Jonathan Joss Killed, Conflicting Reports Have The Internet Divided, Sponsors Abandon PRIDE, & More
PDS Published 06/03/2025
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Was the actor Jonathan Joss just killed in a homophobic hate crime?
That’s what people are claiming after he was shot dead outside his home in San Antonio yesterday after an altercation with a neighbor who was apprehended soon afterwards.
Joss is best known for his roles in King of the Hill and Parks and Recreation and was visiting the site of his recently burned down home with his husband Tristen Kern de Gonzales,
Who wrote on Facebook:
“When we returned to the site to check our mail we discovered the skull of one of our dogs and its harness placed in clear view. This caused both of us severe emotional distress. We began yelling and crying in response to the pain of what we saw.
While we were doing this a man approached us. He started yelling violent homophobic slurs at us. He then raised a gun from his lap and fired.” []
He went on to write that “He was murdered by someone who could not stand the sight of two men loving each other.”
That statement painted a pretty clear picture that the couple were targeted; however, San Antonio police heavily disputed that and said:
“Our investigation has found no evidence whatsoever to indicate that Mr. Joss’s murder was related to his sexual orientation.”
“Should any new evidence come to light, we will charge the suspect accordingly.”
However, this is reportedly not the first time the couple has had issues with the neighbors.
Tristen even made it seem like their recently burned-down home was possibly because of arson, writing:
“That home was burned down after over two years of threats from people in the area who repeatedly told us they would set it on fire. We reported these threats to law enforcement multiple times and nothing was done.” []
And the neighbors have their own version of events and are painting a different picture of Joss’s time on the street.
One told My San Antonio that "He would just walk up and down the street… he would just like scream.”
“He was just very loud, very loud. But we knew how he was, so we wouldn't disturb him. Even if he looked at us, talked mess to us, we just ignored him because we knew that's how he was." []
Others reportedly called the police for mental welfare checks on Joss over 40 times since January of 2024.
And to be clear, essentially all of that was in 2024 since he wasn’t really around after the home burned down in January.
But some felt this shooting was bound to happen because of Joss’ alleged mental health issues, with one telling the local paper that "I'm so sad it had to come to this.”
"We all knew it was going to end up like this because of his antics. It's sad cause this could have been prevented if he had gotten the help he needed."[]
Another claimed that the shooting was because a neighbor was “fed up” with Joss.
However, online most people are not only talking about what a great person Joss was to be around but also taking Tristen’s claim that this was caused by homophobia at face value.
Some have even claimed this ties into a broader trend across the US that is seeing the country shift to the right over the years.
(Although it should be pointed out that the belief that you should kill someone for being gay is extremely fringe, even among the right).
This situation also fueled anger and frustration at some media outlets for how they tackled the issue.
Right the New York Post initially just said that the shooting was because of an argument between Joss and his neighbor, leading to takes like:
“A big FUCK YOU to the New York post for reducing this murder to an “argument” with a neighbor. Jonathan Joss was the victim of a hate crime and died protecting his husband. Queer people shouldn’t be killed for who they love/ who they are. We deserve the right to exist.” []
But to be fair to the Post -- and it kills me to come to their defense at all -- they have since released new articles that explicitly mention that Tristen claims it was a hate crime and police deny that.
But the most common response to this has just been sympathy and sadness at how pointless the killing was -- regardless of the reason.
Nick Offerman had roles alongside Joss and wrote in a statement:
“The cast has been texting together about it all day and we’re just heartbroken.”. “Jonathan was such a sweet guy and we loved having him as our Chief Ken Hotate (Ho-tah-tay). A terrible tragedy.”
And taking a step back it shouldn’t be controversial to say that it shouldn’t matter whether Joss was gay or having a particularly hard mental day after seeing his burned down home and dead dog -- neither are an excuse for murder.
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A big group of celebrities are fighting back against the Trump administration’s efforts to cut funding to LGBTQ+ suicide prevention.
An open letter was published by the Trevor Project yesterday, and it was signed by Ariana Grande, Pedro Pascal, Dua Lipa, Sabrina Carpenter, Daneille Radcliffe, and around 100 other big names.
And the letter specifically addressed the fact that the government is reportedly considering defunding LGBTQ+ services from the 988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline.
Right, while anyone in crisis can call 988, the line has counselors specially trained for high-risk groups like LGBTQ+ youth.
