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SCOTTSDALE, Ariz., July 17, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Raytheon, an RTX (NYSE: RTX) business, announced that it will be opening a new facility at SkySong, The Arizona State University (ASU) Scottsdale Innovation Center, adding 28,000 square feet of digital design space to the company's footprint just minutes away from the main Tempe campus.
The new engineering design hub will leverage talent in the Phoenix area, housing approximately 150 professional positions – 95 percent of which will be employees new to Raytheon. The location will focus primarily on digital design products that support the rapid growth and demand for the company's defense portfolio, which, to date, has mostly been concentrated in southern Arizona.
"We've been working for years to expand our presence in the greater Phoenix area to take advantage of a talent pool that is uniquely qualified to drive this type of innovation," said Wes Kremer, president of Raytheon. "This expansion will also provide greater opportunities to collaborate with other tech companies and suppliers in the region."
In addition to expanding its presence to the Valley, the move strengthens Raytheon's partnership with ASU, the largest engineering university in the country, to create a steady pipeline of talent for the future and further many research and development projects.
"ASU has a deep commitment to expanding its engagement with defense primes and co-locating with Raytheon at the ASU's SkySong Innovation Center will enable us to advance our work with one of the strongest companies in the world," said ASU President Michael Crow. "We welcome Raytheon to greater Phoenix and look forward to a new chapter in our relationship."
SkySong is a 1.2 million square foot mixed-use project featuring Class A commercial office space, retail, restaurant, hotel components, and the SkySong Apartments. With their expansion, Raytheon becomes the newest tenant of the innovation center, moving in alongside more than 60 private-sector businesses from Fortune 500 companies to innovative startups.
Plaza Companies is the master developer of SkySong, in partnership with University Realty, Holualoa Companies, and the City of Scottsdale.
"We're excited to welcome Raytheon as a community partner as they expand their development and innovation expertise, growing the existing ecosystem in Arizona," said Scottsdale Mayor David Ortega.
Raytheon's SkySong facility is scheduled to open in Fall 2023.
About RTX
RTX is the world's largest aerospace and defense company. With more than 180,000 global employees, we push the limits of technology and science to redefine how we connect and protect our world. Through industry-leading businesses – Collins Aerospace, Pratt & Whitney, and Raytheon – we are advancing aviation, engineering integrated defense systems for operational success, and developing next-generation technology solutions and manufacturing to help global customers address their most critical challenges. The company, with 2022 sales of $67 billion, is headquartered in Arlington, Virginia.
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SOURCE RTX | 2023-07-17T17:35:56+00:00 | kswo.com | https://www.kswo.com/prnewswire/2023/07/17/raytheon-open-new-facility-skysong-arizona-state-university-scottsdale-innovation-center/ |
MOSCOW (AP) — Moldova’s breakaway region of Transnistria, which has close ties to Moscow and hosts Russian troops, claimed Thursday it has thwarted an assassination attempt on its president allegedly organized by Ukraine’s national security service.
Transnistria’s state security ministry said an unspecified number of people had been arrested in connection with an attempted attack on the region’s president, Vadim Krasnoselsky, and other officials.
Prosecutor Anatoly Guretsky said the suspects planned to detonate an explosives-packed automobile near the presidential cortege as it traveled through the capital, Tiraspol.
It said Ukraine’s SBU security service ordered the assassination attempt, but did not provide evidence.
The SBU rejected the allegation, saying it “should be considered exclusively as a provocation orchestrated by the Kremlin.”
A separatist war broke out in 1990 in Transnistria — a strip of land with about 470,000 residents that borders Ukraine. As part of a cease-fire in 1992, a contingent of Russian troops remains there as nominal peacekeepers.
Since Russia sent troops into Ukraine more than a year ago, concerns have been high that Moscow would try to take control of Transnistria.
But Russia’s Defense Ministry has claimed in recent weeks that Ukraine has designs on Transnistria, either through mounting a “false-flag” attack that could be blamed on Russia or by sending in its own troops.
Moldova’s pro-Western government said it was following developments but could not confirm the attempted assassination claim. | 2023-03-09T21:07:18+00:00 | nwahomepage.com | https://www.nwahomepage.com/news/international/ap-international/transnistria-accuses-ukraine-of-trying-to-kill-its-president/ |
ZAPORIZHZHIA, Ukraine — In this eastern Ukrainian city, a Soviet-era mural stands boldly in front of Zaporizhstal iron and steel works.
The mural shows muscular ironworkers handing a freshly forged sword to equally muscular soldiers who are rushing off to war. Today, however, Ukraine's iron industry is in rough shape because of war itself.
During much of the 20th century, a thriving industrial heartland churned in central and eastern Ukraine, fed by abundant coal mines and big, hulking steel mills. In several parts of the country, these plants still dominate the landscape, the local economy and even civic identity. Iron and steel production remains Ukraine's second-leading industry after agriculture. And prior to the Russian invasion this year, it was a major supplier of iron ore to Turkey, China and parts of the European Union.
While the war with Russia has raised serious international concern about getting Ukraine's vast production of wheat, corn and sunflower oil — normally its top exports — to global markets, the invasion has been even more devastating to the country's metalworks. Exports of bulk iron ore, for instance, that are shipped by the ton in massive cargo vessels have stopped entirely from Ukrainian ports.
Just half of the plant's blast furnaces are on
Inside the sprawling Zaporizhstal industrial compound, the plant's giant blast furnaces normally convert tons of raw iron ore into a stream of molten orange pig iron.
But Serhiy Safonov, the manager of the blast furnace shop, says that only two of the factory's four blast furnaces are currently operational.
The furnaces are designed to run constantly, he says, and normally would never be shut down over their 30-year life span. But earlier this year all four furnaces had to be dialed back to what Safonov calls a "low idle" as Russian troops threatened to advance on Zaporizhzhia. Moscow's forces never reached the area, but tens of thousands of people fled. Much of the city shut down, and the factory that used to employ 11,000 workers is now operating at less than 50% of capacity.
Yuriy Ryzhenkov, the CEO of Metinvest Group, which owns the Zaporizhstal plant, says they have enough raw materials inside Ukraine to keep pumping out rolls of sheet metal and bars of cast iron. The problem is they can't get those products to market. Metinvest and other Ukrainian steel producers now have huge backlogs of processed metal sitting in Ukrainian warehouses.
"The main difficulty is the logistics," Ryzhenkov says. Traditionally, all Ukrainian steel companies, of which Metinvest is the largest, export their products via the Black Sea ports or Azov Sea ports. "At the moment," Ryzhenkov says. "The ports have been blocked by the Russians."
There's no deal for shipping steel
While a few ships carrying grain have been allowed to leave Ukraine recently, there's still no agreement to allow vessels ferrying other goods to transit the Black Sea.
Some steel and iron ore is getting sent by rail to ports in Poland and Romania, but it's a slow and expensive process. Adding to the logistical challenges, Ukraine's railways operate on a different gauge track than the Western Europeans, meaning cargo has to get transferred at the border.
"This was never envisaged as the main export route for the steel industry in Ukraine," Ryzhenkov says.
As difficult as it is to get steel to customers in Turkey, Italy and North Africa, the Zaporizhzhia factory at least is still in Metinvest's hands.
Russian and Moscow-backed separatist forces seized the company's two steel mills in Mariupol. This includes the Azovstal plant, where Ukrainian soldiers made a final stand against the Russian occupation of the city. Russian forces blew apart the mill to capture it and finally take full control of the southern port city.
While Azovstal is now better known, it was actually the smaller of Metinvest's two steel plants in Mariupol. The other, Ilyich Iron and Steel Works, spread over more ground and, with 14,000 employees, had more workers than Azovstal. Ilyich was seized by Russian troops in April. Ukrainian fighters held out at Azovstal until mid-May.
"At some point in time we'll come back to Mariupol and see what is the state of Azovstal and Ilyich mill and see if they can be restored," he says.
The plants were insured, "but insurance doesn't typically cover the wartime risks," he says. "And that's the big problem."
The company's lawyers are looking at ways to file a claim against the Russian Federation for billions of dollars in damages, Ryzhenkov says — but making a shrug, as if it's a longshot.
There isn't a definitive tally of monetary damages in Mariupol, but the human suffering after months of bombardments has been extensive. Ukrainian officials say more than 20,000 civilians were killed in the Russian siege of the city. U.N. officials have documented a lower number of civilian casualties but still estimate the number killed in the city is in the thousands.
With the city under Russian control, Metinvest has urged customers globally not to buy steel from Mariupol. The company says there's a "high probability" that the occupying Russian forces are selling off some of the more than 200,000 tons of steel products Metinvest had stored at its two plants there.
Earlier this year, Metinvest was paying its idled employees two-thirds of their salaries, including at the Mariupol plants now controlled by the Russians. But in June the company had to lay off thousands of workers.
With limited revenue, two of its largest factories gone, and few options to export their industrial products to customers overseas, Ryzhenkov says the company right now is just focused on survival.
"We are making sure that whatever we still have control over we keep intact," he says.
"And we are waiting for Ukraine to kind of win the war and take back what belongs to it." But he's under no illusions that that is going to happen quickly.
Plants and raw materials are behind enemy lines
The challenges facing Metinvest are similar for other Ukrainian steelmakers and industrial firms, particularly in the east of the country.
"There are a number of really problematic trends that will compound over time," says Andrew Lohsen, who up until last year was based in Ukraine as a monitor and an analyst for the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe.
"One of them is the fact that these industries are highly dependent on coal that is mined behind enemy lines now or close to the fighting."
He says the industrial capacity of Ukraine right now is severely strained because so much of its manufacturing sector is in or near the intense fighting in eastern Ukraine.
This has been part of the problem for Metinvest. Prior to 2014, Metinvest was based in the eastern Ukrainian city of Donetsk. When Russian-backed separatists seized Donetsk in 2014, Metinvest relocated its headquarters to Mariupol, a city on the Sea of Azov. This year, when Russia grabbed Mariupol, the headquarters were displaced again, this time moving to the capital, Kyiv.
Ryzhenkov at times sounds weary talking about the impacts of the war, the export bottlenecks, the assets stolen by the Russians, the layoffs. But when asked if the company might be able to somehow restart operations in Mariupol or elsewhere near the fluctuating front lines, he answers quickly.
"The position of our shareholders is very clear on this," he says. "We will not operate in any occupied territory, under any occupational regime." He insists they'll operate only in areas under Ukrainian control.
Hanna Palamarenko contributed to this report.
Copyright 2022 NPR. To see more, visit https://www.npr.org. | 2022-08-12T23:08:17+00:00 | wksu.org | https://www.wksu.org/npr-news/npr-news/2022-08-12/russias-war-in-ukraine-pushes-ukrainian-steel-production-to-the-brink |
Intelligent Speed Assistance will kickstart a new era for automotive digital maps
LONDON, Aug. 4, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Over 47 million vehicles in circulation by 2027 will rely on digital maps to underpin active safety or autonomous driving applications, according to ABI Research, a global technology intelligence firm. Applications such as lane centering, localization, and location-enriched sensor fusion will see automotive digital maps expand out of the infotainment domain, creating a new, sustained market opportunity for digital map suppliers in the automotive industry.
"The uptake of digital maps outside of navigation and route guidance has been limited to date, so the European ISA mandate is an important catalyst for the location intelligence industry," says James Hodgson, Smart Mobility & Automotive Principal Analyst at ABI Research "Future maps for autonomous vehicles will be quite different from legacy maps, in terms of their attribution, accuracy, and time to reflect reality requirements. Building and maintaining these maps will require a radically different curation approach, defined by crowdsourcing and automation of the pipeline."
While road sign recognition systems that can read the content of speed signs have been widely adopted for many years, these camera-only systems exhibit certain weaknesses, especially in poor lighting or weather scenarios. Further, approximately 60% of European speed restrictions are implied, with no visible signage for even the most robust perception systems. According to Hodgson, "The need for maps in a resilient Intelligent Speed Assistance (ISA) system has blindsided some OEMs, particularly the requirement to maintain the maps that underpin the system to ensure accurate identification of the local speed restriction throughout the long lifetime of the vehicle."
The key role of digital maps across the full spectrum of autonomous vehicle applications has become clear. In early 2022, both Ford and Volkswagen announced that they would leverage Mobileye's Roadbook map product to augment SAE "Level 2+" centering applications, while Mercedes-Benz has selected HERE's HD Live Map to underpin their pioneering SAE L3 Drive Pilot. Waymo builds HD digital maps of a Zone before deploying their L4 / Robotaxi Waymo Driver platform.
Meeting the time to reflect reality requirements of autonomous vehicle maps will mandate the use of crowdsourcing, leveraging the experience of sensor-equipped vehicles in the field to build and maintain the map. To enable this user-generated mapping cycle, many developers of autonomous vehicle software and services have also built mapping platforms. The Mobileye REM platform is capable of ingesting sensor data from models equipped with certain EyeQ ADAS chipsets, while NVIDIA's MapStream allows for vehicles featuring their autonomous vehicle platform to update their map, which has recently been bolstered by the acquisition of DeepMap.
"ISA maps will give automakers and map suppliers their first taste of building and maintaining this new breed of automotive maps," Hodgson concludes. "It is key that OEMs do not regard ISA maps as a one-off nuisance, but as the beginning of a new era of location-enriched mobility."
These findings are from ABI Research's Automotive Maps for Intelligent Speed Assistance, ADAS, and Autonomous Driving application analysis report. This report is part of the company's Smart Mobility and Automotive research service, which includes research, data, and ABI Insights. Based on extensive primary interviews, Application Analysis reports present in-depth analysis on key market trends and factors for a specific technology.
ABI Research is a global technology intelligence firm delivering actionable research and strategic guidance to technology leaders, innovators, and decision makers around the world. Our research focuses on the transformative technologies that are dramatically reshaping industries, economies, and workforces today.
ABI Research是一家国际科技情报公司，为全球科技领袖、创新人士和决策者提供实用的市场研究和战略性指导。我们密切关注一切为各行各业、全球经济和劳动市场带来颠覆性变革的创新与技术。
For more information about ABI Research's services, contact us at +1.516.624.2500 in the Americas, +44.203.326.0140 in Europe, +65.6592.0290 in Asia-Pacific, or visit www.abiresearch.com.
Contact Info:
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Deborah Petrara
Tel: +1.516.624.2558
pr@abiresearch.com
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SOURCE ABI Research | 2022-08-04T09:44:15+00:00 | wsfa.com | https://www.wsfa.com/prnewswire/2022/08/04/global-revenues-intelligent-speed-assistance-autonomous-vehicle-maps-will-surpass-us500-million-by-2027/ |
WFO SPOKANE Warnings, Watches and Advisories for Friday, June 3, 2022
_____
FLASH FLOOD WATCH
Flood Watch
National Weather Service Spokane WA
308 AM PDT Fri Jun 3 2022
...FLASH FLOOD WATCH FOR THE BURN SCAR IS CANCELLED...
The Flash Flood Watch is cancelled for portions of North Central and
Northeast Washington, including the following counties, in North
Central Washington, Chelan, Douglas and Okanogan. In Northeast
Washington, Ferry.
The Flood Watch is cancelled. Rain rates are low. Flooding is no
longer expected to pose a threat. Please continue to heed road
closures.
...FLOOD WATCH REMAINS IN EFFECT FROM 11 AM PDT THIS MORNING THROUGH
10 PM THIS EVENING...
* WHAT...Flooding and debris flows caused by excessive rainfall is
possible.
* WHERE...A portion of Southeast Washington, including the following
counties, Asotin and Garfield.
* WHEN...From 11 AM PDT this morning through 10 pm this evening.
* IMPACTS...Heavy rain and excessive runoff may result in flooding
of rivers, creeks, streams, and other low-lying and flood-prone
locations. There is also the potential for flooding across the
Lick Creek burn scar.
* ADDITIONAL DETAILS...
- http://www.weather.gov/safety/flood
PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS...
You should monitor later forecasts and be alert for possible Flood
Warnings. Those living in areas prone to flooding should be prepared
to take action should flooding develop.
_____
Copyright 2022 AccuWeather | 2022-06-03T11:21:02+00:00 | expressnews.com | https://www.expressnews.com/weather/article/WA-WFO-SPOKANE-Warnings-Watches-and-Advisories-17217022.php |
Born into a poor family in Oldham, northwest England, in 1928, Cribbins left school in his early teens and got his start as a stage manager and bit player in regional repertory theater.
He moved on to West End productions before appearing in a dizzying range of British films, including 1960 comedy “Two-Way Stretch” alongside Peter Sellers; 1966 “Doctor Who” spinoff “Daleks’ Invasion Earth 2150 AD”; the 1967 James Bond spoof “Casino Royale”; and one of Alfred Hitchcock’s final thrillers, “Frenzy” in 1972.
He appeared in several movies in the “Carry On” series, was a memorable guest star on classic sitcom “Fawlty Towers” and had top 10 hits with comedy songs “Hole in the Ground” and “Right Said Fred.”
A younger generation knew Cribbins as Wilfred Mott, a companion to David Tennant’s titular Doctor, when ”Doctor Who” was revived in the early 21st century. He appeared in another BBC children’s series, “Old Jack’s Boat,” between 2013 and 2015, and filmed scenes earlier this year for an upcoming “Doctor Who” 60th-anniversary special.
“Doctor Who” showrunner Russell T. Davies remembered Cribbins as “a wonderful actor.”
“I’m so lucky to have known him ,” Davies said. “Thanks for everything, my old soldier. A legend has left the world.”
Cribbins’ wife of 66 years, Gill, died last year.
FILE Actor Bernard Cribbins poses in this Dec. 1, 1962 photo. Cribbins, a beloved British entertainer whose seven-decade career ranged from the bawdy “Carry On” comedies to children’s television and “Doctor Who,” has died. He was 93. Agent Gavin Barker Associates announced Cribbins’ death on Thursday, July 28, 2022. (PA via AP, File)
Credit: PA Photos
FILE Actor Bernard Cribbins poses in this Dec. 1, 1962 photo. Cribbins, a beloved British entertainer whose seven-decade career ranged from the bawdy “Carry On” comedies to children’s television and “Doctor Who,” has died. He was 93. Agent Gavin Barker Associates announced Cribbins’ death on Thursday, July 28, 2022. (PA via AP, File)
Credit: PA Photos
Credit: PA Photos
FILE Actor Bernard Cribbins with actresses, Sally Thomsett, left and Jenny Agutter, filming The Railway Children on location, in Oakworth, England, July 2, 1970. Cribbins, a beloved British entertainer whose seven-decade career ranged from the bawdy “Carry On” comedies to children’s television and “Doctor Who,” has died. He was 93. Agent Gavin Barker Associates announced Cribbins’ death on Thursday, July 28, 2022. (PA via AP, File)
Credit: Uncredited
FILE Actor Bernard Cribbins with actresses, Sally Thomsett, left and Jenny Agutter, filming The Railway Children on location, in Oakworth, England, July 2, 1970. Cribbins, a beloved British entertainer whose seven-decade career ranged from the bawdy “Carry On” comedies to children’s television and “Doctor Who,” has died. He was 93. Agent Gavin Barker Associates announced Cribbins’ death on Thursday, July 28, 2022. (PA via AP, File)
Credit: Uncredited
Credit: Uncredited
FILE - Actor Bernard Cribbins OBE poses for photographers as he arrives for the British Academy Children's Awards in London, Sunday, Nov. 23 2014. Cribbins, a beloved British entertainer whose seven-decade career ranged from the bawdy “Carry On” comedies to children’s television and “Doctor Who,” has died. He was 93. Agent Gavin Barker Associates announced Cribbins’ death on Thursday, July 28, 2022. (Photo by Grant Pollard/Invision/AP, File)
Credit: Grant Pollard
FILE - Actor Bernard Cribbins OBE poses for photographers as he arrives for the British Academy Children's Awards in London, Sunday, Nov. 23 2014. Cribbins, a beloved British entertainer whose seven-decade career ranged from the bawdy “Carry On” comedies to children’s television and “Doctor Who,” has died. He was 93. Agent Gavin Barker Associates announced Cribbins’ death on Thursday, July 28, 2022. (Photo by Grant Pollard/Invision/AP, File)
Credit: Grant Pollard
Credit: Grant Pollard
FILE Actor and presenter Bernard Cribbins, reads an excerpt from Winnie the Pooh after he received the annual J M Barrie Award for a lifetime of unforgettable work for children on stage, film, television and record, at the Radio Theatre at Broadcasting House in central London, Nov. 13, 2014. Cribbins, a beloved British entertainer whose seven-decade career ranged from the bawdy “Carry On” comedies to children’s television and “Doctor Who,” has died. He was 93. Agent Gavin Barker Associates announced Cribbins’ death on Thursday, July 28, 2022. (Nicholas.T.Ansell/PA via AP, File)
Credit: Nicholas.T.Ansell
Credit: Nicholas.T.Ansell
FILE Actor and presenter Bernard Cribbins, reads an excerpt from Winnie the Pooh after he received the annual J M Barrie Award for a lifetime of unforgettable work for children on stage, film, television and record, at the Radio Theatre at Broadcasting House in central London, Nov. 13, 2014. Cribbins, a beloved British entertainer whose seven-decade career ranged from the bawdy “Carry On” comedies to children’s television and “Doctor Who,” has died. He was 93. Agent Gavin Barker Associates announced Cribbins’ death on Thursday, July 28, 2022. (Nicholas.T.Ansell/PA via AP, File)
Credit: Nicholas.T.Ansell
Credit: Nicholas.T.Ansell
FILE - Bernard Cribbins arrives at Waterloo Station, in London onboard the 66 tonne Stirling Single, the train used in the original Railway Children film, June 3, 2010. Cribbins, a beloved British entertainer whose seven-decade career ranged from the bawdy “Carry On” comedies to children’s television and “Doctor Who,” has died. He was 93. Agent Gavin Barker Associates announced Cribbins’ death on Thursday, July 28, 2022. (Anthony Devlin/PA via AP, File)
Credit: Anthony Devlin
FILE - Bernard Cribbins arrives at Waterloo Station, in London onboard the 66 tonne Stirling Single, the train used in the original Railway Children film, June 3, 2010. Cribbins, a beloved British entertainer whose seven-decade career ranged from the bawdy “Carry On” comedies to children’s television and “Doctor Who,” has died. He was 93. Agent Gavin Barker Associates announced Cribbins’ death on Thursday, July 28, 2022. (Anthony Devlin/PA via AP, File)
Credit: Anthony Devlin
Credit: Anthony Devlin | 2022-07-28T11:14:11+00:00 | springfieldnewssun.com | https://www.springfieldnewssun.com/nation-world/bernard-cribbins-actor-who-delighted-uk-kids-dies-at-93/REDM335U5RAZ3K5SUQAAOJ5FLQ/ |
Students to pursue in-demand career in cardiovascular and diagnostic medical sonography
PORTLAND, June 30, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Concorde Career Colleges, Inc., a national leader in health care education with 17 campuses in eight states, has launched associate degree programs in Cardiovascular Sonography (CVS) and Diagnostic Medical Sonography (DMS) at its Portland campus. The accelerated programs will provide pathways for students who want to pursue in-demand health care careers as quickly as possible.
The demand for professionals in diagnostic medicine is estimated to grow by 14% from 2020 to 2030, largely because of retirements and career changes, according to The Bureau of Labor Statistics.i About 12,000 openings for medical sonographers and cardiovascular technologists are projected each year.
"The combination of our hands-on learning methods and our engaged faculty and staff creates a positive learning environment for students to thrive in their programs," said Concorde-Portland Campus President Siri Dixon. "By investing in our students' education, we have seen them become successful health care professionals, helping to address the national health care shortage, specifically within diagnostic medicine."
Enrollment for both programs are now open. Classes for the DMS Program will begin in July 2022 and for the CVS Program in September 2022. Teaching students fundamental medical concepts through a mixture of classroom learning and hands-on training in clinical settings, both programs are fast paced and offer 960 clinical hours. Students can complete the DMS Program in as little as 20 months and the CVS Program in 21 months.
The CVS program covers cardiac and vascular anatomy, physiology, techniques for preforming ultrasound imaging of various body structures, and general education topics:ii
- Cardiovascular Pathology
- Cardiovascular Pharmacology
- Cardiovascular Registry Review
- Echocardiography
- Electrophysiology
- Vascular Sonography
The DMS program covers human anatomy and physiology, techniques for performing ultrasound imaging of various body structures, and general education topics:iii
- Abdominal Sonography
- Anatomy and Physiology
- General Vascular Sonography
- OB/GYN Sonography
- Physics and Instrumentation
- Registry Review
- Sonographic Cross-Sectional Anatomy
The sonography courses will integrate didactic and clinical instruction with increasing expectations at each level, preparing students to help doctors assess conditions and guide surgical teams. Concorde-Portland has seasoned faculty who are dedicated to helping students gain the skills they need to be successful in their externships and obtain entry-level sonography positions.
The Concorde-Portland campus, which offers a variety of health care programs in Oregon, is located across from the Willamette River. For more information, visit the campus website or call 971-229-4551.
About Concorde Career Colleges, Inc.
Concorde Career Colleges, Inc., which operates 17 campuses in eight states under the brands Concorde Career College and Concorde Career Institute, prepares America's next generation of health care and dental professionals for rewarding careers. The Concorde hybrid/blended education model combines online coursework with in-person lab classes and clinical experiences. Concorde's 25 student-focused academic programs and personalized support prepares graduates for in-demand careers in nursing, dental, respiratory, diagnostic and other health care roles. Concorde's campuses are accredited by either the Accrediting Commission of Career Schools and Colleges (ACCSC) or the Council on Occupational Education (COE). For more information, visit www.concorde.edu.
i U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics projected national growth in job openings for medical sonographers and cardiovascular technologists and technicians between 2020-2030, https://www.bls.gov/ooh/healthcare/diagnostic-medical-sonographers.htm
ii https://www.concorde.edu/diagnostic-programs/cardiovascular-sonography/portland
iii https://www.concorde.edu/diagnostic-programs/diagnostic-medical-sonography/portland
Media Contact:
Devyn Raver
CBD Marketing
draver@cbdmarketing.com
312.661.1050
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SOURCE Concorde Career Colleges | 2022-06-30T14:57:46+00:00 | wsfa.com | https://www.wsfa.com/prnewswire/2022/06/30/concorde-portland-launches-diagnostic-programs/ |
Manchester United have signed goalkeeper Jack Butland on loan for the remainder of the season from Crystal Palace, the club announced on Friday.
Butland is set to arrive from Palace after Newcastle United recalled Martin Dubravka from his season-long loan at Old Trafford.
- Stream on ESPN+: LaLiga, Bundesliga, more (U.S.)
The 29-year-old England international joined Palace in 2020 where he made 10 appearances and will join United as a back-up to first-choice David de Gea.
"This is an amazing club and one that I am now proud to represent. I'm really looking forward to working with an unbelievable goalkeeping group, supporting each other every day to create the best training and playing environment for the team," Butland said in the announcement.
"I've played against David de Gea and represented England alongside Tom Heaton; they are top-class keepers, and I am relishing the opportunity to compete alongside and support them as teammates.
"There is a lot that this group can achieve this season and I'm excited to play my part in helping everyone to reach these ambitions."
When asked about Butland's arrival, United boss Erik ten Hag told a news conference: "Martin was recalled and we need three experienced goalkeepers.
"I'm really happy with David. It's quite clear he's our No. 1. He's a really good performer but there's always something that can happen with David as well and you have to be prepared for that so you don't have one." | 2023-01-06T11:11:45+00:00 | espn.com | https://www.espn.com/soccer/soccer-transfers/story/4845689/man-united-announce-signing-of-jack-butland-on-loan-from-crystal-palace |
USDA-guaranteed Loans Will Help AppHarvest Build New 30-acre Hydroponics Farm that Uses 90% Less Water than Open-field Agriculture
RENO, Nev., Oct. 20, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Greater Commercial Lending (GCL), which provides loans to businesses and organizations in under-served and rural communities, has completed about $50 million in financing for a high-tech berry farm in Somerset, Kentucky. The financing consists of two loans guaranteed by the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA).
The farm, which is designed to grow produce using sunshine, rainwater and up to 90% less water than open field growing, is expected to be operational by the end of the year. It will produce yields up to 30 times that of traditional agriculture and prevent pollution from agricultural runoff.
The Somerset farm is owned and operated by AppHarvest, LLC, a subsidiary of AppHarvest, Inc. (NASDAQ: APPH, APPHW), a sustainable food company in Appalachia building some of the world's largest high-tech indoor farms to grow affordable fruits and vegetables at scale. AppHarvest is a public benefit corporation and a Certified B Corp.
"Access to high-quality fruits and vegetables is critical for all Americans. GCL is pleased to support AppHarvest's sustainable, high-tech agricultural process by providing access to government-guaranteed loans – a low cost and long-term financing source for these important agricultural projects," said Jeremy Gilpin, executive vice president of GCL, one of the largest providers of USDA loans.
Eighty percent of the GCL-arranged financing for the Somerset, Kentucky farm is guaranteed by the USDA through its Business and Industry Rural Development program and Rural Energy America Program (REAP). The financing structure includes participation by GCL parent Greater Nevada Credit Union, Community Bank and Trust of Georgia and other credit unions, community banks, and secondary market groups.
"Securing non-dilutive sources of capital to fund our growth has been a top priority since going public early last year, and I'm pleased with our team's ability to source lower-cost funding in a higher-cost lending environment," said AppHarvest President David Lee. "This funding agreement with the USDA allows us to continue to scale operations as we plan to bring the Somerset farm and two additional CEA (controlled environment agriculture) facilities online before the end of the year, which would quadruple our farm network and diversify our product portfolio to include berries and salad greens."
The project is expected to create about 142 jobs for the community. The Somerset farm will consist of a 30-acre greenhouse, cooling and packing room and office that will process strawberries and small cucumbers.
Greater Commercial Lending (GCL) is a credit organization that brings together credit unions and community lenders from around the U.S. to provide government-guaranteed loans to businesses and initiatives in rural and under-served markets throughout the U.S. and its territories. It helps finance key infrastructure services, like power, renewable energy, transportation and fiber optic, as well as schools, hospitals, restaurants, agriculture, hotels and manufacturers. GCL partners with the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) and the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), which guarantee loans, to arrange credit at favorable terms. GCL is a subsidiary of Greater Nevada Credit Union (GNCU). www.GreaterLending.com
Greater Nevada Credit Union (GNCU) is headquartered in Carson City, Nevada and has been helping Nevadans with their financial needs since 1949. The credit union serves more than 82,200 consumers and small businesses and has over $1.73 billion in assets. GNCU's subsidiaries include Greater Nevada Mortgage, Greater Commercial Lending and Greater Nevada Insurance. GNCU is a certified Community Development Financial Institution (CDFI), and has been consistently recognized as a Best Financial Institution in many of its service areas and as a top employer by the Reno/Tahoe Best Places to Work Awards and is the USDA Lender of the Year. GNCU is also the title sponsor of Greater Nevada Field in Reno. For more information, call (800) 421-6674 or visit www.gncu.org.
AppHarvest is a sustainable food company in Appalachia developing and operating some of the world's largest high-tech indoor farms with robotics and artificial intelligence to build a reliable, climate-resilient food system. AppHarvest's farms are designed to grow produce using sunshine, rainwater and up to 90% less water than open-field growing, all while producing yields up to 30 times that of traditional agriculture and preventing pollution from agricultural runoff. AppHarvest currently operates its flagship farm – about the size of 50 football fields – in Morehead, Ky., producing tomatoes. The company is developing a network of farms to produce a variety of vine crops, salad greens and berries with three more farms currently under construction that are expected to be operational by the end of 2022. For more information, visit https://www.appharvest.com/.
Media contact:
Michael-Jon Romano
Allison+Partners
Michael-Jon.Romano@AllisonPR.com
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SOURCE Greater Commercial Lending | 2022-10-20T14:53:48+00:00 | wsfa.com | https://www.wsfa.com/prnewswire/2022/10/20/greater-commercial-lending-completes-50-million-financing-high-tech-berry-farm-kentucky/ |
Matt Meyer launches 2024 bid for Delaware governor
So far, Meyer is the only person to have officially declared a campaign to run for the governor’s office.
New Castle County Executive Matt Meyer has launched a bid to become the next governor of Delaware.
Before becoming the New Castle County executive, Meyer was a sixth and seventh grade math teacher prior to running for public office.
He cited his experiences in the classroom as inspiration for his campaign during an interview with WDEL News.
“They inspire me again to think of the deep problems across our community,” Meyer said. “I had tremendous opportunities here in Delaware, we’re eager to go out and fix them across the states. I’ll be running for governor next year.”
Meyer’s initiatives focus on public safety, the environment, and effective governance, according to his campaign website.
“When I was a kid, we’d always talk about how the next generation will be the best generation in American history, how the next generation will make more money than their parents,” Meyer said. “There will be greater equality across our community than ever before in American history. Health care will be better. I think now there’s a sense that things are really different. And so we need real leadership to make sure the next generation will indeed be our best generation.”
So far, Meyer is the only person to have officially declared a bid to run for the governor’s office. He’ll be looking to replace the term-limited Governor John Carney.
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WHYY is your source for fact-based, in-depth journalism and information. As a nonprofit organization, we rely on financial support from readers like you. Please give today. | 2023-06-07T20:08:52+00:00 | whyy.org | https://whyy.org/articles/matt-meyer-delaware-governor-2024-campaign-launch/ |
Arizona Attorney General’s office asks for federal investigation of conservative nonprofit True the Vote
By Kate Sullivan and Fredreka Schouten, CNN
The Arizona Attorney General’s office has asked for a federal investigation related to potential violations of the Internal Revenue Code by the conservative nonprofit True the Vote, which claims to be trying to expose voter fraud.
An investigator in Arizona Attorney General Mark Brnovich’s office, Reginald Grigsby, said in a letter that the group has “raised considerable sums of money alleging they had evidence of widespread voter fraud” but has failed to provide any evidence to its office, despite publicly indicating they had shared the information with law enforcement agencies.
“Given TTV’s status as a nonprofit organization, it would appear that further review of its financials may be warranted,” the letter, released on Friday, reads in a striking move for an office overseen by a Republican. Brnovich had sought to win over former President Donald Trump and his supporters in his unsuccessful bid for the nomination for Senate earlier this year.
Grigsby detailed three meetings representatives from the attorney general’s office had with Catherine Engelbrecht, who founded the Texas-based nonprofit, and Gregg Phillips, who is a contracted partner.
The meetings were spread out over a year — the first took place in June 2021 and the following two occurred in April and June of this year. Grigsby said prior to each meeting, Engelbrecht and Phillips said they would provide the attorney general’s office with information to support their claims of voter fraud but they never provided any so-called evidence.
In a statement, True the Vote called the letter “false” and said it “smacks of retribution for the AG’s own decision to ignore suspicious voting activity.” The statement also countered that its hard drive of data is “available to any law enforcement agency which issues a lawful subpoena for the data” and said that it “has documentary records of correspondence with the State of Arizona and the FBI, detailing the evidence and its limitations.”
In its letter, the attorney general’s office stated that it had requested the information by electronic and US mail and by leaving voicemails after the latest in-person meeting, but it did not indicate whether it had formally subpoenaed the data.
An IRS spokesperson told CNN, “Due to privacy regulations, the IRS will not comment on the status of an individual or organization.”
True the Vote and Engelbrecht have advanced claims of election-fraud for years. But the group recently gained new prominence through the film, “2000 Mules” produced by conservative filmmaker Dinesh D’Souza. It claims “mules” were used to illegally collect and deliver ballots to drop boxes in key states in the 2020 election.
True the Vote has said it purchased cellphone geo-tracking data to identify devices that went repeatedly near drop boxes and certain nonprofits ahead of the election to advance the argument that illegal ballot harvesting occurred in key swing states.
Multiple fact-checkers have debunked those claims. And in testimony that aired during a hearing of the House select committee investigating the January 6, 2021, attack on the US Capitol, former Attorney General William Barr called the film’s premise flawed.
The film has been touted by Trump and some Trump-aligned candidates. Earlier this year, the former President hosted a screening of the film at Mar-a-Lago, his waterfront Florida resort and home.
The-CNN-Wire
™ & © 2022 Cable News Network, Inc., a Warner Bros. Discovery Company. All rights reserved. | 2022-10-17T03:56:27+00:00 | localnews8.com | https://localnews8.com/politics/cnn-us-politics/2022/10/16/arizona-attorney-generals-office-asks-for-federal-investigation-of-conservative-nonprofit-true-the-vote/ |
VATICAN CITY (AP) — Pope Francis has decided to give women the right to vote at an upcoming meeting of bishops, an unprecedented change that reflects his hopes to give women greater decision-making responsibilities and laypeople more say in the life of the Catholic Church.
Francis approved changes to the norms governing the Synod of Bishops, a Vatican body that gathers the world’s bishops together for periodic meetings, following decades of demands by women to have the right to vote.
The Vatican on Wednesday published the modifications he approved, which emphasize his vision for the lay faithful taking on a greater role in church affairs that have long been left to clerics, bishops and cardinals.
Ever since the Second Vatican Council, the 1960s meetings that modernized the church, popes have summoned the world’s bishops to Rome for a few weeks at a time to debate particular topics.
At the end of the meetings, the bishops vote on specific proposals and put them to the pope, who then produces a document taking their views into account.
Until now, the only people who could vote were men.
But under the new changes, five religious sisters will join five priests as voting representatives for religious orders.
In addition, Francis has decided to appoint 70 non-bishop members of the synod and has asked that half of them be women. They too will have a vote.
The aim is also to include young people among these 70 non-bishop members, who will be proposed to the pope by regional blocs, with Francis making a final decision.
“It’s an important change, it’s not a revolution,” said Cardinal Jean-Claude Hollerich, a top organizer of the synod.
The next meeting, scheduled for Oct. 4-29, is focused on the very topic of making the church more reflective of, and responsive to, the laity, a process known as “synodality” that Francis has championed for years.
The October meeting has been preceded by an unprecedented two-year canvassing of the lay Catholic faithful about their vision for the church and how it can better respond to the needs of Catholics today.
Cardinal Mario Grech, who is in charge of the synod, stressed that with the changes, some 21% of the gathered representatives at the October meeting will be non-bishops, with half of that group women.
Acknowledging the unease within the hierarchy of Francis' vision of inclusivity, he stressed that the synod itself would continue to have a majority of bishops calling the shots.
Hollerich declined to say how the female members of the meeting would be known, given that members have long been known as “synodal fathers.” Asked if they would be known as “synodal mothers,” he responded that it would be up to the women to decide.
Francis has upheld the Catholic Church's ban on ordaining women as priests, but has done more than any pope in recent time to give women greater say in decision-making roles in the church.
He has appointed several women to high-ranking Vatican positions, though no women head any of the major Vatican offices or departments, known as dicasteries. | 2023-04-26T12:44:55+00:00 | sfgate.com | https://www.sfgate.com/news/world/article/pope-allows-women-to-vote-at-upcoming-bishops-17919402.php |
Light to Moderate Rain Continuing This Afternoon
First Alert Weather
Soggy start to the day with light to moderate rainfall continuing this afternoon across the Tennessee Valley. As we head throughout the rest of the afternoon and evening, plan on a few more isolated to scattered showers and storms, but it likely will not be as widespread in comparison to earlier today. Nonetheless, flash flooding will still be a primary hazard for areas that have received repeated heavy rainfall, so make sure you are taking it easy on the roadways. With rain chances and a good bit of cloud cover today, afternoon highs will be staying on the cooler side topping out in the mid to upper 80s. Expect mainly dry conditions as we head into the evening and overnight hours with overnight lows dipping back into the low and mid 70s.
A warmer and drier pattern will start shaping up for the rest of your work week and into the weekend with an upper level ridge building across the region. Each day will feature isolated to widely scattered showers and storms with afternoon highs soaring back into the low and mid 90s. Heat indices will be climbing back in the triple digits, so get ready to hydrate!
Copyright 2022 WAFF. All rights reserved. | 2022-08-01T17:37:12+00:00 | waff.com | https://www.waff.com/2022/08/01/light-moderate-rain-continuing-this-afternoon/ |
If you’ve never had the chance to experience the San Luis Obispo Botanical Garden, you can visit it Saturday for free. At the garden you can see plants, wildlife, and artwork covering the grounds.
