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The deadly heatwave that has hung over south Europe is beginning to cool, but wildfires still persist in southern parts of Italy and Greece. Serious storms are due to hit Italy in the coming weeks.
Financial Times correspondent Silvia Sciorilli Borrelli is in Tuscany and joins host Robin Young to talk about the latest on the heat, the wildfires, and the impact on Italy and its people.
This article was originally published on WBUR.org.
Copyright 2023 NPR. To see more, visit https://www.npr.org.
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https://www.kvpr.org/2023-07-31/as-heat-wave-in-italy-subsides-the-nation-takes-stock-of-the-damage
| 2023-07-31T19:58:11
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https://www.kvpr.org/2023-07-31/as-heat-wave-in-italy-subsides-the-nation-takes-stock-of-the-damage
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NEW YORK — Trucking company Yellow Corp. has shut down operations and is headed for a bankruptcy filing, according to the Teamsters Union and multiple media reports.
After years of financial struggles, reports of Yellow preparing for bankruptcy emerged last week — as the Nashville, Tennessee-based trucker saw customers leave in large numbers. Yellow shut down operations on Sunday, according to the Wall Street Journal, following the layoffs of hundreds of nonunion employees on Friday.
In an announcement early Monday, the Teamsters said that the union received legal notice confirming Yellow was ceasing operations and filing for bankruptcy.
An official bankruptcy filing is expected any day for Yellow, after years of financial struggles and growing debt. Its expected liquidation would mark a significant shift for the U.S. transportation industry and shippers nationwide.
“Today’s news is unfortunate but not surprising. Yellow has historically proven that it could not manage itself despite billions of dollars in worker concessions and hundreds of millions in bailout funding from the federal government,” Teamsters general president Sean O’Brien said in a statement. “This is a sad day for workers and the American freight industry.”
The Associated Press reached out to Yellow for comment on Monday. No bankruptcy filings had gone live as of the early morning.
The bankruptcy reports have renewed attention around Yellow’s ongoing negotiations with unionized workers, a $700 million pandemic-era loan from the government and other bills the trucker has racked up over time. Yellow, formerly known as YRC Worldwide Inc., is one of the nation’s largest less-than-truckload carriers. The 99-year-old Nashville, Tennessee-based company's reported closure puts 30,000 jobs at risk.
Here’s what you need to know.
WHAT WOULD BANKRUPTCY MEAN FOR YELLOW?
According to Satish Jindel, president of transportation and logistics firm SJ Consulting, Yellow handled an average of 49,000 shipments per day in 2022. Last week, he estimated that number was down to between 10,000 and 15,000 daily shipments.
With customers leaving — as well reports of Yellow stopping freight pickups last week — bankruptcy would “be the end of Yellow,” Jindel told The Associated Press, noting increased risk for liquidation.
“The likelihood of them surviving and remaining solvent diminishes really by the day,” added Bruce Chan, a research director at investment banking firm Stifel.
Yellow declined to comment when contacted by The Associated Press on Friday. In a Wednesday statement to The Journal, the company said it was continuing “to prepare for a range of contingencies.” On Thursday, Yellow said it was in talks with multiple parties about selling its third-party logistics organization.
Even if Yellow was able to sell its logistics firm, it would “not generate a sufficient amount of cash to keep them operational on any sort of permanent basis,” Chan said. “Without a major equity injection, it would be very difficult for them to survive.”
HOW MUCH DEBT DOES YELLOW HAVE?
As of late March, Yellow had an outstanding debt of about $1.5 billion. Of that, $729.2 million was owed to the federal government.
In 2020, under the Trump administration, the Treasury Department granted the company a $700 million pandemic-era loan on national security grounds. Last month, a congressional probe concluded that the Treasury and Defense Departments “made missteps” in this decision — and noted that Yellow’s “precarious financial position at the time of the loan, and continued struggles, expose taxpayers to a significant risk of loss.”
The government loan is due in September 2024. As of March, Yellow had made $54.8 million in interest payments and repaid just $230 million of the principal owed, according to government documents.
Yellow’s current finances and prospect of bankruptcy “is probably two decades in the making,” Chan said, pointing to poor management and strategic decisions dating back to the early 2000s. “At this point, after each party has bailed them out so many times, there is a limited appetite to do that anymore.”
In May, Yellow reported a loss of $54.6 million, a decline of $1.06 per share, for its first quarter of 2023. Operating revenue was about $1.16 billion in the period.
A Wednesday investors note from financial service firm Stephens estimated that Yellow could be burning between $9 million and $10 million each day. Using a liquidity disclosure from earlier this month, Yellow had roughly $100 million in cash at the end of June, the note added — estimating that the company has been burning through increasing amounts of money through July.
“It is reasonable to believe that the Company could breach its $35 mil. liquidity requirement at any moment,” Stephens analyst Jack Atkins and associate Grant Smith wrote.
DIDN'T THE COMPANY JUST AVERT A STRIKE?
Last week's reports of bankruptcy preparations arrived just days after a strike from the Teamsters, which represents Yellow’s 22,000 unionized workers, was averted.
A series of heated exchanges have built up between the Teamsters and Yellow, who sued the union in June after alleging it was “unjustifiably blocking” restructuring plans needed for the company’s survival. The Teamsters called the litigation “baseless” — with O’Brien pointing to Yellow’s “decades of gross mismanagement,” which included exhausting the $700 million federal loan.
On July 23, a pension fund agreed to extend health benefits for workers at two Yellow Corp. operating companies, averting a strike — and giving Yellow “30 days to pay its bills,” notably $50 million that Yellow failed to pay the Central States Health and Welfare Fund on July 15, the union said. While the strike didn’t occur, talks of a walkout may have caused some Yellow customers to pull back, Chan said.
“The financial struggles of Yellow are not related to the union and the contracts,” Jindel said, pointing to management’s responsibility around its services and prices. He added the union wages from Yellow are “lower than any competitor.”
WHAT WOULD HAPPEN IF YELLOW WENT UNDER?
As Yellow customers take their shipments to other carriers, like FedEx or ABF Freight, prices will go up.
Yellow’s prices have historically been the cheapest compared to other carriers, Jindel said. “That’s why they obviously were not making money,” he added. “And while there is capacity with the other LTL carriers to handle the diversions from Yellow, it will come at a high price for (current shippers and customers) of Yellow.”
Chan adds that we’re in an interesting time for the LTL marketplace — noting that, if Yellow liquidates, “the freight would find a home” with other carriers, which may not have been true in recent years.
“It may take time, but there’s room for it to be absorbed,” he said.
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COLOMBO, Sri Lanka (AP) — French President Emmanuel Macron held discussions with his Sri Lankan counterpart Saturday on an open and inclusive Indo-Pacific region in the first-ever visit by a French leader to the Indian Ocean island nation.
As the fourth-largest creditor to Sri Lanka, France had pledged cooperation in debt restructuring to help the island nation recover from its economic crisis.
Macron arrived in Sri Lanka Friday night, following his trip to the South Pacific region, to mark the 75th anniversary of diplomatic relations between the two nations, Sri Lanka's president's office said.
Sri Lanka President Ranil Wickremesinghe praised France’s significant role in global affairs, particularly in areas such as climate mitigation, global debt restructuring, and matters related to the Indo-Pacific region, the statement said.
“Sri Lanka and France are two Indian Ocean nations that share the same goal: an open, inclusive and prosperous Indo-Pacific. In Colombo we confirmed it: strengthened by 75 years of diplomatic relations, we can open a new era of our partnership,” Macron said in a Twitter message after the meeting.
Copyright 2023 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without permission.
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https://www.mynews13.com/fl/orlando/ap-top-news/2023/07/29/french-president-macron-visits-his-counterpart-in-sri-lanka
| 2023-07-31T19:58:15
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DALLAS, July 31, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Virgin Hotels Dallas, the 260 room luxury lifestyle hotel located in the Dallas Design District, is proud to announce that it has been honored with the Equity Leadership award presented by D CEO at their annual Nonprofit & Corporate Citizenship award ceremony. The Equity Leadership award is given each year to a corporation in the Dallas community that supports efforts that advance diversity, equity, and inclusion.
Since the hotel opened in 2019, Virgin Hotels Dallas has supported local organizations that champion diversity and equity such as Cafe Momentum, Unlock Potential, and My Possibilities. Through these initiatives, the hotel has been able to provide mentorship and employment opportunities to justice-involved youth as well as adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities.
"It is an honor for Virgin Hotels Dallas to be recognized as a leader in diversity within the Dallas community," says Richard Branson, Founder of Virgin Group. "Creating an inclusive environment where our guests and teammates always feel welcomed to be who they are has always been our priority at Virgin."
Looking ahead, Virgin Hotels Dallas is dedicated to continuing to evolve their diversity program with new partnerships, teammate training, and more. The Dallas Design District boutique hotel is committed to being Autism Double Checked by the end of 2024. According to the online autism training company, over 20 million people are parents to one or more children with autism. Due to the current landscape and lack of autism-friendly travel experiences, 87% of parents of autistic children currently do not travel or take family vacations. However, 93% of parents with autistic children said they would travel if autistic-friendly travel experiences were available.
With the certification, teammates at Virgin Hotels Dallas will undergo neurodiversity training and guests with special needs will receive a detailed visitors guide ahead of their stay that highlights potential sensory issues such as crowds, temperature, noise, body awareness and more.
In addition to the property's Autism Double Checked commitment, Virgin Hotels Dallas will also implement a new policy with Hidden Disabilities that will allow teammates and guests to wear a sunflower lanyard that indicates that they have a non-visible disability and may need more time, assistance, etc.
The brand's commitment to diversity goes beyond external partnerships. Internally, Virgin Hotels strives to hire individuals that are reflective of the world and encompass a variety of racial backgrounds, genders, etc. In an effort to be the most inclusive employer in the hotel industry, Virgin Hotels launched the J.E.D.I program which stands for justice, equity, diversity, and inclusion. The idea behind this people-focused approach is to implement new guidelines for community partners, recruitment, and training in a phased approach. Currently, the brand is in its third phase which involves a complete demographic analysis to identify gaps in our workforce. Future phases will include J.E.D.I committees at each hotel, unconscious bias training, and more.
"I am so proud of the team at Virgin Hotels Dallas for leading the charge in diversity within the Dallas community and hospitality industry as a whole," says James Bermingham, Chief Executive Officer of Virgin Hotels Collection. "Their efforts are a testament to the brand's purpose of 'everyone leaves feeling better'. We are so thankful to have an amazing team that prioritizes our dedication to being an inclusive and comfortable environment."
For more information on Virgin Hotels diversity & inclusivity commitment, visit https://virginhotels.com/diversity-and-inclusivity/.
About Virgin Hotels Dallas
Virgin Hotels Dallas is the second property from Virgin Hotels - the lifestyle hospitality brand that combines heartfelt service, straightforward value and a seamless, personalized hotel experience with the track record of innovation and smart disruption that Sir Richard Branson's global Virgin Group has pioneered for 50 years. The property intermixes a passion for food and beverage with music and culture that fuses with the local landscape, providing an inclusive environment for travelers and locals alike. Located in the Dallas Design District on 1445 Turtle Creek Blvd, the hotel features 260 Chambers (rooms) and two Penthouse Suites. Dining and drinking outlets include Commons Club the brand's flagship restaurant and bar, Funny Library Coffee Shop and The Pool Club. Reservations accepted and can be made directly on the hotel's website, www.virginhotels.com/dallas or by calling 469.359.7003.
View original content to download multimedia:
SOURCE Virgin Hotels
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'Looks like it's coming at me:' Watch our brave intern try Scorpion Pizza at State Fair
The 2023 Indiana State Fair kicked off on Friday and we sent a team out to experience the summer tradition.
It was the first fair experience for many of them, but they jumped right in with both feet.
They tasted their way through the Fairgrounds, eating everything from classics like elephant ears and corn dogs to cinnamon toast crunch corn and scorpion pizza.
If that last one made you grimace, you definitely aren't alone.
Our Pulliam Fellow intern Miranda Jeyaretnam was the brave soul who tried the pizza topped with real scorpion. Watch her overcome some justified hesitation before giving her review below, and let us know in the comments if you'd try this and tell us your favorite fair foods.
New foods at 2023 Indiana State Fair:Drinks, desserts and deep fried creations
Indiana State Fair Scorpion Pizza taste test
Come back Wednesday for our full roundup of the best things we tried at the 2023 State Fair.
State Fair concerts:Here's a full list of performances happening on the Indiana State Fair's free stage
New events:Hoosier hoops, cornhole and more: What's new at the 2023 Indiana State Fair
First-timer:I didn't know what a Hoosier was. Then I went to the Indiana State Fair
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Gender-affirming care bans are undergoing intense legal scrutiny and testing federal courts in new ways, setting up battles that may go all the way to the U.S. Supreme Court.
Morgan Watkins of Louisville Public Media reports.
This article was originally published on WBUR.org.
Copyright 2023 NPR. To see more, visit https://www.npr.org.
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ATLANTA — Former President Donald Trump's wide-ranging attempt to prevent a potential indictment and derail Georgia's 2020 election investigation was shot down by an Atlanta judge Monday.
Fulton County Superior Court Judge Robert McBurney denied Trump's motion to disqualify Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis and bury a special purpose grand jury report into potential election interference. While much of the report remains sealed, Trump's attorneys argued that no evidence from the document should be used by the district attorney's office or in future proceedings. Cathy Latham, a former chair of the Coffee County Republican Party and a fake Trump elector during the 2020 election, joined Trump's motion after it was initially filed in March.
McBurney ruled that both Trump and Latham lacked standing to mount a legal challenge at the "pre-indictment" phase.
"There will be a time and a forum in which Trump and Latham can raise their concerns about the constitutionality of the special purpose grand jury statutes, about the performance of this particular Special Purpose Grand Jury(and the judge supervising it), and about the propriety of allowing the Fulton County District Attorney to remain involved with whatever criminal prosecution -- if any -- results from the work of this Special Purpose Grand Jury," McBurney wrote. "That time is not now and that forum is not here."
The Fulton County District Attorney's Office declined to comment. Attempts to contact Trump's attorneys -- Drew Findling, Jennifer Little and Marissa Goldberg -- before publication were not returned. This story will be updated once a response is received.
McBurney's ruling comes four months after the former president made his first attempt to end the probe before potential prosecutions. Over that time, the Georgia Supreme Court has shot down a similar motion from Trump's legal team. It's unclear how Monday's ruling might affect a separate lawsuit Trump filed against McBurney and Willis.
That filing, called a writs of mandamus and prohibition, seeks some of the same items outlined in the March motion. Judge Stephen Schuster of the Superior Court of Georgia set a hearing on that matter for Aug. 10 in a signed order Friday. In Monday's ruling, McBurney said his ruling should render that petition moot.
"In the future, (Trump's attorneys) are encouraged to follow the professional standard of inquiring with chamber's staff about timing and deadlines before burdening other courts with unnecessary and unfounded legal filings," McBurney wrote.
The denial comes as one of two Fulton County grand juries is expected to soon hear evidence against Trump and his allies. Willis previously said potential indictments could come between July 31 and Aug. 18. Willis also requested that judges not schedule trials or in-person hearings from Aug. 7 to Aug. 14.
"Arguments like those being made prematurely in the pending motions can be more effectively (and reasonably) presented and ruled upon when the full picture of who is being charged with what has been painted," McBurney wrote in Monday's order. "Guessing at what that picture might look like before the investigative dots are connected may be a popular game for the media and blogosphere, but it is not a proper role for the courts and formal legal argumentation."
This is a breaking story and will be updated.
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UNITED NATIONS (AP) — The United Nations has been forced to cut food, cash payments and assistance to millions of people in many countries because of “a crippling funding crisis” that has seen its donations plummet by about half as acute hunger is hitting record levels, a top official said Friday.
Carl Skau, deputy executive director of the World Food Program, told a news conference that at least 38 of the 86 countries where WFP operates have already seen cuts or plan to cut assistance soon — including Afghanistan, Syria, Yemen and West Africa.
He said WFP’s operating requirement is $20 billion to deliver aid to everyone in need, but it was aiming for between $10 billion and $14 billion, which was what the agency had received in the past few years.
“We’re still aiming at that, but we have only so far this year gotten to about half of that, around $5 billion,” Skau said.
He said humanitarian needs were “going through the roof” in 2021 and 2022 because of the COVID-19 pandemic and the war in Ukraine and its global implications. “Those needs continue to grow, those drivers are still there," he said, "but the funding is drying up. So we’re looking at 2024 (being) even more dire.”
“The largest food and nutrition crisis in history today persists,” Skau said. “This year, 345 million people continue to be acutely food insecure while hundreds of millions of people are at risk of worsening hunger.”
Skau said conflict and insecurity remain the primary drivers of acute hunger around the world, along with climate change, unrelenting disasters, persistent food price inflation and mounting debt stress — all during a slowdown in the global economy.
WFP is looking to diversify its funding base, but he also urged the agency’s traditional donors to “step up and support us through this very difficult time.”
Asked why funding was drying up, Skau said to ask the donors.
“But it’s clear that aid budgets, humanitarian budgets, both in Europe and the United States, (are) not where they were in 2021-2022,” he said.
Skau said that in March, WFP was forced to cut rations from 75% to 50% for communities in Afghanistan facing emergency levels of hunger, and in May it was forced to cut food for 8 million people — 66% of the people it was assisting. Now, it is helping just 5 million people, he said. In Syria, 5.5 million people who relied on WFP for food were already on 50% rations, Skau said, and in July the agency cut all rations to 2.5 million of them. In the Palestinian territories, WFP cut its cash assistance by 20% in May and in June. It cut its caseload by 60%, or 200,000 people. And in Yemen, he said, a huge funding gap will force WFP to cut aid to 7 million people as early as August.
In West Africa, where acute hunger is on the rise, Skau said, most countries are facing extensive ration cuts, particularly WFP’s seven largest crisis operations: Burkina Faso, Mali, Chad, Central African Republic, Nigeria, Niger and Cameroon.
He said cutting aid to people who are only at the hunger level of crisis to help save those literally starving or in the category of catastrophic hunger means that those dropped will rapidly fall into the emergency and catastrophe categories, “and so we will have an additional humanitarian emergency on our hands down the road.”
“Ration cuts are clearly not the way to go forward,” Skau said.
He urged world leaders to prioritize humanitarian funding and invest in long-tern solutions to conflicts, poverty, development and other root causes of the current crisis.
Copyright 2023 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without permission.
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WASHINGTON, July 31, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Brand USA, the destination marketing organization for the United States, announces the impending retirement of Chris Thompson as President and CEO, effective May 31, 2024. After a successful tenure of leading the organization, Thompson has decided to step down and pursue life beyond work.
During his time as President and CEO, Thompson has played a pivotal role in promoting the United States as a premier travel destination. Under his leadership, Brand USA has achieved remarkable milestones, including increased international visitation, and enhanced global awareness of the diverse offerings across the country.
Thompson's strategic vision and unwavering commitment to excellence have been instrumental in driving Brand USA's success. His dedication to fostering partnerships with industry stakeholders, government agencies, and international organizations has strengthened the organization's position as a global leader in destination marketing.
"It has been an incredible privilege to serve as President and CEO of Brand USA," said Thompson. "I am immensely proud of what we have accomplished together, and I am confident that the organization will continue to thrive under new leadership."
The Brand USA Board of Directors expressed their gratitude to Thompson for his exceptional leadership and significant contributions to the organization. "Under Chris's strategic guidance, the Brand USA team has kept the USA the preferred travel destination in the world", stated Todd Davidson, Chair of the Brand USA Board and CEO of Travel Oregon. "Chris's integrity, tenacity, passion and belief in the power of the travel and tourism industry to bring prosperity to all Americans, fueled the advancement of the US travel and tourism industry and established an organizational foundation of innovation, resiliency and future-focused confidence. We all wish him the very best in his retirement."
The search for a new President and CEO is commencing, and Brand USA is committed to finding a successor who will build upon Thompson's legacy and continue to drive the organization forward. The Board of Directors will work closely with an executive search firm to identify a candidate with the necessary expertise, vision, and passion for promoting the United States as a global travel destination.
About Brand USA
Brand USA, the destination marketing organization for the United States, was established by the Travel Promotion Act as the nation's first public-private partnership to promote the United States as a premier travel destination and to communicate U.S. travel policies and procedures to worldwide travelers. The organization's mission is to increase international visitation to the United States in order to fuel the U.S. economy and enhance the image of the United States worldwide. Formed as the Corporation for Travel Promotion in 2010, the public-private entity began operations in May 2011 and does business as Brand USA. According to studies by Oxford Economics, over the past ten years Brand USA's marketing initiatives have helped welcome 8 million incremental visitors to the United States, benefiting the U.S. economy with more than $58 billion in total economic impact and supporting, on average, more than 37,000 incremental jobs a year.
For industry or partner information about Brand USA, visit TheBrandUSA.com. To discover more about the USA and the boundless diversity of American travel experiences and authentic, rich culture, please visit Brand USA's consumer website VisitTheUSA.com and follow Visit The USA on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.
Contact:
Colleen Mangone
Director, Public Affairs Communications
cmangone@thebrandusa.com
View original content to download multimedia:
SOURCE Brand USA
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INDIANAPOLIS
Cyclist hit by Indianapolis police vehicle on East 10th Street
John Tufts
Indianapolis Star
An Indianapolis Metropolitan Police Department officer was involved in a crash involving a cyclist.
The crash happened shortly before 3 p.m. Monday in the 3400 block of East 10th Street.
Police are asking drivers and pedestrians to avoid the area of East 10th Street between North LaSalle Street and Olney Street.
The cause of the crash and the conditions of the cyclist and officer were not immediately released.
This article will update.
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https://www.indystar.com/story/news/local/indianapolis/2023/07/31/impd-police-officer-crash-strikes-cyclist-east-tenth-street-tuxedo-street/70500667007/
| 2023-07-31T19:58:23
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Congress expanded work requirements for food assistance during the debt ceiling negotiations, a move that would normally happen in the Farm Bill. But the state of Kansas already tightened its food aid requirements recently, Eva Tesfaye of Harvest Public Media reports/
This article was originally published on WBUR.org.
Copyright 2023 NPR. To see more, visit https://www.npr.org.
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| 2023-07-31T19:58:24
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18-year-old from ‘Brainy Bunch’ family graduates with master’s degree
MONTGOMERY, Ala. (WSFA/Gray News) – At age 18, most people are just heading into their freshman year of undergraduate studies. But one 18-year-old from Alabama is graduating with her master’s degree.
Marianna Harding is graduating from Auburn University with a master’s degree in agriculture at the age of 18.
She also graduated from high school at age 11.
Harding comes from a Montgomery family known as “The Brainy Bunch” – she is one of 10 children, most of whom started college by the age of 12. One of the boys even graduated law school at 19.
All the children grew up homeschooled. Harding is the eighth child in the family.
She said there was always healthy competition between siblings.
“We all had different interest levels, and most of us different colleges,” she said.
In 2022, Harding earned her bachelor’s degree virtually from a university in Nebraska. Shortly after, she was off to Auburn’s campus to get her master’s degree.
“Although my focus was very much on studies, there was no lack of fun times,” she said.
While on campus, Harding was part of multiple clubs, a campus employee, and kept active in her church. She hopes that her story will encourage others to go after their goals no matter their age.
Now that she has graduated, Harding will begin working for the Lee County Extension where she’ll teach others about agriculture.
Parents Kip and Mona Lisa Harding made an appearance on NBC’s “Today Show” in 2014 to discuss their book, “The Brainy Bunch: The Harding Family’s Method to College Ready by Age Twelve.” They also have a YouTube channel.
“My kids are not any smarter than anybody else’s, they’re really motivated and they’re very hard working, but really feel like anyone can get these kinds of results,” Mona Lisa Harding said during a 2021 interview.
Copyright 2023 WSFA via Gray Media Group, Inc. All rights reserved.
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ISLAMABAD (AP) — China has invested $25.4 billion in Pakistan over the past decade for projects ranging from roads to power plants, China’s vice premier said Monday, as the two countries celebrated the 10th anniversary of the so-called Belt and Road Initiative.
The initiative, also called the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor program, is China’s global endeavor to reconstitute the ancient Silk Road trade routes and link China to all corners of Asia.
In Pakistan, the CPEC has been billed as an opportunity to bring new prosperity to the South Asian nation. Since 2013, thousands of Chinese construction workers and engineers have been working in this impoverished Islamic nation as part of Chinese President Xi Jinping’s initiative.
However, work on some projects has since slowed down or been briefly suspended for multiple reasons, including a 2021 militant attack in which 13 Chinese workers were killed by a suicide bomber targeting a bus carrying them in the northwest.
In his televised remarks, Chinese Vice Premier He Lefing said Pakistan’s southwestern town of Gwadar was once just a fishing town but because of the construction of a deep-water port there by China it has become a city and hub for regional connections.
He said because of the completion of several CPEC-related projects, Pakistanis were now facing fewer power outages and hoped that Pakistanis “will create a better future with their own hands” in the years to come.
His comments came days after China rolled over a $2.4 billion loan for Pakistan in a move aimed at helping the country overcome a serious economic crisis. China recently played a key role in helping Pakistan avoid a default on a debt payment.
Loans from Beijing to Pakistan have continued pouring in since December, when the International Monetary Fund delayed the revival of a bailout for Islamabad until June, when a breakthrough came following talks between the International Monetary Fund and Pakistan Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif.
The IMF deposited the first installment of $1.2 billion in Pakistan’s central bank earlier this month.
On Monday, Sharif, in the presence of the Chinese vice premier at a gathering, said he wouldn’t forget the recent Chinese financial help, which came at a very crucial time. Since coming to power in April 2022, Sharif has blamed alleged corruption under former Prime Minister Imran Khan for Pakistan’s economic downturn.
He said Pakistan will “emulate the Chinese model” of hard work to overcome one of the worst economic crises his country has faced in recent months. Sharif also said he wanted to see an end to relying on foreign loans.
“We have to move away from these borrowed loans and handouts, and have to stand on our feet to show to the world that our people are great, energetic, and capable of facing difficult challenges,” he said.
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The U.S. Department of Energy is banning the sale of energy inefficient light bulbs beginning Aug. 1, 2023. Given that incandescent and halogen light bulbs are far less energy efficient than LED light bulbs, many people are treating this as a ban on incandescent and halogen bulbs.
Incandescent and halogen lights have a wire within the bulb that heats up and produces light, while LED bulbs do not.
But light bulbs aren’t just used in floor lamps and ceiling fans. People in various online communities have asked how the light bulb ban affects them — including a question about halogen headlights in a Ram trucks subreddit, multiple questions about heat lamps in communities for reptile pet owners and a question about how the law affects lava lamps.
THE QUESTION
Is the U.S. government banning all incandescent and halogen light bulbs?
THE SOURCES
THE ANSWER
No, the U.S. government is not banning all incandescent and halogen light bulbs.
WHAT WE FOUND
The new rule bans the manufacture and sale of inefficient “general service lamps,” which largely refers to the standard kinds of light bulbs you’d use to illuminate your home. Most incandescent and halogen light bulbs fail to meet these new energy efficiency standards, and are therefore banned by the rule.
The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) has carved out exceptions for many different kinds of light bulbs in its ban on the manufacturing and sale of energy inefficient light bulbs.
“It does not ban the sale or manufacture of ALL incandescent bulbs, just those common household incandescent (and other) bulbs that are not energy-efficient,” the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) says of the new ban. “Many bulbs, including specialty bulbs, three-way bulbs, chandelier bulbs, refrigerator bulbs, plant grow lights and others, are exempt from the law's requirements.”
The reason incandescent and halogen bulbs are less energy efficient than LED bulbs is because the incandescent and halogen bulbs create light by passing an electrical current through a tungsten filament, which also creates heat, General Electric says. The heat that’s released is usually wasted energy, although it can sometimes be useful for things like heat lamps.
The ban is a rule that has been in the making since 2007, when Congress passed and former President George W. Bush signed the Energy Independence and Security Act of 2007. The law required the Secretary of Energy to determine if there should be a rule with a “minimum standard of 45 lumens per watt for general service lamps.”
In Jan. 2017, the DOE adopted this rule, and planned to begin enforcing it in 2020. DOE withdrew this rule in Sept. 2019 and didn’t adopt it again until May 2022, regulations.gov says. Therefore, the enforcement date was moved to Aug. 1, 2023, a DOE document says.
According to the 2007 law, the rule only makes changes to the “Energy Conservation Program for Consumer Products Other Than Automobiles” within the U.S. code, meaning the ban does not apply to car lights, including headlights.
Additionally, the 2007 law required the rule to exempt a number of various bulbs from the ban. These include:
Appliance lamps (such as refrigerator lights)
Heat lamps, plant lights and bug lamps
Colored lights and black lights
Reflector lamps
Chandelier bulbs, Christmas lights and decorative bulbs of 40 watts or less
The EPA notes that the rule does not ban the use or purchase of incandescent or halogen lightbulbs, just the manufacture and sale of the bulbs. Therefore, individuals will not be penalized for continuing to use incandescent bulbs in their homes.
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Biden has decided to keep Space Command in Colorado, rejecting move to Alabama, officials tell AP
WASHINGTON (AP) — President Joe Biden has decided to keep U.S. Space Command headquarters in Colorado, overturning a last-ditch decision by the Trump administration to move it to Alabama and ending months of politically fueled debate, according to senior U.S. officials.
The officials said Biden was convinced by the head of Space Command, Gen. James Dickinson, who argued that moving his headquarters now would jeopardize military readiness. Dickinson’s view, however, was in contrast to Air Force leadership, who studied the issue at length and determined that relocating to Huntsville, Alabama, was the right move.
The officials spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss the decision ahead of the announcement.
The president, they said, believes that keeping the command in Colorado Springs would avoid a disruption in readiness that the move would cause, particularly as the U.S. races to compete with China in space. And they said Biden firmly believes that maintaining stability will help the military be better able to respond in space over the next decade.
Biden’s decision is sure to enrage Alabama lawmakers and fuel accusations that abortion politics played a role in the choice. The location debate has become entangled in the ongoing battle between Alabama Republican Sen. Tommy Tuberville and the Defense Department over the move to provide travel for troops seeking reproductive health care. Tuberville opposed the policy is blocking hundreds of military promotions in protest.
Formally created in August 2019, the command was temporarily based in Colorado, and Air Force and Space Force leaders initially recommended it stay there. In the final days of his presidency Donald Trump decided it should be based in Huntsville.
The change triggered a number of reviews.
Proponents of keeping the command in Colorado have argued that moving it to Huntsville and creating a new headquarters would set back its progress at a time it needs to move quickly to be positioned to match China’s military space rise. And Colorado Springs is also home to the Air Force Academy, which now graduates Space Force guardians, and more than 24 military space missions, including three Space Force bases.
Huntsville, however, scored higher than Colorado Springs in a Government Accountability Office assessment of potential locations and has long been a home to some of earliest missiles used in the nation’s space programs, including the Saturn V rocket. It is home to the Army’s Space and Missile Defense Command.
According to officials, Air Force Secretary Frank Kendall, who ordered his own review of the matter, leaned toward Huntsville, while Dickinson was staunchly in favor of staying put. The officials said Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin presented both options to Biden.
Copyright 2023 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.
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Benchmark U.S. crude oil for September delivery rose $1.22 to $81.80 a barrel Monday. Brent crude for September delivery rose 57 cents to $85.56 a barrel.
Wholesale gasoline for August delivery fell 3 cents $2.93 a gallon. August heating oil rose 3 cents to $2.99 a gallon. September natural gas fell 1 cent to $2.63 per 1,000 cubic feet.
Gold for December delivery rose $9.30 to $2,009.20 an ounce. Silver for September delivery rose 47 cents to $24.97 an ounce and September copper rose 8 cents to $4.01 a pound.
The dollar rose to 142.29 Japanese yen from 141.00yen. The euro fell to $1.0999 from $1.1023.
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PHOENIX (AP) — A hellish and historic 31-day run of temperatures cracking 110 degrees (43 degrees Celsius) in Phoenix appeared headed for a welcome end on Monday, as monsoon rains moved through the region from Mexico.
The relief wasn't all that great — the day's highs were forecast near 108 degrees, or about 42 Celsius — and the heat was expected to rise past 110 again later in the week. But residents and visitors were taking what they could get.
“It’s not going to last more than a couple of days, but I’m enjoying this break,” said Christine Bertaux, 76, who was cooling off Monday at a downtown day center for older people who are homeless.
“It has been REALLY hot here!” said Jeffrey Sharpe, of Kenosha, Wisconsin, who was in town for a long weekend that on Monday included watching his son's poodles frolic in a grassy dog park. “But today it was about 85 degrees, more like Wisconsin."