Because last year, around 40% of young people in the community considered suicide, and one in ten had an attepmt.
So you had this new celebrity-backed letter saying:
“Since its launch in 2022, this program has connected nearly 1.3 million crisis contacts with life-saving, affirming care to LGBTQ+ young people during their most vulnerable moments.”
“This is about people, not politics. At a time of deep division, let this be something we as people can all agree on: no young person should be left without help in their darkest moment. Stripping away this lifeline leaves LGBTQ+ youth with the message that their lives are not worth saving. We refuse to accept that message. We call on the administration and Congress to do the right thing: restore and protect funding for the 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline’s LGBTQ+ Youth Specialized Services in the Fiscal Year 2026 budget.”
That letter also addressing young LGBTQ+ people specifically, telling them they are not alone and that people are fighting for them.
And then encouraging those interested to sign a petition to protect these lifeline programs.
And this letter probably does not come as a major surprise to you, right, a lot of people feel that the Trump administration has created a more hostile culture for the LGBTQ+ community.
It has cancelled grants aimed at researching and funding LGBTQ+ health initiatives, Trump’s anti-DEI orders and rhetoric have also heavily targeted the community.
And now, as Pride Month is kicking off, many argue this has had a major cultural ripple effect, right.
Because tons of corporate sponsors are backing out of supporting Pride events, which is causing budget shortfalls in cities all around the country.
San Francisco Pride lost five major corpor ate backers, including Comcast, Smirnoff, and more.
So the city’s organizers are now facing a $200,000 budget gap, and Kansas City is down the same amount, which is roughly half of KC Pride’s whole budget.
The group behind New York City’s Pride festivities is trying to fill a $750,000 gap, and in St. Louis, after Anheuser-Busch ended its Pride sponsorship, organizers are down $150,000.
With Suzanne Ford, the executive director of San Francisco Pride, telling the AP:
“With everything we’re facing from the Trump administration, to lose five of your partners within a couple of weeks, it felt like we were being abandoned.”
And after corporate withdrawals from Pride made headlines, some companies did opt to donate, but only did so anonymously.
So you had the AP saying:
“The shift reflects how corporations are adjusting to a changing cultural landscape that began during the pandemic and accelerated with Trump’s second term.”
Then you have World Pride, which is being held in Washington D.C. this year.
And you have tons of reports noting that people have pretty complicated feelings on this for all the obvious reasons you would assume.
With the founder and CEO of the travel platform EveryQueer telling CBS News:
"What is happening socially and politically changes the feeling of the Pride that you are attending” and World Pride will likely bring…”an astronomical amount of fear and sadness from people.”
Right, because while some people will see this current administration and feel more motivated to attend Pride to stick it to the Trump administration, others are scared to attend in this political climate, fearing potential violence at mass gatherings.
And so you have some cities acknowledging the political elephant in the room, with San Francisco’s Pride theme being “Queer Joy is Resistance,” New York’s being “Rise Up: Pride in Protest.”
With Suzanne Ford of San Francisco Pride further saying:
“If you come to Pride this year, that’s a revolutionary act. You are sending a message to those in Washington that, here in San Francisco, we still have the same values that we’ve always had — you can love who you love here. We’re not going to retreat from that.”
And I would love to know your thoughts on this one, whether it be the letter signed by celebrities, the threats to LGBTQ+ suicide prevention services, or the issues facing Pride events.
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Okay, I’ve got a real wild one for you.
So this is Demetric (Demee-Trick) Deshawn Scott, and he has been charged with armed robbery and aggravated battery of another man named Ramón Morales Reyes (Raw-Moan More-Rall-Lez Ray-Yez) in Milwaukee.
But last week, More-Rall-Lez Ray-Yez made national headlines when Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem announced that he had been arrested for writing letters threatening to kill President Trump.
With Noem describing him as an “illegal alien who threatened to assassinate President Trump.”
Claiming that he had entered the U.S. illegally “at least nine times” and had a criminal record.
And in the announcement, Noem also included a picture of one of the letters where the author had written:
“You have been deporting my family and I think it is time Donald J. Trump get what he has coming to him.”
And adding that he will “self deport” himself after using his gun to shoot Trump in the head.
With legal documents also revealing that the letters — which were sent to the Wisconsin Attorney General’s Office, the Milwaukee police chiefs, and ICE — had a return address with his name.
