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American mother, daughter kidnapped in Haiti: 'Do not travel' advisory issued
A woman from New Hampshire who works for a nonprofit organization in Haiti and her young daughter have been reported as kidnapped as the U.S. State Department issued a "do not travel advisory" in the country and ordered nonemergency personnel to leave there amid growing security concerns.
Alix Dorsainvil, a nurse for El Roi Haiti, and her daughter were kidnapped on Thursday, the organization said in a statement Saturday. El Roi, which runs a school and ministry in Port au Prince, said the two were taken from campus. Dorsainvil is the wife of the program's director, Sandro Dorsainvil.
"Alix is a deeply compassionate and loving person who considers Haiti her home and the Haitian people her friends and family," El Roi president and co-founder Jason Brown said in the statement. "Alix has worked tirelessly as our school and community nurse to bring relief to those who are suffering as she loves and serves the people of Haiti in the name of Jesus."
A State Department spokesperson said in a statement Saturday is it "aware of reports of the kidnapping of two U.S. citizens in Haiti," adding, "We are in regular contact with Haitian authorities and will continue to work with them and our U.S. government interagency partners."
People walk past a street market in Port-au-Prince on June 28, 2023. (Photo by RICHARD PIERRIN/AFP via Getty Images)
In its advisory Thursday, the department said that "kidnapping is widespread, and victims regularly include U.S. citizens."
It said kidnappings often involve ransom negotiations and U.S. citizen victims have been physically harmed.
READ MORE: Survivors of deadly Mexico kidnapping returned to US
Earlier this month, the National Human Rights Defense Network issued a report warning about an upsurge in killings and kidnappings and the U.N. Security Council met to discuss Haiti's worsening situation.
WMUR-TV reported that Dorsainvil is from Middleton, New Hampshire, and went to Regis College in Weston, Massachusetts, which has a program to support nursing education in Haiti.
"It doesn’t surprise me that Alex chose to get involved in this type of service work," Regis College president Toni Hays told the station. "She was amazing. She was passionate, she was compassionate." | https://www.fox13seattle.com/news/american-mother-daughter-kidnapped-haiti-do-not-travel-advisory-issued | 2023-07-30T21:58:58 | 1 | https://www.fox13seattle.com/news/american-mother-daughter-kidnapped-haiti-do-not-travel-advisory-issued |
Judge blocks Arkansas law allowing librarians to be charged over ‘harmful’ materials
Arkansas is temporarily blocked from enforcing a law that would have allowed criminal charges against librarians and booksellers for providing "harmful" materials to minors, a federal judge ruled Saturday.
U.S. District Judge Timothy L. Brooks issued a preliminary injunction against the law, which also would have created a new process to challenge library materials and request that they be relocated to areas not accessible by kids. The measure, signed by Republican Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders earlier this year, was set to take effect Aug. 1.
READ MORE: Library association releases report on record book ban attempts in 2022
A coalition that included the Central Arkansas Library System in Little Rock had challenged the law, saying fear of prosecution under the measure could prompt libraries and booksellers to no longer carry titles that could be challenged.
The judge also rejected a motion by the defendants, which include prosecuting attorneys for the state, seeking to dismiss the case.
The ACLU of Arkansas, which represents some of the plaintiffs, applauded the court's ruling, saying that the absence of a preliminary injunction would have jeopardized First Amendment rights.
"The question we had to ask was — do Arkansans still legally have access to reading materials? Luckily, the judicial system has once again defended our highly valued liberties," Holly Dickson, the executive director of the ACLU in Arkansas, said in a statement.
(Photo by JHU Sheridan Libraries/Gado/Getty Images).
The lawsuit comes as lawmakers in an increasing number of conservative states are pushing for measures making it easier to ban or restrict access to books. The number of attempts to ban or restrict books across the U.S. last year was the highest in the 20 years the American Library Association has been tracking such efforts.
Laws restricting access to certain materials or making it easier to challenge them have been enacted in several other states, including Iowa, Indiana and Texas.
Arkansas Attorney General Tim Griffin said in an email Saturday that his office would be "reviewing the judge’s opinion and will continue to vigorously defend the law."
RELATED: The best books of 2022, according to Goodreads Choice Awards
The executive director of Central Arkansas Library System, Nate Coulter, said the judge's 49-page decision recognized the law as censorship, a violation of the Constitution and wrongly maligning librarians.
"As folks in southwest Arkansas say, this order is stout as horseradish!" he said in an email.
"I’m relieved that for now the dark cloud that was hanging over CALS’ librarians has lifted," he added.
Cheryl Davis, general counsel for the Authors Guild, said the organization is "thrilled" about the decision. She said enforcing this law "is likely to limit the free speech rights of older minors, who are capable of reading and processing more complex reading materials than young children can."
The Arkansas lawsuit names the state’s 28 local prosecutors as defendants, along with Crawford County in west Arkansas. A separate lawsuit is challenging the Crawford County library’s decision to move children’s books that included LGBTQ+ themes to a separate portion of the library.
The plaintiffs challenging Arkansas’ restrictions also include the Fayetteville and Eureka Springs Carnegie public libraries, the American Booksellers Association and the Association of American Publishers. | https://www.fox13seattle.com/news/arkansas-law-librarians-charged-harmful-material-blocked-judge | 2023-07-30T21:58:59 | 1 | https://www.fox13seattle.com/news/arkansas-law-librarians-charged-harmful-material-blocked-judge |
August skygazing forecast: Month features 2 Supermoons and Perseid Meteor Shower
With two Supermoons and the Perseid Meteor Shower on tap, August 2023 will be an excellent month for sky gazing.
During the coast-to-coast heat wave in the U.S., the best time of day to enjoy the outdoors might be at night, which makes stargazing the perfect activity to get some fresh air. Unless you live in Phoenix, where the overnight lows stay in the 90s.
Just don't forget the bug spray before you step out for a night staring at the stars.
Aug. 1: Full Sturgeon Supermoon
The Sturgeon full moon rises above buildings in the Jornanian capital Amman, on August 11, 2022. (Photo by YASSER AL-ZAYYAT/AFP via Getty Images)
There is no wait for the first full Moon of August. It happens Aug. 1 and is also the second Supermoon of the year.
A Supermoon is considered "super" because the Moon will be closest to Earth during this part of its orbit. The effect of the full Moon and the close orbit will make it appear larger and brighter, but only by about 8%, according to the Old Farmer's Almanac.
The August Supermoon is known as the Sturgeon Moon. It's named after the sturgeon fish, which can be more available to anglers in the Great Lakes during the summer months.
Full Sturgeon Supermoon cloud cover forecast for Aug.1. (FOX Weather)
WATCH OUT FOR THESE ASTRONOMICAL EVENTS IN 2023
The first full Moon of August will be at its fullest at 2:31 p.m. EDT; because of that timing, North America will need to wait for sunset to see the bright full Moon.
Aug. 30: Blue Moon
Thirty days later, the next Supermoon will rise. On Aug. 30, the Blue Supermoon will be at its fullest at 9:36 p.m. EDT.
According to NASA, a Blue Moon refers not to its color but to any month with two full moons in the 29.5-day lunar cycle. A Blue Moon happens about once every three years, and the next time we'll have two full moons in a month happens in 2026.
This will be the brightest Supermoon of the year, according to the Old Farmer's Almanac.
Aug. 15: Perseid Meteor Shower
A picture taken on August 13, 2021 shows the Perseid meteor shower over the White Desert north of the Farafra Oasis in the New Valley Governorate. Photo: Gehad Hamdy/dpa (Photo by Gehad Hamdy/picture alliance via Getty Images)
One of the best meteor showers of the year returns with peak activity in August, making for the perfect end to the summer.
The Perseid meteors are pieces of the comet Swift-Tuttle. When Earth passes the comet each summer, debris from Swift-Tuttle creates the shooting stars seen in the sky.
Last year, there was a full moon during the best nights to view the Perseids. A dark sky is helpful when trying to spot shooting stars. The most active time for the Perseid Meteor Shower happens between Aug. 11 and 13. As the peak happens right before a new moon this year, it will be good to try and watch out for the Perseids. | https://www.fox13seattle.com/news/august-skygazing-forecast-supermoons-perseid-meteor-shower | 2023-07-30T21:59:05 | 1 | https://www.fox13seattle.com/news/august-skygazing-forecast-supermoons-perseid-meteor-shower |
Entertainment companies hiring AI specialists amid Hollywood strike
Concerns about the potential impact of artificial intelligence (AI) on the entertainment industry have played a significant role in the ongoing Hollywood strike by actors and writers. That hasn’t stopped companies with studios from staffing up with AI specialists.
While the strike by actors and writers reflects a broader set of concerns beyond the impact of AI on the entertainment industry, including pay and benefits, the threat posed by the emerging and increasingly sophisticated technology has raised alarm.
Actors have expressed fears about AI being used to replicate an actor’s image and likeness without the actor’s consent, while writers have pushed for limits on the use of AI to write or rewrite scripts.
At a rally in Times Square hosted by SAG-AFTRA this week, actor Bryan Cranston delivered remarks aimed at Disney CEO Bob Iger.
NETFLIX IN SWEET SPOT DESPITE HOLLYWOOD STRIKE
"We will not be having our jobs taken away and given to robots. … We will not have you take away our right to work and earn a decent living," Cranston said. "And, lastly and most importantly, we will not allow you to take away our dignity."
Despite concerns raised by the actors and writers on strike, the seemingly inexorable rise of AI and the need to stay on the cutting edge of emerging technology has resulted in entertainment studios continuing to seek out AI specialists against the backdrop of labor unrest. Several studios have active listings for AI and machine learning roles that have garnered attention amid the strike.
WHAT IS ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE (AI)?
Netflix has several job postings related to AI and machine learning on its website, including a product manager role first noticed by The Intercept that lists a pay range of $300,000 to $900,000 annually.
The listing states that the product manager would "define the strategic vision" for Netflix’s machine learning platform and work to "increase the leverage" of that platform across the company.
One notable AI and machine learning listing from Disney’s careers website is for a senior vice president role related to postproduction and innovation for Disney Branded Television, which produces content for children and families.
The posting for the role, which offers a salary between $270,500 to $371,900, seeks applicants who can "champion the constant evolution of our tools and processes across all aspects of the development pipelines. Be on the leading edge of technology developments, like Artificial Intelligence, and work to deliver solutions to improve processes like speed-to-market, content quality, efficiency and cost."
A job posting at Sony spotted by The Hollywood Reporter seeks a senior research scientist and manager who specializes in AI ethics, specifically how they relate to fairness, transparency and accountability.
The role, which lists a salary range of $170,000 to $210,000, would help manage a multinational team of research scientists based in the U.S., Japan and Switzerland that executes "ambitious AI projects." The AI ethics manager would also "provide advice and consultation for business units on AI ethics, managing cross-functional stakeholder relationships."
Read more of this story from FOX Business. | https://www.fox13seattle.com/news/entertainment-companies-hiring-ai-specialists-amid-hollywood-strike | 2023-07-30T21:59:12 | 0 | https://www.fox13seattle.com/news/entertainment-companies-hiring-ai-specialists-amid-hollywood-strike |
Florida women arrested after fight in which woman's ear was bitten off
Two women were arrested in connection with a July 4 fight that resulted in one of them biting part of the other's ear off, Florida authorities said.
Dixie Stiles, 18, was charged with battery – touch or strike – and Macy Regan, 23, has been charged with felony battery causing bodily harm, the Bay County Sheriff's Office said Thursday.
Deputies encountered the pair when they responded to an assault and battery call at 6530 Olokee St. in Callaway. An investigation revealed there was an unsupervised house party being thrown at nearby 6526 Olokee St. by minors, authorities said.
Just after midnight, a fight happened involving several men in a yard at the 6526 residence.
WOMAN'S REMAINS FOUND NEAR FLORIDA COAST IN 3 SUITCASES AT DIFFERENT LOCATIONS
Regan was trying to leave to walk to her home at the 6530 address when she was confronted by Stiles, who accused her of stealing alcohol and vape pens, deputies said.
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At some point, Regan allegedly pulled out a 9mm handgun from her waistband. Stiles shoved the firearm away and a fight ensued.
During the fight, Regan bit off the top of Stiles' ear, authorities said.
The ear was unable to be reattached. Multiple bruises and lacerations were also inflicted during the fight, the sheriff's office said. | https://www.fox13seattle.com/news/florida-women-fight-womans-ear-bitten-off | 2023-07-30T21:59:18 | 1 | https://www.fox13seattle.com/news/florida-women-fight-womans-ear-bitten-off |
Frontier launches monthly all-you-can-fly pass, but there's a catch
Frontier Airlines has launched a monthly all-you-can-fly-pass for $149, but there’s a catch.
According to the airline, the new monthly pass is a spinoff of the GoWild! All-You-Can-Fly Fall and Winter Pass, which allows unlimited travel from Sept. 2, 2023 - Feb. 29, 2024 for $299.
A Frontier Airlines plane lands at the McCarran International Airport in Las Vegas on Feb. 27, 2020. (Elizabeth Page Brumley/Las Vegas Review-Journal/Tribune News Service via Getty Images)
Passholders can book as many flights as they want in 30 days with the monthly pass, with access to more than 85 U.S. and international destinations. But there are black-out periods and other restrictions: for both passes, you can only book domestic travel 24 hours in advance. International flights can be booked 10 days before departure.
"[It’s] a great option for those who want to ‘test the waters’ and give the pass a try," said Tyri Squyres, vice president of marketing, Frontier Airlines, in a prepared statement. "It’s also a great option for people who know they want to travel within a given month and have flight scheduling flexibility. Scores of consumers are using and enjoying the GoWild! Pass to travel affordably and see amazing new destinations or visit family and friends."
READ MORE: Americans traveling to Europe will need 'visas' starting in 2024
Previous reports have detailed the pros and cons of buying the Frontier unlimited passes. Some customers have complained about not being able to book flights when they want to go somewhere, while others have united on social media to make the best of the pass they already purchased.
A Frontier spokesperson told NBC the passes are meant for "people with almost unlimited freedom, like retirees, remote workers and college students on summer break." | https://www.fox13seattle.com/news/frontier-monthly-go-wild-all-you-can-fly-pass | 2023-07-30T21:59:24 | 0 | https://www.fox13seattle.com/news/frontier-monthly-go-wild-all-you-can-fly-pass |
'King Otis' fans rejoice: Famed brown bear returns to Alaska live cam
One of Alaska’s most famous brown bears had his fans worried this year, but the celebrity King Otis has returned to Katmai National Park, albeit fashionably late.
Otis, or Bear 480, is one of the most popular bears to watch on Explore.org’s live bear cam, which shows real-time footage of Katmai’s brown bears hunting for salmon in the Brooks River from June - September.
Brown bears fishing for salmon at Brooks Falls on September 16, 2018 in Katmai National Park, Alaska. (Photo by Ronald C. Modra/Getty Images)
The park is home to about 2,200 brown bears – more than the human population on the Alaska Peninsula, according to the National Park Service.
At nearly 30 years old, Otis has become a legend of the annual salmon hunt. But his fans around the globe grew concerned as they watched the cams in June and didn’t see their beloved chunky bear.
That changed this week. On Wednesday, July 26, Explore.org shared on Twitter that Otis had returned.
"At his preferred fishing spots, Otis waits for salmon to come to him," Explore.org explains. "He once ate 42 salmon in a sitting by using this strategy. Despite the difficulties and rigors of old age, Otis uses his adaptability, skill, and patience to find success."
Park officials said there’s a reason for Otis’s tardiness this year: the salmon were late, too.
"What we’ve been seeing in Alaska is that the salmon run has been trending later into July, which means for bears like Otis waiting longer to eat that salmon," Candice Rusch, a spokesperson with Explore.org, told The Washington Post.
Otis is perhaps best known for his multiple championship titles for Fat Bear Week – the annual October March-madness style bracket that lets the public decide which bear they think is the fattest and most ready for winter hibernation.
Otis is a four-time winner of the competition, which takes place in October. Details of this year’s Fat Bear Week have not yet been announced. | https://www.fox13seattle.com/news/king-otis-fans-rejoice-famed-brown-bear-returns-alaska-live-cam | 2023-07-30T21:59:30 | 1 | https://www.fox13seattle.com/news/king-otis-fans-rejoice-famed-brown-bear-returns-alaska-live-cam |
Governor orders flags to fly at half-staff in tribute to fallen Newberry officer
COLUMBIA, S.C. (WIS) - Governor Henry McMaster has ordered flags at the State Capitol to be lowered to half-staff from sunrise until sunset on Monday in tribute to Lieutenant Michael Wood, Jr.
Wood, 48, died after his unmarked patrol car collided with a tractor-trailer on Wednesday night while he was on duty.
The crash happened along S.C. Highway 395 in Newberry around 5:30 p.m. at the intersection of Nance Street and Dixie Drive.
In 2003, Wood began his career at the Newberry Police Department. He was promoted to Corporal in 2006, Sergeant in 2008 and Lieutenant in 2017.
Wood will be honored at Wiles Chapel on the campus of Newberry College at 10 a.m. Monday, July 31.
On Sunday, the family received friends for a private viewing at McSwain-Evans Funeral Home.
The Governor orders that all flags on state buildings be lowered to half-staff from sunrise until sunset on Monday, July 31, 2023, in tribute to Lieutenant Michael Charles Wood, Jr. of the Newberry Police Department. pic.twitter.com/mqUz5rlP20
— SC Governor Press (@scgovernorpress) July 30, 2023
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Copyright 2023 WIS. All rights reserved. | https://www.wistv.com/2023/07/30/governor-orders-flags-fly-half-staff-tribute-fallen-newberry-officer/ | 2023-07-30T21:59:30 | 0 | https://www.wistv.com/2023/07/30/governor-orders-flags-fly-half-staff-tribute-fallen-newberry-officer/ |
Pakistan bombing kills at least 44 people and injures nearly 200
KHAR, Pakistan (AP) - A suicide bomber blew himself up at a political rally in a former stronghold of militants in northwest Pakistan bordering Afghanistan on Sunday, killing at least 44 people and wounding nearly 200 in an attack that a senior leader said was meant to weaken Pakistani Islamists.
The Bajur district near the Afghan border was a stronghold of the Pakistani Taliban — a close ally of Afghanistan’s Taliban government — before the Pakistani army drove the militants out of the area. Supporters of hardline Pakistani cleric and political party leader Maulana Fazlur Rehman, whose Jamiat Ulema Islam generally supports regional Islamists, were meeting in Bajur in a hall close to a market outside the district capital. Party officials said Rehman was not at the rally but organizers added tents because so many supporters showed up, and party volunteers with batons were helping control the crowd.
Officials were announcing the arrival of Abdul Rasheed, a leader of the Jamiat Ulema Islam party, when the bomb went off in one of Pakistan’s bloodiest attacks in recent years.
Image depicts graphic content] Rescue team help wounded people at scene after a suicide bombing at a public rally in northwestern Pakistan, Bajaur, Khar on July 30, 2023. In an apparent suicide bombing, at least 40 people were killed and hundreds inj
Provincial police said in a statement that the attack was carried out by a suicide bomber who detonated his explosives vest close to the stage where several senior leaders of the party were sitting. It said initial investigations suggested the Islamic State group — which operates in Afghanistan and is an enemy of the Afghan Taliban — could be behind the attack, and officers were still investigating.
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"There was dust and smoke around, and I was under some injured people from where I could hardly stand up, only to see chaos and some scattered limbs," said Adam Khan, 45, who was knocked to the ground by the blast around 4 p.m. and hit by splinters in his leg and both hands.
The Pakistan Taliban, or TTP, said in a statement sent to The Associated Press that the bombing was aimed at setting Islamists against each other. Zabiullah Mujahid, a spokesman for the Afghan Taliban, said on the social media platform X, formerly known as Twitter, that "such crimes cannot be justified in any way."
Image depicts graphic content] An ambulance after a suicide bombing at a public rally in northwestern Pakistan, Bajaur, Khar on July 30, 2023. In an apparent suicide bombing, at least 40 people were killed and hundreds injured ahead of a public rally
The Afghan Taliban’s seizure of power in Afghanistan in mid-August 2021 emboldened the TTP. They unilaterally ended a cease-fire agreement with the Pakistani government in November, and have stepped up attacks across the country.
The bombing came hours before the arrival of Chinese Vice Premier He Lifeng in Islamabad, where he was to participate in an event to mark a decade of the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor, or CPEC, a sprawling package under which Beijing has invested billions of dollars in Pakistan.
In recent months, China has helped Pakistan avoid a default on sovereign payments. However, some Chinese nationals have also been targeted by militants in northwestern Pakistan and elsewhere.
Feroz Jamal, the provincial information minister, told The Associated Press that so far 44 people had been "martyred" and nearly 200 wounded in the bombing.
The bombing was one of the four worst attacks in the northwest since 2014, when 147 people, mostly schoolchildren, were killed in a Taliban attack on an army-run school in Peshawar. In January, 74 people were killed in a bombing at a mosque in Peshawar. n February, more than 100 people, mostly policemen, died in a bombing at a mosque inside a high-security compound housing Peshawar police headquarters.
RELATED: 10 years after the Boston Marathon bombings: A timeline of events
Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and President Arif Alvi condemned the attack and asked officials to provide all possible assistance to the wounded and the bereaved families. Sharif later, in a phone call to Rehman, the head of the JUI, conveyed his condolences to him and assured him that those who orchestrated the attack would be punished.
The U.S. Embassy in Islamabad also condemned the attack. In a post on social media platform X, formerly known as Twitter, it expressed its condolences to the families and loved ones of the victims killed in the attack..
Maulana Ziaullah, the local chief of Rehman’s party, was among the dead. JUI leaders Rasheed and former lawmaker Maulana Jamaluddin were also on the stage but escaped unhurt.
Rasheed, the regional chief of the party, said the attack was an attempt to remove JUI from the field before parliamentary elections in November, but he said such tactics would not work. The bombing drew nationwide condemnation, with the ruling and opposition parties extending condolences to the families of those who died in the attack.
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Rehman is considered to be a pro-Taliban cleric and his political party is part of the coalition government in Islamabad. Meetings are being organized across the country to mobilize supporters for the upcoming elections.
"Many of our fellows lost their lives and many more wounded in this incident. I will ask the federal and provincial administrations to fully investigate this incident and provide due compensation and medical facilities to the affected ones," Rasheed said.
Mohammad Wali, another attendant at the rally, said he was listening to a speaker address the crowd when the huge explosion temporarily deafened him.
"I was near the water dispenser to fetch a glass of water when the bomb exploded, throwing me to the ground," he said. "We came to the meeting with enthusiasm but ended up at the hospital seeing crying, wounded people and sobbing relatives taking the bodies of their loved ones."
Riaz Khan reported from Peshawar. Associated Press writer Munir Ahmad contributed from Islamabad. | https://www.fox13seattle.com/news/pakistan-bombing-kills-at-least-44-people-and-injures-nearly-200 | 2023-07-30T21:59:36 | 1 | https://www.fox13seattle.com/news/pakistan-bombing-kills-at-least-44-people-and-injures-nearly-200 |
Police: Murder suspect lived with dead roommate for 'extended period of time'
LAS VEGAS - A Nevada man is accused of killing his roommate and living with her deceased body for an extended period of time.
The Las Vegas Metropolitan Police said 31-year-old George Anthony Bone was arrested and booked on a murder charge.
Officers said on July 26, they responded to a home after getting a report that a deceased woman was inside.
Police said her death appeared to be suspicious and classified her death as a homicide but provided no other details about the circumstances.
According to FOX 5 Vegas, the victim has been identified as Beverly Ma. The outlet reported that the Ma's sister reached out to authorities to conduct a welfare check.
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She also told the outlet that her sister had been dead inside the master bedroom closet for two months.
The family also said Ma suffered trauma and was not close to the family. They last saw here in April and had supposedly received subsequent texts from Ma's phone saying she couldn't make a family trip. The family texted her again but didn't get a response.
FOX 5 also reported that recently, the family went to go check on Ma, but Bone had told them she was dead. Bone also told the family that he didn't call the police because he knew he would be arrested.
The outlet also reported that when one of Ma's relative went to go check on her, Bone reportedly said, "Why do you have to see? If you want to see, I can show her to you," then led her to the master bedroom.
This story was reported from Los Angeles. | https://www.fox13seattle.com/news/police-murder-suspect-lived-with-dead-roommate-for-extended-period-of-time | 2023-07-30T21:59:42 | 0 | https://www.fox13seattle.com/news/police-murder-suspect-lived-with-dead-roommate-for-extended-period-of-time |
Prove your love for Subway; win free sandwiches for life by changing your name
ATLANTA - Subway is giving away free sandwiches for life to one lucky sandwich lover.
But, there's a catch. You have to legally change your name to Subway.
The sandwich chain says it will reimburse the winner for the cost of the name change. The company will also fit that person $50,000 in Subway gift cards to be used over the winner's lifetime.
This isn't the first time they've had such a contest. Last year, they gave a man named James Kunz free Subway for life after he got a foot-long tattoo of the Subway Series logo on his upper back. 8 other people who got smaller Subway tattoos received free sandwiches for a year.
You can check out the rules and enter when the contest opens Tuesday. Click here for more information. | https://www.fox13seattle.com/news/prove-your-love-for-subway-win-free-sandwiches-for-life-by-changing-your-name | 2023-07-30T21:59:48 | 0 | https://www.fox13seattle.com/news/prove-your-love-for-subway-win-free-sandwiches-for-life-by-changing-your-name |
Remarkable fossil shows dinosaur, mammal forever frozen in epic battle
Dinosaurs roamed the Earth hundreds of millions of years ago and were among the most feared creatures on the planet. But the discovery of a remarkable fossil in China suggests smaller mammals may have been brave enough to hunt them for dinner – and were successful.
The 125 million-year-old fossil was discovered in the Lujiatun Member of the Lower Cretaceous Yixian formation in China back in 2012 and shows the small mammal Repenomamus robustus engaged in an epic battle with the dinosaur Psittacosaurus lujiatunensis.
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That attack was frozen in time after the pair were killed when hot volcanic mud covered them both just as the smaller mammal was chomping down on the larger dinosaur for food.
Life restoration showing Repenomamus robustus grappling with Psittacosaurus lujiatunensis. (Michael Skrepnick)
Findings from a study recently published in Scientific Reports now suggest that smaller mammals attacking larger dinosaurs may have occurred more frequently than initially thought. According to the study, the fossil of another Repenomamus robustus was found to have the remains of a young Psittacosaurus lujiatunensis within its stomach.
And while there have been cases of fossil forgeries in the past, the study’s authors believe this isn’t the case with this discovery because of how the two creatures were intertwined when they met their doom.
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The lack of bite marks on the dinosaur’s skeleton, the position of the mammal on top of the dinosaur and the grasping and biting actions of the mammal suggest that it was preying on the weaker dinosaur, which was three times its size, according to the study.
Details of the fossil show the mammal gripping the dinosaur’s jaw and leg while biting into its rib cage. That position suggests, according to the study, that the mammal was likely preying on the dinosaur and wasn’t scavenging the carcass of one that was already dead before they were both buried for 125 million years.
Read more of this story from FOX Weather. | https://www.fox13seattle.com/news/remarkable-fossil-shows-dinosaur-mammal-forever-frozen-in-epic-battle | 2023-07-30T21:59:55 | 1 | https://www.fox13seattle.com/news/remarkable-fossil-shows-dinosaur-mammal-forever-frozen-in-epic-battle |
Report: Radio host fired after making 'Barbie' comment about female news anchor at Commanders training camp
WASHINGTON - A host with the Washington Commanders radio partner was fired after allegedly making disparaging comments about a female news anchor during training camp, according to a report from The Washington Post.
Don Geronimo – real name Michael Sorce – who hosts the "The Don Geronimo Show" on BIG 100, apparently referred to WUSA-TV sports anchor Sharla McBride as "Barbie girl" during the Commanders' second day of training camp, shouting "Hey look, Barbie's here. Hi, Barbie girl!" while talking on air with co-host Crash Young.
According to the report, he also said "I’m guessing she’s a cheerleader" and called her "that chick."
Following the Thursday show, the Commanders informed Sorce and Young that they could not broadcast from the facility on Friday as planned.
In a statement to the Post, Aaron Hyland, iHeartMedia’s D.C. regional president said: "After an internal review, Don Geronimo is no longer an employee of WBIG. We take matters of this nature very seriously and this behavior does not align with our core values."
The Washington Commanders also issued a statement, saying they were happy with the response from their media partner.
"We were confident that iHeart would address this swiftly and are pleased that they did," a Commanders spokesperson said.
Sorce has not issued an official comment on the matter.
"At this time I will not be providing comment on the events of the last few days. I am consulting with my advisors as to my options moving forward, including an accurate reflection of the situation. Thx -d," he wrote in a tweet Sunday afternoon.
Sorce had announced on social media last week that he re-signed with iHeart Media through 2026. In a video message, he thanked fans for their support.
"When I heard the comments made about me on the radio show, I felt incredibly insulted and embarrassed. In my 17 years as a professional journalist, I have never been disrespected in such a blatant manner while trying to do my job. Their words were sexist and misogynistic. No woman should experience this in the workplace, and I appreciate the Commanders swift response in handling this matter," McBride said in a statement shared with The Post and ESPN.
Sorce, 64, has been a well-known local radio personality for decades, working on "The Don and Mike Show" with Mike O’Meara on WJFK (106.7 FM) from 1985 to 2008. | https://www.fox13seattle.com/news/report-commanders-radio-host-fired-for-allegedly-making-disparaging-comments-about-female-tv-anchor | 2023-07-30T22:00:01 | 1 | https://www.fox13seattle.com/news/report-commanders-radio-host-fired-for-allegedly-making-disparaging-comments-about-female-tv-anchor |
Olson drives in 5 with 2 HRs, including go-ahead shot, as Braves sweep Brewers 8-6
ATLANTA (AP) — Matt Olson says it’s no mystery why he’s leading the majors in RBIs.
In the Atlanta Braves’ powerful lineup, Olson is often hitting with runners on base.
Olson drove in five runs with two homers, including a go-ahead, two-run blast in the eighth, and the Braves beat the Milwaukee Brewers 8-6 on Sunday to cap their sweep of the high-scoring series.
Olson has 35 homers, the most in the NL, and 88 RBIs, the most in the majors. The Braves scored 29 runs in the three-game sweep in the matchup of NL division leaders.
“There’s always dudes on base,” Olson said. “I feel like I’m rarely taking at-bats with the bases empty.”
The only player in the majors with more homers than Olson is Shohei Ohtani, with 39. Ohtani will bring the Los Angeles Angels into Atlanta for a series beginning Monday night.
With the sweep, the Braves won five of six against the Brewers in the last two weeks, including two of three in Milwaukee on July 21-23.
“You know you’re probably not shutting them out,” said Brewers left fielder Christian Yelich, who had a homer and drove in two runs but described the series as “a tough three days.”
Yelich said a “back-and-forth game” is likely against Atlanta. Sure enough, the Brewers lost despite holding leads of 1-0, 3-2 and 6-5.
“To keep roaring back, it’s a testament to how tough these guys are,” said Braves manager Brian Snitker.
Atlanta began the day leading Philadelphia by 11 games in the NL East. The Brewers led Cincinnati by 1/2 game in the NL Central.
Orlando Arcia led off the eighth with a double to left field off Joel Payamps (4-2). With one out, Olson’s tie-breaking 35th homer landed in the Atlanta bullpen in right-center, giving the Braves the lead. It was the first earned runs allowed by Payamps, who took a 1.68 ERA into the game, in a span of 18 appearances since June 8.
Kirby Yates (5-0) pitched a scoreless eighth. Raisel Iglesias earned his 20th save by striking out the side in the ninth.
Olson’s three-run homer drove in Ronald Acuña Jr., who singled and stole second, and Austin Riley, who walked, to give the Braves a 5-3 lead in the third.
Collin McHugh blew the 5-3 lead by giving up three runs in the sixth. William Contreras doubled in two runs for Milwaukee.
Atlanta’s Marcell Ozuna tied the game at 6 with his homer off Hoby Milner.
Riley continued his power surge for Atlanta by hitting his eighth homer in the last 11 games, his 24th, in the first. The two-run shot off Colin Rea carried 463 feet to left-center.
Rea allowed five runs in five innings.
Carlos Santana, acquired from Pittsburgh on Saturday, hit his first homer with the Brewers in the third. The liner over the right-field wall gave Milwaukee a 3-2 lead. Christian Yelich led off the third with his 16th homer.
ROOKIE RETURNS
Atlanta rookie AJ Smith-Shawver, recalled from Triple-A Gwinnett before the game, allowed three runs on four hits and four walks in five innings.
“He’s got a great way about him,” said Snitker of the 20-year-old right-hander. “There’s no panic in him. ... There’s tremendous upside for him as he figures things out.”
FIRST THINGS FIRST
Thanks to Riley’s homer, the Braves have scored 109 first-inning runs, the most in the majors by any team in any inning. The Texas Rangers’ 90 fourth-inning runs are second on the list.
“We come in ready to swing and ready to do damage,” Ozuna said.
TRAINING ROOM
Brewers: LHP Wade Miley (left elbow) will come off the 15-day injured list to start Wednesday night at Washington. Miley was added to the team’s rotation plans Sunday. ... RHP Brandon Woodruff (right shoulder) will pitch for Triple-A Nashville on Tuesday. ... RHP Julio Teheran (right hip impingement) was placed on the 15-day IL. RHP Peter Strzelecki was recalled from Nashville.
Braves: LHP Taylor Hearn was optioned to Triple-A Gwinnett after allowing four runs and recording only one out in Saturday night’s 11-5 win. The move cleared a roster spot for Smith-Shawver.
UP NEXT
Brewers: RHP Corbin Burnes (9-6, 3.46) is scheduled to pitch Monday night’s opener of a three-game series at Washington against RHP Jake Irvin (3-5, 4.96).
Braves: Atlanta opens an interleague series against the Los Angeles Angels on Monday night as RHP Charlie Morton (10-8, 3.57) faces RHP Griffin Canning (6-4, 4.46). Morton is 4-1 with a 3.83 ERA in 10 career starts against the Angels.
Copyright 2023 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. | https://www.wbay.com/2023/07/30/olson-drives-5-with-2-hrs-including-go-ahead-shot-braves-sweep-brewers-8-6/ | 2023-07-30T22:00:01 | 0 | https://www.wbay.com/2023/07/30/olson-drives-5-with-2-hrs-including-go-ahead-shot-braves-sweep-brewers-8-6/ |
Video shows Cardi B throw mic at woman who hurled drink at her
LAS VEGAS - Cardi B became the latest performer to have something thrown at her while performing this weekend, but the rapper quickly retaliated.
Cardi B was performing at Drai’s Beach Club in Las Vegas Saturday when a woman in the crowd appeared to throw a drink in Cardi’s face, social media video shows. Cardi B shared the video on her Twitter page.
A visibly angry Cardi B immediately threw her microphone at the woman, appearing to strike her in the arm. Security guards circled the woman and escorted her out of the crowd.
The incident is the latest in a disturbing trend of artists getting hit with objects on stage.
It started in June when Rexha was hit in the face with a cellphone while onstage and had to get stitches. A man in the crowd was arrested. Harry Styles and Ballerini have also been hit with objects on stage, and Pink had a bag with an unknown substance in it thrown on stage while she performed.
Adele addressed the issue at one of her recent shows, warning her concert-goers that "I’ll f—ing" kill you" if they threw something at the stage.
READ MORE: Tim McGraw reveals the one thing he won’t do at his concerts: ‘I'm scared to death’
"Have you noticed how people are like forgetting f---ing show etiquette at the moment because [they're] throwing s--- on stage? Have you seen them," Adele told her Caesars Palace audience.
"I f---ing dare you. Dare you throw something at me and I'll f---ing kill you," she said.
Cardi B, a New York City native whose real name is Belcalis Almanzar, has been open about her hot temper. She’s rapped about her anger issues in the past, and in 2018, she pleaded guilty to two misdemeanor charges stemming from fights at a strip club. Ten other counts, including two felonies, were dismissed.
Offset and Cardi B backstage during the Hot 107.9 Birthday Bash 2023 at State Farm Arena on June 17, 2023 in Atlanta, Georgia. (Photo by Prince Williams/WireImage)
According to prosecutors, Cardi B and her entourage were targeting employees of Angels Strip Club in Flushing, Queens, over an apparent personal dispute. In one fight, chairs, bottles and hookah pipes were thrown as the group argued with a bartender. She and another employee had minor injuries.
The plea deal required her to perform 15 days of community service to avoid a 15-day jail sentence.
One of those service days included an NYPD "Girls Talk" event, where she shared "her rags to riches story" and danced with teens and posed for photos.
The Associated Press contributed to this report. | https://www.fox13seattle.com/news/video-cardi-b-throws-mic-woman-hurled-drink-at-her | 2023-07-30T22:00:06 | 1 | https://www.fox13seattle.com/news/video-cardi-b-throws-mic-woman-hurled-drink-at-her |
SMOKY HAZE MONDAY, BETTER STORM CHANCES LATER IN THE WEEK
Your First Alert Weather Forecast:
Mainly clear skies are on tap for tonight. Keep those windows open because more 50s are in order... with some upper 40s possible again in the Northwoods. Patchy fog could develop in spots.
Canadian wildfire smoke will drift through the region again on Monday. At this time, it looks like it will be mainly high up in the atmosphere so no major air quality issues are expected at this time. Highs will range from the upper 70s lakeside to the low and mid 80s inland. Humidity stays low. A few stray afternoon showers can’t be ruled out but the chance of rain is 10% or less.
Highs in the 80s continue on Tuesday along with low humidity. The amount of smoky haze may end up being less than Monday.
Our next weathermaker will be a cold front late in the week. Humidity levels will increase out ahead of it and that could spark a few storms Wednesday afternoon and evening. Additional storms are possible going into Thursday with the front itself. It’s still too early to tell if any of them will be strong or severe so we’re keeping the severe weather outlook LOW at this time. Check back for updates over the coming days.
You can always keep our forecast handy with our free weather app. Look for the WBAY First Alert Weather App in the Apple app store and Google Play (click here on your mobile device).
WIND & WAVES FORECAST:
MONDAY: W/S 5-10 KTS, WAVES: 0-1′
TUESDAY: ESE 5-10 KTS, WAVES: 0-1′
TONIGHT: Mostly clear, cool & calm. LOW: 54
MONDAY: Hazy sun & clouds. Stray afternoon shower? HIGH: 84 LOW: 59
TUESDAY: Partly cloudy & warm. HIGH: 84 LOW: 62
WEDNESDAY: Partly cloudy & warm. Humidity increases. Spotty PM storms possible. HIGH: 89 LOW: 67
THURSDAY: Warm & humid. Scattered storms possible. HIGH: 89 LOW: 62
FRIDAY: Mix of sun & clouds. Not as humid. HIGH: 81 LOW: 60
SATURDAY: Partly cloudy. Evening storm? HIGH: 83 LOW: 63
SUNDAY: Partly cloudy. Chance of storms. HIGH: 85
Copyright 2023 WBAY. All rights reserved. | https://www.wbay.com/2023/07/30/smoky-haze-monday-better-storm-chances-later-week/ | 2023-07-30T22:00:08 | 1 | https://www.wbay.com/2023/07/30/smoky-haze-monday-better-storm-chances-later-week/ |
Updated July 30, 2023 at 5:02 PM ET
KHAR, Pakistan — A suicide bomber blew himself up at a political rally in a former stronghold of militants in northwest Pakistan bordering Afghanistan on Sunday, killing at least 44 people and wounding nearly 200 in an attack that a senior leader said was meant to weaken Pakistani Islamists.
The Bajur district near the Afghan border was a stronghold of the Pakistani Taliban — a close ally of Afghanistan's Taliban government — before the Pakistani army drove the militants out of the area. Supporters of hardline Pakistani cleric and political party leader Maulana Fazlur Rehman, whose Jamiat Ulema Islam generally supports regional Islamists, were meeting in Bajur in a hall close to a market outside the district capital. Party officials said Rehman was not at the rally but organizers added tents because so many supporters showed up, and party volunteers with batons were helping control the crowd.
Officials were announcing the arrival of Abdul Rasheed, a leader of the Jamiat Ulema Islam party, when the bomb went off in one of Pakistan's bloodiest attacks in recent years.
Provincial police said in a statement that the attack was carried out by a suicide bomber who detonated his explosives vest close to the stage where several senior leaders of the party were sitting. It said initial investigations suggested the Islamic State group — which operates in Afghanistan and is an enemy of the Afghan Taliban — could be behind the attack, and officers were still investigating.
"There was dust and smoke around, and I was under some injured people from where I could hardly stand up, only to see chaos and some scattered limbs," said Adam Khan, 45, who was knocked to the ground by the blast around 4 p.m. and hit by splinters in his leg and both hands.
The Pakistan Taliban, or TTP, said in a statement sent to The Associated Press that the bombing was aimed at setting Islamists against each other. Zabiullah Mujahid, a spokesman for the Afghan Taliban, said on the social media platform X, formerly known as Twitter, that "such crimes cannot be justified in any way."
The Afghan Taliban's seizure of power in Afghanistan in mid-August 2021 emboldened the TTP. They unilaterally ended a cease-fire agreement with the Pakistani government in November, and have stepped up attacks across the country.
The bombing came hours before the arrival of Chinese Vice Premier He Lifeng in Islamabad, where he was to participate in an event to mark a decade of the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor, or CPEC, a sprawling package under which Beijing has invested billions of dollars in Pakistan.
In recent months, China has helped Pakistan avoid a default on sovereign payments. However, some Chinese nationals have also been targeted by militants in northwestern Pakistan and elsewhere.
Feroz Jamal, the provincial information minister, told The Associated Press that so far 44 people had been "martyred" and nearly 200 wounded in the bombing.
The bombing was one of the four worst attacks in the northwest since 2014, when 147 people, mostly schoolchildren, were killed in a Taliban attack on an army-run school in Peshawar. In January, 74 people were killed in a bombing at a mosque in Peshawar. n February, more than 100 people, mostly policemen, died in a bombing at a mosque inside a high-security compound housing Peshawar police headquarters.
Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and President Arif Alvi condemned the attack and asked officials to provide all possible assistance to the wounded and the bereaved families. Sharif later, in a phone call to Rehman, the head of the JUI, conveyed his condolences to him and assured him that those who orchestrated the attack would be punished.
The U.S. Embassy in Islamabad also condemned the attack. In a post on social media platform X, formerly known as Twitter, it expressed its condolences to the families and loved ones of the victims killed in the attack..
Maulana Ziaullah, the local chief of Rehman's party, was among the dead. JUI leaders Rasheed and former lawmaker Maulana Jamaluddin were also on the stage but escaped unhurt.
Rasheed, the regional chief of the party, said the attack was an attempt to remove JUI from the field before parliamentary elections in November, but he said such tactics would not work. The bombing drew nationwide condemnation, with the ruling and opposition parties extending condolences to the families of those who died in the attack.
Rehman is considered to be a pro-Taliban cleric and his political party is part of the coalition government in Islamabad. Meetings are being organized across the country to mobilize supporters for the upcoming elections.
"Many of our fellows lost their lives and many more wounded in this incident. I will ask the federal and provincial administrations to fully investigate this incident and provide due compensation and medical facilities to the affected ones," Rasheed said.
Mohammad Wali, another attendant at the rally, said he was listening to a speaker address the crowd when the huge explosion temporarily deafened him.
"I was near the water dispenser to fetch a glass of water when the bomb exploded, throwing me to the ground," he said. "We came to the meeting with enthusiasm but ended up at the hospital seeing crying, wounded people and sobbing relatives taking the bodies of their loved ones."
Copyright 2023 NPR. To see more, visit https://www.npr.org. | https://www.kasu.org/2023-07-30/a-bombing-at-a-political-rally-in-pakistan-has-killed-at-least-44-and-wounded-some-200 | 2023-07-30T22:00:46 | 0 | https://www.kasu.org/2023-07-30/a-bombing-at-a-political-rally-in-pakistan-has-killed-at-least-44-and-wounded-some-200 |
The world's first atomic bomb was tested in New Mexico in 1945, where hundreds of locals are still facing fallout from the test. Many are also fighting for compensation from the federal government.
Copyright 2023 NPR
The world's first atomic bomb was tested in New Mexico in 1945, where hundreds of locals are still facing fallout from the test. Many are also fighting for compensation from the federal government.
