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DAYTON, Ohio (WDTN) — If you are a customer of Rite Aid, an “unknown third party” may have accessed your personal information in a recent data breach, the company says.
In a release obtained by Nexstar’s WDTN, Rite Aid said that on May 31 they learned that a “vulnerability” in a vendor partner’s software had been exploited.
Rite Aid says that once it was told about the exploit, it installed and updated its systems as well as the provider’s software. In the process, Rite Aid discovered that on May 27 the “third party” managed to access files containing personal customer information.
Customer information in the files included:
- Patient First and Last Name
- Date of Birth
- Address
- Prescription Information
- Limited Insurance Information
- Cardholder ID
- Plan Name
Social Security numbers and credit card numbers were not accessed in the breach, according to Rite Aid.
“We regret that this incident occurred,” Rite Aid says. “We immediately reported it to law enforcement as well as appropriate federal and state regulators. We take our obligation to safeguard personal information very seriously and are alerting consumers about this issue in case they would like to take any steps to help protect themselves.”
The company recommends that you take action to protect your information. You can receive a free credit report by clicking here.
Letters were sent out July 20 to Rite Aid customers who may be affected. More information about the breach can be found by calling the assistance line at 1-866-373-9712. The line will be available until Oct. 19.
Rite Aid customers who do not receive a letter can still call to see if their information was affected. | 2023-07-21T21:55:14+00:00 | everythinglubbock.com | https://www.everythinglubbock.com/news/national/rite-aid-customers-personal-information-accessed-in-data-breach/ |
The U.S. has the highest maternal mortality rate of the world's high-income countries. Death rates remain the highest among Black women, and have more than doubled over the last 20 years.
Copyright 2023 NPR
The U.S. has the highest maternal mortality rate of the world's high-income countries. Death rates remain the highest among Black women, and have more than doubled over the last 20 years.
Copyright 2023 NPR | 2023-07-09T22:14:36+00:00 | delawarepublic.org | https://www.delawarepublic.org/2023-07-09/u-s-maternal-deaths-keep-rising-black-women-are-most-at-risk |
Best glue for plastic
Do you need reliable glue for your next DIY project? Or perhaps you need to fix something you broke recently? There are several types of glue out there tailored to sticking plastics together, but it can be difficult to know which glue is best for your needs.
Some glues work differently on different types of plastics, while others vary in drying time or durability. If you need something quick and reliable, check out Testors Cement Glue.
What to know about the best glue for plastic
Types of glue
There are three types of glue you can use on plastic: polystyrene cement, super glue and epoxy glue.
Polystyrene cement melts the plastic slightly, effectively gluing the pieces together into one. It’s great for things like pipes or model kits, but if not used correctly, it can damage surfaces. It only takes about a minute to set and is fully cured within eight hours.
You can use super glue (or Cyanoacrylate glue) across a wide array of materials. It dries fast but doesn’t fill up much space in between. So if you need a thicker bond to fill gaps, super glue is not the way to go. It only takes 10 seconds to set and about 24 hours to cure.
Epoxy glue is a two-part glue that relies on the combination of two chemical components to create an incredibly strong bond. Regardless of how long it takes to dry, leave epoxy glue to cure for at least 72 hours. This can take longer depending on the job and climate.
Types of plastic
Since plastic is not a porous material, it can be tricky to find the right glue to hold your plastic together. Epoxy glue works best for most plastics, but if your project requires a more flexible bond, you’ll want an acrylic-based glue.
Tips for gluing plastic
Choose the correct glue
First and foremost, make sure to pick the best glue for the type of plastic you’re working with. Consider if the glue will be exposed to any extreme elements or temperatures since this could impact its effectiveness. Finding the best glue for the job will ensure you create the best bond.
Clean surfaces
Before you start gluing, make sure all the surfaces you intend to join are clean. You don’t want dirt or grime getting in the way, and it can also impact the effectiveness of the glue’s performance.
Don’t overdo it
Less is more when it comes to using strong glues. If you apply too much, you run the risk of longer drying times and dried glue buildup. Use only enough glue to get the job done.
Clean up carefully
After you’ve wiped away any stray glue streaks, make sure you put your glue away properly. Remove any excess glue stuck in the nozzle, which can dry and seal the bottle shut. You’ll also want to store the glue in a cool, dry place that isn’t subject to extreme temperatures.
Best glue for plastic
Best polystyrene cement for plastic
Testor Corp Cement Glue Value Pack 2 Tubes
What you need to know: This pack comes with two 0.87-ounce tubes of cement glue.
What you’ll love: It’s exceptionally reliable when you need to glue plastic to plastic. Even though cement is in the name, this glue still dries clear on surfaces. And a little bit goes a long way, too.
What you should consider: It has a very strong smell.
Where to buy: Sold by Amazon
Weld-On 3 Acrylic Plastic Cement with Weld-On Applicator Bottle with Needle
What you need to know: This set features a 4-ounce can of acrylic cement and a bottle with the needle for application.
What you’ll love: This cement glue sets very quickly and creates a tight bond. It can be a little tricky to use because of the watery consistency, but it works very well once you get the hang of it.
What you should consider: Since it’s designed specifically for acrylic plastics, it may not be as effective with other types of plastic.
Where to buy: Sold by Amazon
Best super glues for plastic
What you need to know: This translucent super glue comes in a 0.53-ounce bottle with an anti-clog tip.
What you’ll love: It’s very versatile, and you can use it on plastics as well as on other materials. It sets in under a minute and has the added benefit of being waterproof.
What you should consider: The bottle is a little misleading and looks half-empty when you get it. Rest assured, it does contain all the glue it’s supposed to hold.
Where to buy: Sold by Amazon
Glue Masters Professional Grade Cyanoacrylate “Super Glue”
What you need to know: This super glue comes in a 2-ounce bottle with a tube tip and cap.
What you’ll love: It bonds most plastics together and can also bond plastic to other materials, like glass or metal. It’s strong, waterproof and dries clear.
What you should consider: It’s a little watery, which can make application difficult.
Where to buy: Sold by Amazon
Best epoxy glues for plastic
Loctite Epoxy Five Minute Instant Mix
What you need to know: Perfect for small jobs, this epoxy glue comes in a 0.47-fluid ounce self-mixing dispenser with a precision syringe applicator.
What you’ll love: This one is great for gluing plastics as well as bonding wood, metal, glass ceramics and other materials. It’s water-resistant and does not shrink.
What you should consider: It dries yellow, not clear.
Where to buy: Sold by Amazon
Gorilla 2 Part Epoxy 5 Minute Set
What you need to know: This clear epoxy glue comes in a 0.85-ounce syringe and sets in five minutes.
What you’ll love: This glue is great for bonding plastics together as well as other materials. It fills in gaps as needed and creates a good, strong bond. It’s water-resistant and dries perfectly clear.
What you should consider: Temperature and humidity of work conditions may impact the drying time.
Where to buy: Sold by Amazon and Home Depot
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Copyright 2022 BestReviews, a Nexstar company. All rights reserved. | 2022-07-18T00:05:09+00:00 | wearegreenbay.com | https://www.wearegreenbay.com/reviews/br/lawn-garden-br/tools-br-lawn-garden-br/arts-crafts-br/what-is-the-best-glue-for-plastic/ |
ALBANY, N.Y. (AP) _ The winning numbers in Thursday afternoon's drawing of the New York Lottery's "Win 4 Midday" game were:
1-9-5-6
(one, nine, five, six)
ALBANY, N.Y. (AP) _ The winning numbers in Thursday afternoon's drawing of the New York Lottery's "Win 4 Midday" game were:
1-9-5-6
(one, nine, five, six) | 2023-01-19T21:21:00+00:00 | sfgate.com | https://www.sfgate.com/lottery/article/Winning-numbers-drawn-in-Win-4-Midday-game-17728668.php |
Arrest made in connection with Eliza Fletcher’s abduction
MEMPHIS, Tenn. (WMC/Gray News) - A man has been arrested in connection with the abduction of Eliza Fletcher, WMC reported.
Memphis Police Department arrested Cleotha Abston, 38, and charged him with especially aggravated kidnapping and tampering with evidence.
“This remains to be an active and ongoing investigation,” police said via Twitter.
Fletcher, 34, was jogging when a man approached her and forced her into a dark-colored GMC Terrain after a brief struggle. Fletcher was reported missing when she did not return home.
She is the granddaughter of the late Joseph “Joe” Orgill III, a Memphis hardware businessman and philanthropist, according to the Associated Press.
Fletcher is still missing.
Copyright 2022 Gray Media Group, Inc. All rights reserved. | 2022-09-04T12:46:31+00:00 | waff.com | https://www.waff.com/2022/09/04/arrest-made-connection-with-eliza-fletchers-abduction/ |
Manchester City has history on its side ahead of the final-day title showdown with Liverpool in the English Premier League.
Sunday will mark the ninth time in the Premier League era — since 1992 — that the title race has been decided in the last round.
On each of the previous eight occasions, the team in first place before kickoff went on to clinch the championship.
City leads Liverpool by one point and they both finish with home games — against Aston Villa and Wolverhampton, respectively.
Every league leader playing at home to finish the season has won that game, most famously City in 2012 when Roberto Mancini’s team scored twice in stoppage time to defeat Queens Park Rangers 3-2 and beat Manchester United to the title.
A look at the eight Premier League seasons to go the distance:
1994-95
Blackburn won its first — and so far only — title in the Premier League era despite losing on the final day at Liverpool 2-1. Manchester United started the day two points behind in second place and could only draw 1-1 at West Ham, whose goalkeeper Ludek Miklosko produced a slew of magnificent saves.
1995-96
Alex Ferguson’s Man United bounced back to win the title the following year, this time having no problems on a final-day fight with Newcastle’s team of entertainers under Kevin Keegan. United had a two-point lead and won at Middlesbrough 3-0 while Newcastle, which led the standings by 12 points in February, drew with Tottenham 1-1.
1998-99
Another title for Man United, which needed to come from behind to beat Tottenham 2-1 at home and hold off Arsenal by a point. Arsenal did its job by beating Aston Villa 1-0 and was given hope by Les Ferdinand’s early goal for Tottenham. David Beckham equalized for United and Andy Cole’s deft lob in the 47th minute ultimately proved decisive.
2007-08
Both Man United and Chelsea entered the final day on 84 points, with United leading on goal difference. United beat Wigan 2-0 away thanks to goals by Cristiano Ronaldo and Ryan Giggs, while Chelsea could only draw at Bolton 1-1 after conceding a late equalizer. United and Chelsea would meet in the Champions League final 10 days later — and again United prevailed after a penalty shootout.
2009-10
Chelsea left nothing to chance in its bid to stay ahead of Man United and end its rival’s three-season reign as champion. An 8-0 thrashing of Wigan at Stamford Bridge, which included a hat trick by Didier Drogba, was Chelsea’s biggest victory in its history and took the team past 100 goals for the season. United beat Stoke 4-0 but finished a point back in second place.
2011-12
The most thrilling finish to a Premier League season — perhaps even in top-flight history — saw Man City become English champion for the first time in 44 years. Stoppage-time goals by Edin Dzeko and Sergio Aguero were needed for a 3-2 victory over Queens Park Rangers, which started the game under the threat of relegation. United had completed its 1-0 win at Sunderland before Aguero scored to clinch the title on goal difference for City.
2013-14
Man City left it to the last day for its second Premier League title, too, but this was less of a rollercoaster ride than two years earlier. A routine 2-0 win at home to West Ham was secured by goals from Samir Nasri and Vincent Kompany, and it was enough to hold off Liverpool, which finished two points behind following a 2-1 home win over Newcastle.
2018-19
City started the final day a point ahead of Liverpool — like this season — but it looked like there could be a twist to the title race when Pep Guardiola’s team fell behind to Brighton in the 27th minute, with Liverpool already leading against Wolverhampton. Aguero equalized within a minute and City wound up a 4-1 winner, making redundant Liverpool’s 2-0 victory at Anfield.
___
More AP soccer: https://apnews.com/hub/soccer and https://twitter.com/AP_Sports
___
Steve Douglas is at https://twitter.com/sdouglas80 | 2022-05-20T01:05:39+00:00 | wjhl.com | https://www.wjhl.com/sports/us-world-sports/history-on-citys-side-as-epl-title-race-heads-into-last-day/ |
Eloy Jiménez Player Prop Bets: White Sox vs. Phillies - April 18
Published: Apr. 18, 2023 at 12:24 PM CDT|Updated: 1 hour ago
The Chicago White Sox and Eloy Jimenez, who went 0-for-4 last time out, take on Bailey Falter and the Philadelphia Phillies at Guaranteed Rate Field, Tuesday at 7:10 PM ET.
He is looking to get back on track following a four-strikeout showing in his most recent game against the Orioles.
Eloy Jiménez Game Info & Props vs. the Phillies
- Game Day: Tuesday, April 18, 2023
- Game Time: 7:10 PM ET
- Stadium: Guaranteed Rate Field
- Live Stream: Watch this game on Fubo!
- Phillies Starter: Bailey Falter
- TV Channel: MLB Network
- Hits Prop: Over/under 0.5 hits (Over odds: -161)
- Home Runs Prop: Over/under 0.5 home runs (Over odds: +600)
- RBI Prop: Over/under 0.5 RBI (Over odds: +240)
- Runs Prop: Over/under 0.5 runs (Over odds: +190)
Looking to place a prop bet on Eloy Jiménez? Check out what's available at BetMGM and sign up with this link!
Eloy Jiménez At The Plate
- Jimenez is hitting .161 with two doubles and four walks.
- Jimenez has had a base hit in four of eight games this season, and multiple hits once.
- He has not hit a home run in his eight games this season.
- Jimenez has driven in a run in three games this year (37.5%), including one multiple-RBI game.
- He has scored in three of eight games so far this season.
Ready to play FanDuel Daily Fantasy? Get in the game using our link.
Eloy Jiménez Home/Away Batting Splits
Phillies Pitching Rankings
- The 9.1 strikeouts per nine innings compiled by the Phillies pitching staff ranks 11th in MLB.
- The Phillies' 5.48 team ERA ranks 27th among all league pitching staffs.
- Phillies pitchers combine to allow 17 home runs (1.1 per game), the 10th-fewest in baseball.
- Falter gets the start for the Phillies, his fourth of the season. He is 0-2 with a 4.80 ERA and nine strikeouts in 15 2/3 innings pitched.
- In his last appearance on Thursday against the Cincinnati Reds, the left-hander went 4 2/3 innings, allowing five earned runs while surrendering eight hits.
- In three games this season, the 25-year-old has an ERA of 4.80, with 5.4 strikeouts per nine innings. Opponents are hitting .311 against him.
© 2023 Data Skrive. All rights reserved. | 2023-04-18T18:49:35+00:00 | kcrg.com | https://www.kcrg.com/sports/betting/2023/04/18/eloy-jimenez-mlb-player-prop-bets/ |
WFO CORPUS CHRISTI Warnings, Watches and Advisories for Thursday, August 25, 2022
_____
AREAL FLOOD ADVISORY
Flood Advisory
National Weather Service Corpus Christi TX
1055 AM CDT Thu Aug 25 2022
...FLOOD ADVISORY IN EFFECT UNTIL 1 PM CDT THIS AFTERNOON...
* WHAT...Flooding caused by excessive rainfall is expected.
* WHERE...A portion of south Texas, including the following
counties, Bee and Live Oak.
* WHEN...Until 100 PM CDT.
* IMPACTS...Minor flooding in low-lying and poor drainage areas.
Ponding on roads.
* ADDITIONAL DETAILS...
- At 1054 AM CDT, Doppler radar indicated heavy rain due to
thunderstorms. Minor flooding is ongoing or expected to begin
shortly in the advisory area. Between 1 and 2 inches of rain
have fallen.
- Additional rainfall amounts of 1 to 3 inches are expected
over the area. This additional rain will result in minor
flooding.
- Some locations that will experience flooding include...
Beeville, Three Rivers, Karon, Mineral, Normanna, Tuleta, Ray
Point and Oakville.
- http://www.weather.gov/safety/flood
PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS...
Turn around, don't drown when encountering flooded roads. Most flood
deaths occur in vehicles.
Please report observed flooding to local emergency services or law
enforcement and request they pass this information to the National
Weather Service when you can do so safely.
_____
Copyright 2022 AccuWeather | 2022-08-25T16:58:21+00:00 | ourmidland.com | https://www.ourmidland.com/weather/article/TX-WFO-CORPUS-CHRISTI-Warnings-Watches-and-17397734.php |
Wrought-iron defense was the order of the day when Urbana stopped Peoria Manual to the tune of a 14-0 shutout in an Illinois boys soccer matchup.
You're reading a news brief powered by ScoreStream, a world leader in fan-driven sports results and conversation. Help us collect and deliver more game results from your favorite teams and players by downloading the ScoreStream app. Nearly a million users nationwide share team scores and player performance stats with this convenient free app. | 2022-09-30T04:43:10+00:00 | herald-review.com | https://herald-review.com/sports/high-school/soccer/boys/urbana-exerts-defensive-dominance-to-doom-peoria-manual-14-0/article_7f8b5118-44c5-5c77-8108-3c834599de01.html |
PARIS — Seashells, seaweed — and nearly a ton of cocaine. That’s what French maritime police found on a beach on the English Channel this week.
The cocaine, weighing about 850 kilograms (1,875 pounds) in total, was found in two large packages linked by a rope, the administration said Tuesday.
While packages of drugs wash up once or twice a year on beaches in the region, the administration said they had never seen such a large quantity.
Police are trying to determine whether the drugs fell from a ship or were intentionally floated to the shore for traffickers to pick up.
A surge in cocaine and crack supplies has been hitting Europe hard, along with unprecedented drug violence in some areas. The North Sea port cities of Antwerp in Belgium and Rotterdam in the Netherlands have become the main gateway for Latin American cocaine cartels into Europe. | 2023-02-28T17:44:53+00:00 | washingtonpost.com | https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/police-find-850-kilos-of-cocaine-washed-up-on-french-beach/2023/02/28/b28e0884-b78b-11ed-b0df-8ca14de679ad_story.html |
Today’s Birthday (10/25/22). Fortune follows health this year. Steady domestic care and love generate wonderful improvements. Autumn profits pour in, allowing support with extra winter family expenses. Springtime ripens into collaborative victory, developing solutions for summer income delays. Practice your moves for growing energy, fun and ease.
To get the advantage, check the day’s rating: 10 is the easiest day, 0 the most challenging.
Aries (March 21-April 19) — Today is a 9 — Find creative ways to grow your family nest egg. A lucrative six-month Eclipse phase dawns with tonight’s Scorpio New Moon. Launch valuable initiatives in partnership.
Taurus (April 20-May 20) — Today is an 8 — Make a delightful connection. Collaboration flowers and deepens over the next six months. Together, you’re greater. Kindle some special New Moon magic. Share and grow.
Gemini (May 21-June 20) — Today is an 8 — Energize your physical moves. The New Moon/Eclipse tonight initiates six months of growing health and strength. Infuse heart into your actions. Practice makes perfect.
Cancer (June 21-July 22) — Today is an 8 — Enjoy yourself. Stir up some romance. This Scorpio Eclipse begins a six-month family, fun and passion phase. Get creative. It’s all for love.
Leo (July 23-Aug. 22) — Today is a 7 — Realize domestic dreams and visions over the next six-month Eclipse phase. Get creative. Improve the beauty and functionality of your home. Nurture family.
Virgo (Aug. 23-Sept. 22) — Today is a 9 — Profit through communications over six months. Possibilities spark in conversation during this Eclipse phase. Creative projects flower. Express, share and connect. Write your story.
Libra (Sept. 23-Oct. 22) — Today is a 9 — Begin a lucrative New Moon phase. Discover fresh markets and rising prosperity. Strengthen financial foundations for growth. Rake in and preserve a healthy harvest.
Scorpio (Oct. 23-Nov. 21) — Today is a 9 — Pursue personal dreams. Expand talents, capacities and skills over six months, with the Eclipse in your sign. Grow and develop. Shine your light.
Sagittarius (Nov. 22-Dec. 21) — Today is a 7 — Insights, breakthroughs and revelations sparkle in the dark of tonight’s Scorpio Eclipse. Dreams seem within reach. Enjoy a two-week creative, imaginative and organizational phase.
Capricorn (Dec. 22-Jan. 19) — Today is an 8 — Connect for shared support, fun and appreciation. This six-month Eclipse phase benefits team efforts. Grow through friendships, social networks and community participation. Get social.
Aquarius (Jan. 20-Feb. 18) — Today is an 8 — This Scorpio Eclipse illuminates professional opportunities. Develop interesting projects over the next six months. Pursue exciting possibilities. Your career, status and influence rise.
Pisces (Feb. 19-March 20) — Today is an 8 — Educational opportunities arise after tonight’s Eclipse. The next six-month phase favors study, investigation and exploration. Consider new perspectives. Make connections, contributions and bold discoveries. | 2022-10-24T18:43:17+00:00 | cadillacnews.com | https://www.cadillacnews.com/horoscopes/article_d882f1ec-53b5-11ed-a521-23dab5858634.html |
Idaho Falls mayor recognized for longstanding support of public power
IDAHO FALLS, Idaho (KIFI) – Utah Associated Municipal Power Systems (UAMPS) named City of Idaho Falls Mayor Rebecca Casper as the 2022 Elected Official of The Year.
UAMPS, the joint action agency which provides comprehensive wholesale electric energy services to community-owned power systems throughout the Intermountain West presented Mayor Casper the award at its annual meeting in Salt Lake City on Wednesday. The award recognizes Mayor Casper’s ardent advocacy for public power on the local, state, national and even international levels.
“Mayor Rebecca Casper is a worthy recipient of our Elected Official of the Year Award,” said Mason Baker, incoming UAMPS CEO and general manager. “We have greatly appreciated her support of UAMPS, our Carbon Free Power Project, and public power in general. Her expertise, articulate advocacy, and all-round enthusiasm have been inspirational. We’re glad she’s on our team.”
Mayor Casper serves as the board chair of Idaho Falls Power. Prior to her election in 2013, Mayor Casper was appointed by Idaho Governor Otter to the statewide Leadership in Nuclear Energy (LINE) Commission. Mayor Casper also serves as Vice Chair of the Energy Communities Alliance a national organization of communities with DOE facilities and missions. This allows her to be. a close ally with the U.S. Department of Energy’s Idaho National Laboratory (INL) in promoting the expansion of nuclear generation as a primary strategy for meeting our nation’s clean energy goals.
“It’s an honor to receive this recognition from UAMPS, particularly given their ongoing support of Idaho Falls’ mission to provide reliable and low-cost electricity to our community,” Casper said. “Idaho Falls’ energy future sits at the forefront of my mind because power plays such a large role in the economic prosperity of our great City.” | 2022-12-16T18:08:51+00:00 | localnews8.com | https://localnews8.com/news/idaho-falls/2022/12/16/idaho-falls-mayor-recognized-for-longstanding-support-of-public-power/ |
A winter storm pummeling the region around Buffalo, could bring five feet of snow in coming days. It is expected to be among the most severe storms to hit the region.
Copyright 2022 WBFO
A winter storm pummeling the region around Buffalo, could bring five feet of snow in coming days. It is expected to be among the most severe storms to hit the region.
Copyright 2022 WBFO | 2022-11-18T14:37:08+00:00 | nepm.org | https://www.nepm.org/national-world-news/national-world-news/2022-11-18/state-of-emergency-for-parts-of-western-new-york-is-declared-ahead-of-a-major-storm |
WAUKEE, Iowa , June 17, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Blue Frog announced June 17 that it reached the elite tier of HubSpot's Solutions Partner Program. HubSpot, a leading CRM platform for scaling companies, works hand-in-hand with partner experts to grow their businesses through inbound software, services and support.
"Our experience with the team at Blue Frog has been nothing short of extraordinary. Their years of experience and quality of skilled staff has earned them a trusted reputation within the HubSpot ecosystem as a reliable partner capable of delivering remarkable experiences for our most sophisticated clients," said Brian Garvey, VP, Solutions Partner Program at HubSpot.
Blue Frog is a member of HubSpot's Solutions Partner Program, an ecosystem of experts offering marketing, sales, customer service, web design and CRM services. It's a global community that believes putting customers first is the key to growth, and enables its members to offer a wide variety of sophisticated solutions across the entire customer experience.
To achieve elite tier status, a solutions partner must generate $65,000 in sold monthly recurring revenue and manage $170,000 in recurring monthly revenue.
President John Campbell, since founding the company in 2009, has grown Blue Frog into one of the leading strategic growth firms in the United States. The company's growth can largely be attributed to a commitment to customer success along with HubSpot's inbound marketing philosophy, incorporating strategies that attract, engage and delight customers.
ABOUT BLUE FROG
Established in 2009 by John Campbell, Blue Frog is a privately-owned strategic growth firm offering services ranging from website design and development, data orchestration, branding, inbound marketing, digital advertising, HubSpot and ZoomInfo strategy, and content marketing.
Recognized by "Inc. Magazine" as one of the "Best Places to Work" and an elite tier HubSpot solutions partner, Blue Frog is recognized as one of the leading growth consultancies in the US. To learn more about Blue Frog, visit www.bluefrogdm.com.
MEDIA CONTACT
Name: Kelsey Halverson
Company Name: Blue Frog
Phone: 515-221-2214
Email: khalverson@bluefrogdm.com
View original content:
SOURCE Blue Frog | 2022-06-17T19:40:34+00:00 | waff.com | https://www.waff.com/prnewswire/2022/06/17/blue-frog-becomes-an-elite-tier-hubspot-solutions-partner/ |
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HOUSTON (AP) — Deshaun Watson signed autographs for Texans and Browns fans and posed for selfies before his first game in 700 days in a familiar place.
Once the game started, it was overwhelming boos for Watson.
Watson heard jeers before taking each snap on his first series in his first game Sunday since returning from an 11-game suspension for sexual misconduct. Watson’s debut with Cleveland comes against Houston, where he was a three-time Pro Bowl pick in four seasons.
After an interception gave the Browns the ball at their 43, Watson threw a pair of incomplete passes. He spun away from a sack on third down, and fans cheered when his throw to David Bell hit the ground.
Watson had several supporters in the stands before the game, while a group of the women who accused him of sexual harassment and assault during massages also planned to attend the game.
One fan walked into NRG Stadium wearing a derogatory shirt in Browns colors that includes text saying "I need a massage." He was joined by a fan wearing Watson’s No. 4 Browns jersey.
Fans in the parking lot set up a fake massage table with a mannequin wearing a red Texans jersey and a towel.
The few fans in their seats when Watson and the Browns jogged onto the field about an hour before kickoff booed.
Watson sat out the 2021 season after demanding a trade from Houston. After two grand juries in Texas declined to indict him over the allegations, the Browns traded several draft picks to get Watson and then signed him to a fully guaranteed $235 million contract.
After warming up, Watson signed jerseys for fans behind the end zone. An 18-year-old man from East Texas got Watson’s autograph on his Browns jersey. A couple from Houston wearing Texans jerseys also got Watson’s signature on their jerseys.
“We don’t really know what happened and everyone deserves a second chance,” said Sherry Holden, explaining her support.
Several Browns fans said they were uncomfortable rooting for Watson.
“I’m cheering for the jersey and the team but it’s hard to accept him as my quarterback,” said Brandon Collins, who traveled from Ohio for the game.
The NFL wanted to suspend Watson for at least one season but settled for 11 games after an independent arbiter initially gave him a six-game ban. NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell called Watson’s behavior “egregious” and “predatory.”
Watson also was fined $5 million and required to undergo professional counseling and therapy. Watson has maintained his innocence but also apologized to the women he impacted.
The Browns went 4-7 with veteran Jacoby Brissett filling in for Watson. The Texans are 1-9-1.
___
Follow Rob Maaddi on Twitter at https://twitter.com/robmaaddi
___
AP NFL: https://apnews.com/hub/nfl and https://twitter.com/AP_NFL | 2022-12-04T19:03:43+00:00 | expressnews.com | https://www.expressnews.com/sports/article/Deshaun-Watson-has-supporters-in-the-stands-for-17630506.php |
PARMA, Italy, June 26, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- The Barilla Group Sustainability Report highlights the results achieved from the Parma-based Group for the well-being of people, for the environment and for the communities. According to its purpose "The joy of food for a better life", Barilla continued to invest in improving its pasta, sauces and bakery products (almost 500 products reformulated and improved since 2010, 40 launched in 2022). The aim is to innovate and reduce the impact of production processes in terms of CO2eq emissions, energy and water consumption, to promote sustainable supply chains and to design packaging to be recyclable.
Since 1877 our work has been fuelled by the desire to surpass ourselves, coming to the present day with the same spirit as the founders. This is the only certainty we have before us: a great deal of passions and still so much work to do", noted Paolo Barilla, Vice-President of the Barilla Group.
"If we wish to give our planet and every one of us a future, we must all play our part. Our company embarked on this journey many years ago, taking small steps that over time have helped us to achieve great results", stated Gianluca Di Tondo, CEO of the Barilla Group.
Durum wheat, common wheat, basil and tomatoes: the Barilla Group's commitment to sustainable supply chains from farm to fork continues, with 9,000 farms involved in sustainable and regenerative agriculture projects. Furthermore, 100% of Mulino Bianco breads, biscuits and snacks are produced using renewable energy and Barilla's pasta factories have tri-generation plants. Compared to 2010, greenhouse gas emissions have decreased by 32% and water consumption per tonne of finished product by 24%. In Italy and worldwide, 100% of the Barilla Group's pasta, sauces, pesto, breads, biscuits and snacks are designed for recycling. In line with decisions made in previous years, Barilla's new plan provides an investment of €1 billion, half of which in Italy, in support of sustainable business. Sustainability at Barilla is also about paying attention to people and local communities. In one year, €3.2 million and over 3,200 tonnes of products have been donated to support the communities where Barilla operates and to improve access to food. The Barilla Group Sustainability Report is now online on the www.barillagroup.com website.
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SOURCE Barilla | 2023-06-26T12:10:23+00:00 | newschannel10.com | https://www.newschannel10.com/prnewswire/2023/06/26/barilla-more-sustainable-supply-chains-together-with-9000-farms-commitment-renewable-energy-100-recyclable-packaging-support-local-communities/ |
CHESAPEAKE, Va. (AP) — A 16-year-old helping his family. A custodian and father of two. A mother with wedding plans. A happy-go-lucky guy. A longtime employee.
That’s how friends and family described some of the six people killed at a Walmart in Chesapeake, Virginia, when a manager opened fire with a handgun before a Nov. 22 employee meeting.
Here are some details about those who were lost:
Randy Blevins, 70, of Chesapeake
Blevins started working for Walmart in the early 1990s after the five-and-dime he owned with his wife, Teresa, went under, his stepdaughter Cassandra Yeatts told The Associated Press.
“When Walmart came to town, they kind of drove their business out of business,” Yeatts said. “My mom contacted the manager of the Walmart at Sam’s Drive and said, ‘Hey, you put us out of business and my husband needs a job.’”
Blevins had an interview and got hired on the spot as an overnight stocker, a job that included unloading trucks, Yeatts said.
He liked the third shift because he had the days to himself. He attended Norfolk Admirals hockey games and watched professional wrestling and Washington Commanders football games on TV.
Blevins also took snapshots of people and places in nearby Isle of Wight County, according to a 1996 story in the Isle of Wight Citizen. The pictures were put on postcards and sold at a different five-and-dime that his brother managed.
Blevins never missed a day of work, his stepdaughter said.
“He never had any complaints about anyone that he worked with, and he enjoyed going into work,” Yeatts said.
Blevins leaves behind three stepdaughters. And although he and his wife Teresa Blevins divorced, they remained best friends, Yeatts said.
“Thanksgiving and Christmas were his favorite holidays,” she said.
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Fernando Chavez-Barron, 16, of Chesapeake
Chavez-Barron was an honors student in the 11th grade who had just begun driving and had taken a part-time job to help out his family, according to city officials and a GoFundMe page set up for the family. The page’s organizer, Tamara Nelson, confirmed by phone that the page was authentic, but she declined to comment further.
“An outstanding son and excellent big brother, he loved building with Legos,” the GoFundMe page states. “He will always be remembered as humble, loving, responsible and hardworking young man. His loss is felt, not only by his family, but by so many others in his community.”
Chesapeake City Councilman Don J. Carey III said during a candlelight vigil on Monday night that Chavez-Barron “loved taking care of his family and adored his parents. He started working so that he could be responsible and lessen the burden for his family. He was so responsible, supportive and always helped his dad.
“His dad said, ‘He was my best friend,’” Carey said.
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Kellie Pyle, 52, of Chesapeake
Pyle grew up in Norfolk, Virginia, and moved back to the Hampton Roads region from Kentucky after reconnecting with her high school sweetheart on Facebook.
She and Brian Baker planned to marry next year.
“I’ve never seen her this happy, except when she talked about her children,” said a cousin, William Pillar-Gibson.
“This was not just a new chapter for her — it was the best chapter,” Pillar-Gibson told the AP. “She was a grandmother. Her children were thriving. She was with the love of her life. She was back home.”
Pyle had two adult children in their 20s and a young granddaughter who was “the light of Kellie’s life,” her cousin said.
Pyle had been the caregiver for her parents when their health failed and for her brother when he had a stroke.
