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No one wakes up and is inherently “good” with money. Learning how to manage your money effectively is a lifelong process. There is a common misconception that people who find themselves in difficult financial situations at some point may have made poor financial decisions, making their current situation 100 percent their fault. But that is not always the case.
This is particularly true as it relates to Black women. Much of our experience with money was already decided well before we got to experiment with it because of the lack of resources and financial education available to the generations of Black women before us. This makes our path to financial independence difficult before it begins.
I am here to tell you finances can be a delicate topic, but it doesn’t have to be shameful. Financial independence is not one size fits all. You should not be ashamed of your path to achieving financial independence because it looks different than someone else’s.
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It’s not entirely your fault.
Black Women’s Equal Pay Day is September 21. That means Black women will work over 200 additional days before they catch up to the 2021 earnings of white, non-Hispanic male colleagues. Unfair wages result in a loss of almost $1,000,000 over a 40-year class and reduce opportunities for Black women to save, invest, pay off debt, and rapidly increase their quality of life. This statistic impacts millions of Black women worldwide and reveals that you are not alone in where you are financially, and it is not entirely your fault. Your current path is not always a result of your decisions but also due to circumstances that may be out of your control.
You are not alone.
Social media is a highlight reel of all the significant achievements about money, such as paying off thousands of dollars of debt quickly, purchasing a home, starting a business, or negotiating a six-figure salary. While those achievements are meant to be celebrated, that is not the experience of most. Some people use small actionable steps to move forward on their path to financial independence. While those may not be as exciting, they are equally transformative. Realizing that you are not alone in your journey can be a powerful experience that leads to actionable change.
Shame doesn’t help.
According to a recent survey commissioned by National Debt Relief, more than 70 percent of people dealing with financial hardship feel it has permanently affected their mental health. You are human, and feeling shameful about your finances is normal but should be temporary. Shame leads to avoidance, and when we avoid our financial problems, that doesn’t make them go away; it only magnifies the problem and makes it worse. Replace avoidance with acceptance, embrace where you are financially, and fight for where you want to be.
It’s okay if you need to bring in professional help.
Not knowing what to do with your money can cause shame and increase anxiety around making decisions that could improve your circumstances. Some financial obstacles we run into can not be addressed with general advice, and you may need to call in reinforcements. Remember, we are not born knowing what to do with money, but there are people highly trained in money management who can assist you when things seem beyond your control.
Your current financial state will not last forever.
Finances are forever changing, and if you currently feel you are in a downward spiral, know that that will not always be the case. Most of what people deal with when it comes to finances is psychological, and when we accept that one day things will change for the better, it makes your current path seem less stressful.
Financial shame can lead to unproductive financial practices and tends to focus on how you see yourself as a result of your financial choices. Shame does not have to become your identity. During this journey, you’ve convinced yourself that you are bad with money because you’ve made questionable financial decisions. You can reframe that outlook and see your mistakes as a stepping stone to growing and learning. If you’ve made financial mistakes in the past, nothing is wrong with you, and you don’t have to be ashamed about that, because everyone makes mistakes. No matter where you are starting, there is always an opportunity for improvement.
Dasha Kennedy is a financial activist, a speaker, an educator, and the founder of The Broke Black Girl, where she helps bridge the gap between equity and financial education. Learn more about The Broke Black Girl’s resources and work here, and follow Kennedy at @thebrokeblackgirl. | https://www.oprahdaily.com/life/work-money/a41134350/black-womens-equal-pay-day/ | 2022-09-20T01:25:30Z | oprahdaily.com | control | https://www.oprahdaily.com/life/work-money/a41134350/black-womens-equal-pay-day/ | 1 | 0 | green-iguana-35 | null |
Because festive doesn’t equal ugly.
These days, it's nearly impossible to get through the holiday season without being invited to an ugly Christmas sweater theme party. As such, you may associate the words Christmas and sweater with cheesy, ugly, albeit fun, light-up apparel. But not all Christmas sweaters fall into this category. There are plenty of festive options you can build a Christmas outfit around, plus wear well beyond December 26.
There are options aplenty, and exactly what you choose depends on where you're headed. For more laid-back secret Santa exchanges, try a whimsical winter motif that's a little more overtly festive. If you're heading to a holiday open house, look for something more classic with a little bit of holiday flair—perhaps a textured knit with dramatic sleeves. Of course, you'll also need to stock something more suitable for an office party or the holiday itself. Look for sparkly embellishments, sequins, or evening-wear-inspired sleeves for instant pizzazz. Don’t discount classic Fair Isle and chunky textured cable knits or casual cotton, either—these sweaters perfectly encapsulate the season. Plus, they're go-tos for other winter events—like a weekend trip to your local ski mountain.
