This week, a single soundbite made up of nonsensical words, took the internet by storm as playing it made some people hear the word “yanny” while others heard the word “laurel.”

What do you hear?! Yanny or Laurel pic.twitter.com/jvHhCbMc8I

— Cloe Feldman (@CloeCouture) May 15, 2018

The clip was a play on frequencies which sparked debate and nearly broke the internet as people began arguing over what they were hearing. While the phenomenon of people hearing two different words listening to the same audio is quite interesting, the explanation is actually simple.

If hear “laurel” in the above soundbite then your ears tend to pick up on low frequencies. If you hear “yanny,” then your ears pick up on the higher frequencies.

Video game developer Dylan Bennett made the following graphical representation illustrating exactly what is going on here:

Okay, you're not crazy. If you can hear high freqs, you probably hear "yanny", but you *might* hear "laurel". If you can't hear high freqs, you probably hear laurel. Here's what it sounds like without high/low freqs. RT so we can avoid the whole dress situation. #yanny #laurel 🙄 pic.twitter.com/RN71WGyHwe

— Dylan Bennett (@MBoffin) May 16, 2018

This is certainly fascinating and worthy of discussion, while it went viral, however, there were multiple other stories that were swept to the wayside which actually have an impact on the lives of people across the planet. To make sure they don’t get ignored as the internet debates “yanny” and “laurel,” the Free Thought Project has put together a list of five major stories currently being overshadowed by this soundbite.

1. US State Passes Law Defining Any Criticism of Israel as ‘Anti-Semitic’ Just As They Kill 60 Civilians

South Carolina will become the first state to legally define criticism of Israel as “anti-Semitism” when a new measure goes into effect on July 1, targeting public schools and universities.

As can be determined by the long list of ways in which South Carolina will now define “anti-Semitism,” individuals will be forced to tiptoe around a legitimate subject, and expressing an opinion that is no longer considered politically correct can now be legally used against them.

Calling out this bill is not antisemitic, it is pro free speech. Criticizing the Israeli government as well as any other government is the right and duty of all free humanity. Just as TFTP advocates for the freedom of Americans, we advocate for the freedom of Israelis and the Palestinians. Only through discussion and peaceful criticism will peace ever be achieved.

2. Innocent Couple Raided by Cops for Facebook Post of LEGAL Morel Mushrooms

Last week, John Garrison and his girlfriend Hope went foraging the mountains for some morel mushrooms. Garrison was so excited that they had found a bunch of them, that he posted a photo on Facebook of he and Hope’s bounty along with his plans to “sautee them with brown sugar and cinnamon and see how that turns out.”

Illustrating the horrid effects of both the drug war and the police state, within hours of the post,Garrison’s apartment was raided by police.

“We had just finished eating the Morels we found today and heard a knock on the door. A police officer and an RA were standing outside. We let them in and as soon as the police officer walked in he asked us why we were eating mushrooms and posting about it online. He thought he was on the biggest bust of his career thinking we were having a magic mushroom party before I explained to him that Morels are a native choice edible mushroom similar to truffles,” explained Garrison.

Equally as troubling as cops raiding your apartment over Facebook posts for legal mushrooms is how they found out about it in the first place. Were police simply trolling Facebook that night and saw Garrison’s post? Or, did some “good citizen” do their due diligence and “see something and say something”?

3. DEA Knowingly Gave Addicts and Drug Dealers Licenses to Prescribe Opioids—Fueling the Epidemic

As thousands of Americans die each year from opioid overdoses, an independent investigation into the Drug Enforcement Agency’s conduct has found that it has been issuing controlled substance licenses to drug dealers, drug addicts, convicted felons and dead people, which is just one of the many things that have fueled the current crisis.

The investigation noted that in 2006, only 510,000 individuals and organizations held controlled substance licenses. As of March 2018, that number had increased drastically to 1.7 million licenses. The investigation showed that hundreds of dead people were issued license, thousands of convicted drug dealers incarcerated for felonies, and tens of thousands of others with no background checks.

If you want to look at who to blame for the opioid epidemic, you can start with the DEA.

4. As the media focused on the US embassy opening in Jerusalem, Israeli soldiers killed dozens of civilians, including children

The death toll in Gaza increased dramatically on Monday as Israeli Defense Forces opened fire on thousands of Palestinian civilians, killing 41 and injuring at least 1,700, and the United States’ response served as a reminder that if the governments in Iran, Syria, North Korea or Russia had done the same thing, the U.S. would be calling for a full-scale invasion right now.

It is hypocrisy at its finest, especially considering the fact that the U.S. has a history of cheering on and aiding protests against foreign governments. In fact, when the mainstream media began sharing reports of protests in Iran in December 2017, President Trump took to Twitter to cheer on the dissidents.

“The people are finally getting wise as to how their money and wealth is being stolen and squandered on terrorism,” Trump wrote, claiming that the United States was “watching very closely for human rights violations!”

The US reaction to Israel is the exact opposite. Instead of being praised for fighting against the people they consider their oppressors, they are all written off as “terrorists.”

5. Cops Kill Unarmed Naked Teacher and the Chief Defends It, Claiming ‘Being Naked Does Not Remove a Threat’

The family of Marcus-David L. Peters—an honors graduate and high school science teacher in Richmond, Va.—is asking for answers this week after a Richmond police officer shot and killed him while he was naked and unarmed.

Police say that Peters had previously struck another vehicle prior to crashing and then fled the scene. After a brief chase, he crashed and then ran naked up the northbound lane of I-95. Police claim Peters then charged an officer who had no other choice but to resort to deadly force against the naked and unarmed man who ‘charged the officer.’

Richmond Police Chief Alfred Durham then seemingly justified the shooting, noting that “Our officers do not take the use of deadly force lightly. I think it’s important to remember that being naked does not remove a threat.”

Peters was an upstanding member of society who graduated cum laude from his high school in 2011 and then repeating that honor in 2016, graduating with a biology degree from VCU with honors. He was a beloved science teacher at Essex High School before being killed.

Peters was obviously in some sort of mental distress, whether it was drug related or health-related was unclear. What is clear, however, is that police were unable to resolve a situation involving a naked unarmed man—without killing him—and society has lost an amazing person because of it.

Article posted with permission from The Free Thought Project. Article by Matt Agorist.