“She handled everything,” Pillar-Gibson said. “When something needed to be done, she did it. And she experienced a lot of loss.”
Recently, Pyle was extending her generosity and caregiving to the mother of her fiance, Gwendolyn Bowe Baker Spencer.
In a brief statement to the AP, Spencer said: “We love her … She was an awesome, kind individual — yes she was.”
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Brian Pendleton, 38, of Chesapeake
Pendleton made sure to be punctual. Although his shift as a custodian started at 10:30 p.m., he was in the break room when the shooting started just after 10, according to his mother, Michelle Johnson.
“He always came to work early so he would be on time for work,” she told the AP last Wednesday. “He liked his coworkers.”
Pendleton had recently celebrated his 10-year anniversary working at the store.
His mother said he didn’t have any problems at work, except with a supervisor, Andre Bing, who was identified as the gunman.
“He just didn’t like my son,” Johnson said. “He would tell me that he (Bing) would give him a hard time.”
Pendleton was born with a congenital brain disorder and grew up in Chesapeake, his mother said.
“He called me yesterday before he was going to work,” Johnson said. “I always tell him to call me when gets off work.”
As she was getting ready for bed, Johnson got a call from a family friend telling her there was a shooting at the Walmart.
“Brian was a happy-go-lucky guy. Brian loved family. Brian loved friends. He loved to tell jokes,” his mother said. “We’re going to miss him.”
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Lorenzo Gamble, 43, of Chesapeake
Gamble was a custodian on the overnight shift and had worked at Walmart for 15 years, the company said in a statement Tuesday. His greatest joys “were football and spending time with his two sons.”
Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin said during Monday’s vigil that Gamble was “a man of few words” and “a man of strength, who loved and worked hard for his family.”
Linda Gamble, his mother, told the AP on Sunday that she hadn’t been able to do much of anything, including eat, because she missed him so much.
“It’s been really hard because I never, ever in a million years thought it would be my baby,” Gamble said. “He’s gone, but he will always be in my heart.”
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Tyneka Johnson, 22, of Portsmouth
Johnson was “full of life” and her smile could “light up any room,” Carey, the Chesapeake councilman, said at Monday’s vigil.
“She was so loved and will be missed dearly,” Carey said. “Her mom said, ‘I feel like my best friend has been taken from me.’”
Walmart said in its statement that Johnson “loved music, dancing and dreamed of attending college soon.”
“Education was in the forefront. Her family did whatever they had to do to make sure she got assistance,” Casheba Cannon, who tutored Johnson while she was in high school, told The Washington Post.
Johnson was willing to work to better herself, but she was also cheerful, helped younger students and “gelled” with everyone she encountered at Cannon’s Blessed Tutoring Services.
Cannon added: “Tyneka was a light in a dim room.”
A makeshift memorial to Johnson was placed in a grassy area outside the Walmart, with the words “Our Hearts are with you” and a basket of flowers.
The remembrance included a cluster of blue, white and gold balloons tied to a tree, alongside a stark yellow line of police tape.
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Kelleher reported from Honolulu and Schoenbaum reported from Raleigh, North Carolina. AP news researchers Rhonda Shafner and Randy Herschaft in New York contributed to this report. | 2022-11-30T13:21:55+00:00 | myfox8.com | https://myfox8.com/news/national/ap-us-news/ap-walmart-shooting-claims-teen-young-woman-father-mother-2/ |
A landslide triggered by torrential rains in India’s western Maharashtra state killed at least 10 people, with many others feared trapped under piles of debris, officials said Thursday. In this image captured by Associated Press photographer Rafiq Maqbool, a woman holds the hand of her relative as family members of people trapped under rubble wail after a landslide washed away houses.
In Greece, a huge fire was contained west of Athens, but authorities braced Thursday for a new round of extreme weather. Searing heat across Europe’s Mediterranean south has maintained a high or very high risk of fires in Spain, Italy and Greece. And in the Balkans, a storm that followed an intense heat wave left six dead, including a Coatian firefighter.
Here’s what’s happening related to extreme weather and the climate right now:
—In a refugee camp in Kenya, food shortages left kids hungry amid a drought even before Russia ended the grain deal. One farmer was forced to give most of his produce as tax to al-Qaida-linked extremists who have controlled parts of Somalia for years, and the little that remained wasn’t enough to feed his family during Somalia’s worst drought in decades, Evelyne Musambi reports.
__A study found that the exclusion of race from a federal climate justice tool could worsen air pollution exposure disparities along racial lines in the U.S., Drew Costley reports.
—Temperatures have peaked at or above 110 degrees Fahrenheit (43.3 degrees Celsius) the entire month of July in Phoenix and air conditioning has been a lifeline for many in the city. Isabella O’Malley and Beatrice Dupuy explain how the heat wave has some residents concerned about the energy bills they’ll receive.
—Travelers, considered a bellwether for the U.S. insurance industry due to its size, said Thursday that catastrophe losses doubled in its most recent quarter as severe wind and hailstorms in a number of regions led to rising coverage claims, Michelle Chapman reports.
—Canada’s worst-ever wildfire season has choked much of North America with dangerous smoke for months, coupling with deadly heat around the globe in a summer that’s focusing the world’s attention on the perils of climate change. See the photos by Noah Berger here.
—The tornado damage to a Pfizer plant in North Carolina will likely mean shortages of some drugs hospitals need, Tom Murphy reports.
QUOTABLE:
“This level of heat that we are having in Phoenix right now is enormously dangerous, particularly for people who either don’t have air conditioning or cannot afford to operate their air conditioner,” said Evan Mallen, a senior analyst for Georgia Institute of Technology’s Urban Climate Lab.
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Associated Press climate and environmental coverage receives support from several private foundations. See more about AP’s climate initiative here. The AP is solely responsible for all content. | 2023-07-21T09:04:25+00:00 | keloland.com | https://www.keloland.com/news/national-world-news/ap-climate-glimpse-heres-what-you-need-to-see-and-know-today-3/ |
CLEMSON, S.C. (AP) — DJ Uiagalelei played well as he has all season to power No. 5 Clemson’s offense. The Tigers’ defense finally looked like the stellar group it was projected to be.
The result was Clemson’s most complete game of the season: a 30-20 win over 10th-ranked North Carolina State on Saturday night.
“That was a great thing to see on both sides of the ball,” fifth-year defensive end K.J. Henry said.
Uiagalelei ran for two touchdowns and threw for a third as Clemson beat the Wolfpack (4-1, 0-1) for the ninth time in 10 seasons.
The Tigers (5-0, 3-0 Atlantic Coast Conference) won their ACC-record tying 37th straight at home, their 11th in row overall and a clear path back to league championship game they won annually from 2015 through 2020.
Clemson followed up its 51-45 overtime victory at No. 22 Wake Forest last week by shutting down North Carolina State in the second half to hold division tiebreakers over the two teams many figured would be the most likely to knock the Tigers out of title contention for a second straight year.
Instead, Clemson once more looked like the class of the league.
“I thought we did a great job tonight,” Uiagalelei said. “I thought we did a great job in execution, a great job taking what the defense gave us.”
It was Uiagalelei front and center at the game’s most critical stretch. After North Carolina State passer Devin Leary connected with Cedd Seabrough on the game’s first touchdown for a 10-6 less than two minutes before the half, Uiagalelei led a 75-yard drive he ended by stretching the ball over the goalline to send Clemson into the break ahead instead of behind.
When Clemson stuffed Leary with a pair of sacks to start the third quarter, Uiagalelei cashed in again with a 7-yard pass to tight end Jake Briningstool for a 20-10 lead.
“I thought DJ was in total command of what we were doing,” Clemson coach Dabo Swinney said.
Clemson’s defense did the rest, holding the potent Wolfpack to just a field goal over the first 29 minutes of the second half in building a 17-point lead. The Tigers also picked off Leary and recovered a fumble when N.C. State went for it on 4th-and-13 down 10 with less than nine minutes left.
“Lost the turnover margin, lost the line of scrimmage, you don’t win many games like that,” Wolfpack coach Dave Doeren said.
Clemson, which hasn’t lost at home since November 2016, matched Florida State’s ACC mark of 37 straight at home set from 1992-2001. The Tigers’ 11 in a row since last season in the longest current streak in the FBS.
“We’re definitely not there yet,” Henry said. “But I can say the mindset for four quarters definitely showed up tonight.”
Clemson also holds tiebreakers in the division over the Demon Deacons and Wolfpack.
Uiagalelei completed 21 of 30 passes for 209 yards and ran for a team-high 73 yards. He sealed the victory with 9-yard scoring run with about three minutes to play for a 31-13 lead.
Leary was 28 of 47 passing for 245 yards and an interception. He also rushed for a 4-yard TD with less than a minute left as the Wolfpack finished with their fewest points this season.
THE TAKEAWAY
North Carolina State: The Wolfpack have plenty of talented players, but got rattled right around halftime, when they allowed Clemson’s two touchdowns. N.C. State now has to cross its fingers that the Tigers lose twice in their final five ACC games.
Clemson: The Tigers have had to prove their offense was legit all season and, while they didn’t pile up the points like in their first four games, they made enough plays to show themselves once again as the ACC’s top contender.
BRESEE OUT
Starting defensive tackle Bryan Bresee missed his second game of the past three after dealing with a non-football medical condition that Clemson said involved blood tests and observation. Bresee and his family are still mourning 15-year-old Ella Bresee, who died of brain cancer last month and has been an inspiration to her brother’s team with the phrase, “Ella Strong.” Bryan Bresee got good news about the tests late this week and his condition won’t have a long-term impact, Clemson said.
HURT ‘PACK
North Carolina State thought it had turned a corner in its one-sided series with Clemson after a 27-21 OT win last year, largely knocking the Tigers from title contention. But Wolfpack still have some work to do. Leary said the team was “heartbroken and a little (ticked)-off” by the defeat.
UP NEXT
North Carolina plays No. 23 Florida State at home next Saturday.
Clemson goes to Boston College next Saturday night.
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More AP college football: https://apnews.com/hub/college-football and https://twitter.com/ap_top25. Sign up for the AP’s college football newsletter: https://tinyurl.com/mrxhe6f2 | 2022-10-02T15:48:04+00:00 | kfor.com | https://kfor.com/sports/ap-sports/ap-no-5-clemson-tops-no-10-nc-state-30-20-in-acc-showdown/ |
OSAKA, Japan, Nov. 25, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- The Executive Committee of the Midosuji Party held the "Midosuji Runway" around the Midosuji Avenue in Osaka's Chuo Ward on November 3, as part of its efforts to gain momentum for the EXPO 2025 Osaka, Kansai, Japan. The popular autumn event in Osaka's largest thoroughfare and shopping district was held after a two-year hiatus caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. The event's theme was "SPARK" with a message that Osaka's power will spark for the future, partly because it was held for the first time since Osaka was selected to host the EXPO 2025. About 300,000 spectators were fascinated by this large-scale event.
On a special stage during the event, Kobukuro, a popular male pop duo from Osaka who have been appointed as EXPO ambassadors, sang the EXPO's official theme song, "Kono Hoshi no Tsuzuki wo" (meaning "extension of this planet" in Japanese). "There are less than 900 days before the EXPO," they said. "We'll be able to see what nobody has ever seen. Nothing is more exciting than that." The pop unit emphasized to continue singing the song over the next three years so that it will be known to as many people as possible.
Various iconic mascots in Osaka appeared during the parade. Popular characters such as Woody Woodpecker, Winnie Woodpecker and Snoopy as well as Sesame Street characters joined Universal Studios Japan's performance. Mario and Pikachu appeared on a float and said hello, pleasing spectators.
Cheers erupted among spectators when Downtown, a popular comedy duo who also serve as EXPO ambassadors, appeared on stage during a Special Runway at the end of the event. "We're in the groove here today," said Hitoshi Matsumoto, a member of Downtown. When Osaka Gov. Hirofumi Yoshimura asked Masatoshi Hamada, Matsumoto's partner, to paint the Osaka Pavilion, he agreed, saying, "Of course, I'll do it as long as I have enough time." Yoshimura said, "I'd like to build momentum for the EXPO Osaka, Kansai with all of you." Osaka Mayor Ichiro Matsui told visitors and participants, "We have a dream for the future of Osaka, and in 2025 we want to hold the EXPO in which your dreams will come true, so please support us."
Moreover, Shuhei Tada, a "2020 Tokyo Olympics" sprinter, and other athletes participated in an "Athletes Runway," while prizewinning dancers performed, demonstrating Osaka's vibrancy as the EXPO 2025 is drawing near.
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SOURCE Executive Committee of the Midosuji Party | 2022-11-25T22:11:16+00:00 | mysuncoast.com | https://www.mysuncoast.com/prnewswire/2022/11/25/osaka-holds-midosuji-runway-1st-time-3-years-promote-expo-2025/ |
Partnership facilitates easy purchase and delivery of world-class Enel X Way commercial electric vehicle charging stations to US customers.
SAN CARLOS, Calif. & SHAWNEE, Kan., Aug. 10, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Enel X Way and HiON Distribution today announced a strategic partnership agreement to supply the fast-growing US market with electric vehicle (EV) charging stations and accessories. Enel X Way is the leading global provider of smart EV charging solutions, including residential and commercial Level 2 and DC fast charging stations including residential and commercial Level 2 and DC fast charging stations.
"We are thrilled to expand our partnership with the Enel X Way team," said HiON CEO Jim Frank. "Our mission is to accelerate EV charging infrastructure in the United States, and that can't be done without best-in-class EV charging stations and software. Enel X Way has partnered with some of the most widely recognized vehicle brands in the world, and their technology and systems can be found throughout North America, Europe, and Latin America. The reliability of their products, coupled with their charge speed, network expansion capabilities, and future-proof engineering make them a perfect choice for commercial applications."
HiON Distribution is a new subsidiary of EV charging station implementation partner HiON Group, Inc., which has over 30 years' experience in infrastructure design and construction and is considered an expert in EV charging station planning, site identification and project management.
HiON Distribution will stock the full range of Enel X Way commercial products ranging from commercial Level 2 to Level 3 DC fast charging stations and will assist with incentive applications and logistics support. HiON Distribution will feature products from Enel X Way's JuicePump, JuicePedestal and JuiceBox Pro series. All EV charging stations are UL, cUL and Energy Star Certified and are compatible with all EV models. Durable, versatile, compact and weatherproof, Enel X Way chargers are eligible for federal-, state-, and utility-sponsored rebates and incentives.
"Building out the charging station infrastructure required to support the continued adoption of EVs in the US is critical," said Chris Baker, Head of Enel X Way North America. "We are pleased to serve partners like HiON to efficiently meet market demand and accelerate the electric transition."
The affordability and reliability of the JuiceBox Pro Level 2 charger makes it the ideal choice for multi-tenant housing looking for future-proofed daily-charging options for their residents. Meanwhile, for other commercial locations where multiple public fast chargers are needed, the JuicePump 175 kW can charge a vehicle up to 80% in under 20 minutes. The EV chargers also have app-enabled easy payment and load balancing capabilities through JuiceNet Enterprise Software, which can help businesses avoid costly energy infrastructure upgrades.
About HiON & HiON Distribution: HiON Group, Inc. is an electric vehicle charging station facilitator that develops entire infrastructure development from concept to commissioned. HiON Distribution, a subsidiary of HiON Group, Inc., is a US distributor of best-in-class Enel X Way commercial electric vehicle charging stations. For more information about HiON Distribution, please visit: www.hiondistribution.com.
About Enel X Way: Enel X Way is a global leader in smart electric vehicle charging solutions with over 380,000 charging ports worldwide, including roaming agreements. As a subsidiary of Fortune 200 renewable energy leader, the Enel Group, Enel X Way is committed to providing smart mobility solutions for drivers, businesses and partners to make driving electric simple. Enel X Way's flagship home charging station, the JuiceBox, has been named the "Best EV Charger Overall" in 2022 by CNET and Car and Driver. For more information, please follow us on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook @enelxwayna.
NorthAmericaMedia@enel.com
Marketing@hionev.com
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SOURCE Enel X Way North America | 2022-08-10T16:25:26+00:00 | kcrg.com | https://www.kcrg.com/prnewswire/2022/08/10/enel-x-way-hion-announce-us-strategic-partnership-expand-availability-electric-vehicle-charging-stations/ |
After his death in 2018, the wife of a former USC linebacker filed a wrongful death lawsuit claiming that CTE — or chronic traumatic encephalopathy contributed to her husband's early death.
Copyright 2022 NPR
After his death in 2018, the wife of a former USC linebacker filed a wrongful death lawsuit claiming that CTE — or chronic traumatic encephalopathy contributed to her husband's early death.
Copyright 2022 NPR | 2022-11-23T13:43:33+00:00 | kcbx.org | https://www.kcbx.org/2022-11-23/an-la-jury-rules-the-ncaa-is-not-responsible-for-the-death-of-a-college-football-player |
String of nice weather days before end of week rain
BATON ROUGE, La. (WAFB) - A line of t-storms ahead of a cold front moved through the local area quickly Tuesday morning. Rain amounts were less than 1″ area wide with many picking up less than 0.25″. While appreciated, these rain amounts do little to help the ongoing drought. Regardless, we’ll still enjoy the nice weather this cold front will leave behind.
Winds will remain breezy today but should die off tonight as high pressure builds behind the front. Northerly flow remains in place and temperatures will drop steadily as drier, slightly cooler air moves in. Temperatures will dip into the low 50°s to upper 40°s Wednesday morning. In fact, it will be two consecutive morning starts in the 40°s for some Wednesday and Thursday. Make sure the kids have the jackets for the AM bus stop. Wednesday and Thursday afternoons will be picture perfect with bright sunshine and comfortable afternoon temps in the mid to upper 70°s.
It won’t remain quiet for long. A storm system will be dropping out of the Rocking Thursday and moving over our area during the end of the week. Showers and t-storms will begin to pick up in coverage Friday PM. The best chance for showers and t-storms will be as a cold front pushes through the local area Saturday. An early outlook suggests most of the rain Saturday will come in the morning. It’s still too early to tell if severe weather will be a possibility, but the threat is not 0%. Because we will actually have a longer possibility for rain, amounts will be higher than our previous rain event this morning. Many might pickup between 0.5″-1.0″.
It will be a slow exit for the upper air disturbance tied to this weather maker. That may keep clouds in place to start next week. We should stay dry right through Halloween though. Trick or Treat weather will be very nice with temps falling from the low 70°s into the 60°s.
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Copyright 2022 WAFB. All rights reserved. | 2022-10-25T17:11:59+00:00 | wafb.com | https://www.wafb.com/2022/10/25/string-nice-weather-days-before-end-week-rain/ |
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention on Thursday endorsed updated COIVD-19 boosters, opening the way for a fall vaccination campaign that could blunt a winter surge if enough Americans roll up their sleeves.
The new boosters targeting today’s most common omicron strains should begin arriving in pharmacies and clinics within days.
The decision by CDC Director Rochelle Walensky came shortly after the agency’s advisers voted in favor of the recommendation.
The shots “can help restore protection that has waned since previous vaccination and were designed to provide broader protection,” she said in a statement.
The tweaked shots made by Pfizer and rival Moderna offer Americans a chance to get the most up-to-date protection at yet another critical period in the pandemic. They’re combination or “bivalent” shots — half the original vaccine and half protection against the BA.4 and BA.5 omicron versions now causing nearly all COVID-19 infections.
The CDC’s advisers struggled with who should get the new boosters and when because only a similarly tweaked vaccine, not the exact recipe, has been studied in people so far.
But ultimately the panel deemed the updated injections the best option considering the U.S. still is experiencing tens of thousands of COVID-19 cases and about 500 deaths every day — even before an expected new winter wave.
“I think they’re going to be an effective tool for disease prevention this fall and into the winter,” said CDC adviser Dr. Matthew Daley of Kaiser Permanente Colorado.
Comparing the tweak that has been studied in people and the one the U.S. actually will use, “it is the same scaffolding, part of the same roof, we’re just putting in some dormers and windows,” said Dr. Sarah Long of Drexel University.
The CDC recommendation was the last step before shots can begin. Pfizer said it expected to deliver 3 million doses to vaccination sites around the country by Tuesday.
The original COVID-19 vaccines still offer strong protection against severe illness and death, especially among younger and healthier people who’ve gotten at least one booster.
But those vaccines were designed to target the virus strain that circulated in early 2020. Effectiveness drops as new mutants emerge and more time passes since someone’s last shot. Since April, hospitalization rates in people over age 65 have jumped, the CDC said.
The updated shots are only for use as a booster, not for someone’s first-ever vaccinations. The Food and Drug Administration cleared Pfizer’s bivalent option for people 12 and older while Moderna’s is for adults only.
A big unknown: exactly how much benefit people will get from one of those extra shots.
The CDC said more than 1,400 people have been included in several studies of a prior tweak to the vaccine recipe targeting an earlier omicron strain named BA.1. That omicron-targeting combo shot proved safe and able to rev up virus-fighting antibodies, and European regulators on Thursday recommended using that type of booster.
In the U.S., the FDA wanted fall boosters to target the currently circulating omicron strains. Rather than waiting until possibly November for more human studies to be finished, the agency accepted mouse testing that showed the newer tweak sparked a similarly good immune response.
That’s how flu vaccines are updated every year, the CDC noted.
Dr. Pablo Sanchez of the Ohio State University was the only CDC adviser to vote against recommending the shots. He said he believes the bivalent vaccine is safe and that he likely will get it.
But “I just feel that this was a bit premature” given the absence of human data on how well it works, he said.
Several CDC advisers said that to get the maximum benefit, people will need to wait longer between their last vaccination and the new booster than the two-month minimum set by the FDA. Waiting at least three months would be better, they said.
One more change: The FDA no longer authorizes use of the original-recipe boosters for anyone 12 or older, considering them outdated. It’s a source of potential confusion for people who had planned on getting a regular booster this week and now may have to wait for the new kind to arrive.
It’s not clear how many people will want an updated shot. Just half of vaccinated Americans got the first recommended booster dose, and only a third of those 50 and older who were urged to get a second booster did so.
The U.S. government has purchased 170 million doses from both companies — shots that will be free — and the CDC said 200 million people could be eligible.
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Associated Press Medical Writer Mike Stobbe contributed to this report.
___
The Associated Press Health and Science Department receives support from the Howard Hughes Medical Institute’s Department of Science Education. The AP is solely responsible for all content. | 2022-09-02T02:20:44+00:00 | wric.com | https://www.wric.com/business/us-world-business/ap-cdc-advisers-weigh-who-needs-updated-covid-booster-and-when/ |
WASHINGTON COUNTY, Ind. — The body of a Jackson County man was discovered in a private pond in Washington County over the weekend, Indiana State Police confirmed.
Around 12:30 p.m. on Saturday, ISP and deputies from the Washington County Sheriff’s Office were sent to investigate the 11000 block of Haleysburg Road after a resident reported finding a body in a pond.
Investigators found a man’s body at the edge of a pond on private property. The man was identified as 32-year-old Jesse J. Acton of Jackson County.
Police say this is currently a death investigation. It’s still unclear how the man died.
This investigation is ongoing, according to ISP. | 2022-08-01T10:41:54+00:00 | cbs4indy.com | https://cbs4indy.com/indiana-news/man-found-dead-in-private-pond-in-washington-county/ |
NPR's Leila Fadel speaks with Richard Painter, who served as chief ethics lawyer to the George W. Bush White House, about the probe into President Biden's handling of classified materials.
Copyright 2023 NPR
NPR's Leila Fadel speaks with Richard Painter, who served as chief ethics lawyer to the George W. Bush White House, about the probe into President Biden's handling of classified materials.
Copyright 2023 NPR | 2023-01-23T12:53:38+00:00 | nprillinois.org | https://www.nprillinois.org/2023-01-23/additional-classified-documents-are-found-at-bidens-delaware-home |
BELGRADE, Serbia (AP) — Serbia on Monday released three police officers from Kosovo who were detained near the disputed border between the Balkan foes earlier this month as tensions soared. The release followed demands by the U.S. and European Union that they be set free.
A court in the central Serbian town of Kraljevo said it was releasing the police officers, and they later returned to Kosovo. The court said in a statement that the three were charged with illegal possession of weapons and explosive devices, and will be allowed to remain free pending potential further proceedings.
The officers were detained in mid-June. Serbia has said they had crossed into the country from Kosovo, while Kosovar authorities insisted they had been kidnapped inside Kosovo and transferred to a Serbian prison.
Serbia’s chief negotiator with Kosovo, Petar Petkovic, said the proceedings against the policemen will continue. He said their release from detention was a court decision “and not a political one.”
In Kosovo, officials demanded that Serbia be held responsible for allegedly violating Kosovo’s territory. President Vlosa Osmani thanked the United States for securing the policemen’s release “after the act of aggression that Serbia did in Kosovo.”
Kosovo Prime Minister Albin Kurti tweeted that “even though we are joyous that they get to return to their families, this abduction consists of a serious human rights violation & must be reprimanded. The Serbian aggression must be held accountable.”
The dispute had increased tensions between the two countries, which had flared into recent violent clashes in the Serb-majority north of Kosovo and stirred fears of a renewal of the 1998-99 conflict in Kosovo that left more than 10,000 people dead, mostly Kosovar Albanians.
The EU last week summoned the leaders of Kosovo and Serbia to Brussels to urge them to defuse the situation, but the meeting produced no immediate breakthrough.
Serbia and its former province Kosovo have been at odds for decades, with Belgrade refusing to recognize Kosovo’s 2008 declaration of independence. Western efforts to resolve the crisis have increased recently, to avert possible instability in the Balkans as war rages in Ukraine.
Tensions flared anew late last month, including with violent clashes, after Kosovo police seized local municipality buildings in northern Kosovo, where Serbs represent a majority, to install ethnic Albanian mayors who were elected in a local election in April after Serbs overwhelmingly boycotted the vote.
Serbia has demanded that Kosovo police and the mayors pull out from the northern region bordering Serbia and that several ethnic Serbs, who had been detained in Kosovo in the past few weeks, be released. Belgrade has heightened army readiness, threatening a military intervention over alleged “torture” of ethnic Serbs in Kosovo.
In response to Kosovo’s actions in taking over the municipal buildings, the United States canceled the country’s participation in a U.S.-led military exercise and halted high-level visits to Pristina.
Washington and most EU states have recognized Kosovo’s independence while Russia and China have backed Belgrade’s claim to the territory. Serbia lost control over Kosovo after NATO intervened in 1999 to stop the war, forcing Belgrade to end a brutal crackdown against separatist ethnic Albanians.
___
Associated Press writer Llazar Semini in Tirana, Albania, contributed to this report. | 2023-06-26T16:23:15+00:00 | keloland.com | https://www.keloland.com/news/national-world-news/serbia-releases-3-kosovo-police-officers-whose-arrest-fueled-tensions-between-the-balkan-foes/ |
WASHINGTON (AP) — President Joe Biden is promising “strong executive action” to combat climate change, despite dual setbacks in recent weeks that have restricted his ability to regulate carbon emissions and boost clean energy such as wind and solar power.
The Supreme Court last month limited how the nation’s main anti-air pollution law can be used to reduce carbon dioxide emissions from power plants. Then late Thursday, Sen. Joe Manchin, D-W.Va., said he wants to delay sweeping environmental legislation that Democrats have pushed as central to achieving Biden’s ambitious climate goals.
Biden, who has pledged to cut greenhouse gas emissions in half by 2030, compared with 2005 levels, said Friday that “action on climate change and clean energy remains more urgent than ever.”
If the Senate will not act to address climate change and boost clean energy, “I will take strong executive action to meet this moment,” Biden said in a statement from Saudi Arabia, where he met Friday with Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman.
Biden did not specify what actions he will take on climate, but said they will create jobs, improve energy security, bolster domestic manufacturing and protect consumers from oil and gas price increases. “I will not back down,” he promised.
Some advocates urged Biden to use the moment to declare a national climate emergency and reinstate a ban on crude oil exports, among other steps.
Declaring a climate emergency would allow Biden to redirect spending to accelerate renewable energy such as wind and solar and speed the nation’s transition away from fossil fuels such as coal, oil and natural gas.
Climate advocates, including some of Manchin’s Democratic colleagues in the Senate, said Manchin’s announcement that he cannot back the climate provisions in the Senate bill — at least for now — frees Biden of the obligation to cater to a powerful, coal-state senator eager to protect his energy-producing home state. Manchin’s vote is decisive in the evenly divided Senate, where Republicans unanimously oppose climate action.
“Free at last. Let’s roll. Do it all and start it now,” tweeted Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse, D-R.I. who has long pushed stronger action on climate. “With legislative climate options now closed, it’s now time for executive Beast Mode,” Whitehouse wrote.
Whitehouse suggested a series of actions Biden could take, including “a robust social cost of carbon rule″ that would force energy producers to account for greenhouse gas emissions as a cost of doing business. The senator also urged Biden to require major polluters to use technology to capture carbon dioxide emissions and impose stronger pollution controls on cars, light trucks and heavy-duty vehicles.
Advocates also urged Biden to reject all onshore and offshore drilling on federal lands and in federal waters — a step he promised during the 2020 campaign but has not enacted — and restrict approval of natural gas pipelines and other fossil fuel projects.
“For too long, we’ve been waiting on a single legislative package to save us and a single legislator to determine our fate,” said Sen. Jeff Merkley, D-Ore. “Now that it’s clear legislation to address our climate crisis is dead, President Biden needs to put us on an emergency footing to address this disaster.”
Citing Biden’s campaign promise to end new drilling on federal lands and waters, Merkley said, “Now is the time to show the American people he’s serious by saying ‘no’ to expanding our addiction to fossil fuels.”
Even before Manchin’s apparent rejection of the climate measures, Democrats had slimmed their down their plan from about $555 billion in climate spending to just over $300 billion in a bid to secure his support. Proposed tax credits for wind, solar and nuclear energy, along with still-unproven carbon-capture technology, could reduce emissions by up to 40% by 2030, advocates said.
Manchin had already forced Democrats to drop two tax provisions he opposes: direct payments of clean energy credits and tax credits for drivers who purchase electric vehicles. Manchin forced other concessions last year, including killing a proposal that would have paid utilities that increase clean energy while penalizing those that do not.
Sen. Ron Wyden, D-Ore., chairman of the Senate Finance Committee, said he still hopes to salvage the clean energy tax provisions and said failure “really is not an option here.”
Manchin’s request to postpone action on the climate measure follows a June 30 ruling by the Supreme Court, which said in a 6-3 vote that the Clean Air Act does not give the Environmental Protection Agency broad authority to regulate greenhouse gas emissions from power plants.
The ruling by the court’s conservative majority likely complicates the Biden administration’s plan to manage power plant pollution, but does not eliminate its authority to regulate greenhouse gases. EPA Administrator Michael Regan has said the agency is moving forward with proposed rules for power plants in the coming months.
Ann Clancy, associate climate policy director for Indivisible, a progressive advocacy group, said it was time for Biden to “stop waiting for corporate-backed Democrats and their bad faith negotiations and deliver real wins for the American people on climate.”
“We don’t have any more time to waste,” Clancy said.
Manchin, in a radio interview Friday, said climate activists want an immediate end to U.S. use of oil, coal and gas. “That’s crazy,” he told West Virginia talk show host Hoppy Kercheval. “I’m not throwing caution to the wind. I think we need an energy policy that works for our country.” | 2022-07-16T14:02:50+00:00 | wwlp.com | https://www.wwlp.com/news/political-news/ap-politics/biden-vowing-strong-climate-action-despite-dual-setbacks/ |
LUETZERATH, Germany (AP) — Several hundred climate activists on Tuesday were trying to block the entry of heavy machinery into an abandoned village in Germany which is due to be cleared for the expansion of a coal mine after a German court rejected a last-ditch attempt by the activists to stay there.
The disputed evacuation of the hamlet of Luetzerath, west of Cologne has become a battleground between the government and environmentalists.
The regional administrative court in Muenster late Monday confirmed a lower court decision forbidding the activists from remaining in the village.
The court dismissed the activists’ argument that civil disobedience at the site was justified due to the climate crisis.
Utility company RWE wants to extract the coal beneath Luetzerath, arguing that this is necessary to ensure energy security in Germany.
Police have said no clearance will take place until after a town hall event later Tuesday.
Nearby, a group of about 100 protesters were locked in a standoff with police. Officers briefly used pepper spray to push back the line of activists, who chanted “We are peaceful, what are you?”
Some activists were perched on tripods in an attempt to block a key road into the village. Police carried about a dozen activists away who had dug themselves into a trench. | 2023-01-11T04:10:04+00:00 | cbs42.com | https://www.cbs42.com/news/international/ap-german-court-rejects-activist-bid-to-stay-in-doomed-village/ |
Against the squeeze of rising home prices and low inventory, many homebuyers need solutions to ease the anxiety associated with purchasing a new home.
CHERRY HILL, N.J., July 12, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- While more than half (54%) of homebuyers say now is a good time to purchase a home, it's still very much a nerve-wracking process. According to TD's 2023 Mortgage Service Index, 64% of respondents indicated their most recent homebuying experience was stressful.
TD Bank surveyed more than 1,800 homeowners across the country to examine perceptions around the homebuying and mortgage experience, as well as the housing market.