Right, and so, unsurprisingly, that story got a ton of traction, with Noem and Trump supporters touting it as a success of Trump’s immigration crackdown.
But now it turns out that More-Rall-Lez Ray-Yez likely didn’t write those letters — get ready for this plot twist — it was actually Scott.
Right, in a new complaint, prosecutors allege that Scott wrote the letters pretending to be More-Rall-Lez Ray-Yez in order to get him deported so he couldn’t testify against him in the criminal robbery and battery case.
And it seems like the evidence is actually pretty damn strong.
First of all, Milwaukee police said that when they interviewed More-Rall-Lez Ray-Yez, they found that he, quote:
“does not read, write, or fluently speak English.”
Adding that a note from him that they had analyzed also showed “completely different handwriting” than the letters.
What’s more, prosecutors also say that police listened to phone calls made from Scott’s inmate ID in custody.
Including ones where he talked about sending letters, asked for the address of the Wisconsin AG’s office, and repeatedly talked about how he had a plan that was going to get his case dismissed.
Even explicitly saying in one call:
“This dude is a goddamn illegal immigrant and they just need to pick his ass up.”
“if he gets picked up by ICE, there won’t be a Jury Trial so they will probably dismiss it that day. That’s my plan.”
And then — here’s the real kicker — the complaint literally says that during an interview with police on May 30, Scott “admitted that he wrote everything on the letters.”
Adding that he “admitted that his intention was not to go after President Trump” but solely to prevent More-Rall-Lez Ray-Yez “from testifying at his trial.”
So now, in addition to the other charges against him, prosecutors have filed new charges of identity theft, bail jumping, and felony intimidation of a witness in a criminal complaint.
So, as far as what happens next, Scott’s trial is scheduled for July.[]
But as for More-Rall-Lez Ray-Yez, when asked if he still faces deportation given this wild development, a DHS spokesperson said in a statement:
“The investigation into the threat is ongoing. Over the course of the investigation, this individual was determined to be in the country illegally and that he had a criminal record. He will remain in custody.”[]
Though you did also have his deportation defense lawyer telling reporters that he is working to get More-Rall-Lez Ray-Yez released from custody and pursue any relief he may qualify for in immigration court.
But yeah… this is a fucking wild one y’all with so many levels and turns, so I’d really love to know what you think.
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Did the new acting head of FEMA just learn that hurricane season is a thing?
That, tragically, is a real question that is being debated by lawmakers right now.
Right, for some quick background here, early last month, Trump appointed David Richardson as the acting administrator of the emergency department after firing the previous leader, who Trump himself had appointed just months earlier.
And this because the first acting chief had the audacity to tell Congress that he thinks it would be a bad idea to eliminate FEMA entirely — which has been a Trump goal.
Though, notably, it’s been reported that Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem — whose agency oversees FEMA — has quietly taken steps to keep the agency running because there’s no alternative to replace it.
Which, as it turns out, you kind of fucking need…
But, of course, that hasn’t stopped the administration from undermining it at every step of the way.
Including by appointing Richardson, who served in the Marines and worked in the Countering Weapons of Mass Destruction Office of the DHS, but who lacked experience in emergency management — a fact that raised concerns among FEMA staff.
But, like so many Trump appointees, his main qualification for the job appears to be that he was a Trump loyalist.
With him telling staff on his first full day in office that he “will run right over” anyone who resisted his changes.
And yesterday, those concerns were underscored during a staff briefing where he reportedly noted that June 1st was the start of hurricane season — which runs through the end of November — and then said:
“I didn’t realize it was a season.”
And according to Reuters, which was the first outlet to break the news:
“It was not clear to staff whether he meant it literally, as a joke, or in some other context.”
But, at the same time, you also had CBS reporting that current and former employees told the outlet that the remark:
“flustered many who genuinely believe Richardson was truly surprised to learn that hurricane season had started.”
And that was also echoed by The Wall Street Journal, which said that the comment was, quote:
“stunning members of the workforce of the agency tasked with responding to disasters.”
So, as a result, you had many Democrats and social media users seizing on the remarks to argue that Richardson was unqualified, incompetent, and that he shouldn’t be running the agency.[][][]
With Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer even going as far as to imply that Richardson should be fired.[]
But, in response, you had a DHS spokesperson hitting back in a statement where they notable didn’t deny that Richardson had made the comment but claimed that he wasn’t being serious, saying:
“Despite meanspirited attempts to falsely frame a joke as policy, there is no uncertainty about what FEMA will be doing this Hurricane Season. FEMA is laser focused on disaster response, and protecting the American people.”
