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It was a mere 28 days ago that Cameron Smith stood on the 17th tee at TPC Sawgrass with a chance to become a Players champion. The sixth-ranked player in the world took dead aim and made birdie at the famous par 3 to put an exclamation point on his fifth PGA Tour win.
Things played out a little differently on the par-3 12th Sunday at Augusta National Golf Club.
Smith walked to the 12th tee with all the momentum after a birdie at the difficult par-4 11th had cut Scottie Scheffler’s lead to three. It was the closest Smith had been since he walked off the fourth green after a bogey at the par 3.
With the honor on the tee and a 9-iron in his hands, Smith made what he called “just a really bad swing” that sent his Titleist Pro V1x plunging into Rae’s Creek.
Full-field scores from the 86th Masters Tournament
“Probably one of the worst swings of the week and just at the worst time of the week,” Smith said after his round. “Yeah, just unfortunate, but I'll grow from this and be stronger for it.”
While it would be easy to assume Smith just got a little aggressive in trying to mount a comeback, he insisted he wasn’t trying to go at the pin.
“It was actually a really good number,” Smith said. “It was a really nice 9-iron. Wasn't even trying to go near that pin, and, yeah, just a really poor swing.”
After taking a drop 87 yards from the hole, Smith missed long and right of the green with his third shot, and was unable to get up-and-down from there.
A triple-bogey 6 dropped The Players champion to 4 under for the week and virtually eliminated him from contention at the 86th Masters.
Smith managed to play his final six holes in 1 under par, which resulted in a tie for third alongside 2019 Open champion Shane Lowry. It’s his third top-five finish at the Masters since 2018.
With another close call at Augusta National, how does Smith deal with watching someone else don the green jacket once again?
“I feel like I've played some of my best golf around here,” Smith said. “It's quite frustrating, I guess, to not walk away with a win yet, but at the same token, I look forward to the challenge of coming back here next year and trying to do it again.” | https://www.golfchannel.com/news/2022-masters-two-famous-par-3s-two-different-results-cameron-smith-after-disastrous-12th | 2022-04-11T04:39:24 | 1 | https://www.golfchannel.com/news/2022-masters-two-famous-par-3s-two-different-results-cameron-smith-after-disastrous-12th |
AUGUSTA, Ga. – Ben Crenshaw’s cobalt blue eyes narrowed.
As the emcee of the annual Champions Dinner, each time golf’s most exclusive club gathers is special, but the 2016 event was emotionally charged for the quintessential Texan. The ’16 host was Jordan Spieth, who grew up in Dallas and played college golf in Austin, just like Crenshaw.
The connection between Texas and Augusta National runs deep.
“It’s there,” Gentle Ben said in a way that suggests he knows an answer to a question most haven’t thought of, much like he did at the 1999 Ryder Cup. “We as Texans always had all those people to strive toward – Ben Hogan, Byron Nelson, Jimmy Demaret, Jackie Burke, and they’ve done so well here. I don’t know what it is but we had something to shoot for.”
There is no birthright for Texans at Augusta National. Bobby Jones never called Dallas home and by all accounts, he never considered the rugged Hill Country as a possible landing spot for his venerable club. But the history of the Masters weaves through the Lone Star State.
It’s a lineage that was born in a caddie's yard in Ft. Worth, Texas, when Byron Nelson won the 1937 edition, back when the gathering was called the Augusta National Invitational, and he was followed by the likes of Ben Hogan, who won the first of his two Masters in 1951.
And now Scottie Scheffler.
Scott Scheffler, the effervescent father of the 2022 Masters champion, is all New Jersey. He would sneak onto the train to the Bronx as a teenager to watch the Yankees play and started his family in Ridgewood, New Jersey.
Full-field scores from the 86th Masters Tournament
The Schefflers moved south when young Scottie was in first grade and he never looked back. On a perfect Masters Sunday, Scottie Scheffler, 25, became the 10th player from Texas to claim a green jacket.
Earlier during Masters week, he was introduced on the first tee as “Scottie Scheffler from Ridgewood, New Jersey.” Although that’s technically correct, know that he’s all Texas, like the brisket Crenshaw served at his Champions Dinner and the cowboy boots Patrick Reed wore to his.
“I was born there [New Jersey]. I lived there, I think for five years. The only thing I remember was our backyard. I used to just hit golf balls in the backyard, hit them over the house,” Scheffler said. “All I remember was the backyard.”
But it was in Dallas, and more specifically Royal Oaks Country Club, where the Masters champion was professionally born. Two years after moving to Texas, Scheffler started working with Randy Smith, a Lone Star legend who has mentored the likes of Justin Leonard. Uniquely talented, if not a bit unorthodox, young Scottie developed a reputation as a goofball. A tireless work ethic combined with an outsized dedication to the craft created a legend that persists to this day.
“He wore pants to every tournament, even if it was 110 degrees. He tried to be a professional at a young age,” said Will Zalatoris, who grew up in Dallas competing against Scheffler. “Goofy is an understatement, to put it mildly.”
That “goofy” kid ascended to world No. 1 two weeks ago with his victory at the WGC-Match Play, which was essentially a home game that was played at Austin Country Club, and he delivered a dominant performance at Augusta National.
Rory McIlroy holed out from a greenside bunker at the 72nd hole for the week’s loudest roar and a closing 64 to finish at 7 under. It wasn’t nearly enough.
There were tense moments for Scheffler. There always are.
The turning point came at the third hole after a rope hook drive and a poor recovery left him short of the green. At the time he was clinging to a one-stroke lead over Cameron Smith and appeared poised to fall out of the top spot for the first time all weekend, but he chipped in for an unlikely birdie. Smith made bogey, and it was never really close after that.
Six of the last nine Masters have included a player from Texas in either first or second place, an impressive run, but one that doesn’t compare to the early years when Texans finished first or second in 16 of 17 tournaments, starting in ’37.
Thoughts vary on exactly why Texans have enjoyed so much success at Augusta National. The most common theme is conditions, which covered all four seasons this week with early storms that transitioned to blustery winds on Saturday and, thankfully, a perfect Sunday. The wind and the rain and the cold are staples in Texas.
“Look at this week,” said Reed, the 2018 champion who was born in San Antonio. “You've seen basically four different types of conditions. You've had windy. You've had rainy. You've had wet, soft, firm, hot, cold. It's kind of like at home. It's what we get at home. You just never know what you're going to get.
“Because of that, it allows us when we get into situations, especially around here where wind swirls and stuff, it's not just about knowing your distances, but you also have to know what window it needs to be out at that distance.”
Creativity also seems to be the common denominator, at least for the modern Texans. Spieth, who finished inside the top 3 in four of his first five starts at Augusta National, arrived truly gifted with the short-game gene and Scheffler was equally brilliant this week, finishing third in the field in scrambling and fifth in putting.
But mostly, it seems like a grit thing. Of the four major championships, the romanticized vision of the Masters creates outsized pressure, which is where Scheffler found himself early Sunday.
Scheffler’s stoic exterior was shattered following his final round when young Scottie revealed he “cried like a baby” early Sunday.
“I was so stressed out. I didn't know what to do. I was sitting there telling [wife Meredith], I don't think I'm ready for this. I'm not ready, I don't feel like I'm ready for this kind of stuff, and I just felt overwhelmed,” Scheffler said.
If that doesn’t exactly dovetail with visions of Texas bravado know that Spieth has told similar stories and Crenshaw’s emotions have become a highlight of the Champions Dinner. Wanting something too much isn’t a weakness. Allowing it to impact your performance is, and Scheffler’s execution would have made Hogan proud.
Less than a year ago, there were some who were questioning Scheffler’s ability to close out tournaments. On Sunday, he joined the likes of Nelson, Hogan, Demaret and Spieth.
He’s not a Texas legend – yet.
“He’s moving up the ladder. He’s 25 and has a major and four wins [on the PGA Tour],” said Smith, Scheffler’s swing coach since he was 7, who Crenshaw affectionately and knowingly called a “handler” of swings. “He still has more golf to play and he’s not there yet. But I’m not going to say he’s not going to be one of the best.”
When Augusta National chairman Fred Ridley introduced Scheffler as this year’s Masters champion there was a smattering of hook ‘em horns that emerged from the gallery, which is no small thing in Georgia Bulldog country. He wasn’t the first and it’s unlikely that he’ll be the last Longhorn to pull the coveted green jacket over his shoulders.
Crenshaw won the last of his two Masters in 1995, the year before Scheffler was born. And the ’96 Champions Dinner was distinctly Texas.
“The first time I won [1984] we had to order from the club menu. The next year when Sandy Lyle won, they said you can bring in whatever you want,” Crenshaw remembered. “The second time I went with Texas BBQ, we had it flown in from the Salt Lick [a BBQ institution] in Austin.”
Scheffler will undoubtedly serve some variation of brisket or beef ribs or bone-in ribeye or some such Texas fare at next year’s Champions Dinner. The Texan, via New Jersey, is simply the next in a long chain that indelibly connects Augusta National to the Lone Star State. | https://www.golfchannel.com/news/masters-2022-scottie-scheffler-newest-addition-texas-illustrious-history-augusta-national | 2022-04-11T04:39:30 | 1 | https://www.golfchannel.com/news/masters-2022-scottie-scheffler-newest-addition-texas-illustrious-history-augusta-national |
AUGUSTA, Ga. – As he sat in Augusta National’s elaborate interview room Sunday evening, Rory McIlroy was wearing green.
It just wasn’t quite the right shade.
McIlroy didn’t win the 86th Masters. He didn’t complete the career grand slam. Heck, at no point these past four days did he factor. But what he did do was rip off the guardrails, go for broke and put together his best 18 holes – and overall finish – around this sacred layout.
McIlroy’s 8-under 64, capped by a holed bunker shot for birdie, was a shot better than the two 65s he’s posted, in 2011 and 2018, and it earned him sole possession of second place, three shots behind champion Scottie Scheffler.
“You go out there today and you give it a go, and if it doesn't quite work out, it doesn't really matter,” McIlroy said. “But if it does work out, you can have a day like this and have some fun.”
It wasn’t just fun. It was electric. And McIlroy had the place buzzing early and often.
Especially at the end, when the crowd roared louder than it had all week – and that was with McIlroy locking up bridesmaid status, not a green jacket. (Imagine had that bunker shot been to win...)
“What you just saw on the last hole with me and Rory, that was the coolest thing in the world,” said Collin Morikawa, who followed McIlroy’s hole-out from the right greenside bunker at No. 18 with one of his own. With Morikawa shooting 67 to finish solo fifth, the pair combined for a best-ball 61.
McIlroy needed that on his own ball to force a playoff.
Admittedly, McIlroy “played for pars” for much of the early part of this tournament. Though, as he explained, that was part of his strategy, to just hang around until he got his moment to attack. Sure, 73-73-71 left him too far back to begin Sunday – 10 shots – but McIlroy wasn’t kicking himself as he offered reflection while Scheffler was simultaneously wrapping up his first major title.
“Scottie just had such a lead,” McIlroy said. “It wasn't just me that struggled first two days. It was basically every other person in the field apart from Scottie.”
By the time McIlroy teed of Sunday afternoon, his only chance to catch the red-hot Scheffler, whose heater – three wins in six starts entering the Masters – had bled into this week, was to turn the aggressiveness dial all the way up.
So, he fired at the flag at No. 1, and made birdie.
He pounded a 376-yard drive on a gutsy far-left line at No. 2. (OK, so he came away with a disappointing par there.)
He then sent his drive up just right of the green at No. 3 to set up an easy birdie.
Suddenly, it was clear: McIlroy was feeling himself, and his golf swing, and a low round and Sunday charge was brewing.
As Golf Twitter puts it, Rory was comin’.
“I've been in that position, and I've had the lead on the back nine here and haven't been able to get it done,” McIlroy said. “I just wanted to try and put a little bit of pressure on [Scottie], and I feel like I did that.”
Full-field scores from the 86th Masters Tournament
McIlroy’s best shot of the day came from the left rough at No. 7, where he hit a low stinger that ran through the small opening between the two front greenside bunkers before settling on the first cut, some 30 feet behind the pin.
“Ridiculous,” Morikawa said. “Out of the trees, through the little gap. [My caddie] J.J. [Jakovac] said he walked over there on that line and really didn't even see a gap running it up.”
But there was, and McIlroy found it.
After reuniting with longtime instructor Michael Bannon last fall, McIlroy’s game had been trending, even if his results didn’t show it – just two top-10s and a missed cut last week in San Antonio. He had also changed golf balls after the first round of the Valero, going back to one he had used a few years ago.
It all added up on Sunday.
“I feel good with where my golf swing is, and I'm not overanalyzing it and not looking at the video too much, and it feels pretty good,” McIlroy said. “The ball is basically doing what I want it to do more times than not. That's a good thing.”
Morikawa also noticed McIlroy’s walk – not too fast, not too slow.
“When you look at someone's walk, you can kind of see their demeanor and how they kind of move through things,” Morikawa said. “From that first tee shot, I think both of us, especially him, he was moving at a nice pace. He was moving at a comfortable pace.”
McIlroy birdied the par-5 eighth to turn in 4-under 32, and he kickstarted his second nine with a chip-in birdie at par-4 10th. The excitement was building at that point, though McIlroy was still seven off the lead.
He next strung together a clutch up-and-down par at No. 11, rolling in a 7-footer. And a few holes later, after launching a long-iron 201 yards to 10 feet for an eagle at No. 13, he hit a beautiful pitch at No. 14 that rode the slope and set up a stress-free par save.
“Those are the things that are really pleasing,” McIlroy said. “And they are not the things that are going to get the highlights or the applause, but it's those little things that keep the round going. That's what I was most proud of today.”
In the end, McIlroy never really threatened Scheffler. A firm bounce on McIlroy’s third into the par-5 15th resulted in another bummer of a par, and he hit his 18-foot birdie putt at the par-3 16th too firm.
The only reason McIlroy finished as close as he did was because Scheffler four-putted his closing hole, which happened right as McIlroy was wrapping up his presser; a reporter alerted him of it.
“Oh, no,” McIlroy responded.
He already knew it didn’t matter.
He also already knew he has the game to win a green jacket someday.
He hasn’t put it all together it yet, but he knows that ability is inside of him. Sunday proved it.
“I don't think I've ever walked away from this tournament as happy as I am today,” McIlroy said. “I've played a really good round of golf, and it's my best ever finish at Augusta. It's not quite enough, but I'll certainly look back on this day with very fond memories. And as I said at the start, it gives me confidence going forward not only into the next Masters next year but to the rest of the season as well.”
The fun, it seems, may be just beginning. | https://www.golfchannel.com/news/rory-mcilroy-creates-fond-memories-sunday-64-augusta-national-golf-club | 2022-04-11T04:39:36 | 1 | https://www.golfchannel.com/news/rory-mcilroy-creates-fond-memories-sunday-64-augusta-national-golf-club |
Scottie Scheffler won for the fourth time in two months at the Masters Tournament. Here are the winning clubs he used to do so:
DRIVER: TaylorMade Stealth Plus+ (8 degrees), with Fujikura Ventus Black 7X shaft.
FAIRWAY WOOD: TaylorMade Stealth 3HL (16.5 degrees), with Fujikura Ventus Black 8X shaft
IRONS: Srixon ZU85 (3), with Nippon Pro Modus3 Hybrid Tour X; Srixon ZX7 (4), TaylorMade P-7TW (5-PW), with True Temper Dynamic Gold Tour Issue X100 shafts.
WEDGES: Titleist Vokey Design SM8 (50, 56, 60 degrees), with True Temper Dynamic Gold Tour Issue S400 shafts.
PUTTER: Scotty Cameron Special Select Timeless Tour prototype
BALL: Titleist Pro V1 | https://www.golfchannel.com/news/winners-bag-2002-masters-tournament-champion-scottie-scheffler | 2022-04-11T04:39:42 | 0 | https://www.golfchannel.com/news/winners-bag-2002-masters-tournament-champion-scottie-scheffler |
HENRICO COUNTY, Va. (WRIC) — As the Highland Springs community mourns the loss of 16-year-old Jahiem “Jah” Dickerson, a prayer vigil is set to be held in his remembrance.
Just after midnight Sunday, Henrico Police was called to the 1900 block of Glenwilton Drive for a report of a shooting. When they arrived, they found a juvenile male victim. He was taken to a hospital and later died from his injuries.
Authorities have not released the identity of the victim, but Varina District Supervisor Tyrone Nelson told 8News it was Dickerson, a sophomore at Highland Springs High School.
“I got a call early this morning that a young man was murdered,” Nelson said. “Instantly, my heart broke.”
By request of Dickerson’s mother, Jennifer Flythe, United Communities Against Crime will be holding a candlelight prayer vigil Monday evening. It will start at 6 p.m. at Highland Springs High School. Attendees are asked to bring their own candle and wear white and gold. | https://www.wric.com/community/highland-springs-community-holding-vigil-for-basketball-player/ | 2022-04-11T04:39:44 | 1 | https://www.wric.com/community/highland-springs-community-holding-vigil-for-basketball-player/ |
Posted: Apr 11, 2022 / 12:00 AM EDT Updated: Apr 7, 2022 / 12:20 PM EDT SHARE Close Modal Suggest a Correction Your name(required) Your email(required) Report a typo or grammatical error(required) Submit Δ Suggest a Correction | https://fox59.com/contests/live-nations-bon-jovi-ticket-giveaway-contest/ | 2022-04-11T04:49:17 | 1 | https://fox59.com/contests/live-nations-bon-jovi-ticket-giveaway-contest/ |
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LONG BEACH, Calif. (AP) — Colton Herta is so good on the downtown streets of Long Beach, and was so strong this weekend, that a second consecutive victory seemed automatic.
Not so fast, scowled Josef Newgarden, who went to sleep the night before the race Sunday stewing over a question he’d been asked after qualifying by a reporter who inquired, “At what point does Colton Herta check out tomorrow?”
“Like what is that? I thought it was such a bizarre question and I went to bed last night and I went, ‘You know what? That kid is not checking out. There’s just no way,’” Newgarden said.
And so Newgarden kept the pole-sitter in sight when Herta peeled away Sunday in Herta’s home race. Herta led the first 28 laps but Newgarden chipped away and used strategy and pit stops to move to the front and win his second consecutive race of the season.
It was his first career victory in 10 starts at the most prestigious street course race in the United States. He was the leader in the 2011 Indy Lights race when he crashed with two laps remaining.
“It’s a huge pleasure to finally be able to win around this place,” Newgarden said. “It’s pretty special to finally get one.”
Newgarden led a race-high 32 laps to move Team Penske to 3-0 on the new IndyCar season. Penske teammate Scott McLaughlin won the opener at St. Petersburg, then Newgarden won at Texas and now Long Beach to bump McLaughlin from the championship lead.
Team Penske last opened an IndyCar season with three consecutive wins in 2012, when the team won the first four races.
Newgarden was challenged over the final 15 laps by Romain Grosjean, the former Formula One driver seeking his first career IndyCar victory. Jimmie Johnson, who broke his hand in a crash Friday and raced with a carbon fiber cast, crashed with 10 laps remaining to bring out the caution and give Grosjean and reigning IndyCar champion Alex Palou a shot on a final restart.
The race went green with five laps remaining and Grosjean got several good looks inside of Newgarden but couldn’t pull even to attempt a winning pass. Takuma Sato crashed with a lap remaining to bring out a final caution and Newgarden won under yellow.
“This is not an easy race to win. I don’t know what it looked like from the outside, but I was working my butt off with Grojean there at the end,” said Newgarden.
The victory gave General Motors a sweep in Long Beach; Cadillac went 1-2 on Saturday in the IMSA sports car race and Newgarden won in a Chevrolet.
Grosjean finished second for Andretti Autosport, which was seeking a fourth consecutive win at Long Beach. Andretti drivers Alexander Rossi won in 2018 and 2019, Herta won in 2021 and started from the pole Sunday.
He led 28 laps but had ceded the lead to Newgarden when Herta crashed out of the race with 29 laps remaining. He said he was pushing too hard when he crashed.
“It’s just a stupid mistake. We were definitely in that thing,” Herta said. “It’s unfortunate. I feel really bad. The car was fantastic. Just overdid it a little bit today.”
Palou finished third for his 10th podium finish in 19 races since joining Chip Ganassi Racing at the start of last year.
Will Power of Team Penske was fourth and Pato O’Ward salvaged his sloppy start to the season with a fifth-place finish. The Arrow McLaren SP driver is supposed to be a championship contender but has made mistakes in each of the first three race weekends and is admittedly distracted by his desire for a new contract.
Scott Dixon was sixth for Ganassi, followed by Graham Rahal of Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing and then Rossi. Helio Castroneves was ninth for Meyer Shank Racing and Kyle Kirkwood was 10th for A.J. Foyt Racing.
Johnson finished 20th to close one of the worst weekends of his career. He broke his hand in Friday’s crash, crashed again in Saturday practice, was penalized his two fastest laps in qualifying for interfering with Rahal, and then crashed out of the race Sunday.
“I’ve had (bad weekends) before,” Johnson said. “But it comes with it. I certainly feel bad that I put the team in this position. This deal isn’t easy. You’ve got to live on the razor’s edge on the street races and there’s no margin for error. Trying to be faster, trying to be more competitive, I made some mistakes this weekends and will learn from them.”
UP NEXT: The Grand Prix of Alabama at Barber Motorsports Park. Barber was the season opener a year ago and Palou scored his first career IndyCar victory and launched his championship-winning campaign. | https://fox59.com/sports/newgarden-moves-team-penske-to-3-0-with-long-beach-victory/ | 2022-04-11T04:49:29 | 1 | https://fox59.com/sports/newgarden-moves-team-penske-to-3-0-with-long-beach-victory/ |
WASHINGTON — Sen. Maggie Hassan, D-N.H., is leading three other Democratic senators calling upon the Federal Trade Commission to investigate whether oil and gas companies have illegally been cranking up prices at the pump.
Hassan’s new bill would require the FTC to report back in six months on a probe into whether there has been price gouging.
“As Big Oil continues to rake in record profits, Granite Staters are paying the price every time they fill up their tank,” Hassan said in a statement.
“The administration must take action to investigate whether Big Oil is artificially raising prices and illegally manipulating the market for their own gain, and that’s what my bill will do,” she said.
Democratic Senators Mark Kelly of Arizona, Jeff Merkley of Oregon and Richard Blumenthal of Connecticut co-sponsored what they called the Oversight to Lower Oil Prices Act.
“I am committed to standing up to Big Oil and will keep pushing for solutions to help lower prices for Granite Staters and all Americans,” Hassan added.
Republican state Senate President and U.S. Senate hopeful Chuck Morse, of Salem, insisted Hassan’s legislation would do no good.
“Yet again Maggie Hassan shows a total lack of even the most basic economics that goes into the price at the pump. Smaller supplies of oil here in America and greater global demand lead to higher prices,” Morse said in a statement.
“The solution is simple: Democrats need to take their foot off the necks of financial institutions so they will again finance exploration and drilling for America’s energy. Remember this — prior to Maggie Hassan and her Democratic colleagues taking control of the federal government, we were energy independent and exporting energy at record levels.”
Last week, Hassan tried and failed to get the Senate to bring to an immediate vote her proposal to declare a federal gas tax holiday for the balance of the year.
Kelly and Hassan are co-sponsoring the Gas Prices Relief Act of 2022.
“We have an obligation to work together to bring down costs,” Hassan said in the video of her remarks last Thursday.
Hassan needed all senators to consent to her request that her gas tax holiday bill come from the Senate Finance Committee where it sits right to the Senate floor for an immediate vote.
Sen. Mike Crapo, R-Idaho, objected and went on to attack the idea.
“The problem is this administration’s policy has dramatically reduced the supply in the United States,” Crapo said.
“The gas tax holiday that is now being proposed is not a solution; it is a political gimmick that would not stop skyrocketing gas prices or inflation.”
Republican and Democratic governors have endorsed the concept. Some Democratic senators have come out against it due to concern it could reduce spending on infrastructure projects.
In a recent Wall Street Journal podcast, former Treasury Chairman Larry Summers said “its “triviality” is all that prevents the gas tax holiday from being “one of the worst public policy ideas of the decade.”
“The only lasting solution to our problems is to bolster American oil and gas production,” Crapo said.
Hassan shot back, “What you have just heard are talking points straight out of Big Oil’s playbook.”
Infrastructure spending would not be affected because the bill requires the Treasury repay the Highway Trust Fund for any federal gas tax revenues lost during the holiday period, Hassan said.
Former Londonderry Town Manager Kevin Smith and retired Brig. Den. Donald Bolduc of Stratham have joined Morse in opposing Hassan’s gas tax holiday.
State Sen. David Watters, D-Dover, said last week that Hassan’s proposal might do New Hampshire more good than the proposed, two-month suspension of the state’s gas tax which has the backing of Gov. Chris Sununu.
That’s because all motorists would benefit equally from the federal holiday while out-of-state drivers coming to New Hampshire stand to get up to half of the benefit of a state gas tax suspension, Watters added. | https://www.unionleader.com/news/politics/state/sen-hassan-seeks-probe-into-gas-price-gouging/article_6c6c11af-7092-5a4d-a5ad-74cd165a24f0.html | 2022-04-11T04:52:35 | 1 | https://www.unionleader.com/news/politics/state/sen-hassan-seeks-probe-into-gas-price-gouging/article_6c6c11af-7092-5a4d-a5ad-74cd165a24f0.html |
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Philadelphia 76ers guard Matisse Thybulle spoke after Sunday’s win over the Detroit Pistons.
After Sixers coach Doc Rivers reiterated Thybulle would be ineligible for parts of the team’s upcoming playoff series with the Toronto Raptors because he has not received a full COVID-19 vaccination and Canada has strict COVID rules.
The guard said, however, that he did not consider himself “anti-vax.”
“This was a decision I made a long time ago. I was raised in a holistic household, anti-vax is not a term that was ever used. We grew up with Chinese medicine and naturopathic doctors.”
“I didn’t see any benefits outweighing what I could seek from alternative medicine,” he added after the 118-106 win.
“I made this choice and thought I could keep it to myself, I could keep it quiet,” Thybulle said.
The Australian expressed disappointment in being ruled ineligible for Game 3 and Game 4 at ScotiaBank Arena across the border.
“I mean, it sucks. It was not the outcome that I wanted. It’s always hard not to be available, whether you’re injured or whatnot. It’s hard to watch your guys go out there and fight without you but I believe in them without me just as much as I believe in them with me. I think we have as good of a chance as any to make a run to the championship, and I trust these guys to take care of it when I can’t be there on the court.”
Thybulle scored 7, grabbed 3 rebounds and blocked 2 shots in 35 minutes for Philly, the 4th seed in the East.
() | https://www.twincities.com/2022/04/10/76ers-guard-matisse-thybulle-explains-why-hes-unvaccinated/ | 2022-04-11T04:53:05 | 0 | https://www.twincities.com/2022/04/10/76ers-guard-matisse-thybulle-explains-why-hes-unvaccinated/ |
To the Editor: It is wonderful that the U.S. will welcome 100,000 Ukrainian refugees.
Imagine had President Joe Biden also announced a warm welcome for 100,000 refugees from Central America. Or announced that we will airlift 100,000 civilians from Yemen, blockaded within their country by a brutal civil war, to safety in the U.S.
These things are not going to happen. One reason is that Central Americans are brown; Yemenis are brown and Muslim. But this is too simple an explanation. We have, after all, welcomed Afghans, brown and Muslim, to our country.
A deeper reason is that US economic policies and our support of repressive governments throughout Latin America have created tremendous economic hardship and enabled brutal violations of human rights. Together with homegrown dictators and corrupt economic elites, we have helped to create the conditions that drive people north to our border.
In Yemen, our bombs, missiles, refueling, spare parts and technical support have allowed the Saudi coalition to prosecute a terrible war against the civilians of Yemen. Their Houthi opponents, backed by Iran, of course share responsibility. The United Nations estimates that 377,000 people have died from all war-related causes. Tens of thousands of children have starved. Their deaths lie on our doorstep too.
It is so much easier to extend a compassionate hand to people whom we are sure we have not wronged. It is so much harder to extend compassion when this requires us to take responsibility for our part in creating misery. | https://www.unionleader.com/opinion/letters_to_editor/letter-ukrainians-are-lucky-others-lack-a-voice/article_ee1147ca-4d2d-512f-94ce-69302517ef70.html | 2022-04-11T04:53:12 | 0 | https://www.unionleader.com/opinion/letters_to_editor/letter-ukrainians-are-lucky-others-lack-a-voice/article_ee1147ca-4d2d-512f-94ce-69302517ef70.html |
The final day of each NBA season often features the lengthiest injury reports of the year as teams rest their stars to settle in for the postseason.
The Bulls followed that trend in Sunday’s 124-120 victory in the regular-season finale against the Minnesota Timberwolves, benching four starters for the 82nd game of the season — DeMar DeRozan, Zach LaVine, Nikola Vučević and Alex Caruso.
Resting the starters allowed secondary players to build confidence heading into the playoffs. Patrick Williams (35 points) and Ayo Dosunmu (26) had career-high scoring nights, both playing more than 40 minutes.
Coach Billy Donovan approached the game as a growth opportunity for both players, calling frequent timeouts to direct their decision making without the usual starters on the court.
“They’ve got to learn as young players how to manage themselves inside the game with those guys,” Donovan said. “In a lot of ways, DeMar and Zach can take some of that pressure off of Ayo. But today he was the sole primary guard, and having to organize all of that was probably a little bit of a different feeling for him tonight.”
Some of the Bulls scratches were expected. They mathematically couldn’t budge from the No. 6 seed, so playing a full-strength lineup with DeRozan and Vučević only would have risked fatigue and injury for two keys to the team’s postseason success.
But other names on the injury report serve as looming question marks for the Bulls in the playoffs — primarily Caruso and LaVine, whose health could determine how far the Bulls can go.
LaVine’s knee became a point of concern when he missed the last two games before the All-Star break to seek treatment in Los Angeles for soreness and tightness. Nearly two months later, the Bulls don’t have any more answers about the guard’s health heading into the postseason.
To his credit, LaVine has maintained nearly identical offensive production — 24.4 points and 4.5 assists per game — before and after the All-Star break. But his shooting percentages have dropped as an uncharacteristic timidness has crept in during several games.
Meanwhile, Caruso is fighting through back spasms, sitting out a game last week and wearing a heat pack during breaks on the sideline. The guard asked out of the third quarter of the Bulls’ loss to the Miami Heat on April 2 after the pain moved up between his shoulder blades, resulting in a sharp pain whenever he collided with other players.
Even when Caruso isn’t visibly nursing the injury, Donovan said it’s easy to tell the defensive specialist — who stole the ball only once in the last three games — is playing at a fraction of his typical intensity.
After sitting for two games, Caruso will return to practice this week to ramp up into the playoffs. If he’s still limited, the Bulls might need to rely more heavily on Dosunmu, who took over point guard duties earlier this season.
Donovan used Sunday’s game to focus on Dosunmu’s ability to direct the offense, calling two timeouts in the opening two minutes of the second half to instruct the rookie after multiple turnovers.
“(Dosunmu) is great in terms of coaching because he always responds,” Donovan said. “It was really a tough night for him, but the way he kept his head in the game … it speaks to his maturity and competitiveness.
“He just gets lost in competing. Sometimes guys get frustrated, they get down, they hang their head. He never does that.”
For his part, DeRozan isn’t a fan of rest games — and he hasn’t needed them this season. The veteran forward understands the need to care for his body, joking after a midseason game that all he does after games is ”go home and sit down” now that he’s in his 30s. But DeRozan isn’t prone to taking breaks unless he feels his body is in distress.
“I don’t need no time off,” he said after Tuesday’s loss to the Milwaukee Bucks. “I hate sitting too long. I love playing. … I’m kind of weird when it comes to that. You’re not supposed to feel too good. I hate feeling too good. Some of my best games came when I felt like I got jumped by 10 media people.”
DeRozan took a game off last week after feeling discomfort in his groin — which he always treats carefully after a torn adductor in 2014. He will finish the season having missed only six games, four of them during the leaguewide COVID-19 outbreak in December.
DeRozan’s ability to dodge injuries this season serves as a rare bright light for the Bulls during a season in which hopes were routinely dashed by the injury report.
The Bulls waited until this week to shut down Lonzo Ball for the season after January surgery for a torn meniscus, ending months of hope that the guard could return for a last-minute boost to the roster. Ball’s injury was a core part of the revolving door of starting guards for the Bulls, who swapped four players into the starting point guard role the last two months.
With Caruso’s and LaVine’s injuries ongoing, the Bulls might have to continue this trend of adaptable lineups in the postseason.
“We’ve dealt with all this for so long,” Donovan said. “You try to have a level of optimism … but this is just how it’s been for us this year.”
() | https://www.twincities.com/2022/04/10/chicago-bulls-rest-4-starters-in-regular-season-finale-victory-as-injury-concerns-continue-ahead-of-playoffs/ | 2022-04-11T04:53:12 | 1 | https://www.twincities.com/2022/04/10/chicago-bulls-rest-4-starters-in-regular-season-finale-victory-as-injury-concerns-continue-ahead-of-playoffs/ |
AS WE WATCH the brave and fearless patriots of Ukraine stand up for their freedom and muster resolve in the face of danger by not capitulating to Butcher Putin and his brand of tyranny, we should make this moment in history a clarion call for all Americans to ensure our Second Amendment rights, which are prominently enshrined in The Bill of Rights, our first 10 amendments. Never let the government take away our guns.
We are so lucky and should thank God for the foresight of our Founders’ insistence of incorporating The Bill of Rights. Let’s see if you remember what they are. First Amendment includes freedom of speech, freedom of the press, freedom of religion, freedom of assembly, and the right to petition the government; Second Amendment includes right to keep and bear arms; Third Amendment includes protection against housing soldiers in civilian homes; Fourth Amendment includes protection against unreasonable search and seizure and protection against the issuing of warrants without probable cause; Fifth Amendment includes protection against trial without indictment, double jeopardy, self-incrimination and property seizure; Sixth Amendment includes right to a speedy trial, right to be informed of charges, right to be confronted by witnesses, right to call witnesses, right to a legal counsel; Seventh Amendment includes right to a trial by jury; Eighth Amendment includes protection against excessive bail, excessive fines and cruel and unusual punishment; Ninth Amendment includes rights granted in the Constitution shall not infringe on other rights; Tenth Amendment includes powers not granted to the federal government in the Constitution belong to the states or the people.
Now, let’s look at what happened to the good people of Ukraine. They voluntarily gave up their nuclear weapons to Russia in return for peace. The Russians were supposed to destroy these newly acquired Ukrainian nuclear weapons. No evidence of that having happened has come forth. In return, the government of Ukraine was promised protection from Russia and the Western countries of the United States and Great Britain. This protection, as evidenced by the current situation in Ukraine via coverage by our Western news organizations, is slow in coming. Daily, we witness cities in Ukraine being blown apart by waves of Russian missiles, ground to dust, utterly flattened, destroyed. Sadly, countless hundreds, perhaps thousands of people, are being killed, maimed and orphaned. Millions more are displaced fleeing for safety in neighboring NATO countries. Among the lessons we should learn from this scenario: Never give up your weapons!
Charlton Heston, former actor and president of the National Rifle Association (NRA), said in his remarks to the National Press Club on September 11, 1997: “I believe strongly in the right of Americans to keep and bear arms. It is vital. It is not archaic. It is not an outdated, dusty idea dreamed by some old White guys in fear of the redcoats.” The Second Amendment is more essential than the First Amendment as the one right that protects all the others, he said, then summarized his remarks with the NRA slogan: “I’ll give you my gun when you can pry it from my cold, dead hands!”
As many of our liberal, “progressive” legislators in Washington, D.C., and, similarly, those entrenched in our cities and states throughout our country, pontificate about the dangers of gun ownership and the curtailment of our constitutional rights, let us never fall into their trap to give up our weapons. All Americans should insist on their Second Amendment rights, which protect gun ownership. Further, these same Americans should become proficient in proper handling of their guns through lessons taught by licensed gun owners and certified personnel, and then promote their proficiency through practice, practice, practice!
When insisting on protecting our Second Amendment rights, let’s always remember the wisdom of our Founding Fathers who gave us these inalienable Constitutional rights, and the on-going situation in Ukraine as witnessed by the actions of their courageous President and the resolve of the brave patriots of Ukraine to keep their country from falling into Russian hands!
According to issues.org, Reps. Ann Kuster (D-NH) and Chris Pappas (D-NH), both voted for the Backgrounds Checks Act. Worse, Sens. Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH) and Maggie Hassan (D-NH) were co-sponsors of the Background Checks Act.
Heritage Action, a sister organization to the highly respected Heritage Foundation, has this to say about the Backgrounds Checks Act: “this legislation would require universal background checks for all firearm sales (even private) with specific exemptions. Unfortunately, universal background checks would do little to prevent firearm violence and would instead make it more difficult for law-abiding citizens to purchase, own, carry, and use a firearm.”
The votes by these four delegates on this issue do not represent traditional New Hampshire values. | https://www.unionleader.com/opinion/op-eds/nick-de-mayo-from-my-cold-dead-hands/article_dbaf90c4-a77d-5773-b7ac-28ddc21619be.html | 2022-04-11T04:53:18 | 1 | https://www.unionleader.com/opinion/op-eds/nick-de-mayo-from-my-cold-dead-hands/article_dbaf90c4-a77d-5773-b7ac-28ddc21619be.html |
The Chicago Bulls will face the Milwaukee Bucks in the first round of the NBA playoffs, staying close to home to begin their first postseason appearance in five years.
The best-of-seven series will start Saturday or Sunday at Fiserv Forum in Milwaukee.
The Bulls (46-36) — who completed the regular season Sunday night with a 124-120 victory over the Minnesota Timberwolves — became locked in to the sixth seed in the Eastern Conference last week after beginning 2022 at the top of the conference standings.
The defending NBA champion Bucks (51-31) were neck and neck with the Boston Celtics and Philadelphia 76ers but dropped to the third seed Sunday after resting most of their starters in a loss to the Cleveland Cavaliers.
The rivalry between the Bulls and Bucks seemed to gain an new edge after Alex Caruso’s injury at the hands of Grayson Allen in January, but it has been a lopsided series ever since. The Bulls lost all four meetings with the Bucks this season, including 28- and 21-point blowouts in the last two games.
“They’re champions for a reason,” Bulls coach Billy Donovan said. “They’re battle-tested. They’ve been through this. We will have to play very, very good basketball on both ends of the floor.”
Despite facing the hardest schedule in the league after the All-Star break, the Bucks posted a 15-7 record as they chase back-to-back titles.
Giannis Antetokounmpo poses an impossible problem for most teams, but the Bucks have thrived in recent wins over the Bulls on the strength of other players such as Brook Lopez and Jrue Holiday.
“They have a really good team and a complete team,” Zach LaVine said. “I think we do as well. We just have to attack them and figure out a way we can beat them. … We have to try to bring the fight to them because if we’re back on our heels, it’s not going to be good.”
() | https://www.twincities.com/2022/04/10/chicago-bulls-will-face-the-defending-champion-milwaukee-bucks-in-the-1st-round-of-the-nba-playoffs/ | 2022-04-11T04:53:18 | 0 | https://www.twincities.com/2022/04/10/chicago-bulls-will-face-the-defending-champion-milwaukee-bucks-in-the-1st-round-of-the-nba-playoffs/ |
THE HOUSE Commerce Committee will soon determine the fate of legislation concerning animal-tested cosmetics introduced in the state Senate earlier this year. SB 202, which would end the sale of animal-tested cosmetics in the state, gained overwhelming support in the Senate and for good reason. It has the backing of New Hampshire businesses and other stakeholders who understand the importance of a bright-line standard on a subject that involves human safety, animal welfare and intelligent business practice.
There is no shortage of businesses supporting legislation of this nature as the number of companies that have sworn off new animal testing continues to rise. More than 1,000 cosmetics brands selling products including hair care, fragrances, makeup, and deodorant, in New Hampshire and other states, have already committed not to test their final formulations or ingredients using animals. They used ingredients and formulations whose safety is already well-established, and they employ state-of-the-art non-animal methods that offer clear advantages over conventional animal tests.
Badger is one of those companies who have been producing cruelty-free, organic skincare locally in New Hampshire since 1995.
The roster of other New Hampshire companies supporting SB 202 also includes Hemlock Springs Soaps (Nashua), Portsmouth Soap Company (Portsmouth), The Refill Station (Portsmouth) and Lush (Nashua and Salem).
It’s worth noting, too, that the Personal Care Products Council, the national trade association representing 90% of the U.S. cosmetics industry, supports similar federal legislation, which would prohibit animal testing for any cosmetics products manufactured or sold within the United States. SB 202 was purposefully drafted to align with the provisions of the Humane Cosmetics Act (S 3357/HR 6207), now pending in the U.S. Congress.
The fact that so many companies are willing to support the shift away from animal tests for cosmetics speaks volumes. Companies can continue to formulate new and innovative products using thousands of ingredients with a long history of safe use and do not require additional tests. Using existing ingredients is how the majority of cosmetics companies have been able to maintain a commitment to avoiding new animal testing for their products.
Cosmetics companies have also been at the forefront of adopting cutting-edge test methods that can replace traditional animal tests. They recognize not only the substantial consumer demand for products developed without animal testing, but the great advantages for ensuring consumer safety through other means. Among other advantages, non-animal approaches based on human biology produce results that are more relevant to the safety of people, for whom the products are designed. These methods are often less expensive and can be completed more quickly than traditional animal tests.
That’s why the continued move to animal-free cosmetics safety assessments will benefit consumers, companies and animals. With strong industry commitment helping to push these bills across the finish line, eight states, including Maine, Maryland, New Jersey and Virginia, have already passed laws to end animal testing for cosmetics. At the international level, 41 countries have passed laws to end or limit cosmetics animal testing. The list includes India, New Zealand, South Korea, Guatemala, Australia, Mexico and all countries in the European Union.
There is no reason for guinea pigs, rabbits, mice and rats to undergo painful new chemical tests for cosmetic products like shampoo and mascara. New Hampshire representatives now have a chance to do their part and put our state squarely behind the growing momentum toward cruelty-free testing methods. Their swift approval of SB 202 will help to expedite the nation’s complete transition from cruel and inaccurate animal tests to more human-relevant approaches, and reinforce the steadily advancing regulatory alignment that the cosmetics industry seeks. | https://www.unionleader.com/opinion/op-eds/rebecca-hamilton-nh-cosmetic-companies-support-sb-202-to-end-testing-on-animals/article_4e88f25d-cff9-57c4-8bd6-1c8cfa7fad4b.html | 2022-04-11T04:53:24 | 0 | https://www.unionleader.com/opinion/op-eds/rebecca-hamilton-nh-cosmetic-companies-support-sb-202-to-end-testing-on-animals/article_4e88f25d-cff9-57c4-8bd6-1c8cfa7fad4b.html |
Isiah Kiner-Falefa finally got it. The shortstop went into Sunday night’s series finale against the Red Sox at Yankee Stadium 0-for-8 with an error in the first two games. In the Bombers’ half of the inning, Kiner-Falefa led off the fourth with a double.
Aaron Boone, however, wasn’t worried about that snowballing on the 27-year-old the Yankees acquired from the Twins last month.
“I feel like offensively he’s hit some balls really hard and just hasn’t got anything to show for it yet. Obviously made the error on the throw on the run,” the Yankees manager said before Sunday night’s game. “I like where he’s at from a mindset. He’s aggressive. He’s attacking on both sides of the ball. Now we just got to dot that hit column, but that’s going to come especially with his bat-to-ball skills, and like I said, I feel like he hit a couple balls right on the nose last night, so he’ll be fine.”
Kiner-Falefa is a career-.265/.316/.354 hitter with 16 home runs over four years in the big leagues. He came up to the majors as a catcher and was a Gold Glove third baseman, but said shortstop was the position he is most comfortable with.
Kiner-Falefa bobbled a ground ball on the eighth, but Gleyber Torres’ quick turn—and a slow Red Sox video replay room—got the double-play.
PINSTRIPE DEBUT
Jose Trevino made his Yankee debut Sunday night, catching left-hander Jordan Montgomery on the nationally televised game. The catcher was acquired from the Rangers the last week of spring training when it was clear that Ben Rortvedt, the catcher the Yankees got in the trade with the Twins with Kiner-Falefa and Josh Donaldson, was not going to be ready for the season.
Trevino singled in the fourth and scored a run.
“I like Jose behind the plate. We talked about how good (Kyle Higashioka) is back there and rightfully so. But Jose’s tremendous back there too,” Boone said. “And it’s exactly what you said Higgy’s not going to go every day. Feel like Jose’s got a chance to work a little bit with Monty already. He caught his last live session and felt like they connected pretty well. So excited for him to get his first start with us. And, and getting the mix.”
The 29-year old Trevino is a .245/.270/.364 career hitter over parts of four years in the big leagues. Last year, he started a career-high 89 games for the Rangers, hitting .239 with five homers and 30 RBI.
Rortvedt had a strained right oblique when the Yankees made the deal. He was still feeling the strain, so the Yankees sent him for an MRI this week. Boone said he’s been cleared to start ramping up.
ON THE THIRD DAY DJ RESTS
With their unique roster, Boone will be rotating guys for a day off. On Sunday, it was DJ LeMahieu who was on the bench.
“I am trying to get out in front and look at matchups when kind of makes the most sense. I think most of our guys, if not all, will probably have at least one day here in the first 10 (games),” Boone said. “So just trying to be a little strategic with how we do it. I’m sure there’ll be a wrinkle in here that alters how we want to do it. But like I said the other day, it’s probably this is the most I’ve done where I’m kind of, at least, penciling out several days ahead as much as I can.”
LeMahieu ended up pinch hitting in the eighth, flying out to right field.
() | https://www.twincities.com/2022/04/10/isiah-kiner-falefa-finally-collects-first-hit-as-a-yankee/ | 2022-04-11T04:53:24 | 1 | https://www.twincities.com/2022/04/10/isiah-kiner-falefa-finally-collects-first-hit-as-a-yankee/ |
You would’ve thought Tiger Woods just buried a birdie putt on No. 16 at Augusta with the volume of roars that were reverberating through Target Center on Sunday.