As expected, inventory and interest rates were the biggest factors for many
Home inventory challenges (24%) and mortgage rates (24%) tied as the leading factors that negatively impacted home purchasing decisions. Additionally, a majority (68%) of homebuyers cited shifting interest rates over the last year as a factor in their decision to buy. As inventories in many markets remain inconsistent, almost a third (29%) purchased newly constructed homes.
"The Federal Reserve has increased rates every time it has met for over a year, so the pause on rate hikes last month and the fact that we've likely reached a near peak may offer some respite for buyers," said Steve Kaminski, Head of U.S. Residential Lending for TD Bank. "But given the competitive market and already high home prices, it's understandable that the headache persists for many looking to purchase a home. If inflation continues to tumble and the economic outlook improves, we hope to see the longer end respond favorably and assist in more affordable options. The key to alleviating that stress is speaking to a knowledgeable, trusted lender before beginning a search to ensure buyers are looking within their budget and tapping into all the resources that can save them money."
Despite these inventory and rate challenges, three-fourths (75%) of those surveyed said that the mortgage process did not prevent them from closing on their home within their desired time frame.
With age comes wisdom: experience matters when navigating homebuying
When it comes to navigating the overall homebuying process, sentiment varies between generations:
- Gen Z respondents (81%) and Millennial respondents (71%) were most likely to find the process stressful.
- Baby Boomers, on the other hand, found the process of purchasing a home to be a less taxing experience, with 47% of these respondents indicating they didn't find homebuying to be stressful.
- While an overwhelming majority of Millennials (84%) and Gen Z (90%) respondents reported interest rates were a factor in their decision to buy, the majority of Baby Boomers (58%) said fluctuating interest rates were not a factor in their decision.
"Right now, it's important for buyers that are entering the market to focus on what they can control, such as the fundamentals of preparation," said Kaminski. "This includes meeting with a mortgage professional early in the process, knowing your financial position, and gathering documents early, which can help ease some of the concern around price and rates. Connecting with a knowledgeable lender to understand requirements and the process can also help buyers learn about affordable product options that can assist with payments, another potential de-stressor in the process."
While the mortgage process remains intimidating for some, many homebuyers are also comfortable seeking guidance and tapping into automation, to perhaps simplify the experience:
- A majority of homebuyers (95%) shared they have sought information or opinions on products and services offered by different lenders, with over half of respondents (54%) indicating they talked to a realtor in seeking additional information.
- As automation in the mortgage lending process also continues to become more prevalent, 68% of homebuyers say they are very or somewhat familiar with automation being used by some banks to streamline the lending process.
Flexible Lending Remains a Strong Option for Buyers
As the traditional down payment of 20% or more becomes less of a priority for homebuyers, many are continuing to educate themselves on low down payment and affordability-based options, with 65% of respondents indicating they were familiar with programs designed to help homebuyers seek flexible options.
Interestingly, 40% of respondents spent $2,000 – $5,000 in unexpected charges during the homebuying process and another 10% say they paid over $5,000. This reinforces the importance of leaning on experts like realtors and loan officers who can provide valuable insight on the total cost of homeownership and affordability programs that allow for down payments as low as 3%, saving buyers money on out-of-pocket expenses.
Among low down payment programs, TD Bank's newest mortgage option, TD Home Access Mortgage, recently expanded its lender credit to $10,000 for purchase transactions which may be applied to closing costs and the down payment, two areas that can be roadblocks to homeownership. The lender credit can also be used to buy down a borrower's interest rate, which can also help with affordability.
"Purchasing a home is one of the paths to building generational wealth for many, and trusted lenders are focused on making the process more accessible," said Kaminski. "As factors like uncertain economic conditions, low home supply and fluctuating interest rates continue to make potential homebuyers feel sidelined, it's important for them to know that lenders and many home professionals are continuing to evaluate processes and products to ensure homeownership is more equitable and inclusive."
Survey Methodology
This report presents the findings of a CARAVAN® survey conducted by Big Village Insights among a sample of 1,813 U.S. homeowners who last purchased a home within the past 10 years and acquired a mortgage when they bought their most recent home. The survey was live from May 16 – 26, 2023.
About Big Village
Big Village Insights is a global research and analytics business uncovering not just the 'what' but the 'why' behind customer behavior, supporting clients' insights needs with agile tools, CX research, branding, product innovation, data & analytics, and more. Big Village Insights is part of Bright Mountain Media. Find out more at https://big-village.com/.
About TD Bank, America's Most Convenient Bank®
TD Bank, America's Most Convenient Bank, is one of the 10 largest banks in the U.S., providing over 9.9 million customers with a full range of retail, small business and commercial banking products and services at more than 1,100 convenient locations throughout the Northeast, Mid-Atlantic, Metro D.C., the Carolinas and Florida. In addition, TD Auto Finance, a division of TD Bank, N.A., offers vehicle financing and dealer commercial services. TD Bank and its subsidiaries also offer customized private banking and wealth management services through TD Wealth®. TD Bank is headquartered in Cherry Hill, N.J. To learn more, visit www.td.com/us. Find TD Bank on Facebook at www.facebook.com/TDBank and on Twitter at www.twitter.com/TDBank_US and www.twitter.com/TDNews_US.
TD Bank, America's Most Convenient Bank, is a member of TD Bank Group and a subsidiary of The Toronto-Dominion Bank of Toronto, Canada, a top 10 financial services company in North America. The Toronto-Dominion Bank trades on the New York and Toronto stock exchanges under the ticker symbol "TD". To learn more, visit www.td.com/us.
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SOURCE TD Bank | 2023-07-12T14:06:38+00:00 | newschannel10.com | https://www.newschannel10.com/prnewswire/2023/07/12/majority-homeowners-nationwide-felt-stress-their-most-recent-homebuying-experience-td-bank-survey-finds/ |
WICHITA, Kan. (KSNW) — Two teens were killed after a shooting that took place at a graduation party in Wichita late Saturday night.
According to the Wichita Police Department, officers were called out to the graduation party at a banquet hall in the northeast part of the city around 11:20 p.m. for a report of a shooting.
When they arrived, officers found 17-year-old Boisy Barefield, of Wichita, with a gunshot wound. He was taken to a local hospital where he was pronounced dead.
According to police, an investigation revealed that during the party, a disturbance ensued between two groups that led up to the deadly shooting.
The department said dozens of people were at the party.
“I would say anywhere from 50 to 100, just a guestimate,” said Captain Travis Easter.
As people were leaving the scene of the shooting, a 15-year-old girl was hit by a car.
“There were several cars that were leaving the scene at the same time,” said Easter. “Got reports of several cars leaving at high rates of speed.”
She was brought to an area hospital where she later died from her injuries. Her identity has not been revealed.
According to police, 18-year-old Samara Rockmore has been arrested on suspicion of felony hit and run. An investigation is ongoing.
If anyone has any information, the Wichita Police Department asks you to call detectives at 316-268-4407, the See Something Say Something hotline at 316-519-2282, or Crime Stoppers at 316-267-2111. You can also report an anonymous tip online through Crime Stoppers by clicking here. | 2022-05-30T01:00:15+00:00 | valleycentral.com | https://www.valleycentral.com/news/national-news/2-teens-killed-at-kansas-graduation-party/ |
The announcement this week by a World Health Organization agency that the artificial sweetener aspartame — used in such low-calorie products as Diet Coke, Trident gum and sugar-free Jell-O — is "possibly carcinogenic to humans" has many wondering if the food additive is safe to consume.
Thursday's announcement from WHO's International Agency for Research on Cancer, or IARC, reclassifies aspartame, which has been in wide use since the 1980s and is sold under such brand names as NutraSweet and Equal.
At a news conference in Geneva, Dr. Francesco Branca, director of the Department of Nutrition and Food Safety at the WHO, said that concern was only for "high consumers" of diet soda and other foods containing aspartame and said that IARC had simply "raised a flag" for more research to be done.
Dr. Mary Schubauer-Berigan, a senior official at IARC, emphasized that "it shouldn't really be taken as a direct statement that indicates that there is a known cancer hazard from consuming aspartame."
The recommended acceptable daily intake of aspartame has not changed
Meanwhile, the Joint FAO/WHO Expert Committee on Food Additives (JECFA), which is jointly administered by WHO and the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), said its acceptable daily intake of aspartame has not changed. It says to exceed that limit, an adult weighing 154 pounds would need to consume nine to 14 cans of a diet soft drink containing 200 or 300 mg of aspartame.
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration says it's aware of the conclusions of both the IARC and JECFA, but that "does not mean that aspartame is actually linked to cancer."
The WHO uses a four-tiered system of classification: carcinogenic; probably carcinogenic; possibly carcinogenic; and non-carcinogenic.
As an article in Science notes, "Other substances classed as 'possibly carcinogenic' include extracts of aloe vera, traditional Asian pickled vegetables, some vehicle fuels and some chemicals used in dry cleaning, carpentry and printing. The IARC has also classified red meat as 'probably carcinogenic' and processed meat as 'carcinogenic.'"
Experts say more research is needed
"What this means is that more research needs to be done to ascertain if there is a link to aspartame," says Marjorie McCullough, senior scientific director of epidemiology research at the American Cancer Society.
Toxicologist Daniele Wikoff, a principal scientist at ToxStrategies, has been involved in a number of studies of aspartame commissioned by the American Beverage Association, or ABA, a lobbying group representing the beverage industry. She says the bottom line coming out of Thursday's news conference in Geneva "is basically there's no change."
The studies on aspartame cited by IARC "are really a small, small part of the overall evidence base." The full picture "is much larger, demonstrating safety," Wikoff says. "The overwhelming majority of those studies support lack of association" between aspartame and cancer.
Kevin Keane, the ABA's interim president and CEO, says it's "disappointing" that the IARC has sowed confusion in the minds of consumers. "The FDA and 95 food safety agencies around the globe have found aspartame to be safe," he says. "Consumers should be confident going forward."
However, Dr. Dariush Mozaffarian, a cardiologist and professor at Tufts University's Friedman School of Nutrition Science and Policy, describes the research into aspartame's effect on humans as "woefully inadequate."
He points to the "very limited number" of randomized controlled trials looking at aspartame and other artificial sweeteners. "What's concerning is while there's been an explosion in their use in foods, there has not been an explosion in the science to be sure they're safe."
Consumers should still limit sugary regular soda
Dr. Frank Hu, a professor of nutrition and epidemiology at the Harvard School of Public Health, also has concerns about how well the possible effects of aspartame have been studied. He says the problem is twofold.
"It's difficult to do studies in free living populations to get a great estimate of how much people actually consume," he says.
Another challenge, Hu says, is that in the case of rare cancers such as liver cancer, which the WHO specifically noted, researchers need "hundreds of thousands of people, perhaps millions of people to be followed and to obtain sufficient statistical power to get reliable answers."
The aspartame focus has been largely on low-calorie diet sodas, but what about its use in other beverages?
"If you put two packets of sweeteners into your coffee or tea, I don't think that's going to be a problem for the vast majority of people," Hu says.
For Tuft's Mozaffarian, despite his concerns, he says that for someone who can't break a soda habit, it's still better to drink the diet variety. "We know that high amounts of regular soda is really, really bad for weight gain or obesity or diabetes for risk of heart attack events."
"So ... yes, better to switch to diet [soda]," he says. "But it's even better then to switch from diet to unsweetened sparkling water."
Copyright 2023 NPR. To see more, visit https://www.npr.org. | 2023-07-17T03:56:55+00:00 | kvpr.org | https://www.kvpr.org/health/2023-07-16/what-you-need-to-know-about-aspartame-and-cancer |
WASHINGTON (AP) — Secretary of State Antony Blinken urged his Russian counterpart, in a rare phone call between the diplomats since the Ukraine war, to immediately release a Wall Street Journal reporter who was detained last week as well as another imprisoned American, Paul Whelan, the State Department said Sunday.
In the call with Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov, Blinken conveyed “grave concern” over the Kremlin’s detention of journalist Evan Gershkovich on espionage allegations, according to a State Department summary of the call. Blinken called for his immediate release.
Blinken also sought the immediate release of Whelan, whom the statement said was wrongfully detained.
Whelan, a Michigan corporate security executive, has been imprisoned in Russia since December 2018 on espionage charges that his family and the U.S. government have said are baseless. He is serving a 16-year sentence.
Blinken and Lavrov also discussed “the importance of creating an environment that permits diplomatic missions to carry out their work,” according to the State Department.
The FSB, Russia’s top security agency and successor to the KGB, said Gershkovich was collecting information on an enterprise of the military-industrial complex. Russian authorities detained him last week, the first time a U.S. correspondent has been held on spying accusations since the Cold War.
In its summary of the call, Russia’s foreign ministry said Lavrov “drew Blinken’s attention to the need to respect the decisions of the Russian authorities” about Gershkovich, whom Moscow claims, without evidence, “was caught red-handed.”
The Journal has adamantly denied the allegations and demanded his release. U.S. officials have also called on Russia to let him go, with President Joe Biden telling reporters on Friday that his message to the country was “Let him go.”
The Kremlin said Lavrov also told Blinken it was unacceptable for U.S. officials and Western news media to continue “whipping up excitement” and politicizing the journalist’s detention. “His further fate will be determined by the court.”
The State Department described the detention of Gershkovich as unacceptable.
More than 30 news organizations and press freedom advocates have written the Russian ambassador in the United States to express concern Russia is sending the message that reporting inside the country is criminalized.
And on Saturday night, basketball star Brittney Griner, who was detained for 10 months by Russian authorities before being released in a prisoner swap for convicted Russian arms dealer Viktor Bout, issued a statement with her wife, Cherelle, calling for the release of the 31-year-old Gershkovich.
“Every American who is taken is ours to fight for and every American returned is a win for us all,” the couple said in a statement posted on Instagram.
Interactions between the top U.S. and Russian diplomats have been rare since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, though they did have a brief conversation last month on the sidelines of the Group of 20 conference of foreign ministers in India. It was the highest-level in-person talks between the two countries since the war.
That interaction was their first contact since last summer, when Blinken talked to Lavrov by phone about a U.S. proposal for Russia to release Whelan and Griner. Though Whelan was not included in the one-for-one swap that resulted in the release of Griner, U.S. officials said they remain committed to bringing him home. | 2023-04-02T15:41:42+00:00 | wwlp.com | https://www.wwlp.com/news/political-news/ap-politics/griner-concerned-for-american-journalist-held-in-russia/ |
Happy Wednesday! Send tips and insights into major spending bill negotiations to: cristiano.lima@washpost.com.
Below: Ads on Twitter pages for white nationalists could test Elon Musk’s relationship with brands, and Microsoft prepares for meetings with the FTC. First:
States are joining the TikTok crackdown
Lawmakers on Capitol Hill have been pushing for years to ban federal government workers from downloading TikTok on their devices, with limited success.
The campaign has come amid broader regulatory scrutiny over whether the popular video-sharing app poses national security risks, a charge the company has fought back against.
Now a growing number of state officials are picking up the effort.
In the past week, North Dakota and Maryland have banned the use of TikTok on some government devices.
Last Tuesday, Republican South Dakota Gov. Kristi L. Noem signed an executive order banning TikTok on the devices of state government agencies, employees and contractors. Noem said “South Dakota will have no part in the intelligence gathering operations of nations who hate us” — an apparent reference to China, where TikTok’s parent company, ByteDance, is based.
On Tuesday, Republican Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan issued an emergency directive barring use of what his office called “Chinese and Russian-influenced products,” including TikTok, in the executive branch of Maryland’s government. Hogan said the move — which also targets products from Huawei, ZTE, WeChat and Kaspersky — “represents a critical step in protecting Maryland State systems from the cybersecurity threats caused by foreign organizations.”
At least two other states, Nebraska and South Carolina, have partially blocked or are exploring blocking the app for state workers, the Associated Press reports.
And more could soon be on the way — particularly in states led by Republicans, who have in many cases been driving the push to restrict the app’s use more broadly.
Six of Wisconsin’s members of Congress, including outspoken TikTok critic Republican Sen. Ron Johnson, on Tuesday called on their governor to “ban TikTok from Wisconsin government devices and to lead by example and delete TikTok from your own devices.”
Republican Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis has also targeted state procurement of technology products and services like TikTok with links to “foreign countries of concern.”
TikTok spokesperson Jamal Brown said they “believe the concerns driving these bans are largely fueled by misinformation about our company.”
“We are always happy to meet with state policymakers to discuss our privacy and security practices,” Brown said in an emailed statement. “We are disappointed that the many state agencies, offices, and universities that have been using TikTok to build communities and connect with constituents will no longer have access to our platform.”
The efforts have been fueled by government concerns that the Chinese government could gain access to U.S. user data through TikTok’s links to China as a ByteDance subsidiary. While the state-level restrictions won’t apply to consumer use, they still deal a blow to the company and could foreshadow further restrictions.
TikTok Chief Operating Officer Vanessa Pappas testified to Congress in September that the company has employees based in China who are subject to “very strict access controls around the type of data that they can access and where that data is stored, which is here in the United States.”
Pappas also said that “under no circumstances would we give that data to China.”
Parallel efforts to ban TikTok from federal government devices are ongoing.
In 2020, the House voted in favor of the move as part of its annual massive defense spending package, but it was not ultimately signed into law.
A measure led by Sen. Josh Hawley (R-Mo.) seeking to enshrine similar restrictions advanced out of the Senate Homeland Security Committee in May 2021 but has yet to be taken up.
The Biden administration is currently reviewing a potential deal to assuage the government’s data privacy and security concerns.
But the Wall Street Journal reported Tuesday that a potential agreement “has run into more delays” amid “a range of concerns, including how TikTok might share information related to the algorithm it uses to determine what videos to show users.”
Meanwhile, top U.S. officials have continued to voice concerns about the social network, with FBI Director Chris Wray saying last week that TikTok’s recommendation algorithm “allows them to manipulate content, and if they want to, to use it for influence operations.”
“These state-level actions coupled with FBI Director Chris Wray’s recent public comments … make it increasingly difficult to see how the Biden administration can conclude its ongoing review in a way that allows TikTok to keep operating,” Republican FCC Commissioner Brendan Carr, who has publicly called for the app to be banned in the United States, told me.
But some prominent intelligence officials, including the head of a British intelligence agency, have pushed back on those concerns. And while numerous politicians have assailed the company’s risks, dozens of candidates on both sides of the political aisle have used the app for campaigning.
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Major brands advertised on white nationalists’ Twitter pages
Advertisements by at least three dozen brands — including Amazon, Snap, Uber and the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services — appeared on the pages of at least two white nationalists, Andrew Anglin and Patrick Casey, my colleague Faiz Siddiqui reports. Accounts of Anglin and Casey had previously been banned on the platform, but they were restored after Twitter owner Elon Musk took control of the company in late October.
“Having ads inadvertently appear next to such content marks the latest challenge to Musk’s relationship with Twitter advertisers,” Faiz writes. Many brands have left the site, and civil rights groups have said advertisers should boycott it because Musk — who has recently promised amnesty to many previously suspended accounts — can’t adequately police the site.
“Twitter and other social media companies for years have struggled to ensure advertisements do not show up alongside hateful or otherwise objectionable content,” Faiz writes. “Twitter had made efforts to improve the advertising climate and continued to grapple with the issue even prior to Musk’s takeover.”
Oversight Board tells Facebook to revamp its moderation program for VIPs
In a report, the board criticized Facebook’s “cross check” program for being understaffed, opaque and unfair, the Wall Street Journal’s Jeff Horwitz reports.
“The board’s report doesn’t take issue with the value of a secondary review system for moderating posts from high-profile or sensitive accounts,” Horwitz writes. “But the board said the program in practice has put Meta’s business interests over the program’s stated goals of protecting public discourse, and it noted that the highest levels of protection are generally reserved for accounts that might stir up trouble for Meta’s senior leadership.”
Facebook parent Meta said it has made changes that align with the board’s recommendations, and that it already asked the board for advice on polishing the program, Horwitz reports. “The company has agreed to provide a more robust response within 90 days,” he writes.
Microsoft executives expected to meet with FTC commissioners
Microsoft President Brad Smith and other executives are expected to attend a meeting today with Federal Trade Commission Chair Lina Khan and other commissioners, Bloomberg News’s Leah Nylen reports. The meetings, first reported by the New York Post, come as the FTC barrels toward making a decision on whether to block Microsoft’s proposed $69 billion deal to buy gaming giant Activision Blizzard.
This week, Smith previewed Microsoft’s arguments in an op-ed on the deal. Sony has argued that the deal would give video game developers and consumers less choice by making major gaming franchises potentially exclusive to Microsoft’s Xbox platform. In his op-ed, Smith argued that making games exclusive like that would be “economically irrational,” writing that such a move would be “disastrous” in “alienating millions of gamers.”
A Microsoft spokesperson and FTC spokesman Douglas Farrar declined to comment to Bloomberg News.
Inside the industry
Agency scanner
Privacy monitor
Hill happenings
Trending
Daybook
- U.S. and European officials speak at the Atlantic Council’s Digital Forensic Research Lab 360/StratCom forum today.
Before you log off
HAKIMI WINS IT FOR MOROCCO
— FOX Soccer (@FOXSoccer) December 6, 2022
MOROCCO IS MOVING ON 🇲🇦 pic.twitter.com/zlA17MUgJa
That’s all for today — thank you so much for joining us! Make sure to tell others to subscribe to The Technology 202 here. Get in touch with tips, feedback or greetings on Twitter or email. | 2022-12-07T15:20:58+00:00 | washingtonpost.com | https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2022/12/07/states-are-joining-tiktok-crackdown/ |
Jeopardy! hosts Ken Jennings and Mayim Bialik will become the show's official hosts after filling the roles temporarily following the 2020 death of former longtime host Alex Trebek.
"In Mayim and Ken, we have two outstanding hosts at the beginning of their Jeopardy! hosting careers who connect with their own unique fanbases, new fans, and the traditional Jeopardy! viewer," the show's executive producer, Michael Davies announced Wednesday.
Davies said in the last year, viewership has been up, with more than 27 million people watching each week.
Jennings will host from September until December, a run that includes the inaugural Second Chance competition and the Tournament of Champions.
Bialik will take over in January by hosting Celebrity Jeopardy! and the Jeopardy! National College Championship. Her hosting duties will be balanced with her acting duties on the FOX show Call Me Kat, Davies said.
"Mayim and Ken are both extraordinarily talented and simply lovely humans. They support the staff and each other," Davies said. "They love and respect this institution of a television program. In return, the staff and I are honored to work alongside them."
Trebek had hosted the game show since 1984.
After Trebek's death, the show kicked off weeks of guest hosts, which included Bialik and Jennings, as well as other household names such as LeVar Burton, Katie Couric and Anderson Cooper.
Jeopardy! announced last August that former executive producer Mike Richards would share hosting duties with Bialik. But he stepped down as host days after The Ringer reported on past offensive comments Richards made on a podcast. He was then fired as executive producer. Davies is his successor.
Bialik and Jennings were then named co-hosts until the end of season 38, which concluded in late 2021.
Bialik is a neuroscientist and former star of The Big Bang Theory. Jennings is well-known among Jeopardy! fans, having gone on an unmatched 74-game winning streak. He also was a consulting producer on the show.
Copyright 2022 NPR. To see more, visit https://www.npr.org. | 2022-07-28T17:36:28+00:00 | kunm.org | https://www.kunm.org/npr-news/npr-news/2022-07-28/jeopardy-says-mayim-bialik-and-ken-jennings-will-split-the-host-job |
WASHINGTON (AP) — For most Americans, Friday’s September jobs report was welcome news: Businesses kept hiring at a brisk pace, unemployment fell back to a half-century low and average pay rose.
Yet for the Federal Reserve, the jobs figures highlight how little progress they’re making in their fight against inflation. With the Fed more likely to keep raising borrowing costs rapidly, the risk of recession will also rise.
Employers did pull back slightly on hiring last month, and average wage gains slowed. But economists say neither is falling fast enough for the Fed to slow its inflation-fighting efforts.
As a result, another hefty rate hike of three-quarters of a point — a fourth consecutive one — is likely at the Fed’s next meeting in November. (The central bank typically lifts rates in quarter-point increments.)
The Fed’s rate hikes are intended to cool the economy and tame inflation. The increases have, in turn, led to higher borrowing costs across the economy, notably for homes, credit cards and business loans.
Rising U.S. interest rates have roiled global markets and caused a sharp fall in U.S. stock prices. On Friday, share prices fell further, with the S&P 500 index off nearly 3%.
Yet as it struggles to defeat the worst inflation bout in four decades, the Fed is focused much more on the job market than on the financial markets. Underlying measures of inflation indicate that prices are still surging.
“There is still more work for the Fed to do to cool the labor market and reduce the inflationary pressures stemming from it,” said Sarah House, an economist at Wells Fargo.
Here are five ways that Friday’s report will influence the Fed as it decides how fast to continue raising rates:
LOWER UNEMPLOYMENT RATE DOESN’T HELP
For the Fed, the decline in the unemployment rate, from 3.7% to 3.5%, was a mixed bag, at best. The rate fell because both more Americans found jobs and some unemployed people gave up looking for work, which meant they were no longer counted as unemployed.
A diminished pool of people seeking jobs will keep pressure on employers to offer higher pay to attract and keep employees. Businesses will pass at least some of those higher costs onto consumers, thereby increasing prices and feeding inflation.
Fed officials have signaled that the unemployment rate needs to be at least 4% to slow inflation. Some economists say the jobless rate would need to be even higher. Either way, low unemployment points to more rate hikes to come.
The mostly strong September jobs report also underscored a view held by many Fed policymakers that the U.S. economy is healthy enough to withstand higher rates. That means they may see little reason to slow their rate hikes anytime soon.
HIRING SLOWS, BUT NOT BY ENOUGH
The Fed wants to see a better balance of supply and demand in the job market. That would mean some combination of more people looking for work and less demand for workers.
There’s been only limited progress on both sides. This week, the government reported that the number of available jobs fell sharply in August and is about 15% below a record high reached in March. Yet the number of openings remains at historically high levels.
Christopher Waller, a member of the Fed’s Board of Governors, noted Thursday that economists were predicting a gain of 260,000 jobs in September — quite close to the actual figure in Friday’s report.
Such an increase “would be lower than recent months but very healthy relative to past experience,” Waller said. “As a result, I don’t expect tomorrow’s jobs report to alter my view that we should be focused 100 percent on reducing inflation.”
TOO FEW AMERICANS LOOKING FOR WORK
An increase in people competing for jobs would make it easier for employers to fill positions without offering higher wages. That would reduce inflation pressures without requiring many layoffs.
“More labor supply is the painless way out of the inflationary pressures currently coming from the job market,” House said.
Yet Friday’s report shows there’s been little such progress in recent months. The proportion of Americans either working or looking for work dipped to 62.3% in September, around where it’s been all year.
Fed officials have said in recent speeches that they don’t expect many more people to return to the workforce. Many older workers who retired early in the past two years are likely to remain on the sidelines.
A smaller supply of workers means the Fed would feel compelled to reduce the need for workers even more than it otherwise would. That would suggest that more large rate hikes are in store.
THERE’S STILL A LOT OF CATCH-UP HIRING
Another challenge for the Fed is that even as it’s tightening credit at the fastest pace in 40 years to slow demand, many companies may need more workers just to keep up with modest consumer demand. Such pressure could also force the Fed to raise rates higher to cool demand.
Two weeks ago, for example, Jess Pettit, an executive at the Hilton hotel chain, told Fed officials at a roundtable discussion that consumer demand isn’t the main driver of his company’s hiring. Instead, it’s trying mainly to maintain a basic minimum of staff amid fierce competition from other hotels for a smaller pool of workers.
Waller asked him, “So, regardless of what we do for demand, you’re still going to have demand for labor?”
“I think yeah, that’s the case,” Pettit replied.
WAGES FELL SLIGHTLY
For the Fed, the one bright spot in Friday’s jobs report may be that wage growth slowed, though it’s not clear if that trend will continue.
Hourly wages rose in both August and September at about a 3.6% annual rate, down from about 5.6% early this year. If sustained, that slowdown could ease pressure on the Fed to tighten credit. Wage growth at that level is roughly consistent with the Fed’s 2% inflation target.
Steven Friedman, senior economist at the investment firm MacKay Shields, said the wage figures are “a silver lining for the Fed,” if the same pace continues.
But “I don’t think the Fed feels they have the luxury of time to wait for that,” Friedman said. | 2022-10-09T01:22:47+00:00 | wnct.com | https://www.wnct.com/news/business/ap-what-fridays-jobs-report-means-for-feds-inflation-fight/ |
HENDERSON, Nev. (AP) — Quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo passed a physical on his injured left foot and will begin training camp with the Las Vegas Raiders, a person with knowledge of the situation told The Associated Press on Sunday.
The person spoke to the AP on condition of anonymity because no announcement has been made.
Training camp opens Wednesday.
Garoppolo did not participate in organized team activities because of the foot injury, but coach Josh McDaniels expressed confidence from the beginning the newly signed quarterback would be ready for camp.
“We’re always going to err at this time of the year on being smart,” McDaniels said at the time. “We don’t play a football game for 3 1/2 months, so try to rush (players) out there in May, it’s a poor decision.”
Garoppolo signed a three-year, $72.75 million free-agent contract on March 17. His deal was announced a day later than others because of concerns about the foot.
He reportedly signed a waiver rather than take a physical, which gave the Raiders flexibility in case Garoppolo — who has a history of being hurt — wasn’t ready to go.
He was injured late last season while playing for the San Francisco 49ers.
___
AP NFL: https://apnews.com/hub/nfl and https://twitter.com/AP_NFL | 2023-07-23T18:53:21+00:00 | wnct.com | https://www.wnct.com/sports/nfl/ap-jimmy-garoppolo-cleared-to-open-training-camp-with-the-raiders-ap-source-says/ |
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Activate your digital account | 2022-05-19T18:26:04+00:00 | detroitnews.com | https://www.detroitnews.com/restricted/?return=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.detroitnews.com%2Fstory%2Fsports%2Fgolf%2F2022%2F05%2F19%2Fbook-review-phil-mickelson-bio%2F9831282002%2F |
WFO MIDLAND/ODESSA Warnings, Watches and Advisories for Friday, October 28, 2022
_____
SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT
Special Weather Statement
National Weather Service Midland/Odessa TX
806 AM CDT Fri Oct 28 2022
...A strong thunderstorm will impact portions of Gaines and western
Dawson Counties through 845 AM CDT...
At 805 AM CDT, Doppler radar was tracking a strong thunderstorm 13
miles southwest of Welch, or 15 miles southeast of Seagraves, moving
south at 25 mph.
HAZARD...Wind gusts up to 50 mph.
SOURCE...Radar indicated.
IMPACT...Gusty winds could knock down tree limbs and blow around
unsecured objects.
Locations impacted include...
Lamesa, Seminole, Seagraves, Seagraves Airport, Lamesa Municipal
Airport, Gaines County Airport, Welch, Los Ybanez, Loop, Punkin
Center, Patricia, Arvana, Hancock, McKenzie Lake, Paynes Corner and
Gaines County Park.
PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS...
If outdoors, consider seeking shelter inside a building.
LAT...LON 3254 10197 3254 10292 3296 10281 3296 10180
TIME...MOT...LOC 1305Z 021DEG 22KT 3284 10234
MAX HAIL SIZE...0.00 IN
MAX WIND GUST...50 MPH
_____
Copyright 2022 AccuWeather | 2022-10-28T13:40:53+00:00 | seattlepi.com | https://www.seattlepi.com/weather/article/TX-WFO-MIDLAND-ODESSA-Warnings-Watches-and-17541029.php |
'Bad luck Barquentine' shipwreck that sank in 1869 discovered in Lake Superior
(FOX 2) - Shipwreck hunters have discovered the long-lost hull of a sailing vessel that was lost to a bad storm in Lake Superior and began to take on water.
The find has thrilled shipwreck hunters because the sinking of the Barquentine Nucleus happened nearly a150 years ago in 1869.
The discovery is significant, Shipwreck Society Executive Director Bruce Lynn said, "considering its age, the fact that it is a barquentine and we can't overlook the vessel's checkered past."
The Great Lakes Shipwreck Historical Society said the Nucleus was discovered in the summer of 2021 with the aid of sonar and a remotely operated vehicle. The wreck was positively identified in 2022.
The society's director of marine operations said the wreck was found in surprisingly good condition.
"The stern was intact. It had a straight back stern and then the port side also was intact," said Darryl Ertel Jr., "and so, I was more excited about it because at first, I thought it was totally in pieces on the bottom."
The Nucleus's history ended when the ship was traveling south from Marquette in the Upper Peninsula, carrying a load of iron ore. On Sept. 14, it got caughtin a bad storm, which led to the ship springing a leak.
RELATED: Shipwreck found in Lake Superior was 292-foot barge that collided with vessel during storm
Once it got so bad, crews had to abandon ship and got into a lifeboat. The 144-foot schooner sunk soon after that. According to a release from the shipwreck society, a few hours after the crew escaped, it was spotted by the S.S. Union.
The officers spotted the crew struggling, "but chose to keep on steaming, leaving them behind," the shipwreck society said.
They were later picked up by the schooner Worthington. No one died.