Copyright 2023 NPR | https://www.kasu.org/2023-07-30/people-exposed-to-fallout-from-1st-atomic-bomb-test-still-fighting-for-compensation | 2023-07-30T22:00:53 | 0 | https://www.kasu.org/2023-07-30/people-exposed-to-fallout-from-1st-atomic-bomb-test-still-fighting-for-compensation |
A lawsuit filed by Donald Trump against the news network CNN has been dismissed by a federal judge.
In a federal lawsuit filed last year in Florida, the former president claimed that some news articles and on-air statements from a host on the network created a "false and incendiary association" between him and Adolf Hitler. Trump also said that the use of the phrase "the Big Lie," used in reference to his efforts to overturn the 2020 election, was defamatory, as it allegedly generated feelings of "hate, contempt, distrust, ridicule, and even fear" towards Trump among readers and viewers.
Ultimately, Trump sought punitive damages amounting to $475 million in the lawsuit.
But in a ruling on Friday, U.S. District Judge Raag Singhal stated that Trump's defamation claims lacked merit because the references made were opinions and not statements of fact.
The judge further emphasized that it would be a stretch to believe that the phrase "the Big Lie" would link Trump's efforts to challenge the 2020 election results with Nazi propaganda in the minds of viewers.
"CNN’s use of the phrase "the Big Lie" in connection with Trump’s election challenges does not give rise to a plausible inference that Trump advocates the persecution and genocide of Jews or any other group of people. No reasonable viewer could (or should) plausibly make that reference," Judge Singhal wrote in the filing, first obtained by the Washington Post.
According to the filing, Trump's lawsuit cited various instances, including opinion pieces by former CNN Editor-at-Large Chris Cillizza and one episode of CNN's "State of the Union," hosted by Jake Tapper, where the phrase "the Big Lie" was used.
SEE MORE: Trump's 2024 rivals ignored legal cases against him at Iowa GOP event
Trending stories at Scrippsnews.com | https://www.kxxv.com/federal-judge-dismisses-trump-s-defamation-lawsuit-against-cnn | 2023-07-30T22:01:53 | 0 | https://www.kxxv.com/federal-judge-dismisses-trump-s-defamation-lawsuit-against-cnn |
25 WEATHER — It has been a bit of a hotter day today with temperatures into the triple digits.
A heat advisory is in effect today but that will be upgraded to an excessive heat warning tomorrow. Temperatures and heat index values will be anywhere from 105° to 112°. So, make sure you are taking care of yourself because it will be a bit hotter heading through this week.
Another thing we are keeping our eye on is with no rain these past few weeks, fire danger is elevated for areas along and west of I-35 where we are seeing some drier conditions. Try not to create any sparks and secure those loose trailer chains.
Main story will be the heat this week so make sure you are stay cool and weather ready!
Meteorologist Matthew Hidalgo
25 Weather | https://www.kxxv.com/weather/heat-alerts-blanket-the-area | 2023-07-30T22:01:59 | 1 | https://www.kxxv.com/weather/heat-alerts-blanket-the-area |
READING, Pennsylvania (WPVI) -- Monday will mark the final day of work for Reading Police Chief Richard Tornielli.
Reading Mayor Eddie Moran says he and the chief "agreed a change of strategy was needed" in addressing public safety and violence.
The mayor also stated that he will soon be appointing an interim chief while a search is conducted for new leadership.
Tornielli will officially retire Monday and says he plans to follow a new career path.
It is unclear what that career path may be.
Moran first appointed Tornielli as police chief back in January 2020.
He served the department for 22 years. | https://6abc.com/reading-police-chief-richard-tornielli-mayor-eddie-moran-retirement-berks-county/13574181/ | 2023-07-30T22:02:29 | 0 | https://6abc.com/reading-police-chief-richard-tornielli-mayor-eddie-moran-retirement-berks-county/13574181/ |
AUSTIN (KXAN) — It’s no surprise that the summer heat can do significant damage to your vehicle. But as cities around the country continue to break temperature records and endure long heat waves, some car technicians are finding unusual vehicle issues.
Doc Watson, a national training manager with Bosch Diagnostics, said typical summertime issues include dead car batteries and flat tires. However, he said technicians in Texas and along the West Coast have also been recording more unusual vehicle complications due to the extensive heat waves.
In Texas, Arizona and California, technicians are reporting an emergence of “brake fade” cases in cars. When the temperature outside tops 100 degrees for extended periods of time, temperatures under the hood of vehicles during the summer can reach up to 230 degrees.
Brake fluids inside the cylinder under the hood of the car can absorb moisture, as the heat causes that moisture to expand within the fluid. When that happens, stepping on the brake pedal can feel “mushy.” That means the vehicle owner will need to take the car in for maintenance.
Both heat and humidity can add extra wear and tear to the windshield wiper blades, which have a typical lifespan between 12 and 18 months.
“People don’t stop to think about wiper blades — they don’t need them until it rains, right?” Watson said. “You’re driving around in 112-degree temperature, you’ve got heat reflecting off the glass, and that causes the rubber components of a wiper blade to break down.”
The plastic parts of the blades can also suffer.
“With these extreme temperatures that you guys are seeing, it’s the plastic breaking down off the wiper blade itself, and people not realizing that that’s happened until it’s too late,” he said. “The wiper blade breaks and then you’ve got this metal arm scratching the glass.”
Watson recommended car owners keep a checklist of key vehicle parts to monitor during the summer months. Those include:
- Car batteries: Traditionally, car batteries last between three and five years. Amid excessive heat spells, temperatures under the hood of a vehicle reach up to 230 degrees, which can lead to battery fluid evaporations and dead batteries. Watson suggests car owners have their batteries tested by a technician during the summer to get a condition status.
- Tires: Low tire pressure is exacerbated by hot asphalt on roadways. Watson encouraged car owners to purchase a tire pressure gauge and to test their vehicle’s tire pressure early in the morning while it’s still cool to ensure an accurate reading.
- Engine overflow tank: During the summer months, cooling an engine is critical. Watson said when car owners check underneath the hood, they’ll find a plastic overflow tank with a graduated scale. If it looks low, he suggested adding antifreeze to aid your engine.
- Wiper blades: Check wiper blades during dry spells (and before rain storms) to make sure they’re properly working and not deteriorating. If they show signs of wear and tear, replace them and make sure they’re upgraded every 12-18 months.
- Oil changes: Most newer vehicles require an oil change every 5,000 to 7,000 miles. However, remote starting a vehicle and running the air conditioning works the engine without adding any mileage to the vehicle. As a result, Watson suggested not waiting until you hit that 5,000 to 7,000-mile range if you often use remote start on your vehicle during the summer or winter months.
“People aren’t changing oil regularly like they think they are,” he said. “People need to pay more attention to them because these engines will go many miles — 200,000, 300,000 miles — as long as they’re maintained correctly. That’s big with this extreme heat.” | https://www.kron4.com/news/national/the-weird-car-issues-mechanics-are-seeing-during-heat-waves/ | 2023-07-30T22:02:29 | 1 | https://www.kron4.com/news/national/the-weird-car-issues-mechanics-are-seeing-during-heat-waves/ |
NEW YORK (AP) — A week later, the “Barbenheimer” boom has not abated.
Seven days after Greta Gerwig’s “Barbie” and Christopher Nolan’s “Oppenheimer” conspired to set box office records, the two films held unusually strongly in theaters. “Barbie” took in a massive $93 million in its second weekend, according to studio estimates Sunday. “Oppenheimer” stayed in second with a robust $46.2 million. Sales for the two movies dipped 43% and 44%, respectably — well shy of the usual week-two drops.
“Barbenheimer” has proven to be not a one-weekend phenomenon but an ongoing box-office bonanza. The two movies combined have already surpassed $1 billion in worldwide ticket sales. Paul Dergarabedian, senior media analyst for data firm Comscore, call it “a touchstone moment for movies, moviegoers and movie theaters.”
“Having two movies from rival studios linked in this way and both boosting each other’s fortunes — both box-office wise and it terms of their profile — I don’t know if there’s a comp for this in the annals of box-office history,” said Dergarabedian. “There’s really no comparison for this.”
Following its year-best $162 million opening, the pink-infused pop sensation of “Barbie” saw remarkably sustained business through the week and into the weekend. The film outpaced Nolan’s “The Dark Knight” to have the best first 11 days in theaters of any Warner Bros. release ever.
“Barbie” has rapidly accumulated $351.4 million in U.S. and Canadian theaters, a rate that will soon make it the biggest box-office hit of the summer. Every day it’s played, “Barbie” has made at least $20 million.
And the “Barbie” effect isn’t just in North America. The film made $122.2 million internationally over the weekend. Its global tally has reached $775 million. It’s the kind of business that astounds even veteran studio executives.
“That’s a crazy number,” said Jeff Goldstein, distribution chief for Warner Bros. “There’s just a built-in audience that wants to be part of the zeitgeist of the moment. Wherever you go, people are wearing pink. Pink is taking over the world.”
Amid the frenzy, “Barbie” is already attracting a lot of repeat moviegoers. Goldstein estimates that 12% of sales are people going back with friends or family to see it again.
For a movie industry that has been trying to regain its pre-pandemic footing — and that now finds itself largely shuttered due to actors and screenwriters strikes — the sensations of “Barbie” and “Oppenheimer” have showed what’s possible when everything lines up just right.
“Post-pandemic, there’s no ceiling and there’s no floor,” Goldstein said. “The movies that miss really miss big time, and the movies that work really work big time.”
Universal Pictures’ “Oppenheimer,” meanwhile, is performing more like a superhero movie than a three-hour film about scientists talking.
Nolan’s drama starring Cillian Murphy as atomic bomb physicist J. Robert Oppenheimer has accrued $174.1 million domestically thus far. With an additional $72.4 million in international cinemas, “Oppenheimer” has already surpassed $400 million globally.
Showings in IMAX have typically been sold out. “Oppenheimer” has made $80 million worldwide on IMAX. The large-format exhibitor said Sunday that it will extend the film’s run through Aug. 13.
The week’s top new release, Walt Disney Co.’s “Haunted Mansion,” an adaptation of the Disney theme park attraction, was easily overshadowed by the “Barbenheimer” blitz. The film, which cost about $150 million, debuted with $24 million domestically and $9 million in overseas sales. “Haunted Mansion,” directed by Justin Simien (“Dear White People,” “Bad Hair”) and starring an ensemble of LaKeith Stanfield, Tiffany Haddish, Owen Wilson, Danny DeVito and Rosario Dawson, struggled to overcome mediocre reviews.
“Talk to Me,” the A24 supernatural horror film, fared better. It debuted with $10 million. The film, directed by Australian filmmakers Danny and Michael Philippou and starring Sophie Wilde, was a midnight premiere at the Sundance Film Festival in January and received terrific reviews from critics (95% fresh on Rotten Tomatoes). It was made for a modest $4.5 million.
While theaters being flush with moviegoers has been a huge boon to the film industry, it’s been tougher sledding for Tom Cruise, the so-called savior of the movies last summer with “Top Gun: Maverick.” “Mission Impossible: Dead Reckoning Part I,” which debuted the week before the arrival of “Barbenheimer,” grossed $10.7 million in its third weekend. The film starring Cruise and directed by Christopher McQuarrie, has grossed $139.2 million domestically and $309.3 million oveseas.
Instead, the sleeper hit “Sound of Freedom” has been the best performing non-“Barbenheimer” release in theaters. The Angel Studios’ release, which is counting crowdfunding pay-it-forward sales in its box office totals, made $12.4 million in its fourth weekend, bringing its haul thus far to nearly $150 million.
Estimated ticket sales for Friday through Sunday at U.S. and Canadian theaters, according to Comscore. Final domestic figures will be released Monday.
1. “Barbie,” $93 million.
2. “Opppenheimer,” $46.2 million.
3. “Haunted Mansion,” $24.2 million.
4. “Sound of Freedom,” $12.4 million.
5. “Mission: Impossible — Dead Reckoning Part One,” $10.7 million.
6. “Talk to Me,” $10 million.
7. “Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny,” $4 million.
8. “Elemental,” $3.4 million.
9. “Insidious: The Red Door,” $3.2 million.
10. “Rocky Aur Rani Ki Prem Kahani,” $1.6 million. | https://www.kron4.com/news/national/while-barbie-bonanza-continues-at-the-box-office-oppenheimer-holds-no-2-spot/ | 2023-07-30T22:02:35 | 1 | https://www.kron4.com/news/national/while-barbie-bonanza-continues-at-the-box-office-oppenheimer-holds-no-2-spot/ |
(The Hill) – Northwestern is the latest in a long line of universities to come under public scrutiny due to a scandal over hazing, a practice that has refused to go extinct in colleges and high schools despite multiple concerted efforts to end it.
Hazing, which in rare instances has proven fatal, in particular plagues sports teams and Greek Life.
Experts say education on the issue and increased consequences are needed to create a real change, although they are skeptical the dangerous practice will exit school life anytime soon.
“Hazing has always been prevalent in society, not just in colleges. It’s anywhere that you see a different power dynamic between people who are trying to join a group [and] people who are in the group,” said Todd Shelton, executive director of the Hazing Prevention Network. “There’s research that shows that hazing starts long before college and in those younger ages. It’s especially prevalent in athletic teams camps, performing arts groups.”
The latest high-profile hazing incident comes from Northwestern University, where the head football coach was recently let go and a barrage of lawsuits have fallen on the school.
One of the reported rituals of hazing on the school’s football team was younger players getting restrained in the locker room by older ones while others dry humped the individual. Another incident described in a lawsuit against the school was a ritual called “carwash” where players were forced to rub themselves against a line of naked men in the showers.
“Certainly, it is typical hazing activities that we’ve seen before and it’s not unusual that they’re shrouded with secrecy. So I applaud the people who came forward and reported because that’s — that’s key for institutions to be able to make changes,” Shelton said. “I think those acts are horrible and examples of how hazing can quickly escalate from what individuals think is something that’s mild and or funny, to quickly being something that’s dangerous, either mentally or physically, to the victims.”
Experts say preventing hazing incidents has to start by educating people about its warning signs and dangers.
A study in 2008 showed 73 percent of students who have been in a sorority or fraternity said they experienced behaviors that meet the definition of hazing, such as being forced into drinking games or getting screamed at by other members.
The same study showed 74 percent of athletes in athletic programs also experienced behaviors that amount to hazing.
“Hazing is specific to that group context where someone is seeking inclusion or a sense of belonging in a club, team or organization. They’re a newcomer typically coming into this group situation, and because of that group dynamic there can be an incredible amount of peer pressure and sometimes a coercive environment. And so that can impede or be a barrier to recognizing and or reporting hazing because there can be a lot of fear,” Elizabeth Allan, a professor at the University of Maine, said.
These rituals and desires to be part of the in-group have led to some deadly consequences for young people.
In 2019, five Penn State University students were sentenced to jail after a 19-year-old student at a Beta Theta Pi fraternity house died at a party after hazing-based binge drinking.
While most hazing incidents don’t result in incarceration, there are other consequences for students who are caught for the crime.
“Financial, monetary damages. People have lost their jobs. People have gone to jail or had, criminal penalties, fines and so forth. Let’s say sometimes when it’s a student organization or a team so with a student organization, they’re often suspended or lose their recognition with the campus for a period of time, and with an athletic team sometimes a portion of the season is put on hold or canceled entirely sometimes at the high school level, we’ve seen that recently.” Allan, who also leads the organization Stop Hazing, said.
And yet, even as schools ramp up their efforts, hazing persists.
Allan says a multifaceted strategy is needed to tackle the problem, and her group has developed a “Hazing Prevention Framework” for schools to follow.
“They can use it to also do some strategic planning and set some goals for the improvements they want to make, and all this is really … based on a public health approach to organizational change and promoting healthy behaviors in a community setting,” Allan said.
Shelton said his group also advocates for hazing to be treated as a felony, whereas many states look at it as a misdemeanor.
“The problem is it’s not taken seriously in the law, and we’ve seen a lot of hazing cases, even when there’s been a death… [where] prosecutors don’t consider it hazing or don’t consider hazing to be a serious crime to go through the measures of prosecuting,” Shelton said. “And so that’s why we’ve been working hard to strengthen those state laws.” | https://www.kron4.com/news/national/why-is-hazing-so-hard-to-eliminate/ | 2023-07-30T22:02:41 | 1 | https://www.kron4.com/news/national/why-is-hazing-so-hard-to-eliminate/ |
Maralee Nichols shared another glimpse at her life with son Theo soon after his dad Tristan Thompson paid special tribute to his and Khloe Kardashian's youngest child, Tatum.
Maralee, who had filed a paternity suit against the NBA star in Los Angeles in December 2021—while she and the surrogate who had delivered his son with the Good American founder were both pregnant, posted a pic of herself cuddling Theo, 19 months, on her Instagram Stories July 29. She also shared pics from their trip to a farmer's market.
A day earlier, Tristan posted photos of Tatum, his fourth child, on his Instagram for the first time in honor of his first birthday.
"Tatum!!" the athlete wrote. "Happy birthday my son! You are a reminder of what life represents to me. You have taught me every loss comes a lesson and you are my gift. You are my reminder of all of God's messages. You are the reason that I began my story."
Tristan continued, "The mistakes along the way are lessons not failures. There is no expiration date to reinventing yourself. Tatum your sweet soul reminds me of God's grace. You are a future king my son and I am so blessed to be your DaDa!"
In wake of his paternity scandal, Tristan's post drew criticism from many users. One person wrote, "Dude are you really not gonna acknowledge your other baby??" Another user commented, "How about your other future king? Didn't make the cut?"
Tristan has never shared an online tribute to Theo, for whom he pays child support and of whom Maralee has sole custody, but has occasionally posted pics of his and Khloe's daughter True Thompson, 5, and his and ex Jordan Craig's son Prince Jackson, 6. The athlete has not responded to the backlash over his birthday post for Tatum.
Tristan had shared his tribute soon after the Kardashian-Jenner family posted pics from the toddler's lavish, space-themed birthday party.
The basketball player and Khloe have moved on following his paternity scandal, for which he had apologized. While he is no longer in a relationship with his ex, who has forgiven him for his multiple cheating scandals, the athlete lives with her, Tatum, True and his brother Amari, 16, in Calabasas, Calif.
While Tristan has never shared pics of Theo, Maralee has often offered glimpses into her life with their son, although she has yet to show his face. See her latest pic of herself with Theo as well as other mother-son moments below: | https://www.eonline.com/news/1381714/maralee-nichols-shares-new-photo-with-son-theo-after-tristan-thompson-pays-tribute-to-son-tatum?cmpid=rss-syndicate-genericrss-us-top_stories | 2023-07-30T22:03:01 | 0 | https://www.eonline.com/news/1381714/maralee-nichols-shares-new-photo-with-son-theo-after-tristan-thompson-pays-tribute-to-son-tatum?cmpid=rss-syndicate-genericrss-us-top_stories |
‘Herd That’ is heading to Philly
Published: Jul. 30, 2023 at 5:53 PM EDT|Updated: 8 minutes ago
WHEELING, W.Va. (WSAZ) - ‘Herd That’ erupted with a 34 point third quarter and are advancing in The Basketball Tournament as they beat Boeheim’s Army 88-71 Sunday afternoon. Rob Gray hit the Elam Ender as hed led ‘Herd That’ in scoring with 20 points. Also scoring double figures for the Marshall alumni team were Jon Elmore, Taevion Kinsey and Jacorey Williams.
They are two wins away from a million dollars and will play Wednesday night at 7 p.m against ‘Heartfire’ from the campus of Drexel University.
Copyright 2023 WSAZ. All rights reserved. | https://www.wsaz.com/2023/07/30/herd-that-is-heading-philly/ | 2023-07-30T22:03:01 | 1 | https://www.wsaz.com/2023/07/30/herd-that-is-heading-philly/ |
SAN FRANCISCO — Russian propaganda is spreading into the world’s video games.
In Minecraft, the immersive game owned by Microsoft, Russian players reenacted the battle for Soledar, a city in Ukraine that Russian forces captured in January, posting a video of the game on their country’s most popular social media network, VKontakte.
A channel on World of Tanks, a multiplayer warfare game, commemorated the 78th anniversary of the defeat of Nazi Germany in May with a re-creation of the Soviet Union’s parade of tanks in Moscow in 1945. On Roblox, the popular gaming platform, a user created an array of Interior Ministry forces in June to celebrate the national holiday, Russia Day.
These games and adjacent discussion sites such as Discord and Steam are becoming online platforms for Russian agitprop, circulating to new, mostly younger audiences a torrent of propaganda that the Kremlin has used to try to justify the war in Ukraine.
In this virtual world, players have adopted the letter Z, a symbol of the Russian troops who invaded last year; embraced legally specious Russian territorial claims in Crimea and other places; and echoed Russian President Vladimir Putin’s efforts to denigrate Ukrainians as Nazis and blame the West for the conflict.
“Glory to Russia,” declared a video tutorial on how to construct a flagpole with a Russian flag on Minecraft. It showed a Russian flag over a cityscape labeled Luhansk, one of the Ukrainian provinces that Russia has illegally annexed.
“The gaming world is really a platform that can impact public opinion, to reach an audience, especially young populations,” said Tanya Bekker, a researcher at ActiveFence, a cybersecurity company that identified several examples of Russian propaganda on Minecraft for The New York Times.
Microsoft’s president, Brad Smith, disclosed in April that the company’s security teams had identified recent Russian efforts “basically to penetrate some of these gaming communities,” citing examples in Minecraft and in Discord discussion groups. He said Microsoft had advised governments, which he did not name, about them, but he played down their significance.
“In truth, it’s not the No. 1 thing we should worry about,” Smith said at an economic conference in Washington organized by Semafor, the news site. “They’re going to publish information somewhere. You know, it just happens to be a good place for them to get the information into circulation.”
The head of Microsoft’s threat analysis team, Clint Watts, told researchers at New York University’s Stern School of Business that the Russian paramilitary force known as the Wagner Group promoted “malign narratives” on Discord and Steam to support the Kremlin’s views. It may have also sought to encourage enlistments when Russian combat casualties were taking an enormous toll.
“The propaganda mainly seeks to make Wagner and the Russian military look cool and menacing,” Watts told the researchers, who were examining extremism in video games.
Microsoft declined to elaborate on its executives’ comments or to respond to questions about the Russian examples except to say in a statement that the company reviews content that violates its community standards.
Although some of the material reflects the views of ordinary Russians, other examples suggested government involvement. The Kremlin’s reach into video games shows how tenaciously Putin’s government has sought to bolster its political goals by using Western social media and consumer products despite diplomatic and economic isolation.
In June, celebrities, musicians and at least one Russian government official staged a concert on Minecraft celebrating Russia Day. The official, Ekaterina Mizulina, is a member of the Civic Chamber, an advisory body, and the head of the Russian Internet Safety League. Her mother, Yelena, serves in the upper house of parliament and has been a prominent ally of Putin’s, sponsoring conservative legislation targeting, among other things, homosexuality.
Other memes appearing in games are sympathetic to the Wagner Group, which was led by Yevgeny Prigozhin until a mysterious military mutiny unraveled last month. Prigozhin, once a close ally of Putin’s, is a veteran of information operations, having founded the Internet Research Agency, the St. Petersburg, Russia, company that interfered in the U.S. presidential election in 2016.
This month, Putin underscored the Kremlin’s interest in the gaming industry as a potential tool for the government to instill values. He called it “a colossal business” in remarks to a civic organization he founded in 2018 to focus on youth social and economic issues. One in four Russians plays games online, according to a deputy prime minister who spoke at the same meeting. Putin said games “should be at the intersection of art and education.”
“A game should help a person develop, help him find himself, should help educate a person both within the framework of universal human values and within the framework of patriotism,” Putin said in remarks in the Kremlin.
In the wake of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, Microsoft announced that it would suspend new sales of products and services to Russia to comply with sanctions imposed by the United States and Europe, but Russians have continued to find ways to use its games and sites such as Discord and Steam to reach broader audiences. Many of the examples are in Russian, suggesting that the intended audience is at home or among Russian speakers in neighboring countries, including Ukraine.
“Russian propaganda is trying new things to promote its regime,” said Artem Starosiek, the head of Molfar, a Ukrainian consultancy that analyzes online threats.
Molfar’s researchers identified more than a dozen instances of pro-Kremlin propaganda in Minecraft, Roblox, World of Tanks, World of Warships, Fly Corp, Armored Warfare and War Thunder. Almost all extolled the Soviet victory over Nazi Germany, a theme Putin and his advisers have used to build support for today’s war. Some of it had explicit links to political parties or government agencies.
It is not clear what steps, if any, Microsoft or other companies have taken to block Russian efforts. Wargaming Group, the Cyprus-based creator of World of Tanks and other games, spun off its Russian and Belarusian business last year to Lesta Studio, a subsidiary in St. Petersburg.
Jacob Davey, the head of research of far-right and hate movements at the Institute for Strategic Dialogue in London, said Minecraft and other games could be useful tools for those looking to influence vulnerable young people, especially if those people had already sorted themselves into private groups where they were eager to discuss fringe ideologies.
“We know that hostile actors who are seeking to shape minds and influence people are opportunistic,” said Davey, who has studied the gamification of extremist content online. “They go where they think they might find a receptive audience, and they adopt a wide range of tech platforms to push their messaging out.”
Given the martial nature of many games, it is not surprising that the war in Ukraine would have an influence on content, but in some cases, the games have become a battleground.
A company in Germany made a video game, Death From Above, that simulates Ukrainian drone attacks on Russian forces. The company’s owner called it “a propaganda game.” A newspaper in Finland, Helsingin Sanomat, used the video game Counter-Strike to create a conduit for factual information about the war to a Russian audience largely shielded from it.
“Could we create a place in Counter-Strike where the millions of young Russian men playing this first-person shoot game would be forced to face the terrors of the war in Ukraine?” the newspaper asked in an interactive feature.
Joseph Brown, an assistant professor at Thompson Rivers University in British Columbia, spent five years teaching about video game development in Russia, and said he had seen firsthand the country’s commitment to propaganda through video games and other forms of media.
“They need to get everybody back on board with the war,” Brown said. “It’s another piece of this whole puzzle of constant propaganda, all the time. In every single medium they can get to you with, they will get to you.” | https://www.seattletimes.com/business/microsoft/russia-takes-its-ukraine-information-war-into-video-games/?utm_source=RSS&utm_medium=Referral&utm_campaign=RSS_all | 2023-07-30T22:03:01 | 1 | https://www.seattletimes.com/business/microsoft/russia-takes-its-ukraine-information-war-into-video-games/?utm_source=RSS&utm_medium=Referral&utm_campaign=RSS_all |
Updated July 29, 2023 at 11:35 AM ET
Two Supreme Court decisions are changing the way students, educators and even the Biden administration are approaching higher education.
The first ruling ended affirmative action for public and private colleges. It declared that race conscious admissions programs at both Harvard and the University of North Carolina violated the Equal Protection Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment.
The second put a halt to President Biden's student loan cancellation plan. Now the Biden administration is trying to find new ways to make college more accessible. The administration recently unveiled a new student loan repayment plan that will save borrowers thousands of dollars by keeping monthly payments low and preventing interest from accumulating.
This week, the administration's focus is on affirmative action: The U.S. Department of Education has opened a civil rights investigation into the practice of legacy admissions at Harvard University, and on Friday, Secretary of Education Miguel Cardona visited Wesleyan University, which recently got rid of legacy admissions.
Legacy admissions are on the chopping block
The federal inquiry comes after to three Boston-based groups — the Chica Project, the African Community Economic Development of New England and the Greater Boston Latino Network — filed a complaint with the Education Department against Harvard. It accuses the university of discriminating against Black, Hispanic, Asian and other non-white undergraduate applicants by showing preference for those who have family relationships with donors or alumni.
In a statement to NPR, Harvard spokesperson Nicole Rura said the university is reviewing its admissions policy to ensure it is "complying with the law and to carry forward Harvard's longstanding commitment to welcoming students from a wide range of backgrounds, perspectives, and life experiences."
Ivory Toldson, the national director of Education Innovation and Research at the NAACP, said that legacy admissions compromise a university's ability to create a diverse student body. He said if colleges are committed to diversity, they should not be favoring applicants from wealthier backgrounds.
"Now that race conscious admissions has been outlawed by the Supreme Court, you have to look at other ways to achieve diversity," Toldson said during an interview for Morning Edition.
Toldson said legacy admissions should be abolished.
The impact of legacy admissions policies on a student body
A study released this week by the Harvard School of Economics showed that richer applicants are getting a leg up in the college admissions process. Students from affluent backgrounds are twice as likely to get into top colleges than students from more middle class backgrounds, even if the students have similar GPAs and SAT scores.
Admissions data cited in documents that were part of the affirmative action case revealed that nearly 70% of the university's legacy applicants were white — including applicants who have relationships with donors, those who are children of faculty or staff, and athletes applicants. And while legacy applicants make up less than 5% of applicants to Harvard, the data showed they constitute around 30% of the applicants admitted each year, the ruling cited.
Some schools have gotten rid of legacy admissions altogether.
Wesleyan University, a private liberal arts college in Connecticut that has a 16% acceptance rate, recently eliminated its legacy admissions policy. Wesleyan President Michael Roth told NPR's Leila Fadel, during an interview for Morning Edition, the decision to end the policy was a direct response to the Supreme Court ruling that effectively ended affirmative action as part of college admissions.
"It became clear to me that any advantage you give to incumbents, to people who already have advantages, is a glaring sign of unfairness," Roth said.
Other schools have done the same. The University of Minnesota Twin Cities also ended legacy admissions this month, and Colorado passed a state law banning the practice at all public colleges and universities.
"Not getting in" is just one concern for students
Whitney Gouche is vice president of a nonprofit called EMERGE that serves high-achieving students from low-income areas in Texas. She said her students feel discouraged by the recent Supreme Court decision.
"We've explained to our students, that regardless of the decision, you still belong here, she said. "You have the merits to be a successful student at this campus."
Convincing students to apply isn't the easiest task — concerns about high cost are also on students' minds. Even if they get in, it could cost about $70,000 in tuition for an elite college like Wesleyan.
Roth said that while admitted students who qualify for financial aid will receive it at Wesleyan, the university has to do more to convince students to apply in the first place.
"We have to be very aggressive in recruiting students from places that haven't typically looked at schools like Wesleyan," Roth said.
Roth said that ending legacy admissions won't solve the more widespread problem of education disparities in the United States.
"Legacy admissions is attractive to talk about, but the real issues are elsewhere," Roth said.
This story was edited by Erika Aguilar.
Copyright 2023 NPR. To see more, visit https://www.npr.org. | https://www.wunc.org/2023-07-26/colleges-are-ending-legacy-admissions-to-diversify-campuses-post-affirmative-action | 2023-07-30T22:03:01 | 0 | https://www.wunc.org/2023-07-26/colleges-are-ending-legacy-admissions-to-diversify-campuses-post-affirmative-action |
NEW YORK (AP) — A week later, the “Barbenheimer” boom has not abated.
Seven days after Greta Gerwig’s “Barbie” and Christopher Nolan’s “Oppenheimer” conspired to set box office records, the two films held unusually strongly in theaters. “Barbie” took in a massive $93 million in its second weekend, according to studio estimates Sunday. “Oppenheimer” stayed in second with a robust $46.2 million. Sales for the two movies dipped 43% and 44%, respectably — well shy of the usual week-two drops.
“Barbenheimer” has proven to be not a one-weekend phenomenon but an ongoing box-office bonanza. The two movies combined have already surpassed $1 billion in worldwide ticket sales. Paul Dergarabedian, senior media analyst for data firm Comscore, call it “a touchstone moment for movies, moviegoers and movie theaters.”
“Having two movies from rival studios linked in this way and both boosting each other’s fortunes — both box-office wise and it terms of their profile — I don’t know if there’s a comp for this in the annals of box-office history,” said Dergarabedian. “There’s really no comparison for this.”
Following its year-best $162 million opening, the pink-infused pop sensation of “Barbie” saw remarkably sustained business through the week and into the weekend. The film outpaced Nolan’s “The Dark Knight” to have the best first 11 days in theaters of any Warner Bros. release ever.
“Barbie” has rapidly accumulated $351.4 million in U.S. and Canadian theaters, a rate that will soon make it the biggest box-office hit of the summer. Every day it’s played, “Barbie” has made at least $20 million.
And the “Barbie” effect isn’t just in North America. The film made $122.2 million internationally over the weekend. Its global tally has reached $775 million. It’s the kind of business that astounds even veteran studio executives.
“That’s a crazy number,” said Jeff Goldstein, distribution chief for Warner Bros. “There’s just a built-in audience that wants to be part of the zeitgeist of the moment. Wherever you go, people are wearing pink. Pink is taking over the world.”
Amid the frenzy, “Barbie” is already attracting a lot of repeat moviegoers. Goldstein estimates that 12% of sales are people going back with friends or family to see it again.
For a movie industry that has been trying to regain its pre-pandemic footing — and that now finds itself largely shuttered due to actors and screenwriters strikes — the sensations of “Barbie” and “Oppenheimer” have showed what’s possible when everything lines up just right.
“Post-pandemic, there’s no ceiling and there’s no floor,” Goldstein said. “The movies that miss really miss big time, and the movies that work really work big time.”
Universal Pictures’ “Oppenheimer,” meanwhile, is performing more like a superhero movie than a three-hour film about scientists talking.
Nolan’s drama starring Cillian Murphy as atomic bomb physicist J. Robert Oppenheimer has accrued $174.1 million domestically thus far. With an additional $72.4 million in international cinemas, “Oppenheimer” has already surpassed $400 million globally.
Showings in IMAX have typically been sold out. “Oppenheimer” has made $80 million worldwide on IMAX. The large-format exhibitor said Sunday that it will extend the film’s run through Aug. 13.
The week’s top new release, Walt Disney Co.’s “Haunted Mansion,” an adaptation of the Disney theme park attraction, was easily overshadowed by the “Barbenheimer” blitz. The film, which cost about $150 million, debuted with $24 million domestically and $9 million in overseas sales. “Haunted Mansion,” directed by Justin Simien (“Dear White People,” “Bad Hair”) and starring an ensemble of LaKeith Stanfield, Tiffany Haddish, Owen Wilson, Danny DeVito and Rosario Dawson, struggled to overcome mediocre reviews.
“Talk to Me,” the A24 supernatural horror film, fared better. It debuted with $10 million. The film, directed by Australian filmmakers Danny and Michael Philippou and starring Sophie Wilde, was a midnight premiere at the Sundance Film Festival in January and received terrific reviews from critics (95% fresh on Rotten Tomatoes). It was made for a modest $4.5 million.
While theaters being flush with moviegoers has been a huge boon to the film industry, it’s been tougher sledding for Tom Cruise, the so-called savior of the movies last summer with “Top Gun: Maverick.” “Mission Impossible: Dead Reckoning Part I,” which debuted the week before the arrival of “Barbenheimer,” grossed $10.7 million in its third weekend. The film starring Cruise and directed by Christopher McQuarrie, has grossed $139.2 million domestically and $309.3 million oveseas.
Instead, the sleeper hit “Sound of Freedom” has been the best performing non-“Barbenheimer” release in theaters. The Angel Studios’ release, which is counting crowdfunding pay-it-forward sales in its box office totals, made $12.4 million in its fourth weekend, bringing its haul thus far to nearly $150 million.
Estimated ticket sales for Friday through Sunday at U.S. and Canadian theaters, according to Comscore. Final domestic figures will be released Monday.
1. “Barbie,” $93 million.
2. “Opppenheimer,” $46.2 million.
3. “Haunted Mansion,” $24.2 million.
4. “Sound of Freedom,” $12.4 million.
5. “Mission: Impossible — Dead Reckoning Part One,” $10.7 million.
6. “Talk to Me,” $10 million.
7. “Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny,” $4 million.
8. “Elemental,” $3.4 million.
9. “Insidious: The Red Door,” $3.2 million.
10. “Rocky Aur Rani Ki Prem Kahani,” $1.6 million.
___
Follow AP Film Writer Jake Coyle on Twitter at: http://twitter.com/jakecoyleAP | https://www.myarklamiss.com/entertainment-news/ap-the-barbie-bonanza-continues-at-the-box-office-oppenheimer-holds-the-no-2-spot/ | 2023-07-30T22:03:07 | 1 | https://www.myarklamiss.com/entertainment-news/ap-the-barbie-bonanza-continues-at-the-box-office-oppenheimer-holds-the-no-2-spot/ |
WHITE EARTH, Minn. (AP) — At least two tribal nations are expected to open Minnesota’s first recreational marijuana dispensaries in August as recreational marijuana becomes legal to possess and grow in the state on Tuesday.
Following a council vote on Friday, the White Earth Nation in northwestern Minnesota legalized recreational cannabis and will begin selling it sometime in the first half of August, Minnesota Public Radio reported. Both tribal members and non-tribal adults 21 years and older would be able to purchase from the nation’s dispensary.
Weeks earlier, NativeCare — a tribal-run medical marijuana provider — announced a recreational marijuana dispensary expected to open shortly on Red Lake Nation once the new law takes effect, the Star Tribune reported. The nation is also in northwestern Minnesota.
The band could’ve started selling recreational marijuana at that time but decided to wait until Minnesota’s new marijuana law legalizes possession statewide.
“Our intention is to be a good partner and ultimately fill the void for people who intend to use cannabis,” Red Lake tribal secretary Sam Strong told the Star Tribune.
The state’s Democratic-controlled Legislature approved a massive marijuana legalization bill this year, which Democratic Gov. Tim Walz signed in May.
White Earth Nation and Red Lake Nation plan to take advantage of their sovereignty and allow sales right away. But the state projects most legal retail sales won’t begin until early 2025, while it creates a licensing and regulatory system for the new industry.
Minnesota is the 23rd state to legalize recreational marijuana, more than a decade after Colorado and Washington did so. | https://www.seattletimes.com/business/two-tribal-nations-to-open-minnesotas-first-legal-recreational-marijuana-dispensaries/?utm_source=RSS&utm_medium=Referral&utm_campaign=RSS_all | 2023-07-30T22:03:08 | 1 | https://www.seattletimes.com/business/two-tribal-nations-to-open-minnesotas-first-legal-recreational-marijuana-dispensaries/?utm_source=RSS&utm_medium=Referral&utm_campaign=RSS_all |
A lawsuit filed by Donald Trump against the news network CNN has been dismissed by a federal judge.
In a federal lawsuit filed last year in Florida, the former president claimed that some news articles and on-air statements from a host on the network created a "false and incendiary association" between him and Adolf Hitler. Trump also said that the use of the phrase "the Big Lie," used in reference to his efforts to overturn the 2020 election, was defamatory, as it allegedly generated feelings of "hate, contempt, distrust, ridicule, and even fear" towards Trump among readers and viewers.
Ultimately, Trump sought punitive damages amounting to $475 million in the lawsuit.
But in a ruling on Friday, U.S. District Judge Raag Singhal stated that Trump's defamation claims lacked merit because the references made were opinions and not statements of fact.
The judge further emphasized that it would be a stretch to believe that the phrase "the Big Lie" would link Trump's efforts to challenge the 2020 election results with Nazi propaganda in the minds of viewers.
"CNN’s use of the phrase "the Big Lie" in connection with Trump’s election challenges does not give rise to a plausible inference that Trump advocates the persecution and genocide of Jews or any other group of people. No reasonable viewer could (or should) plausibly make that reference," Judge Singhal wrote in the filing, first obtained by the Washington Post.
According to the filing, Trump's lawsuit cited various instances, including opinion pieces by former CNN Editor-at-Large Chris Cillizza and one episode of CNN's "State of the Union," hosted by Jake Tapper, where the phrase "the Big Lie" was used.
SEE MORE: Trump's 2024 rivals ignored legal cases against him at Iowa GOP event
Trending stories at Scrippsnews.com | https://www.lex18.com/federal-judge-dismisses-trump-s-defamation-lawsuit-against-cnn | 2023-07-30T22:03:09 | 1 | https://www.lex18.com/federal-judge-dismisses-trump-s-defamation-lawsuit-against-cnn |
Updated July 29, 2023 at 11:35 AM ET
Two Supreme Court decisions are changing the way students, educators and even the Biden administration are approaching higher education.
The first ruling ended affirmative action for public and private colleges. It declared that race conscious admissions programs at both Harvard and the University of North Carolina violated the Equal Protection Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment.
The second put a halt to President Biden's student loan cancellation plan. Now the Biden administration is trying to find new ways to make college more accessible. The administration recently unveiled a new student loan repayment plan that will save borrowers thousands of dollars by keeping monthly payments low and preventing interest from accumulating.
This week, the administration's focus is on affirmative action: The U.S. Department of Education has opened a civil rights investigation into the practice of legacy admissions at Harvard University, and on Friday, Secretary of Education Miguel Cardona visited Wesleyan University, which recently got rid of legacy admissions.
Legacy admissions are on the chopping block
The federal inquiry comes after to three Boston-based groups — the Chica Project, the African Community Economic Development of New England and the Greater Boston Latino Network — filed a complaint with the Education Department against Harvard. It accuses the university of discriminating against Black, Hispanic, Asian and other non-white undergraduate applicants by showing preference for those who have family relationships with donors or alumni.
In a statement to NPR, Harvard spokesperson Nicole Rura said the university is reviewing its admissions policy to ensure it is "complying with the law and to carry forward Harvard's longstanding commitment to welcoming students from a wide range of backgrounds, perspectives, and life experiences."
Ivory Toldson, the national director of Education Innovation and Research at the NAACP, said that legacy admissions compromise a university's ability to create a diverse student body. He said if colleges are committed to diversity, they should not be favoring applicants from wealthier backgrounds.
"Now that race conscious admissions has been outlawed by the Supreme Court, you have to look at other ways to achieve diversity," Toldson said during an interview for Morning Edition.
Toldson said legacy admissions should be abolished.
The impact of legacy admissions policies on a student body
A study released this week by the Harvard School of Economics showed that richer applicants are getting a leg up in the college admissions process. Students from affluent backgrounds are twice as likely to get into top colleges than students from more middle class backgrounds, even if the students have similar GPAs and SAT scores.
Admissions data cited in documents that were part of the affirmative action case revealed that nearly 70% of the university's legacy applicants were white — including applicants who have relationships with donors, those who are children of faculty or staff, and athletes applicants. And while legacy applicants make up less than 5% of applicants to Harvard, the data showed they constitute around 30% of the applicants admitted each year, the ruling cited.
Some schools have gotten rid of legacy admissions altogether.
Wesleyan University, a private liberal arts college in Connecticut that has a 16% acceptance rate, recently eliminated its legacy admissions policy. Wesleyan President Michael Roth told NPR's Leila Fadel, during an interview for Morning Edition, the decision to end the policy was a direct response to the Supreme Court ruling that effectively ended affirmative action as part of college admissions.
"It became clear to me that any advantage you give to incumbents, to people who already have advantages, is a glaring sign of unfairness," Roth said.
Other schools have done the same. The University of Minnesota Twin Cities also ended legacy admissions this month, and Colorado passed a state law banning the practice at all public colleges and universities.
"Not getting in" is just one concern for students
Whitney Gouche is vice president of a nonprofit called EMERGE that serves high-achieving students from low-income areas in Texas. She said her students feel discouraged by the recent Supreme Court decision.
"We've explained to our students, that regardless of the decision, you still belong here, she said. "You have the merits to be a successful student at this campus."
Convincing students to apply isn't the easiest task — concerns about high cost are also on students' minds. Even if they get in, it could cost about $70,000 in tuition for an elite college like Wesleyan.
Roth said that while admitted students who qualify for financial aid will receive it at Wesleyan, the university has to do more to convince students to apply in the first place.
"We have to be very aggressive in recruiting students from places that haven't typically looked at schools like Wesleyan," Roth said.
Roth said that ending legacy admissions won't solve the more widespread problem of education disparities in the United States.
"Legacy admissions is attractive to talk about, but the real issues are elsewhere," Roth said.
This story was edited by Erika Aguilar.
Copyright 2023 NPR. To see more, visit https://www.npr.org. | https://www.nprillinois.org/2023-07-26/colleges-are-ending-legacy-admissions-to-diversify-campuses-post-affirmative-action | 2023-07-30T22:03:09 | 1 | https://www.nprillinois.org/2023-07-26/colleges-are-ending-legacy-admissions-to-diversify-campuses-post-affirmative-action |
Updated July 30, 2023 at 5:02 PM ET
KHAR, Pakistan — A suicide bomber blew himself up at a political rally in a former stronghold of militants in northwest Pakistan bordering Afghanistan on Sunday, killing at least 44 people and wounding nearly 200 in an attack that a senior leader said was meant to weaken Pakistani Islamists.