“You’ve gotta come see it for yourself. There’s no describing what it feels like to be in a garden that is like this. In this truly wild space where nature is happening at your feet. It’s something you have to experience,” said SLO Botanical Garden Education Director Millie Tolani.
Saturday the garden is partnering with the Alzheimer’s Association to host an event called “The Longest Day.” It will focus on Alzheimer awareness through fun activities, allowing participants to explore their ability to remember.
There will be a memory game that visitors can play to win a prize, as well as a scavenger hunt, art activities, a tide pool touch tank, and a panel lead by the garden’s founder, Eve Vigil, to talk about the earliest memories of the garden.
“During that day, admission is free for everybody, usually kids under twelve are free, but this day, parents and their kids can come for free,” said Tolani.
Free Admission Day is a joint effort between the garden, volunteers, local organizations, businesses, and artists. Tolani said they hope it encourages people from the community to visit the garden who wouldn’t normally be able to experience it due to financial barriers.
“Whatever the barrier or the restriction might be, we wanted to make sure the community members had an opportunity to come here,” said Tolani.
Free Admission Day will run from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. tomorrow, with activities beginning at 11:00 a.m. | 2022-06-11T01:08:32+00:00 | kcbx.org | https://www.kcbx.org/arts-and-life/2022-06-10/slo-botanical-garden-teams-with-alzheimers-association-to-host-free-day |
NFLPA and BMV to increase voter awareness, education, and participation among Black men, athletes, fans, and the American public
WASHINGTON, June 27, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Today, the National Football League Players Association (NFLPA) and voter engagement organization Black Men Vote (BMV), announced an historic partnership focused on voter registration and engagement. The new partnership will leverage the historical involvement of NFL players in increasing voter turnout and facilitating a fair discussion of issues that impact communities across America.
Founded in 1956, the NFL Players Association (NFLPA) is the union for professional football players in the National Football League. Representing more than 2,000 players – the majority of whom are men of color -- the NFLPA has been a leading advocate for issues of social justice, human rights, and equality. Black Men Vote is a 501(c)3 non-profit whose mission is to inform, educate and encourage all Black men (particularly age 18-35) to vote in local, state and federal elections.
The NFLPA/BMV partnership comes at a critical time in our nation and will help facilitate greater participation in our electoral system by often marginalized communities. Key components will include but are not limited to: strategic relationships and/or partnerships with former and current players, a public awareness campaign highlighting the importance of voting, collaborative voter registration drives, advocacy and policy reform, data analysis and research, and strategic fundraising partnerships. All of these elements are designed to increase voter registration and engagement among Black men specifically and the American public in general.
"Black Men Vote's mission to empower men of color and to educate them on issues that impact our communities seamlessly aligns with what we stand for as a union as well as with the players we represent," NFLPA Executive Director DeMaurice Smith said. "Voting is one of the greatest weapons we have in our ongoing march for justice. Together, I'm excited to see what we will accomplish as we work to make sure that every voice is heard at the polls."
"The NFLPA is one of the leading and most impactful organizations in our country, not only serving their players, but also large segments of the American public," said Larry Williams Jr., Executive Director of Black Men Vote. "They have been an outspoken voice in support of voting and voter registration, as well as other critical issues such as social justice, mental health awareness, and community action. We are proud to count them as a critical partner in our efforts to register and engage Black men across America in the voting process, and are excited that they have chosen to use their platform in support of this important goal."
Under this new partnership, BMV and the NFLPA will establish and nurture strategic relationships with former and current players who are interested in supporting voting rights and civic engagement. The initiative will involve collaborating with athletes to amplify messaging, promote voter registration, and encourage civic participation among their fans and followers to advance the cause of voting rights and participation, especially amongst Black men.
About the NFL Players Association:
The National Football League Players Association is the union for professional football players in the National Football League. Established in 1956, the NFLPA has a long history of assuring proper recognition and representation of players' interests. The NFLPA has shown that it will do whatever is necessary to assure that the rights of players are protected—including ceasing to be a union, if necessary, as it did in 1989. In 1993, the NFLPA again was officially recognized as the union representing the players and negotiated a landmark Collective Bargaining Agreement with the NFL. The current CBA will govern the sport through the 2030 NFL season. Learn more at www.nflpa.com.
About Black Men Vote:
The mission of Black Men Vote is to educate, inform and inspire all black men (particularly aged 18-35) to vote at all levels of government - local, state, and federal. BMV is a 501c3 incorporated in Washington DC. Since 2020, Black Men Vote has been focused on charitable and educational work within the Black community. Black Men Vote has worked to provide nonpartisan voter education to Black men in America resulting in voter registration and voter activation. Learn more at www.blackmenvote.org.
FOR MORE INFORMATION: Communications@blackmenvote.org
IG: blackmenvoteofficial
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SOURCE Black Men Vote | 2023-06-27T19:10:50+00:00 | mysuncoast.com | https://www.mysuncoast.com/prnewswire/2023/06/27/nfl-players-association-black-men-vote-announce-historic-partnership/ |
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Russia official warns West of destruction for arming Ukraine
KYIV, Ukraine (AP) — The speaker of the lower house of Russia’s parliament warned Sunday that countries supplying Ukraine with more powerful weapons risked their own destruction, a message that followed new pledges of armored vehicles, air defense systems and other equipment but not the battle tanks Kyiv requested.
Ukraine’s supporters pledged billions of dollars in military aid to Ukraine during a meeting at Ramstein Air Base in Germany on Friday, though the new commitments were overshadowed by a failure to agree on Ukraine’s urgent request for German-made Leopard 2 battle tanks.
State Duma Chairman Vyacheslav Volodin said that governments giving more powerful weapons to Ukraine could cause a “global tragedy that would destroy their countries.”
“Supplies of offensive weapons to the Kyiv regime would lead to a global catastrophe,” he said. “If Washington and NATO supply weapons that would be used for striking peaceful cities and making attempts to seize our territory as they threaten to do, it would trigger a retaliation with more powerful weapons.”
Germany is one of the main donors of weapons to Ukraine, and it ordered a review of its Leopard 2 stocks in preparation for a possible green light. Nonetheless, the government in Berlin has shown caution at each step of increasing its commitments to Ukraine, a hesitancy seen as rooted in its history and political culture.
French President Emmanuel Macron, meanwhile, said Sunday that he does not rule out sending Leclerc battle tanks to Ukraine and had asked his defense minister to “work on” the idea.
Macron spoke during a during a news conference in Paris with German Chancellor Olaf Scholz as their countries commemorating the 60th anniversary of their post-World War II friendship treaty. In a joint declaration, France and Germany committed to their “unwavering support” for Ukraine.
France will make its tank decision based on three criteria, Macron said: that sharing the equipment does not lead to an escalation of the conflict, that it would provide efficient and workable help when training time is taken into account, and that it wouldn’t weaken France’s own military.
Scholz did not respond when asked about the Leopard 2 tanks Sunday, but stressed that his country already has made sizable military contributions to Ukraine.
“The U.S. is doing a lot, Germany is doing a lot, too,” he said. “We have constantly expanded our deliveries with very effective weapons that are already available today. And we have always coordinated all these decisions closely with our important allies and friends.”
Germany’s tentativeness has drawn criticism, particularly from Poland and the Baltic states, countries on NATO’s eastern flank that feel especially threatened by Russia’s renewed aggression.
Polish Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki said that if Germany does not consent to transferring Leopard tanks to Ukraine, his country was prepared to build a “smaller coalition” of countries that would send theirs anyway.
“Almost a year had passed since the outbreak of war,” Morawiecki said in an interview with Polish state news agency PAP published Sunday. “Evidence of the Russian army’s war crimes can be seen on television and on YouTube. What more does Germany need to open its eyes and start to act in line with the potential of the German state?”
In Washington, two leading lawmakers urged the U.S. on Sunday to send some of its Abrams tanks to Ukraine in the interests of overcoming Germany’s reluctance to share its own, more suitable tanks.
“If we announced we were giving an Abrams tank, just one, that would unleash” the flow of tanks from Germany, Rep. Michael McCaul, the Republican chairman of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, told ABC’s “This Week on Sunday.” “What I hear is that Germany’s waiting on us to take the lead.”
Sen. Chris Coons, a Democrat who is on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, also spoke up for the U.S. sending Abrams.
“If it requires our sending some Abrams tanks in order to unlock getting the Leopard tanks from Germany, from Poland, from other allies, I would support that,” Coons said.
Dmitry Medvedev, the deputy head of the Russian Security Council, said the U.S.-led meeting at the air base in Germany “left no doubt that our enemies will try to exhaust or better destroy us,” adding that “they have enough weapons” to achieve the purpose.
Medvedev, a former Russian president, warned on his messaging app channel that “in case of a protracted conflict,” Russia could seek to form a military alliance with “the nations that are fed up with the Americans and a pack of their castrated dogs.”
Ukraine is asking for more weapons as it anticipates Russia’s forces launching a new offensive in the spring.
Oleksii Danilov, the secretary of Ukraine’s Security and Defense Council, warned that Russia may try to intensify its attacks in the south and in the east and to cut supply channels of Western weapons, while conquering Kyiv “remains the main dream” in President Vladimir Putin’s “fantasies,” he said.
In a column published by online newspaper Ukrainska Pravda. he described the Kremlin’s goal in the conflict as a “total and absolute genocide, a total war of destruction”
Among those calling for more arms for Ukraine was the former British prime minister, Boris Johnson, who made a surprise trip to Ukraine on Sunday. Johnson, who was pictured in the Kyiv region town of Borodyanka, said he traveled to Ukraine at the invitation of President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.
“This is the moment to double down and to give the Ukrainians all the tools they need to finish the job. The sooner Putin fails, the better for Ukraine and for the whole world,” Johnson said in a statement.
The last week was especially tragic for Ukraine even by the standards of a brutal war that has gone on for nearly a year, killing tens of thousands of people, uprooting millions more and creating vast destruction of Ukrainian cities.
A barrage of Russian missiles struck an apartment complex in the southeastern city of Dnipro on Jan. 14, killing at least 45 civilians. On Wednesday, a government helicopter crashed into a building housing a kindergarten in a suburb of Kyiv. Ukraine’s interior minister, other officials and a child on the ground were among the 14 people killed.
Zelenskyy vowed Sunday that Ukraine would ultimately prevail in the war.
“We are united because we are strong. We are strong because we are united,” the Ukrainian leader said in a video address as he marked Ukraine Unity Day, which commemorates when east and west Ukraine were united in 1919.
___
Sylvie Corbet in Paris contributed.
___
Follow AP’s coverage of the war in Ukraine: https://apnews.com/hub/russia-ukraine
Copyright 2023 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. | 2023-01-22T18:48:24+00:00 | fox5vegas.com | https://www.fox5vegas.com/2023/01/22/russia-official-warns-west-destruction-arming-ukraine/ |
NEWPORT NEWS, Va. (WAVY) — You can own a gun, and you can use marijuana (at least in the states that have legalized it) – but you can’t do both at the same time, regardless of where you live.
“If you’re a normal, everyday Virginian who uses marijuana regularly, whether it’s lawfully or unlawfully, it doesn’t matter,” said attorney Billy Jackson. “You can’t possess a firearm because under federal law, as you point out, it’s still illegal to even possess marijuana.”
“Do you use marijuana?” is one of many “yes or no” questions on Form 4473 from the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives. Filling out the form is a requirement for gun purchasers in every state across the nation. Lying on that form is a federal crime.
“The federal government still looks at marijuana usage the same as they look at heroin or cocaine,” said Portsmouth Sheriff Michael Moore. Moore was a special agent in the ATF who worked on drug and gun trafficking cases.
It’s a law federal prosecutors believe Deja Taylor broke when she bought a 9-millimeter handgun from Winfree Firearms in July 2022. Her 6-year-old son would use that gun to shoot his teacher, Abby Zwerner, at a Virginia elementary school six months later.
Taylor recently pleaded guilty to a pair of federal charges – making a false statement when buying a gun and possessing a firearm while illegally using marijuana – in the case.
“That’s why we have these laws on the books,” Jackson said. “To hold these individuals accountable for both their own firearm possession and what flows, what kind of danger flows from that firearm possession. And here, that harm that flowed from it was just devastating.”
Jackson was a federal prosecutor for more than six years. He brought those same charges against many defendants, most often violent offenders he wanted to take off the streets quickly.
“It’s an easy charge to convict someone of,” Jackson said.
Late last month, after Minnesota legalized recreational marijuana, ATF issued a reminder that not only are marijuana users prohibited from owning a gun, but receiving, transporting, or shipping firearms and ammunition.
Smoking a joint one time isn’t enough to make buying a gun illegal. To prove those charges, Jackson said prosecutors must show that a person uses marijuana regularly.
“You have to have regular use. Daily use is preferred,” he said. “You have to show contemporaneous use. That they used it within a day or two or a week of being caught with the firearm. For example, the gold standard is when you find them with the firearm in one pocket and drugs in another.”
Medical marijuana users can’t own guns, either, according to federal law.
“It’s spelled out pretty well, and it has a warning: The use or possession of marijuana remains unlawful under federal law regardless of if it’s been legalized or decriminalized for medicinal or recreation purposes in the state where you reside,” Moore said of the ATF’s Form 4473.
The same federal view of marijuana can also cause headaches for air travelers.
“Hopefully in the very near future this form, and the federal government, will be able to address that change,” he continued. | 2023-06-17T15:34:19+00:00 | everythinglubbock.com | https://www.everythinglubbock.com/news/national/your-gun-or-your-ganja-its-illegal-for-marijuana-users-to-own-a-gun/ |
Travis Jankowski Player Prop Bets: Rangers vs. Angels - May 6
Published: May. 6, 2023 at 7:23 PM CDT|Updated: 45 minutes ago
On Saturday, Travis Jankowski (.276 slugging percentage in past 10 games, with no home runs) and the Texas Rangers face the Los Angeles Angels, whose starting pitcher will be Reid Detmers. First pitch is at 9:07 PM ET.
In his last game he had a hitless performance (0-for-2) against the Angels.
Travis Jankowski Game Info & Props vs. the Angels
- Game Day: Saturday, May 6, 2023
- Game Time: 9:07 PM ET
- Stadium: Angel Stadium of Anaheim
- Live Stream: Watch this game on Fubo!
- Angels Starter: Reid Detmers
- TV Channel: BSW
- Hits Prop: Over/under 0.5 hits (Over odds: -133)
- Home Runs Prop: Over/under 0.5 home runs (Over odds: +1350)
- RBI Prop: Over/under 0.5 RBI (Over odds: +320)
- Runs Prop: Over/under 0.5 runs (Over odds: +210)
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Explore More About This Game
Travis Jankowski At The Plate
- Jankowski has four doubles, a triple and seven walks while batting .279.
- In 52.2% of his games this season (12 of 23), Jankowski has picked up at least one hit, and in four of those games (17.4%) he recorded more than one.
- In 23 games played this season, he has not hit a long ball.
- In six games this season, Jankowski has picked up an RBI, with more than one RBI once.
- In 39.1% of his games this year (nine of 23), he has scored, and in three of those games (13.0%) he has scored more than once.
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Travis Jankowski Home/Away Batting Splits
Angels Pitching Rankings
- The Angels pitching staff ranks 13th in MLB with a collective nine strikeouts per nine innings.
- The Angels have the 11th-ranked team ERA among all league pitching staffs (3.85).
- Angels pitchers combine to allow the eighth-fewest home runs in baseball (31 total, 0.9 per game).
- Detmers gets the start for the Angels, his sixth of the season. He is 0-2 with a 4.85 ERA and 31 strikeouts in 26 2/3 innings pitched.
- In his last outing on Saturday, April 29 against the Milwaukee Brewers, the left-hander tossed 4 1/3 innings, giving up four earned runs while surrendering four hits.
- The 23-year-old has put up an ERA of 4.85, with 10.7 strikeouts per nine innings, in five games this season. Opponents are batting .255 against him.
© 2023 Data Skrive. All rights reserved. | 2023-05-07T01:09:24+00:00 | kcbd.com | https://www.kcbd.com/sports/betting/2023/05/06/travis-jankowski-mlb-player-prop-bets/ |
CHARLOTTE, N.C. (QUEEN CITY NEWS) – More trouble could be on the way to Charlotte Area Transit System because of what leaders say is excessive bus operator absences.
CATS operators received a letter in their work mailboxes from Steve Hamelin, General Manager of Transit Management of Charlotte, the private company that hires and manages bus operators for CATS.
In the letter, Hamelin says he’s “concerned and mystified” that absences continue to be a problem for bus operators even after the latest union contract made operators with certain tenure among the highest paid on the east coast.
Operators spoke to Queen City News anonymously, expressing their concerns about the allegations and possible job cuts.
“I thought it was really a slap in the face,” an operator said. “I thought that the company and the union and the drivers were trying to work toward a better work relationship. I just didn’t think that that was anything good.”
According to numbers from CATS leaders, there are 447 operators, which means about 20% of the operator staff have been in hot water for attendance. According to Hamelin, 23 operators are in point trouble for attendance. He says the repeated callouts or drivers living mid-shift result in hundreds if not thousands of missed weekly trips.
“Drivers don’t feel appreciated,” an operator said. “They don’t feel safe, and when you say you don’t feel safe, being at work, you’re gonna find ways not to go to work if you can.”
In the letter, Hamelin wrote:
“Contingency plans are being formulated by CATS to make additional service cuts unless TMOC can stabilize service levels going forward, possibly cutting at least 40 bus operator positions.”
Hamelin calls on operators to “step up and do their part to make this a better place to work” to avoid negative consequences and a loss of jobs.
“Before you can really think about firing somebody, you should think of why they’re in this situation,” an operator said.
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Operators say they continue to deal with unruly passengers and unsafe situations. The letter states transit leaders have added ambassadors and security guards to help operators feel safe and supported.
“I haven’t really seen anything; I don’t feel safe,” an operator said. “I know; I haven’t heard any drivers say that they feel safer by anything they have done.”
Current policy says any unplanned absence without a doctor’s note is considered an unexcused absence which counts as a point against operators. Operators that reach seven points are in danger of termination. CATS leaders drop off points for good attendance, allowing operators to redeem themselves before getting fired.
“We get sick. We got people that have little issues; it happens. But the point being that you can’t keep drivers; that’s got nothing to do with us,” an operator said. “These people tell us why they are leaving, and we tell you why they’re leaving, and you don’t want to fix the problem. So now you want to threaten the [operators] that you have.”
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Operators we spoke to also pointed out that the rail line have not been running on schedule. When rail lines are not operating, transit leaders implement a bus bridge which makes bus drivers pick up the slack. They question if CATS leaders are considering those numbers.
“You know, this goes a lot deeper than a lot of people think it is,” an operator said. “They need to change the everyday fabric of operations and everything before this will ever be straightened out.”
CATS leaders hosted a town hall meeting late last month with CATS interim CEO for bus operators.
Operators say the meeting was scheduled for 4:30 a.m., which made it difficult for operators to attend. Operators we spoke to would like to see another meeting at a more convenient time when they can address concerns with leadership.
Transit Management of Charlotte did not respond to calls for an interview and further context on the letter. Currently, CATS leaders say there are more than 100 openings for bus operators.
Several hiring events are planned for upcoming weeks to help fill open positions.
- Wednesday, April 12 – 10:00 a.m. – Marvelous Wednesdays Onsite Career Fair, 3145 South Tryon St
- Thursday, April 13 – 10:00 a.m. – Charlotte Veteran’s Career Fair at the Bojangles Coliseum
- Saturday, April 15 – 9:00 a.m. – Farmer’s Market Recruiting and Job Fair, 1801 Yorkmount Rd
- Wednesday, April 9 – 10:00 a.m. – Marvelous Wednesdays Onsite Career Fair, 3145 South Tryon St
- Wednesday, April 26 – 10:00 a.m. – Job Fair of the Carolinas, 300 Carowinds Blvd., Charlotte, NC 2827 | 2023-04-11T01:21:52+00:00 | qcnews.com | https://www.qcnews.com/charlotte/i-dont-feel-safe-cats-leaders-threaten-job-cuts-and-service-changes-in-letter-to-bus-operators/ |
JERUSALEM (AP) — Israel’s far-right government on Monday approved plans to build thousands of new homes in the occupied West Bank — a move that threatened to worsen increasingly strained relations with the United States.
The decision defied growing U.S. criticism of Israel’s settlement policies in occupied lands. It also raised tensions with the Palestinians at a time of rising violence in the occupied territory.
Multiple Israeli media outlets said the Defense Ministry planning committee that oversees settlement construction approved over 5,000 new settlement homes. The units are at various stages of planning, and it was not immediately clear when construction would begin. The ministry did not immediately comment.
The international community, along with the Palestinians, considers settlement construction illegal or illegitimate and obstacles to peace. Over 700,000 Israelis now live in the occupied West Bank and east Jerusalem – territories captured by Israel in 1967 and sought by the Palestinians for a future state.
Israel’s government, which took office in late December, is dominated by religious and ultranationalist politicians with close ties to the settlement movement.
The Biden Administration has been increasingly outspoken in its criticism of Israel’s settlement policies and has repeatedly called on Israel to halt the building. Despite the criticism, the U.S. has taken little action against its close ally. | 2023-06-26T17:42:18+00:00 | kdvr.com | https://kdvr.com/news/nationalworld-news/ap-international/israel-oks-plans-for-thousands-of-new-settlement-homes-move-defies-white-house-calls-for-restraint/ |
The majority of Senate Democrats on Monday pressed Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin to maintain access to abortion care for service members and their dependents, warning that restricting such care could hurt national security.
In a letter led by Sen. Jeanne Shaheen (D-N.H.), a senior member of the Armed Services Committee, the 38 lawmakers tell Austin that “it is imperative that the Department of Defense continue to take action to protect the rights of service members and their families to access abortion care.”
“State laws restricting or prohibiting our service members from accessing reproductive care send a message that the United States does not trust those who serve in uniform – whom we trust to protect our country – to make their own decisions about their health care and families,” the letter reads. “These laws also jeopardize the health and overall readiness of our military.”
The letter was coauthored with Sens. Mazie Hirono (D-Hawaii) and Michael Bennet (D-Colo.) and signed by 36 Democrats as well as Independent Sens. Bernie Sanders (Vt.) and Angus King (Maine).
In the wake of the Supreme Court’s decision to overturn Roe v. Wade last June, 13 states have outlawed most abortions, with several others severely restricting the procedure.
The RAND Corporation estimates that 40 percent of active-duty women who serve in the United States face limited or no access to abortion services where they are stationed, according to the letter.
Prior to the court’s decision, the Department of Defense allowed abortion services at military treatment facilities under limited circumstances, including pregnancy caused by rape or incest or endangering the health and life of the woman. In most other cases, service members were required to pay out of pocket themselves at civilian medical facilities.
Since Roe v. Wade was overturned, Pentagon officials have vowed to continue to allow abortion services at military treatment facilities, including in states where the procedure is no longer allowed or limited.
Austin first announced in October that the Pentagon would also provide leave to service members and their dependents for travel required to access reproductive health care and would reimburse individuals for the trek.
Policies released in February gave additional details and guidance on how the directives would function.
In his October decision, Austin argued that restricting access to reproductive care “will interfere with our ability to recruit, retain, and maintain the readiness of a highly qualified force.”
Senate Republicans, however, are skeptical, with 12 asking Austin for the data to back up his readiness claims.
Led by Senate Armed Services Committee ranking member Roger Wicker (R-Miss.), the lawmakers in a letter earlier this month accused the Pentagon of a “blatant attempt to circumvent numerous federal statutes” and policies that “can only be interpreted as a purely political action taken without consulting Congress.”
The divide has also led to a hold on President Biden’s nominations for top Pentagon positions since February, with Sen. Tommy Tuberville (R-Ala.) last week vowing to maintain the freeze until the policy is altered.
And in a contentious Senate Armed Services Committee hearing last week, Sen. Ted Budd (R-N.C.) included abortion access in the military as among so-called “social experiments” and “radical agendas,” at the Pentagon.
In Monday’s letter, Senate Democrats argue that state laws restricting abortions will not stop service members from needing or seeking care.
“Abortion restrictions and bans only force service members to travel farther to states that have not restricted abortion, further compromising both the financial security of the service members and military readiness,” they write. “Our service members should not be forced to needlessly risk their personal health and safety for routine health care simply because they pledged to protect and defend our nation.” | 2023-03-27T17:28:49+00:00 | upmatters.com | https://www.upmatters.com/hill-politics/senate-democrats-urge-pentagon-to-safeguard-abortion-access/ |
GREENVILLE, N.C. (Stacker.com) — Americans spent $93 billion on travel in February 2023—5% above 2019 (before COVID-19) and 9% above 2022, according to the U.S. Travel Association. As more and more people venture out to make up for the last few pandemic-ridden years, you might be looking to go a little farther off the beaten path to avoid the crowds.
But it’s not always easy to learn about lesser-known travel gems or figure out how to find them. Fortunately, Stacker did some digging and found a hidden travel gem for every state, using data from Atlas Obscura.
Each state’s top hidden wonders were based on their travel rarity ratio, which Stacker calculated by taking the number of “want to visit” votes for places on Atlas Obscura and dividing those by the number of “been here” votes as of April 11, 2023. This list includes each state’s places with the highest-ranking ratio—that is, lots of people want to visit, but not many actually have—as long as they had at least 100 “been here” votes at the time of tabulation.
Here you’ll find opportunities to explore offbeat history, admire ancient geological formations, witness unexplained phenomena, and reveal long-kept secrets—no matter what state your travels take you to.
Because these locations aren’t the most obvious and out-in-the-open tourist attractions that you’d find in your garden variety travel guide, some of these locations require making special arrangements to access them. In other cases, the hidden gem might be on private property and only visible from afar. In those cases, it is vital to respect property owners and avoid trespassing.
Read on to find each state’s coolest hidden wonder.
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Kendra Isbell // Shutterstock
Alabama: Neversink Pit
– Address: Fackler, Alabama, 35746
– Want to visit votes on Atlas Obscura: 2,454
– Been here votes on Atlas Obscura: 172
– Rarity ratio: 14.3
Reaching the bottom of Neversink‘s 162-foot pit—and getting back up—requires specialized rock-climbing and rope-rigging skills and equipment, but hikers are welcome to visit without actually entering the sinkhole. It’s located in Jackson County, about 34 air miles northeast of Huntsville—at the end of a short but strenuous hike up a steep mountain. Free permits are available from the Southeastern Cave Conservancy.
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Linda Harms // Shutterstock
Alaska: The Upside-Down Forest of Glacier Gardens
– Address: 7600 Glacier Highway Juneau, Alaska, 99801
– Want to visit votes on Atlas Obscura: 859
– Been here votes on Atlas Obscura: 129
– Rarity ratio: 6.7
You might not think of Alaska as a destination for a temperate rainforest habitat—but that’s exactly what the botanical attraction Glacier Gardens offers, tucked away in the Tongass National Forest near the Mendenhall Glacier just north of Juneau. From May to October, Glacier Gardens turns any preconception of what Alaska has to offer on its head with its “upside-down” grove of trees—whose branches are firmly planted into the ground and whose roots create an unusual flower bed canopy high above. You can only explore the gardens and their “flower towers” on a guided, hourlong tour, which is offered to cruise passengers and land tourists alike.
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Arizona: Pumpkin Spring Pool
– Address: Mile 212.9, Grand Canyon, Littlefield, Arizona, 86432
– Want to visit votes on Atlas Obscura: 1,749
– Been here votes on Atlas Obscura: 119
– Rarity ratio: 14.7
It may look like autumn all year at Pumpkin Spring Pool in Littlefield, Arizona—but you definitely don’t want to take a sip out of this orange-colored gourd. In fact, you won’t even want to touch the hot springs-fed mineral water that’s overflowing out of this natural limestone formation because it’s a rogues’ gallery of toxins (like arsenic and lead).
Geologically known as a “mound form,” it’s a worthy destination to gaze upon and marvel at—if you can get there, as it’s only reachable by traveling via boat down the Colorado River on the rim of the Grand Canyon. A local river outfitter can hook you up with a rafting trip—and then all you have to do is look for Pumpkin Spring and its curious cauldron at Mile 212.9.
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Arkansas: The Gurdon Light
– Address: 64 Collins Road, Gurdon, Arkansas, 71743
– Want to visit votes on Atlas Obscura: 1,223
– Been here votes on Atlas Obscura: 124
– Rarity ratio: 9.9
Questions surrounding the Gurdon Light in Gurdon, Arkansas, abound—as do theories surrounding it. The glowing orb appears to have no man-made source, and it’s not always found in the same spot. People who’ve spotted it don’t even agree on what color it is.
The television station KTHV, a CBS affiliate in nearby Little Rock, reported that the actual existence of the light can’t be denied because of how many people have witnessed it—but after interviewing a historian and other locals, no one can say for sure what this “ghost light” is, or why it’s there, located somewhere along an abandoned right-of-way along old railroad tracks, a short walk west from Highway 53. One thing’s for sure, though: Sightings only happen at night.
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Liz Hafalia/The San Francisco Chronicle via Getty Images
California: Institute of Illegal Images
– Address: 3466 20th Street, San Francisco, California, 94110
– Want to visit votes on Atlas Obscura: 2,760
– Been here votes on Atlas Obscura: 204
– Rarity ratio: 13.5
All the art at the Institute of Illegal Images in San Francisco’s Mission District was created on sheets of “acid tabs,” aka LSD blotter paper. Also known as the Blotter Barn, the museum is the brainchild—and home—of Mark McCloud, a self-professed acid-tripper who told Wired magazine that he credits LSD for saving his life when he fell out of a window while high. To meet McCloud and peruse his collection of more than 30,000 pieces of framed blotter art (as of 2014)—including M.C. Escher-style designs alongside fractals, blue unicorns, flying saucers, and a purple Jesus—Atlas Obscura recommends arranging your trip by contacting McCloud directly via email or phone.
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Colorado: Magic Mushroom House
– Address: Private Address, Aspen, Colorado, 81611
– Want to visit votes on Atlas Obscura: 1,564
– Been here votes on Atlas Obscura: 109
– Rarity ratio: 14.3
It took Warsaw-born Andre Ulrych six years (beginning in 1973) to finish the Magic Mushroom House, his home near Buttermilk Mountain in Aspen, Colorado—perhaps because he wasn’t an experienced builder (he was a nightclub owner and restauranteur by profession), or because a hallucinogenic state inspired his design, as current owner Patty Findlay told CNN.
The 6,000-square-foot, 12-story shroom incorporates a mind-bending array of twists and turns that Ulrych attempted to evoke the golden ratio, a geometric design that incorporates the divine mathematics of the Fibonacci sequence most commonly seen in the shape of a nautilus shell. Although the Magic Mushroom House has been included in a design tour in the past, opportunities to visit this private residence are rare, so please respect the owners’ privacy.
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Connecticut: Gungywamp
– Address: Gungywamp Groton, Connecticut, 06340
– Want to visit votes on Atlas Obscura: 1,006
– Been here votes on Atlas Obscura: 123
– Rarity ratio: 8.2
Did Celtic monks cross the Atlantic in the 6th century and build Gungywamp an hour outside of what would become New Haven, Connecticut? According to the Hartford Courant, that’s just one of the theories that try to explain the existence of this archaeological site that looks like it could pre-date the arrival of Christopher Columbus to the “New World” in 1492.
Other theories lean more towards the supernatural, including energy vortexes and ancient aliens—namely because of the Stonehenge-like way that the sun lines up perfectly with the stone chambers’ windows during the equinoxes. If you want to investigate the state-owned site yourself (which also crosses private property), join the Denison Pequotsepos Nature Center on a public hike or make an appointment for a private walk.
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Lisa Rapko // Shutterstock
Delaware: Marian Coffin Gardens
– Address: 1301 Greenhill Avenue, Wilmington, Delaware
– Want to visit votes on Atlas Obscura: 853
– Been here votes on Atlas Obscura: 197
– Rarity ratio: 4.3
Marian Coffin Garden offers a lush landscape at the vacant Gibraltar estate—a 19th-century mansion once owned by Hugh Rodney Sharp Jr., who hired the garden’s namesake, landscape architect Marian Cruger Coffin, to install an elaborate garden. The house itself has unfortunately deteriorated into a derelict state, but the gardens have been restored to Coffin’s original circa 1916 vision by Preservation Delaware, which allows free public access daily from sunrise to sunset.
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CHANDAN KHANNA/AFP via Getty Images
Florida: Neptune Memorial Reef
– Address: 3.25 miles offshore, Key Biscayne, Florida, 33149
– Want to visit votes on Atlas Obscura: 2,596
– Been here votes on Atlas Obscura: 254
– Rarity ratio: 10.2
An “underwater city for the dead,” the Neptune Memorial Reef off the shore of Key Biscayne, may look like a lost city akin to the fabled Atlantis, but it’s actually an intentionally submerged cemetery made out of cremated remains. The organization calls it the “ultimate green burial opportunity”: It recycles remains into funerary structures and memorials that serve as an artificial reef. Fortunately, divers are welcome—which means being interred (or “deployed“) in this necropolis isn’t the only way to visit it.
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salajean // Shutterstock
Georgia: Fantastic Pit
– Address: Rocky Lane, Walker County, Georgia
– Want to visit votes on Atlas Obscura: 1,434
– Been here votes on Atlas Obscura: 115
– Rarity ratio: 12.5
Imagine climbing Seattle’s Space Needle, from top to bottom, deep into the underground—and then you’ll have a sense of what it’s like to descend through Georgia’s Fantastic Pit, a 586-foot unobstructed drop within Ellison’s Cave (which, in total, goes down 1,063 feet). Located under Walker County’s Pigeon Mountain, this is an advanced cave system—one that’s not for novice spelunkers. Just getting to Fantastic Pit in the first place requires navigating through a labyrinth of other, smaller pits. But for cavers who have the experience—or are willing to learn vertical caving skills—it’s a rare opportunity to drop through the deepest cave pit (that we know of) in the United States.
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Andre Seale/VW PICS/Universal Images Group via Getty Images
Hawaii: Lithified Sand Dunes
– Address: Unnamed Road, Koloa, Hawaii, 96756
– Want to visit votes on Atlas Obscura: 568
– Been here votes on Atlas Obscura: 105
– Rarity ratio: 5.4
On Kauai, the oldest island in the Hawaiian archipelago, it’s not unusual to find rocky cliffs right next to sandy beaches at the shore. But at Kawailoa Bay, near Mahaʻulepu Beach, the rugged landscape deserves a closer look—because it’s actually composed of ancient sand that slowly turned to stone over the last 350,000 years. Known as the Lithified Sand Dunes, you can find them on the southeastern coast of Kauai, accessible via an easy walk along the Mahaʻulepu Heritage Trail. Look for their odd yellow color—and examine closely to find fossils of sea and land creatures alike.
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Leonard Zhukovsky // Shutterstock
Idaho: Big Idaho Potato Hotel
– Address: Orchard Access Road and E Monroe Road, Boise, Idaho
– Want to visit votes on Atlas Obscura: 753
– Been here votes on Atlas Obscura: 108
– Rarity ratio: 7.0
If you love potatoes enough to sleep inside one, behold the Big Idaho Potato Hotel—born in 2012 out of the Idaho Potato Commission’s 75th-anniversary campaign (“The Famous Idaho Potato Tour“) but now available to rent by the night on Airbnb.
Although it’s just over 10 years old, the giant ‘tato follows the tradition of many of the roadside attractions found throughout the United States in the early and mid-20th century—when three-story shoes, giant donuts, and larger-than-life dogs, all part of the style of programmatic architecture, attracted motorists to local businesses with an eyeful of spectacle. This portly potato, however, has been planted in a far more remote location: in the middle of a 400-acre farm on the outskirts of Boise.
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marchello74 // Shutterstock
Illinois: The Secret Mermaid
– Address: Oakwood Beach, Chicago, Illinois, 60653
– Want to visit votes on Atlas Obscura: 1,834
– Been here votes on Atlas Obscura: 234
– Rarity ratio: 7.8
There may not be any real mermaids swimming in Lake Michigan—but those in the know traveling down Lake Shore Drive through Chicago’s South Side will head to the southern tip of Oakwood Beach to find the Secret Mermaid, a stone figure that was surreptitiously sculpted out of limestone by four artists in broad daylight in 1986. It remained a mystery to locals for 14 years—but the siren’s secret has been out since 2000. And after being temporarily relocated from her original location, she’s back where she belongs: right by the shoreline in Burnham Park, and in plain view for the public to enjoy.
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Indiana: Market Street Catacombs
– Address: 222 E Market St Indianapolis, Indiana, 46204
– Want to visit votes on Atlas Obscura: 2,412
– Been here votes on Atlas Obscura: 387
– Rarity ratio: 6.2
You don’t have to travel all the way to Paris to visit historic catacombs—because in Indianapolis, there’s an entire underground city known as the Market Street Catacombs. Those curious about this limestone and brick underworld can head to Indianapolis City Market, where the tunnels once served as part of its infrastructure—namely, in the days before refrigerators and freezers, keeping its goods cool. Although this subterranean labyrinth is generally not open to the public, the market does allow occasional guided tours of its dark basement through its partnership with Indiana Landmarks.
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Dorothea Lange/Everett Collection // Shutterstock
Iowa: The Hobo Museum
– Address: 51 Main Avenue S, Britt, Iowa, 50423
– Want to visit votes on Atlas Obscura: 639
– Been here votes on Atlas Obscura: 114
– Rarity ratio: 5.6
One of the lasting icons that came out of the Great Depression was the American “hobo”—a railroad car-hopping vagabond sporting a five o’clock shadow and carrying all his worldly possessions in a blanket tied to the end of a stick. This archetype is the jumping-off point for the collection of the Hobo Museum, founded in the early 1980s by actual hobos (as they identified themselves) who wanted to preserve their legacy and the tradition that they had continued throughout the 20th century.
Located in the former Chief Theater in Britt, Iowa, the museum’s collection includes personal artifacts from prominent American hobos throughout history. Opportunities to visit, however, are limited—as it’s only open Thursdays through Saturdays from Memorial Day in May through the Hobo Days festival in August. For the rest of the year, you can request an appointment by emailing the museum.
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Sendo Serra // Shutterstock
Kansas: Wamego LSD Missile Silo
– Address: 16795 Auburn Circle, Wamego, Kansas, 66547
– Want to visit votes on Atlas Obscura: 787
– Been here votes on Atlas Obscura: 127
– Rarity ratio: 6.2
The Wamego LSD Missile Silo is a Cold War-era artifact—once home to the Atlas E-type ballistic missile, which was active from 1961 to 1965 at the former Forbes Air Force Base in nearby Topeka, Kansas. But its military history isn’t its claim to fame. The decommissioned silo’s notoriety comes from its status as what Vice magazine called “the world’s most productive LSD laboratory.”
That’s just the tip of the 15,000-square-foot underground iceberg—because its most infamous resident, Gordon Todd Skinner, became an informant for the DEA, leading to the arrest and conviction of Skinner’s friend William Leonard Pickard for his role in running an illegal LSD lab that resulted in the biggest federal seizure of illegal acid and paraphernalia ever.
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Gabriel Quiles // Shutterstock
Kentucky: Broke Leg Falls
– Address: US-460, Wellington, Kentucky
– Want to visit votes on Atlas Obscura: 891
– Been here votes on Atlas Obscura: 102
– Rarity ratio: 8.7
Broke Leg Falls is a nature preserve in Kentucky’s eastern Menifee County that shows what could happen when an EF-3 tornado rips through a wooded area—because after a twister ripped the surrounding trees out in 2012, the hidden waterfalls within Daniel Boone National Forest were suddenly and violently exposed. Since the small park had just celebrated its grand reopening just a few months before, after an extensive restoration project, officials decided to put the falls’ fate in the hands of nature’s will—and not try to return it back to its pre-tornado state.