Now, of course, some people were still skeptical of the administration’s narrative there.
But regardless, you had many arguing that if it was indeed a joke, it was in very poor taste.
Right, a lot of emergency officials and people who live in hurricane-prone regions probably don’t think it’s funny to joke about the time of year when natural disasters kill dozens of Americans and destroy massive swaths of the country.
And many officials also felt that the so-called “joke” was especially unfunny given the very serious concerns about how the Trump administration will handle the upcoming season.
And that’s because, in addition to trying to get rid of FEMA entirely and installing an inexperienced loyalist, the administration has also taken a number of other steps that could undermine the agency’s ability to respond to a crisis.
Right, hurricane season is FEMA’s most challenging period because the country is its most vulnerable to massive disasters that state and local managers are not equipped to deal with.
And this season could be especially bad — government officials have said there is a 60% chance of above-normal activity this year, with three to five major hurricanes expected.
But instead of beefing up staff and resources, the Trump administration has responded by gutting the agency as part of the sweeping government cuts and funding freezes led by Elon Musk and DOGE.
According to reports, hundreds of workers have been fired in the DOGE sweeps.
But even more have resigned amid pressure from Musk to take buyouts and concerns that Trump would eliminate the agency anyway.
So, all in all, it’s been reported that FEMA has lost nearly a quarter of its full-time staff — including 25% of the coordinating officers who manage responses to large-scale disasters.
Though some reports have said that the staffing reductions are actually closer to a third of the entire workforce.
So, as a result, staffers say that FEMA leadership is stuck between balancing Trump’s demands to dramatically gut and change the agency while also still trying to prepare for emergencies because there isn’t any alternative right now.
With Richardson himself even reportedly saying that FEMA has struggled to put together a hurricane disaster-response plan amid uncertainty over Trump’s intentions for the agency.
Right, and on that note, you had The Wall Street Journal reporting that, during the staff briefing yesterday, Richardson also said agency leaders are scrapping a new hurricane response plan.
This despite the fact that, previously, he allegedly said he was close to completing the plan, and that it would be done before the end of May.
But instead, Richardson said the agency will just use the response plan from last year, which was designed by the Biden administration.
Though, with that, sources said that many people were confused about how that would work with the dramatically reduced workforce.
And given the fact that the Trump administration has literally gotten rid of some of the key programs in that plan.
But we also saw the DHS hitting back at the report on X, calling it “FAKE NEWS” and adding:
“FEMA did not ‘scrap’ anything. FEMA is full-steam ahead with an effective and focused plan to respond to hurricane season, while empowering states to further lead their own disaster response.”[]
Though, with that, you had some noting that the statement didn’t explicitly deny the accuracy of the Journal's reporting or the main meat of its claim, which is that FEMA is recycling the Biden administration’s hurricane plan from last year.
But even if they do have a new plan, experts say that it really should have been rolled out a while ago, given the fact that we are already in hurricane season.
But for now, unfortunately, we’re just going to have to wait and see… fun times.
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Mexico just made history – becoming the first country to elect every single one of its judges.
Which also makes it the world’s largest judicial election, but also, one of the most controversial. []
With critics claiming the new practice will chip away at the country’s system of checks and balances, flood the system with under-qualified or partisan judges, and ultimately empower the ruling party.
Right, which, notably, already dominates the Mexican government, holding the presidency and a majority in Congress, which both played a role in screening and nominating the candidates in this election –
With the process criticized as rushed and superficial.[]
And, now it appears to have total control over the country’s Supreme Court.
Right, with 86 percent of the vote counted, every single judge on the new, nine-member Supreme Court had been on lists of recommended candidates distributed to voters by the ruling party. []
And in addition to that, we’re still waiting on results for more than 2,600 other federal and state magistrates – with it seeming likely that the ruling party will have a strong showing there as well. []
All while the party’s opponents are claiming this is just the latest in a series of events that spell trouble for democracy in Mexico – including, for example, the shuttering of several watchdog agencies last fall.
And as far as the judicial election specifically?
Critics say judges will be more afraid to issue unpopular rulings because they wanna be reelected.