The Bajur district near the Afghan border was a stronghold of the Pakistani Taliban — a close ally of Afghanistan's Taliban government — before the Pakistani army drove the militants out of the area. Supporters of hardline Pakistani cleric and political party leader Maulana Fazlur Rehman, whose Jamiat Ulema Islam generally supports regional Islamists, were meeting in Bajur in a hall close to a market outside the district capital. Party officials said Rehman was not at the rally but organizers added tents because so many supporters showed up, and party volunteers with batons were helping control the crowd.
Officials were announcing the arrival of Abdul Rasheed, a leader of the Jamiat Ulema Islam party, when the bomb went off in one of Pakistan's bloodiest attacks in recent years.
Provincial police said in a statement that the attack was carried out by a suicide bomber who detonated his explosives vest close to the stage where several senior leaders of the party were sitting. It said initial investigations suggested the Islamic State group — which operates in Afghanistan and is an enemy of the Afghan Taliban — could be behind the attack, and officers were still investigating.
"There was dust and smoke around, and I was under some injured people from where I could hardly stand up, only to see chaos and some scattered limbs," said Adam Khan, 45, who was knocked to the ground by the blast around 4 p.m. and hit by splinters in his leg and both hands.
The Pakistan Taliban, or TTP, said in a statement sent to The Associated Press that the bombing was aimed at setting Islamists against each other. Zabiullah Mujahid, a spokesman for the Afghan Taliban, said on the social media platform X, formerly known as Twitter, that "such crimes cannot be justified in any way."
The Afghan Taliban's seizure of power in Afghanistan in mid-August 2021 emboldened the TTP. They unilaterally ended a cease-fire agreement with the Pakistani government in November, and have stepped up attacks across the country.
The bombing came hours before the arrival of Chinese Vice Premier He Lifeng in Islamabad, where he was to participate in an event to mark a decade of the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor, or CPEC, a sprawling package under which Beijing has invested billions of dollars in Pakistan.
In recent months, China has helped Pakistan avoid a default on sovereign payments. However, some Chinese nationals have also been targeted by militants in northwestern Pakistan and elsewhere.
Feroz Jamal, the provincial information minister, told The Associated Press that so far 44 people had been "martyred" and nearly 200 wounded in the bombing.
The bombing was one of the four worst attacks in the northwest since 2014, when 147 people, mostly schoolchildren, were killed in a Taliban attack on an army-run school in Peshawar. In January, 74 people were killed in a bombing at a mosque in Peshawar. n February, more than 100 people, mostly policemen, died in a bombing at a mosque inside a high-security compound housing Peshawar police headquarters.
Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and President Arif Alvi condemned the attack and asked officials to provide all possible assistance to the wounded and the bereaved families. Sharif later, in a phone call to Rehman, the head of the JUI, conveyed his condolences to him and assured him that those who orchestrated the attack would be punished.
The U.S. Embassy in Islamabad also condemned the attack. In a post on social media platform X, formerly known as Twitter, it expressed its condolences to the families and loved ones of the victims killed in the attack..
Maulana Ziaullah, the local chief of Rehman's party, was among the dead. JUI leaders Rasheed and former lawmaker Maulana Jamaluddin were also on the stage but escaped unhurt.
Rasheed, the regional chief of the party, said the attack was an attempt to remove JUI from the field before parliamentary elections in November, but he said such tactics would not work. The bombing drew nationwide condemnation, with the ruling and opposition parties extending condolences to the families of those who died in the attack.
Rehman is considered to be a pro-Taliban cleric and his political party is part of the coalition government in Islamabad. Meetings are being organized across the country to mobilize supporters for the upcoming elections.
"Many of our fellows lost their lives and many more wounded in this incident. I will ask the federal and provincial administrations to fully investigate this incident and provide due compensation and medical facilities to the affected ones," Rasheed said.
Mohammad Wali, another attendant at the rally, said he was listening to a speaker address the crowd when the huge explosion temporarily deafened him.
"I was near the water dispenser to fetch a glass of water when the bomb exploded, throwing me to the ground," he said. "We came to the meeting with enthusiasm but ended up at the hospital seeing crying, wounded people and sobbing relatives taking the bodies of their loved ones."
Copyright 2023 NPR. To see more, visit https://www.npr.org. | https://www.iowapublicradio.org/news-from-npr/news-from-npr/2023-07-30/a-bombing-at-a-political-rally-in-pakistan-has-killed-at-least-44-and-wounded-some-200 | 2023-07-30T22:03:09 | 1 | https://www.iowapublicradio.org/news-from-npr/news-from-npr/2023-07-30/a-bombing-at-a-political-rally-in-pakistan-has-killed-at-least-44-and-wounded-some-200 |
NIAMEY, Niger (AP) — Thousands of people backing the coup in Niger marched through the streets of the capital denouncing France, the country’s former colonial power, waving Russian flags, and setting a door at the French Embassy ablaze on Sunday before the army broke up the crowd.
Demonstrators in Niger are openly resentful of France, and Russia is seen by some as a powerful alternative. The nature of Russia’s involvement in the rallies, if any, isn’t clear but some protesters have carried Russian flags, along with signs reading “Down with France” and supporting Russian President Vladimir Putin.
The Russian mercenary group Wagner is operating in neighboring Mali, and under Putin Russia has expanded its influence in West Africa. The new junta’s leaders have not said whether they intend to ally themselves with Moscow or stick with Niger’s Western partners.
French President Emmanuel Macron said Sunday that attacks on France and its interests would not be tolerated and anyone who attacks French citizens will see an immediate response.
Niger, a French colony until 1960, had been seen as the West’s last reliable partner battling jihadists in Africa’s Sahel region. France has 1,500 soldiers in the country who conduct joint operations with the Nigeriens. The United States and other European countries have helped train the nation’s troops.
At an emergency meeting Sunday, the West African bloc known as ECOWAS said that it was suspending relations with Niger, and authorized the use of force if President Mohamed Bazoum is not reinstated within a week. The African Union has issued its own 15-day ultimatum to the junta in Niger to reinstall the democratically elected government.
Shortly after the ECOWAS meeting in Abuja, Nigeria, Chadian President Mahamat Deby arrived in Niger to lead mediation efforts, according to the Chad state radio station.
ECOWAS has struggled to make a definitive impact on the region’s political crises in the past but Bazoum was democratically elected two years ago in Niger’s first peaceful transfer of power since independence from France in 1960.
Members of the Niger military announced on Wednesday that they had deposed Bazoum and on Friday named Gen. Abdourahmane Tchiani as the country’s new leader, adding Niger to a growing list of military regimes in West Africa’s Sahel region.
Some leaders of the mutiny said they overthrew Bazoum because he wasn’t able to secure the nation against growing jihadi violence. But some analysts and Nigeriens say that was a pretext for a takeover driven by internal power struggles.
“We couldn’t expect a coup in Niger because there’s no social, political or security situation that would justify that the military take the power,” Prof. Amad Hassane Boubacar, who teaches at the University of Niamey, told The Associated Press.
He said Bazoum wanted to replace the head of the presidential guard, Tchiani. Tchiani, who also goes by Omar, was loyal to Bazoum’s predecessor, and that sparked the problems, Boubacar said.
Niger’s dire security situation is not as bad as that in neighboring Burkina Faso or Mali, which have also been battling an Islamic insurgency linked to al-Qaida and the Islamic State group. Last year, Niger was the only one of the three to see a decline in violence, according to the Armed Conflict Location & Event Data Project.
Some taking part in Sunday’s rally warned outside bodies to stay away.
“I would like also to say to the European Union, African Union and ECOWAS, please, please stay out of our business,” Oumar Barou Moussa said at the demonstration. “It’s time for us to take our lives, to work for ourselves. It’s time for us to talk about our freedom and liberty.”
Niger has the most at stake of any country in the Sahel if it turns away from the West, given the millions of dollars of military assistance it has received from abroad.
On Saturday, U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said the continued security and economic cooperation with the U.S. hinges on the release of Bazoum — who remains under house arrest — and “the immediate restoration of the democratic order in Niger.”
Macron said he’d spoken to Bazoum and his predecessor on Sunday. On Saturday France suspended all development and financial aid to Niger.
The 15-nation ECOWAS bloc has unsuccessfully tried to restore democracies in nations where the military took power in recent years. Four nations are run by military regimes in West and Central Africa, where there have been nine successful or attempted coups since 2020.
While the bloc has struggled to have much impact, the measures placed on Niger Sunday show the gravity of the situation, said Andrew Lebovich, a research fellow with the Clingendael Institute.
“The strenuous measures they have put in place or threatened to put in place show not only how seriously they are taking this crisis, but also the urgency the regional body and larger international community feel in trying to force a return to normal that will likely prove elusive,” he said.
The response from the bloc towards Niger differs from how it dealt with recent coups in Mali and Burkina Faso, which did not involve the threat of force if constitutional rule wasn’t reinstated.
In the last few decades it has sent troops into member countries a handful of times.
In the 1990s, ECOWAS intervened in Liberia during its civil war. In 2017 it intervened in The Gambia to prevent the new president’s predecessor, Yahya Jammeh, from disrupting the handover of power. Approximately 7,000 troops from Ghana, Nigeria, and Senegal entered, according to the Global Observatory, which provides analysis on peace and security issues.
Economic sanctions could have a deep impact on Nigeriens, who live in the third-poorest country in the world, according to the latest U.N. data. The country relies on imports from Nigeria for up to 90% of its power, according to the International Renewable Energy Agency. The sanctions would suspend all commercial and financial transactions between ECOWAS member states and Niger.
In a televised address Saturday, Col. Major Amadou Abdramane, one of the soldiers who ousted Bazoum, accused the meeting of making a “plan of aggression” against Niger and said the country would defend itself.
“Tensions with the military are still ongoing. There could be another coup after this one, or a stronger intervention from ECOWAS, potentially military force,” said Tatiana Smirnova, a researcher in conflict resolution and peace missions at the Centre FrancoPaix. “Many actors are also trying to negotiate, but the outcome is unclear.”
___
Associated Press reporters Angela Charlton in Paris and Chinedu Asadu in Abuja, Nigeria and Edouard Takadji in N’Djamena, Chad contributed. | https://www.myarklamiss.com/news/ap-top-headlines/ap-as-regional-and-global-powers-decry-nigers-coup-the-countrys-future-remains-uncertain/ | 2023-07-30T22:03:13 | 0 | https://www.myarklamiss.com/news/ap-top-headlines/ap-as-regional-and-global-powers-decry-nigers-coup-the-countrys-future-remains-uncertain/ |
ZAPORIZHZHIA REGION, Ukraine — For 10 days, Ukrainian marines fought street by street and house by house to recapture the southeastern village of Staromaiorske, navigating artillery fire, airstrikes and hundreds of Russian troops.
The Russians put up a ferocious defense, but that ended Thursday when they folded and the Ukrainians claimed victory. “Some ran away, some were left behind,” said an assault commander from Ukraine’s 35th Marine Brigade, who uses the call sign Dikyi, which means Wild. “We were taking captives,” he added.
The recapture of Staromaiorske, a small village that is nonetheless critical to Ukraine’s southern strategy, was such a welcome development for Ukraine that President Volodymyr Zelenskyy announced it himself.
The counteroffensive has largely been a brutal lesson for Ukrainian troops, who have struggled to seize back territory across the southern region of Zaporizhzhia. In two months, Ukrainian troops have advanced less than 10 miles at any point along the region’s 100-mile front.
Victories, such as the one at Staromaiorske, represent a potential breakthrough in the fighting, Ukrainian officials said, perhaps opening the way for a broader push by their country’s forces.
Ukraine is focused on two main southward thrusts, with the aim of cutting off Russian resupply routes. One line of attack goes through Staromaiorske toward the city of Berdiansk on the Azov Sea, and another, farther west, toward the city of Melitopol.
Both cities command strategic transit routes for Russian forces occupying southern Ukraine and Crimea.
For weeks, Ukrainian artillery and long-range missiles have been pounding Russian supply lines and rear bases in an effort to break their operational capability and undermine Russian morale.
Rockets fired from an American-made HIMARS mobile launcher surprise drivers on country roads near the front line as Ukrainian units attack targets deep behind Russian lines.
As Ukrainian forces deploy Western-supplied weapons, Russian troops are making use of deadly new tactics and weapons of their own, including attack drones and remote-detonated mines.
In Staromaiorske, Russian soldiers dug bunkers underneath the village’s houses with multiple exits so a house would erupt like an anthill when under attack, said Dikyi. He lost one of his best men, a 27-year-old called Vyacheslav, who used the call sign Bandit, in an assault on such a house, he said.
The key to the Ukrainian success in the village, he said, was wearing down the Russian soldiers’ will to fight. The first sign of the Russian collapse was when 20 soldiers abandoned their position after complaining that reinforcements had failed to arrive, he said.
From intercepts of Russian communications and interrogations of prisoners, the Ukrainian forces knew that their opponents were taking casualties and that some were refusing to fight.
“They were panicking,” Dikyi said. The Ukrainians redoubled their attack with a frontal assault with two battalions along four streets.
As officials celebrated Ukraine’s progress in Staromaiorske, troops elsewhere on the ground said Russian defenses and firepower remained formidable and in places impassable.
A soldier at a medical post, awaiting evacuation for a concussion, recently described how his battalion had been decimated when it came under Russian artillery and tank fire. His brigade, the 23rd, was one of nine newly formed, Western-trained units prepared and equipped for the counteroffensive. But the brigade, he said, had been thrown into the fight without sufficient artillery support and had been unable to defend themselves against Russian firepower.
In one battle in which his unit took part, Ukrainian soldiers attacked in 10 American-made MaxxPro armored vehicles, but only one came back, he said. He showed photographs of the damaged vehicles, ripped open and burned out, which he said had been hauled back to a repair base. The soldier declined to give his name for fear of getting into trouble with his superiors.
“They were hit by anti-tank fire,” he said. “They hit them and they kept hitting. They were burned out. The guys did not survive.”
Later, as they sheltered in a captured Russian bunker, his unit came under attack by mortar fire and grenade launchers, he said. Moments before the bunker was destroyed by a Russian tank, he added, his unit escaped.
“If we had stayed 10 minutes longer, we would not be alive,” he said.
The soldier lost a 22-year-old friend, Stas, in the shelling the day before, he said, adding that in just over a month, his battalion had suffered so many dead and wounded that only 10 men remained at the front line.
Another soldier, who joined last year and asked to be identified only by his first name, Oleksiy, said his unit had taken heavy losses as Russian troops directed artillery fire and aerial bombs onto their positions.
“We were shot like on a shooting range,” he said. “A drone was flying above us and correcting the artillery fire.” Their positions were in former Russian positions, hemmed in by minefields, he said, and the Russian forces were able to keep them pinned down and under constant drone surveillance.
Soldiers were running out of ammunition and water but could only sneak in and out of their positions in ones or twos, on foot, when the light was poor just before dawn and at dusk, he said.
The Ukrainian troops, Oleksiy added, were unable to suppress the Russian firepower. “At first, we had artillery support, and then we ran out,” he said. “We need more weapons.”
He added: “If the troops knew we had a good supply and coordinated support from behind, we would take more territory.”
Interviews with Ukrainian soldiers and a review of military surveillance footage from a recent attack indicate that many Ukrainian units are sustaining heavy losses.
A group with special operations training, deployed last month to storm Russian positions in a village on the western part of the front, took such heavy casualties in four days of assaults that they had to pull out without success.
After their armored vehicles were largely destroyed by artillery strikes on the first day, they revised their plan to approach the village on foot through a tree line that had been mined. The Ukrainians cleared a narrow path with demining explosives and the first soldiers reached the Russian positions and dropped down into a trench.
Drone footage of the event showed what happened next. Explosions suddenly detonated inside the trenches and other strikes hit soldiers on the edge of the tree line. The video footage has been verified by The New York Times.
“The trenches were mined,” said the assault commander, who uses the call sign Voskres, short for Resurrection. “Our guys started jumping in the trenches and blowing up,” he added. The Russian forces were watching, and they remotely detonated the mines, he said.
Those who managed to avoid the mines came under attack from multiple Russian kamikaze drones. “It seemed like they had a drone for each person,” he said. “The amount of equipment the Russians have, had we known, it was like mission impossible.”
Several weeks later, the village remains in Russian hands. | https://www.seattletimes.com/nation-world/amid-the-counterattacks-deadly-slog-a-glimmer-of-success-for-ukraine/?utm_source=RSS&utm_medium=Referral&utm_campaign=RSS_all | 2023-07-30T22:03:14 | 1 | https://www.seattletimes.com/nation-world/amid-the-counterattacks-deadly-slog-a-glimmer-of-success-for-ukraine/?utm_source=RSS&utm_medium=Referral&utm_campaign=RSS_all |
Our Sunday started on a decent note, but it has been hot again, and the heat has sparked some more scattered heavy downpours and thunderstorms. Be aware of these this evening, but most of the action will wane into the night as temperatures dip to the mid 60s. Monday and the next few days will be much better as we get rid of the energy from the heat and humidity and a flow of air from Canada. This will keep us cooler (mid 80s) and lower in humidity! The heat wave is over....for now. Dew points will be in the upper 50s instead of the low to mid 70s through Wednesday, but those numbers will creep back up into late week as moisture increases. Because of this, we will also see an uptick in chances for heavy rain and thunderstorms. At least Monday through Wednesday will be nice and dry with lots of sunshine. Later in the week is where we will have to watch for storms again. High temperatures will also move back toward normal or above into next weekend.
Posted at 5:04 PM, Jul 30, 2023
and last updated 2023-07-30 17:04:06-04
Copyright 2023 Scripps Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. | https://www.lex18.com/weather/daily-forecast/quiet-nicer-few-days | 2023-07-30T22:03:15 | 0 | https://www.lex18.com/weather/daily-forecast/quiet-nicer-few-days |
GARDEN CITY, Idaho — Garden City Police arrested 45-year-old Timothy Bingaman, of Caldwell, for a DUI, assault, possession and evading police.
According to police, they responded to a welfare check on Saturday, July 29 near Glenwood and Marigold in Garden City. When they arrived, they found Bingaman in a parking lot and tried to talk with him. He then drove out of the lot, nearly hitting an officer.
Police said that he then sped down State Street, "with a disregard for the safety of the public." Close to the intersection of Highway 44 and Longhorn he hit a patrol car and officers were able to take him into custody.
He was booked into Ada County Jail and charged with aggravated assault, possession of a controlled substance, eluding an officer, possession of paraphernalia, driving under the influence for the second time and having an open container of alcohol. No one was hurt. His arraignment is set for Monday, July 31.
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DENVER (AP) — As Denver neared triple-digit temperatures, Ben Gallegos sat shirtless on his porch swatting flies off his legs and spritzing himself with a misting fan to try to get through the heat. Gallegos, like many in the nation’s poorest neighborhoods, doesn’t have air conditioning.
The 68-year-old covers his windows with mattress foam to insulate against the heat and sleeps in the concrete basement. He knows high temperatures can cause heat stroke and death, and his lung condition makes him more susceptible. But the retired brick layer, who survives on about $1,000 a month largely from Social Security, says air conditioning is out of reach.
“Take me about 12 years to save up for something like that,” he said. “If it’s hard to breath, I’ll get down to emergency.”
As climate change fans hotter and longer heat waves, breaking record temperatures across the U.S. and leaving dozens dead, the poorest Americans suffer the hottest days with the fewest defenses. Air conditioning, once a luxury, is now a matter of survival.
As Phoenix weathered its 27th consecutive day above 110 degrees (43 Celsius) Wednesday, the nine who died indoors didn’t have functioning air conditioning, or it was turned off. Last year, all 86 heat-related deaths indoors were in uncooled environments.
“To explain it fairly simply: Heat kills,” said Kristie Ebi, a University of Washington professor who researches heat and health. “Once the heat wave starts, mortality starts in about 24 hours.”
It’s the poorest and people of color, from Kansas City to Detroit to New York City and beyond, who are far more likely to face grueling heat without air conditioning, according to a Boston University analysis of 115 U.S. metros.
“The temperature differences … between lower-income neighborhoods, neighborhoods of color and their wealthier, whiter counterparts have pretty severe consequences,” said Cate Mingoya-LaFortune of Groundwork USA, an environmental justice organization. “There are these really big consequences like death. … But there’s also ambient misery.”
Some have window units that can offer respite, but “in the dead of heat, it don’t do nothing,” said Melody Clark, who stopped Friday to get food at a nonprofit in Kansas City, Kansas, as temperatures soared to 101, and high humidity made it feel like 109. When the central air conditioning at her rental house went on the fritz, her landlord installed a window unit. But it doesn’t do much during the day.
So the 45-year-old wets her hair, cooks outside on a propane grill and keeps the lights off indoors. She’s taken the bus to the library to cool off. At night she flips the box unit on, hauling her bed into the room where it’s located to sleep.
As far as her two teenagers, she said: “They aren’t little bitty. We aren’t dying in the heat. … They don’t complain.”
While billions in federal funding have been allocated to subsidize utility costs and the installation of cooling systems, experts say they often only support a fraction of the most vulnerable families and some still require prohibitive upfront costs. Installing a centralized heat pump system for heating and cooling can easily reach $25,000.
President Joe Biden announced steps on Thursday to defend against extreme heat, highlighting the expansion of the Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program, which funnels money through states to help poorer households pay utility bills.
While the program is critical, said Michelle Graff, who studies the subsidy at Cleveland State University, only about 16% of the nation’s eligible population is actually reached. Nearly half of states don’t offer the federal dollars for summer cooling.
“So people are engaging in coping mechanisms, like they’re turning on their air conditioners later and leaving their homes hotter,” Graff said.
While frigid temperatures and high heating bills birthed the term “heat or eat,” she said, “we can now transition to AC or eat, where people are going to have to make difficult decisions.”
As temperatures rise, so does the cost of cooling. And temperatures are already hotter in America’s low-income neighborhoods like Gallegos’ Denver suburb of Globeville, where people live along stretches of asphalt and concrete that hold heat like a cast-iron skillet. Surface temperatures there can be roughly 8 degrees hotter than in Denver’s wealthier neighborhoods, where a sea of vegetation cools the area, according to the environmental advocacy group American Forests.
This disparity plays out nationwide. Researchers at the University of San Diego analyzed 1,056 counties and in over 70%, the poorest areas and those with higher Black, Hispanic and Asian populations were significantly hotter.
About one in 10 U.S. households have no air conditioning, a disparity compounded for marginalized groups, according to a study by the Brookings Institution. Less than 4% of Detroit’s white households don’t have air conditioning; it’s 15% for Black households.
At noon on Friday, Katrice Sullivan sat on the porch of her rented house on Detroit’s westside. It was hot and muggy, but even steamier inside the house. Even if she had air conditioning, Sullivan said she’d choose her moments to run it to keep her electricity bill down.
The 37-year-old factory worker pours water on her head, freezes towels to put around her neck, and sits in her car with the air conditioner on. “Some people here spend every dollar for food, so air conditioning is something they can’t afford,” she said.
Shannon Lewis, 38, lived in her Detroit home for nearly 20 years without air conditioning. Lewis’s bedroom was the only place with a window unit, so she’d squeeze her teenager, 8-year-old and 3-year-old-twins into her queen-size bed to sleep, eat meals and watch television.
“So it was like cool in one room and a heat stroke in another,” Lewis said. For the first time, Lewis now has air conditioning through a local non-profit, she said. “We don’t have to sleep or eat in the same room, we are able to come out, sit at the dining room table, eat like a family.”
After at least 54 died during a 2021 heat wave, mostly elderly people without air conditioning, in the Portland area, Oregon passed a law prohibiting landlords from placing blanket bans on air conditioning units. By and large, however, states don’t have laws requiring landlords to provide cooling.
In the federal Inflation Reduction Act, billions were set aside for tax credits and rebates to help families install energy-efficient cooling systems, but some of those are yet to be available. For people like Gallegos, who doesn’t pay taxes, the available credits are worthless.
The law also offers rebates, the kind of state and federal point-of-sale discounts that Amanda Morian has looked into for her 640-square-foot home.
Morian, who has a 13-week-old baby susceptible to hot weather, is desperate to keep her house in Denver’s Globeville suburb cool. She bought thermal curtains, ceiling fans and runs a window unit. At night she tries to do skin-to-skin touch to regulate the baby’s body temperature. When the back door opens in the afternoon, she said, the indoor temperature jumps a degree.
“All of those are just to take the edge off, it’s not enough to actually make it cool. It’s enough to keep us from dying,” she said.
She got estimates from four different companies for installing a cooling system, but every project was between $20,000 and $25,000, she said. Even with subsidies she can’t afford it.
“I’m finding that you have to afford the project in the first place and then it’s like having a bonus coupon to take $5,000 off of the sticker price,” she said.
Lucy Molina, a single mom in Commerce City, one of Denver’s poorest areas, said her home has reached 107 degrees without air conditioning. Nearby, Molina’s two teenage children slurped popsicles to cool off, lingering in front of the open freezer.
For Molina, who bustled around her kitchen on a recent day when temperatures reached 99 degrees outdoors, it’s hard to see any path to a cooling respite.
“We’re just too poor,” she said.
____
Associated Press writers Heather Hollingsworth in Kansas City, Kansas, and Corey Williams in Detroit contributed to this report.
——
Bedayn is a corps member for the Associated Press/Report for America Statehouse News Initiative. Report for America is a nonprofit national service program that places journalists in local newsrooms to report on undercovered issues. | https://www.myarklamiss.com/news/ap-top-headlines/ap-record-heat-waves-illuminate-plight-of-poorest-americans-who-suffer-without-air-conditioning/ | 2023-07-30T22:03:20 | 1 | https://www.myarklamiss.com/news/ap-top-headlines/ap-record-heat-waves-illuminate-plight-of-poorest-americans-who-suffer-without-air-conditioning/ |
A non-verbal autistic man was taken for a wild ride when the Mercedes-Benz he was sitting in was stolen from outside Brooklyn’s Park Slope Food Coop by an opportunistic car thief, cops said Sunday.
Brandon Simeon, 54, was waiting inside an idling 2010 Mercedes-Benz outside the well-known grocery on Union St. when a crook hopped into the driver’s seat about 7:30 p.m. Saturday, police said.
The keys were in the ignition and the thief sped off, making a turn onto Seventh Ave. and fleeing south, police said.
Cops found the abandoned car, with Simeon still inside, about five hours later just two blocks away on Mill and Clinton Sts., police sources said. Simeon was unharmed.
The crook was nowhere to be found and has not been caught. | https://www.seattletimes.com/nation-world/autistic-nyc-man-taken-for-wild-ride-when-mercedes-benz-he-was-sitting-in-was-stolen/?utm_source=RSS&utm_medium=Referral&utm_campaign=RSS_all | 2023-07-30T22:03:21 | 1 | https://www.seattletimes.com/nation-world/autistic-nyc-man-taken-for-wild-ride-when-mercedes-benz-he-was-sitting-in-was-stolen/?utm_source=RSS&utm_medium=Referral&utm_campaign=RSS_all |
The Idaho Youth Ranch has been helping Idaho kids for about 70 years. It started as a ranch for "wayward boys" in the desert outside Rupert in the 1950s. The Youth Ranch says it has now grown into a statewide agency serving Idaho's most vulnerable youth and their families.
It's now about to enter a new era of carrying out that mission. The brand new Residential Center for Healing and Resilience in Caldwell will begin accepting young clients on August 15. The grand opening is August 10.
The nonprofit serves kids across the state who need mental and behavioral health services. The residential center will provide long-term therapy and education for dozens of Idaho kids between the ages of 11 and 17 every year who have experienced forms of trauma in their past.
The Idaho Youth Ranch raised $35 million in mostly private funding to build it. It also got some funding from the Idaho Department of Health and Welfare. The 258-acre setting includes two residential halls, a wellness center, a dining and recreation hall, an education center and a welcome center for families.
The youth ranch says the kids will be supported with 24-hour nursing, psychiatric care, therapy, and a year-round school.
"They'll be coming from a lot of different backgrounds," Residential Center Medical Director Dr. Spencer Merrick said. "A lot of the kids we're working with will have experienced a lot of trauma of various types, a lot verbal, emotional, physical abuse or neglect, and some without trauma but with a lot of just underlying depression and anxiety, other behaviors that just haven't been able to be managed safely at home. These are kids that need extra support that can't be provided with routine therapy."
Residential Center Executive Director Deborah Imbrogno explained why it is crucial to have the center in Idaho.
"It's so important because, to do the family work, the youth need to be here," Imbrogno said. "That's where the magic happens when we're working with the families as partners, and they're present and they're engaged. (It's) So important."
The Youth Ranch is holding a hiring event on August 24. They're looking to fill many positions, including therapists, nurses and youth care providers. You can get more information on their website. https://www.youthranch.org/
On this edition of Viewpoint, we'll show you around the new Residential Center for Healing and Resilience and explain how it will help the kids who go there for care.
The center is a major example of what the Youth Ranch's well-known thrift stores fund by selling donations made by people in our communities.
That fundraising took a major hit a little over a year ago. On July 18, 2022 flames engulfed the nonprofit's main distribution center in Boise. The fire destroyed everything in the center's outside yard, and smoke damaged everything inside the warehouse.
On this edition of Viewpoint, we also look at how the Youth Ranch's recovery from the fire is going a year later and what they need to get back to full capacity.
Viewpoint airs Sunday mornings at 9 o'clock on KTVB Idaho's NewsChannel 7.
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Stream Live for FREE on FIRE TV: Search ‘KTVB’ and click ‘Get’ to download. | https://www.ktvb.com/article/news/local/viewpoint/local-viewpoint-huge-summer-for-idaho-youth-ranch/277-4882e48c-856b-400e-a414-9858c65dba40 | 2023-07-30T22:03:22 | 0 | https://www.ktvb.com/article/news/local/viewpoint/local-viewpoint-huge-summer-for-idaho-youth-ranch/277-4882e48c-856b-400e-a414-9858c65dba40 |
A woman and her teenage daughter say Delta Air Lines staff served a boorish passenger drink after drink, then did nothing when he manhandled and sexually assaulted them on a long flight from JFK Airport to Greece, according to a federal lawsuit.
The pilot and flight attendants didn’t even call police to have the man arrested after the eight hour and 40 minute ordeal, and offered the traumatized mom an insulting 5,000 “SkyMiles” as an apology, the lawsuit alleges.
The mother and her 16-year-old daughter, New York state residents identified in court papers as A.A. and N.A., filed a $2 million negligence and civil rights lawsuit against Delta in Brooklyn Federal Court on Tuesday.
“As a parent, protecting your child is always priority No. 1,” their lawyer, Evan Brustein, told the Daily News. “What happened to my clients during a flight was not just a nightmare, it was completely preventable.”
The mother and daughter boarded Flight 202 to Athens International Airport on July 26, 2022, the lawsuit alleges. The mom sat in the aisle seat and the daughter sat in the middle seat, just a few feet away from the flight attendants’ galley.
The woman next to them swapped seats to sit with her husband, and she was replaced by the passenger from hell — an intoxicated man who asked for a vodka on the rocks before the flight even took off, the suit says.
“Over the first three hours of the flight, the Delta flight attendants served the intoxicated Delta passenger approximately ten vodka on ice drinks,” the lawsuit alleges. “The intoxicated Delta passenger drank every drink the Delta flight attendants served him.”
As he became visibly drunker, the man started talking to the teen and loudly asking invasive questions about where she lived, the lawsuit alleges.
She turned her back to tell her mother she was scared, and the man started touching her back, yelling “so loudly that the surrounding passengers were reacting,” according to the lawsuit.
At that point the mother flagged down a flight attendant in the nearby galley, who unhelpfully told her to “be patient,” the lawsuit alleges.
At one point, the man ran to the bathroom to vomit, and the mom tried to convince another flight attendant to cut him off and start serving him coffee — but when he returned, he had a glass of wine in his hand, the suit says.
After five separate complaints, the lead flight attendant finally came over and told the man and said, “The ladies next to you are complaining that you are bothering them. Stop talking to them,” which led to him screaming and cursing, calling them “b—–s” and c—s,” the suit alleges.
The rattled teen suffered a “panic attack” after that, and she put her head on her mom’s lap to calm down, then felt the man’s “clammy fingers underneath her shirt climbing up her back,” according to the lawsuit. When she felt his fingers reach her bra strap, she jumped out of her seat — and the man grabbed her mother’s leg and moved up her thigh.
The mom and daughter got out of their seats and begged the flight attendants to talk to the pilot and let them switch seats. The plane staff said their hands were tied because no one wanted to move — and an attendant even said that as a practice serving booze to an alcoholic is easier than risking a confrontation, the suit alleges.
Finally, a passenger named Nikolaos saw the teen crying and offered to changed seats, telling the drunken man to shut up when he complained about it.
Mom asked a flight attendant to contact police, but the attendant told her to “calm down and think about it,” and never returned, according to the suit.
No police arrived to greet them in Athens, and the man was hustled off the plane ahead of the other passengers, the lawsuit alleges. Nikolaos was given 5,000 SkyMiles for being a “hero” — the same number the mom was offered as an apology, the lawsuit alleges.
The lawsuit doesn’t specify if the mother or daughter contacted police on their own after landing, and their attorney didn’t specify that to The News.
When asked about the lawsuit, Delta spokesperson Morgan Durrant said, “While we don’t have any specific comment on this pending litigation, Delta has zero tolerance for customers who engage in inappropriate or unlawful behavior. Nothing is more important than the safety of our customers and our people.” | https://www.seattletimes.com/nation-world/delta-airlines-staff-did-nothing-as-drunk-passenger-sexually-assaulted-ny-teen-girl-and-mom-on-9-hour-flight-from-jfk-lawsuit/?utm_source=RSS&utm_medium=Referral&utm_campaign=RSS_all | 2023-07-30T22:03:28 | 0 | https://www.seattletimes.com/nation-world/delta-airlines-staff-did-nothing-as-drunk-passenger-sexually-assaulted-ny-teen-girl-and-mom-on-9-hour-flight-from-jfk-lawsuit/?utm_source=RSS&utm_medium=Referral&utm_campaign=RSS_all |
ORLANDO, Fla. — A judge in Florida on Friday refused to dismiss a lawsuit brought by Gov. Ron DeSantis appointees against Disney’s efforts to neutralize the governor's takeover of Disney World’s governing district.
The judge in state court in Orlando denied Disney's motion in the lawsuit that says the company wrongly stripped appointees of powers over design and construction at Disney World when it made agreements with predecessors, who were supporters.
The case is one of two lawsuits stemming from the takeover, which was retaliation for the company’s public opposition to the so-called Don’t Say Gay legislation championed by DeSantis and Republican lawmakers. In the other lawsuit, in federal court in Tallahassee, Disney says DeSantis violated the company’s free speech rights.
The governor has touted his yearlong feud with Disney in his run for the 2024 GOP presidential nomination, often accusing the entertainment giant of being too “woke.” Disney has accused the governor of violating its First Amendment rights.
Attorneys for Disney had argued that any decision in state court would be moot since the Republican-controlled Legislature already has passed a law voiding agreements that the company made with a prior governing board made up of Disney supporters that gave design and construction powers to the company.
The entertainment giant had asked that the state court case be put on hold if it's not dismissed until the federal lawsuit in Tallahassee was resolved since they covered the same ground and that lawsuit was filed first.
In that case, Disney sued DeSantis and his appointees to the Central Florida Tourism Oversight District in an effort to stop the takeover, saying the governor was violating the company’s free speech and “weaponizing the power of government to punish private business.”
DeSantis wasn’t a party in the state court lawsuit.
The fight between DeSantis and Disney began last year after the company, facing significant pressure internally and externally, publicly opposed a state law banning classroom lessons on sexual orientation and gender identity in early grades, a policy critics call “Don’t Say Gay.”
As punishment, DeSantis took over the district through legislation passed by Florida lawmakers and appointed a new board of supervisors to oversee municipal services for the sprawling theme parks and hotels. But before the new board came in, the company made agreements with previous oversight board members who were Disney supporters that stripped the new supervisors of their authority over design and construction.
In response, DeSantis and Florida lawmakers passed the legislation that repealed those agreements.
Disney announced in May that it was scrapping plans to build a new campus in central Florida and relocate 2,000 employees from Southern California to work in digital technology, finance and product development. Disney had planned to build the campus about 20 miles (30 kilometers) from the giant Walt Disney World theme park resort. | https://www.ktvb.com/article/news/nation-world/judge-refuses-to-dismiss-desantis-lawsuit-against-disney/67-efffbc0e-b0a5-42cc-831c-3389f0437ef0 | 2023-07-30T22:03:28 | 0 | https://www.ktvb.com/article/news/nation-world/judge-refuses-to-dismiss-desantis-lawsuit-against-disney/67-efffbc0e-b0a5-42cc-831c-3389f0437ef0 |
BEIRUT (AP) — Fighting raged Sunday in Lebanon’s largest Palestinian refugee camp near the southern port city of Sidon, killing at least five people and wounding seven, Palestinian officials said.
UNRWA, the U.N. agency for Palestinian refugees, put the death toll at six, and Lebanon’s state-run National News Agency said two children were among those wounded.
The Palestinian officials, speaking to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity in line with regulations, said the fighting broke out after an unknown gunman tried to kill Islamist militant Mahmoud Khalil, killing a companion of his instead.
Later, Islamist militants shot and killed a Palestinian military general from the Fatah group and three escorts as they were walking through a parking lot, another Palestinian official told AP.
Ein el-Hilweh is notorious for its lawlessness and violence is not uncommon. The U.N. says about 55,000 people live in the camp, which was established in 1948 to house Palestinians displaced by Israeli forces during the establishment of Israel.
On Sunday, factions blazed away with assault rifles and rocket-propelled grenade launchers and lobbed hand grenades in the camp as ambulances zoomed through its narrow streets to take the wounded to the hospital.
The fighting stopped for several hours in the morning, though state media said there was still sporadic sniper fire, but fighting erupted again after the killing of the Palestinian general and his escorts.
Some residents in Sidon neighborhoods near the camp fled their homes as stray bullets hit buildings and shattered windows and storefronts. The public Sidon General Hospital evacuated its staff and patients.
The Lebanese army said in a statement that a mortar shell hit a military barracks outside the camp and wounded one soldier, whose condition is stable. Military commandos deployed near the camp’s entrances as clashes continued into the night.
UNRWA said two of its schools that serve some 2,000 students were damaged in the fighting. It said it suspended all its operations in Ein el-Hilweh.
Fatah in a statement condemned the killing of its security official, saying the attack was part of a “bloody scheme that targets the security and stability of our camps.” It vowed to hold the “perpetrators accountable.”
In Ramallah, the office of Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas issued a statement decrying violence in a camp for Palestinian refugees.
“No one is allowed to intimidate our people and tamper with their security,” it said. “We support what the Lebanese government is doing to impose law and order, and we affirm our commitment to Lebanon’s sovereignty, including the Palestinian refugee camps, and maintaining security and the rule of law.”
Late in the day, the factions said in a joint statement that they had agreed to a ceasefire during a mediation meeting hosted by the Lebanese Shiite Amal movement and militant Hezbollah group in Sidon. But local media said fighting continued. A spokesperson from the Palestinian militant group Hamas told AP that the groups were working to implement the truce.
Lebanon’s caretaker prime minister, Najib Mikati, condemned the clashes. “We call on the Palestinian leadership to cooperate with the army to control the security situation and hand over those meddling with security to the Lebanese authorities,” Mikati said in his statement.
Palestinian factions in the camp for years have cracked down on militant Islamist groups and fugitives seeking shelter in the camp’s overcrowded neighborhoods. In 2017, Palestinian factions engaged in almost a week of fierce clashes with a militant organization affiliated with the extremist Islamic State group.
___
Associated Press writer Abby Sewell in Beirut contributed to this report. | https://www.myarklamiss.com/news/international/ap-1-killed-6-wounded-in-overnight-clashes-in-crowded-palestinian-refugee-camp-in-lebanon/ | 2023-07-30T22:03:28 | 0 | https://www.myarklamiss.com/news/international/ap-1-killed-6-wounded-in-overnight-clashes-in-crowded-palestinian-refugee-camp-in-lebanon/ |
KHAR, Pakistan — A powerful bomb ripped through a political rally by supporters of a hard-line cleric and political leader on Sunday in the country’s northwestern Bajur district, police and health officials said. At least 40 people were killed and nearly 200 wounded, including children, in one of the worst attacks in recent years.
Senior police officer Nazir Khan said the workers' convention of Maulana Fazlur Rehman’s Jamiat Ulema Islam party was taking place on the outskirts of Khar, the capital of Bajur district, when the explosion took place. AP video showed wounded people being carried from the scene in the chaotic aftermath of the explosion.
Bajur used to be a haven for Islamic militants. It is the former stronghold of the Pakistani Taliban, known as Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan, or TTP, a militant group that is a close ally of the Taliban government of Afghanistan. The TTP was in recent years evicted from the area as a result of operations by the Pakistani military.
In a statement sent to The Associated Press, the TTP condemned the bombing, saying it was aimed at pitching Islamists against each other. Zabiullah Mujahid, a spokesman for the Afghan Taliban, also condemned the bombing. “Such crimes cannot be justified in any way,” he said in a message on the social media platform X, formerly known as Twitter.
Though a separate group, the TTP remains a close ally of the Afghan Taliban, who seized power in Afghanistan in mid-August 2021. The takeover emboldened the TTP. They unilaterally ended a cease-fire agreement with the Pakistani government last November and have since stepped up attacks across the country.
One of the victims, Adam Khan, 45, was hit by splinters in his leg and both hands. He said it was around 4 p.m. when the explosion knocked him to the ground.
“There was dust and smoke around and I was under some injured people from where I could hardly stand up, only to see chaos and some scattered limbs,” he said.
Initially, police said 10 people were killed but later more bodies arrived at a local hospital, bringing the death toll to 40. Feroz Jamal, the provincial information minister, told The Associated Press that so far 40 people had been “martyred” and nearly 200 wounded in the bombing.
The JUI workers' convention was arranged in a hall close to a market, but later tents were added because of the large number of supporters who turned out. The venue was being guarded by party volunteers with batons. An announcement was being made for the arrival of Abdul Rasheed, a senior leader of the party, when the bomb exploded.
The bombing was one of the four worst attacks in the northwest since 2014, when 147 people, mostly schoolchildren, were killed in a Taliban attack on an army-run school in Peshawar. In January, 74 people were killed in a bombing at a mosque in Peshawar. More than 100 people, mostly policemen, died in a bombing at the city's mosque at police headquarters in February this year.
District health officer Dr. Faisal Khan said 40 bodies from the blast were at Khar's main hospital. Some of the wounded were in critical condition and were being transferred to a facility in Peshawar and the adjoining district of Dir, including by army helicopters.
Prime Minister Shebaz Sharif and President Arif Alvi condemned the attack and asked officials to provide all possible assistance to the wounded and the bereaved families.
Maulana Ziaullah, the local chief of Rehman's party, was among the dead. JUI leaders Rasheed and former lawmaker Maulana Jamaluddin were also on the stage but escaped unhurt. Party officials said Rehman was not at the rally.
Rasheed, the regional chief of the party, said the attack was an attempt to remove JUI from the field before parliamentary elections in November, but he said such tactics would not work.
Rehman is considered to be a pro-Taliban cleric and his political party is part of the coalition government in Islamabad. Meetings are being organized across the country to mobilize supporters for the upcoming elections.
“Many of our fellows lost their lives and many more wounded in this incident. I will ask the federal and provincial administrations to fully investigate this incident and provide due compensation and medical facilities to the affected ones,” Rasheed said.
Mohammad Wali, another attendant at the rally, said he was listening to a speaker address the crowd when the huge explosion temporarily deafened him.
“I was near the water dispenser to fetch a glass of water when the bomb exploded, throwing me to the ground," he said. "We came to the meeting with enthusiasm but ended up at the hospital seeing crying, wounded people and sobbing relatives taking the bodies of their loved ones.”
___
Riaz Khan reported from Peshawar. Associated Press writer Munir Ahmad contributed from Islamabad. | https://www.ktvb.com/article/news/nation-world/political-rally-in-northwest-pakistan-bomb/507-6e3f6092-dc77-4608-a95c-9ee5a6c22522 | 2023-07-30T22:03:34 | 0 | https://www.ktvb.com/article/news/nation-world/political-rally-in-northwest-pakistan-bomb/507-6e3f6092-dc77-4608-a95c-9ee5a6c22522 |
RALEIGH, N.C. — When Tricia Cotham, a former Democratic lawmaker, was considering another run for the North Carolina House of Representatives, she turned to a powerful party leader for advice. Then, when she jumped into the Democratic primary, she was encouraged by still other formidable allies.