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Konoplytska // Shutterstock
Louisiana: Escape My Room
– Address: 633 Constance Street, New Orleans, Louisiana, 70130
– Want to visit votes on Atlas Obscura: 1,496
– Been here votes on Atlas Obscura: 171
– Rarity ratio: 8.7
Escape My Room in New Orleans is such an elaborate escape room visitors might start to actually believe the storyline that draws them into the lore of the DeLaporte family’s trials and tribulations—including missing treasures, covered-up crime, and a doomed mansion. Each of its custom-themed games has a staggeringly low escape rate. Admission is by advance ticket sales only, and punctuality is a must—or risk being turned away from DeLaporte Manor and denied access to its secrets.
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Allan Wood Photography // Shutterstock
Maine: Boon Island Light
– Address: York, Maine, 03909
– Want to visit votes on Atlas Obscura: 923
– Been here votes on Atlas Obscura: 153
– Rarity ratio: 6.0
It makes sense that a lighthouse would be built on an island that’s proven treacherous for sea vessels. It’s clearly where a guiding light is needed most. But the tallest lighthouse in New England—Boon Island Light—was established on a site of a shipwreck so tragic the only way the survivors made it out alive was by eating their ill-fated fellow sailors’ dead bodies. While you can see Boon Island Light from afar from the shore, the truly brave board a boat to get a closer view. As it’s a working lighthouse, no interior access is currently available.
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Linda Davidson // The Washington Post via Getty Images
Maryland: Underground Railroad Experience Trail
– Address: 16501 Norwood Road, Woodlawn Manor Cultural Park Ashton-Sandy Spring, Maryland, 20860
– Want to visit votes on Atlas Obscura: 994
– Been here votes on Atlas Obscura: 127
– Rarity ratio: 7.8
Although there’s no evidence that any of the structures at the Woodlawn Manor (or its owners) were involved in the Underground Railroad, Montgomery Parks/Maryland-National Capital Park and Planning Commission created the Underground Railroad Experience Trail through this former plantation in honor of the local area’s history in aiding in the safe passage of escaped enslaved people in the 1800s—particularly in Sandy Spring, the Quaker town in which it stands.
Between Baltimore and Washington D.C. and well south of the Mason-Dixon Line, the trail takes visitors along a self-guided tour of nine points of interest across 2 miles, illustrating the challenges faced on their path to freedom and the techniques used to get there safely.
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Jessica Rinaldi // The Boston Globe via Getty Images
Massachusetts: Museum of Modern Renaissance
– Address: 115 College Avenue Somerville, Massachusetts, 02144
– Want to visit votes on Atlas Obscura: 1,314
– Been here votes on Atlas Obscura: 143
– Rarity ratio: 9.2
On an otherwise nondescript residential street in Somerville, Massachusetts, one house stands out among the rest: the colorful Museum of Modern Renaissance, located in a former Masonic lodge that Russian artists Ekatrina Sorokina and Nicholas Shaplyko took over in 2002 and transformed into their private art immersion.
It’s not an artist’s studio per se—it doesn’t just contain the duo’s mystical and magical paintings. The structure, too, has become an expression of their art. But it’s still somewhat under the radar in the art world, as the artists only allow the public to experience it on occasional tours by appointment only or sometimes during the annual open houses sponsored by Somerville Open Studios.
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Michigan: Cherry Point Farm and Market Lavender Labyrinth
– Address: 9600 W Buchanan Road, Shelby, Michigan
– Want to visit votes on Atlas Obscura: 1,095
– Been here votes on Atlas Obscura: 115
– Rarity ratio: 9.5
If there’s intelligent life beyond planet Earth looking down at us to try to decide a good spot to make their eventual landing, they just might choose Cherry Point Farm and Market Lavender Labyrinth—because this stunning, enormous feat of landscape design, which features 36 herb beds, can be seen from space.
But this visual marvel is also a fragrant, meditative destination where creatures from this planet or the next can meander through a spiral of sacred geometry, finding their way into and out of it while also discovering something about themselves. And fortunately, it’s free to access during the farm’s normal business hours, which are 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. daily beginning May 5.
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alexfan32 // Shutterstock
Minnesota: Orfield Labs Quiet Chamber
– Address: 2709 East 25th Street, Minneapolis, Minnesota, 55406
– Want to visit votes on Atlas Obscura: 2,236
– Been here votes on Atlas Obscura: 213
– Rarity ratio: 10.5
In 2021, the Guinness World Records organization determined that Orfield Labs Quiet Chamber in Minneapolis was the quietest place on Earth—which comes in handy for the various manufacturers who use it to test their products, including various types of equipment that need to operate within certain sound level constraints. This “quiet room” (known technically as an “anechoic chamber”) was designed specifically to be absent of any echo and to absorb 99.99% of sound—and as a result, it’s become a kind of destination for visitors wanting to challenge the limits of their ability to withstand sensory deprivation for hours on end.
According to BBC News, the room is so quiet that all some people can hear in there is the sound of their own heart beating and stomach digesting—which could be therapeutic, unsettling, or downright panic-inducing. If you’re interested in seeing how you’d react (and how long you’d last), you can arrange a tour through Orfield Labs.
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Mississippi: Margaret’s Grocery and Market
– Address: 4535 N. Washington Street, Vicksburg, Mississippi, 39183
– Want to visit votes on Atlas Obscura: 506
– Been here votes on Atlas Obscura: 114
– Rarity ratio: 4.4
Margaret Rogers is the namesake of Margaret’s Grocery and Market—a folk art environment in Vicksburg, Mississippi, that began as a humble roadside store, which she ran and lived in starting in 1944. But everything changed in the 1980s when Rogers married the Rev. Herman “Preacher” Dennis, who turned her country store into a castle-like assemblage of pink-and-yellow cinder block turrets, a school bus pulpit, and handcrafted signs with messages that read, “The house of prayer for all people to worship, Jews and Gentiles” and the like.
When Dennis and Rogers both passed away, the Mississippi Folk Art Foundation stepped in to help preserve the grocery, which had begun to fall apart. Although it may no longer sell any goods to weary travelers, it’s open for occasional tours and special events.
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Missouri: Welch Spring Hospital Ruins
– Address: Jadwin, Missouri, 65501
– Want to visit votes on Atlas Obscura: 1,515
– Been here votes on Atlas Obscura: 183
– Rarity ratio: 8.3
Welch Spring’s supposedly healing waters flowed from a cave along the Current River in southern Missouri’s Ozarks—and, in 1913, they attracted the attention of Dr. C.H. Diehl, who bought the spring and built a hospital at the cave’s opening for patients struggling with consumption (aka tuberculosis). However, the facility—which was probably more akin to a health spa—ultimately failed; it was too difficult to reach in such a remote location. After Dr. Diehl died in 1940, it fell into disrepair—and the Welch Spring Hospital Ruins are now accessible by foot (at the end of a half-mile trail) or via canoe.
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Montana: Medicine Rocks State Park
– Address: 1141 MT-7, Ekalaka, Montana
– Want to visit votes on Atlas Obscura: 723
– Been here votes on Atlas Obscura: 100
– Rarity ratio: 7.2
The sandstone formations at Medicine Rocks State Park may look a bit like Swiss cheese because of how they’ve eroded over time, but these pillars are more than a geological oddity. They also provided a canvas for Native Americans dating hundreds of years back—many of whom were part of hunting parties that gathered here and considered the site both sacred and medicinal. As the soft stone is easy to carve markings into, a lot of rock art can be found throughout the grounds, including petroglyphs depicting local wildlife, people, and events that occurred over the course of hundreds of years.
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Nebraska: Toadstool Geologic Park
– Address: Toadstool Road, Oglala National Grassland Harrison, Nebraska
– Want to visit votes on Atlas Obscura: 760
– Been here votes on Atlas Obscura: 164
– Rarity ratio: 4.6
Toadstool Geologic Park offers an opportunity to explore an arid desert with an alien-like landscape that was formed when ancient waters flowed through the area around 45 million years ago. Although the prehistoric river has since vanished from these badlands, the traces it left behind include sandstone rock formations (known as hoodoos) that resemble a mushroom forest.
As if the “toadstool” part of this geological wonder weren’t enough of a draw, the site—which is located within Oglala National Grasslands—also boasts a number of fossils of ancient wildlife, like horses and saber-toothed cats, which can be discovered along a mile-long interpretive trail. Just make sure you leave the artifacts undisturbed and take only pictures.
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Nevada: Atomic Survival Town
– Address: Nevada Test Site, Nye County, Nevada
– Want to visit votes on Atlas Obscura: 1,471
– Been here votes on Atlas Obscura: 109
– Rarity ratio: 13.5
Atomic Survival Town is a bucolic neighborhood that was built in the middle of the unforgiving Nevada desert with the specific purpose of blowing it up with an atomic bomb. The only way to get to see it—at least, what’s left of it—is by booking one of the highly in-demand public tours of the Nevada National Security Site located north of Las Vegas.
The two-story houses of the “town”—which were populated by mannequins living an otherwise-ideal mid-20th century existence—were so close to Vegas, in fact, that the nuclear explosions and resulting mushroom clouds attracted spectators who gathered at viewing parties at local hotels. Note: Photography on the entire test site is strictly forbidden, and even bringing a cell phone onto the tour is prohibited.
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New Hampshire: Sculptured Rocks
– Address: 251 Sculptured Rocks Road, Hebron, New Hampshire
– Want to visit votes on Atlas Obscura: 1,706
– Been here votes on Atlas Obscura: 260
– Rarity ratio: 6.6
At the end of the last ice age, the Cockermouth River was flowing on its way to Newfound Lake—and along its path, the grains of sand it contained slowly eroded the local bedrock to create Sculptured Rocks. These geologic formations were carved into oddball shapes, and they now surround a swimming hole and a waterfall in Sculptured Rocks Natural Area, part of the New Hampshire State Parks system. Called the “little Grand Canyon of New Hampshire” by New Hampshire Magazine, Sculptured Rocks is a natural oddity that’s strangely beautiful and a reminder of how the landscape around us can change so dramatically over time.
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New Jersey: Abandoned Hagedorn Psychiatric Hospital
– Address: Edna Volpe Road, Glen Gardner, New Jersey, 08826
– Want to visit votes on Atlas Obscura: 1,302
– Been here votes on Atlas Obscura: 171
– Rarity ratio: 7.6
The only tuberculosis sanatorium in New Jersey that was state-owned and -operated first opened in 1907 and closed in the late 1970s. It was replaced in 1977 by a new facility called the Senator Garret W. Hagedorn Gero-Psychiatric Hospital, then rebranded as a nursing home and psych ward. But that treatment center reached the end of its line in 2012, when New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie ordered the state government to shut it down—leaving it abandoned, right next to the ruins of the old TB center.
Together, the pair comprises the abandoned Hagedorn Psychiatric Hospital complex in Glen Gardner, New Jersey, where nature is taking its course. The New Jersey Natural Lands Trust is currently working to create public access to the decommissioned hospitals’ grounds and the open space that surrounds them.
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Lijuan Guo
New Mexico: Ah-Shi-Sle-Pah Wilderness Study Area
– Address: Bloomfield, New Mexico
– Want to visit votes on Atlas Obscura: 3,546
– Been here votes on Atlas Obscura: 291
– Rarity ratio: 12.2
Although any water supply in Ah-Shi-Sle-Pah Wilderness Study Area is currently scarce, water once rolled through these badlands of northwestern New Mexico and carved mysterious shapes into the sandstone hills. Although the resulting formations—known as hoodoos—aren’t very difficult to reach, this area is primitive backcountry without facilities and trails. The payoff of making the trek, however, is admiring mushroom-shaped rock columns that appear in a rainbow of colors with varying textures in clay.
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New York: North Brother Island
– Address: North Brother Island, Bronx, New York, 10455
– Want to visit votes on Atlas Obscura: 1,943
– Been here votes on Atlas Obscura: 152
– Rarity ratio: 12.8
Manhattan may be the most famous island in the New York City metropolitan area, but there’s another, much smaller isle located in the East River—between two other boroughs, the Bronx and Queens—that has a fascinating but little-known history. It’s called North Brother Island, and it’s infamous for its most famous former resident, “Typhoid Mary,” who for a time was a quarantined patient at the island’s Riverside Hospital.
The facility closed in 1963 and, left abandoned, has since become a bird sanctuary—specifically for the black-crowned night heron. While visiting the nature preserve is prohibited in order to protect nesting birds, it is visible from the water—especially if you can catch one of the birdwatching cruises offered occasionally by Audubon.
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North Carolina: Blue Ghost Fireflies
– Address: 1400 Staton Road, Hendersonville, North Carolina, 28739
– Want to visit votes on Atlas Obscura: 2,346
– Been here votes on Atlas Obscura: 222
– Rarity ratio: 10.6
Even bug experts don’t know much about the Blue Ghost Fireflies that populate the western environs of North Carolina, particularly in the wooded areas of the Appalachian Mountains. But one thing’s for sure: The bluish color of their “glow” is unusual among creatures that exhibit bioluminescence (or the ability to “light up,” thanks to a chemical reaction in the body). Although these lightning bugs are abundant locally, they’re found in very few places throughout the world—and they only appear seasonally in spring.
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North Dakota: The Pyramid of North Dakota
– Address: 81st Street NE, Nekoma, North Dakota, 58355
– Want to visit votes on Atlas Obscura: 847
– Been here votes on Atlas Obscura: 133
– Rarity ratio: 6.4
The Pyramid of North Dakota is part of what put the tiny town of Nekoma on the map: an anti-Russian missile defense facility called the Stanley R. Mickelsen Safeguard Complex. A monumental, four-story-high pyramid that still stands today once housed the complex’s radar system, although Congress voted to dismantle the military installation the day after it opened in October 1975.
It was operational for just a few months before becoming decommissioned the following July and subsequently abandoned. Although the Cold War-era relic, located along 81st Street Northeast, is closed to the public, you can view it from afar—at least until cryptocurrency company Bitzero Blockchain Inc. converts it into a new data center.
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Ohio: Early Television Museum
– Address: 5396 Franklin Street, Hilliard, Ohio
– Want to visit votes on Atlas Obscura: 869
– Been here votes on Atlas Obscura: 111
– Rarity ratio: 7.8
The Huffington Post has called the Early Television Museum in Hilliard, Ohio, “where old TVs go to live.” And this “retirement home” contains some antique television sets that go back to the earliest days of the “boob tube”—as far back as 1928, the year of the first American TV broadcast, which used mechanical scanning technology (later replaced by electron beams). But don’t mistake this museum for a graveyard of vintage sets because most of them are actually still in working order.
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Oklahoma: Gandini’s Circus
– Address: N Kelly Avenue between Swan Lake Road and Pruett Drive, Edmond, Oklahoma, 73003
– Want to visit votes on Atlas Obscura: 992
– Been here votes on Atlas Obscura: 165
– Rarity ratio: 6.0
According to The Daily Oklahoman, local entrepreneur Howard Suesz housed the winter camps of two traveling “big top” attractions on the now-abandoned Edmond circus camp property from the 1940s to the 1970s. While local lore has it that both the Hagen Bros. Circus and the Clyde Bros. Circus actually came out of a pre-Great Depression predecessor called Gandini’s Circus, no artifacts on the site contain that name—and the Edmond Historical Society & Museum adds, no digitized newspaper clippings, other archives, or records have verified the legend. As the property is still privately owned, trespassing is not allowed—but some remnants may be visible from the sidewalk.
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Oregon: Out ‘n’ About Treehouse Treesort
– Address: 300 Page Creek Road, Cave Junction, Oregon, 97523
– Want to visit votes on Atlas Obscura: 1,407
– Been here votes on Atlas Obscura: 142
– Rarity ratio: 9.9
Cave Junction, Oregon, is home to no ordinary resort—drawing vacationers to its Out ‘n’ About Treehouse Treesort, where they can spend the night in their very own arboreal hideout. Located just outside the forested foothills of southern Oregon’s Page Mountain, with plenty of oak trees and Douglas fir pines, this “treesort” also offers opportunities to zip-line through the tree canopy or ride horseback with four legs firmly planted on the ground.
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Pennsylvania: Devil’s Hole Ruins
– Address: Pennsylvania State Gamelands #221, Monroe County Cresco, Pennsylvania
– Want to visit votes on Atlas Obscura: 1,815
– Been here votes on Atlas Obscura: 152
– Rarity ratio: 11.9
With a name like “Devil’s Hole Creek,” the mind can go to some scary places when imagining what might’ve happened at Devil’s Hole Ruins in the Pocono region of Pennsylvania. According to the Monroe County Historical Association, the name might’ve come from the legend of a bottomless lake where swimmers could sink into the depths of hell.
While local legend tells of a possible speak-easy there (at least according to The Times Leader in Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania), the historical society’s archives show that the ruins in the area are from structures washed away in a 1955 flood, like the former Seven Pines Lodge, a powerhouse, and a sanitarium destroyed by fire in 1911 (leaving only a foundation and chimney).
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Rhode Island: Neutaconkanut Hill Park
– Address: 665 Plainfield Street, Providence, Rhode Island, 02909
– Want to visit votes on Atlas Obscura: 768
– Been here votes on Atlas Obscura: 138
– Rarity ratio: 5.6
The Neutaconkanut Hill Conservancy calls Neutaconkanut Hill Park “the last wild place in Providence“—the capital city of Rhode Island with a population of nearly 200,000 as of 2020. It’s a green oasis in a densely-populated part of the city, where 88 acres of open space comprise a wilderness park that contains the highest point in Providence.
The Works Progress Administration created a trail system through this “city forest” in the 1930s—but otherwise, this mostly undeveloped park remains a pristine oak/hickory woodland where creatures, wildflowers, and berry bushes abound. That’s thanks to the last survivor of the original King Homestead, Abby King, who bequeathed the land to the city with the provision that it should stay wild.
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South Carolina: The Last Yogi Bear Honey Fried Chicken Restaurant
– Address: 514 US-15 Business, Hartsville, South Carolina, 29550
– Want to visit votes on Atlas Obscura: 1,024
– Been here votes on Atlas Obscura: 182
– Rarity ratio: 5.6
The cartoon character Yogi Bear, sidekick to Huckleberry Hound, was once the pitchman for a chain of chicken restaurants in the Carolinas—but after their debut in the 1960s, the bear-approved Honey Fried Chicken restaurants have been whittled down to just one surviving location, The Last Yogi Bear Honey Fried Chicken Restaurant, in Hartsville, South Carolina. You can still get boxes of chicken like the Boo Boo Basket and the Picnic Basket (pronounced “pic-a-nic,” if you’re Yogi)—all containing pieces with that honey flavoring (which reportedly contains no actual honey).
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South Dakota: Petrified Wood Park
– Address: 500 Main Avenue, Lemmon, South Dakota, 57638
– Want to visit votes on Atlas Obscura: 497
– Been here votes on Atlas Obscura: 112
– Rarity ratio: 4.4
Petrified Wood Park in Lemmon, South Dakota, is the world’s largest such park—sprawling across an entire city block and boasting not only fossilized remains in a relatively natural state but also a castle, two museums, and more constructed from petrified logs.
It was the creation of amateur geologist Ole S. Quammen, who directed its construction from 1930 to 1932, using locally sourced “stone wood” from a 25-mile radius of Lemmon. His daughter donated it to the city in 1954—and in 1977, it landed on the National Register of Historic Places because of its architectural and social significance, having provided jobs to unemployed locals during the Great Depression. The park is open all year, but building interiors are only open during summer, between Memorial Day and Labor Day.
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Tennessee: ‘The Evil Dead’ Cabin
– Address: 2321 Inman Bend Road, Morristown, Tennessee, 37814
– Want to visit votes on Atlas Obscura: 2,427
– Been here votes on Atlas Obscura: 213
– Rarity ratio: 11.4
The “cabin in the woods” has become a trope of modern-day horror films. But the film that brought this scary concept to mass audiences was “The Evil Dead” in 1981—and in 1979, director Sam Raimi shot this cult favorite largely at a real cabin in Morristown, Tennessee, which subsequently burned down. All that’s left of “The Evil Dead” cabin is part of the fireplace, the film’s lead actor Bruce Campbell told Knox News. And, he warned, it’s on private property—in an area where locals might take a criminal offense such as trespassing pretty seriously.
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Texas: Newman’s Castle
– Address: 504 E Main Street, Bellville, Texas
– Want to visit votes on Atlas Obscura: 1,507
– Been here votes on Atlas Obscura: 130
– Rarity ratio: 11.6
Newman’s Castle sticks out like a sore thumb on a 20-acre plot of land in the woods of rural Texas, outside of the town of Bellville. It’s the brainchild and home of Newman’s Bakery owner Mike Newman, who took 10 years to build the 3,400-square-foot medieval-style oddity out of cinder blocks and masonry. Fortunately, the opportunity to storm the drawbridge, climb the 62-foot bell tower, and brave the dungeon doesn’t require knighthood. Reserve a tour simply by calling the bakery, where the tours start (and where attendees receive the address and directions to the castle).
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Abbie Warnock-Matthews // Shutterstock
Utah: Fantasy Canyon
– Address: Fantasy Canyon, Vernal, Utah, 84078
– Want to visit votes on Atlas Obscura: 1,689
– Been here votes on Atlas Obscura: 181
– Rarity ratio: 9.3
Nearly 200 miles southeast of Salt Lake City lies Fantasy Canyon—a geological wonder whose weathered sandstone takes shape in fantastical formations with mystical names like “Witch,” “King’s Throne,” “Ant Castle,” and even “Alien Head,” all of which can be seen on an interpretive trail that forms a 0.6-mile loop.
This lesser-known gem was the site of the prehistoric Lake Uinta, where sand deposits eventually turned to stone—and some of the resulting pillars and pinnacles are so peculiar-looking they appear to be dripping with melted wax. Today, it’s hiding in plain sight within a labyrinth of service roads belonging to natural gas plants, although a visit to the local BLM field office will help you find your way through the remote area.
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Vermont: Freedlyville Quarry
– Address: 3817-5015 Dorset Hill Road, Dorset, Vermont
– Want to visit votes on Atlas Obscura: 964
– Been here votes on Atlas Obscura: 114
– Rarity ratio: 8.5
The Freedlyville Quarry in Dorset, Vermont, was established in 1808 by tunneling into the eastern side of Mount Aeolus—creating an underground marble extraction site that has the look and feel of a man-made, horizontal cave. It gets its name from a misspelling of its former operator J.K. Freedley & Sons, although no quarrying activity has happened there since the 1930s, according to the Manchester Journal.
But one activity has taken place inside the marble quarry since at least 1931: underground ice skating, as seen in a historic photo in the Dorset Historical Society archives. It still happens, too—namely at Vermont Cavers Association‘s annual ice-skating party (which happens in February, as long as the water is frozen solid).
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Virginia: Great Channels of Virginia
– Address: Saltville, Virginia
– Want to visit votes on Atlas Obscura: 2,162
– Been here votes on Atlas Obscura: 197
– Rarity ratio: 11.0
The Channels Natural Area Preserve, located in the Virginia Department of Forestry’s Channels State Forest, is home to the Great Channels of Virginia—a 400-million-year-old maze of narrow sandstone pathways known as slot canyons that take hikers to the high point of Clinch Mountain. It’s an unusual sight in eastern U.S. topography, as slot canyons are far more often found in the desert terrain of the American Southwest. It’s not for novice hikers, either: the Great Channels were once off-limits because they were so difficult to reach. Today’s “easier” trails still involve steep climbs to 4,208 feet above sea level and a rocky landscape.
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Washington D.C.: Riggs Library
– Address: O Street NW and 37th Street, Washington, District of Columbia
– Want to visit votes on Atlas Obscura: 1,809
– Been here votes on Atlas Obscura: 227
– Rarity ratio: 8.0
Georgetown University’s Riggs Library looks like a scene out of a book lover’s most elaborate fantasy: multiple levels of floor-to-ceiling bookshelves connected by cast-iron catwalks and spiral staircases, with daylight streaming into the central atrium. A rare example of cast-iron construction in such a facility, it was the university’s main library from 1891 until being replaced in 1970—but now, it’s used only as a space for the upper echelon of university-sponsored events. Unfortunately, the general public is not allowed access without an invitation.
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Amor for Travel // Shutterstock
Washington: Treehouse Point
– Address: 6922 Preston-Fall City Road SE, Issaquah, Washington
– Want to visit votes on Atlas Obscura: 2,333
– Been here votes on Atlas Obscura: 169
– Rarity ratio: 13.8
Pete Nelson—known for his starring role in the Animal Planet reality show “Treehouse Masters”—created a unique playground for adults in 2006 known as Treehouse Point. This “tree B&B,” located about 25 miles east of Seattle, offers a getaway for the young-at-heart to channel their inner child in an immersive, wooded setting. Each of the seven treehouses where guests can stay is totally unique—and the main ways to see them are either by booking an overnight stay (which sells out months in advance) or signing up for a tour of the property.
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West Virginia: Archive of the Afterlife
– Address: 86 Railroad Street, Cameron, West Virginia, 26033
– Want to visit votes on Atlas Obscura: 1,620
– Been here votes on Atlas Obscura: 158
– Rarity ratio: 10.3
At the Archive of the Afterlife—aka the “National Museum of the Paranormal“—the spirited artifacts in the collection include an execution cap from a local electric chair, creepy dolls, a “haunted” Dr. Seuss book, and a photograph that the museum claims contains a powerful entity. Together, the Charleston Gazette-Mail wrote in a 2016 article, it’s all “a riot of weird.” And is it just a coincidence that is located across the street from Grave Creek? If you dare to become one of the “visiting souls” who cross over to find out, note that the tour season only runs on Fridays and Saturdays from April 1 through October 31.
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Wisconsin: Shorewood Ghost Train
– Address: 1325 E Capitol Dr Shorewood, Wisconsin
– Want to visit votes on Atlas Obscura: 646
– Been here votes on Atlas Obscura: 101
– Rarity ratio: 6.4
A high-speed passenger train called the Twin Cities 400 used to run through Shorewood, Wisconsin, on its route between Minneapolis and Chicago—until it was decommissioned in 1963. But since 2016, it’s lived on as the Shorewood Ghost Train, a multimedia installation on the rail line’s former train trestle now known as the Oak Leaf Trail Bridge, which crosses over Capitol Drive.
The sound and light display mimic the “schedule, speed, and drama” of the 400 passing over it—with two departures nightly, heading northbound and southbound. Unfortunately, the schedule is temporarily suspended while the Shorewood Public Art Committee attempts to address a technical issue, but the plan is for the ghostly rail service to make a return appearance.
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Wyoming: Hole-in-the Wall Outlaw Hideout
– Address: Johnson and Natrona Counties, Kaycee, Wyoming, 82639
– Want to visit votes on Atlas Obscura: 1,144
– Been here votes on Atlas Obscura: 128
– Rarity ratio: 8.9
The Hole-in-the-Wall Pass was a legendary hideout for criminal gangs, cattle thieves, stagecoach robbers, and other bandits in the Old West—and today, the Hole-in-the Wall Outlaw Hideout is a hidden gem in the high plains of Wyoming’s Johnson County where visitors can literally walk in the footsteps of infamous “bad guys” who trekked over a narrow trail to cross up and over a steep geologic formation known as the Red Wall. Current access is through a private dude ranch called Willow Creek Ranch, where guests can drive cattle just as infamous outlaws like Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid did in the late 1800s. | 2023-06-29T20:48:35+00:00 | wnct.com | https://www.wnct.com/travel/offbeat-adventures-travel-to-the-coolest-hidden-wonders-in-every-us-state-2/ |
An off-duty Mount Joy Borough police officer was drunk when he crashed his pickup truck at his former home he hasn’t lived in for more than two years, then fled and hit several parked and occupied vehicles, according to police.
Pennsylvania State Police on Tuesday charged Kyle Hosking, of East Lampeter Township, with DUI, failing to stop and give information and related offenses.
A reliable number for Hosking could not immediately be located; a message was left at a number listed for him in an online directory.
According to police, shortly after 2 p.m. on April 12, Hosking crashed into the mailbox and a utility box at his old house on Jasmine Place and drove off.
From there, he drove onto Magnolia Drive, where he hit Nicholas Schnelli’s PT Cruiser as Schnelli was preparing to back into his driveway.
Schnelli’s Ring security camera showed Hosking coming from behind and crashing his gray GMC Sierra into the Cruiser’s front driver side quarter panel about 2:15 p.m.
After hitting the Cruiser, Hosking turned left from Magnolia back onto Jasmine, where he hit the rear of a parked red GMC pickup truck, breaking the rear taillight.
Hosking continued driving, smashing head-on into a parked Toyota Corolla on Jasmine. The impact was so strong that it sent the vehicle into the yard of Luis Acevedo and into the side of his neighbor’s foundation wall, damaging a side door.
Hosking’s truck finally stopped after smashing into Acevedo’s parked 2004 Ford F-150.
Hosking was taken by ambulance to a hospital. Hosking, a sergeant who has been with Mount Joy about 16 years, has been on paid administrative leave per department policy.
Hosking background
LNP reported in 2012 that Hosking was fired from Mount Joy following an arbitration hearing, but was reinstated soon after. Officials declined to say why Hosking had been fired.
Online Lancaster County prothonotary records show Hosking was ordered to pay a $2,309 civil judgment to Pennsylvania related to a 2011 criminal case. However, case details are not publicly visible on Pennsylvania’s online criminal docketing system, suggesting it may have been expunged. | 2023-05-09T18:05:21+00:00 | lancasteronline.com | https://lancasteronline.com/news/local/off-duty-mount-joy-officer-charged-with-dui-for-crashes-in-west-hempfield-township/article_a459b016-ee71-11ed-8b64-ab4367e3b0bf.html |
TALLAHASSEE, Fla. — Kaley Mudge went 3 for 3 with three RBIs and a double, Kathryn Sandercock allowed only one run in 5 2/3 innings and No. 3 seed Florida State beat 14th-seeded Georgia 8-1 on Thursday night in the opening game of the Tallahassee Super Regional.
Georgia’s Dallis Goodnight led off the first inning with a bunt single to deny Sandercock a second straight perfect game and then Sydney Kuma homered in the second for the Bulldogs’ run.
Florida State chased Georgia starter Madison Kerpics in the third inning after RBI doubles from Mudge and Kalei Harding, and a run-scoring single by Michaela Edenfield. The hits pushed Florida State past the school’s previous single-season record of 115 doubles. Autumn Belviy also scored on a fielder’s choice in the inning to make it 4-1.
Florida State had the bases loaded in the fifth before Hallie Wacaser got it through the right side to score two for a 6-1 lead. Mudge added a two-run single for a seven-run lead.
Devyn Flaherty extended her hitting streak to a season-high seven games for Florida State.
Kuma’s homer was the first Florida State had given up in the last six games.
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AP college sports: https://apnews.com/hub/college-sports and https://twitter.com/AP_Top25 | 2023-05-26T02:07:39+00:00 | washingtonpost.com | https://www.washingtonpost.com/sports/2023/05/25/georgia-florida-state/88fab502-fb66-11ed-bafc-bf50205661da_story.html |
THE HAGUE, Netherlands (AP) — The Dutch government formally apologized Saturday to soldiers who were sent as U.N. peacekeepers to defend the Bosnian enclave of Srebrenica with insufficient firepower and manpower to keep the peace.
The soldiers — veterans now — were overrun by more heavily armed Bosnian Serb forces led by Gen. Ratko Mladic who went on to massacre 8,000 Muslim men and boys in July 1995, in a bloodbath that an international war crimes tribunal labeled genocide.
Prime Minister Mark Rutte addressed hundreds of veterans of the Dutchbat III peacekeeping unit on Saturday at a military base in the central Netherlands, telling them that after nearly 27 years “some words have still not been said.”
“Today, I apologize on behalf of the Dutch government to all the women and men of Dutchbat III. To you and the people who can’t be here today. With the greatest possible appreciation and respect for the way Dutchbat III under difficult circumstances kept trying to do good, even when that was no longer possible,” Rutte said.
The ceremony came after a report was published last year into the experiences of the roughly 850 troops who made up Dutchbat III. The study made recommendations including that the government make a “collective gesture” to address what it called “the perceived lack of recognition and appreciation, given the exceptional circumstances in which the near-impossible has been asked” of the Dutch peacekeepers.
The Netherlands has long wrestled with the legacy of the Srebrenica massacre. Then Prime Minister Wim Kok resigned in 2002 after a report harshly criticized Dutch authorities for sending soldiers into a danger zone without a proper mandate or the weapons needed to protect about 30,000 refugees who had fled to the Dutch base in eastern Bosnia.
In 2019, the Dutch Supreme Court ruled that the Netherlands was partially liable in the deaths of about 350 Muslim men murdered by Bosnian Serb forces during the massacre.
The court ruled that Dutch peacekeepers evacuated the men from their military base near Srebrenica on July 13, 1995, despite knowing that they “were in serious jeopardy of being abused and murdered” by Bosnian Serb forces.
The U.N. also has been criticized for failing to authorize NATO airstrikes to support the lightly-armed Dutch troops in July 1995 as they came under attack. | 2022-06-18T22:06:53+00:00 | wcia.com | https://www.wcia.com/news/international/dutch-prime-minister-apologizes-to-srebrenica-peacekeepers/ |
NPR's Ayesha Rascoe speaks with author Randall Munroe about his new book, "What If? 2: Additional Serious Scientific Answers to Absurd Hypothetical Questions."
Copyright 2022 NPR
NPR's Ayesha Rascoe speaks with author Randall Munroe about his new book, "What If? 2: Additional Serious Scientific Answers to Absurd Hypothetical Questions."
Copyright 2022 NPR | 2022-09-18T13:08:56+00:00 | wlrn.org | https://www.wlrn.org/2022-09-18/randall-munroes-what-if-2-answers-the-absurd-science-questions-you-didnt-know-you-had |
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention released new data on Friday indicating that most U.S. adults are not meeting physical activity guidelines set out by the CDC.
The CDC advises adults to get at least 150 minutes of moderate – or 75 minutes of vigorous – physical activity a week in addition to two days of strength training. But the data show most adults aren’t getting enough of either.
The data indicate people in rural areas are more likely not to meet the guidelines. Just 16.1% of adults in rural America meet both guidelines for physical activity and muscle building. That is compared to 27.8% for people living in large metro areas.
In large and fringe metro areas, about half of all adults meet the CDC’s standard for 150 minutes of physical activity a week. In rural areas, that number declines to 38.2%.
According to Dr. Daniel Sullivan, director of the National Consultation Service with the Cleveland Clinic, the benefits of exercise are immense. Physical activity reduces the risk of many diseases. He also notes that those who exercise encounter less depression.
“This was interesting information for people who are public health advocates to improve health,” Sullivan said. “If they are looking at a rural area of their state and are involved in health care planning, this information could help them try to put resources in place in rural areas to make it more likely that they would consider getting more frequent physical activity.”
The National Rural Mental Health Association notes that rates of depression in rural and urban areas are generally about the same, but suicide rates tend to be higher in rural areas. The group also notes that access to care is more challenging for those in rural areas.
Sullivan said that given rural areas generally have fewer health care options, a less physically active population in these areas only exacerbates disparities in health outcomes.
“People have to travel further. Access to care is a little more cumbersome,” he said. “So if people are in rural areas and perhaps not meeting exercise guidelines, their disease burden could be higher, but their access to matching those diseases by virtue of being in a rural area is more challenging. There is a double challenge here.”
While many people might think of needing equipment or a gym membership to exercise, Sullivan notes the public can meet physical activity guidelines simply by walking for 30 minutes a day five days a week.
“It doesn’t cost much,” he said. “It’s accessible to virtually everyone and if someone is in a rural area and feels like their resources are limited, perhaps identifying an opportunity in their community to bring people together in that rural area to find shared interests in exercise.” | 2023-01-27T21:19:22+00:00 | wsfltv.com | https://www.wsfltv.com/news/national/americas-lack-of-physical-activity-more-prevalent-in-rural-areas |
Elected and tourism officials are still celebrating along with the key business leaders that helped promote Miami as a World Cup host, since Friday’s announcement that the international championship soccer tournament is coming to town in 2026.
With viewership in the billions, Miami Gardens will be center stage yet again when the soccer championship comes to Hard Rock Stadium in Miami Gardens.
“The World Cup is amazing and now it’s coming to our little, small piece of paradise … we’re looking forward to having it here in the City of Miami Gardens,” said its mayor, Rodney Harris.
The economic impact is still too far out to predict, but it’s expected to be close to or even exceed what the Super Bowl brought to South Florida in 2020.
“Events like this not only bring attention and brand impression for our destinations, but it supports our jobs and economic development, and we are committed to spreading the wealth of tourism to every sector of Miami-Dade County,” said Rolando Aedo, chief operating officer of the Greater Miami Convention & Visitors Bureau (GMCVB), at a FIFA host city watch party in Coral Gables Friday.
“One of the things that we will be seeing in 2026 is that Hard Rock will be an amazing host for the games, but the soccer infrastructure has been built … that can host other events during the World Cup or pre-World Cup,” said Inter Miami CF owner Jorge Mas, referring to Inter Miami’s deal in Fort Lauderdale and now the agreement to build out Miami Freedom Park, where a golf course currently sits near Miami International Airport.
At a subsequent news conference, Miami Gardens Vice Mayor Reggie Leon reflected on what this means in terms of economic development for the largest majority-Black city in Florida, and the third-largest in the country.
“It’s an honor,” he said. “I grew up right around the corner from this location 41 years ago and this location was a patch of sand that was called ‘the Pond De Rosa’ that we used to ride our bikes through. To stand before you now as this, the global epicenter for Miami-Dade County and Miami Gardens, is impressive.”
Miami Mayor Francis Suarez called the World Cup hosting a generational opportunity. The event hasn’t been hosted in the U.S. since 1994.
“We will be strengthening our infrastructure and preparing our communities to plan for the influx of hundreds of thousands of tourists that we anticipate for the World Cup,” said Miami-Dade County Mayor Daniella Levine Cava. “We are coming of the heels of a successful Formula One event, and we are more confident than ever before that we have the world-class safety, fire and police departments to ensure vigilance and safety through the entirety of this event.” | 2022-06-23T01:22:55+00:00 | miamitimesonline.com | https://www.miamitimesonline.com/business/fifa-follows-f1-as-big-business-for-miami-dade/article_efd3d47e-f1db-11ec-8dd9-9b68c964e066.html |
Nick Pratto Player Prop Bets: Royals vs. Rays - June 23
Published: Jun. 23, 2023 at 9:24 AM CDT|Updated: 58 minutes ago
Nick Pratto -- .219 average over his past 10 games -- will be in action for the Kansas City Royals against the Tampa Bay Rays, with Zach Eflin on the mound, on June 23 at 6:40 PM ET.
In his most recent game he had a hitless performance (0-for-1) against the Rays.
Nick Pratto Game Info & Props vs. the Rays
- Game Day: Friday, June 23, 2023
- Game Time: 6:40 PM ET
- Stadium: Tropicana Field
- Live Stream: Watch this game on Fubo!
- Rays Starter: Zach Eflin
- TV Channel: BSSUN
- Hits Prop: Over/under 0.5 hits (Over odds: -125)
- Home Runs Prop: Over/under 0.5 home runs (Over odds: +625)
- RBI Prop: Over/under 0.5 RBI (Over odds: +290)
- Runs Prop: Over/under 0.5 runs (Over odds: +150)
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Explore More About This Game
Nick Pratto At The Plate
- Pratto has 12 doubles, four home runs and 21 walks while hitting .275.
- Pratto has picked up a hit in 64.0% of his 50 games this year, with more than one hit in 24.0% of them.
- He has hit a home run in four games this season (8.0%), homering in 2% of his trips to the dish.
- Pratto has had at least one RBI in 24.0% of his games this year (12 of 50), with more than one RBI five times (10.0%). He has also accounted for three or more of his team's runs in two contests.
- He has scored in 18 games this season (36.0%), including four multi-run games (8.0%).
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Nick Pratto Home/Away Batting Splits
Rays Pitching Rankings
- The 8.8 strikeouts per nine innings compiled by the Rays pitching staff ranks 11th in MLB.
- The Rays have the second-ranked team ERA across all league pitching staffs (3.57).
- Rays pitchers combine to allow 76 home runs (one per game), the fifth-fewest in baseball.
- Eflin makes the start for the Rays, his 14th of the season. He is 8-3 with a 3.26 ERA and 77 strikeouts in 77 1/3 innings pitched.