No, Leandro Bolmaro had just hit a triple to cut the Timberwolves’ deficit to 10 in the third quarter of a game that meant absolutely nothing. The latter didn’t matter one bit to those who were part of the full house at Target Center for Minnesota’s regular-season finale, which also served as fan appreciation night.
Minnesota was locked into Tuesday’s play-in game with the Clippers regardless of result. Chicago (46-36) had already clinched the No. 6 seed in the East. The Bulls were sans five of their best players, missing the likes of Demar DeRozan, Zach LaVine, Nikola Vucevic and Alex Caruso. Karl-Anthony Towns, D’Angelo Russell and Taurean Prince didn’t play for Minnesota, and Anthony Edwards, Malik Beasley and Jarred Vanderbilt didn’t see any second-half minutes.
The same was true for Patrick Beverley after he was tossed after picking up a pair of technical fouls within 16 seconds of one another late in the first half.
It was Nate Knight, Jake Layman, Jaylen Nowell, Greg Monroe, Jordan McLaughlin, Josh Okogie, Bolmaro and Co. leading Minnesota back from a once-28 point deficit to bring the Wolves back to contention.
“I think our first unit that was out there was playing not to get hurt. That’s always the danger with these types of things,” Timberwolves coach Chris Finch said. “But really proud of the way the bench unit fought and gave an effort and try to make it a game, did make it a game.”
Minnesota had the game within two in the closing seconds, before a loose ball ended up bouncing Chicago’s way, leading to a dunk to ice the Bulls’ 124-120 win Sunday in Minneapolis.
The crowd didn’t care who was on the floor — they just appreciated the effort and competition. The atmosphere that’s been so present over the final half of this season was sustained in a meaningless contest, if not amplified. Every bucket from late in the third quarter all the way through the finish line drew a strong reaction.
That’s perhaps the biggest reason this Wolves’ season was a success, regardless of this week’s upcoming play-in results. Minnesota is likely to win one of two play-in games to secure only the team’s second playoff berth since 2004. But even if it doesn’t, the most important thing the Wolves have done this season is help restore Target Center’s atmosphere.
Minnesota (46-36) has fallen in love with pro basketball again. That was on full display Sunday night, as fans oozed with enthusiasm as many lesser-known players went toe-to-toe down the stretch.
“This is a great sports town. If you play hard and you play the right way and you do the right things, they’ll support you,” Finch said. “Those guys did. They played defense, they fought, they made tough plays, and that’s what we want to be. A lot more of that, a lot less of what we saw in the first half.”
The crowd noise certainly amped up the competitiveness and performance of those on the floor. Bulls coach Billy Donovan and Finch were as engaged late as they will be come the postseason.
It was fun to be at Target Center on Sunday, of all nights — just as it’d been for much of the season. That’s what comes with a winning team that’s moving onto the postseason after doubling up its win total from the year prior. It’s a byproduct of an entertaining squad that led the NBA in scoring this season.
The Target Center crowd proved Sunday it’s more than ready for Tuesday’s titanic tilt for the No. 7 seed in the West. It took one successful season to wake a fan base from its previous state of hibernation.
Forget the Timberwolves’ 46 wins this season, that’s the team’s most impactful victory. | https://www.twincities.com/2022/04/10/timberwolves-faithful-roars-for-reserves-in-regular-season-finale/ | 2022-04-11T04:53:30 | 1 | https://www.twincities.com/2022/04/10/timberwolves-faithful-roars-for-reserves-in-regular-season-finale/ |
Jordan Montgomery got up off the ground after getting hit hard by a come-backer, but the Bombers couldn’t get themselves back up off the mat Sunday night. The Red Sox rallied to beat the Yankees 4-3 and avoid a sweep at the Stadium.
“It just kind of was in a weird spot and then it caught me right on the bone. So it sounded pretty loud, but got up and walked it off,” Montgomery said. “I’ll be ready in five days. I’ll walk it off.” That’s the kind of “bounce back’’ the Yankees need with the high-powered Blue Jays coming into the Stadium on Monday night. And still, taking their first two games and winning the first series of the season, particularly against an American League East division rival, is definitely starting out 2022 on the right foot.
“If you’re gonna win the East and be a playoff team, there’s got to be some consistency of what you’re doing. Whether it’s a 100-win season or a playoff type season, regardless, you’re gonna go through your lumps and your bumps along the way. So every win is precious. Of course you want it to be that you get off to a great start because I think there’s something about that, that can be settling as a team and for individuals,” Yankees manager Aaron Boone said. “When individuals get off to a good start, you kind of get into the flow of the season a little bit easier without guys kind of pressing to do more than they need to.”
“We’ve been in every situation we’ve got off to slow starts and still went on to win 100 games. Last year, of course, we’re up against it the final two and a half months and really caught fire,” Boone said. “So we want to be as consistent as we can be. Of course, hopefully that means a great start, but you know, we’re not going to be affected one way or the other. We’re going to come in expecting to do special things and do great things, but we’re not going to be swayed by a great win or a tough loss.”
Anthony Rizzo certainly won’t be pressing.
He’s 3-for-10 with two homers and six RBI in three games. The Yankees, who hit strikes hard but had little to show for it, can take comfort in that and the fact that they started the season winning a series against a division rival.
Rizzo, who had an RBI in each of his fist six games after being acquired by the Yankees in a trade last July, has started this season with two RBI in his first three games of this season.
Friday and Saturday he did it with power, homering in the first two games of the season. Sunday night it was a two-run single in the fourth inning that tied the game.
Montgomery is the first Yankee starter so far this season to not give up a home run. He still allowed three earned runs on four hits. He walked one and struck out four. The lefty got through 3.1 innings, throwing 58 pitches, 38 for strikes. That he got through 3.1 innings was a win for the Yankees after he went down dramatically in the first inning as Xander Bogaerts’ come-backer, 103 miles per hour off the bat, hit him in the back of his left, lower leg. Montgomery was on the ground for several minutes before he got back up and was able to continue pitching.
“It was a pretty gutsy effort to kind of walk it off, shake it off,” Boone said. “So glad we’re able to get X rays and negative and everything so we’ll see in the morning. I’m sure he’s gonna be pretty stiff. He’s pretty stiff already right now, but a gutsy effort.”
That spared a bullpen that had already been stretched out this season. In the first two games, the bullpen threw 13 innings allowing one earned run.
Clarke Schmidt gave the Yankees 2.2 solid innings, despite giving up the go-ahead home run to Dalbec in the top of the sixth.
Josh Donaldson struck out three times looking for the first time in his career and then singled with one out in the sixth inning. Isiah Kiner-Falefa, who began his Yankee career going 0-for-8, got his first hit in pinstripes with a leadoff double in the fourth. He and Jose Trevino, making his first start behind the plate for the Yankees, scored on Rizzo’s single.
() | https://www.twincities.com/2022/04/10/yankees-drop-series-finale-against-red-sox/ | 2022-04-11T04:53:36 | 0 | https://www.twincities.com/2022/04/10/yankees-drop-series-finale-against-red-sox/ |
Officers who pushed Floyd protester cleared by arbitrator
BUFFALO, N.Y. (AP) - An arbitrator has ruled that two Buffalo police officers didn’t violate the department’s use-of-force guidelines when they pushed a 75-year-old protester to the ground in June 2020 during racial injustice protests following the murder of George Floyd in Minneapolis.
The episode drew national attention when a news crew captured video of Martin Gugino being shoved by officers Robert McCabe and Aaron Torgalski in downtown Buffalo, as crowd control officers in riot gear cleared demonstrators for an 8 p.m. curfew.
Gugino, pushed backward, started bleeding after hitting his head on the pavement and spent about a month in the hospital with a fractured skull and brain injury.
In a decision Friday, arbitrator Jeffrey Selchick wrote, “Upon review, there is no evidence to sustain any claim that Respondents (police officers) had any other viable options other than to move Gugino out of the way of their forward movement.”
The level of force used by the officers was justified because Gugino refused to comply with orders to leave the scene and was acting erratically, and walked directly in front of McCabe, according to Selchick.
“The use of force employed by Respondents reflected no intent on their part to do more than to move Gugino away from them,” he wrote.
McCabe and Torgalski were suspended without pay and arrested within days of the incident, but last year a grand jury declined to indict them and charges were dropped.
An attorney for Gugino, who has sued the city, told the Buffalo News that the ruling has no bearing on the lawsuit.
“We are not aware of any case where this arbitrator has ruled against on-duty police officers, so his ruling here on behalf of the police was not only expected by us, but was certainly expected by the union and city who selected and paid him,” Melissa Wischerath told the newspaper.
Police Commissioner Joseph Gramaglia said in a statement he will reinstate the two officers to duty on Monday, the newspaper reported.
Email messages seeking comment were left Sunday with an attorney representing the city, which argued for the disciplinary charges, and with the Buffalo police union.
Copyright 2022 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. | https://www.wflx.com/2022/04/11/officers-who-pushed-floyd-protester-cleared-by-arbitrator/ | 2022-04-11T05:19:04 | 1 | https://www.wflx.com/2022/04/11/officers-who-pushed-floyd-protester-cleared-by-arbitrator/ |
Officers who pushed Floyd protester cleared by arbitrator
BUFFALO, N.Y. (AP) - An arbitrator has ruled that two Buffalo police officers didn’t violate the department’s use-of-force guidelines when they pushed a 75-year-old protester to the ground in June 2020 during racial injustice protests following the murder of George Floyd in Minneapolis.
The episode drew national attention when a news crew captured video of Martin Gugino being shoved by officers Robert McCabe and Aaron Torgalski in downtown Buffalo, as crowd control officers in riot gear cleared demonstrators for an 8 p.m. curfew.
Gugino, pushed backward, started bleeding after hitting his head on the pavement and spent about a month in the hospital with a fractured skull and brain injury.
In a decision Friday, arbitrator Jeffrey Selchick wrote, “Upon review, there is no evidence to sustain any claim that Respondents (police officers) had any other viable options other than to move Gugino out of the way of their forward movement.”
The level of force used by the officers was justified because Gugino refused to comply with orders to leave the scene and was acting erratically, and walked directly in front of McCabe, according to Selchick.
“The use of force employed by Respondents reflected no intent on their part to do more than to move Gugino away from them,” he wrote.
McCabe and Torgalski were suspended without pay and arrested within days of the incident, but last year a grand jury declined to indict them and charges were dropped.
An attorney for Gugino, who has sued the city, told the Buffalo News that the ruling has no bearing on the lawsuit.
“We are not aware of any case where this arbitrator has ruled against on-duty police officers, so his ruling here on behalf of the police was not only expected by us, but was certainly expected by the union and city who selected and paid him,” Melissa Wischerath told the newspaper.
Police Commissioner Joseph Gramaglia said in a statement he will reinstate the two officers to duty on Monday, the newspaper reported.
Email messages seeking comment were left Sunday with an attorney representing the city, which argued for the disciplinary charges, and with the Buffalo police union.
Copyright 2022 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. | https://www.kttc.com/2022/04/11/officers-who-pushed-floyd-protester-cleared-by-arbitrator/ | 2022-04-11T05:19:29 | 0 | https://www.kttc.com/2022/04/11/officers-who-pushed-floyd-protester-cleared-by-arbitrator/ |
Note from Kevin Williams, editor of the Amish Cook column: It is with great sadness and shock that I tell readers that Gloria's husband, Daniel, died in a logging accident April 4. At the time this column is being sent out, I have little additional information to share. I'll have more information next week. I know readers will want to help and will want to know more. But, for this week, Gloria's request is prayers, plenty of them.
It's been a whole year since that most amazing day. Next to the notable day I married my best friend, the birth of our biological children and the adoption of Hosanna and Jesse stand as the most special days of my life. Is it true that it's been a whole year since the dream of adoption became a reality?
We will never forget the roller coaster ride when we were told the adoption was only a few weeks out, only to have it pushed out another year and a half. Last week, when my brother asked me if I'd want to go through all those uncertainties again, my mind went so many directions. No, I'd certainly not choose it, neither would I choose it any other way. You know, we'd never be strengthened in life if God would just send us all sailing down gentle slopes of ease!
Hosanna, 5, and Jesse, 4, never tire of listening to the story of how they first came to our home through the foster system when Jesse was only a teeny baby. Then there are the intense parts when we didn't know where their permanent home would be, and the joy of the birth parents asking if we'd be willing to adopt them as a forever part of the family. Never before has my heart leaped with such intense happiness mingled with such agonizing sympathy for the dear mother who gave birth to “my” children.
So much has transpired since that one and only moment.
Now, a year after adoption, we were ready to celebrate.
Our ideas of tent camping or going to the park on the day marking a year fell flat when the forecast predicted a chilly overcast day.
We opted for Plan B. Early in the morning, I wrote little notes, such as, "Make cupcakes and share some; play bubbles and count by tens; or mark the wall with measurements for each child."
When the seven notes were written, I folded them and slid them into pink, blue and gray balloons we had saved from the adoption party a year ago. Thanks to my early riser, Austin, for blowing up the balloons for me. After I knotted them, we tied them onto the gaslight above the kitchen table.
Soon, blinking eyes were rounding the corner into the kitchen, wondering what the balloons were all about. At the breakfast table, I told them how they'd each get a turn to pop one balloon, then we'd do what it says on the paper. It didn't take inquisitive Julia long to hold the balloons up to the light in an attempt to read the slips of paper. I laughingly told them that they could go right ahead if they could figure it out.
As soon as the morning chores were completed, six children gathered around the balloons. There were happy shrieks as the first balloon popped when Elijah pinched his in the doorway.
Little Joshua was as proud as could be when his turn rolled around. He followed his brother's example of using the door to pop his. Surely it was better than wonderful to see the children play together, knowing that God used adoption to seal us as a forever family. (How much more does God also delight in calling us his own children, and giving us all we need?)
Julia's girlish nature wasn't convinced about popping a balloon, creating such a noisy pop. Using a pin, she braved it, then read her note to all of us: "Everyone goes to the shop to give Daddy a hug." A quick scramble followed, and off we went. We took the one remaining balloon with us to the shop, where we asked Uncle Micah to pop it for us. Picking up a long board, he gave it a big whack. Shrieking with delight, the children sprinted for the paper and followed the suggestion of playing "Frogs in the Pond."
Soon, it was time for lunch. Austin, my little chef in the making, chose to make stacks for lunch. (Yes, he asked if he could be the one in charge to make lunch daily for the family, of which I did not argue with, for even a second.) I keep telling him that his eagerness to learn is what will take him a long way in learning quickly.
So, while we wait for a perfect sunny day to celebrate a year since the adoption, join 7-year-old Austin as he makes hot dog & noodle casserole. He will be using homemade hot dogs for his, though store-bought will work fine, too.
Hot Dog & Noodle Casserole
8 ounces noodles
¼ cup butter
2 tablespoons flour
1 cup milk
1¼ cups cheese, grated
½ teaspoon salt
1 pound hot dogs, sliced
Topping
¼ cup brown sugar
1½ tablespoon mustard
¼ cup salad dressing
In a large kettle, cook noodles and drain. In a saucepan, melt butter and stir in flour. While stirring, slowly add milk. Boil a few minutes to thicken. Remove from heat, add cheese and salt, stir until cheese is melted. Add this sauce and the cooked noodles into a baking dish. Add salt to taste. Mix topping ingredients together, then toss in hot dogs and stir. Layer hot dogs mixture on top of noodles or stir into noodles. | https://www.kokomotribune.com/news/amish-cook-daniel-husband-of-gloria-dies-in-logging-accident/article_df9f5e22-b5bb-11ec-b3e0-afebe1ef7665.html | 2022-04-11T05:32:21 | 1 | https://www.kokomotribune.com/news/amish-cook-daniel-husband-of-gloria-dies-in-logging-accident/article_df9f5e22-b5bb-11ec-b3e0-afebe1ef7665.html |
Today
Greentown Historical Society open, 1-4 p.m. Saturdays and Mondays or by appointment, 103 E. Main St., Greentown, call 765-628-3800.
VFW bingo, 5:30 to 9:30 p.m., 920 N. Washington St., kitchen open.
Tuesday
Al-Anon, 7-8 p.m., Faith Presbyterian Church, 1608 Kirk Row, enter through door 1.
Thursday
Al-Anon, 1-2 p.m., Faith Presbyterian Church, 1608 Kirk Row, enter through door 1.
Card Classes, 10-11 a.m., Greentown Public Library, 421 S. Harrison St., Greentown, this once-a-month class provides the materials to create beautiful and useful cards, call 765-628-3534 to register.
Crafter Work: Canning Jar Craft, 6-8 p.m., Library Community Room, Greentown Public Library, 421 S. Harrison St., Greentown, call 765-628-3534 to register.
Friday
Greentown Lions Club drive-thru fish fry, 4-8 p.m., Lions Cafeteria at the South End of the Howard County Fairgrounds in Greentown, $12 includes fish, tenderloin, beans, slaw and cookie.
Al-Anon, 6:30-7:30 p.m., Faith Presbyterian Church, 1608 Kirk Row, enter through door 1.
Saturday
Orlando A. Somers Camp # 1 Sons of Union Veterans of the Civil War meeting, noon, South Branch of the Howard County Public Library, 1755 E. Center Road, Kokomo, any descendant from a Union soldier or sailor or anyone who has an interest in the Civil War is invited to attend, contact Travis LeMaster at 765-667-1940 or visit www.orlandosomerscamp.org
Greentown Historical Society open, 1-4 p.m. Saturdays and Mondays or by appointment, 103 E. Main St., Greentown, call 765-628-3800.
Youth Easter egg hunt, 1 p.m., Northwest Park, 1600 W. Judson Road, for children 10 and younger, free of charge, bring your own basket/bag, three age groups: 3 and younger, 4-6 and 7-10, all children must be accompanied by an adult, adults may only help children in the age group 3 and younger, all eggs will be filled with candy but some will have a numbered slip for an additional prize, for more information, contact the Parks & Recreation Department at 765-456-7275.
Russiaville Lions Club fish fry, 4-7 p.m., 555 N. Liberty St., Russiaville, meals $12 for adults and $8 for children ages 5-12, pie $2 a slice, menu includes all-you-can-eat fish and tenderloins from Hawg Heaven, baked beans, french fries, coleslaw or applesauce, bread and butter, water, lemonade and coffee, proceeds will benefit college scholarships awarded to Western students.
Adult-only Easter egg hunt, 8:30 p.m., Kirkendall Nature Center at Jackson Morrow Park, 4200 S. Park Road, ages 16+, wristbands on sale for $5 cash only, 10,000 eggs will be hidden and filled with candy, some eggs will also have a numbered slip for an additional prize, photo ID may be required for age verification, wristbands on sale 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. Monday-Friday until April 14 at the KPRD office in Highland Park; wristbands also available from 5-8:25 p.m. on day of event, for more information, contact the Parks & Recreation Department at 765-456-7275. | https://www.kokomotribune.com/news/calendar-april-11-2022/article_14698f72-b79e-11ec-9178-df29a5201cca.html | 2022-04-11T05:32:28 | 1 | https://www.kokomotribune.com/news/calendar-april-11-2022/article_14698f72-b79e-11ec-9178-df29a5201cca.html |
INDIANAPOLIS — In November of 2021, 23-year-old Texas resident, Tanya, learned she was pregnant.
That was two months after Texas lawmakers banned abortions after six weeks of pregnancy — the stage when a fetal heartbeat can be detected, but before most women know they’re pregnant. The new law provides no exceptions for rape or incest.
Tanya, as she was identified in an interview excerpt included in a report published by the University of Texas at Austin, discovered during an ultrasound appointment that the law, known as the “Heartbeat Act,” made her ineligible for an abortion in Texas.
“I had looked up some (clinics), and the closest were basically New Orleans, Jackson, Mississippi, and Oklahoma. I had called about six or seven places in those three states,” Tanya told researchers.
Ultimately, Tanya booked an appointment in Mississippi and embarked on a days-long trip to receive an abortion at a clinic two states away from her home. Her experience was among several collected by researchers who estimated 1,400 Texans each month cross state lines to obtain abortion care following the 2021 passage of the “Heartbeat Act.”
Analysts say the type of migration now common in Texas could become widespread if the 6-3 conservative majority on the U.S. Supreme Court decides to roll back abortion protections granted by the court’s landmark 1973 decision in Roe vs. Wade. Justices are expected to issue a decision by early summer in a Mississippi case involving the same clinic where Tanya obtained her abortion.
“The reality is that if the Supreme Court overturns abortion rights, we expect 26 states are certain or are likely to ban abortion,” said Elizabeth Nash, a state policy analyst with the Guttmacher Institute, a research think tank that supports abortion rights. “That would affect 36 million women of reproductive ages across the country.”
Return to states rule
The patchwork of state rules that would result from overturning Roe vs. Wade would effectively create islands of availability across the U.S. in states where lawmakers haven’t moved to stop abortions.
And those states have become focal points for advocates both for and against abortion access.
Regardless of the Supreme Court’s decision, Robyn Chambers, the executive director of Advocacy for Children at Focus on the Family, said her organization will continue to advocate for abortion restrictions.
“Our hope is obviously that it’s overturned but we also recognize that if Roe is overturned at the federal level that abortion does not go away; it goes back to the state level,” Chambers said. “Our goal is to make abortion unthinkable.”
Similarly, Nash said clinics and providers in abortion-friendly states are preparing for an influx of patients from states with limited or no abortion access. That impacts their capacity both to treat residents from their own states and those traveling from elsewhere. Nash said appointment backlogs in Oklahoma rocketed from a few days to three to four weeks after Texas’ restriction went into effect.
And officials with the abortion provider Planned Parenthood reported an 800% increase in patients at clinics in Oklahoma during that period.
Oklahoma’s legislature had two proposals pending until this past week. One would have established a six-week ban, the other an outright ban on all abortions, except in cases of medical emergencies, rape and incest.
On Tuesday, state lawmakers there passed the latter bill. If signed by Gov. Kevin Stitt, it would make performing an abortion a felony in the state punishable by up to 10 years in prison and a $100,000 fine.
Guttmacher identified 13 states that would likely absorb the majority of patients, including New Mexico, Colorado, Kansas, Minnesota, Illinois, New York, Pennsylvania, Virginia and North Carolina. Several of those states, including Colorado, Illinois and New York, have passed laws protecting abortion access. Colorado’s governor signed the state’s law in early April.
Of those states, experts expect Illinois to see the most dramatic influx of abortion patients as several surrounding states, including Michigan and Indiana, would disallow abortions. The state would become the nearest provider for as many as 8.9 million women, an increase of up to 8,651%.
In anticipation, two clinics in southern Illinois created a call center to help out-of-state women with logistics such as financial assistance, hotels, flights, cabs and child care.
“We should be preparing and are preparing for a scenario where Roe vs. Wade is no longer the law of the land,” said Bonyen Lee-Gilmore, the vice president of strategy and communication at Planned Parenthood in St. Louis.
Lee-Gilmore said about 75% of patients at Planned Parenthood’s Fairview Heights clinic, across the river from St. Louis, traveled from Missouri, which has some of the country’s most restrictive abortion laws. Lawmakers in Missouri, recognizing that proximity and outflow, introduced a bill that would allow residents to sue out-of-state physicians who perform the procedure.
Erin Hawley, a senior appellate lawyer for Alliance Defending Freedom, an anti-abortion group, said “constitutional precedence” allows states to protect the rights of their residents across state lines.
“It’s clear that states have an interest in protecting citizens outside of their state boundaries,” Hawley said. “For example, if a child was kidnapped with the intention of taking her across state lines and killing her, no one would argue that states don’t have an interest in protecting that life.”
Who is most impacted?
Regardless of their fundamental disagreement over access to abortion services, many advocates often agree on who is most impacted by restrictions.
About 1 in 6 pregnancies (excluding miscarriages) ended in abortion in 2017, according to Guttmacher — an estimated 862,320 abortions.
In 2014, more than half of abortion patients were in their 20s. Most, 59%, were already mothers and 75% were poor (living below the federal poverty level) or low-income (earning between 100% or 199% of the federal poverty level).
(The federal poverty level for a family of two in 2014 was $15,730.)
And whether abortion services are covered by insurance varies wildly from state to state, and from one insurance plan to the next. Even Medicaid coverage of abortions varies by state. The Hyde Amendment blocks federal money from being spent on abortions, except under narrow circumstances, but some states supplement Medicaid programs with state money to cover abortions.
“Women denied an abortion were more likely than women who received an abortion to experience economic hardship and insecurity lasting years,” the study, from University of California researchers, concluded. “Laws that restrict access to abortion may result in worsened economic outcomes for women.”
Recognizing this, Chambers, with Focus on the Family, said youth anti-abortion activists pushed the organization to find ways to support mothers post-birth and advocate for affordable healthcare as well as housing and education opportunities.
“The top reasons women have an abortion is because of financial issues or lack of support financially,” Chambers said. “And so those are the things we need to focus on … at that state level.”
Layered on top of financial considerations, is the high maternal mortality rate in the U.S., including in many states with strict abortion restrictions. and mortality statistics show Black women and other minorities suffer the most.
“Maternal mortality rates for Black women are three times that of white women and we know that … proportionately, there are more Black women seeking abortion care,” Nash said. “The fact that our country does not provide adequate reproductive healthcare — the brunt is borne by Black women and that is a real problem.”
Research from the University of Colorado Boulder predicted that pregnancy-related deaths would increase by 21% if abortion was banned nationwide, with a 33% for Black women.
SCOTUS isn’t the end
The Supreme Court’s decision, even if justices don’t overturn Roe vs. Wade, will trigger rapid action by states as lawmakers and advocates pull against one another, said Nash with Guttmacher.
The estimated 26 states likely to constrict or halt abortion access include those with pre-Roe bans, those with “trigger” laws tied to Roe vs. Wade and others with laws currently tied up in litigation that could be dismissed following the justices’ decision.
But Nash emphasized that one court loss couldn’t permanently define abortion access, noting that politics change over time.
“Just because this is where the political climate is right now doesn’t mean that’s where it will be in 5, 10 or 15 years. It may look very different then,” Nash said. “These bans may be eased in some way over that time as people see the harm and politics change.”
Chambers, with Focus on the Family, said the organization doesn’t have a blanket policy for when an abortion is or isn’t permissible because each circumstance is unique. Regardless, knowing that abortions will continue in some states, Focus on the Family will continue pushing for abortion restrictions.
“We don’t know all those situations but we do know that the better choice is life,” Chambers said. “I do have hope for the first time in a very long time that Roe could be overturned but that doesn’t mean we back down.” | https://www.kokomotribune.com/news/choosing-to-ban-states-move-to-restrict-abortion-access-as-landmark-supreme-court-decision-expected/article_3d44efa3-166f-5838-b61e-3a458f0e0d30.html | 2022-04-11T05:32:34 | 1 | https://www.kokomotribune.com/news/choosing-to-ban-states-move-to-restrict-abortion-access-as-landmark-supreme-court-decision-expected/article_3d44efa3-166f-5838-b61e-3a458f0e0d30.html |
Myers, Calvin, services are 10:30 a.m. today at Galveston First Baptist Church, 207 S. Sycamore St., Galveston.
Packard, Thelma, services are 2 p.m. today at Sunset Memory Garden Funeral Home, 2097 W. Alto Road, Kokomo.
Duncan, Glenna, services are noon Tuesday at The First Christian Church, 854 N. 300 West, Kokomo.
Wade, Riley, services are 2 p.m. Tuesday at Murray Weaver Funeral Home in Galveston.
Mumaw, Phyllis, services are noon Wednesday at Shirley & Stout Funeral Home, 1315 W. Lincoln Road, Kokomo.
Ginda, Paul, services are 2 p.m. Wednesday at Shirley & Stout Funeral Home, 1315 W. Lincoln Road, Kokomo.
Hougland, Rick, services are 6 p.m. Wednesday at Shirley & Stout Funeral Homes, 414 West Jefferson St., Kokomo.
Prater, Jennifer, services are 5 p.m. Thursday at Crossroads Community Christian Church, 3570 E. 200 S., Bringhurst.
Eaton, Janice, services are noon Saturday at Stout & Son Funeral Home, 44 Michigan St., Burlington.
Cobb, Beulah, services are 2 p.m. April 20 at Mast-Hensler Cemetery, 3828 600 East, Kokomo.
Janes, Robert Henry, services are 11:30 a.m. April 21 at St. Joan of Arc Catholic Church, 3155 S. 200 West, Kokomo.
Snyder, Richard, services are April 23 at Spruce Creek Presbyterian Church, Port Orange, Florida.
Lancaster, Dixie, services are 2 p.m. May 7 at Bennett Switch Community Church.
Tudor, William, services are 2 p.m. May 8 at the American Legion Post 6, 2604 S. Lafountain St., Kokomo. | https://www.kokomotribune.com/news/funeral-listings-april-11-2022/article_430fa074-b79d-11ec-9839-2f98b09d9230.html | 2022-04-11T05:32:40 | 0 | https://www.kokomotribune.com/news/funeral-listings-april-11-2022/article_430fa074-b79d-11ec-9839-2f98b09d9230.html |
The Kokomo BobKats shook off a loss Friday night with wins Saturday and Sunday to fashion a 2-1 weekend in front of the home fans.
First, Kokomo blasted the Kentucky Enforcers 127-84 Saturday night at Memorial Gym.
Johnny Griffin led the BobKats with a double-double of 20 points and 10 rebounds. Larry Plummer scored 18 points and dished four assists and Devin Harris had 15 points, six rebounds and five assists.
Also for the BobKats (4-7), Derek Hawthorne had 17 points and three assists and Alan Arnett had 15 points and seven boards.
Next, Kokomo hosted the Windsor Express from the National Basketball League of Canada on Sunday. The BobKats beat the Express 108-82.
Hawthorne scored a game-high 20 points and Plummer backed him with an all-around game of 15 points, five rebounds and seven assists.
Also in Sunday’s win, Arnett had 14 points and four boards, Harris had 12 points and Tremont Moore had 10 points.
Crossover games between The Basketball League and the NBLC do not count in the standings.
Kokomo has a break before its next game, April 22, at home against the Medora Timberjacks. Medora beat Kokomo on Friday. | https://www.kokomotribune.com/sports/bobkats-bounce-back-from-loss-to-take-2-wins/article_bb892d5c-b934-11ec-a8fb-c34fd5a8b1a1.html | 2022-04-11T05:32:46 | 0 | https://www.kokomotribune.com/sports/bobkats-bounce-back-from-loss-to-take-2-wins/article_bb892d5c-b934-11ec-a8fb-c34fd5a8b1a1.html |
Two local athletes who raced on the last day of the season in 2021 are back in action as the new girls track and field season gets moving.
Kokomo senior distance runner Julynne Spidell and Western junior sprinter Chase Hayes tested themselves against the state’s best last year at the IHSAA state meet. Now as the new season begins, they give every local athlete achievements to emulate as Wildkats, Panthers, Comets, Titans and Tigers get to work maximizing themselves for potential sectional, regional and state glory.
Western and Northwestern both boast well-rounded clubs this season. The Panthers were second in the local sectional last year while Northwestern was fourth. Kokomo, which was third at the sectional, is sprint-heavy this year. Taylor, which took fifth at the sectional, looks to replace points with a small squad. And Eastern, which was 11th, turns to a young group of athletes to make gains.
Here are previews of each Howard County team.
WESTERN
Long-time boys coach Gary Jewell now oversees coaching both boys and girls squads. He inherits a team that took second at the sectional last season, just 2.5 points behind champion Lewis Cass.
“Looking at what we had a year ago, we weren’t as strong in the distance events as we could have been, and this year I think we are,” Jewell said. “We return some pretty good sprinters. Chase Hayes was a state finalist in the 400. She has a pretty good range in the sprints — 100, 200 to 400, she long jumps pretty well. And she’s actually been able to show us she can move up to the 800.
“We’re a little better in the field events than what we were.”
The Panthers have a lot of returning experience in the sprints as well as new options. The speedsters are led by Hayes, a junior, who was 26th in the 400 at last spring’s state meet. She reached the regional in three events, after winning the 100 and 400 at the sectional, and taking second in the 800.
Sophomore Lacy Rathbun is in both hurdle events. Senior Maddy Parr is in sprints and pole vault, where she’s already hitting her top height from last season. Sophomores Laney Scott and Meredith Williams are back to the sprints, along with freshmen Jayce Holt and Alyssa Norfleet. Junior Karly Lechner is another hurdler. Twin sister Kourtney Lechner is in pole vault and sprints.
Sophomores Lauren Bradley and Avery Shock, juniors Cami Caldwell and Destiny Herr, junior exchange student Sophie Foehner, and freshmen Hattie Harlow, Maddy Shoaff and Joy Marley are in the distances.
In the throws, juniors Keona Smith and Kendall Rhees have picked up at or ahead of where they finished last season. Senior Maleah Winger is back in high jump after last competing as a freshman.
“First thing we need to do is we’ve got to improve our performance in conference,” Jewell said. “We should not be finishing in sixth place in conference. We should be in the top two. If you win our conference meet or finish second, that puts you in the driver’s seat to win our sectional. We want to find that three points that we missed winning the sectional last year. If you’re trying to build a program, we have to win some championships because championships will attract people.”
KOKOMO
The Wildkats build around returning state finalist Spidell and a core of veterans to make up for lower numbers. The Kats have 23 athletes, which means some lineup challenges.
“We’re a little short on numbers this year, but I think the sprints is where we’re going to at least be strongest,” Kokomo coach John Malone said.
The sprint-heavy makeup of the 23-member team is good for those events, but makes it difficult for the Kats to spread talent across all events.
“There’s going to be some events we’re not going to be able to compete in like pole vault,” Malone said. “[I’m] having a real hard time finding four 400 [dash] girls for a 4x4 relay team, and with only three distance runners, that hurts us for the 4x8 relay team. Hopefully by the end of the season some of the young ladies will see, if they’re not in the top two in our sprints, will realize if they want to keep going, they have to move over into the 4x4 and 4x8.”
There are several options in speed and jumping events. Senior Omarea Daniels will run hurdles, long jump and the 4x100 relay. Sophomore Abby Hansen is in the 400 and 200. Freshman Makaela Drake is in the 100 and 4x100. Sophomore Mia Castillo is in the 100, 200, 400 and 4x100. Junior Sophia Justice is in the 400. Freshman Janae Young is in sprints.
Junior Keihera Lang is in the high jump and 4x100 relay. Freshman Aramaea Fivecoate is in both hurdles and long jump. Sophomore Nevaeh Andrews will be in the high jump when she returns from injury. Lang, Daniels and Castillo were part of Kokomo’s 4x100 team that reached the regional last season.
Spidell is the leader of the distance team after taking 20th in the 3,200 at state last season. She’ll run the 1,600 and 3,200, and may take a spot on the 4x800 relay.
In the throws are freshman Brielle Humphries and sophomore Alona Smith.
Looking ahead to what this team is capable of, Malone noted finishing third in the sectional the previous two sectionals in 2021 and 2019 (there was no spring season in 2020).
“It’s going to be hard to be in the top three this year. It’s still going to be a goal. It’s always a goal,” Malone said. “And we’ll try to improve on our standing in the conference, but to do things like that you’ll need a full complement of runners and have two in each event.
“We host regionals this year so we want to at least get somewhere between eight to 10 girls across to the regionals to represent the school. We want to get Julynne back to state this year, and hopefully Omarea Daniels can get there in hurdles. She was in the indoor state finals and hopefully that carries over.”
NORTHWESTERN
The Tigers return two sectional-champion performers and have high hopes for the team overall as new coach Josh Perry takes over. There are several proven athletes even though the team has just one senior and three juniors.
“There is a lot of talent, but there’s even more determination to be the best,” Perry said. “The team gets along really well, but they all hate losing to each other. They all want to be the best on the team. We have a very good spread across almost all of the events and that will really help us out at the sectionals.”
Sophomore Hannah Moore returns after a strong opening statement as a freshman. She won the 1,600 and 800 at last spring’s sectional, and was third in the 3,200. Sophomore Lexi Hale won the high jump last season. And junior Anna Perry was second in the 100 hurdles.
“We have a very reliable high jumper in Lexi Hale, but it’s hard even for a reigning sectional champion to stand out when we have so many dominant forces in the running events,” Josh Perry said. “Hannah Moore and Courtney Adams are ready to be major point scorers for us this year.
“We have a very talented group of sprinters this year. Anna Perry, Anna Bishir, Mayli Yoder and Iris and Layla Brehm are the types of athletes that you are lucky to have just one of on a team. Having them all at the same time is just incredible.”
Moore leads the distance team, joined by junior Sally Freeman, sophomores Addy Robinson and Hannah Troyer, and freshmen Adams and Ashlyn Kelly.
Sprinters include senior Savannah Strawmyer, sophomore Yoder, and freshmen Anna Perry, Bishir, Layla Brehm and Iris Brehm. Strawmyer, Bishir and Layla Brem join Hale in the jumping events.
Sophomores Emma Haynes and Dani Dunten lead the throwers, with sophomore Kyndyll Vincent and junior Jenny Reynoso also throwing.
“This team is ready to compete for a sectional championship,” Josh Perry said. “Everyone has their eyes set on returning to the years where Northwestern girls track was a major powerhouse in the area. I’d like to see us send a few girls to the state meet in June and win a few trophies along the way. The girls all know that expectations are high this year, but they have risen to the challenge so far.”
TAYLOR
The Titans rely on a small core of athletes to carry them this season.
“While the numbers are low, I’m really happy with the athletes we do have out for track this season,” Taylor coach Nick Weicht said. “We have girls out with good attitudes who are willing to do the work it takes to improve.”
There are a few areas in particular where the Titans look to score.
“I expect that our girls will be strong in the sprints and the jumps,” Weicht said. “We have a group of throwers who are improving a lot, and I expect them to continue to progress and pick up points throughout the season. If there’s an area where I feel like we are thin, it’s in distance events.”
The squad has four seniors. Sydnie Boley is in the speed events. She was a regional qualifier in the long jump, 100 and 200 last season. Whitney Chorrushi is back on the track for the first time since her freshman season and will line up in the hurdle events and may take a leg of the 4x100 relay. Kelsi Langley is out for the squad for the first time and is high jumping, and will be an option on relays. Olivia Keith is back in the throwing events.
Juniors are Alexandra Collins, a thrower who may also compete in running events and the jumps, and Casey Tobey, who throws, and runs the 400.
Sophomore Savannah Kellog will run the short sprints and relay events. Freshman Amelia Collins is in the throwing events and freshman Sheyli Nieves will run the 400, 800 and middle distances.
“I want our athletes to continue improving and to be the best they are capable of being,” Weicht said. “Secondly, I want to help the girls who are able to advance out of sectional be successful and advance. I think we have a few girls capable of advancing to regional this year and I’m excited to get started.”
EASTERN
The Comets look to build around a pair of senior throwers as well as a pair of regional qualifiers — one on the track and one in the field.
The team leaders are senior throwers Jacey Richmond and Rebekah Guthrie. Also in the throws are sophomore Nyah Day and freshman Elisabeth Bruno.
“Richmond and Guthrie have been such good examples to the other girls as far as sportsmanship and dedication to the sport,” new Eastern coach Anne Kantz said. “Day is dialed in and focused on improving her throws each meet. Bruno is coming off an impressive middle school season. I am looking forward to see what she can do.”
The distance crew is led by junior Alesia Rummel, who was a regional qualifier in the 800 last spring. Also in distances are junior newcomer Lilly Shallenberger, sophomore Lily Greene, and freshman Ava Kantz, who will run the 1,600 and 3,200.
“Alesia is looking to get back to regional this year and compete,” Anne Kantz said. “Ava had a great end to her middle school career, so we’re looking forward to see where she can go this season. Lily Greene does double duty running both hurdle events, so she’s very versatile. Shallenberger is a welcome addition to track this year. She will run the 4x800 and open 400 or 800.”
In the sprints are juniors Tori Yoder and Lydia Merritt, sophomores Brooklyn Brooks, Maya Pickett, Hannah Morrisett, and Abby Reed, and freshman Allie Hueston.
Yoder also will long jump while Morrisett will take on hurdles and pole vault. Also in the field events is junior Leah Jordan in high jump and pole vault.
“Leah was a regional qualifier in pole vault last season and I know she’d like to get back there,” Anne Kantz said.
“Overall, I’m pleased with how the girls work hard in practice and are showing best efforts in our early meets,” Anne Kantz said. “Our goal for the season is to be competitive in our conference, and to get some girls back to regional.” | https://www.kokomotribune.com/sports/girls-track-and-field-howard-county-2022-preview/article_9bddb1fc-b91c-11ec-8130-83d59c87ad02.html | 2022-04-11T05:32:52 | 0 | https://www.kokomotribune.com/sports/girls-track-and-field-howard-county-2022-preview/article_9bddb1fc-b91c-11ec-8130-83d59c87ad02.html |
BLUEFIELD, Va. — The IU Kokomo baseball team dropped both games of a doubleheader Sunday to start a three-game series at West Virginia Tech. WVT won the nine-inning opening game 8-6, and the seven-inning closer 2-0.
Riley Carczynski and Noah Hurlock led IUK in the opener. Garczynski went 2 for 5 with three runs batted in and a run. Hurlock went 3 for 5 with a double, homer and two RBIs. Dylan Steele was 2 for 4, Pat Mills hit a homer, and Thomas Obergfell doubled and scored twice. Starter Owen Callaghan threw seven innings and took the loss.
In the closing game, Tech pitcher Logan McClure limited IUK to just two hits. Cougar starter Ben Harris took the loss. Obergfell and Garczynski had IUK’s hits.
The River States Conference series concludes today with IUK (20-14, 10-3 RSC) visiting WVT (8-29, 6-11 RSC) for a single game at 11 a.m. | https://www.kokomotribune.com/sports/iuk-baseball-drops-twinbill/article_8bb285f6-b934-11ec-8f5f-b760c564e88b.html | 2022-04-11T05:32:59 | 1 | https://www.kokomotribune.com/sports/iuk-baseball-drops-twinbill/article_8bb285f6-b934-11ec-8f5f-b760c564e88b.html |
New Mexico statewide cannabis sales down; but business still up for some dispensaries
According to the most recent numbers from New Mexico's Cannabis Control Division, the state has sold nearly $13 million in total cannabis products since legal sales started.
“I think it's huge for the state and it's off to a great start," Steve Pear, president of the New Mexico Division of Schwazze, said.
But this weekend sales were down.
Last Friday and Saturday, the state saw $4.3 million in sales for both recreational and medical products.
This weekend between Friday and Saturday we saw $2.9 million in total sales.
“The business was better than a normal Friday, which is what I can say about every day this week,” Pear said.
Despite sales being down, Pear said percentages of sales are still up for his dispensaries.
“I think on average, I would probably say it's up mid to high 20s,” Pear said.
Pear believes sales will hold steady as more people become educated on cannabis products.
“I think that to me, is the biggest part. There is still a lot of myths about cannabis and what it is. The more education we can do as an industry the better for sure,” Pear said.
Those in the industry believe it will take a few more weeks before they get a clearer picture of just how much money the industry will make on a weekly basis. | https://www.koat.com/article/new-mexico-statewide-cannabis-sales-down-but-business-still-up-for-some-dispensaries/39684822 | 2022-04-11T05:34:53 | 0 | https://www.koat.com/article/new-mexico-statewide-cannabis-sales-down-but-business-still-up-for-some-dispensaries/39684822 |
Twitter CEO: Musk will not join Twitter board
Tesla CEO Elon Musk, who recently bought a large stake in Twitter, has decided not to join the social media company's board.
Twitter CEO Parag Agrawal tweeted the news Sunday night.
"Elon's appointment to the board was to become officially effective 4/9, but Elon shared that same morning that he will no longer be joining the board," Agrawal said in the tweet. "I believe this is for the best. We have and will always value input from our shareholders whether they are on our Board or not. Elon is our biggest shareholder and we will remain open to his input."
A Twitter spokesperson confirmed Musk decided not to join the Twitter board and referred to Agrawal's statement.
The development comes about a week after Twitter said in a regulatory filing that it plans to appoint the Tesla and SpaceX CEO to its board for a term that ends in 2024.
Musk recently disclosed he had purchased a more than 9% stake in Twitter, making him the company's largest shareholder. As part of the deal for Musk to join the board, the Tesla CEO had agreed not to acquire more than 14.9% of the company's shares while he remained on the board.
Tesla's stock surged after his initial purchase was disclosed.
When the news of his board appointment broke, Musk tweeted he was "looking forward to working with Parag & Twitter board to make significant improvements to Twitter in coming months!"
It's not entirely clear what improvements Musk had in mind. In recent weeks, Musk had suggested on Twitter that the platform does not allow free enough speech, and said it should make its algorithm open source. He also polled his followers last week about whether they "want an edit button," a longtime feature request, if a divisive one, from many Twitter users. | https://www.koat.com/article/twitter-ceo-elon-musk-not-join-twitter-board/39685672 | 2022-04-11T05:35:04 | 0 | https://www.koat.com/article/twitter-ceo-elon-musk-not-join-twitter-board/39685672 |
Sam Elliott is putting his tail between his legs.
The 77-year-old actor has apologized for the controversial comments he made about the film "The Power of the Dog" on Marc Maron's "WTF" podcast last month.
"I told the 'WTF' podcaster that I thought Jane Campion was a brilliant director, and I want to apologize to the cast of 'The Power of the Dog,' brilliant actors all," he said on April 10 during Deadline's Contenders TV event. "And in particular Benedict Cumberbatch. I can only say that I'm sorry and I am. I am."
In his mea culpa, Elliot admitted he wasn't "very articulate" in sharing his thoughts on the Western and feels "terrible" about how his comments were received, particularly with the gay community.
"I said some things that hurt people and I feel terrible about that," he said. "The gay community has been incredible to me my entire career. And I mean my entire career, from before I got started in this town. Friends on every level and every job description up until today."
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He continued, "I'm sorry I hurt any of those friends and someone that I loved. And anyone else by the words that I used."
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During his March 1 interview on Maron's podcast, Elliott called "The Power of the Dog" a "piece of s—" and took issue with its director being from New Zealand.
"What the f— does this woman from down there know about the American West?" he exclaimed, referring to Campion. "And why in the f— did she shoot this movie in New Zealand and call it Montana? And say this is the way it was? That f—— rubbed me the wrong way, pal."
The "1883" star also made comments that many deemed homophobic about the characters in the film, saying they looked "more like Chippendales dancers than cowboys."