High heat blasted much of the Southwest all through July, ranging from West Texas to eastern California. But Phoenix and its suburbs sweltered to new records, including three days where the high reached 119, and overnight lows stayed above 90 more than half the month. Concerts and other outdoor events were cancelled throughout the month because of the heat and busy parts of the city became ghost towns as people stayed indoors to avoid the heat.
Health officials have so far confirmed 25 heat-related deaths in Maricopa County, Arizona’s most populous and home to Phoenix, in July, although that number seems certain to rise. Another 249 deaths are under investigation for links to heat.
Rudy Soliz, who manages the center where Bertaux was cooling off, said those who visit to get a meal and cool off out of the sun “have been having a very hard time this summer.”
“Older people have a harder time with the heat, there are a lot of diabetics, people who take medicines,” he said.
“The heat has been pretty bad this summer. We’ve made at least five 911 calls from here this July for people who got heat stroke,” said Soliz. “They’ve found a couple of bodies around here this month but it’s not clear yet if they died from the heat.”
Although there is no excessive warning for city, the National Weather Service said Phoenix residents should take precautions to stay cool and safe from the heat.
“Even though it’s going to be cooler than it has been, it’s still going to be warmer than normal. And the heat definitely can still affect a large portion of the population,” said Matthew Hirsch, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service in Phoenix. “So we’re still urging people to take the necessary precautions, such as remaining hydrated and limiting outdoor activity.”
Phoenix’s previous record for days of 110 degrees or more was 18 straight, set in 1974, nearly two weeks shorter than the new record.
Hirsch said July 2023 was the city’s hottest month on record. The previous hottest month on record was August 2020.
And August could be even hotter than July, Hirsch said. He said there is a slightly higher chance of temperatures that are above normal in August and there's an equal chance for the region to get more or less rain than average.
R. Glenn Williamson, a businessman who was born in Canada but has lived in Phoenix for years, said he really noticed a temperature difference Monday morning as he washed his car in his driveway.
“Now we have to get rid of the humidity!” Williamson said. "But honestly, I’d rather have this heat than a Montreal winter.”
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Costley reported from New Orleans.
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Follow Drew Costley on Twitter: @drewcostley.
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The Associated Press Health and Science Department receives support from the Howard Hughes Medical Institute’s Science and Educational Media Group. The AP is solely responsible for all content.
Copyright 2023 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without permission.
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NEW YORK, July 31, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Debevoise & Plimpton LLP announced today the release of its 2023 Private Equity Midyear Outlook, a helpful summary of the various forces shaping the industry and the strategies market participants are using during this dynamic time.
At the beginning of the year, we noted in our Private Equity Report: 2023 Outlook the considerable macroeconomic and geopolitical challenges facing private equity. As we pass the year's midpoint, those challenges continue to hang over the private equity industry like a stalled weather system, refusing to dissipate, as existing obstacles have solidified and new hurdles have emerged. While the crisis around the collapse of Silicon Valley Bank, First Republic Bank and Signature Bank was not protracted, it nonetheless compounded an already difficult liquidity environment. Fundraising remains highly competitive. The polarization around ESG in the United States has intensified, resulting in a patchwork of wildly different state legislation. The SEC continues to take aim at private fund practices, while in the EU, new regulations stand to complicate both fundraising and the M&A landscape. In this environment, caution rules the day for both sponsors and investors.
And yet, with creativity and persistence, deals are getting done. Lenders are adjusting their balance sheet exposures. Direct lending and co-investments, as well as innovative deal structures, help to fill the financing gaps caused by the pull-back in syndicated debt financings. Brand-name funds are weathering fundraising headwinds by offering incentives and flexibility with terms, while first-time managers are building track records by raising capital deal-by-deal. And through it all, bright spots have begun to appear. The U.S. IPO market is showing early signs of thawing. In Latin America, proactive monetary policy, the move toward nearshoring and a spate of welcomed governmental reforms give reason for optimism. And while investors continue their caution regarding China, other Asian markets such as Japan, Australia and India are showing healthy levels of activity.
The full report is available here.
About the Debevoise Private Equity Group
Debevoise is a trusted partner and legal advisor to a majority of the world's largest private equity firms, and has been a market leader in the Private Equity industry for over 40 years. The firm's Private Equity Group brings together the diverse skills and capabilities of more than 400 lawyers around the world from a multitude of practice areas, working together to advise our clients across the entire private equity life cycle. The Group's strong track record, leading-edge insights, deep bench and commitment to unified, agile teams are why, year after year, clients quoted in Chambers Global, Chambers USA, The Legal 500 and PEI cite Debevoise for our close-knit partnership, breadth of resources and relentless focus on results.
Debevoise & Plimpton LLP is a premier law firm with market-leading practices, a global perspective and strong New York roots. We deliver effective solutions to our clients' most important legal challenges, applying clear commercial judgment and a distinctively collaborative approach.
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SOURCE Debevoise & Plimpton LLP
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Doyel: Spat between Colts, Jonathan Taylor is the biggest, dumbest story of training camp
WESTFIELD – Jonathan Taylor is looking in from the outside, and feel free to call that a metaphor. But it’s a literal statement, one of the only accepted truths about the most convoluted development in the NFL – the disconnect between the Colts and their best player on offense.
Taylor isn’t practicing because he’s on the Physically Unable to Perform list, heretofore referred to as the PUP list, like this is a cute story that has lovable characters. It isn’t, and doesn’t. Based on what we know right now – you’ll hear that phrase again soon, right now, and you’ll bolt to attention – there isn’t anybody to love in this story. Nobody is cute here. No puppies.
What’s that line from “For What It’s Worth,” Buffalo Springfield’s anti-establishment song in 1966? Ah yes, here it is:
“Nobody’s right if everybody’s wrong.”
Who’s right, in this standoff between Jonathan Taylor and Colts owner Jim Irsay? Nobody. Everybody’s wrong, and it’s possible more than one person is lying.
Only thing you can take to the bank is this: Taylor looks awfully alone right now.
Tens of thousands of Colts fans have been to camp at Grand Park, many of them wearing Taylor’s No. 28 jersey. I’m not telling you anything you’ve not seen already: Jonathan Taylor looking in from the outside, following the running backs around the field, standing behind them, peeking between their helmets or over their shoulders at the action on the field.
Taylor talks to nobody, and nobody talks to Taylor. For more than hour. Every day at camp.
And the people who are talking, well, they’re not making any sense.
Doyel:Jonathan Taylor joins Andrew Luck, Victor Oladipo as star athletes receiving bad advice
Facts are fungible, and someone's lying
Brief recap, for those new to the conversation:
Jonathan Taylor has been the Colts’ best offensive player for three years, and he’d like a contract extension before the fourth and final year of his rookie contract. The Colts tend to give such extensions to deserving players – Taylor is deserving – but this comes at an awkward time, with NFL teams concluding that running backs are replaceable. Add to that Taylor’s ankle surgery in January, the Colts’ uneven results even as he was running for a combined 2,672 yards and 22 touchdowns in 2021-22, and hints of an offseason injury Taylor suffered working out on his own.
Any extension talk is, shall we say, complicated.
And then it gets weird. Irsay goes on Twitter to lament the way NFL running backs are seeking special dispensation in contract negotiations, saying some agents are dealing in “bad faith.” Taylor’s new agent, better known for representing MMA fighters and professional wrestlers, fires back on Twitter again and again.
Then it gets really weird.
Someone from the Colts, and we all suspect the same person, leaks it Sunday night that Taylor injured his back during offseason workouts in Arizona, leaving the team to consider putting him on the Non-Football Injury list (NFI). That would allow the Colts to withhold his salary. That is a declaration of (negotiating) war.
Taylor fires back on Twitter, saying his back is and always has been fine.
Doyel: Colts RB Jonathan Taylor wants to be traded, but what he needs is a new agent
Insider: Taylor refutes reports that he suffered back injury away from Colts
This has become one of the biggest stories of NFL training camp, right up there with Broncos coach Sean Payton trashing former Denver coach Nathaniel Hackett. But the Payton story? That’s child’s play compared to this one. In Payton v. Hackett we know who said what. We know the truth. We can form an opinion and move on.
In Taylor v. Colts, we don’t know much. It’s like we’re in The Matrix, with one side describing the spoon in fine detail, and the other side saying, “There is no spoon.”
Facts are fungible here. I mean, either Taylor injured his back or he didn’t. More to the point, either he injured himself working out in Arizona … or not. Perhaps it’s not a back injury, but something else. Taylor said his back is not an issue. Is he hiding behind the real truth, which is another injury that the Colts “source” – and we all suspect who it is – bungled in the telling?
These are the questions you ask yourself, trying to make sense of things. Then you go to Colts coach Shane Steichen for help, and he does what he does.
He makes it worse.
Shane Steichen talks, makes it worse
Quotes taken out of context? Not here. This is exactly what I asked Steichen at camp Monday, with italics provided to clarify the speaker:
Shane, I’m telling him, calling him by name because we’re tight like that, “when you’ve had guys hurt – (Julius) Brents, (Will) Mallory – you say: He’s got an ankle, he’s got a hamstring.
“Yeah yeah yeah,” Shane says, hearing me loud and clear.
Well, what does Jonathan Taylor have?
“What’s that?” Shane says, all of sudden not hearing so well.
What does Taylor have?
“He’s just dealing with something right now,” Shane says, “and I’m going to refrain from getting into all that.”
See what I mean? Something’s up, but nobody will say what. We know Taylor’s ankle surgery in January was minor, that most players are fine within a month, that E.J. Speed had similar offseason surgery and has been on the field since camp started. What’s different about Taylor’s surgery?
See Shane shrug.
The Colts haven’t exactly distinguished themselves with transparency regarding injuries. We all remember Andrew Luck’s shoulder or calf or Os Trigonum, and Darius Leonard’s back or ankle or calf or something. Now they’re doing it again with Taylor.
They’re also doing it with quarterback Anthony Richardson, it should be said. The Colts announced Monday morning that Richardson had undergone a procedure “to correct his nasal septum” Sunday, nothing major, but it kept him out of practice Monday and could sideline him Tuesday as well, Steichen said. Which begs the question: Why now? Richardson was drafted April 27. Nobody knew about the septum issue for 2½ months?
Or did Richardson injure his septum during camp?
Reporter to Steichen: Is it pre-existing?
“Yeah,” said Steichen, who uses yeah as a verbal crutch, not an answer, “it’s something he had to get done in there. Yeah.”
Reporter: Any thoughts of doing it before camp?
“Yeah,” Steichen said, “no, just so he can breathe better. Didn’t want him to come in and not start camp, you know what we mean? So let’s let him get started in camp and do it on this (off) day.”
Sure, why perform this procedure in the 2½ months leading up to camp, giving your franchise QB plenty of time to recover? Much better to do it during camp, when the rookie franchise QB will miss a day or two.
Is that what we’re supposed to believe?
Do you see why it’s hard to trust the Colts with injury news?
Jonathan Taylor looks like an outcast
Here’s the most interesting thing Steichen said about Taylor, and again, we’re not taking this out of context. This is the context:
Reporter: Are you expecting J.T. to play this year?
Steichen: “Right now he’s on this football team. He’s on this football team, and when the medical staff clears him he should be out there.”
Right now…
Terrific.
Meanwhile, with Taylor declining to speak with reporters – players can and often do speak while on injured reserve or the PUP list, as Shaq Leonard has done – reserve RB Deon Jackson faced questions on Taylor’s behalf. Jackson verbally stood by Taylor, calling him “one of my closest friends” and saying of the locker room: “We’re all supportive of him. We’re all rallying around him.”
And maybe they are, behind closed doors. Reporters aren’t allowed into the locker room, so believe Jackson if you’d like.
In public, where Jonathan Taylor’s spat with the Colts is unfolding like a soiled pair of pants, teammates are ignoring him. Nobody talks to Taylor. He talks to nobody. And when practice ended Monday, as some players stayed on the field for extra work and others trotted to the bleachers to sign autographs, Taylor walked off the field by himself, toward the tunnel leading to the locker room, where his teammates are “all supportive of him.”
Maybe so. All I can tell you is what I see, which is Jonathan Taylor walking into the tunnel alone, heading into the shade, into the darkness.
He is going, he is going, he is…
Find IndyStar columnist Gregg Doyel on Twitter at @GreggDoyelStar or at www.facebook.com/greggdoyelstar.
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For the full story, click here.
We revisit Robin Young’s November 2022 interview with musical icon Julie Andrews and her daughter Emma Walton Hamilton. The two wrote the kids book, “The First Notes: The Story of Do, Re, Mi” which tells the story of the 11th-century monk who invented a system of musical notation that we use today.
This article was originally published on WBUR.org.
Copyright 2023 NPR. To see more, visit https://www.npr.org.
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A Georgia judge on Monday forcefully rejected an effort by former President Donald Trump to throw out evidence collected by a special grand jury and to remove the current prosecutor from the investigation into Trump’s attempts to overturn his 2020 election loss in the state.
Judge Robert C.I. McBurney of the Fulton County Superior Court wrote in a nine-page order that Trump did not have the legal standing to make such challenges before indictments were handed up. The judge said the “injuries” that Trump claimed to have suffered from the 2-1/2-year investigation “are either insufficient or else speculative and unrealized.”
The order comes on the cusp of the investigation’s culmination. The office of the Fulton County district attorney, Fani Willis, a Democrat, is expected to present potential indictments in the matter to a regular grand jury by mid-August.
A “special purpose” grand jury, which did not have indictment power, interviewed dozens of witnesses and subpoenaed documents over the course of roughly seven months. Then, the jury issued an advisory report that recommended the indictment of a number of people for violations of Georgia laws, according to the jury foreperson.
The specifics of those recommendations have not yet been made public, although the foreperson, in an interview with The New York Times, strongly hinted that Trump was among those recommended for indictment.
McBurney, in Monday’s ruling, seemed to have little patience for the arguments from Trump’s legal team, and he suggested that Trump’s lawyers were gumming up the legal process with frivolous filings.
“In the future, counsel is encouraged to follow the professional standard of inquiring with Chamber’s staff about timing and deadlines before burdening other courts with unnecessary and unfounded legal filings,” McBurney wrote.
To the Trump team’s assertions that Trump would be injured by an indictment, McBurney appeared to allude to the fundraising that Trump’s campaign had done, highlighting the criminal cases against him.
“For some, being the subject of criminal investigation can, a la Rumpelstiltskin, be turned into golden political capital, making it seem more providential than problematic,” he wrote in a footnote. “Regardless, simply being the subject (or target) of an investigation does not yield standing to bring claim to halt that investigation in court.”
A representative for Willis’ office declined on Monday to comment on the judge’s ruling. Lawyers for Trump could not immediately be reached for comment.
In July, the Georgia Supreme Court unanimously rejected a filing with a similar aim from Trump’s Georgia legal team. That filing argued, among other things, that the special grand jury’s proceedings were “blatantly unconstitutional” and that Willis had made biased public statements.
Trump’s challenge in superior court was joined by Cathy Latham, one of 16 Republicans who tried to cast bogus Electoral College votes for Trump in December 2020, and who has been named as a target of the investigation by prosecutors. McBurney also rejected Latham’s filing in his order Monday.
In addition to finding that Trump’s and Latham’s challenges were premature, McBurney pushed back against Trump’s contention that prosecutors had been improperly biased. The judge also appeared to criticize the former president for his attacks on Willis, who is Black, and whom Trump has called a “local racist Democrat district attorney” who is seeking to harm him politically.
“The drumbeat from the district attorney has been neither partisan (in the political sense) nor political, in marked and refreshing contrast to the stream of personal invective flowing from one of the movants,” the judge wrote.
A third challenge from Trump’s lawyers is set to be considered by a judge in Cobb County, Georgia, in a hearing scheduled for Aug. 10. The matter was moved to the county, which is an Atlanta suburb, after the chief judge in Fulton County Superior Court ruled that he and his fellow Fulton County judges were recused from ruling on that motion. McBurney wrote on Monday that the challenge in Cobb County should now be considered moot.
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Defective: After recalls, Americans continue to die and get injured as products remain in homes and for sale online
Watchdogs say companies don’t do enough to alert customers to dangerous household goods
Deer Park, New York (InvestigateTV) — P.J. Matzen was only 3 months old when he uttered his first words to his parents. “I love you,” he babbles in a video taken by his mother.
They were the only words he would ever say.
On Oct. 11, 2019, Phillip Matzen found his son blue, lifeless and face down in an inclined sleeper made by Kids2. P.J. died the following day.
His parents had no idea that six months earlier, the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission and the manufacturers of two of these popular baby products had issued recalls for them.
The Matzens also had no idea the CPSC hired an independent doctor to review these products for possible danger. The month before P.J. died, that doctor declared “no inclined sleep products are safe” warning the design has an increased risk for suffocation because babies can roll and aren’t able to “self-correct.”
By then, millions of these sleepers had been sold.
But the April 2019 recalls of Kids2 rocking sleepers and the Fisher-Price Rock ‘n Play did not stop the deaths. P.J. is one of at least a dozen infants who died in one of those inclined sleepers after the recalls, according to CPSC.
Because of the rising death toll — and the availability of those products on the secondary market — the CPSC and the manufacturers of those sleepers re-announced the recalls this past January.
“Unfortunately, today’s announcement highlights the fact that these products are still in too many homes, and babies continue to be put at risk,” CPSC chairman Alexander Hoehn-Saric wrote in a statement accompanying the re-announcement.
However, the re-announcement of the Kids2 rocking sleepers and the Fisher-Price Rock ‘n Play is not an anomaly.
An InvestigateTV analysis of CPSC data shows that since 2000, the agency has had to re-announce the recall of at least 46 products because the original alert did not reach the ears of consumers and, in many cases, continued to cause harm.
The deaths of at least 16 children or adults were tied to a defective product that had been previously recalled, the analysis of the federal data shows. At least 300 were injured.
Consumer advocates such as Nancy Cowles with Kids in Danger say the government and the manufacturers need to do more to protect Americans — particularly infants and toddlers — from products they know are dangerous.
“Make sure that once you do the recall you actually get them out of homes,” said Cowles, who is the executive director of the Chicago nonprofit that advocates for safer baby products. “Most products — children’s products — that we’ve tracked . . . are still in homes. Nowhere near a majority of products that are recalled are taken out of homes.”
The story of the inclined sleepers epitomizes what consumers advocates say is a flawed recall system that leaves defective and deadly products in American homes and for sale on online marketplaces and at garage sales.
A family was unaware of a recall until it was too late
Kiara Matzen once told her mother — P.J.’s grandmother — that she feels as if her son’s life was nothing but a dream because it was cut so short.
“Every day, I’m still trying to process it,” Kiara said.
Kiara was 19 when she learned that she was pregnant. Friends and relatives showered her with many necessities for the baby, including a Kids2 Ingenuity Rock N’ Soothe Sleeper.
Kids2 began marketing its incline sleepers three years after Fisher-Price designed and launched its Rock ‘n Play in 2009, which was the first incline sleeper to hit the market and became instantly popular.
About 4.7 million Rock ‘n Plays were sold during its 10 years on the market. Kids2 sold nearly 700,000 inclined sleepers that had various different names.
Kiara doesn’t remember who gave her the sleeper, but P.J. slept in it every day from the time he was born.
On the morning of Oct. 11, 2019, Kiara escorted her mother, Lydia Calvacca, to a doctor’s appointment. While waiting to be seen, Kiara pulled up an app on her phone that connected her to cameras in her home.
She wanted to check on P.J.
“I saw something wasn’t right. He was on his stomach,” Kiara said.
Lydia also caught a glimpse of the image on Kiara’s phone.
“I saw the way he was laying in the bassinet. And I was an EMT for seven years and I knew it was not a normal sleeping position,” Lydia said. “I said to her, ‘Call your husband right now. Tell him to wake the baby up.’”
P.J.’s father immediately dialed 911 after finding his son lifeless. Police officers arrived before medics and rushed P.J. to the hospital.
He died the following day.
“That night that he was in the hospital, my whole family came to the hospital, and my sister-in-law said that ... ‘I think I heard that it was recalled,’” Kiara said.
It was the first time she had heard that P.J.’s inclined sleeper had been recalled.
“If they would have spent more time and attention, maybe even money to get that recall product, that it was recalled out, then, you know ... me and probably a bunch of other parents would have stopped using it,” Kiara said.
Both Kids2 and Fisher-Price posted about the original recall on their Facebook pages and Twitter feeds, but neither has since mentioned the re-announcement of the recall made earlier this year on their social media accounts, based on a search of their posts on each platform. They did, however, place the re-announcements of the recalls on their websites.
Neither company responded to InvestigateTV’s requests for comment.
Despite the best efforts of the CPSC to alert consumers to recalls, the agency is largely powerless to force companies to do more.
CPSC publicizes recalls on its websites and social media platforms, but it doesn’t have the budget to launch campaigns about dangerous products.
“It would be much better if the companies actually used the same sort of marketing budget and marketing strategies that they initially used to sell the products to get these defective products off the markets,” said Daniel Mann, a product liability lawyer in Philadelphia who has represented dozens of families harmed by dangerous consumer goods.
After some recalls, Americans still are vulnerable to death and injury
The 46 products that have had re-announced recalls have been linked to at least 150 deaths and at least 800 injuries, with the majority of the harm coming before the recall.
In 2016, the CPSC re-announced the recall of trapeze rings on a backyard play house because so few of the products had been returned, meaning they likely were still in use. The agency received more than 100 reports of the rings breaking, leading to injuries. It did not indicate how many reports of breakage it received after the recall.
In 2012, a 7-month-old Houston baby died in a crib that had been recalled two years earlier.
Months after a 2008 recall of a bassinet that had been linked to strangulation and suffocations deaths, CPSC reported that two more babies had died.
And the problems aren’t just isolated to items for children.
Take the case of a bathrobe that was recalled in 2009 because of flammability failures: In the months after the recall, the CPSC learned that six elderly women died when the robes they were wearing caught fire. Most of them were cooking at the time.
Still, Mann, the Philadelphia attorney, said “the Fisher-Price Rock ‘n Play is probably the most epic consumer product disaster in United States history.”
In June 2021, a Fisher-Price executive admitted to Congress during a hearing that it was aware of at least 97 infant deaths linked to a Rock ‘n Play.
At least eight more died after that, including a 4-month-old who died in September 2020 and a 2-month-old who died in March 2021.
Mann represents a family whose 4-month-old son died on Feb. 1, 2021 while in a Rock ‘n Play at a babysitter’s home. Neither his parents nor the babysitter were aware of the recall, Mann said.
“For those parents where their deaths occur after the recall,” Mann said, “it’s even more tragic.”
Federal law leaves CPSC without necessary authority to rid households of dangerous products
CPSC chairman Hoehn-Saric admits that his agency is largely powerless to force companies to do more in recalls.
The Consumer Product Safety Act tips the balance of power away from the government regulator and into the hands of the companies that make and market products.
When a defect is discovered, the companies decide when and how a recall will be conducted.
“We can push them,” he said, “but forcing them is a whole different matter.”
The CPSC’s so-called sister agencies — the Food and Drug Administration and the National Highway Transportation Safety Administration — which also issue recalls, can alert the public on their own, without a company’s permission.
“We don’t know (of) other federal agencies subject to a law like this. Getting information out to consumers quickly is extremely important to prevent those unnecessary deaths and injuries,” Hoehn-Saric said.
But only Congress has the power to unlock the handcuffs that it has put on an agency that is supposed to regulate more than 15,000 categories of everyday products from appliances to tools to toys.
The CPSC can’t force a company to spend money to advertise a recall. It also can’t dictate what consumers will receive in exchange for returning a defective product.
Fisher-Price, for example, on its website offered consumers the choice of a potty chair, a stuffed Barney the dinosaur or a Thomas & Friends racetrack in exchange for the Rock ‘n Play, which cost between $50 and $150. The recall announcements mention that consumers should contact the company for a voucher or refund.
Kids2 offered a refund for its defective inclined sleepers.
Recalled products can be found on secondary marketplaces and at garage sales
The CPSC’s own reports show that many recalled products remain unaccounted for, leaving consumers at risk.
In its fiscal year 2021 report on its annual performance measures, the CPSC reported that 32% of products recalled during that period had been returned or the defective part had been corrected.
The agency noted that this rate meant that it had met its performance goals.
“The other issue that we have in terms of having hard metrics is some of the recalls, if it’s for a cheap product, that’s a buck, we may never know exactly what happens because a lot of people hear about those recalls and just throw the product away,” Hoehn-Saric said.
More dangerously, however, the products may end up on secondary marketplaces and in garage sales.
Hoehn-Saric has taken a particularly hard stance against Meta and its Facebook Marketplaces.
Rock ‘n Plays continue to show up for sale there.
InvestigateTV bought a Rock ‘n Play on Facebook Marketplace in December and found others for sale in early July. Consumers were also selling the Kids2 rocking sleeper on the platform in that month.
“You should never have seen that product on their marketplace. They’re in a position where they can see what’s going up on the marketplace before it gets to the public,” Hoehn-Saric said. “And that’s the best time to step in and say, ‘You can’t post that. There’s a recall on it.’”
When asked about finding recalled items on its marketplace, a spokeswoman for Meta issued a brief statement: “Like other platforms where people can buy and sell goods, there are instances of people knowingly or unknowingly selling recalled goods on Marketplace. We take this issue seriously and when we find listings that violate our rules, we remove them.”
It is illegal to sell a recalled product. Big box stores and online retailers such as Amazon generally are quick to remove recalled items from their shelves.
In 2022, TJX, the parent company of T.J. Maxx, Marshalls and Homegoods, agreed to pay a $13 million fine to the CPSC for knowingly selling inclined sleepers after the recall.
When the CPSC finds a recalled item on a secondary marketplace, the agency asks the platform to remove it — but it’s often a game of whack-a-mole: as one goes down, another comes up.
Consumers also sometimes disguise the products by failing to mention their specific names in the description. For example, “Rock ‘n Play” won’t return any results on Facebook Marketplace. But the product will turn up if searching for bassinets, sleepers or rockers.
Regarding the secondary marketplaces, Hoehn-Saric said that it is “very difficult for [CPSC] to require or force them to take action. I think that is important. And I think it’s good business for them to be able to protect their own customers.”
Grieving family members become disciples of safe sleeping practices
Since P.J.’s death, Kiara Matzen and Lydia Calvacca have turned their agony into advocacy through their social media channels.
They post about the importance of following safe sleep guidelines, where babies should be on their backs, on a firm surface with no blankets, pillows or stuffed toys in the crib or bassinet.
“There’s a [Facebook] page called safe infant sleep ... It’s a support group for moms that have lost their babies to unsafe sleep practices. And they are just wonderful. They’re wonderful. Every time I see a woman with a new baby, I always tell them about this page,” Calvacca said. “I have pictures of my grandson on my desk and ... I always tell them the story. I don’t just say, ‘Oh, that’s my grandson.’ I let them know what happened because I feel it’s my responsibility to educate people so this doesn’t happen to them.”
Kiara and Phillip now have two daughters. The youngest is just 2 months old.
The family sued Kids2 and reached a confidential settlement last year.
Calvacca said that when she keeps her granddaughters for overnight stays, she’s too afraid to sleep.
“It sucks. Because I want to be able to enjoy them the way I enjoyed P.J. without worrying and being nervous that something’s going to happen. And this incident has taken that away from me,” Calvacca said. “It’s taken some of my joy for my other grandchildren away from me, and that angers me.”
InvestigateTV associate producer Austin Hedgcoth contributed to this story.
Copyright 2023 Gray Media Group, Inc. All rights reserved.
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CHICAGO (AP) — A leading anti-abortion organization criticized Republican Ron DeSantis on Monday for not supporting a national ban on the procedure, calling the Florida governor’s position “unacceptable” as he seeks the GOP nomination for president.
The president of Susan B. Anthony Pro-Life America, an influential player in conservative politics, took issue with DeSantis’ statements in a recent interview in which he declined to back a national abortion ban. SBA President Marjorie Dannenfelser said the anti-abortion movement and Americans across the U.S. deserve a president who will “boldly advocate” for a ban on abortion at 15 weeks of pregnancy.
“A pro-life president has a duty to protect the lives of all Americans. He should be the National Defender of Life,” she said. “Gov. DeSantis’s dismissal of this task is unacceptable to prolife voters. A consensus is already formed. Intensity for it is palpable and measurable. There are many pressing legislative issues for which Congress does not have the votes at the moment, but that is not a reason for a strong leader to back away from the fight. This is where presidential leadership matters most.”
DeSantis’ campaign called the statement unjustified.
“Governor DeSantis delivers results and acts, especially when it comes to protecting life. He did so in Florida by signing the heartbeat bill and will be a pro-life president,” Press Secretary Bryan Griffin said. “He does not kowtow to DC interest groups. This unjustified attack on him is another example of the DC political games that have seen conservatives falter in Washington while Governor DeSantis has produced unmatched conservative victories in Florida.”
Susan B. Anthony Pro-Life America was responding to a recent interview in which Megyn Kelly asked DeSantis if he would support a national abortion ban. The U.S. Supreme Court last year overturned Roe v. Wade, the roughly 50-year-old ruling that established a federal right to abortion. Susan B. Anthony has said it would not support any White House candidate in 2024 who did not at a minimum support a 15-week federal ban.
In the interview, DeSantis noted he signed legislation in Florida to ban abortion at six weeks of pregnancy but suggested that individual states should decide the issue. He said he is “pro-life” but added that he is “running on doing things that I know I can accomplish.”
The criticism from a powerful organization comes at a tenuous time for DeSantis, who is seen as the top rival to former President Donald Trump for the GOP presidential nomination, but who has been running a distant second to Trump in public polling. DeSantis’ campaign has been working in recent weeks to improve his trajectory and reboot his campaign, including cutting staff.
He is not alone in drawing criticism from Susan B. Anthony Pro-Life America, however. The group also was critical of Trump for not supporting the 15-week federal ban.
Trump has defended that position, noting he appointed the Supreme Court justices who made it possible for Roe v. Wade to be overturned.
Some other Republicans seeking the nomination support the national ban. Former Vice President Mike Pence said he would go further, endorsing a ban at six weeks of pregnancy, or before some women know they are pregnant.
He told The Associated Press that abortion should be banned when a pregnancy isn’t viable — a standard that would force women to carry pregnancies to term even when doctors have determined there is no chance a baby will survive outside the womb.
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Associated Press reporter Michelle L. Price contributed from New York.
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Firefighter dies from injuries after crash with cow while responding to call, department says
Published: Jul. 31, 2023 at 1:48 PM CDT|Updated: 1 hour ago
PLANO, Texas (KXII/Gray News) – A firefighter injured in the line of duty earlier this month died Sunday morning.
Volunteer firefighter Evan Brown was in a crash July 9 and had been in intensive care at Medical City Hospital in Plano, Texas.
According to the Honey Grove Fire Department, Brown was responding to another crash call when he hit a cow on the road in his personal vehicle.
His vehicle rolled, ejecting Brown and causing severe injuries.
The Honey Grove Fire Department is arranging for first responders to stand watch by Evan at the funeral home.
The department set up a GoFundMe to help Brown’s family with medical bills and funeral costs.
Copyright 2023 KXII via Gray Media Group, Inc. All rights reserved.
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HOUSTON — On the surface, it might seem like the sport of CrossFit is all about numbers.
“My clean and jerk is 245, my clean’s 260, my deadlift’s about 400," elite CrossFit athlete Kelly Baker said when she was asked about some of her personal marks in common CrossFit lifts.
Baker trains at CrossFit Greater Heights and is one of only 40 women in the world to qualify as an Individual for the 2023 CrossFit Games in Madison, Wisconsin.
“Crossfit’s constantly varied high-intensity functional movements. So the goal is to either get the most reps or do a certain amount of reps in the fastest amount of time," Baker said.
But for Baker, who others say is the "Queen of Houston CrossFit," the sport that requires well-rounded fitness is about much more than just the numbers.
“It's just seeing what my full potential is," Baker said.
The "Games" are held every year to determine who -- among the athletes who qualify -- is crowned the "Fittest" on the planet. To qualify for the sport's highest level, the athletes have to advance through multiple, highly competitive rounds over several months.
“When you can take a step back and realize, oh, wow, I'm a part of this really low percentage of people that get to make it this far, it kind of shifts your perspective of just, you know, I've already made it this far," Kelly said.
Like many CrossFit athletes, Kelly’s journey started on a field. She was a college soccer player from Philadelphia and when she found CrossFit in 2016, she fell in love with the sport and the community.
"It's incredible. Honestly, when I moved from Philadelphia to Houston that was my biggest concern was am I going to really find a family community that's going to welcome me in and CrossFit Greater Heights was actually the first gym that I dropped into, and I was just so supported from the very beginning by the members, the owners, the coaches," Baker said.
One of the things she said she loves so much about the sport is its inclusivity.
“I think some people watch documentaries, or maybe see an event on ESPN of CrossFit and think I could never do that. But you know, we have an adapted division this year at the CrossFit Games, you know, people amputees and age group divisions," Baker said. “It's just really cool that everyone can do it. And it's scalable."