- The right-hander last pitched on Saturday against the San Diego Padres, when he went six innings, allowing two earned runs while giving up four hits.
- The 29-year-old has an ERA of 3.26, with 9 strikeouts per nine innings, in 13 games this season. Opponents are batting .224 against him.
© 2023 Data Skrive. All rights reserved. | 2023-06-23T15:25:23+00:00 | kwch.com | https://www.kwch.com/sports/betting/2023/06/23/nick-pratto-mlb-player-prop-bets/ |
(NewsNation) — A Florida family has nicknamed their toddler “Little Ninja Turtle” due to a growth on his back that once resembled a turtle shell.
James McCallum was born with giant congenital melanocytic nevus, a condition in which pigment cells don’t develop correctly. In his case, it caused the 20-month-old to have a large raised area on his back that his parents said looked like a turtle shell.
His parents, Kaitlyn and Tim McCallum, from Clearwater, noticed something was different about their son when he was born.
“It was just a different tint, a different color, there was some kind of scabby-type things on his upper back,” Tim McCallum said.
Kaitlyn McCallum said it looked like “a birthmark with scabbing.”
“At the time, you’re on that mommy feeling of just having your baby, and you’re just excited for him to be here,” she said. “You don’t think anything and then over a couple of days, you start to, you know, notice everything, and you know, that’s a big thing to notice for a little one.”
The growth continued to get larger over the months, and it took two surgeries just for James to be able to lie on his back. His parents said they then noticed he seemed more comfortable. Doctors told the family the little boy will grow up with minimal scarring from his surgery.
According to the National Institute of Health, the lesions, which typically present at birth, are rare, affecting less than about 1 in 20,000 newborns. They also can be associated with complications such as malignant melanoma.
Kaitlyn McCallum has a message for other parents whose children are dealing with a rare condition.
“You’re not alone,” she said. “Reach out to your community and there are people that have the same thing that can help you.” | 2023-05-02T16:55:15+00:00 | cenlanow.com | https://www.cenlanow.com/national/toddler-with-rare-condition-is-called-little-ninja-turtle/ |
Istanbul explosion: At least 6 killed, several hurt in bomb blast
ISTANBUL (AP) - A bomb rocked a bustling pedestrian avenue in the heart of Istanbul on Sunday, killing six people, wounding several dozen and leaving panicked people to flee the fiery blast or huddle in cafes and shops.
Emergency vehicles rushed to the scene on Istiklal Avenue, a popular thoroughfare lined with shops and restaurants that leads to the iconic Taksim Square. In one video posted online, a loud bang could be heard and a flash seen as pedestrians turned and ran away.
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan called the blast a "treacherous attack" and said its perpetrators would be punished. He did not say who was behind the attack but said it had the "smell of terror" without offering details and also adding that was not certain yet.
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Sunday’s explosion was a shocking reminder of the anxiety and safety concerns that stalked the Turkish population during years when such attacks were common. The country was hit by a string of bombings between 2015 and 2017, some by the Islamic State group, others by Kurdish militants who seek increased autonomy or independence.
In recent years, Erdogan has led a broad crackdown on the militants as well as on Kurdish lawmakers and activists. Amid skyrocketing inflation and other economic troubles, Erdogan’s anti-terrorism campaign is a key rallying point for him ahead of presidential and parliamentary elections next year.
ISTANBUL, TURKEY - NOVEMBER 13: Police officers secure the area after an explosion on busy pedestrian Istiklal street on November 13, 2022 in Istanbul, Turkey. At least six people have died and at least fifty five injured, according to the city’s gov
Erdogan, who left Sunday for the Group of 20 summit in Indonesia, said six people were killed. Vice President Fuat Oktay put the wounded toll to 81, with two in serious condition, and also said it appeared to be a terrorist attack.
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Justice Minister Bekir Bozdag told pro-government broadcaster A Haber that investigators were focusing on a woman who sat on a bench by the scene of the blast for about 40 minutes. The explosion took place just minutes after she left. He said her identity was not yet clear, nor was it clear what group might be behind the attack.
A manager of a restaurant near where the bomb went off said he heard the explosion and saw people running. The dozens of customers inside his restaurant, including women and children, panicked and screamed.
The manager, who spoke on condition of anonymity because of the sensitivity of the situation, said he closed his restaurant’s shutters, fearing there might be another explosion, and tried to calm the customers down. After about 15 to 25 minutes inside, he saw police on the avenue and organized the customers and his staff to leave in small groups.
ISTANBUL, TURKEY - NOVEMBER 13: People flee the scene after an explosion occurred on Istiklal street, a busy pedestrian thoroughfare on November 13, 2022 in Istanbul, Turkey. It is unclear what caused the explosion that left at least six people dead
Numerous foreign governments offered their condolences, including neighboring Greece with which relations are tense. Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis said he was "shocked and saddened by the news of the heinous attack."
Following the attacks between 2015 and 2017 that left more than 500 civilians and security personnel dead, Turkey launched cross-border military operations into Syria and northern Iraq against Kurdish militants, while also cracking down on Kurdish politicians, journalists and activists at home.
RELATED: COVID-19 deaths down 90% since February, WHO says
While the Kurdish militants, known as the PKK, are considered a terrorist organization by Turkey, the United States and the European Union, critics say Erdogan has also used broad terror laws to stifle free speech.
Most recently, Turkey enacted a controversial " disinformation law " that carries a prison sentence of up to three years for social media users who disseminate false information about domestic or international security, public order or health. Critics have said the wording of the article is so vague, it can be used to stamp out dissent.
Police on Sunday said they had identified 25 social media users who shared "provocative content" that could fall afoul of that law.
In another example of the country's restrictions on the press, Turkey’s media watchdog also imposed temporary limits on reporting on Sunday's explosion — a move that bans the use of close-up videos and photos of the blast and its aftermath. The Supreme Council of Radio and Television has imposed similar bans in the past, following attacks and accidents.
Access to Twitter and other social media sites was also restricted.
Associated Press journalists Cavit Ozgul and Khalil Hamra contributed to this report. | 2022-11-14T00:32:52+00:00 | fox29.com | https://www.fox29.com/news/istanbul-explosion-at-least-6-killed-several-hurt-in-bomb-blast |
LAS VEGAS (AP) — Golden Knights games have always been as flashy as any show on the Las Vegas Strip, the sword-fighting mascot taking the ice before what seems like a legion of players marching out through the mirrored entrance into the roar of the crowd.
If this team was ever going to win the Stanley Cup, it was going to do it with Vegas flash.
The Knights delivered just that from dazzling passes to Mark Stone’s hat trick to all-out goal celebrations, capturing the young organization’s first title with a 9-3 romp over the beaten up and exhausted Florida Panthers on Tuesday night.
Coach Bruce Cassidy, in a nod to the Knights’ brief history, started five of the original Vegas players known as the Misfits and put the sixth on the second shift. Cassidy sounded confident the day before the game that his team would play well, and it certainly did, blowing open a one-goal game in the second period to lead 6-1. The nine goals tied the record for the most in a Cup Final.
“Vegas, you certainly know how to throw a party,” NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman told the crowd. “What’s going on inside this arena and outside is incredible and a testament to what a great hockey market this is.”
Vegas closed out the series in five games to win the cup before a delirious franchise-record crowd of 19,058 at T-Mobile Arena that drowned out the pregame introductions of forward Jonathan Marchessault and goalie Adin Hill and cheered all the way through the final buzzer.
Marchessault, who ended the postseason with a 10-game points streak, received the Conn Smythe Trophy for playoff MVP.
“I couldn’t be more proud of our team, our organization,” Marchessault said. “Everybody stepped up at different times and that’s why we’re winners.”
Stone’s hat trick — with the third into an empty net with 5:54 left — was the first in a Stanley Cup Final since Colorado’s Peter Forsberg in 1996, also against the Panthers.
The Knights got the rest of their scoring from Nic Hague, Alec Martinez, Reilly Smith, Michael Amadio, Ivan Barbashev and Nicolas Roy. Martinez’s goal in the second period came nine years to the day after he delivered the double-overtime goal in Game 5 to give the Los Angeles Kings’ the cup.
Hill came through with another strong performance with 31 saves that has quickly made him a Knights fan favorite, even earning “MVP! MVP!” chants in the third period. Jack Eichel, the eight-year pro playing in his first postseason, had three assists.
“This is what everyone dreams of,” Eichel said. “You come to an organization like this and the expectation is to win this thing. It’s a special place to play.”
As captain, Stone was the first to lift the cup before handing it over to the six Misfits to each get their turn skating with the trophy before handing it down the line to the rest of the team.
“Unbelievable,” Stone said. “The look in my teammates’ eyes when I got it, one of the craziest feelings I’ve ever had. I can’t even describe the feelings in my stomach right now. It’s everything you can imagine.”
Aaron Ekblad, Sam Reinhart and Sam Bennett scored for Florida, and Sergei Bobrovsky was overwhelmed in another tough performance against Vegas — allowing eight goals on 30 shots on goal — after carrying Florida to the final. Missing from the lineup was star forward Matthew Tkachuk after playing injured in Game 4.
“It was a privilege for me to play with them and fight with them,” Bobrovsky said. “It’s definitely tough to lose that way and end the season that way. But we have done a fantastic job and I want to stick to that.”
The Knights have set the standard of what an expansion franchise should look like, making the Cup Final in their first season and the playoffs in every year but one. Six players remain from the initial 2017-18 team that lost in five games to the Washington Capitals in the final.
Those players watched the Capitals skate with the Stanley Cup that night, and then they got the chance to do the same Tuesday to fulfill owner Bill Foley’s quest to win the championship in the sixth year.
“We waited a long time for that moment to come back.” Marchessault said. “We wanted to make sure we cash in this time.”
By creating such a lofty standard at the outset, the Knights played with high expectations, but repeatedly fell short despite four runs to at least the NHL semifinals – until Game 5 against the Panthers.
This is Las Vegas’ second pro title in nine months – the Aces claimed the WNBA championship in September – and continues the stunning growth of a sports market that was limited largely to prize fights, UNLV athletics, NASCAR and lots of golf before the Golden Knights took the city by storm. The Raiders began playing here in 2020, the Oakland Athletics appear headed to the desert, Las Vegas will host a Formula One race this year and the Super Bowl will be at Allegiant Stadium in February.
As for the Knights, their connection to Las Vegas was sealed ever since the shooting Oct. 1, 2017, that took 60 lives. They played an integral role in helping the city heal, reaching out to the community off the ice and winning big on it.
Beating Florida justified the many moves Knights management made to remake the roster over the years. Stone, Eichel and Alex Pietrangelo are the most notable players Vegas has acquired to get to this moment.
And Cassidy, hired a week after getting fired by the Boston Bruins last year, proved to be the coach to get them there.
“He came in, brought an intensity to our locker room that maybe we needed,” Stone said. “He wanted to win as badly as anybody else in that locker room.”
Cassidy seemingly pushing all the right buttons in helping Vegas become the Western Conference’s top seed and then the NHL’s champion.
“It’s a great story — very, very grateful to get another opportunity,” Cassidy said. “I’m just here to do my job and it worked out well.”
The Knights also won with an unlikely goalie in Hill, who was injured when the playoffs began. Laurent Brossoit was the starter until going out with an injury in Game 3 of the second-round series against the Edmonton Oilers, and then Hill got his chance.
“You dream about it every day growing up as a child.” Hill said. “To be here with this group of guys, in this city, in this building, is a dream come true.”
___
AP NHL playoffs: https://apnews.com/hub/stanley-cup and https://twitter.com/AP_Sports | 2023-06-14T23:07:36+00:00 | fox44news.com | https://www.fox44news.com/news/golden-knights-blast-panthers-9-3-in-game-5-to-capture-for-stanley-cup/ |
CONCORD, N.H. (AP) — Democrats Annie Kuster and Chris Pappas both won reelection to Congress in New Hampshire’s 1st and 2nd Districts, defeating two pro-Trump Republicans.
Pappas defeated Karoline Leavitt, who worked in the White House press office under former President Donald Trump, and Kuster beat Robert Burns, who runs a pharmaceutical quality control business.
Leavitt, 25, would have been the youngest women elected to Congress if she had won in the competitive 1st District that has flipped multiple times in recent years. She campaigned to strengthen parental rights in schools and increase domestic energy production.
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Pappas, 42, helped run his family’s restaurant in Manchester and was part of a state council that approves spending contracts. He made history in 2018 by becoming the state’s first openly gay member of Congress.
Both Democrats championed their support of the Inflation Reduction Act, which requires Medicare to negotiate lower prices with drug companies. The legislation included Kuster’s bill to eliminate out-of-pocket vaccine costs for seniors and Medicare beneficiaries.
In his campaign, Burns supported bringing more manufacturing, including pharmaceuticals, back to the United States. He also wanted to secure the country’s southern border with Mexico by building a wall and using drones, cameras and other technology in areas that are not as accessible for border patrol agents. He ran for the seat once before in 2018, but lost in that primary to Steve Negron, who was later defeated by Kuster.
Kuster thanked her opponent and New Hampshire voters in a statement, saying, “I am truly humbled by the outpouring of support.”
The sprawling, mostly rural 2nd District stretches from New Hampshire’s border with Canada to the Massachusetts line. It includes the cities of Nashua and Concord.
“I certainly wish tonight’s results came in a little bit differently,” Leavitt said in a concession speech in front of supporters. “I’m nevertheless still humbled by the outpouring of support that we received across every single city and town and more.”
In his victory speech to campaign supporters Tuesday night, Pappas said “We know this campaign was a tough fight. But it was always about the people of New Hampshire and putting them first.”
Pappas said he respected Leavitt’s campaign, adding, “we should all be grateful for those who step up to run for office.”
Before Pappas won the open seat in 2018, the 1st District switched between the parties five times in seven elections.
In his campaign, Pappas emphasized how he helped secure a record amount of federal funding for the Low-Income Heating Assistance Program. He also focused on bills to help veterans and increase penalties against trafficking fentanyl.
Leavitt said she believed the 2020 election was stolen from Trump. Pappas said she “continues to double-down on the big lie.” Trump called her “fantastic” in his endorsement.
Leavitt and Burns contended that the Inflation Reduction Act, will actually increase inflation at a time when families are struggling.
Both Burns and Leavitt, who campaigned on a pro-Trump “America First” platform, defeated candidates favored to win in their primary races.
Leavitt beat Matt Mowers, who won the nomination in 2020 and was endorsed at the time by Trump, but lost in the general election to Pappas. Burns defeated George Hansel, the mayor of Keene and a moderate who was endorsed by Republican Gov. Chris Sununu.
Leavitt said she believed the 2020 election was stolen from Trump; Burns said Joe Biden had enough votes to win the presidency. Trump recently endorsed both of them.
Kuster also highlighted her bill that was part of the Inflation Reduction Act which makes vaccines available to seniors for free. It also allows Medicaid to negotiate drug prices, but Leavitt and Burns argued those negotiations don’t go into effect until 2026.
Democrats kept abortion rights at the forefront of the campaigns. Pappas and Kuster said they would support the Women’s Health Protection Act, which would protect the right to access abortion care throughout the nation in the wake of the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision to overturn Roe v. Wade.
Leavitt and Burns both describe themselves as pro-life. Leavitt said she supports having state legislatures make decisions on abortion regulations and would oppose a federal abortion ban. Burns initially said he supports a federal “heartbeat bill” banning abortions, with an exception if the mother’s life is at risk. He now says he’d support a ban at 12 or 15 weeks.
Follow AP’s coverage of the elections at: https://apnews.com/hub/2022-midterm-elections | 2022-11-09T07:29:43+00:00 | wcfcourier.com | https://wcfcourier.com/lifestyles/health-med-fit/new-hampshire-democrats-pappas-kuster-reelected-to-congress/article_0b7b9c77-85f9-597b-a3ac-a93035c78e32.html |
Biden administration releases data breaking down student loan relief applications by congressional district
By Maegan Vazquez, CNN
The Department of Education released a breakdown of federal student loan forgiveness applications by congressional district on Friday, providing a new window into the demographics of borrowers seeking relief across both Republican and Democratic-represented districts.
The new data is being released as the fate of President Joe Biden’s debt relief plan remains in limbo, with the US Supreme Court set to soon hear cases challenging its legality later this month. The initiative would offer up to $20,000 of individual debt forgiveness to millions of low- and middle-income borrowers, but ongoing legal challenges have meant that no one has received relief — including millions of borrowers whose applications have already been approved.
The White House says the plan is vital in order to provide targeted debt relief to certain federal student-loan borrowers affected by the Covid-19 pandemic. But many Republicans say that the relief will make inflation worse and argue it’s unfair to individuals who didn’t take out student loans or have already paid them off. They’ve also criticized the administration’s legal justification for issuing the relief through executive authority.
The Department of Education received about 26 million applications for debt relief by the time a federal district court judge blocked the program in November. More than 16 million of those borrowers’ applications were fully approved and more than 40 million borrowers would qualify for the program, according to the administration.
“Across the country, in every congressional district there is a strong desire for the Biden-Harris Administration’s one-time debt relief program,” a Department of Education official said about the new data. “In every single congressional district, at least half of eligible borrowers either applied or were deemed auto-eligible for debt relief, and that was only in the one month that the application was available before the program got blocked because of lawsuits.”
In every congressional district, the official said, at least 30% of eligible borrowers were approved to have their debt discharged before the program was blocked. Some 81% of all applications for relief came from the bottom 80% of congressional districts when broken down by average income, the official added.
A new Politico analysis of additional zip code data from the department obtained though a public records request also shows that borrowers living in lower-income areas applied for relief at a higher rate compared to those who live in wealthier neighborhoods, and most applications came from places where the per-capita income is under $35,000. Non-White majority zip codes accounted for more forgiveness applications per capita than majority-White zip codes.
Friday’s data build on earlier numbers released by the Department of Education which showed a state-by-state breakdown of student loan forgiveness applications, which were published shortly after independent auditors questioned the estimated cost of the program.
The the latest release coincides with the Supreme Court planning to hear two cases pertaining to Biden’s student loan forgiveness program later this month, including one from several Republican-led states.
Nebraska, Missouri, Arkansas, Iowa, Kansas and South Carolina say that the Department of Education did not have the legal authority to issue such a cancellation. They argue that it violates the separation of powers and that Biden is using the pandemic as a pretext to mask his true goal of fulfilling a campaign promise to erase student-loan debt.
They put forward several theories that they say allow them to get into court to challenge a program they argue unlawfully invokes Covid “to assert power beyond anything Congress could have conceived.”
Another case being heard by the high court this month was brought by two individual borrowers — Myra Brown and Alexander Taylor — who are not qualified for full debt relief forgiveness and who say they were denied an opportunity to comment on Education Secretary Miguel Cardona’s decision to provide targeted student loan debt relief to some.
Earlier this month, 126 House Republicans — led by Education and the Workforce Committee Chairwoman Virginia Foxx of North Carolina and South Carolina Rep. Jeff Duncan — filed an amicus brief opposing the debt forgiveness effort.
According to the White House data, in Foxx’s district, approximately 61% of borrowers, some 46,300 people, applied or were automatically eligible for relief. In Duncan’s district, about 59% of borrowers, 51,400 people, applied or were automatically eligible for relief.
A number of members in Republican leadership, including Majority Leader Steve Scalise, Majority Whip Tom Emmer, Conference Chair Elise Stefanik and Policy Committee Chair Gary Palmer also signed onto the brief.
House Speaker Kevin McCarthy did not sign onto the brief, but he has been critical of the president’s plan.
McCarthy’s home state of California, the most populous state in the nation, has 2.3 million people who have applied or were automatically eligible for relief — the most out of any state. Approximately 60% of borrowers in the speaker’s district applied or were automatically eligible for relief, with 31,600 borrowers already fully approved for relief out of 49,800 who have applied or were automatically eligible.
Representatives for Foxx, Duncan, Scalise, Emmer, Stefanik, Palmer and McCarthy did not respond to CNN’s request for comment on the new data.
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CNN’s Katie Lobosco and Ariane de Vogue contributed to this report. | 2023-02-18T00:49:47+00:00 | localnews8.com | https://localnews8.com/politics/cnn-us-politics/2023/02/17/biden-administration-releases-data-breaking-down-student-loan-relief-applications-by-congressional-district/ |
Medical Home Network was recognized for a unique approach to data interoperability in health care that provides important patient information at the right time in the right place
CHICAGO, July 28, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Medical Home Network was honored in the 2022 Digital Health Awards, which recognize the world's best digital health resources. MHN received a Gold Award in the Connected Digital Health division for its cross-platform interoperable data solution, the MHN Baseball Card.
The MHN Baseball Card summarizes high-level patient health information and leverages technology for better care management. In 2022, MHN started integrating the at-a-glance data integration across different electronic medical record systems (EMRs) for 13 providers and more than 160,000 Medicaid safety net patients in the Chicago area.
For the spring 2022 Digital Health Awards, the Health Information Resource Center organized a judging panel of 57 experts in digital health media to select gold, silver, bronze and merit winners from among nearly 700 entries. The Connected Digital Health award evaluated resources aimed at health professionals.
"MHN is helping healthcare providers have more informed conversations with patients by enabling easy access to patient data in one place," said MHN Senior Director of eSolutions Laura Merrick. "With a timely and comprehensive view of patient information, providers can make more informed decisions and ultimately deliver better care."
Predictive Analytics Improve Care Management
MHN's gold award recognizes an interoperability technology solution that organizes and integrates disparate sources of data within the provider EMR workflows. The MHN Baseball Card gives providers a real-time view of hospital admissions and visits to emergency rooms, outpatient or skilled nursing facilities and home health visits, as well as predictive risk scores that help providers respond to their patients' needs.
"The MHN Baseball Card allows care managers to be more efficient," said MHN Vice President of Clinical Integration and Innovation Tina Spector. "They can instantly access the most up-to-date stats that are essential to their work with patients."
In Chicago, the MHN Baseball Card organizes hospitalization and emergency room visits for more than 30 area hospitals, plus pharmacy refill records that give providers a window into whether patients are taking medicines. Information is organized to guide more meaningful exam-room discussions with patients.
"I can get information in real time about medication adherence as well as any recent ER visits or in-patient hospitalizations," said Mary Dudek, a physician assistant at Heartland Health Centers in Chicago. "That's very valuable, as sometimes our patients don't always have the needed information to provide at their visit. I'm so glad that we have been able to move forward with this interoperability project so that all of the providers will have access to this valuable resource. It will really improve patient care."
Using artificial intelligence, MHN calculates a Risk Management Score to prioritize timely and critical cases. Frequent updates to the MHN Baseball Card allow care teams to monitor patient progress between appointments. Providers share patient history and treatment records through the secure MHNConnect care management platform. The technology-enabled care management model has helped provider partners reduce inpatient utilization by 36% and hospital admissions for its managed Medicaid patients.
"We use digital tools and real time information to enable connectivity, and data liquidity to support seamless and intelligent communication and coordination of patient care across all venues," said MHN President and CEO Cheryl Lulias. "We're honored that our peers have recognized our work to enable care management without boundaries."
About Medical Home Network
Medical Home Network (MHN) is a nationally recognized not-for-profit focused on transforming care in the safety net and building healthier communities. Based in Chicago, MHN powers the future of healthcare delivery by creating clinically integrated, digitally connected and community-based systems of care that focus on the whole person. MHN's innovative approach consistently delivers leading health outcomes, savings, and quality results under value-based arrangements. For the second year in a row, Modern Healthcare named MHN one of the Best Places to Work in Healthcare. Learn more at medicalhomenetwork.org and on LinkedIn.
Media Contact:
Christina Coons
Purpose Brand
224-307-5583
ccoons@purposebrand.com
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SOURCE Medical Home Network | 2022-07-28T18:48:00+00:00 | kcbd.com | https://www.kcbd.com/prnewswire/2022/07/28/medical-home-network-honored-patient-baseball-card-emr-integration/ |
Looking for a Pro Bowl betting line? You won’t find one
Updated February 4, 2023 - 1:10 pm
Sportsbooks are passing on the Pro Bowl.
The three-day competition featuring a new format culminates with a 7-on-7 flag football game at noon Sunday at Allegiant Stadium, and no betting line is available.
“The Pro Bowl is gone,” Station Casinos sportsbook vice president Jason McCormick said via text message. “They have a flag football game now and fun games and skill competitions. We do not have any of this available.”
The current Pro Bowl event is a far cry from the days when the AFC’s and NFC’s best would gather in Hawaii and light up the Aloha Stadium scoreboard to the delight of “over” bettors.
Players competed Thursday in a series of skills competitions, with the AFC leading 9-3 after the precision passing contest, the longest drive and the lightning round, which featured several challenges.
The skills competition continues Sunday before the AFC meets the NFC in a flag football game to conclude the weekend.
“The plan is to pass entirely on the Pro Bowl,” Westgate SuperBook director John Murray said via text message.
The Pro Bowl was canceled in 2021 because of the coronavirus pandemic.
The AFC won last year’s game 41-35 to cover as a 1-point favorite. The game went over the total, which was anywhere from 62½ to 63½.
Contact David Schoen at dschoen@reviewjournal.com or 702-387-5203. Follow @DavidSchoenLVRJ on Twitter. | 2023-02-04T23:16:23+00:00 | reviewjournal.com | https://www.reviewjournal.com/sports/betting/looking-for-a-pro-bowl-betting-line-you-wont-find-one-2723346/ |
SALEM, Ore. (AP) — One of Oregon’s largest labor unions says it’s going to try to oust a Democratic state lawmaker who has been a longtime labor ally.
United Food and Commercial Workers Local 555 said Monday it had filed paperwork to initiate a recall effort against Rep. Paul Holvey of Eugene, Oregon Public Broadcasting reported.
If successful, it could trigger an election later this year deciding whether Holvey, the House speaker pro-tem, can stay in office.
Holvey, joined the House in 2004 and is a former union representative. But the union says his failure to support House Bill 3183, which would block cannabis employers from interfering with employee efforts to unionize, is one of the reasons behind its effort. The union is trying to make the case that the representative has turned his back on working people.
“He has shown that his allegiance lies with large corporations, not with Oregonians,” Local 555 President Dan Clay said in a statement.
Holvey told OPB that the recall caught him off-guard.
“I’m very surprised they’d pursue this sort of retaliation over this particular bill,” he said. “I am a strong labor person, I grew up in labor and have always pursued legislation to help working people.”
The union says Holvey killed the cannabis union bill, and strongly suggests in its planned filing with the Secretary of State that he did so at the behest of La Mota. That’s the cannabis dispensary chain whose owners have come under scrutiny for donating to Democrats while failing to pay their taxes. The business’ owners have not given money to Holvey’s personal campaign committee, but they did donate $20,000 to the main political action committee for electing House Democrats.
UFCW Local 555 also says Holvey secured a legal opinion from legislative attorneys that suggests the bill could be illegal. The union believes that opinion is misleading and could affect its efforts to help workers unionize.
Holvey said he had questions about whether the UCFW bill was legal and acted accordingly, obtaining two opinions from legislative attorneys suggesting HB 3183 could be precluded by federal law.
“All I could see was this would put us into potential litigation where I felt pretty strongly the state would lose,” he said.
In order to force an election later this year, the union must collect signatures equivalent to 15% of the voters in Holvey’s Lane County district that participated in last year’s race for governor. According to state elections officials, the union needs 4,598 signatures by Aug. 21. | 2023-05-23T02:58:48+00:00 | seattletimes.com | https://www.seattletimes.com/seattle-news/northwest/labor-union-says-it-will-start-recall-effort-against-oregon-state-lawmaker/?utm_source=RSS&utm_medium=Referral&utm_campaign=RSS_all |
ANAHEIM Calif. (AP) — José Suarez of the Los Angeles Angels lost a perfect game in the seventh inning when the Texas Rangers’ Marcus Semien led off with a single.
Suarez ran into more trouble in the inning when Nathaniel Lowe hit a two-run homer to right field to give the Rangers a 2-1 lead.
The Venezuelan left-hander threw 77 pitches and struck out five in retiring the first 18 batters.
It was the first time Suarez had a no-hitter through six innings. His previous low in hits allowed at that point of a game was two, which has happened twice this season.
There hasn’t been a perfect game in the majors since Seattle’s Felix Hernandez threw one on Aug. 15, 2012, against Tampa Bay.
Suarez was trying for the Angels’ second no-hitter of the season. Los Angeles rookie Reid Detmers did it against the Rays on May 10. Shohei Ohtani took a no-hitter into the eighth inning Thursday night against Oakland.
There have been two other no-hitters this season, with five New York Mets pitchers combining against Philadelphia on April 29, and three Houston Astros hurlers against the New York Yankees on June 25.
___
More AP MLB: https://apnews.com/hub/mlb and https://twitter.com/AP_Sports | 2022-10-02T22:37:50+00:00 | fox44news.com | https://www.fox44news.com/sports/ap-angels-jos%C3%A9-suarez-has-perfect-game-through-6-vs-rangers/ |
CARMEL, Ind., Nov. 10, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- KAR Auction Services, Inc., d/b/a KAR Global (NYSE: KAR), a leading operator of digital marketplaces for wholesale used vehicles, today announced its participation in the following investor conference:
- Stephens Annual Investment Conference
- KAR's Vice President Investor Relations, Mike Eliason and Chief Accounting Officer, Scott Anderson will be participating on Thursday, November 17, 2022 at 11am ET.
Webcast of the presentation will be made available under the investor relations section of the company's website, karglobal.com.
About KAR
KAR Auction Services, Inc. d/b/a KAR Global (NYSE: KAR), provides sellers and buyers across the global wholesale used vehicle industry with innovative, technology-driven remarketing solutions. KAR Global's unique end-to-end platform supports whole car, financing, logistics and other ancillary and related services. Our integrated physical, online and mobile marketplaces reduce risk, improve transparency and streamline transactions for customers in about 75 countries. Headquartered in Carmel, Indiana, KAR Global has employees across the United States, Canada, Europe, Mexico, Uruguay and the Philippines. For more information and the latest KAR Global news, go to www.karglobal.com and follow us on Twitter @KARspeaks.
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SOURCE KAR Auction Services | 2022-11-10T22:12:48+00:00 | mysuncoast.com | https://www.mysuncoast.com/prnewswire/2022/11/10/kar-global-announces-participation-upcoming-investor-conference/ |
SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — Luis Matos took a few slow steps toward first base, followed by a pair of quick hops. The Giants’ rookie wasn’t admiring his first career home run down the left field line so much as he was trying to will it to stay fair.
″I knew it had the distance to go out,” Matos said through an interpreter. ”I just wanted to make sure that it stayed fair.”
Matos’ go-ahead, two-run drive in the sixth inning provided the Giants with their biggest moment as they beat the division-leading Arizona Diamondbacks 7-6 on Saturday for their 12th win in 13 games.
Joc Pederson and Blake Sabol added two hits each as San Francisco won its second straight against Arizona to pull 1 1/2 games back in the NL West.
Like several others who have played well for the Giants after coming up from the minors. Matos was the team’s No. 4 prospect when he was called up June 14. He has scored at least once in seven of the 10 games he’s played in since then batting primarily in the middle of the order. On Saturday, Matos hit ninth.
“Really good contact hitter. It’s one of the things we’re noticing,” Giants manager Gabe Kapler said. “He’s got really good bat-to-ball skills, a really good understanding where the sweet spot is on the bat. Nice to have a hitter down at the bottom of the lineup that can do that kind of damage.”
Christian Walker extended his hitting streak to nine games with a three hits and three RBIs for the Diamondbacks. Ketel Marte added his 13th home run and two RBIs. Arizona is the only team in the majors to avoid getting shut out this season.
Taylor Rogers (4-2), the fifth of seven Giants pitchers, retired three batters in the sixth to pick up the win. Camilo Doval allowed an RBI single to Lourdes Gurriel Jr. in the ninth but struck out Pavin Smith swinging with runners at second and third for his 22nd save.
The Giants trailed 3-1 and 5-3 before tying the game with two runs in the fifth and then taking the lead for good on Matos’ milestone moment.
After Brandon Crawford’s leadoff single, Matos crushed a 2-0 fastball from Arizona starter Merrill Kelly (9-4) over the fence in left field. San Francisco’s 21-year-old outfielder, making his second consecutive start in center after Mike Yastrzemski went on the Injured List, had one hit in his previous 10 at-bats and had been picked off first base.
“(Kelly) started me with two balls and no strikes so at the moment, I knew he had to attack the zone,” Matos said. “I knew he was going to come in and give me a good pitch to hit, and that’s what I got.”
Kelly, who came in tied for the NL lead in wins, suffered his first loss in eight road starts this season. He allowed 10 hits and seven runs (five earned) in five innings.
Arizona got off to an early start with Marte’s 13th home run off opener Ryan Walker in the first but San Francisco scored a pair of unearned runs in the bottom of the inning to go up 2-1.
Diamondbacks center fielder Corbin Carroll dropped Thairo Estrada’s fly ball for an error, one batter after LaMonte Wade Jr. lined a leadoff double to right-center. It was Carroll’s first error this season and second in 31 career games in center.
Immediately after the gaffe, Pederson’s groundout drove in Wade. Michael Conforto’s double scored Estrada.
The Diamondbacks regained the lead with four runs in the fourth off reliever Keaton Winn. Jake McCarthy reached on an infield single then stole second. Geraldo Perdomo followed with a liner that Giants second baseman Estrada made a diving stop of but lost control. Marte then blooped an RBI single over Estrada into right.
The game was then halted for several moments during a video review after Marte took second on Carroll’s fielder’s choice grounder against reliever Sean Manaea. Crawford fielded the ball behind the base and appeared to beat Marte to the bag but the runner was ruled safe. San Francisco challenged but the call was upheld.
Walker, working as San Francisco’s opener for the third time in six games, allowed two hits including Marte’s home run, in one inning.
TRAINER’S ROOM
Diamondbacks: Carroll was playing in center field for the first time in a week because manager Torey Lovullo gave Alek Thomas the day off.
Giants: Reliever Luke Jackson left for unknown reasons after facing one batter in the sixth. … Optioned SS Dalton Guthrie to Triple-A Sacramento after acquiring the infielder from the Phillies earlier in the week.
UP NEXT
Diamondbacks RHP Ryne Nelson (3-4, 5.31) faces the Giants for the second time in his career in the series finale Sunday. Anthony DeSclafani (4-6, 4.38) pitches for San Francisco and is looking for his first win since May 29.
__
AP MLB: https://apnews.com/hub/MLB and https://twitter.com/AP_Sports | 2023-06-25T19:45:24+00:00 | everythinglubbock.com | https://www.everythinglubbock.com/sports/matos-hits-first-career-hr-to-lift-giants-past-diamondbacks-7-6-for-12th-win-in-13-games/ |
LOS ANGELES (AP) — Beyoncé has propelled herself into the highest Grammy echelon: The star singer claimed a leading nine nominations Tuesday, making her tied — with her husband Jay-Z — as the most nominated music act in the history of the awards show.
Beyoncé's “Break My Soul” reeled in record and song of the year nominations, while “Renaissance” — which ventured into the world of dancehall music — netted an album of the year nod. With Jay-Z also earning five nods this year, each spouse now holds the record for the most-ever Grammy nominations at 88 apiece.
Kendrick Lamar came away with the second-most nominations, with eight. Adele and Brandi Carlile both received seven nods. Harry Styles, Mary J. Blige, Future, DJ Khaled, The-Dream and mastering engineer Randy Merrill each picked up six.
Nearly half of this year’s leading nominees — announced by the likes of Olivia Rodrigo, John Legend, Machine Gun Kelly and Smokey Robinson —are women and more than half are people of color, according to the recording academy. The ceremony will be held Feb. 5 in Los Angeles.
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“This makes me feel very proud, but it makes me conscious of the fact that we have to maintain the work we have done,” said Harvey Mason jr., the Recording Academy’s CEO. He said there have been strides in the peer-driven voting system and increased membership, but he still believes more progress can be made.
“This year, I’m pleased with the result and work the voters did,” he continued. “We have almost 13,000 voters now. It’s really important work. I’m pleased to think they spent the time listening to the music and evaluating. I think you see by the type of nominations that they are not only going for just popular music or music that has a lot of streams. It’s just music of high quality.”
The academy added a special song for social change and five new categories including songwriter of the year, which Harvey says will further help diversify the 65th edition of the annual awards.
The non-classical songwriter category will recognize one individual who was the “most prolific” non-performing and non-producing songwriter for a body of new work during an eligibility year. It will take a different approach than song of the year, which awards the songwriters who wrote the lyrics or melodies to one song.
Harvey said implementing the songwriters category is a “significant” step forward for the music industry. Last year, a rule update allowed that any songwriter, producer, engineer or featured artist on a work nominated for album of the year could ultimately earn a nomination.
“The academy and voters are placing a high importance on the craft of songwriting,” Harvey said of the new category, in which nominees include The-Dream, Amy Allen, Nija Charles, Tobias Jesso Jr. and Laura Veltz. “Personally, as a songwriter, I’m happy to see it being a significant part of our process. We realize that songwriting is at the heart of our industry. It’s one of the building blocks for every artist’s career.”
Beyoncé, the most decorated woman in Grammy history with 28 wins, could break the late Hungarian-British conductor Georg Solti’s record for most awards won if she wins four awards. Solti, who has 31 Grammys, has held on to the record since 1997.
For the first time in Beyoncé's lauded career, she’ll be nominated in the dance category. Her seventh studio project “Renaissance” is up for best dance-electronic music album and “Break My Soul” is nominated for best dance-electronic recording. Other nominations include best R&B song for “Cuff It,” R&B performance for “Virgo’s Groove,” traditional R&B performance for “Plastic Off the Sofa” and song written for visual media for “Be Alive,” the Oscar-nominated song from the “King Richard” soundtrack.
Merrill grabbed two nominations in the record of the year category for the second straight year for his work on Adele’s “Easy on Me” and Styles’ “As It Was.” It’s also his first time being nominated three times in the same year for album of the year.
Other album of the year nominees include: Adele’s “30,” ABBA’s “Voyage,” Bad Bunny’s “Un Verano Sin Ti,” Mary J. Blige’s “Good Morning Gorgeous” (Deluxe), Carlile’s “In These Silent Days,” Coldplay’s “Music of the Spheres,” Lamar’s “Mr. Morale & the Big Steppers,” Lizzo’s “Special” and Styles’ “Harry’s House.”
Tracks competing with “Break My Soul” for record of the year include Styles’ “As It Was,” Doja Cat’s “Woman,” Adele’s “Easy On Me,” ABBA’s “Don’t Shut Me Down,” Blige’s “Good Morning Gorgeous,” Steve Lacy’s “Bad Habit,” Lamar’s “The Heart Part 5,” Lizzo’s “About Damn Time” and Carlile’s “You and Me On the Rock” featuring Lucius.
Three of Jay-Z’s nominations came through DJ Khaled’s “God Did,” a song featuring Rick Ross, Lil Wayne, John Legend and Fridayy. The track is up for best rap performance and rap song along with song of the year, which also has Jay-Z nominated for his writing efforts on Beyoncé’s “Break My Soul.” The rapper also received a nod for album of the year for his work on his wife’s “Renaissance” album.
Copyright 2022 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without permission. | 2022-11-15T19:13:22+00:00 | wcfcourier.com | https://wcfcourier.com/news/national/beyonc-ties-grammy-record-after-leading-nominations-with-9/article_38c94f8d-dbfe-5b6e-8552-e472ee5b6ac4.html |
TULSA, Okla. — Since December, Dr. Kelly Nagasawa, a cardiothoracic surgeon, has used the Ion endoluminal system to reach deep into the lungs to search out suspicious nodules.
The robotic system utilizes an ultra-thin catheter allowing the surgeon to maneuver into areas of the lung that were previously unreachable.
Dr. Nagasawa uses the new system to search out lung cancer. The first procedure, called a "Fast Track Nodule Pathway," lasted 4 hours, and was performed on December 15, 2022. He soon found he can biopsy a suspicious lump, get the lab results; and if it is malignant, remove it immediately. Since this is all accomplished in the same surgery, Dr. Nagasawa said it is safer for the patient.
