bribery. Said was also charged with several counts of money laundering, the U.S. Attorney's Office said.

The scheme was tied to the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Federal Child Nutrition Program, which provides meals to children in need. The program, which expanded during the COVID-19 pandemic, allowed for-profit restaurants to run federally funded food distribution sites as long as a nonprofit organization sponsored them.

Prosecutors said restaurant owners and others bribed Feeding Our Future employees to get the organization to sponsor sham distribution sites. The participants then spent federal funds intended for the sites on personal purchases, including luxury cars, houses, jewelry, and resort property abroad.

Wow! I guess when this group hears the phrase “Go bi or go home” they have no intention of going home. Stealing funds intended to feed hungry kids is beyond slimy. Here’s hoping these people have a miserable experience behind bars.

COURTESY: USA TODAY

Tim Walz comes out of hiding to reflect on election beat down

Our take: We did not like Tim Walz the minute we laid eyes on him. He struck us as a shifty, unintelligent, lying politician. To be fair, he has had almost a year to convince us otherwise Our opinion remains unchanged.

Unfortunately, we are now subjected to more of his pontificating and “folksy” style, since he is now emerging from the forest to share his thoughts on the historic election loss he and his boss Kamala Harris suffered at the hands of Donald Trump abd J.D. Vance last November.

Walz was asked specifically about the decision to not appear on the Joe Rogan Experience, according to the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, part of the USA TODAY Network.

“I don't think we would have won the election if we'd gone on Joe Rogan," he said. "But I don't think we would've got beat any worse."

Thanks Tim, for your brilliant analysis. Maybe you could just hang out in Minnesota and leave the rest of us alone. To quote Bill Lundberg from the movie Office Space: “If you could, just take care of that, that’d be great.”

COURTESY: USA TODAY

US slips outside of top 20 countries in happiness index

Our take: We doubt it will win any scientific awards, but this is still interesting to us.

The United States is continuing its downward path on the global World Happiness Report, having dropped to a record low on the global rankings list.

Last year, the U.S. fell out of the top 20 for the first time in the report's history, landing at No. 23. The 2025 report, published Thursday, shows Americans dropping another level down to No. 24.

Several organizations conduct the annual report that ranks countries from the most to least overall happiness. Once again, Nordic countries lead the list, dominating the top 4 spots.

The World Happiness Report also shares illuminating information such as the fact that declining joy and social trust is a contributor to a rise of political polarization in the U.S. and parts of Europe.

Here's what to know what about this year's report, including the global rankings and how researchers calculate joy.

The UN's Sustainable Development Solutions Network lists six factors that can explain the different levels of happiness.

  • Social Support: This is the best predictor of happiness. If people feel like they have at least one person they can reach out to when they're in need, they are more likely to feel secure.

  • GDP per capita: This is how much a country produces divided by its population.

  • A healthy life expectancy: Researchers look at the physical and mental health of a country's population.

  • Freedom to make life choices: This plays a key role in how happy one feels.

  • Generosity: This factor looks at how charitable a country's people are.

  • Perception of Corruption: How corrupt are a country's government and business policies? This factor looks at both and researchers use what they find to estimate happiness levels.

COURTESY: USA TODAY

TIP OF THE DAY

Positive interactions with friends and family can greatly enhance your happiness, so surround yourself with people who uplift you. Reach out to a friend or family member for a chat or a get-together this week.

Practicing Empathy can have positive effects on your own happiness, as well as the happiness of those around you. Give it a try and witness how your connections can blossom.

QUOTE OF THE DAY

"Only the pursuit of happiness is guaranteed. The rest is up to you." - David Fagan

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