MORE: Mysterious sand slabs appearing on Lake Michigan beach
The wreck was actually the third in the Nucleus's unfortunate history. It actually had sunk twice before. The legend of this notorious ship grew even further after it rammed and sank the S.S. Detroit in the Lake Huron in 1854. | 2023-02-09T22:49:19+00:00 | fox6now.com | https://www.fox6now.com/news/historic-great-lakes-shipwreck-nucleus-that-sank-in-1869-discovered-in-lake-superior |
LAS VEGAS, May 6, 2022 /PRNewswire/ --Southwest Gas Holdings, Inc. (NYSE: SWX) ("Southwest Gas" or the "Company") today announced that it is rescheduling its 2022 Annual Meeting of Stockholders (the "Annual Meeting"), which was originally scheduled to be held virtually on May 12, 2022, to Thursday, May 19, 2022 at 11:00 a.m. EDT. The rescheduled meeting will be held virtually at the same website as previously announced: www.cesonlineservices.com/swx22_vm.
The Annual Meeting has been rescheduled to provide Southwest Gas stockholders adequate time to review the terms of the Company's announced settlement agreement with Carl Icahn and his affiliated entities.
The Company notes that the record date is unchanged. As previously announced, stockholders of record as of March 21, 2022 are entitled to vote at the Annual Meeting. Stockholders who have already voted on the Company's WHITE proxy card and do not wish to change their vote need not vote again. Stockholders who previously voted on the GOLD proxy card are urged to vote again on the WHITE proxy card to ensure their shares are represented at the Annual Meeting. Stockholders wishing to attend the virtual 2022 Annual Meeting must pre-register no later than 11:00 a.m., EDT on May 18, 2022 by following the instructions shown in the "How do I attend the Annual Meeting" section on page 2 of the Company's Definitive Proxy Statement relating to the Annual Meeting, dated March 24, 2022. Stockholders who have already pre-registered for the virtual Annual Meeting do not need to pre-register again.
About Southwest Gas Holdings, Inc.
Southwest Gas Holdings, Inc., through its subsidiaries, engages in the business of purchasing, distributing and transporting natural gas, and providing comprehensive utility infrastructure services across North America. Southwest Gas Corporation, a wholly owned subsidiary, safely and reliably delivers natural gas to over two million customers in Arizona, California and Nevada. The Company's MountainWest subsidiary provides natural gas storage and interstate pipeline services within the Rocky Mountain region. Centuri Group, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary, is a strategic infrastructure services company that partners with regulated utilities to build and maintain the energy network that powers millions of homes and businesses across the United States and Canada.
How to Find Further Information
This communication does not constitute a solicitation of any vote or approval in connection with the Annual Meeting. In connection with the Annual Meeting, the Company has filed a definitive proxy statement with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission ("SEC"), which the Company has furnished to its stockholders in connection with the Annual Meeting. The Company may furnish additional materials in connection with the Annual Meeting. BEFORE MAKING ANY VOTING DECISION, WE URGE STOCKHOLDERS TO READ THE PROXY STATEMENT (INCLUDING ALL AMENDMENTS AND SUPPLEMENTS THERETO) AND WHITE PROXY CARD AND OTHER DOCUMENTS WHEN SUCH INFORMATION IS FILED WITH THE SEC CAREFULLY AND IN THEIR ENTIRETY, BECAUSE THEY CONTAIN IMPORTANT INFORMATION ABOUT THE COMPANY AND THE ANNUAL MEETING. The proposals for the Annual Meeting are being made solely through the definitive proxy statement. In addition, a copy of the definitive proxy statement may be obtained free of charge from www.swgasholdings.com/proxymaterials. Security holders also may obtain, free of charge, copies of the proxy statement and any other documents filed by Company with the SEC in connection with the Annual Meeting at the SEC's website at http://www.sec.gov, and at the Company's website at www.swgasholdings.com.
Important Information for Investors and Stockholders: This communication does not constitute an offer to buy or solicitation of an offer to sell any securities. In response to the tender offer for the shares of the Company commenced by IEP Utility Holdings LLC and Icahn Enterprises Holdings L.P., the Company has filed a solicitation/recommendation statement on Schedule 14D-9 with the SEC. INVESTORS AND STOCKHOLDERS OF SOUTHWEST GAS HOLDINGS ARE URGED TO READ THE SOLICITATION/RECOMMENDATION STATEMENT AND OTHER DOCUMENTS FILED WITH THE SEC CAREFULLY IN THEIR ENTIRETY BECAUSE THEY WILL CONTAIN IMPORTANT INFORMATION. Investors and stockholders may obtain a free copy of these documents free of charge at the SEC's website at www.sec.gov, and at the Company's website at www.swgasholdings.com. In addition, copies of these materials may be requested from the Company's information agent, Innisfree M&A Incorporated, toll-free at (877) 825-8621.
Forward-Looking Statements: This press release contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of the U.S. Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995, Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended. Such statements include, without limitation, statements regarding Southwest Gas Holdings, Inc. (the "Company") and the Company's expectations or intentions regarding the future. These forward-looking statements can often be identified by the use of words such as "will", "predict", "continue", "forecast", "expect", "believe", "anticipate", "outlook", "could", "target", "project", "intend", "plan", "seek", "estimate", "should", "may" and "assume", as well as variations of such words and similar expressions referring to the future, and include (without limitation) statements regarding expectations with respect to a separation of Centuri, the future performance of Centuri, Southwest Gas's dividend ratios and Southwest Gas's future performance. A number of important factors affecting the business and financial results of the Company could cause actual results to differ materially from those stated in the forward-looking statements. These factors include, but are not limited to, the timing and amount of rate relief, changes in rate design, customer growth rates, the effects of regulation/deregulation, tax reform and related regulatory decisions, the impacts of construction activity at Centuri, whether we will separate Centuri within the anticipated timeframe and the impact to our results of operations and financial position from the separation, the potential for, and the impact of, a credit rating downgrade, the costs to integrate MountainWest, future earnings trends, inflation, sufficiency of labor markets and similar resources, seasonal patterns, the cost and management attention of ongoing litigation that the Company is currently engaged in, the effects of the pending tender offer and proxy contest brought by Carl Icahn and his affiliates, and the impacts of stock market volatility. In addition, the Company can provide no assurance that its discussions about future operating margin, operating income, COLI earnings, interest expense, and capital expenditures of the natural gas distribution segment will occur. Likewise, the Company can provide no assurance that discussions regarding utility infrastructure services segment revenues, EBITDA as a percentage of revenue, and interest expense will transpire, nor assurance regarding acquisitions or their impacts, including management's plans or expectations related thereto, including with regard to Riggs Distler or MountainWest. Factors that could cause actual results to differ also include (without limitation) those discussed under the heading "Risk Factors" in the Company's most recent Annual Report on Form 10-K and in the Company's and Southwest Gas Corporation's current and periodic reports, including our Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q, filed from time to time with the SEC. The statements in this press release are made as of the date of this press release, even if subsequently made available by the Company on its Web site or otherwise. The Company does not assume any obligation to update the forward-looking statements, whether written or oral, that may be made from time to time, whether as a result of new information, future developments, or otherwise.
Participants in the Solicitation: The directors and officers of the Company may be deemed to be participants in the solicitation of proxies in connection with the Annual Meeting. Information regarding the Company's directors and officers and their respective interests in the Company by security holdings or otherwise is available in its most recent Annual Report on Form 10-K filed with the SEC and the definitive Proxy Statement on Schedule 14A filed with the SEC in connection with the Annual Meeting. Additional information regarding the interests of such potential participants is included in other relevant materials filed with the SEC.
Contacts
For investor information, contact: Boyd Nelson, (702) 876-7237, boyd.nelson@swgas.com; or Innisfree M&A Incorporated, Scott Winter/Jennifer Shotwell/Jon Salzberger, (212) 750-5833.
For media information, contact: Sean Corbett, (702) 876-7219, sean.corbett@swgas.com; or Joele Frank, Wilkinson Brimmer Katcher, Dan Katcher / Tim Lynch, (212) 355-4449.
View original content:
SOURCE Southwest Gas Holdings, Inc. | 2022-05-08T01:26:11+00:00 | kmvt.com | https://www.kmvt.com/prnewswire/2022/05/07/southwest-gas-reschedules-annual-meeting-may-19-2022/ |
By RALPH D. RUSSO
AP College Football Writer
The College Football Playoff announced Thursday it will expand to a 12-team event starting in 2024, completing an 18-month process that was fraught with delays and disagreements.
The announcement comes a day after the Rose Bowl agreed to amend its contract for the 2024 and 2025 seasons, which was the last hurdle CFP officials needed cleared to triple the size of what is now a four-team format.
“We appreciate the leaders of the six bowl games and the two future national championship game host cities for their cooperation,” CFP Executive Director Bill Hancock said in a statement. “Everyone realized that this change is in the best interest of college football and pulled together to make it happen.”
The first round of the new playoff in 2024 will take place the week ending Saturday, Dec. 21. Exact dates are still to be determined.
The championship game for the 2024 season will be played Jan. 20, 2025, in Atlanta. The championship game for the 2025 season will be played Jan. 19, 2026, in Miami Gardens, Florida. Both are more than a week later than the current title game timing.
Expansion is expected to produce about $450 million in additional gross revenue for the conferences and schools that participate.
The plan to expand the playoff was unveiled in June 2021, but the conference commissioners who manage the CFP could not come to the unanimous consensus needed to push the proposal forward. Expansion for the 2024 season was pronounced dead back in February.
University presidents and chancellors who oversee the CFP stepped in and revived the process over the summer. They approved the original plan for use by 2026, and threw it back to the commissioners, directing them to try to expand by 2024, if possible.
The College Football Playoff’s 12-year contract with ESPN runs through the 2025-26 season.
No longer haggling over the format, the commissioners needed to work through when and where the games would be played and whether bowl partners and championship games hosts cities could accommodate a change in schedule for 2024 and 2025.
The Rose Bowl issue was the last to be settled, as organizers for the 120-year-old bowl game were hoping to get some assurances from the CFP that they would keep their valuable New Year’s Day time when new contracts went into effect in 2026.
CFP officials balked.
Facing the possibility of being painted as an obstructionist and potentially being shut out of the expanded playoff in the long-term, the Rose Bowl agreed to move forward in good faith.
“This is a great day for college football,” said Mark Keenum, Mississippi State president and chairman of the CFP Board of Managers. “I’m glad we are able to follow through and launch the expanded playoff early. It’s very exciting for schools, alumni and everyone involved.”
___
Follow Ralph D. Russo at https://twitter.com/ralphDrussoAP and listen at http://www.appodcasts.com
___
AP college football: https://apnews.com/hub/college-football and https://twitter.com/ap_top25. Sign up for the AP’s college football newsletter: https://tinyurl.com/mrxhe6f2
Copyright 2022 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without permission. | 2022-12-03T04:59:58+00:00 | wtmj.com | https://wtmj.com/sports/2022/12/01/college-football-playoff-expands-to-12-teams-in-2024-season-3/ |
GOMA, Congo (AP) — As she puts the final touches on her latest collection, a fashion designer in Congo sees the pinning, sewing and ironing as a way to send a message to the world.
“Through art, all the colors that we will express, through our clothes, it will be full of emotions, trying to explain what we are going through in our country,” Flore Mfuanani Nsukula says in her Goma workshop.
Conflict in eastern Congo has gone on for decades as myriad armed groups fight for control of valuable mineral resources. There are frequent mass killings, and the violence has triggered an exodus of refugees.
On Saturday, organizers held the ninth edition of the Liputa fashion show, which they say is an opportunity to inspire peace and peaceful coexistence across Africa.
“Africans must be one, be united. It is true that we have a very wide cultural diversity, but this diversity must bring us together,” Cameroonian fashion designer Délia Ndougou said. She presented a collection inspired by her nation’s flag.
“We really wanted to convey joy in the clothes, peace in the clothes, very cheerful styles, a question of making the world smile,” added Chadrac Lumumba, a creative stylist from Kinshasa.
The Goma show featured designers, models and artists from Cameroon, Senegal, Burundi, France, the U.S., and more.
“We think we have sent a message to say that all these people who have come from elsewhere, that means that the situation is already improving,” Nsukula said after debuting her new collection on the runway.
“We had those who came from the Central African Republic, Cameroon, USA, France, to come and present their collections. That means that there is hope, security, with time, it will improve.”
In addition to highlighting Congo’s fashion industry, the show also aims to promote a more positive view of the continent.
“We presented these collections, not only to sell the visions of these creators, but to show that in Africa, in (Congo), the areas that are considered ‘red,’ we can do things there that we see in other countries that have peace,” says organizer David Ngulu.
“I think that each creator contributed to love, peace and living together,” he said. | 2023-06-27T22:11:38+00:00 | pahomepage.com | https://www.pahomepage.com/news/international/congo-fashion-show-hopes-to-inspire-peace-creativity-in-region-affected-by-conflict/ |
SANTA FE, N.M. (AP) — Court filing: Prosecutors drop possibility of 5-year sentence in Alec Baldwin film set shooting case. | 2023-02-20T19:15:26+00:00 | seattlepi.com | https://www.seattlepi.com/entertainment/article/alert-court-filing-prosecutors-drop-possibility-17795193.php |
SUNBURY, NORTHUMBERLAND COUNTY (WBRE/WYOU) — The Mount Carmel girls defeated Bloomsburg, and the Central Mountain boys defeated Shamokin as the Red Tornadoes and Wildcats won the Pennsylvania Heartland Athletic Conference basketball championships.
Mount Carmel girls, Central Mountain boys win PHAC basketball titles
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March Madness has begun in college basketball with some stunning upsets in the first round, the World Baseball Classic comes to a close, and the men's FIFA World Cup expands its format.
Copyright 2023 NPR
March Madness has begun in college basketball with some stunning upsets in the first round, the World Baseball Classic comes to a close, and the men's FIFA World Cup expands its format.
Copyright 2023 NPR | 2023-03-18T13:03:58+00:00 | wyomingpublicmedia.org | https://www.wyomingpublicmedia.org/2023-03-18/saturday-sports-march-madness-begins-mens-fifa-world-cup-expands-format |
KALAMAZOO, MI – A Kalamazoo man has been arrested after nearly four kilograms of multiple drugs were seized.
The 50-year-old man is accused of possessing and intending to distribute fentanyl, heroin and methamphetamine, as well as possessing four assault rifles, multiple magazines and a stolen handgun, according to a news release from U.S. Attorney Mark Totten.
The Kalamazoo Valley Enforcement Team searched the man’s Kalamazoo home and found 2.3 kilograms of pure fentanyl, 1.3 kilograms of a heroin and fentanyl mixture, 516 grams of heroin and 489 grams of meth, federal officials said in the news release.
He is not supposed to have guns because of multiple felony convictions, officials said.
The man was denied bond, according to court records. He is to remain in custody pending an indictment from a grand jury. His next hearing is set for Dec. 8.
“According to the Kalamazoo Valley Enforcement Team, this is the largest seizure of fentanyl in the Kalamazoo area,” Totten said in the release. “My office, in coordination with our local and federal partners, is committed to disrupting the distribution of fentanyl, illegal drugs, and guns into our communities.”
KVET worked with the DEA for numerous hours during the investigation, Kalamazoo Public Safety Capt. Rafael Diaz said in the release. The Kalamazoo agencies and Drug Enforcement Administration will keep working together to reduce gun violence and overdoses, Diaz said.
More from MLive:
Nuclear plant along Lake Michigan will not reopen after federal application denied
Suspect charged with open murder in killing of Kalamazoo man near WMU
Mammograms for low-income women funded by Ascension Borgess Tree of Love campaign | 2022-11-21T21:36:15+00:00 | mlive.com | https://www.mlive.com/news/kalamazoo/2022/11/4-kilos-of-fentanyl-heroin-found-in-kalamazoo-mans-home-officials-say.html |
HARTVILLE, Mo. (AP) — It’s not every day that a small hamlet in the Missouri Ozarks is in the middle of everything, but that was the case for tiny Wright County on Wednesday as officials from the nation’s capital unveiled a marker designating a spot there as the center of population in the United States.
Dignitaries from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and the U.S. Census Bureau, including the agency’s director, Robert Santos, celebrated the debut of the red granite marker in Hartville. With a population of 594 residents in 2020, the county seat is 14.6 miles (23.5 kilometers) from the actual spot calculated following the 2020 census.
“You’ll be famous for this wonderful designation for the rest of our nation’s history,” Santos told local officials at a ceremony. “And you will have bragging rights for the rest of this decade! Not bad.”
Bypassed by interstate highways and railroads, Hartville doesn’t have a big tax base or large industry. The local school, a nursing home, the gas station and the Dollar General store are the largest employers.
The nation’s population center is calculated every 10 years after the once-a-decade census shows where people are living. The heart of America has been in Missouri since 1980. Previously located in Plato, in the neighboring county, it moved only 11.8 miles (19 kilometers) southwest from 2010 to 2020. It is the smallest distance shift in 100 years and the second-smallest in U.S. history.
To calculate the center of the U.S., the Census Bureau figures out which spot would be “the balance point” if the 50 states were located on an imaginary, flat surface with weights of identical size — each representing the location of one person — placed on it. | 2022-09-22T21:13:20+00:00 | wboy.com | https://www.wboy.com/news/national/ap-marker-in-tiny-missouri-hamlet-denotes-us-population-center/ |
Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) on Monday took a jab at Republicans in the ongoing debt ceiling fight, accusing the party of trying to “wreck the economy” to protect wealthy taxpayers.
“If this were really about the national debt, then there are plenty of places we could go to stitch up loopholes, like no more of these tax havens abroad, that we could get that under control but that is not where the Republicans want to go,” Warren said during an appearance on MSNBC’s “Morning Joe” on Monday.
Warren particularly seized on former President Trump’s signature 2017 tax law as well as GOP attacks targeting funding for the IRS.
“If the Republicans had not pushed just two things, the Republican tax cuts that went mostly to those at the very top and the biggest corporations and hollowing out the IRS specifically so they could not hold wealthy tax chiefs accountable, wouldn’t be able to audit them,” Warren said.
“If those two things had not happened, then we wouldn’t even hit the debt ceiling at any time during the first Biden administration,” she said.
The Treasury Department began implementing so-called extraordinary measures last week to keep the government from defaulting on its debt.
Federal financial data showed the country’s debt, accrued under both Republican and Democratic administrations, reached more than $31.4 trillion, passing the limit set by Congress when it last raised the nation’s borrowing limit more than a year ago.
Republicans have pressed any action taken to address the debt ceiling, which caps how much outstanding national debt the government can hold to fulfill its financial duties, paired with significant fiscal reform and spending cuts that have prompted pushback from Democrats.
At the same, however, Republicans have also opposed Democratic-backed tax proposals to raise revenue, with House GOP leadership prioritizing legislation targeting funding for the IRS passed as part of the 2022 Inflation Reduction Act, a key piece of President Biden’s legislative agenda.
Democrats passed the sweeping bill without GOP support last year. The measure, which the Biden administration says is aimed at partly bolstering IRS tax enforcement to go after wealthy tax cheats, is expected to put billions of dollars toward deficit reduction over the next decade. | 2023-01-23T16:18:29+00:00 | pahomepage.com | https://www.pahomepage.com/hill-politics/warren-republicans-threatening-to-wreck-economy-in-debt-ceiling-battle-to-protect-wealthy/ |
MONTGOMERY, Ala (AP) — Alabama inmates were in their second day of a work strike Tuesday, refusing to labor in prison kitchens, laundries and factories to protest conditions in the state’s overcrowded, understaffed lock-ups.
Prisoners including those who provide food, laundry and janitorial services refused to show up for work at major state prisons, leaving staff scrambling to keep the facilities running.
“They are running a slaughterhouse," Diyawn Caldwell, founder of the advocacy group Both Sides of the Wall, said of Alabama's prison system, which the U.S. Department of Justice has called one of the most violent and understaffed in the country. Caldwell's husband is incarcerated at a state prison.
The Department of Justice has an ongoing civil lawsuit against Alabama over conditions in its prisons, saying the state is failing to protect male inmates from inmate-on-inmate violence and excessive force at the hands of prison staff.
The 2020 lawsuit alleges that conditions in the prison system are so poor that they violate the ban on cruel and unusual punishment and that state officials are “deliberately indifferent” to the problems. Alabama officials have acknowledged problems in the prison system but dispute the Justice Department’s accusations.
The Alabama Department of Corrections confirmed Tuesday that the work stoppage was “still active in most male facilities.” However, the department maintained that “facilities are operational and there have been no disruption of critical services, which include meals.”
Family members of several inmates, however, said prisons were not distributing three daily meals and prisoners were given paper sacks containing corndogs or sandwiches.
Inmate labor provides a vital role in keeping prisons functioning.
“HOW LONG CAN 25 PEOPLE RUN A PRISON WITH 1000, 1800, 2300, etc. PRISONERS?” inmate organizers of the work stoppage wrote in a press statement about the strike.
Caldwell said organizers are hoping to persuade federal officials to go ahead intervene in the prison system. She said they are also seeking a number of changes related to release and sentencing such as repealing the Habitual Felony Offender Act, establishing uniform criteria for parole that would guarantee release, streamlining the review process for medical furloughs and reviewing elderly incarcerated individuals for immediate release.
Supporters, including family members, delivered the demands to the prison system headquarters after a protest on Monday.
A spokesperson for Gov. Kay Ivey told reporters that the demands were unreasonable and thanked prison staff for maintaining facilities.
"It is also important for these protestors to understand that a lot of their demands would require legislation, not unilateral action. Some of these demands suggest that criminals like murderers and serial child sex offenders can walk the streets, and I can tell you that will never happen in the state of Alabama where we will always prioritize the safety of our citizens," Ivey's office told news outlets.
The strike, while not directly related, comes after photos of an emaciated inmate at Alabama‘s Elmore Correctional Facility went viral. Kastellio Vaughan's sister had posted the photos to Facebook with the message, “Get Help.”
The disturbing image prompted outrage and allegation of medical neglect. The prison system said that Vaughan had refused medical assessment and left the hospital following surgery against medical advice
“This is horrific,” Ben Crump, an attorney representing Vaughan said in a statement. “Let’s be clear, the State of Alabama has tried to deflect any action or responsibility for Mr. Vaughan’s condition at every turn.
The prison system issued a statement Tuesday saying that Vaughn had surgery for an obstructed bowel in August and was hospitalized in September for a complication. Both times he was discharged against medical advice, the prison system said, and has since refused medical assessment and medical treatment.
“The ADOC offers medical assessment and treatment to all inmates but does not force them to accept that care,” the prison system said. | 2022-09-27T23:49:44+00:00 | lmtonline.com | https://www.lmtonline.com/news/article/Alabama-prisoners-refusing-to-work-in-2nd-day-of-17471298.php |
While his Republican House colleagues were fighting for votes–and party majority–a week after the Nov. 8 midterm election, Pennsylvania incumbent Glenn Thompson, the ranking GOP member of the House Ag Committee, was basking in the glow of another blowout re-election.
His hammering, 40-point win wasn’t his biggest. That came in 2020 when he won his sixth term by a crushing 47 points. Even then-President Donald J. Trump, running for reelection, couldn’t top that; Trump won Thompson’s district by “just” 43 points.
That empowering victory–and the fact that Thompson represents one of the largest, reddest rural districts east of the Mississippi–should tell every farmer and rancher west of the Ohio where he stands on most ag issues when he assumes the House Ag Committee chairmanship in January.
For starters, Thompson hates WOTUS, the Waters of the U.S. rule. Additionally, he believes SNAP, the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, needs “work and job training” requirements “for certain beneficiaries.”
Yes, that old “no work-no SNAP” idea, rejected in the 2018 Farm Bill debate, will likely see its reprise under Thompson.
He’s no fan of new ideas, either. He openly opposes any proposed Securities and Exchange Commission rule that requires publicly traded companies to disclose their climate change impact. That’s especially true for companies involved in agriculture.
To say he’s a rock-ribbed conservative slanders both rocks and conservatives: Thompson is a tough, outspoken Republican critic of both the Biden White House and its Department of Agriculture (USDA) leaders and he makes no apologies for it.
That’s especially so when it comes to the White House’s recent push to acknowledge agriculture’s role in climate change. In September, Ag Secretary Tom Vilsack announced almost $3 billion of new funding for “climate-smart commodity” research projects. Thompson blasted the spending because, he claimed, it “endangered the bipartisan support” for “traditional Farm Bill conservation” spending.
It’s a novel argument: USDA shouldn’t fund new research on how to protect critical natural resources during climate change because it will harm ongoing research on how to protect critical resources during climate change.
To ensure House Dems got his meaning, Thompson then upped the ante in an interview two days before his reelection.
Speaking to the Pennsylvania Capital-Star, a non-profit, nonpartisan website that covers Keystone State politics, Thompson said that he didn’t “feel bound by any amount of funding or the specific program allocation passed in the partisan IRA bill,” the White House’s Inflation Reduction Act, passed last summer, that aims to cut U.S. carbon emissions 40 percent by 2030.
Sure, he said, “I have been leaning into the climate discussion, but I will not have us suddenly incorporate buzzwords like regenerative agriculture in the Farm Bill or overemphasize climate.”
As new chairman of the House Ag Committee, Thompson now has the muscle to push all Farm Bill talk on climate change onto any of his subcommittees’ back burners. That doesn’t mean, however, that climate change programs–and their buzzwords–won’t be incorporated into the Senate draft Farm Bill.
In fact, Thompson’s pre-Farm Bill pronouncements sound eerily similar to the partisan markers the GOP laid down during the contentious, two-year long 2018 Farm Bill fight.
Back then, like in 2023, the GOP ran the House. Unlike next year’s wafer-thin GOP majority, however, its 2018 majority was rock solid. Even at that, none of the GOP’s most conservative proposals for the bill–especially any work requirements for SNAP benefits–made it into law because GOP leaders couldn’t corral their members.
And too, holding fast against any new SNAP work requirements then was the Dem leader of the Senate Ag Committee, Michigander Debbie Stabenow. Since Democrats held their Senate majority Nov. 8, guess who’s still chair of Senate Ag?
As such, the 2018 Farm Bill fight might be a good blueprint for the upcoming 2023 fight: House Republicans pass tough Farm Bill “reforms” while defunding climate change; Senate Dems do neither but watch the clock; House Repubs finally concede and a no one-is-happy, 2018-looking Farm Bill struggles over the finish line.
In short, if the recipe stays the same, the sausage will too. | 2022-12-04T15:06:03+00:00 | leadertelegram.com | https://www.leadertelegram.com/country-today/opinions/guest-opinions/house-s-new-ag-boss-doesn-t-offer-much-that-s-new/article_99ff92bf-8af4-503d-9256-cbf654c69c32.html |
Jill Biden sees East Africa drought up close, seeks more aid
LOSITETI, Kenya (AP) — U.S. first lady Jill Biden got an up-close look Sunday at the historic East Africa drought as she walked along arid land and listened as some Maasai women described how their children and livestock are going hungry. She appealed for more countries to join the United States to help alleviate the suffering.
Some areas of the Horn of Africa have endured five consecutive failed rainy seasons, meaning there was no rainfall or an insufficient amount to help farmers with their crops and livestock. An upcoming sixth rainy season, beginning in March, is expected to be about the same or worse.
Biden, who was on the final day of a five-day visit to Africa, toured an outreach center in the town operated by World Vision with support from UNICEF and the World Food Program. She chatted with people who had brought their children to be screened for malnutrition and she participated in a discussion with a group of women, including a mother of 10 children, who shared their stories.
“They talked about how their livestock are dying. Obviously, you can see the drought here, how bad it is,” the first lady told reporters afterward. “The one source of water here feeds 12 villages and each village has approximately a thousand to 1,200 people.”
“So they are coming here, the people are coming to get water, they’re bringing their livestock to get water. But unfortunately, for many of them, the way they make their living is from their livestock and for most of them, the livestock are dying, so they’re having a hard time,” she said.
Biden noted that the United States has provided 70% of the money sent to the region to help alleviate the suffering, “but we cannot be the only ones.”
“We need to have other countries join us in this global effort to help these people of the region,” she said, adding that the drought was competing with humanitarian efforts tied to Russian’s war in Ukraine and an earthquake that killed tens of thousands of people in Turkey and Syria.
“I mean, there are a lot of competing interests but, obviously here, people are actually, livestock, people are starving,” she said.
Members of the Maasai community, who are predominantly herders, live in Kajiado county where Biden visited.
Nearly 23 million people in Somalia, Ethiopia and Kenya are thought to be highly food insecure, which means they do not know where they will find their next meal, according to a food security working group chaired by the U.N. Food and Agriculture Organization and the regional Intergovernmental Authority on Development.
A Maasai elder, Mingati Samanya, 69, said he lost 10 cows during the recent prolonged dry season and struggled to find hay for the rest of his herd.
“The short rains last year were insufficient and right now we are back to struggling for pasture. We hope the long rains will be enough,” he told The Associated Press in a telephone interview.
Biden sought to use her stature to help focus the world’s attention on the worsening humanitarian crisis in East Africa by touring the drought-stricken area near Kenya’s border with Tanzania.
On the nearly three-hour drive south of Nairobi, the capital, Biden’s lengthy motorcade passed over dry river and creek beds. Numerous cows were walking alongside the highway — many so thin that their ribs were showing.
Throngs of people lined both sides of the motorcade route at various points, waving or using their cellphones to record the event.
Some 4.4 million people in Kenya are facing high levels of food insecurity, with the number projected to rise to 5.4 million in March, according to an analysis by the Integrated Food Security Phase Classification.
Already, 11 million livestock that are essential to many families’ health and livelihood have died. Many of the people affected are farmers who have watched their crops wither and die, and their water sources run dry.
Northern Kenya, which is arid and semi-arid and is where pastoralist communities live, is most affected.
The country’s agriculture sector heavily relies on rainfall, and the meteorological department is predicting delayed rains in the upcoming short rainy season that should begin in March.
President William Ruto announced last October that his cabinet had lifted a decade-old ban on openly cultivating and importing genetically modified crops. The decision came amid pressure from the U.S. government, which had argued that the ban affected U.S. agricultural exports and food aid.
Last week, Ruto led the country in praying for rain.
The first lady has been highlighting the drought along with women and youth empowerment since arriving in Namibia last Wednesday.
Biden had visited Kenya in 2011, when her husband, Joe Biden, was serving as vice president, to help raise awareness about what then was considered a severe famine. U.S. officials and aid organizations say the current drought is far worse.
About halfway through drive to Lositeti, the first lady traded her black SUV for a smaller one more suited for the rugged terrain ahead. The village was the final stop on a five-day, two-country visit that took her from Namibia, along the Atlantic coast in southern Africa, to Kenya in the east.
It was her sixth visit overall to Africa, and her first as first lady. She traveled with her granddaughter, Naomi Biden, who is 29.
Biden met throughout the week with young people, women and entrepreneurs as she promoted U.S.- backed programs that teach about HIV/AIDS, preventing infection and safe sex practices. Other programs she visited help people learn skills to find jobs or start businesses to support their families.
Along the way, she managed to make some news with her comments in an interview with the AP in which she gave the strongest indication yet that her husband will seek to be reelected in 2024.
Asked if the only thing left to do was to decide on when and where to announce the campaign, she replied, “Pretty much.”
The president, who later was asked about his wife’s comments, offered a more measured response, saying he had “other things to finish before I get into a full-blown campaign.”
___
Musambi reported from Nairobi, Kenya.
Copyright 2023 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. | 2023-02-26T15:19:07+00:00 | kfyrtv.com | https://www.kfyrtv.com/2023/02/26/jill-biden-sees-east-africa-drought-up-close-seeks-more-aid/ |
BEIJING, March 4, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- A news report from chinadaily.com.cn:
Ma Xiaolin, member of the 14th CPPCC National Committee and director of Henan Museum, is dedicated to the protection and revitalization of cultural relics. Over the years, he has been submitting proposals on heritage preservation and utilization, as well as developing innovative approaches to introduce traditional culture to people's everyday lives.
For this year's two sessions, he proposes to promote Chinese cultural heritage to the world with the support of the overseas Chinese community.
Watch the video to find out more.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tllJIrlVNZo
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SOURCE chinadaily.com.cn | 2023-03-05T03:34:22+00:00 | wbrc.com | https://www.wbrc.com/prnewswire/2023/03/05/promoting-chinese-culture-world/ |
EDMONTON, AB, Sept. 6, 2022 /PRNewswire/ - Intelliwave Technologies, a global leader in providing digital solutions for construction materials management and tracking, is proud to announce a significant expansion of the integration available between SiteSense and Procore Technologies, a leading global provider of construction management software. This integration continues to strengthen the strategic partnership between SiteSense and Procore by providing additional value to mutual customers utilizing leading construction technology tools in one ecosystem.
Intelliwave Technologies was formed in 2007 to increase "Time on Tools" for craft labor productivity and improve overall site safety in construction. The result was the creation of a revolutionary web and mobile-based software solution in one encompassing brand, SiteSense.
SiteSense's integration with Procore's Directory, Financials, Quality and Safety and Field Productivity modules allows construction teams to effectively close the loop for vendor payment for commitments along with defect management, while tracking material, tools, assets, and equipment consumption from one project to another, with support from the existing directory from Procore during these transactions.