She won the primary in a redrawn district near Charlotte, and then triumphed in the November general election by 18 percentage points, a victory that helped Democrats lock in enough seats to prevent, by a single vote, a Republican supermajority in the state House.
Except what was unusual — and not publicly known at the time — was that the influential people who had privately encouraged Cotham to run were Republicans, not Democrats. One was Tim Moore, the redoubtable Republican speaker of the state House. Another was John Bell, the Republican majority leader.
“I encouraged her to run because she was a really good member when she served before,” Bell recalled in an interview.
Three months after Cotham took office in January, she delivered a mortal shock to Democrats and to abortion rights supporters: She switched parties, and then cast a decisive vote May 3 to override a veto by the state’s Democratic governor, Roy Cooper, and enact a 12-week limit on most abortions — North Carolina’s most restrictive abortion policy in 50 years.
Overnight, Cotham became a hero to Republicans and anti-abortion advocates across the country, even as Democrats vilified her as a traitor whose unexpected party flip had changed health care policy in a politically purple state of more than 10 million people.
More perplexing to many Democrats was why she did it. Cotham came from a family with strong ties to the Democratic Party, campaigned as a progressive on social issues and had even co-sponsored a bill to codify a version of Roe v. Wade into North Carolina law.
Interviews with former and current political allies depict her as someone who had grown alienated from Democratic Party officials and ideals. Republican leaders cultivated her before she ran and, seeing her growing estrangement, seized a chance to coax her across party lines.
Before the switch, Cotham chafed at what she perceived as a lack of support from other Democrats. Once she was elected, Moore said, he made it clear that she would be welcomed by Republicans.
“Never in my life did I think that one person could have that kind of impact, that will affect the lives of thousands of people for years to come,” said Ann Newman, a Democratic activist in Cotham’s district. Newman recently asked for — and received — a refund of the $250 she had donated to Cotham’s 2022 campaign.
Her change of parties has left many of Cotham’s constituents feeling angry and betrayed, and has allowed Republicans to flex the power of their new supermajority well beyond the abortion issue, overturning a string of vetoes by Cooper, including six on June 27 alone.
Cotham, 44, has defended her switch and said she had delivered on many promises she made to voters.
“I campaigned on Medicaid expansion,” she said in a statement to The New York Times. “I campaigned on supporting children, housing, safer communities, a strong economy and increasing health care options. I’ve done all of this and more.”
Yet, there is no question that Cotham has dealt a grievous blow to Democratic policy goals in North Carolina.
In late March, just a few days before switching parties, she skipped a pivotal gun-control vote, helping Republicans loosen gun restrictions in the state. After she became a Republican, she sponsored a bill to expand student eligibility for private-school vouchers, voted to ban gender-affirming care for minors and voted to outlaw discussions of race or gender in state job interviews.
“This switch has been absolutely devastating,” said state Rep. Pricey Harrison, a Democrat from Greensboro.
Cotham received a standing ovation at North Carolina’s state Republican convention in June. She was invited to meet privately there with Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis and former Vice President Mike Pence.
“She’s a rock star among the Republican Party activists and voter base,” said U.S. Rep. Dan Bishop, R-N.C., who said he encouraged Cotham to join his party and who stood behind her when she announced the decision.
A Democratic Upbringing
Cotham had deep Democratic roots when she first entered the state House in 2007, replacing a lawmaker who resigned amid corruption charges. At 28, she became the state’s youngest legislator.
Her mother was active in party politics, and later ran successfully for the Mecklenburg County Commission. A first cousin became a Democratic Party leader in Maine, and ran a political action committee supporting abortion rights.
As a student, Cotham volunteered for Bill Clinton’s presidential campaign and interned for John Edwards, then a U.S. senator.
A lot of people in the Democratic Party “have known her since she was a child,” said Cotham’s mother, Pat.
In the North Carolina House, Cotham was reelected to four full terms and became a progressive force, calling for higher taxes on the state’s wealthiest residents to help close budget gaps. She criticized charter schools. She fought against the so-called bathroom bill that required people to use restrooms in accordance with their birth gender.
She repeatedly railed against waiting periods for abortions, and speaking on the House floor in 2015, she invoked her personal experience.
“Legislators, you do not hold shares in my body,” she said in a speech that has now become famous, “so stop trying to manipulate my mind.”
In 2016, Cotham chose to run for Congress, rather than for another term in the legislature, and was defeated.
Lacey Williams, a former advocacy director at the Charlotte-based Latin American Coalition who considered Cotham a friend for years, said Cotham “felt she did not get the gratitude or spotlight that she felt she deserved,” and added, “she was jealous that other Democrats were getting the adulation from the party.”
In response, Cotham said Williams “has a right to her feelings,” but “I do not perceive it that way — I’m a very confident and accomplished woman.”
The Lobbyist
For a time, Cotham left elective politics and went into lobbying, with a focus on education. In 2019, she and three partners founded a firm called BCHL. One of the partners was C. Philip Byers, a major donor to state Republicans who was also president of a company that built charter schools.
In office, Cotham had criticized charter schools, but now her firm supported private investments in the public school system and charter schools. (Cotham said she had been supportive of public school alternatives “for years.”)
In 2019, she also became president of an education organization called Achievement for All Children, which was chosen by state officials to turn around a foundering public school in Robeson County. For the next year and a half, Cotham commuted to the school, Southside-Ashpole Elementary, which is about 100 miles from her home outside Charlotte.
Brenda McCallum, an office manager at the school, recalled that Cotham fought policy battles energetically. Cotham also appealed to her younger constituents, once dressing as the Cat in the Hat for a reading event.
“She was an excellent advocate for our school,” said McCallum. “The kids loved her.”
In early 2020, Cotham fell sick with COVID-19, a diagnosis that hobbled her for the next two years. In a local television interview in 2022, she said she was still struggling with the virus’s lingering effects.
It was around that time that state Democratic Party officials were homing in on a redrawn state House district in Mecklenburg County, where Cotham lived and where Democratic voters outnumber Republicans. Partly because of her public COVID battle, party leaders didn’t seriously consider nominating her, but she surprised them by filing at the deadline in March to run for the seat.
Some Democrats welcomed her return, seeing her as a reliable ally on social issues such as abortion, but activist Democrats in the Charlotte area said she never responded to their offers of help. Text messages from political allies and friends, wishing her well, were met with silence.
She fumed that Lillian’s List, an abortion rights organization, had “really screwed” her by endorsing another Democrat in the primary, according to a message she sent to a campaign worker, Autumn Alston, that was reviewed by the Times.
Cotham seemed to have embraced a me-vs.-them mentality, said Jonathan Coby, her former campaign consultant. “She would say, ‘Oh, I don’t want to talk to that group. They’re out to get me; they don’t like me,’” Coby recalled.
Cotham said Coby, who worked with her for nearly a decade, including on her most recent campaign, was not a reliable source of information.
Meanwhile, as Cotham grew leery of activists and groups on the left, she was receiving counsel from prominent Republicans. “I reached out to her and told her good luck, I hope she wins,” said Moore. “She was somebody I realized we could work with.”
Cotham said Moore and “others” were pleased that she was running. She called their well wishes “pretty common.”
Moore and Bell said they didn’t know at that time that Cotham would change parties.
Cotham’s top campaign donors included the North Carolina Dental Society PAC — which gave almost exclusively to Republican candidates — and the North Carolina Health Care Facilities PAC, which gave mainly to Republicans.
“Those groups have honored me with their support for years,” Cotham said. “I’ve earned it.”
A Rocky Return
In January, Cotham was part of a small group of lawmakers who escorted Moore to the dais to be sworn in as speaker. Some Democrats said they were surprised to see Cotham play such a role.
In a recent interview, Moore praised Cotham’s ability to “work with Republicans at all times.”
Democrats, including Cotham, sponsored a House bill that month to write Roe v. Wade’s protection of abortion rights into state law. Yet, she refused to meet or take phone calls from Planned Parenthood, according to Jillian Reilly, a lobbyist for the group.
Cotham told Coby and her mother that she was put off that Democrats treated her as a newcomer when she returned to the House, inviting her to freshman orientation and offering her a mentor. She declined both.
Cotham would later say she was offended by what she regarded as bullying and groupthink inside the Democratic caucus, which was no longer the “big tent” she had once known. She said the caucus focused too much on process over the hard work of governance.
Democrats said they were baffled by the accusations she later aired. Text messages between Cotham and House Democratic Party leader Robert Reives reviewed by the Times show friendly dialogue.
“It never would have crossed my mind that she was having issues,” said Reives.
Bell said he was aware of Cotham’s unease. He and Moore tried to engage her about joining the GOP, telling her “you have a home over here.”
After Cotham was criticized for missing the vote on gun regulations, Bishop called her and said he had heard she was thinking of joining his party.
“I got the sense when we talked that she was much farther along in that decision than I had understood before calling her,” he recalled.
After the gun vote, Coby said he found Cotham to be angry. “She said, ‘I’m either going to switch parties or resign,’” he remembered. “The things she was telling me then were like, ‘The Democrats don’t like me, the Republicans have helped me out a lot and been nice to me’.”
Four days later, Cotham announced her decision to defect. “The party wants to villainize anyone who has free thought,” she said of the Democrats during a news conference.
She accused Democrats of spreading “vicious rumors” about her — perhaps alluding to chatter that she and Moore were romantically linked. Moore has denied the assertion; Cotham called it “insulting.”
Cotham was soon fielding thousands of texts, emails and phone messages calling her a traitor and liar, delivering vulgarities her mother described “as a new low in society” and demanding that she resign.
Four months after Cotham’s party switch, the bitterness still runs deep.
Linda Meigs, a political activist from Charlotte, drove to Cotham’s district this month for a meeting with local lawmakers hosted by Common Cause North Carolina and other liberal advocacy groups.
Meigs said she had come prepared to confront Cotham over how she could have campaigned on “Democratic Party values such as women’s rights to reproductive freedom and LGBTQ rights,” only to reverse her support. Cotham was invited to speak, but didn’t attend.
“When I’m talking to somebody and asking them a question, I usually like to look them in the face,” Meigs told a crowded room at a Mint Hill church. “I can’t do that tonight.”
Instead, she pointed to a front-row chair. “So,” she said to cheers, “I’m going to talk to this empty chair.” | https://www.seattletimes.com/nation-world/inside-the-party-switch-that-blew-up-north-carolina-politics/?utm_source=RSS&utm_medium=Referral&utm_campaign=RSS_all | 2023-07-30T22:03:34 | 1 | https://www.seattletimes.com/nation-world/inside-the-party-switch-that-blew-up-north-carolina-politics/?utm_source=RSS&utm_medium=Referral&utm_campaign=RSS_all |
MOSCOW (AP) — Ten people — including three children — died after high winds tore through central Russia, emergency services and a local official reported Sunday.
Eight of the dead were part of a group of tourists camping close to Lake Yalchik in the Mari-El region when the storm hit Saturday, Russia’s emergencies ministry said.
The strong winds caused a large number of trees to fall in the area, including where the group’s tents had been pitched on a stretch of wild beach inside the Mariy Chodra National Park, regional leader Yuri Zaitsev wrote on social media. He said that three children were among the dead. Russia’s investigative committee has opened a criminal case to determine whether unsafe or sub-standard services provided by the park’s management company contributed to the deaths.
Across the wider Volga Federal District, 76 people were injured in the storm, with thousands of households losing power, emergency services said. | https://www.myarklamiss.com/news/international/ap-9-die-including-3-children-as-strong-winds-hit-tourist-camp-in-central-russia-officials-say/ | 2023-07-30T22:03:35 | 1 | https://www.myarklamiss.com/news/international/ap-9-die-including-3-children-as-strong-winds-hit-tourist-camp-in-central-russia-officials-say/ |
MONTVILLE, Conn. — Tesla is ramping up efforts to open showrooms on tribal lands where it can sell directly to consumers, circumventing laws in states that bar vehicle manufacturers from also being retailers in favor of the dealership model.
Mohegan Sun, a casino and entertainment complex in Connecticut owned by the federally recognized Mohegan Tribe, announced this week that the California-based electric automaker will open a showroom with a sales and delivery center this fall on its sovereign property where the state's law doesn't apply.
The news comes after another new Tesla showroom was announced in June, set to open in 2025 on lands of the Oneida Indian Nation in upstate New York.
“I think it was a move that made complete sense,” said Lori Brown, executive director of the Connecticut League of Conservation Voters, which has lobbied for years to change Connecticut's law.
“It is just surprising that it took this long, because Tesla had really tried, along with Lucid and Rivian," she said, referring to two other electric carmakers. “Anything that puts more electric vehicles on the road is a good thing for the public.”
Brown noted that lawmakers with car dealerships that are active in their districts, no matter their political affiliation, have traditionally opposed bills allowing direct-to-consumer sales.
The Connecticut Automotive Retail Association, which has opposed such bills for years, says there needs to be a balance between respecting tribal sovereignty and “maintaining a level playing field” for all car dealerships in the state.
“We respect the Mohegan Tribe’s sovereignty and the unique circumstance in which they operate their businesses on Tribal land but we strongly believe that this does not change the discussion about Tesla and other EV manufacturers with direct-to-consumer sales, and we continue to oppose that model," Hayden Reynolds, the association’s chairperson, said in a statement. “Connecticut’s dealer franchise laws benefit consumers and provide a competitive marketplace."
Over the years in numerous states, Tesla has sought and been denied dealership licenses, pushed for law changes and challenged decisions in courts. The company scored a victory earlier this year when Delaware’s Supreme Court overturned a ruling upholding a decision by state officials to prohibit Tesla from selling its cars to directly customers.
At least 16 states have effectively changed their laws to allow Tesla and other direct-to-consumer manufacturers to sell there, said Jeff Aiosa, executive director of the Connecticut dealers association. He doesn't foresee Connecticut changing its law, noting that 32 “original equipment manufacturers,” a list that includes major car companies like Toyota and Ford, currently abide by it.
“It's not fair to have an unlevel playing field when all the other manufacturers abide by the state franchise laws and Tesla wants this exception to go around the law,” he said. “I would suggest their pivoting to the sovereign nation is representative of them not wanting to abide by the law.”
Tesla opened its first store as well as a repair shop on Native American land in 2021 in New Mexico. The facility, built in Nambé Pueblo, north of Santa Fe, marked the first time the company partnered with a tribe to get around state laws, though the idea had been in the works for years.
Brian Dear, president of the Tesla Owners Club of New Mexico, predicted at the time that states that are home to tribal nations and also have laws banning direct car sales by manufacturers would likely follow New Mexico's lead.
“I don’t believe at all that this will be the last,” he said.
Tesla's facility at Mohegan Sun, dubbed the Tesla Sales & Delivery Center, will be located at a shopping and dining pavilion within the sprawling casino complex. Customers will be able to test drive models around the resort. and gamblers will be able to use their loyalty rewards toward Tesla purchases.
Tesla also plans to exhibit its solar and storage products at the location.
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MOJAVE NATIONAL PRESERVE, Calif. (AP) — A massive wildfire burning out of control in California’s Mojave National Preserve was spreading rapidly Sunday amid erratic winds, while firefighters reported progress against another major blaze to the south that prompted evacuations.
The York Fire that erupted Friday near the remote Caruthers Canyon area of the preserve was sending up a huge plume of smoke visible nearly 100 miles (160 kilometers) away across the state line in Nevada.
Flames 20 feet (6 meters) high in some spots have charred more than 110 square miles (284 square kilometers) of desert scrub, juniper and Joshua tree woodland, according to a Sunday incident update.
“The dry fuel acts as a ready ignition source, and when paired with those weather conditions it resulted in long-distance fire run and high flames, leading to extreme fire behavior,” the update said. No structures were threatened. There was no containment.
To the southwest, the Bonny Fire was holding steady at about 3.4 square miles (8.8 square kilometers) in rugged hills of Riverside County. More than 1,300 people were ordered to evacuate their homes Saturday near the remote community of Aguanga.
Windy conditions and the chance of thunderstorms into Monday will heighten the risk of renewed growth, the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection said.
One firefighter was injured in the blaze, which was 5% contained Sunday. | https://www.seattletimes.com/nation-world/nation/erratic-winds-challenge-firefighters-battling-two-major-california-blazes/?utm_source=RSS&utm_medium=Referral&utm_campaign=RSS_all | 2023-07-30T22:03:41 | 0 | https://www.seattletimes.com/nation-world/nation/erratic-winds-challenge-firefighters-battling-two-major-california-blazes/?utm_source=RSS&utm_medium=Referral&utm_campaign=RSS_all |
KHAR, Pakistan (AP) — A suicide bomber blew himself up at a political rally in a former stronghold of militants in northwest Pakistan bordering Afghanistan on Sunday, killing at least 44 people and wounding nearly 200 in an attack that a senior leader said was meant to weaken Pakistani Islamists.
The Bajur district near the Afghan border was a stronghold of the Pakistani Taliban — a close ally of Afghanistan’s Taliban government — before the Pakistani army drove the militants out of the area. Supporters of hardline Pakistani cleric and political party leader Maulana Fazlur Rehman, whose Jamiat Ulema Islam generally supports regional Islamists, were meeting in Bajur in a hall close to a market outside the district capital. Party officials said Rehman was not at the rally but organizers added tents because so many supporters showed up, and party volunteers with batons were helping control the crowd.
Officials were announcing the arrival of Abdul Rasheed, a leader of the Jamiat Ulema Islam party, when the bomb went off in one of Pakistan’s bloodiest attacks in recent years.
Provincial police said in a statement that the attack was carried out by a suicide bomber who detonated his explosives vest close to the stage where several senior leaders of the party were sitting. It said initial investigations suggested the Islamic State group — which operates in Afghanistan and is an enemy of the Afghan Taliban — could be behind the attack, and officers were still investigating.
“There was dust and smoke around, and I was under some injured people from where I could hardly stand up, only to see chaos and some scattered limbs,” said Adam Khan, 45, who was knocked to the ground by the blast around 4 p.m. and hit by splinters in his leg and both hands.
The Pakistan Taliban, or TTP, said in a statement sent to The Associated Press that the bombing was aimed at setting Islamists against each other. Zabiullah Mujahid, a spokesman for the Afghan Taliban, said on the social media platform X, formerly known as Twitter, that “such crimes cannot be justified in any way.”
The Afghan Taliban’s seizure of power in Afghanistan in mid-August 2021 emboldened the TTP. They unilaterally ended a cease-fire agreement with the Pakistani government in November, and have stepped up attacks across the country.
The bombing came hours before the arrival of Chinese Vice Premier He Lifeng in Islamabad, where he was to participate in an event to mark a decade of the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor, or CPEC, a sprawling package under which Beijing has invested billions of dollars in Pakistan.
In recent months, China has helped Pakistan avoid a default on sovereign payments. However, some Chinese nationals have also been targeted by militants in northwestern Pakistan and elsewhere.
Feroz Jamal, the provincial information minister, told The Associated Press that so far 44 people had been “martyred” and nearly 200 wounded in the bombing.
The bombing was one of the four worst attacks in the northwest since 2014, when 147 people, mostly schoolchildren, were killed in a Taliban attack on an army-run school in Peshawar. In January, 74 people were killed in a bombing at a mosque in Peshawar. n February, more than 100 people, mostly policemen, died in a bombing at a mosque inside a high-security compound housing Peshawar police headquarters.
Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and President Arif Alvi condemned the attack and asked officials to provide all possible assistance to the wounded and the bereaved families. Sharif later, in a phone call to Rehman, the head of the JUI, conveyed his condolences to him and assured him that those who orchestrated the attack would be punished.
The U.S. Embassy in Islamabad also condemned the attack. In a post on social media platform X, formerly known as Twitter, it expressed its condolences to the families and loved ones of the victims killed in the attack..
Maulana Ziaullah, the local chief of Rehman’s party, was among the dead. JUI leaders Rasheed and former lawmaker Maulana Jamaluddin were also on the stage but escaped unhurt.
Rasheed, the regional chief of the party, said the attack was an attempt to remove JUI from the field before parliamentary elections in November, but he said such tactics would not work. The bombing drew nationwide condemnation, with the ruling and opposition parties extending condolences to the families of those who died in the attack.
Rehman is considered to be a pro-Taliban cleric and his political party is part of the coalition government in Islamabad. Meetings are being organized across the country to mobilize supporters for the upcoming elections.
“Many of our fellows lost their lives and many more wounded in this incident. I will ask the federal and provincial administrations to fully investigate this incident and provide due compensation and medical facilities to the affected ones,” Rasheed said.
Mohammad Wali, another attendant at the rally, said he was listening to a speaker address the crowd when the huge explosion temporarily deafened him.
“I was near the water dispenser to fetch a glass of water when the bomb exploded, throwing me to the ground,” he said. “We came to the meeting with enthusiasm but ended up at the hospital seeing crying, wounded people and sobbing relatives taking the bodies of their loved ones.”
___
Riaz Khan reported from Peshawar. Associated Press writer Munir Ahmad contributed from Islamabad. | https://www.myarklamiss.com/news/international/ap-a-bomb-at-a-political-rally-in-northwest-pakistan-kills-10-people-and-wounds-more-than-50/ | 2023-07-30T22:03:42 | 1 | https://www.myarklamiss.com/news/international/ap-a-bomb-at-a-political-rally-in-northwest-pakistan-kills-10-people-and-wounds-more-than-50/ |
FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. — A majestic rain tree has lived through 100 years of nasty weather, surviving torrential flooding, fierce storms and powerful hurricanes. But some worry the landmark tree won’t survive its latest test, a journey of 50 feet that moved it closer to the New River to make way for two new high-rise apartment towers.
A year ago, the 1.5 million pound tree was hoisted into the air, roots and all, as construction crews got ready to break ground on the $500 million project.
The tree was moved closer to the water, but not all the way to its final destination.
For nearly a year, the tree remained perched on a grassy plateau 6 feet above ground, waiting on a new seawall to be built.
At the time, developer Asi Cymbal said a collapsing seawall needed to be replaced to give the tree proper support. Work on the seawall began a few months ago and is now complete, Cymbal says.
Last week, the rain tree, still perched high up on its grassy island, was moved to its new permanent home, about 15 feet from the water’s edge. The new towers, once built, will stand 30 stories high and overlook the rain tree.
“The tree was moved closer to the river on July 21 and it’s in great health,” Cymbal said. “Our rain tree has been preserved and relocated to her final home on the future Riverwalk, along the waterfront in downtown Fort Lauderdale. We are happy to report that her preservation has been a success. Our rain tree has never been healthier.”
But critics fear the tree won’t survive in its new home.
Donna Meents, whose condo looks down upon the rain tree, is keeping close watch. She worries about the tree’s branches hanging over the water.
“Now the rain tree is in place and it is in even further jeopardy,” she told The South Florida Sun Sentinel. “The first time a large yacht comes down the New River to be repaired or remodeled, it will likely do damage to her branches.”
This is no ordinary tree.
The state Division of Forestry declared it a “Florida Champion” in 1982, signifying the tree’s status as the largest of its kind in the state. The tree, likely the largest of its species in the continental U.S., stands 80 feet high and boasts a radiant green canopy that casts shade over an area 130 feet wide.
In an attempt to protect the prized tree, city leaders granted it special protection in 1987, requiring commission approval before it can be moved or cut down.
Cymbal received permission to move the tree after agreeing to pay the city $1 million if it dies within five years of being moved.
Derrel Thompson, a longtime fan of the tree, thinks Cymbal might end up having to fork over the $1 million.
“Right now the tree is about 100 yards from my house,” Thompson said. “It used to be 25 yards away. I know this tree really well. I know when it’s supposed to bloom. I know how big the branches are supposed to be. I have lived under this tree for over 10 years.”
Thompson has also kept vigil over the tree and doesn’t like what he sees.
“The tree is not the same,” he said. “And it’s not going to rebound. The tree is still alive, but not thriving and will never recover from this move. When they cut the tree away from the roots, they cut so many roots, the tree is never going to recover. ”
Kimberly Christie has a bird’s eye view of tree from her ninth floor window at the Esplanade, a condo next door. She watched crews move the tree last week and even shot her own video.
“They started at 8 a.m. and were finished by noon,” she said. “This is its final resting place. Instead of digging a hole to plant the tree, they’re building up the soil around it.”
Unlike some of her neighbors, Christie holds out hope that the tree will do well in its new spot by the river.
“It was much fuller before they moved it,” she said. “It was really looking bad. But it’s started to look better now due to all the rain. It’s really perked up.”
Ted Inserra, a Fort Lauderdale activist, has been checking on the tree almost daily on his ride in to work.
“I saw them moving the tree last week so I came over to check things out,” he said. “It’s now in its new home. They’re trucking in dirt to raise the ground level to fit the tree.”
When asked if he thinks the tree will like its new home, Inserra let out a deep sigh.
“I don’t know,” he said. “With all this construction around the tree, they’re going to have to drill the pilings for the foundation. The tree is going to have to be strong to withstand all that vibration in the soil. And we don’t know if the root system is going to withstand that.”
Inserra says he plans to still keep an eye on the tree. And he’s likely not the only one. | https://www.seattletimes.com/nation-world/prized-750-ton-rain-tree-moved-to-new-home-critics-fear-it-wont-survive/?utm_source=RSS&utm_medium=Referral&utm_campaign=RSS_all | 2023-07-30T22:03:47 | 1 | https://www.seattletimes.com/nation-world/prized-750-ton-rain-tree-moved-to-new-home-critics-fear-it-wont-survive/?utm_source=RSS&utm_medium=Referral&utm_campaign=RSS_all |
NAIROBI, Kenya (AP) — African leaders have left two days of meetings with Russian President Vladimir Putin with little to show for their requests to resume a deal that kept grain flowing from Ukraine and to find a path to end the war there.
Putin in a press conference late Saturday following the Russia-Africa summit said Russia’s termination of the grain deal earlier this month caused a rise in grain prices that benefits Russian companies. He added that Moscow would share some of those revenues with the “poorest nations.”
That commitment, with no details, follows Putin’s promise to start shipping 25,000 to 50,000 tons of grain for free to each of six African nations in the next three to four months — an amount dwarfed by the 725,000 tons shipped by the U.N. World Food Program to several hungry countries, African and otherwise, under the grain deal. Russia plans to send the free grain to Burkina Faso, Zimbabwe, Mali, Somalia, Eritrea and Central African Republic.
Fewer than 20 of Africa’s 54 heads of state or government attended the Russia summit, while 43 attended the previous gathering in 2019, reflecting concerns over Russia’s invasion of Ukraine even as Moscow seeks more allies on the African continent of 1.3 billion people. Putin praised Africa as a rising center of power in the world, while the Kremlin blamed “outrageous” Western pressure for discouraging some African countries from showing up.
The presidents of Egypt and South Africa were among the most outspoken on the need to resume the grain deal.
“We would like the Black Sea initiative to be implemented and that the Black Sea should be open,” South African President Cyril Ramaphosa said. “We are not here to plead for donations for the African continent.”
African leaders also called clearly for peace.
“This war must end and it can only end on the basis of justice and reason,” said the head of the African Union Commission, Moussa Faki Mahamat. “The disturbances that it causes in the supply of energy and grain must cease immediately” for the benefit of all, especially Africans.
Putin said Russia would analyze African leaders’ peace proposal for Ukraine, whose details have not been publicly shared. But the Russian leader asked: “Why do you ask us to pause fire? We can’t pause fire while we’re being attacked.”
The next significant step in peace efforts instead appears to be a Ukrainian-organized peace summit hosted by Saudi Arabia in August. Russia is not invited.
Africa’s nations make up the largest voting bloc at the United Nations and have been more divided than any other region on General Assembly resolutions criticizing Russia’s actions in Ukraine. Delegations at the summit in St. Petersburg roamed exhibits of weapons, a reminder of Russia’s role as the top arms supplier to the African continent.
But African nations need more concrete results from such meetings, the AU Commission head told the summit.
“The trade balance between Russia and Africa, very unbalanced in favor of the first party, must be improved,” Mahamat said. At the first Russia-Africa Summit in 2019, Putin vowed to double Russia’s trade with the continent within five years. Instead, it has stalled at around $18 billion a year.
In addition, “the strengthening of cooperation on peace and security and the fight against terrorism calls for more deeds and fewer declarations of intent,” Mahamat said, while he and other African leaders were rushing to respond to a coup in Niger that could upend the regional response to a growing threat from Islamic extremist groups.
Putin in his remarks on Saturday also downplayed his absence from the BRICS economic summit in South Africa next month amid a controversy over an arrest warrant issued against him by the International Criminal Court. His presence there, Putin said, is not “more important than my presence here, in Russia.” | https://www.myarklamiss.com/news/international/ap-african-leaders-leave-russia-summit-without-grain-deal-or-a-path-to-end-the-war-in-ukraine/ | 2023-07-30T22:03:49 | 1 | https://www.myarklamiss.com/news/international/ap-african-leaders-leave-russia-summit-without-grain-deal-or-a-path-to-end-the-war-in-ukraine/ |
SANTA BARBARA, Calif. — This city of red-tile roofs, temperate breezes and coastal charm has long glimmered as one of those exceptional California places.
Its natural beauty attracts a literate and engaged population, and its residents, at least from afar, seem unduly blessed with fine weather, prosperity and more than a dose of the good life.
That good fortune appeared to shine on Santa Barbara in 2000, when one of the state’s richest women bought The Santa Barbara News-Press, a venerable newspaper that at the time had been at the heart of the city’s public life for more than 130 years. Santa Barbarans cheered at the notion of having a local in charge after more than a decade under the ownership of The New York Times Co. They saw in Wendy McCaw an owner with the financial resources (once pegged by Forbes at $1.5 billion) to ensure long-term viability of the Pulitzer Prize-winning news outlet. And they liked what they knew of her politics: environmentalist; champion of wildlife. McCaw seemed in step with the liberal-leaning beach and university community.
The reports of a match made in heaven proved greatly exaggerated. Within a few years, McCaw’s relationship with newsroom leaders — and then with many readers — began to crumble. A “bloodbath” exodus of top editors in 2006 unleashed what would become a slow-motion unraveling of the newspaper and its credibility.
The downward spiral reached rock bottom July 21, when Ampersand Publishing, the McCaw-led company that owns the News-Press, filed for bankruptcy. The finishing stroke came without fanfare or public notice. “All of our jobs are eliminated, and the News-Press has stopped publishing,” Managing Editor Dave Mason wrote in a brief email to the outlet’s staffers. “They ran out of money to pay us.”
Santa Barbarans reacted to the shutdown with measures of sadness and resignation. Many said the newspaper’s fate had been sealed ever since McCaw began warring with her staff and injecting her right-leaning, government-upbraiding views deep into the news pages. Whether through inexperience or intent, her critics said, McCaw transformed a respected local news organization — steeped in industry standards of fairness and independence — into a tormented plaything. Circulation swooned.
“It’s been like watching a cancer victim die,” said Dawn Hobbs, a former News-Press reporter, who was fired in 2007 after she called for readers to boycott the paper because of McCaw’s purported meddling in editorial decisions. “You are so sad at the end. But you’re almost relieved that the entity has been put out of its misery.”
Joining in the regrets about the newspaper’s fate was a nominal rival, Nick Welsh, the irascible dean of the Santa Barbara press corps who has written for the alternative weekly, the Independent, for four decades. “At the time it was ‘Local owner! Billionaire! Animal rights activist!’ There was such an opportunity there for the News-Press, which was just totally squandered,” said Welsh, whose droll “Angry Poodle” column is considered a must-read by many locals.
The effects of the bankruptcy remain unclear because the famously reclusive McCaw, who lives in a gated seaside estate in ultra-luxe Hope Ranch, has said nothing publicly about what will happen next. The paper’s website as of Friday remained intact but frozen with a handful of stories from shutdown day. The site had no mention of the closure.
Mason, the managing editor, responded with a “no comment” to the Los Angeles Times’ interview request. The attorney handling the company’s bankruptcy did not answer emailed questions asking about the legal filing or who would speak for the owner.
McCaw in the past has argued, in columns, interviews, legal proceedings and through intermediaries, that she is the victim in the long-running feud with News-Press journalists and the community. She has contended she was targeted because she dared to buck Santa Barbara’s insular liberal ethos. Her editorial pages often railed against Santa Barbara’s left-leaning orthodoxy and the purported overreach of the local, state and federal governments.
With the News-Press team silent, it was left to journalist Joshua Molina of Noozhawk — an online site maintained largely by former News-Press staffers — to alert the community that a newspaper founded not long after the Civil War was no more.
That’s not to say the closure shocked Santa Barbara. Locals had watched the paper go from a publication with a daily print circulation of more than 45,000 and a robust website to an online-only enterprise with paltry local coverage and national stories provided by a right-tilting news service. A news staff of close to 50 withered to fewer than 10 and became reliant on student interns to cover many public meetings.
The Chapter 7 bankruptcy filing by parent company Ampersand Publishing calls for liquidation, not a reorganization, suggesting there will be little chance for a new owner to take over. The filing claims the News-Press has less than $50,000 in assets and up to $10 million in liabilities, owed to 818 individuals and entities, including subscribers and McCaw. Two of the most valuable holdings — the News-Press’ graceful Spanish-style headquarters on De La Guerra Plaza and its Goleta printing plant — are owned by other McCaw companies.
Former employees expressed bitterness that the Chapter 7 filing could mean a crushing postscript to their two-decade legal fight with McCaw. They feared it might allow the owner to avoid paying nearly $3.5 million in back wages and interest levied by the National Labor Relations Board, which years ago found the company guilty of unfair labor practices. McCaw’s repeated appeals extended the ordeal through last summer, when the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals agreed that she needed to pay up.
“I hope there is a way for the creditors to go after her and force her to sell those properties to pay her debt,” said Hobbs, the former reporter. “She is coming out of this unscathed while the lives of so many have been turned upside down.”
This is not where this Santa Barbara media marriage was supposed to end.
McCaw had obtained much of her fortune in a divorce settlement from her one-time Stanford University sweetheart, Craig McCaw, a Seattle-area cellular phone industry magnate who became a multibillionaire.
After Wendy McCaw bought the paper from The New York Times in 2000 for a reported $110 million, she spoke of wanting to bolster attention to local issues. In an essay headlined “Integrity,” McCaw pledged “to leave it entirely to our newsroom professionals to decide which stories were worth covering and how they should be covered.”
The paper’s bid for journalistic excellence was reinforced in 2002, when Jerry Roberts, a noted political writer and former managing editor of The San Francisco Chronicle, took the post of executive editor. Reporters who worked under Roberts in those early years described an era of ambition, growth and an imperative to hold powerful interests to account.
But the good times did not last.
One dispute arose when McCaw directed that the paper kill a short article about a drunken-driving sentence given to the News-Press’ editorial page editor, who was soon to be publisher. The journalists argued the bust was public information, while the company countered the paper didn’t cover most DUIs that didn’t involve injury or death.
In another owner-newsroom beef, a reporter and three editors drew a sharp reprimand for publishing the address where actor Rob Lowe had applied to public agencies to build his “dream home,” a mega-mansion with elaborate trappings proposed for a vacant lot in Montecito. The journalists argued for transparency in a matter of public concern. McCaw, a personal friend of Lowe’s, said listing the address intruded on his privacy.
In what the Independent reported as a “self-inflicted bloodbath,” Roberts, four other top editors and veteran columnist Barney Brantingham resigned en masse in July 2006, protesting what they described as McCaw’s improper meddling in editorial content. The owner countered that she was the one trying to uphold journalistic standards because “news articles became opinion pieces, reporting went unchecked and the paper was used as a personal arena to air petty infighting by the editors.”
The meltdown drew national attention, most of it accusing McCaw of violating the journalistic credo that insists on a “wall” between media owners and news-gatherers. Renowned political commentator Lou Cannon, a Santa Barbara resident, accused McCaw of destroying the public’s trust and canceled his subscription.
Journalists who remained at the Santa Barbara paper began labor-organizing and voted for representation by a unit of the Teamsters Union, also calling for a public boycott of the News-Press to protest the owner’s purported overreach into editorial matters.
In rapid succession, eight journalists were fired. Two were accused of bias in their reporting. Six others hung a banner above the 101 Freeway that urged “Cancel Your Newspaper Today!” in protest of what they said was McCaw’s failure to bargain and intrusion into news decisions.
The NLRB in 2011 declared that the “News-Press Eight” (as the Independent called them) had been illegally terminated for engaging in protected union activities. The agency ordered them reinstated. But a federal appeals court upheld the terminations in 2012. “The First Amendment affords a publisher — not a reporter — absolute authority to shape a newspaper’s content,” the three-judge panel ruled.
The Byzantine legal fights dragged on. In one round, a federal appellate court ruled that the News-Press had engaged in “unusually aggravated conduct” against its employees. That conduct included bargaining in bad faith, discontinuing merit raises and unilaterally transferring work away from union employees to nonunion workers. Last summer, the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals upheld an order for the News-Press to pay $2 million in back wages and other levies, which had grown with interest to nearly $3.5 million by the end of 2022.
The clashes between McCaw, her staff and the community would die down for a time, only to flare anew: Another reporter and editor lost their jobs after the owner objected to a story she said quoted then-Mayor Marty Blum — a liberal and McCaw foe — too often. Many readers objected strongly in 2015 when the paper’s publishers insisted on calling migrants who did not hold immigration documents “illegals.”
In 2020, a McCaw editorial accused Democratic lawmakers of using the coronavirus for their own political agenda and compared stay-at-home orders to Nazi Germany. Editor-in-Chief Nick Masuda was soon out the door, though it was unclear whether he quit or was fired.
As with many prolonged passings, the demise of the News-Press felt both inevitable and sudden. Sitting at the bar of a favorite local haunt, Harry’s Plaza Cafe, Bente and Stephen Millard shook their heads at the disintegration of a paper “we used to be proud to get on our driveway every day.”
“She can have a conservative slant on the opinion page. That’s her right,” said Stephen Millard, a retired outdoor-festival impresario. “But she shouldn’t be controlling the stories in the news section of the newspaper. And previously the News-Press had supported the community and all sorts of events. That all seemed to slip away.”
In conversations with a dozen locals, it was clear residents had grown accustomed to searching alternative sources to get news about their community: the Independent, in print and online; the Noozhawk website; and Edhat, an online site reliant on citizen journalism.
“Valiant” was the word News-Press veteran Melinda Burns used to describe the efforts made to fill the news void left during the paper’s unraveling. But she and an array of civic activists said the heft and influence of the old News-Press has never been fully replaced.
Even the News-Press’ origin story has been a point of contention. The owners have long claimed an 1855 birthday and asserted the paper’s position as the oldest in Southern California. But a 1941 history published by the federal Works Progress Administration said the agency’s research supported a May 1868 birthday for the Santa Barbara Post, one of the publications later melded into what became the News-Press.
Birth date aside, longtime residents strike a uniform note of nostalgia about the newspaper’s founder, a towering figure named Thomas More Storke.
Storke was introduced to the trade by his father and went from cub reporter to editor to owner, a journalist acclaimed for sterling ethics and civic activism. He took on big topics in the pages of the News-Press and rallied his community to tackle outsized public works. He is credited as the force who drove forward Santa Barbara’s Mediterranean motif and generous open spaces; championed the Lake Cachuma reservoir, and demanded a University of California branch just up the road in Isla Vista.
Most notably, he powered a 1961 editorial exposé revealing the skulduggery and character assassination employed by the John Birch Society, rabid anti-Communists who had risen to prominence in California.
Storke won the 1962 Pulitzer Prize for editorial writing. When he died in 1971, at 94, former Chief Justice Earl Warren memorialized the Santa Barbara native as “one of the last of the old-time giants of journalism whose like will not be seen again.”
Santa Barbara County Supervisor Laura Capps grew up next door to the Storke home, and her father and mother, former U.S. Rep. Lois Capps, D-Calif., spoke reverently about the storied publisher.
“He stood as this pillar of integrity,” said Supervisor Capps. “And then (McCaw) turned the News-Press into something unrecognizable and something that actually detracted from the community.”
McCaw, asked through intermediaries to comment, failed to respond. | https://www.seattletimes.com/nation-world/santa-barbara-news-press-bankruptcy-brings-uneasy-end-to-an-owners-bitter-tenure/?utm_source=RSS&utm_medium=Referral&utm_campaign=RSS_all | 2023-07-30T22:03:54 | 1 | https://www.seattletimes.com/nation-world/santa-barbara-news-press-bankruptcy-brings-uneasy-end-to-an-owners-bitter-tenure/?utm_source=RSS&utm_medium=Referral&utm_campaign=RSS_all |
BANGUI, Central African Republic (AP) — The Central African Republic went to the polls Sunday in a highly anticipated vote on a new constitution, which would remove presidential term limits.
President Faustin Archange Touadera wants to extend presidential terms from five to seven years and remove the previous two-term limit, enabling him to run again in 2025.
The new constitution would replace the one adopted at Touadera’s inauguration in 2016, when the country was in a civil war and 80% of it was not under state control. If the new constitution is passed, it could entrench the ruling party’s power indefinitely, analysts say.
“This referendum basically confirms the fears of authoritarian drift (in CAR),” said Enrica Picco, Central Africa project director with the International Crisis Group. The new constitution would weaken checks on the executive by opposition parties, closing the space for Central Africans to participate in democratic decision-making, she said.
The proposed changes also would lift requirements that executive decisions be debated by the legislative and permit Central Africans with dual nationalities to vote.
The mineral-rich but impoverished nation has faced intercommunal fighting since 2013, when predominantly Muslim Seleka rebels seized power and forced then-President Francois Bozize from office. Mostly Christian militias later fought back, also targeting civilians in the streets. The United Nations, which has a peacekeeping mission in the country, estimates the fighting had killed thousands and displaced over a million people, one fifth of the country’s population.
When Touadera won re-election in 2020, barely a third of Central Africans made it to the polls, largely due to threats of violence by rebel groups. Touadera’s government has relied on support from UN peacekeepers, soldiers from neighboring Rwanda and Russian mercenaries from the Wagner Group to keep rebels out of the capital Bangui.
“Now that there is peace … the time has come for us to take action,” said Fidel Gouandjika, a presidential advisor.
Opposition groups accuse the ruling party of making a draft of the new constitution publicly available too late for people to make informed decisions, less than three weeks before the referendum, said Picco.
Together with opposition parties they are calling on Central Africans to vote against the proposed constitution, or abstain from the referendum.
“Touadera wants to see himself as an emperor, and he wants to make our country what he wants, not what Central Africans want,” said former Prime Minister Nicolas Tiangaye. | https://www.myarklamiss.com/news/international/ap-constitutional-referendum-to-remove-presidential-term-limits-divides-central-african-republic/ | 2023-07-30T22:03:57 | 0 | https://www.myarklamiss.com/news/international/ap-constitutional-referendum-to-remove-presidential-term-limits-divides-central-african-republic/ |
A shirtless man whose friend was dancing exuberantly as they pumped gas at a Brooklyn Mobil station was stabbed to death by a stranger who said the men’s antics were offensive to the killer’s Muslim faith, a witness told the Daily News.
The NYPD is investigating the caught-on-video killing as a possible hate crime.
The mayhem started when the victim pulled up the the Mobil gas station on Coney Island Ave. near Avenue P in Midwood about 11:15 p.m. Saturday, cops said. He and his four friends, all shirtless in swim trunks on one of the hottest days of the year, got out of their white sedan to pump gas.
A friend of the victim in small tight trunks a witness described as “underwear” began dancing.
That’s when a group of men exiting the Mobil station started harassing the 28-year-old victim, clad in pink swim trunks, and his pals, according to Summy Ullah, 32, who witnessed the argument and slaying.
“They were saying, ‘Oh, we’re Muslim, so don’t do this in front of me,’” said Ullah. “From that I think it looks like a hate crime.”
“Nothing else was going on. They were only dancing,” he added. “This guy was dancing in underwear and the suspect was like ‘Why are you dancing in your underwear?’”
Ullah says he believes the stabber was motivated by homophobia. “Obviously, they are gay and if they are dancing that’s the problem they had,” he said.
One member of the victim’s group walked up to the men, followed by three others, and they exchanged heated words, video obtained by the Daily News shows.
“You like girls, you look like you’re into girls, but we are not into girls,” Ullah said the victim’s group told the men harassing them. “We have our own life. We can do whatever we want, you know. We’re dancing, that’s our life.”
Ullah said he convinced the two groups to calm down and told everyone to step away — but one of the men harassing the victim’s group continued to use his cellphone to record the shirtless men as he cursed them as they returned to their car.