Kelly has previously competed on a team, but on her Instagram (@kellybaker928) posted the moment when after years of training and dedication and multiple qualifying rounds last month competing as an individual Kelly finally heard her name called.
“When they said my name, I was obviously just so excited and overwhelmed that I qualified," Baker said.
Her coach Triston Patrick is the Head Coach of Ascend Athlete. He said she’s earned it.
“She makes sure she gets done the things that she should do in and out of the gym every day to set her up for success," Patrick said.
And as she gets ready to represent Houston on the world stage.
"I know a lot of my success has to come from just being in this community," Baker said.
Kelly’s ready to seize her opportunity.
“It's overwhelming sometimes. But at the same time, pressure is a privilege, and I'm just trying to soak that in," Baker said
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PITTSBURGH (AP) — A jury is set to deliberate whether to impose the death penalty or a sentence of life in prison without parole on a man who spewed antisemitic hate before fatally shooting 11 worshippers at a synagogue in the heart of Pittsburgh's Jewish community.
The same jurors who convicted 50-year-old Robert Bowers in June on 63 criminal counts listened to closing arguments Monday in the penalty phase of his federal trial, held nearly five years after the truck driver from suburban Baldwin perpetrated the deadliest attack on Jews in U.S. history.
Bowers defiled a place of worship when he entered the Tree of Life synagogue on Oct. 27, 2018, and opened fire with an AR-15 rifle, shooting everyone he could find in a mass murder clearly motivated by religious hatred, said U.S. Attorney Eric Olshan.
Bowers raved incessantly on social media about his hatred of Jewish people — using a slur for Jewish people some 400 times on a social media platform favored by the far right — and remains proud that he killed Jews, the prosecutor reminded jurors,
“Do not be numb to it. Remember what it means. This defendant targeted people solely because of the faith that they chose,” Olshan said.
He added: "This is a case that calls for the most severe punishment under the law: the death penalty.”
The defense was expected to deliver its closing argument later Monday.
Bowers' attorneys have argued that he has schizophrenia, a serious brain disorder whose symptoms include delusions and hallucinations, and that Bowers attacked the synagogue out of a delusional belief that Jews were helping to bring about a genocide of white people by coming to the aid of refugees and immigrants. The defense has also presented evidence of Bowers' difficult childhood.
Olshan disputed the defense experts' diagnosis of schizophrenia, asserting Bowers was not suffering psychosis but had chosen to believe white supremacist rhetoric. And while acknowledging there's no question that Bowers was a depressed, neglected child, Olshan downplayed the significance of it, noting that Bowers had held jobs, paid bills, and was an otherwise functioning adult.
“He was not a child, he was a grown man. He was responsible for his actions, not his family and things that happened decades earlier. He was, he is responsible for his actions," Olshan said.
In order to impose death, jurors must find that aggravating circumstances, which make the crime especially heinous, outweigh mitigating factors that could be seen as diminishing his culpability. Those aggravating circumstances could include the vulnerability of Bowers' elderly and disabled victims and his targeting of Jewish people.
Olshan played a composite of 911 calls made from inside the synagogue, including audio of people being shot and a survivor’s horrified screams.
He said Bowers had taken “11 people, 11 full lives, 11 people who loved their families, 11 people who loved their friends, 11 people who were loved. ... How do you measure the impact of all of that loss?”
The prosecutor spoke about 75-year-old Joyce Fienberg's care for her family and 65-year-old Richard Gottfried's devotion to his faith. He said Dr. Jerry Rabinowitz, 66, had the ethos of a country doctor: “He loved delivering babies but he never delivered judgment.” David Rosenthal, 54, and Cecil Rosenthal, 59, intellectually disabled brothers, “loved life," Olshan said. "But maybe more than anything, they loved Tree of Life."
The other deceased victims were Rose Mallinger, 97; Bernice Simon, 84, and her husband, Sylvan Simon, 86; Dan Stein, 71; Melvin Wax, 87; and Irving Younger, 69.
The attack also wounded seven people, including five responding police officers. Bowers was shot three times before surrendering when he ran out of ammunition.
___
Rubinkam reported from northeastern Pennsylvania.
Copyright 2023 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without permission.
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Growing Mobile Storage Brand Looks to Build Off Impressive Start to 2023 with Continued National Expansion
WESTLAKE VILLAGE, Calif., July 31, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Go Mini's - the portable storage franchise that offers containers for moving, storage, renovation, and restoration needs - has seen consistent growth throughout the first half of 2023 as the brand looks to continue the momentum for the remainder of the year. With six new Go Mini's territories awarded in 2023 already, the brand looks to further expand and bring portable storage solution to communities across the nation. In the second half of the year, Go Mini's expects to sign more franchise deals, further expanding the brands footprint, as well as further execute and implement the brands new long distance moving service, Go MINI's Miles. In addition, the brand is looking to further invest in their growing franchisee network by expanding and investing in robust advertising strategies to increase consumer traffic.
"What we have accomplished as a brand up to this point has been remarkable," said Go Mini's CEO and President, Chris Walls. "The conceptualization and gradual implementation of Go MINI's Miles was a turning point for our brand this year as we aim to further expand throughout the nation and service more customers with their moving and portable storage needs. I am tremendously proud of everyone within our network for their commitment and determination to making Go Mini's a growing national brand that continues to get stronger."
To further its development and success into 2024, the brand is looking at new ways in which they can utilize the existing trucks and containers to innovate with the industry. With the addition of new and robust marketing strategies, Go Mini's looks to cement themselves as a leader within the moving and portable storage industry.
Go Mini's offers a complete support system for their franchisees who have everything they need to hit the ground running, including a proprietary operating system. Each territory is protected with no need for a warehouse or retail space due to the product's superior construction and durability in all outdoor conditions. The business model requires minimal staffing with a simple concept, and the corporate office works closely with owners to analyze and fully understand their market's potential to maximize profits. Go Mini's is one of the few franchised portable storage concepts where franchisees benefit from a scalable opportunity to operate as a locally owned company with deep ties to the communities they serve.
"Today, with the ever-changing housing market and continued economic uncertainty, portable storage services remain in-demand," continued Walls. "As the industry grows, Go Mini's has the necessary infrastructure and systems to keep pace and provide customers with the best experience possible. Our continued success is dependent on our franchisee's success, so we have created a business model that is designed to thrive in any market. We are looking forward to the second half of the year and hope to end just as successfully as we began."
Go Mini's currently has 114 locations throughout the United States, Canada, and Mexico with additional available territories. For more information on franchising with Go Mini's, visit: https://www.gominisfranchise.com/
About Go Mini's:
Founded in 2002, Go Mini's® has become one of the fastest-growing portable storage and moving companies in North America with locations in 41 states in the United States, Canada, and Mexico. In 2012, the brand converted into a franchise model and now has 114 locations within the United States, Canada, and Mexico. Go Mini's is proud to have been recognized by Franchise Business Review as a Top Franchise in 2017, as well as being ranked 16th by Entrepreneur Magazine in their list of 2017's Top New Franchises. Go Mini's Franchising LLC. was recently named a Top Franchise for 2023 by Franchise Business Review. Got a Project? Get a Mini. For more information, please go to https://www.gominis.com/.
Contact: Hunter Devereux, Franchise Elevator PR, (914) 486-0330, hdevereux@franchiseelevator.com
View original content to download multimedia:
SOURCE Go Mini's
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SARAJEVO, Bosnia-Herzegovina (AP) — The U.S. on Monday imposed sanctions on four ranking Bosnian Serb officials for undermining a 1995 peace agreement that ended a war that left more than 100,000 dead and millions homeless.
The four officials sanctioned by the U.S. Treasury include Zeljka Cvijanovic, a Serb member of the tripartite collective Bosnian presidency, as well as the prime minister of the Serb entity in Bosnia, Radovan Viskovic.
The four are alleged to have taken part in drafting a law that U.S. and other international officials say undermines the unity of Bosnia by ignoring the decisions of the country’s constitutional court.
The Bosnian Serb parliament has passed the law to not recognize or implement any decisions by Bosnia’s multi-ethnic Constitutional Court.
“This action threatens the stability, sovereignty, and territorial integrity of Bosnia and Herzegovina and the hard-won peace underpinned by the Dayton Peace Agreement,” said Under Secretary of the Treasury for Terrorism and Financial Intelligence Brian E. Nelson. “This behavior further threatens the country’s future trajectory and successful integration into Euro-Atlantic institutions.”
The Bosnian War started in 1992, pitting mostly Muslim Bosniaks, Serbs, and Croats against each other. It ended with the U.S.-sponsored Dayton accords that created two regions, the Republika Srpska and the Bosniak-Croat Federation.
The Bosnian Serb ruling party, SNSD, said that the latest U.S. sanctions were “shameful” and “hypocritical” and would not “stop us from doing our job.”
The pro-Russian Bosnian Serb leader, Milorad Dodik, has openly been striving to separate Bosnian Serb territories from the rest of Bosnia and join them with neighboring Serbia.
Because of that, he was also sanctioned by the U.S., in 2017.
On Monday, the U.S Treasury said that “as a result of today’s action, all property and interests in property of the designated persons described above that are in the United States or in the possession or control of U.S. persons are blocked and must be reported.”
The U.S. recently also imposed sanctions on the pro-Russian head of Serbia’s security agency, Aleksandar Vulin, accusing him of involvement in illegal arms shipments, drug trafficking and misuse of public office.
There are widespread fears that Serbia, an ally of Russia, could inflame tensions in the Balkans to divert at least some of the world attention from the war in Ukraine.
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| 2023-07-31T19:58:35
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IS claims responsibility for the bombing that killed 54 at a pro-Taliban election rally in Pakistan
KHAR, Pakistan (AP) — An Afghan branch of Islamic State on Monday claimed responsibility for a suicide bombing in Pakistan that killed at least 54 people at a pro-Taliban party’s election rally, in one of the region’s worst attacks in recent years.
Islamic State in Khorasan Province made the claim in a statement posted on its Amaq website. It said the attacker detonated an explosive vest, and that the bombing in the northwestern town of Bajur was part of the group’s continuing war against forms of democracy it deems to be against Islam.
Hours earlier, hundreds of mourners in Bajur carried caskets draped in colorful cloths to burial sites following the previous day’s attack at the election rally for the Jamiat Ulema Islam party. Officials said Sunday’s bombing killed 54 people, including at least five children, and wounded nearly 200.
The attack appeared to reflect divisions between Islamist groups, which have a strong presence in the district in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province that borders Afghanistan. The Jamiat Ulema Islam party has ties to the Afghan and Pakistani Taliban.
At least 1,000 people were crowded into a tent near a market for the rally ahead of fall elections, according to police.
“People were chanting God is Great as the leaders arrived,” said Khan Mohammad, a local resident who said he was standing outside the tent, “and that was when I heard the deafening sound of the bomb.”
Mohammad said he heard people crying for help, and minutes later ambulances arrived and began taking the wounded away.
Police had suggested in their initial investigation that Islamic State in Khorasan Province was a suspect. The group is based in neighboring Afghanistan’s Nangarhar province and is a rival of the Afghan Taliban and al-Qaida.
Pakistan security analyst Mahmood Shah also previously had said that breakaway factions of the Pakistani Taliban could be possible suspects, though the group distanced itself from the attack.
The Pakistani military spent years fighting the Pakistani Taliban, also known as Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan, or TTP, in Bajur before declaring the district clear of militants in 2016. But the Jamiat Ulema Islam party, headed by hard-line cleric and politician Fazlur Rehman, has remained a potent political force.
On Monday, police recorded statements from some of the wounded at a hospital in Khar, the district’s principal town.
Female relatives and children wailed and beat their chests at family homes Monday as the dead were taken for funerals, following local customs. Hundreds of men followed the caskets to mosques and open areas for special funeral prayers and then into the hills for burial.
As condolences continued to pour in from across the country, dozens of people who had lesser injuries were discharged from hospital, while the critically wounded were taken to the provincial capital of Peshawar by army helicopters. The death toll continued to rise as some critically wounded people died in hospital, physician Gul Naseeb said.
Gul Akbar, the father of an 11-year-old boy who was wounded in the attack, told The Associated Press that his entire family was in a state of shock after hearing about the bombing Sunday. He said he first went to the scene of the attack, and later found his son Taslim Khan being treated in a hospital in Khar.
“What would I have done if he had also been martyred? Five children died in this barbaric attack, and we want to know what our children did wrong,” he said.
Rehman’s party is preparing to contest elections, which are expected in October or November. Abdul Rasheed, one of the party’s senior leaders, said the bombing was aimed at weakening the party but that “such attacks cannot deter our resolve.”
Rehman’s party is part of Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif’s coalition government, which came to power in April 2022 by ousting former Prime Minister Imran Khan through a no-confidence vote in the legislature.
Sharif called Rehman to express his condolences and assure the cleric that those who orchestrated the attack would be punished. Khan condemned the bombing Sunday, as did the U.S. and Russian embassies in Islamabad.
The Pakistani Taliban also distanced themselves from the bombing, saying that it was intended to set Islamists against each other. Zabihullah Mujahid, the spokesman for the Afghan Taliban, wrote in a tweet that “such crimes cannot be justified in any way.”
The bombing came hours before Chinese Vice Premier He Lifeng arrived in Islamabad, where he signed new agreements to boost trade and economic ties to mark a decade of the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor, a sprawling package under which China has invested $10 billion in Pakistan over 10 years, according to Sharif.
“We will not tolerate any obstacles in the way of friendship with China,” Sharif said, as he stood next to He.
But the government canceled a cultural event that had been arranged in honor of He, according to Sharif, while the nation mourns.
Some Chinese nationals have also been targeted by militants in northwestern Pakistan and elsewhere.
Rehman, who has long supported Afghanistan’s Taliban government, survived at least two known bomb attacks in 2011 and 2014, when bombings damaged his car at rallies.
Sunday’s bombing was one of the worst in northwestern Pakistan in the last decade. In 2014, 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. And in February, more than 100 people, mostly policemen, died in a bombing at a mosque inside a high-security compound housing Peshawar police headquarters.
___
Associated Press writer Munir Ahmed contributed to this story from Islamabad.
Copyright 2023 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.
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Here & Now‘s Deepa Fernandes speaks with Kalyn Belsha, a national reporter for Chalkbeat, about her investigation into the online tutoring company Paper.
This article was originally published on WBUR.org.
Copyright 2023 NPR. To see more, visit https://www.npr.org.
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ARLINGTON, Texas — The Texas Rangers had a strange weekend that was both good and bad.
It was a bad weekend because they traveled to San Diego to play the Padres, who have had an up-and-down, disappointing season and yet swept the Rangers in three games. The Rangers ran into the Joe Musgrove, Yu Darvish, and Blake Snell combo and couldn’t do much against them. They were outscored 16-4 and were shut out on Saturday.
The team also put starter Nathan Eovaldi, who stepped up in a big way in Jacob deGrom’s absence, on the 15-day IL with a forearm strain over the weekend, so things were not looking good.
Then the team made a flurry of big moves ahead of the trade deadline on Tuesday by acquiring starting pitchers Max Scherzer from the New York Mets on Saturday and Jordan Montgomery from the St. Louis Cardinals on Sunday.
BE SURE to listen and subscribe to Locked On Rangers wherever you find your podcasts!
Host Brice Paterik of Locked On Rangers discussed the wild weekend for the Rangers and gave his thoughts about the trades they made.
“The Montgomery trade makes me a little nervous about the Eovaldi injury. Maybe this is just precautionary. Maybe this is something the Rangers were going to do anyway before they announced him (Eovaldi) going on the IL,” Paterik said. “I thought it was a smart (because) it was a move they needed to make to bolster the starting rotation and add guys with playoff experience.”
The Scherzer move on Saturday let everyone around baseball know the Rangers were going all in this season. They currently lead the AL West by one game thanks to that sweep by the Padres, and they needed pitching reinforcements.
Texas’ General Manager Chris Young said about Scherzer, “Max's pedigree is of a future Hall of Fame pitcher,” He added, “The winner that he is, is a perfect fit for what we need right now. I’ve always said that you can never have enough starting pitching. And to add somebody of Max's caliber is just a great addition to our club. We landed the player that we felt like is going to help us get where we want to go this year.”
As for Montgomery, Young said, “Jordan Montgomery is having a tremendous year. We felt like he was one of the better starters on the market. And given where we are, that we needed to continue to upgrade our rotation. We addressed that.”
Montgomery wasn’t the only pitcher the Rangers got from the Cardinals. Reliever Chris Stratton was also part of the package. Montgomery is 6-9 with a 3.42 ERA in 21 starts. Stratton has appeared in 42 games and he’s 1-1 with a 4.36 ERA and one save.
Scherzer, who was the big get for the Rangers over the weekend, is 9-4 with a 4.01 ERA in 19 starts.
The Rangers traded two prospects and a reliever for Montgomery and Stratton; INF prospect Thomas Saggese, RHP prospect Tekoah Roby, and LHP John King.
They traded INF prospect Luisangel Acuña, who is Ronald Acuña Jr.’s brother, to the Mets in exchange for Scherzer and cash.
The Rangers’ rotation, which is still one of the best in the league, has struggled since June 1, posting a collective 4.60 ERA. Scherzer is essentially replacing deGrom, who they signed to be their ace over winter and who was lost to Tommy John surgery earlier this season.
BE SURE to listen and subscribe to Locked On Rangers wherever you find your podcasts!
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https://www.wfaa.com/article/sports/locked-on/lo-dallas/rangers-show/texas-rangers-all-in-trade-max-scherzer-jordan-montgomery-new-york-mets-st-louis-cardinals/535-6088ae59-5c51-4b55-b8d9-a8b14cfd7d57
| 2023-07-31T19:58:38
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A hellish and historic 31-day run of temperatures cracking 110 degrees in Phoenix appeared headed for a welcome end on Monday, as monsoon rains moved through the region from Mexico.
The relief wasn't all that great — the day's highs were forecast near 108 degrees — and the heat was expected to rise past 110 again later in the week. But residents and visitors were taking what they could get.
"It's not going to last more than a couple of days, but I'm enjoying this break," said Christine Bertaux, 76, who was cooling off Monday at a downtown day center for older people who are homeless.
"It has been REALLY hot here!" said Jeffrey Sharpe, of Kenosha, Wisconsin, who was in town for a long weekend that on Monday included watching his son's poodles frolic in a grassy dog park. "But today it was about 85 degrees, more like Wisconsin."
High heat blasted much of the Southwest all through July, ranging from West Texas to eastern California. But Phoenix and its suburbs sweltered to new records, including three days where the high reached 119, and overnight lows stayed above 90 more than half the month. Concerts and other outdoor events were cancelled throughout the month because of the heat and busy parts of the city became ghost towns as people stayed indoors to avoid the heat.
Health officials have so far confirmed 25 heat-related deaths in Maricopa County, Arizona's most populous and home to Phoenix, in July, although that number seems certain to rise. Another 249 deaths are under investigation for links to heat.
Rudy Soliz, who manages the center where Bertaux was cooling off, said those who visit to get a meal and cool off out of the sun "have been having a very hard time this summer."
"Older people have a harder time with the heat, there are a lot of diabetics, people who take medicines," he said.
"The heat has been pretty bad this summer. We've made at least five 911 calls from here this July for people who got heat stroke," said Soliz. "They've found a couple of bodies around here this month but it's not clear yet if they died from the heat."
Although there is no excessive warning for city, the National Weather Service said Phoenix residents should take precautions to stay cool and safe from the heat.
"Even though it's going to be cooler than it has been, it's still going to be warmer than normal. And the heat definitely can still affect a large portion of the population," said Matthew Hirsch, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service in Phoenix. "So we're still urging people to take the necessary precautions, such as remaining hydrated and limiting outdoor activity."
Phoenix's previous record for days of 110 degrees or more was 18 straight, set in 1974, nearly two weeks shorter than the new record.
Hirsch said July 2023 was the city's hottest month on record. The previous hottest month on record was August 2020.
And August could be even hotter than July, Hirsch said. He said there is a slightly higher chance of temperatures that are above normal in August and there's an equal chance for the region to get more or less rain than average.
R. Glenn Williamson, a businessman who was born in Canada but has lived in Phoenix for years, said he really noticed a temperature difference Monday morning as he washed his car in his driveway.
"Now we have to get rid of the humidity!" Williamson said. "But honestly, I'd rather have this heat than a Montreal winter."
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| 2023-07-31T19:58:39
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Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis (R) rolled out his economic policy plan at a campaign stop in New Hampshire on Monday, dubbing the plan “a declaration of economic independence.”
“We will declare our economic independence from the failed elites that have orchestrated American decline, from the reckless federal spending that has inflated prices and plunged this nation to the brink of bankruptcy,” DeSantis told a crowd in Rochester, N.H., at Prep Partners Group, which handles logistics, including warehousing and distribution for companies.
The plan particularly takes aim at China by putting an end to the country’s preferential trade status and banning import goods made by stolen intellectual property.
The 10-part economic plan includes getting to 3 percent growth, making America energy independent, reining in the Federal Reserve, pushing back on “wasteful federal spending” and reforming the education system for working-class Americans.
The Democratic National Committee was quick to attack DeSantis over the plan, dubbing it “extreme.”
“It remains a mystery why DeSantis would try to reboot his dumpster fire of a campaign by promising to bring his failures as governor nationwide, but by all means, we welcome Republicans to continue reminding the American people how catastrophic the MAGA agenda is for the economy,” said Ammar Moussa, a spokesperson for the DNC.
Last week DeSantis’s campaign declared a “reset” in a memo to donors, noting that the themes of its “Great American Comeback” message will be the economy, border, China and culture.
However, polling still shows DeSantis in second place behind former President Trump, with a new New York Times/Siena College survey showing the former president leading the Florida governor by 37 points.
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VAN BUREN COUNTY, MI -- A jury has found Juan Solis-Reyna guilty of second-degree murder in the 1995 shooting death of Jose Cruz Armijo-Arreguin.
A jury trial happened from July 25 to July 28 in Van Buren County’s 36th Circuit Court in the decades-old shooting death, the Van Buren County Sheriff’s Office said in a news release.
On Friday, July 28, after about two hours of deliberation, the jury found Solis-Reyna guilty of second-degree murder and felony firearm.
Solis-Reyna will be sentenced at 11:30 a.m. on Sept. 18, the sheriff’s office said.
The murder happened on April 24, 1995, in Decatur Township, police said.
With help from the FBI, the Van Buren County Sheriff’s Office located Solis-Reyna in Mexico. He was on the run from law enforcement since 1995, the sheriff’s office said.
He was arrested and extradited back to Michigan to face charges in October 2022, police said.
Police did not provide additional information about the incident.
Want more Kalamazoo-area news? Bookmark the local Kalamazoo news page or sign up for the free 3@3 Kalamazoo daily newsletter.
Also on MLive:
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Fire at new courthouse caused $25K damage, responsible party determined
Congressman opens new office in Portage
Police catch all 4 suspects in foot chase after Kalamazoo gunfire
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A Montana man who crashed during a weekend police chase in northwestern North Dakota's Mountrail County faces four criminal charges.
Sidney Bowman, 31, of Conrad, Montana, allegedly fled a traffic stop in Stanley late Saturday and led law officers on a chase on state Highway 2 at speeds surpassing 100 mph. The pursuit ended when Bowman crashed in a construction zone 20 miles west of Stanley, according to the Highway Patrol.
He was flown to a Minot hospital with what authorities said were serious injuries.
Bowman was charged Monday with felony DUI, fleeing and reckless endangerment, along with a misdemeanor count of carrying a concealed weapon. Each of the felony charges carries a maximum sentence of five years in prison. Court documents do not list an attorney for him.
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https://bismarcktribune.com/news/state-regional/crime-courts/police-chase-suspect-faces-3-felony-charges/article_e52a7298-2fd4-11ee-9056-d35d83496fc7.html
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Patrick Braxton became mayor of Newbern, Alabama, in 2020 — but says he has been fighting to hold onto his title after the white former mayor and his council members held a special election and reappointed themselves to their positions.
Now, Braxton is suing in a federal civil rights lawsuit that accuses the town officials of conspiring to deny his civil rights and position due to his race. We hear from Aallyah Wright, a rural issues reporter for Capital B News.
This article was originally published on WBUR.org.
Copyright 2023 NPR. To see more, visit https://www.npr.org.
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https://www.kvpr.org/2023-07-31/power-struggle-unfolds-between-alabama-towns-1st-black-mayor-and-white-officials
| 2023-07-31T19:58:42
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IEEE Transactions on Pattern Analysis and Machine Intelligence (TPAMI) achieves highest impact factor among Computer Society journals
LOS ALAMITOS, Calif., July 31, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- The IEEE Computer Society (CS), the leading global computer science and engineering member community, announced today that its journal IEEE Transactions on Pattern Analysis and Machine Intelligence (TPAMI) earned the highest 2022 Journal Impact Factor™ (JIF™) of all IEEE CS publications, securing the top spot among artificial intelligence journals.
"Computer science and engineering represent some of the most prominent, promising areas of research today," said Nita Patel, president, IEEE CS. "As the number of papers in our field continues to climb, paper acceptance gets increasingly competitive, and our editors work tirelessly to ensure that only the top papers make their way into our journals. We're thrilled to, once again, hold top impact factor rankings, and we thank all of our volunteers for their commitment to excellence."
Impact factor measures the frequency with which the average article in a publication has been cited in a particular year. The calculation is based on a two-year period and involves dividing the number of times articles were cited by the number of articles that are citable. It offers a key metric to assess the overall strength and industry influence of a particular publication.
Overall, 11 IEEE CS journals now hold the coveted top impact factor ranking in their specialty field. The following four publications join TPAMI to round out the top five highest-ranked IEEE CS journals:
- IEEE Transactions on Affective Computing (TAC)
- IEEE Transactions on Knowledge and Data Engineering (TKDE), a new entrant to IEEE CS' top five journals
- IEEE Transactions on Services Computing (TSC)
- IEEE Transactions on Mobile Computing (TMC), a new entrant to IEEE CS' top five journals
In addition, IEEE CS' fully open access publication, IEEE Open Journal of the Computer Society, received its first impact factor in Clarivate's Emerging Sources Citation Index™ (ESCI), which features newly launched, niche, and open access journals publishing high-quality research on a range of topics. This is the first year Clarivate included the multidisciplinary ESCI in its JIF review.
"We're thrilled that IEEE Open Journal of the Computer Society had the opportunity to be recognized this year," said Greg Byrd, IEEE CS VP of Publications. "With the innovative research it brings to the field, it is certain to have a long-standing impact on the computer science and engineering community."
Impact factor applies not only to scientific and engineering journals but to technical magazines as well. Those IEEE CS publications with the highest impact factor rankings include:
"One of the most important things about impact factor rankings is that they point to the most highly researched topics in the field," said Patel. "This year, there's a heavy focus on artificial intelligence, data science, and mobile computing. It will be interesting to watch the evolution of these topics and the advances that arise from papers presented in Computer Society publications."
JIF rankings are released annually in Clarivate's Journal Citation Reports™ (JCR™). These reports evaluate more than 21,500 high-quality academic journals from across more than 250 scientific and research disciplines.
To learn more about IEEE Computer Society journals and the research they offer, visit https://www.computer.org/publications.
About the IEEE Computer Society
Engaging computer engineers, scientists, academia, and industry professionals from all areas of computing, the IEEE Computer Society (CS) sets the standard for the education and engagement that fuels continued global technological advancement. Through conferences, publications, and programs, and by bringing together computer science and engineering leaders at every phase of their career for dialogue, debate, and collaboration, IEEE CS empowers, shapes, and guides the future of not only its members, but the greater industry, enabling new opportunities to better serve our world. Visit computer.org for more information.
View original content to download multimedia:
SOURCE IEEE Computer Society
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18-year-old from ‘Brainy Bunch’ family graduates with master’s degree
MONTGOMERY, Ala. (WSFA/Gray News) – At age 18, most people are just heading into their freshman year of undergraduate studies. But one 18-year-old from Alabama is graduating with her master’s degree.
Marianna Harding is graduating from Auburn University with a master’s degree in agriculture at the age of 18.
She also graduated from high school at age 11.
Harding comes from a Montgomery family known as “The Brainy Bunch” – she is one of 10 children, most of whom started college by the age of 12. One of the boys even graduated law school at 19.
All the children grew up homeschooled. Harding is the eighth child in the family.
She said there was always healthy competition between siblings.
“We all had different interest levels, and most of us different colleges,” she said.
In 2022, Harding earned her bachelor’s degree virtually from a university in Nebraska. Shortly after, she was off to Auburn’s campus to get her master’s degree.
“Although my focus was very much on studies, there was no lack of fun times,” she said.
While on campus, Harding was part of multiple clubs, a campus employee, and kept active in her church. She hopes that her story will encourage others to go after their goals no matter their age.
Now that she has graduated, Harding will begin working for the Lee County Extension where she’ll teach others about agriculture.
Parents Kip and Mona Lisa Harding made an appearance on NBC’s “Today Show” in 2014 to discuss their book, “The Brainy Bunch: The Harding Family’s Method to College Ready by Age Twelve.” They also have a YouTube channel.
“My kids are not any smarter than anybody else’s, they’re really motivated and they’re very hard working, but really feel like anyone can get these kinds of results,” Mona Lisa Harding said during a 2021 interview.
Copyright 2023 WSFA via Gray Media Group, Inc. All rights reserved.
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| 2023-07-31T19:58:43
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NEW YORK — While the Las Vegas Aces are the class of the WNBA so far this season, their dominance may actually hurt them in final awards ballots.
Locked On Women's Basketball hosts Natalie Heavren and Em Adler discussed their WNBA awards ballots at the midway point of the season on the latest episode of the podcast, starting with likely runaway MVP Breanna Stewart, producing at an elite level in her first season in Brooklyn.
“I think if Stewie puts up a few more 40-point games … that’s probably a turning point," Adler said. "If New York cleans (clutch performance) up, then I think it will sort of be the difference in wins and losses that will convince a lot of people.”
Coming in second on the hosts' MVP ballots was Alyssa Thomas, the standout forward for the Connecticut Sun playing at her peak at age 30.
“I wasn’t necessarily expecting Alyssa Thomas to be so close to Breanna Stewart," Adler explained. "It could go either way, I think Alyssa Thomas is certainly deserving of that recognition, especially with how much she has led the team lately.”
Thomas was the hosts' pick to win Defensive Player of the Year.
Perhaps the most clear-cut winner of any WNBA award this season will be Aliyah Boston of the Indiana Fever, a shoo-in for Rookie of the Year.
“Aliyah Boston is obviously going to be Rookie of the Year," Adler said. "She is the one player consistently getting doubled from Indiana … it’s really hard to stop her one on one.”
The hosts also listed Chicago Sky reserve forward Alanna Smith as their Most Improved Player and went through the top coach and executive in the WNBA as well as how the race could evolve in the back half of the year.
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| 2023-07-31T19:58:44
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LSU students can now get a discounted Walmart+ membership
Published: Jul. 31, 2023 at 2:01 PM CDT|Updated: 55 minutes ago
BATON ROUGE, La. (WAFB) - Louisiana State University students are getting ready to head back to campus and Walmart is offering services to help students save money, officials said.
For the first time, Walmart said they are offering Walmart+ Student, where eligible students will get 50% off a monthly or annual W+ membership. It is reportedly a limited time offer from Friday, July 28 to Thursday, September 7.
Students can verify eligibility and check out all the benefits of Walmart+ here: Walmart+
Click here to report a typo.
Copyright 2023 WAFB. All rights reserved.
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| 2023-07-31T19:58:45
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WASHINGTON (AP) — President Joe Biden has decided to keep U.S. Space Command headquarters in Colorado, overturning a last-ditch decision by the Trump administration to move it to Alabama and ending months of politically fueled debate, according to senior U.S. officials.
The officials said Biden was convinced by the head of Space Command, Gen. James Dickinson, who argued that moving his headquarters now would jeopardize military readiness. Dickinson’s view, however, was in contrast to Air Force leadership, who studied the issue at length and determined that relocating to Huntsville, Alabama, was the right move.
The officials spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss the decision ahead of the announcement.
The president, they said, believes that keeping the command in Colorado Springs would avoid a disruption in readiness that the move would cause, particularly as the U.S. races to compete with China in space. And they said Biden firmly believes that maintaining stability will help the military be better able to respond in space over the next decade.
Biden’s decision is sure to enrage Alabama lawmakers and fuel accusations that abortion politics played a role in the choice. The location debate has become entangled in the ongoing battle between Alabama Republican Sen. Tommy Tuberville and the Defense Department over the move to provide travel for troops seeking reproductive health care. Tuberville opposed the policy is blocking hundreds of military promotions in protest.
Formally created in August 2019, the command was temporarily based in Colorado, and Air Force and Space Force leaders initially recommended it stay there. In the final days of his presidency Donald Trump decided it should be based in Huntsville.