This enhanced integration builds on SiteSense's previous integration releases with Procore to provide teams additional touchpoints to further connect the office to the field, driving project performance more effectively. SiteSense and Procore customers can now:
- Utilize Directory records during field transactions: Directory entries in Procore now sync to SiteSense as workers, crews, and jobs to assist with auto populating contact information, company names and e-mails but can also provide support scanning site badges for materials, tools, assets, and equipment handover transactions.
- Manage Delivery Defects with Observations: Defect tickets created during receiving of materials, tools, assets, and equipment transactions in SiteSense sync to Procore as Non-Conformance Observations to ensure the defect is reviewed and resolved with the vendor. Types of defects that can be logged in SiteSense include Unacceptable, Overage, Shortage and Damage (UOS&Ds).
- Support the 3-way match for Commitments: SiteSense Receiving Reports sync to Procore as Commitment Invoices to remove communication issues when closing the loop for jobsite deliveries of materials, tools, assets, and equipment to ensure trust with vendors and continued deliveries.
- Financial Consumption of Resources: SiteSense Issue Tickets for consumption of materials, tools, assets, equipment, and consumables sync to Procore as one of three options, Change Event, Time and Materials Ticket or Direct Cost to ensure cost is either re-captured through or properly allocated to a project budget that is consuming the goods.
- Advanced Project Mapping: Added support for 1-1, 1-many or many-1 Procore to SiteSense Projects to support custom Warehousing and Inventory Management use cases.
- Developer Managed Service Account Configuration: Upgraded set-up of the integration from legacy Service Accounts to the new Developer Managed Service Accounts (DMSA) that drastically reduces the time required to set-up the integration between SiteSense and Procore.
The two-way integration between Intelliwave SiteSense and Procore provides considerable value to our shared clients," stated Dale Beard, CEO of Intelliwave. "We look forward to providing new and prospective clients our enhanced best-in-class integration for inventory control, supply chain and materials management for all types and sizes of construction projects."
The SiteSense integration with Procore provides a connected network of leading construction technology tools that can help*:
- Reduce administration costs by up to 10%
- Craft labor productivity improvement by up to 16%
- Reduce material bulk purchases by up to 40%
"SiteSense by Intelliwave can help reduce data entry errors, transit time, and receipt capture for payment to vendors," said Micah Senen, partner manager at Procore. "The new enhancement to the integration reaffirms how vital SiteSense is for AEC companies looking to bridge the gap between their office and field teams and achieve maximum project performance. By syncing directory entries, defect tickets, and commitment invoices from Procore to SiteSense, we continue to achieve our mutual goal of connecting everything and everyone in construction."
View the full news release on the Intelliwave website and the SiteSense <> Procore Integration Page for more information. Visit the Procore Marketplace to view the Intelliwave listing for SiteSense.
Contact Intelliwave Technologies today to learn more about SiteSense products.
*Reference CII Best Practices Guide: Improving Project Performance
Intelliwave Technologies provides the world's most comprehensive materials management digital solution for construction projects. SiteSense Cloud and Mobile Software enables construction crews to make more informed decisions with accurate real-time information on material status and availability.
To learn more visit www.intelliwavetechnologies.com or on LinkedIn, Facebook, and Twitter.
SiteSense® is a registered trademark of Intelliwave Technologies Inc.
Procore is a leading global provider of construction management software. Over 1 million projects and more than $1 trillion USD in construction volume have run on Procore's platform. Our platform connects every project stakeholder to solutions we've built specifically for the construction industry—for the owner, the general contractor, and the specialty contractor. Procore's App Marketplace has a multitude of partner solutions that integrate seamlessly with our platform, giving construction professionals the freedom to connect with what works best for them. Headquartered in Carpinteria, California, Procore has offices around the globe. Learn more at Procore.com.
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SOURCE Intelliwave Technologies Inc | 2022-09-06T12:12:22+00:00 | live5news.com | https://www.live5news.com/prnewswire/2022/09/06/intelliwave-technologies-releases-enhanced-sitesense-integrations-with-procore-financials-field-productivity-modules/ |
MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — George Floyd’s family is ready to take applications from businesses for grants funded by money from their wrongful death legal settlement with the city of Minneapolis.
Floyd, who was Black, died in May 2020 after a white Minneapolis police officer pressed his knee into Floyd’s neck for nearly nine minutes. His family won a $27 million settlement from the city in March 2021 and set aside $500,000 for grants to businesses in the neighborhood where Floyd died.
Floyd family attorney Ben Crump says businesses can begin applying Monday and continue to apply until all dollars are distributed. Grants will be awarded in the amounts of $5,000, $10,000 and $25,000, although larger grants may be considered.
Businesses can apply at www.theward8fund.org. | 2023-01-09T23:35:30+00:00 | kxnet.com | https://www.kxnet.com/news/business-beat/ap-business/ap-george-floyd-family-taking-applications-for-business-grants/ |
WFO SAN FRANCISCO BAY AREA Warnings, Watches and Advisories for Friday, October 7, 2022
_____
DENSE FOG ADVISORY
URGENT - WEATHER MESSAGE
National Weather Service San Francisco Bay Area
946 AM PDT Fri Oct 7 2022
...DENSE FOG ADVISORY WILL EXPIRE AT 10 AM PDT THIS MORNING...
Visibilities have improved near the coast, so Dense Fog Advisory
is allowed to expire. Some patchy fog and isolated areas of
reduced visibility are possible through the late morning, so
continue to use caution on the roads.
_____
Copyright 2022 AccuWeather | 2022-10-07T18:16:01+00:00 | expressnews.com | https://www.expressnews.com/weather/article/CA-WFO-SAN-FRANCISCO-BAY-AREA-Warnings-Watches-17494005.php |
(NEXSTAR) – Saturday’s Powerball drawing marks the 37th consecutive drawing without a jackpot winner, sending the grand prize to an estimated $1 billion ahead of Monday’s drawing.
This is only the second time in the lottery game’s history that the jackpot has reached $1 billion, according to Powerball.
Saturday’s numbers were white balls 19, 31, 40, 46, 57 and red Powerball 23. Six tickets (one each in Maryland and Texas, and two each in California and Michigan) landed $1 million prizes after matching all five white balls. A ticket in Florida matched all five white balls and, thanks to the Power Play feature, landed a $2 million prize.
Monday’s estimated $1 billion jackpot is the fifth-largest jackpot in U.S. history and the second-largest Powerball jackpot.
Here are the 10 largest Powerball jackpots to date:
- $1.586 Billion: Jan. 13, 2016 (CA, FL, TN)
- $1 Billion (Estimated): Oct. 31, 2022
- $768.4 Million: March 27, 2019 (WI)
- $758.7 Million: Aug. 23, 2017 (MA)
- $731.1 Million: Jan. 20, 2021 (MD)
- $699.8 Million: Oct. 4, 2021 (CA)
- $687.8 Million: Oct. 27, 2018 (IA, NY)
- $632.6 Million: Jan. 5, 2022 (CA, WI)
- $590.5 Million: May 18, 2013 (FL)
- $587.5 Million: Nov. 28, 2012 (AZ, MO)
The Powerball jackpot hasn’t been hit since early August when a ticket in Pennsylvania landed a $206.9 million prize. In January, winners in California and Wisconsin split a $632.6 million Powerball jackpot.
As it did last week, the Powerball jackpot will likely rise again before Monday night’s drawing. Last Sunday, the Powerball jackpot reached $610 million and grew by another $15 million before the next day’s drawing.
If you’re lucky enough to win the jackpot on Halloween, you can receive your pot as an annuity (30 graduated payments over 29 years) or as a lump sum. According to Powerball, the jackpot has a cash value of $497.3 million.
Your odds of winning a prize overall are 1 in 24.9, while your odds at the jackpot are 1 in 292.2 million. There are some numbers that could increase your chances at a Powerball prize, though.
Powerball is played in 45 states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, and the U.S. Virgin Islands. Tickets are $2 per play, and drawings occur every Monday, Wednesday, and Saturday at 10:59 p.m. ET.
In September, two Illinois winners claimed the historic $1.34 billion Mega Millions jackpot drawn in July. It was the nation’s third-largest lottery prize. | 2022-10-30T16:40:33+00:00 | mytwintiers.com | https://www.mytwintiers.com/news-cat/powerball-jackpot-reaches-1b-for-second-time-in-history-when-is-the-next-drawing/ |
AI and Chatbot solution saves millions of dollars through autonomous negotiations for enterprise customers.
MOUNTAIN VIEW, Calif., July 18, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Pactum AI, the pioneer of autonomous negotiations, has announced that its integration with SAP is now available on the SAP® Store, the online marketplace for SAP and partner offerings. This addition brings cutting-edge AI chatbot negotiations to the SAP procurement world, enabling organizations to optimize purchasing negotiations and unlock significant cost savings.
Pactum's innovative solution in the SAP store focuses on under-managed spend and one-off purchase requisitions below $150,000. By leveraging autonomous negotiations powered by advanced algorithms, organizations can achieve better pricing and payment terms without the need for manual effort. The seamless integration with SAP Ariba empowers users to enhance requisition pricing and streamline negotiations, resulting in unprecedented efficiency and profitability.
Martin Rand, Co-Founder and CEO of Pactum AI, expressed his enthusiasm about the collaboration, stating, "We are thrilled to partner with SAP and add our AI-powered chat negotiation capabilities into the SAP Ariba platform. This partnership enables businesses to harness the full potential of their under-managed spend and realize substantial savings. By automating and streamlining the negotiation process, organizations can achieve better outcomes, optimize supplier relationships, and drive bottom-line savings."
Pactum's technology drives bottom line savings via autonomous negotiations by automating and simplifying both competitive and single-source negotiations, and optimizing underutilized spending. It also allows for automated cost savings and speeds up negotiation processes with the help of AI-powered chatbots. Lastly, it promotes better collaboration between buyers and suppliers.
Claudio Pinto, Senior Director for ISBN Partnerships at SAP commented on the positive gains in efficiencies and value that Pactum AI will bring to enterprise customers, "We are in the business of automation at scale, and as we enter the age of AI combined with chatbots, we look forward to bringing a solution to our customers that can scale value creation for supply chain, procurement and logistics."
Pactum AI is used by some of the largest companies in the world to autonomously negotiate contracts that are usually left un-negotiated - also known as the "tail spend" problem in procurement. Pactum is a "Silver SAP Partner".
SAP Store, found at store.sap.com, delivers a simplified and connected digital customer experience for finding, trying, buying and renewing more than 2,300 solutions from SAP and its partners. There, customers can find the SAP solutions and SAP-validated solutions they need to grow their business. And for each purchase made through SAP Store, SAP will plant a tree.
About Pactum AI
Pactum AI is revolutionizing the way businesses manage supplier relationships through autonomous negotiations using AI and Chat allowing large enterprises to create millions of dollars in value and goodwill across supply chains. This cutting-edge technology automates even the most complex negotiations and can finalize thousands of agreements in minutes. By engaging suppliers on a mass scale, businesses can save valuable time and free up their teams to focus on strategic tasks while ensuring that the agreements work for everyone involved. Established in 2019 by experienced entrepreneurs and technology executives, the company is headquartered in Mountain View, California, and serves customers worldwide.
To learn more about how Pactum AI can help your business optimize its negotiations, visit www.pactum.com.
SAP and other SAP products and services mentioned herein as well as their respective logos are trademarks or registered trademarks of SAP SE in Germany and other countries. Please see https://www.sap.com/copyright for additional trademark information and notices. All other product and service names mentioned are the trademarks of their respective companies.
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SOURCE Pactum AI | 2023-07-18T23:11:44+00:00 | wlox.com | https://www.wlox.com/prnewswire/2023/07/18/pactum-ai-launches-sap-integration-solve-tail-spend/ |
VATICAN CITY (AP) — Veteran reporter Giovanna Chirri was starting to doze off in the Vatican press room on a slow holiday when all of a sudden the Latin she learned in high school made her perk up — and gave her the scoop of a lifetime.
It was Feb. 11, 2013, and Chirri was watching closed-circuit television coverage of Pope Benedict XVI presiding over a pro-forma meeting of cardinals to set dates for three upcoming canonizations.
But at the end of the ceremony, rather than stand up and leave the Consistory Hall of the Apostolic Palace, Benedict remained seated, took out a single sheet of paper and began to read.
“I have convoked you to this consistory, not only for the three canonizations, but also to communicate to you a decision of great importance for the life of the Church,” Benedict said quietly in his German-clipped Latin.
Chirri followed along but only began to realize the import of what was unfolding when she heard Benedict then utter the words “ingravescente aetate.” The term is Latin for “advanced age,” and is the title of a 1970 Vatican regulation requiring bishops to retire when they turn 75.
Knowing both Latin and Vatican regulations well, Chirri slowly began to realize that Benedict had just announced he too would be retiring, at the end of the month, because he believed he was getting too old for the job.
It was the first papal resignation in 600 years, and Chirri, the Vatican correspondent for the authoritative ANSA news agency, was about to report the news to the world.
“Hearing this ‘ingravescente aetate’ I started to feel sick physically, a really, really violent reaction,” Chirri recalled years later.
Her head felt like it was a balloon inflating. Her left leg began to shake so uncontrollably that she had to hold it down with one hand as she started making phone calls to her Vatican sources to check that she had heard Benedict correctly.
After finally receiving confirmation from the Vatican spokesman, Chirri sent the flash headline on ANSA at 11:46 a.m.
“The pope is leaving the pontificate beginning 2/28,” it read.
Benedict died Saturday, almost a decade after that momentous day.
Years later, Chirri still searches for the right words to express the emotional, physical, professional and intellectual combustion that that headline, and all it implied, caused her.
“I was terrified by news that was unthinkable to me,” she said.
Aside from the fact that she truly liked Benedict as a pope, Chirri couldn’t comprehend that the conservative German theologian who spent his life upholding church rules and doctrine would take the revolutionary step of resigning.
“Now eight years have passed and we’re used to it,” she said in an interview in 2021. “But eight years ago, the idea that the pope might resign was beyond (reality). It was a theoretical hypothesis” that was technically possible but had been rejected repeatedly by popes over the centuries.
Chirri won accolades for having had both the intellectual capacity to understand what had transpired, and the steely nerves to report it first and accurately among mainstream news organizations — no small feat considering the near-official authority that an ANSA headline carries in reporting Vatican news.
It was a holiday in the Vatican that day — the anniversary of the Lateran Accords between Italy and the Vatican — and only a handful of other reporters were even in the press room to hear the in-house broadcast of the ceremony.
But Chirri was there, the right person in the right place at the right time.
“Certainly, if I hadn’t been an Italian who studied Latin in the 1970s in Italy, I never would have understood a thing,” Chirri said of Italy’s classics-heavy public high school curriculum.
“Also, because the pope was reading so calmly, it was like he was telling us what he had had for breakfast that morning,” she added.
Only later, would it emerge that Benedict had been planning to retire for months. A nighttime fall during a 2012 trip to Mexico confirmed to him that he no longer had the strength for the globe-trotting rigors of the 21st century papacy.
Benedict knew well what was required to make the announcement legitimate: Though only a handful of popes had done it before, canon law allows for a papal resignation as long as it is “freely made and properly manifested.”
Some traditionalists and conspiracy theorists would later quibble with the grammatical formula Benedict used, claiming it rendered the announcement null and that Benedict was still pope.
But Benedict fulfilled both requirements under the law: He stated that he had come to the decision freely, made it public in a Vatican ceremony using the official language of the Holy See, and repeated it for years to come to remove any doubt.
“As far as canon law is concerned, it’s impeccable,” Chirri said.
And for anyone paying attention, Benedict had hinted about his intentions for years.
In 2009, during a visit to the earthquake-ravaged city of L’Aquila, Benedict prayed at the tomb of Pope Celestine V, the hermit pope who stepped down in 1294 after just five months in office. Benedict left on Celestine’s tomb a pallium — the simple white woolen stole that is a symbol of the papacy.
No one thought much of it at the time. But in retrospect, a pope leaving behind a potent symbol of the papacy on the tomb of a pope who had resigned carried a message.
One year later, in a 2010 book-length interview, Benedict said point-blank that popes not only could but should resign under certain circumstances, though he stressed that retirement was not an option to escape a particular burden.
“If a pope clearly realizes that he is no longer physically, psychologically and spiritually capable of handling the duties of his office, then he has a right, and under some circumstances, also an obligation to resign,” Benedict said in “Light of the World.”
He essentially laid out that same rationale to his cardinals on that chilly February morning.
“After having repeatedly examined my conscience before God, I have come to the certainty that my strengths, due to an advanced age, are no longer suited to an adequate exercise of the Petrine (St. Peter) ministry,” he said.
He said that in modern world, “strength of mind and body are necessary, strength which in the last few months, has deteriorated in me to the extent that I have had to recognize my incapacity to adequately fulfill the ministry entrusted to me.”
Closing out his remarks, Benedict thanked the cardinals for their love and service and begged their forgiveness for his defects.
And in a promise he kept to the very end, he vowed to continue serving the church “through a life dedicated to prayer.”
___
Follow AP’s coverage of the death of Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI at https://apnews.com/hub/pope-benedict-xvi | 2023-01-01T16:26:50+00:00 | ktalnews.com | https://www.ktalnews.com/news/u-s-world/ap-benedicts-2013-resignation-shook-a-routine-vatican-ceremony/ |
THESSALONIKI, Greece (AP) — Family members awaited the results of DNA testing to identify victims of a train crash that killed nearly 60 people in Greece, as workers went on strike Thursday saying the rail system is outdated, underfunded and dangerous.
The government has blamed human error, and a railway official was charged with manslaughter.
Emergency crews, meanwhile, inched through the mangled remains of passenger carriages in their search for the dead from Tuesday night's head-on collision, which has left 57 confirmed dead — a number that rescuers fear will increase.
The collision of a passenger train and a freight train was the country's deadliest ever, and more than 48 people remained hospitalized — with six in intensive care — most in the central Greek city of Larissa.
RESIDENTS LINE UP IN RAIN TO GIVE BLOOD
Larissa residents lined up to give blood, many waiting in heavy rain for more than an hour, while the city’s hotel association provided free accommodation to relatives of the crash victims.
DNA matching was going fast, with at least four families — in the presence of psychologists — receiving confirmation Thursday that their relatives were among the dead, said police spokeswoman Constandia Dimoglidou.
Dimoglidou said the process usually takes several days but authorities are making an effort to finish by Friday. She said 24 bodies have been identified through DNA so far. The testing was necessary because many of the bodies were burned or mangled beyond recognition.
Among the dozens of grieving relatives who spent a second day at the hospital awaiting results Thursday was Dimitris Bournazis, whose father and 15-year-old brother remain unaccounted for. He said phone calls to Italian-owned train operator Hellenic Train have been fruitless.
“I’ve been trying since yesterday afternoon to communicate with the company to find out what seat my father was in,” he said. “Nobody has called me back.”
WORKERS, RELATIVES SAY TRAIN SYSTEM UNSAFE
Railway workers’ associations called strikes, halting national rail services and the subway in Athens to protest working conditions and what they described as a dangerous failure to modernize the rail system. A second 24-hour strike was called for Friday.
Two separate protests in central Athens were held by left-wing groups, with one resulting in clashes between stone-throwing youths and riot police. Protests were also held in Thessaloniki and Larissa.
Critics blame a lack of public investment during the deep financial crisis that spanned most of the previous decade and brought Greece to the brink of bankruptcy. It was during the crisis, in 2017, that the rail operator, then heavily losing money, was privatized and bought by Italy's Ferrovie dello Stato Italiane Group.
Despite years of modernization projects, much of the key rail control work is still manually operated.
The head of the engine drivers’ union, Costas Genidounias, said an up-to-date traffic control system was supposed to have been ready three years ago. He said that starting in 2020, union representatives sent legal notices to the company responsible for Greece's railway infrastructure, OSE, as well as government and regulatory officials, but received no reply.
OSE issued a statement Thursday expressing condolences to the victims' families but it has not publicly commented on the criticism.
“A FOREST OF RESPONSIBILITY”
Transportation Minister Kostas Karamanlis resigned following the crash and officials launched a judicial inquiry to determine how two trains traveled in opposite directions on the same track for more than 10 minutes without anyone raising the alarm.
The Larissa station manager was charged Thursday with multiple counts of manslaughter and causing serious physical harm through negligence. His name was not released.
The stationmaster’s lawyer, Stefanos Pandzardzidis, said his client was “devastated” and accepted “his portion of the responsibility.”
“But beyond that ... we must not focus on the tree while there’s a whole forest beyond it,” he said. “There’s a forest of responsibility.”
Bournazis agreed that the responsibility for the crash should go far beyond the stationmaster.
“We can’t dump all the blame on one person for making one mistake,” he said.
He said the crash should lead to a full safety overhaul of the country’s rail system.
“I’ve lost my brother, my father. That can’t change, I know it,” he said. “But the point is for us not to mourn victims like that again. They bought 50 tickets to death.”
Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis pledged in a televised statement Wednesday night to get to the bottom of the disaster.
"Responsibility will be assigned. We will work so that the words ‘never again’ ... will not remain an empty pledge,” he said. “That I promise you.”
“CENTIMETER BY CENTIMETER”
Amid the growing criticism, emergency workers continued their grim recovery effort, proceeding “centimeter by centimeter” through mounds of twisted steel, shattered glass and scattered luggage, said Fire Service spokesman Yiannis Artopios.
“We can see that there are more (bodies) of people there. Unfortunately they are in a very bad condition,” he told state television.
Rescuers were focusing on the restaurant car, which was crushed under the first carriage from the force of the collision, said fire official Vassilios Vathrakogiannis.
“This morning we removed seven burned bodies from that carriage,” he said.
CRASH SURVIVOR DESCRIBES FIERY ESCAPE
About 350 people were on the passenger train, many of them students returning from a holiday weekend and annual Carnival celebrations around Greece.
Andreas Alikaniotis, a 20-year-old survivor, described how he and fellow students escaped from a jackknifed train car as the fire approached, smashing windows and throwing luggage outside to use as a makeshift landing pad.
“It was a steep drop, into a ditch,” Alikaniotis, who suffered a knee injury, told reporters from his hospital bed in Larissa.
“The lights went out. ... The smoke was suffocating inside the rail car but also outside,” Alikaniotis said.
He said he was “one of the few around who had not been seriously injured.”
"Me and my friends helped people get out.”
Paphitis reported from Athens, Greece. Derek Gatopoulos in Athens contributed to this report. | 2023-03-02T21:57:04+00:00 | hjnews.com | https://www.hjnews.com/world/deadly-greek-train-crash-prompts-strike-relatives-give-dna/article_a204d47c-8429-5925-88ec-e13dea08e93a.html |
The month of March is known for many things: the beginning of spring, the start of Daylight Saving Time, St. Patrick’s Day, and March Madness, the largest college basketball tournament of the year. While the tournament's 'First Four' began on March 14, the madness really gears up on Thursday and Friday, when 32 games are split across the first round.
But some people claim March is also known for another thing – vasectomies.
Several health organizations across the country have used the hashtag #VasMadness when promoting the procedure ahead of the NCAA Tournament. Even food manufacturer Jack Links Jerky tweeted about the topic. The company launched a “Tender Meat for Tender Meat” care package giveaway for people who get a vasectomy before the tournament.
VERIFY looked into whether it’s true March Madness is actually a popular time for the vasectomy procedure.
THE QUESTION
Is March a popular month for vasectomies?
THE SOURCES
THE ANSWER
Yes, March is a popular month for vasectomies. Experts say March Madness is the main reason for the spike in people getting the procedure.
WHAT WE FOUND
The Urology Clinic of North Texas says of the approximately 500,000 men in the U.S. who get vasectomies in a year, a large percentage of them get it scheduled in March.
A vasectomy is a medical sterilization procedure that stops sperm from being able to get to semen. To perform a vasectomy, a urologist removes a small section of the vas deferens, or the sperm duct, in both testicles. After getting a vasectomy, the Mayo Clinic says a person would need to rest 24 hours after surgery and avoid any heavy activity for up to three days.
Since vasectomies take a few days to heal and rest is needed, many men get them done during March Madness so they can watch basketball while they recover, the Urology Clinic of North Texas website said. Urology Austin, another Texas-based clinic, also said the tournament is a popular time to get snipped.
The March Madness and vasectomy combo began as a marketing ploy, Ajay Nangia, M.D., urologist with The University of Kansas Health System, told VERIFY.
Nangia thinks the trend started in the early-to-mid-2000s, when another urologist used the tournament to get more sports fans walking through clinic doors. After that, in the same way some businesses offer pizza specials during the college tourney, other urologists started offering discounted vasectomies.
“And then it took off, whereby then other doctors started doing this, then the media picked up on it, then it became, you know, a vicious circle of ‘which is fact, which is fiction.’ And initially, it was much more of a sensationalism, but actually started becoming true. An urban legend that actually became true,” Nangia said of the trend.
A 2018 study in Urology Gold Journal also found that from 2007 to 2015, the month of March and the end of the year – when insurance deductibles have been met – had the highest proportion of vasectomies performed. Nangia believes the spike of vasectomies in the month of March, as reported in that study, can be attributed to the marketing gimmicks to get more patients in ahead of March Madness.
My Vasectomy Doc, a clinic in Spartanburg, South Carolina, has a notice on their homepage that says: “Come see us at My Vasectomy Doc for a no-needle, no-scalpel vasectomy just in time for March Madness opening weekend!”
And other brands, not just Jack Links Jerky, are trying to get in on it. Twisted Tea is offering VasectomUndies during March Madness. In lieu of the traditional frozen bag of peas during recovery, the boxers are designed to hold cold drinks near your nether regions while you’re watching the tournament. | 2023-03-18T11:54:35+00:00 | wtsp.com | https://www.wtsp.com/article/news/verify/health-verify/march-madness-popular-month-for-vasectomies/536-92fa08e0-2da0-4a6c-b808-8c46ccdd6852 |
BELFAST, Northern Ireland (AP) — President Joe Biden embarked Tuesday on a journey of diplomatic and family celebration, highlighting the U.S. role of 25 years ago in ending deadly bloodshed in Northern Ireland while catching up with distant relatives in the Republic of Ireland. It’s his first trip back as America’s president.
Biden arrived in Belfast on Tuesday night and was greeted at the airport by United Kingdom Prime Minister Rishi Sunak. He will spend about half a day in the city on Wednesday, holding talks with Sunak before going to Ulster University to mark the Good Friday accord anniversary.
The president will also “engage” with the leaders of Northern Ireland’s five main political parties but not as a group, the White House said.
Monday marked a quarter-century since the Good Friday Agreement, signed on that day in April 1998, ended decades of violence in Northern Ireland that killed 3,600 people. Northern Ireland, which is part of the United Kingdom, is observing the milestone anniversary with a reunion of key players in the peace process along with Biden’s visit.
Deep divisions remain over the conflict’s legacy, and U.K. authorities in March raised the terrorism threat level in Northern Ireland to “severe,” warning of IRA dissidents opposed to the peace process and set on attacks. Youths threw gasoline bombs and set a police vehicle on fire during a dissident march in Londonderry on Monday.
Biden said last month that nothing would change his travel plans.
“They can’t keep me out,” he said.
The Democratic president will spend four days on the trip in all, including appearances in Belfast, the capital and largest city in Northern Ireland; in Dublin, the capital of the Republic of Ireland, and in County Louth and County Mayo, on Ireland’s East and West coasts, respectively. He will also address Ireland’s Parliament.
In County Louth the 80-year-old will dive into the Irish ancestry of which he is immensely proud and speaks about often.
Biden will hold separate meetings Thursday in Dublin with Irish President Michael Higgins and Prime Minister Leo Varadkar before the address to Parliament and a dinner banquet. Varadkar visited Biden in the Oval Office last month on St. Patrick’s Day.
The president will spend Friday, the final day of the trip, in County Mayo, exploring family genealogy and giving a speech about ties between the U.S. and Ireland in front of a 19th century cathedral that the White House said was partly built using bricks supplied by his great-great-great-grandfather, Edward Blewitt, a brickmaker and civil engineer.
“The president is very much looking forward to that trip and to celebrating the deep historic ties that our two countries and our two people continue to share,” National Security Council spokesperson John Kirby said.
Ending decades of sectarian violence in Northern Ireland, a period referred to as “the Troubles,” meant balancing competing identities in the country, which remained in the United Kingdom when the rest of Ireland won independence a century ago. Irish nationalists in the north — most of them Catholic — seek union with the Republic of Ireland, while largely Protestant unionists want to stay with the U.K.
The Good Friday Agreement, struck on April 10, 1998, after almost two years of U.S.-backed talks, committed armed groups to stop fighting, ended direct British rule and set up a Northern Ireland legislature and government with power shared between unionist and nationalist parties.
But Britain’s exit from the European Union, which left Northern Ireland poised uneasily between the rest of Britain and EU member Ireland, has upset a delicate political balance, including the power-sharing system set up by the peace accord.
The Northern Ireland Assembly has not sat for more than a year, after the main unionist party pulled out of the government to protest new trade rules for Northern Ireland brought in after Brexit.
A more recent accord between the U.K. and the EU, known as the Windsor Framework, addresses some of the issues that arose around commerce and goods sent across the Irish Sea from Great Britain to Northern Ireland. Biden has praised the framework as an important step in maintaining the peace, though Northern Ireland’s political leaders have called for changes.
Asked as he prepared to leave Washington about his priorities for the trip, Biden said, “Make sure the Irish accords and the Windsor agreement stay in place. Keep the peace. That’s the main thing.”
Max Bergmann, director of the Europe, Russia and Eurasia program at the Center for Strategic and International Studies think tank in Washington, said he would expect Biden to use the anniversary to highlight the positive role the U.S. can play in forging peace around the world.
“This is a real success, 25 years later, of U.S. diplomacy, where the U.S. was asked and then played a very critical role in bridging the divide between two of its friends and partners,” Bergmann said in an interview. “I think this is a moment to mark that progress can happen in the world and the United States can play a central role in it.”
Excitement over Biden’s trip has been growing in the town of Ballina, from which one of the president’s great-great-grandfathers left for the United States in 1850.
Buildings are getting fresh coats of paint and American flags are being hung from shopfronts in Ballina, a bustling agricultural town of about 10,000 residents at the mouth of the River Moy in western Ireland. The center of town already has a mural of a beaming Biden, erected in 2020.
Many people from Ballina and the surrounding County Mayo moved to Pennsylvania in the 19th century, and Ballina is twinned with Scranton, Biden’s hometown.
Joe Blewitt, a distant cousin who first met Biden when he visited Ballina as vice president in 2016, told The Associated Press that the U.S. leader pledged to return once he’d won the presidency.
“He said, ‘I’m going to come back into Ballina.’ And sure to God he’s going to come back into Ballina,” Blewitt said. “His Irish roots are really deep in his heart.”
The 43-year-old plumber was among Biden relations invited to the White House for St. Patrick’s Day last month. Blewitt said it was a “surreal” experience; it included a half-hour private meeting with Biden.
Biden, who was accompanied on the trip by his sister Valerie and son Hunter, often peppers his public remarks with sayings from his late mother and father, and he regularly quotes Irish poets, including Seamus Heaney and William Butler Yeats. He recently boasted to White House guests that the mansion was designed and built by an Irish American, James Hoban.
Ireland’s Irish Family History Centre says Biden “is among the most ‘Irish’ of all U.S. Presidents” — 10 of his 16 great-great-grandparents were from the Emerald Isle. All left for the U.S. during the Great Famine of the mid-19th century, which killed an estimated 1 million people.
___
Lawless reported from Ballina, Ireland. | 2023-04-12T13:05:16+00:00 | valleycentral.com | https://www.valleycentral.com/green-living/top-story/ap-top-headlines/biden-celebrating-diplomacy-his-ancestry-on-trip-to-ireland/ |
NEW YORK (AP) — Officials in New York City declared a public health emergency due to the spread of the monkeypox virus Saturday, calling the city “the epicenter” of the outbreak.
The announcement Saturday by Mayor Eric Adams and health Commissioner Ashwin Vasan said as many as 150,000 city residents could be at risk of infection. The declaration will allow officials to issue emergency orders under the city health code and amend code provisions to implement measures to help slow the spread.
In the last two days, New York Gov. Kathy Hochul declared a state disaster emergency declaration and the state health department called monkeypox an “imminent threat to public health.”
New York had recorded 1,345 cases as of Friday, according to data compiled by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. California had the second-most, with 799.
“We will continue to work with our federal partners to secure more doses as soon as they become available,” Adams and Vasan said in the statement. “This outbreak must be met with urgency, action, and resources, both nationally and globally, and this declaration of a public health emergency reflects the seriousness of the moment.”
The World Health Organization declared monkeypox a global health emergency on July 23 and San Francisco’s mayor on Thursday announced a state of emergency over the growing number of cases.
The once-rare disease has been established in parts of central and west Africa for decades but was not known to spark large outbreaks beyond the continent or to spread widely among people until May, when authorities detected dozens of epidemics in Europe, North America and elsewhere.
To date, there have been more than 22,000 monkeypox cases reported in nearly 80 countries since May, with about 75 suspected deaths in Africa, mostly in Nigeria and Congo. On Friday, Brazil and Spain reported deaths linked to monkeypox, the first reported outside Africa. Spain reported a second monkeypox death Saturday.