"They're running around in chaps and no shirts," he complained. "There's all these allusions of homosexuality throughout the f—— movie. I mean, Cumberbatch never got out of his f—— chaps."
Following the podcast, Cumberbatch called Elliott's criticism "very odd," while Campion — who went on to win best director at the 2022 Oscars — had a stronger reaction.
"I'm sorry, he was being a little bit of a b—," she said of Elliott, spelling out the final word, at the DGA Awards on March 12. "I'm sorry to say it but he's not a cowboy, he's an actor."
She echoed similar comments to Deadline saying Elliott's remarks "hit the trifecta of misogyny and xenophobia and homophobia."
As for Elliot, he began his mea culpa on April 10 with some semi-serious advice, telling the audience, "Don't do a podcast with the call letters 'WTF.'" | https://www.nbcnewyork.com/entertainment/entertainment-news/sam-elliott-apologizes-for-his-comments-about-the-power-of-the-dog/3639530/ | 2022-04-11T05:36:54 | 0 | https://www.nbcnewyork.com/entertainment/entertainment-news/sam-elliott-apologizes-for-his-comments-about-the-power-of-the-dog/3639530/ |
A COVID-19 patient was in respiratory distress. The Army nurse knew she had to act quickly.
It was the peak of this year’s omicron surge and an Army medical team was helping in a Michigan hospital. Regular patient beds were full. So was the intensive care. But the nurse heard of an open spot in an overflow treatment area, so she and another team member raced the gurney across the hospital to claim the space first, denting a wall in their rush.
When she saw the dent, Lt. Col. Suzanne Cobleigh, the leader of the Army team, knew the nurse had done her job. “She’s going to damage the wall on the way there because he’s going to get that bed," Cobleigh said. "He's going to get the treatment he needs. That was the mission.”
That nurse's mission was to get urgent care for her patient. Now, the U.S. military mission is to use the experiences of Cobleigh's team and other units pressed into service against the pandemic to prepare for the next crisis threatening a large population, whatever its nature.
Their experiences, said Gen. Glen VanHerck, will help shape the size and staffing of the military’s medical response so the Pentagon can provide the right types and numbers of forces needed for another pandemic, global crisis or conflict.
One of the key lessons learned was the value of small military teams over mass movements of personnel and facilities in a crisis like the one wrought by COVID-19.
In the early days of the pandemic, the Pentagon steamed hospital ships to New York City and Los Angeles, and set up massive hospital facilities in convention centers and parking lots, in response to pleas from state government leaders. The idea was to use them to treat non-COVID-19 patients, allowing hospitals to focus on the more acute pandemic cases. But while images of the military ships were powerful, too often many beds went unused. Fewer patients needed non-coronavirus care than expected, and hospitals were still overwhelmed by the pandemic.
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A more agile approach emerged: having military medical personnel step in for exhausted hospital staff members or work alongside them or in additional treatment areas in unused spaces.
“It morphed over time,” VanHerck, who heads U.S. Northern Command and is responsible for homeland defense, said of the response.
Overall, about 24,000 U.S. troops were deployed for the pandemic, including nearly 6,000 medical personnel to hospitals and 5,000 to help administer vaccines. Many did multiple tours. That mission is over, at least for now.
Cobleigh and her team members were deployed to two hospitals in Grand Rapids from December to February, as part of the U.S. military’s effort to relieve civilian medical workers. And just last week the last military medical team that had been deployed for the pandemic finished its stint at the University of Utah Hospital and headed home.
VanHerck told The Associated Press his command is rewriting pandemic and infectious disease plans, and planning wargames and other exercises to determine if the U.S. has the right balance of military medical staff in the active duty and reserves.
During the pandemic, he said, the teams’ make-up and equipment needs evolved. Now, he's put about 10 teams of physicians, nurses and other staff — or about 200 troops — on prepare-to-deploy orders through the end of May in case infections shoot up again. The sizes of the teams range from small to medium.
Dr. Kencee Graves, inpatient chief medical officer at the University of Utah Hospital, said the facility finally decided to seek help this year because it was postponing surgeries to care for all the COVID-19 patients and closing off beds because of staff shortages.
Some patients had surgery postponed more than once, Graves said, because of critically ill patients or critical needs by others. “So before the military came, we were looking at a surgical backlog of hundreds of cases and we were low on staff. We had fatigued staff.”
Her mantra became, “All I can do is show up and hope it’s helpful." She added, "And I just did that day after day after day for two years.”
Then in came a 25-member Navy medical team.
“A number of staff were overwhelmed," said Cdr. Arriel Atienza, chief medical officer for the Navy team. "They were burnt out. They couldn’t call in sick. We’re able to fill some gaps and needed shifts that would otherwise have remained unmanned, and the patient load would have been very demanding for the existing staff to match.”
Atienza, a family physician who’s been in the military for 21 years, spent the Christmas holiday deployed to a hospital in New Mexico, then went to Salt Lake City in March. Over time, he said, the military “has evolved from things like pop-up hospitals” and now knows how to integrate seamlessly into local health facilities in just a couple of days.
That integration helped the hospital staff recover and catch up.
“We have gotten through about a quarter of our surgical backlog,” Graves said. ”We did not call a backup physician this month for the hospital team ... that’s the first time that’s happened in several months. And then we haven’t called a patient and asked them to reschedule their surgery for the majority of the last few weeks.”
VanHerck said the pandemic also underscored the need to review the nation’s supply chain to ensure that the right equipment and medications were being stockpiled or to see if they were coming from foreign distributors.
“If we’re relying on getting those from a foreign manufacturer and supplier, then that may be something that is a national security vulnerability that we have to address,” he said.
VanHerck said the U.S. is also working to better analyze trends in order to predict the needs for personnel, equipment and protective gear. Military and other government experts watched the progress of COVID-19 infections moving across the country and used that data to predict where the next outbreak might be so that staff could be prepared to go there.
The need for mental health care for the military personnel also became apparent. Team members coming off difficult shifts often needed someone to talk to.
Cobleigh said military medical personnel were not accustomed to caring for so many people with multiple health problems, as are more likely to be found in a civilian population than in military ranks. "The level of sickness and death in the civilian sector was scores more than what anyone had experienced back in the Army,” said Cobleigh, who is stationed now at Fort Riley, Kansas, but will soon move to Aberdeen Proving Ground in Maryland.
She said she found that her staff needed her and wanted to “talk through their stresses and strains before they’d go back on shift.”
For the civilian hospitals, the lesson was knowing when to call for help.
“It was the bridge to help us get out of omicron and in a position where we can take good care of our patients," Graves said. “I am not sure how we would have done that without them.” | https://www.nbcnewyork.com/news/coronavirus/with-covid-mission-over-pentagon-plans-for-next-pandemic/3639536/ | 2022-04-11T05:37:00 | 0 | https://www.nbcnewyork.com/news/coronavirus/with-covid-mission-over-pentagon-plans-for-next-pandemic/3639536/ |
Study finds higher homicide risk in homes with handguns
NEW YORK (AP) - Most U.S. gun owners say they own firearms to protect themselves and their loved ones, surveys show. But a study published last Monday suggests people who live with handgun owners are shot to death at a higher rate than those who don’t have such weapons at home.
“We found zero evidence of any kind of protective effects” from living in a home with a handgun, said David Studdert, a Stanford University researcher who was the lead author of the Annals of Internal Medicine study.
The study has several shortcomings. For example, the researchers said they could not determine which victims were killed by the handgun owners or with the in-home weapons. They couldn’t account for illegal guns and looked only at handguns, not rifles or other firearms.
The dataset also was limited to registered voters in California who were 21 and older. It’s not clear that the findings are generalizable to the whole state, let alone to the rest of the country, the authors acknowledged.
But some outside experts said the work was well done, important and the largest research of its kind.
“I would call this a landmark study,” said Cassandra Crifasi, a gun violence policy researcher at Johns Hopkins University. “This contributes to our understanding of the potential causal relationship between guns in the home and homicides,” she said.
California is unusual in that it offers gun ownership data and other information not obtainable in almost any other state. That allowed the researchers to follow millions of people over many years to try to better establish what happens when a person begins living in a home with handgun, they said.
The study focused on nearly 600,000 Californians who did not own handguns but began living in homes with handguns between October 2004 and December 2016 — either because they started living with someone who owned one or because someone in their household bought one.
The researchers calculated that for every 100,000 people in that situation, 12 will be shot to death by someone else over five years. In comparison, eight out of 100,000 who live in gun-free homes will be killed that way over the same time span.
“The rates are low” and the absolute risk is small, but it’s important to consider the increase in a person’s risk of being killed, Studdert said.
Those numbers suggest the risk rises 50%, but Studdert said it’s actually higher: In a separate calculation designed to better account for where people live and other factors, the researchers estimated the risk was actually more than twice as high.
Separately, the researchers found that those who lived with handgun owners had a much higher rate of being fatally shot by a spouse or intimate partner. The vast majority of such victims — 84% — were women, they said.
The study was confined to California, but the risk is likely even greater in states with less stringent gun laws and where gun ownership is more common, Crifasi said.
Previous research estimated that nearly 3% of U.S. adults became new gun owners between January 2019 and April 2021, which translates to about 7.5 million Americans. Of those, about 5.4 million previously lived in a home with no guns.
For decades, studies have shown guns in the home raise the risk of a violent death. Much of that work, including an earlier study by Studdert and his colleagues, focused on suicide.
The new study goes further in addressing the perception that handguns are still worthwhile because of the safety they provide against being murdered, some experts said.
“The reason people have guns in their home is for protection from strangers,” said David Hemenway, director of the Harvard University’s Injury Control Research Center. “But what this is showing that having a gun in the home is bad for people in the home.”
___
The Associated Press Health & Science Department receives support from the Howard Hughes Medical Institute’s Department of Science Education. The AP is solely responsible for all content.
Copyright 2022 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. | https://www.wnem.com/2022/04/11/study-finds-higher-homicide-risk-homes-with-handguns/ | 2022-04-11T05:45:24 | 0 | https://www.wnem.com/2022/04/11/study-finds-higher-homicide-risk-homes-with-handguns/ |
Highway 126 reopened following crash east of Walton
Louis Krauss
Register-Guard
All lanes of Highway 126 have reopened after a crash had closed it about three miles east of Walton on Sunday afternoon, according to the Oregon Department of Transportation in a news release. The crash happened near milepost 35.6 and Cougar Pass, and was reported by ODOT at 12:30 p.m.
Drivers were asked to take alternative routes while a detour was in place, according to Tripcheck.com. The road reopened at around 4:45 p.m., ODOT spokeswoman Angela Beers Seydel said. Oregon State Police did not immediately return a request for additional details on the level of injuries in the crash or how many cars were involved. Updates on the closure can also be found at Tripcheck.com. | https://www.registerguard.com/story/news/2022/04/10/crash-blocks-all-lanes-highway-126-between-eugene-florence-oregon/65349162007/ | 2022-04-11T05:59:08 | 1 | https://www.registerguard.com/story/news/2022/04/10/crash-blocks-all-lanes-highway-126-between-eugene-florence-oregon/65349162007/ |
Oregon baseball wins four-game series against Ball State
After taking two of three from Ball State, the Oregon Ducks entered Sunday's matchup with an opportunity to clinch the four-game series.
Despite the rainy weather throughout the day, the Ducks found a way to squeak out a close victory at home.
Oregon (21-11) took three of four from Ball State (18-12) as the Ducks defeated the Cardinals 7-6 on Sunday afternoon at PK Park.
With the game tied 6-6 in the bottom of the ninth inning, Oregon turned to pinch hitter Tyler Ganus with one out and a runner on first base. Ganus delivered a walk-off hit down the left-field line as Jacob Walsh scored the game-winning run.
After being swept by UCLA last weekend, Oregon was looking to get back on track and it certainly did this weekend. The Ducks began its series against Ball State with a 13-7 victory Friday night. Jacob Walsh and Anthony Hall both hit go-ahead home runs before Oregon tacked on five eighth-inning runs to pull away.
The Ducks and the Cardinals played a doubleheader Saturday as the teams split the two games. Ball State scored a run in the seventh and two more in the eighth to rally to beat the Ducks 3-2.
Oregon railed from a 4-3 fifth-inning deficit in the second game and took a series lead with a 10-4 victory Saturday night. Tanner Smith went 4-for-6 with a home run, three RBIs and two runs scored. Anthony Hall finished with four hits, going 3-for-4 in game one before hitting the home run in game two of the doubleheader.
"I feel like there's a lot of positives are club is showing and there are still some loose ends we can secure," Oregon coach Mark Wasikowski said. "I just don't feel like we are operating on all cylinders quite yet.
"Our job is to try to do that. We are just trying to discuss the things that we need to discuss to get the team and the program as good as it can be."
Oregon's next series will be on the road against Washington beginning on Thursday at 7:05 p.m. The three-game series against the Huskies will conclude Saturday afternoon at 2:05 p.m.
Contact Register-Guard sportswriter Antwan Staley at astaley@gannett.com and follow him on Twitter @antwanstaley. | https://www.registerguard.com/story/sports/college/football/2022/04/10/college-baseball-oregon-ducks-win-four-game-series-ball-state/65349156007/ | 2022-04-11T05:59:14 | 1 | https://www.registerguard.com/story/sports/college/football/2022/04/10/college-baseball-oregon-ducks-win-four-game-series-ball-state/65349156007/ |
Oregon football coach Adrian Klemm bringing his expertise to Ducks' offensive line
After a coaching change and all the departures at running back, wide receiver and defensively, the strength of the Oregon Ducks' offensive line is arguably the most essential unit of the team.
Oregon returns T.J. Bass, Steven Jones, Alex Forsyth, Ryan Walk and Malaesala Aumavae-Laulu on its starting offensive line. The only player on the offensive line the Ducks will need to replace is George Moore IV, who started 13 of 14 games last season.
With the addition of Dan Lanning as coach, Adrian Klemm was hired as the Ducks' new offensive line coach. Although there's still a lot of work to be done, Klemm is enjoying all the experience that's returning to the Ducks' offensive line.
"There's a really nice foundation to build off of," Klemm said. "The one thing they did a good job of is getting guys with good character. Our room has a lot of guys with good character.
"They're a tight-knit group. Anytime you have that, you're just able to focus on football. We've been able to just focus on things that I teach and I want to implement that I think are almost polar opposite of what they've been doing. That's been a process.
"We're getting better each day. Hopefully, we'll have it ready Week 1 and it'll be the way that I want it to be. The guys are more than willing to do it and are working their tails off to get there."
Experience in NFL, college offensive playmaking
Lanning hired Klemm in December after having an extensive coaching career in both the professional and college ranks. He began his coaching career at SMU in 2008 and spent five years working in the Pac-12 as an assistant coach at UCLA (2012-16).
After UCLA fired him after the 2016 season, Klemm became the assistant offensive line coach with the Pittsburgh Steelers in 2019 and was later promoted as the offensive line coach last season.
Offensive coordinator:After Oregon football's pedestrian offense the past few years, Kenny Dillingham has a new plan
Throughout all of his coaching stops, Klemm said he has grown in many ways.
"I'm used to being in a spread offense during my time in the college ranks," Klemm said. "Then going to the NFL, you run more pro-style deals. So coming back, those are things that kind of integrate with what (Oregon offensive coordinator) Kenny Dillingham does.
"It's about finding ways to integrate those things so you can throw defenses off. It's been a pretty smooth transition. The great thing about coach Dillingham is that he's really open to change.
"He's very familiar with a number of things and even if he hasn't run it before, he has a great understanding of the game as a whole, including the offensive line."
Offensive line back together for one more year
One of the significant players on Oregon's offensive line is center Forsyth. Injuries plagued Forsyth last season and early during spring camp.
Forsyth missed four games last season due to back spasms and he also wasn't seen during the beginning of spring practices. Forsyth has been doing pilates and stretching so his back can continue to get stronger.
Spring practice:Oregon Ducks add transfers, early enrollees to spring football roster
While many players from Oregon's other positions decided to move on, Forsyth said he knew he was coming back for the 2022 season. Then the rest of the dominos on the offensive line fell as Walk, Bass and Jones returned and Aumavae-Laulu changed his mind after initially opting into the NFL Draft.
"It was good recruiting the guys to come back," Forsyth said. "We should do just one more year for all of us. The big ones were Malaesala and T.J. Getting Malaesala back was huge and we gave our best-recruiting pitch to T.J. and we felt like we got shorted because Ryan and I haven't gotten a full season altogether.
"Next year is going to be our year."
Contact Register-Guard sportswriter Antwan Staley at astaley@gannett.com and follow him on Twitter @antwanstaley. | https://www.registerguard.com/story/sports/college/football/2022/04/11/adrian-klemm-oregon-ducks-football-offensive-line-nice-foundation-to-build-on/65348918007/ | 2022-04-11T05:59:20 | 0 | https://www.registerguard.com/story/sports/college/football/2022/04/11/adrian-klemm-oregon-ducks-football-offensive-line-nice-foundation-to-build-on/65348918007/ |
Oregon softball's losing streak reaches six games after sweep by Arizona State
Oregon softball was unable to contain Arizona State’s power-hitting lineup during their three-game series at Jane Sanders Stadium.
But the Ducks at least made it interesting Sunday afternoon.
The visiting Sun Devils, already the Pac-12 leader in home runs, hit eight more against Oregon over the course of the three-game series to bring their season total to 64.
Two of those came Sunday as No. 16 Arizona State hit a grand slam and a three-run homer and beat No. 14 Oregon 8-6 to wrap up a series sweep.
"It's difficult to defend balls that leave the yard," Oregon coach Melyssa Lombardi said. "That's it. We've got to be able to keep the ball in the yard."
Oregon (24-11, 4-8 Pac-12) also got a homer Sunday from Allee Bunker, whose two-run shot in the bottom of the sixth cut the Ducks' deficit to 7-6.
The game, which took place during a persistent but light rain, was delayed for six minutes two outs into the top of the seventh inning. When play resumed, the Sun Devils added one last run.
KK Humphrys hit a two-out double for the Ducks in the bottom of the seventh, but pinch hitter Allison Benning popped out to end the game as Arizona State (28-5, 9-0) extended its winning streak to 17 games.
Following back-to-back sweeps by the Sun Devils and last week against No. 3 UCLA, the Ducks have lost six straight.
"Our energy was great, these guys are in it, they're united," Lombardi said. "They want to do whatever it takes to find a way for us to win. I just think we need to have stability through offense, defense, pitching."
For the second game in a row, Oregon took the early lead with two runs in the first inning on an RBI double by Terra McGowan and an RBI groundout by Ariel Carlson.
But Ducks starting pitcher Stevie Hansen walked three straight hitters with one out to load the bases in the third inning and Jazmine Hill took advantage, sending a two-strike pitch deep over the fence in centerfield to put the Sun Devils up 4-2.
Oregon cut its deficit to 4-3 in the third inning when Rachel Cid led off with a double and McGowan followed with an RBI single to score pinch-runner Gabby Herrera.
The Ducks put two more on base with no outs but stranded both as Arizona State pitcher Marissa Schuld got a pair of strikeouts and a foul pop out to end the inning.
Oregon’s inability to capitalize quickly came back to haunt the Ducks as Cydney Sanders belted a three-run homer to center one out into the fourth to extend the Sun Devils’ lead to 7-3.
The Ducks added a run in the fourth on a sacrifice fly to left field by Cid that scored Hannah Delgado from third base to make it 7-4.
For the second game in a row, the Ducks outhit the Sun Devils, 10-9, but they just couldn't match their power. Oregon also left seven runners on base to bring their weekend total to 18.
Sunday’s result was the closest of the series, not that it made anyone in an Oregon uniform feel any better with the second half of the Pac-12 season beginning next week at Arizona.
"We're in that spot everyone gets to at some point in the (Pac-12) where you have to decide where you're going to go from here," Bunker said. "We understood going into this that it was going to be tough and that there were going to be times where we weren't feeling our best and times where we were struggling as a team, but that's when we have to stick together and work through it together."
The Sun Devils won the opener Friday night, 9-3. They led 8-0 after four innings before Vallery Wong and Cid homered in the fifth and sixth innings, respectively, to get the Ducks on the scoreboard.
Oregon led the second game of the series on Saturday 4-0 after three innings but Arizona State, trailing 4-1, scored six in the sixth inning on five hits, two walks and an Oregon error that kept the inning alive. The Sun Devils added two more in the seventh to win 9-4.
"We've gotta get some things figured out right now," Lombardi said. "There's urgency for sure. Does this team think that they can compete and beat anybody? Yep. But we can't be chasing. It doesn't work that way. Not in this sport."
Follow Chris Hansen on Twitter@chansen_RG or email atchansen@registerguard.com. For more sports coverage, visit registerguard.com. Want more stories like this? Subscribe to get unlimited access and support local journalism. | https://www.registerguard.com/story/sports/college/softball/2022/04/11/ncaa-college-softball-oregon-ducks-swept-arizona-state-sun-devils/65348632007/ | 2022-04-11T05:59:26 | 0 | https://www.registerguard.com/story/sports/college/softball/2022/04/11/ncaa-college-softball-oregon-ducks-swept-arizona-state-sun-devils/65348632007/ |
Study finds higher homicide risk in homes with handguns
NEW YORK (AP) - Most U.S. gun owners say they own firearms to protect themselves and their loved ones, surveys show. But a study published last Monday suggests people who live with handgun owners are shot to death at a higher rate than those who don’t have such weapons at home.
“We found zero evidence of any kind of protective effects” from living in a home with a handgun, said David Studdert, a Stanford University researcher who was the lead author of the Annals of Internal Medicine study.
The study has several shortcomings. For example, the researchers said they could not determine which victims were killed by the handgun owners or with the in-home weapons. They couldn’t account for illegal guns and looked only at handguns, not rifles or other firearms.
The dataset also was limited to registered voters in California who were 21 and older. It’s not clear that the findings are generalizable to the whole state, let alone to the rest of the country, the authors acknowledged.
But some outside experts said the work was well done, important and the largest research of its kind.
“I would call this a landmark study,” said Cassandra Crifasi, a gun violence policy researcher at Johns Hopkins University. “This contributes to our understanding of the potential causal relationship between guns in the home and homicides,” she said.
California is unusual in that it offers gun ownership data and other information not obtainable in almost any other state. That allowed the researchers to follow millions of people over many years to try to better establish what happens when a person begins living in a home with handgun, they said.
The study focused on nearly 600,000 Californians who did not own handguns but began living in homes with handguns between October 2004 and December 2016 — either because they started living with someone who owned one or because someone in their household bought one.
The researchers calculated that for every 100,000 people in that situation, 12 will be shot to death by someone else over five years. In comparison, eight out of 100,000 who live in gun-free homes will be killed that way over the same time span.
“The rates are low” and the absolute risk is small, but it’s important to consider the increase in a person’s risk of being killed, Studdert said.
Those numbers suggest the risk rises 50%, but Studdert said it’s actually higher: In a separate calculation designed to better account for where people live and other factors, the researchers estimated the risk was actually more than twice as high.
Separately, the researchers found that those who lived with handgun owners had a much higher rate of being fatally shot by a spouse or intimate partner. The vast majority of such victims — 84% — were women, they said.
The study was confined to California, but the risk is likely even greater in states with less stringent gun laws and where gun ownership is more common, Crifasi said.
Previous research estimated that nearly 3% of U.S. adults became new gun owners between January 2019 and April 2021, which translates to about 7.5 million Americans. Of those, about 5.4 million previously lived in a home with no guns.
For decades, studies have shown guns in the home raise the risk of a violent death. Much of that work, including an earlier study by Studdert and his colleagues, focused on suicide.
The new study goes further in addressing the perception that handguns are still worthwhile because of the safety they provide against being murdered, some experts said.
“The reason people have guns in their home is for protection from strangers,” said David Hemenway, director of the Harvard University’s Injury Control Research Center. “But what this is showing that having a gun in the home is bad for people in the home.”
___
The Associated Press Health & Science Department receives support from the Howard Hughes Medical Institute’s Department of Science Education. The AP is solely responsible for all content.
Copyright 2022 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. | https://www.1011now.com/2022/04/11/study-finds-higher-homicide-risk-homes-with-handguns/ | 2022-04-11T06:00:04 | 0 | https://www.1011now.com/2022/04/11/study-finds-higher-homicide-risk-homes-with-handguns/ |
Zion Johnson from Boston College has the ideal size and strength to develop into a premier starting guard at the next level. Zion was asked what player he’s looking forward to facing in the NFL and if there were any questions about what kind of competitor he is… this answer says it all.
“I feel like almost every offensive lineman would say Aaron Donald,” Johnson said. “He’s a dominating force people would say he is one of the best defensive tackles in the league so I would have to say Aaron Donald.”
Zion started 3 seasons at guard and tackle for Boston College and at the Senior Bowl slid inside to center.
“I didn’t have a lot of opportunities before to showcase at center so I had the opportunity to get good reps in and do some things that I haven’t done at Boston College and I think it went well overall,” Johnson said.
The ability to move around and play different spots on the offensive line is important at the next level.
“It’s good to be a great player at one position but to be able to play multiple makes you that much more valuable because in a pinch if something happens to the center, you can move over or late in the game, if you’ve got to get in the game, if something happens to a tackle and you have to pop out you can do that,” Johnson said. “That’s very important to a team and I want to help the team win by any means necessary.”
Zion had an outstanding showing at the scouting combine and improved his draft stock. He’s projected to be an early 2nd round draft pick but could sneak into the 1st round. | https://www.wivb.com/sports/buffalo-bills/30-in-30-boston-college-ol-zion-johnson/ | 2022-04-11T06:13:08 | 0 | https://www.wivb.com/sports/buffalo-bills/30-in-30-boston-college-ol-zion-johnson/ |
TAMPA, Fla. (WIVB) – The Tampa Bay Lightning had no trouble scoring on the Sabres in Sunday’s contest. Two goals in the first two periods and another in the third allowed the defending Stanley Cup champions to take one from the Sabres in dominant fashion, 5-0.
Members of the team said after the game that they didn’t play the way they had been the past few times, and that made a difference.
“This was the first game in a very very long time where we didn’t come to our identity that we want to be as a group and that is work hard, make the other team make mistakes, so I think that was uncharacteristic of us to not be like that today,” forward Rasmus Asplund said.
“We weren’t sharp,” head coach Don Granato said. “The execution wasn’t there. Whatever that was, we haven’t practiced much recently, we were fatigue, whatever it is, but we’ll skate tomorrow and I know our guys will be better the next time out after going through what they went through tonight.”
Corey Perry and Ondrej Palat scored in the first period, and the Lightning took a 2-0 lead into first intermission. Brandon Hagel and Nikita Kucherov scored in the second, and that gave Tampa a 4-0 lead after two. Ross Colton netted the fifth and final goal of the game.
The Sabres fall to 26-37-11 on the season and will face the Toronto Maple Leafs next on Tuesday night at 7 p.m. | https://www.wivb.com/sports/buffalo-sabres/lightning-dominate-sabres-5-0/ | 2022-04-11T06:13:14 | 0 | https://www.wivb.com/sports/buffalo-sabres/lightning-dominate-sabres-5-0/ |
Griffin Rushton
Updated: April 10, 2022 10:23 PM
Created: April 10, 2022 08:49 PM
ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. – We're wrapping up the second weekend of recreational marijuana sales in New Mexico, and it was another fantastic weekend of sales for dispensaries.
According to the Cannabis Control Division, recreational sales brought in $880,000 this past Friday and another $800,000 Saturday. And so far, recreational sales have already raked-in nearly $8 million statewide since April 1.
One dispensary owner KOB 4 talked to Sunday says she's blown away by these first few days.
Ellie Besancon executive director of Green Goods says she's expecting another big surge in sales for April 20, or 4/20, which is just 10 days away.
"Our stores are very well stocked right now, I do anticipate that there will be a supply crunch at some point in the near future. We'd like to get over the 420 hump and just see how successful that is, and then sort of gather ourselves up, pick ourselves up out of the dust, and kind of take another inventory of what we have," said Besancon.
She says after that-- we should get a better look at how the recreational industry is doing and what average sales might look like moving forward.
But data proves there's still a lot of demand from medical patients.
"We don't matter anymore. It's all about the money signs, the dollars," said Stefanie K, medical marijuana patient.
Stefanie is a long-time medical marijuana patient in New Mexico. She says she got her cannabis card after she was diagnosed with anxiety and no other treatment seemed to work.
"I don't do it to party. I don't do it to go out and dance. I don't get high. I don't laugh. I do it because it makes my pain go away,” said Stefanie.
She says she's deeply concerned about how medical patients have been treated since recreational sales began, arguing most dispensaries don't seem to acknowledge a difference.
"They're telling us we should keep our cards even though it's recreational. For what reason? What are we getting? What perks are we getting? We don't get to get in line in front of anybody, we don't get to pay less prices, we don't get better weed. No, we get nothing,” she said.
The lines and higher prices are one thing but Stefanie says some dispensaries have started selling out of certain products, including the specific strains medical patients are looking for.
"There's different types, there's sativa there's indica, some people can't use one of the other, I cannot use sativa. They were out of the one I wanted,” said Stefanie. "If they're supposed to be holding some back for patients, they should be holding some back for every single thing they have per patient."
Stefanie says she eventually got what she needed at a medical-only location, but admits those are becoming a rare breed and that's not the solution she's looking for.
"You're not going to have these dispensaries change their ways and say, ‘Okay, we're just gonna go medicinal now forget this recreational thing,’ it's too much money for them, way too much. And if they just split it down, you know, had one side for what for rec and one side for medicinal, and kept it that way. There'll be no problem.”
She believes any significant change will have to come from the state, but until then -- medical patients have to ride the recreational wave.
“The medical patients need to get their medicines. And they can't do that. They're, it's just backwards. It's just backwards,” she said.
It's important to note some dispensaries have taken extra measures to serve medical patients, and that includes Green Goods.
“One of the things we've done in our Green Goods and Red Barn locations is to create display cases whereby we have only recreational offerings and only medical offerings,” said Besancon. "We wanted to, you know, take into account that there might be a frustration level with our loyal patients who didn't want to contend with long lines, because they knew what they wanted."
Besancon says online ordering has also helped their medical patients but admits their stores only have so much space, and they're still trying to figure out the right balance of serving recreational customers and medical patients.
Something to remember is that shops are supposed to always have products on-hand for medical patients -- no matter what.
Copyright 2022 - KOB-TV LLC, A Hubbard Broadcasting Company | https://www.kob.com/albuquerque-news/new-mexico-medical-marijuana-patients-struggle-to-find-products-two-weeks-into-legal-recreational-sales/6443055/?cat=500 | 2022-04-11T06:31:08 | 1 | https://www.kob.com/albuquerque-news/new-mexico-medical-marijuana-patients-struggle-to-find-products-two-weeks-into-legal-recreational-sales/6443055/?cat=500 |
KOB Web Staff
Updated: April 10, 2022 10:15 PM
Created: April 10, 2022 08:20 PM
*Note: Some viewers may find the video above and content below disturbing.
ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. – An accused child predator could be getting a plea deal later this month.
Anthony Padilla is set to have the many cases against him merged into one plea deal -- that's set to be heard in court April 28.
Padilla is accused of sexually assaulting six children between one and 8-years-old. Five are said to have contracted diseases from Padilla.
He's been in custody since 2019. The cases involve children from Albuquerque, Rio Rancho, and Española.
Copyright 2022 - KOB-TV LLC, A Hubbard Broadcasting Company | https://www.kob.com/albuquerque-news/possible-plea-deal-for-man-accused-of-sexually-assaulting-multiple-children/6443052/?cat=500 | 2022-04-11T06:31:14 | 1 | https://www.kob.com/albuquerque-news/possible-plea-deal-for-man-accused-of-sexually-assaulting-multiple-children/6443052/?cat=500 |
KOB Web Staff
Updated: April 10, 2022 10:28 PM
Created: April 10, 2022 08:10 PM
FARMINGTON, N.M. – A man was shot and killed by Farmington police this weekend.
Officials said just before 5 p.m. on Saturday, they found a man with several felony warrants who was known to be armed.
Police say when they approached the man - he fled holding a gun.
The pursuit ended near Yucca Avenue and Sage Drive. Police say he refused to put down the gun after several requests, and eventually, "moved the gun" toward the officers. At that point, police say two officers fired their weapons.
“I will also remind you this is three months since the last time, where a subject with a gun in that case shot our officer, so this is happening way too frequently. I'm very disappointed that we are here again so soon,” said Farmington Police Chief Steve Hebbe.
No officers were injured in the shooting. The officers involved were placed on administrative leave.
Copyright 2022 - KOB-TV LLC, A Hubbard Broadcasting Company | https://www.kob.com/new-mexico-news/farmington-police-shoot-kill-armed-suspect/6443051/?cat=500 | 2022-04-11T06:31:21 | 0 | https://www.kob.com/new-mexico-news/farmington-police-shoot-kill-armed-suspect/6443051/?cat=500 |
Democrats Charlie Crist, Annette Taddeo mingle with Black voters on B-CU campus
DAYTONA BEACH — State Sen. Annette Taddeo did hip-hop steps with Bethune-Cookman University students, while area pastors laid their hands upon Charlie Crist in prayer.
Crist and Taddeo — two of the three major Democratic candidates for governor — made campaign stops appealing to Black voters in Daytona Beach over the weekend. Though they are competing for the same job, Crist and Taddeo saved their criticisms for Gov. Ron DeSantis, the Republican seeking a second term.
"He governs by punishment. And hatred. And dividing," Crist said of DeSantis. "Dividing people of different skin color. Dividing people by who they choose to love. Dividing people by whether they want to wear a mask or not to protect themselves and their family."
Campaign 2022:At Daytona stop, Charlie Crist promotes COVID-19 vaccines and criticizes Gov. Ron DeSantis
Governor Hopeful's Story:Annette Taddeo has overcome a cleft lip, 'socialista' label; can she beat Ron DeSantis?
Florida Legislature 2022:When DeSantis zigged, GOP lawmakers from Volusia, Flagler did too
Crist spoke to about 20 people, many of them Black pastors, at Allen Chapel AME Church before making another appearance at Bethune-Cookman's Mary McLeod Bethune Performing Arts Center to more than 100 Democratic supporters and students on Saturday.
How a racist slur propels Taddeo
Taddeo attended the Friday fish fry in the B-CU quad Friday afternoon, sharing her story as an immigrant from Colombia to about 50 students. Taddeo explained when she was 17, her father was kidnapped and she fled to Alabama, where she attended college, later running for student government.
She had posted signs reading, "Annette Taddeo for Secretary," around campus.
"And on the day of my election, as I was going over to vote ... 'Secretary' had been crossed out and they said, 'Annette Taddeo for Deportation.' ... It was at that moment I decided someday I was going to run for office, because I knew ... I could be angry or I could be bitter, or I could actually allow that experience to strengthen and inspire me."
That anecdote resonated with two B-CU students who say they're planning to vote.
Janiya Jones, a 20-year-old sophomore at B-CU, said: "I could relate to her as a Black woman. And ... I feel like she's a great candidate."
Imani Oliver, 21-year-old B-CU junior, said she appreciates Taddeo's determination, her unwillingness to let a slur stop her from pursuing her dreams.
"I feel like that was very racist and sexist and I'm glad that she overcame that adversity and she is the woman she is today," she said.
Oliver said not many students are thinking about the governor's race, but Taddeo's visit helped open a few eyes.
"Now her name is out there, so I think that might interest them, especially with her story," she said.
Courting votes in red counties
By venturing into Volusia County, Crist and Taddeo visited a DeSantis stronghold. The governor, who won Volusia County by more than 10 percentage points in 2018, had previously served as the area's congressman.
A third leading Democrat, Agriculture Commissioner Nikki Fried, didn't make it to Daytona Beach Saturday, but Caroline Korba, a campaign spokeswoman, said Fried has participated in listening tours in Miami's Haitian community and with Black leaders in Jacksonville, at least four Black business roundtables around the state and has also visited numerous Black churches as well as the Florida A&M University Homecoming parade.
Crist started Saturday at The Villages, later acknowledging the decided advantage Republicans have there. But the goal of the candidates now is trained on the August primary and Democrat votes count in all 67 counties.
In the afternoon, Crist spent an hour with a group of Volusia County faith leaders, including members of the Daytona Beach Black Clergy Alliance, where he embraced The Bible.
"I used to be a Republican, speaking of faith, and then I saw the light. You know that story, don't you? The Road to Damascus?" Crist said.
One of the pastors interrupted Crist at one point, telling him he's got soul. The candidate stored that chestnut away for an opportune moment later. Crist started his talk with the pastors by acknowledging the presence of God. "He is here. But you know it tells us in the book that whenever there are two or more of us, he is present."
Crist spoke glowingly of President Joe Biden and celebrated the confirmation of incoming Supreme Court Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson, noting her Florida roots.
"And shame on our U.S. senators from Florida, they both voted against her. But here's the good news: We have a candidate for the U.S. Senate against one of them named Val Demings. I'm gonna be with her tonight in Seminole County. ... Hopefully, God willing, after the primary, I'll be with her on the ticket.
"All our folks will turn out for her. And maybe some for me, because I've got soul. I saw that and as a former governor myself, I thought, 'Who does that? Who acts like that towards children? Well, I'll tell you who and his name is Ron DeSantis, and that's why he must be beat."
The Rev. Victor Gooden, senior pastor at New Life Church Ministries in Daytona Beach, said people of means don't always think about the pocketbook issues affecting communities of color and lower-income families. He cited Space X's first private flight of astronauts to the International Space Station on Friday, and how it didn't resonate in the African-American community as it did in other circles.
"Our people are trying to make it from check to check, week to week. And they really don't have time to be concerned ... when we have enough money to put a spacecraft into the outer atmosphere," he said. "We're more concerned with things from day to day. How are we going to get the rent paid or the mortgage paid? How are we going to get the children fed? How are we going to make the ends meet?"
Considering bad poll numbers, what gives them optimism?
Heading into the heart of election season, DeSantis brings several decided advantages. Polls show him comfortably ahead of Democrats. And he's raised nearly $100 million, more than 10 times Crist, who leads Fried and Taddeo.
Crist said each morning he reads "Jesus Calling," a book of parables that he says strengthens him.
"And it says don't miss the little things along the way that remind you that I'm here, because I am. Whether it's a nice breeze outside like we have today, or as we were driving in Lake County, these purple, pink flowers that just all of a sudden are on the side of the road because it's spring. (God is) here all over the place. Everything you look at. Everything you see is because of Him. That's what makes me sleep well at night and not be afraid of a man who has $100 million."
"I don't care. I don't care how much money he has. He doesn't have what we have. This election is not about money. It's about people."
Taddeo, in an interview, was asked about how Florida is projected by demographers to become a majority minority state in 2025, and why she thinks she's the right Democrat for this time.
"I don't think it's a secret that Democrats have had a bit of an erosion of the Hispanic vote, and as someone that represents a district that Trump won +6, I know that I am the perfect candidate to actually go up against (DeSantis).
"At a time when we've tried everything as Democrats and it's been well over 20 years of Republicans in control, we need to bring out the voters that are going to bring us over the top in a state like Florida. And it is going to be a coalition of Black, brown and all of the other necessary," she said.
Taddeo scoffed at poll numbers showing her behind Crist and Fried, making reference to DeSantis' 2018 primary opponent, Adam Putnam, who was widely considered the favorite for months.
"We should ask Gov. Putnam what he thinks about polling this early out," she said, laughing. "I'm not really worried about it. I know how this goes."
Never miss a story: Subscribe to The Daytona Beach News-Journal using the link at the top of the page. | https://www.news-journalonline.com/story/news/politics/2022/04/10/charlie-crist-annette-taddeo-denounce-ron-desantis-daytona-beach/9528514002/ | 2022-04-11T06:35:55 | 1 | https://www.news-journalonline.com/story/news/politics/2022/04/10/charlie-crist-annette-taddeo-denounce-ron-desantis-daytona-beach/9528514002/ |
Former Volusia Corrections Warden Matt Reinhart enters County Council District 2 race
DAYTONA BEACH — Matt Reinhart, former warden for the Volusia County Corrections Division and a Daytona Beach resident, has joined the race to claim the Volusia County Council District 2 post.
Already in that contest are Danny Fuqua and Paul Zimmerman. Port Orange City Councilman Chase Tramont had been a competitor for the District 2 seat as well, but he has decided to instead run for a state government post.
Reinhart has already raised close to $3,000, Zimmerman has raised $8,237 and Fuqua has raised nearly $22,000, according to the Volusia County Supervisor of Elections website.
District 2 incumbent Billie Wheeler decided not to seek re-election. District 2 includes most of Daytona Beach and Port Orange and all of Daytona Beach Shores, South Daytona and Ponce Inlet.
Reinhart, a 52-year resident of Volusia County, retired as warden in 2017 after 30 years of service in Volusia County Corrections.
"My experience managing multimillion-dollar budgets, personnel of over 300, reviewing contracts and making policy decisions affecting corrections and the people of Volusia County will guide my decisions on the County Council," Reinhart said. "I am committed to serving as a good steward of the people’s money."
Read more about Florida elections:Florida redistricting dominoes begin to tumble, with Chase Tramont switching races
Volusia County Council candidates stepping forward:Doug Pettit enters Volusia County Council at-large race
The Volusia County Council candidate shuffle:Volusia County Councilwoman Heather Post drops out of race for at-large seat
Reinhart graduated from Deland High School and attended Seminole Community College before joining the Volusia County Corrections Division in 1986. He and his wife, Stephanie, have been married for 19 years and have four children and five grandchildren.
"This race is about our future, our children and grandchildren’s future," Reinhart said. "I want them to find every opportunity right here in Volusia County for jobs, housing, recreation, safety and education. We can do that with a sound county government, with affordable costs. I will be vigilant in looking for responsible ways to reduce the county budget and for increasing county revenues."
After he retired, Reinhart worked for F.A.I.T.H. Homeschool Academy teaching American History and American Government. He is currently employed by the city of New Smyrna Beach.
Reinhart serves on Daytona Beach's Code Enforcement Board, the Georgetowne Neighborhood Homeowners Association Board and is an active member of Crossroads Church.
You can reach Eileen at Eileen.Zaffiro@news-jrnl.com | https://www.news-journalonline.com/story/news/politics/elections/county/2022/04/10/volusia-county-council-matt-reinhart-joins-paul-zimmerman-danny-fuqua-district-2-race/9511119002/ | 2022-04-11T06:36:01 | 0 | https://www.news-journalonline.com/story/news/politics/elections/county/2022/04/10/volusia-county-council-matt-reinhart-joins-paul-zimmerman-danny-fuqua-district-2-race/9511119002/ |
KEN WILLIS: Scottie beams himself up into a Masterful golf stratosphere
AUGUSTA, GA. — Over the course of major championship history, it has happened the other way around.
Often, a major eventually made its way to a worthy champ.
But this time, conveniently, Muhammad went to the mountain.
It wasn’t but about nine months ago, speaking of old sayings, Scottie Scheffler was a star without portfolio. But enough of a star that he was picked for the U.S. Ryder Cup team and delivered.
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It wasn’t long thereafter when he further validated his upper-rung status and won a tournament. Then another. Then another, riding a run of good finishes to the No. 1 world ranking, which seemed a tad hollow given the new-car smell of it all.
But now this, the 2022 Masters Tournament, which seems to serve as the raised notary seal on the lanky, likable and latest Texas-bred golfer to step into the Butler Cabin and into a green jacket.
In its most basic form, the Masters is a golf tournament in the world of professional golf. This particular week’s 72-hole, stroke-play tournament. So it stands to reason Scottie Scheffler would win to make it his fourth tournament trophy in his past six starts.
Next!
We all know better. What makes the major a major, and the Masters the Masters, is the blanketing importance of it all. This is so much more than 72 holes over four days — 3’s, 4’s and 5’s on a card — and a final number today and tomorrow, through Sunday.
When you know it’s for history, for a chance to forever etch your name into that well-lit wall of fame, it takes one of two very disparate things. 1. You treat it as just another tournament and do your thing, or 2. You take it to another level because you know all the top competitors are aiming for that same level.
Not sure where Scottie Scheffler fits into that theory, but we know he came into this past week as the world’s top-ranked golfer and won the Masters. Does that mean he’s now well on his way to a Rushmorean career?
Yes, of course.
Unless the answer is no, of course.
Dare we go down the list of golfers who made the Masters their first major championship, and looked for all the world like there’d be more to come, only to have that magical Sunday in April become the one shining ornament on their LinkedIn page?
Scheffler’s track record, through age 25, suggests this is just the beginning, and maybe it is. His Sunday answers to everything Cameron Smith threw at him early and everything Rory McIlroy threw at him late, says a lot about his demeanor.
And demeanor, in its most positive form, is the best 15th club a golfer can sneak into his bag.
That 4-putt double-bogey on the 18th, which meant nothing in the grand scheme of things, might mean quite a bit going forward. It humanized a guy who looked rather machine-like over four days.
And hey, in terms of branding, which is so important in today’s world, your 2022 Masters champ already enjoys the spoils of a first-name brand.
Scottie!
He’s a far cry from joining Bobby, Arnie, Jack and Tiger, but he just earned his launching pad.
Finally, Tiger Woods. Tiger’s return to golf this past week certainly brought extra attention to the Masters and therefore Scottie Scheffler’s eventual victory, but frankly, Scheffler might be the only Masters champ who played a supporting role in the whole shebang.
In retrospect, regarding Tiger, everyone should’ve known better. He never had a real chance to compete for the 2022 Masters, given his physical challenges and, more importantly, his competitive rust.
Tiger’s competitive abilities took a decidedly southward turn following his 2019 Masters win. That one took a lot of out of him and in the following months it showed.
The early 2021 back surgery — his fifth, by the way — added another layer of difficulty, but the car wreck a month later seemed to end any hope of him playing at a top level ever again.
And maybe it did, unless you count a made-cut at the Masters as top-level golf. Relatively speaking, it is, but Tiger’s expectations have no modern relatives. He shot a pair of 78s on the weekend and finished 47th, which would be forgettable if you didn’t know the whole story.
There are no better educated American golf fans than those who line the fairways of Augusta National every April. The fact Tiger, even on Sunday when he was simply limping to the finish, drew the biggest gallery by far, says all you need to know about his hold on the world of golf.