The change triggered a number of reviews.
Proponents of keeping the command in Colorado have argued that moving it to Huntsville and creating a new headquarters would set back its progress at a time it needs to move quickly to be positioned to match China’s military space rise. And Colorado Springs is also home to the Air Force Academy, which now graduates Space Force guardians, and more than 24 military space missions, including three Space Force bases.
Huntsville, however, scored higher than Colorado Springs in a Government Accountability Office assessment of potential locations and has long been a home to some of earliest missiles used in the nation’s space programs, including the Saturn V rocket. It is home to the Army’s Space and Missile Defense Command.
According to officials, Air Force Secretary Frank Kendall, who ordered his own review of the matter, leaned toward Huntsville, while Dickinson was staunchly in favor of staying put. The officials said Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin presented both options to Biden.
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https://www.seattletimes.com/nation-world/nation/biden-has-decided-to-keep-space-command-in-colorado-rejecting-move-to-alabama-officials-tell-ap/?utm_source=RSS&utm_medium=Referral&utm_campaign=RSS_nation-world
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Idaho mother Lori Vallow Daybell has been sentenced to life in prison without parole Monday in the murders of her two youngest children and a romantic rival in a case that included bizarre claims that her son and daughter were zombies and that she was a goddess sent to usher in the Biblical apocalypse.
Vallow Daybell was found guilty in May of killing her two youngest children, 7-year-old Joshua "JJ" Vallow and 16-year-old Tylee Ryan, as well as conspiring to kill Tammy Daybell, her fifth husband's previous wife.
The husband, Chad Daybell, is awaiting trial on the same murder charges. Vallow Daybell also faces two other cases in Arizona — one on a charge of conspiring with her brother to kill her fourth husband, Charles Vallow, and one of conspiring to kill her niece's ex-husband. Charles Vallow was shot and killed in 2019, but her niece's ex survived an attempt later that year.
At the Fremont County Courthouse in St. Anthony, Idaho, Judge Steven W. Boyce heard testimony from several representatives of the victims, including Vallow Daybell's only surviving son, Colby Ryan.
"Tylee will never have the opportunity to become a mother, wife or have the career she was destined to have. JJ will never be able to grow and spread his light with the world the way he did," Ryan wrote in a statement read by prosecuting attorney Rob Wood. "My siblings and father deserve so much more than this. I want them to be remembered for who they were, not just a spectacle."
Ryan also wrote about his own grief.
"I've lost the opportunity to share life with the people I love the most. I have lost my sister, father, brother and my mother," he wrote. "I pray for healing for everyone involved, including those who took the lives of everyone we loved."
The murder scheme and Tammy Daybell's death left a deep rift in her family, Tammy's sister Samantha Gwilliam told the court.
"Why? Why plan something so heinous? You are not exalted beings, and your behavior makes you ineligible to be one," Gwilliam said, referring to the unusual religious claims. "Because of the choices you made, my family lost a beloved mother, sister and daughter."
Tammy Daybell's mother was fighting cancer, and spent the last months of her life watching the murder trial, Gwilliam said. The family has also been hounded by media and others drawn by "all of the salacious scandal you stirred up," Gwilliam told Vallow Daybell, who looked down as she sat between her defense attorneys.
"I miss my sister every day. I will grieve her, and the loss of my mother, every single day of my life," Gwilliam said. "As for you, I choose to forget you and as I leave the courtroom here today, I choose to never think of you again."
Wood pointed to the two Arizona cases as well as the three murders in six weeks in Idaho.
"A defendant who is willing to murder her own children is willing to murder anyone," Wood said. "Society can only be protected from this defendant by a sentence of life in prison without parole."
Vallow Daybell was committed multiple times for treatment to make her mentally competent for the court proceedings. But Wood said there is no evidence that her crimes were impacted by her "alleged mental illness" — which includes delusional disorder with grandiose features, according to reports referenced in court.
"The evidence is overwhelming that she did know right from wrong," Wood said, noting testimony from several people who said she lied to them about the deaths.
In July 2019, Vallow Daybell's brother, Alex Cox, shot and killed her estranged husband, Charles Vallow, in a suburban Phoenix home. Cox told police he acted in self-defense. He was never charged and later died of what authorities determined were natural causes.
Vallow Daybell was already in a relationship with Chad Daybell, a self-published writer of doomsday-focused fiction loosely based on Mormon teachings. She moved to Idaho with her kids and brother to be closer to him.
The children were last seen alive in September 2019. Police discovered they were missing a month later after an extended family member became worried. Their bodies were found buried in Chad Daybell's yard the following summer.
During the trial, experts said Tylee appeared to have been stabbed and her body burned before it was buried in a pet cemetery, Wood said.
JJ's head was wrapped in tape and plastic, asphyxiating him, Wood said, speculating that his last thoughts must have "been filled with fear and betrayal."
Tammy Daybell's body was bruised, suggesting she fought back as she was asphyxiated in her bed, Wood said.
Chad Daybell and Lori Vallow married in November 2019, about two weeks after Daybell's previous wife, Tammy, was killed. Tammy Daybell initially was described as having died of natural causes, but an autopsy later showed she had been asphyxiated, authorities said.
Defense attorney Jim Archibald argued during the trial that there was no evidence tying Vallow Daybell to the killings, but plenty showing she was a loving, protective mother whose life took a sharp turn when she met Chad Daybell and fell for his "weird" apocalyptic religious claims. He suggested that Daybell and Vallow Daybell's brother, Alex Cox, were responsible for the deaths.
Daybell told her they had been married in several previous lives and she was a "sexual goddess" who was supposed to help him save the world by gathering 144,000 followers so Jesus could return, Archibald said.
Vallow Daybell's former friend Melanie Gibb testified during the trial that Vallow Daybell believed people in her life had been taken over by evil spirits and turned into "zombies," including JJ and Tylee.
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https://www.mynews13.com/fl/orlando/news/2023/07/31/idaho-mom-lori-vallow-daybell-sentenced-in-deaths-of-2-children-and-her-romantic-rival
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SAN FRANCISCO (KRON) — Lady Gaga took to Instagram Monday and posted an emotional tribute to the late Tony Bennett. Bennett, who passed away last week at the age of 96, was a frequent collaborator with Gaga and the two were known for their musical collaboration and cross-generational friendship.
“I will miss my friend forever,” Gaga wrote. “I will miss singing with him, recording with him, talking with him, being on stage together. With Tony, I got to live my life in a time warp.”
Bennett, who immortalized the City by the Bay with his iconic hit, “I Left My Heart in San Francisco,” had been diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease in 2016. In her tribute, Gaga also spoke of their time together following the disease taking hold of him.
“Losing Tony to Alzheimer’s has been painful but it was also really beautiful,” she wrote. “An era of memory loss is such a sacred time in a person’s life. There’s such a feeling of vulnerability and a desire to preserve dignity. All I wanted was for Tony to remember how much I loved him and how grateful I was to have him in my life.”
Over a career that spanned more than eight decades, Bennett released more than 70 albums and won 19 Grammy Awards. Gaga also paid tribute to Bennett’s longevity and their notable age difference.
“Though there were 5 decades between us, he was my friend. My real true friend. Our age difference didn’t matter — in fact, it gave us each something neither of us had with most people. We were from two different stages in life entirely — inspired.”
Gaga, who has 13 Grammy Awards herself, said that in collaborating with Bennett, the duo “transported ourselves to another era, modernized the music together and gave it all new life as a singing duo.”
“But it wasn’t an act,” she wrote. “Our relationship was very real. Sure he taught me about music, about showbiz life, but he also showed me how to keep my spirits high and my head screwed on straight.”
“I love Tony. Love, Lady,” the post concluded.
Lady Gaga and Bennett put out two albums together — “Cheek to Cheek” in 2014 and 2021’s “Love for Sale.”
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https://www.kron4.com/news/bay-area/lady-gaga-pens-moving-tribute-to-tony-bennett/
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After Democrats performed better than expected in the 2022 midterms, both political parties are looking to rural areas to recruit or retain voters ahead of a crucial presidential election.
NPR’s Ximena Bustillo reports.
This article was originally published on WBUR.org.
Copyright 2023 NPR. To see more, visit https://www.npr.org.
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https://www.kvpr.org/2023-07-31/republicans-and-democrats-look-to-rural-voters-in-2024
| 2023-07-31T19:58:49
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#1 Lottery App's* New Feature Allows Users to Enter Exclusive Giveaways
NEW YORK, July 31, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Jackpocket, America's #1 lottery app*, is turning 10! To celebrate, Jackpocket is giving fans the chance to win an all-inclusive trip to attend the 2023 iHeartRadio Music Festival in Las Vegas, Nevada on Friday, September 22 and Saturday, September 23, 2023.
Jackpocket and iHeartRadio are teaming up to send one lucky winner and a guest to watch iconic performances at the 2023 iHeartRadio Music Festival at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas. The full lineup can be viewed here. The prize package includes:
- 2 VIP tickets to both nights of the 2023 iHeartRadio Music Festival
- 2 round-trip flights to Las Vegas, Nevada
- 2 nights' stay at New York-New York Hotel & Casino
- Ground transportation to and from Las Vegas airport
- $500 gift card for food, beverage, and other expenses
To enter, visit the Giveaways section of the app by tapping the Gold Ticket on the Jackpocket home screen and activate the iHeartRadio Vegas Getaway. This new app feature allows users to earn an entry for every $1 spent on Jackpocket lottery ticket orders—up to 100 entries per day. The number on the Gold Ticket counter is personalized to the user, showing them their total number of entries for all their activated Giveaways. No purchase is necessary to enter.
"It's amazing to see how much Jackpocket has grown and innovated over the past 10 years to bring lottery fans a convenient and accessible way to participate in their favorite games," said Peter Sullivan, Jackpocket founder and CEO. "Our new Giveaways feature lets Jackpocket users enter to win prizes and experiences like never before. Even if your Powerball ticket doesn't win a lottery prize, it could still win you a trip to Vegas, VIP sports tickets, and more. It's all part of our goal to give lottery fans the very best user experience possible."
The winner of the iHeartRadio Vegas Getaway will be randomly selected on or about August 31, 2023 and announced in September. For more information, including free entry methods and complete Official Rules, visit: https://jackpocket.com/sweepstakes/iheartradio-vegas-getaway/.
Founded in 2013, Jackpocket is the first-licensed lottery courier app in the United States. Now available in 17 states, Jackpocket provides an easy, secure way to order official state lottery tickets. Over $300 million in total lottery prizes have been won by Jackpocket users to date. In July, an Ohio Powerball winner became the 30th person to win a lottery prize worth $1 million or more using the Jackpocket app.
*According to data from AppFollow.
**ABBREVIATED RULES. No purchase necessary. A purchase does not increase your odds of winning. Must be 18+ (21+ in AZ and 19+ in NE) and physically present in AR, AZ, CO, ID, MA, MN, MT, NE, NH, NM, NJ, NY, OH, OR, TX, WV or D.C. to enter. Void where prohibited. Entries require a valid Jackpocket account and accounts are subject to the full terms of service at jackpocket.com/tos. Registering for a Jackpocket account is free. See Official Rules for details. If you or someone you know has a gambling problem and wants help, residents of NY call 1-877-8-HOPE-NY or text HOPENY (467369); residents of MA call 1-800-327-5050; residents of OR call 1-877-MYLIMIT; all others, call 1-800-GAMBLER.
About Jackpocket
Jackpocket is on a mission to create a more convenient, fun, and responsible way to take part in the lottery. The first licensed third-party lottery courier app in the United States, Jackpocket provides an easy, secure way to order official state lottery tickets. Jackpocket is currently available in Arizona, Arkansas, Colorado, Idaho, Massachusetts, Minnesota, Montana, Nebraska, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, Ohio, Oregon, Texas, Washington D.C., and West Virginia, and is expanding to many new markets. Download the app on iOS and Android or participate via desktop. Follow along on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.
View original content to download multimedia:
SOURCE Jackpocket
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ARLINGTON, Texas — The Texas Rangers really seemed like they could have used a bit of a respite from high-octane matchups this weekend. Unfortunately, the San Diego Padres, despite their record, doubled down on the idea that they could still take a Wild Card spot in the National League and handed Texas a series sweep to go along with a shrinking lead in the AL West that is down to one game over Houston.
While the Rangers were looking elsewhere for help for their pitching staff, San Diego threw their three best starters at Texas and each performed up to the task. The Padres enjoyed the spoils of the top of their rotation as Rangers’ ace Nathan Eovaldi again couldn’t make his start, leaving further questions for Texas as they left California nursing their wounds.
Game 104: Texas 1, San Diego 7 (W: Musgrove, 10-3, L: Dunning, 8-4)
Game 105: Texas 0, San Diego 4 (W: Darvish, 8-7, L: Perez, 8-4)
Game 106: Texas 3, San Diego 5 (W: Snell, 8-8, L: Leclerc, 0-2, Sv: Hader, 25)
Three Up
Here comes the cavalry – Getting swept almost felt like an afterthought this weekend for the Rangers as they struck hard ahead of the trade deadline to signal that they believe in what the team can do in October. Now they just have to get there.
Hurlers Max Scherzer, Jordan Montgomery, and Chris Stratton were acquired by the Rangers while the team was struggling in San Diego. In order to get the reinforcements, general manager Chris Young agreed to send the team’s No. 3 prospect – Luisangel Acuña – to the New York Mets and agreed to pay $22.5 million of what is left on Scherzer’s contract.
Scherzer also elected to exercise his player option for 2024, which secures his services for next season as well. The Rangers also sent reliever John King, minor league starting pitcher prospect Tekoah (TK) Roby, and infield prospect Thomas Seggese to the Cardinals to get Montgomery and Stratton.
Consider it the shot in the arm that the Rangers’ rotation and bullpen needs, as the games against the Padres demonstrated that the starters need someone to break up the routine and breathe some new life into the staff. The question now is how the rotation and bullpen shake out with the arrival of Mad Max, Montgomery, and Stratton and who gets shifted to the bullpen.
The key takeaway from this weekend is that the Rangers have a 3-time Cy Young award winner with an incredible postseason pedigree in their rotation, another starting pitcher with postseason experience, and a fresh reliever who has the potential to help at an area that has felt deficient all season.
Perez and the Wayback Machine – The middle game of this series wasn’t exactly a repeat performance for Martin Perez, but the time machine back to his earlier days with Texas was in full effect on Saturday night again.
Much like his previous start against the Los Angeles Dodgers, and much like several of his starts in his first stint with the Rangers, Perez had one really very bad inning, but buckled down for the rest of his outing to give an otherwise quality start.
After retiring the first three batters he faced in order on ground outs, Perez then saw eight batters in the bottom of the 2nd and surrendered four runs, including walking in a run with the bases loaded. After that, Perez made it all the way into the 6th inning, but couldn’t close out the side. Perez’s night ended at 5 ⅔ innings pitched where he allowed four runs on eight hits, four of which came in that dubious 2nd inning.
The main difference between this performance and the one against the Dodgers, of course, is that Texas was unable to pick Perez up at the plate. It’s hard to call Perez’s performance a positive but there wasn’t much to like from Texas throughout the weekend.
A good return for Grant – With Eovaldi hitting the injured list with arm troubles, the Rangers were able to bring up some bullpen help. That came in the form of righty Grant Anderson.
Anderson had been sent down a week ago during the Dodgers’ series, as Texas had burned through several bullpen arms to keep the staff afloat. The rookie had had a decent month of June, but faltered a bit against the likes of Boston, Tampa Bay, and Los Angeles in July. When he was sent down, Anderson had a 5.20 ERA and 1.301 WHIP with 26 strikeouts in 27.2 innings. However, in Sunday’s finale against the Padres, Anderson provided some needed relief.
In a game where every Rangers pitcher aside from Anderson gave up a run, the righty went 1 ⅓ innings, giving up just one hit, and managing to help Brock Burke get out of a 6th inning jam by inducing a Manny Machado flyout.
Three Down
Eovaldi to the IL – It was announced before the game on Saturday that Texas’ All-Star starting pitcher Eovaldi, who was the likely starter for the finale on Sunday, would be scratched again. Eovaldi had been pushed back from his scheduled start against the Astros after a dip in velocity during his start against Tampa Bay, his only outing since the All-Star break.
This time, the club had their ace get an MRI on his elbow, and while the result was “clean,” there was reported continued soreness in his elbow. The club then announced on Sunday that Eovaldi actually had a right forearm strain and placed him on the 15-day IL.
Since Texas is going to need Eovaldi if they want to continue to play past September, the club made the decision to let him heal up and free up a roster spot for additional relief help. At this point, Eovaldi hasn’t pitched in a game since Tuesday, July 18th.
The addition of Scherzer helps to alleviate the negativity of Eovaldi’s problems, but they are still big problems. A forearm strain was the exact diagnosis that Jacob deGrom had before he was scheduled for Tommy John surgery a month and a half later. The Rangers are trying to avoid a similar fate with their latest ace.
Silenced offense – The additions of Chapman and Scherzer really only mean something if the Rangers’ offense can get back to producing at a level that wins games. Unfortunately, this weekend was one where the bats were quieter than an empty ballpark.
The series in San Diego marked the quietest series for the Rangers all the season, as a trio of Joe Musgrove, Yu Darvish, and Blake Snell, and a stout Padres bullpen, held Texas to just four runs total over the three-game set.
Texas registered 18 hits over the weekend, but they were only mostly scattered as the team couldn’t link them together and the power vanished under the California marine layer. The Rangers collected just five extra base hits – all doubles – with none of them driving in a run.
Depth fails test – One of the contingent factors on the Rangers being contenders going into the season was whether their initial 25-man roster would stay healthy. With Corey Seager, Jonah Heim and Eovaldi all on the injured list and others seemingly banged up, that depth was tested over the weekend and earned a failing grade.
Truth be told, the Rangers have been extremely lucky that they didn’t feel the absence of deGrom or Jake Odorizzi earlier in the year – Eovaldi and Dane Dunning have had a large part in that. They are also lucky that Ezequiel Duran was able to fill in at shortstop when Seager missed a month earlier in the year.
Without those performances, the Rangers wouldn’t be where they are right now. As such, the rotation is starting to falter under the rigors of the long summer, Duran is experiencing growing pains, and the duo of Mitch Garver and Sam Huff are nowhere near equal to what Heim has brought to the table on either side of the ball.
The Rangers have made moves to address their pitching issues, and while they still could stand to add another arm, a performer to lengthen the lineup, namely a corner outfielder or catcher if Heim is deemed unlikely to return, should probably be their focus before Tuesday’s trade deadline.
The reinforcements can’t get here soon enough. This series against the Padres showed it. The pitching wasn’t awful, but it was just bad enough that the trio of Scherzer, Montgomery and Stratton are Gandalf riding in from the East at dawn.
But all the pitching in the world isn’t going to mean anything if the offense falls flat like it did this weekend. Now, instead of enhancing a team that has dominated in spurts throughout the season, the Rangers’ new acquisitions are going to have to be team saviors – and that changes the dynamic of their purpose in Arlington.
Do you think the Rangers will bounce back from their lackluster performance on the West Coast? Share your thoughts with Matt on Twitter @FisherWritesMLB.
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https://www.wfaa.com/article/sports/mlb/rangers/texas-rangers-sweep-in-san-diego-sours-rangers-call-to-contend/287-c4d678f4-6c85-4f9c-bbaf-24f610c288f5
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Man sentenced after attempted ATM theft ends in deadly crash
DENHAM SPRINGS, La. (WAFB) - A man was sentenced to five years behind bars after pleading no contest to a felony charge of negligent homicide, according to the 21st Judicial District Attorney’s Office.
The man, Goldie Jones, 28, was involved in a deadly crash while fleeing the scene of an attempted ATM theft, authorities said.
According to police, the attempted theft happened at the Regions Bank on South Range Avenue in Denham Springs back in April of 2022.
Police said Jones and another suspect left the scene in an erratic manner. Their car ended up on Veterans Boulevard and was involved in a crash that left the other suspect dead, according to police.
Authorities said that Jones and the suspect who died were both from the Houston area.
Click here to report a typo.
Copyright 2023 WAFB. All rights reserved.
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https://www.wafb.com/2023/07/31/man-sentenced-after-attempted-atm-theft-ends-deadly-crash/
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LAS VEGAS — After battling back in the third quarter from being down 18, the Dallas Wings didn't come away with a win against the Aces, losing 104-91 at Michelob ULTRA Arena on Sunday.
Vegas' A'ja Wilson got the game started with a driving layup 40 seconds into the game for the first basket and the Aces led the rest of the way.
The Aces' Kelsey Plum made two free throws to extend the lead to 79-61 late in the third quarter, but the Wings' Crystal Dangerfield and Arike Ogunbowale made back-to-back 3-pointers in a 15-0 run, capped when Dangerfield hit a pull-up jumper that pulled Dallas within three points with 8 1/2 minutes to go. The Wings' 31 points in the third tied their season high for points in the quarter.
But it wasn't enough in the end. The Wings' shots just weren't falling. Ogunbowale, the WNBA's third-leading scorer with 21.9 points per game, had 14 points but made just 6 of 18 shots.
"We just needed better execution. Following the game plan, that first quarter hurt us, and against a good team you can’t let them get that much momentum," Dallas Wings head coach Latricia Trammell said in her postgame interview. "It’s usually our big three but this time it was theirs."
The Aces made 32 of 64 from the field, shot 52% (13 of 25) from 3-point range, hit 27 of 28 (96.4%) from the free throw line, and committed just eight turnovers.
Plum scored 28 points, Chelsea Gray added 27 points and eight assists, and Wilson had 22 points and six blocks as the Aces avenged one of their two losses this season.
Dallas, which has lost two of three games to the Aces this season — they play the fourth and final time this season on Aug. 8 — is the only team in the WNBA to beat Las Vegas, New York and Connecticut, the top-three teams in the standings. The Wings are four games behind the third-place Sun and nine back of the league-leading Aces.
Despite the loss, Dallas' Teaira McCowan earned her sixth double-double of the season with 25 points and 14 rebounds.
"I think she did a fantastic job, and she shouldn’t lay her head down because she did what she was supposed to do," said Trammell about McCowan's performance.
Dallas' Natasha Howard joined McCowan with a double-double too, with 13 points and 11 rebounds.
The Wings have had two players record a double-double in the same game 12 times this season -- other teams in the league haven't done it more than six times.
Up next, the Wings head to Seattle to play the Storm on Wednesday, Aug. 2-- the series is tied 1-1 -- with tipoff scheduled at 9 p.m. CT.
“We got to go back and watch film on what we did wrong and what we don’t want to do when we play Seattle,” Howard said about rebounding after the loss against the Aces. “Just do the little things and execute the plays on the offensive and defensive end. Just be poised,” she said.
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https://www.wfaa.com/article/sports/wnba/dallas-wings/dallas-wings-las-vegas-aces-score-104-91-michelob-ultra-arena-las-vegas/287-6a32245b-a123-4b24-a420-69c70d616634
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DENVER (AP) — A Colorado teenager pleaded not guilty Monday to charges of attempting to support a designated foreign terrorist organization, the Islamic State group.
Davin Meyer, 18, sat handcuffed at his arraignment in a federal courtroom in Denver and didn’t say anything about the allegations. Earlier this month, Meyer was arrested when he tried to board a plane to Turkey, where prosecutors say he planned to become a fighter for IS.
David Kaplan, Meyer’s attorney, declined to comment on the case. The trial is not yet scheduled.
In November, after he turned 18, Meyer began communicating over the internet with someone he believed was an IS facilitator, and another who presented themselves as an ISIS travel facilitator, according to the arrest affidavit, but both were actually undercover informants.
In a previous court hearing, Meyer’s mother, Deanna Meyer, testified that her son wouldn’t have tried traveling to the Middle East if not for the support of people he met who shared his views, including the FBI informants.
This was in response to a judge’s question about whether her son — who was diagnosed with autism — understood the gravity of the situation, given his condition.
The prosecutor, assistant U.S. attorney Melissa Hindman, argued that the young man was already committed to radical Islam before the informants spoke with him.
During Monday’s hearing, prosecutors didn’t speak about the allegations and the U.S. Attorney’s office did not immediately respond to an emailed request for comment after the hearing.
Deanna Meyer had reached out to law enforcement when Davin was 17 over concerns about his escalating “radical Islamic beliefs” and openly expressing violent intentions, according to court documents. The FBI was later notified, it said.
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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.
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https://www.seattletimes.com/nation-world/nation/colorado-teen-pleads-not-guilty-to-trying-to-join-islamic-state-group/?utm_source=RSS&utm_medium=Referral&utm_campaign=RSS_nation-world
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REEDLEY, Calif. (KSEE/KGPE) – An investigation into a warehouse in Reedley, California, uncovered a large-scale illegal medical lab complete with bioengineered mice, infectious agents, nearly 30 refrigerators and freezers, incubators and more.
The investigation was prompted by a simple garden hose that was illegally attached and coming out of a wall in the back of the building.
“Frankly, we knew that should not have been there and when she went to investigate, she found that there was activity or operation or something happening within that building,” said Reedley City Manager Nicole Zieba.
The city then obtained a search warrant to look inside what should have been an ordinary warehouse. Inside, they found thousands of vials, many of which contained bio-hazardous materials like human blood, and other unknown substances.
“There was over 800 different chemicals on site in different bottles of different acids. Unfortunately, a lot of these are being categorized under unknown chemicals,” said Assistant Director of the Fresno County Department of Public Health Joe Prado. “A lot of these labels have been removed from bottles so there was only so much testing. We could do those chemicals.”
Health officials also discovered nearly 1,000 lab mice, 200 of which were dead.
Prado said the warehouse occupants claimed they were “doing some testing on laboratory mice that would help them support, developing the COVID test kits that they had on-site.”
According to court documents, officials with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention tested what they could and determined that at least 20 potentially infectious viral, bacterial, and parasitic agents were present, including E. coli, malaria, and the virus that causes COVID-19.
“This is an unusual situation. I’ve been in government for 25 years. I’ve never seen anything like this,” said Zieba.
“I’ve never seen this in my 26-year career with the County of Fresno,” Prado agreed.
Over the course of several weeks, officials with local, state, and federal agencies worked to remove the materials from the location
“I think because of that swift action that was taken we had been able to maintain public safety this entire time,” Prado explained.
“There are no more biologicals. There are no more mice, but they still will see us abating, 30 freezers and fridges, medical equipment, and all sorts of furniture in there. They’ll still see some activity, nothing hazardous at this point,” Zieba said.
Officials are still trying to figure out what type of operation was taking place inside that building. Prado said the owners operated under the name Prestige Biotech and the company president was not forthcoming with information.
A criminal investigation is also ongoing.
All of the mice inside the lab had to be euthanized.
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The extreme heat that has been blanketing parts of the country for the last month is just one of the extreme weather events we’ve seen this summer.
In late June, wildfires in Canada sent so much particulate matter to the northeast that parts of New York spent at least one day in virtual darkness. And now, Vermont continues to clean up and rebuild after severe flooding in July destroyed streets and buildings across the state.
While it’s impossible to predict with certainty where the next event will be, it is possible to take precautions to help ensure safety and quick recovery for those in affected areas.
New York Times tech writer J.D. Biersdorfer joins host Robin Young to discuss some of the ideas in her recent article “A Tech Checklist for the Dark Side of Summer Weather” that details how technology, from apps to scanners, can help during crises.
Resources:
- Crank chargers
- Solar chargers
- Weather alerts
- National Hurricane Center
- Air quality index
- Apps for scanning documents
- Apps for creating a digital wallet
This article was originally published on WBUR.org.
Copyright 2023 NPR. To see more, visit https://www.npr.org.
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2025 Cruises and Cruisetours from Alaska's Leading Cruise Line
on Sale August 3
Family Favorite Caribbean Princess to Sail Alaska for First Time
SANTA CLARITA, Calif., July 31, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Princess Cruises has unveiled its 2025 Alaska cruise and cruisetours season, featuring three captivating roundtrip itineraries and an exclusive new National Parks Cruisetour. These remarkable offerings are available for booking starting August 3.
New Adventures and Extended Journeys Await, including a Departure from LA:
New for 2025 from the cruise line that brings the most guests to Alaska every year is a 22-day roundtrip voyage sailing from San Francisco on Ruby Princess that coincides with the Summer Solstice, and a 17-day roundtrip cruise from Seattle on Grand Princess featuring three days of scenic glacier viewing. For guests seeking to sail from Southern California, a new 16-day roundtrip Inside Passage voyage from Los Angeles on Grand Princess offers a convenient and affordable option.
National Parks Cruisetour
Following its debut in 2024, the National Parks Cruisetour returns in 2025 with a 15-night adventure to five of Alaska's most breathtaking parks. Guests will have the opportunity to explore Glacier Bay, Denali, Wrangell-St. Elias, Kenai Fjords National Parks, and Klondike Gold Rush National Historical Park in Skagway. Unique to Princess, this experience combines a seven-day Voyage of the Glaciers cruise, scenic rail travel, and multiple days on land, including stays at four Princess-owned wilderness lodges.
"As the market leader in Alaska, we're excited to offer guests even more exciting ways to see the natural beauty of Alaska with itineraries in 2025 that serve up new adventures and extended journeys that first-time guests and repeat visitors are going to find intriguing," said John Padgett, Princess Cruises president. "We're also making it easier for guests to access an Alaska cruise by bringing back a roundtrip option out of Los Angeles, which also make it more affordable for millions within that drive market."
Caribbean Princess to Debut in Alaska in 2025
In 2025, seven Princess ships will sail to Alaska, including Caribbean Princess for the first time. In addition, the number of Princess homeports offering Alaska voyages expands to five with the addition of Los Angeles, with the season featuring 21 cruise destinations and four glacier-viewing experiences, highlighted by 88 visits to Glacier Bay National Park, taking more guests to this spectacular national park than any other cruise line.
With 155 total departures on 18 unique itineraries ranging in length from 4 to 22 days, cruise and cruisetour choices include:
Cruises – Seven Ships, Five Homeports
- NEW! Ultimate Alaska Solstice with Glacier Bay National Park: 22-day roundtrip from San Francisco on Ruby Princess – departs June 6, 2025
- NEW! Ultimate Alaska with Glacier Bay National Park: 17-day roundtrip from Seattle on Grand Princess – departs May 6, 2025
- Inside Passage with Glacier Bay National Park: 16-day roundtrip from Los Angeles on Grand Princess visiting Juneau, Skagway, Glacier Bay National Park, Sitka, Icy Strait Point, Ketchikan and Victoria, B.C. – departs August 30, 2025
- Voyage of the Glaciers: This top-rated seven-day itinerary features Juneau, Skagway, Ketchikan, and two glacier-viewing experiences at Glacier Bay National Park and Hubbard Glacier or College Fjord. Caribbean Princess, Coral Princess, and Sapphire Princess offer weekly northbound and southbound cruises from Vancouver, B.C. to Anchorage (Whittier) and vice versa. Guests can combine select seven-day voyages for an amazing 14-day Voyage of the Glaciers Grand Adventure – operates May 10 to September 13, 2025.
- Inside Passage: Princess' signature seven-day roundtrip sailings from Seattle and Vancouver, B.C., as well as 11-day roundtrip departures from San Francisco and Vancouver that include four ports of call and a day of glacier viewing. Many Inside Passage cruises include Glacier Bay National Park. Discovery Princess and Royal Princess sail from Seattle weekly, May 4 – September 21, 2025. Grand Princess offers weekly cruises from Vancouver, B.C., May 27 – August 19, 2025. Ruby Princess sails 11-day cruises roundtrip from San Francisco May 4 – September 13, 2025.
- Alaska Samplers: Three itineraries of four to five days offer shorter voyages for guests looking for a quick getaway. Discovery Princess, Royal Princess and Grand Princess operate four-day, roundtrip voyages between Vancouver, B.C. to Seattle with a stop in Ketchikan – departing April 30, May 13 and May 23, 2025. Caribbean Princess sails a four-day, roundtrip cruise from Vancouver, B.C., with a visit to Ketchikan departing September 13, 2025, and a five-day roundtrip cruise from Vancouver, B.C., with stops in Sitka and Ketchikan sailing May 5, 2025.
Cruisetours
- More than 26 cruisetour options give guests variety of choice with four styles of travel including Denali Explorer tours, On Your Own options, Connoisseur Deluxe Escorted and Off the Beaten Path.
- The exclusive Direct-to-the-Wilderness rail service ensures a seamless transition between the ship in Whittier and the Denali area on the same day.
Award-Winning North to Alaska Program
Princess' award-winning North to Alaska program enriches the onboard and onshore experience with local lumberjacks, Iditarod champions, and storytellers sharing their Alaska experiences and insights. Other offerings include Wild for Alaska seafood menus, a variety of shore excursions, Puppies in the Piazza to meet sled-dog puppies, Junior Ranger program for youth, and authentic commentary by Glacier Bay Park Rangers and Naturalists.