"My patient had an undiagnosed nodule confirmed it was a cancer in the operating room and she had an appropriate cancer operation the same day," said Dr. Kelly Nagasawa, cardiothoracic surgeon at Ascension St. John. "It was a month from when we found the nodule to the day it was removed so you can imagine, hopefully the prognosis is significantly increased."
In addition, the minimally invasive procedure is believed to be safer for patients since there is a lower risk of lung collapse as there is no need for needle biopsy. Typically, surgeons use a needle biopsy to test the tissues of a suspicious nodule. Needle biopsy punctures the lung and involves a 20-30% risk of lung collapse. The physician said with the Ion robotic system, there is only a 1% risk of lung collapse and the patient will no longer need to undergo multiple procedures.
When asked if he and other surgeons at St. John are pleased to have the new technology available to them, Dr. Nagasawa said, "Myself and the pulmonologists here are quite excited and we realize the benefits of it for our patients and the community and the hope is to make a dent in the prognosis and survival of lung cancer."
Until now, the length of time from the first x-rays or CT scans to biopsy and then beginning cancer treatment is typically three months. Dr. Nagasawa has already seen that time trimmed to one month. After performing 11 procedures using the Ion endoluminal system, he believes reducing the time from diagnosis to treatment will potentially improve even more patients' lung cancer survival rate.
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- Follow us on Twitter | 2023-02-16T13:53:59+00:00 | kjrh.com | https://www.kjrh.com/news/local-news/new-robotic-technology-is-helping-surgeons-in-tulsa-find-lung-cancer-earlier |
HAWKINS COUNTY, Tenn. (WJHL) — A Newport man was airlifted to the University of Tennessee Medical Center following a single-vehicle crash involving a dump truck that had been hauling a load of gravel Thursday morning.
The Tennessee Highway Patrol (THP) responded to the scene at 7:15 a.m., according to a preliminary crash report. A narrative penned by a responding officer states that a 2023 Peterbilt dump truck had been traveling south on highway 11-E near the Hawkins and Greene county lines.
After partially running off the right side of the road, the driver reportedly swerved left to avoid crashing into a ditch. The truck then crossed the double yellow lines, causing it to overturn on its right side in the northbound lanes and slide off the left side of the road into a ditch line.
The truck lost a majority of the gravel load, which scattered across both lanes, resulting in an hours-long road closure. First responders transported the driver to UT Medical Center; the extent of the driver’s injuries is not known at the time of this report.
THP did not charge the driver, the report states. | 2022-09-15T20:07:50+00:00 | wjhl.com | https://www.wjhl.com/news/local/driver-airlifted-after-hawkins-co-dump-truck-crash/ |
TX El Paso Tx/Santa Teresa NM Zone Forecast for Thursday, April 27, 2023
_____
993 FPUS54 KEPZ 281051
ZFPEPZ
Zone Forecast Product for New Mexico
National Weather Service El Paso Tx/Santa Teresa NM
451 AM MDT Fri Apr 28 2023
TXZ418-281200-
Western El Paso County-
Including the cities of Downtown El Paso, West El Paso,
and Upper Valley
451 AM MDT Fri Apr 28 2023
.TODAY...Sunny. Patchy blowing dust. Breezy with highs around 80.
Northwest winds 15 to 20 mph, becoming north 15 to 25 mph this
afternoon.
.TONIGHT...Patchy blowing dust in the evening. Clear, windy with
lows in the mid 40s. Northeast winds 20 to 30 mph, becoming
southeast 10 to 15 mph after midnight.
.SATURDAY...Sunny. Highs in the upper 70s. South winds around
5 mph.
.SATURDAY NIGHT...Clear. Lows in the lower 50s. South winds
around 5 mph.
.SUNDAY...Sunny, warmer with highs in the lower 90s. South winds
5 to 10 mph, becoming southwest 10 to 15 mph in the afternoon.
.SUNDAY NIGHT...Mostly clear in the evening, then becoming partly
cloudy. Lows around 60.
.MONDAY...Partly cloudy. Highs around 90.
.MONDAY NIGHT...Mostly cloudy. Lows in the lower 60s.
.TUESDAY...Mostly sunny. Highs in the mid 80s.
.TUESDAY NIGHT THROUGH WEDNESDAY NIGHT...Partly cloudy. Lows in
the upper 50s. Highs in the lower 80s.
.THURSDAY...Mostly sunny. Highs in the lower 80s.
$$
TXZ419-281200-
Eastern/Central El Paso County-
Including the cities of East and Northeast El Paso, Socorro,
and Fort Bliss
451 AM MDT Fri Apr 28 2023
.TODAY...Sunny. Patchy blowing dust. Breezy with highs in the
upper 70s. Northwest winds 10 to 15 mph, becoming north 15 to
25 mph this afternoon.
.TONIGHT...Patchy blowing dust in the evening. Clear, breezy,
cooler with lows in the lower 40s. Northeast winds 15 to 25 mph,
becoming southeast 10 to 15 mph after midnight.
.SATURDAY...Sunny. Highs in the upper 70s. South winds around
5 mph, becoming southwest in the afternoon.
.SATURDAY NIGHT...Clear. Lows in the lower 50s. South winds 5 to
10 mph, becoming southeast after midnight.
.SUNDAY...Sunny, warmer with highs in the lower 90s. South winds
5 to 10 mph, becoming southwest 10 to 15 mph in the afternoon.
.SUNDAY NIGHT...Mostly clear in the evening, then becoming partly
cloudy. Lows in the upper 50s.
.MONDAY...Partly cloudy. Highs around 90.
.MONDAY NIGHT...Mostly cloudy. Lows in the lower 60s.
.TUESDAY...Partly cloudy in the morning, then clearing. Highs in
the mid 80s.
.TUESDAY NIGHT THROUGH WEDNESDAY NIGHT...Partly cloudy. Lows in
the upper 50s. Highs in the lower 80s.
.THURSDAY...Mostly sunny. Highs in the lower 80s.
$$
TXZ420-281200-
Northern Hudspeth Highlands/Hueco Mountains-
Including the cities of Hueco Tanks and Loma Linda
451 AM MDT Fri Apr 28 2023
.TODAY...Sunny. Patchy blowing dust. Windy with highs in the
lower 70s. Temperature falling into the mid 60s this afternoon.
Northwest winds 10 to 15 mph, increasing to northeast 20 to
30 mph this afternoon.
.TONIGHT...Patchy blowing dust in the evening. Clear, windy,
cooler with lows in the upper 30s. Northeast winds 20 to 30 mph,
diminishing to 15 to 20 mph after midnight.
.SATURDAY...Sunny. Highs in the mid 70s. East winds around 5 mph,
becoming west in the afternoon.
.SATURDAY NIGHT...Clear. Not as cool with lows in the upper 40s.
Southwest winds 5 to 10 mph, becoming south after midnight.
.SUNDAY...Sunny. Not as cool with highs in the upper 80s. South
winds 5 to 10 mph, becoming west 10 to 15 mph in the afternoon.
.SUNDAY NIGHT...Mostly clear in the evening, then becoming partly
cloudy. Lows in the upper 50s.
.MONDAY...Partly cloudy. Highs in the mid 80s.
.MONDAY NIGHT...Mostly cloudy. Lows in the upper 50s.
.TUESDAY AND TUESDAY NIGHT...Partly cloudy. Highs in the lower
80s. Lows in the mid 50s.
.WEDNESDAY...Partly cloudy. A slight chance of showers in the
afternoon. Highs in the upper 70s. Chance of rain 20 percent.
.WEDNESDAY NIGHT...Partly cloudy. Lows in the mid 50s.
.THURSDAY...Mostly sunny. Highs in the upper 70s.
$$
TXZ423-281200-
Rio Grande Valley of Eastern El Paso/Western Hudspeth Counties-
Including the cities of Fabens, Fort Hancock, and Tornillo
451 AM MDT Fri Apr 28 2023
.TODAY...Sunny. Patchy blowing dust. Windy with highs in the
upper 70s. Northwest winds 10 to 15 mph, increasing to north
20 to 30 mph this afternoon.
.TONIGHT...Patchy blowing dust in the evening. Clear, breezy,
cooler with lows around 40. Northeast winds 15 to 25 mph,
becoming southeast 10 to 15 mph after midnight.
.SATURDAY...Sunny. Highs in the upper 70s. Southeast winds around
5 mph, becoming west in the afternoon.
.SATURDAY NIGHT...Clear. Lows in the upper 40s. Southeast winds
around 5 mph.
.SUNDAY...Sunny, warmer with highs in the lower 90s. South winds
5 to 10 mph, becoming west 10 to 15 mph in the afternoon.
.SUNDAY NIGHT AND MONDAY...Partly cloudy. Lows in the upper 50s.
Highs in the lower 90s.
.MONDAY NIGHT...Mostly cloudy. Lows around 60.
.TUESDAY...Partly cloudy in the morning, then clearing. Highs in
the mid 80s.
.TUESDAY NIGHT THROUGH WEDNESDAY NIGHT...Partly cloudy. Lows in
the mid 50s. Highs in the mid 80s.
.THURSDAY...Mostly sunny. Highs in the mid 80s.
$$
TXZ421-281200-
Salt Basin-
Including the cities of Cornudas, Dell City, and Salt Flat
451 AM MDT Fri Apr 28 2023
.TODAY...Sunny. Patchy blowing dust. Windy with highs in the
lower 70s. Temperature falling into the mid 60s this afternoon.
North winds 15 to 20 mph, becoming northeast 20 to 30 mph this
afternoon.
.TONIGHT...Patchy blowing dust in the evening. Mostly clear.
Breezy, cooler with lows in the upper 30s. Northeast winds 20 to
25 mph, becoming north 5 to 10 mph after midnight.
.SATURDAY...Sunny. Highs in the upper 70s. Northwest winds 5 to
10 mph.
.SATURDAY NIGHT...Clear. Lows in the mid 40s. Southwest winds
5 to 10 mph.
.SUNDAY...Sunny. Not as cool with highs in the upper 80s.
Southwest winds 10 to 15 mph.
.SUNDAY NIGHT...Mostly clear. Lows in the mid 50s.
.MONDAY...Partly cloudy. Highs in the upper 80s.
.MONDAY NIGHT...Mostly cloudy. Lows in the upper 50s.
.TUESDAY THROUGH WEDNESDAY NIGHT...Partly cloudy. Highs in the
lower 80s. Lows in the mid 50s.
.THURSDAY...Partly cloudy in the morning, then clearing. Highs in
the lower 80s.
$$
TXZ422-281200-
Southern Hudspeth Highlands-
Including the city of Sierra Blanca
451 AM MDT Fri Apr 28 2023
.TODAY...Sunny. Patchy blowing dust. Windy with highs in the
lower 70s. Northwest winds 15 to 20 mph, becoming north 20 to
30 mph this afternoon.
.TONIGHT...Patchy blowing dust in the evening. Mostly clear.
Windy, cooler with lows in the upper 30s. Northeast winds 20 to
30 mph, diminishing to 15 to 20 mph after midnight.
.SATURDAY...Sunny. Highs in the lower 70s. North winds 5 to
10 mph.
.SATURDAY NIGHT...Clear. Not as cool with lows in the upper 40s.
South winds 5 to 10 mph.
.SUNDAY...Sunny. Not as cool with highs in the mid 80s. South
winds 10 to 15 mph, becoming west in the afternoon.
.SUNDAY NIGHT...Mostly clear in the evening, then becoming partly
cloudy. Lows in the upper 50s.
.MONDAY...Partly cloudy. Highs in the mid 80s.
.MONDAY NIGHT...Mostly cloudy. Lows in the upper 50s.
.TUESDAY AND TUESDAY NIGHT...Partly cloudy. Highs in the lower
80s. Lows in the mid 50s.
.WEDNESDAY...Partly cloudy. A slight chance of showers in the
afternoon. Highs in the upper 70s. Chance of rain 20 percent.
.WEDNESDAY NIGHT...Partly cloudy. Lows in the mid 50s.
.THURSDAY...Partly cloudy in the morning, then clearing. Highs
around 80.
$$
TXZ424-281200-
Rio Grande Valley of Eastern Hudspeth County-
Including the city of Indian Hot Springs
451 AM MDT Fri Apr 28 2023
.TODAY...Sunny. Patchy blowing dust. Windy with highs around 80.
Northwest winds 15 to 20 mph, becoming north 20 to 30 mph this
afternoon.
.TONIGHT...Patchy blowing dust in the evening. Clear. Very windy
and cooler with lows in the lower 40s. Northeast winds 25 to
35 mph, becoming north 20 to 25 mph after midnight.
.SATURDAY...Sunny. Highs in the upper 70s. Northwest winds around
5 mph.
.SATURDAY NIGHT...Clear. Lows around 50. South winds 5 to 10 mph.
.SUNDAY...Sunny, warmer with highs in the lower 90s. South winds
5 to 10 mph, becoming southwest 10 to 15 mph in the afternoon.
.SUNDAY NIGHT AND MONDAY...Partly cloudy. Lows in the upper 50s.
Highs in the lower 90s.
.MONDAY NIGHT...Mostly cloudy. Lows in the lower 60s.
.TUESDAY AND TUESDAY NIGHT...Partly cloudy. Highs in the upper
80s. Lows in the upper 50s.
.WEDNESDAY...Partly cloudy. A slight chance of showers in the
afternoon. Highs in the mid 80s. Chance of rain 20 percent.
.WEDNESDAY NIGHT...Partly cloudy. Lows in the upper 50s.
.THURSDAY...Partly cloudy in the morning, then clearing. Highs in
the upper 80s.
$$
_____
Copyright 2023 AccuWeather | 2023-04-28T12:37:11+00:00 | expressnews.com | https://www.expressnews.com/weather/article/tx-el-paso-tx-santa-teresa-nm-zone-forecast-17924611.php |
SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico (AP) — The sight of a massive hammerhead shark was a rare treat for 32 travelers on a tour boat in the Bahamas this week. But then, something stranger still: A dog dove from a nearby dock to confront the monstrous sea creature.
Tourists aboard the four-hour excursion can be heard shouting and pleading with the dog to turn back, in a video circulating on social media. “Oh my god!” and “Get out baby!” and “Stop going after it!”
The dog ignored them and paddled after the 12-foot shark, which thrashed as the two animals circled each other in transparent turquoise waters near a private island in the southern Bahamas. Then the shark swam away slowly, much to the delight and surprise of the crowd.
“I don’t think the shark is going to mess with him!” exclaimed one man.
The shark had emerged from under the boat during a tour Wednesday in the southern Bahamas organized by Exuma Water Sports.
Company reservations manager Rebecca Lightbourn told The Associated Press on Friday that the black-and-tan dog always runs along the shore to greet the boat when it passes that island. But it’s the first time it was seen diving in.
“I guess this time the dog decided he wanted to protect his house or play with a really big fish in the water, so he went after it,” Lightbourn said.
When the shark swam away from the pier, the medium-sized dog scrambled back onto the rocks and loped away, earning applause from the tourists. The boat then headed to a popular area where tourists jump into the water with the renowned Bahamian swimming pigs. | 2023-02-17T18:53:52+00:00 | lmtonline.com | https://www.lmtonline.com/news/world/article/dog-vs-shark-standoff-thrills-tourists-on-bahamas-17791227.php |
WASHINGTON (AP) — When lawmakers gather for President Joe Biden’s State of the Union address, the Republican side of the aisle will look slightly different than it did a few years ago.
Rather than row after row of white men in suits, the House Republican majority increasingly has added Black, Latino and female elected officials to their ranks, an effort toward bolstering GOP diversity that’s helping to make the new Congress the most racially and ethnically diverse ever.
It’s a slow yet unsteady progress toward creating a Congress more reflective of America. But it also spotlights a still stark gap on the House Republican side, where the new majority remains made up mostly of white, male lawmakers, which does not fully capture the changing demographics of the country.
“Diversity matters,” said Debbie Walsh, director of the Center for Women and Politics at Rutgers University.
“Every person who serves in office brings with them a set of life experiences that shape their policy priorities, that shape how they see the world,” Walsh said. “It’s not that the experiences of white men don’t matter, but they don’t matter — they shouldn’t matter — more than everybody else.”
House Speaker Kevin McCarthy is largely responsible for making strides at trying to diversify the Republican House. The California leader personally recruited and helped to elect more female candidates and people of color who delivered majority control.
McCarthy and his team worked to diversify their ranks during the 2022 midterm elections with dozens of Black, Hispanic and Asian American nominees on ballots nationwide, some of whom won office.
Still, compared with the diversity on the Democratic side of the aisle, the Republican tally remains slim.
There are four Black Republicans in the House — twice as many as in the last session. That’s a record for Republicans in the 20th and 21st centuries.
But it’s still fewer Black Republicans in the House than during Reconstruction, the era that followed the Civil War. As many as seven Black Republicans served in the House during the 1875-77 session, according to the U.S. House Historical Office, and the House membership overall was much smaller.
Women are making steady gains in the Republican Party in the House, with 33 GOP women in the House, according to the Center for Women in American Politics. That’s up from 13 House Republican women in 2019.
But there are no Black Republican women in the House, compared with 27 Black women on the Democratic side, including some who have been powerful leaders and chairwomen wielding gavels.
Republicans count five Latina women and two Asian Americans, a fraction of those the Democrats have elected, according to the Center for Women and Politics.
While the House freshman class includes seven new Republican women, the gains were essentially offset by six Republican women leaving, the center said in its analysis of the new Congress.
House Republicans have held steady with about a dozen Latino and Hispanic lawmakers, but overall the proportion of Latinos in Congress is less than in the U.S. population.
“This continues a long-running trend toward more racial and ethnic diversity on Capitol Hill: This is the seventh Congress to break the record set by the one before it,” said Pew Research Center, including senators in its tally.
But Pew reports a vast divide by party for the racial and ethnic minority members in the new Congress: 80% are Democrats while 20% are Republicans. The report said that’s similar to the last session of Congress. At that time, 83% of non-white lawmakers were Democrats and 17% were Republicans.
Pew said 13 members of Congress identify as lesbian, gay or bisexual, the highest number openly identified in history. Among the 11 openly gay or lesbian members of the House, just one is a Republican, Rep. George Santos of New York.
The Senate shows strides, too, with 25 women this session, including nine Republican female senators, matching the record set in 2020, according the Center for Women and Politics.
Among the 100 senators, there is one Black Republican, Sen. Tim Scott of South Carolina, and two Black Democrats, Sen. Cory Booker of New Jersey and Sen. Raphael Warnock of Georgia.
There are no Black women elected to the Senate.
There are six Latino or Hispanic senators, including two Republicans; and there are two Asian American senators, both Democrats.
One new Republican, Sen. Markwayne Mullin of Oklahoma, “a member of the Cherokee nation, is the first American Indian to serve in the Senate in almost two decades,” the Pew Report said.
“I wouldn’t call it strides,” said Rashad Robinson, president of the Color of Change, a racial justice organization.
“We have complicated problems in this country that require solutions that come from a range of perspectives and that require us to think seriously about how we move forward,” he said.
___
Follow AP’s coverage of the State of the Union address at: https://apnews.com/hub/state-of-the-union-address | 2023-02-07T13:17:04+00:00 | valleycentral.com | https://www.valleycentral.com/news/politics/ap-politics/ap-state-of-the-union-congress-doesnt-fully-reflect-diversity/ |
The platform reveal arrives as Zippo rings in its 90th Anniversary
BRADFORD, Pa., June 14, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Zippo Manufacturing Company, the world-renowned maker of the iconic windproof lighter and growing assortment of lifestyle and outdoor products, is unveiling a new global brand platform, "Live with Confidence," to support the brand's evolution. For 90 years, Zippo has been making reliable, rugged essentials that have a built-better-than-necessary quality. The brand's new positioning represents its longstanding commitment to fine craftsmanship and durability, giving individuals confidence in Zippo products so that they can have the freedom to do what they want, how they want.
"Live with Confidence" will come to life across Zippo's logo, packaging and marketing through a series of new films and imagery that showcases confident people using Zippo products, in ways ranging from the everyday to the extraordinary. Stories include an archer shooting flaming arrows with her feet; a mixologist lighting up cocktails with Zippo's signature lighter; a gamer using Zippo's hand warmer to keep her fingers loose; and even the real-life account of a veteran whose life was saved by a Zippo lighter.
"This new platform lights the path to where we're going while staying true to where we've been," said Lucas Johnson, Associate Vice President of Global Marketing at Zippo. "Live With Confidence is more than a tagline. It speaks directly to who we are as a company – built in the USA with pride by people confident in craftsmanship. It also embodies who our customers are and how they aspire to live."
The brand films were created by Ogilvy, directed by ROOS and produced by Greenpoint Pictures with photography by The Wade Brothers.
For more information about Zippo's new brand platform, please visit zippo.com.
Zippo has been a source of reliable and durable products for 90 years, giving its users the confidence to live their way, however they choose. Founded in 1932 by George G. Blaisdell, the brand first garnered global fame for its signature windproof lighter, which is still manufactured in Bradford, Pennsylvania. With the exception of improvements to the flint wheel and an ever-increasing number of designs and finishes, the product retains its classic form and functionality and is backed by the company's famous lifetime guarantee – "It works or we fix it free.™" Today, Zippo's diverse product line includes lighters, butane and electric lighter inserts, rechargeable candle lighters, utility lighters and a robust line of heat and flame accessories for outdoor enthusiasts. Zippo is available in over 180 countries and owns Bradford-based W.R. Case and Sons Cutlery Company, an American manufacturer of premium pocket knives and fixed blade designs; the Ronson family of brands, a producer of lighters, lighter accessories and fuel; and Wellsville, New York based Northern Lights Candles, a leading designer of luxury candles and artisan accessories. For more information, visit zippo.com.
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SOURCE Zippo Manufacturing Company | 2022-06-14T14:27:05+00:00 | wafb.com | https://www.wafb.com/prnewswire/2022/06/14/zippo-unveils-new-brand-platform-celebrating-individuals-who-live-with-confidence/ |
Driver racing on city street hits 2 cars, kills 4-year-old
DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — A 4-year-old boy died Tuesday night after a car that was reportedly racing crossed into oncoming lanes and crashed into two vehicles, police in Iowa said.
The collisions happened along a four-lane thoroughfare in Des Moines, where police said a car and an SUV were racing. The car crossed the median, first striking the vehicle carrying the 4-year-old boy, also injuring an adult and an 8-year-old inside. The racing car then struck another vehicle, injuring an adult driver.
The driver who was racing was also injured.
All those injured were taken to Des Moines hospitals. The driver of the second vehicle that was struck has been released, and the others who were injured are expected to recover.
Police did not immediately release the names of those involved.
After the crash, the racing SUV left the area. Police were asking for the public’s help in locating the vehicle.
Copyright 2022 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without permission. | 2022-12-14T17:04:49+00:00 | kob.com | https://www.kob.com/news/us-and-world-news/driver-racing-on-city-street-hits-2-cars-kills-4-year-old/ |
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Alabama Inmate Who Escaped with Jailer’s Help Enters Plea Deal
An Alabama inmate charged in the death of a jail official who helped him escape pleaded guilty Thursday to escape in exchange for having the murder case dismissed.
Casey Cole White entered the plea agreement in Lauderdale County Court, avoiding a June trial on the felony murder charge. He continues to await trial on a separate murder charge.
Authorities said White escaped from jail in 2022 with the help of Vicky White, the assistant director of corrections for Lauderdale County and a 17-year veteran of the sheriff’s office. Law enforcement officials initially thought that the inmate had kidnapped the female jailer but later learned the pair had a jailhouse romance.
An 11-day manhunt for the pair ended in Indiana as authorities caught up with them. Casey White was recaptured, and Vicky White died by a self-inflicted gunshot wound. Casey White was charged in her death because Alabama law allows someone to be charged with murder if someone is killed while a felony is being committed.
WHNT-TV reported that Casey White apologized to Vicky White’s mother when entering his plea. “It wasn’t supposed to go that way,” he said. He said the pair had fallen in love, and they planned to start a new life together.
One requirement of the plea deal is that Casey White have no contact with Vicky White’s family, court records show.
Casey White is also scheduled to go on trial this summer for capital murder in the 2015 stabbing death of Connie Ridgeway in Rogersville.
(Copyright 2023 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.) | 2023-05-05T02:47:36+00:00 | waka.com | https://www.waka.com/2023/05/04/alabama-inmate-who-escaped-with-jailers-help-enters-plea-deal/ |
China Film Group's "The Wandering Earth 2" Scores $6 Million Opening Day in IMAX — Nearly Double its Predecessor and Good for 8.5% of the Film's Total
SHANGHAI AND NEW YORK, Jan. 23, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- IMAX Corporation (NYSE: IMAX) rocketed to its second-best opening day ever for the Chinese New Year holiday — the perennial peak moviegoing period in China — with $7 million in box office across the IMAX China network on Sunday.
China Film Group's "The Wandering Earth 2" — the prequel to the 2019 smash-hit "The Wandering Earth" — led the way with $6 million. IMAX opening day box office for "The Wandering Earth 2" was nearly double the opening day haul for its predecessor, and IMAX locations delivered 8.5% of the film's first day gross on only 1% of screens. Filmmaker Guo Fan's latest effort earned strong early reaction from Chinese moviegoers on China's top ticketing platforms, including a 9.4 score on Maoyan and 9.7 on Taopiaopiao.
"Moviegoing in China continues to make a strong comeback in 2023, and our results for the opening day of Chinese New Year — which stand among our best ever — offer further proof of the pent-up demand among Chinese audiences for great blockbuster entertainment," said Rich Gelfond, CEO of IMAX. "With a strong Chinese New Year slate, the continued success of 'Avatar: The Way of Water', and several high-profile releases from Hollywood in the coming weeks, it's clear that China is once again one of the most robust and diversified film markets in the world."
IMAX's results were further amplified with the success of a trio of films, including "Full River Red", the period drama that marks the fifth collaboration between IMAX and director Zhang Yimou. The Chinese New Year IMAX slate was rounded out by children's animated film "Deep Sea" produced by Enlight Film, and WWII espionage thriller "Hidden Blade" produced by Bona Film and Xiyue Film. Both films mark first-time partnerships between IMAX and directors Tianxiaopeng and Cheng Er, highlighting the expanding range of partnerships between local language content filmmakers and IMAX.
"This is one of the strongest and most diversified Chinese New Year slates in years, and a credit to the studios and filmmakers who continue to push Chinese filmmaking to new heights," said Daniel Manwaring, CEO of IMAX China. "We are particularly excited to welcome Chinese moviegoers back to the visionary world of Guo Fan's "Wandering Earth", as audiences continue to see IMAX as the premier destination to experience this groundbreaking franchise."
IMAX China will continue to program its Chinese New Year film slate throughout the holiday leading into February. Disney/Lightstorm's "Avatar: The Way of Water" — which is already the second highest grossing IMAX film in China with more than $50 million — will continue its successful run in China as well. Disney/Marvel's "Black Panther: Wakanda Forever" and "Ant-Man and The Wasp: Quantumania" will also debut in China next month.
About IMAX Corporation
IMAX, an innovator in entertainment technology, combines proprietary software, architecture, and equipment to create experiences that take you beyond the edge of your seat to a world you've never imagined. Top filmmakers and studios are utilizing IMAX theaters to connect with audiences in extraordinary ways, and, as such, IMAX's network is among the most important and successful theatrical distribution platforms for major event films around the globe. Streaming technology company SSIMWAVE, an IMAX subsidiary, is a leader in AI-driven video quality solutions for media and entertainment companies.
IMAX is headquartered in New York, Toronto, and Los Angeles, with additional offices in London, Dublin, Tokyo, and Shanghai. As of September 30, 2022, there were 1,703 IMAX theater systems (1,622 commercial multiplexes, 12 commercial destinations, 69 institutional) operating in 87 countries and territories. Shares of IMAX China Holding, Inc., a subsidiary of IMAX Corporation, trade on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange under the stock code "1970."
IMAX®, IMAX® Dome, IMAX® 3D, IMAX® 3D Dome, Experience It In IMAX®, The IMAX Experience®, An IMAX Experience®, An IMAX 3D Experience®, IMAX DMR®, DMR®, Filmed For IMAX™, IMAX LIVE™, IMAX Enhanced™, IMAX nXos®, SSIMWAVE® and Films to the Fullest®, are trademarks and trade names of the Company or its subsidiaries that are registered or otherwise protected under laws of various jurisdictions. For more information, visit www.imax.com. You may also connect with IMAX on Instagram (www.instagram.com/imax), Facebook (www.facebook.com/imax), Twitter (www.twitter.com/imax), YouTube (www.youtube.com/imaxmovies) and LinkedIn (www.linkedin.com/imax).
About IMAX China
IMAX China is a subsidiary of IMAX Corporation, and was incorporated as a limited liability company under the laws of Cayman Islands. IMAX China was established by IMAX Corporation specifically to oversee the expansion of IMAX's business throughout Greater China. Shares of IMAX China trade on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange under the stock code "1970".
For additional information please contact:
Investors:
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jhorsley@imax.com
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IMAX Corporation, New York
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SOURCE IMAX Corporation | 2023-01-23T14:40:22+00:00 | mysuncoast.com | https://www.mysuncoast.com/prnewswire/2023/01/23/imax-rockets-second-best-opening-day-ever-chinese-new-year/ |
ALAUSI, Ecuador (AP) — A huge landslide swept over an Andean community in central Ecuador, burying dozens of homes, killing at least seven people and sending rescuers on a frantic search for survivors, authorities said Monday.
Earlier in the day, officials had reported 16 deaths, but President Guillermo Lasso put the confirmed toll at seven as he arrived Monday night at the scene of the disaster in Alausí, about 137 miles south of the capital, Quito. Officials also raised the number of people reported missing to 62.
Lasso lamented the tragedy and promised people in the town that “we will continue working” on the search effort.
Ecuador’s Risk Management Secretariat said more than 30 people were rescued after the mountainside collapsed around 10 p.m. Sunday. It said 23 people were injured.
“My mother is buried” under the mud, said Luis Ángel González, 58, who also lost other family members Sunday. “I am so sad, devastated. There is nothing here, no houses, no anything. We are homeless (and) without family.”
The risk management agency estimated 500 people and 163 homes were affected by the disaster, which also destroyed a portion of the Pan-American Highway.
The governor of Chimborazo, Ivan Vinueza, told The Associated Press that some of the injured were taken to area hospitals. He said officials had urged people to evacuate the area after landslides and cracks began to develop about two months ago. Some followed the advice, and by Saturday, as tremors intensified, others fled.
Area residents told local media they heard tremors on the mountain before the landslide, which was estimated to be about 150 meters (490 feet) wide and nearly a half mile (700 meters) long. It swept away trees, homes and other buildings. More than fifty houses were buried under tons of mud of debris.
The emergency response agency said 60% of potable water service in the area was affected by the landslide. The communication’s office of the presidential office said some schools would be switching to online classes.
Firefighters from a half dozen cities were dispatched to the area to help. Rescuers focused on the flanks of the landslide where they found traces and debris of houses.
Rescuer and paramedic Alberto Escobar said it was unlikely more survivors would be found because of the time that had elapsed.
He said the search would continue as long as it did not rain.
Video from cameras connected to the country’s emergency service network showed people fleeing their homes with help from neighbors. It also showed people transporting appliances and other belongings in vehicles.
Survivors, many housed in temporary shelters, cried over their misfortune.
Among them was the Zuña family, who were staying at the Iglesia Matriz de Alausí, where rooms for catechism or parish meetings were adapted with bunk beds days ago after authorities declared an emergency in the area due to the risk of landslides.
Sonia Guadalupe Zuña said her mother was reluctant to leave what they had built over the years.
“We went to the shelter, but my mother didn’t want to,” Zuña said. “Later, my daughter went to convince her. When they walked along the rails, everything collapsed. They arrived covered in dirt and crying.”
Save for the clothes they had on, Zuña’s family lost everything.
“I don’t know where, but we’re all leaving,” she said crying. “My parents taught us that by working hard, you get material things, but being together is priceless.”
___
Associated Press writers Gonzalo Solano in Quito and Regina Garcia Cano in Caracas, Venezuela, contributed to this report. | 2023-03-29T04:42:04+00:00 | cenlanow.com | https://www.cenlanow.com/international/ap-international/at-least-16-killed-dozens-missing-in-ecuador-landslide/ |
Bola Ahmed Tinubu has been declared as the winner of Nigeria's presidential elections, beating out two other prominent candidates. It comes three days after criticism by observers for widespread logistical failings, violence that suppressed the vote and cries from opposition parties of a sham.
For Tinubu, his victory is the culmination of a deeply held ambition.
Over decades, the former two-term governor of Lagos has evolved into a divisive yet towering figure in Nigerian politics. The wealthy, so-called political godfather is a power broker who helped outgoing president Muhammadu Buhari win the presidency in 2015.
Tinubu's campaign slogan was "emi lo kan" in his native Yoruba — "It's my turn." And now it is.
He won just over 36% of the vote in one of the most tightly contested polls since the end of military rule. He lost in his home state but won by a clear margin in the rest of the country defeating 76-year-old Atiku Abubakar, a six-time presidential contestant, and 61-year-old Peter Obi, a third-party candidate who galvanized huge support from voters disaffected with the traditional political class.
The president-elect saw success in Lagos — and criticism over his continued influence
Tinubu is at once one of the most well-known politicians in the country and also an enigma, dogged by questions about the source of his wealth, his age and his health.
A former accountant and senator, he's credited by supporters for attracting major investment and turning Lagos into one of the biggest economies in Africa when he was governor of the state from 1999 to 2007.
Since he left office, subsequent governors have relied on his blessing and committed to following his blueprint.
But to his detractors, he is blamed for Lagos' many challenges: decrepit infrastructure, a lack of affordable housing and inequality. He has long claimed to have made millions while working as an accountant at Deloitte, but the firm says he was never employed.
He has often been accused of maintaining control of the state's finances which he helped to build. He has also fought corruption charges and been accused of involvement in drug-related crimes. In 1992, the U.S. government accused him in a lawsuit of laundering proceeds from heroin trafficking, and he eventually reached a settlement, forfeiting $460,000. He denies any wrongdoing.
The election indicates changes for Nigerian politics
Before the vote, several opinion polls predicted Obi would win the election. He ultimately came third but despite defeat, Obi's 25% share of the vote is the highest third party percentage tally in Nigerian history. Key wins in states like Lagos have made Nigeria's political map appear less set in stone, and more vulnerable to political mobilization of the kind that Obi has inspired, particularly among the young and middle class.
The opposition had called for the elections to be canceled and for a rerun of the vote, and there will likely be legal challenges.
But now Tinubu has been declared the next president of Nigeria, he faces the tall task of addressing major economic and security crises.
The last eight years have seen two recessions, high youth unemployment, inflation and a collapse in the value of the naira. Kidnaps for ransom attacks have spread, and armed groups are active across the country's north, central and southeast.
The inauguration is scheduled to be held in May.
Copyright 2023 NPR. To see more, visit https://www.npr.org. | 2023-03-02T02:49:35+00:00 | kanw.com | https://www.kanw.com/npr-news/npr-news/2023-02-28/nigeria-africas-most-populous-nation-elects-bola-tinubu-as-the-new-president |
The Biden administration announced more than $80 million in funding Thursday in a push to produce more solar panels in the U.S., make solar energy available to more people, and pursue superior alternatives to the ubiquitous sparkly panels made with silicon.
The Department of Energy announced the investments in the morning and Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm plans to visit a community solar site in Washington in the afternoon. Community solar refers to a variety of arrangements where renters and people who don’t control their rooftops can still get their electricity from solar power. Two weeks ago, Vice President Kamala Harris announced what the administration said was the largest community solar effort ever in the United States.
Now it is set to spend $52 million on 19 solar projects across a dozen states, including $10 million from the infrastructure law, as well as $30 million on technologies that will help integrate solar electricity into the grid.
The DOE also selected 25 teams to participate in a $10 million competition designed to fast-track the efforts of solar developers working on community solar projects.
The Inflation Reduction Act already offers incentives to build large solar generation projects, such as renewable energy tax credits. But Ali Zaidi, White House national climate advisor, said the new money focuses on meeting the nation’s climate goals in a way that benefits more communities.
“It’s lifting up our workers and our communities. And that’s, I think, what really excites us about this work,” Zaidi said. “It’s a chance not just to tackle the climate crisis, but to bring economic opportunity to every zip code of America.”
The investments will help people save on their electricity bills and make the electricity grid more reliable, secure, and resilient in the face of a changing climate, said Becca Jones-Albertus, director of the energy department’s Solar Energy Technologies Office.
Jones-Albertus said she’s particularly excited about the support for community solar projects, since half of Americans don’t live in a situation where they can buy their own solar and put in on the roof.
Michael Jung, executive director of the ICF Climate Center agreed. “Community solar can help address equity concerns, as most current rooftop solar panels benefit owners of single-family homes,” he said.
In typical community solar projects, households can invest in or subscribe to part of a larger solar array offsite. “What we’re doing here is trying to unlock the community solar market,” Jones-Albertus said.
The U.S. has 5.3 gigawatts of installed community solar capacity currently, according to the latest estimates. The goal is that by 2025, five million households will have access to it — about three times as many as today — saving $1 billion on their electricity bills, according to Jones-Albertus.
The new funding also highlights investment in a next generation of solar technologies, intended to wring more electricity out of the same amount of solar panels. Currently only about 20% of the sun’s energy is converted to electricity in crystalline silicon solar cells, which is what most solar panels are made of. There has long been hope for higher efficiency, and today’s announcement puts some money towards developing two alternatives: perovskite and cadmium telluride (CdTe) solar cells. Zaidi said this will allow the U.S. to be “the innovation engine that tackles the climate crisis.”
Joshua Rhodes, a scientist at the University of Texas at Austin said the investment in perovskites is good news. They can be produced more cheaply than silicon and are far more tolerant of defects, he said. They can also be built into textured and curved surfaces, which opens up more applications for their use than traditional rigid panels. Most silicon is produced in China and Russia, Rhodes pointed out.
Cadmium telluride solar can be made quickly and at a low cost, but further research is needed to improve how efficient the material is at converting sunlight to electrons.
Cadmium is also toxic and people shouldn’t be exposed to it. Jones-Albertus said that in cadmium telluride solar technology, the compound is stable and encapsulated in glass and additional protective layers.
The new funds will also help recycle solar panels and reuse rare earth elements and materials. “One of the most important ways we can make sure CdTe remains in a safe compound form is ensuring that all solar panels made in the U.S. can be reused or recycled at the end of their life cycle,” Jones-Albertus explained.
Recycling solar panels also reduces the waste from solar and can provide materials for new panels. Eight of the projects in Thursday’s announcement focus on improving solar panel recycling, for a total of about $10 million.
Clean energy is a fit for every state in the country, the administration said. One solar project in Shungnak, Alaska was able to eliminate the need to keep making electricity by burning diesel fuel, a method sometimes used in remote communities that is not healthy for people and contributes to climate change.
“Alaska is not a place that folks often think of when they think about solar, but this energy can be an economic and affordable resource in all parts of the country,” said Jones-Albertus.
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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. | 2023-04-20T15:38:37+00:00 | ksn.com | https://www.ksn.com/news/business/ap-business/us-invests-in-alternative-solar-tech-more-solar-for-renters/ |
HONG KONG (AP) — Rabbits scamper around a play area in a climate-controlled building in suburban Hong Kong, some climbing a castle made of wood while others explore a cotton tunnel.
In one of the world’s most densely populated cities, where most apartments range from small to miniscule, rabbits are popular pets.
And when their owners are away, there are rabbit lovers ready to look after their lonely pets at Bunny Style, a luxury rabbit resort.
That’s especially evident this month, as the lifting of COVID-19 restrictions in Hong Kong is spurring a surge in travel for the Lunar New Year to welcome the Year of the Rabbit.
Donna Li, the owner of Bunny Style, said she’s fully booked for the holiday and keeps her charges happy with regular exercise, parties, spa treatments and lots of carrots.
“We aim to provide a secure environment,” Li said.
Li, who has two pet rabbits of her own, set up Bunny Style in June, starting with just a playroom offering space to hop and relief from Hong Kong’s hot, humid weather.