Whatever you're shopping for, here's a word of advice: Don't wait until the last minute, when your to-do list is overflowing with holiday errands like shopping for loved ones. Instead, snag one of these cute Christmas sweaters now while they're still widely available. | https://www.oprahdaily.com/style/g29527252/cute-christmas-sweaters/ | 2022-09-20T01:25:40Z | oprahdaily.com | control | https://www.oprahdaily.com/style/g29527252/cute-christmas-sweaters/ | 1 | 0 | green-iguana-35 | null |
Spc. Joaquin Renolds (left) and Sgt. Kyle Khuu, Army Reserve Soldiers with Headquarters and Headquarters Company, 492nd Civil Affairs Battalion, make their way to the finish line of the Medaille de Marche Internationale de Diekirch (MID) event in Buckeye, Arizona on September 18, 2022. The 492nd CAB conducted the MID event in order to build camaraderie and foster unit cohesion, and incentivizing completion with the MID award. (U.S. Army Reserve photo by Staff Sgt. Christopher Hernandez)
This work, 492nd Civil Affairs Battalion conducts Rising Phoenix Battalion March, Marche Internationale de Diekirch [Image 11 of 11], by SSG Christopher Hernandez, identified by DVIDS, must comply with the restrictions shown on https://www.dvidshub.net/about/copyright. | https://www.dvidshub.net/image/7424578/492nd-civil-affairs-battalion-conducts-rising-phoenix-battalion-march-marche-internationale-de-diekirch | 2022-09-20T01:35:17Z | dvidshub.net | control | https://www.dvidshub.net/image/7424578/492nd-civil-affairs-battalion-conducts-rising-phoenix-battalion-march-marche-internationale-de-diekirch | 1 | 0 | green-iguana-35 | null |
U.S. Marine Corps Maj. General Jay Bargeron, 3d Marine Division Commanding General, and Mr. Robert North, 3d Marine Division Association President, attend the 3d Marine Division Association banquet honoring the Division’s 80th Anniversary in San Diego, California, Sept. 17, 2022. The 3d Marine Division was activated at Camp Elliot, San Diego, Sept. 16, 1942 and has taken part in combat operations from World War II and Vietnam through Iraq and Afghanistan. The current Marines of 3d Marine Division continue to build on this legacy today as a critical part of the stand-in force within the first island chain of the Indo-Pacific. (U.S. Marine Corps photo by Chief Warrant Officer 2 Trent Randolph)
This work, 3d Marine Division Association Banquet [Image 6 of 6], by CWO2 Trent Randolph, identified by DVIDS, must comply with the restrictions shown on https://www.dvidshub.net/about/copyright. | https://www.dvidshub.net/image/7424603/3d-marine-division-association-banquet | 2022-09-20T01:35:48Z | dvidshub.net | control | https://www.dvidshub.net/image/7424603/3d-marine-division-association-banquet | 1 | 0 | green-iguana-35 | null |
Kansas Attorney General Derek Schmidt said he supports Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis' efforts to transport migrants out of the state.
DeSantis appeared at a campaign rally in Olathe, Kansas, for Schmidt, who is the Republican nominee for Kansas governor.
Karen Juarez, executive director for Advocates for Immigrant Rights and Reconciliation, said transporting the migrants out of state under false pretenses is "a violation of human rights."
Schmidt is using migrants for political gain, "but I like to believe that Kansas is better than that," Juarez said.
- Karen Juarez, executive director, Advocates for Immigrant Rights and Reconciliation | https://www.kcur.org/podcast/up-to-date/2022-09-19/migrants-transported-out-of-state-is-human-rights-violation-according-to-kansas-activist | 2022-09-20T01:38:12Z | kcur.org | control | https://www.kcur.org/podcast/up-to-date/2022-09-19/migrants-transported-out-of-state-is-human-rights-violation-according-to-kansas-activist | 1 | 0 | green-iguana-35 | null |
With a strong start to the high-school season, which includes a 4-0 record in the Liberty District, the Langley Saxons were atop the league’s girls volleyball standings when the week began.
Three of Langley’s district victories were by dominating 3-0 scores and the other a 3-1 win over the second-place Marshall Statesmen in a match with close results in all four sets.