Visit www.princess.com/alaska for more details on the 2025 Alaska cruises and cruisetours season from Princess Cruises.
Additional information about Princess Cruises is available through a professional travel advisor, by calling 1-800-Princess (1-800-774-6237) or by visiting www.princess.com.
About Princess Cruises
Princess Cruises is The Love Boat, the world's most iconic cruise brand that delivers dream vacations to millions of guests every year in the most sought-after destinations on the largest ships that offer elite service personalization and simplicity customary of small, yacht-class ships. Well-appointed staterooms, world class dining, grand performances, award-winning casinos and entertainment, luxurious spas, imaginative experiences and boundless activities blend with exclusive Princess MedallionClass service to create meaningful connections and unforgettable moments in the most incredible settings in the world - the Caribbean, Alaska, Panama Canal, Mexican Riviera, Europe, South America, Australia/New Zealand, the South Pacific, Hawaii, Asia, Canada/New England, Antarctica, and World Cruises. The company is part of Carnival Corporation & plc (NYSE/LSE:CCL; NYSE:CUK).
View original content to download multimedia:
SOURCE Princess Cruises
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Police were calling owner to shut down party when gunfire killed 1, wounded 17, chief says
MUNCIE, Ind. (AP) — A shooting that left one person dead and 17 others wounded early Sunday in a central Indiana city unfolded at an outdoor party attended by hundreds of revelers as police were calling the venue’s owner to shut down the gathering, authorities said Monday.
Muncie Police Chief Nathan Sloan said no arrests have been made in the shooting, which killed 30-year-old Joseph E. Bonner III, whom the chief said was among those attending the large party in the city about 60 miles (100 kilometers) northeast of Indianapolis.
Sloan said police were aware that the owner of a business that periodically rents out space for events was hosting a block party that got “out of control,” with between 500 and up to 1,000 in attendance. Photos of the scene showed police tags marking what appeared to be dozens of bullets on the street.
Sloan said police were not at the scene at the time of the shooting just after 1 a.m. Sunday, but they were trying to get the business owner to end the party.
“We made a phone call to the owner and asked him to get things shut down. The streets were packed. Before we could make contact and get something done, before we could get that shut down, the gunfire erupted,” Sloan said during a news conference.
He said police were asking for any witnesses to the shooting or people with pictures or video of the incident to contact the Muncie Police Department. Sloan said some people at the scene refused to tell officers what had happened.
He declined to provide details of the investigation, including how many people may have fired weapons but described a scene of chaos as officers and first responders arrived at the location on Muncie’s east side.
“Our people were applying tourniquets, administering first aid, providing CPR. And they we were rushing people to the hospital in our police cars because we didn’t have time to wait,” Sloan said.
Mayor Dan Ridenour said one man was killed and 17 other people suffered gunshot wounds in Sunday’s shooting. He said the shooting had left the community “shaken to the core by violence” and choked up repeatedly during the news conference.
After the shooting, police had to separate people in a Muncie hospital’s parking lot who were arguing and officers had to clear a path at the hospital’s entrance for anyone needing medical attention to enter, said Muncie Deputy Police Chief Melissa Criswell.
She said that among the 17 who survived the shooting, eight remained hospitalized — five at Indiana University Health Ball Memorial Hospital in Muncie, and four others who were taken to Indianapolis hospitals.
She said that among the four taken to Indianapolis, one remains in critical condition, two are listed as stable and the fourth had been discharged from a hospital.
Criswell said that two of the people wounded in Sunday’s shooting were minors, and that a nineteenth person who was injured may have been struck by a car.
IU Health spokesperson Neil Gifford said five people remained hospitalized at the Muncie hospital, down from 13 who were being treated on Sunday morning. He said he could not provide conditions of the five patients without being provided with their names.
Copyright 2023 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.
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PITTSBURGH (AP) — A jury is set to deliberate whether to impose the death penalty or a sentence of life in prison without parole on a man who spewed antisemitic hate before fatally shooting 11 worshippers at a synagogue in the heart of Pittsburgh’s Jewish community.
The same jurors who convicted 50-year-old Robert Bowers in June on 63 criminal counts listened to closing arguments Monday in the penalty phase of his federal trial, held nearly five years after the truck driver from suburban Baldwin perpetrated the deadliest attack on Jews in U.S. history.
Bowers defiled a place of worship when he entered the Tree of Life synagogue on Oct. 27, 2018, and opened fire with an AR-15 rifle, shooting everyone he could find in a mass murder clearly motivated by religious hatred, said U.S. Attorney Eric Olshan.
Bowers raved incessantly on social media about his hatred of Jewish people — using a slur for Jewish people some 400 times on a social media platform favored by the far right — and remains proud that he killed Jews, the prosecutor reminded jurors,
“Do not be numb to it. Remember what it means. This defendant targeted people solely because of the faith that they chose,” Olshan said.
He added: “This is a case that calls for the most severe punishment under the law: the death penalty.”
Bowers’ lead defense attorney, Judy Clarke, acknowledged the horror of his crimes but urged jurors to opt for a life sentence.
“What has happened cannot be undone. We can’t rewind the clock and make it that this senseless crime never happened. All we can do is make the right decision going forward. We are asking you to make the right decision, and that is life,” Clarke said in her closing argument.
A life sentence would mean that “prison is where Mr. Bowers will die in obscurity, not as a hero and not as a martyr,” she said.
Bowers’ attorneys have argued that he has schizophrenia, a serious brain disorder whose symptoms include delusions and hallucinations, and that Bowers attacked the synagogue out of a delusional belief that Jews were helping to bring about a genocide of white people by coming to the aid of refugees and immigrants. Clarke recounted Bowers’ history of psychiatric hospitalizations, including an extended stay in a residential juvenile mental health program.
The defense also presented evidence of Bowers’ difficult childhood.
Olshan disputed the defense experts’ diagnosis of schizophrenia, asserting that Bowers was not suffering psychosis but had chosen to believe white supremacist rhetoric. And while acknowledging that Bowers was a depressed, neglected child, Olshan downplayed the significance of it, noting that Bowers had held jobs, paid bills, and was an otherwise functioning adult.
“He was not a child, he was a grown man. He was responsible for his actions, not his family and things that happened decades earlier. He was, he is responsible for his actions,” Olshan said.
In order to impose death, jurors must find that aggravating circumstances, which make the crime especially heinous, outweigh mitigating factors that could be seen as diminishing his culpability. Those aggravating circumstances could include the vulnerability of Bowers’ elderly and disabled victims and his targeting of Jewish people.
Olshan played a composite of 911 calls made from inside the synagogue, including audio of people being shot and a survivor’s horrified screams.
He said Bowers had taken “11 people, 11 full lives, 11 people who loved their families, 11 people who loved their friends, 11 people who were loved. … How do you measure the impact of all of that loss?”
The prosecutor spoke about 75-year-old Joyce Fienberg’s care for her family and 65-year-old Richard Gottfried’s devotion to his faith. He said Dr. Jerry Rabinowitz, 66, had the ethos of a country doctor: “He loved delivering babies but he never delivered judgment.” David Rosenthal, 54, and Cecil Rosenthal, 59, intellectually disabled brothers, “loved life,” Olshan said. “But maybe more than anything, they loved Tree of Life.”
The other deceased victims were Rose Mallinger, 97; Bernice Simon, 84, and her husband, Sylvan Simon, 86; Dan Stein, 71; Melvin Wax, 87; and Irving Younger, 69.
The attack also wounded seven people, including five responding police officers. Bowers was shot three times before surrendering when he ran out of ammunition.
___
Rubinkam reported from northeastern Pennsylvania.
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18-year-old from ‘Brainy Bunch’ family graduates with master’s degree
MONTGOMERY, Ala. (WSFA/Gray News) – At age 18, most people are just heading into their freshman year of undergraduate studies. But one 18-year-old from Alabama is graduating with her master’s degree.
Marianna Harding is graduating from Auburn University with a master’s degree in agriculture at the age of 18.
She also graduated from high school at age 11.
Harding comes from a Montgomery family known as “The Brainy Bunch” – she is one of 10 children, most of whom started college by the age of 12. One of the boys even graduated law school at 19.
All the children grew up homeschooled. Harding is the eighth child in the family.
She said there was always healthy competition between siblings.
“We all had different interest levels, and most of us different colleges,” she said.
In 2022, Harding earned her bachelor’s degree virtually from a university in Nebraska. Shortly after, she was off to Auburn’s campus to get her master’s degree.
“Although my focus was very much on studies, there was no lack of fun times,” she said.
While on campus, Harding was part of multiple clubs, a campus employee, and kept active in her church. She hopes that her story will encourage others to go after their goals no matter their age.
Now that she has graduated, Harding will begin working for the Lee County Extension where she’ll teach others about agriculture.
Parents Kip and Mona Lisa Harding made an appearance on NBC’s “Today Show” in 2014 to discuss their book, “The Brainy Bunch: The Harding Family’s Method to College Ready by Age Twelve.” They also have a YouTube channel.
“My kids are not any smarter than anybody else’s, they’re really motivated and they’re very hard working, but really feel like anyone can get these kinds of results,” Mona Lisa Harding said during a 2021 interview.
Copyright 2023 WSFA via Gray Media Group, Inc. All rights reserved.
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(The Hill) – President Biden is opening up about the crummiest advice he’s ever gotten, saying holding grudges “gets you nowhere.”
“I guess the worst advice I’ve ever received was holding a grudge — because lots of times when people do something that is really not good, it’s because they were fearful when they did it. Not fearful of you, but their circumstance,” Biden said in an interview on Jay Shetty’s “On Purpose” podcast released Monday.
“It gets you nowhere, which means people will doubt that I’m really Irish,” Biden quipped.
“But all kidding aside,” the 80-year-old president continued, “Remembering is important, but holding a grudge is not helpful.”
The best advice Biden said he’d been given was to “show up.”
“My mother used to say, ‘Joey, get up. Never bow, never bend. Just get up.’ But showing up, that’s a big part,” he said.
In the wide-ranging chat focused on grief and mental health, Biden also revealed he’s definitely not serving as the country’s TV viewer in chief.
Asked which TV show set in the world of politics and Washington is the most accurate and which is the least, he cracked, “’Mission Impossible.’”
“Look, one of the problems I have is I don’t — and I should — I don’t watch much television,” Biden said.
“And it’s not because I’m above it or anything like that,” he told Shetty during the pair’s conversation at the White House. Biden blamed decades of commuting between D.C. and Delaware as a senator for cutting into potential TV time.
“And so when I get home, there wasn’t much to watch,” Biden said, noting he’d focus his energy on spending time with his then-young children.
“So I’ve been back and forth so much I just haven’t watched many programs,” the 46th president said after describing his usual Amtrak train commute while in the Senate.
“There’s a lot of good stuff, I’m sure. I mean, every once in awhile I turn it on,” Biden said of current television fare.
Living at the executive mansion, which is equipped with a movie theater, has helped his viewing habits, according to Biden.
“I get this list what movies are in and we have the new one,” Biden said of “Oppenheimer,” adding that he’s yet to see the summer box office hit starring Cillian Murphy as the famed real-life Manhattan Project physicist.
“They’re the movies I see these days,” Biden said of the films screened at the White House. “I get to see them at night every once in awhile.”
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Biden has decided to keep Space Command in Colorado, rejecting move to Alabama, officials tell AP
WASHINGTON (AP) — President Joe Biden has decided to keep U.S. Space Command headquarters in Colorado, overturning a last-ditch decision by the Trump administration to move it to Alabama and ending months of politically fueled debate, according to senior U.S. officials.
The officials said Biden was convinced by the head of Space Command, Gen. James Dickinson, who argued that moving his headquarters now would jeopardize military readiness. Dickinson’s view, however, was in contrast to Air Force leadership, who studied the issue at length and determined that relocating to Huntsville, Alabama, was the right move.
The officials spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss the decision ahead of the announcement.
The president, they said, believes that keeping the command in Colorado Springs would avoid a disruption in readiness that the move would cause, particularly as the U.S. races to compete with China in space. And they said Biden firmly believes that maintaining stability will help the military be better able to respond in space over the next decade.
Biden’s decision is sure to enrage Alabama lawmakers and fuel accusations that abortion politics played a role in the choice. The location debate has become entangled in the ongoing battle between Alabama Republican Sen. Tommy Tuberville and the Defense Department over the move to provide travel for troops seeking reproductive health care. Tuberville opposed the policy is blocking hundreds of military promotions in protest.
Formally created in August 2019, the command was temporarily based in Colorado, and Air Force and Space Force leaders initially recommended it stay there. In the final days of his presidency Donald Trump decided it should be based in Huntsville.
The change triggered a number of reviews.
Proponents of keeping the command in Colorado have argued that moving it to Huntsville and creating a new headquarters would set back its progress at a time it needs to move quickly to be positioned to match China’s military space rise. And Colorado Springs is also home to the Air Force Academy, which now graduates Space Force guardians, and more than 24 military space missions, including three Space Force bases.
Huntsville, however, scored higher than Colorado Springs in a Government Accountability Office assessment of potential locations and has long been a home to some of earliest missiles used in the nation’s space programs, including the Saturn V rocket. It is home to the Army’s Space and Missile Defense Command.
According to officials, Air Force Secretary Frank Kendall, who ordered his own review of the matter, leaned toward Huntsville, while Dickinson was staunchly in favor of staying put. The officials said Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin presented both options to Biden.
Copyright 2023 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.
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Russia shot down military drones that struck buildings in Moscow Monday. While Ukraine didn’t claim the strikes, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said Sunday night that “the war is returning to the territory of Russia.”
We get the latest from the Washington Post’s John Hudson.
This article was originally published on WBUR.org.
Copyright 2023 NPR. To see more, visit https://www.npr.org.
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Animal Shelters, Rescue Groups, and Happy Adopters, Nationally and Internationally, Encouraged to Celebrate the Role Adopted Dogs Play in Our Lives
PORT WASHINGTON, N.Y., July 31, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Tuesday, August 1st is DOGust 1ST ®– the official birthday for all rescue dogs – and North Shore Animal League America is encouraging animal lovers around the country and globe to join them in celebrating the incredible meaning our adopted animals add to our lives.
Since the actual dates of birth for most rescued dogs are unknown, Animal League America created DOGust 1st to celebrate rescue dogs (those adopted and those awaiting loving homes.) Since 2008, these "Mutt-i-grees" have had this day designated to honor the incredible impact they make on our lives.
"This is a wonderful opportunity to celebrate rescue dogs and the invaluable role they play in our lives, while raising awareness about the importance of rescue and adoption," said Joanne Yohannan, Senior Vice President, Operations, North Shore Animal League America.
In honor of DOGust 1st, North Shore Animal League America, and many of their shelter partners across the country, will be participating in DOGust 1st festivities throughout the week (August 1 – 7.) By encouraging adoption specials, birthday themed activities, and local media opportunities, even more rescue dogs are expected to find loving, responsible homes.
To find an adoptable pet at a shelter or rescue group in your area go to www.animalleague.org.
To find a participating DOGust 1st group near you visit www.animalleague.org/dogust1st.
For video highlights of DOGust 1st, visit: DOGUST 1ST ASSETS
Photo & Video Credit: North Shore Animal League America
MEDIA CONTACT:
KATHLEEN LYNN
Senior Director of Communications
Cell: (516) 528-7878
Email: KathleenL@animalleague.org
#DOGust1st #GetYourRescueOn
About NORTH SHORE ANIMAL LEAGUE AMERICA
Animal League America has saved more than 1.1 million lives. As the world's largest no-kill rescue and adoption organization, we understand that a rescue isn't complete until each animal is placed into a loving home. Our innovative programs provide education to reduce animal cruelty and advance standards in animal welfare. We reach across the country to rescue animals from overcrowded shelters, unwanted litters, commercial breeding facilities, natural disasters and other emergencies and find them permanent, loving homes. www.animalleague.org
View original content to download multimedia:
SOURCE North Shore Animal League America
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Trader Joe’s falafel recalled because it may contain rocks
(Gray News) – Trader Joe’s is recalling a cooked falafel product because it “may contain rocks.”
The grocery chain announced Friday that the supplier of its Fully Cooked Falafel (SKU# 93935) warned it about the product possibly containing rocks.
Trader Joe’s said the recalled falafel is sold in its stores in Alabama, Arkansas, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Florida, Georgia, Iowa, Illinois, Indiana, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Massachusetts, Maryland, Maine, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, North Carolina, Nebraska, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, Ohio, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Virginia, Vermont, Wisconsin and Washington, D.C.
“All potentially affected product has been removed from sale and destroyed,” Trader Joe’s said in its announcement.
Customers are urged to discard the falafel and return it to any Trader Joe’s location for a full refund.
Trader Joe’s also announced Friday that it was recalling some of its cookies because they also may contain rocks, and the chain recently recalled its broccoli cheddar soup because it may contain insects.
Copyright 2023 Gray Media Group, Inc. All rights reserved.
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https://www.wafb.com/2023/07/31/trader-joes-falafel-recalled-because-it-may-contain-rocks/
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HAMPTON BEACH, N.H. (AP) — A small plane that crashed into the ocean just off a New Hampshire beach over the weekend flipped upside down when it hit the water before slowly rolling back into an upright position.
The pilot of the single-engine Piper PA-18 plane that had been pulling a banner advertising a concert made his own way out of the aircraft after Saturday’s noontime crash and was assisted ashore by Hampton Beach lifeguards who moments before had been keeping a close eye on swimmers.
The pilot was evaluated at the scene but was not hurt, police said.
The plane had been buzzing over the crowded beach all morning dragging a banner for an Eagles tribute band playing Saturday night at a local venue, said Tammy Nowlan of Fitchburg, Massachusetts, who was at the beach with her boyfriend and caught video of the crash on her phone.
When the plane dropped the banner, she knew something was wrong.
“I remember my boyfriend saying, ‘Looks like something fell off that plane,'” Nowlan said on Monday.
She grabbed her phone and captured the plane hitting the water about 30 yards (27 meters) off the shore and somersaulting over.
“It was the craziest thing,” she said. “It just slowly glided in like something from a movie. I saw the pilot get out and he was safe, and I said, ‘Thank goodness.’”
Authorities did not release the pilot’s name but the aircraft is registered to the owner of Sky Lines Aerial Advertising, based at nearby Hampton Airfield, according to Federal Aviation Administration records. Voicemail messages were left with the company on Monday.
The FAA and the National Transportation Safety Board are investigating.
According to preliminary information released by the FAA on Monday, the aircraft crashed “for unknown reasons.”
The plane was hauled onto the sand and eventually turned over to the owner.
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https://www.seattletimes.com/nation-world/nation/new-hampshire-beachgoers-witness-small-plane-crash-into-surf-flip-in-water/?utm_source=RSS&utm_medium=Referral&utm_campaign=RSS_nation-world
| 2023-07-31T19:59:04
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https://www.seattletimes.com/nation-world/nation/new-hampshire-beachgoers-witness-small-plane-crash-into-surf-flip-in-water/?utm_source=RSS&utm_medium=Referral&utm_campaign=RSS_nation-world
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Editor’s note: This story has been updated to correct what was stolen. We regret the error.
BELEN, N.M. (KRQE) — A 6-year-old boy’s lemonade stand was burglarized last week in Belen, New Mexico, while he was trying to raise money for a good cause. After news spread about the theft, the community stepped up and rallied around him.
Connor Brock had a goal: raise $250 to donate to St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital as part of their “Lemonade Stand in July” challenge.
His parents were also raising money for Connor’s benefit: “Connor has autism level two, and we’ve used the lemonade stand not only to benefit St. Jude’s Children’s Hospital but also to teach Connor responsibility, to recognize the one dollar bill, the president on it, how to count money,” said Abbegale Brock, Connor’s mother. She wanted to teach him about things like empathy and compassion.
That all came to a halt when thieves stole snacks, drinks and equipment from the lemonade stand.
“I was just dumbfounded because we weren’t gone long. Went to get something to eat, and it didn’t make any sense. It was items that you wouldn’t even think anyone would take,” Brock recalled.
Brock said she had to explain to Connor what had happened: “I just told him somebody else must have needed it more than we did.”
This weekend, Connor found himself back in business when two motorcycle groups rallied dozens of bikers Saturday and Sunday to help out.
“We heard the unfortunate situation that happened to him last week, and we just wanted to stand behind him and come show some support and just let him know that we’re here, and we got his back,” said Marcos Jaramillo, president of Moose Riders Belen 1680.
Cup after cup, from Saturday to Sunday, donations came pouring in.
“I contacted all my folks, and we put it out there four days ago. Four days ago, we put this out there, and I believe we had over 56 bikes show up this morning,” said Andrew Witham, with Rogue Biker Life, “If you’re not a part of the solution, you’re definitely a part of the problem, and if we can help in any way shape or form, we’re going to.”
“As a biker community, what we’re saying as bikers is, we’re going to be there,” explained Toby Gutierrez, owner of Rogue Biker, “If you’re going to come out and do this, you can expect to see us.”
An anonymous donation of lemonade jars for Connor was also dropped off at the Belen Police Department, and Brock said the New Mexico Gas Company donated money and built him a new lemonade stand to use.
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https://www.kron4.com/news/national/biker-groups-community-support-6-year-old-boy-after-thieves-target-lemonade-stand/
| 2023-07-31T19:59:05
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https://www.kron4.com/news/national/biker-groups-community-support-6-year-old-boy-after-thieves-target-lemonade-stand/
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Defective: After recalls, Americans continue to die and get injured as products remain in homes and for sale online
Watchdogs say companies don’t do enough to alert customers to dangerous household goods
Deer Park, New York (InvestigateTV) — P.J. Matzen was only 3 months old when he uttered his first words to his parents. “I love you,” he babbles in a video taken by his mother.
They were the only words he would ever say.
On Oct. 11, 2019, Phillip Matzen found his son blue, lifeless and face down in an inclined sleeper made by Kids2. P.J. died the following day.
His parents had no idea that six months earlier, the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission and the manufacturers of two of these popular baby products had issued recalls for them.
The Matzens also had no idea the CPSC hired an independent doctor to review these products for possible danger. The month before P.J. died, that doctor declared “no inclined sleep products are safe” warning the design has an increased risk for suffocation because babies can roll and aren’t able to “self-correct.”
By then, millions of these sleepers had been sold.
But the April 2019 recalls of Kids2 rocking sleepers and the Fisher-Price Rock ‘n Play did not stop the deaths. P.J. is one of at least a dozen infants who died in one of those inclined sleepers after the recalls, according to CPSC.
Because of the rising death toll — and the availability of those products on the secondary market — the CPSC and the manufacturers of those sleepers re-announced the recalls this past January.
“Unfortunately, today’s announcement highlights the fact that these products are still in too many homes, and babies continue to be put at risk,” CPSC chairman Alexander Hoehn-Saric wrote in a statement accompanying the re-announcement.
However, the re-announcement of the Kids2 rocking sleepers and the Fisher-Price Rock ‘n Play is not an anomaly.
An InvestigateTV analysis of CPSC data shows that since 2000, the agency has had to re-announce the recall of at least 46 products because the original alert did not reach the ears of consumers and, in many cases, continued to cause harm.
The deaths of at least 16 children or adults were tied to a defective product that had been previously recalled, the analysis of the federal data shows. At least 300 were injured.
Consumer advocates such as Nancy Cowles with Kids in Danger say the government and the manufacturers need to do more to protect Americans — particularly infants and toddlers — from products they know are dangerous.
“Make sure that once you do the recall you actually get them out of homes,” said Cowles, who is the executive director of the Chicago nonprofit that advocates for safer baby products. “Most products — children’s products — that we’ve tracked . . . are still in homes. Nowhere near a majority of products that are recalled are taken out of homes.”
The story of the inclined sleepers epitomizes what consumers advocates say is a flawed recall system that leaves defective and deadly products in American homes and for sale on online marketplaces and at garage sales.
A family was unaware of a recall until it was too late
Kiara Matzen once told her mother — P.J.’s grandmother — that she feels as if her son’s life was nothing but a dream because it was cut so short.
“Every day, I’m still trying to process it,” Kiara said.
Kiara was 19 when she learned that she was pregnant. Friends and relatives showered her with many necessities for the baby, including a Kids2 Ingenuity Rock N’ Soothe Sleeper.
Kids2 began marketing its incline sleepers three years after Fisher-Price designed and launched its Rock ‘n Play in 2009, which was the first incline sleeper to hit the market and became instantly popular.
About 4.7 million Rock ‘n Plays were sold during its 10 years on the market. Kids2 sold nearly 700,000 inclined sleepers that had various different names.
Kiara doesn’t remember who gave her the sleeper, but P.J. slept in it every day from the time he was born.
On the morning of Oct. 11, 2019, Kiara escorted her mother, Lydia Calvacca, to a doctor’s appointment. While waiting to be seen, Kiara pulled up an app on her phone that connected her to cameras in her home.
She wanted to check on P.J.
“I saw something wasn’t right. He was on his stomach,” Kiara said.
Lydia also caught a glimpse of the image on Kiara’s phone.
“I saw the way he was laying in the bassinet. And I was an EMT for seven years and I knew it was not a normal sleeping position,” Lydia said. “I said to her, ‘Call your husband right now. Tell him to wake the baby up.’”
P.J.’s father immediately dialed 911 after finding his son lifeless. Police officers arrived before medics and rushed P.J. to the hospital.
He died the following day.
“That night that he was in the hospital, my whole family came to the hospital, and my sister-in-law said that ... ‘I think I heard that it was recalled,’” Kiara said.
It was the first time she had heard that P.J.’s inclined sleeper had been recalled.
“If they would have spent more time and attention, maybe even money to get that recall product, that it was recalled out, then, you know ... me and probably a bunch of other parents would have stopped using it,” Kiara said.
Both Kids2 and Fisher-Price posted about the original recall on their Facebook pages and Twitter feeds, but neither has since mentioned the re-announcement of the recall made earlier this year on their social media accounts, based on a search of their posts on each platform. They did, however, place the re-announcements of the recalls on their websites.
Neither company responded to InvestigateTV’s requests for comment.
Despite the best efforts of the CPSC to alert consumers to recalls, the agency is largely powerless to force companies to do more.
CPSC publicizes recalls on its websites and social media platforms, but it doesn’t have the budget to launch campaigns about dangerous products.
“It would be much better if the companies actually used the same sort of marketing budget and marketing strategies that they initially used to sell the products to get these defective products off the markets,” said Daniel Mann, a product liability lawyer in Philadelphia who has represented dozens of families harmed by dangerous consumer goods.
After some recalls, Americans still are vulnerable to death and injury
The 46 products that have had re-announced recalls have been linked to at least 150 deaths and at least 800 injuries, with the majority of the harm coming before the recall.
In 2016, the CPSC re-announced the recall of trapeze rings on a backyard play house because so few of the products had been returned, meaning they likely were still in use. The agency received more than 100 reports of the rings breaking, leading to injuries. It did not indicate how many reports of breakage it received after the recall.
In 2012, a 7-month-old Houston baby died in a crib that had been recalled two years earlier.
Months after a 2008 recall of a bassinet that had been linked to strangulation and suffocations deaths, CPSC reported that two more babies had died.
And the problems aren’t just isolated to items for children.
Take the case of a bathrobe that was recalled in 2009 because of flammability failures: In the months after the recall, the CPSC learned that six elderly women died when the robes they were wearing caught fire. Most of them were cooking at the time.
Still, Mann, the Philadelphia attorney, said “the Fisher-Price Rock ‘n Play is probably the most epic consumer product disaster in United States history.”
In June 2021, a Fisher-Price executive admitted to Congress during a hearing that it was aware of at least 97 infant deaths linked to a Rock ‘n Play.
At least eight more died after that, including a 4-month-old who died in September 2020 and a 2-month-old who died in March 2021.
Mann represents a family whose 4-month-old son died on Feb. 1, 2021 while in a Rock ‘n Play at a babysitter’s home. Neither his parents nor the babysitter were aware of the recall, Mann said.
“For those parents where their deaths occur after the recall,” Mann said, “it’s even more tragic.”
Federal law leaves CPSC without necessary authority to rid households of dangerous products
CPSC chairman Hoehn-Saric admits that his agency is largely powerless to force companies to do more in recalls.
The Consumer Product Safety Act tips the balance of power away from the government regulator and into the hands of the companies that make and market products.
When a defect is discovered, the companies decide when and how a recall will be conducted.
“We can push them,” he said, “but forcing them is a whole different matter.”
The CPSC’s so-called sister agencies — the Food and Drug Administration and the National Highway Transportation Safety Administration — which also issue recalls, can alert the public on their own, without a company’s permission.
“We don’t know (of) other federal agencies subject to a law like this. Getting information out to consumers quickly is extremely important to prevent those unnecessary deaths and injuries,” Hoehn-Saric said.
But only Congress has the power to unlock the handcuffs that it has put on an agency that is supposed to regulate more than 15,000 categories of everyday products from appliances to tools to toys.
The CPSC can’t force a company to spend money to advertise a recall. It also can’t dictate what consumers will receive in exchange for returning a defective product.
Fisher-Price, for example, on its website offered consumers the choice of a potty chair, a stuffed Barney the dinosaur or a Thomas & Friends racetrack in exchange for the Rock ‘n Play, which cost between $50 and $150. The recall announcements mention that consumers should contact the company for a voucher or refund.
Kids2 offered a refund for its defective inclined sleepers.
Recalled products can be found on secondary marketplaces and at garage sales
The CPSC’s own reports show that many recalled products remain unaccounted for, leaving consumers at risk.
In its fiscal year 2021 report on its annual performance measures, the CPSC reported that 32% of products recalled during that period had been returned or the defective part had been corrected.
The agency noted that this rate meant that it had met its performance goals.
“The other issue that we have in terms of having hard metrics is some of the recalls, if it’s for a cheap product, that’s a buck, we may never know exactly what happens because a lot of people hear about those recalls and just throw the product away,” Hoehn-Saric said.
More dangerously, however, the products may end up on secondary marketplaces and in garage sales.
Hoehn-Saric has taken a particularly hard stance against Meta and its Facebook Marketplaces.
Rock ‘n Plays continue to show up for sale there.
InvestigateTV bought a Rock ‘n Play on Facebook Marketplace in December and found others for sale in early July. Consumers were also selling the Kids2 rocking sleeper on the platform in that month.
“You should never have seen that product on their marketplace. They’re in a position where they can see what’s going up on the marketplace before it gets to the public,” Hoehn-Saric said. “And that’s the best time to step in and say, ‘You can’t post that. There’s a recall on it.’”
When asked about finding recalled items on its marketplace, a spokeswoman for Meta issued a brief statement: “Like other platforms where people can buy and sell goods, there are instances of people knowingly or unknowingly selling recalled goods on Marketplace. We take this issue seriously and when we find listings that violate our rules, we remove them.”
It is illegal to sell a recalled product. Big box stores and online retailers such as Amazon generally are quick to remove recalled items from their shelves.
In 2022, TJX, the parent company of T.J. Maxx, Marshalls and Homegoods, agreed to pay a $13 million fine to the CPSC for knowingly selling inclined sleepers after the recall.
When the CPSC finds a recalled item on a secondary marketplace, the agency asks the platform to remove it — but it’s often a game of whack-a-mole: as one goes down, another comes up.
Consumers also sometimes disguise the products by failing to mention their specific names in the description. For example, “Rock ‘n Play” won’t return any results on Facebook Marketplace. But the product will turn up if searching for bassinets, sleepers or rockers.
Regarding the secondary marketplaces, Hoehn-Saric said that it is “very difficult for [CPSC] to require or force them to take action. I think that is important. And I think it’s good business for them to be able to protect their own customers.”
Grieving family members become disciples of safe sleeping practices
Since P.J.’s death, Kiara Matzen and Lydia Calvacca have turned their agony into advocacy through their social media channels.
They post about the importance of following safe sleep guidelines, where babies should be on their backs, on a firm surface with no blankets, pillows or stuffed toys in the crib or bassinet.
“There’s a [Facebook] page called safe infant sleep ... It’s a support group for moms that have lost their babies to unsafe sleep practices. And they are just wonderful. They’re wonderful. Every time I see a woman with a new baby, I always tell them about this page,” Calvacca said. “I have pictures of my grandson on my desk and ... I always tell them the story. I don’t just say, ‘Oh, that’s my grandson.’ I let them know what happened because I feel it’s my responsibility to educate people so this doesn’t happen to them.”
Kiara and Phillip now have two daughters. The youngest is just 2 months old.
The family sued Kids2 and reached a confidential settlement last year.
Calvacca said that when she keeps her granddaughters for overnight stays, she’s too afraid to sleep.
“It sucks. Because I want to be able to enjoy them the way I enjoyed P.J. without worrying and being nervous that something’s going to happen. And this incident has taken that away from me,” Calvacca said. “It’s taken some of my joy for my other grandchildren away from me, and that angers me.”