That sparked the victim’s group to return to the front of the store to argue some more with the man recording them. Ullah again urged the men to cool and the man recording the victim walked off through the parking lot. But the victim chased after him and was stabbed by the man who had been recording, according to Ullah.
The video shows the stabbing happened in a split second, with the shocked victim still on his feet as a crowd gathered around him.
Medics rushed the victim, stabbed in the torso, to Maimonides Medical Center but he couldn’t be saved. His name was not immediately released.
The killer ran off on Coney Island Ave. and has not been caught. Ullah believes the suspect and his friends frequent a smoke shop down the block. Cops were inside the smoke shop investigating hours after the killing but a man in the smoke shop told a Daily News reporter the store had no connection to the killing. | https://www.seattletimes.com/nation-world/shirtless-man-pumping-gas-in-brooklyn-stabbed-to-death-by-offended-muslim-stranger-witness/?utm_source=RSS&utm_medium=Referral&utm_campaign=RSS_all | 2023-07-30T22:04:00 | 1 | https://www.seattletimes.com/nation-world/shirtless-man-pumping-gas-in-brooklyn-stabbed-to-death-by-offended-muslim-stranger-witness/?utm_source=RSS&utm_medium=Referral&utm_campaign=RSS_all |
BEIJING (AP) — The French finance minister said Sunday he pressed Chinese leaders to open their markets wider to foreign companies and lobbied for investment in France’s electric car industry, as the European Union’s second-largest economy followed Washington in reviving post-COVID economic talks amid tension over Beijing’s surging trade surpluses.
Bruno Le Maire also defended Paris’s controls on foreign access to technology after authorities said two Chinese citizens are under investigation for what news reports say is possible smuggling of French-made processor chips with military uses to China and Russia.
Le Maire met Saturday with Vice Premier He Lifeng, Beijing’s top envoy on economic issues. He followed Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen, who visited Beijing on July 9-10 as part of U.S. efforts to revive frosty relations with China.
Chinese officials gave Le Maire and Yellen a warm welcome as part of efforts to reverse an economic slump by reviving foreign investor interest. But Beijing has given no indication of possible changes in technology and other policies that its trading partners say violate Chinese market-opening commitments.
Officials of the 27-nation European Union are trying to narrow a trade deficit with China that swelled to 396 billion euros ($432 billion) last year. Le Maire cited cosmetics, aerospace and agriculture as possible areas for more French exports.
“There is a need to improve access to the Chinese market. I think that it was at the core of our discussions,” Le Maire said in an interview at the French Embassy. “We want to have a stronger economic relationship between Europe and China, between France and China, which means to get access for all European goods.”
Chinese leader Xi Jinping’s government has looked to Europe as an alternative market and source of technology since Washington tightened controls on access to U.S. processor chips and other high-tech goods and hiked tariffs on imports from China in a feud over its industry development ambitions.
Le Maire and Chinese officials pledged to cooperate on climate change, financing for developing countries and nuclear power. They announced plans to set up a group to settle a dispute over access to China’s market for cosmetics, a major French export.
Le Maire also lobbied for investment from China’s fast-growing electric car industry. He was due to fly to the southern city of Shenzhen to meet Wang Chuanfu, founder of BYD Auto, one of the world’s biggest electric vehicle producers. BYD Auto and other Chinese brands are starting to sell in developed markets including Europe and Japan. Chinese battery supplier CATL has set up a factory in Germany to supply automaker BMW.
“We want China to make investments in France in electric vehicles,” Le Maire said. “In the climate transition, there is a place for Chinese investment in France, which allows us to reinforce our economic relations and also speed up action against global warming.”
The talks were overshadowed by Russia’s war against Ukraine and complaints China might be helping Moscow evade Western sanctions, but Le Maire said he didn’t discuss the war with Chinese officials. However, he said it was in Beijing’s interest to end the 17-month-old war. President Emmanuel Macron’s security adviser, Emmanuel Bonne, said this month China was delivering “military equipment” to Russia but gave no details.
“I want to make very clear that we want this war to go to an end as soon as possible,” Le Maire said. “Indeed, (it is) in the interest of China, it is in the interests of the global growth to have peace as soon as possible.”
Le Maire also defended French controls on technology exports and foreign investment in high-tech industry. French authorities are investigating two Chinese citizens associated with chip producer Ommic who the newspaper Le Parisien said face possible charges of exporting chips to a Chinese armaments maker using forged documents.
French counter-espionage officials believe a Chinese investor who bought control of Ommic in 2018 was trying to transfer chip manufacturing technology to China, according to the newspaper. The ruling Communist Party is trying to develop its own chip industry, but Washington has blocked access to advanced manufacturing tools and persuaded allies Japan and the Netherlands to impose their own restrictions.
Chinese authorities complain their companies are unfairly targeted by restrictions on access to foreign technology. They have warned curbs on access to semiconductors will disrupt smartphone and other industries.
“Everybody can understand that France wants to protect its key technologies,” Le Maire said. “We don’t want any foreign country to get access to those French sovereign technologies.” | https://www.myarklamiss.com/news/international/ap-frances-le-maire-presses-china-on-market-access-and-lobbies-for-electric-car-investment/ | 2023-07-30T22:04:04 | 1 | https://www.myarklamiss.com/news/international/ap-frances-le-maire-presses-china-on-market-access-and-lobbies-for-electric-car-investment/ |
ERIE, Pa. — Former President Donald Trump lashed out at Republicans in Congress while campaigning in Pennsylvania on Saturday, threatening members of his party who do not share his appetite for pursuing corruption investigations against President Joe Biden and his family — and for retribution.
In a litany of grievances about his deepening legal woes and the direction of the country, the twice-indicted former president cast GOP holdouts as meek during a rally in Erie, criticizing their response to what he described as politically motivated prosecutions against him.
“The Republicans are very high class,” he said. “You’ve got to get a little bit lower class.”
And then Trump, the overwhelming front-runner for the 2024 Republican presidential nomination, put party members on notice.
“Any Republican that doesn’t act on Democratic fraud should be immediately primaried,” said Trump, to the roaring approval of several thousand supporters at the Erie Insurance Arena. Throughout the night he referenced the case against Hunter Biden and accused the president of complicity in his son’s troubles.
It was the first solo campaign event and the second public appearance for Trump since the Justice Department added charges against him in connection with his mishandling of classified documents after leaving office.
In a superseding indictment filed Thursday in U.S. District Court in Florida, federal prosecutors presented evidence that Trump told the property manager of Mar-a-Lago, his private club and residence in Florida, that he wanted security camera footage there to be deleted.
Prosecutors also charged him, along with one of his personal aides, with conspiring to obstruct the government’s repeated attempts to reclaim the classified material.
On the same day that the additional charges were announced, Trump’s lawyers met with federal prosecutors to discuss another expected indictment, one centering on Trump’s efforts to overturn the 2020 election and his actions during the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol.
To Trump’s unflinching supporters gathered inside the arena, the cascade of indictments was a punchline — if not a badge of honor.
Edward X. Young, 63, a debt consolidation company consultant and part-time actor who was dressed like Elvis Presley, wore a T-shirt with a mock-up mug shot of Trump. He said he had driven 10 hours from Point Pleasant, New Jersey, to attend Trump’s rally, his 59th.
“I think he’s being persecuted,” he said of the former president.
Ruth Jenkins, 61, a Republican from Rochester, New York, who works for a Wegmans grocery store, said that she did not believe that Trump had been motivated to run for president to avoid criminal liability.
“Well, who wouldn’t want to be kept out of prison?” she said, claiming that the latest charges against Trump were the latest attempt to shift attention away from the case against the president’s son.
As Trump prepared to take the stage, campaign workers helped fill in an empty section near the back of the arena, which had been configured to seat 8,000.
The playlist for the rally featured “Try That in a Small Town,” the Jason Aldean hit that was filmed at the site of a lynching and pulled from Country Music Television amid criticism.
With Trump as its standard-bearer, the Republican Party has watched Democrats in Pennsylvania secure high-profile victories in the last year, including flipping a U.S. Senate seat, holding on to the governor’s office and gaining control of the statehouse.
In 2020, Trump lost the battleground state by nearly 82,000 votes to Biden, who was born there.
Despite several courts rejecting his election lawsuits in Pennsylvania, Trump has continued to cling to falsehoods about results, including Saturday.
“We got screwed,” he said, baselessly claiming that news outlets had delayed their race calls because he had been ahead. “I said, ‘Why aren’t they calling Pennsylvania?’”
Trump, who spoke for more than 100 minutes, said that he still had not decided whether he would take part in the first Republican presidential debate, which will take place Aug. 23 and be televised by Fox News.
Trump said that there appeared to be little upside to debating on a “hostile” network — Fox News began to fall out of favor with the former president after it became the first major outlet to call Arizona for Biden in 2020 — and noted his commanding polling lead over his GOP opponents. His nearest competitor, Gov. Ron DeSantis of Florida, trailed him by about 30 percentage points in national polls.
“If I don’t go to the debate, they say — I’m not saying this — they say the ratings are going to be very bad,” he said. “Should I do it or not?”
The crowd’s answer was resounding: “No.” | https://www.seattletimes.com/nation-world/trump-threatens-republicans-who-dont-help-him-exact-vengeance/?utm_source=RSS&utm_medium=Referral&utm_campaign=RSS_all | 2023-07-30T22:04:06 | 0 | https://www.seattletimes.com/nation-world/trump-threatens-republicans-who-dont-help-him-exact-vengeance/?utm_source=RSS&utm_medium=Referral&utm_campaign=RSS_all |
THE HAGUE, Netherlands (AP) — Salvage crews started towing a burning cargo ship loaded with thousands of cars to a temporary anchorage location off the northern Dutch coast on Sunday after smoke pouring from the stricken vessel eased, authorities said.
On Saturday night, the Dutch Ministry of Infrastructure and Water Management had said the Fremantle Highway was unlikely to be moved because of a southeasterly wind blowing smoke from the days-old fire over tugboats.
But that changed Sunday.
“The smoke from the cargo ship subsided considerably this afternoon and the salvage combination Multraship/Smit Salvage immediately made use of this,” the ministry said in a statement referring to two salvage companies involved in the operation.
The ship was being slowly towed by two tugs to a temporary anchor point about 16 kilometers (10 miles) north of the Dutch islands of Schiermonnikoog and Ameland.
Experts are continuously monitoring the ship’s stability and a specialized boat used to clean up oil is nearby in case there is a spill, the ministry added.
The salvage teams ultimately want to tow the stricken ship to a port but it is not yet clear where or when that will happen.
The crews on Saturday attached a second towing cable to the ship, which was transporting 3,783 new vehicles, including 498 electric vehicles, from the German port of Bremerhaven to Singapore.
The ship has been burning since Tuesday. Firefighters decided not to douse the flames with water for fear of making the nearly 200-meter (219-yard) ship unstable as it floats close to North Sea shipping lanes and a world-renowned migratory bird habitat.
One crew member died and others were injured after the fire broke out. The crew was evacuated in the early hours of Wednesday.
The cause of the fire has not been determined. | https://www.myarklamiss.com/news/international/ap-high-winds-stall-efforts-to-tow-a-burning-cargo-ship-packed-with-cars-off-northern-dutch-coast/ | 2023-07-30T22:04:11 | 1 | https://www.myarklamiss.com/news/international/ap-high-winds-stall-efforts-to-tow-a-burning-cargo-ship-packed-with-cars-off-northern-dutch-coast/ |
EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. (AP) — Kayvon Thibodeaux and Azeez Ojulari are seemingly inseparable on the field for the New York Giants.
When practiced started Sunday at training camp, the two outside linebackers warmed up together. They laughed and joked during an early break and when the first-team defense ran drills, they were on opposite ends of the line, ready to pounce and deliver big plays.
That was the plan last year, too. The young bookend backers and edge rushers were going to make life miserable for opposing quarterbacks and offenses playing in coordinator Wink Martindale’s aggressive defense.
It didn’t happen.
The fifth pick overall in the draft, Thibodeaux sustained a knee injury in the preseason, missed the first two regular-season games and started 14 of the next 15 games and two in the playoffs. He finished with four sacks, 49 tackles, 13 quarterback hits, two forced fumbles and two recoveries, including a strip-sack for a TD against Washington in December.
“Last year’s film kind of disgusts me a little bit when I look at myself,” Thibodeaux said. “I get a little cringe feeling. But it definitely is, like I said, a platform to continue to grow.”
Last season was a struggle with injuries for Ojulai.
Coming off a team-high eight sacks as a rookie in 2021, he was limited to seven regular-season games by a hamstring pull, two calf injuries and ankle problems.
Still, the Georgia product had 14 tackles, seven quarterback hits and 5 1/2 sacks, second only to Dexter Lawrence’s 7 1/2 sacks.
“Most important goal for me this season is to play all 17 games, stay healthy,” Ojulari said. “That’s my main goal for me.”
Both players have adjusted their offseason workout programs in looking to get the Giants back to the playoffs. Ojulari dropped weight. Thibodeaux became a gym rate, a health nut and more of a professional in his training.
“It’s going to be exciting,” Thibodeaux said of playing again with Ojulari. “For him on paper, you know how many sacks he had to how many plays he had, if you can get him 17 games, who knows how many sacks you’ll get? Yeah, he’s definitely one of the most talented pass rushers I’ve ever played with.”
Thibodeaux not only can rush the passer, but he has instincts and speed to play sideline to sideline.
“He has all the tools and the sky’s the limit for him,” Ojulari said.
The two are pushing each other.
“We’re always competing in our room or whatever,” Ojulari said. “Everything we do, we always compete. Every single thing, every rep, even if it’s a get-off competition, we try to see who’s going to get off the fastest and who going to make the most plays. I feel like as we keep that competition up, every single day is going to translate to the game.”
Thibodeaux would not talk about goals for his second season in numerical terms.
“I just want to be great,” the Oregon product said. “I want to help my team win. I want to be a guy who can make plays and make the plays when they count.”
NOTES: Veteran Sterling Shepard was taken off the physically unable to perform list and fellow receiver Jamison Crowder was activated off the non-football injury list. Shepard is attempting a comeback from an ACL injury in September. Nine months earlier his 2021 season ended with an Achilles tendon injury. … The Giants longest-tenured player, Shepard will have to work hard to earn a roster spot. New York signed Crowder, Parris Campbell and Cole Beasley as free agents, drafted Jalin Hyatt, and have Darius Slayton and Isaiah Hodgins returning. “Whatever decision or however it shakes out, that’s just the way it shakes out,” the 30-year-old Shepard said. “It isn’t anything that I can do about it but do what I do, so that’s the way that I approach it. Every day.” Safety Jason Pinnock intercepted Daniel Jones’ red zone pass on the final play of practice to give a defense a win on a sudden-death play. The result was the offense had to run a wind sprint. … Beasley returned to practice after missing a workout on Friday because of a quad injury. … Defensive tackle Rakeem Nunez-Roches was on the field with a non-contract red jersey. He was injured in a car accident on Tuesday and missed the first three practices. Outside linebacker Jihad Ward (undisclosed) and tight end Ryan Jones (knee) did not practice.
___
AP NFL: https://apnews.com/hub/NFL and https://twitter.com/AP_NFL | https://www.seattletimes.com/sports/giants-linebackers-thibodeaux-and-ojulari-hoping-to-run-up-sacks-in-2023/?utm_source=RSS&utm_medium=Referral&utm_campaign=RSS_all | 2023-07-30T22:04:12 | 1 | https://www.seattletimes.com/sports/giants-linebackers-thibodeaux-and-ojulari-hoping-to-run-up-sacks-in-2023/?utm_source=RSS&utm_medium=Referral&utm_campaign=RSS_all |
CAIRO (AP) — Palestinian factions met Sunday in Egypt to discuss reconciliation efforts as violence in the occupied West Bank surged between Israel and Palestinian militants.
The main groups, Hamas and Fatah, have been split since 2007 and repeated reconciliation attempts having failed, so expectations for the one-day meeting were low.
Participants at the closed-door meeting gave no indication of what was discussed. Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, who initiated the session in the Egyptian city of el-Alamein on the Mediterranean Sea, said at its conclusion only that the meeting was a “first and significant step” in efforts to end the long-running division.
It came amid soaring violence in the West Bank, where Abbas and his Fatah group are based and exert limited self-rule. Israel has been staging near-nightly raids in Palestinian areas of the territory in what it says is an attempt to stamp out militancy, especially in areas where Abbas’ security forces have less of a foothold.
Those raids have led to some of the worst fighting in nearly two decades in the West Bank. Palestinians also say the Israeli raids undermine their own security forces and weaken their leadership.
The meeting in Egypt was chaired by Abbas, presenting the aging and longtime Palestinian leader with a chance to portray an image of control and statesmanship to both Palestinians and the international community at a time when he is deeply unpopular at home and his room for maneuver is constrained by the Israeli incursions.
The meeting was attended by other Palestinian leaders, including Ismail Haniyeh, the leader of Hamas, the militant group that rules the Gaza Strip. Fatah and Hamas have been rivals since Hamas violently routed forces loyal to Abbas in Gaza in 2007, taking over the impoverished coastal enclave. Israel and Egypt have imposed a blockade on the territory.
For Hamas, joining the meeting was an opportunity to show Gazans that it is making an effort to mend the rift, even if nothing changes as a result.
Another key group playing a central role in the fighting with Israel, the Palestinian Islamic Jihad, boycotted the gathering to protest the detentions by the Palestinian Authority of its members, said to the group’s leader, Ziyad al-Nakhala.
Egypt has for years acted as a mediator in trying to end the infighting between Palestinian factions. It also helped broker truces in multiple rounds of fighting between Israel and Hamas. | https://www.myarklamiss.com/news/international/ap-palestinian-factions-meet-in-egypt-to-try-to-reconcile-as-violence-surges-in-the-west-bank/ | 2023-07-30T22:04:19 | 0 | https://www.myarklamiss.com/news/international/ap-palestinian-factions-meet-in-egypt-to-try-to-reconcile-as-violence-surges-in-the-west-bank/ |
PAVLIVKA, Ukraine (AP) — The summer winds carried the smell of burned grain across the southern Ukrainian steppe and away from the shards of three Russian cruise missiles that struck the unassuming metal hangars.
The agricultural company Ivushka applied for accreditation to export grain this year, but the strike in mid-July destroyed a large portion of the stock, days after Russia abandoned the grain deal that would have allowed the shipments across the Black Sea without fear of attack.
Men shirtless and barefoot, with blackened soles from ash, swept unburnt grain into piles and awaited the loader, whose driver deftly steered around twisted metal shrapnel, bits of missile and craters despite his shattered windshield.
They hoped to beat the next rain to rescue what was left of the crop. According to the Odesa Regional Prosecutor’s Office, Russia struck the facility July 21 with three Kalibr- and Onyx-class cruise missiles.
“We don’t have a clue why they did it,” explained Olha Romanova, the head of Ivushka. Romanova, who worked in the debris alongside the others, wore a red headscarf and an exhausted expression and was too frazzled to even estimate her losses.
She cannot comprehend why the Russians targeted Ivushka, as there are no nearby military facilities and the frontlines are far from the village in the Odesa region.
“They spent so much money on us,” she said, puzzled. The missiles that ruined the silos are worth millions of dollars — far more than the crop they destroyed.
But Ivushka wasn’t the only target in Odesa. The main port also was struck, leaving Black Sea shipping companies that relied upon the grain deal to keep them safe and food supplies flowing to the world at a standstill.
The Black Sea handled about 95% of Ukrainian grain exports before Russia’s invasion and the U.N.-brokered initiative allowed Ukraine to ship much of what farmers harvested in 2021 and 2022, said Joseph Glauber, senior research fellow at the International Food Policy Research Institute.
Ukraine, a major supplier of corn, wheat, barley and vegetable oil, shipped 32.9 million metric tons (36.2 million U.S. tons) of grain under the nearly yearlong deal designed to ease a global food crisis. It has been able to export an additional 2 million to 2.5 million metric tons (2.2 to 2.7 million U.S. tons) monthly by the Danube River, road and rail through Europe.
Those are now the only routes to ship grain, but have stirred divisions among nearby European countries and generated higher costs to be absorbed by Ukrainian farmers, said Glauber, former chief economist at the U.S. Department of Agriculture.
Russian missiles strikes against the Danube port last Monday also raised questions about how much longer that route will remain viable.
That’s a disincentive to keep planting fields already threatened by missiles and strewn with explosive mines. Corn and wheat production in agriculture-dependent Ukraine is down nearly 40% this year from prewar levels, analysts say.
From the first of July last year until June 30 this year, Ukraine exported 68 million tons of grain, according to data from Mykola Horbachov, the president of the Ukrainian Grain Association. Ukrainian farmers shipped 11.2 million tons via railways, 5.5 million tons by road transport and around 18 million tons through Danube ports. Additionally, nearly half of the total exported grain, 33 million tons, was delivered through seaports under the Black Sea Grain Initiative.
Ihor Osmachko, the general director of Agroprosperis Group, was unsurprised by Russia’s withdrawal from the deal leading to its collapse. His company had never considered it a reliable or permanent solution during wartime.
He said Russians frequently stymied the deal, even while it was functioning, by delaying ship inspections until the cargos were sent back, leading to $30 million in losses for his company alone. Now, they are once again forced to pay to reroute 100,000 tons of grain trapped in ports that are no longer safe, Osmachko said.
“We have been preparing for this whole time,” Osmachko said. “We haven’t stopped. We are moving forward.”
Osmachko estimated around 80% to 90% of the approximately 3.2 million tons of grain Agroprosperis exported to China, Europe and African countries during the past year went through the grain corridor.
“The most significant problem today is the cost of logistics,” explained Mykola Horbachov, president of the Ukrainian Grain Association. Before the war, farmers paid approximately $20 to $25 per ton to transport grain to the Odesa ports. Now, logistics costs have tripled as they are forced to pay more than $100 to transport a single ton via alternative routes through the Danube port to Constanta, Romania.
“If we were to go on the Danube with the grain corridor closed, practically all our production would be unprofitable,” Osmachko said.
The Danube ports can’t handle the same volume as seaports. The most Agroprosperis has sent through this route is 75,000 tons per month, compared with a monthly average of 250,000 tons through Black Sea ports.
The Ukrainian harvest this year is the lowest in a decade, according to a July report from the U.S. Department of Agriculture. Horbachov said shipping costs to export around the world and uncertainty about the length of the war will last could quickly make new planting unprofitable for Ukrainian farmers.
Ukraine currently produces three times more grain than it consumes, while global prices will inevitably rise if the country’s exports decrease.
“I think you’re looking at a diminished Ukraine for at least the next couple of years and maybe longer,” said Glauber, the former U.S. agricultural official. “That’s something the rest of the world just needs to make up.”
The war from all sides poses risks for Agroprosperis.
In the Sumy region on the Russian border, farmers harvest their crops wearing body armor. Sometimes they must stop their combines in the middle of the wheat fields to pick up shrapnel from Russian projectiles.
“It can get tough at times,” Osmachko acknowledged. “But there are responsibilities — some have duties on the front. Some must grow food and ensure the country’s and world’s security.”
___
Volodymyr Yurchuk in Lviv, Ukraine, and Courtney Bonnell in London contributed.
___
Follow AP’s coverage of the war in Ukraine at https://apnews.com/hub/russia-ukraine | https://www.myarklamiss.com/news/international/ap-russian-missile-attacks-leave-few-options-for-ukrainian-farmers-looking-to-export-grain/ | 2023-07-30T22:04:26 | 1 | https://www.myarklamiss.com/news/international/ap-russian-missile-attacks-leave-few-options-for-ukrainian-farmers-looking-to-export-grain/ |
BARCELONA, Spain (AP) — Spanish government researchers said Sunday they had identified 357 foreign fighters who went missing during the Spanish Civil War (1936-1939), the conflict that foreshadowed World War II.
Researchers confirmed the names of 212 fighters from Germany, Austria and the Netherlands, according to a statement from the government Sunday. Some 102 are of German origin, 70 Austrian and 40 Dutch. It gave no information on how many people of other nationalities had been identified.
The identified combatants fought within the International Brigades, military units set up by the Communist International to fight against General Francisco Franco’s fascist forces. Some 40,000 foreign men and women joined up as volunteers, fighting alongside the forces of the democratic Second Spanish Republic and against the rise of fascism in Europe in late 1930s.
The findings are based on a year of research in records held in documentary archives in Spain and Russia. Researchers combed through the daily lists of casualties and missing soldiers compiled by officers in the International Brigades.
The names of private soldiers were frequently omitted from the lists, making the research process more difficult. These lists are held in the Russian State Archive of Socio-Political History, in Moscow. Researchers also dipped into the main archives on the Spanish Civil War located in Spain.
By cross-referencing documents, researchers were also able to identify the likely area where the soldiers died or were badly wounded. It is an important step toward locating their remains inside mass graves scattered across the country.
This research provides “very valuable information that gives us the opportunity to contact the families of the missing combatants and, in the future, to intervene in the mass graves that have been located,” said Alfons Aragoneses, head of the project.
All those identified were part of the Thälmann Brigade, a Communist unit made up largely of anti-Nazi Germans. The battalion was active on the Ebro River front in northeastern Spain between March and September 1938, the site of the longest and deadliest battle of the war.
The research is ongoing and it is funded by Catalan regional government, with the aim of contributing to the country’s historical memory. The second phase of the project will try to identify missing militiamen from Great Britain, Ireland, Canada and the United States. The final step would require opening the graves in search of bodies.
Historians estimate nearly 10,000 foreign volunteers died in combat on Spanish soil during the war. How many are still unidentified, buried inside graves, remains unknown.
The Spanish Civil War served as a testing ground for Hitler’s Germany and Mussolini’s Italy prior to World War II. This triggered an international outcry to try to save the Republic’s democratic government, which eventually succumbed to Franco in 1939. | https://www.myarklamiss.com/news/international/ap-spain-identifies-212-german-austrian-and-dutch-fighters-who-went-missing-during-spanish-civil-war/ | 2023-07-30T22:04:33 | 0 | https://www.myarklamiss.com/news/international/ap-spain-identifies-212-german-austrian-and-dutch-fighters-who-went-missing-during-spanish-civil-war/ |
GAZA CITY, Gaza Strip (AP) — Several thousand people briefly took to the streets across the Gaza Strip on Sunday to protest chronic power outages and difficult living conditions, providing a rare public show of discontent with the territory’s Hamas government. Hamas security forces quickly dispersed the gatherings.
Marches took place in Gaza City, the southern town of Khan Younis and other locations, chanting “what a shame” and in one place burning Hamas flags, before police moved in and broke up the protests.
Police destroyed mobile phones of people who were filming in Khan Younis, and witnesses said there were several arrests. Dozens of young supporters and opponents of Hamas briefly faced off, throwing stones at one another.
The demonstrations were organized by a grassroots online movement called “alvirus alsakher,” or “the mocking virus.” It was not immediately known who is behind the movement.
Hamas rules Gaza with an iron fist, barring most demonstrations and quickly stamping out public displays of dissent.
The Islamic militant group seized control of Gaza in 2007 from the forces of Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, prompting Israel and Egypt to impose a crippling blockade on the territory. Israel says the closure is needed to prevent Hamas, which does not recognize Israel’s right to exist, from building up its military capabilities.
The closure has devastated Gaza’s economy, sent unemployment skyrocketing and led to frequent power outages. During the current heat wave, people have been receiving four to six hours of power a day due to heavy demand.
“Where is the electricity and where is the gas?” the crowds shouted in Khan Younis. “What a shame. What a shame.”
Protesters also criticized Hamas for deducting a roughly $15 fee from monthly $100 stipends given to Gaza’s poorest families by the wealthy Gulf state of Qatar.
There was no immediate comment from the Hamas authorities. | https://www.myarklamiss.com/news/international/ap-thousands-take-to-streets-in-gaza-in-rare-public-display-of-discontent-with-hamas/ | 2023-07-30T22:04:41 | 0 | https://www.myarklamiss.com/news/international/ap-thousands-take-to-streets-in-gaza-in-rare-public-display-of-discontent-with-hamas/ |
LOS ANGELES (AP) — When viewed through a wide lens, renters across the U.S. finally appear to be getting some relief, thanks in part to the biggest apartment construction boom in decades.
Median rent rose just 0.5% in June, year over year, after falling in May for the first time since the pandemic hit the U.S. Some economists project U.S. rents will be down modestly this year after soaring nearly 25% over the past four years.
A closer look, however, shows the trend will likely be little comfort for many U.S. renters who’ve had to put an increasing share of their income toward their monthly payment. Renters in cities such as Cincinnati and Indianapolis are still getting hit with increases of 5% or more. Much of the new construction is located in just a few metro areas, and many of the new units are luxury apartments, which rent for well north of $2,000.
Median U.S. rent has risen to $2,029 this June from $1,629 in June 2019, according to rental listings company Rent, which tracks rents in 50 of the largest U.S. metropolitan areas. Demand for apartments exploded during the pandemic as people who could work remotely sought more space or decided to relocate to another part of the country.
The steep rent increases have left tenants like Melissa Lombana, a high school teacher who lives in the South Florida city of Miramar, with progressively less income to spend on other needs.
The rent on her one-bedroom apartment jumped 13% last year to $1,700. It climbed another 6% to $1,800 this month when she renewed her lease.
“Even the $1,700 was a stretch for me,” said Lombana, 43, who supplements her teaching income with a side job doing educational testing. “In a year, I will not be able to afford living here at all.”
Lombana’s rent is now gobbling up nearly half her monthly income. That puts her in a category referred to as “cost-burdened” by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, denoting households that pay 30% or more of their income toward rent. Last year, the average rent-to-income ratio per household rose to 30%. This March, it was 29.6%.
Lombana hasn’t had any luck finding a more affordable apartment. While South Florida is one of the metropolitan areas seeing a rise in apartment construction, the units are mostly high-end and not a viable option.
That scenario is playing out across the nation. Developers are rushing to complete projects that were green-lit during the pandemic-era surge in demand for rentals or left in limbo by delays in supplies of fixtures and building materials. Nearly 1.1 million apartments are currently under construction, according to the commercial real estate tracker CoStar, a pace not seen since the 1970s.
Increasing the supply of apartments tends to moderate rent increases over time and can give tenants more options on where to live. But more than 40% of the new rentals to be completed this year will be concentrated in about 10 high job growth metropolitan areas, including Austin, Nashville, Denver, Atlanta and New York, according to Marcus & Millichap. In many areas, the boost to overall inventory will be barely noticeable.
Even within metros where there’ll be a notable increase in available apartments, such as Nashville, most of it will be in the luxury category, where rents average $2,270, nationally. Some 70% of the new rental inventory will be the luxury class, said Jay Lybik, national director of multifamily analytics at CoStar.
That will leave most tenants unlikely to see a big enough reduction in rent to make a difference, industry experts and economists say.
“I think we’re in a period of rent flattening for 12 or 18 months, but it’s certainly not a big rent decline,” said Hessam Nadji, CEO of commercial real estate firm Marcus & Millichap.
“We’re building a multi-decade record number of units,” Nadji said. “It’s going to cause some softening and some pockets of overbuilding, but it’s not going to fundamentally resolve the housing shortage or the affordability problem for renters across the U.S.”
The surge in rents has made it difficult for workers to keep up with inflation despite solid wage gains the past few years and exacerbated a long-term trend. Between 1999 and 2022, U.S. rents soared 135%, while income grew 77%, according to data from Moody’s Analytics.
Realtor.com is forecasting that rents will drop an average of 0.9% this year. But while down nationally, rents are still rising in many markets around the country, especially those where hiring remains robust.
In the New York metro area, the median rent climbed 4.7% in June from a year earlier to $2,899, according to Realtor.com. In the Midwest, rents surged 5.6% in the Cincinnati metro area to $1,188, and 6.9% to $1,350 in the Indianapolis metro area.
The current spike in apartment construction alone isn’t going to be enough to address how costly renting has become for many Americans.
“For the rest of the 2020s rents will continue to grow because millennials are such a big generation and we’re very much in the hole in terms of building housing for that generation,” said Daryl Fairweather, chief economist at Redfin. “It will take many good years of new construction to build adequate housing for millennials.”
The bigger challenge is building more work force housing, because the cost of land, labor and navigating the government approval process incentivize developers to put up luxury apartments buildings.
Expanding the supply of modestly priced rentals would help alleviate the strain from so many new apartments targeting renters with high incomes, “although additional subsidies will be needed to make housing affordable to households with the lowest incomes,” researchers at Harvard University’s Joint Center for Housing Studies wrote in a recent report.
Despite the overall pullback in U.S. rents, Joey Di Girolamo, in Pembroke Pines, Florida, worries that he’ll face more sharp rent increases in coming years.
Last year, the web designer left a two-bedroom, two-bath townhome he rented for $2,200 a month to avoid a $600 a month increase. This year, his rent went up by $200, a nearly 10% jump.
“That blew me away,” said Di Girolamo, 50. “I’m just kind of dreading what it’s going to be like next year, but especially 3 or 4 years from now.” | https://www.myarklamiss.com/news/national-news/ap-a-boom-in-apartment-construction-is-helping-to-curb-rents-but-not-all-renters-will-benefit/ | 2023-07-30T22:04:47 | 1 | https://www.myarklamiss.com/news/national-news/ap-a-boom-in-apartment-construction-is-helping-to-curb-rents-but-not-all-renters-will-benefit/ |
ATLANTIC CITY, N.J. (AP) — The discovery of four dead women in a drainage ditch just outside Atlantic City was shocking news in 2006.
International media flocked to the seaside gambling resort. More than 100 detectives and prosecutors were assigned to investigate. Casino guests worried about safety, and the victims’ fellow sex workers began carrying hidden knives.
But as the years passed, the public’s attention and fear faded, and the case of the “Eastbound Strangler” – so named for the direction the victims’ heads were facing – remained unsolved.
The arrest earlier this month of a man charged with killing three women whose remains were found on a Long Island beach in 2010 has breathed fresh life into another long-dormant case with obvious parallels; the Gilgo Beach serial killings involve a total of 11 victims, most of whom were young, female sex workers. Yet the recent breakthrough, and the rekindling of public interest, only highlights a painful truth: Many similar cases – like the one in Atlantic City — remain open.
The FBI would not say how many killings of sex workers in the U.S. remain unsolved. Media accounts and statements from local authorities show a long trail of open cases, from nine women whose bodies were found along highways in Massachusetts, to 11 found dead in New Mexico, and eight more found amid the crawfish farms and swamps of southern Louisiana. The killings of other sex workers in Chicago, New Haven, Connecticut and Ohio, among other places, also remain mysteries.
From the days of London’s Jack The Ripper in the 1880s, serial killers, particularly those preying on sex workers, have often gotten away with it, in part because their victims were easy targets living on the margins of society.
Gary Ridgway, the so-called Green River killer convicted of 49 killings in Washington state, said at during a 2003 court hearing in which he pleaded guilty that he chose sex workers as victims because he knew they would not be missed quickly, if at all.
“I picked prostitutes because I thought I could kill as many of them as I wanted without getting caught,” he said.
Two women were out for an afternoon walk near Atlantic City in November 2006 when they found a body in a ditch. They called police, who quickly found three others nearby.
The $15-a-night motel in Egg Harbor Township behind which the four bodies were found is long gone. It was torn down in an attempt to clear a seedy area known for crime, drugs and disturbances – and the murders of Barbara Breidor, 42, Molly Jean Dilts, 20, Kim Raffo, 35, and Tracy Ann Roberts, 23.
Because it is near the ocean, like Gilgo Beach, the location has prompted much speculation by amateur detectives about a single killer, but some other online sleuths have pointed out that oceanside areas are often the remotest locations after hours on the densely packed East Coast. Gilgo Beach is about 3.5 hours drive from Atlantic City.
Gone in New Jersey are the four small wooden crosses someone erected on the site, along with the folded-up paper note bearing a Biblical quote promising justice that someone left there on one of the anniversaries of the discovery of the bodies.
For families left behind, each new day without word in the case of their loved one brings fresh pain.
“I kind of lost hope that anyone was even searching for the killer anymore,” said Joyce Roberts, whose daughter Tracy Ann was one of the four Atlantic City-area victims. “The first six months, the prosecutor did get on the phone with me and told me they were working on it.
“Then it just fell off the radar,” she said. “It was like nobody cared anymore.”
That is a sentiment echoed by Phoenix Calida, a former sex worker from Chicago who now advocates for them through the Sex Workers Outreach Project.
“Police departments often refer to it as an ‘NHI’ case: No humans involved,” she said. ”You feel like the only way you’ll be remembered is when they catch the serial killer who killed you, and then they’ll make five movies about him and no one will remember your name.”
Massachusetts State Police are investigating “nine unsolved homicides possibly committed by the same person,” said David Procopio, a spokesperson for the agency. He said two additional missing persons cases may be homicides related to the other nine.
Gilbert Gallegos, a spokesman for the Albuquerque Police Department, said the New Mexico cases remain actively investigated, with “multiple detectives” working them. The 11 victims were all involved in drugs and prostitution, police said.
A reward of $100,000 has been offered for information leading to an arrest and conviction in the case, which involved two victims who were just 15 years old.
Despite the decade-long efforts of a local, state and federal task force, Louisiana has at least eight unsolved apparent homicide cases involving sex workers between the ages of 17 and 30. Their bodies were found in marshy areas in Jennings, a small town in the area known as Cajun Country, between 2005 and 2009.
Prosecutors in New York’s Suffolk County investigating the Gilgo Beach cases have been in touch with multiple law enforcement agencies, but District Attorney Ray Tierney would not say which ones.
“Everything is being examined and looked at, and this is an active investigation,” said Anthony Carter, Suffolk County’s deputy police commissioner. He would not say if his agency was investigating any connection between Heuermann and the Atlantic City murders.
Atlantic County Prosecutor William Reynolds said the four cases from the drainage ditch outside Atlantic City remain active, with detectives assigned to them, but would not say how many. He declined comment on the Long Island case “as we are not involved.”
Joyce Roberts, the victim’s mother, said no one from law enforcement has called her since the arrest was made in the Long Island cases.
Police in Las Vegas, where Heuermann owns a time share, said they are investigating whether Heuermann may be involved in cases involving the killings of sex workers there.
In the months immediately after the bodies’ discovery near Atlantic City, the local prosecutor’s office and a dozen other law enforcement agencies had 140 people assigned to the cases, Ted Housel, who was prosecutor at the time, said in 2008. By the first anniversary, the total had fallen to 85, and those investigators were also working other cases.
Calida, the former sex worker from Chicago, said women involved the sex trade are frequently robbed by people who know they’re carrying cash, and are sometimes coerced into sexual activity by police in return for not being arrested.
She said an attacker “knows you can’t or won’t report it. You’re an easy target and they know it.”
Three of her friends who were also sex workers in Chicago also turned up dead.
“You see someone, you become friends with them and then one day they’re suddenly just not there,” she said. “We’d all go out asking around and looking for them, and then a few days later a body would be found. There’s always this specific fear that it’s a serial killer. Sometimes we never even get a body back to bury. And we wonder: Will law enforcement take it seriously because it’s ‘just another sex worker?’”
___
AP writers Susan Montoya Bryan in Albuquerque; Steve LeBlanc in Boston; Julie Walker and Robert Bumsted in Suffolk County, New York; Sara Cline in Baton Rouge, Louisiana and Rhonda Shafner in New York contributed to this story.
Follow Wayne Parry on Twitter at www.twitter.com/WayneParryAC | https://www.myarklamiss.com/news/national-news/ap-breakthrough-in-long-island-serial-killings-shines-light-on-the-many-unsolved-murders-of-sex-workers/ | 2023-07-30T22:04:53 | 1 | https://www.myarklamiss.com/news/national-news/ap-breakthrough-in-long-island-serial-killings-shines-light-on-the-many-unsolved-murders-of-sex-workers/ |
MOJAVE NATIONAL PRESERVE, Calif. (AP) — A massive wildfire burning out of control in California’s Mojave National Preserve was spreading rapidly Sunday amid erratic winds, while firefighters reported progress against another major blaze to the south that prompted evacuations.
The York Fire that erupted Friday near the remote Caruthers Canyon area of the preserve was sending up a huge plume of smoke visible nearly 100 miles (160 kilometers) away across the state line in Nevada.
Flames 20 feet (6 meters) high in some spots have charred more than 110 square miles (284 square kilometers) of desert scrub, juniper and Joshua tree woodland, according to a Sunday incident update.
“The dry fuel acts as a ready ignition source, and when paired with those weather conditions it resulted in long-distance fire run and high flames, leading to extreme fire behavior,” the update said. No structures were threatened. There was no containment.
To the southwest, the Bonny Fire was holding steady at about 3.4 square miles (8.8 square kilometers) in rugged hills of Riverside County. More than 1,300 people were ordered to evacuate their homes Saturday near the remote community of Aguanga.
Windy conditions and the chance of thunderstorms into Monday will heighten the risk of renewed growth, the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection said.
One firefighter was injured in the blaze, which was 5% contained Sunday. | https://www.myarklamiss.com/news/national-news/ap-erratic-winds-challenge-firefighters-battling-two-major-california-blazes/ | 2023-07-30T22:05:00 | 1 | https://www.myarklamiss.com/news/national-news/ap-erratic-winds-challenge-firefighters-battling-two-major-california-blazes/ |
MUNCIE, Ind. (AP) — A “mass shooting” at a large party in Indiana early Sunday morning left one person dead, police said. A hospital said 19 people were being treated for injuries at its facility.
Muncie police responded to multiple reports of gunfire on the city’s east side just after 1 a.m., The Star Press reported. Police said in a news release that there was no active threat to the community and that “multiple” victims were injured, including some critically.
“Due to the number of victims and nature of the incident, multiple agencies were contacted to assist,” Muncie Deputy Police Chief Melissa Criswell said in a statement sent to The Star Press.
Many police officers from the nearby town of Eaton were among those who provided assistance, according to a post on the department’s Facebook page. Eaton Police Chief Jay Turner called the incident a “mass shooting.”
Police did not say how many people were injured, but officials at Indiana University Health Ball Memorial Hospital in Muncie told The Associated Press that 19 victims were treated in their emergency department for injuries related to the shooting, and 13 remained at the hospital in stabilized condition Sunday morning. Criswell said some victims sustained critical injuries and were transferred by medical helicopter to other facilities.
Delaware County Coroner Gavin Greene identified the man who died as 30-year-old Joseph E. Bonner III, The Star Press reported. | https://www.myarklamiss.com/news/national-news/ap-one-person-is-dead-and-multiple-were-wounded-in-indiana-shooting-police-say/ | 2023-07-30T22:05:06 | 1 | https://www.myarklamiss.com/news/national-news/ap-one-person-is-dead-and-multiple-were-wounded-in-indiana-shooting-police-say/ |
MONTGOMERY, Ala. (AP) — Voting rights activists are returning to court to fight Alabama’s redrawn congressional districts, saying state Republicans failed to follow federal court orders to create a district that is fair to Black voters.
Plaintiffs in the high-profile redistricting case filed a written objection Friday to oppose Alabama’s new redistricting plan. They accused state Republicans of flouting a judicial mandate to create a second majority-Black district or “something quite close to it” and enacting a map that continues to discriminate against Black voters in the state.
A special three-judge panel in 2022 blocked use of the the state’s existing districts and said any new congressional map should include two districts where “Black voters either comprise a voting-age majority” or something close. That panel’s decision was appealed by the state but upheld in June in a surprise ruling by the U.S. Supreme Court, which concurred that having only one Black-majority district out of seven — in a state where more than one in four residents is Black — likely violated federal law.
The plaintiffs in the case, represented by the NAACP Legal Defense & Educational Fund and other groups, asked the three-judge panel to step in and draw new lines for the state.
“Alabama’s new congressional map ignores this court’s preliminary injunction order and instead perpetuates the Voting Rights Act violation that was the very reason that the Legislature redrew the map,” lawyers representing the plaintiffs in the case wrote.
The new map enacted by the Republican-controlled Alabama Legislature maintained one-majority Black district but boosted the percentage of Black voters in the majority-white 2nd Congressional District, now represented by Republican Rep. Barry Moore, from about 30% to 39.9%
Lawyers representing plaintiffs in the case wrote Friday that the revamped district “does not provide Black voters a realistic opportunity to elect their preferred candidates in any but the most extreme situations.” They accused state Republicans of ignoring the courts’ directive to prioritize a district that would stay under GOP control “pleasing national leaders whose objective is to maintain the Republican Party’s slim majority in the U.S. House of Representatives.”
Alabama has maintained the new plan complies with the Voting Rights Act, and state leaders are wagering that the panel will accept their proposal or that the state will prevail in a second round of appeals to the Supreme Court. Republicans argued that the map meets the court’s directive and draws compact districts that comply with redistricting guidelines.