“To begin with, my idea was mainly about setting up a safe indoor play space with a suitable temperature for rabbits,” Li said.
As the government began lifting COVID-19 restrictions in September, Li sensed a need and swiftly set up boarding facilities. They were full over Christmas and Li has already begun taking bookings for Easter.
With 15 rabbits, Li and her staff will be busy over the holiday, the most important in the Chinese calendar. Apart from feeding — some owners order special vegetable cakes in advance — there are hair-brushing, nail trimming and exercising to be managed.
“I think rabbits understand what people say. They can sense whether we are being nice to them and look after them well,” Li said. “And so when I look after them, I talk to them a lot, telling them how beautiful and cute they are.”
A livestream and video clips are also provided, “so we knew that our rabbit was out actively hopping and enjoying itself,” said Rainbow Li, who found Bunny Style on the internet and boarded her rabbit while she and her partner traveled over Christmas.
Bunny Style charges about $15 per night, including half an hour of supervised play time. Beauty treatments and special menu items are extra.
The animals’ popularity in Hong Kong has inevitably led to some owners finding they’ve bit off more than they can chew. For that, there are shelters such as Tolobunny, set up in 2015 and dedicated to finding new homes for abandoned rabbits, often at public adoption events.
Spokesperson Bridget Ng is already anticipating a surge of calls to the shelter’s 24-hour rescue hotline in the months after the new year. Already, its volunteers are temporarily housing 42 rabbits given up by their owners.
“Our observation is that throughout the year, especially at festive holidays like Valentine’s Day, Easter or Christmas, there are more people who want to keep rabbits, but after a few months, there will be more abandoned rabbits,” Ng said.
Homeless dogs and cats still get more care, but “I hope there will be more attention and resources for all kinds of abandoned animals,” founder Winky Cheng said. | 2023-01-20T18:42:16+00:00 | siouxlandproud.com | https://www.siouxlandproud.com/ap-strange-news/ap-hong-kong-pet-rabbits-enjoy-bunny-resort-while-owners-away/ |
PRINCETON, N.J. (AP) — PRINCETON, N.J. (AP) — CytoSorbents Corp. (CTSO) on Tuesday reported a loss of $7.3 million in its first quarter.
On a per-share basis, the Princeton, New Jersey-based company said it had a loss of 17 cents.
The results did not meet Wall Street expectations. The average estimate of three analysts surveyed by Zacks Investment Research was for a loss of 13 cents per share.
The blood purification therapy company posted revenue of $9.4 million in the period, which beat Street forecasts. Three analysts surveyed by Zacks expected $8.7 million.
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This story was generated by Automated Insights (http://automatedinsights.com/ap) using data from Zacks Investment Research. Access a Zacks stock report on CTSO at https://www.zacks.com/ap/CTSO | 2023-05-02T21:27:19+00:00 | lmtonline.com | https://www.lmtonline.com/business/article/cytosorbents-q1-earnings-snapshot-18074316.php |
WIMBLEDON, England — LOOKAHEAD TO THURSDAY
THURSDAY’S FORECAST
Cloudy. High of 68 degrees Fahrenheit (20 degrees Celsius).
WEDNESDAY’S KEY RESULTS
Women’s First Round: No. 6 Karolina Pliskova beat Tereza Martincova 7-6 (1), 7-5; No. 8 Jessica Pegula beat Donna Vekic 6-3, 7-6 (2); Greet Minnen beat No. 9 Garbine Muguruza 6-4, 6-0.
Women’s Second Round: Jule Niemeier beat No. 2 Anett Kontaveit 6-4, 6-0; No. 3 Ons Jabeur beat Katarzyna Kawa 6-4, 6-0; No. 5 Maria Sakkari beat Viktoriya Tomova 6-4, 6-3; Caroline Garcia beat No. 10 Emma Raducanu 6-3, 6-3; No. 12 Jelena Ostapenko beat Yanina Wickmaye 6-2, 6-2; No. 15 Angelique Kerber beat Magda Linette 6-3, 6-3.
Men’s Second Round: No. 1 Novak Djokovic beat Thanasi Kokkinakis 6-1, 6-4, 6-2; Ugo Humbert beat No. 3 Casper Ruud 3-6, 6-2, 7-5, 6-4; No. 5 Carlos Alcaraz beat Tallon Griekspoor 6-4, 7-6 (0), 6-3; No. 9 Cameron Norrie beat Jaume Munar 6-4, 3-6, 5-7, 6-0, 6-2; No. 10 Jannik Sinner beat Mikael Ymer 6-4, 6-3, 5-7, 6-2; Tim van Rijthoven beat No. 15 Reilly Opelka 6-4, 6-7 (8), 7-6 (7), 7-6 (4); No. 20 John Isner beat Andy Murray 6-4, 7-6 (4), 6-7 (3), 6-4; No. 23 Frances Tiafoe beat Maximilian Marterer 6-2, 6-2, 7-6 (3); No. 30 Tommy Paul beat Adrian Mannarino 6-2, 6-4, 6-1.
STAT OF THE DAY
0 — The number of times two-time Wimbledon champion Andy Murray had lost before the third round at the All England Club in 13 previous appearances.
QUOTE OF THE DAY
“It breaks my heart to see what’s happening to him. I can only imagine how hard it is for his family members.” — Djokovic speaking about former coach Boris Becker, who was sentenced to 2 1/2 years in prison in Britain for illicitly transferring large amounts of money and hiding assets after he was declared bankrupt.
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More AP Wimbledon coverage: https://apnews.com/hub/wimbledon and https://apnews.com/hub/tennis and https://twitter.com/AP_Sports | 2022-06-29T21:58:38+00:00 | washingtonpost.com | https://www.washingtonpost.com/sports/tennis/wimbledon-lookahead-nadal-gauff-swiatek-play-on-day-4/2022/06/29/781cafba-f7ed-11ec-81db-ac07a394a86b_story.html |
E_Ward (3). LOB_Los Angeles 5, Cleveland 7. 2B_Stassi (11), Hedges (4), Rosario 2 (24). HR_Duffy (1), Trout (35).
Detmers pitched to 2 batters in the 6th, Loup pitched to 3 batters in the 7th.
HBP_Detmers (Gonzalez).
Umpires_Home, Ron Kulpa; First, John Tumpane; Second, Carlos Torres; Third, Clint Vondrak.
T_3:08. A_12,461 (34,788). | 2022-09-13T03:12:46+00:00 | seattlepi.com | https://www.seattlepi.com/sports/article/Cleveland-5-L-A-Angels-4-17437216.php |
Startup has Automated More than a Half Million Resale Product Listings Across a Broad Network of eCommerce Marketplaces Using Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning
PHOENIX, June 7, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Hammoq Inc., the company powering reCommerce sellers with artificial intelligence (AI) to run their business on autopilot, today announced that it has secured $24 million in equity plus debt financing. This latest financing round was led by Sierra Ventures, with participation from the company's pre-seed lead investor Origin Ventures and brings its total financing to date to $27 million.
A glut of online retail returns and a flourishing market for sustainable fashion upcycling and vintage items has created an exploding reCommerce industry. With this financing round, Hammoq will accelerate development of its AI and machine learning platform to automate marketplace listings and open up channels for reseller financing as well as product sourcing.
"The reCommerce market is exploding, with the fashion resale market alone expected to reach $26 billion in 2022," said Sid Lunawat, CEO and Co-Founder of Hammoq. "There are an abundance of resale marketplaces supporting this economy. Yet, the largest gap is in the labor required to identify product value and push it to the marketplaces. With rising labor costs, the need for automation in the reCommerce industry continues to grow. Using AI and machine learning, Hammoq has put a major dent in this labor gap, empowering its customers to automate the identification and listing process. Our latest funding will accelerate tech development while supporting our sales and marketing strategies to capitalize on this rising opportunity."
Goodwill of the San Francisco Bay and Hammoq share a deep commitment to sustainability. Hammoq's AI technology is helping Goodwill to process more material donations, more quickly to help divert more items from landfill. Donated items are given a second life in Goodwill thrift stores.
Another customer of Hammoq is reseller Flip the World. "Before we brought Hammoq on to handle our listings, I would average around 40-50 listings a week. Listing across platforms is time consuming work and after a full day of sourcing, cleaning, prepping and photographing I found that I was falling asleep in bed trying to get my listings up," said Chris Hatfield, Owner, Flip the World. "Now with Hammoq, we've more than doubled our weekly listings and have gone from a 500-item store to over 2,000 in less than two months. It's been a game changer for our business. Now we can focus on the most important part of reselling, sourcing the items, rather than the listing."
Hammoq was co-founded by reCommerce industry veterans Sid Lunawat and Ty Blunt, sustainability advocates who believe the 80 billion resalable items dropped in landfills every year have a viable purpose for prolonged use. After successful stints running a reseller business, Lunawat and Blunt understood that identifying and easily listing products for resale was an acute pain point. To solve this challenge, they developed the Hammoq software platform using AI and machine learning to enable listing at scale. Starting with a simple photo, the platform uses product data to automatically enable listings across dozens of resale marketplaces. Hammoq has listed over 600,000 products for sale and ensures 100% compliance with data listing requirements prior to pushing to the marketplaces.
"Hammoq is uniquely serving the exploding reCommerce industry by applying technology to solve sellers' largest challenge: intelligent, real-time listings," said Vignesh Ravikumar, Partner, Sierra Ventures. "Their solution and business model are well aligned with our mission to invest early in emerging technology companies that are moving the needle in key market areas. Their SaaS reCommerce solution is delivering precisely what the rapidly transforming market needs as consumers actively seek ways to buy used products that support sustainability and reuse."
About Hammoq
Hammoq, the company that is reimagining reCommerce, digitizes resale goods and automates online listings so customers can list and sell more. Established in 2021 and based in Phoenix, Hammoq has supported the identification and listing automation process for more than 600,000 items. For resellers, liquidators, thrift and retail organizations, Hammoq enables the resale of returns, lost SKUs, overstocks and other pre-loved goods. Built by resellers for resellers Hammoq's SaaS platform drives customers' ability to scale reCommerce, while significantly reducing the time and labor needed to get merchandise online. For more information, visit: www.hammoq.com.
About Sierra Ventures
Sierra Ventures is a Silicon Valley-based early-stage venture firm investing globally with a focus on Core Enterprise and Next-Gen Technologies. With four decades of experience and over $2 billion of assets under management, Sierra has created a vast network of successful entrepreneurs, Global 1000 CXOs, operational executives, and deep domain experts, providing a platform for entrepreneurs around the world. Learn more at sierraventures.com.
Press Contacts:
Erin Jones
Avista PR for Hammoq
704.664.2170
ejones@avistapr.com
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SOURCE Hammoq | 2022-06-07T14:01:23+00:00 | kalb.com | https://www.kalb.com/prnewswire/2022/06/07/hammoq-closes-24-million-round-tackles-exploding-retail-returns-used-goods-market-with-ai-platform/ |
NEW YORK (AP) — Jacob deGrom struck out 12 and carried a perfect game into the sixth inning of his second start all season, pitching the New York Mets past the Atlanta Braves 5-2 on Sunday for their 12th victory in 14 games.
Pete Alonso drove in two runs and the first-place Mets finished with 19 strikeouts — including three straight from closer Edwin Díaz to end a combined two-hitter. They took four of five from Atlanta in their NL East showdown, extending their division lead to 6 1/2 games over the defending World Series champions.
“It was kind of emotional walking out there. I haven’t taken this mound in over a year,” deGrom said. “I had to take a second and kind of get myself together.”
Pitching at home for the first time in 13 months, a dominant deGrom (1-0) retired his first 17 batters — 12 on strikeouts — before walking No. 9 hitter Ehire Adrianza with two outs in the sixth. That ended the longest perfect-game bid of deGrom’s career.
Dansby Swanson followed with a two-run homer on the 76th and final pitch from deGrom, making it 5-2.
“He was really good,” Braves manager Brian Snitker said. “I’m like, good God, there’s nothing wrong with him.”
The two-time Cy Young Award winner missed the final three months last season with right forearm tightness and a sprained elbow, then was shut down late in spring training because of a stress reaction in his right scapula. He finally returned Tuesday at Washington, throwing five innings of one-run ball in a rare Mets loss lately.
“It’s a really cool thing that we have going,” deGrom said. “The goal is to keep it going.”
New York fans had to wait a little longer than they planned to see deGrom go to work as the start of the game was delayed 20 minutes by rain. Once play began, however, deGrom didn’t disappoint the Citi Field crowd of 37,717.
A standing ovation greeted the 34-year-old ace before he stepped onto the mound and his first pitch was a 99 mph fastball that Swanson lofted into right field for an out. The right-hander then struck out Matt Olson on four pitches, each of which was 100 mph or faster.
“That was fun,” Mets manager Buck Showalter said. “(DeGrom) was at the top of his game.”
Making his 200th major league start, deGrom finished with the most strikeouts by a Mets pitcher this season. With shadows creeping over the infield during a late-afternoon start, the Braves swung and missed at each of his first 18 sliders.
After getting swept in Saturday’s split doubleheader, Atlanta has lost three straight for the first time all year. The previous team to go that long into a season without a three-game skid was the 2001 Seattle Mariners, who set the major league mark by not losing three in a row until a four-game slide from games Nos. 147-150, according to the Elias Sports Bureau.
While deGrom was silencing the Atlanta bats, the Mets scored four times against rookie Spencer Strider (6-4) in the third.
Brandon Nimmo led off with an infield single and moved to third on Francisco Lindor’s single to center. Alonso delivered a two-run double off the third-base bag. Daniel Vogelbach walked and both burly sluggers chugged home on Mark Canha’s double to left-center.
“It’s easy to have fun when we’re playing because it’s an incredible environment,” Alonso said.
Strider needed 79 pitches to complete 2 2/3 innings in the shortest start of his career.
“A lot of weird hits,” Strider said. “They seem to be having a lot of luck right now offensively. That’s great. It’s August. (We’ll) see what things are like in October.”
New York added another run in the fifth when Jeff McNeil scampered home on a wild pitch.
Joely Rodríguez struck out a career-high four over a season-high 2 1/3 innings in relief of deGrom. Díaz fanned all three batters in the ninth for his 26th save, finishing the two-hitter.
For the second straight game, Mets fans taunted the Braves in the ninth inning by performing the tomahawk chop.
RECORD BOOK
New York matched a franchise mark for strikeouts in a nine-inning game. David Cone (1991) and Hall of Famer Tom Seaver (1970) each fanned 19 in a complete game for the Mets. … With his 1,523 career strikeouts, deGrom passed Yu Darvish (1,517) for the most by a major league pitcher through his first 200 games.
TRAINER’S ROOM
Braves: OF Ronald Acuña Jr. was a late scratch from the lineup with lower-body soreness. He flied out as a pinch-hitter in the seventh and remained in the game for the final two innings. … C Travis d’Arnaud (right lower leg) was in a walking boot after Alonso slid into him hard on a play at the plate. X-rays were negative and d’Arnaud is expected to return to the lineup later this week.
Mets: LHP Joey Lucchesi (Tommy John surgery) continues to progress. While there is still no timetable for his return, manager Buck Showalter indicated Lucchesi could be a bullpen option upon his return.
UP NEXT
Braves: After an off day, RHP Charlie Morton (5-5, 4.09 ERA) takes the mound Tuesday as Atlanta opens a two-game series in Boston. He’ll be opposed by LHP Rich Hill (4-5, 4.52).
Mets: RHP Chris Bassitt (8-7, 3.61 ERA) starts at home Monday night when New York begins a three-game series against Cincinnati. RHP Justin Dunn makes his season debut for the Reds after being sidelined since June 2021 with a shoulder injury. Dunn grew up on Long Island not far from Citi Field and was a first-round draft pick by the Mets out of Boston College.
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More AP MLB: https://apnews.com/hub/MLB and https://twitter.com/AP_Sports | 2022-08-08T06:49:11+00:00 | valleycentral.com | https://www.valleycentral.com/sports/dominant-degrom-pitches-surging-mets-to-5-2-win-over-braves/ |
NEW YORK (AP) — Love her or loathe her, Barbie has been transformed again, this time into a version for children as young as 3.
Gone is the contentious hourglass figure for My First Barbie, which launched Thursday ahead of July’s live-action film about the icon starring Margot Robbie and Ryan Gosling.
The slightly softer-bodied Barbie follows on the high heels of tall, petite and curvy iterations that were released five years ago in a massive makeover.
My First Barbie is 13.5 inches tall, 2 inches taller than traditional Babs, with a larger waist that de-emphasizes the bust line (it remains in place, however), and flesh-tone modesty undergarments permanently attached.
Her fashion is more kid-like, with playful heart, star and flower designs on jammies and flouncy preschool-friendly dresses and swim gear. Her accessories are larger for littler hands, and her hair is extra long for easier brushing.
My First Barbie’s limbs are moveable, like some past versions of the doll, and her facial features remain recognizable. A huge milestone: Her fingers and thumbs are connected, eliminating a frequent complaint that Barbie’s hands get caught in her clothes when children try to put them on.
Lisa McKnight, a Mattel executive vice president and global head of Barbie and dolls, told The Associated Press the company created the new version in response to feedback from parents.
“We talk to parents and kids almost 365 days a year,” she said. “We started hearing a theme around younger kids wanting to play with Barbie. Parents were concerned that their children at the preschool age didn’t have the fine motor skills to have a positive play experience with our traditional fashion doll.”
The first rollout of the new doll includes four diverse skin tones and hair textures.
Critics of 63-year-old Barbie, intended to symbolize a girl in her late teens, have long cited her dimensions as promoting unattainable, sexualized body standards for girls. My First Barbie, at a price point of $19.99, goes a long way in eliminating that issue.
McKnight wouldn’t directly address the criticism or whether My First Barbie has a place in turning around that negative view.
Research is mixed on whether Barbie’s bad rap on body issues and her adult-leaning fashion sense have any impact on children, said Jody LeVos, once a leader of Mattel’s child development and learning team and now chief learning officer for Begin, a company that creates learning apps and other educational fare for kids.
Among parents, she said, “there’s a big nostalgia factor” when it comes to Barbie.
“I don’t think there’s one specific doll that’s most appropriate. I think doll play allows children to really practice storytelling skills, perspective taking and social interactions,” LeVos said.
The Barbie line’s overall sales have soared in recent years after a period of decline in 2013.
Joaniko Kohchi, director for Adelphi University’s Institute for Parenting, questioned Mattel’s motives.
“If we’re going to think about Mattel guiding our choices then we have already kind of limited them,” she said.
McKnight made it clear that My First Barbie will not be a separate, parallel Barbie universe. She said new content featuring the doll will hit Barbie’s YouTube channel later this month, with an animated special about the planning of a surprise party.
Andrea Werner, a pediatric occupational therapist in West Hartford, Connecticut, and mother of a preschooler and an infant, supports doll play as developmentally valuable.
“There are plenty of dolls on the market,” she said. “Companies will always be trying to sell consumers the next best thing.”
Kohchi isn’t entirely sold on My First Barbie as appropriate.
“We know that if you’re going to hand a child an image and say, this is beauty or this is wonderful or look how pretty that is, it should resemble the child a little bit more closely,” she said. “It’s certainly still a little older than a preschooler.”
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Follow Leanne Italie on Twitter at http://twitter.com/litalie
—-
For more AP Lifestyles stories, go to https://apnews.com/hub/lifestyle. | 2023-01-13T01:12:47+00:00 | wjhl.com | https://www.wjhl.com/business/ap-business/ap-new-taller-barbie-doll-is-aimed-at-kids-as-young-as-3/ |
HUBLOT, THE FIRST NAME IN PRECISION FOOTBALL TIMEKEEPING, RETURNS AS THE FLAGSHIP TOURNAMENT'S OFFICIAL TIMEKEEPER FOR THE THIRD TIME
NYON, Switzerland, July 20, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- The FIFA Women's World Cup 2023™ is almost here! Hublot will be there as Official Timekeeper, keeping time at every one of the tournament's 64 fixtures, from the first group stage game at Eden Park in Auckland between New Zealand and Norway on 20 July, to the final in Sydney on 20 August. Every match will run to Hublot time, captured by the iconic Big Bang-shaped fourth official boards, LED boards, and the Hublot Big Bang e Gen 3, the watchmaker's luxury smartwatch devoted to the world's greatest game, on the wrists of all of the competition's Official Referees. Hublot loves football!
The women's game is going from strength to strength and Hublot – always first, different, unique – is proud to be supporting its development and taking its story of dedication, excellence and fair play to the world, inspiring a new generation of fans and players. This will be the third time the Swiss fine watchmaker has timed the FIFA Women's World Cup™, having served as Official Timekeeper at the 2015 and 2019 tournaments in Canada and France respectively. Since then, Hublot has deepened its commitment to growing the women's game by serving as Official Timekeeper to the UEFA European Women's Championship™ and UEFA Women's Champions League™.
At this year's tournament, there will be 107 match officials (33 referees, 55 assistant referees and 19 video match officials), 94 of whom are women. Each of them will be equipped with Hublot's Big Bang e, a high-powered luxury smartwatch that fuses the brand's flagship Big Bang watch design with cutting-edge materials and the latest connected technology. The edition designed exclusively for officials features a number of special functions created to help them during the course of a game, such as monitoring yellow cards and added time at the end of the game. What's more, the FIFA Women's World Cup 2023™ app will be available for download to all owners of the Big Bang e Gen 3 through the Google Play store, bringing all the action of the game to the wrist. The fan edition keeps track of every match with score updates delivered straight to the wrist in real time.
A number of Hublot Friends of the Brand will be taking part in the tournament, including Norway's Ada Hegerberg, the first winner of the women's Ballon d'Or in 2018; Spain's double Ballon d'Or winner Alexia Putellas; and Alex Morgan, who will take to the field in Australia and New Zealand as a member of the USA team, winners of the previous two editions of the FIFA Women's World Cup™.
One of the officials wearing the Hublot Big Bang e connected watch will be French referee and Hublot Friend of the Brand Stéphanie Frappart, who has set numerous firsts during her illustrious career. Last year, she became the first woman to referee a men's World Cup match at the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022™.
Beyond this summer's tournament, Hublot is now recognised as the first name in elite football timekeeping. The Swiss fine watchmaker first entered the sport in 2006 as sponsor to the Swiss national team and has been growing its involvement in it ever since. Today, Hublot is the official timekeeper of FIFA and UEFA's flagship men's events, too, including the FIFA World Cup™ and the UEFA European Championship™. Hublot also times the men's UEFA Champions League™ and the English Premier League™, the most followed football league in the world.
Many of the world's most celebrated footballers and football personalities are Hublot ambassadors, including the great, late Pelé, Kylian Mbappé and Jose Mourinho.
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SOURCE Hublot SA | 2023-07-20T08:50:04+00:00 | kxii.com | https://www.kxii.com/prnewswire/2023/07/20/hublot-counts-down-days-until-fifa-womens-world-cup-2023/ |
RIFA works to fill the buses and fill students’ bellies
JACKSON, Tenn. –Regional Interfaith Association, RIFA, held their annual Pack the Bus fundraiser for their Snack Backpack program.
“We do this once a year, we have buses parked at Walmart north, Walmart south, Kroger Lynnwood, Kroger University and Kroger Stonebrook. We will be here until 3:30 this afternoon and the goal is to fill all of the buses up with the Snack Backpack food items,” said Lisa Tillman, Executive Director, RIFA.
You could donate, crackers, pastries, soup and other items for the backpacks. Once everything is collected it’s packed into a backpack and given to youth around the city.
“We’ve got volunteers that come in and assemble about 1,200 Snack Backpacks every week and then and those Snack Backpacks are distributed to the different elementary schools around town, and then kids take home with them on Fridays to help them bridge that gap on Saturday and Sunday,” Tillman said.
It’s RIFA’s mission to serve the community and those in need, with the rise of food costs, this years event is crucial.
“Just puts more of a burden on families that are trying to pay their rent and keep their utilities on and buy groceries. Food costs has gone up for them, its gone up for us and so that’s why it’s important to come out and support RIFA, to pack the bus,” Tillman said.
Each year different locations compete to see who has the most donations, every year RIFA tries to beat their goal from the previous year, and at the end of the day the organization will weigh and count everything they’ve received.
“The more food that we can collect today, obviously, the more Snack Backpacks that we can assemble and the more kids that we can feed,” Tillman said.
To volunteer with RIFA, you can visit their website to see what volunteer area fits you best.
The next event for RIFA will be in September, with their largest fundraiser, Canstruction.
For more local news, click here. | 2022-08-21T00:44:20+00:00 | wbbjtv.com | https://www.wbbjtv.com/2022/08/20/rifa-works-to-fill-the-buses-and-fill-students-bellies/ |
FARNBOROUGH, England, July 18, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Aequs Pvt. Ltd., a leading aerospace components maker, and Hindalco Industries Ltd., one of the leading integrated aluminium products companies globally, have sealed a strategic alliance for long-term collaboration and joint business development in the commercial aerospace sector.
The partnership leverages the capabilities, market presence, and industry knowledge of the respective parties for the development, manufacture and qualification of extrusions required for commercial aerospace OEMs and other Aequs customers.
"This strategic alliance marks a breakthrough for the Indian aerospace sector by further integrating the entire value chain to deliver 100% in-country value add. It creates strategic value for our customers by enhancing manufacturing sustainability and reliability in the country," said Aravind Melligeri, Chairman & CEO, Aequs.
With the introduction of aluminium extrusions to its portfolio in partnership with Hindalco, Aequs strengthens the one-stop solution strategy with a fully localized aerospace supply chain that is sustainable and ecofriendly.
Aequs operates the largest aero machining facility in India with over 1 million machining hours delivered per year from the Belagavi Aerospace Cluster. The campus also houses co-located capabilities for end-to-end manufacturing from forgings to surface treatment and complex aerostructure assemblies.
Hindalco is a leading player in the extrusions industry in India with presence across the aluminium value chain – from bauxite mining to extrusions. It operates three extrusion plants in the country at Renukoot, Alupuram and Kuppam; and specializes in a wide range of alloys, including hard alloys and special alloys for the aerospace sectors. All plants have well-established manufacturing processes for die development and QA systems honed over a period of five decades. New application developments at Hindalco are supported by Hindalco Innovation Centre & Aditya Birla Science and Technology Centre, Mumbai.
About Aequs
Aequs is a diversified contract manufacturing company providing vertically integrated product solutions across the Aerospace, Toys and Consumer Durable Goods industries. By leveraging its manufacturing ecosystems, Aequs reliably delivers supply chain efficiencies to its global customer base. Aequs currently operates manufacturing facilities across India, France, and the United States.
About Hindalco Industries Limited
Hindalco Industries Limited is the metals flagship company of the Aditya Birla Group. A $26 billion metals powerhouse, Hindalco is the world's largest aluminum rolling and recycling company, and a major player in copper. It is also one of Asia's largest producers of primary aluminum. Guided by its purpose of building a greener, stronger, smarter world, Hindalco provides innovative solutions for a sustainable planet. Its wholly owned subsidiary Novelis Inc. is the world's largest aluminium rolling and recycling company. Novelis is also a leading supplier of Aerospace plates and sheets with manufacturing presence in Germany and China. Hindalco's global footprint spans 50 manufacturing units across 10 countries.
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SOURCE Aequs Pvt. Ltd | 2022-07-18T12:31:28+00:00 | wafb.com | https://www.wafb.com/prnewswire/2022/07/18/aequs-amp-hindalco-enter-strategic-alliance-commercial-aerospace-sector/ |
NEW YORK, Sept. 7, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- OUTFRONT Media Inc. (NYSE: OUT) announced today that Jeremy Male, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, is scheduled to present at the Goldman Sachs Communacopia + Technology Conference on Wednesday, September 14, 2022 at 1:45 p.m. Eastern Time. A live and replay audio webcast will be available on the investor relations section of the Company's website at www.OUTFRONTmedia.com.
About OUTFRONT Media Inc.
OUTFRONT leverages the power of technology, location, and creativity to connect brands with consumers outside of their homes through one of the largest and most diverse sets of billboard, transit, and mobile assets in North America. Through its technology platform, OUTFRONT will fundamentally change the ways advertisers engage audiences on-the-go.
Contacts:
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SOURCE OUTFRONT Media Inc. | 2022-09-07T19:28:32+00:00 | kswo.com | https://www.kswo.com/prnewswire/2022/09/07/outfront-media-chief-executive-officer-jeremy-male-participate-goldman-sachs-communacopia-technology-conference/ |
LOS ANGELES (AP) — Five Los Angeles utility workers were hospitalized following an explosion Thursday in an underground electrical vault, officials said.
The blast occurred shortly before 3 p.m. while a crew was working on a circuit inside the vault in the Universal City area, said Joe Ramallo, a spokesperson for the LA Department of Water and Power.
Three of the workers suffered smoke inhalation and two were burned, Ramallo said. All were taken to hospitals with non-life-threatening injuries, he said.
“All patients were alert, conscious, talking and were in fair condition,” the Los Angeles Fire Department said in a statement.
Crews were working to restore service to about 17 commercial customers that lost power in the area about 10 miles northwest of downtown Los Angeles.
The cause of the explosion was under investigation. | 2022-08-18T22:59:34+00:00 | lmtonline.com | https://www.lmtonline.com/news/article/5-LA-utility-workers-hurt-in-underground-vault-17383119.php |
Falcons Odds to Make Playoffs and Win Super Bowl
As of December 31 the Atlanta Falcons' odds of winning the Super Bowl, +6600, rank them 19th in the league.
Watch the Falcons this season on Fubo!
Falcons Super Bowl Odds
- Odds to Win the NFC South: +220
- Odds to Win the Super Bowl: +6600
Looking to place a futures bet on the Falcons to win the Super Bowl this season? Head to BetMGM using our link and enter the bonus code "GNPLAY" for special offers!
Atlanta Betting Insights
- Atlanta put together a 9-7-0 ATS record last year.
- Last season, seven Falcons games hit the over.
- Atlanta totaled 318.3 yards per game on offense last season (24th in ), and it ranked 27th on defense with 362.1 yards allowed per game.
- Last year the Falcons won only once away from home and had a 6-3 record at home.
- When favored, Atlanta went undefeated (4-0) a season ago, and 3-9 as the underdog.
- In the NFC South the Falcons won only two games (2-4), and in the conference overall they went 6-6.
Falcons Impact Players
- Tyler Allgeier rushed for 1,035 yards (64.7 per game) and three touchdowns in 16 games last year.
- In the passing game, Allgeier scored one touchdown, with 16 catches for 139 yards.
- Cordarrelle Patterson ran for 695 yards (53.5 per game) and eight touchdowns in 13 games.
- In nine games with the Commanders a season ago, Taylor Heinicke threw for 1,859 yards (206.6 per game), with 12 touchdowns and six interceptions, and a completion percentage of 62.2%.
- In the passing game, Drake London scored four TDs, catching 72 balls for 866 yards (50.9 per game).
- On defense last year, Richie Grant helped lead the charge with two interceptions to go with 122 tackles, 3.0 TFL, and seven passes defended in 17 games.
Bet on Falcons to win the Super Bowl and plenty more with BetMGM. Head to BetMGM using our link and enter the bonus code "GNPLAY" for special offers!
2023-24 Falcons NFL Schedule
Odds are current as of July 21 at 5:19 AM ET. Not all offers available in all states, please visit BetMGM for the latest promotions for your area. Must be 21+ to gamble, please wager responsibly. If you or someone you know has a gambling problem, contact 1-800-GAMBLER.
© 2023 Data Skrive. All rights reserved. | 2023-07-21T10:35:05+00:00 | foxcarolina.com | https://www.foxcarolina.com/sports/betting/2023/07/21/falcons-nfl-playoffs-super-bowl-odds/ |
Pentagon shoots down unknown object flying in U.S. airspace
WASHINGTON (AP) — The Pentagon shot down an unknown object flying in U.S. airspace off the coast of Alaska on Friday, White House officials said.
The object was flying at about 40,000 feet and posed a “reasonable threat” to the safety of civilian flights, said John Kirby, White House National Security Council spokesman.
Kirby said that President Joe Biden ordered the military to down the object, which he described as roughly the size of a small car. No other details about what it was were immediately provided.
The object fell into U.S. waters. The development comes after the U.S. shot down a suspected Chinese spy balloon on Saturday. Officials are still recovering debris from that object, shot down off the coast of South Carolina.
Copyright 2023 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. | 2023-02-10T20:02:14+00:00 | wlbt.com | https://www.wlbt.com/2023/02/10/white-house-pentagon-downs-object-flying-us-airspace-off-alaska-coastline/ |
LEAD PLAINTIFF DEADLINE IS OCTOBER 31, 2022
NEW YORK and SAN DIEGO, Sept. 23, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Wolf Haldenstein Adler Freeman & Herz LLP reminds investors that a federal securities class action lawsuit has been filed class action lawsuit in the United States District Court for the Southern District of California, on behalf of all persons or entities that purchased TuSimple Holdings, Inc. ("TuSimple" or the "Company") (NASDAQ: TSP) securities during the period from April 15, 2021 through August 1, 2022 inclusive (the "Class Period").
All investors who purchased the shares of TuSimple Holdings, Inc. and incurred losses are advised to contact the firm immediately at classmember@whafh.com or (800) 575-0735 or (212) 545-4774. You may obtain additional information concerning the action or join the case on our website, www.whafh.com.
If you have incurred losses in TuSimple Holdings, Inc. you may, no later than October 31, 2022, request that the Court appoint you lead plaintiff of the proposed class. Please contact Wolf Haldenstein to learn more about your rights as an investor in TuSimple Holdings, Inc.
PLEASE CLICK HERE TO JOIN THE CASE
According to the filed complaint, on April 15, 2021, TuSimple effected its Initial Public Offering ("IPO"), selling 33.8 million class A common shares at $40.00 per share, generating $1.031 billion in gross proceeds.
On August 1, 2022, the Wall Street Journal published an article titled "Self-Driving Truck Accident Draws Attention to Safety at TuSimple," which brought to light a number of previously undisclosed concerns that undermined defendants' representations and omissions concerning the Company's safety. The article referenced an April 6, 2022, accident involving a truck fitted with TuSimple's autonomous driving technology, noting that regulators disclosed the accident to the public in June after TuSimple filed a report on the incident, which "underscores concerns that the autonomous-trucking company is risking safety on public roads in a rush to deliver driverless trucks to market, according to independent analysts and more than a dozen of the company's former employees."
On this news, the Company's share fell almost 10%, to close at $8.99 per share on August 1, 2022.
Wolf Haldenstein has extensive experience in the prosecution of securities class actions and derivative litigation in state and federal trial and appellate courts across the country. The firm has attorneys in various practice areas; and offices in New York, Chicago and San Diego. The reputation and expertise of this firm in shareholder and other class litigation has been repeatedly recognized by the courts, which have appointed it to major positions in complex securities multi-district and consolidated litigation.
If you wish to discuss this action or have any questions regarding your rights and interests in this case, please immediately contact Wolf Haldenstein by telephone at (800) 575-0735 or via e-mail at classmember@whafh.com
Contact:
Wolf Haldenstein Adler Freeman & Herz LLP
Patrick Donovan, Esq.
Gregory Stone, Director of Case and Financial Analysis
Email: gstone@whafh.com, donovan@whafh.com or classmember@whafh.com
Tel: (800) 575-0735 or (212) 545-4774
This press release may be considered Attorney Advertising in some jurisdictions under the applicable law and ethical rules.
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SOURCE Wolf Haldenstein Adler Freeman & Herz LLP | 2022-09-23T21:41:33+00:00 | kcbd.com | https://www.kcbd.com/prnewswire/2022/09/23/tusimple-holdings-inc-class-action-alert-wolf-haldenstein-adler-freeman-amp-herz-llp-reminds-investors-that-securities-class-action-lawsuit-has-been-filed-united-states-district-court-southern-district-california-against-tusimple-holdings-inc/ |
Billstein, Monson & Small PLLC is pleased to announce that two of its lawyers have been recognized in the 2023 edition of The Best Lawyers in America. Attorneys recognized by Best Lawyers are divided by geographic region and practice areas.
Shane Coleman is recognized in practice areas of litigation – ERISA and intellectual property and patent, with a specific focus in the appellate practice area. Michael Monson is recognized in practice areas of commercial finance law, commercial transactions/UCC law and corporate law.
In addition, Billstein, Monson & Small PLLC has been named a Tier 1 firm in Billings for commercial finance law and received three Tier 2 rankings in commercial transactions/UCC law, corporate law, and real estate law. | 2023-03-05T14:29:10+00:00 | billingsgazette.com | https://billingsgazette.com/business/two-attorneys-with-billstein-monson-small-recognized-in-best-lawyer-directory/article_f688b5f0-b931-11ed-bdf1-9bb13628b12f.html |
TAMPA — Miami Dolphins coach Mike McDaniel is leaning toward not playing quarterback Tua Tagovailoa in Saturday’s preseason opener at the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
McDaniel appears to feel comfortable with how Tagovailoa has performed in two weeks of intrasquad training camp practices and Wednesday’s joint practice against the Buccaneers entering Thursday’s session.
“Based off of the last couple practices, I’m encouraged about the idea of not playing him, but again, that remains to be seen from what happens [Thursday], McDaniel said. “That has nothing to do with bottom-line results offensively. It’s more how prepared he is at practice. I just want to continue to build on what he’s been building on.”
McDaniel has to weigh the benefits of preseason in-game reps with the potential injury risk.
”There is value in it, but every time you don’t have a red jersey on, you have the ability to get tackled,” he said. “That’s risk. There’s a lot of risk in the game of football, but you also have to weigh that upon what’s the best thing for regular season [Week] 1. It’s a constant battle that you just have to take your time and make the best decision hoping it’s the right decision.”
McDaniel added he would be “surprised” if he went the entire exhibition season without giving Tagovailoa in-game reps but is taking it day by day.
McDaniel said he views the preseason as an extension of practice, meant to prepare the team best for the regular season.
Outside of cornerback Byron Jones, who is on the physically-unable-to-perform list, the Dolphins are mostly healthy entering Saturday.
”There’s certain players I feel pretty confident might not play, but I do not get ahead of myself,” McDaniel said. “I talked to the team this morning about it, and as far as they’re concerned, everyone is expected to be prepared to play, but there will certainly be players that don’t, which [Thursday] will have a big impact on
Buccaneers quarterback Tom Brady got a rest day from Thursday’s joint practice as the Dolphins did not face him. | 2022-08-11T14:57:35+00:00 | sun-sentinel.com | https://www.sun-sentinel.com/sports/miami-dolphins/fl-sp-dolphins-notes-thurs-20220811-gyateuxisjdurcj4okf5nxmgpy-story.html |
NAIROBI, Kenya (AP) — The heavily armed men appeared around the small farming village in Ethiopia’s Oromia region, frightening residents already on edge after recent clashes between government troops and rebels.
“The militants assured us that they will not touch us. They said they are not after us,” resident Nur Hussein Abdi told The Associated Press. “But in reality, they were surrounding our whole village for a deadly massacre. What happened the next day was a total bloodbath.”
Abdi escaped by hiding on a rooftop, a horrified witness to one of the worst mass killings in Ethiopia in recent years. Hundreds of people, mostly ethnic Amhara, were slaughtered in Tole village and the surroundings on June 18 in the latest explosion of ethnic violence in Africa’s second most populous nation.
Multiple witnesses told the AP they are still discovering bodies, with some put in mass graves containing scores of people. The Amhara Association of America said it has confirmed 503 civilians killed. Ethiopian authorities have not released figures. One witness, Mohammed Kemal, said he has witnessed 430 bodies buried, and others are still exposed and decomposing.
Kemal begged Ethiopia’s government to relocate the survivors, saying the armed men had threatened to return.
“They killed infants, children, women and the elderly,” resident Ahmed Kasim said. The Amhara Association of America said the dead include a 100-year-old and a one-month-old baby, and some people were killed in a mosque where they had tried to hide.
Residents and Oromia regional officials have blamed the Oromo Liberation Army, an armed group that Ethiopia’s government has declared a terrorist organization. An OLA spokesman denied it, alleging that federal troops and regional militia attacked the villagers for their perceived support of the OLA as they retreated from an OLA offensive.