InvestigateTV associate producer Austin Hedgcoth contributed to this story.
Copyright 2023 Gray Media Group, Inc. All rights reserved.
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https://www.wlbt.com/2023/07/31/defective-after-recalls-americans-continue-die-get-injured-products-remain-homes-sale-online/
| 2023-07-31T19:59:05
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https://www.wlbt.com/2023/07/31/defective-after-recalls-americans-continue-die-get-injured-products-remain-homes-sale-online/
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Defective: After recalls, Americans continue to die and get injured as products remain in homes and for sale online
Watchdogs say companies don’t do enough to alert customers to dangerous household goods
Deer Park, New York (InvestigateTV) — P.J. Matzen was only 3 months old when he uttered his first words to his parents. “I love you,” he babbles in a video taken by his mother.
They were the only words he would ever say.
On Oct. 11, 2019, Phillip Matzen found his son blue, lifeless and face down in an inclined sleeper made by Kids2. P.J. died the following day.
His parents had no idea that six months earlier, the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission and the manufacturers of two of these popular baby products had issued recalls for them.
The Matzens also had no idea the CPSC hired an independent doctor to review these products for possible danger. The month before P.J. died, that doctor declared “no inclined sleep products are safe” warning the design has an increased risk for suffocation because babies can roll and aren’t able to “self-correct.”
By then, millions of these sleepers had been sold.
But the April 2019 recalls of Kids2 rocking sleepers and the Fisher-Price Rock ‘n Play did not stop the deaths. P.J. is one of at least a dozen infants who died in one of those inclined sleepers after the recalls, according to CPSC.
Because of the rising death toll — and the availability of those products on the secondary market — the CPSC and the manufacturers of those sleepers re-announced the recalls this past January.
“Unfortunately, today’s announcement highlights the fact that these products are still in too many homes, and babies continue to be put at risk,” CPSC chairman Alexander Hoehn-Saric wrote in a statement accompanying the re-announcement.
However, the re-announcement of the Kids2 rocking sleepers and the Fisher-Price Rock ‘n Play is not an anomaly.
An InvestigateTV analysis of CPSC data shows that since 2000, the agency has had to re-announce the recall of at least 46 products because the original alert did not reach the ears of consumers and, in many cases, continued to cause harm.
The deaths of at least 16 children or adults were tied to a defective product that had been previously recalled, the analysis of the federal data shows. At least 300 were injured.
Consumer advocates such as Nancy Cowles with Kids in Danger say the government and the manufacturers need to do more to protect Americans — particularly infants and toddlers — from products they know are dangerous.
“Make sure that once you do the recall you actually get them out of homes,” said Cowles, who is the executive director of the Chicago nonprofit that advocates for safer baby products. “Most products — children’s products — that we’ve tracked . . . are still in homes. Nowhere near a majority of products that are recalled are taken out of homes.”
The story of the inclined sleepers epitomizes what consumers advocates say is a flawed recall system that leaves defective and deadly products in American homes and for sale on online marketplaces and at garage sales.
A family was unaware of a recall until it was too late
Kiara Matzen once told her mother — P.J.’s grandmother — that she feels as if her son’s life was nothing but a dream because it was cut so short.
“Every day, I’m still trying to process it,” Kiara said.
Kiara was 19 when she learned that she was pregnant. Friends and relatives showered her with many necessities for the baby, including a Kids2 Ingenuity Rock N’ Soothe Sleeper.
Kids2 began marketing its incline sleepers three years after Fisher-Price designed and launched its Rock ‘n Play in 2009, which was the first incline sleeper to hit the market and became instantly popular.
About 4.7 million Rock ‘n Plays were sold during its 10 years on the market. Kids2 sold nearly 700,000 inclined sleepers that had various different names.
Kiara doesn’t remember who gave her the sleeper, but P.J. slept in it every day from the time he was born.
On the morning of Oct. 11, 2019, Kiara escorted her mother, Lydia Calvacca, to a doctor’s appointment. While waiting to be seen, Kiara pulled up an app on her phone that connected her to cameras in her home.
She wanted to check on P.J.
“I saw something wasn’t right. He was on his stomach,” Kiara said.
Lydia also caught a glimpse of the image on Kiara’s phone.
“I saw the way he was laying in the bassinet. And I was an EMT for seven years and I knew it was not a normal sleeping position,” Lydia said. “I said to her, ‘Call your husband right now. Tell him to wake the baby up.’”
P.J.’s father immediately dialed 911 after finding his son lifeless. Police officers arrived before medics and rushed P.J. to the hospital.
He died the following day.
“That night that he was in the hospital, my whole family came to the hospital, and my sister-in-law said that ... ‘I think I heard that it was recalled,’” Kiara said.
It was the first time she had heard that P.J.’s inclined sleeper had been recalled.
“If they would have spent more time and attention, maybe even money to get that recall product, that it was recalled out, then, you know ... me and probably a bunch of other parents would have stopped using it,” Kiara said.
Both Kids2 and Fisher-Price posted about the original recall on their Facebook pages and Twitter feeds, but neither has since mentioned the re-announcement of the recall made earlier this year on their social media accounts, based on a search of their posts on each platform. They did, however, place the re-announcements of the recalls on their websites.
Neither company responded to InvestigateTV’s requests for comment.
Despite the best efforts of the CPSC to alert consumers to recalls, the agency is largely powerless to force companies to do more.
CPSC publicizes recalls on its websites and social media platforms, but it doesn’t have the budget to launch campaigns about dangerous products.
“It would be much better if the companies actually used the same sort of marketing budget and marketing strategies that they initially used to sell the products to get these defective products off the markets,” said Daniel Mann, a product liability lawyer in Philadelphia who has represented dozens of families harmed by dangerous consumer goods.
After some recalls, Americans still are vulnerable to death and injury
The 46 products that have had re-announced recalls have been linked to at least 150 deaths and at least 800 injuries, with the majority of the harm coming before the recall.
In 2016, the CPSC re-announced the recall of trapeze rings on a backyard play house because so few of the products had been returned, meaning they likely were still in use. The agency received more than 100 reports of the rings breaking, leading to injuries. It did not indicate how many reports of breakage it received after the recall.
In 2012, a 7-month-old Houston baby died in a crib that had been recalled two years earlier.
Months after a 2008 recall of a bassinet that had been linked to strangulation and suffocations deaths, CPSC reported that two more babies had died.
And the problems aren’t just isolated to items for children.
Take the case of a bathrobe that was recalled in 2009 because of flammability failures: In the months after the recall, the CPSC learned that six elderly women died when the robes they were wearing caught fire. Most of them were cooking at the time.
Still, Mann, the Philadelphia attorney, said “the Fisher-Price Rock ‘n Play is probably the most epic consumer product disaster in United States history.”
In June 2021, a Fisher-Price executive admitted to Congress during a hearing that it was aware of at least 97 infant deaths linked to a Rock ‘n Play.
At least eight more died after that, including a 4-month-old who died in September 2020 and a 2-month-old who died in March 2021.
Mann represents a family whose 4-month-old son died on Feb. 1, 2021 while in a Rock ‘n Play at a babysitter’s home. Neither his parents nor the babysitter were aware of the recall, Mann said.
“For those parents where their deaths occur after the recall,” Mann said, “it’s even more tragic.”
Federal law leaves CPSC without necessary authority to rid households of dangerous products
CPSC chairman Hoehn-Saric admits that his agency is largely powerless to force companies to do more in recalls.
The Consumer Product Safety Act tips the balance of power away from the government regulator and into the hands of the companies that make and market products.
When a defect is discovered, the companies decide when and how a recall will be conducted.
“We can push them,” he said, “but forcing them is a whole different matter.”
The CPSC’s so-called sister agencies — the Food and Drug Administration and the National Highway Transportation Safety Administration — which also issue recalls, can alert the public on their own, without a company’s permission.
“We don’t know (of) other federal agencies subject to a law like this. Getting information out to consumers quickly is extremely important to prevent those unnecessary deaths and injuries,” Hoehn-Saric said.
But only Congress has the power to unlock the handcuffs that it has put on an agency that is supposed to regulate more than 15,000 categories of everyday products from appliances to tools to toys.
The CPSC can’t force a company to spend money to advertise a recall. It also can’t dictate what consumers will receive in exchange for returning a defective product.
Fisher-Price, for example, on its website offered consumers the choice of a potty chair, a stuffed Barney the dinosaur or a Thomas & Friends racetrack in exchange for the Rock ‘n Play, which cost between $50 and $150. The recall announcements mention that consumers should contact the company for a voucher or refund.
Kids2 offered a refund for its defective inclined sleepers.
Recalled products can be found on secondary marketplaces and at garage sales
The CPSC’s own reports show that many recalled products remain unaccounted for, leaving consumers at risk.
In its fiscal year 2021 report on its annual performance measures, the CPSC reported that 32% of products recalled during that period had been returned or the defective part had been corrected.
The agency noted that this rate meant that it had met its performance goals.
“The other issue that we have in terms of having hard metrics is some of the recalls, if it’s for a cheap product, that’s a buck, we may never know exactly what happens because a lot of people hear about those recalls and just throw the product away,” Hoehn-Saric said.
More dangerously, however, the products may end up on secondary marketplaces and in garage sales.
Hoehn-Saric has taken a particularly hard stance against Meta and its Facebook Marketplaces.
Rock ‘n Plays continue to show up for sale there.
InvestigateTV bought a Rock ‘n Play on Facebook Marketplace in December and found others for sale in early July. Consumers were also selling the Kids2 rocking sleeper on the platform in that month.
“You should never have seen that product on their marketplace. They’re in a position where they can see what’s going up on the marketplace before it gets to the public,” Hoehn-Saric said. “And that’s the best time to step in and say, ‘You can’t post that. There’s a recall on it.’”
When asked about finding recalled items on its marketplace, a spokeswoman for Meta issued a brief statement: “Like other platforms where people can buy and sell goods, there are instances of people knowingly or unknowingly selling recalled goods on Marketplace. We take this issue seriously and when we find listings that violate our rules, we remove them.”
It is illegal to sell a recalled product. Big box stores and online retailers such as Amazon generally are quick to remove recalled items from their shelves.
In 2022, TJX, the parent company of T.J. Maxx, Marshalls and Homegoods, agreed to pay a $13 million fine to the CPSC for knowingly selling inclined sleepers after the recall.
When the CPSC finds a recalled item on a secondary marketplace, the agency asks the platform to remove it — but it’s often a game of whack-a-mole: as one goes down, another comes up.
Consumers also sometimes disguise the products by failing to mention their specific names in the description. For example, “Rock ‘n Play” won’t return any results on Facebook Marketplace. But the product will turn up if searching for bassinets, sleepers or rockers.
Regarding the secondary marketplaces, Hoehn-Saric said that it is “very difficult for [CPSC] to require or force them to take action. I think that is important. And I think it’s good business for them to be able to protect their own customers.”
Grieving family members become disciples of safe sleeping practices
Since P.J.’s death, Kiara Matzen and Lydia Calvacca have turned their agony into advocacy through their social media channels.
They post about the importance of following safe sleep guidelines, where babies should be on their backs, on a firm surface with no blankets, pillows or stuffed toys in the crib or bassinet.
“There’s a [Facebook] page called safe infant sleep ... It’s a support group for moms that have lost their babies to unsafe sleep practices. And they are just wonderful. They’re wonderful. Every time I see a woman with a new baby, I always tell them about this page,” Calvacca said. “I have pictures of my grandson on my desk and ... I always tell them the story. I don’t just say, ‘Oh, that’s my grandson.’ I let them know what happened because I feel it’s my responsibility to educate people so this doesn’t happen to them.”
Kiara and Phillip now have two daughters. The youngest is just 2 months old.
The family sued Kids2 and reached a confidential settlement last year.
Calvacca said that when she keeps her granddaughters for overnight stays, she’s too afraid to sleep.
“It sucks. Because I want to be able to enjoy them the way I enjoyed P.J. without worrying and being nervous that something’s going to happen. And this incident has taken that away from me,” Calvacca said. “It’s taken some of my joy for my other grandchildren away from me, and that angers me.”
InvestigateTV associate producer Austin Hedgcoth contributed to this story.
Copyright 2023 Gray Media Group, Inc. All rights reserved.
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Actor Paul Reubens — best known as the character Pee-wee Herman — died Sunday of cancer. He was 70.
"Last night we said farewell to Paul Reubens, an iconic American actor, comedian, writer and producer whose beloved character Pee-wee Herman delighted generations of children and adults with his positivity, whimsy and belief in the importance of kindness," read a statement on his Instagram. "Paul bravely and privately fought cancer for years with his trademark tenacity and wit."
The story of "a guy and his bike" made a cultural splash when the film Pee-wee's Big Adventure — directed by Tim Burton — premiered in 1985. Suddenly, a raft of childhood phrases were everywhere:
I know you are but what am I? I know you are but what am I?
That's my name! Don't wear it out!
Reubens created Pee-wee in 1977 as a member of Los Angeles improvisational group The Groundlings. And the character went on to have a long life in a stage and TV show before the film.
Pee-wee's childish but big-hearted antics became beloved — but Reubens himself was more troubled. In 1991 he pleaded no contest to indecent exposure in an adult movie theater; about a decade later, he pleaded guilty to possessing an obscene image of a minor. His reputation as a sweet, children's performer never recovered.
Copyright 2023 NPR. To see more, visit https://www.npr.org.
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The Fitness Superstore to Exclusively Carry the REP Line
DENVER, July 31, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Home and commercial gyms in the United Kingdom and Ireland are about to level up.
One of the USA's top gym equipment brands has joined forces with the UK's largest speciality fitness retailer. Starting this summer, Bodypower Sports Ltd. (trading as Fitness Superstore) will carry a large range of REP Fitness equipment. This expansion was in response to a growing demand overseas, after REP took the US by storm. It kicks off the launch of REP products throughout all of Europe, so more people can have access to REP's versatile, quality, innovative equipment.
REP, founded a decade ago in Colorado by two gym-loving brothers, has risen to become America's most popular brand in the home gym market. It offers a full line of gym gear, all designed by in-house, weightlifting engineers for both commercial and home gyms.
REP's award-winning power racks, benches, functional training gyms, and more will soon be available for UK customers to try out and order in Fitness Superstore showrooms across the UK (11 stores). Fitness Superstore, founded in 1994, is the largest supplier of specialist fitness equipment in the UK and is proud to feature the largest fitness equipment showrooms in the UK.
Fitness Superstore will also carry REP on its website, to be delivered throughout the UK and Ireland.
"Fitness Superstore is proud to exclusively represent this fantastic and innovative brand in the UK," says Paul Walker, Fitness Superstore managing director and owner.
Ryan McGrotty, co-founder or REP, echoes that. He says Fitness Superstore and REP make a great partnership because both are staffed by real-life fitness enthusiasts and professionals; they both offer a full range of equipment, and they both value creating community and making fitness accessible to all.
"We're excited to be working with such a strong partner in the UK with Fitness Superstore. We know they will offer a great shopping experience for all our fans in the UK who have been eagerly awaiting the availability of our products," says McGrotty. "Their broad store footprint will make it convenient for everyone to easily see and test our products before taking them home.
ABOUT REP
REP Fitness designs and sells world-class, innovative strength equipment that is sold around the world. REP was founded in Colorado in 2012 by two brothers with a shared passion for fitness and has grown into more than 300,000 square feet of office and distribution space and a team of more than 150 dedicated fitness enthusiasts. That shared passion for fitness is what drives REP's innovative spirit, where creating class-leading fitness equipment, with an emphasis on incredible home gyms, is paramount.
REP has been listed twice on the Inc. 5,000 fastest-growing companies — in 2018 and in 2021. REP products are frequently listed as top choices in many fitness publications, such as Men's Health.
For more information, visit repfitness.com. Connect with REP on Instagram, YouTube, Facebook, TikTok, and LinkedIn.
ABOUT FITNESS SUPERSTORE
Fitness Superstore, founded in 1994, is the largest supplier of specialist fitness equipment in the UK and is proud to feature the largest fitness equipment showrooms in the UK.
Learn more at fitness-superstore.co.uk. You can also connect with Fitness Superstore on Facebook, Instagram, YouTube, and TikTok.
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Aleksandar Kovacevic 2023 Mifel Open Odds
After bowing out in the round of 32 of the Hall of Fame Open in his most recent tournament (losing to Jordan Thompson), Aleksandar Kovacevic will open the Mifel Open versus Omni Kumar (in the round of 32). Kovacevic currently is +3300 to win it all at Cabo Sports Complex.
Find all the latest odds for the 2023 Mifel Open and place your bets with a new user bonus from BetMGM.
Kovacevic at the 2023 Mifel Open
- Next Round: Round of 32
- Tournament Dates: July 28 - August 6
- Venue: Cabo Sports Complex
- Location: Los Cabos, Mexico
- Court Surface: Hard
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Kovacevic's Next Match
In the round of 32 of the Mifel Open, on Monday, July 31 (at 11:40 PM ET), Kovacevic will play Kumar.
Kovacevic currently has odds of -350 to win his next matchup versus Kumar. Check out the latest odds for the entire field at BetMGM.
Want to bet on Kovacevic? Head to BetMGM using our link for a bonus bet special offer for new players!
Kovacevic Stats
- In his last match, Kovacevic came up short 0-6, 1-6 against Thompson in the Round of 32 of the Hall of Fame Open.
- Kovacevic is 9-14 over the past 12 months, with no tournament victories.
- Kovacevic is 7-9 on hard courts over the past 12 months.
- Kovacevic, over the past 12 months, has played 23 matches across all court types, and 25.2 games per match.
- On hard courts, Kovacevic has played 16 matches over the past year, and 25.6 games per match.
- When it comes to serve/return winning percentages over the past 12 months, Kovacevic has won 76.7% of his games on serve, and 17.0% on return.
- On hard courts over the past year, Kovacevic has been victorious in 17.6% of his return games and 78.6% of his service games.
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MUNCIE, Ind. (AP) — A shooting that left one person dead and 17 others wounded early Sunday in a central Indiana city unfolded at an outdoor party attended by hundreds of revelers as police were calling the venue’s owner to shut down the gathering, authorities said Monday.
Muncie Police Chief Nathan Sloan said no arrests have been made in the shooting, which killed 30-year-old Joseph E. Bonner III, whom the chief said was among those attending the large party in the city about 60 miles (100 kilometers) northeast of Indianapolis.
Sloan said police were aware that the owner of a business that periodically rents out space for events was hosting a block party that got “out of control,” with between 500 and up to 1,000 in attendance. Photos of the scene showed police tags marking what appeared to be dozens of bullets on the street.
Sloan said police were not at the scene at the time of the shooting just after 1 a.m. Sunday, but they were trying to get the business owner to end the party.
“We made a phone call to the owner and asked him to get things shut down. The streets were packed. Before we could make contact and get something done, before we could get that shut down, the gunfire erupted,” Sloan said during a news conference.
He said police were asking for any witnesses to the shooting or people with pictures or video of the incident to contact the Muncie Police Department. Sloan said some people at the scene refused to tell officers what had happened.
He declined to provide details of the investigation, including how many people may have fired weapons but described a scene of chaos as officers and first responders arrived at the location on Muncie’s east side.
“Our people were applying tourniquets, administering first aid, providing CPR. And they we were rushing people to the hospital in our police cars because we didn’t have time to wait,” Sloan said.
Mayor Dan Ridenour said one man was killed and 17 other people suffered gunshot wounds in Sunday’s shooting. He said the shooting had left the community “shaken to the core by violence” and choked up repeatedly during the news conference.
After the shooting, police had to separate people in a Muncie hospital’s parking lot who were arguing and officers had to clear a path at the hospital’s entrance for anyone needing medical attention to enter, said Muncie Deputy Police Chief Melissa Criswell.
She said that among the 17 who survived the shooting, eight remained hospitalized — five at Indiana University Health Ball Memorial Hospital in Muncie, and four others who were taken to Indianapolis hospitals.
She said that among the four taken to Indianapolis, one remains in critical condition, two are listed as stable and the fourth had been discharged from a hospital.
Criswell said that two of the people wounded in Sunday’s shooting were minors, and that a nineteenth person who was injured may have been struck by a car.
IU Health spokesperson Neil Gifford said five people remained hospitalized at the Muncie hospital, down from 13 who were being treated on Sunday morning. He said he could not provide conditions of the five patients without being provided with their names.
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(The Hill) – Country singer Jason Aldean defended his controversial song “Try That in a Small Town” in Massachusetts over the weekend, saying the message of the track was demonstrated by the city of Boston after the devastating marathon bombing 10 years ago.
Speaking to fans at the Xfinity Center in Mansfield, about 40 miles from where the terrorist attack occurred, killing three and injuring hundreds, Aldean told fans the message of his song has been “overshadowed by all the bulls—.”
“I was lying in bed last night and I was thinking to myself, you guys would get this better than anybody, right,” Aldean said, according to NBC News. “Because I remember a time, I think it was April 2013, when the Boston Marathon bombings happened, you guys remember this right?” he asked the audience.
“The last time that happened was a whole, not a small town, a big-ass town came together, no matter your color, no matter anything,” he continued. “No matter if you’re anything. The whole country and especially Boston came together to find” the culprits.
Aldean has faced growing backlash for his song and the music video for what some consider racially charged lyrics and images. The song, which was released in May, tells protesters who “cuss out a cop, spit in his face, stomp on the flag and light it up” they could see retribution from small town residents.
Others expressed outrage over the location where the video was shot: outside a courthouse in Columbia, Tenn., where a Black man was lynched in the 1920s and which almost became the lynching spot of Thurgood Marshall, the Supreme Court’s first African American justice.
After some accused the song of glorifying sundown towns, or all-white neighborhoods where Black people were discouraged from being after dark through white violence, the music video pulled from CMT.
Republicans, however, have stood behind the song, with former President Trump, whom Aldean supported in 2020, defending the singer and calling him a “fantastic guy.”
Aldean has vehemently denied accusations that “Try That in a Small Town” carries racist undertones, and on Saturday he told concert-goers the song has nothing to do with race but about punishing those who threaten America, just as Bostonians would have if they had caught the 2013 bombers, brothers Dzhokhar and Tamerlan Tsarnaev.
“And anybody, any of you guys that would’ve found those guys before the cops did, I know you guys from Boston, and you guys would’ve beat the s— outta them, either one of ‘em,” Aldean said. “And I’ve been trying to say, this is not about race, it’s about people getting their s— together and acting right, acting like you’ve got some common sense.”
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Inmate sentenced to 40 years after escaping MDOC months before his release
PEARL, Miss. (WLBT) - A Mississippi escapee is headed back to prison after breaking out of jail and kidnapping two people months before his release date.
Shunekndrick Huffman, 21, pled guilty to two counts of kidnapping. He was sentenced to 40 years behind bars.
He was serving a seven-year sentence with the Mississippi Department of Corrections for aggravated assault and was scheduled to be released in December.
August of 2022, Huffman escaped on foot and broke into a nearby home, holding the homeowner and two daughters at gunpoint for hours.
Huffman then stole one of the hostages’ cars before wrecking and taking off on foot toward the nearby Mississippi State Hospital campus.
Over a hundred local law enforcement officials surrounded the area, and Huffman was quickly apprehended after being found hiding inside a trash can near one of the campus homes.
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More students are taking on paid internships, but new numbers show there’s still a gender gap when it comes to interns who are in roles that are unpaid.
Now, the National Association of Colleges and Employers is calling for federal action to ensure all interns are compensated for their time.
Here & Now‘s Deepa Fernandes learns more with Mary Gatta, NACE’s director of research and public policy.
This article was originally published on WBUR.org.
Copyright 2023 NPR. To see more, visit https://www.npr.org.
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Firefighter dies from injuries after crash with cow while responding to call, department says
Published: Jul. 31, 2023 at 1:48 PM CDT|Updated: 1 hour ago
PLANO, Texas (KXII/Gray News) – A firefighter injured in the line of duty earlier this month died Sunday morning.
Volunteer firefighter Evan Brown was in a crash July 9 and had been in intensive care at Medical City Hospital in Plano, Texas.
According to the Honey Grove Fire Department, Brown was responding to another crash call when he hit a cow on the road in his personal vehicle.
His vehicle rolled, ejecting Brown and causing severe injuries.
The Honey Grove Fire Department is arranging for first responders to stand watch by Evan at the funeral home.
The department set up a GoFundMe to help Brown’s family with medical bills and funeral costs.
Copyright 2023 KXII via Gray Media Group, Inc. All rights reserved.
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Ben Shelton 2023 Citi Open Odds
After bowing out in the round of 32 of the Truist Atlanta Open in his last tournament (losing to Juncheng Shang), Ben Shelton will start the Citi Open versus Shang (in the round of 32). Shelton has +2800 odds to win this tournament at William H.G. FitzGerald Tennis Center.
Find all the latest odds for the 2023 Citi Open and place your bets with a new user bonus from BetMGM.
Shelton at the 2023 Citi Open
- Next Round: Round of 32
- Tournament Dates: July 28 - August 7
- Venue: William H.G. FitzGerald Tennis Center
- Location: Washington, District of Columbia
- Court Surface: Hard
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Shelton's Next Match
Shelton will play Shang in the round of 32 of the Citi Open on Tuesday, August 1 at 7:00 PM ET.
Want to bet on Shelton? Head to BetMGM using our link for a bonus bet special offer for new players!
Shelton Stats
- In his most recent tournament, the Truist Atlanta Open, Shelton was eliminated in the Round of 32 by No. 156-ranked Shang, 4-6, 4-6.
- Through 20 tournaments over the past 12 months, Shelton has gone 12-20 and has yet to win a title.
- In 10 tournaments on hard courts over the past year, Shelton has gone 8-10.
- Over the past year (across all court surfaces), Shelton has played 32 matches and 29.8 games per match.
- Shelton, in 18 matches over the past year on hard courts, has played 30.1 games per match and won 49.3% of them.
- When it comes to serve/return winning percentages over the past 12 months, Shelton has won 82.1% of his games on serve, and 15.4% on return.
- As far as serve/return winning percentages on hard courts over the past year, Shelton has won 85.2% of his games on serve and 14.8% on return.
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© 2023 Data Skrive. All rights reserved.
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UNITED NATIONS (AP) — The United Nations chief on Monday welcomed Kenya’s offer to “positively consider” leading a multinational police force to help combat Haiti’s gangs and improve security in the violence-wracked Caribbean nation.
Haiti’s Prime Minister Ariel Henry sent an urgent appeal last October for “the immediate deployment of a specialized armed force, in sufficient quantity” to stop the gangs. U.N. Secretary-General António Guterres has been appealing unsuccessfully since then for a lead nation to help restore order to Latin America’s most impoverished country.
Kenya’s Foreign Ministry said Saturday said its offer includes a commitment to send 1,000 police to help train and assist the Haitian National Police “restore normalcy in the country and protect strategic installations.” The ministry said it was responding to a request from the Friends of Haiti group of nations.
“Kenya stands with persons of African descent across the world, including those in the Caribbean, and aligns with the African Union’s diaspora policy and our own commitment to Pan Africanism, and in this case to `reclaiming of the Atlantic crossing,’” the ministry said.
Haiti’s gangs have grown in power since the July 7, 2021 assassination of President Jovenel Moïse and are now estimated to control up to 80% of the capital. The surge in killings, rapes and kidnappings has led to a violent uprising by civilian vigilante groups.
U.N. deputy spokesman Farhan Haq said Guterres “welcomes Kenya’s positive response to his call” and expresses gratitude to Kenya for its “solidarity.”
The secretary-general calls on the U.N. Security Council to support a non-U.N. multinational operation in Haiti “and encourages member states, particularly from the region, to join forces from Kenya” in supporting the country’s police, Haq said.
Kenya’s Foreign Ministry said its proposed deployment will crystalize once the Security Council adopts a resolution giving a mandate for the force, and other Kenyan constitutional processes are undertaken.
A Kenyan task force plans to undertake an assessment mission to Haiti within the next few weeks which “will inform and guide the mandate and operational requirements of the mission,” it said.
Guterres, who visited Haiti in early July, called afterward for a robust international force to help the Haitian National Police “defeat and dismantle the gangs.”
He said the estimate by the U.N. independent expert for Haiti, William O’Neill, that up to 2,000 additional anti-gang police officers are needed is no exaggeration. O’Neill, who concluded a 10-day trip to Haiti in July, is an American lawyer who has been working on Haiti for over 30 years and helped establish the Haitian National Police in 1995.
The Security Council unanimously adopted a resolution on July 14 asking Guterres to come up with “a full range of options” within 30 days to help combat Haiti’s armed gangs, including a non-U.N. multinational force, a possible U.N. peacekeeping force, additional training for the Haitian National Police and providing support to combat illegal arms trafficking to the country.
Compounding the gang warfare, which has spread outside the capital, is the country’s political crisis: Haiti was stripped of all democratically elected institutions when the terms of the country’s remaining 10 senators expired in early January.
The Security Council resolution, co-sponsored by the United States and Ecuador, “strongly urges” all countries to prohibit the supply, sale or transfer of weapons to anyone supporting gang violence and criminal activities.
U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken spoke to Kenyan President William Ruto on Monday including about Kenya’s positive consideration to leading a multinational force in Haiti, State Department spokesperson Matthew Miller said.
The United States takes over the rotating presidency of the U.N. Security Council for August on Tuesday, and Miller said the U.S. and Ecuador, as a first step, are going to introduce a resolution to authorize a non-U.N. multinational mission.
The second step is an assessment mission by Kenya, “which they plan to do in the coming days,” and then there will be talks with other countries about what additional assistance is needed, he said.
“We are committed to finding the resources to support this multinational force,” Miller said. “We’ve been a large humanitarian donor to relief efforts in Haiti for some time, and we have worked behind the scenes to find the lead nation to run this multinational force and are pleased that that has been successful.”
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Ellen Knickmeyer contributed to this report from Washington and Evelyne Musambi from Nairobi
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SoftwareReviews' latest Data Quadrant report highlights the top-rated CRM software solutions in the current market that are successfully harnessing the technological trends.
TORONTO, July 31, 2023 /PRNewswire/ - SoftwareReviews, a leading source for insights on the software provider landscape, has revealed its new 2023 Customer Relationship Management (CRM) Data Quadrant Report, which highlights the top ten CRM solutions in the enterprise, midmarket, and small business spaces for the year.
In an era defined by digital transformation, organizations are strategically adapting to fortify their customer relationships, as corroborated by the recent 2023 Data Quadrant report from SoftwareReviews. The report and its list of Customer Relationship Management (CRM) software points to the substantial expansion of the CRM industry as organizations strive to consolidate their customer experiences across various sectors, such as sales, marketing, and customer service.
"As digital technology and transformation further embed themselves into our personal and professional lives, our expectations for quality customer experience increase," says Robert Fayle, research advisory lead at Info-Tech Research Group. "With the advent of generative AI and other AI and machine learning technologies, customers now demand a personalized experience. To meet these demands, organizations need to procure CRM platforms that enable personal interactions and that are also heavily investing in the adoption of these new technologies."
Although CRM adoption has its challenges, including the need for organizational cultural shifts, extensive employee training, and stringent data privacy measures, the potential benefits are substantial. From improved customer service to streamlined marketing efforts and increased sales, well-executed CRM systems can be transformative.
The integration of artificial intelligence (AI) is introducing a new dimension to CRM systems, automating routine tasks, predicting customer behaviors, and identifying potential sales leads. As the CRM industry continues to evolve rapidly, driven by technological advancements and the rising relevance of mobile and social CRM platforms, it underscores the importance of overcoming implementation challenges to fully harness the power of CRM in the digital economy.
The 2023 Enterprise Customer Relationship Management Software Gold Medalists are as follows:
- Zoho CRM, 8.6 CS, ranked high for ease of customization.
- Oracle PeopleSoft CRM, 8.4 CS, ranked high for business value creation.
The 2023 Midmarket Customer Relationship Management Software Gold Medalists are as follows:
- NetSuite CRM, 8.9 CS, ranked high for lead management.
- ActiveCampaign, 8.8 CS, ranked high for quality of features.
- Salesforce Sales Cloud Professional, 8.6 CS, ranked high for its breadth of features.
- Agile CRM, 8.6 CS, ranked high for ease of implementation.
- Sage CRM, 8.6 CS, ranked high for sales management.
The 2023 Small Business Customer Relationship Management Software Gold Medalists are as follows:
- ConvergeHub, 9.0 CS, ranked high for lead management.
- Less Annoying CRM, 8.9 CS, ranked high for usability and intuitiveness.
- Pipeliner CRM, 8.8, ranked high for ease of data integration.
Cloud-based CRM systems now offer the flexibility of remote access and management, while advanced analytics tools empower organizations to derive actionable insights from the overwhelming influx of customer data. Concurrently, mobile and social CRM platforms are gaining prominence as essential tools for successful customer engagement. As the digital landscape evolves, these innovative platforms will continue to redefine customer interaction and shape the future of customer relationship management.