The virus spreads through prolonged and close skin-to-skin contact as well as sharing bedding, towels and clothing. In Europe and North America, it has spread primarily among men who have sex with men, though health officials emphasize that the virus can infect anyone.
The type of monkeypox virus identified in this outbreak is rarely fatal, and people usually recover within weeks. But the lesions and blisters caused by the virus are painful. | 2022-07-31T21:26:26+00:00 | pahomepage.com | https://www.pahomepage.com/news/national/new-york-city-declares-monkeypox-a-public-health-emergency/ |
KENOSHA — A campaign to remodel a near century-old Ceremonial Courtroom has a new consultant to manage fundraising enroute to meeting the $1.35 million pledge goal for restoring the historic space in the Kenosha County Courthouse to its former grandeur.
The county-sponsored campaign has raised at least $350,000 for the project with a possible commitment for significant additional funding in the future, according to Frank Martinelli, special projects manager
Frank Martinelli, special projects manager, gives the Kenosha County Public Works and Facilities Committee an update about fundraising efforts…
In 2021, the Jeffris Foundation bestowed a $675,000 “challenge” grant to the project with the caveat that the county raise twice the amount no later than June 30, 2024.
Once the $1.35 million goal has been met, the foundation will release the grant to the county, Martinelli said.
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“It would be the $1.3 million (raised) that would trigger them giving the $675,000,” Martinelli said in a update to the Public Works and Facilities Committee on Monday night.
The restoration project will cost just over $2 million.
Reached Tuesday, John Collins, co-chair of a blue ribbon committee tasked with overseeing fundraising for the project, said that with the hiring of Milwaukee-based consultant The Abbey Group, "we're moving along."
The firm manages non-profit, philanthropic endeavors.
Collins said that fundraising efforts have slowed during the last several months while officials transitioned to a new consultant.
"So, currently, we're working with the Abbey Group out of Milwaukee and they're doing fine," he said. "I like them a lot and I'm very pleased there's a new jolt of energy running through the system and we're optimistic … I think we're in good shape.
"As this process unfolds, it's a matter of continuing to seek contributors and seek people who have an interest in preserving the history and as we find them, then we go look for more. There's going to be more information for the public as we proceed."
During the public works meeting, Supervisor Brian Thomas, a member of the committee, asked what would need to be done in order to prepare for the proposed restoration once the fundraising goal is met.
“To really get a handle on what it was going to cost to redo this, we really did about 80 percent of all the architectural plans,” Martinelli said.
In the proposed budget for next year, the County Board will be asked to approve about $100,000 to complete architectural documents by June of next year, Martinelli said.
This will enable the county to bid out the project by November 2024, according to Martinelli.
The project would still undergo review and need to be approved by the County Board.
Should the project receive the necessary approvals, remodeling of the Ceremonial Courtroom would begin as early as spring 2025, coinciding with the 100-year anniversary of the Kenosha County Courthouse.
Construction is expected to take about a year to complete.
The project for the historic courtroom, which was built in 1925, includes restoration of the ceiling, skylight and plaster work, installation of reproductions of the original lighting, and moving the HVAC equipment.
A second phase would include returning the walls above the existing original wooden wainscoting to their historic look, including the original paint colors and stenciling.
The restoration would return to public view a gold leaf quote that lines the room, along with detailed ornamental plaster and a stained-glass skylight that was original to the building.
The quote from Abraham Lincoln reads: “Let every American, every lover of liberty, every well-wisher to his posterity, swear by the blood of the Revolution, never to violate in the least particular, the laws of the country; and never to tolerate their violation by others.”
The project also includes restoring several murals and would allow the courtroom to be used for historical and architectural tours, educational activities for children and community events. | 2023-07-26T16:10:17+00:00 | kenoshanews.com | https://kenoshanews.com/news/local/government-politics/kenosha-county-ceremonial-courtroom-restoration-fundraising/article_5584656a-2ac8-11ee-8fe8-df9820a2bd44.html |
SUNRISE, Fla. (AP) — Andre Burakovsky scored the go-ahead goal midway through the second period and the Seattle Kraken beat the Florida Panthers 5-2 on Sunday night.
Matty Beniers, Jordan Eberle, Daniel Sprong and Yanni Gourde also scored to help Seattle snap a three-game losing streak. Martin Jones finished with 23 saves as the Kraken improved to 3-1 all-time against the Panthers — including 2-0 in Florida.
“We wanted to get back to who we are,’’ Seattle coach Dave Hakstol said. “We had lost three in a row so we needed that 60-minute performance in order to push back in the right direction. Our players did that. … I thought we were pretty consistent, our special teams were solid and contributed to the win. Goaltending was solid. That’s what it takes to get a good road win.”
Eric Staal and Chris Tierney scored for the Panthers, who have lost two straight and three of four. Sergei Bobrovsky had 27 saves while starting for the second straight night with Spencer Knight out due to illness.
“There were an awful lot of difficulty in some basic things in our game,’’ Florida coach Paul Maurice said. “We had trouble moving the puck. There are physical turnovers and mental ones and we had a little bit of both. … As the game wore on, you saw the mental aspect. We started a little bit off then they pushed and I don’t think we found a way to get better during the game.”
Seattle opened the scoring 1:04 into the game when Beniers scored on a turnover deep in the Florida zone. It was his 11th of the season.
The Panthers tied the score at 7:34 of the second when Staal scored his first goal in more than 18 months. The veteran center, who did not play in the NHL last season, signed a one-year deal with Florida in October.
Burakovsky then gave Seattle the lead for good 1:31 later with his 10th of the season.
Florida was unable to tie the score on a power-play chance in the third and Eberle scored his seventh soon after it ended to give the Kraken a 3-1 lead at 7:15.
“I think it was a much better effort than we had seen lately,’’ Gourde said. “It was a much more complete game, our compete level was higher. Everything was better tonight.”
The Panthers’ Ryan Lomberg was hit with a two-minute penalty for roughing and a five-minute major for boarding a little more than four minutes later. The Kraken took advantage as Sprong scored on the power play with 4:51 left for his sixth.
Gourde scored an empty-netter with 2:38 left to make it 5-1.
Tierney capped the scoring with his second with 1:17 remaining.
NOTES: The Panthers continue to deal with players feeling under the weather. After captain Aleksander Barkov missed six consecutive games before returning Thursday night, center Anton Lundell has missed four games and Knight has been out for three. … The Panthers also have defenseman Radko Gudas in concussion protocol after he was hurt in Seattle on Dec. 3.
UP NEXT
Kraken: At Tampa Bay on Tuesday night.
Panthers: Host Columbus on Tuesday night.
Copyright 2022 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed. | 2022-12-12T05:51:41+00:00 | wsvn.com | https://wsvn.com/sports/burakovsky-helps-kraken-beat-panthers-5-2/ |
NEW YORK, Nov. 28, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- The Gross Law Firm issues the following notice to shareholders of Freshworks Inc..
Shareholders who purchased shares of FRSH during the class period listed are encouraged to contact the firm regarding possible lead plaintiff appointment. Appointment as lead plaintiff is not required to partake in any recovery.
CONTACT US HERE:
CLASS PERIOD: This lawsuit is on behalf of persons and entities that purchased Freshworks common stock pursuant to and/or traceable to documents issued in connection with the Company's initial public offering.
ALLEGATIONS: According to the complaint, the documents used to effectuate Freshworks' initial public offering were false and misleading and omitted to state that, at the time of the initial public offering, the Company's business had encountered obstacles. As a result of these obstacles, Freshworks' net dollar retention rate was plateauing, and its revenue growth rate and billings were decelerating.
DEADLINE: January 3, 2023 Shareholders should not delay in registering for this class action. Register your information here: https://securitiesclasslaw.com/securities/freshworks-inc-loss-submission-form/?id=33952&from=4
NEXT STEPS FOR SHAREHOLDERS: Once you register as a shareholder who purchased shares of FRSH during the timeframe listed above, you will be enrolled in a portfolio monitoring software to provide you with status updates throughout the lifecycle of the case. The deadline to seek to be a lead plaintiff is January 3, 2023. There is no cost or obligation to you to participate in this case.
WHY GROSS LAW FIRM? The Gross Law Firm is nationally recognized class action law firm, and our mission is to protect the rights of all investors who have suffered as a result of deceit, fraud, and illegal business practices. The Gross Law Firm is committed to ensuring that companies adhere to responsible business practices and engage in good corporate citizenship. The firm seeks recovery on behalf of investors who incurred losses when false and/or misleading statements or the omission of material information by a company lead to artificial inflation of the company's stock. Attorney advertising. Prior results do not guarantee similar outcomes.
CONTACT:
The Gross Law Firm
15 West 38th Street, 12th floor
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Email: dg@securitiesclasslaw.com
Phone: (646) 453-8903
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SOURCE The Gross Law Firm | 2022-11-28T11:34:43+00:00 | kxii.com | https://www.kxii.com/prnewswire/2022/11/28/shareholder-alert-gross-law-firm-notifies-shareholders-freshworks-inc-class-action-lawsuit-lead-plaintiff-deadline-january-3-2023-nasdaq-frsh/ |
MENLO PARK, Calif., Jan. 9, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- PacBio (NASDAQ: PACB), a leading developer of highly accurate sequencing solutions, today announced a collaboration with the University of Tokyo, Graduate School of Medicine to study the use of long-read sequencing and novel bioinformatics methods in the hopes of better understanding the genetic causes of certain rare diseases in individuals and cohorts within the Japanese population.
"Through this collaboration with the University of Tokyo, we plan on developing and applying new methods in the hopes of identifying genetic mutations of many diseases impacting the Japanese population," said Michael Eberle, Vice President of Computational Biology at PacBio. "This will help improve our understanding of difficult genetic regions and variants that we hope will benefit the Japanese population."
High-throughput bioinformatics software applications that are optimized for PacBio HiFi long-read sequencing data, such as the Tandem Repeat Genotyping Tool (TRGT), are designed to enable researchers in Japan and the international community to more effectively uncover disease-associated variants, including structural variants such as tandem repeats.
PacBio has worked with University of Tokyo researchers for years and has assisted their work around sequencing hundreds of human genomes and structural variants associated with neurological disorders and leukemia (some of this research was published in Nature Genetics in 2018 and 2019 and in Oxford Bioinformatics in 2016).
"Collaborating with PacBio in applying advanced bioinformatics workflows should accelerate our in-progress work characterizing structural variants and making these findings more accessible to the broader scientific community. We believe this collaboration will complement our previous work and help us identify many more disease-causing structural variations in the human genome," said Dr. Shoji Tsuji, a senior investigator for the University of Tokyo Hospital, Department of Neurology.
Pacific Biosciences of California, Inc. (NASDAQ: PACB) is a premier life science technology company that is designing, developing, and manufacturing advanced sequencing solutions to help scientists and clinical researchers resolve genetically complex problems. Our products and technology under development stem from two highly differentiated core technologies focused on accuracy, quality, and completeness which include our existing HiFi long-read sequencing and our emerging SBB® short-read sequencing technologies. Our products address solutions across a broad set of research applications, including human germline sequencing, plant and animal sciences, infectious disease and microbiology, oncology, and other emerging applications. For more information, please visit www.pacb.com and follow @PacBio.
This press release may contain "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, and the U.S. Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. All statements other than statements of historical fact are forward-looking statements, including statements related to the collaboration with and the University of Tokyo, Graduate School of Medicine, the anticipated outcomes and results of such collaboration, such as identifying certain disease-causing variants associated with rare disease, and other future events. Readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements and any such forward-looking statements are qualified in their entirety by reference to the following cautionary statements. All forward-looking statements speak only as of the date of this press release and are based on current expectations, and involve a number of assumptions, risks and uncertainties that could cause the actual results to differ materially from such forward-looking statements, including, among others, potential product and quality issues, and risks inherent in conducting a research study. Readers are strongly encouraged to read the full cautionary statements contained in the Company's filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission, including the risks set forth in the company's Forms 8-K, 10-K, and 10-Q. The Company disclaims any obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statements.
Investors:
Todd Friedman
ir@pacificbiosciences.com
Media:
Lizelda Lopez
pr@pacificbiosciences.com
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SOURCE Pacific Biosciences of California, Inc. | 2023-01-09T12:23:26+00:00 | kwch.com | https://www.kwch.com/prnewswire/2023/01/09/pacbio-university-tokyo-announce-bioinformatics-applications-collaboration/ |
Metal detectors were removed from outside the House chamber with the start of the new Republican-controlled House on Tuesday.
The extra layer of security was ordered put in place by then-Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) in the wake of the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the Capitol.
The addition of the metal detectors drew the ire of House Republicans, several of whom initially refused to comply with the new security screenings and pushed passed Capitol Police into the chamber without passing through the magnetometers.
In response, Pelosi announced that the House would institute fines for lawmakers who bypassed security, with a $5,000 fine for the first offense and $10,000 for the second.
“It is tragic that this step is necessary, but the chamber of the People’s House must and will be safe,” she said at the time.
Rep. Lauren Boebert (R-Colo.) — who was seen having a dispute with police over the metal detectors in the days after their placement — celebrated their removal in a video posted to Twitter on Tuesday.
“When I arrived in Congress two years, Nancy Pelosi put this hunk of garbage outside of the House chambers for members of Congress to go through,” Boebert said, as the metal detectors were removed behind her. “Today, they are being removed and we are turning Pelosi’s House back into the people’s House.” | 2023-01-03T20:59:14+00:00 | ksn.com | https://www.ksn.com/hill-politics/metal-detectors-removed-from-outside-the-house-chamber/ |
NEW YORK, Jan. 9, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Rowley Law PLLC is investigating potential securities law violations by Duck Creek Technologies (NASDAQ: DCT) and its board of directors concerning the proposed acquisition of the company by Vista Equity Partners. Stockholders will receive $19.00 for each share of Duck Creek Technologies stock that they hold. The transaction is valued at approximately $2.6 billion and is expected to close in the second quarter of this year.
If you are a stockholder of Duck Creek Technologies and are interested in obtaining additional information regarding this investigation, please visit us at: http://www.rowleylawpllc.com/investigation/dckt/. You may also contact Shane Rowley, Esq. at Rowley Law PLLC, 50 Main Street Suite 1000, White Plains, NY 10606, by email at info@rowleylawpllc.com, or by telephone at 914-400-1920 or 844-400-4643 (toll-free).
Rowley Law PLLC represents shareholders nationwide in class actions and derivative lawsuits in complex corporate litigation. For more information about the firm and its attorneys, please visit http://www.rowleylawpllc.com.
Attorney Advertising. Prior results do not guarantee a similar outcome.
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SOURCE Rowley Law PLLC | 2023-01-10T00:29:54+00:00 | kwch.com | https://www.kwch.com/prnewswire/2023/01/09/alert-rowley-law-pllc-is-investigating-proposed-acquisition-duck-creek-technologies/ |
Ex-CFO says Trump kids raised pay after learning of scheme
NEW YORK (AP) — How did Donald Trump’s oldest sons — entrusted to run his company when he became president — react when they learned that a top executive was scheming to dodge taxes on lavish corporate perks?
They gave him a raise, according to testimony Friday at the Trump Organization’s criminal tax fraud trial.
Allen Weisselberg, the company’s longtime chief financial officer, testified that Eric Trump raised his pay $200,000 after an internal audit spurred by Trump’s 2016 election found that he’d been reducing his salary and bonuses by the cost of the perks.
The raises boosted Weisselberg’s annual pay to $1.14 million, extra cash he said he used to pay for things Trump and the company had previously been: Manhattan apartment rent, Mercedes-Benz cars for him and his wife, his grandchildren’s school tuition, and more.
The company continues to pay Weisselberg $640,000 in salary and $500,000 in holiday bonuses and punished him only nominally after his arrest in July 2021, reassigning him to senior adviser and moving his office at Trump Tower. He’s now on paid leave.
“Now, even after you plead guilty in this case did the company reduce your salary one penny?” prosecutor Susan Hoffinger asked Weisselberg on his third and final day of testimony.
“No,” he said.
“Even with your betrayal of their trust?” she asked.
“Correct.”
Weisselberg testified that Eric Trump and Donald Trump Jr., both Trump Organization executive vice presidents, knew from the audit that Weisselberg had not reported his apartment as taxable income, as required by law.
Weisselberg told jurors he stopped his scheme after the audit and soon after asked Eric Trump for a raise, conveying to him that “since the practice was no longer going on I would need some additional income to pay for those expenses.”
Weisselberg said Eric Trump, who handles day-to-day operations at the company, signed off on his raise and is now in line to approve his latest $500,000 holiday bonus — even as Weisselberg prepares to shuffle off to New York City’s infamous Rikers Island jail complex.
Other executives accused of scheming to avoid taxes also kept their jobs and pay, Weisselberg said. They include his son, former Central Park ice rink manager Barry Weisselberg, and the company’s chief operating officer, Matthew Calamari Sr.
Weisselberg, 75, pleaded guilty in August to taking $1.7 million in off-the-books compensation. His plea agreement requires him to testify for the prosecution in exchange for a five-month jail sentence. Weisselberg, who had been facing up to 15 years in prison, said he previously rejected an offer of one to three years in prison.
Manhattan prosecutors allege that the Trump Organization helped top executives avoid paying taxes on company-paid perks and that it is liable for Weisselberg’s wrongdoing because he was a “high managerial agent” acting on its behalf.
The tax fraud case is the only trial to arise from the Manhattan district attorney’s three-year investigation of Trump and his business practices. If convicted, the company could be fined more than $1 million and face difficulty making deals.
Weisselberg’s testimony Friday suggests that key Trump Organization executives — members of Trump’s family — condoned his behavior once it was discovered, rather than firing him and reporting him to the authorities. Weisselberg said the scheme benefited the company because it didn’t have to pay him as much in salary.
The company’s lawyers, however, argue that the Trumps are deeply loyal, stressing how Weisselberg was “among the most trusted people they knew” and how they continue to stand by him, even as he acknowledged betraying them. His lawyers are being paid by the company.
Company lawyer Alan Futerfas, questioning Weisselberg on cross-examination, noted that even “in the worst time in your life” Trump has “not kicked you to the curb.” But, the lawyer asked, “you don’t understand that to mean that he approves of what you did, do you?”
“No,” Weisselberg said.
Trump, who announced Tuesday that he is running again for president in 2024, is not expected to appear at the trial. But he signaled Friday that he has been following along, defending Weisselberg and bashing prosecutors in posts to his Truth Social platform.
Trump wrote that the case had “fallen apart” after Weisselberg testified Thursday that neither Trump nor Trump’s family were involved in his tax avoidance scheme.
“Did a longtime executive pay tax on the use of a company car, or a company apartment, or payments (not even taken by us as a tax deduction!) for the education of his grandchildren. For this he get handcuffs and jail?” Trump wrote, describing the situation as “VERY UNFAIR!”
Trump was elected president in November 2016, inviting fresh scrutiny of his Trump Organization, a privately held entity through which he and his family manage its golf courses, luxury towers and other investments.
Weisselberg said he and another company executive, Jeffrey McConney, decided around that time that the company had to end some of its dubious pay practices and financial arrangements. They brought in a Washington lawyer who conducted an audit and wrote a memo of her findings.
McConney, the senior vice president and controller, helped Weisselberg fudge payroll records to reduce his income tax bill. He received immunity and testified earlier in the trial.
___
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Copyright 2022 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. | 2022-11-18T22:15:43+00:00 | kxii.com | https://www.kxii.com/2022/11/18/ex-cfo-says-trump-kids-raised-pay-after-learning-scheme/ |
Atlanta-area prosecutors are considering bringing racketeering and conspiracy charges in connection with Donald Trump's effort to overturn the 2020 election in Georgia, according to a source with knowledge of the investigation.
Investigators have a large volume of substantial evidence related to a possible conspiracy from inside and outside the state, including recordings of phone calls, emails, text messages, documents, and testimony before a special grand jury.
Their work, the source said, underscores the belief that the push to help Trump was not just a grassroots effort that originated inside the state.
The special grand jury met for roughly seven months in Atlanta and heard testimony from 75 witnesses, including some of Trump's closest advisers from his final weeks in the White House. It recommended issuing multiple indictments in their final report, according to the jury foreperson who spoke out in a media blitz.
Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis could make decisions on charges this spring, the source said. Willis will bring her charging recommendations to the regularly seated grand juries, who each serve two-month terms. Two regular Fulton County grand juries were seated in early March, and the next batch of two are scheduled to be sworn-in early May.
Investigators have at least three recordings of Trump pressuring Georgia officials, including a phone call that he made to the Georgia House speaker to push for a special session to overturn Democrat Joe Biden's 2020 victory in the state.
There is also a recording of Trump's call to a top investigator with the Georgia Secretary of State's office in December 2020, while they were looking into quashed allegations of irregularities with signature-matching in Cobb County in the Atlanta metropolitan area.
Willis kicked off her investigation in early 2021, soon after the infamous January phone call became public in which Trump pressured Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger to "find" the votes necessary for Trump to win Georgia's electoral votes.
The Fulton County probe expanded beyond the Trump phone calls to include false claims of election fraud to state lawmakers, the fake elector scheme, efforts by unauthorized individuals to access voting machines in one Georgia county and threats and harassment against election workers.
Willis previously said their far-reaching investigation included potential "solicitation of election fraud, the making of false statements to state and local governmental bodies, conspiracy, racketeering, violation of oath of office and any involvement in violence or threats related to the election's administration."
Willis' office declined to comment for this story.
The investigation also included presentations that former Trump lawyer Rudy Giuliani made before state lawmakers that were riddled with election falsehoods; a phone call between South Carolina Sen. Lindsey Graham and Raffensperger; and the sudden departure of Byung "BJay" Pak, the US attorney for the Northern District of Georgia.
A potential indictment of Trump in New York is not affecting the pace of charging decisions in the Georgia case, a person familiar with the matter tells CNN, though Willis' office is closely watching how the security situation there plays out in case it needs to make arrangements in Georgia.
Willis: 'I'm a fan of RICO'
Racketeering charges, sometimes used in gang-related activity, allow prosecutors to bring charges against multiple defendants. Willis could use the law to try to make the case that Trump and his allies were part of a criminal enterprise in their various efforts to pressure state officials, put forth fake electors and otherwise try to influence the election.
"The reason that I am a fan of RICO is, I think jurors are very, very intelligent," Willis said at a news conference about a broad gang-related indictment over the summer of 2022. "They want to know what happened. They want to make an accurate decision about someone's life. And so RICO is a tool that allows a prosecutor's office and law enforcement to tell the whole story."
John Floyd, a lawyer with deep expertise in racketeering cases, is assisting Fulton County on multiple cases, including Willis gang indictment against the rapper Young Thug, where she is currently using the RICO Act and introducing song lyrics as evidence.
Trump, who has launched his 2024 campaign for the White House, denies any criminal wrongdoing. He has claimed that Willis, a Democrat, is politically biased, and still regularly promotes the false claim that he won the election in Georgia.
The former President's Georgia legal team -- Drew Findling, Jennifer Little, and Marisa Goldberg -- previously wrote in a January statement that because he was never subpoenaed or asked to appear before the grand jury voluntarily, "we can assume that the grand jury did their job and looked at the facts and the law, as we have, and concluded there were no violations of the law by President Trump."
A Fulton County judge approved the district attorney's request to document testimony by all 75 witnesses who appeared before the special grand jury, so the full record of transcripts could become public record, according to a source familiar with the investigation. Although, timing details of when this treasure trove of information could be released is still unclear.
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution recently spoke anonymously with five of the jurors who served on the special grand jury. "A lot's gonna come out sooner or later," one of the jurors said. "And it's gonna be massive. It's gonna be massive."
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Ja Morant NBA Playoffs Player Prop Bets: Grizzlies vs. Lakers - April 28
The Memphis Grizzlies, Ja Morant included, will be in action at 10:30 PM on Friday versus the Los Angeles Lakers in the 2023 NBA Playoffs.
We're going to examine Morant's prop bets, using stats and trends to help you make good selections.
Ja Morant Prop Bets vs. the Lakers
Looking to bet on one or more of Ja Morant's player prop bets? Sign up at DraftKings with our link to get a first deposit bonus today!
Ja Morant Insights vs. the Lakers
- This season, Ja Morant has made 9.3 field goals per game, which adds up to 15.8% of his team's total makes.
- This season, he's accounted for 9.3% of his team's three-pointers made, averaging 1.5 per game.
- Morant's Grizzlies average 104.1 possessions per game, sixth-highest among NBA teams, while the Lakers are one of the league's fastest, ranking second with 104.8 possessions per contest.
- Defensively, the Lakers are 20th in the NBA, allowing 116.6 points per game.
- The Lakers concede 44.9 rebounds per game, ranking 25th in the NBA.
- The Lakers are the 15th-ranked squad in the NBA, conceding 25.7 assists per game.
- Giving up 12.5 made 3-pointers per game, the Lakers are the 18th-ranked team in the league.
Ja Morant vs. the Lakers
Want another way to try to win cash prizes? Add Morant or any of his Grizzlies teammates to your lineup in FanDuel Daily Fantasy NBA contests. Use our link to sign up and get a great offer for new users. (See website for offer details, not available in all areas.)
Not all offers available in all states. Please gamble responsibly. If you or someone you know has developed a gambling problem or addiction, contact 1-800-GAMBLER.
© 2023 Data Skrive. All rights reserved. | 2023-04-28T23:18:27+00:00 | kfyrtv.com | https://www.kfyrtv.com/sports/betting/2023/04/28/ja-morant-nba-playoffs-player-prop-bets-grizzlies-vs-lakers/ |
The Honda Civic Type R will race in the Japanese Super GT series starting in 2024, and will make its first shakedown runs ahead of competition July 25-26 at the Okayama International Circuit in Japan.
A new racing version of the Honda hot hatchback, dubbed Civic Type R-GT, will race in the top GT500 class alongside Super GT-spec versions of the Nissan Z and Toyota Supra, among others. Class rules give automakers significant leeway to alter bodywork, as demonstrated by the R-GT’s wide body and larger rear wing.
Class rules are more restrictive on powertrains, mandating a turbocharged 2.0-liter inline-4. Honda didn’t provide any additional information on the powertrain, but class rules set an output cap of 650 hp and also mandate 6-speed sequential transmissions with rear-wheel drive.
The Civic Type R road car also uses a 2.0-liter turbo-4, but with front-wheel drive, a 6-speed manual transmission, and a tamer 315 hp and 310 lb-ft of torque. It’s proven quick out of the box, though, setting a new record for front-wheel-drive cars at the Nürburgring Nordschleife, lapping the 12.6-mile track in 7:44.8.
On the road, the latest Civic Type R has a more grown-up character than its predecessor but remains a blast to drive. Such a blast, in fact, that it earned the title of of Motor Authority Best Car to Buy 2023.
The Civic Type R-GT joins a racing version designed for TCR regulations, which made its competition debut earlier this year. Unlike the Type R-GT, the Civic Type R TCR can be seen racing in North America in the IMSA Michelin Pilot Challenge series.
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- Ex-F1 driver’s Porsche 930 TAG Turbo by Lanzante revealed | 2023-07-25T19:23:49+00:00 | wboy.com | https://www.wboy.com/automotive/internet-brands/honda-civic-type-r-gt-prepares-for-super-gt-series/ |
BUCHAREST, Romania (AP) — Romania's Foreign Ministry said Sunday that a tourist from the country was killed in a shark attack while vacationing in Egypt, making it the second shark attack death there in recent days.
A 68-year-old Austrian woman died on Friday after losing an arm and a leg in another attack by a Moka shark while swimming in the Red Sea near the resort town of Hurghada. Egyptian local media widely reported on the death of a second woman from a shark attack on Sunday.
The Romanian Foreign Ministry said it was working to identify the victim, notify the family and see the body repatriated.
On Saturday, Egyptian authorities closed off a stretch of the country’s Red Sea coastline after the Austrian woman died. They banned water activities including diving, snorkeling, wind surfing and kite sailing. Fishing boats were also banned from the waters off Hurghada.
A video circulated online purported to show the attack that killed the Austrian woman, relatively close to the shore, as seen from a nearby pier. In the video, the water around the swimmer turns red from blood as bystanders on the pier throw a flotation device toward her. It remained unclear how she was able to get to the shore.
Shark attacks have been relatively rare in Egypt’s Red Sea coastal region in recent years. In 2020, a young Ukrainian boy lost an arm and an Egyptian tour guide lost a leg in a shark attack. In 2010, a spate of shark attacks killed one European tourist and maimed several others off Sharm el-Sheikh on the Sinai Peninsula, across the Red Sea from Hurghada.
Egypt’s Red Sea resorts, including Hurghada and Sharm el-Sheikh, are some of the country’s major beach destinations and are popular with European tourists. Divers are drawn by the steep drop-offs of coral reefs just offshore that offer a rich and colorful sea life.
A spokeswoman for Egypt’s Ministry of Environment declined to comment when asked about the second death.
Authorities have in recent years sought to revive the vital tourism sector, battered by years of instability and, more recently, the coronavirus pandemic and the war in Ukraine. | 2022-07-03T19:10:22+00:00 | springfieldnewssun.com | https://www.springfieldnewssun.com/nation-world/romanian-woman-killed-in-2nd-egypt-shark-attack-in-days/FIBOIB3PXFCIDIM4QKAAUNCK5A/ |
HARRISBURG, Pa. (AP) — Donald Trump’s attacks on fellow Republican David McCormick contributed to the former hedge fund manager’s loss in Pennsylvania’s Senate primary. Now, as McCormick considers running again for the Senate, Trump’s derision may not be such a liability.
While McCormick, 57, has not said whether he will challenge three-term Democratic Sen. Bob Casey in 2024, he is taking steps signaling a campaign may be in the works, including attending recent receptions with influential GOP strategists and donors. McCormick also plans to publish a book in March — “Superpower in Peril: A Battle Plan to Renew America” — that could raise his profile.
He would be running in what could be a much different political environment.
Trump dominated the GOP primaries this year, wielding the power of his endorsement to lift his preferred candidates to the party nomination. But many of those contenders, including Mehmet Oz in Pennsylvania, lost in the general election. The latest was Herschel Walker, whose defeat on Tuesday in Georgia gave Democrats 51 of the Senate’s 100 seats.
Trump is now facing blame from some Republicans for contributing to the party’s midterm shortcomings, and that could open room for McCormick and others without worrying about blowback from the former president.
McCormick “hasn’t come to any definitive conclusion even though we’ve tried to encourage him to run,” said Christine Toretti, the GOP’s national committeewoman from Pennsylvania. “I think he’s a fabulous candidate and I would love to see him run.”
McCormick did not respond to a request for an interview.
Flipping a Senate seat in one of the most competitive states won’t be easy.
Casey, 62, has not said whether he will seek reelection. He has never won a race for Senate by fewer than 9 percentage points and, as the son of a former two-term governor and someone who has run statewide seven times, is an institution in Pennsylvania politics.
The 2024 race in the closely contested state also could be influenced by the parties’ choice of presidential nominees that year.
Some Republicans expect that the Senate field will be frozen until McCormick makes up his mind. He was the establishment favorite in the party’s seven-way primary in May that he lost by fewer than 1,000 votes to Oz.
McCormick is a West Point graduate who was awarded a Bronze Star for service in the Gulf War, got a doctorate from Princeton University, became a tech entrepreneur and served at the highest levels in President George W. Bush’s administration before running the world’s largest hedge fund.
And he’s worth nine figures.
“With his resources, the party would be foolish to actively recruit someone to go against him,” said Vince Galko, a Republican campaign strategist based in northeastern Pennsylvania. “He checks most boxes Republicans care about.”
Over the weekend, McCormick was seemingly everywhere at the Pennsylvania Society, an annual cluster of dinners, receptions, fundraisers and get-togethers for Pennsylvania’s social and political elite in New York City. McCormick attended a reception hosted by Toretti and several events held by prominent donors and organizations.
One other name coming up in Republican circles as a potential Senate candidate is the elected state treasurer, Stacy Garrity, who campaigned hard for fellow Republicans on the ticket in 2022. Garrity didn’t return a request for comment.
Perhaps an equally big problem as Casey for McCormick — or any other Republican candidate — is the GOP’s embarrassing performance in this past election.
Finger-pointing is following GOP defeats in the races for senator, governor and three toss-up congressional districts, and its loss of the state House majority. Oz lost by 5 percentage points to Democrat John Fetterman, while the party’s nominee for governor, Doug Mastriano, lost by 15 points to Democrat Josh Shapiro.
Party leaders now are warning that the GOP must end an aversion among its voters to voting by mail, fueled by Trump’s baseless claims that such voting is rife with fraud.
They also say the party must be firm about endorsing in primaries to weed out weak general election candidates and avoid bruising primaries — a prospect sure to benefit McCormick.
And after GOP candidates once again lost vast swaths of Pennsylvania’s heavily populated suburbs, there is talk anew that the party must do a better job countering Democrats’ ideas and communicating their own to moderate voters.
That must be fixed before 2024 if a GOP candidate is to be successful, said Sam DeMarco, a McCormick supporter and GOP chairman in heavily populated Allegheny County.
Still, it’s not clear that McCormick can capture the GOP’s primary electorate.