He hit plenty of great shots, but was loose here and there with the driver and irons, and spotty at best with the putter. No crime at this stage.
He could barely get halfway down into the catcher’s position to read putts, as if getting a head-start on a future senior career. But it was a constant reminder of his physical limitations and, if you want to get technical, giving away that angle of reading putts probably played a factor in his struggles.
Tiger wasn’t committing to next month’s PGA Championship at Southern Hills in Tulsa, or June’s U.S. Open at The Country Club outside Boston. But he sounded as if he definitely plans to try the British Open in July, especially since this one returns again to the Old Course at St. Andrews, a flat and short venue that puts a huge emphasis on course knowledge.
Can Tiger eventually make it all the way back and win another big tournament, perhaps a major? The odds truly are against it and you tell yourself that in honest moments. But you temper that by reminding yourself that the odds were also against anyone ever doing the things he’s already done. So there’s that.
— Reach Ken Willis at ken.willis@news-jrnl.com | https://www.news-journalonline.com/story/sports/columns/2022/04/10/masters-scotty-scheffler-proves-hes-1-major-reason-tiger-woods-augusta/9529537002/ | 2022-04-11T06:36:07 | 0 | https://www.news-journalonline.com/story/sports/columns/2022/04/10/masters-scotty-scheffler-proves-hes-1-major-reason-tiger-woods-augusta/9529537002/ |
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Activate your digital account | https://www.news-journalonline.com/restricted/?return=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.news-journalonline.com%2Fstory%2Fbusiness%2F2022%2F04%2F10%2Fmillers-ale-house-set-open-may-daytona-beach-tomoka-town-center%2F9476417002%2F | 2022-04-11T06:39:10 | 0 | https://www.news-journalonline.com/restricted/?return=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.news-journalonline.com%2Fstory%2Fbusiness%2F2022%2F04%2F10%2Fmillers-ale-house-set-open-may-daytona-beach-tomoka-town-center%2F9476417002%2F |
The Chicago Bulls will face the Milwaukee Bucks in the first round of the NBA playoffs, staying close to home to begin their first postseason appearance in five years.
The best-of-seven series will start Sunday at Fiserv Forum in Milwaukee. Game time and TV coverage are undetermined.
The Bulls (46-36) — who completed the regular season Sunday night with a 124-120 victory over the Minnesota Timberwolves — became locked in to the sixth seed in the Eastern Conference last week after beginning 2022 at the top of the conference standings.
The defending NBA champion Bucks (51-31) were neck and neck with the Boston Celtics and Philadelphia 76ers but dropped to the third seed Sunday after resting most of their starters in a loss to the Cleveland Cavaliers.
The rivalry between the Bulls and Bucks seemed to gain an new edge after Alex Caruso’s injury at the hands of Grayson Allen in January, but it has been a lopsided series ever since. The Bulls lost all four meetings with the Bucks this season, including 28- and 21-point blowouts in the last two games.
“They’re champions for a reason,” Bulls coach Billy Donovan said. “They’re battle-tested. They’ve been through this. We will have to play very, very good basketball on both ends of the floor.”
Despite facing the hardest schedule in the league after the All-Star break, the Bucks posted a 15-7 record as they chase back-to-back titles.
Giannis Antetokounmpo poses an impossible problem for most teams, but the Bucks have thrived in recent wins over the Bulls on the strength of other players such as Brook Lopez and Jrue Holiday.
“They have a really good team and a complete team,” Zach LaVine said. “I think we do as well. We just have to attack them and figure out a way we can beat them. … We have to try to bring the fight to them because if we’re back on our heels, it’s not going to be good.”
() | https://www.twincities.com/2022/04/10/chicago-bulls-will-face-the-defending-champion-milwaukee-bucks-beginning-sunday-in-the-1st-round-of-the-nba-playoffs/ | 2022-04-11T06:42:03 | 1 | https://www.twincities.com/2022/04/10/chicago-bulls-will-face-the-defending-champion-milwaukee-bucks-beginning-sunday-in-the-1st-round-of-the-nba-playoffs/ |
Study finds higher homicide risk in homes with handguns
NEW YORK (AP) - Most U.S. gun owners say they own firearms to protect themselves and their loved ones, surveys show. But a study published last Monday suggests people who live with handgun owners are shot to death at a higher rate than those who don’t have such weapons at home.
“We found zero evidence of any kind of protective effects” from living in a home with a handgun, said David Studdert, a Stanford University researcher who was the lead author of the Annals of Internal Medicine study.
The study has several shortcomings. For example, the researchers said they could not determine which victims were killed by the handgun owners or with the in-home weapons. They couldn’t account for illegal guns and looked only at handguns, not rifles or other firearms.
The dataset also was limited to registered voters in California who were 21 and older. It’s not clear that the findings are generalizable to the whole state, let alone to the rest of the country, the authors acknowledged.
But some outside experts said the work was well done, important and the largest research of its kind.
“I would call this a landmark study,” said Cassandra Crifasi, a gun violence policy researcher at Johns Hopkins University. “This contributes to our understanding of the potential causal relationship between guns in the home and homicides,” she said.
California is unusual in that it offers gun ownership data and other information not obtainable in almost any other state. That allowed the researchers to follow millions of people over many years to try to better establish what happens when a person begins living in a home with handgun, they said.
The study focused on nearly 600,000 Californians who did not own handguns but began living in homes with handguns between October 2004 and December 2016 — either because they started living with someone who owned one or because someone in their household bought one.
The researchers calculated that for every 100,000 people in that situation, 12 will be shot to death by someone else over five years. In comparison, eight out of 100,000 who live in gun-free homes will be killed that way over the same time span.
“The rates are low” and the absolute risk is small, but it’s important to consider the increase in a person’s risk of being killed, Studdert said.
Those numbers suggest the risk rises 50%, but Studdert said it’s actually higher: In a separate calculation designed to better account for where people live and other factors, the researchers estimated the risk was actually more than twice as high.
Separately, the researchers found that those who lived with handgun owners had a much higher rate of being fatally shot by a spouse or intimate partner. The vast majority of such victims — 84% — were women, they said.
The study was confined to California, but the risk is likely even greater in states with less stringent gun laws and where gun ownership is more common, Crifasi said.
Previous research estimated that nearly 3% of U.S. adults became new gun owners between January 2019 and April 2021, which translates to about 7.5 million Americans. Of those, about 5.4 million previously lived in a home with no guns.
For decades, studies have shown guns in the home raise the risk of a violent death. Much of that work, including an earlier study by Studdert and his colleagues, focused on suicide.
The new study goes further in addressing the perception that handguns are still worthwhile because of the safety they provide against being murdered, some experts said.
“The reason people have guns in their home is for protection from strangers,” said David Hemenway, director of the Harvard University’s Injury Control Research Center. “But what this is showing that having a gun in the home is bad for people in the home.”
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The Associated Press Health & Science Department receives support from the Howard Hughes Medical Institute’s Department of Science Education. The AP is solely responsible for all content.
Copyright 2022 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. | https://www.wflx.com/2022/04/11/study-finds-higher-homicide-risk-homes-with-handguns/ | 2022-04-11T06:48:58 | 0 | https://www.wflx.com/2022/04/11/study-finds-higher-homicide-risk-homes-with-handguns/ |
- The southern city of Guangzhou closed in-person classes at elementary and middle schools as of Monday, shifting courses online.
- In Shanghai, lockdown measures remained in place, while the city reported a record high combined number of cases for Sunday, 914 with symptoms and 25,173 without.
- Electric vehicle company Nio announced Saturday it was suspending production and delaying delivery of its cars since suppliers have had to halt production due to Covid.
BEIJING — Another major Chinese city has tightened Covid restrictions as the country struggles to contain a nationwide outbreak stretching from Shanghai in the southeast to the northern provinces.
The southern city of Guangzhou closed in-person classes at elementary and middle schools as of Monday, shifting courses online. The measures will last for at least a week, according to a city announcement over the weekend.
Municipal authorities said locals should not leave the city unless necessary, and would need a negative virus test from within the last 48 hours to do so.
Guangzhou — capital of Guangdong, a manufacturing-heavy province — reported 27 new Covid cases for Sunday, including 9 without symptoms. That's up from a total of 11 cases a day earlier, according to the National Health Commission.
Shanghai reported a record high combined number of cases for Sunday, 914 with symptoms and 25,173 without. For Saturday, authorities reported 1,006 cases with symptoms and 23,937 asymptomatic ones.
The southeastern metropolis accounts for most of mainland China's new Covid cases. Shanghai remains in lockdown — with most people forced to stay in their apartments and get food by delivery — about a week after a two-part shutdown was originally supposed to end.
Money Report
Shanghai had shifted elementary and middle schools to online learning about a month ago on March 12. The two-stage lockdown began on March 28 in the name of mass virus testing.
All 11 districts of Guangzhou city began another round of mass testing late last week. The city said Saturday it is in the process of turning an expo center into a makeshift hospital.
The latest wave of cases stems from the highly transmissible omicron variant and marks the worst Covid outbreak on the mainland since the initial phase of the pandemic in early 2020.
Factory closures, worries about jobs
Electric vehicle company Nio announced Saturday it was suspending production and delaying delivery of its cars since suppliers in the northern province of Jilin, Shanghai and the nearby Jiangsu province have had to halt production due to Covid.
A Morgan Stanley survey found that at the start of this month, about 31% of Chinese people were worried they wouldn't be able to pay debt or rent — several percentage points higher than the March to May 2020 period.
Worries about job losses climbed back to levels seen in mid-March 2020, but slightly off highs seen that April, the survey found.
Morgan Stanley analysts don't expect significant changes to China's zero-Covid policy until after October or November this year. On March 31, the analysts cut their annual GDP forecast to 4.6%, down from 5.1%.
That same day, Citi analysts raised their China GDP forecast to 5.0% from 4.7% on expectations Covid's impact on the economy would result in more government stimulus.
After battling a spike in Covid cases since late February, the northern province of Jilin — home to many automobile factories — has started to see a leveling out. The number of daily new Covid cases in Jilin has fallen from more than 1,000 or 2,000 a day, including asymptomatic ones, to several hundred a day.
Beijing, the capital of China, reported no new locally transmitted cases for Sunday. The surrounding province of Hebei reported 100 new cases, all asymptomatic.
Other major cities across the country, including Xi'an and Chengdu in central China, and Suzhou and Nanjing closer to the coast, each reported less than 10 new cases with symptoms for Sunday. | https://www.nbcnewyork.com/news/business/money-report/china-covid-outbreak-guangzhou-closes-schools-shanghais-new-cases-soar-to-a-record/3639539/ | 2022-04-11T06:50:06 | 0 | https://www.nbcnewyork.com/news/business/money-report/china-covid-outbreak-guangzhou-closes-schools-shanghais-new-cases-soar-to-a-record/3639539/ |
By JOHN DANISZEWSKI
NEW YORK (AP) — With the Russian military in retreat from around Kyiv and facing condemnation for brutal tactics, harsh political repression at home and the economy buffeted by Western sanctions, adversaries and allies alike are raising the same question about President Vladimir Putin: Can he hold onto power?
The answer: For now, but maybe not forever.
After 22 years in power, Putin has built a powerful phalanx of loyalists who surround him, both in the Russian military and the secret services. He also has significant support among the Russian people, who are steeped in pro-Putin propaganda through the Russian leader’s almost total control of television and other mass communication. Even today, many Russians view his leadership as having delivered greater prestige, prosperity and stability for the country over two decades.
This edifice of protection, the vast wealth Putin controls and the lack of any significant history of palace coups in Russia make either of the obvious means of removing Putin — a military mutiny or a mass popular “color” revolution — almost inconceivable right now.
Yet all strongman states are inherently vulnerable to the unforeseen — especially when they become deaf to the society around them. Just ask Hosni Mubarak.
“For God’s sake, this man cannot remain in power,” declared President Joe Biden of Putin last month in Poland. It was an unscripted but heartfelt comment as the bloodletting in Ukraine has mounted.
The 69-year-old Putin is up for re-election in 2024, and changes in the Russian constitution conceivably would allow him to remain president until 2036. But the imprisonment of Russia’s best-known opposition figure, Alexei Navalny, is just one sign that Putin is not confident enough of his popularity to submit to an actual democratic test.
While there can be no credible polling in a country now effectively under martial law, the number of Russians informed and courageous enough to protest against the war in Ukraine so far has numbered in the thousands, not the hundreds of thousands.
Tens of thousands of affluent citizens, intellectuals and political critics have abandoned Russia rather than remain under the tight controls Putin has imposed, finding escape in Istanbul, Tbilisi or cities in the West. This brain drain no doubt will hurt Russia in the future. But at the moment, their departure removes a possible nexus of opposition from the society.
Of course, history is unpredictable. Few anticipated the rapid dissolution of the Soviet Union at the end of the 1980s and the beginning of the 1990s. If Russian casualties in Ukraine are as high as has been reported — 15,000 or more dead and three times that wounded in the space of six weeks — those results eventually will begin filtering through the society in spite of official censorship.
Arguably, the USSR’s fate was sealed in 1986 after its then-leader, Mikhail Gorbachev, loosened the Communist Party’s iron grip on information and set sights on the restructuring of the Soviet Union’s stagnating economy in order to better compete with the West. That was the year of the Chernobyl nuclear disaster, when the Politburo — after initially trying to cover up the disaster — was forced to disclose it to the Soviet public. The Soviet war in Afghanistan, meanwhile, had turned into a quagmire, leading to withdrawal in 1988-89.
In 1988, when Polish workers loyal to the independent Solidarity union movement launched a series of strikes in coal mines and shipyards, Gorbachev signaled that he would not intervene in one of the Soviet Union’s key satellite states. Then-Polish leader Gen. Wojciech Jaruzelski, whose 1981 imposition of martial law had led that country nowhere, opted instead to open up talks with the strikers’ leader, Lech Walesa. The result: partly democratic elections.
That in turn set in motion a series of dominoes within the Eastern European countries, with Hungary, Czechoslovakia, East Germany, Bulgaria, Romania and Albania all seeking to escape Soviet dominance and Communist rule. Before long, the fever had spread to the Baltic countries that were part of the Soviet Union itself, and nationalist emotions flared across the union.
Hardliners in Moscow who had seen enough attempted a coup against Gorbachev, but they were too late. That quickly was overturned by the popular outpouring of support led by Boris Yeltsin. On Dec. 31, 1991, both Gorbachev and the Soviet Union had been swept aside when the Soviet Union ended.
Putin, at the time an intelligence agent in East Germany, lived through the events and has drawn appropriate conclusions to maintain control now. Even before the war in Ukraine, he worked to shape public opinion by portraying the Ukrainians as Nazis who threatened Russia. Then, he clamped down on independent media organizations and the few remaining civil society groups.
More recently, he has imposed draconian anti-media laws that ban telling the Russia public anything about the war that conflicts with the Kremlin’s chosen narrative about the “special military operation.” Dissenters and doubters have been branded as scum and gnats, worthy only to be spat out.
Aside from Gorbachev, the sole Soviet leader to be removed was Nikita Khrushchev, whose 11 years in power ended in 1964.
He was forced out by his closest associates in the Communist Party. Disturbed by a series of disastrous economic decisions, a failed initiative to install nuclear weapons in Cuba and the signs that Khrushchev intended to build a cult of personality, fellow members of the Communist Presidium denounced him in a closed meeting while he was away.
When he returned, realizing that he had lost all support, Khrushchev agreed to step aside on fictional grounds of ill health. He soon was rendered a nonperson within the Soviet Union, as his successor Leonid Brezhnev assumed the leadership. But again, Khrushchev’s bloodless removal was unique.
Could something like that happen to Putin as economic conditions worsen, or if the Ukrainian invasion is a disaster for Russia?
Unlike the Soviet Union, there is little in the way of an institutional party structure that could intervene to topple him. Putin has cronies, yes men, and a coterie of “siloviki” — people of power awash in hard-nosed nationalist thinking of the FSB and military — none of whom so far dare to show the least independence from Putin’s Ukraine war “project.”
Yet losses on the battlefield have already led to an apparent paring-down of military goals, angering and disappointing some anti-Ukraine pundits on Russian TV.
While Putin’s coterie has every incentive to stay close for the time being or risk losing privileges and wealth, if the war in Ukraine drags on for months or years, and Putin’s adventure becomes the mammoth disaster that it appears to be so far, it is almost certain that cracks will emerge.
Absent Russia’s total victory over Ukraine, it already is difficult to imagine the world going back to business as usual with Vladimir Putin. He could find himself boxed into a grinding, open-ended conflict on his border and facing a need to impose more and more repression at home to stifle dissent in a population paying the economic consequences of the invasion.
Aging leaders rarely last forever or have the luxury to leave office on their own terms. Whether it is by elections, revolt or an internal mutiny, the long days of Putin’s rule may well be numbered.
___
John Daniszewski, former senior managing editor for international news at The Associated Press, first reported from Eastern Europe in 1987 and has been based in Warsaw, Johannesburg, Cairo, Moscow, Baghdad and London. He is currently AP’s vice president for standards and editor at large. Follow him on Twitter at http://twitter.com/jdaniszewski | https://www.twincities.com/2022/04/10/analysis-war-economy-could-weaken-putins-place-as-leader/ | 2022-04-11T07:03:26 | 0 | https://www.twincities.com/2022/04/10/analysis-war-economy-could-weaken-putins-place-as-leader/ |
KYIV, Ukraine (AP) — An elderly woman draped in snow. A child peering out a train window into the unknown. A pair of hands bound. From Jan. 25 to April 8, AP photographer Vadim Ghirda took some of the most recognizable images of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
Ghirda spent his earliest days in Ukraine’s eastern regions of Donetsk and Luhansk as tensions rose over warnings that Russia planned to invade Ukraine. Russia at the time strenuously denied such plans, and then did invade on Feb. 24.
The first days of the invasion found Ghirda in bombarded Kharkiv, Ukraine’s second-largest city, crouching in the snow next to a dead soldier and a destroyed Russian rocket launcher.
Then he was on to Kyiv, the Ukrainian capital, to document the frantic crush of people trying to leave the country while they still could. His camera captured a serene-looking baby in the middle of the anxious crowd. Ghirda was there again as the flight from the capital region later became more dangerous, photographing an elderly woman clutching her head after crossing the Irpin River under a bridge that had been destroyed.
He also documented some of the horrors found in the northern Ukrainian town of Bucha, where Ukrainian officials say Russian soldiers committed war crimes before withdrawing.
Amid the destruction of war, Ghirda found gentle moments. A woman with a dozen dogs at a sunny triage point after leaving Irpin. A teenager rubbing noses with her soldier boyfriend, a suitcase nearby. A soldier trying to avoid being bitten by an ostrich in one of the more unusual evacuation attempts of the war, at a zoo on the outskirts of Kyiv.
He also found flowers placed on a charred Ukrainian military vehicle on April 1, a sign of mourning but also, perhaps, one of spring as well.
“What I remember is being in awe at how people cope with this and try to not leave a soul behind, be it hamster, cat or huge dog. And, leaving on a crowded train home with super heavy suitcases, I thought how would I feel if a photographer would now stare at me through his lens as I struggle,” Ghirda says. “And again I was in awe at the kindness and generosity of all those people who offered me the honor to share with the world their personal tragedy.”
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Follow all AP stories on Russia’s war in Ukraine at https://apnews.com/hub/russia-ukraine. | https://www.twincities.com/2022/04/10/ap-photos-10-weeks-of-ukraine-documented-by-vadim-ghirda/ | 2022-04-11T07:03:33 | 1 | https://www.twincities.com/2022/04/10/ap-photos-10-weeks-of-ukraine-documented-by-vadim-ghirda/ |
When Mike Elias first viewed the Orioles’ general manager opening in 2018, he saw a unique opportunity. He wouldn’t be just rebuilding the player pool in Baltimore, a group already gutted by a trade-deadline sell-off earlier that summer; he would need to overhaul the organization from the ground up.
“We viewed it as a total refresh,” Elias told The Baltimore Sun.
The farm system was bereft of major talent. The international scouting department was underfunded and underused, particularly in the Dominican Republic. The analytics department was understaffed, the player development sector antiquated, and several large contracts for players who didn’t pan out left the team little room to maneuver.
It all required changing. And changing takes time.
As Elias enters his fourth season as executive vice president and general manager, many of those changes remain unseen, invisible from the stands of Oriole Park at Camden Yards. What is visible frustrates fans: the 100-loss seasons and frequent trades of household names in favor of prospects.
But there’s an internal belief that under the surface is a change of fortune, a revitalization of a franchise that recently became the lone Major League Baseball club to lose value in 2021, according to Forbes magazine. It’s a process Elias envisioned since he arrived, and he feels it’s close to coming to fruition.
Baltimore isn’t built to win this year, and the club’s lightweight payroll — about $40 million for players currently in the organization — reflects that. But the Orioles hope that spending money on longer-term, sustainable efforts, such as scouting, analytics and the development of minor league players, can lead to a more competitive club in coming years.
“I really do feel like we can now boast [a solid foundation] as an organization,” Elias said. “While the last three years were rough at the major league level, I think the next three years will represent a much clearer reflection of what’s going on beneath the surface.”
‘At the low point of the flywheel’
For Clarence “Fancy Clancy” Haskett, a longtime beer vendor at Camden Yards, going to work in recent years has meant seeing fewer and fewer of his regulars.
“They’re tired of spending their money [when] there’s nothing happening on the field,” Haskett, 63, said.
Haskett, who’s been working Orioles games for 48 years, said that when attendance is low, it hurts the average vendor, who might earn half as much during a sparse night compared with a well-attended one.
Baltimore’s home attendance has decreased each year since 2014, when the team averaged 30,806 fans a game. Even before the coronavirus pandemic, that figure had nearly halved to 16,348 in 2019. Following the spectator-less year of 2020, the Orioles averaged just over 10,000 fans a game in 2021 — including a Camden Yards low of 4,965 one September night.
This year’s puny payroll, however, is not a result of poor attendance; instead, it’s more a product of priority. Rather than invest in on-field talent in 2022, the Orioles have opted to focus financially on other areas — scouting, analytics, minor league development — to the detriment of the present, but in an attempt to build a long-term contender.
“Hopefully when they start winning, they can get [the fans] back,” Haskett said.
While low attendance can hurt beer vendors and ding revenue, it doesn’t have a massive impact on the Orioles’ finances.
The bulk of the team’s revenue comes from consistent streams — including from league-wide revenue sharing and from national media deals. Each Major League Baseball team pools 48% of its annual revenue together, splitting the pot evenly among all 30 clubs, which buoys the small-market ones like Baltimore. Combined with shared national TV revenue, small-market clubs can receive the majority of their revenue from those two streams alone.
Additionally, the less the Orioles make in gate fees, the less the club owes in rent. The Orioles pay their landlord, the Maryland Stadium Authority, a percentage of in-game revenue, rather than a flat fee. During the most recent fiscal year, the authority received $1.6 million in rent from the Orioles, compared with $8 million during some popular years.
That isn’t likely to happen this season, though, as the Orioles — who have the worst combined record in baseball since 2015 — are expected to struggle again. Most sportsbooks consider Baltimore to be the worst team in the major leagues, projecting roughly 62.5 wins.
The club’s lease for Camden Yards, meanwhile, is set to expire at the end of 2023 and longtime owner Peter Angelos is in poor health, prompting some to question the team’s future in Baltimore. However, Angelos family members have consistently said the Orioles will remain in Baltimore.
To help retain the team and update the aging, yet beloved venue, the stadium authority is seeking the General Assembly’s approval to borrow up to $600 million for improvements, and with that more people might want to go to the ballpark.
The pandemic exacerbated financial challenges for any MLB team, particularly small-market ones, but the Orioles still managed revenue of $251 million in 2021, Forbes reported, comparable with its small-market peers. However, its player payroll remains among the smallest in the major leagues for yet another year after ranking near the bottom of the league in 2021 ($57 million, 27th) and the pandemic-shortened 2020 season (a prorated $23 million, 29th).
In fact, the team’s payroll isn’t far from the annual salaries of some of the sport’s biggest individual stars, such as Los Angeles Angels center fielder Mike Trout ($39 million) and New York Yankees pitcher Gerrit Cole ($36.5 million).
The club has spent near the league average in past years as it competed for playoff spots and division titles, ranking as high as ninth in total payroll entering the 2016 season.
Georgetown University professor Marty Conway, who has worked for MLB, for the Texas Rangers, and as the Orioles’ vice president of marketing in the early 1990s, described spending as a sort of “dial” that can be adjusted as needed. He said the Orioles are “at the low of point of that flywheel.”
“The expectation is that this strategy pays off at the other end, and then you could look at more investments in payroll to supplant and to actually try to play postseason baseball,” Conway said.
Conway said attendance is a “lagging indicator” of success, and should the Orioles compete for a playoff spot in the coming years, Camden Yards could see a return to large crowds. If more spectators bring in more revenue, Elias plans to “leverage those resources into the MLB roster.”
“As the team gets better,” Elias said, “we hope and project and expect for our local revenues to rise as the team becomes more popular and more successful and more entertaining.”
Building for the future
When Elias arrived in Baltimore, one of his first moves was to hire Sig Mejdal as assistant general manager for analytics. Mejdal had worked with Elias in Houston, and the duo helped turn the Astros from a bottom-feeder into a World Series contender.
They had the blueprint. It wasn’t through extravagant free-agent signings — at least not right away. It was up to the farm system, the analytics department and international scouting to build and sustain a championship contender.
The Astros achieved that, with Elias a driving force in the team drafting shortstop Carlos Correa, the future American League Rookie of the Year and two-time All-Star, with the top overall pick in 2012.
But that foundation didn’t exist in Baltimore.
“This was a franchise that had been running on a model of heavily leveraging the major league payroll, oftentimes at the expense of future-oriented investments and infrastructure that has become ubiquitous with the way every Major League Baseball team runs itself since about the mid-2010s,” Elias said. “It was, first and foremost, a buildup of the entire baseball operations department.”
That started in the analytics department, where there was one developer on staff when Elias began. Since then, Di Zou, that lone developer, has been promoted, and there are now a dozen or so software programmers on the analytics staff. That staff had to recreate tools Elias and Mejdal were accustomed to using in Houston and, even earlier, in St. Louis, to get Baltimore up to speed.
There was a push to upgrade the player development facilities, and the Orioles are in the process of building a 23-acre complex in the Dominican Republic. The team has emphasized minor league development, including revamped hitting and pitching programs, and hired a mental skills coordinator. As part of new league rules, the organization is now also responsible for providing housing for its minor leaguers.
“This is all stuff that goes on beneath the surface and isn’t reflected in your major league payroll,” Elias said, “but is a legitimate pull on your resources.”
The MLB draft has been a key rebuilding tool for the Orioles in recent years, and Baltimore again has the No. 1 overall pick in July. By virtue of finishing with the majors’ worst record last season at 52-110, the team also has one of the largest bonus pools to work with to sign amateur players.
Since losing 115 games in 2018 — a season that featured the trades of homegrown stars such as Manny Machado, Zack Britton, Kevin Gausman and Jonathan Schoop — the Orioles have picked first (catcher Adley Rutschman), second (outfielder Heston Kjerstad) and fifth (outfielder Colton Cowser) in the draft, stockpiling talent that has built what some consider the No. 1 farm system in baseball.
Several of those players — including baseball’s top overall prospect Rutschman and top pitching prospect Grayson Rodriguez — are expected to make their major league debuts this season.
Of course, there’s no guarantee a rebuild works. But as the core group of highly touted players nears Baltimore, the hope of winning brightens the darkness of recent mediocrity.
“We’re sitting on top of the best minor league system in baseball, and those players are getting closer and closer to Camden Yards,” Elias said. “We view this season as one of importance, aspiration, hope for the Orioles as we start to demonstrate the product of work we’ve been putting in all around the organization.”
When will the winning start?
Orioles fans have suffered the losing that comes with a rebuild, and many fans are growing weary of waiting. The want to know: When will the winning start?
Baltimore has not had a winning record since 2016 and has lost at least 108 games in each of the past three full seasons. Some fans are disgruntled as they watch the Orioles flounder while the Tampa Bay Rays, also in a small market, have soared to a 100-win season last year and a pennant in 2020.
If Elias’ time in Houston is any harbinger, a playoff contender could come in the next two or three years.
The Astros hired general manager Jeff Luhnow before the 2012 season, who brought Elias to Houston, too. Houston’s big league club limped for three seasons, racking up losses and draft picks, before making the playoffs in 2015 and winning the 2017 World Series; though that title has been tainted by a sign-stealing scandal.
It was similar to what the Chicago Cubs began in 2011 under Theo Epstein, when the team suffered through miserable 2012, 2013 and 2014 campaigns. But in 2015 came a surprisingly successful season and then, in 2016, a World Series title led by talented, homegrown players including 24-year old Kris Bryant, that season’s MVP who’d been drafted by the Cubs during the rebuild.
Those are models — with more winning and more attendance — that Baltimore fans and beer vendors alike can look forward to.
When Haskett, the longtime vendor, isn’t hawking brews at Camden Yards, he coaches track at Mount Saint Joseph High School. The team he coaches is young, he said, but talented, and with some development, they could be great in the near future.
“We’re gonna be real nice,” he said, “in a couple years.”
() | https://www.twincities.com/2022/04/10/as-orioles-enter-season-with-another-puny-payroll-club-hopes-changes-made-beneath-the-surface-begin-to-show/ | 2022-04-11T07:03:39 | 0 | https://www.twincities.com/2022/04/10/as-orioles-enter-season-with-another-puny-payroll-club-hopes-changes-made-beneath-the-surface-begin-to-show/ |
TWO HARBORS, Minn. — Joe Shead has been shed hunting since 2001. Shead (yes, it’s pronounced “shed”) literally wrote the book on shed hunting in 2006: “Shed Hunting: A Guide to Finding White-Tailed Deer Antlers.”
Since then, Shead, who lives along the North Shore just outside of Two Harbors, has become somewhat of a national star in the growing community of shed hunters, people who comb the woods and fields of deer country looking for antlers dropped by bucks over the winter.
Some people collect sheds to make money, and there are buyers paying big bucks for sheds used to make decorations, for dog chews and for medicinal purposes or supplements in some cultures. Shead, on the other hand, does it strictly for fun.
Spring, as the snow recedes and exposes bare ground, is prime time for shed hunting in the Northland. This is when last year’s antler gold — shed by most deer between December and March — begins to reveal itself. Go too early and the antlers are still covered by snow. Go too late and someone else will be holding your shed.
So far, across much of the Northland, the lingering snow in the woods has been a pesky problem for shed hunters.
“I did head south last week and found a few,” Shead said earlier this week. “I’m really itching for the snow to melt.”
Shed hunting has become a popular way to get back outdoors, to get some fresh air and exercise, after a long winter.
Joe Shead’s shed hunting tips
Look for three basic areas: Places where deer bed down, places where they feed and the trails between the two. Follow enough deer trails long enough this time of year and you’ll find sheds.
In early spring, concentrate on southern exposures. They receive the most late-winter sun, and snow recedes here first. Plus, deer like to live here, soaking up radiant heat from the sun. “Follow the snow line. Or drive south until you run out of snow and run into open ground, and look right in that transition area,” Shead said.
Don’t expect a matched set every time. Bucks can lose each side of their antlers weeks and miles apart. “As far as getting both, I’m probably like a National League (baseball) pitcher, batting about .150,” Shead said. But don’t give up. There’s also the chance both sides dropped close together.
Walk slowly. While you may think covering more ground is best, covering less ground very thoroughly actually finds more antlers.
Look close to you. You don’t have to look far ahead. You’ll get there eventually, so focus on where you are. Shead said most of his sheds he sees first within about 10 feet.
Look for unnatural shapes. If an antler falls tines-down, all you’ll see is the curve of the main beam. If it falls tines-up, you might just see three or four tines protruding from the snow. In the snow, you don’t usually see a complete antler.
Check out the lone evergreens. Bucks like to rest under these lone spruces or jackpines or balsam firs. Sometimes, that’s where they lose their antlers.
In heavily shed-hunted areas, such as Duluth, you’ll have to hunt before the snow melts. Many bucks drop antlers on the snow, but if you wait until the snow melts, someone else probably will have found the antlers.
Did you know?
Members of the deer family, cervidae, are the only animals that grow and discard body parts — antlers — on an annual basis. All types of male deer, elk, moose and both male and female caribou grow antlers beginning in the spring. By late summer, the antlers are fully grown. In fall, bucks and bulls use their antlers to fight rival males and attract mates. In winter or early spring, the antlers are shed and new antlers begin to grow.
Responsible shed hunting rules
Know where to go. It’s illegal to shed hunt in all national parks, Minnesota state parks and state Scientific and Natural Areas. Most other public lands are open to shed hunting, such as national forests, state forest and county lands. Several other states do have restrictions, rules and even seasonal limits when shed hunting is allowed: Check before you go.
Don’t disturb animals. Don’t approach animals or follow the same ones on a daily basis, especially in late winter/early spring when they are already stressed.
Respect private property. You always need permission to be on private land. Antlers that are shed on private land below belong to the landowner
Don’t take vehicles off-roading in spring. The ground is water-logged at this time of year and off-roading in the wrong place can damage critical wildlife and fish habitat. Travel by foot only.
Try not to be in the same spot every day. Deer and moose might need to be in that spot for food or cover, and your presence will keep them from it.
Keep dogs under your control. Don’t let dogs approach or follow wildlife. State laws prohibit dogs (and people) from harassing wildlife.
Sources: Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife, Minnesota Department of Natural Resources | https://www.twincities.com/2022/04/10/as-snow-melts-winter-antler-sheds-are-revealed-here-are-some-tips-for-finding-them/ | 2022-04-11T07:03:45 | 0 | https://www.twincities.com/2022/04/10/as-snow-melts-winter-antler-sheds-are-revealed-here-are-some-tips-for-finding-them/ |
Only eight Knicks are suiting up for Sunday night’s season finale against the Raptors.
With Quentin Grimes (knee), Miles McBride (knee) and Mitchell Robinson (non-COVID illness) all downgraded to out before the game, Immanuel Quickley was set to make his third start of the season and sixth of his career.
He’ll be joined in the starting lineup by Alec Burks, Obi Toppin, Evan Fournier and Jericho Sims.
With the Pelicans in action later Sunday, the Knicks’ lottery position could be affected by Sunday night’s game. Both teams are 36-45, although the Pelicans could be out of the lottery entirely if they win two straight in the play-in tournament. The Wizards (35-47) lost to the Hornets earlier on Sunday, meaning the Knicks cannot finish below the 11th-worst record in the league.
The Knicks signed Feron Hunt to a two-way deal in March, and he made his NBA debut with two minutes in Washington on Friday night. He was set for his first real NBA action on Sunday, with only Hunt, Taj Gibson and the little-used Ryan Arcidiacono available off the bench.
Head coach Tom Thibodeau praised Hunt on Sunday, rattling off his favorite attributes of Hunt’s: “High-energy, played two positions, excellent defender, his shooting’s improving, just a multiple effort guy, a long wing.”
The 22-year-old Hunt went undrafted out of SMU last year and appeared in 27 games for the Mavericks’ G League affiliate this season before catching on with the Knicks last month.
Thibodeau confirmed that RJ Barrett’s ugly knee injury in Washington was “just a sprain,” although he said he did not know if Barrett had an MRI on the knee.
With the Raptors locked into the fifth seed and the playoffs set to begin on Apr. 16, Fred VanVleet and Pascal Siakam sat out Sunday night’s game. Toronto coach Nick Nurse said OG Anunoby would likely “try to play a little bit” against the Knicks.
() | https://www.twincities.com/2022/04/10/knicks-raptors-show-up-shorthanded-for-season-finale/ | 2022-04-11T07:03:51 | 0 | https://www.twincities.com/2022/04/10/knicks-raptors-show-up-shorthanded-for-season-finale/ |
The Orlando Magic not only closed out the season with a matchup vs. the Miami Heat Sunday at Amway Center, but they also distributed over $1 million to the Central Florida community.
The Magic distributed 13 $50,000 grants and four $100,000 focus area grants totaling $1.05 million to 17 organizations through the Orlando Magic Youth Foundation during a ceremony Sunday.
The 13 organizations that received the $50,000 grants were: City Year Orlando, Early Leaning Coalition of Orange County, Elevate Orlando, Hebni Nutrition Consultants, Hope Community City, Impower, Orlando Ballet, Orlando Shakes in Partnership with UCF, Page 15, Professional Opportunities Programs for Students, UCF Foundation, Tech Sassy Girlz and Zebra Coalition.
The four organizations that receive the four $100,000 focus area grants were: Foundation for Foster Children, Foundation for Orange County Public Schools, Harbor House and YMCA of Central Florida.
The organizations were honored during Sunday’s game.
“On behalf of the entire DeVos family, we are so honored to be able to give back to this great Orlando community each year on this very important day,” Magic chairman Dan DeVos said in a statement. “The foundation of our family has always been one surrounded in community work. I truly am honored to be able to share in the excitement of all of these very deserving organizations.”
Sunday marked the 14th time that at least $1 million has been distributed through the Orlando Magic Youth Foundation since its inception.
More than $27 million has been distributed to local nonprofit community organizations through the Orlando Magic Youth Foundation over the last 32 years.
“Through the leadership of the DeVos family, giving back to our community in whatever way possible has always been a focal point in all that we do as an organization,” Magic CEO Alex Martins said in a statement. “From the beginning, the vision of Mr. and Mrs. DeVos was for the Magic to serve as a platform to improve our great city. The OMYF is one way we can continue to honor that vision and assist these amazing organizations who help the foundation fulfill its commitment to underserved youth and families in Central Florida.”
The DeVos Family Foundation also is donating a total of $3 million to 30 area nonprofit organizations as part of the DeVos family’s 30 Grants for 30 Years initiative in addition to the Orlando Magic Youth Foundation’s fundraising.
The initiative’s goal is to invest in people and projects impacting youth, essential needs for families, and community enrichment across Central Florida.
This article first appeared on OrlandoSentinel.com. Email Khobi Price at khprice@orlandosentinel.com or follow him on Twitter at @khobi_price.
() | https://www.twincities.com/2022/04/10/magic-distributes-over-1-million-to-central-florida-organizations/ | 2022-04-11T07:03:57 | 1 | https://www.twincities.com/2022/04/10/magic-distributes-over-1-million-to-central-florida-organizations/ |
Native American scholar and University of New Mexico professor Gregory Cajete is set to give a presentation called “Native Science: Natural Laws of Interdependence” to Luna Community College Students at 9:30 a.m. Wednesday in the Allied Health Auditorium on campus.
At 5:30 p.m., Cajete will host a talk called “Health, Community, Indigenous Foods and Herbs in Northern New Mexico,” also in the Allied Health Auditorium. The presentation is free to the public and refreshments are provided.
Film Institute offers funds to filmmakers
Applications open May 1 for funding for high school students, college students and independent filmmakers from the Santa Fe Film Institute.
A regional grant will award up to $5,000 in funding to applicants in New Mexico and $2,000 to those in surrounding states for independent film productions. Productions can be any runtime and can be in any phase of production.
The Imogene Hughes Scholarship is open for college students and the Santa Fe Film Institute Scholarship will award funds to high schoolers. Both award $1,000 or more in funds.
Mesalands Community College in Tucumcari is the latest school to join the digital Collaborative for Higher Education Shared Services, the school announced in late March.
The CHESS project, which includes participation from local schools like Santa Fe Community College and Northern New Mexico College, is meant to “modernize” student information and speed up processes like transfers between participating schools. More information is at chess.edu.
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Welcome to the Ravens’ free-agency tracker, which will be updated throughout the offseason as the roster takes shape.
With the NFL’s new league year beginning March 16 at 4 p.m., teams can officially announce signings and trades. Here’s a rundown of who the Ravens have signed thus far and who’s still on the open market:
Free-agent additions
Defensive end Calais Campbell: The Ravens announced that they have re-signed veteran defensive end Calais Campbell to a two-year deal. Campbell’s deal is worth $12.5 million but he can earn as much as $16.5 million with incentives, according to multiple reports.
Inside linebacker Josh Bynes: Bynes has agreed to terms to return to the Ravens, the team announced. The 32-year-old started 12 games last season, recording 76 tackles, two sacks and four pass breakups in his third stint with the team after being signed as an undrafted free agent in 2011. The veteran adds some stability behind 2020 first-round pick Patrick Queen and 2020 third-round pick Malik Harrison, who is cross training at outside linebacker. Veteran linebackers L.J. Fort and Otaro Alaka remain unsigned.
Defensive tackle Michael Pierce: The former Ravens starter is returning to Baltimore on a three-year deal, the team announced. The deal is worth $16.5 million, according to NFL Network. The Minnesota Vikings released Pierce earlier this week after he made just eight starts in two seasons. Pierce, 29, signed a three-year, $27 million deal with the Vikings but opted out of the 2020 season because of COVID-19 concerns and then missed nine games in 2021 with tricep and elbow injuries.
Safety Marcus Williams: The former New Orleans Saints star finalized a five-year, $70 million deal, giving a talented Ravens secondary one of the top playmakers on the open market. Williams’ contract is worth $14 million annually, the seventh most among NFL safeties, and includes $37 million guaranteed, according to ESPN.
The 6-foot-1, 195-pound Williams, 25, has been one of the NFL’s best safeties since arriving in New Orleans in 2017. Over five seasons with the Saints, he had 15 interceptions and 38 passes defended.
Offensive tackle Morgan Moses: The Ravens signed Moses to a three-year, $15 million deal, stabilizing a position of need along their offensive line. In the 6-foot-6, 318-pound Moses, the Ravens have acquired an imposing veteran who almost landed on their free-agency radar last year.
Moses, 31, has been one of the NFL’s most durable linemen since Washington drafted him out of Virginia in the third round in 2014.
Outside linebacker Za’Darius Smith: The Minnesota Vikings and Smith agreed to terms on a three-year, $42 million contract Tuesday, less than a week after a deal to rejoin the Ravens fell through.
Smith, who spent the past three seasons with the Green Bay Packers, has incentives to earn up to $47 million over the life of the deal. The Ravens’ initial deal with Smith, which fell apart Thursday, was reportedly worth $35 million over four years, with a maximum value of $50 million.
The 29-year-old Smith was a Pro Bowl pick in 2019 and 2020 with a combined 26 sacks in 32 games, but he had a major back injury last season and appeared in only one game for the NFC North champions.
With defensive end Danielle Hunter returning after a torn pectoral muscle limited him to seven games in 2021, the Vikings have a pair of proven pass-rushers to lean on in the attempt to prop up a defense that has lagged badly over the last two years. Assistant head coach Mike Pettine was Smith’s defensive coordinator with the Packers in 2019 and 2020.
Free-agent losses
Cornerback Tavon Young: Young is signing a one-year deal with the Chicago Bears, according to multiple reports. A 2016 fourth-round pick, Young was released by the Ravens in a cost-cutting move March 9. After an injury-plagued six years in Baltimore, Young entered the offseason as a potential salary cap casualty. He would’ve had a $9.3 million cap hit next season, and his release saves $6 million in cap space.
In February 2019, less than two years after Young tore the ACL in his left knee and missed the 2017 season, the Ravens signed him to a three-year, $25.8 million extension that briefly made him the NFL’s highest-paid slot cornerback. That August, the Oxon Hill native had an impressive training camp derailed by a season-ending neck injury. A year later, Young suffered another torn left ACL in a Week 2 game against the Houston Texans.
Young, 27, appeared in all 17 games last season, starting seven, but he played just over half of the Ravens’ defensive snaps. He was mostly solid in coverage, allowing a passer rating of 85.1, and had two sacks. Still, injuries kept him from recapturing the form that he flashed early in his career. A beloved teammate, he leaves Baltimore having played in 50 career games and missed 47.
Cornerback Chris Westry: Westry has signed a one-year deal with the Carolina Panthers, the team announced.
The 6-foot-4 Westry impressed in his first Ravens training camp last year and made the team’s season-opening 53-man roster. But injuries limited the third-year corner to six games (two starts) last year, and the Ravens did not offer him a restricted-free-agent tender this offseason.
Westry’s departure leaves the Ravens with just six cornerbacks on their 90-man roster: Marlon Humphrey, Marcus Peters, Iman Marshall, Robert Jackson, Kevon Seymour and Kevin Toliver. Only Humphrey and Peters, both recovering from season-ending injuries, have started more than two games over the past two years.
Defensive tackle Justin Ellis: Ellis has signed a one-year deal with the New York Giants, the team announced Wednesday.
The 6-foot-2, 350-pound Ellis, known as “Jelly,” played in 34 games and started eight over his two-plus years in Baltimore. He had 18 tackles and one quarterback hit in 17 games last season, playing 35% of the Ravens’ defensive snaps and helping them maintain one of the NFL’s staunchest run defenses.
In New York, the 31-year-old Ellis will reunite with former Ravens defensive coordinator Don “Wink” Martindale, who now has the same position on the Giants’ staff. Ellis’ signing comes two days after another former Ravens defensive lineman, Jihad Ward, also joined the Giants.
Ellis’ departure is the first of potentially three along the Ravens’ defensive line this offseason. Calais Campbell and Brandon Williams are also free agents.
Inside linebacker Chris Board: The Detroit Lions have agreed to terms with Board on a one-year deal, according to NFL Network. Board, 26, had 94 tackles, 2 ½ sacks and two forced fumbles in 63 games with the Ravens playing mostly on special teams.
Quarterback Josh Johnson: Johnson has signed with the Denver Broncos, he announced on Twitter. Terms of the deal were not disclosed.
Johnson, 35, signed off the New York Jets’ practice squad in December as starter Lamar Jackson recovered from an ankle injury, made a surprise start in Week 16 after backup Tyler Huntley tested positive for the coronavirus. In Johnson’s first start since 2018, he went 28-for-40 for 304 yards, two touchdowns and an interception in a blowout loss to the Cincinnati Bengals.
Denver is the 14th NFL franchise that Johnson has played for in his NFL career. He finished 2021 with 638 passing yards, five touchdowns, two interceptions and 67.1% accuracy.
Center Bradley Bozeman: Bozeman, a consistent starter along the Ravens’ offensive line who developed into one of the NFL’s better centers last season, has agreed to a one-year deal with the Panthers, Carolina announced. Terms of the deal were not announced.