The full report is now accessible on the firm's website, which is updated in real time to reflect new reviews and ratings.
User assessments of software categories on SoftwareReviews provide an accurate and detailed view of the constantly changing market. SoftwareReviews' reports are informed by data from users and IT professionals who have intimate experience with the software throughout the procurement, implementation, and maintenance processes.
For more information about SoftwareReviews, the Emotional Footprint, or the Data Quadrant, or to access resources to support the software selection process, visit softwarereviews.com
SoftwareReviews empowers organizations with the best data, insights, and advice to improve the software buying and selling experience.
For buyers, SoftwareReviews' proven software selection methodologies, customer insights, and technology advisors help maximize success with technology decisions. For providers, the firm helps build more effective marketing, product, and sales processes with expert analysts, how-to research, customer-centric marketing content, and comprehensive analysis of the buyer landscape.
SoftwareReviews is a division of Info-Tech Research Group, a world-class information technology research and advisory firm.
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IS claims responsibility for the bombing that killed 54 at a pro-Taliban election rally in Pakistan
KHAR, Pakistan (AP) — An Afghan branch of Islamic State on Monday claimed responsibility for a suicide bombing in Pakistan that killed at least 54 people at a pro-Taliban party’s election rally, in one of the region’s worst attacks in recent years.
Islamic State in Khorasan Province made the claim in a statement posted on its Amaq website. It said the attacker detonated an explosive vest, and that the bombing in the northwestern town of Bajur was part of the group’s continuing war against forms of democracy it deems to be against Islam.
Hours earlier, hundreds of mourners in Bajur carried caskets draped in colorful cloths to burial sites following the previous day’s attack at the election rally for the Jamiat Ulema Islam party. Officials said Sunday’s bombing killed 54 people, including at least five children, and wounded nearly 200.
The attack appeared to reflect divisions between Islamist groups, which have a strong presence in the district in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province that borders Afghanistan. The Jamiat Ulema Islam party has ties to the Afghan and Pakistani Taliban.
At least 1,000 people were crowded into a tent near a market for the rally ahead of fall elections, according to police.
“People were chanting God is Great as the leaders arrived,” said Khan Mohammad, a local resident who said he was standing outside the tent, “and that was when I heard the deafening sound of the bomb.”
Mohammad said he heard people crying for help, and minutes later ambulances arrived and began taking the wounded away.
Police had suggested in their initial investigation that Islamic State in Khorasan Province was a suspect. The group is based in neighboring Afghanistan’s Nangarhar province and is a rival of the Afghan Taliban and al-Qaida.
Pakistan security analyst Mahmood Shah also previously had said that breakaway factions of the Pakistani Taliban could be possible suspects, though the group distanced itself from the attack.
The Pakistani military spent years fighting the Pakistani Taliban, also known as Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan, or TTP, in Bajur before declaring the district clear of militants in 2016. But the Jamiat Ulema Islam party, headed by hard-line cleric and politician Fazlur Rehman, has remained a potent political force.
On Monday, police recorded statements from some of the wounded at a hospital in Khar, the district’s principal town.
Female relatives and children wailed and beat their chests at family homes Monday as the dead were taken for funerals, following local customs. Hundreds of men followed the caskets to mosques and open areas for special funeral prayers and then into the hills for burial.
As condolences continued to pour in from across the country, dozens of people who had lesser injuries were discharged from hospital, while the critically wounded were taken to the provincial capital of Peshawar by army helicopters. The death toll continued to rise as some critically wounded people died in hospital, physician Gul Naseeb said.
Gul Akbar, the father of an 11-year-old boy who was wounded in the attack, told The Associated Press that his entire family was in a state of shock after hearing about the bombing Sunday. He said he first went to the scene of the attack, and later found his son Taslim Khan being treated in a hospital in Khar.
“What would I have done if he had also been martyred? Five children died in this barbaric attack, and we want to know what our children did wrong,” he said.
Rehman’s party is preparing to contest elections, which are expected in October or November. Abdul Rasheed, one of the party’s senior leaders, said the bombing was aimed at weakening the party but that “such attacks cannot deter our resolve.”
Rehman’s party is part of Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif’s coalition government, which came to power in April 2022 by ousting former Prime Minister Imran Khan through a no-confidence vote in the legislature.
Sharif called Rehman to express his condolences and assure the cleric that those who orchestrated the attack would be punished. Khan condemned the bombing Sunday, as did the U.S. and Russian embassies in Islamabad.
The Pakistani Taliban also distanced themselves from the bombing, saying that it was intended to set Islamists against each other. Zabihullah Mujahid, the spokesman for the Afghan Taliban, wrote in a tweet that “such crimes cannot be justified in any way.”
The bombing came hours before Chinese Vice Premier He Lifeng arrived in Islamabad, where he signed new agreements to boost trade and economic ties to mark a decade of the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor, a sprawling package under which China has invested $10 billion in Pakistan over 10 years, according to Sharif.
“We will not tolerate any obstacles in the way of friendship with China,” Sharif said, as he stood next to He.
But the government canceled a cultural event that had been arranged in honor of He, according to Sharif, while the nation mourns.
Some Chinese nationals have also been targeted by militants in northwestern Pakistan and elsewhere.
Rehman, who has long supported Afghanistan’s Taliban government, survived at least two known bomb attacks in 2011 and 2014, when bombings damaged his car at rallies.
Sunday’s bombing was one of the worst in northwestern Pakistan in the last decade. In 2014, 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. And in February, more than 100 people, mostly policemen, died in a bombing at a mosque inside a high-security compound housing Peshawar police headquarters.
___
Associated Press writer Munir Ahmed contributed to this story from Islamabad.
Copyright 2023 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.
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Elise Hu spent almost four years as NPR’s first Seoul, South Korea, bureau chief. During that time, Hu experienced what she calls an “endless assault of images of the ideal Korean beauty.”
Hu explores the South Korean beauty industry in her new book “Flawless: Lessons in Looks and Culture from the K-Beauty Capital.”
“I really started feeling the bodily shame and angst that I hadn’t felt since I was a teenager,” she says. “I think all of us as we’re going through puberty, and then in those teenage years, when we’re confronting ourselves in the mirror have had those moments of bodily angst or bodily shame. I felt like I had largely put that away. It wasn’t until I was about 32 years old and plopped into Seoul where I was confronted by strangers sending me messages like, ‘there’s freckles on your face, you could get rid of those. We have dermatologists for that.’”
Elise Hu. (Courtesy of Emily Cummings)
4 questions about South Korean beauty standards with NPR’s Elise Hu
You’re obviously a foreigner, but women are born into this. Girls are born into this and they wouldn’t get a message like you did. They might just have to go do that.
“I think it’s really crucial to me in terms of my experience, and why I ended up writing this book. I had daughters in Seoul, I have a total of three daughters, that’s notable because they were treated differently than boys.
When South Koreans would compliment girls, they would only be talked about in terms of their appearance.
“So my daughters came back knowing three phrases in Korean: ‘hello, thank you and you’re so pretty.’ That’s really powerful because when we talk to little boys, it’s not, ‘you’re so handsome, great hair, awesome skin.’ It tends to be about their capability or you look strong or that’s brave. And so I do think that gender and the way that girls are seen versus boys are seen ends up getting internalized at very young ages. My daughter was 3 when she was asked whether she had eyelash extensions.”
I found it quite stunning that when you apply for a job, you have to include a headshot, and that’s not applying for a modeling job or an acting job. It seems across the board, which puts a lot of pressure on women, I imagine.
“This is why I think it’s really crucial that I emphasize that I am not coming down on individual Koreans. I loved my time in South Korea and continue to want to go back. What I am coming down on, and I think that we need to really critique, is an entire system that upholds this norm that we need to look better in order to be acceptable professionally or socially. And that it’s a matter of personal responsibility, and that our beauty or our physical beauty is tied to worthiness. I actually think that that can be very harmful and marginalizing. It leads to discrimination.
“I talk about ‘lookism,’ which comes into play when your head shots have to be affixed to resumes. And when your passport photos are photoshopped by default, as I found one time when I went to get a passport photo and my skin was automatically retouched and my jaw line was narrowed down.”
You said in the book, and I’m going to quote you here, “Korea has become a neoliberal dream state, a place of unquenchable consumerism.” How does that tie into the beauty industry and the pressures on women to look a certain way?
“We are not only consumed as women. Women have long been objectified, but we are also consumers. So we are having to spend money in order to look better for the eyes of other people. It is kind of this constant feedback loop of spending and then also being consumed. At the same time, I think beauty ideals have mattered all over the world for several millennia, but often for aristocratic classes.
“So when Chinese women were getting their feet bound, it was aristocratic Chinese women and it wasn’t everybody. Lower class women couldn’t possibly do that, not only because it was expensive, but because it wasn’t practical. But now we’re in this global standard of beauty or we are reaching global standards of beauty that everybody has to chase, and so even lower classes or those who might not be able to afford it are being sold on this notion that you could afford to pass as higher class or get the injectables or get the work done.”
“I think that the industry then wants to creep in into more markets. So you have all these transnational forces that are getting negotiated when it comes to beauty as well that makes it part of this hyper capitalistic moment.”
It’s easy to other the South Korea beauty industry, especially when you’re reading about it from here. Why is it important that we know about it? And how do you think the Korean beauty industry is or will impact us here in the U.S.?
“So many of the things that are now popular in the West among Gen Z, people [who are] my oldest daughter’s age, like dewy skin sheet masks, those pimple patches that you can put over blemishes. Ideals that we see for young people today, are ideals that come from the East, come from South Korea.
“It is the world’s third largest cosmetics and skincare exporter. South Korea is now exporting more in cosmetics than it exports in smartphones. South Korea may seem like it’s far away, a place that people aren’t going to visit, but it influences us and that’s why it’s not only an important place to be looking at but an important influence that shapes all of us.”
Emiko Tamagawa produced and edited this interview for broadcast with Julia Corcoran. Catherine Welch adapted it for the web.
This article was originally published on WBUR.org.
Copyright 2023 NPR. To see more, visit https://www.npr.org.
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IS claims responsibility for the bombing that killed 54 at a pro-Taliban election rally in Pakistan
KHAR, Pakistan (AP) — An Afghan branch of Islamic State on Monday claimed responsibility for a suicide bombing in Pakistan that killed at least 54 people at a pro-Taliban party’s election rally, in one of the region’s worst attacks in recent years.
Islamic State in Khorasan Province made the claim in a statement posted on its Amaq website. It said the attacker detonated an explosive vest, and that the bombing in the northwestern town of Bajur was part of the group’s continuing war against forms of democracy it deems to be against Islam.
Hours earlier, hundreds of mourners in Bajur carried caskets draped in colorful cloths to burial sites following the previous day’s attack at the election rally for the Jamiat Ulema Islam party. Officials said Sunday’s bombing killed 54 people, including at least five children, and wounded nearly 200.
The attack appeared to reflect divisions between Islamist groups, which have a strong presence in the district in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province that borders Afghanistan. The Jamiat Ulema Islam party has ties to the Afghan and Pakistani Taliban.
At least 1,000 people were crowded into a tent near a market for the rally ahead of fall elections, according to police.
“People were chanting God is Great as the leaders arrived,” said Khan Mohammad, a local resident who said he was standing outside the tent, “and that was when I heard the deafening sound of the bomb.”
Mohammad said he heard people crying for help, and minutes later ambulances arrived and began taking the wounded away.
Police had suggested in their initial investigation that Islamic State in Khorasan Province was a suspect. The group is based in neighboring Afghanistan’s Nangarhar province and is a rival of the Afghan Taliban and al-Qaida.
Pakistan security analyst Mahmood Shah also previously had said that breakaway factions of the Pakistani Taliban could be possible suspects, though the group distanced itself from the attack.
The Pakistani military spent years fighting the Pakistani Taliban, also known as Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan, or TTP, in Bajur before declaring the district clear of militants in 2016. But the Jamiat Ulema Islam party, headed by hard-line cleric and politician Fazlur Rehman, has remained a potent political force.
On Monday, police recorded statements from some of the wounded at a hospital in Khar, the district’s principal town.
Female relatives and children wailed and beat their chests at family homes Monday as the dead were taken for funerals, following local customs. Hundreds of men followed the caskets to mosques and open areas for special funeral prayers and then into the hills for burial.
As condolences continued to pour in from across the country, dozens of people who had lesser injuries were discharged from hospital, while the critically wounded were taken to the provincial capital of Peshawar by army helicopters. The death toll continued to rise as some critically wounded people died in hospital, physician Gul Naseeb said.
Gul Akbar, the father of an 11-year-old boy who was wounded in the attack, told The Associated Press that his entire family was in a state of shock after hearing about the bombing Sunday. He said he first went to the scene of the attack, and later found his son Taslim Khan being treated in a hospital in Khar.
“What would I have done if he had also been martyred? Five children died in this barbaric attack, and we want to know what our children did wrong,” he said.
Rehman’s party is preparing to contest elections, which are expected in October or November. Abdul Rasheed, one of the party’s senior leaders, said the bombing was aimed at weakening the party but that “such attacks cannot deter our resolve.”
Rehman’s party is part of Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif’s coalition government, which came to power in April 2022 by ousting former Prime Minister Imran Khan through a no-confidence vote in the legislature.
Sharif called Rehman to express his condolences and assure the cleric that those who orchestrated the attack would be punished. Khan condemned the bombing Sunday, as did the U.S. and Russian embassies in Islamabad.
The Pakistani Taliban also distanced themselves from the bombing, saying that it was intended to set Islamists against each other. Zabihullah Mujahid, the spokesman for the Afghan Taliban, wrote in a tweet that “such crimes cannot be justified in any way.”
The bombing came hours before Chinese Vice Premier He Lifeng arrived in Islamabad, where he signed new agreements to boost trade and economic ties to mark a decade of the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor, a sprawling package under which China has invested $10 billion in Pakistan over 10 years, according to Sharif.
“We will not tolerate any obstacles in the way of friendship with China,” Sharif said, as he stood next to He.
But the government canceled a cultural event that had been arranged in honor of He, according to Sharif, while the nation mourns.
Some Chinese nationals have also been targeted by militants in northwestern Pakistan and elsewhere.
Rehman, who has long supported Afghanistan’s Taliban government, survived at least two known bomb attacks in 2011 and 2014, when bombings damaged his car at rallies.
Sunday’s bombing was one of the worst in northwestern Pakistan in the last decade. In 2014, 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. And in February, more than 100 people, mostly policemen, died in a bombing at a mosque inside a high-security compound housing Peshawar police headquarters.
___
Associated Press writer Munir Ahmed contributed to this story from Islamabad.
Copyright 2023 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.
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| 2023-07-31T19:59:20
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BOISE, Idaho (KTVX) – Lori Vallow Daybell, convicted of murdering her children, among other crimes, was sentenced to five life sentences in prison Monday with no possibility of parole. This sentencing brings closure to nearly four years of investigation and a trial.
Daybell, 49, was found guilty of murder, and conspiracy to commit murder of her children Joshua “JJ” Vallow, 7, and Tylee Ryan, 16. She was also convicted of conspiracy to commit murder in the death of Tammy Daybell, the former wife of her husband, Chad Daybell. Additionally, Lori was found guilty of grand theft.
Lori was sentenced to five life sentences without the possibility of parole, three of which will run consecutively, for her involvement in their murders and the conspiracy to commit murder. While many called for the death penalty, it was ruled out by a judge in March 2023 prior to her murder trial.
The case began in 2018 when Lori and Chad met at a religious conference in St. George. They became close friends, and even lovers, though both were married to other people. In July 2019, Lori’s husband Charles Vallow was killed by her brother, and it was declared self-defense, but later identified as a homicide.
Then in late-2019, Lori’s two children went missing — a case that captivated the United States. And while investigators were frantically searching for the kids, Lori and Chad were in Hawaii getting married.
Chad’s wife Tammy died a few weeks before Lori and Chad ran to Hawaii, but after the children went missing. Her death was originally ruled natural causes but later declared asphyxiation at the hands of another after her body was exhumed.
In February 2020, Lori was arrested on charges of desertion and nonsupport of dependent children. In April, Lori and Chad were both under investigation for conspiracy, attempted murder, and murder. They both pleaded not guilty.
During the final stages of the investigation leading up to their scheduled trials in January 2023, Tylee and JJ’s remains were found buried on Chad’s property.
Because of the large amount of evidence discovered, and the fact that Chad waived his right to a speedy trial, he will face his charges in April 2024. However, Lori did not waive her right to a speedy trial and appeared in court on April 2023, where she was found guilty on all charges.
Now, in July 2023, nearly four years after Lori’s children were murdered, she was sentenced to life in prison on all counts.
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https://www.kron4.com/news/national/lori-vallow-daybell-given-5-life-sentences-in-prison-for-murders-of-her-two-children/
| 2023-07-31T19:59:21
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Ernesto Escobedo 2023 Mifel Open Odds
Ernesto Escobedo will begin the Mifel Open in Los Cabos, Mexico versus Jason Jung in the round of 32. He was knocked off by Brandon Holt in the qualification round 1 of the Abierto Mexicano Telcel presentado por HSBC (his previous tournament). Escobedo has +8000 odds to be crowned champion at Cabo Sports Complex.
Find all the latest odds for the 2023 Mifel Open and place your bets with a new user bonus from BetMGM.
Escobedo at the 2023 Mifel Open
- Next Round: Round of 32
- Tournament Dates: July 28 - August 6
- Venue: Cabo Sports Complex
- Location: Los Cabos, Mexico
- Court Surface: Hard
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Escobedo's Next Match
In his opener at the Mifel Open, on Tuesday, August 1 (at 9:00 PM ET) in the round of 32, Escobedo will play Jung.
Escobedo currently has odds of -120 to win his next contest against Jung. Check out the latest odds for the entire field at BetMGM.
Want to bet on Escobedo? Head to BetMGM using our link for a bonus bet special offer for new players!
Escobedo Stats
- Escobedo came up short in his last match, 4-6, 7-6, 2-6 versus Holt in the qualifying round of the Abierto Mexicano Telcel presentado por HSBC on February 25, 2023.
- In five tournaments over the past 12 months, Escobedo is 4-5 and has yet to win a title.
- Escobedo is 4-5 on hard courts over the past year.
- Through nine matches over the past 12 months (across all court surfaces), Escobedo has played 25.6 games per match. He won 49.1% of them.
- In his nine matches on hard courts over the past year, Escobedo has played 25.6 games per match.
- Escobedo has won 19.7% of his return games and 80.6% of his service games over the past 12 months.
- Escobedo has claimed 80.6% of his service games on hard courts and 19.7% of his return games over the past 12 months.
Not all offers available in all states, please visit BetMGM for the latest promotions for your area. Must be 21+ to gamble, please wager responsibly. If you or someone you know has a gambling problem, contact 1-800-GAMBLER.
© 2023 Data Skrive. All rights reserved.
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Aleksandar Kovacevic 2023 Mifel Open Odds
After bowing out in the round of 32 of the Hall of Fame Open in his most recent tournament (losing to Jordan Thompson), Aleksandar Kovacevic will open the Mifel Open versus Omni Kumar (in the round of 32). Kovacevic currently is +3300 to win it all at Cabo Sports Complex.
Find all the latest odds for the 2023 Mifel Open and place your bets with a new user bonus from BetMGM.
Kovacevic at the 2023 Mifel Open
- Next Round: Round of 32
- Tournament Dates: July 28 - August 6
- Venue: Cabo Sports Complex
- Location: Los Cabos, Mexico
- Court Surface: Hard
Watch live sports without cable! Sign up today for a free trial to Fubo!
Kovacevic's Next Match
In the round of 32 of the Mifel Open, on Monday, July 31 (at 11:40 PM ET), Kovacevic will play Kumar.
Kovacevic currently has odds of -350 to win his next matchup versus Kumar. Check out the latest odds for the entire field at BetMGM.
Want to bet on Kovacevic? Head to BetMGM using our link for a bonus bet special offer for new players!
Kovacevic Stats
- In his last match, Kovacevic came up short 0-6, 1-6 against Thompson in the Round of 32 of the Hall of Fame Open.
- Kovacevic is 9-14 over the past 12 months, with no tournament victories.
- Kovacevic is 7-9 on hard courts over the past 12 months.
- Kovacevic, over the past 12 months, has played 23 matches across all court types, and 25.2 games per match.
- On hard courts, Kovacevic has played 16 matches over the past year, and 25.6 games per match.
- When it comes to serve/return winning percentages over the past 12 months, Kovacevic has won 76.7% of his games on serve, and 17.0% on return.
- On hard courts over the past year, Kovacevic has been victorious in 17.6% of his return games and 78.6% of his service games.
Not all offers available in all states, please visit BetMGM for the latest promotions for your area. Must be 21+ to gamble, please wager responsibly. If you or someone you know has a gambling problem, contact 1-800-GAMBLER.
© 2023 Data Skrive. All rights reserved.
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Police were calling owner to shut down party when gunfire killed 1, wounded 17, chief says
MUNCIE, Ind. (AP) — A shooting that left one person dead and 17 others wounded early Sunday in a central Indiana city unfolded at an outdoor party attended by hundreds of revelers as police were calling the venue’s owner to shut down the gathering, authorities said Monday.
Muncie Police Chief Nathan Sloan said no arrests have been made in the shooting, which killed 30-year-old Joseph E. Bonner III, whom the chief said was among those attending the large party in the city about 60 miles (100 kilometers) northeast of Indianapolis.
Sloan said police were aware that the owner of a business that periodically rents out space for events was hosting a block party that got “out of control,” with between 500 and up to 1,000 in attendance. Photos of the scene showed police tags marking what appeared to be dozens of bullets on the street.
Sloan said police were not at the scene at the time of the shooting just after 1 a.m. Sunday, but they were trying to get the business owner to end the party.
“We made a phone call to the owner and asked him to get things shut down. The streets were packed. Before we could make contact and get something done, before we could get that shut down, the gunfire erupted,” Sloan said during a news conference.
He said police were asking for any witnesses to the shooting or people with pictures or video of the incident to contact the Muncie Police Department. Sloan said some people at the scene refused to tell officers what had happened.
He declined to provide details of the investigation, including how many people may have fired weapons but described a scene of chaos as officers and first responders arrived at the location on Muncie’s east side.
“Our people were applying tourniquets, administering first aid, providing CPR. And they we were rushing people to the hospital in our police cars because we didn’t have time to wait,” Sloan said.
Mayor Dan Ridenour said one man was killed and 17 other people suffered gunshot wounds in Sunday’s shooting. He said the shooting had left the community “shaken to the core by violence” and choked up repeatedly during the news conference.
After the shooting, police had to separate people in a Muncie hospital’s parking lot who were arguing and officers had to clear a path at the hospital’s entrance for anyone needing medical attention to enter, said Muncie Deputy Police Chief Melissa Criswell.
She said that among the 17 who survived the shooting, eight remained hospitalized — five at Indiana University Health Ball Memorial Hospital in Muncie, and four others who were taken to Indianapolis hospitals.
She said that among the four taken to Indianapolis, one remains in critical condition, two are listed as stable and the fourth had been discharged from a hospital.
Criswell said that two of the people wounded in Sunday’s shooting were minors, and that a nineteenth person who was injured may have been struck by a car.
IU Health spokesperson Neil Gifford said five people remained hospitalized at the Muncie hospital, down from 13 who were being treated on Sunday morning. He said he could not provide conditions of the five patients without being provided with their names.
Copyright 2023 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.
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https://www.valleynewslive.com/2023/07/31/police-were-calling-owner-shut-down-party-when-gunfire-killed-1-wounded-17-chief-says/
| 2023-07-31T19:59:23
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Police were calling owner to shut down party when gunfire killed 1, wounded 17, chief says
MUNCIE, Ind. (AP) — A shooting that left one person dead and 17 others wounded early Sunday in a central Indiana city unfolded at an outdoor party attended by hundreds of revelers as police were calling the venue’s owner to shut down the gathering, authorities said Monday.
Muncie Police Chief Nathan Sloan said no arrests have been made in the shooting, which killed 30-year-old Joseph E. Bonner III, whom the chief said was among those attending the large party in the city about 60 miles (100 kilometers) northeast of Indianapolis.
Sloan said police were aware that the owner of a business that periodically rents out space for events was hosting a block party that got “out of control,” with between 500 and up to 1,000 in attendance. Photos of the scene showed police tags marking what appeared to be dozens of bullets on the street.
Sloan said police were not at the scene at the time of the shooting just after 1 a.m. Sunday, but they were trying to get the business owner to end the party.
“We made a phone call to the owner and asked him to get things shut down. The streets were packed. Before we could make contact and get something done, before we could get that shut down, the gunfire erupted,” Sloan said during a news conference.
He said police were asking for any witnesses to the shooting or people with pictures or video of the incident to contact the Muncie Police Department. Sloan said some people at the scene refused to tell officers what had happened.
He declined to provide details of the investigation, including how many people may have fired weapons but described a scene of chaos as officers and first responders arrived at the location on Muncie’s east side.
“Our people were applying tourniquets, administering first aid, providing CPR. And they we were rushing people to the hospital in our police cars because we didn’t have time to wait,” Sloan said.
Mayor Dan Ridenour said one man was killed and 17 other people suffered gunshot wounds in Sunday’s shooting. He said the shooting had left the community “shaken to the core by violence” and choked up repeatedly during the news conference.
After the shooting, police had to separate people in a Muncie hospital’s parking lot who were arguing and officers had to clear a path at the hospital’s entrance for anyone needing medical attention to enter, said Muncie Deputy Police Chief Melissa Criswell.
She said that among the 17 who survived the shooting, eight remained hospitalized — five at Indiana University Health Ball Memorial Hospital in Muncie, and four others who were taken to Indianapolis hospitals.
She said that among the four taken to Indianapolis, one remains in critical condition, two are listed as stable and the fourth had been discharged from a hospital.
Criswell said that two of the people wounded in Sunday’s shooting were minors, and that a nineteenth person who was injured may have been struck by a car.
IU Health spokesperson Neil Gifford said five people remained hospitalized at the Muncie hospital, down from 13 who were being treated on Sunday morning. He said he could not provide conditions of the five patients without being provided with their names.
Copyright 2023 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.
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| 2023-07-31T19:59:24
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WASHINGTON (AP) — Former President Donald Trump ‘s mounting legal woes are burning through cash, leading his campaign to request a refund from a supportive super PAC and launch a new legal defense fund to help cover costs.
His political action committee, Save America, is expected to disclose Monday that it spent more than $40 million on legal fees during the first half of the year for costs related to defending the former president, his aides and other allies, according to a person familiar with the filing who spoke on the condition of anonymity before the deadline. The number was first reported by The Washington Post.
At the same time, Trump’s allies are creating a new legal defense fund that will help pay the soaring legal fees as Trump faces dozens of criminal charges stemming from indictments in New York and Florida, with more expected as soon as this week. The Patriot Legal Defense Fund, as it is called, is intended to raise money to defray costs for those “defending against legal actions arising from an individual or group’s participation in the political process,” according to a filing made last month with the IRS. The group will be run by Trump campaign senior advisers Susie Wiles and Michael Glassner.
“The weaponized Department of Justice and the deranged Jack Smith have targeted innocent Americans associated with President Trump,” said Trump spokesman Steven Cheung. “In order to combat these heinous actions by Joe Biden’s cronies and to protect these innocent people from financial ruin and prevent their lives from being completely destroyed, a new legal defense fund will help pay for their legal fees.” The fund was first reported by The New York Times.
Smith is the special counsel leading the federal investigations of Trump. His team has expressed interest in the payment of legal fees for Trump-aligned witnesses in the investigations and has sought information about it, according to a person familiar with the matter who spoke on the condition of anonymity in order to discuss ongoing criminal probes.
Trump’s PAC has also requested that his super PAC, MAGA Inc., return some of the money that it transferred to seed the group to help cover costs. It is unclear whether money was actually transferred or how much.
A spokesman for the super PAC did not respond to a request for comment.
Trump launched his PAC, Save America, in the days after the 2020 election, which he lost to President Joe Biden. For weeks, the group bombarded supporters with a nonstop stream of text messages and emails that purported to raise money for an “election defense fund” that would be used to contest the election’s outcome.
But the $170 million that the effort raised in less than a month was not used to contest the election, records show. Instead, it was used to pay down campaign debt and replenish the coffers of the Republican National Committee, with Trump also stockpiling another large chunk for his future political endeavors. Last year, the Justice Department issued a round of grand jury subpoenas that sought information about the political action committee’s fundraising practices.
Since then, Save America has served as a different sort of “defense fund,” covering the legal expenses for Trump operatives, allies and employees who have been ensnared in the Justice Department’s ongoing investigation.
Some of Save America’s money has been used to boost other candidates, though it’s a pittance compared to how much Trump has spent on ballooning legal costs.
As the 2022 midterm elections approached, Trump pledged to back congressional candidates loyal to him. But of the roughly $65 million earmarked by Save America for political spending, only a fraction — about $20 million — was used to back midterm candidates through campaign contributions or paid advertising.
Save America requested to claw back much of the money. And much of the remaining cash Save America had was dedicated to a different sort of “defense fund” — paying dozens of law firms to represent the former president and his aides.
“Forty-million dollars — I’ve never seen anything like it,” said Paul S. Ryan, a longtime campaign finance attorney in Washington, referring to the sum the group spent on legal fees this year. “There’s no legal issue. It’s really just a question for his donors: Do they want to be funding lawyers?”
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Colvin reported from New York.
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Updated July 31, 2023 at 3:06 PM ET
Judge Steven Boyce sentenced Lori Vallow Daybell to multiple fixed life terms in prison with no possibility of parole on Monday, handing down punishment for murdering two of her children and conspiring to murder a romantic rival.
The judge ordered Vallow Daybell to serve the prison terms consecutively rather than concurrently, saying it is important for her to be punished for each death.
Vallow Daybell, 50, was found guilty of first-degree murder and conspiracy charges in May, as a jury agreed with prosecutors who said she wanted to eliminate her youngest children as part of a plan to embark on a new life with Chad Daybell, as well as conspiring to murder Daybell's previous wife.
"You chose the most evil and destructive path possible," despite having a wealth of better, less harmful, options, Boyce told Vallow Daybell. He juxtaposed her enjoyment of a honeymoon in Hawaii with her children lying in shallow graves in Idaho.
Her children — Tylee Ryan and Joshua Jaxon "JJ" Vallow — had been "burned, mutilated and dismembered, and buried like animals," Boyce said.
The judge noted the "disgust" he saw on jurors' faces during the trial. The scene was horrific, Boyce said, adding that while law enforcement, jurors and he himself will be haunted by images of the children's bodies, he saw no sign that Vallow Daybell feels any remorse.
For the first time, Vallow Daybell gave an accounting of her own actions — but she insisted she is not guilty of murder and said that her victims have visited her in spiritual form and are happy and busy in the afterlife.
"Jesus knows me, and Jesus understands me," she said, adding that she mourns those who died. But, she added, "Jesus Christ knows that no one was murdered in this case."
The lengthy trial was full of strange and shocking moments. Prosecutors say Vallow Daybell was motivated by arcane religious beliefs about "dark energy" and the "end times," and by her desire to pursue a life with her new husband, Chad Daybell — including conspiring to kill his late wife.
Monday's sentencing hearing included four main phases: five victim impact statements; the prosecution's sentencing recommendation; the defense's sentencing recommendation; and the chance for Vallow to address the court.
Judge Boyce handed down his sentence after hearing victim impact statements from relatives of Tylee Ryan and Joshua Jaxon "JJ" Vallow, Vallow Daybell's children, whose bodies were found in 2020; and from relatives of Tammy Daybell, the previous wife of Chad Daybell — who also faces charges in all three deaths.
Thomas urged Boyce to impose on his client a 20-year fixed term with an "indeterminate" life sentence.
Prosecutor Rob Wood asked for the maximum sentence — several fixed life terms without the possibility of parole — saying Vallow Daybell had betrayed her children's trust in a horrific manner.
The children's bodies were found in 2020
A jury found Vallow Daybell guilty of killing her two youngest children, Tylee Ryan and Joshua Jaxon "JJ" Vallow. Tylee was nearly 17 when she and JJ, 7, were last seen alive in September 2019. The children's bodies were found in June 2020, buried on property in Rexburg, Idaho, owned by Chad Daybell.
Even before the remains were found, Vallow Daybell was charged with felony desertion of a child and obstruction. Prosecutors said she didn't report her children missing so she could keep collecting benefit payments.
Vallow Daybell was also found guilty of conspiring to murder Tammy Daybell, Chad's then-wife, who was found dead in her home in October 2019 — less than one month before he and Vallow got married in Hawaii. He is Vallow Daybell's fifth husband.