The Saxons’ most recent triumph was 3-0 on the road in Arlington against the Yorktown Patriots. Two nights earlier Langley downed the McLean Highlanders, 3-0.
Overall Langley has a 12-1 record, which included a 2-0 record in its three-team Dig Pink Tournament with non-district matches against the Madison Warhawks and Robinson Rams in early-morning action. Madison and Robinson are traditional are perennial powers.
In those Sept. 17 tournament matches, Langley won each by 3-0 scores. The first match was against Robinson. In the second match against Madison, the third set was tied at 16 and Langley eventually won 25-2.
Langley also finished 4-1 in an early-season showcase tournament.
The team’s loss was a 3-0 defeat against Courtland in the showcase tournament.
“We are playing really well right now,” Langley coach Susan Shifflett said.
Langley has other non-league wins over South Lakes and Stone Bridge by 3-1 and 3-0 scores, respectively.
“We don’t have any six-foot players, we run a fast offense and we have a very well-rounded team,” Shifflett said. “We hit and serve-return well, we set well and our passing has improved.”
One of Langley’s top players has been senior Ercia Maebius, who Shifflett said is a top libero in the region. Ashley Osganian, Michael Svensson and Sophia Galova are other top seniors. Top juniors are Riley Buddie and Chloe Hokenson. Sophomores Ana Toumazatos and Leni Stanton-Parker are top hitters and receive a lot of playing time, along with freshman setter Claire Mo.
In that Dig Pink match against Madison, Langley was leading just 21-20 in the third set. Then three straight kills by Galova, Stanton-Parker and Hokenson upped the lead to 24-20, then a net ball by Madison ended the set and match.
Langley won the first two sets 25-13, 25-14. The Saxons defeated Robinson 25-18, 25-21, 25-18.
Through Sept. 15 action, Marshall, with a roster that includes seven seniors, had a 6-1 overall record, including a 3-1 Liberty District mark. The Statesmen’s most recent district win was 3-1 over the visiting Washington-Liberty Generals.
In non-district play, Marshall has blanked Oakton, Madison and Westfield by 3-0 scores.
Marshall has enjoyed the biggest turnover of players this season in program history.
Seniors for head coach David Carroll’s Marshall team are Madison Curcio, Liana Davila, Gabrielle Demant, Marie Kah, Rhea Patel, Zuliana Ruth and Emmie Tran.
Marshall participated in the multi-team Endless Summer tournament on Sept. 17 in Virginia Beach, playing the Division I bracket. | https://www.insidenova.com/sports/langley-volleyball-team-atop-liberty-district-standings/article_031e414c-387a-11ed-8a97-5b0a06f00b84.html | 2022-09-20T01:43:29Z | insidenova.com | control | https://www.insidenova.com/sports/langley-volleyball-team-atop-liberty-district-standings/article_031e414c-387a-11ed-8a97-5b0a06f00b84.html | 1 | 0 | green-iguana-35 | null |
There are two Monday night games. The Titans and Bills kicked off already. Josh Allen has already made a couple of highlight plays. Tennessee struggled to tackle, and Buffalo had an early 7-0 lead. The Titans answered back with a Derrick Henry touchdown on their opening drive.
The main event kicks off in under an hour between the Philadelphia Eagles and Minnesota Vikings. I thought both teams had a chance to win their respective divisions before the season started. Each team made a statement in Week 1, however DraftKings Sportsbook has the Eagles as 3-point favorites.
Jordan Jefferson ran wild through the Green Bay Packers' secondary. But how will Minnesota fare against a Philly defensive line? On the other side of the ball, the Vikes were fortunate rookie Christian Watson dropped a long touchdown pass from Aaron Rodgers. I suspect A.J. Brown has a big night against Patrick Peterson.
We could be in store for some points. Philadelphia is susceptible to teams who can run out of 11 personnel. That’s Kevin O’Connell’s specialty. This game has the potential for fireworks and big plays all over. I think the Eagles have the last laugh. | https://www.ninersnation.com/2022/9/19/23362160/mnf-week-2-eagles-vikings-picks-playoff-preview | 2022-09-20T01:46:52Z | ninersnation.com | control | https://www.ninersnation.com/2022/9/19/23362160/mnf-week-2-eagles-vikings-picks-playoff-preview | 1 | 0 | green-iguana-35 | null |
New Delhi: A host of track and field stars, including steepleschaser Avinash Sable and long jumper M Sreeshankar, will take part in the upcoming National Games with athletics set to field most number of participants among the 36 sports.
The Games are scheduled to be held in Gujarat from September 29.