Cornerback Anthony Averett: Averett has signed with the Las Vegas Raiders, according to his agency, Athletes First. The Athletic reported that it’s a one-year deal worth $4.5 million.
A 2018 fourth-round pick, Averett entered free agency coming off the best season of his career. He allowed a passer rating of just 77.5 in coverage, according to Pro Football Reference, and had three interceptions and 11 pass defenses after combining for zero and 11, respectively, over his first three seasons.
Averett missed the Ravens’ final three games with a fractured rib, but he still finished the season as one of the NFL’s most targeted cornerbacks. According to Sports Info Solutions, quarterbacks went after him 90 times last year, fifth most in the league.
Averett was limited to 30 games over his first three years in Baltimore, struggling at times as a reserve cornerback and making a limited impact on special teams. But he impressed in training camp last year, when former defensive coordinator Don “Wink” Martindale said Averett had All-Pro talent. Amid an injruy-plagued season, the 5-foot-11 Averett emerged as the team’s most reliable cornerback.
He’s the second cornerback to leave Baltimore this season, after the Ravens released nickelback Tavon Young last week.
Tight end Eric Tomlinson: After 23 games in Baltimore, the 29-year-old Tomlinson reportedly agreed to a one-year deal with the Denver Broncos. Originally signed to the Ravens’ practice squad in 2020, the 6-6, 263-pound Tomlinson played 26% of the offensive snaps while receiving Pro Football Focus’ second-highest run-blocking grade among 70 qualifying tight ends.
Still unsigned
Running back: Latavius Murray, Devonta Freeman
Wide receiver: Sammy Watkins
Tight end/fullback: Patrick Ricard
Offensive line: OT David Sharpe
Defensive line: Calais Campbell, Brandon Williams
Outside linebacker: Justin Houston, Pernell McPhee
Inside linebacker: L.J. Fort, Otaro Alaka
Cornerback: Jimmy Smith, Khalil Dorsey
Safety: DeShon Elliott
Other notable moves
- Quarterback Joe Flacco, the former Super Bowl Most Valuable Player who played 11 seasons with the Ravens, is returning to the New York Jets on a one-year deal worth $3.5 million, according to ESPN. Flacco, a New Jersey native who will back up 2020 No. 2 overall draft pick Zach Wilson, has started five games for the Jets over the past two seasons.
- Las Vegas Raiders defensive end Yannick Ngakoue, a former Maryland star who spent half a season with the Ravens in 2020 after being acquired from the Minnesota Vikings, was traded to the Indianapolis Colts for cornerback Rock Ya-Sin. Ngakoue, 26, had 10 sacks with the Raiders last season after signing a two-year, $26 million deal.
- Tight end Hayden Hurst, the Ravens’ No. 25 overall pick in the 2018 draft, has agreed to a one-year deal with the Cincinnati Bengals, according to his agency EnterSports Management. The deal is worth $3.5 million with another $1 million that can be reached with incentives, according to Pro Football Network. Hurst caught 82 passes for 792 yards and nine touchdowns in two seasons with the Atlanta Falcons after being acquired for a second-round pick.
- Long snapper Morgan Cox, who spent 11 years with the Ravens as part of the special teams’ so-called “Wolfpack” alongside kicker Justin Tucker and punter Sam Koch, agreed to a one-year extension with the Tennessee Titans.
- Left tackle Orlando Brown Jr., who was traded from the Ravens to the Kansas City Chiefs last offseason for a package of draft picks, was designated with the franchise tag, which is worth $16.6 million. Brown, 25, is expected to receive a long-term contract extension from Kansas City before the July 15 deadline.
- Tight end Maxx Williams, a second-round pick by the Ravens in 2015, re-signed to a one-year contract with the Arizona Cardinals, according to NFL Network.
- Wide receiver Breshad Perriman, a first-round pick by the Ravens in 2015, is returning to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers on a one-year deal, according to ESPN.
- Cornerback Darious Williams, who played three games with the Ravens in 2018 after signing as an undrafted free agent and won a Super Bowl with the Los Angeles Rams this past season, is signing a three-year, $30 million deal with the Jacksonville Jaguars that includes $18 million fully guaranteed, according to NFL Network.
- Quarterback Tyrod Taylor, a sixth-round pick by the Ravens in 2011 who spent for seasons as Flacco’s backup, is expected to sign a two-year, $11 million deal with a max value of $17 million with the New York Giants, according to NFL Network.
- The Miami Dolphins signed former San Francisco 49ers running back Raheem Mostert to a one-year deal worth $3.25 million, according to ESPN. Mostert played seven games with the Ravens during his rookie season in 2015, mostly on special teams, after going undrafted out of Purdue.
Key dates
March 27-30: Annual league meeting, The Breakers, Palm Beach, Florida.
April 4: Clubs that hired a new head coach after the end of the 2021 regular season may begin offseason workout programs.
April 18: Clubs with returning head coaches may begin offseason workout programs.
April 22: Deadline for restricted free agents to sign offer sheets.
April 28-30: NFL draft, Las Vegas.
() | https://www.twincities.com/2022/04/10/ravens-free-agency-tracker-ilb-josh-bynes-returns-cb-tavon-young-signs-deal-with-bears/ | 2022-04-11T07:04:04 | 0 | https://www.twincities.com/2022/04/10/ravens-free-agency-tracker-ilb-josh-bynes-returns-cb-tavon-young-signs-deal-with-bears/ |
Braiding is defined as “joining three or more pieces of hair or string-like material by putting them over each other in a special pattern.” As a child who wore braids, this was my first understanding of the word.
But there’s a more expansive definition, one that results in meaningful educational opportunities for our students. I begin with the book Braiding Sweetgrass, in which botanist Robin Wall Kimmerer describes the act of planting, harvesting and braiding sweetgrass as a metaphor for how to treat one another, including all beings who inhabit the earth.
After reading this book, I realized that this exciting braided learning is already occurring in the Santa Fe Public Schools.
We see this vision in the concept of community schools, which rests on the simple observation that as a community participates more in the education of its children, the more the children flourish. While each community school is different, the goal is to enrich the educational environment through support from parents, community organizations, local businesses, nonprofit organizations and governmental agencies.
All schools do this to some extent, but what I see as essential to consistently meeting this goal is a full-time, permanent “Community School Coordinator.” This individual is responsible for doing the constant braiding of these groups, based on the needs and assets of the learning community. For instance, on a recent Saturday at César Chávez Elementary, members of a group which happened to be named Las Trenzas (Spanish for “braids”) led a diverse group in telling their personal stories to one another. Participants left the session with a deeper understanding of community values, heritage languages and individual assets and struggles.
Community school coordinators use this knowledge, along with assets and needs surveys, to better understand their community, and then they supplement and enhance the classroom and parental experience. For example, a coordinator may see a need for the school population to learn innovative, inexpensive ways of shopping and cooking. The coordinator then arranges for Cooking with Kids, a local nonprofit, to come into the classrooms on a regular basis, where those needs are met with lessons that combine math and nutrition concepts, with the fun of hands-on cooking and eating fresh vegetables and fruits.
Community schools are designed to facilitate this braiding process, and I would encourage all of us to advocate for more funding for these schools. We should also encourage and direct funding to innovative programming that is already available in some schools — such as combining literacy with math and science (the Math Amigos program), or combining high school academics with career pathways and dual credit, as found in Early College Opportunities High School and at other high schools.
Students make personal discoveries when immersed in interactive, braided learning. I recently discovered this for myself during a daylong cooking class. Ostensibly we were learning to make tortillas, tamales and chicken molé. Our instructor, however, seamlessly braided Spanish language lessons into hands-on demonstrations and student practice. As a result, conversation in English and Spanish was rapid and nonstop, full of laughter and storytelling. We learned to cook, but we also learned about one another.
Santa Fe Public Schools also is braiding relationships with institutes of higher education. Let us ensure these relationships are widely known to our middle and high school students. Expand AVID and Breakthrough programs to provide the mentors and tutors needed for students to prepare for and envision themselves as successful college students. Finally, we must make sure students are aware of and take advantage of free tuition and scholarships.
Let the braiding flourish at SFPS. | https://www.santafenewmexican.com/news/local_news/braiding-education-allows-us-to-join-forces-for-kids/article_da0fb07c-b7b1-11ec-b161-fbd14afdd91a.html | 2022-04-11T07:04:06 | 1 | https://www.santafenewmexican.com/news/local_news/braiding-education-allows-us-to-join-forces-for-kids/article_da0fb07c-b7b1-11ec-b161-fbd14afdd91a.html |
LOUISVILLE — If not for a pressing occasion next week, the St. Paul Saints might never leave northern Kentucky.
The Saints seemed to find a second home at Louisville Slugger Field during their six-game series that opened the Triple-A baseball season this past week. And what a series it was for the Saints, who wrapped it up with a 15-6 rout of the host Louisville Bats.
St. Paul had a feast on Louisville pitching in the series finale, hitting a franchise-record seven doubles, a franchise-tying-record 11 extra base hits and slugging four home runs.
During the six games and 54 innings they played in Louisville, the Saints (5-1) trailed the Bats (1-5) for a total of an inning and a half.
But as wonderfully as things went on the road for St. Paul, it’s time to come home. After a well-deserved day off on Monday, the Saints return to CHS Field for their home opener at 6:37 p.m. Tuesday against the Indianapolis Indians.
The Indians, an affiliate of the Pittsburgh Pirates, are 4-2 after opening the season at home with a six-game series against Omaha.
On Sunday, Kyle Garlick, Mark Contreras and Chance Sisco finished with three hits apiece for St. Paul. Daniel Robertson, Jermaine Palacio and Curtis Terry had two hits each in the Saints’ 16-hit attack. Garlick, Contreras, Robertson and Terry hit home runs. | https://www.twincities.com/2022/04/10/saints-bats-explode-for-15-6-rout-of-louisville-bats/ | 2022-04-11T07:04:10 | 1 | https://www.twincities.com/2022/04/10/saints-bats-explode-for-15-6-rout-of-louisville-bats/ |
The seas are full of Jonathan “Ivan” Saunders’ words.
The longtime sailor and fisherman, who spent 45 of his 64 years of life sailing around various parts of the world, figures he has thrown at least 50 bottles into ocean waters containing messages for anyone who discovered them.
Only once, said Saunders — who is now living the life of a landlubber in Santa Fe — did anyone ever respond to say a bottle had been found.
That was a simple note Saunders wrote in April 1995 that included his name, the name of the ship he was on, the name of the ship’s captain, its coordinates and his mailing address. He asked whoever found the bottle to contact him there and tell him where the bottle was found. He also inserted a $1 bill into the bottle.
He then deposited the bottle into the Atlantic Ocean off Puerto Rico.
In November, Saunders said, Nadia Guelénnoc of Brittany, France, posted the letter on her Facebook page, saying she had found the bottle on a beach in her city.
It had traveled over 5,000 nautical miles.
Saunders said Guelénnoc has not yet responded to queries sent by his partner, Helen Ballantyne. Efforts to reach Guelénnoc were unsuccessful.
The news didn’t get back to Saunders, who does not have a Facebook account, until a couple of weeks ago. That’s when a friend from Hawaii, who had seen the woman’s post, reached out to Saunders and said, “Dude, this is your handwriting. I think this is you.”
And it was.
“It was like vindication,” Saunders said in a recent interview at his Santa Fe home. “I did it. I completed the circle.”
Tall — over 6 feet — with a face and arms painted red-brown by the sun, Saunders still looks and talks the part of a sailor as he recalls those messages cast out to the waves years ago.
Growing up on Cape Cod, he was drawn to the ocean and the jobs it offered him, particularly as a fisherman. He recalls delivering his first message in a bottle to the sea sometime in the mid-1970s.
He didn’t send out messages of love or hope or full of bumper sticker slogans. His notes simply relayed his contact information and other details to help connect him with a finder. A student of the ocean, he wanted to understand the science behind how it moved — “Where will this end up? When will this wind up?” he said.
He said he wrote the messages on paper with pencil and stuck them in plastic bags that he put inside the bottles.
He always included a dollar bill, he said, “to get their attention.”
The best bottles to use, he said, are large, dark glass bottles that can be firmly corked and capped so ultraviolet rays do not decompose either the bottle or the message inside.
In the case of the message in this particular bottle, it may have been the name of the captain of the ship — Linda Greenlaw — that caught the French woman’s attention. Or maybe it was the name of the ship they were on, the Hannah Boden.
The Hannah Boden was the sister ship of the Andrea Gail, the fishing vessel that sunk off the coast of Gloucester, Mass., in 1991, prompting the book and movie The Perfect Storm. Sebastian Junger, the author of the book, called Greenlaw one of the best captains on the East Coast.
The woman who found Saunder’s bottle sent Greenlaw a Facebook message in French in November but did not get a response. Greenlaw came across a second Facebook message from her in late February and acknowledged receipt of it, but she couldn’t read what it said.
The social media interaction eventually led to an understanding of what had happened and prompted Greenlaw, who lives in Maine, to reconnect with Saunders after being out of touch with him for 20 years.
In an email, Greenlaw wrote, “The most amazing thing about the note surfacing is that I reconnected with Ivan. I’m sorry I don’t have much info about the woman who found the bottle other than her name.”
Regarding his bottle’s trajectory and timeline, Saunders said he knows enough about the ocean tide’s ebb and flow to realize that perhaps the bottle did not take all of 27 years to find its way to Brittany. “Who knows how long it could have been on the beach” where the woman found it, he said. “It could have been a long time.”
Saunders said he thinks sailors have been sending messages in bottles via the ocean for centuries.
“Perhaps it’s the isolation of being out on the ocean for so long,” he said. “It says, ‘Hey, here I am!’ ”
Clint Buffington, who maintains a blog about messages in a bottle (he claims to have found over 80 since 2007), wrote the first such messages were “sent by ocean scientists in the 18th and 19th centuries,” and those letters were “the best available means to study ocean currents.”
Over time, Buffington wrote, the idea of putting a message in a bottle and sending it adrift in the sea became ensconced in popular culture and the subject of literary endeavors, songs and movies — not to mention a potential lifesaving technique for those deserted on a desert island (hopefully with a bottle on hand).
The discovery of his 1995 bottle has left Saunders wondering about the rest of his floating messages. Might they be found or will the publicity concerning this one lead someone who has found one to reach out to him?
“This might be the first of many,” he said.
Meanwhile, he is planning to contact the French woman soon and ask if he can make a deal.
He said he would pay for her to flight to Santa Fe to meet him and his partner, Helen, if she would return the letter to him.
“I want to frame it,” he said. “She can keep the dollar bill.” | https://www.santafenewmexican.com/news/local_news/santa-fe-man-has-message-in-a-bottle-returned-decades-later/article_55c8787c-af7c-11ec-9ec5-a7842387fbc0.html | 2022-04-11T07:04:12 | 0 | https://www.santafenewmexican.com/news/local_news/santa-fe-man-has-message-in-a-bottle-returned-decades-later/article_55c8787c-af7c-11ec-9ec5-a7842387fbc0.html |
The Stillwater Area School Board announced that Michael Funk was selected to be the Stillwater school district’s new superintendent by a unanimous vote at a special meeting last Friday.
Funk has been the superintendent of Albert Lea Area Schools since 2009, where he was recently named the 2022 Minnesota Superintendent of the Year by the Minnesota Association of School Administrators. He was superintendent at BOLD schools before that.
“Dr. Funk has shown our board that he not only meets, but exceeds, the hiring criteria established by our board and stakeholders. We are excited for this next chapter of student achievements to begin,” Stillwater Board Chair Alison Sherman said.
The school board expects to approve a contract in mid-April. If Funk approves the contract, he will begin his new position as Stillwater superintendent on July 1.
Funk has earned degrees from St. John’s University, the University of St. Thomas, and the United States Army War College, in addition to earning a doctorate degree in Educational Policy and Administration from the University of Minnesota in 2004. He has retired from the Minnesota National Guard after serving 30 years. | https://www.twincities.com/2022/04/10/school-board-approves-new-stillwater-school-district-superintendent/ | 2022-04-11T07:04:16 | 0 | https://www.twincities.com/2022/04/10/school-board-approves-new-stillwater-school-district-superintendent/ |
This looks like a first for New Mexico politics — and the legal system, too.
State Sen. Jacob Candelaria is suing Sen. Mimi Stewart, claiming she violated the New Mexico Human Rights Act.
Candelaria, an independent from Albuquerque, says he ripped Stewart for keeping a bigoted legislative director on the state payroll. In retaliation, Candelaria says, Democrat Stewart abused her position as president pro tem of the Senate by moving Candelaria’s Capitol office and changing his seat on the Senate floor.
It’s a case that might sound petty. But Candelaria maintains his lawsuit against Stewart is based on principle.
“Any form of reprisal is unlawful,” said Candelaria, 35, an attorney who practices civil rights law.
Stewart, 75, isn’t responding.
“Senator Stewart will not be commenting on any pending legal matter at this time,” said a spokesman for Senate Democrats.
The relationship between the two senators from different generations has been icy since the heat of last summer.
Candelaria roundly criticized Stewart for authorizing a secretive investigation of state administrator Rachel Gudgel, then covering up the findings from the public and most of New Mexico’s 112 legislators.
Gudgel was director of the Legislative Education Study Committee, a job she’d held for five years that paid her $131,000 annually.
Unbeknownst to most legislators, several of Gudgel’s subordinates accused her of making racist comments about Native Americans and denigrating a gay man. Employees also said turnover was unusually high in Gudgel’s 15-member agency. They complained her harsh management style drove off talented employees.
Stewart and a few other legislative leaders hired a private attorney to investigate the complaints against Gudgel. But eight of the 10 lawmakers with direct supervisory authority over Gudgel knew nothing about the investigation or its outcome until they read about it in my column.
Gudgel received a two-week suspension without pay for making derogatory comments. Top-ranking lawmakers also authorized the hiring at taxpayer expense of a “leadership coach” to help Gudgel.
Once Gudgel’s misconduct became public knowledge, Candelaria and many other legislators called for her firing. Stewart and Sen. Bill Soules, D-Las Cruces, became Gudgel’s fiercest defenders.
Stewart said Gudgel was not prejudiced against Native Americans, and she had already been disciplined for making inappropriate comments.
Stewart sidestepped an important fact. Gudgel might have been fired if the full Legislature had known of her misconduct.
Candelaria was upset by the behind-the-scenes maneuvers in which a few lawmakers saved Gudgel. He went public with his criticisms of Stewart and Soules.
“They turned a blind eye to workplace discrimination. Really, they hid it,” Candelaria said.
Once the story broke, the state’s newspapers were filled with stories about Gudgel. Soon after, Candelaria heard from Stewart.
“On Aug. 6, 2021, mere weeks after Mr. Candelaria began to publicly oppose Ms. Stewart’s discriminatory conduct, Ms. Stewart emailed Mr. Candelaria to inform him that she was moving his office in the Roundhouse from the ground floor with a window to a less desirable location on the third floor without a window. Ms. Stewart also informed Mr. Candelaria at this time that she was moving his seat on the Senate Floor to a less desirable location in the front row.”
Candelaria asked for an explanation. He says Stewart never responded.
For a time, the animus between Stewart and Candelaria was overshadowed by Gudgel’s troubles. Legislators, tribes and pueblos kept pushing for her firing, calling her unfit to shape public-school policies.
Gudgel resigned under pressure in September, claiming she had been harassed. In the typical fashion of New Mexico politics, Gudgel received about six months’ extra pay for what she claimed was accrued leave. Lawmakers didn’t know how the amount was calculated but still handed Gudgel the money on her way out the door.
Candelaria says there’s an irony to this story. Offices at the Capitol matter a good deal to legislators, and no one knows that better than Stewart.
In 2015, after Stewart had shifted from the House of Representatives to the Senate, Candelaria said she asked him for a favor.
Stewart was upset with her office and the fact that she was quartered near a male senator she disliked. Would Candelaria be kind enough to switch offices with her?
“I gave up a pretty sick office for her,” Candelaria said. “It had a big window and enough space where I could get a moment’s peace. I went to a smaller office with no window on a more crowded floor.”
Maybe it’s the kind of confrontation Jimmy Kimmel will make sport of on his late-night talk show. Candelaria, though, says his lawsuit is serious.
He predicts Stewart’s lawyers will file a flurry of motions to have the case tossed on grounds of legislative immunity.
Candelaria didn’t sue Stewart for removing him from the Senate Finance Committee, a move he said was within her legislative authority. But she had no basis to change his office or seating arrangement, he said.
Candelaria expects his lawsuit against Stewart to go to trial next summer or fall.
“I’ll be blissfully retired by then,” he said.
Candelaria told me he will retire from the Senate in December, the middle of his third term. He says he wants the Bernalillo County commissioners to appoint Democratic Rep. Moe Maestas to succeed him as the senator for the west side of Albuquerque.
After that, Stewart and Candelaria will officially cease being colleagues. Unofficially, they’ve been at war for months. | https://www.santafenewmexican.com/news/local_news/senator-sues-fellow-senator-for-petty-retaliation/article_61abbe14-b4fa-11ec-81ee-ef4e95d2e1e3.html | 2022-04-11T07:04:19 | 1 | https://www.santafenewmexican.com/news/local_news/senator-sues-fellow-senator-for-petty-retaliation/article_61abbe14-b4fa-11ec-81ee-ef4e95d2e1e3.html |
Michael Kopech was back in his dream job Sunday, returning full time to the Chicago White Sox rotation.
After missing 2019 while recovering from Tommy John surgery and opting out of the pandemic-shortened 2020 season for personal reasons, the right-hander spent the majority of 2021 in the bullpen.
He had four spot starts last season. The plan was always to get back in the rotation.
Kopech made the most of that opportunity Sunday, allowing one run on two hits in four innings in a 10-1 win against the Detroit Tigers in front of 15,712 at Comerica Park.
“Today was important to me,” Kopech said. “I may have put a little bit extra pressure on myself because it was important to me. But there’s a lot of people that I had in mind today. I had about a two-hour conversation with my dad (Saturday). He helped me get in the right mindset.
“And I’m always thinking about my son and I put myself in a position where I can do more to support his life. Today was a big day for me.”
Kopech struck out three and walked two in the 69-pitch outing. He didn’t factor in the decision — Kyle Crick got credited with the win — but he played a pivotal role in helping the Sox take two of three from the Tigers in the season-opening series.
“I really liked being able to get through four (innings), especially when the bullpen has been heavy this series,” Kopech said. “I was able to do that and hopefully that puts me in a good position to build off of that for my next one.”
Sox manager Tony La Russa liked how Kopech made adjustments throughout the afternoon.
“He’d miss with his fastball and he’d fix his delivery,” La Russa said. “I talked to him after the game and he said, ‘Some good and some not so good,’ and I said, ‘Yeah, but there was a lot more good.’
“And the one thing he did, when it was not good, he tweaked it. He made the adjustments. That’s a very encouraging sign.”
Staked to a two-run lead, Kopech struck out Robbie Grossman on a 96.6 mph fastball to begin his day.
After a scoreless first, he allowed a run in the second on a two-out triple by Victor Reyes.
“Between innings, I was able to make an adjustment to the next inning,” Kopech said. “I felt like I progressed well each inning. Kind of struggled a little bit in the second. As long as I’m able to make those adjustments and not let them carry to the next hitter or the next inning, then I’m in a good position.”
Kopech retired the last seven batters he faced, including striking out the first two hitters in the third.
“It sounds simple and obvious, but I just was able to focus on my target a little bit more,” Kopech said of the third inning. “I kind of drowned out some stuff that I was letting get in my head in the second inning. That was mainly just me overthinking, and I took a step back and didn’t think as much. Very simple and obvious fixes, but I felt like I was able to make an adjustment.”
Kopech exited after getting Jonathan Schoop to fly out to right to end the fourth. The Sox are monitoring Kopech for the long haul.
“We were thinking conditioning-wise, 65 or 70 (pitches),” La Russa said. “See if he could buy an out in the fourth. Bought one, bought two, bought them all. Wasn’t going to push him.”
Crick struck out one in a scoreless fifth to pick up the win. Lefty Tanner Banks struck out four in the final two innings in an impressive major-league debut.
“I remember my debut in Triple A and being so, so, so nervous,” Banks said. “Telling myself and reminding myself over and over again, take the feeling and feel for what it is and relax and pitch your game. It allowed me to stay within myself and think through the pitches I wanted to throw and where I wanted to throw them instead of letting the moment take over.”
All-Star shortstop Tim Anderson excelled in his season debut after serving a suspension that was handed down during the final week of 2021. Anderson doubled on the game’s first pitch, one of three hits, and scored twice.
“It felt good,” Anderson said. “I was excited to get back out there with the guys and compete. And even better that we got a win.”
Andrew Vaughn hit a three-run homer in the seventh and drove in another run in the ninth with a single. Eloy Jiménez and José Abreu both had two RBIs as the Sox head to Chicago for Tuesday’s home opener after rebounding from Friday’s tough 5-4 loss to win the final two of the series.
“The most impressive thing we did was to get our heart broken and come out the next two days and play and get wins,” La Russa said.
() | https://www.twincities.com/2022/04/10/today-was-important-michael-kopech-plays-a-pivotal-role-in-the-chicago-white-soxs-10-1-win-against-the-detroit-tigers/ | 2022-04-11T07:04:23 | 1 | https://www.twincities.com/2022/04/10/today-was-important-michael-kopech-plays-a-pivotal-role-in-the-chicago-white-soxs-10-1-win-against-the-detroit-tigers/ |
When Big Adventure Comics owner Kevin Drennan prepared to open his South Guadalupe Street business on a recent afternoon, he found the front door pried opened with a crowbar.
Fortunately for Drennan, no money or merchandise was taken. But the break-in had a steep price tag: $1,500 for a new, reinforced door. The cost was covered by the building’s manager.
“It could have been much worse,” Drennan said.
Other business owners in the Railyard and Guadalupe districts haven’t been as lucky — and they are banding together to discuss security concerns in the area, which they say include a rise in burglaries and vandalism in the past few months.
“I am privy to our security footage and cameras,” said Kyle Klain, chief operating officer at Barker Realty, which manages the Guadalupe Station building that houses Big Adventure Comics. “It has been an increasing problem for the past couple of years and this recent stint has been particularly bad.”
Carlos Fontana, a repairman for the same building, was at the site Friday, fixing a door at Curiosa, a gift, home goods and jewelry store. The door was pried open early Friday morning.
Fontana said he has noticed a rise in burglary and vandalism since December, calling it the biggest spike he has seen since he started the job nearly 20 years ago.
He said the cost for repairs at damaged businesses can range from $800 to $3,000, depending on the complexity of the mess.
Cindy Cornelsen owns Smash Bangles next door to Curiosa and said her business is one of two in the complex that haven’t been hit. But she fears she could be next.
“We’re still trying to build my business, and it feels like we lost two years because of COVID,” she said. “So, to have this extra [expletive] piled on top of it is beyond stressful.”
Other nearby businesses, including Chico’s, Cowgirl BBQ restaurant and WholeHog Cafe, also have reported break-ins in recent months.
Santa Fe Police Department Chief Paul Joye said while he doesn’t want to discount concerns of business owners in the area, the department only has record of about three incidents in the Guadalupe and Railyard districts between March 1 and April 5 — one at a private residence.
According to data provided by Santa Fe police, there were 44 reported burglaries citywide during that same time.
Joye added it’s possible the business owners are including unreported burglaries or combining other vandalism issues such as graffiti, broken windows or aggressive panhandling into their accounts of problems in the area.
Still, he said, the department has met with business owners over the past couple of weeks to talk about additional actions owners can take to secure their locations.
He said better video recording systems and stronger alarms can help.
“It helps us greatly if the businesses do whatever they can do to make themselves a more hardened target,” he said.
Joye said the department had discussions with residents and business owners in the Railyard and Guadalupe areas in early 2020 about their concerns, with plans for more community meetings, but the pandemic slowed the effort.
But as the pandemic begins to subside, business owners are fretful.
Nina Houle, who owns the footwear store On Your Feet, said someone within the past two weeks popped her door open — likely with a crowbar — and made off with a small amount of cash.
She said the individual may have been scared off by a recently installed security system.
“You bet I’m concerned they will come back,” she said.
Bill Banowsky, owner of the Violent Crown and Sky Coffee in the Railyard District, said he believes the situation may have been exacerbated by the pandemic.
In 2020, he shared a video about his concerns on the Railyard District and sent it to city officials. In the video, area business owners complained about the appearance of vagrancy, burglaries and graffiti in the then-largely shuttered space.
“It just got sort of Mad Max down here,” he said.
Banowsky said things have gotten better since that video was made but noted the Railyard District is not “quite there yet.”
April Viszolay, a business partner of Banowsky’s, said Sky Coffee and the soon-to-come Nuckolls Brewery in the Railyard District both have been burglarized in recent months.
She also has reported the appearance of drug paraphernalia, empty alcohol bottles and a catalytic converted being pulled out of a work vehicle at the Nuckolls site.
She even found human feces smeared on one of the walls.
“That was pleasant to come into work to,” she said.
Christine Robertson, executive director of the Railyard Community Corp., said the nonprofit is negotiating a deal with the city on a new security contract for the area.
Robertson said there was a city contract with Allied Security, which also patrols the midtown campus and other parts of the city, but Railyard officials weren’t satisfied it was working for their area.
She said tenants would regularly voice that they never saw the guards, or they were hard to reach.
“You need a presence to discourage,” Robertson said.
City spokesman Dave Herndon in an email confirmed the city is in the early stages of discussion with Railyard Community Corp. on how the two can partner, adding the city is responsible for security in the open spaces of the Railyard, while the nonprofit is responsible for leased parcels where private businesses operate.
“[New Mexico’s] Anti-donation law draws a distinct boundary between the two,” Herndon wrote.
Herndon added the city did have a contract for the open spaces of the Railyard with Allied Security, but due to the pandemic, the company struggled with hiring guards and was unable to properly cover the area.
Herndon said the city recently closed a request for proposal for a new on-call security service provider that would perform citywide.
“Our hope is to be able to contract with a number of security firms to [diversify] our partnerships and provide more coverage where needed in the city,” he wrote. | https://www.santafenewmexican.com/news/local_news/string-of-northside-burglaries-frustrates-santa-fe-business-owners/article_4acc1e24-b4f9-11ec-8862-7b839dd8ca14.html | 2022-04-11T07:04:25 | 1 | https://www.santafenewmexican.com/news/local_news/string-of-northside-burglaries-frustrates-santa-fe-business-owners/article_4acc1e24-b4f9-11ec-8862-7b839dd8ca14.html |
The Lynx were in a tight spot heading into Monday’s WNBA draft, and Cheryl Reeve found an out.
Minnesota’s coach and general manager sent Minnesota’s eighth and 13th — the latter is the first pick of the second round — selections to Las Vegas. In return, Minnesota will receive the Aces’ first- and second-round picks in 2023.
“We believe this year’s draft is a good draft, however, with the players that we currently have under contract and the limited roster space remaining, we made the decision to turn our attention to future opportunities,” Reeve said in a statement.
The Aces figure to be in the top half of WNBA teams this season. This draft doesn’t appear to be particularly loaded with top-end talent, though Reeve said Friday it does have players that “have a chance to be serviceable players in the league.” But Minnesota already has a roster full of those.
Frankly, Minnesota was short on roster spots and cap space to use on incoming rookies. Even the No. 8 overall pick would’ve been far from a sure bet to earn a roster spot out of training camp. Reeve spoke Friday about using those early picks to create competition in training camp, but that’s something you’d rather do with later picks, as Minnesota will likely do with its No. 22 and No. 28 selections Monday, if it keeps those.
The Lynx can now continue to stock pile picks for the future, which they can use to build the post-Sylvia Fowles team after the future Hall of Famer retires after this season. For now, the Lynx are focused on sending the center out with a title. | https://www.twincities.com/2022/04/10/wnba-draft-lynx-trade-picks-no-8-and-no-13-to-las-vegas-for-2023-draft-picks/ | 2022-04-11T07:04:29 | 0 | https://www.twincities.com/2022/04/10/wnba-draft-lynx-trade-picks-no-8-and-no-13-to-las-vegas-for-2023-draft-picks/ |
Voluntary evacuations began Sunday for several communities in the area of the Hermits Peak Fire, which grew from 350 acres on Saturday to 540 on Sunday, according to the Northern New Mexico Type 3 Incident Management Team.
The evacuations apply to San Ignacio, Las Dispensas and Pendaries, according to a news release, which added that winds of more than 60 mph were forecast for the area Sunday. The blaze northwest of Las Vegas, N.M., was 10 percent contained, it added, up from zero percent the day before.
Santana Gomez, who lives north of Hermits Peak on N.M. 94, said in a phone interview Sunday afternoon he was ready to evacuate “when the fire trucks show up.”
Gomez, 22, said he grew up in the area and had never been under a fire evacuation order before, voluntary or otherwise.
“It’s real gloomy out here,” he said of conditions Sunday. “It’s real smoky out here. The wind doesn’t help; you can smell wood burning.”
Gomez said he grew up hunting in the nearby mountains with his great-grandfather.
“It’s going to be crazy to come back if everything is burned,” he said of a possible evacuation. “It’d be weird to come back after seeing things one way for 22 years of your life and then it’s all gone.”
Gomez said he and five family members would head to nearby Las Vegas to stay with other family if needed.
“It hurts me to leave home … but what could you do?” he said. “Your life is more important than material things.”
No structures were at risk Sunday, according to the news release from the Northern New Mexico Type 3 Incident Management Team.
The fire began Wednesday when a controlled burn went awry, spurring questions from some about whether the wind conditions were appropriate for such an action. Firefighters are working to keep the blaze out of Beaver Creek and the Gallinas Municipal Watershed, the news release states.
The response has involved 163 firefighters as well as four Hotshot crews, one specialized crew, eight engines, three helicopters, one rapid extraction module and one tactical water tender, the news release states.
Elsewhere in New Mexico, firefighters made progress in containing the Overflow Fire, which also began as a controlled burn.
They’d reached 70 percent containment of the 1,900-acre fire near Roswell as of Sunday afternoon, according to the New Mexico Fire Information website. Monday’s forecast calls for high winds and low humidity in the area, the site states.
No updates were available Sunday on the Collins Fire. As of Friday, the fire in Gila National Forest was estimated at 1,200 acres with zero percent containment, according to a Facebook post by the U.S. Forest Service. | https://www.santafenewmexican.com/news/local_news/voluntary-evacuations-set-in-areas-near-growing-hermits-peak-fire/article_e53361b6-b904-11ec-b310-47d2a0519ded.html | 2022-04-11T07:04:31 | 0 | https://www.santafenewmexican.com/news/local_news/voluntary-evacuations-set-in-areas-near-growing-hermits-peak-fire/article_e53361b6-b904-11ec-b310-47d2a0519ded.html |
Viewing a political campaign as a job interview is one way of sorting out candidates. That’s what happened last week when five candidates for the GOP nomination for governor were grilled at an event hosted by the New Mexico Business Coalition.
The candidates had to answer the same questions, one at a time, and couldn’t revert to stump speeches or tired punchlines. Some 275 people attended.
Interviews are not a bad way to find out which Republican Party politician is best prepared to face off against incumbent Democratic Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham, who is seeking her second term. She is unopposed on the Democratic side, so the big job interview — the one in which voters have the final say — won’t begin until after the June primary.
Now the focus is on which of the GOP candidates can survive the primary and win come November. Running for the GOP nomination are Sandoval County Commissioner Jay Block, state Rep. Rebecca Dow, right-to-life activist Ethel Maharg, former TV weatherman Mark Ronchetti and businessman Greg Zanetti.
Most observers think the race is between Dow and Ronchetti. As a well-known television presence, Ronchetti likely has the most name recognition, especially because he was the GOP nominee for U.S. Senate against Sen. Ben Ray Luján. Ronchetti lost but made a better-than-expected showing.
Dow, who lacks the statewide reach of someone who was on television daily, can point to bipartisan successes in the Legislature and her background as an entrepreneur, wife and mom.
While we like the rapid-fire style of questioning in last week’s event, the answers sometimes aren’t as important as what is being asked and who is doing the asking. A crowd of business people in Albuquerque have different worries than minimum wage workers or retirees or young people worried about paying student loans. All are voters.
There’s also this: Republicans have to think about how they will make the transition to the general election. Winning the base is one thing, but attracting moderate Republicans and Democrats whose attitudes are not hardened about Lujan Grisham’s first term is quite another job. That’s the task for the challengers and, to a great extent, the governor.
The sweet spot for a challenger will be presenting an alternative look at how they would have run the state in the past four years — how could the coronavirus pandemic have been handled with less disruption of the economy while, at the same time, not collapsing fragile, overwhelmed health care systems? How can the tax system be reformed or tax dollars spent more frugally? Just what should the government’s role be in a state with many needs and few private resources? All of these are topics worthy of debates — and questions.
Simply nattering on about freedom versus government might please the Republican base, but it won’t necessarily win independent voters or even restless Democrats.
And that’s the challenge of a primary — appealing to the people who show up in June without making statements that come back to haunt you come fall.
Here’s a bit of advice:
New Mexicans aren’t up in arms about whether critical race theory is being taught in public schools (it’s not). It’s a faux wedge issue dreamed up in an East Coast think tank. But they are eager to transition to renewable energy, even as most want lower gas prices. They don’t care much about supposed hot-button issues such as transgender young people receiving the medical care they need or, heaven forbid, who plays which sports.
There’s a balancing act the right candidate for governor should seek, whether a Democrat or Republican. New Mexicans have good sense, even if some candidates don’t. They should remember that as the job interviews continue. | https://www.santafenewmexican.com/opinion/editorials/for-this-job-interview-remember-whos-hiring/article_86a04f4e-b7ae-11ec-91e3-1b546162130e.html | 2022-04-11T07:04:37 | 1 | https://www.santafenewmexican.com/opinion/editorials/for-this-job-interview-remember-whos-hiring/article_86a04f4e-b7ae-11ec-91e3-1b546162130e.html |
Declining student enrollment has been a long-standing topic during Board of Regents meetings at the University of New Mexico. Both the main campus and satellite sites have seen declining numbers over the years, and the school has employed different techniques, from marketing to outreach, to get students back on campus.
The solution is surprisingly easy: Have the Lobos reach the Final Four.
According to research shared by Student Loan Hero, an outfit that helps students repay and manage their loan debts, schools whose men’s basketball teams reach the Final Four tend to see spikes in applications that outpace the national average.
When Butler reached the Final Four in 2010 and 2011, it saw a 40.8 percent jump in students seeking enrollment. Kentucky had a 30.7 percent increase two years later, and mid-majors like Wichita State and George Mason had at least 23 percent leaps the year after their appearances.
Problem solved, UNM. Make the Final Four, fill those empty desks.
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The field for the 2022 Stu Clark Invitational has been finalized and, for the first time since the 1980s, St. Michael’s is one of the teams in the tournament.
The Horsemen will join tournament co-hosts Robertson and West Las Vegas in the event, which is set for Dec. 27-29 at the John A. Wilson Complex at New Mexico Highlands. Other teams include Belen, Pecos, Bernalillo, Portales and Socorro.
And, no, still no word on the Horsemen coaching situation. For now, head coach David Rodriguez is still on administrative leave and assistant Gerard Garcia remains the interim coach.
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The Marilyn Sepulveda Meet of Champions track and field meet is set for Monday at Great Friends of UNM Track Complex in Albuquerque, and several northern athletes will be there to compete in the midseason all-star event.
Santa Fe will be well-represented, with Santa Fe Prep’s Finn Coles and Emery Kurth competing in the boys and girls high jump, respectively. They will be joined by Josh Abeyta in the boys 800 meters. St. Michael’s will have Raylee Hunt in the 800 and 1,600 meters, plus Jacqueline Gorman in the pole vault. Santa Fe Indian School’s Fenyx Morningdove will compete in the 400.
Los Alamos should have a whole host of competitors at the event, including sophomore Angelina Passalacqua, who is the fastest 200 runner and second-best in the long jump.
Speaking of Morningdove, he missed out on qualifying for the javelin since his season-best throw of 151 feet,
10 inches came Saturday at Capital’s Jaguar Invitational — well after invitations were sent out. Regardless, he vaulted to the top of the 3A list in the event, surpassing Albuquerque Sandia Prep’s Sudias Ball, who had the best throw at 149-5, and defending 3A champion Devin Flores of St. Michael’s, who has a 144-8 toss earlier this season.
Overall, Morningdove has the eighth-best distance in the event.
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You’ve heard of summer camps on college campuses, right? Well, New Mexico Highlands is willing to bring its camp to you — for a fee.
From May to August, Cowboys coach Michael Dominguez will take his show on the road to any high school that requests his services. The fee is $70 per player for a one-day camp, $115 for two days and $130 for three. It comes with all the usual stuff: individual skills, team drills, analysis of shooting technique and ball handling.
NMHU had 14 in-state players on its roster last season, and Dominguez, perhaps the most famous grad of Capital’s program, is selling the Cowboys with 30 3-point tries per game, run and gun that demands
40 minutes of full-court press and plenty of scoring for those who can keep up.
Anyone interested should contact Dominguez through NMHU’s athletics department.
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If you haven’t signed up the kiddos for flag football in the Northern New Mexico Children’s Sports League, best get to it, because Team USA might need a few bodies soon.
The sports business site, Front Office Sports, recently published a story saying the NFL is seeking to expand its international business to $1 billion over the next decade, and part of the plan is to get flag football as a sanctioned sport for the 2028 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles. Contact football was introduced as a demonstration sport in the 1932 Games but hasn’t been back since.
It appears to be too late to get the International Olympic Committee to approve flag football in time for the 2024 Games in Paris, but the NFL is reportedly pushing hard for the end of the decade.
Look it up: Flag football, Santa Fe. A future Olympian could be among us.
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The New Mexico United are going to need an extended-stay package in Phoenix later this week. The club has had a long-standing match against United Soccer League rival Phoenix Rising set for Saturday, but the pair were given a second game — which isn’t part of the USL Championship’s regular-season slate — when the pairings for the ongoing Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup were announced last week.
The random draw for the four teams in the Mountain Region paired the United with Phoenix Rising in the third round of the tournament. The match is set for April 20 at Phoenix Rising Stadium in Chandler, Ariz.
United coach Zach Prince said the travel aspect won’t be a challenge because the club will already be in town.
“It becomes a bit of a chess match between the two games, which is a lot of fun for our guys,” he said. “To be able to go out and try to get three points in game one, and then in game two circumstances change because it’s a knockout competition, but you’re still going for the win. We’re excited about the challenge to play in two matches in a short period of time against the same opponent.” | https://www.santafenewmexican.com/sports/want-to-improve-unm-enrollment-get-lobos-into-final-four/article_d0b0cfc4-b8cf-11ec-abf3-0791d6c293e5.html | 2022-04-11T07:04:43 | 0 | https://www.santafenewmexican.com/sports/want-to-improve-unm-enrollment-get-lobos-into-final-four/article_d0b0cfc4-b8cf-11ec-abf3-0791d6c293e5.html |
Indiana women's basketball lands big transfer in Minnesota's Sara Scalia
Indiana women’s basketball’s big offseason in the transfer portal has yielded further dividends.
The Hoosiers landed a commitment from Minnesota guard Sara Scalia, adding an All-Big Ten caliber player to a roster that already had two All-Americans in Grace Berger and Mackenzie Holmes. Scalia has two years of eligibility remaining, including her COVID year.
More:Sydney Parrish, 2020 Indiana Miss Basketball, transfers to IU: 'Time to come home.'
More:How Sydney Parrish fits with Indiana women's basketball and what her arrival could signify
Scalia was a consensus All-Big Ten Second Team selection as a junior this past season after averaging 17.9 points per game for the Golden Gophers. She shot 39.6% from the field, 41.3% from 3-point range, and a program record 91.5% from the free-throw line.
Scalia caused a lot of problems for Indiana when the Gophers played the Hoosiers at Simon Skjodt Assembly Hall in February. She shot 9-for-20, including a 7-for-12 line on 3-pointers, for 26 points that game.
More:Three reasons why Indiana women's basketball defeated Minnesota
IU kept her in check in the other two times they've faced off. In each of those games — at Williams Arena in December 2020, and in Bloomington in January 2020 — Scalia shot 3-for-12 and 1-for-5 from 3-point range for nine points.
More:Projecting Indiana women's basketball's starting lineup for 2022-23
The Stillwater, Minnesota native was named an All-Big Ten Honorable Mention in each of her first two seasons in Minneapolis. Scalia also made the All-Freshman team in 2020. She's averaged double-digit points in every season of her collegiate career.
Scalia's transfer comes on the heels of IU bringing in 2020 IndyStar Miss Baskeball Sydney Parrish from Oregon. The Hoosiers also added former Providence forward Alyssa Geary to the fold.
More:Grace Berger's commitment changed the trajectory of Indiana women's basketball
More:Ali Patberg's drive, leadership define her Indiana University women's basketball legacy
Those transfers will step in and help IU make up for losing Ali Patberg, Nicole Cardaño-Hillary, and Aleksa Gulbe. Scalia, Parrish, and Geary join an existing nucleus of Grace Berger, Mackenzie Holmes, and Chloe Moore-McNeil, among other internal options.
The Hoosiers now have 14 scholarships allotted for next season. Women's college basketball teams can have up to 15 scholarship players.
Follow Herald-Times sports reporter Seth Tow on Twitter @SethTow, or email him at stow@heraldt.com. | https://www.heraldtimesonline.com/story/sports/college/iu/2022/04/10/indiana-hoosiers-womens-basketball-lands-big-transfer-conference-foe/9532499002/ | 2022-04-11T07:06:11 | 0 | https://www.heraldtimesonline.com/story/sports/college/iu/2022/04/10/indiana-hoosiers-womens-basketball-lands-big-transfer-conference-foe/9532499002/ |
Joyce Ares had just turned 74 and was feeling fine when she agreed to give a blood sample for research. So she was surprised when the screening test came back positive for signs of cancer.
After a repeat blood test, a PET scan and a needle biopsy, she was diagnosed with Hodgkin lymphoma.
“I cried,” the retired real estate broker said. “Just a couple of tears and thought, ‘OK, now what do we do?’”
The Canby, Oregon, resident had volunteered to take a blood test that is being billed as a new frontier in cancer screening for healthy people. It looks for cancer by checking for DNA fragments shed by tumor cells.