Again, Ethiopians are left wondering why the federal government failed to protect them from the violent side of the country’s ethnic tensions — and why ethnic minorities in a federal system based on identity are left so vulnerable.
Teddy Afro, Ethiopia’s much celebrated pop star, released two songs this week highlighting the crisis that has worsened in the past four years and dedicating his songs to civilians who have lost their lives.
“It’s never an option to keep quiet when a mountain of death comes in front of me,” one of his lyrics says.
On Friday, thousands of students at Gondar University in the neighboring Amhara region protested the killings and demanded justice.
Ethiopia’s Prime Minister, Abiy Ahmed, has said security forces have launched a military operation against the OLA, but many Ethiopians appear skeptical after seeing the deadly cycle play out in the past.
The president of the Oromia region, Shimelis Abdisa, on Thursday acknowledged that it will be difficult to arrange security in every location, but said the current operation “will cripple the enemy’s ability to move from place to place.”
Ethnic Amhara are Ethiopia’s second-largest ethnic group but have found themselves under attack in some areas where they are in the minority. Several dozen were killed in attacks in the Benishangul Gumuz and Oromia regions over the past three years alone.
“Ethnic Amharas who live outside of their region do not have legal and political representation, which results in no protection,” said Muluken Tesfaw, a community activist who tracks abuses against the Amhara. “There were even speeches by Oromia region government officials that seek to reduce Amharic-speaking people.”
“An anti-Amhara narrative has been spreading for over 50 years now,” said Belete Molla, chairman of the opposition NaMA party. “The Amhara living in Oromia and Benishangul are hence being targeted.” He also accused some members of the Oromia region’s ruling party of “working for or sympathizing with the Oromo Liberation Army.”
The latest mass killings brought international alarm. The United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, Michelle Bachelet, has urged Ethiopian authorities to hold “prompt, impartial and through” investigations. The U.S. State Department called on Ethiopians to “reject violence and pursue peace.”
Ethiopia continues to struggle with ethnic tensions in several parts of the country and a deadly conflict in the northern Tigray region that has severely affected the once rapidly growing economy, but the prime minister is adamant that better days are ahead.
“There is no doubt that Ethiopia is on the path of prosperity,” he declared in a parliament address this month.
But Ethiopians who escaped the latest attack seek answers.
Nur Hussein said he and other Tole villagers had called nearby officials about the appearance of the armed men shortly before the violence exploded. “Their response was muted. They said there were no specific threats to respond to. But look at what unfolded,” he said. “God willing, we will get past this, but it is a scar that will live with us forever.” | 2022-06-25T23:35:37+00:00 | fox59.com | https://fox59.com/news/national-world/ap-international/total-bloodbath-witnesses-describe-ethiopia-ethnic-attack/ |
Supreme Court skeptical of rejecting civil rights precedent
WASHINGTON (AP) — The Supreme Court on Tuesday seemed unlikely to agree to overturn decades of precedent in a case about civil rights lawsuits, a result that would preserve the ability of individuals to use federal law to sue.
The justices had been asked to use a case about a nursing home resident who claimed a violation of his rights to more broadly limit the right to sue. The justices were told that result could leave tens of millions of people who have rights under federal programs including Medicare and Medicaid without access to the courts.
But members of both the court’s six-justice conservative majority and three-justice liberal wing seemed to have little appetite to rule broadly in the case.
Justice Sonia Sotomayor pointed out the repercussions of doing so. “Neither the federal government nor the states can possibly investigate and remedy every violation of these rights that are given to people,” she said, adding that federal law “speaks clearly” that people have a right to go to court. “Why shouldn’t we just respect our precedent?” she asked.
The court was being asked to say that when states agree to accept federal money to provide services — so-called spending clause legislation for programs like Medicare and Medicaid — they shouldn’t face lawsuits from individuals over civil rights violations unless the legislation itself gives states clear notice they’re subject to lawsuits.
But the court has previously said that a section of federal law — “Section 1983″ — applies universally to give people the right to sue government workers when they violate rights created by any federal statute.
The specific case the justices heard involves the interaction of Section 1983 and the Federal Nursing Home Reform Act, a 1987 law that outlines requirements for nursing homes that accept federal Medicare and Medicaid funds. The court is being asked to answer whether a person can use Section 1983 to go to court with claims their rights under the nursing home act are violated.
On that narrower question, it wasn’t clear the court would rule Section 1983 lawsuits are permitted. Justice Brett Kavanaugh said that the nursing home legislation “says rights over and over again” but also noted that there’s a separate administrative process set up for people to complain when their rights are violated. “What’s wrong with an administrative process ... if it’s comprehensive and works?” He asked at one point.
Biden administration lawyer Benjamin Snyder told the court that Congress did not intend to allow Section 1983 lawsuits when it enacted the nursing home legislation. Snyder said most nursing homes that participate in Medicare and Medicaid are private facilities. That means residents of those facilities can’t sue under Section 1983 but only have access to administrative remedies. He argued it wouldn’t make sense for different rules to apply to government-run facilities.
The specific case in front of the court involves Gorgi Talevski, who was a resident of Valparaiso Care and Rehabilitation, a government nursing home in Indiana. His family says the nursing home found it difficult to care for Talevski, who had dementia, and so gave him powerful drugs to restrain him, then involuntarily transferred him to another facility.
Talevski’s family sued under Section 1983, saying his rights had been violated. A trial court dismissed the case, but a federal court of appeals said it could proceed. Talevski died in 2021. A lawyer for the family, Andrew Tutt, told the court that a Section 1983 lawsuit was the family’s “last resort” and that it is a “life-saver for people who cannot actually make effective use” of administrative remedies in the law.
The case is Health and Hospital Corporation of Marion County v. Talevski, 21-806.
Copyright 2022 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. | 2022-11-08T23:09:33+00:00 | wnem.com | https://www.wnem.com/2022/11/08/supreme-court-skeptical-rejecting-civil-rights-precedent/ |
BOISE, Idaho — The new national mental health crisis and suicide lifeline, 988, launched Saturday.
Idaho lawmakers and mental health advocates celebrated the historic change in Twin Falls. Sen. Mike Crapo, R-Idaho, co-sponsored legislation in 2020 that helped create 988. He said this new number will ensure people get the help they need.
“We have emergencies in this country in regard to mental health,” Crapo said. “This is a way to put together a system for people to get help fast when they need it.”
The old national crisis hotline was 10 digits long and hard to remember. Crapo said 988 is the solution. Idahoans who call 988 are connected with the Idaho Crisis and Suicide Prevention Hotline. From there, crisis responders make sure people receive the help they need.
It is important to remember the hotline is not just for those experiencing suicidal thoughts - it is for people with all mental health struggles - according to Idaho Crisis and Suicide Prevention Hotline director, Lee Flinn.
“A person can call if they feel suicidal. A person can call if they feel like they’re struggling with depression, anxiety,” Flinn said. “Or maybe they’re going through a really difficult divorce.”
Idaho Rep. Laurie Lickley said the Idaho Legislature put $4.4 million into the rollout of 988. She said she hopes people know their elected officials are fighting for their mental health.
“[Mental health] is a lifelong path and we are with you,” Lickley said.
For many, having a streamlined mental health line is a long time coming. Flinn said the hope is for the number to become just as well known as 911.
“Over time, in the future - everyone in this country - all across Idaho, will know that if you are struggling with emotional distress of any kind, if you have a friend or a family member, everyone will know that you can call 9-8-8,” Flinn said.
The Idaho Crisis and Prevention Center is expecting an uptick in calls in the coming weeks. Right now, they receive about 70 calls per day. To help meet the demand, Flinn said they are looking for more employees and volunteers.
Watch more Local News:
See the latest news from around the Treasure Valley and the Gem State in our YouTube playlist: | 2022-07-17T05:45:47+00:00 | ktvb.com | https://www.ktvb.com/article/news/health/mental-health/access-to-mental-health-help-just-three-digits-away/277-7978099e-79dc-4492-80b5-efcc34ba70b7 |
US economic growth last quarter is revised up to a 2% annual rate
WASHINGTON (AP) — The U.S. economy grew at a 2% annual pace from January through March as consumers spent at the fastest pace in nearly two years, the government said Thursday in a sharp upgrade from its previous estimate.
The government had previously estimated that the economy expanded at a 1.3% annual rate last quarter.
The Commerce Department’s third and final report on January-March economic growth pointed to surprising resilience but still marked a deceleration from the 2.6% annual rate from October through December and the 3.2% growth from July through September. The economy has been slowed by the Federal Reserve’s aggressive drive to tame inflation through a series of interest rate hikes beginning early last year.
Yet Thursday’s report on the nation’s gross domestic product — the total output of goods and services — showed why the economy has so far managed to defy expectations of a coming recession: Consumers continue to spend even in the face of ever-rising borrowing costs. Their spending, which fuels about 70% of the economy, rose at a 4.2% annual rate in the January-March quarter, the most since April-June 2021.
The economy grew even though a cutback in business inventories shaved 2.1 percentage points off last quarter’s growth rate.
The Fed has raised its benchmark interest rate 10 times since March 2022 in its attack on inflation, which hit a four-decade high of 9.1% last year but has since slowed to 4%. The central bank’s rate hikes have led to higher costs for mortgages, auto loans, credit cards and business borrowing and widespread predictions that an economic downturn is inevitable.
But the economy has proved unexpectedly durable. Retail sales rose last month despite pressure from still-high inflation and rising borrowing costs. Government reports have shown recent gains in new-home sales and orders for long-lasting manufactured goods. And employers have added a healthy average of 314,000 jobs a month so far this year, with the unemployment rate, at 3.7%, still close to a half-century low.
In the current April-June quarter, the economy is believed to be slowing further but still managing to maintain its growth. Economists surveyed by the data firm FactSet have estimated that annual growth for the quarter will amount to 1%.
Copyright 2023 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. | 2023-06-29T13:15:36+00:00 | ksla.com | https://www.ksla.com/2023/06/29/us-economic-growth-last-quarter-is-revised-up-2-annual-rate/ |
BAKERSFIELD, Calif. (AP) — Tobias Cameron had 17 points in Abilene Christian's 65-59 win against Cal State Bakersfield on Saturday night.
Cameron was 6-of-7 shooting (5 for 6 from distance) for the Wildcats (7-5). Joe Pleasant added 12 points, while Immanuel Allen scored 11.
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The Roadrunners (4-6) were led by Travis Henson with 15 points and eight rebounds. Kaleb Higgins added 11 points, six rebounds and five assists. Antavion Collum had 11 points.
___
The Associated Press created this story using technology provided by Data Skrive and data from Sportradar. | 2022-12-18T06:38:01+00:00 | seattlepi.com | https://www.seattlepi.com/sports/article/Cameron-sends-Abilene-Christian-past-CSU-17661986.php |
I’m ticked off at web pages that ask me to save my login info with them, then when I go back in they tell me I have the wrong e-mail and password.
I am ticked off that my alma mater, let’s call them Boilermakers, continues to snatch defeat from the jaws of certain victory each Saturday. Last Saturday’s epic meltdown in the game’s final 51 seconds may go down as the most numb-skulled display of insanity ever witnessed in college football history. It may be time for me to become a Gator’s fan!
I am ticked off that I didn’t know that the more money you donate to the private school your kids go to the more accolades and awards your kids get. Should have figured that out years ago.
I’m ticked off that they are considering flying cars for commuters. We have clueless idiots driving cars on our surface roads now causing mayhem, and we certainly do not need them flying around our crowded skies in those things. We are not the Jetsons! What a stupid idea.
I am ticked off at the NFL for the one game suspension of Tama Bay Bucs receiver Mike Evans. The NFL should suspend the entire New Orleans Saints defensive team and their coaches. The Saints defensive players are all dirty players whose number one intent is to injure the opposing teams offensive players. This goes all the way back to their “Bounty Gate” reward system under their former defensive coach. The NFL head office is awful!
To the ticked off veteran who was embarrassed about being thanked for his service, no matter if you were called on to serve this beautiful country or volunteered to serve, you should be proud of your service regardless of the part you played. Your sacrifice makes America safer and you have earned the accolades and respect of those around you.
The flip side
Thank you to two young men who stopped to push our dead car off the road into a nearby auto service lot at the height of 5 p.m. traffic last Friday.
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ST. LOUIS, Nov. 1, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Spartech, a leading manufacturer of engineered thermoplastics and custom packaging solutions, is pleased to announce two new additions to the team: Dave Murphy as Director of Sales, Central Region, and David Dennemann as Account Manager, Western Region.
Murphy will be instrumental in development and execution of a sales strategy focused on long-term profitable growth for the complete line of Spartech products, while Dennemann will be responsible for driving profitable sales growth as he works with both Spartech distribution channel partners and direct customers.
Prior to coming to Spartech, Murphy has held varying sales management positions of increasing responsibility throughout his career. Most recently he was the Regional Sales Director – North American for Lindal Group of Hamburg, Germany. He holds a BS in Economics from Elmhurst University in Elmhurst, Illinois, and an MBA from Purdue University.
Dennemann spent the last nine years with a plastic's material manufacturer in their Pennsylvania, Washington, and California locations in Sales, with his most recent position as Senior Outside Sales Representative. At his former position he demonstrated a strong track record in growing sales and closing new business utilizing a consultative selling approach. In 2020, Dennemann was selected as a recipient for the prestigious President's Club Award. He holds a BS in Business Administration from Tiffin University in Tiffin, Ohio.
Headquartered in St. Louis, Missouri with a unique innovation center and 17 manufacturing facilities located throughout the United States, Spartech is a leading plastics manufacturer of engineered thermoplastic materials and specialty packaging products. Meeting exact standards for everything from food packaging to aerospace and automotive applications, Spartech continues to make a world of difference with sustainable, diverse, reliable, and innovative products including UltraTuf®, Royalite®, Korad®, PreservaPak®, and Polycast®. https://spartech.com
Media Contact:
For Spartech
Sheldon Ripson
sheldon@spokemarketing.com
636-751-5733
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SOURCE Spartech | 2022-11-01T16:36:23+00:00 | newschannel10.com | https://www.newschannel10.com/prnewswire/2022/11/01/spartech-announces-dave-murphy-director-sales-david-dennemann-account-manager/ |
The podcast “Black Women of Amherst College” explores how activism by Black students can make elite institutions of higher learning more inclusive for everyone. It’s what the host calls “the invisible work of Black women.”
Here & Now‘s Deepa Fernandes talks with the host of the podcast Nichelle Carr.
This article was originally published on WBUR.org.
Copyright 2023 NPR. To see more, visit https://www.npr.org. | 2023-03-30T19:22:51+00:00 | kvpr.org | https://www.kvpr.org/2023-03-30/the-invisible-work-of-black-women-spotlighted-in-podcast |
WFO SAN DIEGO Warnings, Watches and Advisories for Wednesday, May 3, 2023
_____
WIND ADVISORY
URGENT - WEATHER MESSAGE
National Weather Service San Diego CA
354 AM PDT Wed May 3 2023
...WIND ADVISORY IN EFFECT FROM 6 PM THIS EVENING TO 6 PM PDT
THURSDAY...
* WHAT...West winds 20 to 30 mph with gusts to 55 mph expected.
* WHERE...San Diego County Mountains and San Diego County
Deserts.
* WHEN...From 6 PM this evening to 6 PM PDT Thursday.
* IMPACTS...Gusty winds could blow around unsecured objects. Tree
limbs could be blown down.
* ADDITIONAL DETAILS...The strongest winds are expected for
tonight.
PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS...
Use extra caution when driving, especially if operating a high
profile vehicle. Secure outdoor objects.
* WHAT...West winds 25 to 35 mph with gusts to 60 mph expected.
* WHERE...Riverside County Mountains and San Gorgonio Pass Near
Banning.
tonight with a second round of stronger winds for Thursday
afternoon.
_____
Copyright 2023 AccuWeather | 2023-05-03T12:45:06+00:00 | lmtonline.com | https://www.lmtonline.com/weather/article/ca-wfo-san-diego-warnings-watches-and-advisories-18075533.php |
Yoga Murder Suspect Pleads Not Guilty, as Defense Casts Doubt on Boyfriend
Plus, D.A. requesting her medical records
By Maggie Q. Thompson, Fri., July 29, 2022
Kaitlin Armstrong – the Austin yoga instructor accused of killing 25-year-old cycling star Moriah "Mo" Wilson and then going on the run for 43 days until getting nabbed in Costa Rica, and who allegedly killed Wilson for swimming with Armstrong's boyfriend that day – pleaded not guilty Wednesday, July 20.
That's the headline that's spread virally across America: Court TV, the Daily Mail, New York Post, and a plethora of other news stations pounced on the plea by Austin's own "fugitive yoga teacher" and "love-triangle murder suspect." But it's important to note the plea came during her arraignment, a pretrial court hearing in which a defendant is formally charged, where a not guilty plea is routine – it can be changed later as a result of a plea deal, but pleading guilty at arraignment would waive a right to trial.
What is interesting is that Armstrong's defense attorneys, who include Rick Cofer (a well-known Austin criminal defense lawyer and Best of Austin winner), asked District Judge Brenda Kennedy for a speedy trial and had already filed what Kennedy called "all these motions" for evidence, the Austin American-Statesman reported. In court, Cofer added, "If the district attorney chose to indict this case without evidence to indict this case, that's on the district attorney."
Armstrong's jury trial is scheduled for late October (Kennedy is set to retire at the end of the year, after 35 years on county benches), and Cofer told the Statesman that "questions about both the circumstances and the police investigation itself still need to be answered." After the arraignment Wednesday, in talking with a group of reporters, Cofer also threw suspicion on Armstrong and Wilson's uncharged ex-boyfriend, Colin Strickland, the Statesman reported. "Why did the Austin Police Department seemingly ignore a tip about the former boyfriend of Ms. Wilson? … Did the inexperience of two key officers assigned to this case play a role in its apparent mishandling? Who vandalized the home of Kaitlin Armstrong and Colin Strickland the night of Wilson's death, and why?"
On the state's side, the District Attorney's Office has stayed fairly quiet, but an application for subpoena obtained by the Chronicle showed the state is looking into Armstrong's hospital records (including emergency room records, EMS reports, blood tests, CT scans, and blood alcohol content) from St. Joseph Medical Center in Houston on July 2, three days after Armstrong's arrest in Costa Rica.
Got something to say? The Chronicle welcomes opinion pieces on any topic from the community. Submit yours now at austinchronicle.com/opinion. | 2022-07-29T06:37:09+00:00 | austinchronicle.com | https://www.austinchronicle.com/news/2022-07-29/yoga-murder-suspect-pleads-not-guilty-as-defense-casts-doubt-on-boyfriend/ |
Sunday's riot by supporters of Brazil's former president has parallels with what happened in the U.S. on Jan. 6, 2021. But it's also part of a global far-right movement that's opposed to democracy.
Copyright 2023 NPR
Sunday's riot by supporters of Brazil's former president has parallels with what happened in the U.S. on Jan. 6, 2021. But it's also part of a global far-right movement that's opposed to democracy.
Copyright 2023 NPR | 2023-01-09T22:34:31+00:00 | nprillinois.org | https://www.nprillinois.org/2023-01-09/a-look-at-the-transnational-extremism-behind-brazils-unrest-and-the-u-s-jan-6-riot |
WFO NEW YORK CITY Warnings, Watches and Advisories for Friday, December 16, 2022
_____
COASTAL FLOOD STATEMENT
Coastal Hazard Message
National Weather Service New York NY
417 AM EST Thu Dec 15 2022
...COASTAL FLOOD STATEMENT REMAINS IN EFFECT LATE TONIGHT...
* WHAT...Up to 1/2 ft of inundation above ground level expected
in vulnerable areas near the waterfront and shoreline.
* WHERE...In Connecticut, Southern Fairfield County. In New
York, Southern Westchester, Bronx, Northwest Suffolk and
Northern Nassau Counties.
* WHEN...Late tonight.
* IMPACTS...Brief minor flooding of the most vulnerable locations
near the waterfront and shoreline due to elevated water levels
and 2 to 4 ft wave action.
* ADDITIONAL DETAILS...There is the potential for widespread minor
coastal flooding for the Friday afternoon high tidal cycle.
PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS...
Do not drive through flooded roadways.
_____
Copyright 2022 AccuWeather | 2022-12-15T10:19:42+00:00 | ourmidland.com | https://www.ourmidland.com/weather/article/CT-WFO-NEW-YORK-CITY-Warnings-Watches-and-17655642.php |
Trans woman says railroad passed her over after transition
By JOSH FUNK
AP Business Writer
OMAHA, Neb. (AP) — A former BNSF worker who was named one of the railroad’s employees of the year in 2021 for her work in supporting LGBTQ+ workers is now suing the railroad where she worked for 30 years. She argues that after being promoted regularly earlier in her career she was denied advancement opportunities after her gender transition. Randi Berghorst sued the Fort Worth, Texas-based railroad in federal court recently. Berghorst said she’s disappointed she had to file the lawsuit, but she hopes it will prompt BNSF to change. The railroad declined to comment on the lawsuit but defended its hiring practices. A company spokesperson said BNSF does not discriminate against job applicants. | 2023-05-09T19:26:19+00:00 | localnews8.com | https://localnews8.com/news/ap-national/2023/05/09/trans-woman-says-railroad-passed-her-over-after-transition/ |
Jill Biden had an unconventional proposal Monday after the final of women’s NCAA tournament: Invite both the winning team, LSU, and the runner-up, Iowa, to the White House.
The first lady, who attended the championship game, now seems to have walked back on her statements after LSU’s star player, Angel Reese, called them “a joke.”
Biden first appeared to extend an invite to Iowa, who lost the game 102-85.
“I know we’ll have the champions come to the White House; we always do, so we hope LSU will come,” Biden said, according to the Washington Post. “But, you know, I’m going to tell Joe I think Iowa should come, too, because they played such a good game.”
Advertisement
It’s a tradition for the March Madness winners to score a White House invitation. But not the runners up.
Reese, who scored 15 points and played a key part in LSU’s victory Sunday, had a terse response.
“A JOKE,” Reese tweeted, along with three laughing-crying emojis and a link to an article with Biden’s comments.
The first lady’s press secretary, Vanessa Valdivia, tweeted Tuesday morning to clarify Biden’s statements.
“The First Lady loved watching the NCAA women’s basketball championship game alongside young student athletes and admires how far women have advanced in sports since the passing of Title IX,” Valdivia wrote. “Her comments in Colorado were intended to applaud the historic game and all women athletes. She looks forward to celebrating the LSU Tigers on their championship win at the White House.”
Reese, 20, had drawn controversy during the championship game. In the fourth quarter, she stared down Iowa’s star point guard Caitlin Clark, waving her hand in front of her face and pointing to her finger as if she was wearing a ring to signify victory.
Advertisement
That sparked a firestorm online, but she was unapologetic in the postgame press conference.
“All year, I was critiqued about who I was,” Reese said. “I don’t fit in a box that y’all want me to be in. I’m too hood. I’m too ghetto. But when other people do it, y’all say nothing. So this was for the girls that look like me, that’s going to speak up on what they believe in. It’s unapologetically you.”
🤣🤣🤣A JOKE. https://t.co/9SiOKQNqbj
— Angel Reese (@Reese10Angel) April 3, 2023
Kate Armanini can be reached at kate.armanini@globe.com. Follow her on Twitter @KateArmanini. | 2023-04-04T17:45:03+00:00 | bostonglobe.com | https://www.bostonglobe.com/2023/04/04/metro/jill-biden-angel-reese-lsu-iowa-state/ |
Wings vs. Aces: Odds, spread, over/under and other Vegas lines - July 5
The Dallas Wings (8-8) will lean on Arike Ogunbowale (second in WNBA, 22.1 points per game) to help them beat A'ja Wilson (seventh in league, 19.6) and the Las Vegas Aces (15-1) on Wednesday, July 5, 2023 at Michelob ULTRA Arena, at 10:00 PM ET on BSSWX.
In this article, you will check out the spread and odds across multiple sportsbooks for the Wings vs. Aces matchup.
Click on our link to sign up for a free trial of Fubo, and start watching live sports without cable today!
Wings vs. Aces Game Info
- Game Day: Wednesday, July 5, 2023
- Game Time: 10:00 PM ET
- TV Channel: BSSWX
- Location: Las Vegas, Nevada
- Arena: Michelob ULTRA Arena
Wings vs. Aces Odds, Spread, Over/Under
See the odds, spread and over/under for this WNBA matchup across individual sportsbooks.
Wings vs. Aces Betting Trends
- The Aces have compiled an 8-7-0 record against the spread this season.
- The Wings have won seven games against the spread this season, while failing to cover eight times.
- Las Vegas has covered the spread five times this season (5-3 ATS) when playing as at least 14.5-point favorites.
- The Aces and their opponents have combined to hit the over nine out of 15 times this season.
- A total of six Wings games this year have hit the over.
Not all offers available in all states. Please gamble responsibly! Contact 1-800-GAMBLER if you or someone you know has developed a gambling problem or addiction.
© 2023 Data Skrive. All rights reserved. | 2023-07-05T20:26:47+00:00 | kwtx.com | https://www.kwtx.com/sports/betting/2023/07/05/wings-aces-wnba-odds-spread-over-under/ |
SHANGHAI, July 18, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Infinix, an emerging brand in the consumer electronics market, today announced the NOTE 12 PRO, the latest addition to its NOTE Series smartphone line-up. The NOTE 12 PRO is the first smartphone powered by MediaTek Helio G99. The device features an impressive 108MP camera unit, a 6.7" FHD+ true-color AMOLED display, and stunning design language that stands out from the crowd. The NOTE 12 PRO caters to the ever-growing needs of young people today and is all available at a modest price tag proving unparalleled value for a smartphone in 2022.
"The NOTE 12 PRO is the industry's first smartphone powered by MediaTek Helio G99, which uses TSMC's 6nm process technology. The NOTE 12 PRO fully realizes the potential of the chipset to bring users a truly outstanding smartphone experience. With incredible photographic capabilities, a powerful chipset, and a stylish design, the NOTE 12 PRO represents a fantastic choice for young users in emerging markets looking to upgrade their devices. At Infinix, we are committed to expanding our product portfolio to meet the demand of different consumers." Vento Lin, Product Manager of NOTE Series at Infinix Mobility.
Exceptional Performance
The NOTE 12 PRO is powered by MediaTek's latest chipset, the Helio G99, delivering unparalleled computing architecture, powerful performance, and industry-leading power efficiency. Inside the MediaTek Helio G99 is an octa-core CPU with two high-performance Arm Cortex-A76 processors clocking up to 2.2GHz, alongside a highly capable Arm Mali G57-class GPU. The Helio G99 was built using the exceptionally efficient 6nm-class chip production process, maximizing in-game performance and power saving. This chip allows for extensive usage on a single charge and enables buttery smooth gaming all day long. Compared to the G96 12nm, the power consumption of the G99 6nm processor is reduced by 10% [1].
Smartphone Photography at its Best
The NOTE 12 PRO is equipped with the 108MP Ultra Clear Triple Camera, delivering unparalleled photo quality. The crisp 108MP main camera features the latest Samsung S5KHM6 sensor, which ensures enhanced image quality and reduced noise. The f/1.75 aperture lens, which supports 9-in-1 Super Pixel, helps mobile photographers to create truly stunning photographs. Additionally, the 1/1.67 super large image sensor and 1.92μm unit pixel size allow more light into the lens resulting in enhanced quality & clarity of snapshots in all lighting conditions so that users can focus on the subject and less on the light.
By utilizing professional Night Scene Photography Mode, the NOTE 12 PRO can capture more light at night, restore realistic and richer details, and present clear and vivid portraits. Furthermore, for users looking for the perfect selfie, the NOTE 12 PRO also offers a 16MP front camera for snapping crystal clear selfies.
Iconic Design Language
Embodying Infinix's pursuit of aesthetics, the NOTE 12 PRO elevates premium design to new heights. The Round Camera Deco design is inspired by a racing car, reflecting NOTE 12 PRO's spirit of passion and exploration. Available in three glossy finishes – Volcanic grey, Tuscany Blue, and Alpine White, the NOTE 12 PRO looks the part alongside delivering a fantastic smartphone experience. Exceptionally thin, sleek, and stylish, the NOTE 12 Pro boasts a thickness of just 7.8mm, effortlessly fitting into small handbags and pockets. The NOTE 12 PRO represents one of the best-looking smartphones designed to date in the NOTE Series lineup.
The NOTE 12 Pro comes with a stunningly slim 6.7-inch FHD+ true-color AMOLED screen which displays rich vivid colors. Compared with conventional LCD screens, AMOLED is more power-efficient and doesn't leak light. With a 100% DCI-P3 color gamut and a 100000:1 color contrast ratio, the NOTE 12 Pro screens give rise to sharper, more true-to-life colors. Presenting a truly immersive visual entertainment experience, the NOTE 12 PRO has super-narrow bezels which deliver an impressive 92% screen-to-body ratio.
Ahead of the Curve
The NOTE 12 PRO is equipped with unique Extended RAM technology allowing the device to run smoothly under heavy usage. Consumers can enjoy a better experience compared to the original large-memory models without the added cost. The NOTE 12 PRO provides extended memory of 8GB+5GB (equivalent to 13GB), supporting up to 20 apps running lag-free at the same time [2].
Furthermore, the NOTE 12 PRO gives users longer-lasting battery life thanks to the 5000mAh battery and 33W super charge functionality, allowing users to quickly power up their smartphone.
Additional key features
- Monster Game Kit: Infinix's Monster Game Kit provides consumers with visual, auditory, and tactile sensations for an immersive gaming experience. Utilizing graphic enhancement, revive countdown, Dual Speakers with DTS and the Linear Motor Tactile System make smartphone gaming better than ever before.
- Dual Speakers with DTS: The NOTE 12 PRO is equipped with Dual Speakers with DTS Stereo surround sounds for a truly immersive audio experience.
- XOS 10.6 Software: The NOTE 12 PRO features new XOS 10.6 software based on Android 12, which includes new features such as Storage Optimizer, Lightning Multi-Window, Privacy Guardian and more.
- Multifunctional NFC: The NOTE 12 PRO offers consumer NFC function to make secure transactions, enabling being a e-ticket to connect electronic devices with a touch.
Pricing and Availability
The NOTE 12 PRO will cost around $219. The series will include variations based on customer and market demands. Prices and availability will vary from region to region.
About Infinix:
Infinix Mobility is a rapidly emerging technology brand that designs, manufactures and markets an expanding portfolio of smart devices worldwide under the Infinix brand, which was founded in 2013.
Targeting today's youth with first in class technology, Infinix creates trendy, powerful and attainably priced smart devices that bring the latest technology on the market to users around the world at a time when they need it at a price that they want it.
For more information, please visit: http://www.infinixmobility.com/
View original content to download multimedia:
SOURCE Infinix | 2022-07-18T14:37:22+00:00 | kcrg.com | https://www.kcrg.com/prnewswire/2022/07/18/infinix-launches-impressive-new-note-12-pro-industrys-first-smartphone-powered-by-mediatek-helio-g99/ |
The swimmer who went missing Tuesday while swimming in the ocean off a Wildwood beach has been identified as a 19-year-old Pennsylvania man, investigators announced Thursday afternoon.
Drexel Hill resident Alfred Williams was still not found as of 4 p.m. Thursday when the Wildwood Police said the investigation had turned into a recovery mission.
Police and firefighters were called to the Andrews Avenue beach shortly after 4 p.m. Tuesday after they received a 911 call about swimmers in distress, the Wildwood Police Department said in statement. Officers spotted two swimmers struggling about 100 to 200 yards from the shore and firefighters were able to reach and rescue them.
It was then learned that a third swimmer was able to reach the shore before first responders arrived, but that a fourth swimmer, Williams, was still missing, police said. One of the swimmers who was rescued was taken to Cape Regional Medical Center where he was listed in stable condition.
Firefighters reentered the water and began searching for Williams and were joined by crews from the Coast Guard, New Jersey State Police Marine Division, off-duty lifeguards and other local rescue organizations.
The Coast Guard searched for Williams with a 45-foot response boat and a helicopter from the time they were called to the area of the Andrews Avenue beach at about 4 p.m. until sunset, which was at 8:18 p.m.
“The Wildwood Police & Fire Departments and other assisting agencies would like to offer our heartfelt condolences to Alfred’s family and friends,” the agencies said in a statement.
Thank you for relying on us to provide the local news you can trust. Please consider supporting NJ.com with a voluntary subscription.
Chris Sheldon may be reached at csheldon@njadvancemedia.com. | 2022-06-03T00:56:21+00:00 | nj.com | https://www.nj.com/news/2022/06/swimmer-who-went-missing-off-wildwood-idd-as-19-year-old-pennsylvania-man-police-say.html |
WASHINGTON (AP) — President Joe Biden’s administration is taking stock of a newly empowered Xi Jinping as the Chinese president begins a third, norm-breaking five-year term as Communist Party leader. With U.S.-Chinese relations already fraught, concerns are growing in Washington that more difficult days may be ahead.
Xi has amassed a measure of power over China’s ruling party unseen since Mao Zedong, the leader from 1949 until his death in 1976. Xi’s consolidation of power comes as the United States has updated its defense and national security strategies to reflect that China is now America’s most potent military and economic adversary.
Biden takes pride in having built rapport with Xi since first meeting him more than a decade ago, when they served as their countries’ vice presidents. But Biden now faces, in Xi, a counterpart buoyed by a greater measure of power and determined to cement China’s superpower status even while navigating strong economic and diplomatic headwinds.
“We’re not back in the Mao era. Xi Jinping is not Mao,” said Jude Blanchette, chair of China studies at the Center for Strategic and International Studies. “But we are definitely in new territory and unpredictable territory in terms of the stability and predictability of China’s political system.”
Biden and Xi are expected to hold talks on the sidelines of next month’s Group of 20 summit in Indonesia, a long-anticipated meeting that would come after nearly two years of tense relations. The leaders are dug into winning the upper hand in a competition that both believe will determine which country is the leading global economic and political force driving the next century.
“There’s an awful lot of issues for us to talk to China about,” said National Security Council spokesman John Kirby. He added that U.S. and Chinese officials have been working to arrange a meeting of the leaders, though one has yet to be confirmed. “Some issues are fairly contentious and some should be collaborative,” Kirby said.
Biden and Xi traveled together in the U.S. and China in 2011 and 2012, and they have held five phone or video calls since Biden became president in January 2021. But the U.S.-China relationship has become far more complicated since those getting-to-know-you talks over meals in Washington and on the Tibetan plateau a decade ago.
As president, Biden has repeatedly taken China to task for human rights abuses against the Uyghur people and other ethnic minorities, Beijing’s crackdowns on democracy activists in Hong Kong, coercive trade practices, military provocations against self-ruled Taiwan and differences over Russia’s prosecution of its war against Ukraine.
Xi’s government has criticized the Biden administration’s posture toward Taiwan — which Beijing looks eventually to unify with the communist mainland — as undermining China’s sovereignty and territorial integrity. The Chinese president also has suggested that Washington wants to stifle Beijing’s growing clout as it tries to overtake the U.S. as the world’s largest economy.
“External attempts to suppress and contain China may escalate at any time,” Xi warned in his address before the Communist Party congress. “We must therefore be more mindful of potential dangers, be prepared to deal with worst-case scenarios, and be ready to withstand high winds, choppy waters and even dangerous storms.”
Dali Yang, a political scientist at the University of Chicago who researches Chinese politics, said there are some potentially stabilizing developments emerging in the relationship after months of rancor.
Two of China’s best-known diplomats in Washington were elevated at the Communist Party meeting. Foreign Minister Wang Yi was selected for the Communist Party’s Politburo, the policymaking body made up of the 24 most senior officials. China’s ambassador to the U.S., Qin Gang, is joining its central committee. Their elevation should bring a measure of continuity to the U.S.-China relationship, Yang said.
Yang noted there has also been an effort on the part of the Communist Party leadership to “tone down its warm embrace of Russia.” Last month, after meeting with Xi on the sidelines of a summit in Uzbekistan, Russian President Vladimir Putin acknowledged that Xi had expressed “concern and questions” about the war in Ukraine.
With his third term confirmed, “in some ways, Xi is now freer to act and less encumbered in terms of no longer having to always watch what his rivals are doing,” Yang said. “I think that actually may affect his approach and may make him more comfortable in dealing with Biden.”
White House officials have played down hopes that Xi’s new five-year hold on the Communist Party could give him breathing room to more fully engage on matters where China has some overlapping interests with the U.S.
Biden, during a meeting with Defense Department officials on Wednesday, stressed that the U.S. was “not seeking conflict” with China. Hours later, Chinese state television reported Xi told members of the national committee on U.S.-China relations that Beijing should find ways to work with Washington on issues of mutual concern.
The conciliatory moment was short-lived.
The following day, U.S. and Chinese officials were trading rhetorical shots about the U.S. move earlier this month to expand export controls on the sale of advanced semiconductor chips to China.
“The U.S. has overstretched the national security concept and suppressed China’s development, and normal business cooperation has been politicized and weaponized,” Wang Hongxia, counselor at the Chinese Embassy in Washington, told reporters.
Her comments came not long after a top Commerce Department official, Undersecretary Alan Estevez, said at a Washington forum that “if I was a betting person, I would put down money” on the U.S. imposing additional export controls on China.
China’s economy is slowing, with Beijing reporting this month that growth for the first nine months of the year was 3%, putting it on pace to fall well below its official full-year target of 5.5%. The country’s economy is also dragging from strict “zero” COVID rules, and Beijing is confronting a deceleration in exports and home prices that fell to a seven-year low in September.
It also faces increased competition from a U.S. and European Union that are investing tens of billions of dollars to compete on semiconductors and other technologies. All of this points to the possibility that China might not eclipse U.S. gross domestic product by 2030 as many economists have forecast.
Ruchir Sharma, chairman of Rockefeller International, recently concluded that with its likely growth trajectory China would exceed the U.S. economy by 2060, if it manages to do so at all.
At the same time, Secretary of State Antony Blinken as well as the U.S. chief naval operations officer, Adm. Mike Gilday, have recently expressed concern that Beijing may try to step up its timeline to seize Taiwan. Blinken said China had made “a fundamental decision that the status quo was no longer acceptable.”
China has largely refrained from criticizing Russia’s war in Ukraine, but also has held off on supplying Moscow with arms. Still, the conflict has raised concerns in Taiwan that China — which has never controlled the island — might be further emboldened to move on its long-stated plan for unification.
U.S.-China tensions have been further enflamed by House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s August visit to Taiwan and Biden’s remark in May that the U.S. military would defend Taiwan in case of an attack by China, comments the White House later played down.
“What’s concerning now is that with Xi’s unlimited power and ambition, he may use Taiwan to distract from his internal problems,” said Keith Krach, a former undersecretary of state during the Trump administration. “I hope he’s looked at the courage of the Ukrainians and reckoned that the people of Taiwan are just as courageous, perhaps even more so.”
___
Associated Press writer Josh Boak contributed to this report.
___
Follow AP’s coverage of China at: https://apnews.com/hub/china | 2022-10-31T10:54:00+00:00 | ourquadcities.com | https://www.ourquadcities.com/news/politics/ap-politics/ap-biden-faces-unpredictable-era-with-chinas-empowered-xi/ |
How to beat a New Year's hangover before it starts
Toasting the birth of the new year is an age-old ritual, and for many, so is that dreaded morning aftermath — a hangover.
What seemed like great fun at the time is now causing your hands to shake, your head to pound and your heart to race, not to mention other unpleasant symptoms such as dizziness, nausea, vomiting, light sensitivity and excruciating thirst.
Why are you suffering? Because the liquor that smoothly passed your lips is now wreaking havoc in your body, causing dehydration, stomach distress and inflammation. These ailments peak about the time all the alcohol leaves your body.
There is no scientifically proven way to cure a hangover, but experts say you can prevent one — or at least keep that morning-after misery to a minimum. Here's how.
Drink on a full stomach
Forget a late-night meal after a night of drinking — that's much too late, experts say. Instead, eat before your first drink and keep noshing as the night goes on.
"Food in the stomach slows gastric emptying and can reduce hangover symptoms," said Dr. Robert Swift, a professor of psychiatry and human behavior at Brown University's Warren Alpert Medical School in Providence, Rhode Island.