In this year’s primary campaign, McCormick tapped deep connections across the world of finance, politics and government to get support for his campaign and was the choice of many in the establishment. He was wealthy enough to pay for his own TV ads, spending $14 million of his own money, and was backed by a super political action committee spending millions more.
To try to endear himself to working-class primary voters, his campaign put up ads of McCormick shooting guns, riding a motorcycle and reminiscing in a bar about scoring touchdowns as a high school athlete.
But McCormick was attacked by primary rivals that he was a carpetbagging political opportunist trying to buy the seat after living the previous 12 years in Connecticut. He also drew criticism for being weak on China after running a hedge fund notable for its sizable portfolio that catered to Chinese investors investing in China.
In the end, McCormick was not the choice of many of the party’s farthest-right voters.
And he was not the choice of Trump, who endorsed Oz and attacked McCormick as the “candidate of special interests and globalists and the Washington establishment.”
If Trump is on the ballot in 2024, McCormick will have to share the campaign trail with a fellow Republican who tried to defeat him and who continues to peddle baseless claims about how the 2020 election was stolen from him — claims that party leaders want to put behind them.
For a party that just went through a difficult election year in Pennsylvania, it’s certainly not too early to start talking about 2024, said Keith Rothfus, a former congressman who spoke with McCormick recently. He said candidates, even ones as wealthy as McCormick, should start talking to donors now and building a network of people who will give to their campaign and support them.
It’s also important for Republicans to start early in Pennsylvania, where Democrats have been winning most statewide races and hold a slight voter registration advantage.
“Pennsylvania is not a purple-red state, it’s purple at best for Republicans,” Rothfus said. “A Republican can win, but you pretty much have to run a flawless campaign and you pretty much have to do everything right.”
___
Follow Marc Levy on Twitter: http://twitter.com/timelywriter | 2022-12-08T18:05:06+00:00 | wdtn.com | https://www.wdtn.com/news/politics/ap-politics/ap-trump-blowback-could-carry-less-bite-in-2024-for-some-in-gop/ |
Atlanta-based The Home Depot activates Hurricane Command Center ahead of Ian
ATLANTA, Ga. (Atlanta News First) - As meteorologists track Hurricane Ian, a team from Atlanta-based The Home Depot is doing the same from inside the company’s Hurricane Command Center.
“They’re already sending the supplies that those stores are going to need,” said Danny Watson of The Home Depot.
The Home Depot activated its command center last week. Dozens of staff members are laser focused on analyzing weather data and mapping out trucking routes. The center’s mission is to manage the logistics of hauling critical supplies from their warehouses to stores in and around Ian’s path.
So far, they’ve moved more than 450 truckloads of emergency product, like generators, gas cans, and plywood.
“Really stay on top of everything, all the needs of the associates, all the needs of the customer to make sure that our stores have everything that they need,” said Watson. “Batteries, flashlights, a first aid kit, tarps, clamps for those tarps, tape.”
Trucks are still delivering supplies to the stores that are still open. As Ian bears down on Florida, The Home Depot was forced to close at least 40 stores in Ian’s path.
Company reps say they’ve positioned trucks outside the strike zone, in hopes of quickly moving supplies in just as Floridians return home and assess the damage left behind.
Copyright 2022 WANF. All rights reserved. | 2022-09-28T21:24:30+00:00 | atlantanewsfirst.com | https://www.atlantanewsfirst.com/2022/09/28/atlanta-based-home-depot-activates-hurricane-command-center-ahead-ian/ |
DETROIT (AP) — Tesla’s second-quarter profit fell 32% from record levels in the first quarter as supply chain issues and pandemic lockdowns in China slowed production of its electric vehicles.
But the Austin, Texas, company still surprised analysts Wednesday with a better-than-expected $2.26 billion net profit for the quarter. Tesla stuck with a prediction of 50% annual vehicle sales growth over the next few years, but said that depends on the supply chain, equipment capacity and other issues.
The company made a record $3.32 billion in this year’s first quarter.
Tesla’s sales from April through June fell to 254,000 vehicles, their lowest quarterly level since last fall. But the company predicted record-breaking production in the second half and said that in June it had the highest production month in its history.
Industry analysts had been expecting lower earnings after the lower sales figures and tweets by CEO Elon Musk about laying off 10% of the company’s work force due to fears of a recession. In an interview, Musk described new factories in Austin and Berlin as “money furnaces” that were losing billions of dollars because supply chain breakdowns were limiting the number of cars they can produce.
But Tesla exceeded Wall Street expectations from April through June with adjusted earnings of $2.27 per share. Analysts polled by FactSet expected $1.81. Revenue was $16.93 billion, beating estimates of $16.54 billion.
Edward Jones analyst Jeff Windau said the earnings were better than expected. He noted that the decrease in automobile revenues from the first quarter was offset by stronger energy storage, solar and services performance.
Musk reiterated the 50% annual vehicle sales growth forecast but said it depends a lot on circumstances that the company might not be able to control.
Windau said the forecast “shows the confidence they have in their ability to grow the electric vehicle market.”
Tesla shares rose 1.5% to $753.40 in extended trading Wednesday.
The company said it converted 75% of its bitcoin investment to government currency during the quarter, adding $936 million in cash to its balance sheet. It spent $1.5 billion on the investment last year. Overall, it booked a $106 million cost for bitcoin, plus added costs for employee reductions.
CEO Elon Musk said the bitcoin holdings were sold to raise cash because of uncertainty over how long pandemic lockdowns would last in China. He said Tesla is open to increasing bitcoin holdings in the future.
The price of bitcoin has fallen about 50% so far this year.
Musk also said Tesla is seeing indications that inflation may be declining as prices for most commodities drop. He cautioned against making economic predictions but said commodity prices, such as steel and aluminum, are trending down.
Musk said Tesla’s “Full Self-Driving” beta test software is on track to be released before the end of this year to all North American customers who want to buy it. And with regulatory approval, it will be released in Europe and other parts of the world, he said. Despite its name, “Full Self-Driving” cannot drive itself, and Tesla warns that drivers have to pay attention all the time.
Chief Financial Officer Zachary Kirkhorn said the company is seeing “maybe a little” impact on demand due to macroeconomic issues. Musk reiterated that Tesla has a vehicle supply problem, not a demand problem, and said it now takes six months to a year to get a new vehicle. He said the company has increased prices to “embarrassing levels” due to inflation, but he hopes to reduce prices a bit. | 2022-07-21T13:35:01+00:00 | myfox8.com | https://myfox8.com/business/ap-business/tesla-2q-profit-drops-from-1q-but-company-beats-estimates/ |
HOUSTON, Jan. 12, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Main Street Capital Corporation (NYSE: MAIN) ("Main Street") is pleased to announce the following recent activity in its private loan portfolio. During the fourth quarter of 2022, Main Street originated new or increased commitments in its private loan portfolio of $44.2 million and funded total investments across its private loan portfolio with a cost basis totaling $86.4 million.
The following represent notable new private loan commitments and investments during the fourth quarter of 2022:
- $29.1 million in a first lien senior secured loan and $3.7 million in a first lien senior secured revolver to an exclusive dealer and aircraft maintenance and upgrades service provider for single-engine turboprop airplanes in the United States;
- Increased commitment of $6.5 million in a mezzanine loan to a provider of secured cloud communications solutions and managed services for commercial, enterprise and public sector organizations throughout the United States; and
- Increased commitment of $4.9 million in a first lien senior secured incremental loan to a specialty distributor of hard-to-find and obsolete electronic components globally.
As of December 31, 2022, Main Street's private loan portfolio included total investments at cost of approximately $1.5 billion across 85 unique borrowers. The private loan portfolio, as a percentage of cost, included 96.7% invested in first lien debt investments and 3.3% invested in equity investments or other securities.
Main Street (www.mainstcapital.com) is a principal investment firm that primarily provides long-term debt and equity capital to lower middle market companies and debt capital to middle market companies. Main Street's portfolio investments are typically made to support management buyouts, recapitalizations, growth financings, refinancings and acquisitions of companies that operate in diverse industry sectors. Main Street seeks to partner with entrepreneurs, business owners and management teams and generally provides "one stop" financing alternatives within its lower middle market investment strategy. Main Street's lower middle market companies generally have annual revenues between $10 million and $150 million. Main Street's middle market debt investments are made in businesses that are generally larger in size than its lower middle market portfolio companies.
Main Street, through its wholly owned portfolio company MSC Adviser I, LLC ("MSC Adviser"), also maintains an asset management business through which it manages investments for external parties. MSC Adviser is registered as an investment adviser under the Investment Advisers Act of 1940, as amended.
Contacts:
Main Street Capital Corporation
Dwayne L. Hyzak, CEO, dhyzak@mainstcapital.com
Jesse E. Morris, CFO and COO, jmorris@mainstcapital.com
713-350-6000
Dennard Lascar Investor Relations
Ken Dennard | ken@dennardlascar.com
Zach Vaughan | zvaughan@dennardlascar.com
713-529-6600
View original content:
SOURCE Main Street Capital Corporation | 2023-01-12T13:12:52+00:00 | wlbt.com | https://www.wlbt.com/prnewswire/2023/01/12/main-street-announces-fourth-quarter-2022-private-loan-portfolio-activity/ |
TROUT LAKE — Mt. Adams Institute has received a $1,149,768 grant from Ameri-Corps, the federal agency responsible for national service and community volunteerism.
This funding will support up to 74 AmeriCorps members across the country participating in Mt. Adams Institute’s career development programs: VetsWork, VetsWork FireCorps (formerly VetsWork GreenCorps), and Land Stewards (formerly Public Lands Stewards).
“These programs are designed to improve recreation, access, and conservation of our natural resources, while launching military veterans and young adults into careers within the public lands management field,” said a press release.
“We are excited to receive this grant as it provides funding for up to three years to operate our VetsWork and Lands Stewards program,” said Brendan Norman, executive director of Mt. Adams Institute. “This is the 10th year in a row that AmeriCorps selected our organization as a grantee and that is a testament to the positive impact that these programs have on our communities and the veterans and young adults that they serve.”
Mt. Adams Institute AmeriCorps members serve on conservation projects such as trail maintenance, visitor engagement, wildlife research, environmental education, geographic information mapping, invasive species monitoring, and community volunteer coordination.
AmeriCorps will provide an additional $351,000 in Segal AmeriCorps Education Awards for the AmeriCorps members funded by this grant. After completing a full term of service, AmeriCorps members receive an award of up to approximately $6,500 that they can use to pay for college or to pay off student loans.
Mt. Adams Institute matches the grant funding with additional support from project partners, including but not limited to the U.S. Forest Service, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), Columbia River Gorge National Fish Hatchery Complex, King Conservation District, Oregon State Parks, Willamette Resources and Education Network, and Willamette Riverkeeper.
Locally, VetsWork and Land Stewards AmeriCorps members have provided more than 45,000 hours of service at local Gorge sites over the past five years, including the Conboy Lake National Wildlife Refuge, Columbia River Gorge National Fish Hatchery Complex, Columbia River Gorge National Scenic Area, and the Gifford Pinchot and Mt. Hood National Forests, said a press release.
Mt. Adams Institute is a nonprofit organization with a mission to strengthen the connection between people and the natural world through education, service learning, career development and research. More information about the organization can be found at mtadamsinstitute.org. | 2022-06-23T01:41:06+00:00 | columbiagorgenews.com | https://www.columbiagorgenews.com/news/mt-adams-institute-receives-americorps-grant/article_0d239d5a-f184-11ec-84a0-df5da99ab21f.html |
Chicago Bears jersey schedule released originally appeared on NBC Sports Chicago
It's finally here.
The Chicago Bears released its jersey schedule for the 2022 regular season.
Here's the schedule for each color jersey.
Blue Jersey - Home
- Week 1 vs. San Francisco 49ers
- Week 9 vs. Miami Dolphins
- Week 10 vs. Detroit Lions
- Week 13 vs. Green Bay Packers
- Week 15 vs. Philadelphia Eagles
- Week 16 vs. Buffalo Bills
White Jersey - Away
- Week 2 @ Green Bay Packers
- Week 4 @ New York Giants
- Week 5 @ Minnesota Vikings
- Week 7 @ New England Patriots
- Week 11 @ Atlanta Falcons
- Week 12 @ New York Jets
- Week 17 @ Detroit Lions
Classic White Jersey
- Week 3 vs. Houston Texans
Orange Jersey - Alternative (with orange helmets)
- Week 6 vs. Washington Commanders
- Week 8 @ Dallas Cowboys
All Blue Uniform
- Week 18 vs. Minnesota Vikings
Click here to follow the Under Center Podcast.
Local
Copyright RSN | 2022-09-02T16:20:08+00:00 | nbcchicago.com | https://www.nbcchicago.com/news/local/chicago-bears-jersey-schedule-released/2930294/ |
Bomb threat disrupts Patti LaBelle concert in Wisconsin
MILWAUKEE, Wis. (AP) — Patti LaBelle was abruptly rushed off stage just a couple of songs into her Christmas concert in Milwaukee after a bomb threat forced authorities to evacuate the theater.
The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reports that video from the Riverside Theater on Saturday night shows what appears to be two security officers interrupting the 78-year-old LaBelle as she chats with an audience member. They rush her off stage. Shortly after, someone announced that the nearly full 2,500-seat theater had to be evacuated because of a bomb threat.
Catherine Brunson, who documented the evacuation on Facebook Live, told the newspaper that the evacuation happened two songs into LaBelle’s concert around 9:24 p.m.
“We came out and police had the block taped off. ... A whole lot of people were pretty upset. ... It’s scary,” Brunson said.
Scott Pierce, who also attended the concert, said everyone exited the theater calmly, but it’s “just sad that someone does this.”
Milwaukee Police Capt. Warren Allen Jr. said in a statement early Sunday that K9 units searched the theater and no explosive devices were discovered, so there was no threat to the public.
As of Sunday morning, LaBelle hadn’t issued a statement about the evacuation on social media. The operator of the Riverside Theater, Pabst Theater Group, said it would work with LaBelle to reschedule the show in the future.) -
Copyright 2022 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. | 2022-12-11T18:57:50+00:00 | wnem.com | https://www.wnem.com/2022/12/11/bomb-threat-disrupts-patti-labelle-concert-wisconsin/ |
BALTIMORE (AP) — Orioles left-hander John Means needs Tommy John surgery, ending the season for Baltimore’s opening day starter.
Means announced the news on social media Saturday, a day before his 29th birthday.
“After multiple MRI’s it’s confirmed that I need Tommy John surgery,” Means posted on Twitter. “I’m obviously disappointed, but more motivated than ever. In the meantime, I’m looking forward to watching what this team can do this year.”
An All-Star in 2019, Means was 0-0 in two starts this season, giving up three runs in eight innings.
Last May, Means pitched a no-hitter against Seattle. He nearly missed a perfect game as the only Mariners runner to reach came on a wild pitch on strike three.
Means was 6-9 with a 3.62 ERA last season, leading a staff that had the worst ERA in the majors.
Means was put on the 10-day injured list on April 15 and later transferred to 60-day IL because of a sprained elbow. At the time, Orioles manager Brandon Hyde said Means wouldn’t be back anytime soon.
“He’s going to be out a while,” Hyde said then.
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More AP MLB: https://apnews.com/hub/MLB and https://twitter.com/AP_Sports | 2022-04-24T00:03:36+00:00 | valleycentral.com | https://www.valleycentral.com/sports/orioles-lefty-john-means-says-he-needs-tommy-john-surgery/ |
The new House Republican majority is battling to unify on the issue of abortion less than a year after the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade.
Unity was on display Wednesday when Republicans approved two anti-abortion measures with unanimous GOP votes.
But beneath the surface, there is discomfort, as some GOP lawmakers worry the party is in danger of losing suburban women by taking too extreme a position on abortion while not addressing other reproductive issues.
“We learned nothing from the midterms if this is how we’re going to operate in the first week,” said Rep. Nancy Mace (R-S.C.), who voted for both measures, told reporters on Tuesday. “Millions of women across the board were angry over overturning Roe v. Wade.”
The votes come as the GOP is still unpacking how it performed below expectations in the midterm elections.
Polls consistently showed abortion as one of the top issues for voters and a in half-dozen referendum votes related to abortion, the side that favored more protections for the procedure prevailed. Earlier this month, former President Trump blamed the “abortion issue” for GOP losses, and “especially those that firmly insisted on No Exceptions, even in the case of Rape, Incest, or Life of the Mother.”
While proposed Republican legislation and messaging now regularly includes support for those exceptions, Mace argues the GOP should do more to embrace pregnancy prevention and healthcare access.
“We’re doing a huge disservice to women around the country by taking on the bills we voted on today and not tackling something like access to birth control,” Mace told reporters after the vote.
“I’m in a place where I want to find where we can figure out how to balance women’s rights and balance the right to life. And I’m for life, with all the exceptions,” Mace said. “But I also know that this is an issue that people care about, and 90 percent of the country isn’t with the fringes. And that’s not where we need to go. We’ve got to be very middle-of-the-road, find some middle ground on this issue.”
Mace, who has shared her story of surviving rape as a teen, broke with the bulk of her colleagues last year to vote for a Democratic bill to protect access to contraception. She wore a jacket as a statement to the vote: “My state is Banning EXCEPTIONS Protect CONTRACEPTION.”
Mace also brought up concerns about states prohibiting abortions, even in cases of fatal deformities to the fetus or when the mother’s life is in danger, on MSNBC Wednesday.
The House on Wednesday passed the “Born-Alive Abortion Survivors Protection Act,” a bill to require health care providers to provide life-saving care to infants born alive after attempted abortions.
Democrats argue the “Born Alive” bill is unnecessary because of a 2002 law, the “Born-Alive Infants Protection Act,” that defined a person as anyone born at any stage of development under federal law. Republicans said that federal law does not go far enough to outline standards of care.
It also adopted a resolution that condemns acts of vandalism and violence directed at antiabortion pregnancy centers, groups, and churches, without making mention of attacks directed at abortion clinics.
House Majority Leader Steve Scalise (R-La.) has also said that the House will vote on a bill to permanently codify the Hyde Amendment, which bars the use of federal funds to pay for abortion services.
Neither of the bills will make it through the Democratic-controlled Senate, let alone be signed by President Biden. But even though antiabortion legislation is doomed in the current Congress, actions that a GOP House takes now will help set the groundwork for steps they can take if they gain unified control of Washington, and set the tone for the 2024 presidential campaign.
GOP leaders, though, have not yet committed to bring up national abortion restrictions that they previously proposed when they controlled the chamber.
The House passed the Pain-Capable Unborn Child Protection Act, which would ban abortion after 20 weeks’ gestation, under Republican control in 2013, 2015 and 2017.
Lead sponsor Rep. Chris Smith (R-N.J.) modified the bill in the last Congress to ban abortion after 15 weeks rather than 20 weeks, and he told The Hill that he plans to reintroduce it in this Congress.
Rep. Brian Fitzpatrick (R-Pa.), a moderate who joined Mace in voting for the bill to protect access to contraception last year, said that he expects there will not be other anti-abortion bills brought to the floor in this Congress.
“I will tell you this: There’s a group of us that are going to make sure that we’re focusing on things that people care about, and why they elected this majority. And they need to focus on districts, you know, like Nancy Mace’s, for example, who’s been very outspoken about this,” Fitzpatrick said.
But Smith said that he did not think the midterm elections will make it harder to bring up his antiabortion bills over the next two years, saying that the more members speak with “kindness” and “civility” on the issue, the more “people will be persuaded.”
“I welcome the national debate on abortion. We’ve never had it. We’ve always had little narrow views about, ‘Okay, funding this, that,’” Smith said. “We need a national debate on abortion, and for once a recognition and respect for [those] innocent children.”
And lack of commitments from leadership is not stopping the staunchest anti-abortion advocates from pressing forward with proposals for federal restrictions.
On Wednesday, Reps. Mike Kelly (R-Pa.), Smith, and Kat Cammack (R-Fla.) reintroduced the “Heartbeat Protection Act,” a bill to ban abortion after a fetal heartbeat can be detected, usually around six weeks into pregnancy. The bill does have exceptions for rape, incest, and life of the mother. It has 62 original cosponsors.
“While lives are being saved thanks to the Dobbs victory, in states like California and New York, countless unborn babies and their mothers still suffer the violence of abortion,” Marilyn Musgrave, Susan B. Anthony Pro-Life America’s vice president of government affairs, said in a statement about the bill’s re-introduction. “It is time we had a minimum federal standard, in line with science and compassion.” | 2023-01-12T00:33:52+00:00 | mytwintiers.com | https://www.mytwintiers.com/hill-politics/unease-about-strategy-simmers-below-house-gop-antiabortion-votes/ |
DENVER (AP) — Tyler Bozak and the St. Louis Blues experienced just about every emotion imaginable over the course of a win-or-season-ends game in which they fell behind by three goals.
Ultimately, they landed on this improbable one — elation.
Bozak scored 3:38 into overtime and the Blues fended off elimination in Game 5 of the Western Conference semifinals, overcoming a pair of deficits in a 5-4 victory over the Colorado Avalanche on Wednesday night.
Bozak, a fourth-line center, unleashed a shot from near the blueline that got past Darcy Kuemper, capping a remarkable comeback for St. Louis.
“It was an amazing hockey game,” Bozak said. “I’m sure everyone that was watching thought the same thing.”
Robert Thomas had two goals, including the tying tally with 56 seconds left in regulation, for a resilient Blues team. It’s the latest game-tying goal for the Blues when facing elimination, according to NHL Stats. Vladimir Tarasenko and Justin Faulk also scored, Nick Leddy had four assists and Pavel Buchnevich had two.
They never doubted — even down 3-0 late in the second period and 4-3 late in the third.
“You’ve got nothing to lose, you might as well throw it all out there,” Thomas said. “That was our mentality.”
The comeback offset a hat trick from Nathan MacKinnon, who looked like he might have just turned in a signature moment with goal No. 3. He went end-to-end, working his way around Blues defenseman Leddy with nifty stick work and lifting a shot over goaltender Ville Husso for a 4-3 lead. It was his second career postseason hat trick.
Hats hit the ice.
“Doesn’t matter,” MacKinnon said of his feat. “Looking to get a win.”
Thomas tied it up with Husso on the bench for an extra skater, setting the stage for Bozak, who played college hockey down the road at the University of Denver.
To think, he didn’t play much down the stretch of the third period, with the Blues rolling out just three lines. When he got his chance in OT, he made the most of it.
“There’s definitely no such thing as a bad shot,” Bozak said. “So just tried to get it through the traffic and it went in. So that’s awesome.”
Game 6 is Friday in St. Louis.
The Blues have rallied from a 3-1 deficit to take a playoff series twice in their history — 1999 against Phoenix and 1991 versus Detroit.
They’re looking to write another chapter.
“This team’s come from behind quite a bit this year in games so they don’t give up,” Blues coach Craig Berube said.
Captain Gabriel Landeskog also scored and Bowen Byram had two assists for the Avalanche, who were on the verge of advancing to the Western Conference final for the first time since 2002.
Instead, they have to wait — and wonder. The second-round has proven to be a big hurdle for the Avalanche. They’ve been eliminated at this stage in each of the last three postseasons.
“You sulk for three minutes and you move on. Simple as that,” Landeskog said. “It’s playoff hockey. It’s not supposed to be easy.”
Husso made 30 saves for St. Louis. He took over in Game 3 when Jordan Binnington was injured following a collision between Nazem Kadri and Blues defenseman Calle Rosen that caused Kadri to crash into Binnington.
Afterward, Kadri received racist death threats on social media, which led to increased security to protect him. He responded in Game 4 with a hat trick. On Wednesday, fans along the boards held up signs that read “Stand with Naz.”
Kuemper stopped 25 shots.
MacKinnon came out flying in the first period, taking five shots and scoring twice to give the Colorado an early 2-0 lead. Those were the first two goals of the series for MacKinnon, who has seven in the postseason.
The speedy MacKinnon also had an assist to give him 82 career playoff points. He became the fourth player in franchise history with 80 or more postseason points, joining the company of Sakic (188), Peter Forsberg (159) and Peter Stastny (81).
After Landeskog made it 3-0 just over 4 minutes into the second period, Tarasenko knocked in his first goal of the series 10 1/2 minutes later to jumpstart the Blues.
“We got on our heels a little bit,” said MacKinnon, whose team is 4-0 on the road in these playoffs. “We wanted it so bad, I guess. … Win the third, go to the conference finals, whatever. It’s one period. Got to keep our game going, stay aggressive. That’s what we’ll do.”
BERUBE’S TAKE
Berube opened his pregame talk with reporters Wednesday by condemning the racist threats made toward Kadri.
“In no way is it acceptable by the St. Louis Blues or anybody else, for him to go through that,” Berube said. “Being a Native American myself, I’ve heard it all. I’ve been around it. It’s not a good thing.”
___
More AP NHL: https://apnews.com/hub/nhl and https://twitter.com/AP_Sports | 2022-05-27T01:33:53+00:00 | wnct.com | https://www.wnct.com/sports/bozak-caps-rally-with-ot-goal-blues-beat-avs-5-4-in-game-5/ |
BARCELONA, Spain — (AP) — Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez has been prematurely counted out more than once in his relatively short but action-packed political career.
Battered and bruised after seeing his Socialists take a drumming in local and regional elections in May, Sánchez took no time to lick his wounds. The very next day he stunned his buoyant rivals by bringing forward general elections from December to this Sunday, smack in the middle of the sweltering Spanish summer.
Translated from politics to street talk that was the equivalent of saying: Let’s settle this, once and for all.
Most polling points to the conservative Popular Party led by Alberto Núñez Feijóo getting the most votes and being in position to form a coalition government with the far-right Vox party. If that comes about, Spain would follow a European drift to the right and put in question the two main pillars of Sánchez's leftist government — the green energy revolution backed by the European Union and an ambitious women's rights and LGBTQ agenda.
Núñez Feijóo and other critics often call Sánchez untrustworthy and willing to do anything to stay in power, but nobody accuses him of flinching when it comes to a fight.
A Madrid native, former basketball player and economics professor, Sánchez, 51, has proven he can pull off the unexpected. After mounting a grassroots insurgency to return to power as the Socialist party's general secretary in 2017, one year later he led Spain's first successful no-confidence motion to overthrow his conservative predecessor and move into the prime minister's office.
To stay in power, Sánchez had to enlist a far-left anti-establishment party in 2019 for the country’s first coalition in nearly half a century of democratic rule. Now he will have to pull off another win against the odds.
Neither a moving speaker nor a great debater, many consider him out of touch.
“(Sánchez’s) biggest talent is his sense of opportunity. The perplexing thing is how little he is able to capitalize on it (among voters),” political analyst Josep Ramoneda, a longtime observer of Spain’s Left, told The Associated Press.
“Why can’t he win the people’s trust? There are many factors, but it is true that he has a somewhat elitist tone of voice. He is, if you will permit me, too handsome to be prime minister. When he walks he has this swagger," Ramoneda said.
“And then there is something else: He is unable to transmit the same authority that long-standing prime ministers have commanded," the analyst said.
Sánchez, however, has consistently shown strength in forming policy, negotiating deals and making the tough call.
He has been a hyperactive legislator despite leading a minority coalition government.
One of his early acts as prime minister was the highly symbolic removal of the body of dictator Francisco Franco from a public mausoleum. Sánchez established his feminist credentials by always having more women than men in his Cabinet and with women deputy prime ministers in charge of the economy, environment and energy, and employment.
Fluent in English, Sánchez increased Spain's profile in Brussels, where he is a firm EU backer and ally of European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, despite her belonging to Europe's conservatives.
He responded to the COVID-19 pandemic with one of the strictest lockdowns in Europe, an aggressive aid package to help people keep their jobs, and a campaign that made Spain a world leader in vaccination rates.
On the economic front, he passed expansive budgets and major labor and pension overhauls, and he persuaded Brussels to let Spain and Portugal bend EU rules to curtail energy prices and curb inflation. He lobbied for Spain to secure 140 billion euros in direct transfers and loans from the EU pandemic recovery funds, putting much of that money into clean energy sources. Spain's economy is growing and creating jobs despite turbulence from Russia's invasion of Ukraine.
The seeds of his current troubles were planted when Sánchez won back-to-back elections in 2019 but still needed to form a governing coalition with the far-left Unidas Podemos (United We Can) party. During that campaign he had said he "would not sleep well" if he had United We Can members in important Cabinet posts. Four years later, a sexual consent law championed by his equality minister, a Podemos politician, inadvertently reduced prison terms for hundreds of sexual offenders in the biggest misstep by his government.
What his supporters see as one of Sánchez's biggest successes has also been used against him. Having inherited restive Catalonia in the aftermath of its failed 2017 secession attempt, Sánchez reduced tensions there by opening talks with the separatists and pardoning nine of their imprisoned leaders. He later revised laws on sedition and misuse of public funds in a clear bone thrown to separatists facing legal troubles.
The Popular Party and many swing voters say Sánchez appeased the separatists in Catalonia and the Basque Country to win their backing in Parliament.
Sánchez's chances depend on a strong turnout for his Socialists, who have surged in Catalonia while falling elsewhere, the revamped far-left coalition Sumar (Joining Forces) and a handful of smaller parties.
He has escaped some very tight squeezes. As prime minister, he has survived two no-confidence motions and a cliffhanger vote on a critical labor bill.
Nothing, however, tops his resurgence from being pushed out as the Socialist party general secretary in 2016. Sánchez launched what many viewed as a Quixotic road trip to drum up support across Spain from rank-and-file party members. It worked, and he won an internal party primary to return to power.
Asked repeatedly in the current campaign what he will do if he is ousted from the Moncloa Palace, Sánchez has had the same answer: “I am going to win this election. I am convinced that I am going to win.”
Copyright 2023 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without permission. | 2023-07-19T07:40:22+00:00 | whio.com | https://www.whio.com/news/world/spains-political/P3OXTPQPOUAQHEFRQDIVSZZY7A/ |
Wildfires in West explode in size amid hot, windy conditions
Published: Jul. 30, 2022 at 3:28 PM EDT|Updated: 1 hour ago
SAN DIEGO (AP) — Wildfires fed by windy and hot conditions have grown dramatically in California and Montana, forcing evacuation orders for over 100 homes.
In northern California, the fast-moving McKinney fire tore across an estimated 28 square miles by Saturday morning after starting Friday in Klamath National Forest.
Meanwhile in Montana, a wildfire doubled in size to more than 6 square miles near the town of Elmo and Flathead Lake.
Roughly 200 miles to the south, Idaho residents remained under evacuation orders as the Moose Fire in the Salmon-Challis National Forest burned more than 67 square miles of timbered land near the town of Salmon.
Copyright 2022 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. | 2022-07-30T20:33:46+00:00 | wcjb.com | https://www.wcjb.com/2022/07/30/wildfires-west-explode-size-amid-hot-windy-conditions/ |
Reports: Texas man wanted in killings of 5 in custody after dayslong manhunt
Published: May. 2, 2023 at 8:06 PM CDT|Updated: 9 minutes ago
CLEVELAND, Texas (Gray News) - Sources have told multiple news outlets a man wanted for fatally shooting five people, including a 9-year-old boy, at a Texas home has been taken into custody.
Police had been searching for Mexican national Francisco Oropesa since Friday night’s shooting in Cleveland, Texas. Police said neighbors had been asking him to stop firing his rifle outdoors when the incident happened.
CNN reports that law enforcement sources told them a man believed to be Oropesa has been taken into custody.
The FBI’s Houston office has scheduled a news conference at 8:30 p.m. Central time.
Copyright 2023 Gray Media Group, Inc. All rights reserved. | 2023-05-03T01:16:12+00:00 | kalb.com | https://www.kalb.com/2023/05/03/reports-texas-man-wanted-killings-5-custody-after-dayslong-manhunt/ |
19th Annual LIDMA Fall Meeting & Business Showcase of industry leaders to take place at the Westdrift Manhattan Beach in Manhattan Beach, California from October 16 to October 19, 2022.
The 2022 LIDMA conference theme is "Future of Life Insurance Distribution" and will feature keynote speakers
ATLANTA, Aug. 31, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- The Life Insurance Direct Marketing Association (LIDMA) has announced its 19th Annual Fall Meeting and Business Showcase will take place October 16 – October 19, 2022, at the Westdrift Manhattan Beach in Manhattan Beach, CA. LIDMA is the foremost collection of the brightest minds in the life insurance industry with its membership comprised of direct response marketers, entrepreneurs, innovators, producers, carriers, and vendor partners who are driving positive change in life insurance distribution with the goal of closing the coverage gap among families in the US.
The theme of this year's Fall Meeting, "Future of Life Insurance Distribution" will tackle the relevant topics of "The State of the Industry", "The State of the Market" and the "State of the Channel", all focused on where we are as industry today and how we can collaborate as an organization to continue to move the life insurance industry forward through technological and underwriting innovations. In addition, there will be a variety of interactive breakout sessions where our attendees can learn about lead generation, companies who are disrupting the industry and contact strategy best practices from experts in the life insurance community.
"This year's Fall Meeting, "Future of Life Insurance Distribution", will focus on innovations collectively needed as an industry to the meet the future demands of the next generation…meeting our customers when and how they want", stated LIDMA President Nicole Buckenmeyer. "All of the members in attendance will play a pivotal role in how we evolve as an industry to meet those demands. We've witnessed massive breakthroughs in technology, underwriting and digitization of the life insurance industry, but we know we still have more work to do in order to achieve our goal of providing financial protection and peace of mind to all families across the country. And, I'm proud to say that LIDMA continues to be the flagship organization in pushing our industry towards that goal."