Plus, they could become beholden to politicians and “local power brokers” including drug traffickers. []
With one former Supreme Court justice saying in an interview:
“This signifies the end of the independence of the judicial branch.” []
And then, an expert on judicial independence and director of a Mexican NGO adding:
“It did not seem to me to be a democratic exercise — it was a clear attempt to manipulate the vote.” []
With her and other volunteers also claiming they had detected several irregularities during the election –
Including voters carrying printed sheets indicating which candidates to select, multiple people entering voting booths at once and voters taking photos of their filled ballots — a possible indication of vote buying. []
And beyond that, many Mexicans reportedly said they were confused by the process, in which they had to select dozens of judges from multiple ballots with hundreds of names.
Which may be part of the reason turnout was only around 13 percent – []
Making it another reason critics are questioning the legitimacy of the whole thing.
Right, because 13%? That’s far below the more than 60% that tends to turn out for presidential elections –
And it’s also lower than any other federal vote in Mexico’s democratic history. []
And with all that, hundreds of career magistrates actually chose not to run in the election, and many critics just boycotted the vote.
With some saying they’re going backward, remembering a time last century when one party held the presidency for 71 years straight and controlled most of the government.[]
Of course, President Claudia Sheinbaum (Cloudia Shane-bom)? She has a different take.
Right, noting that the Mexican judiciary had long had problems with corruption and nepotism, and arguing that it’s best to “let the people decide.” []
With her saying after the election:
“Mexico is the most democratic country in the world.” []
But ultimately, we’ll have to see where all this leads, and if one side ends up being proven right.
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The global economy is even more cooked than we first thought.
That’s the headline from the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development, or OECD, which just announced its growth forecasts for the world.
With its chief economist getting up on stage and sugarcoating nothing. [Lead B roll into clip]
[Clip, 15:00 - 15:10] Caption: “It doesn’t matter if you are a G20 economy, a non-G20 economy, if you are big or if you are a small economy, if you are open or relatively more closed, we downgraded almost everybody.”
So whereas the global economy grew by 3.4% in 2023 and 3.3% last year, it’s expected to slow to 2.9% this year and the next. [Image and Quote, find “2.9”]
With much of the slowdown concentrated in China, Mexico, Canada and especially the United States. [Same image]
Which must have come as a surprise to Donald Trump, because at 1:00 a.m. this morning, just hours before the OECD report, he posted: “Because of Tariffs, our Economy is BOOMING!” [Post and Image]
Nevermind that the U.S. economy shrank by 0.2% year-over year last quarter. [Image]
Now, assuming that tariff rates remain the same, the OECD predicts that U.S. growth will slow to just 1.6% this year and 1.5% next year. [Image and Quote, find “1.5”]
Which is lower than the 2.2% predicted back in March, and way lower than the 2.8% growth actually experienced in 2024.
And although it didn’t mention him by name, the OECD seemed clear about who’s to blame: Donald J. Trump.
With it attributing the slowdown to the tariffs, the policy uncertainty, the decrease in net immigration, and a “sizable reduction” in the federal workforce (a la the DOGE cuts). [Quote]
Also, it projected that inflation will shoot up from a relatively low 2.3% in April to nearly 4% by the end of the year. [Image and Quote, find “3.9”]
With it then expected to cool down in 2026, but the increase itself is striking since “Bidenflation” was one of Trump’s main talking points during the election.
Now to be fair, the report admits that U.S. manufacturing may grow, but only at the cost of shrinking consumer demand and corporate investment.
And while the tariffs and DOGE cuts will reduce the deficit, those effects will reportedly be dwarfed by the deficit increase caused by slower growth and the GOP’s budget plan. [Quote, find “offset”]
Meanwhile, as China’s economic growth is expected to slow moderately from 5% to 4.7% and then 4.3%, its government is taking steps to cushion its population from the pain. [Quote, find “4.7”]
Namely subsidies for a trade-in programme on consumer goods like mobile phones and appliances, as well as increased welfare transfers. [Quote, find “welfare”]
And of course, all of this assumes that tariffs will remain at their rates from mid-May; if they go down, forecasts go up, and if they go even further up, forecasts go even further down.
With the OECD’s secretary general explaining: [Lead B roll into clip]
[Clip, 04:22 - 04:39] Caption: “Our report estimates that in a scenario in which U.S. bilateral tariffs are raised by an additional 10 percentage points on all countries as compared with the rates in force as of mid-May, global GDP would be about 0.3% lower after two years.”
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