Why does food help? Because alcohol isn't metabolized by the stomach but via the intestinal tract just below it, Swift said.
"If somebody does shots on an empty stomach, for example, all that pure alcohol is not diluted by the stomach and is passed to the intestine very quickly," said Swift, who has studied alcohol abuse since the 1990s.
"If the stomach contains food, however, there are gastric juices and enzymes that mix the food and the alcohol, and only small amounts of food are passed into the intestine," he said. "Now the alcohol is diluted in the stomach, and only a small quantity of alcohol is absorbed at any time."
Stay hydrated
The same principle applies to water and other nonalcoholic beverages, Swift said. "If alcohol is mixed with fluid, it's diluted, so when it goes into your intestines, it's not as irritating. You're less likely to have inflamed intestines or an inflamed stomach lining."
There's another benefit to downing water between drinks, said John Brick, former chief of research at the Center of Alcohol Studies, Education and Training Division at Rutgers University in New Jersey.
"The primary cause of hangovers is dehydration and the loss of fluids, along with vitamins and minerals," said Brick, who authored "The Doctor's Hangover Handbook" and published scientific papers on the biobehavioral effects of alcohol and other drugs.
Downing just 3½ alcoholic drinks can result in the loss of up to a quart of water over several hours, Brick added. "That's a good amount of water that has to be replenished."
Dehydration from alcohol may affect a woman even more, and she is more likely to suffer a hangover, even if she drinks less than a man, Swift said. That's because a man has a higher percentage of body water than a woman of the same height and weight, so the same amount of alcohol will be more diluted in a man, he said.
"The woman will have a higher concentration of blood alcohol because her body contains less water to dilute it," he said. "Women are much more susceptible to the deleterious effects of alcohol (and they) get more intoxicated and develop alcohol liver disease sooner in life than men do."
Pick beer, wine or spirits with fewer additives
The alcohol we drink, called ethyl alcohol or ethanol, is the byproduct of fermenting carbohydrates and starches, usually some sort of grain, grape or berry. There are other, less tasty byproducts as well, such as ethanol — which is in the gas we put in our cars — and methyl alcohol or methanol — a toxic substance used as a solvent, pesticide and alternative fuel source. Also called wood alcohol, methyl alcohol made by bootleggers blinded or killed thousands of people during Prohibition.
That's not all — the list of byproducts or chemicals added by manufacturers for flavor and taste can read like a list of supplies at an industrial warehouse: ethyl formate, ethyl acetate, n-propanol, isobutanol, n-butanol, isopentanol and isoamyl alcohols. While these congeners, as they are called, are added in small, nontoxic amounts, some people are overly sensitive to their effects.
Overall, dark-colored beer and spirits tend to contain more congeners and thus may be more likely to cause hangovers, experts say. A 2010 study investigated the intensity of hangovers in people who drank the darker-colored liquor bourbon versus clear vodka.
"Congeners in bourbon ... significantly increased hangover intensity, which is not too surprising since bourbon has about 37 times the amount of congeners as vodka," Brick said.
Chemical preservatives called sulfites, known to cause allergic reactions in sensitive people, are also a natural byproduct of fermentation in small quantities. However, many manufacturers of beer and wine add sulfites to their products to extend shelf life. (Sulfites are also added to soda, cereals, sweeteners, canned and ultra-processed foods, medications and more.)
Sweet and white wines tend to have more sulfites than red, but red wines contain more tannins, which are bitter or astringent compounds found in the skin and seeds of grapes. Like sulfites, tannins can trigger allergic reactions in people who are sensitive.
As a result, limiting your drinking to light beers, clear liquors and white wine might help keep hangovers at bay.
Abstain
In the end, however, experts say there is only one true preventive — or cure — for a hangover: Don't drink.
"There's no simple cure because there are so many complex factors that are producing the multiple symptoms of a hangover," Swift said. "And that's why the only real cure for a hangover is to not drink alcohol or drink such a low amount of alcohol that it won't trigger a hangover." | 2022-12-31T04:03:54+00:00 | kcci.com | https://www.kcci.com/article/how-to-beat-a-new-year-s-hangover-before-it-starts/42368387 |
NEW YORK, Aug. 22, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Halper Sadeh LLP, an investor rights law firm, is investigating the following companies for potential violations of the federal securities laws and/or breaches of fiduciary duties to shareholders relating to:
PBF Logistics LP (NYSE: PBFX)'s sale to PBF Energy Inc. for 0.270 shares of PBF Energy Class A common stock and $9.25 in cash, without interest. If you are a PBF Logistics shareholder, click here to learn more about your rights and options.
EVO Payments, Inc. (NASDAQ: EVOP)'s sale to Global Payments Inc. for $34.00 per share. If you are an EVO shareholder, click here to learn more about your rights and options.
Cowen Inc. (NASDAQ: COWN)'s sale to TD Bank Group for $39.00 per share. If you are a Cowen shareholder, click here to learn more about your rights and options.
Ping Identity Holding Corp. (NYSE: PING)'s sale to Thoma Bravo $28.50 per share. If you are a Ping shareholder, click here to learn more about your rights and options.
Halper Sadeh LLP may seek increased consideration for shareholders, additional disclosures and information concerning the proposed transaction, or other relief and benefits on behalf of shareholders.
Shareholders are encouraged to contact the firm free of charge to discuss their legal rights and options. Please call Daniel Sadeh or Zachary Halper at (212) 763-0060 or email sadeh@halpersadeh.com or zhalper@halpersadeh.com.
Halper Sadeh LLP represents investors all over the world who have fallen victim to securities fraud and corporate misconduct. Our attorneys have been instrumental in implementing corporate reforms and recovering millions of dollars on behalf of defrauded investors.
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SOURCE Halper Sadeh LLP | 2022-08-22T14:02:48+00:00 | kwtx.com | https://www.kwtx.com/prnewswire/2022/08/22/shareholder-investigation-notice-halper-sadeh-llp-investigates-pbfx-evop-cown-ping/ |
The future of a powerful financial watchdog agency has been upended by a federal court, with both its funding and its independence now in danger.
A panel of the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals ruled last week that the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau’s (CFPB) unique power to fund its own operations is unconstitutional.
“For the time being, the decision raises more questions than it answers,” wrote Ian Katz, director at research consultancy Capital Alpha Partners, in an analysis.
“It will likely be appealed to the full Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals and could eventually end up before the Supreme Court,” Katz added.
If the conservative-majority justices sustain the ruling, the CFPB may be unable to enforce financial rules or crack down on fraud without Congress stepping in to fund it. But that would also give Republican lawmakers, who’ve long griped about the agency, a chance to undermine in for good.
“As Republicans have said all along, the CFPB’s ‘double-insulated,’ independent funding mechanism is unconstitutional and makes it wholly unaccountable,” Rep. Patrick McHenry (N.C.), the top Republican on the House Financial Services Committee, said in a statement responding to the ruling.
McHenry would lead efforts to revamp the CFPB if the GOP takes control of the House in the upcoming midterm elections.
“Bringing the CFPB under the appropriations process would make it more accountable to the American people through their elected representatives,” he added.
The CFPB has been a partisan flashpoint since it was created in 2011 by the Dodd-Frank Wall Street reform law as part of the response to the Great Recession.
The brainchild of Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.), the CFPB was granted unprecedented power and independence to enforce laws meant to protect Americans from fraud and abuse from the financial sector. Over its 11 years in operation, the CFPB has issued sweeping new rules and reeled in more than $10 billion in fines paid by firms that allegedly abused, deceived, or discriminated against customers.
Republicans have taken several steps to tame the CFPB from within since its creation.
Former President Trump overrode the agency’s line of succession in 2017 by appointing then-White House budget director Mick Mulvaney to serve as its acting chief.
After a federal court deemed Mulvaney the rightful acting head of the CFPB amid a power struggle with a Democratic holdover deputy director, Trump’s pick reeled in several agency rules and reined in its efforts to enforce lending discrimination laws.
“Congress deliberately ensured the independent funding of the CFPB, so that the consumer watchdog could protect consumers and help create an economy that centers working families,” Sen. Sherrod Brown (D-Ohio), chairman of the Senate Banking Committee, said in a statement in the wake of the Fifth Circuit ruling.
“It is not a coincidence that, while other financial regulators …. all have independent funding structures, Wall Street chose to attack the one financial regulator charged with protecting consumers.”
The CFPB is led by a single director — appointed by the president and confirmed by the Senate — who has total authority over the agency’s ability to write new financial rules and punish financial firms that break them.
The CFPB was also able to forge its own path without congressional interference thanks to its unique source of funding.
Most federal agencies are funded through the congressional appropriations process, where lawmakers can allocate money to the executive branch for specific purposes and with strings attached.
Other agencies, such as the Federal Reserve System and Office of the Comptroller of the Currency, are independently funded through fees paid by financial firms. That gives those agencies the ability to set their own agendas without approval from Congress.
But the CFPB has a unique layer of protection: It secures its funding through a simple budget request from the director to the Federal Reserve System, which is obligated to fulfill it up to an exceedingly high threshold.
“Even among self-funded agencies, the Bureau is unique. The Bureau’s perpetual self-directed, double-insulated funding structure goes a significant step further than that enjoyed by the other agencies on offer,” wrote Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals Judge Cory Wilson, a Trump-appointee, writing on behalf of a unanimous panel of two other judges nominated by the previous president.
The ruling leaves several questions about the future of the CFPB open, likely until the Supreme Court settles the matter.
The court last year already ruled one aspect of the CFPB’s structure unconstitutional, stripping the director’s protection from being fired by the president, and seems poised to curb it again.
Another ruling against the agency could affect the legality of the dozens of regulations it has issued over its decade-plus of existence and may leave other laws the agency is charged with enforcing up for grabs.
Even so, the chaos the uncertainty could cause for the financial sector may force Democrats and Republicans to find a bipartisan solution that could pass through a divided Congress.
Democrats have historically resisted attempts to change the structure of the CFPB from a directorate to a five-person commission and place the agency under congressional appropriations. But they may be left with no other choice if a GOP-controlled House is responsible for rebooting the agency after a major court ruling.
“The CFPB’s funding setup has been opposed by Republicans since the bureau was born a dozen years ago. Congress deliberately provided the CFPB a separate funding mechanism so that it wouldn’t be at the mercy of politics,” Katz wrote.
“Conservative judges may make that untenable.” | 2022-10-27T10:45:27+00:00 | wcia.com | https://www.wcia.com/hill-politics/obama-era-watchdog-agencys-independence-in-peril/ |
(NewsNation) — The summer air travel season is off to a turbulent start.
Airports across the nation have become hubs of frustration. More than 3,500 flights were canceled over the recent holiday weekend, with tens of thousands of flights delayed.
Airlines are blaming bad weather and the Federal Aviation Administration, an arm of the Transportation Department that manages the nation’s airspace, for the recent travel disruptions.
In an email to NewsNation, a spokesperson from the FAA wrote: “Airlines have been unable to bounce back when they encounter severe weather, as we saw this weekend.”
But some pilots are telling a different story, blaming airlines, instead, for the travel troubles. A pilot shortage and insufficient staffing are to blame for the airport chaos.
Another source of frustration for travelers is airlines overbooking flights.
Legally, airlines can oversell or overbook flights.
In fact, they do it all the time, and the airlines are not required to tell you ahead of time if the flight is overbooked.
Passengers can ask, but usually, travelers don’t find out they’ve been bumped off a fight until it’s time to check-in.
It’s a common practice in the airline industry. Airlines prefer to keep every flight as full as possible to maximize their profit.
The airlines anticipate some passengers may cancel or reschedule their flights. Airlines say overbooking helps them cover the cost of cancellations.
But here are some tips to avoid being booted from the plane when it comes time to check in:
Check in for your flight as soon as possible. The airlines typically bump those who check in last, even if they already had a seat assignment.
Also, airlines have to ask any passengers on the scheduled flight if they’re willing to give up their seat in exchange for compensation from the airline.
If a passenger is bumped involuntarily because of overbooking, they are entitled to compensation.
However, if the airline can get a passenger to their final destination within one hour of their original arrival time, they will not be compensated.
The bottom line is to read the fine print and fully understand passenger rights so the airlines can be held accountable.
Also, it’s important to know that when an airline is compensating passengers for an overbooked flight, there is no limit to the amount of money airlines can offer or the number of travel vouchers passengers can negotiate with the airline. | 2022-06-21T16:54:05+00:00 | myfox8.com | https://myfox8.com/news/overbooked-flights-yet-another-frustration-amid-travel-chaos/ |
The controversial natural gas pipeline has been stalled by court challenges — but now the Mountain Valley Pipeline has new momentum, thanks to a debt ceiling deal that gives sweeping approvals to the project.
The Fiscal Responsibility Act orders expedited approval of all permits needed to complete the pipeline, which has been opposed by climate and conservation groups as well as local residents along its path. Backers of the plan say it would boost U.S. energy infrastructure and jobs in Appalachia and the Southeast.
The Mountain Valley Pipeline would stretch 303 miles, from West Virginia to North Carolina. But it would cut through the Jefferson National Forest and cross hundreds of waterways and wetlands — and legal battles have held up those crucial sections of the pipeline have been held up for years.
In an extraordinary move, the federal measure would also quash lawsuits against the pipeline project and send any new appeals to the D.C. Circuit rather than the Fourth Circuit, which has regional jurisdiction and which has blocked numerous permits.
Here's a quick recap of where things stand with the pipeline:
Pipeline approval would fulfill Biden's promise to Manchin
The Fiscal Responsibility Act devotes fewer pages to the debt ceiling than it does to the pipeline, a longtime cause for Democratic Sen. Joe Manchin of West Virginia — who holds a critical vote in a closely divided Senate — and Republicans from his state.
Manchin receives three times as much money from pipeline companies as any other member of Congress, according to Open Secrets.
Last year, Manchin secured a promise from the Biden administration to fast-track the pipeline's completion in exchange for his support of President Biden's climate spending bill.
The Equitrans Midstream Corporation, which is managing the pipeline's development and would operate it, recently told shareholders it would likely get all permits approved and have the pipeline ready for operation by the end of 2023, with a total cost of some $6.6 billion.
Manchin says the pipeline also means big money for his state.
"I've been told it's about $40 million a year in tax revenues to the state of West Virginia," he said, according to West Virginia Public Broadcasting. "And about $300 million a year in revenue to the royalty owners."
The act shifts legal jurisdiction for court approval
When Manchin brokered the 2022 deal with the White House, his office said it planned to "give the D.C. Circuit jurisdiction over any further litigation," rather than the 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Richmond, Va., where judges have repeatedly ruled against the pipeline.
The debt ceiling deal would fulfill that plan. The act states, "no court shall have jurisdiction to review any action taken by the Secretary of the Army, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, the Secretary of Agriculture, the Secretary of the Interior," or any state agency, if the action authorizes or permits building and operating the pipeline at full capacity.
The legislation also says the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit "shall have original and exclusive jurisdiction over any claim alleging the invalidity of this section or that an action is beyond the scope of authority conferred by this section."
Rep. Garret Graves of Louisiana, who led Republicans' negotiations with the White House over the debt ceiling, called the deal a GOP victory, saying Democrats are now on the record "supporting a conventional energy project that removes or ties the hands of the judiciary," according to The Washington Post, citing a conference call with reporters.
Climate groups say pipeline isn't needed and is harmful
By approving the Fiscal Responsibility Act, Congress would declare that "the timely completion of construction and operation of the Mountain Valley Pipeline is required in the national interest."
The American Exploration and Production Council, a lobbying group for oil and gas producers, hailed the deal, with CEO Anne Bradbury saying in an email to NPR that by approving the pipeline and promising changes to the permitting system, a bureaucratic process will become more streamlined.
But the Natural Resources Defense Council disagrees, saying the new deal would remove key avenues for legal and environmental review. It also says that much of the official narrative about the pipeline is false — despite claims by Manchin and others, the group says, the pipeline isn't needed and still faces important legal hurdles.
The League of Conservation Voters is also against the pipeline's inclusion in the debt deal. In an email to NPR, the group's Tiernan Sittenfeld, senior vice president of government affairs, said that by forcing approval of the pipeline, the debt deal "locks in decades of climate pollution, threatens water quality, and jeopardizes communities in West Virginia, Virginia, and North Carolina, especially low-income, elderly, Indigenous, and Black communities."
The debt deal has critics on the left and right
Some of the most conservative House members are furious with House Speaker Kevin McCarthy over the the debt ceiling deal, saying it gives Democrats too many concessions and doesn't go far enough in reaching Republican goals.
Some progressive Democrats are also unhappy, saying the Biden administration isn't delivering on its promises to support clean energy rather than fossil fuels, along with allowing cuts or restrictions to food programs and other assistance for vulnerable Americans.
Critics are also asking why the debt deal legislation being considered in the House, which runs to 99 pages, devotes so much space to other matters, like revamping the federal permitting process under the National Environmental Policy Act.
When asked about those concerns, Office of Management and Budget Director Shalanda Young said on Tuesday, "I've worked in many divided government situations. I think this is where you would expect a bipartisan agreement to land. It's just the reality."
Copyright 2023 NPR. To see more, visit https://www.npr.org. | 2023-05-31T23:26:30+00:00 | wlrn.org | https://www.wlrn.org/national-politics/national-politics/2023-05-31/what-to-know-about-the-mountain-valley-pipeline-in-the-debt-ceiling-deal |
Climate Migration: Floods displace villagers in Indonesia
By DITA ALANGKARA and VICTORIA MILKO
Associated Press
MONDOLIKO, Indonesia (AP) — All the crops had died and the farmed fish had escaped their ponds. The only road to the village was flooded and the water just kept getting higher, says Asiyah, 38, who like many Indonesians uses only one name.
She knew that she had to leave her home on Java’s northern coast, just as many fellow villagers had done months earlier. So about two years ago, after agonizing over the decision for months, she told her husband it was time to go and started to pack.
___
EDITOR’S NOTE: This story is part of an ongoing series exploring the lives of people around the world who have been forced to move because of rising seas, drought, searing temperatures and other things caused or exacerbated by climate change.
___
Java, home to some 145 million people and the Indonesian capital Jakarta, is the most populated island in the world. Scientists say parts of the island will be entirely lost to the sea in the coming years.
Much has been written about the sinking capital, which is being moved partially due to destructive flooding. Other parts of the country with persistent flooding have received less attention.
Some 300 miles (500 kilometers) from Jakarta, entire villages along the Java Sea are submerged in murky brown water. Experts say rising seas and stronger tides as a result of climate change are some of the causes. Gradual sinking of the land and development are also to blame.
Mondoliko, where Asiyah is from, is one of those villages.
Asiyah smiles as she describes what Mondoliko was like when she was young: Lush green rice paddies, tall coconuts trees and red chili bushes grew around the some 200 homes people lived in. She and other children would play in the local soccer field, watching snakes glide through the grass while butterflies flew through the air.
“Everyone had land,” she says. “We were all able to grow and have what we needed.”
But around 10 years ago, the water came — sporadically and a few inches high at first. Within a few years it became a constant presence. Unable to grow in salt water, the crops and plants all died. With no land left as the water got higher, the insects and animals disappeared.
Asiyah says she and other villagers adapted the best they could: Farmers swapped their crops for fish ponds; people used dirt or concrete to raise the floors of their homes above the water. Net fences were put in yards to catch the trash the tide would bring in.
For seven years Asiyah, her husband Aslori, 42, and their two children lived with the floods, the water getting higher every year. But they noticed changes as well: Neighbors were leaving their homes behind in search of drier land. The call to prayer at the village mosque went quiet. Even new fish ponds became futile, the water rising so high that the fish would jump over the nets.
She remembers the day she decided they had to leave her lifelong home. Her father, who lived with them, had been battling bone cancer and prostate issues, and some days he was so frail he couldn’t stand. Her son was getting bigger and faced an increasingly difficult, waterlogged commute to school over 2 miles (about 3 kilometers) away.
“I was worried when the road flooded — how can we go about our daily lives?” she remembers wondering to herself. “The kids can’t go to school or play with their friends. … We can’t live like this.”
The flood water getting higher, she told her husband that it was time to leave.
Early one morning in the pouring rain, Asiyah and Aslori loaded what items they could into their boat: pictures of their wedding and family, documents and a big plastic bowl filled with cooking supplies. She left her house for a final time, making the trip 3 miles (almost 5 kilometers) away to Semarang, where she had found to rent an empty one-bedroom concrete apartment.
The first night in their new apartment Asiyah slept on the ground, trying to soothe her distraught son.
“I tried to make them understand that there was no other option. We can’t work and they can’t go to school if we stayed in Mondoliko,” she says. “It’s uninhabitable.”
Asiyah confesses that while she was comforting him, she wanted to go home, too. But even if she wanted to return, it would have been impossible — the road to the village had flooded.
Others from Mondoliko have abandoned their homes since then. When The Associated Press visited the village in November 2021, 11 homes were still occupied. By July 2022, that number dwindled to five, as the village continues to be swallowed by the sea.
Asiyah and her fellow villagers are just a few of the some 143 million people who are likely to be uprooted by rising seas, drought, searing temperatures and other climate catastrophes over the next 30 years, according to the U.N.’s Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change report published this year.
Some villagers in the region are still living in their flooded homes.
In Timbulsloko, some 2 miles (about 3 kilometers) from Asiyah’s village, homes have been fortified with raised floors and dirt walkways, causing people to crouch when walking through shortened doors. Some residents of the village have received aid from the local government, but many are still left without a dry place to sleep, afraid a strong tide in the middle of the night could wash them out to sea.
Adjusting to her new home has been an ongoing process, Asiyah says. Aslori still works as a fisherman close to their home and brings back whatever waterlogged items he can.
In early September, on a day when the tide was especially low, Asiyah went back to the old house for the first time since leaving. Months earlier she had cried when she had seen a photograph of her home on a neighborhood chat group, the bridge that once led to the house completely washed away.
But while in the house, she calmly sorted through old school books, saying her son’s name over and over as she carefully selected items like water bottles and a rusted gas canister to bring back to her new home.
Aware that the tide was soon to rise and that they could be stranded, Asiyah, Aslori and the other former villagers of Mondoliko who had come to gather items began the journey back to drier land.
“I miss my home,” she says. “I never imaged it would become ocean.”
___
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. | 2022-10-06T08:02:57+00:00 | keyt.com | https://keyt.com/news/2022/10/05/climate-migration-floods-displace-villagers-in-indonesia/ |
WFO HOUSTON/GALVESTON Warnings, Watches and Advisories for Monday, August 29, 2022
_____
AREAL FLOOD ADVISORY
Flood Advisory
National Weather Service Houston/Galveston TX
128 PM CDT Mon Aug 29 2022
...FLOOD ADVISORY IS CANCELLED...
The Flood Advisory is cancelled for a portion of southeast Texas,
including the following county, Fort Bend.
The heavy rain has ended. Flooding is no longer expected to pose a
threat. Please continue to heed remaining road closures.
...A strong thunderstorm will impact portions of south central
Hidalgo County through 215 PM CDT...
At 128 PM CDT, Doppler radar was tracking a strong thunderstorm 7
miles south of Santa Ana National Wildlife Refuge, or 13 miles
southeast of Hidalgo, moving north at 25 mph.
HAZARD...Winds in excess of 30 mph.
SOURCE...Radar indicated.
IMPACT...Gusty winds could knock down tree limbs and blow around
unsecured objects.
Locations impacted include...
Edinburg, Mission, Pharr, San Juan, Alamo, Hidalgo, Palmview,
Palmhurst, North McAllen and Sharyland.
PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS...
Frequent lightning is occurring with this storm. Lightning can
strike 10 miles away from a thunderstorm. Seek a safe shelter inside
a building or vehicle.
LAT...LON 2607 9808 2606 9808 2606 9813 2607 9813
2605 9815 2607 9818 2606 9820 2607 9825
2610 9829 2612 9827 2612 9830 2610 9830
2624 9839 2634 9810 2607 9803 2604 9804
2604 9807
TIME...MOT...LOC 1828Z 160DEG 20KT 2596 9812
MAX HAIL SIZE...0.00 IN
MAX WIND GUST...30 MPH
_____
Copyright 2022 AccuWeather | 2022-08-29T19:38:35+00:00 | lmtonline.com | https://www.lmtonline.com/weather/article/TX-WFO-HOUSTON-GALVESTON-Warnings-Watches-and-17405405.php |
Phillies first. Kyle Schwarber singles to right field. Rhys Hoskins walks. Kyle Schwarber to second. Alec Bohm homers to left field. Rhys Hoskins scores. Kyle Schwarber scores. J.T. Realmuto doubles to deep left center field. Nick Castellanos singles to left field. J.T. Realmuto to third. Bryson Stott strikes out on a foul tip. Nick Maton singles to right field. Nick Castellanos to second. J.T. Realmuto scores. Matt Vierling pops out to shallow infield to Pete Alonso. Bradley Zimmer strikes out swinging.
4 runs, 5 hits, 0 errors, 2 left on. Phillies 4, Mets 0.
Mets second. Daniel Vogelbach walks. Jeff McNeil pops out to shallow left field to Alec Bohm. Mark Canha reaches on a fielder's choice to third base. Daniel Vogelbach to second. Fielding error by Alec Bohm. Brett Baty reaches on a fielder's choice to first base. Mark Canha out at second. Daniel Vogelbach to third. Michael Perez singles to deep center field, advances to 2nd. Brett Baty scores. Daniel Vogelbach scores. Fielding error by Bradley Zimmer. Brandon Nimmo grounds out to second base, Nick Maton to Rhys Hoskins.
2 runs, 1 hit, 2 errors, 1 left on. Phillies 4, Mets 2.
Mets third. Starling Marte singles to right center field. Francisco Lindor singles to shallow left field. Starling Marte to second. Pete Alonso grounds out to shortstop. Francisco Lindor out at second. Starling Marte to third. Daniel Vogelbach doubles. Starling Marte scores. Jeff McNeil singles to center field. Daniel Vogelbach to third. Mark Canha reaches on a fielder's choice to shortstop. Jeff McNeil out at second.
1 run, 4 hits, 0 errors, 3 left on. Phillies 4, Mets 3.
Mets fourth. Brett Baty called out on strikes. Michael Perez walks. Brandon Nimmo walks. Michael Perez to second. Starling Marte singles to shallow center field. Brandon Nimmo to second. Michael Perez scores. Francisco Lindor pops out to shallow infield to Alec Bohm. Pete Alonso grounds out to shallow left field, Alec Bohm to Rhys Hoskins.
1 run, 1 hit, 0 errors, 2 left on. Mets 4, Phillies 4.
Phillies fourth. Bradley Zimmer singles to first base. Kyle Schwarber walks. Bradley Zimmer to second. Rhys Hoskins flies out to deep center field to Brandon Nimmo. Bradley Zimmer to third. Alec Bohm homers to right field. Kyle Schwarber scores. Bradley Zimmer scores. J.T. Realmuto strikes out swinging. Nick Castellanos strikes out swinging.
3 runs, 2 hits, 0 errors, 0 left on. Phillies 7, Mets 4.
Mets seventh. Pete Alonso singles to shallow center field. Daniel Vogelbach singles to center field. Pete Alonso to second. Jeff McNeil lines out to left center field to Bradley Zimmer. Mark Canha homers to left field. Tyler Naquin scores. Pete Alonso scores. Brett Baty grounds out to first base, Nick Maton to Rhys Hoskins. Michael Perez lines out to center field to Bradley Zimmer.
3 runs, 3 hits, 0 errors, 0 left on. Mets 7, Phillies 7.
Phillies eighth. Jean Segura pinch-hitting for Matt Vierling. Jean Segura homers to left field. Bradley Zimmer flies out to shallow center field to Francisco Lindor. Kyle Schwarber singles to deep right field. Rhys Hoskins pops out to Pete Alonso. Alec Bohm reaches on a fielder's choice to shortstop. Garrett Stubbs out at second.
1 run, 2 hits, 0 errors, 2 left on. Phillies 8, Mets 7.
Mets ninth. Jeff McNeil doubles. Mark Canha homers to left field. Jeff McNeil scores. Brett Baty strikes out swinging. Michael Perez called out on strikes. Brandon Nimmo homers to right field. Starling Marte doubles to deep left field. Francisco Lindor flies out to shallow left field to Bryson Stott.
3 runs, 4 hits, 0 errors, 1 left on. Mets 10, Phillies 8.
Phillies ninth. J.T. Realmuto singles to shallow center field. Nick Castellanos singles to right center field. J.T. Realmuto to second. Bryson Stott flies out to deep right center field to Starling Marte. J.T. Realmuto to third. Nick Maton out on a sacrifice fly to deep center field to Brandon Nimmo. J.T. Realmuto scores. Jean Segura walks. Nick Castellanos to second. Darick Hall pinch-hitting for Bradley Zimmer. Darick Hall called out on strikes.
1 run, 2 hits, 0 errors, 2 left on. Mets 10, Phillies 9. | 2022-08-21T23:30:10+00:00 | sfgate.com | https://www.sfgate.com/sports/article/N-Y-Mets-Philadelphia-Runs-17388408.php |
Takeaways from President Biden's State of the Union speech. Recovery efforts continue in Turkey and Syria following Monday's massive earthquake. And, LeBron James breaks the NBA career scoring record.
Copyright 2023 NPR
Takeaways from President Biden's State of the Union speech. Recovery efforts continue in Turkey and Syria following Monday's massive earthquake. And, LeBron James breaks the NBA career scoring record.
Copyright 2023 NPR | 2023-02-08T11:04:32+00:00 | mtpr.org | https://www.mtpr.org/2023-02-08/morning-news-brief |
In northeast Washington state, a remote region nestled against the Canadian border, the politics lean conservative and wariness of government runs high.
Earlier this year, a Republican-led county commission there made a decision that rippled across Washington — triggering alarm at the secretary of state's office, and now among cybersecurity experts who have worked for the past six years to shore up the security of America's voting systems.
It happened on Valentine's Day during the regular weekly meeting of the three-member commission in Ferry County, where Donald Trump received more than 63% of the vote in the 2020 election.
After an agenda that included an update on the county fair and a discussion about a local water and sewer district, the commissioners took up a proposal to disconnect a recently installed cybersecurity device from the county's computer network.
The device, known as an Albert sensor, was designed to alert local governments to potential hacking attempts against their networks. More than 900 Albert sensors have been deployed across the country, primarily to states and counties, and they have been a key component of the federal government's cybersecurity response following Russian election interference around the 2016 election.
But the commissioners in Ferry County had come to the conclusion that the sensor, which had been provided by the state at no cost, was more of a liability than an asset.
"Let's get rid of it," Commissioner Nathan Davis said before making his motion to remove the device.
The vote in support of the motion was unanimous.
"Bye bye, Albert sensor," one of the commissioners quipped.
Another county in Washington state also disconnected its sensor, and a third decided not to install one. It's an isolated trend in Washington at this point, but one that represents a stark example of how Republican mistrust in elections and government systems more broadly threatens to dismantle bipartisan progress made over the past decade to improve election security.
During the Ferry County meeting, Commissioner Davis quoted from a memo that circulated among Washington state Republicans. That memo, which NPR and the Northwest News Network obtained, raised a number of concerns about Albert sensors and also seemed to allude to the program being part of a left-wing conspiracy.
"Decisions are being made that are hurting the overall security of elections based on lies and untruths," said Matt Masterson, who led election security efforts leading up to 2020 within the Department of Homeland Security's Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA). "It is entirely healthy and appropriate for citizens and elected officials to ask questions about the nature of the technology they use. ... But those conversations have to be based in fact."
An early-warning system
Named after Albert Einstein, the Albert sensor is what's called an "intrusion detection" device that looks out for known bad actors, or malicious IP addresses, on the network it's connected to. When a match is detected, a notification is sent to an around-the-clock security operations center located near Albany, N.Y. There, analysts review the traffic and, if the threat is deemed credible, send an immediate alert to that government warning of a potential hacking attempt.
The program is operated by the Center for Internet Security (CIS), which was founded in 2000 to address emerging cyber threats. While CIS is a nonprofit, it receives federal funding and works closely with CISA, the DHS cybersecurity agency.
The Albert monitoring program first began in 2011 but was ramped up after the 2016 election, following the Russian hacking attempts on a number of different state and local government systems that happened around that time.
It took months for the federal government to notify and distribute information to the relevant local government officials after those attacks.
"There was zero information-sharing going on in the elections realm with relation to cybersecurity until 2016," said Masterson, who added that Albert sensors were a key piece in addressing that problem.
Not only do Albert sensors help individual counties understand the threats they face, they provide a clearer national picture of what's happening online in all the different localities that administer elections in the U.S.
Because of that, Masterson says a county pulling out of the program also hurts that national visibility.
"The less participation, the less broad deployment of Albert sensors — or frankly, to take it out one step further, the less information being shared broadly across the community, the less secure our elections are," he said.
The Albert sensor in Washington's Ferry County was one of hundreds installed on the networks of state and local governments in the runup to the 2020 election.
While voting equipment is not connected to the internet, hackers could still wreak havoc on an election by breaking into a county's network. Once inside, they could freeze or alter websites, affect registration infrastructure, or do other things to harm public confidence in elections.
It's happened before. For example, in October 2020, just before the general election, a ransomware attack on Hall County, Ga., temporarily took down election-related systems, including a voter signature database.
"Hall County was in a precarious spot and you don't want to be in a precarious spot," said David Levine, a former election official who's now with the nonpartisan Alliance For Securing Democracy.
In an average month, CIS says it investigates more than 25,000 Albert sensor alerts.
"The analogy that I often use here is that we don't ask the county sheriff to be responsible for repelling military invasions, but that is really the equivalent of what they're up against on the internet," said Matt Blaze, a cybersecurity expert at Georgetown University who is not associated with the Albert program or CIS.
But in some Republican parts of Washington, the sensor came to be seen not as an insurance policy against hackers, but as a device that should be viewed with suspicion — a form of "big brother" watching over everything on a county's network.
'Didn't do a damn thing'
Directly south of Ferry County is Lincoln County, a deeply conservative wheat farming community.
In late 2021, Lincoln County commissioners terminated their agreement for an Albert sensor, just 13 months after it was signed, deciding the device was more of a liability than a safeguard. Their skepticism was rooted in the fact that shortly after the sensor was installed, the county fell victim to a crippling ransomware attack.
"This Albert sensor didn't do a damn thing about it," said Lincoln County Commissioner Rob Coffman, a Republican. "It didn't function as it was advertised."
CIS said that while Albert sensors can detect ransomware attacks, they're not foolproof because the program only recognizes known hostile addresses in a rapidly shifting threat landscape.
Blaze, of Georgetown University, said the ransomware attack should've been further evidence for the county that the Albert sensor was a good thing to have.
"The fact that state and local networks are often victimized by this type of attack is an example why you need defenses like this," Blaze said.
After the ransomware attack, Lincoln County beefed up its cybersecurity protections, but Coffman also began doing research about the Albert sensor. He said he learned that his county's information technology director had been wary of installing the device, but felt pressure from the state to do so. Coffman said he also talked to the IT director in neighboring Grant County, who had declined to install an Albert sensor out of concern that it could be a point of weakness for his network.
CIS responded that it has specific recommendations about how to deploy an Albert sensor on a network to allay those concerns.
Suspicion catches on
As part of his research, Coffman said he also started looking into CIS and learned that in 2018 the organization briefly partnered with another nonprofit that the conservative website Influence Watch said was connected with "left-leaning social welfare" groups.
It was enough to add fuel to a brewing conspiracy.
Coffman said he shared his findings with members of the Lincoln County Republican Party. Months later, in February 2022, the county GOP chair, Mary Blechschmidt, issued a two-page memo about Albert sensors to her fellow county Republican chairs.
In her memo, Blechschmidt wrote: "I continue to press on this issue because it is hard to imagine why a county would allow a non-profit organization such as this, access to the proprietary data on its network, 24/7 across the internet."
In an interview, Blechschmidt, who said she believes the 2020 election was stolen from Trump, rejected the suggestion that she was spreading misinformation about Albert sensors.
"We're trying to keep outside influences out of our data and we took the time to research it and determined that we don't want it and we don't need it," Blechschmidt said of the Albert sensor.
Also in the memo, Blechschmidt tried to tie CIS to the left by, among other things, citing a CIS co-founder's stints in the Clinton and Obama administrations. But the Albert sensor program was significantly ramped up under the Trump administration.
"We've had a long track record of being nonpartisan and trusted by states and counties all over the country," said Jason Forget, a CIS spokesperson.
Thirteen days after Blechschmidt issued her memo on the Albert sensors, the Ferry County commission voted to remove theirs.
During their discussion, Ferry's commissioners referenced Lincoln County's ransomware event. Davis, the commissioner who led the effort, also voiced concern about what the Albert sensor was capturing and where the county's data was going.
"It's scanning everything we do on our network and it sends it to a third party," Davis said.
Asked to address this concern, Geoff Hale, who leads the election security initiative for CISA, said Albert sensors passively monitor for potential trouble and don't have unfettered access to a client's data.
"It's almost like seeing a license plate to a car," Hale said. "And so this sensor is looking at all the traffic that passes. And if one of those license plates, one of those signatures, matches up to known bad infrastructure, it sends you an alert."
A 'misinformation campaign'
Word of Ferry County's decision to remove its Albert sensor soon reached Secretary of State Steve Hobbs, a Democrat, in Olympia, Wash.
"Immediately it occurred to me this was the start of, perhaps, a misinformation campaign directed at the Albert sensor and I was quite concerned about it," he said.
The secretary of state's office quickly convened a virtual meeting about the Albert sensor program and invited county officials from across the state to attend. Among the speakers at the February meeting was former Washington Secretary of State Kim Wyman, a Republican who spearheaded the deployment of Albert sensors in the state after the 2016 election. Wyman was appointed to oversee election security efforts for the Biden administration in 2021.
"The Albert sensor program is really a way for us to have one more layer of security and information that we can use to combat people who would do our system harm," Wyman told the counties.
The presentation ended with Hobbs making a direct appeal to skeptical county officials.
"If you do not have an Albert sensor, get the Albert sensor. If you have removed the Albert sensor or are thinking about removing the Albert sensor, please reconsider," Hobbs said.
That plea was not compelling to Ferry County Commissioner Davis, who has a background in IT. He said in an interview that he still has questions about how Albert sensors work, but did not have the time right now to continue researching them.
Davis also said he finds it odd that anyone cares whether his little county, with barely more than 7,000 people, has one or not.
"Why the hard push?" Davis asked. "What are the true motivations to push so hard on something that really doesn't do a lot?"
Davis said he's open to reinstalling the Albert sensor in the future, but would need to have more information before he's willing to do so.
CIS said the counties in Washington are the only ones to disconnect from the Albert program, and Hobbs said he thinks by responding quickly the state succeeded in stopping false narratives about the sensors from spreading.
Nationwide, Albert sensors still seem to have basically unanimous support. Ohio Secretary of State Frank LaRose, a Trump-endorsed Republican, mentioned them during a congressional hearing this summer.
"If you don't have [Albert sensors] at your county boards of elections you should do that," LaRose said. "So that way if something goes wrong on a Saturday night or Sunday morning, you can know about it before everyone comes back to work on Monday and you can mitigate the problem right then and there."
The vast majority of Washington's 39 counties have also embraced the program. In a series of interviews, county auditors, both Democrats and Republicans from small and big counties, praised the program and said they feel better knowing their county has an Albert sensor.
"We put it on and it's been working great," said Charles Ross, the Republican auditor in south central Washington's Yakima County. "It hasn't caused any problems."
Julie Wise, the nonpartisan director of elections in King County, the state's most populous, said the Albert sensor is "another data point" to help keep elections secure. She called efforts to undermine the Albert program part of a concerning pattern.
"This appears to be just another iteration of misinformation to discredit elections, like we've seen with ballot drop boxes, vote by mail and now it's Albert sensors," Wise said.
Copyright 2022 NPR. To see more, visit https://www.npr.org. | 2022-08-29T21:46:02+00:00 | upr.org | https://www.upr.org/npr-news/npr-news/2022-08-28/some-republicans-in-washington-state-cast-a-wary-eye-on-an-election-security-device |
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