'Zombie' beliefs arose during trial
In court documents, Vallow Daybell's close friend Melanie Gibb described hearing her say that Tylee had become a zombie — a concept Vallow Daybell had picked up from Daybell.
Gibb said she heard Vallow Daybell call Tylee a zombie after Tylee had refused to babysit JJ — to which Tylee replied, "Not me, mom," according to a police affidavit. Gibb said Vallow Daybell later concluded that JJ had also become a zombie.
Prosecutors also said Daybell and Lori Vallow Daybell portrayed themselves as religious figures called "James and Elaina." And they purported to be able to "rate" people, detecting whether they might be under the thrall of an evil spirit's dark energy.
Tammy Daybell's family speaks out
In a victim impact statement, Samantha Gwilliam, Tammy Daybell's sister, said her family has been "ripped apart," thrust into grief, suspicion and sadness by Tammy's unexpected death at 49. It deepened, she said, when the family learned Chad Daybell was remarrying just weeks later, in a Hawaii ceremony with Lori Vallow.
The more she learned about Vallow, Gwilliam said, she found only "lies" — from Vallow Daybell's claim that her most recent husband had died of a heart attack to her saying she and Chad would be "empty nesters," with no young children.
It was only when Tammy Daybell was disinterred and an autopsy was performed, Gwilliam said, that the family began to "get some answers and some truth, after so many lies." That truth, she added, was that Tammy Daybell was both an obstacle for Vallow Daybell and a way to profit from her death, through an insurance policy.
Weeping in court, Gwilliam described how her family's relationships with Chad and Tammy Daybell's children has become strained. She also read a statement from Tammy's father, recounting the toll Vallow Daybell's actions took on his wife, who died earlier this year.
At one point, Gwilliam compared her sister, a librarian and educator, to Vallow Daybell.
"Because of the choices you made, my family lost a beloved mother, sister, aunt and daughter. She is irreplaceable," she said. "She was 1,000 times the woman you will ever dream of being."
Defense team says Vallow Daybell is 'misunderstood'
"I think Lori Daybell is probably the most hated person in America right now," said Bonneville County Public Defender John Thomas, who is one of Vallow Daybell's attorneys.
But, he said, she is a "very misunderstood person" who is truly "about love" and has been defined by complicated circumstances.
He asked the judge to use his sentence to impart a sense of "hope" that would both punish Vallow Daybell and encourage her to become a model inmate and grow as a person and become "a better version of Lori Daybell."
Thomas urged Boyce to impose on his client a 20-year fixed term with an "indeterminate" life sentence and have terms running concurrently, making her eligible for parole when she is in her 70s.
The case depicted a love affair that turned deadly
Prosecutors say Vallow Daybell and Chad Daybell's relationship was entwined in a deadly criminal conspiracy they sought to justify with fantastical beliefs. Rather than simply starting a new life together after they met in October 2018, the prosecution said, the couple plotted to kill their closest relatives and benefit from their deaths through insurance payouts and Social Security benefits.
Vallow Daybell's defense attorney, James Archibald, has said his client was in the thrall of a man she sees as a messiah and her eternal soulmate. He has also argued that the prosecution has produced little direct evidence to tie Vallow Daybell to her children's deaths.
Other criminal cases are still pending
Chad Daybell is expected to undergo his own murder trial for the same three deaths in the spring of 2024.
Other criminal cases are also pending for Vallow Daybell in Arizona, where she previously lived.
She's under indictment there on conspiracy murder charges for allegedly arranging for one of her brothers to shoot and kill her fourth husband, Charles Vallow, in July 2019. That brother, Alex Cox, died in December 2019, of what was determined to be natural causes. She's also accused of conspiring with Alex to murder her niece's ex-husband, Brandon Boudreaux, who was shot at in 2019 but who survived.
Copyright 2023 NPR. To see more, visit https://www.npr.org.
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WASHINGTON (AP) — X, the social media platform formerly known as Twitter, has threatened to sue a group of independent researchers whose research documented an increase in hate speech on the site since it was purchased last year by Elon Musk.
An attorney representing the social media site wrote to the Center for Countering Digital Hate on July 20 threatening legal action over the nonprofit’s research into hate speech and content moderation. The letter alleged that CCDH’s research publications seem intended “to harm Twitter’s business by driving advertisers away from the platform with incendiary claims.”
Musk is a self-professed free speech absolutist who has welcomed back white supremacists and election deniers to the platform, which he renamed X earlier this month. But the billionaire has at times proven sensitive about critical speech directed at him or his companies.
The center is a nonprofit with offices in the U.S. and United Kingdom. It regularly publishes reports on hate speech, extremism or harmful behavior on social media platforms like X, TikTok or Facebook.
The organization has published several reports critical of Musk’s leadership, detailing an increase in anti-LGBTQ hate speech as well as climate misinformation since his purchase. The letter from X’s attorney cited one specific report from June that found the platform failed to remove neo-Nazi and anti-LGBTQ content from verified users that violated the platform’s rules.
In the letter, attorney Alex Spiro questioned the expertise of the researchers and accused the center of trying to harm X’s reputation. The letter also suggested, without evidence, that the center received funds from some of X’s competitors, even though the center has also published critical reports about TikTok, Facebook and other large platforms.
“CCDH intends to harm Twitter’s business by driving advertisers away from the platform with incendiary claims,” Spiro wrote, using the platform’s former name.
Imran Ahmed, the center’s founder and CEO, told the AP on Monday that his group has never received a similar response from any tech company, despite a history of studying the relationship between social media, hate speech and extremism. He said that typically, the targets of the center’s criticism have responded by defending their work or promising to address any problems that have been identified.
Ahmed said he worried X’s response to the center’s work could have a chilling effect if it frightens other researchers away from studying the platform. He said he also worried that other industries could take note of the strategy.
“This is an unprecedented escalation by a social media company against independent researchers. Musk has just declared open war,” Ahmed told the Associated Press. “If Musk succeeds in silencing us other researchers will be next in line.”
Messages left with Spiro and X were not immediately returned Monday.
It’s not the first time that Musk has fired back at critics. Last year, he suspended the accounts of several journalists who covered his takeover of Twitter. Another user was permanently banned for using publicly available flight data to track Musk’s private plane; Musk had initially pledged to keep the user on the platform but later changed his mind, citing his personal safety. He also threatened to sue the user.
He initially had promised that he would allow any speech on his platform that wasn’t illegal. “I hope that even my worst critics remain on Twitter, because that is what free speech means,” Musk wrote in a tweet last year.
X’s recent threat of a lawsuit prompted concern from U.S. Rep. Adam Schiff, D-Calif., who said the billionaire was trying to use the threat of legal action to punish a nonprofit group trying to hold a powerful social media platform accountable.
“Instead of attacking them, he should be attacking the increasingly disturbing content on Twitter,” Schiff said in a statement.
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John Isner 2023 Mifel Open Odds
John Isner, off a loss in the round of 32 of the Truist Atlanta Open (to Dominik Koepfer) in his previous tournament, will open the Mifel Open in Los Cabos, Mexico versus Rinky Hijikata in the round of 32. Isner's odds are +1400 to win this event at Cabo Sports Complex.
Find all the latest odds for the 2023 Mifel Open and place your bets with a new user bonus from BetMGM.
Isner at the 2023 Mifel Open
- Next Round: Round of 32
- Tournament Dates: July 28 - August 6
- Venue: Cabo Sports Complex
- Location: Los Cabos, Mexico
- Court Surface: Hard
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Isner's Next Match
In the round of 32 of the Mifel Open, on Monday, July 31 (at 10:20 PM ET), Isner will meet Hijikata.
Isner is currently listed at -160 to win his next contest against Hijikata. Check out the latest odds for the entire field at BetMGM.
John Isner Grand Slam Odds
- US Open odds to win: +12500
- Mifel Open odds to win: +1400
Want to bet on Isner? Head to BetMGM using our link for a bonus bet special offer for new players!
Isner Stats
- In his most recent tournament, the Truist Atlanta Open, Isner was eliminated in the Round of 32 by No. 88-ranked Koepfer, 6-3, 6-7, 6-7.
- Isner is 12-14 over the past 12 months, with no tournament titles.
- Isner is 9-10 on hard courts over the past year.
- Isner, over the past year, has played 26 matches across all court surfaces, and 29.2 games per match.
- On hard courts, Isner has played 19 matches over the past year, and 28.3 games per match.
- Isner has won 11.0% of his return games and 88.1% of his service games over the past 12 months.
- On hard courts over the past year, Isner has been victorious in 10.3% of his return games and 89.8% of his service games.
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© 2023 Data Skrive. All rights reserved.
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Trader Joe’s falafel recalled because it may contain rocks
(Gray News) – Trader Joe’s is recalling a cooked falafel product because it “may contain rocks.”
The grocery chain announced Friday that the supplier of its Fully Cooked Falafel (SKU# 93935) warned it about the product possibly containing rocks.
Trader Joe’s said the recalled falafel is sold in its stores in Alabama, Arkansas, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Florida, Georgia, Iowa, Illinois, Indiana, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Massachusetts, Maryland, Maine, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, North Carolina, Nebraska, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, Ohio, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Virginia, Vermont, Wisconsin and Washington, D.C.
“All potentially affected product has been removed from sale and destroyed,” Trader Joe’s said in its announcement.
Customers are urged to discard the falafel and return it to any Trader Joe’s location for a full refund.
Trader Joe’s also announced Friday that it was recalling some of its cookies because they also may contain rocks, and the chain recently recalled its broccoli cheddar soup because it may contain insects.
Copyright 2023 Gray Media Group, Inc. All rights reserved.
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https://www.valleynewslive.com/2023/07/31/trader-joes-falafel-recalled-because-it-may-contain-rocks/
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Ben Shelton 2023 Citi Open Odds
After bowing out in the round of 32 of the Truist Atlanta Open in his last tournament (losing to Juncheng Shang), Ben Shelton will start the Citi Open versus Shang (in the round of 32). Shelton has +2800 odds to win this tournament at William H.G. FitzGerald Tennis Center.
Find all the latest odds for the 2023 Citi Open and place your bets with a new user bonus from BetMGM.
Shelton at the 2023 Citi Open
- Next Round: Round of 32
- Tournament Dates: July 28 - August 7
- Venue: William H.G. FitzGerald Tennis Center
- Location: Washington, District of Columbia
- Court Surface: Hard
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Shelton's Next Match
Shelton will play Shang in the round of 32 of the Citi Open on Tuesday, August 1 at 7:00 PM ET.
Want to bet on Shelton? Head to BetMGM using our link for a bonus bet special offer for new players!
Shelton Stats
- In his most recent tournament, the Truist Atlanta Open, Shelton was eliminated in the Round of 32 by No. 156-ranked Shang, 4-6, 4-6.
- Through 20 tournaments over the past 12 months, Shelton has gone 12-20 and has yet to win a title.
- In 10 tournaments on hard courts over the past year, Shelton has gone 8-10.
- Over the past year (across all court surfaces), Shelton has played 32 matches and 29.8 games per match.
- Shelton, in 18 matches over the past year on hard courts, has played 30.1 games per match and won 49.3% of them.
- When it comes to serve/return winning percentages over the past 12 months, Shelton has won 82.1% of his games on serve, and 15.4% on return.
- As far as serve/return winning percentages on hard courts over the past year, Shelton has won 85.2% of his games on serve and 14.8% on return.
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© 2023 Data Skrive. All rights reserved.
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Trader Joe’s falafel recalled because it may contain rocks
(Gray News) – Trader Joe’s is recalling a cooked falafel product because it “may contain rocks.”
The grocery chain announced Friday that the supplier of its Fully Cooked Falafel (SKU# 93935) warned it about the product possibly containing rocks.
Trader Joe’s said the recalled falafel is sold in its stores in Alabama, Arkansas, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Florida, Georgia, Iowa, Illinois, Indiana, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Massachusetts, Maryland, Maine, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, North Carolina, Nebraska, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, Ohio, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Virginia, Vermont, Wisconsin and Washington, D.C.
“All potentially affected product has been removed from sale and destroyed,” Trader Joe’s said in its announcement.
Customers are urged to discard the falafel and return it to any Trader Joe’s location for a full refund.
Trader Joe’s also announced Friday that it was recalling some of its cookies because they also may contain rocks, and the chain recently recalled its broccoli cheddar soup because it may contain insects.
Copyright 2023 Gray Media Group, Inc. All rights reserved.
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https://www.wlbt.com/2023/07/31/trader-joes-falafel-recalled-because-it-may-contain-rocks/
| 2023-07-31T19:59:31
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BRISTOL -- A unique troupe is helping clear the grounds of the Pringle Nature Center in Bristol Woods this week.
And it doesn't seem like the work will be more than they can chew.
About 40 goats from The Green Goats in Burlington began munching through the night on Sunday, eating away at invasive species plants growing near the trails and the center site.
Warren Leisemann, Pringle Nature Center Board chair, said it isn't the first time goats have been "employed" by the center. He said goats were used to help clear invasive plants many years ago.
"They've grown a lot since when we first had them (the goats)," Leisemann said. "They were little ones and when we wanted to move them, we'd carry them under one arm and carry them to the next pen. Now, there's a little more herding involved."
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Without the goats, Leisemann said it would take staff and volunteers "months" to clear out as many plants as the goats have in just one night.
"They really clean up a whole lot of invasive species way faster than we would ever be able to do it," Leisemann said. "They'll come in and just gobble stuff up."
The goats strip all of the leaves off of the stem of the plants when they eat them. Leisemann said that's helpful because most of the invasive species they're eating are buckthorn and other thorny plants, making it easier for staff to mow what's left.
Since they arrived on Sunday, the goats cleared an entire plot of land in a day. On Monday, nature center employees moved fenced off a third section of the park as the goats prepared to finish eating the invasive species in their second area.
The goats are said to be "excellent" at removing invasive species because they can eat up to four pounds of plants every day.
"It's fun being around them," Leisemann said.
"We've tried to put some information out to get people to bring their kids because they're really neat to look at," Leisemann said.
Leisemann predicted they'll be at the center for about "another week or so." He said it depends how efficiently the goats work at eating the plants.
If people come to visit the goats at the center, Leisemann warned there is an electric fence around the goats. He warned everyone to be careful not to get too close to the fence or to attract the goats to get close to the fence to ensure noone gets "zapped."
People can also learn more about the goats and why they're at the park inside the Pringle Nature Center office.
"We're just really happy to have them out here," Leisemann said.
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https://kenoshanews.com/grazing-goats-at-the-pringle-nature-center-to-get-rid-of-invasive-species/article_159feb42-2fc6-11ee-b395-97d83ea08384.html
| 2023-07-31T19:59:32
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WASHINGTON (Nexstar) – Two United States senators had issues last week that’s prompting conversations about whether they are mentally and physically fit to serve and is leading some politicians to suggest the idea of mental competency tests.
During a committee yes or no vote, Senator Dianne Feinstein gave a wandering speech instead and Republican Senate leader Mitch McConnell froze mid-sentence and had to be escorted away from a press conference.
Democratic Senator Chris Coons says McConnell appears to be okay for now but both McConnell and Feinstein have had prior health scares.
“I feel like he’s going to be the Republican leader through the rest of this Congress, and what happens after that, I don’t know,” Sen. Chris Coons (D-DE) said.
Republican Presidential Candidate Nikki Haley is suggesting testing to ensure people are fit to serve.
“We need to have term limits in Congress, and we need to have mental competency tests for anyone over the age of 75,” Haley said.
Members of Congress aren’t the only one’s she’s concerned about.
“When you go and you look at Biden, he was in the week before and he can’t say it,” Haley added. “When you go and see him falling asleep with leaders, that’s concerning. And I know when I was at the United Nations, leaders watch the health status of other leaders.”
But Asa Hutchinson, another Republican presidential candidate, dismissed the idea of mental competency tests outright.
“The tests are not constitutional. And so, it’s really something that’s a throwaway line that catches people’s attention,” Hutchinson said.
Hutchinson also said that determining whether politicians are fit to serve is up to the voters.
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| 2023-07-31T19:59:34
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RYE BROOK, N.Y., July 31, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Belle Haven Investments is proud to be Certified™ by Great Place To Work® for the second year in a row. The prestigious award is based entirely on what current employees say about their experience working at Belle Haven Investments. This year, 93% of employees said it's a great place To Work – 36 points higher than the average U.S. company.
Great Place To Work® is the global authority on workplace culture, employee experience, and the leadership behaviors proven to deliver market-leading revenue, employee retention and increased innovation.
"Great Place To Work Certification is a highly coveted achievement that requires consistent and intentional dedication to the overall employee experience," says Sarah Lewis-Kulin, the Vice President of Global Recognition at Great Place To Work. She emphasizes that Certification is the sole official recognition earned by the real-time feedback of employees regarding their company culture. "By successfully earning this recognition, it is evident that Belle Haven Investments stands out as one of the top companies to work for, providing a great workplace environment for its employees."
Matt Dalton, CEO & CIO, expressed his excitement emphasizing "We owe the Firm's continued success to our dedicated and awesome employees. We celebrate and thank them for all they do to earn this incredible recognition."
About Belle Haven Investments
Belle Haven Investments is an independent, employee-owned asset manager that focuses exclusively on fixed income. They prioritize service, reliability, and customization, nurturing long-term partnerships with their clients. Their core values - trust and communication - permeate both external client relationships and internal team dynamics. The autonomy given to employees fosters trust, driving them to deliver their best work daily. To learn more, visit: https://www.bellehaven.com/
About Great Place to Work Certification™
Great Place To Work® Certification™ is the most definitive "employer-of-choice" recognition that companies aspire to achieve. It is the only recognition based entirely on what employees report about their workplace experience – specifically, how consistently they experience a high-trust workplace. Great Place to Work Certification is recognized worldwide by employees and employers alike and is the global benchmark for identifying and recognizing outstanding employee experience. Every year, more than 10,000 companies across 60 countries apply to get Great Place To Work-Certified.
Contact:
Nicole Robbins
robbinsn@bellehaven.com
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SOURCE Belle Haven Investments
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Astros vs. Guardians Predictions & Picks: Odds, Moneyline, Spread - July 31
Monday's contest that pits the Houston Astros (59-47) versus the Cleveland Guardians (53-53) at Minute Maid Park has a good chance to be a tight matchup based on our computer prediction, which projects a final score of 5-3 in favor of the Astros. First pitch is at 8:10 PM ET on July 31.
The Astros will call on J.P. France (6-3) against the Guardians and Noah Syndergaard (1-4).
Astros vs. Guardians Game Info & Odds
- When: Monday, July 31, 2023 at 8:10 PM ET
- Where: Minute Maid Park in Houston, Texas
- How to Watch on TV: SportsNet SW
- Live Stream: Watch this game on Fubo!
Bet on this matchup with BetMGM Sportsbook and use bonus code "GNPLAY" for special offers!
Astros vs. Guardians Score Prediction
Our prediction for this contest is Astros 5, Guardians 4.
Total Prediction for Astros vs. Guardians
- Total Prediction: Under 9 runs
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Discover More About This Game
Astros Performance Insights
- In eight games over the last 10 matchups when favored by bookmakers, the Astros have a record of 5-3.
- In its last 10 games with a total, Houston and its opponents have combined to hit the over five times.
- In their last game with a spread, the Astros failed to cover.
- The Astros have won 40, or 58%, of the 69 games they've played as favorites this season.
- Houston has a record of 20-10 in games when sportsbooks favor them by at least -175 on the moneyline.
- The oddsmakers' moneyline implies a 63.6% chance of a victory for the Astros.
- Houston ranks 11th in the majors with 506 total runs scored this season.
- The Astros have the fourth-ranked team ERA among all MLB pitching staffs (3.82).
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Astros Schedule
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Ernesto Escobedo 2023 Mifel Open Odds
Ernesto Escobedo will begin the Mifel Open in Los Cabos, Mexico versus Jason Jung in the round of 32. He was knocked off by Brandon Holt in the qualification round 1 of the Abierto Mexicano Telcel presentado por HSBC (his previous tournament). Escobedo has +8000 odds to be crowned champion at Cabo Sports Complex.
Find all the latest odds for the 2023 Mifel Open and place your bets with a new user bonus from BetMGM.
Escobedo at the 2023 Mifel Open
- Next Round: Round of 32
- Tournament Dates: July 28 - August 6
- Venue: Cabo Sports Complex
- Location: Los Cabos, Mexico
- Court Surface: Hard
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Escobedo's Next Match
In his opener at the Mifel Open, on Tuesday, August 1 (at 9:00 PM ET) in the round of 32, Escobedo will play Jung.
Escobedo currently has odds of -120 to win his next contest against Jung. Check out the latest odds for the entire field at BetMGM.
Want to bet on Escobedo? Head to BetMGM using our link for a bonus bet special offer for new players!
Escobedo Stats
- Escobedo came up short in his last match, 4-6, 7-6, 2-6 versus Holt in the qualifying round of the Abierto Mexicano Telcel presentado por HSBC on February 25, 2023.
- In five tournaments over the past 12 months, Escobedo is 4-5 and has yet to win a title.
- Escobedo is 4-5 on hard courts over the past year.
- Through nine matches over the past 12 months (across all court surfaces), Escobedo has played 25.6 games per match. He won 49.1% of them.
- In his nine matches on hard courts over the past year, Escobedo has played 25.6 games per match.
- Escobedo has won 19.7% of his return games and 80.6% of his service games over the past 12 months.
- Escobedo has claimed 80.6% of his service games on hard courts and 19.7% of his return games over the past 12 months.
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© 2023 Data Skrive. All rights reserved.
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| 2023-07-31T19:59:37
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RYE BROOK, N.Y., July 31, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Belle Haven Investments is proud to be Certified™ by Great Place To Work® for the second year in a row. The prestigious award is based entirely on what current employees say about their experience working at Belle Haven Investments. This year, 93% of employees said it's a great place To Work – 36 points higher than the average U.S. company.
Great Place To Work® is the global authority on workplace culture, employee experience, and the leadership behaviors proven to deliver market-leading revenue, employee retention and increased innovation.
"Great Place To Work Certification is a highly coveted achievement that requires consistent and intentional dedication to the overall employee experience," says Sarah Lewis-Kulin, the Vice President of Global Recognition at Great Place To Work. She emphasizes that Certification is the sole official recognition earned by the real-time feedback of employees regarding their company culture. "By successfully earning this recognition, it is evident that Belle Haven Investments stands out as one of the top companies to work for, providing a great workplace environment for its employees."
Matt Dalton, CEO & CIO, expressed his excitement emphasizing "We owe the Firm's continued success to our dedicated and awesome employees. We celebrate and thank them for all they do to earn this incredible recognition."
About Belle Haven Investments
Belle Haven Investments is an independent, employee-owned asset manager that focuses exclusively on fixed income. They prioritize service, reliability, and customization, nurturing long-term partnerships with their clients. Their core values - trust and communication - permeate both external client relationships and internal team dynamics. The autonomy given to employees fosters trust, driving them to deliver their best work daily. To learn more, visit: https://www.bellehaven.com/
About Great Place to Work Certification™
Great Place To Work® Certification™ is the most definitive "employer-of-choice" recognition that companies aspire to achieve. It is the only recognition based entirely on what employees report about their workplace experience – specifically, how consistently they experience a high-trust workplace. Great Place to Work Certification is recognized worldwide by employees and employers alike and is the global benchmark for identifying and recognizing outstanding employee experience. Every year, more than 10,000 companies across 60 countries apply to get Great Place To Work-Certified.
Contact:
Nicole Robbins
robbinsn@bellehaven.com
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| 2023-07-31T19:59:37
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Imagine stepping on stage with your favorite artist in VR from your browser. Discover secret rooms, join live Q&As with other fans, shop for merch, and more. Connect with your audience like never before.
NEW YORK, July 31, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- BR Marketing Group, a leading luxury brand marketing agency in NYC, is excited to offer its new Web Virtual Reality (WebVR) service to clients worldwide. With this service, clients can create memorable marketing experiences in WebVR. WebVR is a technology that allows users to enjoy virtual reality from their browsers, without any extra hardware or software.
BR Marketing Group has a team of creative experts who design and promote WebVR experiences that capture the unique essence of each brand. Whether it's a concert, a store, a gallery, or more BR Marketing Group can bring it to life in WebVR.
"Our service stands out because we embrace the future. We know how innovative technologies like WebVR can transform the customer experience," said Andrea Canas, CEO of BR Marketing Group.
- Drake, global superstar, has recently taken his concerts and online store to the next level by adding immersive technology for an interactive virtual experience. He is not alone. Luxury brands and artists are following suit.
- Revenue in the VR Advertising market is projected to reach US$161.70m in 2023, revenue is expected to show an annual growth rate (CAGR 2023-2027) of 2.33%, resulting in a projected market volume of US$177.30m by 2027, according to a recent study.
WebVR is still a new and fast-growing tech, able to give immersive, interactive, awe-inspiring experiences. WebVR also connects with IRL events, enabling users to explore real-world objects, locations, and people through VR.
To get more info on WebVR or work with BR Marketing Group for your next virtual or IRL event, visit us at brmarketgroup.com or call 332-600-4466.
About BR Marketing Group
As one of the first creative agencies to offer WebVR immersive services, BR Marketing Group combines its web development, design, and marketing skills to create amazing VR events that connect the virtual and physical worlds.
BR Marketing Group is a leading luxury brand marketing agency in NYC, led by Andrea Cañas, a visionary Latina leader. She and her team of creative experts' craft captivating and unforgettable marketing experiences that bring out the unique essence of each brand they work with.
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SOURCE BR Marketing Group
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How to Watch the Astros vs. Guardians Game: Streaming & TV Channel Info for July 31
Steven Kwan and the Cleveland Guardians hit the field on Monday at Minute Maid Park against J.P. France, who will start for the Houston Astros. First pitch is at 8:10 PM ET.
Sign up for Fubo to watch this matchup and make sure you don't miss any of the action all year long!
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Astros vs. Guardians Live Stream, TV Channel and Game Info:
- Date: Monday, July 31, 2023
- Time: 8:10 PM ET
- TV Channel: SportsNet SW
- Location: Houston, Texas
- Venue: Minute Maid Park
- Live Stream: Watch this game on Fubo!
Bet on this matchup with BetMGM Sportsbook and use bonus code "GNPLAY" for special offers!
Read More About This Game
Astros Batting & Pitching Performance
- The Astros are ninth in MLB action with 135 home runs. They average 1.3 per game.
- Houston ranks 11th in baseball, slugging .416.
- The Astros have the 16th-ranked batting average in the majors (.250).
- Houston has the No. 11 offense in MLB play, scoring 4.8 runs per game (506 total runs).
- The Astros rank 15th in MLB with a .319 on-base percentage.
- The Astros strike out 7.8 times per game, the fifth-fewest mark in baseball.
- The pitching staff for Houston has a collective 9.3 K/9, the sixth-best in the majors.
- Houston has the fourth-ranked team ERA across all MLB pitching staffs (3.82).
- Pitchers for the Astros combine for the 16th-ranked WHIP in baseball (1.276).
Astros Probable Starting Pitcher
- France gets the start for the Astros, his 15th of the season. He is 6-3 with a 2.87 ERA and 58 strikeouts through 84 2/3 innings pitched.
- The righty's most recent appearance came on Wednesday against the Texas Rangers, when he threw seven innings, surrendering no earned runs while allowing five hits.
- France is aiming for his third quality start in a row.
- France will try to last five or more innings for his third straight start. He's averaging six frames per outing.
- He has had three appearances this season in which he kept his opponents to zero earned runs.
Astros Schedule
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John Isner 2023 Mifel Open Odds
John Isner, off a loss in the round of 32 of the Truist Atlanta Open (to Dominik Koepfer) in his previous tournament, will open the Mifel Open in Los Cabos, Mexico versus Rinky Hijikata in the round of 32. Isner's odds are +1400 to win this event at Cabo Sports Complex.
Find all the latest odds for the 2023 Mifel Open and place your bets with a new user bonus from BetMGM.
Isner at the 2023 Mifel Open
- Next Round: Round of 32
- Tournament Dates: July 28 - August 6
- Venue: Cabo Sports Complex
- Location: Los Cabos, Mexico
- Court Surface: Hard
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Isner's Next Match
In the round of 32 of the Mifel Open, on Monday, July 31 (at 10:20 PM ET), Isner will meet Hijikata.
Isner is currently listed at -160 to win his next contest against Hijikata. Check out the latest odds for the entire field at BetMGM.
John Isner Grand Slam Odds
- US Open odds to win: +12500
- Mifel Open odds to win: +1400
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Isner Stats
- In his most recent tournament, the Truist Atlanta Open, Isner was eliminated in the Round of 32 by No. 88-ranked Koepfer, 6-3, 6-7, 6-7.
- Isner is 12-14 over the past 12 months, with no tournament titles.
- Isner is 9-10 on hard courts over the past year.
- Isner, over the past year, has played 26 matches across all court surfaces, and 29.2 games per match.
- On hard courts, Isner has played 19 matches over the past year, and 28.3 games per match.
- Isner has won 11.0% of his return games and 88.1% of his service games over the past 12 months.
- On hard courts over the past year, Isner has been victorious in 10.3% of his return games and 89.8% of his service games.
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DALLAS, July 31, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Virgin Hotels Dallas, the 260 room luxury lifestyle hotel located in the Dallas Design District, is proud to announce that it has been honored with the Equity Leadership award presented by D CEO at their annual Nonprofit & Corporate Citizenship award ceremony. The Equity Leadership award is given each year to a corporation in the Dallas community that supports efforts that advance diversity, equity, and inclusion.
Since the hotel opened in 2019, Virgin Hotels Dallas has supported local organizations that champion diversity and equity such as Cafe Momentum, Unlock Potential, and My Possibilities. Through these initiatives, the hotel has been able to provide mentorship and employment opportunities to justice-involved youth as well as adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities.
"It is an honor for Virgin Hotels Dallas to be recognized as a leader in diversity within the Dallas community," says Richard Branson, Founder of Virgin Group. "Creating an inclusive environment where our guests and teammates always feel welcomed to be who they are has always been our priority at Virgin."
Looking ahead, Virgin Hotels Dallas is dedicated to continuing to evolve their diversity program with new partnerships, teammate training, and more. The Dallas Design District boutique hotel is committed to being Autism Double Checked by the end of 2024. According to the online autism training company, over 20 million people are parents to one or more children with autism. Due to the current landscape and lack of autism-friendly travel experiences, 87% of parents of autistic children currently do not travel or take family vacations. However, 93% of parents with autistic children said they would travel if autistic-friendly travel experiences were available.
With the certification, teammates at Virgin Hotels Dallas will undergo neurodiversity training and guests with special needs will receive a detailed visitors guide ahead of their stay that highlights potential sensory issues such as crowds, temperature, noise, body awareness and more.
In addition to the property's Autism Double Checked commitment, Virgin Hotels Dallas will also implement a new policy with Hidden Disabilities that will allow teammates and guests to wear a sunflower lanyard that indicates that they have a non-visible disability and may need more time, assistance, etc.
The brand's commitment to diversity goes beyond external partnerships. Internally, Virgin Hotels strives to hire individuals that are reflective of the world and encompass a variety of racial backgrounds, genders, etc. In an effort to be the most inclusive employer in the hotel industry, Virgin Hotels launched the J.E.D.I program which stands for justice, equity, diversity, and inclusion. The idea behind this people-focused approach is to implement new guidelines for community partners, recruitment, and training in a phased approach. Currently, the brand is in its third phase which involves a complete demographic analysis to identify gaps in our workforce. Future phases will include J.E.D.I committees at each hotel, unconscious bias training, and more.
"I am so proud of the team at Virgin Hotels Dallas for leading the charge in diversity within the Dallas community and hospitality industry as a whole," says James Bermingham, Chief Executive Officer of Virgin Hotels Collection. "Their efforts are a testament to the brand's purpose of 'everyone leaves feeling better'. We are so thankful to have an amazing team that prioritizes our dedication to being an inclusive and comfortable environment."
For more information on Virgin Hotels diversity & inclusivity commitment, visit https://virginhotels.com/diversity-and-inclusivity/.
About Virgin Hotels Dallas
Virgin Hotels Dallas is the second property from Virgin Hotels - the lifestyle hospitality brand that combines heartfelt service, straightforward value and a seamless, personalized hotel experience with the track record of innovation and smart disruption that Sir Richard Branson's global Virgin Group has pioneered for 50 years. The property intermixes a passion for food and beverage with music and culture that fuses with the local landscape, providing an inclusive environment for travelers and locals alike. Located in the Dallas Design District on 1445 Turtle Creek Blvd, the hotel features 260 Chambers (rooms) and two Penthouse Suites. Dining and drinking outlets include Commons Club the brand's flagship restaurant and bar, Funny Library Coffee Shop and The Pool Club. Reservations accepted and can be made directly on the hotel's website, www.virginhotels.com/dallas or by calling 469.359.7003.
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