Such blood tests, called liquid biopsies, are already used in patients with cancer to tailor their treatment and check to see if tumors come back.
Now, one company is promoting its blood test to people with no signs of cancer as a way to detect tumors in the pancreas, ovaries and other sites that have no recommended screening method.
It’s an open question whether such cancer blood tests — if added to routine care — could improve Americans’ health or help meet the White House’s goal of cutting the cancer death rate in half over the next 25 years.
With advances in DNA sequencing and data science making the blood tests possible, California-based Grail and other companies are racing to commercialize them.
And U.S. government researchers are planning a large experiment — possibly lasting seven years and with 200,000 participants — to see if the blood tests can live up to the promise of catching more cancers earlier and saving lives.
“They sound wonderful, but we don’t have enough information,” said Dr. Lori Minasian of the National Cancer Institute, who is involved in planning the research. “We don’t have definitive data that shows that they will reduce the risk of dying from cancer.”
More Cancer Screening Coverage
Grail is far ahead of other companies with 2,000 doctors willing to prescribe the $949 test. Most insurance plans don’t cover the cost. The tests are being marketed without endorsements from medical groups or a recommendation from U.S. health authorities. Review by the Food and Drug Administration isn’t required for this type of test.
“For a drug, the FDA demands that there is a substantial high likelihood that the benefits not only are proven, but they outweigh the harms. That’s not the case for devices like blood tests,” said Dr. Barry Kramer of the Lisa Schwartz Foundation for Truth in Medicine.
Grail plans to seek approval from the FDA, but is marketing its test as it submits data to the agency.
The history of cancer screening has taught caution. In 2004, Japan halted mass screening of infants for a childhood cancer after studies found it didn’t save lives. Last year, a 16-year study of 200,000 women in the United Kingdom found regular screening for ovarian cancer didn’t make any difference in deaths.
Cases like these have uncovered some surprises: Screening finds some cancers that don’t need to be cured. The flip side? Many dangerous cancers grow so fast they elude screening and prove deadly anyway.
And screening can do more harm than good. Anxiety from false positives. Unnecessary costs. And serious side effects from cancer care: PSA tests for men can lead to treatment complications such as incontinence or impotence, even when some slow-growing prostate cancers would never have caused trouble.
The evidence is strongest for screening tests for cancers of the breast, cervix and colon. For some smokers, lung cancer screening is recommended.
The recommended tests — mammography, PAP tests, colonoscopy — look for one cancer at a time. The new blood tests look for many cancers at once. That’s an advantage, according to Grail executive Dr. Joshua Ofman.
“We screen for four or five cancers in this country, but (many) cancer deaths are coming from cancers that we’re not looking for at all,” Ofman said.
Dr. Tomasz Beer of Oregon Health & Science University in Portland led the company-sponsored study that Joyce Ares joined in 2020. After a miserable winter of chemotherapy and radiation, doctors told her the treatment was a success.
Her case isn't an outlier, "but it is the sort of hoped-for ideal outcome, and not everyone is going to have that,” Beer said.
While there were other early cancers detected among study participants, some had less clear-cut experiences. For some, blood tests led to scans that never located a cancer, which could mean the result was a false positive, or it could mean there's a mystery cancer that will show up later. For others, blood tests detected cancer that turned out to be advanced and aggressive, Beer said. One older participant with a bad case declined treatment.
Grail continues to update its test as it learns from these studies, and is sponsoring a trial with Britain’s National Health Service in 140,000 people to see if the blood test can reduce the number of cancers caught in late stages.
Although Ares feels lucky, it’s impossible to know whether her test added healthy years to her life or made no real difference, said Kramer, former director of the National Cancer Institute’s Division of Cancer Prevention.
“I sincerely hope that Joyce benefited from having this test,” Kramer said when told of her experience. “But unfortunately, we can’t know, at the individual Joyce level, whether that’s the case."
Cancer treatments can have long-term side effects, he said, "and we don’t know how fast the tumor would have grown.” Treatment for Hodgkin lymphoma is so effective that delaying therapy until she felt symptoms might have achieved the same happy outcome.
For now, health experts stress the Grail blood test is not a cancer diagnosis; a positive result triggers further scans and biopsies.
“This is a path in diagnostic testing that has never been tried before," Kramer said. “Our ultimate destination is a test that has a clear net benefit. If we don’t do it carefully, we’ll go way off the path.”
The Associated Press Health and Science Department receives support from the Howard Hughes Medical Institute’s Department of Science Education. The AP is solely responsible for all content. | https://www.nbcnewyork.com/news/national-international/for-new-cancer-blood-tests-questions-around-whether-they-can-actually-improve-health/3639602/ | 2022-04-11T07:08:49 | 1 | https://www.nbcnewyork.com/news/national-international/for-new-cancer-blood-tests-questions-around-whether-they-can-actually-improve-health/3639602/ |
In 2008, the overwhelmingly white state of Iowa was Barack Obama's unlikely launching pad to become the nation's first Black president. Fourteen years later, Iowans aren't showing a similar embrace for the woman running to become its first Black governor.
Democrat Deirdre DeJear is finding Iowa a much-changed place — trending staunchly conservative and endorsing many aspects of Trumpism — with an electorate that is so far displaying little interest in her history-making candidacy.
Educated younger adults who were once reliable Democratic voters have fled rural Iowa seeking opportunities elsewhere. The strength of organized labor has eroded. Obama's general election victories in 2008 and 2012 seem like distant memories.
The changes are part of a broader transformation that has spread through the Northern Plains over the past two decades, making it increasingly difficult for Democrats to compete in the region even as they make inroads in other places like the Deep South and Sun Belt.
“Times are so different from Obama's 2008 campaign,” said Dave Leshtz, a veteran Democratic organizer from Iowa City, after a DeJear event in the liberal enclave. “It's an entirely different state."
DeJear, a 36-year-old Des Moines businesswoman, cemented her status as a rising political star in 2018 when she became the first Black candidate to win a statewide primary in Iowa. She lost the general election for secretary of state, but she won national attention and invitations from Democratic presidential hopefuls to serve as a state adviser.
She is struggling to translate that lower-wattage fame into support from voters. Only 31% of likely Iowa voters said they know enough about DeJear — running unopposed in the June 7 primary — to form an opinion, according to The Des Moines Register's Iowa Poll, conducted in late February and early March.
Politics
Meanwhile, she posted an anemic $8,500 fundraising balance in January, raising less than $300,000 since announcing her candidacy in August. It paled next to Republican incumbent Gov. Kim Reynolds' $4.8 million balance and $3.8 million in contributions.
Story County Democrat Barb Wheelock attributed part of DeJear's struggle to racism, both inside the party and among the state's voters.
“I think it’s part that she’s Black and people don’t think she’ll do very well — the people in our state party, the people with the money,” Wheelock, a 70-year-old retired physical therapist, said while attending a DeJear stop in Story County last month.
DeJear told The Associated Press that she suspected her race may be on some minds as she seeks supporters.
“Of course no one has said that to me outright," DeJear said. "But there is a question of whether or not a Black woman could win. That is definitely a question.”
DeJear tried to put any such doubts aside as she bounded onto the stage at an event in Nevada, a small farm town in central Iowa. With an upbeat style and a trace of her native Mississippi accent, DeJear reminded the audience that Iowans boasted a groundbreaking legacy, including an Iowa Supreme Court decision that made Iowa the first state to desegregate public schools after the Civil War.
“I believe in what’s possible,” she said. “We made a conscientious decision that no matter what your skin color was, no matter what your race was, each and every one of our students should have access to a quality public education.”
It was a nod to an Iowa progressive streak that carried well into the 21st century.
In 2009, the Iowa high court ruled gay marriage legal, making the state the third to allow it, after similar rulings in Massachusetts and Connecticut but five years before the U.S. Supreme Court. A year before, Iowa voters had not only backed Obama by a healthy margin in the general election, they overwhelmingly sent liberal Democrat Tom Harkin to the U.S. Senate for a fifth term.
Iowans ushered in the new millennium with Tom Vilsack, a Democrat and former mayor from rural southeast Iowa, as governor. And during the 1988 Democratic presidential caucuses, the Rev. Jesse Jackson finished a notable fourth, relying on support from rural Iowa.
But a sharp decline in union jobs and an exodus of young, college-educated adults, have altered Iowa's once-dynamic political map.
In a striking illustration, Obama carried the state in November 2008 by winning 52 of its 99 counties. Joe Biden, who on Tuesday will make his first trip to Iowa as president, lost the state in 2020, winning only six counties.
After decades of divided state government, Republicans have controlled the Legislature and the governorship for six consecutive years, cutting taxes and reining in voting and abortion rights. Today, five of Iowa's six members of Congress are Republicans.
State Rep. Ras Smith had hoped to interrupt the trend as a candidate for governor in this year's race. The 34-year-old Smith, who was voted the Iowa Democratic Party's “Rising Star” award recipient in 2019 and is Black, found it difficult to persuade some of the party's major donors in the state, who are white, to give him a look.
Despite Smith’s promising profile and DeJear’s 2018 breakthrough, some wealthy Iowa Democrats sought out others to run, including state Rep. Todd Pritchard, who is from rural northern Iowa and white.
Smith said some influential donors declined his invitation to meet to discuss his campaign. Among them, he said, was Fred Hubbell, the 2018 Democratic nominee for governor. A wealthy Des Moines-area businessman, Hubbell spent $7 million of his own money in narrowly losing to Reynolds.
“It wasn’t about the dollars,” said Smith, who ended his campaign in January, leaving DeJear unopposed in the primary. “He didn’t come to an event and was turned off. We didn’t have coffee and I said something that pissed him off. That’s the part that felt disrespectful. It was disrespectful.”
Smith said he and Hubbell spoke by phone but never met despite several invitations. Hubbell did not respond to requests for comment.
“My party doesn’t think it’s nearly as racist," said Tom Courtney, a former state senator and longtime union activist from the once-booming manufacturing corridor along the Mississippi River, who is white. “But some of that is going on.”
The sentiment stings for Iowa Democrats, as national party leaders, frustrated by the state’s lack of diversity, are taking steps to shift the early presidential nominating contest away from the traditionally first-in-the-nation caucus state.
Hubbell endorsed DeJear in a written statement last month, two months after Smith's withdrawal made her the Democrats' only candidate. Hubbell has since contributed to DeJear's campaign, though her campaign declined to say how much. Smith has also endorsed DeJear, one of several Black Democratic women running for statewide office around the country this year.
Georgia Democrat Stacey Abrams is again seeking the governorship. Former North Carolina Supreme Court Chief Justice Cheri Beasley is running for U.S. Senate as a Democrat. And Florida Rep. Val Demings is the leading Democrat to face Republican U.S. Sen. Marco Rubio.
But DeJear is the only Black woman campaigning in such a predominantly white state. In 2020, 90.4 percent of Iowans were white, according to census data. Roughly 62 percent of the nation's population was white, and more than 13 percent Black.
Still, DeJear, who campaigned for Obama as a college student at Drake University in Des Moines in 2008, is optimistic she can relight the flame.
“We also look to Obama and what he was able to accomplish," she said in the interview. "I believe that Iowans have this innate ability to see the humanity that exists in other folks. And that’s what drives us.” | https://www.nbcnewyork.com/news/politics/iowas-political-swing-makes-obamas-wins-harder-repeat-today/3639582/ | 2022-04-11T07:08:56 | 1 | https://www.nbcnewyork.com/news/politics/iowas-political-swing-makes-obamas-wins-harder-repeat-today/3639582/ |
Just minutes before the Los Angeles Lakers ended their season with a comeback win in overtime against the Denver Nuggets, ESPN reporter Adrian Wojnarowski issued a tweet about head coach Frank Vogel's future with the franchise:
Though not official just yet, the post made rounds on Twitter. The main consensus: Why would the Lakers leak that news before the buzzer without even notifying Vogel?
It marks a disappointing end to Vogel's three-year tenure with the franchise, which included the team's 17th championship in 2020. However, despite pairing Russell Westbrook via trade with LeBron James and Anthony Davis with hopes of another title, the Lakers failed to qualify for the play-in tournament.
The report on Vogel is likely the first of many moves the Lakers will make to right the wrongs from the past offseason, but the way the firing was leaked did not sit well with the NBA spectrum:
Some fans got off jokes on the matter:
Now the Lakers will begin a search for a new head coach with James, Davis and Westbrook all still under contract together for at least one more season. | https://www.nbcnewyork.com/news/sports/social-media-reacts-to-reports-of-lakers-firing-frank-vogel/3639549/ | 2022-04-11T07:09:02 | 0 | https://www.nbcnewyork.com/news/sports/social-media-reacts-to-reports-of-lakers-firing-frank-vogel/3639549/ |
Study finds higher homicide risk in homes with handguns
NEW YORK (AP) - Most U.S. gun owners say they own firearms to protect themselves and their loved ones, surveys show. But a study published last Monday suggests people who live with handgun owners are shot to death at a higher rate than those who don’t have such weapons at home.
“We found zero evidence of any kind of protective effects” from living in a home with a handgun, said David Studdert, a Stanford University researcher who was the lead author of the Annals of Internal Medicine study.
The study has several shortcomings. For example, the researchers said they could not determine which victims were killed by the handgun owners or with the in-home weapons. They couldn’t account for illegal guns and looked only at handguns, not rifles or other firearms.
The dataset also was limited to registered voters in California who were 21 and older. It’s not clear that the findings are generalizable to the whole state, let alone to the rest of the country, the authors acknowledged.
But some outside experts said the work was well done, important and the largest research of its kind.
“I would call this a landmark study,” said Cassandra Crifasi, a gun violence policy researcher at Johns Hopkins University. “This contributes to our understanding of the potential causal relationship between guns in the home and homicides,” she said.
California is unusual in that it offers gun ownership data and other information not obtainable in almost any other state. That allowed the researchers to follow millions of people over many years to try to better establish what happens when a person begins living in a home with handgun, they said.
The study focused on nearly 600,000 Californians who did not own handguns but began living in homes with handguns between October 2004 and December 2016 — either because they started living with someone who owned one or because someone in their household bought one.
The researchers calculated that for every 100,000 people in that situation, 12 will be shot to death by someone else over five years. In comparison, eight out of 100,000 who live in gun-free homes will be killed that way over the same time span.
“The rates are low” and the absolute risk is small, but it’s important to consider the increase in a person’s risk of being killed, Studdert said.
Those numbers suggest the risk rises 50%, but Studdert said it’s actually higher: In a separate calculation designed to better account for where people live and other factors, the researchers estimated the risk was actually more than twice as high.
Separately, the researchers found that those who lived with handgun owners had a much higher rate of being fatally shot by a spouse or intimate partner. The vast majority of such victims — 84% — were women, they said.
The study was confined to California, but the risk is likely even greater in states with less stringent gun laws and where gun ownership is more common, Crifasi said.
Previous research estimated that nearly 3% of U.S. adults became new gun owners between January 2019 and April 2021, which translates to about 7.5 million Americans. Of those, about 5.4 million previously lived in a home with no guns.
For decades, studies have shown guns in the home raise the risk of a violent death. Much of that work, including an earlier study by Studdert and his colleagues, focused on suicide.
The new study goes further in addressing the perception that handguns are still worthwhile because of the safety they provide against being murdered, some experts said.
“The reason people have guns in their home is for protection from strangers,” said David Hemenway, director of the Harvard University’s Injury Control Research Center. “But what this is showing that having a gun in the home is bad for people in the home.”
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The Associated Press Health & Science Department receives support from the Howard Hughes Medical Institute’s Department of Science Education. The AP is solely responsible for all content.
Copyright 2022 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. | https://www.kttc.com/2022/04/11/study-finds-higher-homicide-risk-homes-with-handguns/ | 2022-04-11T07:12:35 | 0 | https://www.kttc.com/2022/04/11/study-finds-higher-homicide-risk-homes-with-handguns/ |
Which AKG headphone is best?
Headphones are a hot commodity these days, leading to a wide variety of AKG headphones. With AKG’s trusted brand name in audio and its wide range of excellent-sounding headphone products, most users won’t have trouble finding what they’re looking for in the company’s lineup.
Depending on what you are looking for, the AKG Pro Audio K240 Studio Headphones are a top pick for many users, offering a semi-open back design and crystal clear audio suitable for even the most experienced audiophiles.
What to know before you buy AKG headphones
Over-ear headphones vs. earbuds
One of the first questions many AKG headphone buyers will ask themselves is whether they should get over-ear headphones or earbuds. While most of the best AKG headphones come in the form of over-ear headphones, simply due to the size of the speaker allowed in a larger headphone cup, you can also find a handful of wired and wireless earbuds from AKG that still offer a decent audio quality — ideal for users who plan to work out with headphones in or just prefer the in-ear fit.
Wired vs. Bluetooth headphones
While most AKG’s headphones are wired, using a built-in or plugin ⅛-inch cable like most studio headphones, the company also makes wireless Bluetooth headphones that don’t require an auxiliary input to connect to an audio source.
Open-back vs. closed-back headphones
For studio headphones, buyers will be faced with a decision between open-back and closed-back headphones as well as those that fall into a semi-open back category. While open-back headphones offer an audio experience with less pressure on the ears, they also tend to let more sound from a person’s surroundings into the ear cup — making them most suitable for studios or other quiet, non-public spaces. Alternatively, closed-back headphones offer a better surrounding-muting experience, sometimes at the expense of unwanted echoing sounds, extra discomfort on the wearer, or simply a less-clear audio quality.
What to look for in quality AKG headphones
Strong audio with a wide frequency range
Most of all, we want our headphones to feature a crystal clear audio signal. While this feature can be represented in many ways, AKG’s studio headphones are often advertised with a frequency range, which refers to what frequency bands can be heard effectively within an entire audio signal. Good reference monitors or studio headphones usually offer a fairly flat, wide frequency range, allowing users to hear each frequency individually at roughly the same volume as the next.
Comfortable fit
One factor to consider when buying AKG headphones that isn’t audio-related is the overall fit of the headphones. Headphones with a comfortable ear cup, headband, and general fit are preferable and allow the user to wear the headphones for longer periods of time. While some users prefer open-back headphones for the utmost comfort, others will look for those with a lightweight headband, smaller ear cups or an overall comfortable closed-back fit.
Preferred input type
Another important thing to consider is the type of input you’ll need to use with your headphones. While many top-tier studio headphones include a built-in ⅛-inch cable for plugging into a regular headphone port, others may prefer wireless Bluetooth headphones which can connect to phones and other devices. In addition, many Bluetooth headphones will offer a bypass ⅛-inch cable, so users have the option to either go wired or wireless.
To learn more about some of the best AKG headphones, check out the buying guide at BestReviews.
How much you can expect to spend on AKG headphones
AKG headphones run a wide range of prices, with the cheapest wired earbuds from AKG costing as low as $9, while better-sounding AKG studio headphones can cost as much as $350.
AKG headphones FAQ
Is AKG owned by Samsung?
A. While AKG audio was originally owned by Harman, Samsung purchased Harman and AKG in 2016, though the company still outfits its AKG headphones with the same high-fidelity audio drivers that gave the name brand such widespread approval, to begin with.
Do AKG headphones have a microphone?
A. While many of AKG’s higher-tier studio headphones do not include a microphone and are instead focused on providing super high-quality audio, some of the company’s Bluetooth headphone and earbud models do include a built-in microphone. No matter what, it’s a good idea to check before buying if the headphones you’re looking at have a microphone, especially if not having one is a deal-breaker.
What are the best AKG headphones to buy?
Top AKG headphones
AKG Pro Audio K240 Over-Ear Semi-Open Back Studio Reference Headphones
What you need to know: With a semi-open back design that gets the best of both worlds, these high-quality studio headphones from AKG are a great pick from a sound standpoint at an impressively low price point.
What you’ll love: The semi-open back design on these headphones offers audio with reduced ear cup noises and less pressure on the user’s ears. They also offer a wide frequency range of 15 hertz to 25,000 hertz, and the original AKG monitor audio quality, designed to let the user hear the whole frequency band evenly.
What you should consider: These headphones use a wired connection to connect to the audio source, and they don’t include any kind of built-in microphone.
Where to buy: Sold by Amazon
Top AKG headphones for the money
AKG Pro Audio K92 Over-Ear Closed-Back Studio Reference Headphones
What you need to know: At a slightly more affordable price point than AKG’s classic K240s, these closed-back studio headphones still offer a fairly wide frequency response and increased audio isolation due to their closed-back ear cups.
What you’ll love: These AKG headphones offer one of the best audio qualities out there at such a low price, and users can even switch from the K92 model to the simplified K72 if they’re on a tight budget. With a frequency response of 16 hertz to 20,000 hertz, these headphones are great for mixing, mastering, or listening closely.
What you should consider: These headphones must be plugged into a headphone outlet to be used and do not have a mic. Some users also prefer the open-back or semi-open design to this closed-back fit.
Where to buy: Sold by Amazon
Worth checking out
AKG Y45BT Black Mini On-Ear Wireless Bluetooth Headphones With Bypass Cable
What you need to know: For those who prefer Bluetooth or wireless headphones, these headphones from AKG feature smaller ear cups without sacrificing audio quality and with the addition of a built-in microphone for phone calls and voice commands.
What you’ll love: These Bluetooth headphones feature controls mounted on the ear cups and a miniature ear cup design that many users find preferable to full, over-ear-fitting headphones. They also come with a built-in microphone with crystal-clear audio and a convenient swivel design for easy storing and taking. It also has a frequency range of 17 hertz to 20,000 hertz.
What you should consider: These headphones are more expensive than most other Bluetooth headphone models.
Where to buy: Sold by Amazon
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Zachary Visconti writes for BestReviews. BestReviews has helped millions of consumers simplify their purchasing decisions, saving them time and money.
Copyright 2022 BestReviews, a Nexstar company. All rights reserved. | https://www.wfla.com/reviews/best-akg-headphones/ | 2022-04-11T07:14:25 | 1 | https://www.wfla.com/reviews/best-akg-headphones/ |
Which drones for beginners are best?
Drones are interesting machines that can be used for recreational and commercial purposes alike. Whether flying just for fun or to capture stunning aerial photography, there are several things beginners need to consider when purchasing their first drone.
Along with flight capabilities, several other features should factor into your decision-making process, including camera quality and battery life. You’ll also need to take size and weight into account. Compact, folding models under 250 grams, such as the DJI Mini 2, have fewer regulations and are easier to transport than larger, heavier models.
What to know before you buy a drone for beginners
Registration
If you are buying your first drone, there are some regulations you need to be aware of. In the United States, you need to register any drone that weighs over 250 grams with the Federal Aviation Administration. Not doing so can result in hefty fines. Thankfully, the process is relatively simple on the FAA’s website and takes just a few minutes. It costs $5, and you must be at least 13 years of age to do so. You’ll receive a registration number that is valid for 3 years, which you need to affix to your drone.
Suppose you are flying a larger drone or one for non-recreational purposes, such as taking photos of your home to list it for sale or taking pictures of something for a website. In that case, you’ll need to pass the FAA’s Unmanned Aircraft General – Small aeronautical knowledge exam.
Flight conditions
It is vital to understand the flight limitations of any drone you buy. Along with the control range, these include maximum take-off altitude and wind levels. Drones are limited in altitude because above a certain threshold the air is too thin for the propellers to be able to create enough lift. For high-quality drones, this threshold is usually 4,000 meters above sea level or 13,123 feet. Note that this is different from the altitude you can fly it from your position, which is 400 feet above where you are standing.
Putting the above into practice means that if you were standing on a mountain with an altitude of 4,100 meters, your drone wouldn’t be able to fly at all. This also means that if you were standing in a location that was 1,000 feet above sea level, the max altitude you are allowed to fly your drone is 1,400 feet.
Drone speeds
Drone capabilities vary greatly from one model to the next. Some can reach speeds upwards of 50 miles per hour and have a control range of several miles. Others may top out at just 10 or 15 miles per hour and have a relatively short 1,000-foot control range.
Wind speed
You also need to take wind speed into account when flying a drone. Most drone manufacturers list what kind of wind speeds you can safely fly your drone. For high-quality models, this is often between 20 and 24 miles per hour. However, for some hobby drones, this may be as low as 10 miles per hour. For more information on this, check out the buying guide at BestReviews.
What to look for in quality drones for beginners
Range
All drones have a control range that they cannot fly past. On cheap toy models, this may be as short as 150 feet. On mid-level models, it tends to be between 1,000 feet and 1 mile. Premium drones will have a flight range between 2 and 6 miles.
Flight time
Along with the range, the flight time affects how far you can fly your drone. Low-cost drones often have a flight time between 7 and 12 minutes before you run out of battery life. On the other end of the spectrum, you can find models with flight times between 30 and 40 minutes.
Camera quality
If you are buying a drone for aerial photography and videography, the camera quality needs to be a top priority. Some beginner models are capable of 15 MP stills and 4K UHD video. Others may only be capable of 5MP stills and 720p video. The camera specs will be listed in the drone’s product details.
Gimbal
Along with the camera quality, another feature that affects how well your pictures and video turn out is a gimbal. Gimbals are used to stabilize the camera, so your footage comes out clear and crisp rather than shaky and blurry. Depending on the model, a drone may have no gimbals, a single-axis gimbal, a dual-axis gimbal or a three-axis gimbal. Three-axis gimbals are the best and will provide the most stable videos.
Quick shots
Many drones feature quick shot modes to make aerial video easier. Once initiated, the drone will autonomously capture cinematic shots that rival those in Hollywood movies. The most common of these are rocket, dronie, helix, boomerang and circle.
Active tracking
If you are looking for a drone for capturing action shots of yourself, choose a model with active tracking. These are capable of autonomously following and recording a moving subject.
Satellite connectivity
Many drones are capable of autonomously returning to their take-off location. This is important if you ever lose sight of your drone while it is in the sky. In order to do this, they need to be equipped with satellite connectivity to track their positions. This can be GLONASS, GPS or a combination of the two.
Obstacle sensors
Obstacle sensing is a very important feature in beginner drones. Depending on the model, it may only sense obstacles in a single direction, such as in front of it when flying forward or in all directions, including above and below. The more obstacle sensors a drone has, the better it will be at avoiding crashes, even when under the control of an inexperienced pilot.
Pilot-assist features
Drones may be equipped with a number of pilot-assisting features that make flying these easier. Some examples are auto-hover, one-touch return home, automatic take-off and landing.
How much you can expect to spend on drones for beginners
Drones vary greatly in price, with tiny toy models costing as little as $20 and premium options costing several thousand. If looking for a high-quality drone as your entry-level model, expect to spend between $100-$500.
Drones for beginners FAQ
Are drones hard to learn to fly?
A. How hard a drone is to learn to fly depends on its piloting software. More expensive models tend to be easier to learn to fly than cheap toy models because they feature stabilizing software that allows them to retain their altitude and obstacle sensors that help avoid crashes. Most people can learn to fly a drone with this kind of software in just a few minutes and will become comfortable with it after a few hours.
Are drones suitable for kids?
A. The majority of manufacturers recommend pilots be at least 14 years of age. The exception to this are drones specifically designed for children. These are often small and feature fully enclosed rotors and extremely durable builds. If you are unsure whether or not a particular drone is suitable for a child, check the manufacturer’s minimum age recommendation in the product details.
What are the best drones to buy for beginners?
Top drone for beginners
What you need to know: This lightweight, foldable drone features a high-quality camera and is ideal for travelers.
What you’ll love: It offers an impressive 10-kilometer range with a 31-minute battery life. Also, it has a three-axis gimbal and remains stable in high winds, so your videos never come out shaky.
What you should consider: It lacks the popular active tracking feature and only has downward obstacle sensing.
Where to buy: Sold by Amazon
Top drone for beginners for the money
What you need to know: Packed with many of the same features as high-end drones but for a fraction of the price, the HS510 offers a lot of value for your money.
What you’ll love: It is capable of shooting in 4K and features both GLONASS and GPS to minimize the chances of losing positioning connectivity. Also, it weighs less than 250 grams, so there is no need to register it with the FAA.
What you should consider: It only has a single-axis gimbal.
Where to buy: Sold by Amazon
Worth checking out
What you need to know: If you’re looking for something affordable to learn to pilot on and having the best quality camera isn’t a top priority, the Tello fits the bill.
What you’ll love: It can be programmed via a mobile app to autonomously perform a variety of movements, and it includes rotor guards to protect the propellers and whatever objects you hit in the event of a crash.
What you should consider: Its flight time is just 13 minutes.
Where to buy: Sold by Amazon
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Brett Dvoretz writes for BestReviews. BestReviews has helped millions of consumers simplify their purchasing decisions, saving them time and money.
Copyright 2022 BestReviews, a Nexstar company. All rights reserved. | https://www.wfla.com/reviews/best-drones-for-beginners/ | 2022-04-11T07:14:34 | 1 | https://www.wfla.com/reviews/best-drones-for-beginners/ |
Which Baby Einstein jumper is best?
If your baby isn’t sleeping as soundly as you’d like, they might need a little more exercise to tire them. Baby jumpers can drain your little one’s energy, and Baby Einstein jumpers are some of the most stimulating you can find.
A baby jumper allows your baby to safely bounce and often keeps them entertained. Baby Einstein is a brand dedicated to stimulating your child’s curiosity, so the line’s jumpers are outfitted with toys and other accessories that engage your child’s senses. If you’re looking for a top-quality jumper with plenty of activities and features to stimulate your baby, the Baby Einstein Neptune’s Ocean Discovery Jumper is a top choice.
What to know before you buy a Baby Einstein jumper
Jumper type
A simple stationary jumper has a frame, so it’s a freestanding item. It has a seat attached to the frame with an elastic cord that allows your baby to jump. However, it doesn’t have any toys or activity options to engage your child’s senses, so all your baby can do in it is bounce safely. Baby Einstein doesn’t offer any simple stationary jumpers — all of their models are equipped with toys and other accessories to entertain your child in addition to jumping.
An activity center jumper is similar to a simple jumper because it features a frame with a seat attached by an elastic cord to allow for bouncing. However, it also has a tray with toys and other accessories that help stimulate your child’s senses. The activities usually have visual, auditory and tactile components to keep your baby entertained while jumping. Most Baby Einstein jumpers fall into this category.
A doorway jumper doesn’t have a freestanding frame. Instead, it clamps to a door frame and has a seat that hangs from a bungee cord to allow for jumping. Setting up and taking down this type of jumper can be somewhat tedious, but a doorway model usually costs less than other styles. Baby Einstein offers some doorway jumpers, which feature toys to keep your little one entertained.
Size
Compact jumpers are usually small enough to fit against a wall, while large models generally require several inches of clearance on all sides for safe usage. Most Baby Einstein jumpers are relatively large, so check the product descriptions for the dimensions of any jumper you’re considering to ensure you have room for it in your home.
Weight limit
All baby jumpers have a specific weight limit designated by the manufacturer, so you can be certain that it’s safe for your child to use. This weight limit includes both minimum and maximum weights for the jumper.
Most jumpers usually have a maximum weight of 20-30 pounds, but Baby Einstein jumpers typically have a max weight of 25-26 pounds. Always follow the manufacturer’s guidelines regarding weight limits to avoid injuring your child.
What to look for in a quality Baby Einstein jumper
Height adjustability
Baby jumpers usually allow you to adjust for your baby’s height so they can continue to use it as they grow. Manufacturers typically advertise the maximum number of height adjustments that can be made for the jumper. The more height adjustments a jumper allows, the longer your baby can use it comfortably. Baby Einstein jumpers usually allow for four or five height adjustments.
Seat
Seat design can vary among jumpers. Many seats include padding to ensure your child is comfortable. If you’re shopping for a jumper for an infant, it’s best to look for a high seat with plenty of back support since infants have trouble supporting their heads.
Most Baby Einstein jumpers have removable, machine-washable seat covers, so it’s easy to clean up any messes or accidents that occur. The majority of Baby Einstein jumpers also feature seats that can rotate 360 degrees, which makes it easy for your baby to reach all of the attached toys and activity areas.
Toys
All Baby Einstein jumpers are outfitted with toys and other activities that engage your child’s senses to keep them entertained. The toys differ from model to model, but many jumpers have flashing lights and music. Many activities are also designed to teach your child basic facts like numbers and colors.
Some Baby Einstein jumpers also include additional loops, so you can attach toys your child already has and swap in new ones if your baby gets bored with the current setup.
Battery requirements
Most Baby Einstein jumpers require batteries to power some of the attached toys and accessories. The jumpers don’t come with the necessary batteries, so you’ll need to purchase them to allow your child to use all the features.
How much you can expect to spend on a Baby Einstein jumper
Baby Einstein jumpers range from $30 to $120. Doorway jumpers are the most affordable, usually costing $30-$50. Baby Einstein activity center jumpers vary in price based on the toys and accessories they include, but most cost between $80 and $120.
Baby Einstein jumper FAQ
What age is a Baby Einstein jumper appropriate for?
A. Your baby must be able to hold their head upright and support some of their weight on their legs before they can use a jumper. At the same time, babies who are walking won’t have much use for a jumper. Children who fall between these two milestones will get the most use and enjoyment out of a baby jumper — generally children 4-14 months of age.
How long should your baby spend in a jumper per day?
A. Experts suggest your baby shouldn’t spend more than 20 minutes daily in a jumper or it may affect their motor development. Your baby can use the jumper up to twice a day.
What’s the best Baby Einstein jumper to buy?
Top Baby Einstein jumper
Baby Einstein Neptune’s Ocean Discovery Jumper
What you need to know: This well-designed ocean-themed jumper is sure to entertain and stimulate little ones while teaching them numbers, colors, vocabulary words and more.
What you’ll love: The seat can swivel 360 degrees to provide access to all the toys. It offers four easy-to-adjust height positions to grow with your child. It introduces numbers and colors to your child in English, French and Spanish. It’s easy to wipe clean.
What you should consider: Some of the toys don’t move, which can be frustrating for children.
Where to buy: Sold by Amazon and Buy Buy Baby
Top Baby Einstein jumper for the money
Baby Einstein Neighborhood Friends Activity Jumper
What you need to know: One of Baby Einstein’s more affordable jumpers, this activity center is ideal for engaging your baby’s senses and helping boost hand-eye coordination.
What you’ll love: It offers three play stations and more than 12 activities with lights and sounds. The light-up piano helps introduce your baby to music. Its seat swivels 360 degrees and offers five different height positions.
What you should consider: Some of the assembly can be challenging, particularly attaching the seat to the frame.
Where to buy: Sold by Amazon and Buy Buy Baby
Worth checking out
Baby Einstein Neighborhood Symphony Activity Jumper
What you need to know: This feature-packed jumper can inspire your baby’s musical creativity with plenty of music-themed activities to entertain and engage.
What you’ll love: The seat rotates 360 degrees, so your child can reach all the toys. It offers four height adjustments to grow with your child. The toy station is removable, so babies can play with it on the floor too. It has loops that allow you to attach more toys.
What you should consider: Some buyers report that the height options make it easy for a child to outgrow the jumper.
Where to buy: Sold by Amazon and Buy Buy Baby
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Jennifer Blair writes for BestReviews. BestReviews has helped millions of consumers simplify their purchasing decisions, saving them time and money.
Copyright 2022 BestReviews, a Nexstar company. All rights reserved. | https://www.wfla.com/reviews/br/baby-kids-br/activity-br/best-baby-einstein-jumper/ | 2022-04-11T07:14:42 | 0 | https://www.wfla.com/reviews/br/baby-kids-br/activity-br/best-baby-einstein-jumper/ |
Which expensive colognes are best?
You’ve likely heard people say “look good, feel good” or “dress to impress” before, but never anything about the benefits of smelling good. And let’s be honest, reeking of an unpleasant smell probably leaves a stronger negative impression than looking good does a positive one.
Thankfully, a premium scent can keep you smelling fresh throughout the day, while adding a layer of sophistication to your outfit. If you’re just getting your fragrance wardrobe started and are in the market for an excellent cologne for all occasions, we recommend Soleil Brulant from Tom Ford.
What to know before you buy expensive cologne
Personal style
Any good cologne, and especially an expensive one, can add dimension to your visual look. For example, if you often sport pastels and spring colors, you may want to choose something light and citrusy. On the other hand, if you often wear earth tones or darker hues, consider a heavier scent that evokes mystery and intrigue.
Bottle size
The last thing you want is to have your expensive cologne confiscated at an airport because it’s too large. Make sure you choose the right size for your needs. If you’re a frequent traveler and want something you can bring on a plane, opt for bottles below 3.3 fluid ounces. But if you want something to bring with you in case of a smelly emergency, look for an atomizer cylinder that fits into your bag or pants pocket. If it’s going to stay in the bathroom, size shouldn’t matter.
What to look for in quality expensive cologne
Ingredients
Expensive cologne should include premium, natural ingredients. Brands like Chanel continue to grow their own flowers in the valleys of Cannes, France. This ensures they retain the floral quality their scents were originally prized for almost 100 years ago. It’s important to know that many fragrance brands grow the same flowers in India because it’s cheaper. However, the climate in India creates lower-quality, vague -smelling blossoms.
Development process
Superior development and production processes ensure the longevity and quality of expensive colognes. While the House of Creed uses a proprietary process created by founder James Creed in the 1760s, Chanel still maintains and harvests all of its natural ingredients by hand to preserve their blossom integrity. Behind-the-scenes details like this are what separates premium fragrances from their budget counterparts.
Brand pedigree
There are countless expensive colognes on the market, but not all are reputable brands. When looking for a premium cologne, keep an eye out for brands like Chanel, Creed, Tom Ford and Bond No. 9, because they are renowned specifically for their fragrances. If you choose a brand with pedigree, you can purchase with confidence knowing all the ingredients are pure and luxurious.
How much you can expect to spend on expensive cologne
Expensive cologne is just that, expensive. While entry-level designer scents cost $75 for small bottles, expect to spend at least $150 for new collections and classic scents that never go on sale.
Expensive cologne FAQ
Can I make the scent last longer?
A. The ingredients and mixing process determine the duration of any given cologne. However, fragrance intensifies with your body heat, so apply it in the creases of your elbows, knees and neck for a longer-lasting scent. Also, avoid rubbing the scent onto your skin, as this degrades the fragrance.
Does cologne go bad?
A. Unfortunately, yes. Since expensive cologne is composed of natural ingredients, in many cases, it may begin to lose its scent after a year. Unless you know you’re going to wear it all the time, it’s best to stick with smaller bottles to begin with.
What’s the best expensive cologne to buy?
Top expensive cologne
What you need to know: Formulated to evoke the warmth of sunshine on a breezy beach day, Soleil Brulant is a meticulously balanced scent suitable for any occasion in any setting.
What you’ll love: Straight from Tom Ford’s “private collection” scent laboratory, Soleil Brulant features notes of fresh mandarin and bergamot with undertones of spicy peppercorn and seductive black honey. Strong top notes give way to an exquisite combination of burnt amber and summer flowers that leave an inviting scent trail. To top it all off, this cologne comes in Tom Ford’s striking chess piece bottle, reserved only for private collection scents.
What you should consider: Because this fragrance is light and wispy, it doesn’t last a full day.
Where to buy: Sold by Sephora
Top expensive cologne for the money
What you need to know: ALLURE HOMME manages to pack intense, traditionally masculine and often overpowering scents into a refreshingly light fragrance.
What you’ll love: Backed by Chanel’s renowned fragrance laboratory, a few quick sprays in the morning keep you smelling great well into the night. It features a unique blend of spicy coriander and mandarin at the top, robust notes of cedar in the heart and subtle notes of tonka and cistus labdanum at the base. While the profile is heavy and masculine, this cologne is light enough for a beach day.
What you should consider: Some wearers wished the scent was a bit stronger.
Where to buy: Sold by Sephora
Worth checking out
What you need to know: Crafted by Olivier Creed, the sixth-generation master perfumer from Creed family, Aventus was introduced for the company’s 250th anniversary in 2010, and it’s been the brand’s bestselling cologne since.
What you’ll love: As the exclusive provider of custom fragrances and scented gloves to monarchies across Europe for centuries, Creed has an unparalleled perfume pedigree. Inspired by the strength and history of the French monarchy, Aventus features top notes of pineapple and bergamot with heart notes of birch and patchouli and base notes of ambergris, sandalwood and oakmoss. Plus, each batch of Aventus is weighed, mixed, macerated and filtered by hand.
What you should consider: Perhaps this shouldn’t be a surprise considering the House of Creed made its first fragrance in 1781 for King George III, but the smallest bottle costs a whopping $335.
Where to buy: Sold by Amazon
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Will Briskin writes for BestReviews. BestReviews has helped millions of consumers simplify their purchasing decisions, saving them time and money.
Copyright 2022 BestReviews, a Nexstar company. All rights reserved. | https://www.wfla.com/reviews/br/beauty-personal-care-br/fragrance-br/best-expensive-cologne/ | 2022-04-11T07:14:50 | 0 | https://www.wfla.com/reviews/br/beauty-personal-care-br/fragrance-br/best-expensive-cologne/ |
Which Casper mattress is best?
Nothing beats a good night’s sleep, but achieving that ideal state depends on the quality of your mattress. The best mattress provides proper support and a good level of comfort for your body’s specific needs.
Casper has been using state-of-the-art technology and unique design features to produce some of the top mattresses available today. If you’re someone who enjoys a soft feel but also likes plenty of support, the Casper Wave Hybrid Mattress may be the perfect solution.
What to know before you buy a Casper mattress
Size
Casper mattresses are available in all standard sizes, from twin to California king. Decide what size mattress works best in your current space and what size you need for optimal comfort, especially if you’ll be sharing the bed with a partner or pets. Keep in mind that the larger the mattress is, the higher the price.
Type
Currently, Casper produces four mattress styles designed for different types of sleepers. The 10-inch-thick Casper Element Mattress is the least expensive option and is made with double layers of comfortable but not overly soft polyurethane foam. Some users may require slightly more support depending on their preferences, but side sleepers in particular will enjoy this style.
The Casper Original Mattress is an 11-inch-thick, three-layer foam option and is the best-selling Casper model. You can purchase this original model in a hybrid version.
The 12-inch Casper Nova Hybrid and 13-inch Casper Wave Hybrid combine both multilayer foam and traditional springs to add maximum support without sacrificing comfort. Hybrid models are recommended for anyone suffering from chronic back pain.
What to look for in a quality Casper mattress
Sleep trial period
You won’t know how a specific mattress will work with your sleep style until you give it a try. Every Casper mattress purchase allows you to sleep on the mattress of your choosing for up to 100 nights. This extended trial lets your body adjust to the new mattress so you can decide if it is right for you. You can opt to return the mattress at no cost if it doesn’t suit your needs.
Casper Snow technology
Snow technology is an additional feature that can be added to the Nova and the Wave hybrid mattress models. The purpose of Snow technology is to keep you cool while you sleep by utilizing its strategically placed HeatDelete bands and a QuickCool cover to prevent overheating and sweating during the night.
Zoned support
Most Casper mattresses include a built-in feature called “zoned support.” If you’re someone who enjoys firm support, look for a model that utilizes these ergonomic areas that assist with proper spine alignment.
AirScape technology
Another way Casper mattresses help you keep cool all night is with AirScape technology. Casper’s AirScape is a network of small perforations throughout the foam, which ultimately allows the mattress to be more breathable.
Bundle package
You can usually get a great deal on additional Casper accessories such as sheets, pillows, a mattress protector and more if you go with a bundle. Casper-brand accessories are designed to work seamlessly with its mattresses, providing the best overall experience when it comes to comfort and cooling capabilities.
How much you can expect to spend on a Casper mattress
The least-expensive Casper mattress option comes in just under $400 for a twin-size model. Expect to pay $1,000-$1,300 for an Original queen-size mattress and more than $2,000 for larger hybrid options.
Casper mattress FAQ
How long do Casper mattresses last?
A. Expect your Casper mattress to last about eight to 10 years on average. However, the lifespan can vary depending on sleep position along with how well you take care of your mattress, which is why it is important to clean up any spills or liquid damage and invest in a quality mattress cover. Rotating your mattress can help prevent one area from being worn down too quickly.
Do you need a box spring with a Casper mattress?
A. No. It is not recommended to use a standard box spring with a Casper mattress. In fact, the way most box springs are designed could end up damaging the foam. Instead, opt for a bed frame with wooden slats or use a Casper foundation.
What’s the best Casper mattress to buy?
Top Casper mattress
Casper The Wave Hybrid Mattress
What you need to know: This high-quality mattress is designed for those wanting maximum support and comfort every night.
What you’ll love: Utilizing four foam layers and an interior spring layer, this hybrid mattress provides the comfort and support you need to get a solid night’s sleep. The cooling technology and integrated zoned gel pods keep you comfortable throughout the night.
What you should consider: This is the most expensive Casper mattress model.
Where to buy: Sold by Casper and Amazon
Top Casper mattress for the money
What you need to know: A reasonably-priced option, the Element provides lasting comfort and plenty of desirable features.
What you’ll love: With a top layer of foam built to relieve any pressure, this mattress won’t create a sinking or sagging feeling. It utilizes AirScape technology to keep you cool.
What you should consider: At 10-inches thick, it is thinner than other Casper models.
Where to buy: Sold by Amazon
Worth checking out
What you need to know: As the original and most popular option, this mattress provides the ideal balance between support and comfort for a variety of users.
What you’ll love: The four foam layers and Zoned Support add firmness to specific areas, while the cooling aspect will be appreciated on warm nights. You can try the mattress in a hybrid option for 100 nights before making your decision.
What you should consider: Some have noticed slight sagging in the middle of the mattress after some time.
Where to buy: Sold by Casper and Amazon
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Matthew Young writes for BestReviews. BestReviews has helped millions of consumers simplify their purchasing decisions, saving them time and money.
Copyright 2022 BestReviews, a Nexstar company. All rights reserved. | https://www.wfla.com/reviews/br/bed-bath-br/mattresses-pillows-br/the-best-casper-mattress/ | 2022-04-11T07:14:57 | 1 | https://www.wfla.com/reviews/br/bed-bath-br/mattresses-pillows-br/the-best-casper-mattress/ |
Which radar gun is best?
There are more uses for a radar gun than to be tagged by a cop for speeding down the highway at 11 p.m. because you just want to get to your destination quickly. The next most common usage is in training for various sports, most commonly used in baseball to measure pitching speeds or in American football to measure running speeds.