The three-day LIDMA Fall Meeting will be jam-packed with expert panels, interactive break-out sessions and plenty of time set aside for networking and collaboration. As is our annual tradition, LIDMA will also be announcing its winners of the "Vision Award" and the coveted "Innovation Award". A snapshot of content includes:
- Premier Hosted Sessions by Paperless Solutions Group, Pacific Life, ExamOne, Protective Life, Legal & General America, AIG, TransUnion, Transamerica, Lexis-Nexis Risk Solutions and Lincoln Financial.
- "Future Proofing You" keynote by Jay Samit, international best-selling author – innovator.
- "State of the Industry" panel hosted by Kevin Fusick, VP, Finance at Policygenius including Anton Harper, Assistant Vice President & Actuary at Transamerica, Fred Tavan, SVP & Chief Pricing Officer at Legal & General America, Stafford Thompson, Jr., SVP, Life Product Management at Lincoln Financial.
- "State of the Market" keynote by Tod Nasser, EVP & Chief Investment Officer, Pacific Life.
- "State of the Channel" panel hosted by Denis Clifford, SVP & Chief Distribution Officer, SBLI of MA including Jennifer Fitzgerald, Co-Founder & CEO at Policygenius, Shervin Eftekhari, President, Zander Insurance and Nichole Myers, Chief Underwriter at Ethos Life.
- Interactive break-out sessions to include "Life Insurance Leads – Insights from Industry Executives", "Disruptors of Underwriting", and "Fixing a Leaky Funnel – Contact Strategy Best Practices"
- Vision Award and Innovation Award presentations
Attendance at the LIDMA Fall Meeting is available to LIDMA members only. Information on the various membership opportunities and pricing is available at www.lidma.org.
Attendees should plan to arrive on Sunday, October 16th. All new members and first-time attendees of LIDMA are cordially invited to a reception at 4:15 pm where they will have a chance to meet and talk to members of the LIDMA Board. A Welcome Reception for all attendees of LIDMA will commence at 5 pm.
LIDMA is the premiere association dedicated to supporting businesses and professionals active in direct sales of life insurance products to consumers – the fastest growing sales segment in the life insurance industry. The not-for-profit organization is committed to helping members protect more families while boosting their revenues and reducing costs. For more information, or if you would like to become a member, please visit www.lidma.org.
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SOURCE Life Insurance Direct Marketing Association | 2022-08-31T15:01:48+00:00 | wlbt.com | https://www.wlbt.com/prnewswire/2022/08/31/life-insurance-direct-marketing-association-lidma-announces-2022-fall-meeting-amp-business-showcase/ |
PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) — Winter storms sowed more chaos across the U.S. on Thursday, shutting down much of Portland with almost a foot of snow and paralyzing travel from parts of the Pacific Coast all the way to the northern Plains.
The nearly 11 inches that fell in Portland amounted to the second snowiest day in the city’s history. It took drivers by surprise, stalling traffic during the Wednesday evening rush hour and trapping motorists on freeways for hours.
Some spent the night in their vehicles or abandoned them altogether as crews struggled to clear roads. Other commuters got off spun-out buses and walked in groups to safety. The National Weather Service, which had predicted only a slim chance of significant snow, planned to review its work.
The weather also knocked out power to almost a million homes and businesses in multiple states, closed schools and grounded or delayed thousands of flights.
Kim Upham endured a 13-hour ordeal as snow brought to a standstill the traffic on U.S. 26, a mountainous highway that connects Portland to the coast.
Already treacherous because of its steep grade, the highway was covered in a sheet of ice, forcing some drivers to leave their cars in the middle of the road.
“It was so scary to have semi-trucks behind you and semi-trucks in front of you, and you know you’re on a slope,” she said.
As the hours stretched on, some drivers began to worry about surviving until morning. Upham used a blanket to stay warm and spent the night in her car.
To save gas, she turned the vehicle on only intermittently to run the windshield wipers and inch ahead when traffic moved slightly.
“I really don’t want to die on 26,” she added. “I was thinking that quite often, to be honest with you.”
The Multnomah County medical examiner’s office said it was investigating a suspected hypothermia death related to the storm. The agency offered no details.
Other people reveled in the surprise day off in a place that rarely gets measurable snow.
Joan Jasper snapped on skis and was gliding through a residential neighborhood.
“They always have like ‘snowmageddon’ on the news, and so we kind of ignored it — and 11 inches later here we are!” she said. “This is gorgeous.”
The system even brought snow to usually balmy Southern California. The weather service office in San Diego issued its first-ever blizzard warning, covering the mountains of San Bernardino County from early Friday until Saturday afternoon.
San Bernardino County lies east of Los Angeles County, where the first mountain blizzard warning since 1989 was scheduled to take effect at the same time.
In Wyoming, roads across much of the southern part of the state were impassable, state officials said.
Rescuers tried to reach stranded motorists, but high winds and drifting snow created a “near-impossible situation,” said Sgt. Jeremy Beck of the Wyoming Highway Patrol.
High winds and heavy snow in the Cascade Mountains prevented search teams from reaching the bodies of three climbers killed over the weekend in an avalanche on Washington’s Colchuck Peak.
Portland residents had expected no more than a dusting to a few inches. The city uses salt on its roads only in extreme situations for environmental reasons, and the chaos Thursday recalled a similar storm in 2017 that left motorists stranded on freeways and shut down the city for days.
The weather service originally predicted a 20% chance that Portland would get more than 2 inches (5 centimeters) of snow. The probability of getting 6 to 8 inches (15 to 20 centimeters) was only around 5%.
The forecast changed rapidly as the storm approached, said Colby Neuman, a weather service meteorologist in Portland.
He said forecasters would try to figure out why their models were wrong.
“There’s a balance there between crying wolf and also informing people so they can make their own decisions,” Neuman said.
In Arizona, several interstates and other highways were closed due to high winds, falling temperatures and blowing snow. Forecasters said snow could fall as rapidly as 2 to 3 inches (5 to 8 centimeters) per hour.
A blizzard warning was in effect through Saturday in California for higher elevations of the Sierra Nevada, where predictions called for several feet of snow, 60 mph (96 kph) gusts and wind chills as low as minus 40 degrees (minus 40 Celsius).
Electrical grids took a beating in the north as heavy ice and strong winds toppled power lines. In California, lines were fouled with tree branches and other debris.
A Michigan firefighter died Wednesday after coming in contact with a downed power line in the village of Paw Paw, authorities said. Van Buren County Sheriff Dan Abbott called it a tragic accident that was “no fault of the firefighter.”
Widespread power outages were reported in California, Oregon, Illinois, Michigan and New York, according to the website PowerOutage.us.
The largest outages by far were in Michigan, where more than 820,000 customers were without electricity, mostly in the state’s southeast corner. Power lines and trees were shrouded in ice. DTE Energy said some outages could last through the weekend.
Afternoon temperatures in the 40s were expected to melt the ice, but DTE said it was bracing for more broken lines.
“A quarter-inch of ice on an electrical system is the equivalent of a baby grand piano hanging on those wires,” said Trevor Lauer, the president of DTE’s electric arm.
In the Detroit suburb of Dearborn, the city offered free dry ice, an acknowledgment that power could be out for a while. Ash Quam praised a public works crew for getting a large ice-coated tree limb out of the street.
“It was so loud when it came crashing down around midnight. By the time I woke up this morning, it was gone,” Quam said on Facebook.
Weather also contributed to another day of problems at the nation’s airports. By Thursday afternoon, more than 2,000 flights were canceled and nearly 14,000 were delayed across the country, according to the tracking service FlightAware.
At times, the snow offered a delightful diversion. Karen Krenis was driving to a pottery studio in Santa Cruz, California, when she stopped in her tracks after seeing snow on the beach.
She got out of her car and went to take photos. By the time she left, about 50 other people were there. Adults were snapping photos, and children were making snowballs.
“I have lived in California for 30 years, and I’ve never seen anything like it,” Krenis said.
___
Salter reported from O’Fallon, Missouri. Associated Press writer Andrew Selsky in Salem, Oregon, Olga Rodriguez in San Francisco, Ed White in Detroit and other AP reporters from around the country contributed to this report. | 2023-02-24T00:27:30+00:00 | nwahomepage.com | https://www.nwahomepage.com/news/national/ap-california-may-get-slammed-by-brutal-storm-front-sweeping-us/ |
At 103 S.Y. Square
SELMER, Tenn., Jan. 16, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- BenchMark Physical Therapy, which has more than 100 outpatient clinics in Tennessee, opened its newest one today at 103 S.Y. Square.
The clinic is open 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday. To make an appointment, call 731-982-1102 or visit benchmarkpt.com.
BenchMark offers in-clinic and telehealth options for outpatient orthopedic physical therapy, including manual therapy, injury prevention, return to performance, total joint replacement, concussion management and vestibular rehabilitation programs.
Clinic director E. Cade Hood earned a bachelor's degree in kinesiology (with a specialty in clinical exercise physiology) from Mississippi State University and a doctor of physical therapy degree from University of Mississippi Medical Center.
Hood has advanced certification in dry needling. He has a special interest in manual techniques and in upper cervical, facial, headache and TMJ issues.
BenchMark, part of the Upstream Rehabilitation family of clinical care, offers access to care within 24 hours and works with all insurance types.
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SOURCE Upstream Rehabilitation | 2023-01-16T17:20:14+00:00 | kalb.com | https://www.kalb.com/prnewswire/2023/01/16/benchmark-physical-therapy-opens-outpatient-clinic-selmer-tenn/ |
HARTFORD, Conn. (AP) — A former Connecticut state representative was sentenced to 27 months in prison on Wednesday for stealing more than $1.2 million from the city of West Haven — most of it in federal coronavirus-related aid — and using a good chunk of it to fuel his gambling addiction.
“I stole that money. That is on me,” Michael DiMassa said as he apologized during his sentencing before Judge Omar Williams.
“It’s hard to find the word to express how I feel. I feel ashamed, embarrassed, mortified,” the West Haven Democrat said.
DiMassa, 32, had asked for leniency. He could have gotten more than four years in prison under federal sentencing guidelines.
“Mr. DiMassa suffered from a debilitating gambling addiction at the time of the offense,” his lawyer, John Gulash, wrote in a court filing, “and his essentially unfettered access to a deep pool of federal funds and total lack of impulse control facilitated his precipitous downward spiral.”
The lawyer compared DiMassa to Howard Ratner, the gambler played by Adam Sandler in the movie “Uncut Gems.” He said he bet on things as frivolous as how long the national anthem would take to perform at the Super Bowl, or what color Gatorade would be poured on the winning coach.
He did much of his gambling and betting at the Mohegan Sun casino in eastern Connecticut.
At the time of the thefts, which began in mid-2020, DiMassa was both a state representative and an aide to the West Haven City Council, with authority to approve reimbursements for coronavirus-related expenses. He pleaded guilty in November to three counts of wire fraud conspiracy, admitting that he and others billed West Haven for legal, lobbying and consulting services that were never provided.
DiMassa and a business partner, John Bernardo, also a former West Haven city employee, pilfered nearly $637,000, prosecutors said.
Bernardo pleaded guilty to wire fraud and was sentenced to 13 months in prison in March.
In a second scheme, DiMassa and another business owner, John Trasacco, conspired to submit fraudulent invoices from Trasacco’s companies to the city, netting nearly $432,000 in COVID-19 aid. Nearly all of that went to Trasacco, who was sentenced to eight years in prison in March after a jury convicted him of fraud.
The final conspiracy involved DiMassa and his wife, Lauren DiMassa, and the theft of nearly $148,000, authorities said. The couple submitted phony requests for payments by the city related to a youth violence prevention program. Those pilfered funds were not federal coronavirus aid.
Lauren DiMassa, who is pregnant with the couple’s second child, pleaded guilty last year and was sentenced in March to six months in prison. She recently reported to prison.
In addition to his prison sentence, Michael DiMassa was ordered to pay nearly $866,000 in restitution to the city of West Haven. His codefendants were ordered to pay restitution to make up the rest of the stolen money.
“The defendant was a public official elected to serve his constituents,” prosecutors wrote in their sentencing documents. “Instead, he completely betrayed that trust by stealing public funds for his own benefit.”
DiMassa resigned from the Legislature and the city of West Haven after his arrest in 2021.
He had cited several reasons for leniency including his lack of any previous criminal record, his testicular cancer and being able to care for his children. | 2023-05-31T17:25:14+00:00 | wivb.com | https://www.wivb.com/news/u-s-headlines/ap-former-connecticut-lawmaker-a-gambling-addict-gets-27-months-for-stealing-coronavirus-aid/ |
STOCKHOLM, Dec. 23, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- BioArctic AB's (publ) (Nasdaq Stockholm: BIOA B) partner Eisai announced today that they have initiated submission of data for Biologics License Application (BLA) to the National Medical Products Administration (NMPA) of China for lecanemab (development code: BAN2401), an investigational anti-amyloid beta (Aβ) protofibril antibody.
The registration category of lecanemab was designated as a Category 1 drug (innovative biologics not approved in China or any other countries). The data submitted in this package includes data from the Phase IIb clinical trial (Study 201) in mild cognitive impairment (MCI) due to Alzheimer's disease (AD) and mild AD (collectively known as early AD) with confirmed Aβ accumulation in the brain and the top-line data of the large global Phase III Clarity AD study. Eisai will submit additional data including full data of the Clarity AD study, as directed by the NMPA.
Lecanemab selectively binds and eliminates soluble, toxic Aβ protofibrils that are thought to contribute to the neurodegenerative process in AD. As such, lecanemab may have the potential to have an effect on disease pathology and to slow down the progression of the disease. The large global Phase 3 study, Clarity AD, of lecanemab in early AD met its primary endpoint and all key secondary endpoints with highly statistically significant results. In November 2022, the results of the Clarity AD study were presented at the 2022 Clinical Trials on Alzheimer's Disease (CTAD) conference, and simultaneously published in the New England Journal of Medicine, one of the world's most prestigious peer-reviewed medical journals.
In the U.S., lecanemab was granted Breakthrough Therapy and Fast Track designations by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) in June and December 2021, respectively. In July 2022, the FDA accepted Eisai's Biologics License Application (BLA) for lecanemab under the accelerated approval pathway and granted it Priority Review. The Prescription Drug User Fee Act (PDUFA) action date is January 6, 2023. Eisai aims to file for traditional approval in the U.S. and for marketing authorization applications in Japan and Europe by the end of the first quarter 2023.
Eisai serves as the lead of lecanemab development and regulatory submissions globally with both Eisai and Biogen co-commercializing and co-promoting the product and Eisai having final decision-making authority. BioArctic has right to commercialize lecanemab in the Nordic under certain conditions and is currently preparing for commercialization in the Nordics together with Eisai.
This release discusses investigational uses of an agent in development and is not intended to convey conclusions about efficacy or safety. There is no guarantee that such an investigational agent will successfully gain health authority approval.
The information was released for public disclosure, through the agency of the contact person below, on December 23, 2022, at 00:30 a.m. CET.
For further information, please contact:
Oskar Bosson, VP Communications and IR
E-mail: oskar.bosson@bioarctic.se
Phone: +46 70 410 71 80
About lecanemab (BAN2401)
Lecanemab is an investigational humanized monoclonal antibody for Alzheimer's disease (AD) that is the result of a strategic research alliance between BioArctic and Eisai. Lecanemab selectively binds and eliminates soluble toxic Aβ aggregates (protofibrils) that are thought to contribute to the neurodegenerative process in AD. As such, lecanemab may have the potential to have an effect on disease pathology and to slow down the progression of the disease. Currently, lecanemab is being developed as the only late-stage anti-Aβ antibody that can be used for the treatment of early AD without the need for titration, enabling full treatment effect from day one.
The Clarity AD open-label extension is underway with treatment initiated after completion of the Core period to further evaluate the safety and efficacy of lecanemab. In addition, the lecanemab Phase 3 clinical study AHEAD 3-45 is ongoing for individuals with preclinical (asymptomatic) AD, meaning they are clinically normal and have intermediate or elevated levels of brain amyloid. AHEAD 3-45 is conducted as a public-private partnership between the Alzheimer's Clinical Trial Consortium, funded by the National Institute on Aging, part of the National Institutes of Health, and Eisai. In 2021, lecanemab was selected for the Tau NexGen clinical study for Dominantly Inherited Alzheimer's disease (DIAD), as a background anti-amyloid treatment when exploring combination therapies with anti-tau treatments. The study, which is ongoing, is conducted by Dominantly Inherited Alzheimer Network Trials Unit (DIAN-TU), led by Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis. Furthermore, Eisai has performed a lecanemab subcutaneous dosing Phase 1 study and the subcutaneous formulation is currently being evaluated in the Clarity AD open label extension study.
About the collaboration between BioArctic and Eisai
Since 2005, BioArctic has a long-term collaboration with Eisai regarding the development and commercialization of drugs for the treatment of Alzheimer's disease. The most important agreements are the Development and Commercialization Agreement for the lecanemab antibody, which was signed in December 2007, and the Development and Commercialization agreement for the antibody BAN2401 back-up for Alzheimer's disease, which was signed in May 2015. In March 2014, Eisai and Biogen entered into a joint development and commercialization agreement for lecanemab. Eisai is responsible for the clinical development, application for market approval and commercialization of the products for Alzheimer's disease. BioArctic has right to commercialize lecanemab in the Nordic under certain conditions and is currently preparing for commercialization in the Nordics together with Eisai. BioArctic has no development costs for lecanemab in Alzheimer's disease and is entitled to payments in connection with regulatory filings, approvals, and sales milestones as well as royalties on global sales.
About BioArctic AB
BioArctic AB (publ) is a Swedish research-based biopharma company focusing on disease-modifying treatments for neurodegenerative diseases, such as Alzheimer's disease, Parkinson's disease and ALS. BioArctic focuses on innovative treatments in areas with high unmet medical needs. The company was founded in 2003 based on innovative research from Uppsala University, Sweden. Collaborations with universities are of great importance to the company together with its strategically important global partner Eisai in Alzheimer disease. The project portfolio is a combination of fully funded projects run in partnership with global pharmaceutical companies and innovative in-house projects with significant market and out-licensing potential. BioArctic's Class B share is listed on Nasdaq Stockholm Mid Cap (ticker: BIOA B). For more information about BioArctic, please visit www.bioarctic.com.
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SOURCE BioArctic | 2022-12-23T04:55:15+00:00 | kcbd.com | https://www.kcbd.com/prnewswire/2022/12/23/bioarctics-partner-eisai-initiates-bla-submission-data-lecanemab-china/ |
Summer EBT benefits rolling out this week
Families can begin to access their Summer Pandemic Electronic Benefit Transfer (P-EBT) benefits this week, the Department of Human Resources announced Thursday.
Qualifying families — those who receive free or reduced-price school lunch through the National School Lunch Program — will receive $391 for each participating student. The money can be spent on SNAP-eligible food at grocery stores that accept EBT cards.
For families that received benefits in the 2021-2022 school year, the same card will work for these benefits. Families new to the program will be mailed their cards within 20 days.
To apply for P-EBT, contact your child's school no later than Aug. 31. Questions about eligibility should be addressed by the school.
Benefits expire nine months after they are added, and families should keep their cards for future benefits, if available.
The DHR says that support specialists can answer P-EBT questions from 7 a.m. to 6 p.m., Monday through Friday, at dhr.alabama.gov/food-assistance/ or by phone at 1-800-410-5827. | 2022-08-25T17:46:57+00:00 | montgomeryadvertiser.com | https://www.montgomeryadvertiser.com/story/news/education/2022/08/25/alabama-ebt-benefits-roll-out-this-week-summer-pandemic/65419787007/ |
TUCSON, Ariz. — Were it not for a hire Bill Belichick made three years ago, the Patriots could not have transitioned from playing in Arizona to practicing so seamlessly for the rest of the week.
Arizona coach Jedd Fisch opened his program’s facilities to the Pats, who have their final on-campus practices scheduled for Thursday and Friday. Belichick hired Fisch as the Patriots’ new quarterbacks coach in Jan. 2020, before Fisch left to take over Arizona that December.
“This has been, so far, a really good set up for us,” Belichick said. “Obviously, coach Fisch has been very accommodating. Given us great access to everything, it’s been great. It’s a good program here. Jedd’s done a really good job of getting things going in the two years. … It’s a pro-style program in a college environment, and that really fits well for us to come in here and be able to utilize all their resources.”
With three games left on the team’s schedule that season, Belichick gave his blessing for Fisch to leave and said this week he placed a call to the university president to recommend him. While Fisch’s primary responsibilities were coaching Cam Newton and developing Jarrett Stidham, he also offered insight into college prospects ahead of the draft, something he had already been doing for Belichick for years. Prior to landing in New England, Fisch had worked for 12 NFL and college teams in 21 years, including the University of Miami and UCLA, where he served as the offensive coordinator.
“Every time he was in college, and I asked him about players, he knew everything about the kid’s family, his parents, his coaches, what kind of system they ran in high school and so forth and so on. He was very involved with that,” Belichick said. “Not just a recommendation about the guy’s skillset, it was way deeper than that. I’ve always been very impressed with him and followed him here the past couple years.
“He’s done a really good job of putting this program in a competitive position.”
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We’re spoiled for choice when it comes to Pokémon attractions in Tokyo. We’ve got the brilliant Pokémon Center Shibuya for every imaginable piece of merchandise, and even a café with character-themed dishes in Nihonbashi. If all that wasn’t enough, you can soon enjoy a Pikachu afternoon tea in Omotesando.
From April 24 to July 3, Cafe & Dining Zelkova inside The Strings Omotesando is serving a Pikachu afternoon tea (¥5,800) with dishes inspired by the popular yellow Pokémon. It includes three savoury items: a cheese burger slider with yellow buns, chicken and tomato quiche, and a yellow tabbouleh nut salad.
There are also plenty of sweet treats to enjoy. You’ll get a muffin topped with citrus-flavoured chantilly cream and Pikachu ears, pistachio mousse tart with a Poké Ball, chocolate opera cake inspired by Pikachu’s thunderbolt, mango pudding, and a caramel macaron with two brown stripes like the character has on its back.
Also keep an eye out for the honey lemon jelly filled with fruits, plus the chocolate lollipop printed with an adorable image of Pikachu.
What’s more, you can add the striking Pikachu Special Dessert to your afternoon tea. Pour the yellow fruit sauce over the large chocolate sphere to reveal an ice cream cake encased inside. We recommend reserving this dessert as it’s limited to just 20 people if ordered on the day.
The Pikachu theme doesn’t stop with the food. You can see cute Pikachu and Poké Ball motifs on the walls, and yellow macarons hanging from the ceiling.
If you want to add even more Pikachu to your afternoon tea, order the adorable fruit mocktail (¥1,012), passionfruit-ade (¥1,012) or latte with Pikachu printed on the top (¥1,265).
Not to worry if you can’t get a reservation at the café as the afternoon tea is also available for takeaway. It costs ¥10,000 (for two people) and can be picked up from 12noon to 8pm.
The Pikachu afternoon tea is available from April 24 to July 3 between 11.30am and 6pm for ¥5,800. You can also pair it with one of the Pikachu drinks for ¥6,500, get it with the Pikachu Special Dessert for ¥7,800 or have the lot for ¥8,500.
To find out more and to make reservations, visit The Strings Omotesando website.
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Want to be the first to know what's cool in Tokyo? Sign up to our newsletter for the latest updates from Tokyo and Japan. | 2023-03-29T13:01:29+00:00 | timeout.com | https://www.timeout.com/tokyo/news/this-omotesando-cafe-is-serving-pikachu-afternoon-tea-for-a-limited-time-032923 |
CHANGSHA, CHINA, June 24, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Zoomlion Heavy Industry Science & Technology Co., Ltd. ("Zoomlion"; 1157.HK), a leading high-end equipment manufacturing enterprise, has reported a 51.05 percent year-on-year growth of overseas sales in 2021, further expanding its business development in the international market with key emphasis on promoting localization strategy and diversified international logistics solutions.
Zoomlion is committed to provide high-quality machinery products to support infrastructure constructions in the overseas market, and has participated in a series of high-profile projects including the N'Djamena Stadium in Chad with 10 units of cranes, excavators, bulldozers and concrete pumping trucks provided and the Mumbai metro project in India with Zoomlion's ZAT4500H all-terrain cranes featured on site.
Following the localization strategy, Zoomlion has also customized products for the overseas market. On May 24, Zoomlion delivered an order of customized pumping equipments to Singapore that fit the local market demand of energy efficiency and reliable performance . Its ZTR260 tunnel-boring machine has also been deployed to the F4 section of the E60 highway project in Georgia that's improving the working efficiency and safety significantly of one of Georgia's largest and most important infrastructure project.
In the meantime, Zoomlion has joined international trade shows including World of Concrete in Las Vegas, U.S., Build Expo in Kenya, NAMP in South Africa and KOMATEK Exhibition in Turkey to keep in close contact with partners worldwide.
"Zoomlion's success in overseas market is the fruition of our localization development strategy, with the customized products that cater to customers' specific needs as the foundation, we are also setting up our own teams on the ground to achieve end-to-end business model," said Li Bin, Executive Deputy General Manager of Zoomlion Overseas.
Zoomlion has further strengthen its localized strategy to establish 10 comprehensive production bases and 10 spare parts warehouses in the globe wide with local employees to reach 87% of total number of staff, serving with tailored products and solutions that covered over 130 countries and regions.
Zoomlion also actively pursues stable overseas market development through diversified export channels as part of its localization strategy. By taking the Changsha China-Europe freight train, the logistics time from Hunan China to Europe countries is shortened from 40 days to less than 15 days for ocean freight at the cost of one-fifth of air freight, significantly improving international logistics timeliness and diversifying international logistics options between Hunan and Europe.
"In the future, with the continuous advancement of the localization strategy and the diversified international logistics solutions, Zoomlion will better and more deeply connect with overseas markets and support more projects," said Li.
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SOURCE Zoomlion | 2022-06-24T08:47:42+00:00 | wbrc.com | https://www.wbrc.com/prnewswire/2022/06/24/zoomlion-carries-forward-its-international-market-development-with-localization-strategy-diversified-logistics/ |
StoreDot claims its fast-charging battery tech will allow automakers to design EVs with smaller battery packs—saving cost and weight.
The argument seems to be that, by enabling what the company calls “extreme fast charging,” allowing more frequent recharges with less inconvenience, automakers won’t need to rely as much on larger battery packs and the extra buffer of range they provide to make EVs practical. As StoreDot notes in a press release, smaller battery packs improve efficiency by reducing weight, and they decrease costs, making EVs more affordable.
Downsizing an EV battery pack from 80 kwh to 50 kwh could reduce weight by up to 440 pounds and cut manufacturing costs by about $4,500, depending on raw-material cost fluctuations and energy-density improvements, StoreDot claims. The company believes its tech will make that possible.
After conducting real-world testing, StoreDot says it’s on track to deliver its “100in5” battery cells to automakers by next year. These cells target 100 miles of range in just five minutes of charging, and StoreDot even has an online calculator to illustrate this.
The company aims to launch cells that add 100 miles of range in three minutes of charging in 2028, and 100 miles with two minutes of charging by 2032. StoreDot claims that its batteries will be offered in multiple formats, including pouch, prismatic, 46XX cylindrical, and 2170 cylindrical.
StoreDot counts BP, Polestar, and Volvo among its investors. It also has a high-volume manufacturing joint venture with EVE Energy, which will be one of the suppliers for BMW’s Neue Klasse EVs, and for Aptera, among others. EVE Energy also produced the first sample cells for StoreDot in 2021.
StoreDot isn’t the only battery firm emphasizing faster charging. Sila Nanotechnologies claims to achieve that, along with a 20% range boost, with silicon-anode battery tech slated to go into the Mercedes-Benz EQG electric SUV. General Motors is betting on silicon-anode tech as well, backing developers in the hope that it produces more efficient batteries.
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- Poll: Nearly half in US support EV incentives, fewer to buy them | 2023-04-15T02:45:50+00:00 | cbs4indy.com | https://cbs4indy.com/automotive/internet-brands/battery-firm-faster-charging-cells-could-cut-ev-cost-and-weight/ |
Candles sold at Ross Dress for Less recalled over combustion concerns
Published: Jan. 20, 2023 at 9:48 AM CST|Updated: 1 hour ago
(CNN) - Some scented candles sold at discount retailer Ross Dress for Less are being recalled because of a fire and injury hazard.
The Consumer Product Safety Commission said the Taylor and Finch Six-Wick Scented Candles can combust while lit, causing the glass container to break.
According to the agency, Ross received five reports of this happening with the candles, with one report of a minor injury.
The recalled candles come in two scents: spiced apple and rosewood, and cedarwood and clove.
They sold for $17 at Ross locations nationwide from August through October of 2022.
They can be returned to the store for a full refund.
Copyright 2023 CNN Newsource. All rights reserved. | 2023-01-20T17:00:29+00:00 | kcbd.com | https://www.kcbd.com/2023/01/20/candles-sold-ross-dress-less-recalled-over-combustion-concerns/ |
San Luis Obispo Police officers are investigating a crash that happened Monday night.
On Wednesday, police were on scene along Sacramento Drive in the area of Basil Lane.
At this time police are releasing very few details, however, they did confirm they are further investigating a crash that happened in the area Monday night.
Investigators were on scene throughout the day, with the nearby area blocked off. Witnesses say authorities have been on scene since the early morning hours.
KSBY has a crew on scene, working to gather more information.
This is a developing story and will be updated once more information becomes available. | 2022-11-24T00:37:26+00:00 | ksby.com | https://www.ksby.com/news/local-news/san-luis-obispo-police-close-roadway-investigate-crash-from-monday-night |
PARIS (AP) — Flowers, art, and Dior’s world-famous ateliers collided on Friday for a sweet-smelling explosion of creativity. The house’s Paris Fashion Week show was an homage to late British painter Duncan Grant and celebrated member of London’s Bloomsbury Group, who died in 1978.
VIP guests gawped as they entered a DIOR-branded tent to discover the makeshift country vista — replete with about 19,000 real poppies, wildflowers and flora planted on hills beside two reconstructed English country houses. All this for the 10 minute fashion show. The set was, of course, intended to evoke Grant’s rolling landscapes.
There were almost as many famous faces on display as flowers. David Beckham and son Cruz, Naomi Campbell, J Balvin, Justin Timberlake and Jessica Biel were among the starry Dior front row staring out across the petals and tufts of grass.
Here are some highlights of Friday’s spring-summer 2023 shows:
DIOR’S FLOWER POWER
For spring, designer Kim Jones recreated the painter’s universe by not just evoking his masterpieces, but by creating the actual garments he wore while working — such as his straw gardening hat reimagined as a pergola fused on baseball cap. Grant’s signature suits were also a key theme, yet reinvented in Jones’ style with clever fashion forward twists.
Myriad references riffed on the 1930s — the artist’s heyday. Two sleeves were used in the place of a retro sash on a loose vanilla double-breasted suit. They hung down in the middle abstractly, poking out underneath the jacket. Elsewhere tailored shorts sported turned-down waistbands in the slightly clunkier styles of that time between the two wars.
Wooly socks and gardening shoes were a fun nod to the painter, who spent much of his time outdoors, yet also a nod to Jones himself, a designer for whom humor is never far away. The palette of the collection was, fittingly, garden and pond inspired with greens and blues as well as pastels.
PAUL SMITH LAYERS
A fresh and sensitive wardrobe awaited guests at Paul Smith’s spring show in the southeast of Paris.
Layering and optical plays were the themes of the season, in looks that built on the British sartorial master’s bread-and-butter of color, florals and suited looks.
A beautiful silver coat ensemble, loose and flowing, cut a trendy preppy vibe with its suit shorts that led the eye down to sock and suede loafers.
Elsewhere, it was the realm of gentle optical illusion in patterning that gave several ensembles a kinesis.
A granite-colored tunic shirt was constructed in grooved fabric that rippled down in zigzags that changed shape as the model walked.
JUNYA WATANABE MAKES A STATEMENT OF DENIM
The Japanese fashion designer — a protege of iconic Comme des Garcons couturier Rei Kawakubo — put out an urban, yet soft, display for his eponymous brand Friday.
At the heart of Junya Watababe’s designs is a concept called “Monozukiri,” which means literally “production” or “manufacturing” in Japanese and for him has come to comprise a know-how of cutting edge techniques to make clothes.
Here for spring, contrasting prints, patterns and textures created visual tensions, while distressed jeans with a bias cut, replete with colorful appliqued patches, to give the collection some fun.
Logos of Coca-Cola and images of hamburgers on denim jeans made for a comment on the capitalistic nature of the world — and the fashion industry itself — in a nice moment of introspection.
There were plenty of interesting design twists: One jean jacket in Japanese denim had a regal stiffness, which nicely contrasting with the shabbiness of one of its breast pockets being missing. | 2022-06-24T19:48:51+00:00 | pahomepage.com | https://www.pahomepage.com/entertainment-news/layering-statement-denim-hit-paris-fashion-week/ |
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