The state must file its defense of the map by Aug. 4. The three judges have scheduled an Aug. 14 hearing in the case as the fight over the map shifts back to federal court.
The outcome could have consequences across the country as the case again weighs the requirements of the Voting Rights Act in redistricting. It could also impact the partisan leanings of one Alabama congressional district in the 2024 elections with control of the U.S House of Representatives at stake.
Former U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder, chairman of the National Democratic Redistricting Committee, said in a statement that Alabama’s new map is a “brazen defiance” of the courts.
“The result is a shameful display that would have made George Wallace—another Alabama governor who defied the courts—proud,” Holder said in a statement. | https://www.myarklamiss.com/news/national-news/ap-plaintiffs-in-voting-rights-case-urge-judges-to-toss-alabamas-new-congressional-map/ | 2023-07-30T22:05:13 | 0 | https://www.myarklamiss.com/news/national-news/ap-plaintiffs-in-voting-rights-case-urge-judges-to-toss-alabamas-new-congressional-map/ |
A woman from New Hampshire who works for a nonprofit organization in Haiti and her young daughter have been reported as kidnapped as the U.S. State Department issued a “do not travel advisory” in the country and ordered nonemergency personnel to leave there amid growing security concerns.
Alix Dorsainvil, a nurse for El Roi Haiti, and her daughter were kidnapped on Thursday, the organization said in a statement Saturday. El Roi, which runs a school and ministry in Port au Prince, said the two were taken from campus. Dorsainvil is the wife of the program’s director, Sandro Dorsainvil.
“Alix is a deeply compassionate and loving person who considers Haiti her home and the Haitian people her friends and family,” El Roi president and co-founder Jason Brown said in the statement. “Alix has worked tirelessly as our school and community nurse to bring relief to those who are suffering as she loves and serves the people of Haiti in the name of Jesus.”
A State Department spokesperson said in a statement Saturday is it “aware of reports of the kidnapping of two U.S. citizens in Haiti,” adding, “We are in regular contact with Haitian authorities and will continue to work with them and our U.S. government interagency partners.”
In its advisory Thursday, the department said that “kidnapping is widespread, and victims regularly include U.S. citizens.”
It said kidnappings often involve ransom negotiations and U.S. citizen victims have been physically harmed.
Earlier this month, the National Human Rights Defense Network issued a report warning about an upsurge in killings and kidnappings and the U.N. Security Council met to discuss Haiti’s worsening situation.
WMUR-TV reported that Dorsainvil is from Middleton, New Hampshire, and went to Regis College in Weston, Massachusetts, which has a program to support nursing education in Haiti.
“It doesn’t surprise me that Alex chose to get involved in this type of service work,” Regis College president Toni Hays told the station. “She was amazing. She was passionate, she was compassionate.” | https://www.myarklamiss.com/news/national-news/ap-us-mother-daughter-reported-kidnapped-in-haiti-people-warned-not-to-travel-there/ | 2023-07-30T22:05:21 | 1 | https://www.myarklamiss.com/news/national-news/ap-us-mother-daughter-reported-kidnapped-in-haiti-people-warned-not-to-travel-there/ |
(The Hill) – Northwestern is the latest in a long line of universities to come under public scrutiny due to a scandal over hazing, a practice that has refused to go extinct in colleges and high schools despite multiple concerted efforts to end it.
Hazing, which in rare instances has proven fatal, in particular plagues sports teams and Greek Life.
Experts say education on the issue and increased consequences are needed to create a real change, although they are skeptical the dangerous practice will exit school life anytime soon.
“Hazing has always been prevalent in society, not just in colleges. It’s anywhere that you see a different power dynamic between people who are trying to join a group [and] people who are in the group,” said Todd Shelton, executive director of the Hazing Prevention Network. “There’s research that shows that hazing starts long before college and in those younger ages. It’s especially prevalent in athletic teams camps, performing arts groups.”
The latest high-profile hazing incident comes from Northwestern University, where the head football coach was recently let go and a barrage of lawsuits have fallen on the school.
One of the reported rituals of hazing on the school’s football team was younger players getting restrained in the locker room by older ones while others dry humped the individual. Another incident described in a lawsuit against the school was a ritual called “carwash” where players were forced to rub themselves against a line of naked men in the showers.
“Certainly, it is typical hazing activities that we’ve seen before and it’s not unusual that they’re shrouded with secrecy. So I applaud the people who came forward and reported because that’s — that’s key for institutions to be able to make changes,” Shelton said. “I think those acts are horrible and examples of how hazing can quickly escalate from what individuals think is something that’s mild and or funny, to quickly being something that’s dangerous, either mentally or physically, to the victims.”
Experts say preventing hazing incidents has to start by educating people about its warning signs and dangers.
A study in 2008 showed 73 percent of students who have been in a sorority or fraternity said they experienced behaviors that meet the definition of hazing, such as being forced into drinking games or getting screamed at by other members.
The same study showed 74 percent of athletes in athletic programs also experienced behaviors that amount to hazing.
“Hazing is specific to that group context where someone is seeking inclusion or a sense of belonging in a club, team or organization. They’re a newcomer typically coming into this group situation, and because of that group dynamic there can be an incredible amount of peer pressure and sometimes a coercive environment. And so that can impede or be a barrier to recognizing and or reporting hazing because there can be a lot of fear,” Elizabeth Allan, a professor at the University of Maine, said.
These rituals and desires to be part of the in-group have led to some deadly consequences for young people.
In 2019, five Penn State University students were sentenced to jail after a 19-year-old student at a Beta Theta Pi fraternity house died at a party after hazing-based binge drinking.
While most hazing incidents don’t result in incarceration, there are other consequences for students who are caught for the crime.
“Financial, monetary damages. People have lost their jobs. People have gone to jail or had, criminal penalties, fines and so forth. Let’s say sometimes when it’s a student organization or a team so with a student organization, they’re often suspended or lose their recognition with the campus for a period of time, and with an athletic team sometimes a portion of the season is put on hold or canceled entirely sometimes at the high school level, we’ve seen that recently.” Allan, who also leads the organization Stop Hazing, said.
And yet, even as schools ramp up their efforts, hazing persists.
Allan says a multifaceted strategy is needed to tackle the problem, and her group has developed a “Hazing Prevention Framework” for schools to follow.
“They can use it to also do some strategic planning and set some goals for the improvements they want to make, and all this is really … based on a public health approach to organizational change and promoting healthy behaviors in a community setting,” Allan said.
Shelton said his group also advocates for hazing to be treated as a felony, whereas many states look at it as a misdemeanor.
“The problem is it’s not taken seriously in the law, and we’ve seen a lot of hazing cases, even when there’s been a death… [where] prosecutors don’t consider it hazing or don’t consider hazing to be a serious crime to go through the measures of prosecuting,” Shelton said. “And so that’s why we’ve been working hard to strengthen those state laws.” | https://www.myarklamiss.com/news/national-news/why-is-hazing-so-hard-to-eliminate/ | 2023-07-30T22:05:28 | 0 | https://www.myarklamiss.com/news/national-news/why-is-hazing-so-hard-to-eliminate/ |
At 24, Alberto Rodriguez has grandparents younger than Joe Biden. But he’s more interested in the 80-year-old president’s accomplishments than his age.
“People as young as me, we’re all focusing on our day-to-day lives and he has done things to help us through that,” Rodriguez, a cook at Mandalay Bay Resort and Casino in Las Vegas, said of Biden’s support among young voters. Rodriguez pointed specifically to federal COVID-19 relief payments and government spending increases on infrastructure and other social programs.
Voters like him were a key piece of Biden’s winning 2020 coalition, which included majorities of young people as well as college graduates, women, urban and suburban voters and Black Americans. Maintaining their support will be critical in closely contested states such as Nevada, where even small declines could prove consequential to Biden’s reelection bid.
His 2024 campaign plans to emphasize messages that could especially resonate with young people in the coming weeks as the anniversary of the sweeping Inflation Reduction Act approaches in mid-August. That legislation includes provisions that the White House will embrace to argue that Biden has done more than any other president to combat climate change.
Such efforts, however, could collide with Biden’s personal reality — like when he recalled that, while attending a St. Patrick’s Day parade at age 14, he appeared in a photo with President Harry S. Truman.
“Purely by accident — I assume it was an accident — the photographer from the newspaper got a picture of me making eye contact with Harry Truman,” Biden said to chuckles last week at the Truman Civil Rights Symposium in Washington.
In 2020, 61% of voters under age 30 — and 55% of those between 30 and 44 — supported Biden, according to AP VoteCast, a nationwide survey of the electorate.
It’s an age group with which Republicans hope to make inroads. Former President Donald Trump, who is the early front-runner in the GOP presidential primary and is only 3 1/2 years younger than Biden, said Friday, “We are hitting the young person’s market like nobody’s ever seen before.”
Kevin Munoz, a spokesman for Biden’s campaign, referred to Trump’s “Make America Great Again” movement in arguing that “young people are acutely impacted by the issues front and center in this election, driven by the extreme MAGA agenda.” He said that included inaction on climate change, gun violence and student debt.
“We will meet younger Americans where they are and turn their energy into action,” Munoz said in a statement.
That might not defuse questions about age, though, when it comes to Biden or Trump.
“There’s a frustration and exhaustion that they feel with the rematch,” Terrance Woodbury, co-founder & CEO of the Democratic polling firm HIT Strategies, said of young voters.
“That’s more of a problem than either of those two candidates individually, is that a system can just keep reproducing,” Woodbury added. “And I think a lot of people just find that untenable.”
An April poll from The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research found that just 25% of Democrats under 45 said they would definitely support Biden in a general election, compared with 56% of older Democrats. A majority of Democrats across age groups said they would probably support him as the party’s nominee, however.
Biden’s campaign is relying heavily on the Democratic National Committee, which during last year’s midterms, hired campus organizers in Pennsylvania, Wisconsin, Michigan, Arizona and other battleground states and offered weekly youth coordinating meetings to encourage in-class contacts and “dormstorms.” The DNC sees young people as some of the most critical voters it will need to reach in 2024 and promises “significant investments” to mobilize them. Plans are underway to expand on its work last cycle, including trainings it held on how best to turn out voters.
The Republican National Committee is trying to use Biden’s age against him, posting online videos of Biden seeming frail or making verbal gaffes, such as when he declared in June “God save the queen,” nearly nine months after the death of England’s Queen Elizabeth II.
Rodriguez shrugged off online attacks, “People can make all the hit pieces and memes and TikToks all they want.”
A starker contrast might be between the president and rising Democrats such as 46-year-old California Rep. Ro Khanna and Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg, 41, one of Biden’s primary rivals in 2020. Neither seriously entertained running for the White House in 2024 and have backed Biden’s reelection.
“The only thing that really matters is your ability to do the job,” Buttigieg, who was 37 when he launched his 2020 presidential bid, said recently on CNN. Khanna told Fox News Channel that age will “obviously” be a 2024 factor, but suggested that Biden’s staff “overprotects” him and “the more he’s out there, the better.”
Other top young Democrats have lined up to back Biden. Florida Democratic Rep. Maxwell Frost, who was elected to Congress last year at 26, is on the Biden campaign’s advisory board, as is Maryland Gov. Wes Moore, 44. New York Rep. Alexandra Ocasio Cortez, 33, recently endorsed Biden.
Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson, a progressive who says strong turnout among young voters helped him win a runoff election this spring, said Biden’s policies transcend his age. Johnson noted that the president’s work “around climate justice speaks not just to this generation, but generations to come.”
“The excitement that I believe that we’re going to have is going to speak to the incredible work and organizing that we are committed to doing as a party,” said Johnson, 47. “And we’re looking forward to working with the president over the course of his next four years.”
Still, Randi Weingarten, president of the American Federation of Teachers, acknowledged that even the president’s supporters understand how demanding the White House can be.
“People worry about Joe Biden. They worry like you would worry about a beloved father or grandfather,” said Weingarten, 65. “What you normally hear from Democrats is this sense of, ‘OK, I just want him to be OK.’ And you’re hearing just the consternation of, ’This is a hard job.’”
Biden said he “took a hard look” at his age while deciding to seek a second term. But he’s also tried to suggest his age and experience are assets rather than liabilities by joking repeatedly about them. That’s a departure from 2020, when Biden called himself a “transition candidate” and pledged to be a “bridge” to younger Democrats.
Santiago Mayer, the founder of Voters of Tomorrow, which has 20-plus chapters nationwide and works to increase political engagement among young voters, argues that Biden is not defying his past promise by running for reelection, but keeping it.
“He just needs more time,” said Mayer, who graduated from California State University at Long Beach in May. “I think the second term is a very important part of that pledge. He’s building a progressive future for young people and he can’t actually pass the baton until that’s done.”
One key policy piece of Biden’s efforts to appeal to young voters, providing student debt relief, was recently struck down by the Supreme Court. The White House has launched a new effort, but it will take longer.
“Of course it’s going to dampen some of that because people are disappointed,” Weingarten said of the ruling’s effect on enthusiasm for Biden. But she said the decision could also motivate young Biden supporters anxious show their support for the president’s alternative plan.
“It is also about the fight,” Weingarten said “not just about the results.”
___
AP polling director Emily Swanson in Washington contributed to this report. | https://www.myarklamiss.com/news/politics/ap-politics/ap-joe-biden-americas-oldest-sitting-president-needs-young-voters-to-win-again-will-his-age-matter/ | 2023-07-30T22:05:34 | 0 | https://www.myarklamiss.com/news/politics/ap-politics/ap-joe-biden-americas-oldest-sitting-president-needs-young-voters-to-win-again-will-his-age-matter/ |
GARY, Ind. — An 18-year-old man is dead after he went missing Saturday near Miller Beach in Gary, according to Indiana Conservation Officers.
Just before 3 p.m., emergency personnel were called to Miller Beach to look for a missing man in Lake Michigan.
Around 6 p.m., someone on the beach noticed the man and crews recovered his body.
His identity hasn’t been released.
Search efforts were hampered due to winds and up to six-foot waves that created rip currents, conservation officers said.
An investigation into the incident is still ongoing. | https://cbs4indy.com/news/18-year-old-man-found-dead-after-going-missing-in-lake-michigan-in-northwest-indiana/ | 2023-07-30T22:05:37 | 1 | https://cbs4indy.com/news/18-year-old-man-found-dead-after-going-missing-in-lake-michigan-in-northwest-indiana/ |
MARION COUNTY, Ind. — A man has been arrested and preliminarily charged with Resisting Law Enforcement and Criminal Recklessness following a police pursuit in Marion County.
The Marion County Sheriff’s Office confirmed its deputies were involved in a chase near 75th Street and Allisonville Road on Sunday. Officials said the suspect, 34-year-old Robert J. Grant, struck several cars, including a police vehicle, before the pursuit ultimately ended with a vehicular collision.
MCSO deputies arrested Grant and reported that one civilian was transported to Eskenazi Hospital for examination. Officials are still investigating the incident, and final charging decisions will be made by the Marion County Prosecutor’s Office. | https://cbs4indy.com/news/marion-county-man-arrested-after-police-pursuit-ends-with-vehicular-collision/ | 2023-07-30T22:05:43 | 1 | https://cbs4indy.com/news/marion-county-man-arrested-after-police-pursuit-ends-with-vehicular-collision/ |
COLUMBIA, S.C. (AP) — With less than a month to go until the first Republican presidential debate of the 2024 campaign, seven candidates say they have met qualifications for a spot on stage in Milwaukee.
But that also means that about half the broad GOP field is running short on time to make the cut.
To qualify for the Aug. 23 debate, candidates needed to satisfy polling and donor requirements set by the Republican National Committee: at least 1% in three high-quality national polls or a mix of national and early-state polls, between July 1 and Aug. 21, and a minimum of 40,000 donors, with 200 in 20 or more states.
A look at who’s in, who’s (maybe) out and who’s still working on making it:
DONALD TRUMP
The current front-runner long ago satisfied the polling and donor thresholds. But he is considering boycotting and holding a competing event.
Campaign advisers have said the former president has not made a final decision about the debate. One noted that “it’s pretty clear,” based on Trump’s public and private statements, that he is unlikely to appear with the other candidates.
“If you’re leading by a lot, what’s the purpose of doing it?” Trump asked on Newsmax.
In the meantime, aides have discussed potential alternative programming if Trump opts for a rival event. One option Trump has floated is an interview with former Fox News host Tucker Carlson, who now has a program on X, the site formerly known as Twitter.
RON DESANTIS
The Florida governor has long been seen as Trump’s top rival, finishing a distant second to him in a series of polls in early-voting states, as well as national polls, and raising an impressive amount of money.
But DeSantis’ campaign has struggled in recent weeks to live up to the sky-high expectations that awaited him when he entered the race. He let go of more than one-third of his staff as federal filings showed his campaign was burning through cash at an unsustainable rate.
If Trump is absent, DeSantis may be the top target on stage at the debate.
TIM SCOTT
The South Carolina senator has been looking for a breakout moment. The first debate could be his chance.
A prolific fundraiser, Scott enters the summer with $21 million cash on hand.
In one debate-approved poll in Iowa, Scott joined Trump and DeSantis in reaching double digits. The senator has focused much of his campaign resources on the leadoff GOP voting state, which is dominated by white evangelical voters.
NIKKI HALEY
She has blitzed early-voting states with campaign events, walking crowds through her electoral successes ousting a longtime incumbent South Carolina lawmaker, then becoming the state’s first woman and first minority governor. Also serving as Trump’s U.N. ambassador for about two years, Haley frequently cites her international experience, arguing about the threat China poses to the United States.
The only woman in the GOP race, Haley has said transgender students competing in sports is “the women’s issue of our time” and has drawn praise from a leading anti-abortion group, which called her “uniquely gifted at communicating from a pro-life woman’s perspective.”
Bringing in $15.6 million since the start of her campaign, Haley’s campaign says she has “well over 40,000 unique donors” and has satisfied the debate polling requirements.
VIVEK RAMASWAMY
The biotech entrepreneur and author of “Woke, Inc.: Inside Corporate America’s Social Justice Scam” is an audience favorite at multicandidate events and has polled well despite not being nationally known when he entered the race.
Ramaswamy’s campaign says he met the donor threshold earlier this year. He recently rolled out “Vivek’s Kitchen Cabinet” to boost his donor numbers even more, by letting fundraisers keep 10% of what they bring in for his campaign.
CHRIS CHRISTIE
The former New Jersey governor opened his campaign by portraying himself as the only candidate ready to take on Trump. Christie called on the former president to “show up at the debates and defend his record.”
Christie will be on that stage, even if Trump isn’t, telling CNN this month that he surpassed “40,000 unique donors in just 35 days.” He also has met the polling requirements.
DOUG BURGUM
Burgum, a wealthy former software entrepreneur now in his second term as North Dakota’s governor, has been using his fortune to boost his campaign.
He announced a program this month to give away $20 gift cards — “Biden Relief Cards,” as a critique of President Joe Biden’s handling of the economy — to as many as 50,000 people in exchange for $1 donations. Critics have questioned whether the offer violated campaign finance law.
Within about a week of launching that effort, Burgum announced he had surpassed the donor threshold. Ad blitzes in the early-voting states also helped him meet the polling requirements.
MIKE PENCE
Trump’s vice president has met the polling threshold but has yet to amass a sufficient number of donors, raising the possibility that he might not qualify for the party’s first debate.
Pence and his advisers have expressed confidence he will do so, noting that most other Republican hopefuls took a month or two of being active candidates to meet the mark. Pence entered the race on June 7, the same day as Burgum and one day after Christie.
“We’re making incredible progress toward that goal. We’re not there yet,” Pence told CNN in a recent interview. “We will make it. I will see you at that debate stage.”
ASA HUTCHINSON
According to his campaign, the former two-term Arkansas governor has met the polling requirements but is working on satisfying the donor threshold. As of Wednesday, Hutchinson marked more than 11,000 unique donors.
Hutchinson is running in the mold of an old-school Republican and has differentiated himself from many of his GOP rivals in his willingness to criticize Trump. He has posted pleas on Twitter for $1 donations to help secure his slot.
FRANCIS SUAREZ
The Miami mayor has been one of the more creative candidates in his efforts to boost his donor numbers. He offered up a chance to see Argentine soccer legend Lionel Messi’s debut as a player for Inter Miami, saying donors who gave $1 would be entered in a chance to get front-row tickets.
Still shy of the donor threshold, he took a page from Burgum’s playbook by offering a $20 “Bidenomics Relief Card” in return for $1 donations. A super political action committee supporting Suarez launched a sweepstakes for a chance at up to $15,000 in tuition, in exchange for a $1 donation to Suarez’s campaign.
Suarez’s campaign did not return a message seeking details on his number of donors or qualifying polls.
LARRY ELDER
The conservative radio host wrote in an op-ed that the RNC “has rigged the rules of the game by instituting a set of criteria that is so onerous and poorly designed that only establishment-backed and billionaire candidates are guaranteed to be on stage.”
His campaign last week declined to detail its number of donors, saying only that there had been “a strong increase the last few weeks.” He has not met the polling requirements.
PERRY JOHNSON
Johnson, a wealthy but largely unknown businessman from Michigan, said in a recent social media post that he had notched 23,000 donors and was “confident” he would make the debate stage. He added that all donors were “eligible to attend my free concert in Iowa featuring” country duo Big & Rich next month.
Johnson, who has reached 1% in one qualifying poll, has also offered to give copies of his book “Two Cents to Save America” to anyone who donated to his campaign.
WILL HURD
The former Texas congressman — the last candidate to enter the race, on June 22 — has said repeatedly that he would not pledge to support the eventual GOP nominee, a stance that would keep him off the stage even if he had the qualifying donor and polling numbers.
___
Meg Kinnard can be reached at http://twitter.com/MegKinnardAP | https://www.myarklamiss.com/news/politics/ap-politics/ap-whos-in-whos-out-a-look-at-which-candidates-have-qualified-for-the-1st-gop-presidential-debate/ | 2023-07-30T22:05:42 | 0 | https://www.myarklamiss.com/news/politics/ap-politics/ap-whos-in-whos-out-a-look-at-which-candidates-have-qualified-for-the-1st-gop-presidential-debate/ |
AUSTIN (KXAN) — It’s no surprise that the summer heat can do significant damage to your vehicle. But as cities around the country continue to break temperature records and endure long heat waves, some car technicians are finding unusual vehicle issues.
Doc Watson, a national training manager with Bosch Diagnostics, said typical summertime issues include dead car batteries and flat tires. However, he said technicians in Texas and along the West Coast have also been recording more unusual vehicle complications due to the extensive heat waves.
In Texas, Arizona and California, technicians are reporting an emergence of “brake fade” cases in cars. When the temperature outside tops 100 degrees for extended periods of time, temperatures under the hood of vehicles during the summer can reach up to 230 degrees.
Brake fluids inside the cylinder under the hood of the car can absorb moisture, as the heat causes that moisture to expand within the fluid. When that happens, stepping on the brake pedal can feel “mushy.” That means the vehicle owner will need to take the car in for maintenance.
Both heat and humidity can add extra wear and tear to the windshield wiper blades, which have a typical lifespan between 12 and 18 months.
“People don’t stop to think about wiper blades — they don’t need them until it rains, right?” Watson said. “You’re driving around in 112-degree temperature, you’ve got heat reflecting off the glass, and that causes the rubber components of a wiper blade to break down.”
The plastic parts of the blades can also suffer.
“With these extreme temperatures that you guys are seeing, it’s the plastic breaking down off the wiper blade itself, and people not realizing that that’s happened until it’s too late,” he said. “The wiper blade breaks and then you’ve got this metal arm scratching the glass.”
Watson recommended car owners keep a checklist of key vehicle parts to monitor during the summer months. Those include:
- Car batteries: Traditionally, car batteries last between three and five years. Amid excessive heat spells, temperatures under the hood of a vehicle reach up to 230 degrees, which can lead to battery fluid evaporations and dead batteries. Watson suggests car owners have their batteries tested by a technician during the summer to get a condition status.
- Tires: Low tire pressure is exacerbated by hot asphalt on roadways. Watson encouraged car owners to purchase a tire pressure gauge and to test their vehicle’s tire pressure early in the morning while it’s still cool to ensure an accurate reading.
- Engine overflow tank: During the summer months, cooling an engine is critical. Watson said when car owners check underneath the hood, they’ll find a plastic overflow tank with a graduated scale. If it looks low, he suggested adding antifreeze to aid your engine.
- Wiper blades: Check wiper blades during dry spells (and before rain storms) to make sure they’re properly working and not deteriorating. If they show signs of wear and tear, replace them and make sure they’re upgraded every 12-18 months.
- Oil changes: Most newer vehicles require an oil change every 5,000 to 7,000 miles. However, remote starting a vehicle and running the air conditioning works the engine without adding any mileage to the vehicle. As a result, Watson suggested not waiting until you hit that 5,000 to 7,000-mile range if you often use remote start on your vehicle during the summer or winter months.
“People aren’t changing oil regularly like they think they are,” he said. “People need to pay more attention to them because these engines will go many miles — 200,000, 300,000 miles — as long as they’re maintained correctly. That’s big with this extreme heat.” | https://cbs4indy.com/news/national-world/the-weird-car-issues-mechanics-are-seeing-during-heat-waves/ | 2023-07-30T22:05:49 | 0 | https://cbs4indy.com/news/national-world/the-weird-car-issues-mechanics-are-seeing-during-heat-waves/ |
NEW YORK (AP) — A week later, the “Barbenheimer” boom has not abated.
Seven days after Greta Gerwig’s “Barbie” and Christopher Nolan’s “Oppenheimer” conspired to set box office records, the two films held unusually strongly in theaters. “Barbie” took in a massive $93 million in its second weekend, according to studio estimates Sunday. “Oppenheimer” stayed in second with a robust $46.2 million. Sales for the two movies dipped 43% and 44%, respectably — well shy of the usual week-two drops.
“Barbenheimer” has proven to be not a one-weekend phenomenon but an ongoing box-office bonanza. The two movies combined have already surpassed $1 billion in worldwide ticket sales. Paul Dergarabedian, senior media analyst for data firm Comscore, call it “a touchstone moment for movies, moviegoers and movie theaters.”
“Having two movies from rival studios linked in this way and both boosting each other’s fortunes — both box-office wise and it terms of their profile — I don’t know if there’s a comp for this in the annals of box-office history,” said Dergarabedian. “There’s really no comparison for this.”
Following its year-best $162 million opening, the pink-infused pop sensation of “Barbie” saw remarkably sustained business through the week and into the weekend. The film outpaced Nolan’s “The Dark Knight” to have the best first 11 days in theaters of any Warner Bros. release ever.
“Barbie” has rapidly accumulated $351.4 million in U.S. and Canadian theaters, a rate that will soon make it the biggest box-office hit of the summer. Every day it’s played, “Barbie” has made at least $20 million.
And the “Barbie” effect isn’t just in North America. The film made $122.2 million internationally over the weekend. Its global tally has reached $775 million. It’s the kind of business that astounds even veteran studio executives.
“That’s a crazy number,” said Jeff Goldstein, distribution chief for Warner Bros. “There’s just a built-in audience that wants to be part of the zeitgeist of the moment. Wherever you go, people are wearing pink. Pink is taking over the world.”
Amid the frenzy, “Barbie” is already attracting a lot of repeat moviegoers. Goldstein estimates that 12% of sales are people going back with friends or family to see it again.
For a movie industry that has been trying to regain its pre-pandemic footing — and that now finds itself largely shuttered due to actors and screenwriters strikes — the sensations of “Barbie” and “Oppenheimer” have showed what’s possible when everything lines up just right.
“Post-pandemic, there’s no ceiling and there’s no floor,” Goldstein said. “The movies that miss really miss big time, and the movies that work really work big time.”
Universal Pictures’ “Oppenheimer,” meanwhile, is performing more like a superhero movie than a three-hour film about scientists talking.
Nolan’s drama starring Cillian Murphy as atomic bomb physicist J. Robert Oppenheimer has accrued $174.1 million domestically thus far. With an additional $72.4 million in international cinemas, “Oppenheimer” has already surpassed $400 million globally.
Showings in IMAX have typically been sold out. “Oppenheimer” has made $80 million worldwide on IMAX. The large-format exhibitor said Sunday that it will extend the film’s run through Aug. 13.
The week’s top new release, Walt Disney Co.’s “Haunted Mansion,” an adaptation of the Disney theme park attraction, was easily overshadowed by the “Barbenheimer” blitz. The film, which cost about $150 million, debuted with $24 million domestically and $9 million in overseas sales. “Haunted Mansion,” directed by Justin Simien (“Dear White People,” “Bad Hair”) and starring an ensemble of LaKeith Stanfield, Tiffany Haddish, Owen Wilson, Danny DeVito and Rosario Dawson, struggled to overcome mediocre reviews.
“Talk to Me,” the A24 supernatural horror film, fared better. It debuted with $10 million. The film, directed by Australian filmmakers Danny and Michael Philippou and starring Sophie Wilde, was a midnight premiere at the Sundance Film Festival in January and received terrific reviews from critics (95% fresh on Rotten Tomatoes). It was made for a modest $4.5 million.
While theaters being flush with moviegoers has been a huge boon to the film industry, it’s been tougher sledding for Tom Cruise, the so-called savior of the movies last summer with “Top Gun: Maverick.” “Mission Impossible: Dead Reckoning Part I,” which debuted the week before the arrival of “Barbenheimer,” grossed $10.7 million in its third weekend. The film starring Cruise and directed by Christopher McQuarrie, has grossed $139.2 million domestically and $309.3 million oveseas.
Instead, the sleeper hit “Sound of Freedom” has been the best performing non-“Barbenheimer” release in theaters. The Angel Studios’ release, which is counting crowdfunding pay-it-forward sales in its box office totals, made $12.4 million in its fourth weekend, bringing its haul thus far to nearly $150 million.
Estimated ticket sales for Friday through Sunday at U.S. and Canadian theaters, according to Comscore. Final domestic figures will be released Monday.
1. “Barbie,” $93 million.
2. “Opppenheimer,” $46.2 million.
3. “Haunted Mansion,” $24.2 million.
4. “Sound of Freedom,” $12.4 million.
5. “Mission: Impossible — Dead Reckoning Part One,” $10.7 million.
6. “Talk to Me,” $10 million.
7. “Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny,” $4 million.
8. “Elemental,” $3.4 million.
9. “Insidious: The Red Door,” $3.2 million.
10. “Rocky Aur Rani Ki Prem Kahani,” $1.6 million. | https://www.myarklamiss.com/news/while-barbie-bonanza-continues-at-the-box-office-oppenheimer-holds-no-2-spot/ | 2023-07-30T22:05:49 | 0 | https://www.myarklamiss.com/news/while-barbie-bonanza-continues-at-the-box-office-oppenheimer-holds-no-2-spot/ |
(The Hill) – A bipartisan group of lawmakers on the House Oversight Committee say a high-profile hearing on UFOs is just the start of their push for answers.
And they are threatening to use heavier handed tactics if the Pentagon and intelligence agencies stand in their way.
Reps. Anna Paulina Luna (R-Fla.), Matt Gaetz (R-Fla.), Tim Burchett (R-Tenn.) and Jared Moskowitz (D-Fla.) want more information on unidentified anomalous phenomena (UAP) — commonly referred to as UFOs — beginning with new laws, a classified hearing and the possible creation of a select committee.
The lawmakers said they are willing to use subpoena power if needed to get the answers they’re seeking from the federal government.
“If there’s not a cover up, the government and the Pentagon are sure spending a lot of resources to stop us from studying it,” Burchett told The Hill.
He added that they hope House Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) can aid them in setting up a select committee to study the issue of UAPs — as well as any government program that addresses them. If they don’t get leadership approval, they’ll “just start holding field hearings because the public is demanding that we have transparency,” Burchett said.
The effort comes after three former military officials earlier this week and under oath gave bombshell testimony on the unexplained aerial objects, telling lawmakers that for years they’ve been kept in the dark about the mysterious sightings and encounters.
David Grusch, a former Air Force intelligence officer, gave the most shocking testimony when he said he was told of a “multi-decade UAP crash retrieval and reverse-engineering program,” accusing the military of misdirecting funds to keep such operations secret.
The shocking testimony now has committee members questioning how Congress should begin to investigate the witness claims and demand more answers from the executive branch on programs it claims doesn’t exist.
Lawmakers hope to start with obtaining additional information and documents that Grusch said he submitted to the Pentagon’s inspector general after serving on two Defense Department task forces looking into UAPs.
To get the information from Grusch — who said he was unable to discuss specifics on what he told the Pentagon’s watchdog arm — lawmakers want to sit down with the former official in a sensitive compartmented information facility (SCIF) to get additional information from him.
The group has been blocked, however, by officials that have informed them that Grusch doesn’t currently have security clearance to discuss the issues in a SCIF, according to Burchett.
“I think we’ll get there eventually, it’s just frustrating. I’m ready to go and the American public are ready to go,” he said.
Luna argued the SCIF with Grusch would help lawmakers better understand the type of legislation they need to write regarding UAPs. She said she supports legislation that would declassify information on the phenomena.
With a growing amount of bipartisan interest for more government transparency surrounding the issue, a need for reporting procedures for UAP’s both in the miliary and commercial airspace, and “stronger and stricter punishment for those that try to silence whistleblowers,” the topic is more important than ever, she said.
There is currently a provision in the Senate’s version of the annual defense authorization bill, inserted by Sens. Mike Rounds (R-S.D.) and Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.), which would force federal government agencies to hand over UAP records to a review panel with the power to declassify them. The bill, known as the National Defense Authorization Act, was passed by the Senate on Thursday and now must be reconciled with the House’s version, so the initiative could still be stripped out.
Burchett also made an attempt to put an amendment into a Federal Aviation Administration bill to improve air travel, passed July 20, that would have required UAP sightings be reported to Congress. The initiative was blocked, which Luna said was an indication that “we clearly have a battle ahead of us.”
Another avenue for lawmakers should they not receive access to a SCIF would be invoking the Holman rule.
During Wednesday’s hearing Rep. Andy Ogles (R-Tenn.) vowed to do just that, saying that he would “personally volunteer to initiate the Holman rule against any personnel, or any program, or any agency that denies access to Congress.”
The Holman rule is a House power through which they can strip the salary of a specific government position, fire civil servants or cut a particular program.
Ogles’s pledge came after Grusch told lawmakers that the federal government for decades has secretly funded a “UAP crash retrieval and reverse engineering program” and that he believes the government is in possession of non-human crafts, based on interviews with 40 witnesses.
Moskowitz told The Hill that while it’s too early to use the Holman rule — as Congress must first “figure out where these positions exist and then examine whether or not they should be funded” — he hopes that by discussing the rule it will create more transparency with the federal government.
“This is about government transparency. I’m all for protecting national security, but that can’t just be a shield to deny the American people the basics of what we know about UAPs,” he said.
And Burchett said if lawmakers “start getting stonewalled” by the Pentagon and intelligence agencies, he will have “no hesitation,” to invoke the rule.
Luna, meanwhile, said whether lawmakers use the rule depends on the response they receive from various agencies, programs and appointees.
That process could start as soon as September when lawmakers consider the Defense Appropriations bill on the House floor.
“We know that enormous sums of money are being spent on UAP related activity, whether it’s retrieval/recovery, research and reverse engineering, or just security for whatever the government is hiding,” she told The Hill. “But none of that is on the books, so from a basic governance perspective, Congress needs to know where money is being misappropriated.”
The Hill’s Sarakshi Rai contributed reporting. | https://cbs4indy.com/news/national-world/ufo-curious-lawmakers-brace-for-a-fight-over-government-secrets/ | 2023-07-30T22:05:55 | 1 | https://cbs4indy.com/news/national-world/ufo-curious-lawmakers-brace-for-a-fight-over-government-secrets/ |
WEST MONROE, La. (KTVE/KARD) — It’s Sunday, July 30, 2023, and NBC 10 will be live at 10 PM, but here’s what’s happening in your Ark-La-Miss in 60 seconds.
WEST MONROE, La. (KTVE/KARD) — It’s Sunday, July 30, 2023, and NBC 10 will be live at 10 PM, but here’s what’s happening in your Ark-La-Miss in 60 seconds. | https://www.myarklamiss.com/news/your-ark-la-miss-in-60-seconds/your-ark-la-miss-in-60-seconds-weekend-recap-july-30-2023/ | 2023-07-30T22:05:55 | 0 | https://www.myarklamiss.com/news/your-ark-la-miss-in-60-seconds/your-ark-la-miss-in-60-seconds-weekend-recap-july-30-2023/ |
NEW YORK (AP) — A week later, the “Barbenheimer” boom has not abated.
Seven days after Greta Gerwig’s “Barbie” and Christopher Nolan’s “Oppenheimer” conspired to set box office records, the two films held unusually strongly in theaters. “Barbie” took in a massive $93 million in its second weekend, according to studio estimates Sunday. “Oppenheimer” stayed in second with a robust $46.2 million. Sales for the two movies dipped 43% and 44%, respectably — well shy of the usual week-two drops.
“Barbenheimer” has proven to be not a one-weekend phenomenon but an ongoing box-office bonanza. The two movies combined have already surpassed $1 billion in worldwide ticket sales. Paul Dergarabedian, senior media analyst for data firm Comscore, call it “a touchstone moment for movies, moviegoers and movie theaters.”
“Having two movies from rival studios linked in this way and both boosting each other’s fortunes — both box-office wise and it terms of their profile — I don’t know if there’s a comp for this in the annals of box-office history,” said Dergarabedian. “There’s really no comparison for this.”
Following its year-best $162 million opening, the pink-infused pop sensation of “Barbie” saw remarkably sustained business through the week and into the weekend. The film outpaced Nolan’s “The Dark Knight” to have the best first 11 days in theaters of any Warner Bros. release ever.
“Barbie” has rapidly accumulated $351.4 million in U.S. and Canadian theaters, a rate that will soon make it the biggest box-office hit of the summer. Every day it’s played, “Barbie” has made at least $20 million.
And the “Barbie” effect isn’t just in North America. The film made $122.2 million internationally over the weekend. Its global tally has reached $775 million. It’s the kind of business that astounds even veteran studio executives.
“That’s a crazy number,” said Jeff Goldstein, distribution chief for Warner Bros. “There’s just a built-in audience that wants to be part of the zeitgeist of the moment. Wherever you go, people are wearing pink. Pink is taking over the world.”
Amid the frenzy, “Barbie” is already attracting a lot of repeat moviegoers. Goldstein estimates that 12% of sales are people going back with friends or family to see it again.
For a movie industry that has been trying to regain its pre-pandemic footing — and that now finds itself largely shuttered due to actors and screenwriters strikes — the sensations of “Barbie” and “Oppenheimer” have showed what’s possible when everything lines up just right.
“Post-pandemic, there’s no ceiling and there’s no floor,” Goldstein said. “The movies that miss really miss big time, and the movies that work really work big time.”
Universal Pictures’ “Oppenheimer,” meanwhile, is performing more like a superhero movie than a three-hour film about scientists talking.
Nolan’s drama starring Cillian Murphy as atomic bomb physicist J. Robert Oppenheimer has accrued $174.1 million domestically thus far. With an additional $72.4 million in international cinemas, “Oppenheimer” has already surpassed $400 million globally.
Showings in IMAX have typically been sold out. “Oppenheimer” has made $80 million worldwide on IMAX. The large-format exhibitor said Sunday that it will extend the film’s run through Aug. 13.
The week’s top new release, Walt Disney Co.’s “Haunted Mansion,” an adaptation of the Disney theme park attraction, was easily overshadowed by the “Barbenheimer” blitz. The film, which cost about $150 million, debuted with $24 million domestically and $9 million in overseas sales. “Haunted Mansion,” directed by Justin Simien (“Dear White People,” “Bad Hair”) and starring an ensemble of LaKeith Stanfield, Tiffany Haddish, Owen Wilson, Danny DeVito and Rosario Dawson, struggled to overcome mediocre reviews.
“Talk to Me,” the A24 supernatural horror film, fared better. It debuted with $10 million. The film, directed by Australian filmmakers Danny and Michael Philippou and starring Sophie Wilde, was a midnight premiere at the Sundance Film Festival in January and received terrific reviews from critics (95% fresh on Rotten Tomatoes). It was made for a modest $4.5 million.
While theaters being flush with moviegoers has been a huge boon to the film industry, it’s been tougher sledding for Tom Cruise, the so-called savior of the movies last summer with “Top Gun: Maverick.” “Mission Impossible: Dead Reckoning Part I,” which debuted the week before the arrival of “Barbenheimer,” grossed $10.7 million in its third weekend. The film starring Cruise and directed by Christopher McQuarrie, has grossed $139.2 million domestically and $309.3 million oveseas.
Instead, the sleeper hit “Sound of Freedom” has been the best performing non-“Barbenheimer” release in theaters. The Angel Studios’ release, which is counting crowdfunding pay-it-forward sales in its box office totals, made $12.4 million in its fourth weekend, bringing its haul thus far to nearly $150 million.
Estimated ticket sales for Friday through Sunday at U.S. and Canadian theaters, according to Comscore. Final domestic figures will be released Monday.
1. “Barbie,” $93 million.
2. “Opppenheimer,” $46.2 million.
3. “Haunted Mansion,” $24.2 million.
4. “Sound of Freedom,” $12.4 million.
5. “Mission: Impossible — Dead Reckoning Part One,” $10.7 million.
6. “Talk to Me,” $10 million.
7. “Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny,” $4 million.
8. “Elemental,” $3.4 million.
9. “Insidious: The Red Door,” $3.2 million.
10. “Rocky Aur Rani Ki Prem Kahani,” $1.6 million. | https://cbs4indy.com/news/national-world/while-barbie-bonanza-continues-at-the-box-office-oppenheimer-holds-no-2-spot/ | 2023-07-30T22:06:01 | 0 | https://cbs4indy.com/news/national-world/while-barbie-bonanza-continues-at-the-box-office-oppenheimer-holds-no-2-spot/ |
Rare Beauty products by Selena Gomez are going viral
Since its debut in 2019, Selena Gomez’s Rare Beauty company has taken the makeup industry by storm, mostly by dominating social media. The brand offers tinted moisturizer, bronzer, highlighter, setting powder, blush and other facial products; eye makeup such as eyeshadow, mascara and eyebrow pencils; products to enhance the lips, including lipstick, lip liner, lip oil and more. We researched the trendiest, most popular products from this celebrity-owned beauty brand worth adding to your makeup routine.
Shop this article: Rare Beauty Soft Pinch Liquid Blush, Rare Beauty Liquid Touch Brightening Concealer, and Rare Beauty Perfect Strokes Universal Volumizing Mascara
About Rare Beauty
Selena Gomez’s vision for Rare Beauty breaks down unrealistic standards of perfection in the makeup industry. The brand’s mission is to help wearers celebrate the rarity that is their individuality, the main objective being “to create a safe, welcoming space in beauty — and beyond — that supports mental well-being across age, gender identity, sexual orientation, rare, cultural background, physical or mental ability and perspective,” according to the Rare Beauty site.
Rare Beauty products are cruelty-free, meaning they were developed without experimentation on animals. Depending on the product type, they’re also ophthalmologist- and/or dermatologist-tested. Many of the products have noncomedogenic ingredients that won’t clog or block pores, and there are various options for sensitive skin. Rare Beauty has a selection of vegan products, as well. They’re a skin-friendly, self-aware brand that wants to make the world a better place.
Top Rare Beauty products, according to customers
Rare Beauty Kind Words Matte Lipstick
This buttery matte lipstick comes in 10 pigment-rich shades ranging from natural to bold. Suitable for sensitive skin, the creamy formula lasts all day while keeping lips soft and moisturized throughout wear.
Sold by Sephora
Rare Beauty Kind Words Matte Lip Liner
This creamy, waterproof lip liner defines and shapes the lips while staying put all day — it’s perfect for outlining the lips or coloring them in. The lightweight formula keeps the lips feeling soft and won’t smudge. It features a built-in sharpener and comes in the same 10 shades as the Kind Words Matte Lipstick for effortless color matching.
Sold by Sephora
Rare Beauty Soft Pinch Liquid Blush
This lush liquid blush is Rare Beauty’s top-seller, having received Allure’s Best of Beauty award in 2022. The lightweight, buildable formula gives you a soft flush of color with long-lasting pigments for all-day wear. It’s suitable for sensitive skin and has 13 beautiful matte and dewy finishes.