The best radar gun for any possible use is the Pocket Radar Smart Coach. While it’s true this radar gun chews straight through batteries, you can alleviate this by securing a power pack, and the rest of the features, especially the accuracy, are impossible to ignore.
What to know before you buy a radar gun
How speed is measured
Radar guns measure the speed of an object using either the Doppler effect or lasers to measure.
- Doppler method: A radar gun that uses the Doppler effect sends radio signals toward the object to be measured. When the radio signals bounce off the target and return to the radar gun, the change in the frequency of the sent wave and the returned wave is measured and then computed into the final given speed. The entire process takes less than a second.
- Laser method: Laser radar guns, most often used by the police, use a light shined onto the object and measure how long it takes for that light to reflect off the object and return to the radar gun.
Typical radar gun uses
There are all kinds of different speeds to measure when it comes to almost every sport.
What to look for in a quality radar gun
Design
The typical design of a radar gun, the shape you most often visualize, is similar to a handheld drill. The front of the radar gun sends and receives the signals with the back housing the display and controls.
More recently designed radar guns look almost like smartphones. You use it as you would taking a picture. Point at your object and press the center button to trigger the measuring mechanism. A benefit of this type of design is the ability to mount it to a tripod far easier than mounting a drill-shaped radar gun.
Controls
All radar guns are activated by a button or trigger to take a reading but some have additional control options for different uses. The most common alternate mode is a continuous reading mode that automatically takes measurements without holding the gun.
Other popular modes include displaying only the fastest speed of the measuring period or storing the range of speeds an object has during its full testing period, both especially useful for measuring baseball pitches.
How much you can expect to spend on a radar gun
Even the most basic radar guns are going to require many pretty pennies from your wallet. The most basic radar guns that simply measure speed within a few miles per hour can cost a few hundred dollars, and once you start looking at quality options, you’ll find prices up to $500. Radar guns used by law enforcement can cost a few thousand dollars.
Radar gun FAQ
Are the radar guns used by police more accurate than commonly available consumer-grade options?
Very much so, yes. At a minimum, they are accurate within a single mile per hour but are frequently even more accurate than that. However, this comes at a cost, as you must test and recalibrate them regularly. Otherwise, their accuracy can begin to deviate. The next time you’re pulled over for speeding though you followed the speed limit, have them check when it was last calibrated as it may affect whether or not you receive a speeding ticket.
Does it matter where I place my radar gun when I’m trying to measure speed?
A. If you’re using a Doppler effect radar gun, then yes, your radar gun must be pointing in the same direction as the object you wish to measure, as it measures the speed at which the object comes toward or moves away from the gun. In other words, place it in front of or behind the object for accurate results.
Will radar guns remain accurate in precipitous weather conditions?
A. Yes, they will. Precipitation does not affect a radar gun unless the radar gun isn’t proofed against the type of weather to which it is being subjected. For example, it would need waterproofing against rain or snow.
What are the best radar guns to buy?
Top radar gun
What you need to know: Don’t let the simplistic design fool you, this radar gun is packed with features.
What you’ll love: Bluetooth connectivity and a companion app assist an already impressive device.
What you should consider: The AAA batteries are drained very quickly, almost necessitating a power pack.
Where to buy: Sold by Amazon
Top radar gun for the money
What you need to know: This is an affordable and solid option if you just want to get some quick reads while saving some money.
What you’ll love: This streamlined and straightforward design can still register speeds up to 200mph.
What you should consider: You lose some good features seen in better models by selecting this low-cost option.
Where to buy: Sold by Amazon
Worth checking out
Stalker Sport 2 Series Radar Gun
What you need to know: This is the perfect radar gun option for any baseball player in training.
What you’ll love: A recall mode shows the last five readings taken, perfect for averaging speeds.
What you should consider: Rechargeable batteries with AC adapters are available but unfortunately sold separately.
Where to buy: Sold by Amazon
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Jordan C. Woika writes for BestReviews. BestReviews has helped millions of consumers simplify their purchasing decisions, saving them time and money.
Copyright 2022 BestReviews, a Nexstar company. All rights reserved. | https://www.wfla.com/reviews/br/electronics-br/best-radar-gun/ | 2022-04-11T07:15:06 | 1 | https://www.wfla.com/reviews/br/electronics-br/best-radar-gun/ |
Which camera suction mounts are best?
A good camera suction mount can be leagues better than most other types of camera mounts, simply to the fact that no tools or gunky adhesives are required. You can install most suction mounts anywhere as well, from car dashboards to helmets or perhaps a boat. Not all camera suction mounts work with all cameras, so make sure you’re double-checking for compatibility.
A strong option that works with many different cameras is the Panavise ActionGrip 13130 Double-Knuckle Mount. This is an industrial-quality camera suction mount and, as such, is built to withstand the rigors of the roughest road conditions while staying firmly in place.
What to know before you buy a camera suction mount
Mount material
Camera suction mounts are light enough for maximum versatility but strong enough to hold both the weight of the camera and the weight of the mount itself. Commonly used materials for this purpose are aluminum, anodized zinc, ABS and PC or a composite.
Aluminum: A durable and rust-resistant material, though it is one of the heavier options.
Anodized zinc: Frequently combined with aluminum for extra sturdiness, anodized zinc is incredibly sturdy.
ABS and PC: Acrylonitrile butadiene styrene and polycarbonate are perfect for high-speed activities like boating and biking thanks to their extreme ruggedness.
Composite: A combination of materials designed to find a balance between weight, durability and price.
Mounting
Not all cameras use the same method of attaching to mounts. Many will use a .25-20-inch mounting screw, but popular cameras like GoPros use their systems for attaching. Some camera suction mounts will include various adapters, while others might include a list of compatible cameras. At the very least, most camera suction mounts will have adapters you can buy separately later on.
What to look for in a quality camera suction mount
Weather resistance
For most camera suction mounts, once a seal has been made, you shouldn’t have to worry about any weather conditions except changing temperatures. Rain and wind, for example, won’t dislodge a good seal, but if the temperature drops, then the material of the seal will be affected, leading to a disconnection. Camera suction cups should include temperature ranges that at which they will remain effective.
Suction cups
The piece of your camera suction mount that does most of the work. Some camera suction mounts use more than one suction cup for greater strength, but that means you’ll need a larger surface area on which to stick them.
Rotation
Different camera suction mounts have different maximum rotation angles, with the very best offering full 360-degree rotating movement. You might not need full 360-degree rotation, but if you can’t point your camera, the direction you want to point it after it has adhered to your chosen surface, then you’ll wish you had gone with a 360-degree option.
How much you can expect to spend on a camera suction mount
Camera suction mounts are fairly affordable compared to the possible prices of the camera they’re mounting. You can find a low-end camera suction mount for as little as $10, but generally, you’ll want to spend $15-$30 for a solid quality option, while high-end camera suction mounts can get up to around $60.
Camera suction mount FAQ
Can I use my camera suction mount with my helmet?
Generally, camera suction mounts adhere to flat surfaces. However, some camera suction mounts with small-diameter suction cups with strong suction quality can and will stick and remain stuck to helmets. If you’re shopping specifically for sticking to a helmet, keep your focus on the smallest possible suction cups.
How heavy of a camera can the average camera suction mount hold?
Most camera suction mounts can hold cameras weighing between 4 and 10 pounds. However, depending on the specific camera suction mount in question, maximum weight bearing can hit maximums of 30 or more pounds with ease.
Will moistening the suction cup with water help to create a tighter seal?
Water will not help create a tighter seal. It can also lead to weakening the seal if the temperature around the seal and water changes. What does help if you want to strengthen the seal is to use a tiny amount of oil, just enough to dampen the surface.
What’s the best camera suction mount to buy?
Top camera suction mount
Panavise ActionGrip 13130 Double-Knuckle Mount
What you need to know: This industrial, double-knuckle suction camera mount works with almost any camera.
What you’ll love: this camera suction mount also includes a GoPro mount and .25-20-inch tripod mount.
What you should consider: This camera suction mount won’t adhere to a car dashboard due to its textured surfaces, but you can purchase a separate adapter to bypass that fact.
Where to buy: Amazon
Top camera suction mount for the money
What you need to know: This camera suction mount is both incredibly versatile and incredibly affordable.
What you’ll love: Includes five different mounting adapters, which nearly ensures your dashboard camera will attach successfully.
What you should consider: This camera suction mount is meant to work with dashboard cameras instead of action cameras.
Where to buy: Amazon
Worth checking out
What you need to know: This is a perfect camera suction mount for those who need to adjust the angle and height of their mounted camera quickly.
What you’ll love: A full 360-degree tilt and a rotating arm make angling your up to 4-pound camera an easy task.
What you should consider: You must use this camera suction mount on a perfectly flat surface. Otherwise, it will not stay stuck.
Where to buy: Amazon
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Jordan C. Woika writes for BestReviews. BestReviews has helped millions of consumers simplify their purchasing decisions, saving them time and money.
Copyright 2022 BestReviews, a Nexstar company. All rights reserved. | https://www.wfla.com/reviews/br/electronics-br/camera-photo-br/best-camera-suction-mount/ | 2022-04-11T07:15:14 | 0 | https://www.wfla.com/reviews/br/electronics-br/camera-photo-br/best-camera-suction-mount/ |
Which document camera is best?
If you need to present paper documents during a meeting or presentation, a high-quality document camera is a must. Similar to the overhead projectors once found in many offices and classrooms, document cameras are webcam-like devices that are used to project detailed images in real time.
The Epson DC-21 Document Camera is the top choice because it delivers 1080p resolution and comes with a microscope adapter.
What to know before you buy a document camera
Uses for a document camera
Document cameras aren’t just for paper documents. Many science teachers will use the devices with a microscope attachment to examine samples with their class, while an instructor of American Sign Language may use a document camera to present new signs to their students in real time. A document camera can also capture detailed images of photos, maps and illustrations. This versatility is what makes document cameras so valuable to presenters and sets them apart from overhead projectors.
Components of a document camera
- Arm: The arm is the part that connects the lens of the camera to the base. These components typically feature some degree of adjustability so you can point the camera to a particular area of your documents.
- Image sensor: Similar to the sensor found in a digital camera, the image sensor is the high-tech component that converts the visual signal into an image that you can see.
- Lens: This crucial component typically lets you adjust the focus on the document camera.
- Storage: Many document cameras let you save image and video files so you can view and share them later on. This feature is particularly helpful for presentations, since it allows your audience to revisit images afterward if they missed anything. Some cameras require a connection to a computer to save files, while other devices may include a port for a USB flash drive.
Connection
Document cameras need to be connected to a projector or TV before they can display images. Most cameras connect via USB, HDMI or VGA. When shopping for a document camera, think about how you’re going to display the images, and make sure that the device you choose has all of the necessary ports.
What to look for in a quality document camera
Resolution and zoom
With document cameras, resolution is usually measured in megapixels. A higher megapixel count will produce sharper, clearer images, while a low megapixel count may deliver grainy or blurry image quality. Most document cameras are 2 to 10 megapixels. Depending on the images you intend to display, a powerful zoom is equally important. Look for a camera that provides 3x digital zoom or higher.
Lighting
Many document cameras come with an LED light that’s positioned near the lens. This additional illumination is helpful if you want to display clear, detailed images.
Software
If you want to record your lessons or presentations, look for a document camera that comes with some kind of video-capture software that enables you to edit and share your recordings.
Accessories
There are many common accessories that you can search for when picking out a document camera, including microscope adapters, close-up lens attachments and even built-in microphones for times when your audience is particularly large.
How much you can expect to spend on a document camera
The cost of a document camera can vary widely depending on the features included. Cameras with limited adjustability and low resolution can be purchased for under $100, while high-end units with professional image quality and storage capabilities commonly exceed $200.
Document camera FAQ
Why are the images from my document camera blurry?
A. Try adjusting the focus ring on your camera’s lens. If that doesn’t work, make sure that the lens isn’t smudged or dusty.
Can document cameras be used during Zoom meetings?
A. Most document cameras can be used during virtual meetings as long as they are connected to a computer. Once connected, simply go into the program settings and select the document camera as your video source.
What’s the best document camera to buy?
Top document camera
What you need to know: This high-quality document camera offers stellar image quality and is loaded with helpful features for teachers and business professionals alike.
What you’ll love: Versatile and easy to use, this camera uses 12x optical zoom, 10x digital zoom and 1080p image resolution to produce crystal-clear images. It also comes with a microscope adapter, built-in microphone and a free software download.
What you should consider: This model is expensive.
Where to buy: Sold by Amazon
Top document camera for the money
What you need to know: Budget-friendly and reliable, this simple document camera connects via USB and is perfect for smaller classrooms and conference rooms.
What you’ll love: This document camera is lightweight and capable of capturing 30 frames per second. It also comes with built-in macro mode, intelligent autofocus and custom software so you can save and share images.
What you should consider: With its 2-megapixel sensor, this document camera is unsuitable in cases where high resolution is needed.
Where to buy: Sold by Amazon
Document camera worth checking out
Lumens DC120 Ladibug Document Camera
What you need to know: This stylish document camera is extremely adjustable and features wireless connectivity.
What you’ll love: This model stands out because of its wireless capabilities. The camera also comes with a free software download, attached LED light and a 5.5x mechanical zoom feature. The company offers a five-year replacement warranty.
What you should consider: This device is potentially less versatile than similar document cameras.
Where to buy: Sold by Amazon
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Patrick Farmer writes for BestReviews. BestReviews has helped millions of consumers simplify their purchasing decisions, saving them time and money.
Copyright 2022 BestReviews, a Nexstar company. All rights reserved. | https://www.wfla.com/reviews/br/electronics-br/camera-photo-br/the-best-document-camera/ | 2022-04-11T07:15:23 | 0 | https://www.wfla.com/reviews/br/electronics-br/camera-photo-br/the-best-document-camera/ |
Which smartphone microphone is best?
Smartphones seem to advance by leaps and bounds every year while their built-in microphones largely remain the same. Whether you’re interested in capturing live music, podcasts or lectures, a solid microphone is a must if you want professional-sounding recordings.
While there are many types of smartphone microphones to consider, the PowerDeWise Lavalier Lapel Microphone is an excellent choice because it’s a versatile lapel mic that’s ready to capture high-quality audio straight out of the box.
What to know before you buy a smartphone microphone
Types of smartphone microphones
There are quite a few distinct styles of smartphone microphones from which to choose. Before settling on a microphone type, consider how you plan to use the device and whether the style will be well-suited for your project.
- Lapel/lavalier microphones: These tiny microphones clip onto a shirt or jacket and are ideally suited for interviews and lectures. They capture sounds coming from all directions, and their stationary positioning means you don’t have to worry about maintaining the proper distance from the mic once it’s attached.
- Condenser microphones: Typically positioned on a desktop or mounted on a microphone stand, these smartphone microphones capture crystal clear vocals and are perfect for podcasts and simple music recordings.
- Shotgun microphones: These slender mics capture directional sound, ideal for situations when you need to reduce background noise, such as during an outdoor interview or public speaking engagement.
- Handheld microphones: Another great option for interviews, vlogging and public speaking engagements, handheld dynamic microphones are easy to hold and carry while recording audio.
Connection
Most smartphone microphones connect with a 3.5-millimeter cable, the same audio jack used with traditional headphones and wired earbuds. As modern smartphones move away from the standard headphone jack, you may find microphones that connect wirelessly or via the smartphone’s USB port. Consider your phone’s connectors before settling on a microphone, or plan on purchasing an adaptor.
What to look for in a quality smartphone microphone
Portability
Many smartphone microphones, such as lapel mics, are compact and extremely portable. Others, like certain condenser mics, are meant to be positioned on a desktop and can be relatively bulky. When choosing a microphone, consider where you intend to use it and how frequently you plan to travel with it.
Software/DAWs
Most smartphone microphones are plug-and-play, meaning they require no additional software or audio drivers. That said, you may want to download an app or DAW software, also known as a digital audio workstation, that will let you adjust the audio or add effects like reverb and EQ. Some microphones come with free audio editing software for added convenience.
Accessories
You can purchase some smartphone microphones as part of bundles that include accessories like pop filters, stands and even video lights to make your projects look and sound more professional.
How much you can expect to spend on a smartphone microphone
The cost of a smartphone microphone can vary widely depending on the style of the microphone and any included accessories. Most users can expect to pay $10-$120 for a solid device.
Smartphone microphone FAQ
Why isn’t the smartphone microphone working after being plugged in?
A. Make sure the microphone is specifically designed for smartphones. To do this, look at the tip of the 3.5-millimeter cable attached to the microphone. If it has two black rings, it means the microphone uses a TRS cable, which isn’t suited for smartphones, tablets or computers. Those devices use a TRRS cable, so you’ll need to purchase a TRS-TRRS adaptor.
What kind of smartphone mic is best for recording singing?
A. If you want to capture professional-sounding, crystal-clear vocals, you can’t do much better than a condenser mic. Look for one you can mount on an adjustable stand and consider purchasing a pop filter.
What’s the best smartphone microphone to buy?
Top smartphone microphone
PowerDeWise Lavalier Lapel Mic
What you need to know: This popular lapel mic is versatile and easy to use.
What you’ll love: This lapel mic is omnidirectional and suited for podcasts, news reports and presentations. It comes with a 6.5-foot mic cord and a bonus extension cord of the same length. The purchase even includes a TRRS-TRS adapter, so it will work with nearly any device with a 3.5-millimeter audio jack.
What you should consider: Some users reported that this mic didn’t work with an Apple lightning connection, while others said it wasn’t well-suited for recording music.
Where to buy: Sold by Amazon
Top smartphone microphone for the money
Miracle Sound Ultimate Lavalier Microphone
What you need to know: This clip-on microphone is an excellent value and a solid performer.
What you’ll love: This omnidirectional, 3.5-millimeter microphone works with most Apple, Android and Windows smartphones and comes with a travel case, windscreen pop filter and a 59-inch cable. It also works with an Apple lightning to the 3.5-millimeter adapter.
What you should consider: Reviewers say the recordings made with this smartphone microphone aren’t the greatest quality.
Where to buy: Sold by Amazon
Worth checking out
Looyuan Condenser Recording Microphone
What you need to know: This desktop microphone comes with a pop filter and is perfect for recording music and professional-sounding podcasts right out of the box.
What you’ll love: This reliable condenser microphone is easy to set up and use. A vast improvement over built-in smartphone microphones, this compact mic comes with a pop filter, shock mount and adjustable desktop tripod.
What you should consider: The microphone’s cardioid design is very directional, making it less suitable for certain types of audio.
Where to buy: Sold by Amazon
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Patrick Farmer writes for BestReviews. BestReviews has helped millions of consumers simplify their purchasing decisions, saving them time and money.
Copyright 2022 BestReviews, a Nexstar company. All rights reserved. | https://www.wfla.com/reviews/br/electronics-br/cell-phones-accessories-br/best-smartphone-microphone/ | 2022-04-11T07:15:31 | 0 | https://www.wfla.com/reviews/br/electronics-br/cell-phones-accessories-br/best-smartphone-microphone/ |
Which Razer gaming keyboards are best?
A keyboard is one of the most critical components of your computer, but it is equally one of the most exciting. There is a large variety of styles, models and designs from which to choose. Some have extra keys, while others are brightly lit with millions of colors.
Whatever your preference, if you are a gamer, you need a keyboard that can keep up with your playing style. That is why you should have the best Razer gaming keyboard by looking no further than the Razer Huntsman V2.
What to know before you buy a Razer gaming keyboard
Keyboard layout
A keyboard is the most central point to control all the action on the screen. It needs to have all the keys that your game utilizes and additional keys for more functions. Consider what keyboard layout you prefer and whether you want the ability to create your own macros. A full Razer keyboard will also have a numerical keypad and multimedia buttons.
Response time for faster reactions
Every millisecond in a game can mean the difference between winning and losing, you need to have the fastest keyboard response time. This is often referred to as the polling time, and it is the frequency at which the keyboard will check for new key presses. If you play fast-paced games, consider a keyboard with a high polling rate.
Mechanical vs. membrane keyboard
Gaming keyboards generally come in two different types: mechanical keys or membrane keys. This is the key type that determines the travel time of the key press and how quickly the keyboard registers it. Mechanical keys are the loudest and also come in different variations. Consider whether you want a mechanical keyboard or a keyboard that uses the standard membrane mechanism.
What to look for in a quality Razer gaming keyboard
Full color or RGB lighting
Red, green and blue lighting has been incorporated in almost every computer component available. A standard feature in Razer keyboards, the lighting allows you to change the effects on the keys. Many keyboards also allow you to change the color of the individual keys and the color around the keyboard’s edges.
Resting your wrists
Gaming sessions can last for several hours at a time, and your wrists and hands are bound to become tired. A good Razer gaming keyboard will have a wrist rest where you can take some of the strain off. It typically uses sturdy foam and is just high enough so that you don’t put too much effort into keeping your hands in a comfortable position when playing or typing.
Onboard memory
Depending on the Razer gaming keyboard that you get, you will have the ability to program macros switches, additional functions and save the RGB lighting profile. All of that information needs to be stored somewhere, which is usually on the keyboard itself. For this, the onboard memory of a keyboard will determine how much information can be stored. A good Razer gaming keyboard will allow you to create and store dozens of separate profiles to suit the game you are playing.
How much you can expect to spend on a Razer gaming keyboard
The price of a Razer gaming keyboard will generally depend on the model and the keyboard’s capabilities. An entry-level gaming keyboard can retail for $40-$80, while the top gaming keyboards can retail for as much as $200-$400.
Razer gaming keyboard FAQ
Does a Razer gaming keyboard work with Windows and Mac computers?
A. Generally, Razer keyboards are designed to work with Windows-based computers. However, some keyboards do have partial support for Mac computers. The keys are laid out differently than the Mac keyboard, so that is something that you need to keep in mind.
Can you change the keys on a Razer gaming keyboard?
A. Yes, you can. Whether you have Cherry MX or Razer keycaps, you can change them to a different style or mechanical method. Just keep in mind that you can’t put mechanical keycaps on a membrane keyboard.
What’s the best Razer gaming keyboard to buy?
Top Razer gaming keyboard
Razer Huntsman V2 Analog Gaming Keyboard
What you need to know: This is a great keyboard to enhance your gaming experience.
What you’ll love: The Huntsman V2 uses optical switches, which means you can set the desired actuation point to suit your playstyle. The keys are Doubleshot PBT keycaps, and the Razer Chroma RGB lighting allows for a combination of up to 18.6 million colors. A multi-function digital dial at the top of the keyboard for multimedia and a USB 3.0 pass-through.
What you should consider: There is no Spanish version of this keyboard available.
Where to buy: Sold by Amazon
Top Razer gaming keyboard for the money
What you need to know: This is an affordable Razer keyboard that looks good and works hard.
What you’ll love: The BlackWidow TE Chroma v2 comes with Razer Green key switches and is powered by a removable USB cable. The RGB lighting of the keys is fully compatible with popular games and Philips Hue accessories. It comes with a magnetic wrist rest that you can easily remove.
What you should consider: The keyboard doesn’t have a USB pass-through like other models.
Where to buy: Sold by Amazon
Worth checking out
Razer Battlefield 4 BlackWidow Ultimate
What you need to know: This is a full keyboard for the die-hard “Battlefield” warrior.
What you’ll love: If you are a big fan of the “Battlefield” franchise, then you have to get your hands on this licensed keyboard. Adorned with “Battlefield” images and the Razer logo, the BlackWidow Ultimate keyboard features mechanical keys, enough onboard memory to store up to 10 profiles, and backlit keys. It also comes with the exclusive Razer Snake Dog Tag from the Razer Battlefield 4 Collector’s Edition.
What you should consider: The keycaps can’t be changed to a different kind and the keyboard glow is only one color.
Where to buy: Sold by Amazon
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Charlie F. writes for BestReviews. BestReviews has helped millions of consumers simplify their purchasing decisions, saving them time and money.
Copyright 2022 BestReviews, a Nexstar company. All rights reserved. | https://www.wfla.com/reviews/br/electronics-br/computer-accessories-peripherals-br/best-razer-gaming-keyboard/ | 2022-04-11T07:15:39 | 0 | https://www.wfla.com/reviews/br/electronics-br/computer-accessories-peripherals-br/best-razer-gaming-keyboard/ |
Which one-handed gaming keyboard is best?
One-handed gaming keyboards are growing in popularity in the PC community. These compact keyboards provide gamers with access to all of the keys necessary for play but take up very little desk space and are often more ergonomic than traditional keyboards.
The Razer Tartarus Pro Gaming Keypad is the best one-handed gaming keyboard for most users. It includes a wealth of additional input controls, LED lighting, a comfortable design and a padded wrist rest. Razer is a respected manufacturer of PC accessories, known for building reliable devices.
What to know before you buy a one-handed gaming keyboard
Why use a one-handed gaming keyboard?
One-handed gaming keyboards are specifically designed to enhance your speed while playing games that require the use of a keyboard and mouse control scheme. Their small design allows you to rest your hand in one position and still access all required buttons without moving your arm or having to look down at the keys for accuracy. These compact devices are also great for those who game on laptop PCs, as they are more comfortable than the small, cramped keyboards often built into these computers.
Desk space
Typical use of your PC will still require a full-size keyboard, so don’t expect your one-handed gaming model to completely replace it. While one-handed gaming keyboards are compact and take up little space, you will still need enough room on your desk to comfortably use one. If your main keyboard is wired, you may have to consider placement options that will allow proper room to use your gaming device.
Your preferred games
One-handed gaming keyboards are not appropriate for all games or game genres. While they excel at games that require quick resources and use only a few keys to perform actions, games that require typing or make full use of a traditional keyboard cannot be played enjoyably with the limited keys available on a one-handed model.
Photo and video editing
If you edit audio, video or photos professionally, a one-handed gaming keyboard can speed up your workflow in the same way it can enhance someone’s speed while gaming. If you are looking to maximize your efficiency while working, consider trying a one-handed gaming keyboard.
What to look for in a quality one-handed gaming keyboard
Comfort
Your comfort is key when it comes to using a one-handed gaming keyboard. Many models are ergonomically designed for your wrist to rest on a pad while allowing your fingers to reach the keys. The small size of a one-handed gaming keyboard also allows for greater flexibility when it comes to placing the device on your desk or table, as it is less cumbersome than a traditional model.
Aesthetics
Many one-handed gaming keyboards include RGB LED backlighting and other effects. Some feature programmable lighting schemes while others remain static. From edgy designs meant to attract gamers to more understated appearances that work better in a professional setting, these keyboards come in many styles. Select a one-handed gaming keyboard that appeals to your taste.
Key layout
Some one-handed keyboards are basically just a traditional keyboard cut in half. They provide you with keys that retain the familiar letters and layout found on full-size models, making it easy to transition from one device to another. Different models provide keys that are either numbered or custom labeled. These can be challenging to use, but are often preferred once the learning curve is mastered.
Additional controls
Some one-handed gaming keyboards include joysticks, trackballs and other additional input controls. Depending on the kind of gaming or work you do, these extras may prove to be either indispensable or not worth the additional expense. Consider your intended use carefully before investing in a keyboard with too many unneeded extra features.
Switch style
Mechanical keyboards are in high demand among gamers and coders because their keys provide a snappy, satisfying response. Membrane keyboards have a softer, rubbery feel to them but are usually less expensive. If you’re looking for the best gaming experience, most users recommend a one-handed keyboard with mechanical switches.
Keyboard switch types explained
You may be surprised to learn that some users are very passionate about the feel and even the sound of their keyboard switches. There are two common switch types available for most keyboards:
- Mechanical switches are preferred by gamers and professionals alike. Mechanical keyboards are more expensive, but they provide more customization options and tactile feedback for those who prefer a more responsive device. They can also be quite loud to use, which some users actually prefer.
- Membrane switches are more common. They provide a softer, quieter typing experience and are cheaper to produce. They are more familiar to most users but provide less accuracy than mechanical options. Unless specifically labeled otherwise, assume that almost any keyboard you pick up will include membrane switches.
How much you can expect to spend on a one-handed gaming keyboard
A one-handed gaming keyboard will cost $20-$150 depending on features, build quality and included accessories.
One-handed gaming keyboard FAQ
Can you type with a one-handed gaming keyboard?
A. No. These keyboard models are not made for typing, and even those that retain keybed lettering only contain half of a traditional keyboard, at most.
Can you use a one-handed gaming keyboard on your video game console?
A. In some cases, yes. Some game consoles allow you to plug in USB accessories easily, while others require adapters and clever key assignments to be used. Check with the manufacturer of your console for compatibility.
Is it hard to set up a one-handed gaming keyboard?
A. It depends on the model you select. If you choose a keyboard that requires you to determine which keys perform what function, setup can take some time. Models that retain traditional keyboard letters are simpler to set up for most users.
What’s the best one-handed gaming keyboard to buy?
Top one-handed gaming keyboard
Razer Tartarus Pro Gaming Keypad
What you need to know: This one-handed gaming keyboard features additional controls and a fully customizable keybed.
What you’ll love: Razer is one of the world’s largest manufacturers of PC gaming accessories, with a reputation for quality. This keyboard includes a padded, adjustable wrist rest, a scroll wheel, a D-pad and analog keys.
What you should consider: This keyboard is a bit on the large side and may not be comfortable for those with smaller hands.
Where to buy: Sold by Amazon and Dell
Top one-handed gaming keyboard for the money
One-Handed RGB Mechanical Gaming Keyboard
What you need to know: This budget-friendly model is a great entry point for gamers and professionals who would like to try out a one-handed keyboard.
What you’ll love: This gaming keyboard retains traditional lettering for easy transition from a traditional device. Its backlit keys are soft, quiet and easy to see in the dark.
What you should consider: Users report the letters on the keys can rub off after minimal use.
Where to buy: Sold by Amazon
Worth checking out
What you need to know: With its simple, understated design, this model appeals to professional users and gamers alike.
What you’ll love: This model includes a removable wrist pad and adjustable analog keys that allow you to make subtle movements while playing. High-quality, tactile switches make this keyboard fun and satisfying to use.
What you should consider: Users report that while they are pleased with this keyboard’s hardware, the included software can be frustrating and confusing.
Where to buy: Sold by Amazon
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Derek Walborn writes for BestReviews. BestReviews has helped millions of consumers simplify their purchasing decisions, saving them time and money.
Copyright 2022 BestReviews, a Nexstar company. All rights reserved. | https://www.wfla.com/reviews/br/electronics-br/gaming-accessories-br/best-one-handed-gaming-keyboard/ | 2022-04-11T07:15:47 | 1 | https://www.wfla.com/reviews/br/electronics-br/gaming-accessories-br/best-one-handed-gaming-keyboard/ |
Which Razer laptops are best?
If you are an avid gamer, you might have considered a gaming laptop in the past. There are plenty of models from different manufacturers to choose from, and it can be rather difficult. Each one has different specifications and designs.
But have you ever considered a Razer laptop? Over the years, the company has made a name for itself as one of the best PC and gaming accessory makers. So if you are looking for a premium gaming laptop that will be perfect for office work as well, then check out the Razer Blade 14 Gaming Laptop.
What to know before you buy a Razer laptop
Power of the Central Processing Unit
Arguably one of the most critical components in a computer or laptop, the CPU is responsible for how fast it can perform actions. Since you can’t upgrade most CPUs in laptops, you must consider which CPU speed will be right for your purposes. Generally, a CPU speed of 4.2GHz will be sufficient for most things.
Harddrive space is important for gaming
If you are planning on doing some serious gaming on your Razer laptop, you must ensure that you have enough space for the games. Most games today are digital downloads that can reach over 100GB. You can upgrade the M.2 SSD, but look for storage capacity that will store all your games and files.
AMD or NVIDIA graphics card
In an office environment, the graphics card in a laptop won’t make that much of a difference. But when it comes to gaming, most gamers will prefer either AMD cards or NVIDIA graphics cards. There isn’t that much difference between the two brands, and it will mainly come down to personal preference.
What to look for in a quality Razer laptop
RGB lighting and key customizability
When you get a laptop from a company deeply embedded into gaming culture, you can expect it to have a wide variety of customizability options. One of those is the RGB lighting effects that have been incorporated into almost every gaming component. A good Razer laptop will have plenty of lighting options and the ability for you to change it however you want.
Resolution
Specifically for gaming, the resolution of the laptop’s screen will play a huge role in the quality of the graphics. This is important so that you can clearly see what is going on. A good quality Razer laptop will have a 4K resolution with a refresh rate of 120MHz. The fast refresh rate makes sure that fast-paced action doesn’t have a motion blurring effect.
Multi-monitor and accessory support
Having a single screen on the monitor might be perfect for playing games, but if you use the laptop for office work, you might need some extra viewing real estate. That is why a good Razer laptop will have additional HDMI ports for you to connect extra monitors.
How much you can expect to spend on a Razer laptop
The general retail price of a Razer laptop will depend on the model, the capabilities, and the components inside. An entry-level Razer laptop can retail for $1,000-$1,600. A top-tier Razer laptop can retail for $2,500-$3,000.
Razer laptop FAQ
Can you upgrade the components in a Razer laptop?
A. Laptops are notoriously difficult to upgrade. But with that said, some Razer laptops use the M.2 slot to upgrade the solid-state drive easily. Due to the thin design of some laptops, you can’t upgrade the RAM or other components.
Can all Razer laptops be used for gaming?
A. Razer is mainly associated with PC gaming and accessories, so it would be an easy assumption to make. But not all Razer laptops are good for gaming. The company makes a few that are specifically designed for working and office productivity. With those, you might struggle to run even the most basic of video games.
What’s the best Razer laptop to buy?
Top Razer laptop
What you need to know: This option is perfect for any type of gaming, wherever you might be.
What you’ll love: For crisp graphics, this Razer laptop is powered by an NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3080 graphics card, has an AMD Ryzen 9 5900HX 8-Core processor and 16GB of RAM. In terms of storage space, it comes with a 1TB solid-state drive. The display measures 14-inches with a QHD resolution of 2560 by 1440 with a response time of 165Hz.
What you should consider: The RAM can’t be upgraded, as only the SSD uses M.2 technology.
Where to buy: Sold by Amazon
Top Razer laptop for the money
Razer Blade Stealth 13 Ultrabook
What you need to know: Thin and powerful, it makes gaming a breeze.
What you’ll love: The ultra-thin laptop is powered by a quad-core 11th gen intel core i7-1165g7 processor, has 16GB of RAM and 512GB of SSD internal storage. The 1080p display has a refresh rate of 120MHz, measures 13.3-inches, and is powered by an NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1650 Ti Max-Q graphics card.
What you should consider: As with many laptops, the fixed 16GB of RAM will be difficult to upgrade.
Where to buy: Sold by Amazon
Worth checking out
What you need to know: This is an office workhorse that can handle the pressure.
What you’ll love: While the 13-inch Razer Book might not be suited for gaming, the Intel Core i7-1165G7 4 Core and 16GB of RAM will make small work of any office tasks. The display is full HD and has a touchscreen, with a Vapor Chamber Cooling System to ensure it doesn’t overheat. It comes with Razer Chroma RGB to change the lighting and uses Thunderbolt 4 to charge.
What you should consider: The laptop has somewhat limited storage and the 256GB M.2 SSD might not be enough.
Where to buy: Sold by Amazon
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Charlie F. writes for BestReviews. BestReviews has helped millions of consumers simplify their purchasing decisions, saving them time and money.
Copyright 2022 BestReviews, a Nexstar company. All rights reserved. | https://www.wfla.com/reviews/br/electronics-br/laptop-computers-br/best-razer-laptop/ | 2022-04-11T07:15:55 | 1 | https://www.wfla.com/reviews/br/electronics-br/laptop-computers-br/best-razer-laptop/ |
Which cartilage earrings are best?
Cartilage is the tough connective tissue that creates the upper portion of your ear and is a common spot for piercings. Cartilage earrings, however, differ from regular earrings. Generally, cartilage earrings are thinner because of the gauge bar. The cartilage earring’s barbell length is also shorter than regular earrings because the area around the upper portion of an ear is smaller.
If you’re looking for a subtle piercing, the best place to get a cartilage piercing is the helix, located on the upper cartilage that curls in. These piercings are higher and closer to the edge of the ear than an outer conch piercing. The rook is the highest ridge of your inner ear. It connects the bottom of your inner ear to the conch. The tragus is typically the most painful to pierce but is a great option if you’re looking for an edgier feel.
Cartilage earrings come in different styles: hoop, labret stud or post, captive bead, shields and dangling are to name a few. Hoop earrings are small in diameter compared to other styles and have a tight fit. They are usually composed of stones, diamonds, patterned or plain. Labret studs or posts typically have a flat back and have short bars, similar to regular earrings. They are extremely versatile and suited for any cartilage piercing.
Additionally, they’re perfect if you’re looking for a casual everyday earring. Dangling cartilage piercings or shields make more of a fashion statement. One of the best features about cartilage earrings overall is that there is a style for any occasion and outfit. Cartilage earrings are also pretty cost-effective, depending on where you purchase them. However, certain features like diamonds can add value.
If you’re looking for a cheap yet high-quality cartilage earring, these Tiny Hoop Mini-Gold Earrings are the top choice.
What to know before you buy a cartilage earring
Before purchasing a cartilage earring, there are a few considerations to keep in mind. Ear piercing placement can determine the size of a cartilage earring. Too small of size leads to discomfort, and too big of a size can lead to them falling out. Cartilage earrings are made in a variety of styles as well. Studs and hoops are great for everyday wear, while colored earrings can be the perfect accessory to any outfit. Dangle cartilage earrings are perfect if you’re looking for an edgier look. While you can purchase cartilage earrings at an ideal price, higher-end options will be more durable.
Ear piercing placement
First and foremost, if you’re thinking of getting a cartilage earring, ear-piercing placement is key. Some cartilage earrings are for specific positionings. When getting a cartilage piercing, remember that cartilage is stronger than earlobes, making it more sensitive to pain. Once the earring is in, it should stay in until healed, taking up to three months. Common cartilage areas to get pierced are the anti-tragus, inner and outer conch, auricle, helix and rook.
Style
Cartilage earrings come in various styles. Studs are always an excellent option for a casual everyday look and are versatile to suit any cartilage placement. For a night on the town, try a cartilage earring with diamonds or a pop of color. Hoops are another versatile choice for everyday wear. Whatever style you choose, keeping in mind that certain makes may be more fitted for specific piercings.
Cost
You can purchase cartilage earrings at a rational price. However, quality may not be great. If you’re on a budget but looking to purchase a few cartilage earrings, try looking for a bundle pack. It’s a great way to save money and have a broad selection. Material is a large determinant of the cost of cartilage earrings as well. Gold is typically more expensive than silver, and other qualities, like nickel-free and hypoallergenic materials, may also add to the cost.
What to look for in a quality cartilage earring
There are a few elements to consider when looking for a quality cartilage earring, like material, diamonds, embellishments and earring thickness. Each element nevertheless can determine the cost of a cartilage earring.
Diamonds/embellishments
Diamonds are always a great choice to dress up any outfit. When purchasing a cartilage earring that has diamonds, be sure to check the grade. While this may mean it will come at a higher cost, durability will be long-lasting and the overall look won’t appear tacky. These are also tips to keep in mind when purchasing cartilage earrings that have other embellishments like dangle pieces.
Material
Material is essential when it comes to stuff we wear, especially when it’s on our skin. If you have sensitive skin, make sure to purchase a cartilage earring that is hypoallergenic and nickel-free, like high karat gold, surgical stainless steel or titanium. The material also plays a role in cost. For example, gold and rose gold may be more expensive than silver. However, it can depend on the material’s grade.
Earring thickness
Earrings come in different thicknesses. Because cartilage is sensitive, knowing what size earring is appropriate for each cartilage piercing area is important. Additionally, earring thickness may be different depending on the style. For example, flatback and barbell cartilage earrings for the helix and tragus require an earring diameter of 5/16 inches. Hoop and horseshoe styles for the conch require an earring thickness of 3/18 to ½ inches. If you’re unsure what earring diameter is right for your cartilage piercing, ask a professional.
How much you can expect to spend on a cartilage earring
While the average cost of cartilage earrings is between $35-$85, prices tend to vary depending on the earring location type. For example, tragus, rook, snug and forward helix earrings cost between $30-$60. Industrial and orbital earrings are on the more luxurious side, priced between $45-$85.
Cartilage earring FAQ
How long should you keep a cartilage piercing before changing it?
A. Once pierced, cartilage earrings should not be changed for at least four to six months, giving them enough time to heal. However, they should be cleaned once or twice a day with ear cleaner or saline solution.
Do cartilage piercings get infected easily?
A. Cartilage piercings heal from the outside first and can be prone to infection if not cleaned properly and often. A few days after getting a cartilage piercing, remember that it’s normal to experience mild pain, redness, bruising and swelling.
What metal should cartilage be pierced with?
A. Titanium and gold are hypoallergenic, making them perfect for piercing. Additionally, gold is antibacterial and a good choice for those with sensitive skin.
What’s the best cartilage earring to buy?
Top cartilage earring
LuckyJewUS Tiny Hoop Mini Gold Hoop Earrings
What you need to know: These cartilage earrings are perfect if you’re looking for a variety of simplistic styles.
What you’ll love: Available in yellow gold, sterling silver and 14-karat rose gold, they can be mixed and matched to express your style. Gold-filled and sterling silver options are also hypoallergenic.
What you should consider: Due to their small width, they can be difficult to find if they fall out.
Where to buy: Sold by Etsy
Top cartilage earring for the money
COCHARM Solid Gold Cartilage Earring Hoop
What you need to know: On the higher end, this cartilage hoop earring creates an edgy look.
What you’ll love: Made of 14-karat solid gold, it’s nickel-free, lead-free and cadmium-free. There are no sharp edges, making it comfy to wear for any occasion.
What you should consider: Some reviews state the back won’t stay closed.
Where to buy: Sold by Amazon
Worth checking out
AVORA 14K Yellow Gold 4 stone Simulated Diamond CZ Curved Bar Cartilage Piercing
What you need to know: This cartilage earring is extremely versatile and adds a stylish touch.
What you’ll love: Safe for those with sensitive skin, this glistening cartilage earring adds just the right amount of sparkle to any outfit. Featuring a curved bar design and flat back, it’s lined with pink ombre Simulated Diamond Cubic Zirconia accents.
What you should consider: Price is on the luxurious end.
Where to buy: Sold by Amazon
AnotherEast Butterfly Hoop Earrings
What you need to know: Available in gold and silver, the material is lightweight and a great option to add some flair to an outfit.
What you’ll love: Materials are nickel-free and hypoallergenic, making them perfect for those with sensitive skin. The lever back closure guarantees it will stay snug on the tragus.
What you should consider: If not taken care of properly, the dangly piece may fall off.
Where to buy: Sold by Etsy
FUNLMO Opal Cartilage Conch Earring Hoop
What you need to know: In over 20 different colors, this cartilage conch hoop earring is the perfect accessory for any outfit.
What you’ll love: At a great price and made of 316L Surgical Steel and Shiny Cube Zircon, the high-polished smooth surface makes it extremely comfortable for everyday wear. Additionally, the hinge makes it easy to open and close, but it will stay snug once closed.
What you should consider: Some reviews state the earring was defective.
Where to buy: Sold by Amazon
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Tessa Schaal writes for BestReviews. BestReviews has helped millions of consumers simplify their purchasing decisions, saving them time and money.
Copyright 2022 BestReviews, a Nexstar company. All rights reserved. | https://www.wfla.com/reviews/br/fashion-accessories-br/jewelry-br/the-best-cartilage-earrings/ | 2022-04-11T07:16:04 | 0 | https://www.wfla.com/reviews/br/fashion-accessories-br/jewelry-br/the-best-cartilage-earrings/ |
Which anti-fatigue mats are best?
With all the talk these days about how bad sitting is for your health, many people are choosing to opt for standing desks. While this can be a smart idea, it is important to consider leg and foot health.
Standing in place for long periods of time is both tiring and uncomfortable. Anti-fatigue mats help with that. They provide a cushioned, shock-absorbing surface to stand on that can ease the pressure on your legs and spine.
Anti-fatigue mats come in a wide variety of colors and shapes to fit every need. A perfect example of this is the Kangaroo Anti Fatigue Cushioned Floor Mat, which comes in dark and vibrant hues ranging from 17 to 70 inches long.
What to know before you buy an anti-fatigue mat
How anti-fatigue mats work
When standing in a static position on a hard surface for long periods of time, the pressure in the veins in your legs increases. This makes it more difficult for the blood to flow into and out of your lower extremities, resulting in your heart having to work harder to keep the blood circulating properly. Anti-fatigue mats combat this by forcing your muscles to slightly expand and contract in micromovements as your body adjusts to the flexibility of the mat. This improves your circulation to the lower extremities, bringing more oxygen-rich blood to the muscles and reducing fatigue.
Types of anti-fatigue mats
Anti-fatigue mats can be classified into one of three categories: flat mats, non-flat active mats, and fully flat active mats.
Flat anti-fatigue mats are the most common and tend to be the best entry-level option. This is because they don’t take much getting used to and are often the most affordable. Most are rectangular in shape, range from half an inch to 1 inch thick, and provide a moderate level of cushioning.
Non-flat active anti-fatigue mats also provide cushioning but have a textured surface designed to promote greater micromovements of the muscles and better circulation. These are also most often rectangular in shape.
Full active anti-fatigue mats have large balls, ridges, accu-pressure peaks, and other textures or shapes spread across their surface that are designed to massage your feet and stretch your calves. These tend to have squarish shapes that make them ideal for those working at standing desks, but they are often the most expensive options.
Durability
Anti-fatigue mats are exposed to a lot of wear and tear, so they need to be durable if you want them to last for a long time. This is especially true when using them in commercial settings. Most are made from either foam, a rubber-covered foam or hard rubber. There are also some rubber mats with a gel core. Foam is the least durable but most affordable. Rubber-covered foam is slightly tougher because the rubber coating protects the foam from deteriorating. Finally, full rubber and gel-core mats are the most durable and the least likely to compress over time.
For more information on this, check the best anti-fatigue mat buying guide at BestReviews.
What to look for in a quality anti-fatigue mat
Size
Anti-fatigue mats come in a range of sizes, with the shortest being about 1.5 feet and the longest 20 feet or more. It is important to match the mat to your needs and available space. For example, if you use a standing desk and stay in one place all day long, you most likely only need a small, square or rectangular mat. However, if you are looking for something for your kitchen to make cooking all day less tiresome on your feet, you’ll be best served by a long, rectangular mat that allows you to move from one end of your counter to the other.