Sold by Sephora
Rare Beauty Liquid Touch Brightening Concealer
This medium-coverage concealer hides blemishes, dark circles, redness and fine lines while evening out skin texture. It’s made with botanical ingredients that soothe and nourish the skin. The creamy formula is lightweight, buildable and sweat-resistant, with 48 shades to match virtually every skin tone.
Sold by Sephora
Rare Beauty Liquid Touch Weightless Foundation
This liquid foundation feels like a serum with a layerable, medium-coverage formula and a blend of botanical ingredients that soothe and nourish the skin. It’s best used with normal and combination skin types, available in 48 shades that accommodate nearly every skin tone.
Sold by Sephora
Rare Beauty Positive Light Liquid Luminizer
This silky liquid highlighter feels like a second skin, creating a dewy, healthy-looking glow with superfine, light-catching pearls. Botanical ingredients have a soothing and nourishing effect on the skin. It layers well over makeup and provides all-day coverage with seven luminous shades.
Sold by Sephora
Rare Beauty Warm Wishes Effortless Bronzer Stick
This cream bronzer gives you a sun-kissed glow and adds gentle warmth to the skin with its natural finish. The formula is buildable, water-resistant and won’t clog your pores. It features Rare Beauty’s signature botanical ingredients for a calming and hydrating effect on the skin. The brand sells seven natural-looking shades, and the stick application makes it easy to use.
Sold by Sephora
Rare Beauty Always an Optimist Soft Radiance Setting Powder
This loose setting powder smooths skin texture, blurring the look of pores and controlling shine for a radiant yet natural finish. It helps makeup stay in place all day and is especially useful for those who struggle with oily skin. The container has a locking sifter for keeping the application process and storage mess-free. This setting powder comes in five sheer shades.
Sold by Sephora
Rare Beauty Perfect Strokes Universal Volumizing Mascara
This volumizing mascara was created for all lash types, featuring castor oil that conditions and nourishes your lashes. The unique curvy brush design combines long bristles that add length and short bristles for increasing volume. It’s an ultra-black, buildable, water-resistant formula that performs well all day. This mascara is safe for those with sensitive eyes and contact lenses.
Sold by Sephora
Rare Beauty Positive Light Under Eye Brightener
If you struggle with dark circles or discoloration under the eyes, this liquid brightener will visibly brighten and smooth out the under-eye area for a refreshed look. The lightweight formula is enriched by hydrating white peony and vitamin E extracts. It’s easy to blend and layer using your fingertip, with six shades covering various skin tones.
Sold by Sephora
Rare Beauty Positive Light Tinted Moisturizer
This tinted moisturizer blurs and evens skin tone while minimizing the look of pores and fine lines. It offers glowy, light to medium coverage, with a hydrating formula containing vitamin E and SPF 20 broad-spectrum sunscreen. The long-lasting moisturizer is nongreasy and comes in 24 flexible shades.
Sold by Sephora
Rare Beauty Always an Optimist 4-In-1 Mist
This unique facial mist contains a layer of water-based active ingredients and another with nourishing oils that work together to hydrate, prime and set the skin. The refreshing mist boosts the foundation’s performance, and the natural, radiant finish won’t feel greasy. Suitable for sensitive skin, this versatile product comes in 0.12- and 2.87-fluid-ounce bottles.
Sold by Sephora
Worth checking out
- With a glossy finish and gentle plumping effect on the lips, the Rare Beauty Soft Pinch Tinted Lip Oil is a beauty-lover favorite.
- If you prefer using a powder highlighter, the Rare Beauty Positive Light Silky Touch Highlighter is an excellent option for a soft, natural-looking glow.
- The award-winning Rare Beauty Stay Vulnerable Melting Blush offers a natural satin finish with a subtle blurring effect.
- The Rare Beauty Perfect Strokes Longwear Gel Eyeliner is a waterproof product that will stay in place — even on the waterline — with a built-in sharpener for precise application.
- The waterproof Rare Beauty Brow Harmony Precision Pencil is another stellar pick among fans for fuller-looking, more defined brows.
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Amy Evans writes for BestReviews. BestReviews has helped millions of consumers simplify their purchasing decisions, saving them time and money.
Copyright 2023 BestReviews, a Nexstar company. All rights reserved. | https://www.myarklamiss.com/reviews/br/beauty-personal-care-br/makeup-palettes-sets-br/these-are-the-most-popular-rare-beauty-products/ | 2023-07-30T22:06:01 | 1 | https://www.myarklamiss.com/reviews/br/beauty-personal-care-br/makeup-palettes-sets-br/these-are-the-most-popular-rare-beauty-products/ |
(The Hill) – Northwestern is the latest in a long line of universities to come under public scrutiny due to a scandal over hazing, a practice that has refused to go extinct in colleges and high schools despite multiple concerted efforts to end it.
Hazing, which in rare instances has proven fatal, in particular plagues sports teams and Greek Life.
Experts say education on the issue and increased consequences are needed to create a real change, although they are skeptical the dangerous practice will exit school life anytime soon.
“Hazing has always been prevalent in society, not just in colleges. It’s anywhere that you see a different power dynamic between people who are trying to join a group [and] people who are in the group,” said Todd Shelton, executive director of the Hazing Prevention Network. “There’s research that shows that hazing starts long before college and in those younger ages. It’s especially prevalent in athletic teams camps, performing arts groups.”
The latest high-profile hazing incident comes from Northwestern University, where the head football coach was recently let go and a barrage of lawsuits have fallen on the school.
One of the reported rituals of hazing on the school’s football team was younger players getting restrained in the locker room by older ones while others dry humped the individual. Another incident described in a lawsuit against the school was a ritual called “carwash” where players were forced to rub themselves against a line of naked men in the showers.
“Certainly, it is typical hazing activities that we’ve seen before and it’s not unusual that they’re shrouded with secrecy. So I applaud the people who came forward and reported because that’s — that’s key for institutions to be able to make changes,” Shelton said. “I think those acts are horrible and examples of how hazing can quickly escalate from what individuals think is something that’s mild and or funny, to quickly being something that’s dangerous, either mentally or physically, to the victims.”
Experts say preventing hazing incidents has to start by educating people about its warning signs and dangers.
A study in 2008 showed 73 percent of students who have been in a sorority or fraternity said they experienced behaviors that meet the definition of hazing, such as being forced into drinking games or getting screamed at by other members.
The same study showed 74 percent of athletes in athletic programs also experienced behaviors that amount to hazing.
“Hazing is specific to that group context where someone is seeking inclusion or a sense of belonging in a club, team or organization. They’re a newcomer typically coming into this group situation, and because of that group dynamic there can be an incredible amount of peer pressure and sometimes a coercive environment. And so that can impede or be a barrier to recognizing and or reporting hazing because there can be a lot of fear,” Elizabeth Allan, a professor at the University of Maine, said.
These rituals and desires to be part of the in-group have led to some deadly consequences for young people.
In 2019, five Penn State University students were sentenced to jail after a 19-year-old student at a Beta Theta Pi fraternity house died at a party after hazing-based binge drinking.
While most hazing incidents don’t result in incarceration, there are other consequences for students who are caught for the crime.
“Financial, monetary damages. People have lost their jobs. People have gone to jail or had, criminal penalties, fines and so forth. Let’s say sometimes when it’s a student organization or a team so with a student organization, they’re often suspended or lose their recognition with the campus for a period of time, and with an athletic team sometimes a portion of the season is put on hold or canceled entirely sometimes at the high school level, we’ve seen that recently.” Allan, who also leads the organization Stop Hazing, said.
And yet, even as schools ramp up their efforts, hazing persists.
Allan says a multifaceted strategy is needed to tackle the problem, and her group has developed a “Hazing Prevention Framework” for schools to follow.
“They can use it to also do some strategic planning and set some goals for the improvements they want to make, and all this is really … based on a public health approach to organizational change and promoting healthy behaviors in a community setting,” Allan said.
Shelton said his group also advocates for hazing to be treated as a felony, whereas many states look at it as a misdemeanor.
“The problem is it’s not taken seriously in the law, and we’ve seen a lot of hazing cases, even when there’s been a death… [where] prosecutors don’t consider it hazing or don’t consider hazing to be a serious crime to go through the measures of prosecuting,” Shelton said. “And so that’s why we’ve been working hard to strengthen those state laws.” | https://cbs4indy.com/news/national-world/why-is-hazing-so-hard-to-eliminate/ | 2023-07-30T22:06:07 | 0 | https://cbs4indy.com/news/national-world/why-is-hazing-so-hard-to-eliminate/ |
Bouldering equipment for beginners
Bouldering is gaining in popularity throughout the world. It’s an exciting and rewarding way to strengthen your muscles, increase flexibility and improve coordination. It lets you explore new locations and meet new people. Though it may seem intimidating when starting out, one of the best aspects of bouldering is the minimal equipment required. By investing in a few core pieces of climbing gear, you can tackle your next adventure and work your way up a challenging route.
Shop this article: La Sportiva Men’s TarantuLace Climbing Shoe, Black Diamond Circuit Crash Pad and Sukoa Chalk Bag
Bouldering vs. rope climbing: what’s the difference?
There are a few main differences between bouldering and traditional rock climbing. Most importantly, bouldering doesn’t require the use of any ropes since most routes are less than 15 feet in height. If you do happen to fall, you land on either a cushioned gym floor or a crash pad in outdoor situations. Traditional climbing requires the use of ropes, a harness, carabiners and often a partner to help belay while you make your ascent.
Bouldering also often uses different techniques and climbing moves compared to big wall climbs. It can be a great way for beginner climbers to build up their stamina and endurance before attempting longer routes or “boulder problems.”
Bouldering tips to get started
Here are five tips for bouldering.
- Know the scales: Most bouldering routes have a rating that corresponds to their difficulty. The two most common grading scales are V-scale and Font scale. V-scale is the system most commonly used in the United States and grades the difficulty on a scale of V0 to V16. While V0 is usually considered the easiest, you may sometimes encounter a route rated as VB, meaning it is for beginners.
- Start slow: As with most new sports or athletic activities, it’s always a good idea to start off slow and work your way up as you gain strength and experience. While it may seem tempting to tackle a hard boulder problem right out of the gate, overdoing it can lead to an increased risk of injury.
- It’s fine to fall: Always take all safety precautions seriously and always use proper safety gear, such as a crash pad when bouldering outdoors. However, the occasional fall while attempting a climb is only natural. As long as you have the proper safety equipment, each fall can be a learning experience, helping you improve your climbing abilities.
- Practice different moves: Don’t get stuck climbing in one style. Trying out different moves and varying your grip can help improve your skills. This is especially important for beginners starting out in a gym setting before transitioning to outdoor climbs.
- Legs are important: It may seem like bouldering is all about arm strength for beginners, but that isn’t the case. Your legs and core muscles are equally important. Your legs can help tightly grip footholds and push your body upwards without relying solely on arm strength.
Beginner bouldering gear
The three main pieces of gear you need to start bouldering are climbing shoes, a crash pad and a chalk bag to keep your hands dry. Besides the big three, there are several accessories that can improve your bouldering experience.
Best climbing shoes
La Sportiva Men’s TarantuLace Climbing Shoe
These bouldering shoes are perfect for both beginner and intermediate climbers. The high-traction Frixion sole means you can grip the rock face with confidence. The quick-lacing system provides a comfortable fit.
Sold by Amazon
Scarpa Origin Women’s Climbing Shoe
These women’s climbing shoes are a great beginner option. They use a flat last and heel system that reduces pressure and tension so they aren’t painful on your feet after a full day spent bouldering.
Sold by Backcountry
Best crash pads
Black Diamond Circuit Crash Pad
This crash pad is great for transporting to your favorite bouldering spot without being too heavy or bulky. The closed-cell PE foam is ideal for cushioning falls from various heights. It has backpack straps and easy-to-carry handles.
Sold by Amazon
This protective crash pad features 5 inches of padding and can even serve as a comfortable chair when not in use. You can choose between several fun colors.
Sold by Amazon
Best chalk bags and chalk
This budget-friendly chalk bag is great for beginners. It features two built-in pockets, letting you store important items while bouldering. The main compartment uses water-resistant materials. It’s spacious enough to accommodate larger hands.
Sold by Amazon
This simple chalk bag with a drawstring closure makes it easy to access your chalk with one hand. It is also available in several color options.
Sold by Amazon
This non-toxic chalk prevents any type of moisture from interfering with your climb, keeping your hands dry and your mind focused.
Sold by Amazon
Best climbing accessories
Using climbing tape can be helpful when getting your fingers and hands used to rough rock surfaces. This tape uses durable cotton and can prevent painful scrapes and scratches while building up callouses.
Sold by Amazon
Metolius Simulator 3D Training Board
An at-home training board can help you practice your grips on days when the weather isn’t cooperating, and you can’t make it to the gym. This Metolius model can be installed above your door frame and features a variety of holds in different sizes.
Sold by Amazon
PETZL Unisex Boreo Climbing Helmet
Not all people who boulder choose to wear a helmet, but they can help prevent a serious head injury in the event of an unexpected fall. This helmet has ventilation holes for breathability and sports a soft, comfortable headband.
Sold by Backcountry
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Matthew Young writes for BestReviews. BestReviews has helped millions of consumers simplify their purchasing decisions, saving them time and money.
Copyright 2023 BestReviews, a Nexstar company. All rights reserved. | https://www.myarklamiss.com/reviews/br/camping-outdoors-br/gear-br/beginners-guide-to-bouldering-equipment-what-you-need-to-get-started/ | 2023-07-30T22:06:08 | 0 | https://www.myarklamiss.com/reviews/br/camping-outdoors-br/gear-br/beginners-guide-to-bouldering-equipment-what-you-need-to-get-started/ |
Which product helps prevent thigh chafing best?
Do you find your sense of style forever or athletic endeavors in conflict with the possibility of uncomfortable thigh chafing? You’re not alone. Sometimes a great outfit can be rendered completely unusable because you know your thighs will be left feeling red and raw after a little while. The same goes for people who do a lot of running or swimming. Fortunately, you no longer have to choose between what you want to do or wear and the toll it will take on your skin. There are creams, clothes and even creative accessories designed to soothe skin and prevent thigh chafing so you can live your life comfortably.
Shop this article: Monistat Care Chafing Relief Powder Gel, Body Glide Skin Glide Anti-Friction Cream and Undersummers by CarrieRae Women’s Shortlette
What causes thigh chafing?
The friction produced between the thighs when they rub together causes thigh chafing. It can make the skin red and cause irritation or even pain. Chafing, in general, is often considered an athlete concern, but it can be especially problematic for anyone during seasons when skirts and dresses are popular. Long pants usually lessen friction by providing a barrier of fabric between your thighs, which is why it’s often less of a problem when temperatures drop. Though inconvenient and uncomfortable, you can address thigh chafing and lessen or prevent it in a variety of ways.
What solutions are available?
These days, there are a few preventative measures you can take to avoid thigh chafing. There are rub-in creams or roll-on palms designed to do the trick, but if you’d prefer something wearable, there are shorts and bands that serve the same purpose.
Best rub-in thigh chafing preventatives
Monistat Care Chafing Relief Powder Gel
This is a non-greasy, fragrance-free formula that’s gentle on sensitive skin and combines the best of lotion and powder care. It protects skin, relieves irritation and is reliable for everyday use. It can be used for thigh chafing as well as underarm or breast chafing.
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Body Glide Skin Glide Anti-Friction Cream
This hypoallergenic hydrating cream doesn’t leave a greasy residue and creates a smooth barrier that protects sensitive skin. It won’t clog pores and washes off easily in the bath or shower. The cream prevents thigh chafing in both humid and dry climates.
Sold by Amazon
Though Aquaphor is mostly used for cracked skin, chapped lips and even tattoo care, it also makes for an excellent thigh chafing preventative. It’s incredibly nourishing for sensitive skin and it’s fragrance-free. A little goes a long way, and so a large jar like this one will last a while.
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Chamois Butt’r Original Anti-Chafe Cream
This anti-chafe cream is great for athletes or anyone experiencing uncomfortable thigh chafing. It’s gluten-free, paraben-free and has no artificial fragrances or colors in it. It also rubs into the skin smoothly and evenly.
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Blue Steel Sports Anti-Chafe Cream
This anti-chafing cream is called a “sports” cream but is made for anyone and includes natural tea tree oil. It’s water/sweat resistant, making it great for those planning on swimming or even just walking around on a hot day. It’s not greasy and won’t stain your clothes either.
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Best stick/roll-on thigh chafing preventatives
Vaseline All Over Body Balm Jelly Stick
This anti-friction jelly stick really nourishes dry skin. It can prevent chafing before it happens or soothes skin already sore from it. You can even use it on chapped lips or dry, cracked hands.
KT Tape KT Performance+ Anti-Chafing Stick
Here is a gel stick that is sweat-resistant, water-resistant and made to last up to 24 hours. It’s not sticky and holds up in both humid and dry climates. There are no sulfates, parabens, petroleum or dyes included in this formula.
Sold by Amazon
Zone Naturals Chub Rub All Natural Anti-Chafing Stick
This anti-chafing stick is made with all-natural ingredients that include coconut oil, Shea butter and aloe. It helps to protect and hydrate skin with the bonus of being paraben-free and fragrance-free.
Sold by Amazon
Squirrel’s Nut Butter All Natural Anti Chafe Salve Stick Applicator
Here is a salve popular with men and women for dry/sensitive skin. It’s in stick applicator form and great at preventing thigh chafing but can also be used for eczema, dry skin, diaper rash, razor burn and tattoo recovery.
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This anti-friction stick is designed specifically for thighs but you can use it anywhere to prevent chafing. It is made with aloe, pomegranate seed extract, Vitamin E and other natural ingredients. It’s sulfate, aluminum, paraben and phthalates-free.
Sold by Ulta Beauty
Best wearable thigh chafing preventatives
Hanes Men’s Comfort Flex Fit Total Support Pouch 3-Pack
Available in long leg or regular leg sizes, this package comes with three comfortable and breathable boxer briefs in assorted colors. They are made from a polyester/spandex blend and won’t ride up the thigh even after going through the washing machine.
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Wirarpa Women’s Anti Chafing Cotton Underwear
This set of three comes available in several color combinations and provides a comfortable fit for chafe-free thighs. The underwear is made from a cotton/spandex blend and it’s machine washable (though you should hang dry).
Sold by Amazon
Bandelettes Patented Trademarked Original Elastic Anti-Chafing Thigh Bands
Available in several colors and styles, this set of nylon/spandex blend bands is perfect for those who want their thighs protected but don’t want to wear long underwear or shorts beneath their clothes. They look delicate and flirty but are hand-wash only and line dry.
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Undersummers by CarrieRae Women’s Shortlette
This stretchy polyester/spandex shortlette protects thighs without causing extra friction that can be painful to the skin. It doesn’t ride up and comes in three colors (ecru, beige and black).
Sold by Amazon
Chicky Chaps Stretch-Mesh Breathable Thigh Bands
These mesh and lace thigh bands clip onto underwear to not fall and come in seven colors and styles. They aren’t the most durable chafe preventative, but if you’re looking for something sexier that looks like lingerie, these bands fit the bill. They are hand-wash only and line dry.
Sold by Amazon
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Emily Verona writes for BestReviews. BestReviews has helped millions of consumers simplify their purchasing decisions, saving them time and money.
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Copyright 2023 BestReviews, a Nexstar company. All rights reserved. | https://www.myarklamiss.com/reviews/br/health-wellness-br/medical-supplies-equipment-br/15-products-that-help-prevent-thigh-chafing/ | 2023-07-30T22:06:15 | 0 | https://www.myarklamiss.com/reviews/br/health-wellness-br/medical-supplies-equipment-br/15-products-that-help-prevent-thigh-chafing/ |
Can you fertilize a lawn in the summer?
Few things can add or detract as much from a home’s curb appeal as the landscaping, and your grass is a significant aspect of that. Healthy and well-manicured grass gives a home a welcoming feeling, while a dead or overgrown yard makes everything look unkempt.
Fertilizing is vital to keeping your lawn looking its best, but it must be done correctly and at the right time of the year. Many people often wonder if they can fertilize their yard in the summer. To clear up that confusion once and for all, we’ve put together this handy guide that covers everything you need to know.
Shop this article: Scott’s Natural Lawn Food, Scotts EdgeGuard Mini Broadcast Spreader and Flexzilla Garden Hose
What is the best time to fertilize your lawn?
You should be fertilizing your lawn at least twice a year. However, if you pick the wrong season or the wrong fertilizer, you can cause excessive weed growth or even burn the grass. Part of knowing when to fertilize your yard is about knowing what type of grass you have. You should fertilize your lawn when it is actively growing. If you have cool-season grass, early spring, when the temperatures are between 60-75 degrees is the optimal time for the first feeding.
Warm-season grasses tend to start sending up green shoots a bit later in the spring when the temperatures reach 80 degrees or higher. When you see this start happening, it’s time to sprinkle your fertilizer.
You should also fertilize both cool- and warm-season grasses in the fall. This helps ensure healthy roots during the winter months, which results in healthier, greener grass the following spring.
How often should you fertilize your lawn in the summer?
While the most important times to fertilize your lawn are the spring and fall, these shouldn’t necessarily be the only times. For both types of grasses, a second feeding should follow about six weeks after the first. Depending on the date of your first round of fertilizing, this might be very late spring or early summer. However, make sure to read the manufacturer’s guidelines on the fertilizer you use, as the recommended interval between feedings may be longer or shorter.
It is usually best to avoid fertilizing during the hottest months, but if you have to do it, make sure to use the correct fertilizer type.
Choosing the right fertilizer
Synthetic fertilizers come in slow- and fast-release formulas. In addition to the essential nutrients of nitrogen, potassium and phosphate, they may also contain calcium, magnesium, sulfur and other ingredients.
While synthetic fertilizers are a good choice for spring and fall use, you should avoid them during the summer. This is because they typically have a very high nutrient content and are likely to burn the grass.
Organic fertilizers are made from fish meal, compost, manure and other natural ingredients. It has a lower nutrient content, which makes it gentler and ideal for summer use. Organic fertilizer tends to break down slowly too, so it will continue feeding the grass for months after application.
Fertilizing your lawn in the summer heat
Prepare your yard in advance
To get the best results, mow your lawn a day or two before you plan on applying the fertilizer. This helps ensure the fertilizer spreads evenly and falls to the soil, rather than sitting atop the blades of grass where it can potentially burn them. After the mowing, heavily water your lawn to saturate the soil thoroughly.
Do it at the right time of day
Later afternoon or early evening is the best time to apply fertilizer. Never do it in the middle of the day under direct sun, or you may burn the grass.
Use the right equipment
It is essential to spread fertilizer evenly across the yard. Too little in one place, and it won’t grow as well as the rest of the lawn. Too much in one spot, and it can harm or even kill the grass. The best way to ensure an even spread is by using a broadcast spreader.
Water after fertilizing
After applying fertilizer, lightly water your lawn. This is to wash any fertilizer that may have landed on the blades of grass down to the soil. Make sure not to overly saturate the soil, though, as you want to give it some time to absorb the nutrients. If you water it too heavily, you run the risk of washing the fertilizer away.
What you need to buy for fertilizing
This all-natural fertilizer is safe to use around kids and pets and is suitable for all grass types and seasons. A single bag covers a 4000-square-foot lawn.
Where to buy: Sold by Amazon
Scotts EdgeGuard Mini Broadcast Spreader
A reliable and reasonably-priced model, this broadcaster spreader is a good choice for many homeowners. It offers easy-to-use rate control and doesn’t require any assembly.
Where to buy: Sold by Amazon
Scotts Wizz Hand-held Spreader
If your yard is too small for a wheeled broadcast spreader, or you simply find a handheld model to be more convenient, the Wizz is a suitable option. It is lightweight and features 23 flow-rate settings.
Where to buy: Sold by Amazon
The Flexzilla garden hose comes in several lengths ranging from 10-100 feet, so there is certainly one that will perfectly fit your needs. It retains its flexibility in all weather conditions and has a rugged build that should last through many seasons.
Where to buy: Sold by Amazon
Luster Leaf 1601 Rapitest Test Kit for Soil
Though unnecessary for fertilizing your lawn, having a soil test kit like this is a brilliant idea. It helps you identify what nutrients your soil is lacking, or has an excess of, so you can make sure to buy the right fertilizer.
Where to buy: Sold by Amazon
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Brett Dvoretz writes for BestReviews. BestReviews has helped millions of consumers simplify their purchasing decisions, saving them time and money.
Copyright 2023 BestReviews, a Nexstar company. All rights reserved. | https://www.myarklamiss.com/reviews/br/lawn-garden-br/fertilizers-br/should-i-fertilize-my-lawn-in-the-summer/ | 2023-07-30T22:06:23 | 1 | https://www.myarklamiss.com/reviews/br/lawn-garden-br/fertilizers-br/should-i-fertilize-my-lawn-in-the-summer/ |
Become a lawn master
Knowing how to plant a new lawn is a useful skill to have, no matter if you’re moving into a new house, sprucing up your current one, or you just want to develop your green thumb. A lush green lawn is often the first thing people notice about your home, and well-manicured grass can greatly increase the value of your property. With a few personal touches, you can make it your own.
While it may seem like a daunting task at first, planting or renovating your lawn is relatively simple when broken down into a few easy-to-follow steps.
Shop this article: Tillers, Fertilizers and Lawn Rollers
Sod vs. seed
First, you must decide whether you want to use grass seed or sod on your lawn.
Let’s start with sod, as grass seed is relatively self-explanatory. Sod, also known as instant lawn or turf grass, is rolled grass that offers several benefits over grass seed. The most obvious is that it’s much faster to establish and gives the look of a finished lawn instantly. In addition, quality sod has few or no weed seeds present, which can save major headaches (and backaches) down the road. Also, because it’s heartier than young grass, sod can be installed nearly any time of year, so long as the ground isn’t frozen or exposed to extreme heat. However, it’s not without disadvantages.
Due to its convenience, sod is initially more expensive than grass seed and requires labor to install. Your grass choices are restricted as well, because most sod farmers grow their products in full sun. That means if your lawn is shaded by houses or large trees, sod may not thrive as well as seed designed for those environments. Shade blend sod is available in some areas, but it’s not always easy to find.
By contrast, grass seed is simpler, cheaper, less labor-intensive at the onset, and offers more choice when it comes to grass variety. It requires more consistent maintenance, though, and the chance for weed contamination is higher. Perhaps the most notable drawback is this method has a defined window for success, as extreme temperatures can lead to patchy results or complete seed failure.
How to prepare lawn for new grass
No matter which method you choose to grow your new lawn, the initial preparation is relatively consistent. Follow these steps:
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First, remove debris and any existing vegetation, i.e. weeds and grass. You can do this physically, with a flame torch, using a home remedy, or with a non-selective herbicide. If you use chemicals, remember to wait for the compounds to become inert before planting (check product labels for this info).
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Repeat the first step, till the soil, and check it again to make sure all remaining seeds are gone. Doing this will ensure a weed-free lawn in the long term.
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Once the area is free of vegetation, you are ready to plant.
How to plant a lawn with sod
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Till the first two inches of soil with a tiller or rake. If needed, add seeding soil to the top of your existing soil.
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Level soil. Any dips or bumps could stay there for years and can look unsightly.
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If you do not use seeding soil (these generally have starter fertilizer mixed in), apply a starter fertilizer, water, and till in.
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Roll out sod. Keep edges snug against each other but don’t overlap them.
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Use a lawn roller to smooth out and firm the sod, connecting it with the ground below and facilitating root contact. Keep sod moist for the first two weeks after application to further assist root growth.
How to plant a lawn with seed
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Till the first two inches of soil with a tiller or rake. If needed, add seeding soil to the top of your existing soil.
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Level soil. Any dips or bumps could stay there for years and can look unsightly.
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If you do not use seeding soil (these generally have starter fertilizer mixed in), apply a starter fertilizer, water, and till in.
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Divide your seed into two equal portions. Spread one half going one direction, with the other half going at a right angle in the other direction. This crisscross pattern guarantees even coverage across your lawn. For higher accuracy, use a drop spreader.
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Tamp seed down with a lawn roller. For added protection, cover the seeds with 1/4 inch of peat moss or compost. This prevents the seeds from washing away, stops birds from eating them, and also holds in moisture.
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Gently soak the soil about six inches deep after seeding, and keep the seeds moist until grass has germinated. This should take approximately two weeks. Continue to lightly water three to four times a day until the grass is about a half-inch high, then maintain as normal.
How to take care of new grass
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A watering rule of thumb: Once the grass is high enough to mow, water at approximately one inch per week.
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Water your lawn early in the morning. Doing it at night keeps the water stagnant, which raises the risk for mold and fungus, and watering midday increases evaporation risk. In addition, water deeply and infrequently as opposed to lightly and more often, as this improves root health.
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Keep your mower blades sharp, and don’t cut more than a third of the grass blade at a time to prevent shocking the grass.
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Fertilize every four to six weeks with lawn fertilizer.
Lawn care shopping list
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Planting a new lawn is incredibly rewarding, but it takes a toll on your hands. Invest in some high-quality gardening gloves to stay safe from thorns, sharp sticks, sunlight, and abrasions.
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A sturdy rake or cultivator will help you till your lawn before planting. This is a necessary step to remove unwanted vegetation, loosen up dirt, and aerate the soil.
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A lawn roller is the most efficient way to both tamp down new grass seeds and secure sod to the soil below. Fill your lawn roller with water if more weight is needed to finish the job. Choose between tow models that hook up to powered equipment or simple push/pull versions.
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Drop spreaders are extremely helpful in evenly distributing grass seed over an area. Available in rolling and handheld versions, these spreaders are adjustable for different drop rates. Great for grass seed or fertilizer!
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Fertilizer is necessary to keep a lawn healthy and full. Lawn fertilizers are typically rich in nitrogen, which is very water-soluble and promotes green, leafy growth.
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Your lawn won’t survive without water, and an adjustable rotating sprinkler helps it stay irrigated at the seedling stage as well as when it’s fully developed. Interested in even more control? Consider a multi-zone irrigation controller.
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Bob Beacham writes for BestReviews. BestReviews has helped millions of consumers simplify their purchasing decisions, saving them time and money.
Copyright 2023 BestReviews, a Nexstar company. All rights reserved. | https://www.myarklamiss.com/reviews/br/lawn-garden-br/lawn-care-br/how-to-plant-a-new-lawn/ | 2023-07-30T22:06:29 | 0 | https://www.myarklamiss.com/reviews/br/lawn-garden-br/lawn-care-br/how-to-plant-a-new-lawn/ |
TORONTO (AP) — Los Angeles Angels outfielder Taylor Ward was placed on the 10-day injured list with facial fractures on Sunday, a day after he was hit by a 91 mph pitch from Blue Jays right-hander Alek Manoah.
Ward was taken to a Toronto hospital after being struck in the fifth inning of Saturday’s 6-1 loss. He was released from hospital Saturday evening.
Before Sunday’s game, Angels manager Phil Nevin said Ward did not have vision damage. Surgery is an option for Ward, but no decision has been made. It was not clear when Ward would be able to return to California. The Angels play a three-game series at Atlanta this week before returning home Thursday to host Seattle.
To replace Ward, the Angels selected the contract of infielder Kevin Padlo from Triple-A Salt Lake.
Batting with the bases loaded, Ward was hit by a 2-0 pitch from Manoah. The ball appeared to strike Ward next to his next left eye, knocking off his batting helmet.
Plate umpire Andy Fletcher motioned to the Angels’ dugout for the trainer as Ward went down, blood running down his face. Angels staff rushed to the plate and held a towel to Ward’s face. After a couple of minutes, Ward got to his feet and left the field on a cart. His left eye appeared to be swollen shut.
A six-year veteran who has spent his entire career with the Angels, Ward is batting .253 with 14 home runs and 47 RBI in 97 games.
___
AP MLB: https://apnews.com/hub/mlb and https://twitter.com/AP_Sports | https://www.myarklamiss.com/sports/ap-sports/ap-angels-outfielder-taylor-ward-placed-on-il-with-facial-fractures-after-being-hit-in-head/ | 2023-07-30T22:06:35 | 0 | https://www.myarklamiss.com/sports/ap-sports/ap-angels-outfielder-taylor-ward-placed-on-il-with-facial-fractures-after-being-hit-in-head/ |
FUKUOKA, Japan (AP) — Canadian teenager Summer McIntosh should be a star at next year’s Paris Olympics, and she showed why Sunday on the closing day of the swimming world championships in Japan.
The 16-year-old McIntosh won her second gold of the event, taking the 400-meter individual medley after winning the 200 butterfly gold on Friday.
That made up for a slow start for the young Canadian, who finished fourth in the 400 free, where she held the world record until Australia’s Ariarne Titmus took it back. She also took bronze in the 200 free, at least getting a medal.
“Going into tonight I just wanted to see how hard I could push myself,” McIntosh said.
She did just that. Her time of 4 minutes, 27.11 seconds was the third fastest ever, not far off her world record of 4:25.87. She was also the defending world champion. American Katie Grimes took the silver in 4:31.41, with Jenna Forrester of Australia picking up the bronze in 4:32.30.
“It was definitely motivating,” McIntosh said of her first few days. “I try to turn everything that goes wrong into motivation somehow.”
Asked about Paris, she replied: “Right now I’m just thinking about a little break.”
McIntosh should be joined by other young stars in Paris like 21-year-old Frenchman Leon Marchand and Australia’s 22-year-old Kaylee McKeown. Marchand and McKeown each won three individual golds.
The Americans also closed fast.
After winning only four gold medals during the first seven days, they picked up three on the eighth and final day for a total of seven golds and 38 overall. The gold total is still their lowest in a worlds going back for around 20 years. They won only eight in the 2015 worlds.
Australia finished with 13 gold and 20 overall, and China had five gold and 16 overall.
“This is the cherry on top,” said American Regan Smith, part of the winning 4×100 women’s medley relay. “I love racing with these girls and I love relays so much and brining home a gold in the last event for Team USA means so much to me and all of us.”
The Americans finished in 3:52.08, followed by Australia (3:53.37) and Canada (3:54.12).
The United States also won the men’s 4×100 medley in 3:27.20, ahead of China (3:29.00) and Australia (3:29.62), and added another gold with Hunter Armstrong in the 50-meter backstroke (24.05).
Sarah Sjostrom of Sweden made history with her victory in the women’s 50-meter freestyle. The gold gave Sjostrom 21 medals in individual races in the world championships, surpassing Michael Phelps who had 20.
Sjostrom, who set the world record in the semifinals on Saturday, powered home in the final 25 meters for the win, clocking 23.62. Shayna Jack of Australia picked up the silver in 24.10, while Zhang Yufei of China earned the bronze in 24.15.
Ruta Meilutyte of Lithuania set a world record on the way to winning gold in the women’s 50-meter breaststroke in 29.16. She equaled the old world mark of 29.30 the night before in the semifinals.
Meilutyte grabbed the early lead and was never challenged. American Lilly King claimed the silver in 29.94, while Benedetta Pilato of Italy picked up the bronze in 30.04. She shared the old record of 29.30 with Meilutyte.
Ahmed Hafnaoui of Tunisia added the men’s 1,500-meter free gold to the 800 free he won earlier in the worlds, prevailing in an epic battle with American Bobby Finke that went down to the wire.
The 20-year-old Hafnaoui, the defending 400 free Olympic champion, captured the gold in 14:31.54, with Finke clocking 14:31.59 for silver. Sam Short of Australia rounded out the podium with the bronze in 14:37.28.
The mark was just off the world record by Sun Yang of China, 14:31.02, set in 2012. Sun has been suspended for a doping violation.
“Bobby (Finke) is so fast at the end of the race. he pushed us to do the 14.31,” Hafnaoui said. “It was so close to the world record. I mean I enjoyed the race and thanks Bobby for pushing me.”
___
AP sports: https://apnews.com/hub/sports and https://twitter.com/AP_Sports | https://www.myarklamiss.com/sports/ap-sports/ap-canadian-summer-mcintosh-16-gets-second-gold-medal-at-swimming-worlds-in-japan/ | 2023-07-30T22:06:42 | 0 | https://www.myarklamiss.com/sports/ap-sports/ap-canadian-summer-mcintosh-16-gets-second-gold-medal-at-swimming-worlds-in-japan/ |
FLORHAM PARK, N.J. (AP) — Dalvin Cook got an up-close view of Aaron Rodgers and the New York Jets while watching practice from the sideline Sunday.
The free agent running back has to see if he’ll spend the rest of training camp in their backfield — or elsewhere.
Cook spent Sunday meeting with the Jets as he ponders the next stop of his playing career. The four-time Pro Bowl selection was released by the Vikings on June 8 for salary cap savings, according to a person familiar with Minnesota’s decision.
The Jets are the first team Cook has officially visited as a free agent, with his hometown Miami Dolphins also among possible suitors. New York also must consider whether to make him an offer before he leaves the team’s practice facility.
Cook, who turns 28 on Aug. 10, was greeted by chants of “Dal-vin Cooook! Sign that contract!” from fans in the stands as he walked onto the field. He later responded to the post on X, formerly known as Twitter, with a green heart emoji.
Several Jets players, including Rodgers, greeted Cook and he spent a few moments chatting with owner Woody Johnson.
“He’s a good young man, a very good young man,” Jets coach Robert Saleh said. “We didn’t interact too much. There’s a lot of stuff going on, especially when it’s open to the public. But it was good to say hello.”
Cook has talked up the Jets in TV interviews in recent days, telling NFL Network’s “Good Morning Football” on Friday they “are right at the top of the list” and the odds of him signing with them were “pretty high.”
“It’s a unique situation because I think they’re building something special over there,” Cook told “Good Morning Football” during the interview. “When you look at it, you always want to be around a great QB, you always want to be around somebody you can pick his brain and just learn from. A-Rod is a four-time MVP. So, just being around a guy like that you can learn a lot more and just develop as a player.
“That’s what I’m looking to do.”
He reiterated those comments Saturday during an interview with ESPN, saying he thinks “the coaching staff, I think everything about what they got going on, just says winning.”
But Cook, a former Florida State star, also said in the interview he was interested in the Dolphins and it would be “a Cinderella story” to play for his hometown team.
He was the guest of the Jets on Sunday, though. And now they have to wait to see if they offer Cook a deal and he accepts — or explores his options.
Both sides have expressed interest, and the Jets wanted Cook to take a physical to be sure his surgically repaired shoulder is healthy.
“That’s pretty much it,” Saleh said. “Call it a meet and greet.”
Cook, who has run for at least 1,000 yards in each of the past four seasons, was scheduled to count more than $14.1 million against the Vikings’ salary cap before he was released. He’s third on Minnesota’s career rushing list with 5,993 yards in six seasons.
With the Jets, Cook could give New York some insurance in the backfield with Breece Hall working his way back from a knee injury that cut short a promising rookie season. New York also has Michael Carter, Zonovan Knight, Damarea Crockett, fifth-round draft pick Israel Abanikanda and undrafted free agent Travis Dye at the position.
NOTES: Saleh said WR Garrett Wilson has a lower right ankle injury and the Jets are being cautious by holding him out of practice. Wilson appeared to have a slight limp and his right ankle was wrapped. … WR Corey Davis remains out with an illness, but Saleh said he could return to practice Monday. … WR Randall Cobb was activated from the physically unable to perform list and participated in practice. … Saleh said the starters aren’t expected to play Thursday night in the Hall of Fame game against Cleveland in Canton, Ohio. Among those players who will play include QB Zach Wilson and OT Mekhi Becton.
___
AP Pro Football Writers Dave Campbell and Rob Maaddi contributed.
___
AP NFL: https://apnews.com/hub/nfl and https://twitter.com/AP_NFL | https://www.myarklamiss.com/sports/ap-sports/ap-dalvin-cook-visits-with-the-jets-and-watches-practice-as-he-considers-his-options/ | 2023-07-30T22:06:49 | 1 | https://www.myarklamiss.com/sports/ap-sports/ap-dalvin-cook-visits-with-the-jets-and-watches-practice-as-he-considers-his-options/ |
7-year-old dies after gun discharges at Prattville home
Published: Jul. 30, 2023 at 4:18 PM CDT|Updated: 21 minutes ago
PRATTVILLE, Ala. (WSFA) - The shooting death of a child is under investigation in Prattville.
Prattville Police Chief Mark Thompson said it happened at a local apartment complex around noon Sunday. He said a 7-year-old boy came into possession of a gun at his home when the gun discharged.
The child’s name was not released.
Thompson said he could not comment further, as the investigation is ongoing.
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Copyright 2023 WSFA. All rights reserved. | https://www.wbrc.com/2023/07/30/7-year-old-dies-after-gun-discharges-prattville-home/ | 2023-07-30T22:06:52 | 0 | https://www.wbrc.com/2023/07/30/7-year-old-dies-after-gun-discharges-prattville-home/ |
ENGLEWOOD, Colo. (AP) — Frank Clark has reunited with Russell Wilson in Denver and now the outside linebacker has former teammate Patrick Mahomes in his sights instead.
The 30-year-old outside linebacker signed with Denver after being jettisoned by the Kansas City Chiefs in a cost-cutting move this offseason and the Broncos are counting on him to add some oomph to their pass rush.
Still in the AFC West, Clark gets two opportunities at beating his former team this season, something the Broncos haven’t done since 2015. Their 15-game skid against the Chiefs is the fourth longest by one team to a single opponent in NFL history.
Unlike his reunion with Wilson, revenge and rivalry aren’t top of mind for Clark as he embraces his fresh start in the Rocky Mountains.
“I wouldn’t call it a rivalry. A rivalry is competitive,” Clark interjected in his first public comments since signing a one-year, $5.5 million deal with Denver last month. “I’m (with) the Broncos now. I’ve been on the other side. We didn’t call it a rivalry then.”
And before anyone around Denver can call it that the Broncos will have to beat Mahomes, something they have a better shot at doing with Clark on their side.
The Chiefs parted ways with Clark just a year after signing him to a two-year, $30 million extension. The Broncos haven’t had a fearsome pass rush since trading Von Miller two years ago. And with Baron Browning sidelined by a knee injury and Randy Gregory coming off an injury-filled debut season in Denver, first-year head coach Sean Payton eagerly welcomed the veteran with 58 1/2 sacks.
Clark had 23 1/2 sacks in four seasons in Kansas City and another 10 1/2 in the playoffs, helping the Chiefs go 10-2 in the postseason and make three trips to the Super Bowl.
“What we did in Kansas City was special,” Clark said. “Four-year run, two Super Bowl (rings), three AFC titles. It was fun, but at the end of the day all good things come to an end.”
Bad things, too, he hopes. Such as Denver’s 15-game skid to the Chiefs.
One thing Clark insists isn’t nearing the finish line in his proclivity for getting after the passer even though his five sacks in 2022 and two-game suspension for gun possession incidents a year earlier meant an end to his three-year run as a Pro Bowler.
“I wouldn’t say it was the end” in Kansas City last season, Clark said. “It’s never the end when you get the job finished.”
Now he aims to help the Broncos and Wilson bounce back in 2023.
“He’s still dangerous. Don’t get it twisted,” Clark said of Wilson, whom he played with in Seattle from 2015-18. “Russ is a veteran. He’s a guy that’s won on multiple levels. … I was a part of Seahawks teams that were successful; I was a part of teams where we didn’t make the playoffs. But it was the same Russ.
“So don’t think a bad season’s going to shake a guy like Russ,” Clark added. “Naw, bro, we start fresh every year. Every summer’s a fresh start.”
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AP NFL: https://apnews.com/hub/nfl and https://twitter.com/AP_NFL | https://www.myarklamiss.com/sports/ap-sports/ap-ex-chiefs-linebacker-frank-clark-reunites-with-russell-wilson-in-denver/ | 2023-07-30T22:06:57 | 0 | https://www.myarklamiss.com/sports/ap-sports/ap-ex-chiefs-linebacker-frank-clark-reunites-with-russell-wilson-in-denver/ |
FLORHAM PARK, N.J. (AP) — Aaron Rodgers is sticking by his offensive coordinator and firing his hardest throw of the summer at Sean Payton.
The Jets quarterback was bothered by critical comments Payton, the Denver Broncos’ head coach, recently made about offensive coordinator Nathaniel Hackett. Payton told USA Today for a story published Thursday that Hackett’s 15-game stint with the Broncos last season ”was one of the worst coaching jobs in the history of the NFL.″
Payton also said there were “20 dirty hands” around Russell Wilson’s career-worst season, and took some shots at the Jets — Hackett’s new team where he and Rodgers are reunited after enjoying success together in Green Bay.
“It made me feel bad that someone who has accomplished a lot in the league is that insecure that they have to take another man down to set themselves up for some sort of easy fall if it doesn’t go well for that team this year,” Rodgers told NFL Network on Sunday. “I think it was way out of line, inappropriate, and I think he needs to keep my coaches’ names out of his mouth.”
Rodgers, acquired by New York in April from Green Bay, said Hackett is “arguably my favorite coach I’ve ever had in the NFL.” The pair was together for two of Rodgers’ four NFL MVP awards in 2020 and 2021 with the Packers.
During the interview with USA Today’s Jarrett Bell, Payton also criticized the Jets being the latest NFL team “trying to win the offseason” — something he said the Broncos under Hackett tried to do and were “embarrassed.”
Jets coach Robert Saleh said Thursday “Hackett’s doing a phenomenal job here” when asked about Payton’s comments. He also said the Jets are just focused on themselves, but recognizes “there’s a lot of people that are hatin’ on us and a lot of people looking for us to fail.”
Payton on Friday said he regretted his comments in which he disparaged Hackett, and said he would reach out to Hackett and Saleh “at the right time” to do so.
“Listen, I had one of those moments where I still had my Fox hat on and not my coaching hat,” said Payton, who’s returning to the sideline this season after a year’s sabbatical during which he worked as a studio football analyst for Fox Sports following a 15-year stint with the New Orleans Saints.
Rodgers told NFL Network he thought Payton’s initial comments “were very surprising, for a coach to do that to another coach.”
Meanwhile, the back-and-forth made the Jets’ matchup in Denver in Week 5 on Oct. 8 a bit juicier. Payton acknowledged Friday his comments “certainly will bring more interest to the game when we play them, but that seems like years from now.”
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AP Pro Football Writer Arnie Stapleton in Englewood, Colorado, contributed.
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AP NFL: https://apnews.com/hub/nfl and https://twitter.com/AP_NFL | https://www.myarklamiss.com/sports/ap-sports/ap-jets-aaron-rodgers-defends-nathaniel-hackett-and-fires-back-at-the-broncos-sean-payton/ | 2023-07-30T22:07:04 | 0 | https://www.myarklamiss.com/sports/ap-sports/ap-jets-aaron-rodgers-defends-nathaniel-hackett-and-fires-back-at-the-broncos-sean-payton/ |
AUCKLAND, New Zealand (AP) — Megan Rapinoe is adjusting to her new role at the Women’s World Cup, even if it means she’s not on the field as much as she’d like to be.
The outspoken 38-year-old known for her eclectic hair colors and the iconic victory pose she struck at the 2019 World Cup is the oldest player on the team. She already announced that her fourth World Cup would be her last.
“Ultimately, we’re at the World Cup. This is where everybody wants to be, whether you’re playing 90 minutes, whether you’re a game changer, whatever,” she said Sunday. “I think it’s a lot similar to what I thought it would be — bringing all the experience that I can, all the experience that I have, and ultimately being ready whenever my number is called up.”
Rapinoe has played limited minutes so far, coming in as a substitute in the 3-0 victory over Vietnam in the tournament opener, which was her 200th career appearance for the team.
She was available but didn’t play in the disappointing 1-1 draw with the Netherlands on Thursday in Wellington. U.S. coach Vlatko Andonovski made just one substitution in the match, bringing in midfielder Rose Lavelle after the first half.
“I think all of us on the bench, it’s like we think we should be on the field as much as the players on the field believe that they should be on the field,” Rapinoe said. “Every player on the field that starts the game thinks that they should play 90 minutes, and every player who doesn’t, who is a sub, thinks that they should be on at some point.”
The United States has won the last two World Cups, but the players find themselves in a more precarious position as they chase an unprecedented third consecutive title. The Americans need at least a draw going into the final group match against Portugal on Tuesday at Eden Park in Auckland.
The Americans top Group E, even on points with the Netherlands, but hold the edge because of goal difference. Portugal, which beat Vietnam, could send the United States home early with a win over the Americans.
“We’re unsatisfied with the way we played, but we know there are areas that we can be better and I think there’s some really simple fixes we can do to put ourselves in a better position to have more joy on the ball, especially in the final third,” Rapinoe said. “I think everybody’s looking at this like `Let’s go.’”
At the 2019 World Cup in France, Rapinoe scored six goals over the course of the tournament, including a penalty in a 2-0 victory over the Netherlands in the final. She also finished with three assists and claimed both the Golden Boot and the Golden Ball for the best overall player.
Rapinoe, who is engaged to former WNBA star Sue Bird, has been a leader on and off the field.
She made headlines during the 2019 tournament when she said she wouldn’t visit the White House if the United States won. Her decision was based on her disdain for then-President Donald Trump, and the team did not go to the White House after winning its second World Cup.
And in the midst of a dispute with U.S. Soccer over equal pay with the men’s national team, Rapinoe helped the women hold firm on their position.
“I just think back to 2019 in particular. We didn’t really talk about it a lot as a group but we were like, `Well, we have to win. This is kind of like a must-win World Cup for us.’ And I think it did give us confidence,” she said. “It pressured us, but I think we also knew that we could handle it and it was almost a mandatory upping of our level to be able to match everything that we were saying off the field. I think in so many ways we were betting on ourselves.”
Rapinoe has won two Women’s World Cup titles and an Olympic gold medal with the United States. She also took home the Ballon d’Or and the Best FIFA Women’s Player awards — the game’s top individual honors — for her play in 2019.
As a fierce advocate for social justice issues, including gender equity and LGBTQ rights, she was awarded the nation’s highest civilian honor, the Presidential Medal of Freedom, by President Joe Biden last year.
The team also won a new contract that pays the players the same as their male counterparts.
“I’ve always tried to use whatever platform we have, and this platform was built long before I got here. We just continue to add to to it, to grow the game, to make the world a better place, to use our voices, to advocate for more,” she said.
At this World Cup, she’s passing that legacy on to younger generation. Fourteen of the U.S. players are playing in their first World Cup. In 2019, Carli Lloyd was in a similar role of a player who was also something of a coach who led by example.
Rapinoe is doing that now.
“Still every day in training I’m like, `I’m gonna try to bust your ass,’ and that makes them better, that makes me better,” she said. “That makes the whole team better. So I think it’s been really rewarding. And I think ultimately, and I think that this gets lost, but I get to play in another World Cup.”
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AP Women’s World Cup: https://apnews.com/hub/fifa-womens-world-cup and https://twitter.com/AP_Sports | https://www.myarklamiss.com/sports/ap-sports/ap-megan-rapinoe-adjusts-to-new-role-at-womens-world-cup-while-still-savoring-final-days-in-spotlight/ | 2023-07-30T22:07:11 | 0 | https://www.myarklamiss.com/sports/ap-sports/ap-megan-rapinoe-adjusts-to-new-role-at-womens-world-cup-while-still-savoring-final-days-in-spotlight/ |
DUNEDIN, New Zealand (AP) — New Zealand outshot Switzerland and even moved goalkeeper Victoria Esson into an attack position several times, but failed to break a 0-0 tie Sunday in the Women’s World Cup and became the first host nation to be eliminated in group play in tournament history.
The Football Ferns are co-hosting the World Cup with Australia, which must win Monday against Canada to avoid its own early elimination.
Switzerland advanced to the round of 16. The Swiss also played to a scoreless draw against Norway, but won the group with the draw against New Zealand, coupled with the Norwegians’ simultaneous 6-0 rout of the Philippines.
New Zealand controlled the pace for long stretches of the match and had its chances to score, outshooting Switzerland 12-3. Jacqui Hand knocked a shot off the right post in the 24th minute.
All 25,947 seats at Forsyth Barr Stadiums were filled — the only one of Dunedin’s six tournament matches to sell out. The raucous crowd stomped and cheered all night, to no avail.
The tournament began July 20 with New Zealand upsetting Norway 1-0, but the Ferns failed to score from the 48th minute of that match through two more games. They lost their previous match 1-0 against the Philippines.
KEY MOMENTS
Esson moved into an offensive position several times in the last minutes of the match as New Zealand pressed for a winner. She managed a header off a corner kick but was off target.
WHY IT MATTERS
Switzerland becomes one of two teams from Group A to advance to the round of 16. It’s only the team’s second time in the knockout round — the first was in the Swiss’ only previous Women’s World Cup in 2015.
The New Zealanders’ failure to score put an end to their Women’s World Cup run.
IN THEIR OWN WORDS
“Just gutted, I think. Obviously we talked and we were proud of ourselves and what we’ve been able to accomplish, but at the end of the day we wanted to get out of this group stage and we just didn’t. It’s just black and white. So, obviously gutted,” said New Zealand midfielder Malia Steinmetz of the elimination.
“We expected it to be really tough. New Zealand really tried everything they could, and I think we knew how to respond, especially defensively. We did a lot right,” said Inka Grings, Switzerland’s coach.
WHAT’S NEXT
Switzerland will play either Spain or Japan from Group C, pending a match between those teams on Monday to decide the top two places in that group.
New Zealand is done for the Women’s World Cup.
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Ellen McIntyre is a student in the John Curley Center for Sports Journalism at Penn State.
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AP Women’s World Cup coverage: https://apnews.com/hub/fifa-womens-world-cup and https://twitter.com/AP_Sports | https://www.myarklamiss.com/sports/ap-sports/ap-new-zealand-out-of-womens-world-cup-following-0-0-draw-with-switzerland-as-swiss-advance/ | 2023-07-30T22:07:18 | 0 | https://www.myarklamiss.com/sports/ap-sports/ap-new-zealand-out-of-womens-world-cup-following-0-0-draw-with-switzerland-as-swiss-advance/ |
HOUSTON (AP) — Quarterback C.J. Stroud, taken second overall in this year’s draft, isn’t worried that the Panthers picked No. 1 selection Bryce Young as their starter on Day 1 of training camp while the Houston Texans are making him compete for the job.
“I’m happy for him, but his situation is his situation, and my situation is mine,” Stroud said Sunday. “So, I know that I’ve got to work on my end and do whatever I’ve got to do to make this team better. It’s not about the starter (or) who’s not the starter, it’s about getting better for Week 1 against Baltimore.”
Stroud is vying with Davis Mills to be the team’s quarterback. The Texans have split first-team snaps between the two in the first few days of camp.
Houston drafted Stroud after Mills struggled as the team’s starter for the past two years after Deshaun Watson sat out following a trade request before being shipped to Cleveland before last season.
Mills went 5-22-1 in 28 games, including 26 starts, as the Texans were among the NFL’s worst teams.
Stroud is just the third quarterback the Texans have drafted in the first round, joining Watson, taken 12th in 2017 and David Carr, the team’s first draft pick who was taken first overall in 2002.
After using such a high pick on Stroud it’s hard to imagine that he won’t end up as the team’s starter. But for now, new coach DeMeco Ryans is adamant that it’s an open competition between the former Ohio State star and Mills.
While Ryans won’t answer questions about what Stroud will have to do to win the job, he’s had plenty to say about the dedication the 21-year-old has shown since joining the team.
“What you see about C.J. is the work and preparation that he does when he’s not here,” Ryans said. “He’s a true football junkie. He loves football, always watching football, always asking for extra cut-ups from our coaches. I’m so impressed with the mental part of him and just how much he loves the game of football. When a guy has that much love for the game of football, he’s (only) going to continue to get better.”
Stroud was a two-year starter for Ohio State, where he threw for 8,123 yards with 85 touchdowns and just 12 interceptions as the Buckeyes went 21-4. His 85 touchdowns over two seasons broke a Big Ten record held by Drew Brees.
Despite competing with Mills for the job, the rookie said that he and fellow quarterback Case Keenum have both helped him a lot as he’s made the jump from college to the pros.
“I’ve learned everything from Davis,” Stroud said. “Davis and Case are great vets. And just because we may be competing against each other, doesn’t mean that we’re not going to learn from each other. I’ve had a really great time being in the room with those guys.”
Stroud certainly knows what’s at stake for him in this camp, but he’s trying not to let the competition change how he approaches his job day to day.
“I feel like when you try to have a different mindset you confuse yourself,” he said. “So, for me, I just try to keep my head down and I work — just try to work harder and harder every day. Just trying to … be the best person I can be on and off the field.”
As Stroud prepares for his first NFL season, he certainly has plenty of goals. However, his approach to goals has never been to list only lofty, far down the road ones.
“I have goals written down,” he said. “I did it in college and I’ll do it now. But I have a lot of things that I put down, like really small goals. I think the more you can accomplish small goals in your life, the big ones can come kind of natural. And they come as you get the small ones checked off.”
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AP NFL: https://apnews.com/hub/NFL and https://twitter.com/AP_NFL | https://www.myarklamiss.com/sports/ap-sports/ap-no-2-pick-stroud-competes-with-mills-for-starting-qb-job-with-houston-texans/ | 2023-07-30T22:07:25 | 0 | https://www.myarklamiss.com/sports/ap-sports/ap-no-2-pick-stroud-competes-with-mills-for-starting-qb-job-with-houston-texans/ |
Eagles practice observations: Quez Watkins redux; Haason Reddick returning; redrawing Jalen Hurts?
Another day, another practice, all seen with the eyes and filtered through the knowledge of a veteran Eagles reporter.
The Eagles held their third practice of the 2023 training camp at the NovaCare Complex on Sunday. Here’s the link to Days 1 and 2. Here were my observations from Day 3:
The fourth estate. A few days after the Eagles’ Super Bowl loss, Quez Watkins stood at his locker stall and said he didn’t perform up to expectations in 2022. The wide receiver, who failed to pull in a deep pass from Jalen Hurts in the final game of last season, also noted that he had played through a grade 2 shoulder strain since early December.
Watkins’ struggles existed long before the injury, though. Some of his dropoff from a breakout sophomore season had to do with the signing of A.J. Brown. And some of it was circumstantial. But he also had admitted that he allowed his quasi-demotion to affect him mentally and that seemed almost the case from the start of training camp.
A year later, Watkins appears locked in, and as a result, has been one of the early stars of camp this summer. Sunday, he caught a number of passes on a variety of routes. The most eye-opening came when he turned cornerback Zech McPhearson around on a slot fade and elevated for a Hurts dart. But Watkins’ day didn’t end there. He caught a short cross in space vs. zone coverage and then got inside Josiah Scott on a slant.
Watkins has so far looked like the 2020 camp version of himself and the receiver that supplanted Jalen Reagor, who was drafted five rounds ahead of him, that season. Brown, DeVonta Smith, and tight end Dallas Goedert are still around and should still see the majority of targets. But Watkins, who’s in a contract year, could be in a better state of mind when the ball does find its way to him in this, his fourth season.
Roll call. The Eagles’ lone missing player the first two days — linebacker Haason Reddick (groin) — returned to practice. Coach Nick Sirianni declined to divulge when and how Reddick suffered his injury. He said before practice that the All-Pro would only participate in individual drills Sunday, so Reddick is apparently still a ways from making a full return.
» READ MORE: ‘Commanding the defense’: Nakobe Dean is taking control
Cornerback Avonte Maddox (toe) and Derek Barnett (knee) were still listed as limited. Maddox got tangled up with Watkins during a one-on-one drill and needed a moment to gather himself afterward. But he returned and was in action in team drills for the first time this camp. Landon Dickerson wasn’t on the injury report, but he split first-team repetitions at left guard with Sua Opeta. The Eagles are clearly taking a cautious approach with the often banged-up offensive lineman.
Dean’s list. Nakobe Dean is the man in the middle and there aren’t any other challengers to the second-year linebacker — at least not yet. That may be imprudent considering Dean has yet to take a starter’s snap in the NFL, but the Eagles believe him to be an apt pupil having spent one year with the 2022 third-rounder. He has yet to make any eye-opening plays — sort of like how he opened camp as a rookie — but I’ve been more interested in seeing if Dean plays the proper technique and is in the right position on plays. As far as I can tell, he’s been moving at the appropriate speed, even when tasked with covering the slippery Goedert.
Dean doesn’t seem to care about being flashy in camp. He diagnosed a short pass to wide receiver Britain Covey and could have easily given him a pop — or even a two-hand touch — but eased up instead when it was apparent he had him within range. His judiciousness reminded me of former Eagles linebacker DeMeco Ryans, who was once questioned by eager reporters following a shaky performance in a preseason game. “It’s the preseason,” Ryans simply responded, laughing off the notion that he wouldn’t be ready for the season. And he was right.
Charting waters. Christian Elliss continued to get the occasional first-team rep at inside linebacker alongside Dean. He made a nice run stop near the line, but lost running back D’Andre Swift on a two-way go. Nicholas Morrow started ahead of Elliss again and was all over a short RPO to Smith. He was in coverage when Swift deftly came back and caught an underthrown Hurts heave during 7 on 7s.
McPhearson was first up at slot cornerback. Smith got behind him on a deep cross. Hurts’ pass was perfection and arrived just before post safety Reed Blankenship. Terrell Edmunds started alongside Blankenship, but K’Von Wallace spelled him on occasion. Wallace, playing earlier with the second unit, lost tight end Dan Arnold on a cross. But he shot into the scrum on a Hurts draw play.
Dennis Kelly and Jack Driscoll flipped sides at tackle with the second team, the former moving to the right and the latter to the left.
» READ MORE: D’Andre Swift adds receiving versatility to Eagles’ backfield
Backing up. Marcus Mariota has had an uneven first three days, and understandably so. He’s learning an entirely new offense, having been in various systems over his career, and, aside from Olamide Zaccheaus, is throwing to receivers he’s never previously thrown to. He wasn’t very sharp on Day 1, was better on Day 2, but struggled on Day 3.
The 7-on-7 period was particularly rough on the Eagles’ backup quarterback. On his first toss, Mariota didn’t set his feet and threw behind Arnold. On his second, he threw low and wide of the one-hand attempt of running back Kenny Gainwell. He hooked up with tight end Grant Calcaterra on his third pass, but threw behind tight end Tyree Jackson downfield on the next.
Goodberry. Mariota’s worst moment — whether he was ultimately responsible or not — came during team drills when he tossed a pass right into the waiting arms of cornerback James Bradberry. There must have been a miscommunication, but since there wasn’t a receiver near the play, it was difficult to know who Mariota’s intended receiver was.
Bradberry raced the other direction after the pick and was joined by jubilant defensive teammates. Earlier, he appeared to be the guilty party when Smith sauntered into the secondary unchecked and caught a deep spiral from Hurts.
» READ MORE: Marcus Mariota excited to finally be an Eagle: ‘I’m going to do whatever I can to help Jalen out’
Quick draw. There’s been plenty of conversation about pulling back on Hurts running after his contract extension. I don’t think the Eagles are going to cut into the option plays much — as long as the quarterback continues to make smart decisions the majority of the time. But it does make sense to dial down on draws and power runs, despite their success in the latter part of last season.
That being said, Hurts has had his number called multiple times in each practice so far. The Eagles aren’t accustomed to revealing their regular season plans in camp, and even they don’t know what the offense may look like in detail beyond Week 1, but I’m not taking away much in terms of Sirianni’s scheme at this stage.
Battle of Britain. Covey may be a lock to return as the punt returner, but he would increase his chances of making the roster if he added kick returner to his list of duties. He briefly filled that role last season after Watkins failed to make an impression. But Covey, too, lost that job when the Eagles went back to the reliable Boston Scott.
Covey was the lone returner during special teams Sunday. Having him handle both roles during the season could save the Eagles a roster spot on game days. That might mean Scott will be inactive. With Swift, Gainwell, and Rashaad Penny seemingly ahead of him on the depth chart, a fourth running back may be a luxury unless Scott can contribute in other ways on special teams.
Quick hits. Hurts had a Randall Cunningham-like scramble in the backfield before unloading a deep pass on the run to Zaccheaus, who couldn’t make the fingertip grab. Rookie guard Tyler Steen had another false start to the dismay of the irate Sirianni. Speaking of fingertips, rookie cornerback Kelee Ringo grazed a short pass by quarterback Ian Book when he rushed off the edge unblocked. The pass was still caught. During the developmental period, Book went at the musclebound Ringo on successive go routes to receivers Joseph Ngata and Deon Cain. Ngata caught the first and Cain couldn’t pull in the second, but Ringo had tight coverage on both.
Extra points. Rookie punter Ty Zentner tried his foot at a kickoff and sent one into the end zone. … Undrafted rookie receiver Jadon Haselwood appears to be the first player to wear No. 87 since former Eagles tight end Brent Celek retired. … Practice lasted a little over one hour and 30 minutes, 15 minutes longer than Friday’s workout. The Eagles are expected to be in full pads for the first time on Tuesday following Monday’s closed-to-the-media walkthrough. | https://www.inquirer.com/eagles/eagles-practice-observations-quez-watkins-jalen-hurts-nfl-philadelphia-nick-sirianni-20230730.html | 2023-07-30T22:07:29 | 0 | https://www.inquirer.com/eagles/eagles-practice-observations-quez-watkins-jalen-hurts-nfl-philadelphia-nick-sirianni-20230730.html |
The dominant narrative about cities like Chelsea, Boston, and Flint, Mich. are stories of sickness and chronic underinvestment. But what Chelsea resident Sara Arman sees when she looks at her hometown is proof that things will get better, that the climate movement is “not one of despair.”
“We’ve been organizing for decades on housing, environmental justice, and climate justice,” she said. “[Our story] is one of hope and community power and resilience.”
The resilience of Chelsea and other Massachusetts communities was on display Saturday at the NAACP National Convention, where local and visiting government officials, advocates, and climate experts discussed the urgent need for solutions to protect Black and Brown communities on the front lines of the climate crisis.
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The workshop on climate issues offered examples of homegrown solutions that are already underway. Meeting just day after Boston ended a heat emergency, speakers didn’t need to do much to illustrate the urgent need to find equitable solutions to prepare for extreme weather events. Many attendees walked out of the Boston Convention and Exhibition Center and straight into a severe thunderstorm that tore across the state late Saturday night.
Massachusetts has certainly felt the effects of extreme weather, but that burden is not distributed equally among its residents, one panelist said.
“High-impact weather events disproportionately affect those with the least access to financial resources, including historically underserved communities, the unhoused, and those with health vulnerabilities,” said Michael Morgan, assistant secretary of commerce for environmental observation and prediction at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.
That’s especially significant in a city like Boston, where a majority of residents are people of color.
“I know we’re down in the Seaport, but I bring you greetings from Roxbury, Dorchester, Mattapan, and Hyde Park, the historically Black parts of this city,” said Rev. Mariama White-Hammond of Dorchester, the city’s chief of environment, energy and open space.
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A climate-resilient society also creates opportunities to “not just talk about where the struggle is, but where we can find great success” and create economic opportunities, she said.
“The recognition that the system we have doesn’t work is not necessarily bad news for us all because it has not worked for our people for a long time,” she said.
She pointed to PowerCorpsBOS, a green jobs training program for underserved communities, as an example of progress.
The six-month training course is open to Boston residents ages 18 to 30 who are either unemployed or underemployed. Participants are paid $15.75 an hour for 35 hours of work preparing for jobs in a greener economy.
The program has graduated two cohorts of 47 people and a third cohort of 38 members started this month, according to White-Hammond.
Arman is the director of health equity and policy at GreenRoots, a community-led environmental justice organization serving Chelsea and East Boston that has been at the forefront of the local climate justice movement.
To combat heat island — urban areas with little shade that plague the communities they serve — GreenRoots is working to transform empty lots into parks and green spaces. Stipends are paid to residents to care for newly planted trees, and manage community gardens.
They also work to advance local climate justice legislation, and advocate for policies to reverse historic disinvestment in communities and reduce their environmental pollution burden.
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“This is the result of explicit policies and practices that have segregated, dehumanized, and harmed our communities for years,” she said. “And this is true for so many Black and Brown communities, urban communities, and communities with high levels of immigrant populations, so it’s not a coincidence that these communities are facing the most pressing parts of climate change.”
The only solution for communities to create the change they need, according to Arman, is to mobilize and create stronger collective responses.
The panelists spoke as part of a series of workshops offering a look at how Black and Brown communities have created movements to create equity in a variety of areas, such as policing, education and health care.
Local leaders who have been advocating for progress on these issues in Massachusetts highlighted the progress made in the 40 years since the convention was last held in Boston.
Justice Geraldine Hines, the first Black woman to serve on the Massachusetts Supreme Court, spoke about potential reforms and challenges to building a more equitable justice system. Dr. Thea James, Boston Medical Center’s vice president of mission and associate chief medical Officer, was one of several experts who addressed closing the racial gap in health care.
Communities of color that have always faced health inequities merely exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic.
Together, the panelists have found inspiration in one another, Arman said.
“We come from really rich organizing histories and practices,” said Arman, who credited White-Hammond with opening her eyes to climate justice, after she spoke about the topic during one of her classes at Tufts University. “Thank you to the leaders of the movement.”
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Zeina Mohammed can be reached at zeina.mohammed@globe.com. Follow her @_ZeinaMohammed. | https://www.bostonglobe.com/2023/07/30/metro/community-power-resilience-naacp-workshop-explores-why-black-communities-must-unite-around-climate/ | 2023-07-30T22:07:29 | 1 | https://www.bostonglobe.com/2023/07/30/metro/community-power-resilience-naacp-workshop-explores-why-black-communities-must-unite-around-climate/ |
AUCKLAND, New Zealand (AP) — Sophie Roman Haug’s hat trick kick-started Norway’s dormant offense and sparked a 6-0 blowout win over the Philippines on Sunday that moved the Norwegians into to the knockout stage of the Women’s World Cup.
The Philippines’ debut run in the tournament came to an end as Norway scored early and often, netting three goals in the first 31 minutes.
Norway’s spot in the round of 16 was secured when Switzerland and New Zealand simultaneously played to a 0-0 draw and the Norwegians. Norway and New Zealand were tied in Group A but Norway advanced on goal differential. New Zealand became the first host country to be eliminated in the group stage in tournament history.
Before the game, Norway had not scored in three consecutive Women’s World Cup matches dating to the quarterfinals of the 2019 tournament.
But Roman Haug one-timed a ball into the net in the sixth minute, and scored again 11 minutes later. Caroline Graham Hansen added a long-distance shot in the 31st minute.
Roman Haug completed the hat trick in injury time.
In the second half, an Alicia Barker own goal in the 48th minute and Guro Reiten’s penalty kick in the 53rd minute extended Norway’s lead to 5-0. Filipina defender Sofia Harrison received a red card in the 67th minute for using excessive force, and the Philippines played the rest of the match a player down.
Eden Park was turned into a makeshift home match for the Philippines, as the Filipina fans screamed in unison any time the Philippines touched the ball, even as the deficit grew.
The Philippines were fresh off of a historic 1-0 win over co-host New Zealand that marked the first Women’s World Cup win for the debutantes.
KEY MOMENTS
Roman Haug got the Norwegians off to a hot start. The first of her two goals was a left-footed volley from inside the six-yard box in the sixth minute. Eleven minutes later, Roman Haug scored a header delivered by a Vilde Boe Risa cross. Roman Haug’s header flew over the reach of Philippines goalkeeper Olivia McDaniel.
Graham Hansen scored on a long-distance strike that curled into the bottom left corner in the 31st minute to give Norway its third goal of the half.
From that point on, Norway was in control.
WHY IT MATTERS
The win advances Norway to the knockout stage after the Norwegians found themselves in last place in Group A heading into the Philippines match.
The Norwegians had yet to score in 2023 before their six-goal eruption.
IN THEIR OWN WORDS
“They showed some of their class today with their skill. They picked us apart and won a couple of battles in the air in the box early. We really released the pressure early and allowed them to, sort of, be a little more creative as the game went on,” Philippines head coach Alen Stajcic said.
“We’ve been talking quite a bit about having the first goal, then it will give us energy. We know in our attack, we are strong and have good combination play both on the right side and left side. Today was the day that, when we had the first one, we knew there could be more,” Norway head coach Hege Riise said.
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WHAT’S NEXT
Norway will play either Japan or Spain in the round of 16 next Saturday, depending on the results of a game between those Group C teams on Monday.
The inaugural tournament run ends for the Philippines, who needed at least a draw to have a chance of moving on.
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Zach Allen is a student in the John Curley Center for Sports Journalism at Penn State.
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AP Women’s World Cup coverage: https://apnews.com/hub/fifa-womens-world-cup and https://twitter.com/AP_Sports | https://www.myarklamiss.com/sports/ap-sports/ap-norway-moves-into-the-knockout-round-at-womens-world-cup-with-6-0-rout-over-the-philippines/ | 2023-07-30T22:07:33 | 1 | https://www.myarklamiss.com/sports/ap-sports/ap-norway-moves-into-the-knockout-round-at-womens-world-cup-with-6-0-rout-over-the-philippines/ |
Cutter Gauthier clarifies reason for missing Flyers development camp
The Flyers were missing their top young prospect.
Even for a player who lives and breathes the game, there’s been too much hockey lately for Cutter Gauthier.
That’s why the Flyers’ fifth-overall pick in the 2022 NHL draft was noticeably absent from Flyers development camp at the beginning of July.
“Was a little bit too much hockey after Worlds,” Gauthier told NHL.com on Sunday. “Just too much for me. I wanted time with the family. So I figured it was best to stay home.”
Initially, there seemed to be some confusion over his absence. On July 3, general manager Danny Brière shared that Gauthier had declined the invitation to camp. However, Brière’s language indicated a lack of communication between parties.
» READ MORE: Development camp takeaways: Emil Andrae, Bobby Brink make their cases, Cutter Gauthier absent
“We’re assuming that it’s because he’s played a lot of hockey with the World Championship, lots of travel,” Brière said. “So we’re not too worried about that.
“We’ll find out a little bit more. We’re trying to figure out why he didn’t want to come, but at this point, I’m not too worried about that.”
In addition to playing his first season of NCAA hockey with Boston College, Gauthier also played in the U20 World Junior Championships at the end of December and the men’s World Championships in May.
There was also speculation that Gauthier did not attend because of a NCAA rule that players have to pay to go to their second development camp. However, neither the Flyers nor Gauthier mentioned costs being a reason. Several other Flyers prospects, including Hunter McDonald (Northeastern) and Devin Kaplan (Boston University) who play NCAA hockey, attended despite it being their second camp.
Gauthier returned to the ice Saturday to participate in the World Juniors Showcase, along with former NTDP teammate Kaplan. The two played on the USA White team against Finland while USA Blue, featuring Flyers prospect Cole Knuble, played Sweden.
Gauthier played on the top power play unit, and while he didn’t score, he still had a strong performance. That follows his impressive showing at the world championships, where he led the team with seven goals as the second-youngest player. He also tied for second-most goals in the tournament and led all players in shots on goal with 57.
Sunday, Gauthier cleared up why he didn’t attend development camp and shared that it wasn’t a popular decision. However, it won’t affect his plans to play one more season of college hockey before joining the Flyers.
“After talking to Danny, obviously it wasn’t his favorite thing, but it was best for me,” Gauthier said. “After this year, hopefully we get done pretty late there in April with the group we have, but overall that’s [joining the Flyers] the goal.”
» READ MORE: Five offseason priorities for the Flyers as they embark on Year 1 of their rebuild | https://www.inquirer.com/flyers/cutter-gauthier-flyers-danny-briere-junior-worlds-developmental-camp-20230730.html | 2023-07-30T22:07:35 | 0 | https://www.inquirer.com/flyers/cutter-gauthier-flyers-danny-briere-junior-worlds-developmental-camp-20230730.html |
Phils are own worst enemy in 5-4 extra-inning loss to Pirates
Christopher Sánchez was pitching well, but the Phillies weren't defending well, and it all added up to a loss.
PITTSBURGH — Cristopher Sánchez was receiving handshakes and high-fives in the Phillies’ dugout Sunday after pitching five no-hit innings when Trea Turner asked why the lefty was coming out of the game.
Sánchez pointed to his stomach.
“I thought he got hurt,” Turner said. “I was like, ‘Oh damn, man.’ I thought oblique [muscle], or something.”
Sánchez wasn’t injured. But he was dealing with a stomach illness, and after he got through the Pirates’ lineup twice on 73 pitches, manager Rob Thomson decided it was enough.
There were other reasons why the Phillies took a 6-4 punch to the gut in 10 innings on Josh Palacios’ two-run homer and dropped two of three games to the Pirates. They blew a pair of two-run leads, gave away one run by making two costly errors in the seventh inning, and botched a potential scoring opportunity on the bases in the 10th.
“I’ve seen us play better, that’s for sure,” Thomson said. “We’ve got to clean it up. We made some fundamental mistakes. [Poor] communication on pop-ups, we’ve seen that a few times this year. Baserunning mistakes. We’ve got to clean it all up, and we will.”
First, though, the pitching decision. Thomson conceded that the Phillies didn’t want Sánchez to throw more than about 90 pitches. It’s possible, then, that he could’ve come out for one more inning.
But with the top of the Pirates’ order due to bat for a third time, Thomson didn’t want to take any chances.
“He wasn’t feeling well all day,” Thomson said. “He said, ‘No, I’m OK.’ But I want to take care of the kid, make sure he got out of there on a good note.”
Through a team interpreter, Sánchez said he had “a little stomach ache going on, and I didn’t feel like I had much energy.” He hid it well, even from some teammates. Turner said he had no idea that he wasn’t feeling well. Sánchez’s second-to-last pitch was a 92-mph sinker. He got a double play grounder on his last pitch.
It was a continuation of Sánchez’s stellar work since getting called up last month. He has surpassed all modest expectations — heck, he has been a revelation — with a 2.30 ERA in eight starts. He has allowed fewer walks/hits per inning pitched (0.85) than any pitcher in baseball since his June 17 call-up.
But instead, Thomson turned to Seranthony Domínguez, who promptly gave up a game-tying two-run homer to Bryan Reynolds.
The Phillies overcame it, reclaiming a 4-2 lead in the seventh inning on RBI singles by Bryce Harper and Alec Bohm before giving away a run on a dropped infield fly by Turner and a rare miscue in center field by Johan Rojas.
In the 10th inning, Harper didn’t tag at third on Turner’s medium-depth fly to right field. It was a good decision, given Henry Davis’ strong throw to the plate. When Bohm drew a throw to second base, Harper broke for home. But the Pirates relayed the ball back to the plate and Harper was out easily.
“I saw Bohmer was almost halfway to me [at third base], and once he kind of released to second, thought I had an opportunity to get there,” Harper said. “They made a good throw and got me.”
File it away among the many miscues that sunk the Phillies in a wasted weekend against the noncontending Pirates.
“When talent doesn’t play well or play smart, you get beat,” Harper said. “Doesn’t matter who you’re playing, it’s professional baseball. Got to do the little things right, and that’s playing defense and hitting timely. We had a big opportunity to come in here and do some work, and we weren’t able to do that. Just didn’t happen for us.”
Indefensible
With one out in the seventh inning, Edmundo Sosa and Turner converged on a pop fly by Connor Joe. Both infielders called for it, but neither backed off. The ball clanked off Turner’s glove, and Joe wound up a first base.
Out of frustration, Turner chucked the dead ball into left field.
“Once I started calling it, I heard him and I didn’t want to back off and we’d both be standing there looking at each other,” Turner said. “Bad communication on my part. Should’ve just let him catch the ball.”
One batter later, Reynolds singled to center field, where Rojas bobbled the ball as he tried to retrieve it. Joe scored from first base, while Reynolds wound up on second.
Big day for Bohm
Bohm staked the Phillies to a pair of two-run leads, neither of which held up.
Batting in the cleanup spot, Bohm bashed a two-run homer in the fourth inning against Pirates lefty Rich Hill, then added an RBI single in the seventh.
Since the All-Star break, Bohm is 16-for-55 (.291) with eight RBIs. With the Phillies seeking consistency out of the No. 2 spot in the order, Bohm could be a candidate. But Thomson said he prefers to keep Bohm in a run-producing spot because he doesn’t strike out as much as some others in the lineup. | https://www.inquirer.com/phillies/phillies-trea-turner-pirates-pittsburgh-philadelphia-rob-thomson-20230730.html | 2023-07-30T22:07:35 | 0 | https://www.inquirer.com/phillies/phillies-trea-turner-pirates-pittsburgh-philadelphia-rob-thomson-20230730.html |
When the American Rescue Plan Act passed in March 2021, hopes were high across the country that the much-needed influx of funds to public schools could help students recover from months of remote learning, and also fill holes in school infrastructure the pandemic exposed, like outdated HVAC systems.
But with a year remaining to spend the $2.6 billion in total relief funds that went to Massachusetts schools, it’s unclear how far those dollars have gone, and what they have achieved. State test scores from the 2021-22 school year showed a partial recovery, but more recent national data from the assessment and research organization NWEA showed a concerning reversal: after progress in the prior year, scores backslid in 2022-23.
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Megan Kuhfield, a researcher with NWEA, attributed the decline to “how difficult it has been for districts to implement their recovery plans.”
“I think schools are already doing or attempting to do many of the things the research supports,” like tutoring programs and summer school programs, Kuhfield said.
It will be months before we know how Massachusetts students did on the 2023 MCAS, but even after last year’s results, state leaders said they had a long way to go. Absent further recovery, students stand to take major hits to lifetime income and other outcomes — with the most harm inflicted upon the highest-needs students.
The amount of federal dollars Massachusetts districts have spent so far varies widely. The median district or charter has spent about two-thirds of its allocation, according to state data. Some districts have spent every dollar — Brockton, for example, spent the last of its $53.6 million in June. Others still have the vast majority of their money; New Bedford has spent about 30 percent of its $74.3 million, and Boston has spent just under a third of its $431.6 million, according to the state data.
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The slow start in some districts was driven by a variety of issues, including staffing shortages, construction delays, and problems with outside tutoring vendors. But with half of the funds, known as ESSER aid, yet to be claimed from the state, district leaders said they still believe they have an opportunity to make an impact with the money.
“There needs to be all hands on deck in order to simultaneously improve classroom teaching and do anything and everything possible to bridge the gap for students most affected by pandemic-inflicted learning loss,” said Lydia Rainey, a Center for Reinventing Public Education researcher behind a recent report that found many school systems gave up on tutoring services, after they proved ineffective, and shifted focus to basic instruction.
The report found that tutoring, one of the most widely touted recovery methods, was so hamstrung by staffing shortages that many districts ended their contracts with vendors.
“There were not enough tutors, or when they could get additional folks, the quality generally was not what they were used to seeing,” Rainey said.
That includes Boston Public Schools, which touted in November 2021 that it had partnered with the tutoring platform Paper to provide tutoring for three years.
“For the number of students it was reaching for its cost and our assessment of how it’s been working, it hasn’t been worth it,” said Shira Decovnick, the district’s director of state and federal grant programs. The district budgeted millions in ESSER and other grants for Paper, but only a small fraction of students ever used it, district spokesman Max Baker said.
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School system leaders who spoke to CRPE also reported that classroom instruction had suffered from the pandemic, said Rainey, so they have shifted their focus to improving core instruction, rather than tutoring. Curriculum upgrades and professional development have been popular investments in Massachusetts.
The state data, last updated on July 11, is not real-time, a state spokeswoman noted. Decovnick said that Boston often spends money before claiming it back from the state, and she expects Boston by September will have spent closer to 60 percent.
Boston planned to spend its money across seven areas: core teaching, including special-needs students in general education classrooms; teaching English learners in their native languages; college and career pathways; equity; engagement; and facilities. About $160 million was allocated at the school level, for principals to spend. Large amounts went to the HVAC installation and other facilities work, COVID mitigation, the district’s new literacy curriculum, and after-school programming. Summer programming also has been expanded to nearly 17,000 students this year, or about a third of the district’s enrollment, up more than 40 percent in two years.
But two years after receiving the influx of money, district officials don’t yet have good data on what is working, Decovnik said.
“We’re definitely seeing that the programs we’re doing are reaching students, but I think isolating exactly what the impact is is something we don’t have numbers for today,” she said.
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District officials said it has not been a lack of urgency on their part that has caused the delay in spending down the remaining $200 million in federal money. Instead, Decovnick contends hiring delays drove a slow start to spending and created a bottleneck for other spending, like facilities work. But she said the money will be spent or contracted out by the September 2024 deadline.
Other districts said the same thing. New Bedford, like Boston, had facilities work — a priority given the district’s century-old buildings — start slow, but it still expects to get it done in time. Springfield has one planned project, a city-wide wireless internet network, that may not be ready in time, but it has so many needed HVAC improvements that it will be able to shift funds to those if need be. Both districts used ESSER funds for learning recovery, as well, but found local resources — such as retired teachers in the case of Springfield — more practical for tutoring needs than hiring outside companies.
In Brockton, meanwhile, the priority was put on making sure every dollar was spent, said Chief Financial Officer Aldo Petronio.
“Whenever there’s a deadline, I don’t go all the way to the very end,” Petronio said. “I don’t like to take chances.”
Specifically, the district spent large amounts on curriculum upgrades and buying its own buses — saving money long-term and enabling more students to access district resources, such as the high school’s planetarium. The district also rolled out more after-school homework help and mentoring, but it too used its own teachers and local community groups, rather than hiring an outside vendor.
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Kuhfield, the NWEA researcher, said the ESSER spending has likely made an impact, it just hasn’t been enough for the scale of the need.
Without it, she said, “it’s likely kids would’ve been worse off.”
The Great Divide team explores educational inequality in Boston and statewide. Sign up to receive our newsletter, and send ideas and tips to thegreatdivide@globe.com.
Christopher Huffaker can be reached at christopher.huffaker@globe.com. Follow him @huffakingit. | https://www.bostonglobe.com/2023/07/30/metro/massachusetts-esser-spending/ | 2023-07-30T22:07:35 | 1 | https://www.bostonglobe.com/2023/07/30/metro/massachusetts-esser-spending/ |
Plug-in hybrids have been on the scene for some time and they make a great case for pure electric power, especially if your daily commute falls within its EV range. When you combine their efficiency with Hyundai Santa Fe’s splendid looks, interior refinements and cargo space, you’ve got a winning combination at a decent price.
This fourth-generation mid-size traces its U.S. roots to Montgomery, Alabama where it debuted in 2006. It was a big hit then and is now sandwiched between the company’s compact Tucson and larger Palisade.
The hybrid only version came out in 2021 with the PHEV (Plug-In Hybrid Vehicle) added last year. Which one should you buy? If most of your daily driving falls within the 31-mile electric range and you have access to a garage or work outlet, the PHEV is right for you. Don’t worry if you exceed the electric limit since the Santa Fe will seamlessly switch to its gasoline engine and keep you moving.
A 220-volt outlet will fully charge the Santa Fe battery in about four hours and twice that with household current for around a dollar. With a fully charged battery and tank of gasoline, the plug-in will travel around 430 miles. This is important because it eliminates range anxiety — the biggest fear with electric only cars that run out of juice and stop. Keep in mind the hybrid Santa Fe with its onboard battery components needs no special maintenance and returns better fuel economy all the time.
The plug-in hybrid is quick off the line, reaching 60 miles per hour in 7.1 seconds compared with 8.2 seconds for the hybrid version. A 1.6-liter turbocharged four-cylinder engine with lithium-ion polymer battery system does the heavy-lifting.
Driving modes include Eco, Smart, Snow and Sport with meaningful adjustments in gearing, suspension and steering. Sport mode brings forth a spirited ride when compared with Eco settings although the latter delivered better fuel economy.
Only minor changes were made in the 2023 Santa Fe PHEV compared with last year’s model. It is available in two well-equipped trims — SEL Convenience starting in the low $40s and our Limited tester in the high $40s. Each has standard all-wheel drive and a six-speed automatic transmission with steering-wheel mounted paddle shifters for the sports enthusiast.
In our road test, the Santa Fe performed well with smooth shifting and little body roll in cornering maneuvers. Brake action was rigid and steering precise. Suspension was on the firm side — a good thing since curb weight is just over 4,500 pounds. We found cabin noise is hushed at highway speeds.
The Santa Fe is family friendly with comfortable seating for five adults. There is 36 cubic feet of storage behind the rear seats and 72 cubes with seats folded flat. While many SUV’s will fit four golf bags vertically, our tester stored them horizontally — something few vehicles can claim.
Cabin amenities in our tester were abundant with full leather ventilated seats, 12.3-inch digital instrument cluster, 10.25-inch navigation screen, Harmon Kardon premium sound system, a full suite of driver assist features including full stop adaptive cruise control that slows the vehicle around curves. A nice touch. | https://www.record-eagle.com/news/business/car-review-new-santa-fe-plug-in-value-packed/article_e6ef50f2-2a21-11ee-8062-27dc321653a9.html | 2023-07-30T22:07:36 | 0 | https://www.record-eagle.com/news/business/car-review-new-santa-fe-plug-in-value-packed/article_e6ef50f2-2a21-11ee-8062-27dc321653a9.html |