Thickness
The thickness of the anti-fatigue mats plays a large role in how effective it is. The majority range from half an inch to 1-inch thick in the main standing area. Fully active mats are notably thicker than those on their raised ridges and balls.
Non-slip bottom
For safety purposes, any mat you purchase must have a non-slip bottom to keep it securely in place.
Beveled edge
A beveled edge is helpful for two reasons: It reduces the chances of tripping over the edge when stepping onto the mat, and it ensures the edges sit flush with the floor, so they don’t curl up over time.
Color
For commercial settings, many people opt for a plain black anti-fatigue mat. However, they come in a wide range of solid colors ranging from neutral tones like grey and earth to vibrant options like red and aqua. You can also find them in faux wood and eye-catching patterns.
How much can you expect to spend on an anti-fatigue mat
Depending on the size and materials, anti-fatigue mats can cost as little as $15 or as much as $300. There are even some extra-large options for commercial spaces that can cost more than $1,000.
Anti-fatigue mat FAQ
How do you clean an anti-fatigue mat?
A. To clean an anti-fatigue mat, start by sweeping or vacuuming the debris off it. Then fill a bucket with a bit of warm water and dish soap. Take the mat and bucket outside and lightly scrub the mat with the solution using a soft-bristle brush or a cleaning rag. Finally, rinse the mat off with clean water and hang it to dry before placing it back in your home.
Should I wear shoes on an anti-fatigue mat?
A. The choice of whether or not to wear shoes on your anti-fatigue mat comes down to the situation more so than the mat itself. For example, if it is in a commercial setting, you’ll most likely need to wear shoes, but if using an anti-fatigue mat at home, you may not want to. If you’re wearing shoes, it is important to avoid high heels and other footwear with sharp or pointed bottoms because they can damage the mat.
What are the best anti-fatigue mats to buy?
Top anti-fatigue mat
Kangaroo Anti Fatigue Cushioned Floor Mat
What you need to know: A durable option that comes in a range of sizes and colors, the Kangaroo anti-fatigue is ideal for home and commercial applications alike.
What you’ll love: It has a ¾-inch thick rubber construction that provides a lot of cushioning and won’t compress from constant use.
What you should consider: It has a tendency to slide around and periodically needs to be moved back into place.
Where to buy: Sold by Amazon
Top anti-fatigue mat for the money
What you need to know: A top choice for those who work at a standing desk, the Genius Mat has a variety of ridges and acupressure points to help you stretch out your calves.
What you’ll love: There is a rolling massager ball in the center of the mat that can be used to loosen plantar fascia and make standing for long periods of time more comfortable.
What you should consider: Its high sides can be a tripping hazard.
Where to buy: Sold by Amazon
Worth checking out
Butterfly Long Kitchen Anti Fatigue Mat
What you need to know: The Butterfly mat is both attractive and comfortable, making it the perfect addition to a home kitchen.
What you’ll love: It comes in four eye-catching patterns, all of which come in dark and warm tones that blend in well with most decor.
What you should consider: The textured surface can make it difficult to clean.
Where to buy: Sold by Amazon
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Brett Dvoretz writes for BestReviews. BestReviews has helped millions of consumers simplify their purchasing decisions, saving them time and money
Copyright 2022 BestReviews, a Nexstar company. All rights reserved. | https://www.wfla.com/reviews/br/health-wellness-br/massage-relaxation-br/best-anti-fatigue-mat/ | 2022-04-11T07:16:12 | 1 | https://www.wfla.com/reviews/br/health-wellness-br/massage-relaxation-br/best-anti-fatigue-mat/ |
Which physical therapy equipment to use at home is best?
Depending on your physical therapy program, your doctor or physical therapist may encourage at-home exercises. If you’d like to practice similar exercises to the ones you perform in a clinical setting, consider buying physical therapy equipment to use at home.
Physical therapy equipment doesn’t have to be fancy or expensive to be effective. There are several affordable options, including yoga mats, weighted exercise balls and resistance bands. Trideer Extra-thick Yoga Exercise Ball is a top choice that’s a versatile device that lends itself to dozens of upper- and lower-body exercises.
What to know before you buy physical therapy equipment to use at home
Why do people buy physical therapy equipment to use at home?
Physical therapy plays a pivotal role in rehabilitation because it may help individuals regain strength, mobility, coordination and balance. According to MedlinePlus, many people begin their physical therapy journeys in clinical settings, such as doctors’ offices or rehabilitation centers, and eventually, they transition to at-home therapy.
At-home therapy is often done on “off” days from in-office sessions or is continued after individuals complete their physical therapy programs in rehabilitation centers. Some individuals may need to perform physical therapy exercises for a few weeks after discharge, whereas others may need to incorporate it into their daily lives long-term so they don’t regress in recovery.
Popular types of physical therapy equipment for home use
Because few people have the room to accommodate large machines or devices, it’s common to invest in smaller, pared-down versions of physical therapy equipment.
- Yoga mats are essential investments because they’re often for basic, floor-based stretching and mobility exercises.
- Free weight sets are ideal for developing upper body strength through repetition exercises, such as bicep curls.
- Resistance bands, often used in rehabilitation centers, are used for strength-building exercises.
- Exercise balls assist in modifications of certain exercises, like planks or lifting.
- Hand grip strengtheners, such as silicone stress eggs or spring-loaded grip trainers, are often used to build dexterity.
Talk to your doctor
Before you begin using physical therapy equipment at home, speak to your doctor or physical therapist to make sure you are approved to perform exercises outside of a clinical setting. Additionally, they may provide you with new exercises that are conducive to home practice with specific equipment.
What to look for in quality physical therapy equipment to use at home
Material
Most physical therapy equipment is made with silicone, rubber, latex, PVC and high-density plastic. These materials are durable and generally have high tensile strength, which means they can withstand a high level of tension without breaking. More complex physical therapy equipment, including spring-operated devices like hand grips strengthened, usually have steel components.
Progressive difficulty
As you progress in your physical therapy journey, your care team may introduce exercises with higher levels of difficulty. When you transition to an at-home program, you may wish to adjust difficulty levels as needed.
With some equipment, individuals can modify exercises to make them more challenging, such as doing more repetitions with free weights. Other equipment have built-in difficulty levels, such as step platforms whose heights can be adjusted by adding or removing risers.
Portability
Portability is an important consideration for many individuals who do physical therapy at home. Many types of equipment are compact and easy to store when it’s not in use, such as yoga mats or foam rollers. Other types of equipment are travel-friendly. Resistance bands, for example, can be rolled up and tucked inside most handbags and carry-ons.
How much you can expect to spend on physical therapy equipment to use at home
Smaller or simpler pieces of at-home physical therapy equipment, like resistance bands and yoga mats, cost $15 and below. More involved equipment, like free weight sets, may run between $20-$50. If you’d like to invest in facility-grade equipment, like pedal machines, be prepared to spend $75-$300.
Physical therapy equipment to use at home FAQ
Will my insurance cover physical therapy equipment to use at home?
A. It depends. You’ll need to contact your insurance plan regarding coverage, benefits and eligibility for a definitive answer. Some insurance plans may consider certain equipment is eligible for coverage under FSA or HSA benefits, whereas others won’t cover it at all.
How do I clean physical therapy equipment?
A. Most types of physical therapy equipment can be wiped down with everyday surface cleaners or disinfectant wipes. Some people prefer using nontoxic cleaners that are non-irritating to skin.
What’s the best physical therapy equipment to use at home?
Top physical therapy equipment to use at home
Trideer Extra-thick Yoga Exercise Ball
What you need to know: An all-around versatile fitness accessory, this ball can be manipulated in countless ways for upper- and lower-body exercises.
What you’ll love: The ball is available in five sizes to accommodate users with different needs. It’s made with durable anti-burst material that withstands pressure to 2,200 pounds. The ball comes with a foot pump for easy inflation out of the box.
What you should consider: A few users felt the foot pump wasn’t easy to use, and it took a while to inflate the ball.
Where to buy: Sold by Amazon
Top physical therapy equipment to use at home for the money
THERABAND Latex Beginner Bands
What you need to know: These resistance bands, often used by physical therapists in rehabilitation centers, are ideal for home and travel use.
What you’ll love: The beginner set offers three levels of low resistance between 3-4.6 pounds. They’re made with high-quality latex rubber that can withstand heavy use. At over 5 feet in length, they’re suitable for upper- and lower-body conditioning.
What you should consider: Because the bands are made with latex, they’re not suitable for those with latex allergies.
Where to buy: Sold by Amazon
Worth checking out
Logest Hand Grip Strengthener Set
What you need to know: This 14-piece set includes popular devices used in hand therapy, which may help build strength and dexterity.
What you’ll love: The set includes flexible silicone accessories that are soft and easy to manipulate. It includes a couple of intermediate and advanced devices for those further along in their rehabilitation journeys. All pieces can be stored in the drawstring carry case.
What you should consider: Individuals with larger hands may experience difficulty using smaller accessories.
Where to buy: Sold by Amazon
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Sian Babish writes for BestReviews. BestReviews has helped millions of consumers simplify their purchasing decisions, saving them time and money.
Copyright 2022 BestReviews, a Nexstar company. All rights reserved. | https://www.wfla.com/reviews/br/health-wellness-br/medical-supplies-equipment-br/the-best-physical-therapy-equipment-to-use-at-home/ | 2022-04-11T07:16:21 | 1 | https://www.wfla.com/reviews/br/health-wellness-br/medical-supplies-equipment-br/the-best-physical-therapy-equipment-to-use-at-home/ |
Which carpet dryer is best?
A carpet dryer is a powerful type of fan that pushes away wet air and pulls in dry air. Dry air sucks up water and accelerates the evaporation process. If you own a business or a home with carpet that requires regular cleaning, you should own a carpet dryer.
The perfect carpet dryer is the appropriate size and has the right features for your space and your needs. Our top pick, the Stanley Air Blower, features three speeds and is easy to move and adjust.
What to know before you buy a carpet dryer
Fan type
Carpet dryers use axial or centrifugal fans. An axial fan looks a lot like a ceiling fan. It resembles a flower with petals spinning around and around. A centrifugal fan looks a lot like a paddlewheel boat. It’s enclosed in a cylinder and turns in a circle.
Centrifugal fans create a higher-pressure airflow that’s perfect for targeting concentrated spills, but they’re slower at drying out an entire room. For larger spaces, an axial fan’s even distribution is your best bet.
Cubic feet per minute
Cubic feet per minute, or CFM, is the amount of air a carpet dryer can move in 60 seconds. The higher the CFM, the quicker your carpet will dry. Remember that this is cubic feet, not square feet. While it’s understandable to think your carpet is the only thing that needs to dry out, that’s not the case. The air around your carpet needs to dry out, too.
The Institute of Inspection, Cleaning and Restoration Certification recommends using a 2,800 CFM carpet dryer for every 300 square feet of wet carpet. For a large space, you may need more than one carpet dryer.
Horsepower
Horsepower or HP is the least important of the three major considerations when buying a carpet dryer, but it’s worth talking about to prevent a common point of confusion. More horsepower does not necessarily mean a higher CFM or faster drying. The main reason to pay attention to horsepower is if you’ll be using your carpet dryer in an old building with a temperamental electrical system.
Most carpet dryers come with 1-HP, ½-HP or ¼-HP. The higher the HP, the louder your machine will be.
What to look for in a quality carpet dryer
Adjustable features
Some carpet dryers feature a timer. A timer prevents you from running your unit for too long and wasting energy. It’s also a good way to remind yourself when it’s time to move your machine to another part of the room.
Another important feature is fan speed. Basic carpet dryers only have one speed, but midrange models should at least have options for low, medium and high. Some high-end models have additional speeds beyond that. The more choices you have, the more useful your carpet dryer is.
Ease of use
If you’re planning to use more than one carpet dryer at the same time, look for a model with a built-in outlet on each unit. That way, you can plug them into each other, like multiple sets of Christmas lights. This makes placing them exactly where you need a lot easier since you won’t be dependent on outlet location.
Noise is a major consideration. If you’re buying in-store, see if there are any floor models you can turn on and off. If you’re buying online, see if there are any videos from previous buyers in the customer reviews. Some carpet dryers can be very loud, which might wear on your nerves if you have to share the space for hours at a time.
Ease of storage
If you’re buying more than one carpet dryer, consider a model that’s stackable when storing. Carpet dryers take up a good amount of space and some are awkwardly shaped. You might be able to find room for one unit in a garage or storage shed, but three units that don’t stack could require some major rearranging.
Also look at how much each unit weighs and what the handle is like. Most carpet dryers weigh 8-12 pounds. If the handle is poorly designed, it’ll be annoying at best and a future back problem at worst if you’re using it often.
How much you can expect to spend on a carpet dryer
Small home carpet dryers with basic features can be found for $50-$75. Midrange carpet dryers with more options and higher CFMs range from $100 to $250. High-end commercial models with all the bells and whistles typically run $250-$400.
Carpet dryer FAQ
When should you replace your carpet outright?
A. If your carpet falls victim to a sewage leak or becomes saturated with some other type of contaminated water, replace it. If water of any kind has been allowed to soak your carpet for days on end, perhaps while you were on vacation, it’s best to toss it. The number one telltale sign is a mildew smell. If your carpet smells, a dryer isn’t going to save it.
How long does carpet take to dry?
A. It depends on how it got wet and how big your room is. If you just cleaned your carpet, it should dry in a few hours. For flooding, pipe leaks and other severe events, it may take two or three days. If your carpet is still wet after three days and there hasn’t been any new water damage, you should call a professional.
What’s the best carpet dryer to buy?
Top carpet dryer
What you need to know: This is a compact dryer with impressive power.
What you’ll love:It has a built-in outlet, blower head pivots and three speed settings.
What you should consider: Some users report that the blowing power weakens over time and extended use.
Where to buy: Sold by Amazon and Wayfair
Top carpet dryer for the money
Lasko High Velocity X-Blower Fan
What you need to know: A versatile dryer from a trusted name, it sells at the right price.
What you’ll love: It features two USB charging ports, a built-in outlet and a circuit breaker with a reset button. It is easy to transport.
What you should consider: It is very loud.
Where to buy: Sold by Amazon
Worth checking out
What you need to know: This small dryer is perfect for spills and other modest jobs.
What you’ll love: It is compact enough to fit in spaces other dryers can’t, such as closets or under sinks. It blows air in all directions for faster drying.
What you should consider: It is noisy despite its size and not ideal for large spaces.
Where to buy: Sold by Amazon
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Frank Paiva writes for BestReviews. BestReviews has helped millions of consumers simplify their purchasing decisions, saving them time and money.
Copyright 2022 BestReviews, a Nexstar company. All rights reserved. | https://www.wfla.com/reviews/br/home-br/floor-care-br/best-carpet-dryer/ | 2022-04-11T07:16:29 | 0 | https://www.wfla.com/reviews/br/home-br/floor-care-br/best-carpet-dryer/ |
Which cold brew makers are best?
If you’re a dedicated coffee lover who enjoys sipping on a satisfying cold brew during warmer weather, you’ll definitely want to invest in an at-home cold brew coffee maker. Not only will it save you money, but it will also allow you to cater your coffee to your specific taste and strength preferences.
Before choosing the best cold brew maker for your lifestyle, you’ll first want to look at a few essential features, such as size, design, materials and brewing time. As one of the top choices, the KitchenAid Cold Brew XL Coffee Maker is large enough for multiple servings and has an easy-dispensing spout.
What to know before you buy a cold brew maker
Iced coffee vs. cold brew
Though sometimes used interchangeably, iced coffee and cold brew have significant differences.
In most cases, iced coffee is simply brewed coffee cooled and poured over ice. This style of brewing is best when consumed within a day or two. It can occasionally produce a slightly bitter or acidic tasting drink.
The biggest difference with cold brew is the fact that it is never heated. The cold brewing process soaks coffee grounds in cold water over longer periods to create a smooth flavor and strong taste. You can then drain the resulting to remove any grounds or sediment. While cold brew can be more expensive when purchased at a cafe, it has a longer shelf life.
Size
Cold brew coffee makers come in various sizes, from portable single-serve brewers to larger countertop models. Depending on how often you plan on making cold brews, you’ll want to choose the most practical model.
Brewing time
Compared to hot coffee, which you can brew in minutes, cold brew takes several hours to achieve the best tasting result. The best cold brew takes 12 to 24 hours, depending on desired strength and flavor profile. Since cold brew coffee is stronger than regular coffee, you likely won’t need to use as much as you can be dilute it with water, milk or milk alternative.
What to look for in a quality cold brew maker
Durable material
The two most common materials for cold brew makers include glass and plastic.
Glass may look and feel more elegant, but there is a greater risk of cracking or shattering. Glass cold brew makers are less likely to form stains and discolorations or hold onto any lasting odors.
Plastic cold brew makers are more durable in the long run, as they are resistant to shattering if dropped. BPA-free plastics also ensure that you won’t have to deal with any chemicals seeping into your daily cup of joe.
Design
There isn’t any universal design for cold brew makers, with some resembling a french press, pitcher, carafe or classic coffee maker. No design is necessarily better than the other, so the best cold brew maker is the one that is easy to clean and most convenient for your lifestyle.
Spout
Once you have your cold brew ready to serve, it is essential to have an efficient way to pour it. The spout should not affect the airtight seal needed during the brewing process but should allow for a smooth flow when serving the coffee. Some cold brew makers may even sport a tap dispenser for convenient access throughout the week or serving guests.
Filter
If your coffee maker features a metal filter or steeper, it is best if the holes are fine enough to prevent any coffee grounds from escaping into the final product. Metal filters are reusable and highly durable.
Paper filters make for quick cleanup but can occasionally rip and need replacing before each brew.
How much you can expect to spend on a cold brew maker
The least expensive cold brew makers can be purchased for less than $20, though most are within the $20-$50 price range. Larger and more advanced options can cost over $100.
Cold brew maker FAQ
How long will cold brew last in the fridge?
A. Unlike hot coffee, which is best when served fresh, cold brew coffee can typically last for 7-10 days in the fridge. If your cold brew accumulates a strange scent or loses its flavor, it is best to brew a new batch.
Does cold brew contain more caffeine than a regular cup of coffee?
A. Cold brew contains more caffeine than a comparable cup of standard drip coffee. Because it is highly concentrated, most people choose to dilute their cold brew.
What’s the best cold brew maker to buy?
Top cold brew maker
KitchenAid Cold Brew XL Coffee Maker
What you need to know: This KitchenAid cold brew maker is designed for true coffee connoisseurs and features a convenient tap dispenser.
What you’ll love: The 38-ounce capacity is enough to make up to 19 servings of cold brew when diluted with water, milk or ice. The stainless steel and glass design is easy to clean, and the streamlined appearance will complement any kitchen.
What you should consider: It is significantly more expensive than many other cold brew makers.
Where to buy: Sold by Amazon, Home Depot and KitchenAid
Top cold brew maker for the money
BODUM Bean Cold Brew Coffee Maker
What you need to know: This budget-friendly cold brew maker can hold up to 51 ounces of coffee.
What you’ll love: The dishwasher-safe design makes cleanup and maintenance a breeze, while the double-lid feature prevents spills and keeps the coffee fresh for longer. All components of this cold brew maker use BPA-free plastic.
What you should consider: The lid isn’t the easiest to remove for some users.
Where to buy: Sold by Amazon
Worth checking out
OXO Brew Compact Cold Brew Coffee Maker
What you need to know: As a small option, this model is great for those with limited space.
What you’ll love: The unique design of this cold brew maker produces flavorful and high-quality coffee. When the top brewer is attached to the carafe, it will automatically drain the cold brew for easy serving.
What you should consider: If you’re looking for a large capacity brewer, this may not be the ideal choice.
Where to buy: Sold by Amazon and Bed Bath & Beyond
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Matthew Young writes for BestReviews. BestReviews has helped millions of consumers simplify their purchasing decisions, saving them time and money.
Copyright 2022 BestReviews, a Nexstar company. All rights reserved. | https://www.wfla.com/reviews/br/kitchen-br/coffee-accessories-br/best-cold-brew-maker/ | 2022-04-11T07:16:37 | 1 | https://www.wfla.com/reviews/br/kitchen-br/coffee-accessories-br/best-cold-brew-maker/ |
Which OXO can openers are best?
You’ll appreciate a high-quality can opener the next time you want to heat up your favorite soup or open up a can of beans or vegetables. While low-end models can sometimes create sharp edges and uneven cuts, OXO can openers are known for their durability, functionality and ergonomically designed handles.
The best can opener will cut through a can seamlessly, removing the lid without any mess or struggle. When searching for the best OXO model, the OXO Good Grips Smooth Edge Can Opener is a top choice because it can eliminate dangerous and sharp edges.
What to know before you buy an OXO can opener
Manual vs. electric can openers
The two main types of can opener options you’ll encounter are manual and electric.
- Manual can openers are most likely what comes to mind when picturing this common kitchen tool. This style of can opener uses a blade to puncture the lid and a hand-operated crank or knob to cut and remove the top of the can. Manual can openers are small and portable but do require some physical effort to use. All OXO can openers will be manually operated.
- Electric can openers automatically remove the lid of the can so you don’t have to do the work. These are often significantly larger, more expensive and require access to an electrical outlet.
Blade position
When buying an OXO can opener, you can either choose a side- or top-cut model depending on your preference.
- As the name suggests, side-cut can openers will remove the lid by creating a cut around the side of the can, just under the top lip. This can ultimately keep the blades cleaner and reduce food contact, but it doesn’t allow the best drainage.
- The blade on top-cut models removes the very top section of the lid, which allows you to drain any excess liquid easily, but is likely to dirty the can opener blades.
What to look for in a quality OXO can opener
Handle
Having a firm and comfortable handle will allow for a more efficient opening process when compared to flimsy models. OXO can openers often include cushioned or rubberized handles, and some will even feature a locking mechanism to form a sturdy grip.
Easy-to-use
The best OXO can opener should have a blade that easily attaches to the can and only requires a single rotation to remove the lid properly. Those that take multiple turns to create a clean-cut are likely to lead to frustration and accidents.
Cleanup
Cleanup is essential, especially for top-cut models. Though some can openers can be placed in the dishwasher for easy cleaning, you should clean all models regularly to prevent rust and food residue buildup.
Lid catch feature
OXO can openers that feature lid catch designs will make it easy to remove the lid once it has been separated from the can. This also reduces the risk of any accidental cuts or slices when removing the lid with your fingers. The most common lid catch methods consist of built-in magnets or pliers.
Bottle opener
If you want a multi-purpose can opener, look for an OXO model that also sports a convenient bottle opener.
How much you can expect to spend on an OXO can opener
Depending on the size and features, most OXO can openers can be purchased for $10-$25.
OXO can opener FAQ
How long will a can opener last?
A. A quality can opener can last several years, as long as you keep it properly cleaned and free from rust and other damage. Over time, the blade can dull, though you can sharpen some models.
Can I store leftover food directly in the can?
A. While storing and refrigerating leftover canned food in the can likely won’t pose any risk, transferring the contents to a plastic or glass container is preferred as it will better preserve flavor and freshness.
What’s the best OXO can opener to buy?
Top OXO can opener
OXO Good Grips Smooth Edge Can Opener
What you need to know: This smooth edge can opener is designed for those who want precise cuts and easy lid removal without a sharp edge.
What you’ll love: The knob used to operate this OXO can opener is oversized, making it simple to grip and turn. The non-slip handles will help you keep the can steady, while the stainless steel blade cuts without making contact with the interior contents.
What you should consider: The innovative style can take some getting used to compared to standard can openers.
Where to buy: Sold by Amazon, Bed Bath & Beyond and Home Depot
Top OXO can opener for the money
OXO Good Grips Soft-Handled Can Opener
What you need to know: This is a reliable stainless steel can opener with easy-to-grip handles.
What you’ll love: The low price and durable materials make this can opener a true value option. The non-slip handles provide excellent grip even when used with wet hands, and the built-in bottle opener gives this opener added functionality.
What you should consider: This can opener should only be washed by hand.
Where to buy: Sold by Amazon and Bed Bath & Beyond
Worth checking out
OXO Good Grips Locking Can Opener with Lid Catch
What you need to know: The locking can opener feature is ideal for those wanting hassle-free lid removal.
What you’ll love: Users will appreciate the unique design and non-slip handle that can lock in place for increased control. Equipped with a magnetic arm, this OXO can opener allows for a convenient lid removal process at a reasonable price.
What you should consider: A few users have reported uneven cuts.
Where to buy: Sold by Amazon, Bed Bath & Beyond and Home Depot
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Matthew Young writes for BestReviews. BestReviews has helped millions of consumers simplify their purchasing decisions, saving them time and money.
Copyright 2022 BestReviews, a Nexstar company. All rights reserved. | https://www.wfla.com/reviews/br/kitchen-br/utensils-tools-br/best-oxo-can-opener/ | 2022-04-11T07:16:46 | 0 | https://www.wfla.com/reviews/br/kitchen-br/utensils-tools-br/best-oxo-can-opener/ |
Which portable air compressor is best?
Portable air compressors are versatile tools that can help you take on your project list with power and provide emergency support in a potentially dire situation. Whether you’re framing a client’s house or need to fix your flat tire in a pinch, you can rely on a quality air compressor to get the job done.
Air compressors tend to be optimized for one of two things, inflation or power delivery. However, the best air compressors draw a bridge between these two worlds and can easily blow through both tasks. If you’re interested in a powerful, portable and practical all-in-one solution we recommend considering the DeWALT portable air compressor.
What to know before you buy a portable air compressor
Storage capacity
The most important thing to consider when purchasing a portable air compressor is what you intend to use it for. If you’re looking for something to carry in your car, you don’t need a compressor with storage capacity. If you’re looking to power pneumatic tools in addition to robust inflation capabilities opt for a compressor with at least 1 gallon of storage.
PSI (pound force per square-inch)
Like most power tools, choosing the appropriate amount of power to deliver is key to achieving successful results. Getting a compressor with too much PSI increases the likelihood of blowouts and misfires. Most compressors put out 125 PSI, which is enough to pump a car tire, power a nail gun or even a paint sprayer. If you’re looking to pump commercial tires or run multiple pneumatic tools at once, consider a pump with 150 PSI or more. Check out the full portable air compressor buying guide from BestReviews to learn more about how to choose the right PSI.
Weight and Size
If you want to carry your compressor everywhere you go, pay close attention to the dimensions and weight. The more portable you go, the less versatility you have in terms of using it for projects beyond inflation. However, if you’re looking for consistent power on the job site, overall size and weight may not matter as much.
What to look for in a quality portable air compressor
Digital gauge
Although it’s not absolutely necessary, top quality air compressors will come with easily legible digital gauges. Digital gauges tend to be more accurate than their mechanical counterparts so you dial in the right pressure for performance tires and pneumatic tools.
Portability features
While all of the compressors in this guide are portable, some are easier to transport than others. However heavy-duty your compressor may be, it should come with convenient transport features such a cord storage compartment, ergonomic handles and multiple power-reception options (car battery, standard AC outlet or car outlet).
Accessories
Top quality portable air compressors will come equipped with an extendable hose, cable management cleat and built-in LED light to illuminate your workspace. Many air compressors also come with various nozzles for different types of tires or that attach to pneumatic tools.
How much you can expect to spend on a portable air compressor
Expect to spend around $65 for an entry-level air compressor kit and up to $200 for heavy-duty kits that may even come with a pneumatic tool.
Portable air compressor FAQ
Why does my air compressor start-up on it’s own sometimes?
A. Quality air compressors come with automatic shut-off and turn-on capabilities. These prevent over-pressurization while you’re filling the tank and then keep the pressure level consistent to prevent misfires and jams. In most cases, if you leave the air compressor plugged in and switched on it will run through off and on cycles until it’s powered off.
What tools can I use with an air compressor?
A. Most people think air compressors are only good for powering various nail guns and fastening devices when it comes to tool versatility. In reality, those are only the tip of the iceberg. You can hook up a pneumatic sander, paint sprayer, air drill or even air hammer to your portable air compressor.
What ARE the best portable air compressorS to buy?
Top portable air compressor
DeWALT portable air compressor
What you need to know: Capable of pumping out up to 135 psi, this heavy duty air compressor can handle everything from DIY upgrades and tire inflation to structural framing and construction projects.
What you’ll love: Manufactured in America and backed by DeWALT’s stellar customer service and 1-year warranty you can try to find its limit in the most demanding conditions. Although it’s only 9 inches wide and 24 pounds, this compressor’s low-noise 2.6 amp motor and oil-free pump pack a serious punch.
What you should consider: Hose must be purchased separately.
Where to buy: Sold by Amazon
Top portable air compressor for the money
AmazonBasics portable air compressor
What you need to know: Don’t let the brand name fool you, this compressor is loaded with useful features like car battery connectors
What you’ll love: Compact design and portability characterize the AmazonBasics air compressor. Weighing only 7 pounds and capable of pumping out up to 120 PSI it’s performance is hard to beat. It conveniently includes dual alligator clamps to attach to your car battery in case you get a flat tire. This compressor is ideal for those looking to pump things up.
What you should consider: Poor cord storage design makes this compressor a pain to pack-up after use.
Where to buy: Sold by Amazon
Worth checking out
GSPSCN Dual Cylinder portable air compressor
What you need to know: Complete with all the bells and whistles, this portable air compressor is versatile, quiet and efficient.
What you’ll love: Made from lightweight yet durable steel and powered by a 12V motor, the Dual Cylinder air compressor from GSPSCN puts out a whopping 150 PSI. Ideal for heavy duty use, this compressor can pump the tire of a loaded truck or van. It also comes with a convenient carry handle, 11.5 foot air hose, spare fuse, built-in led light and numerous nozzle adapters.
What you should consider: Some users reported that the gauge was inaccurate.
Where to buy: Sold by Amazon
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William Briskin writes for BestReviews. BestReviews has helped millions of consumers simplify their purchasing decisions, saving them time and money.
Copyright 2022 BestReviews, a Nexstar company. All rights reserved. | https://www.wfla.com/reviews/br/lawn-garden-br/tools-br-lawn-garden-br/pumps-presses-compressors-br/best-portable-air-compressors/ | 2022-04-11T07:16:54 | 1 | https://www.wfla.com/reviews/br/lawn-garden-br/tools-br-lawn-garden-br/pumps-presses-compressors-br/best-portable-air-compressors/ |
Which Zildjian cymbals are best?
If you’re looking to complete your drum kit, Zildjian cymbals are an obvious choice. With hundreds of years of cymbal-making experience behind them, Zildjian produces cymbals that meet the needs of all styles of drummers.
Still, you may be wondering which Zildjian cymbals are best and how to choose the right ones for you. If you want a full set of basic cymbals, try the Zildjian K Custom Dark Cymbal Pack with its warm, muted tone.
What to know before you buy a Zildjian cymbal
Types of Zildjian cymbals
Your average drum kit uses three types of cymbals: ride, crash and hi-hats. Zildjian makes these three types of cymbals, along with lesser-used offerings, such as splash and China cymbals.
- Ride cymbals are usually the largest cymbals in a beginner kit. They’re positioned above the floor tom and are usually used to play steady patterns, rather than accents. Crash cymbals are the most commonly-used accent cymbals in drum kits. As the name suggests, they make a loud crashing sound that should cut through the mix.
- Hi-hat cymbals sit on a stand with a pedal that you can use to either open or close the hats. Played closed, they’re great for maintaining a steady rhythm, and while played open, they provide a nice accent.
- Splash cymbals are less common accent cymbals that are smaller than a crash and provide a shorter accent with less sustain. China cymbals are thin and have a loud, trashy sound, which has gained them the nickname “trash crash” cymbals.
You can also buy packs containing all the basic cymbals you’ll need, which is ideal for new drummers. For more information, see the guide to drum cymbal sets at BestReviews.
Dark vs. bright
Zildjian cymbals can be divided into two main tonal qualities: bright or dark. Bright cymbals are the most commonly used option. They’re sound, responsive and punchy with a short decay, so they don’t usually ring out for too long after a hit. Dark cymbals have drier, warmer and more mellow tones. They’re popular in jazz and fusion, though they’re versatile and have a place in most types of music, especially when recording in a studio.
What to look for in a quality Zildjian cymbal
Size
Cymbal size depends on the type of cymbal. Ride cymbals usually measure between 20 and 24 inches, for instance, while crash cymbals are generally 14 to 20 inches in diameter. Typically, a larger cymbal is louder with longer sustain and a lower pitch.
Series
Zildjian makes various series or ranges of cymbals. Popular ranges include the A series, which is versatile with a bright, sweet sound and the K series, which is warm, rich and dark.
Hammering
Today, Zildjian cymbals aren’t hand-hammered. Instead, they’re hammered using a high-tech computer-controlled machine that can accurately recreate hand-hammering.
How much you can expect to spend on a Zildjian cymbal
Basic single Zildjian cymbals start at between $50-$100 but can cost as much as $500-$800, while Zildjian cymbal sets can cost as much as $1,000-$1,500.
Zildjian cymbal FAQ
What are the origins of Zildjian?
A. The very first Zildjian cymbals were made all the way back in 1618 by Avedis Zildjian, who worked for the court of the Sultan of the Ottoman empire. He was eventually given permission by the Sultan to leave the employ of the court and start his own company. That company is still run by the same family today, though it now produces cymbals in Norwell, Massachusetts.
Are Zildjian cymbals the best?
A. There’s no single best cymbal company out there, so this is impossible to answer. You can find higher-end cymbals on the market that are arguably better, but Zildjian is one of the most popular and well-respected cymbal manufacturers in the world. It makes quality cymbals that are in a price range within reach of most drummers. A huge number of famous musicians use or have used Zildjian cymbals over the years, from The Beatles’ Ringo Starr to Blink 182’s Travis Barker.
What’s the best Zildjian cymbal to buy?
Top Zildjian cymbal
Zildjian K Custom Dark Cymbal Pack
What you need to know: A great set for new drummers and those wanting to replace their existing cymbals.
What you’ll love: The dark tone is warmer and more muted, while still cutting through the mix. These cymbals are extremely versatile and can be used in a range of musical genres.
What you should consider: Because they come in a set, it isn’t possible to customize your sound in the same way you could if you chose your cymbals separately.
Where to buy: Sold by Amazon
Top Zildjian cymbal for the money
What you need to know: A great crash for new or casual drummers.
What you’ll love: The thin weight of this cymbal provides a washy sound that some drummers love. It’s extremely bright with moderate sustain. The low price makes it easily accessible to drummers with tighter budgets.
What you should consider: It isn’t the most durable choice and won’t stand long to heavy use.
Where to buy: Sold by Amazon
Worth checking out
Zildjian A Zildjian Sweet Ride
What you need to know: A classic bright ride cymbal that’s one of the most popular in the world.
What you’ll love: This cymbal is extremely versatile, as it can be used as a standard ride or with more of a crash to accent the beat. It works well for many musical genres, but especially rock, pop and punk.
What you should consider: Some drummers find this ride a little too bright, but that’s mostly down to personal preference.
Where to buy: Sold by Amazon
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Lauren Corona writes for BestReviews. BestReviews has helped millions of consumers simplify their purchasing decisions, saving them time and money.
Copyright 2022 BestReviews, a Nexstar company. All rights reserved. | https://www.wfla.com/reviews/br/music-br/percussion-instruments-br/best-zildjian-cymbals/ | 2022-04-11T07:17:02 | 1 | https://www.wfla.com/reviews/br/music-br/percussion-instruments-br/best-zildjian-cymbals/ |
Which desk calendar is best?
A desk calendar is a valuable tool for seeing the bigger picture of your schedule. A smartphone calendar app is great when you’re out and about, but it’s not ideal for seeing your entire month at once or for planning a long-term goal. Digital calendars also encourage distraction. You may open your phone to check your calendar but end up getting distracted by your email.
Desk calendars for home offices organize your life in the place where you’re most productive. Our top pick, the Cranbury Large Desk Calendar, includes a set of 234 reminder stickers for important events.
What to know before you buy a desk calendar
Size
The two standard sizes for desk calendars are 22 by 17 inches and 17 by 12 inches. Measure the space on your desk where the calendar will go. You’ll want to give your calendar a little breathing room. If you put a bunch of stuff on top of it, it’s going to be a pain to move everything when you need to tear off the sheet every month.
While most people put their desk calendars on their actual desks, some people prefer to hang them above or next to their desks. Most calendars have holes in the top for easy hanging.
Design
Some desk calendars are black or blue and would look great in any professional setting. Other desk calendars feature colorful designs like flowers along the margins. These designs may stay the same all year or change every month. A desk calendar with a fun border can be an easy way to personalize your desk.
Consider whether you want ruled or unruled squares underneath each day of the month.
Number of months
Some desk calendars are for a single calendar year, but most include an extra four to six months to encourage you to buy early and get started. These extra months typically are in the current year, beginning with either July or September.
Keep in mind that these extra months are often not the same size as regular months. There might be two, four or all six months on a single page. This may not be useful if you have a busy schedule or large handwriting. Every model is different, so be sure to check.
What to look for in a quality desk calendar
Corner protectors
Corner protectors keep your desk calendar flat. Without them, the paper might curl or catch on something.
Corner protectors use clear plastic, leather or faux leather. Leather and faux leather look more sophisticated but they also block the view of the calendar space underneath. Clear plastic is cheaper but it can wear quickly and scratch up your hand if you brush up against it the wrong way. Try running your hand over the corner protectors if you’re buying in-store to test the product.
Paper quality
Paper quality isn’t too important if you only plan to use black or blue ink on your desk calendar. You could probably get away with an inexpensive model and be fine. If you’re someone who likes to color-code their schedule, you’ll want a desk calendar with thick, high-quality paper. Markers or highlighters will bleed through to the following months if the paper isn’t thick enough.
If you want to keep your monthly pages after you tear them off, look for desk calendars with archival-quality paper that tears off easily. Most low-range models start to curl up as soon as you remove them.
Room for notes and starting day
Some desk calendars have an extra section on the left or right of the calendar grid for general notes. This additional space can be a great way to remind yourself of goals, events or important things set on a specific day.
Most desk calendars start the week on Sunday but some models geared toward professional use begin on Monday. If you prefer one over the other, check. Also, keep an eye out for calendars that double up on Saturday and Sunday with a single square.
How much you can expect to spend on a desk calendar
You can find small, no-frills desk calendars for $5-$8. Midrange desk calendars with better paper or nicer designs are available for $10-$16. High-end, top-quality desk calendars are in the $20-$28 range.
Desk calendar FAQ
Do you really need an 18-month calendar?
A. It depends on what your goals are. If you’re saving for that dream vacation and you know it will take focus and determination to get there, an 18-month calendar can be a fantastic tool. Same with keeping to a fitness regimen or launching a small business. The only caveat is that if your calendar ends in the middle of the year, it may be challenging to find a replacement that starts on the correct month.
Can you recycle your desk calendar when you’re done with it?
A. Of course. Most desk calendars use partly or entirely recycled materials. Feel free to recycle each month as you tear it off. When the year is over, keep in mind that the non-paper components of your calendar, like leather corner protectors, likely can’t be recycled. Consult local guidelines for further guidance.
What’s the best desk calendar to buy?
Top desk calendar
What you need to know: This bright and clean desk calendar is available in professional blue or decorative floral designs.
What you’ll love: The ink won’t bleed through this calendar’s high-quality paper, and it includes 234 reminder stickers for appointments, birthdays and travel.
What you should consider: The binding is thick and difficult to hang above your desk if that’s your preference.
Where to buy: Sold by Amazon
Top desk calendar for the money
What you need to know: This option gets the job done for less than $10.
What you’ll love: It has leak-resistant paper, is pre-marked with holidays and has a notes section on the side of every month to allow for customization.
What you should consider: Many buyers report their calendars arriving bent or warped.
Where to buy: Sold by Amazon
Worth checking out
Indeme 18 Month Desk/Wall Calendar
What you need to know: It comes in two sizes with a floral-inspired design for each month.
What you’ll love: It has extra space on the side for notes, is easy to tear off each month and uses archival-quality paper.
What you should consider: This option is smaller than other models, and some buyers reported difficulty getting the calendar to lie flat due to bending during shipping.
Where to buy: Sold by Amazon
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Frank Paiva writes for BestReviews. BestReviews has helped millions of consumers simplify their purchasing decisions, saving them time and money.
Copyright 2022 BestReviews, a Nexstar company. All rights reserved. | https://www.wfla.com/reviews/br/office-br/office-supplies-br/best-desk-calendar/ | 2022-04-11T07:17:10 | 1 | https://www.wfla.com/reviews/br/office-br/office-supplies-br/best-desk-calendar/ |
Which Jade yoga mats are best?
Yoga is a wildly popular activity and rightly so. It offers a myriad of physical, mental and spiritual benefits while welcoming participants of all ages, shapes and sizes to practice alone or in a group. Yoga is accessible to those who are just starting off and diverse enough to continually challenge dedicated yogis who engage daily.
All you need is a yoga mat. Jade yoga mat, one of the leaders in yoga accessories, offers a few different options to cater to all your yoga needs. The Harmony Mat is their signature option, a quality all-around product designed for regular use. Finding the right mat for your body and activity level is crucial to success in yoga.
What to know before you buy a Jade yoga mat
Size
The standard yoga mat is 68 inches long and 24 inches wide. This typically suits most users across most poses. Jade also offers a 71-inch mat and a 74-inch mat for taller individuals.
Additionally, Jade boasts extra large mats that are 80 inches long and 28 inches wide. Extra width comes in handy not only for wider poses, but users can also roll the mat onto itself for extra padding. The yoga mat buying guide at Best Reviews includes more information on sizing and how to find the best fit for your needs.
Material
Most Jade yoga mats are made from natural rubber. This is an alternative to the more common variety of synthetic materials used in mats. Rubber is a terrific choice for environmentally-friendly and eco-conscious consumers, as it is a sustainable, long-lasting resource. Rubber mats are durable and easy to clean, although rubber is more expensive than synthetic alternatives. Keep in mind that rubber is not advised for outdoor use.
Jade does offer two options that are not made from rubber. One mat is made from organic cotton, offering a comfortable spot for a variety of practices, while another comprises organic cotton and Dharba grass, a tropical plant native to India. Both options are better suited for those who may want to practice outside. Although these mats lack the thickness and support for intense practices, they can be used on top of another mat.
Color
Jade yoga mats are available in a variety of bright and bold colors, including blue, purple, pink, slate and jade green. Color does not influence the quality of the mat but offers users a chance to find a color that may be a personal favorite or match their home decor. Some users may also want to match the color to a type of practice they prefer or frequent. Darker shades may be more suited to meditative and restorative practices, while those who work up a sweat with physical sessions may opt for something light and eye-catching.
What to look for in a quality Jade yoga mat
Thickness
The thickness of a yoga mat determines both the potential support and convenience offered. Thicker mats are ideal for those who need extra padding and support during more intense, frequent practices. However, thicker mats are harder to travel with since they are heavier and don’t fold as easily. Alternatively, thinner mats are ideal for taking to class and on the go, but they can lack the comfort some may desire.
The most popular Jade mat is 3/16 of an inch thick, which is about the average thickness. They also offer a thinner mat at 1/16 of an inch, as well as a thicker option at 5/16 of an inch.
Color causes
Jade Yoga features three yoga mat colors that are aimed to raise awareness for health issues, with a portion of the purchase donated in support. Teal mats are in support of ovarian cancer research, saffron mats support autism causes and pink mats raise money in support of breast cancer causes. Teal is offered year-round, while saffron and pink run for a limited time.
How much you can expect to spend on Jade yoga mat
Most Jade yoga mats cost between $65-$100, depending on size and thickness.
Jade yoga mat FAQ
How do I clean my Jade yoga mat?
A. Jade yoga mats are fairly easy to clean. For regular usage, your mat can be wiped with a damp towel every week. For more intense practices, users may want to wipe clean after every session. Owners may opt for Jade’s plant-based mat wash to wipe away any dirt or odor. Harsh chemicals and cleaning products should not be used, as it may damage the materials. Essential oils may also damage the rubber.
What accessories do I need to supplement my yoga mat?
A. With a yoga mat, you’re ready to stretch, meditate and work out as you wish. If you plan on taking your mat to a class or on vacation, it may be worth investing in a convenient bag or carrier so that the mat stays protected. Some yoga enthusiasts may want to acquire blocks as well to assist with certain positions. Bolsters are also another useful tool to integrate into practices, as are yoga blankets.
What’s the best Jade yoga mat to buy?
Top Jade yoga mat
What you need to know: Jade’s most popular yoga mat.
What you’ll love: This comfortable and durable mat caters to a wide range of practices and poses. Available in a variety of exciting colors, this mat boasts average length and width to suit most people in most practices. It sticks to the floor and offers stability, as well as comfort. Longer options are also available
What you should consider: This mat is more expensive than competitors and not ideal for outdoor use.
Where to buy: Sold by Amazon
Top Jade yoga mat for the money
What you need to know: A thin and lightweight mat, this option is ideal for yogis on the move, helping save space, energy and money.
What you’ll love: The thinnest mat available by Jade at 1/16 of an inch, the Travel Mat offers a convenient and intimate yoga session. It’s available in a variety of colors and among the cheaper options available.
What you should consider: It may not be supportive enough for larger individuals or intense practices.
Where to buy: Sold by Amazon
Worth checking out
What you need to know: An extra-thick mat that provides longevity and proper support for intense practices and physical activities.
What you’ll love: At 5/16 of an inch thick, this mat offers both comfort and stability for lunges, squats, planks and other intensive exercises. It’s available in various colors and there are two longer options also available for taller persons.
What you should consider: This mat is quite expensive and not ideal for traveling.
Where to buy: Sold by Amazon
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Anthony Marcusa writes for BestReviews. BestReviews has helped millions of consumers simplify their purchasing decisions, saving them time and money.
Copyright 2022 BestReviews, a Nexstar company. All rights reserved. | https://www.wfla.com/reviews/br/sports-fitness-br/yoga-pilates-br/best-jade-yoga-mat/ | 2022-04-11T07:17:19 | 0 | https://www.wfla.com/reviews/br/sports-fitness-br/yoga-pilates-br/best-jade-yoga-mat/ |