Though Olympic champion javelin thrower Neeraj Chopra and Commonwealth Games triple jump gold medallist Eldhose Paul have decided to give the Games a miss, there are still some top athletes taking part in the multi-sport event, held after a gap of seven years.
Annu Rani, who became the first Indian female javelin thrower to win a medal (bronze) in the CWG, will represent Uttar Pradesh.
Star women sprinters Hima Das and Dutee Chand will run for Assam and Odisha respectively. Dutee had won a gold in 100m and bronze in 200m in the last edition of the National Games in Kerala in 2015.
Hima will bid for her maiden medal in the National Games.
Assam's Amlan Borgohain, who recently bettered the men's 100m national record in a Railways meet, and women's 100m hurdles national record holder, Jyothi Yarraji of Andhra Pradesh, will also take part in the Games.
An athlete can achieve an automatic qualification for the 2023 World Championships in Hungary on the basis of National Games performance.
"Yes, I am taking part in the National Games," Keralite Sreeshankar told PTI.
His father S Murali said Sreeshankar will try to breach the World Championships qualification standard of 8.25m during the Games.
The World Championships qualification period is from July 31, 2022, to July 30, 2023.
The 23-year-old Sreeshankar had won a silver in the Birmingham CWG last month with a jump of 8.08m. He has a personal best of 8.36m, but that was in April.
An Athletics Federation of India (AFI) official said Sable, who had won a silver in the Birmingham CWG, will be taking part in the Games.
The 28-year-old Sable had become the first non-Kenyan to win a medal in men;s steeplechase at the CWG since 1994.
However, Paul and his Kerala triple jump colleague Abdullah Aboobacker, who won silver in the Birmingham CWG in India's 1-2 finish, will not feature in the Games, their coach Harikrishnan confirmed.
As expected, athletics will see most number of participants out of the 36 sports, with more than 600 set to take part. That would make nearly 10 per cent of the total number of participants in the Games, which is likely to be around 7,000.
The Games are being held across six cities of Gujarat -- Ahmedabad, Gandhinagar, Surat, Vadodara, Rajkot and Bhavnagar.
Track and field events will be held at IIT Gandhinagar Ground from September 30 to October 4. | https://www.onmanorama.com/sports/other-sports/2022/09/19/sable-sreeshankar-to-compete-in-national-games.amp.html | 2022-09-20T01:55:09Z | onmanorama.com | control | https://www.onmanorama.com/sports/other-sports/2022/09/19/sable-sreeshankar-to-compete-in-national-games.amp.html | 1 | 0 | green-iguana-35 | null |
New Delhi: A host of track and field stars, including steepleschaser Avinash Sable and long jumper M Sreeshankar, will take part in the upcoming National Games with athletics set to field most number of participants among the 36 sports.
The Games are scheduled to be held in Gujarat from September 29.
Though Olympic champion javelin thrower Neeraj Chopra and Commonwealth Games triple jump gold medallist Eldhose Paul have decided to give the Games a miss, there are still some top athletes taking part in the multi-sport event, held after a gap of seven years.
Annu Rani, who became the first Indian female javelin thrower to win a medal (bronze) in the CWG, will represent Uttar Pradesh.
Star women sprinters Hima Das and Dutee Chand will run for Assam and Odisha respectively. Dutee had won a gold in 100m and bronze in 200m in the last edition of the National Games in Kerala in 2015.
Hima will bid for her maiden medal in the National Games.
Assam's Amlan Borgohain, who recently bettered the men's 100m national record in a Railways meet, and women's 100m hurdles national record holder, Jyothi Yarraji of Andhra Pradesh, will also take part in the Games.
An athlete can achieve an automatic qualification for the 2023 World Championships in Hungary on the basis of National Games performance.
"Yes, I am taking part in the National Games," Keralite Sreeshankar told PTI.
His father S Murali said Sreeshankar will try to breach the World Championships qualification standard of 8.25m during the Games.
The World Championships qualification period is from July 31, 2022, to July 30, 2023.
The 23-year-old Sreeshankar had won a silver in the Birmingham CWG last month with a jump of 8.08m. He has a personal best of 8.36m, but that was in April.
An Athletics Federation of India (AFI) official said Sable, who had won a silver in the Birmingham CWG, will be taking part in the Games.
The 28-year-old Sable had become the first non-Kenyan to win a medal in men;s steeplechase at the CWG since 1994.
However, Paul and his Kerala triple jump colleague Abdullah Aboobacker, who won silver in the Birmingham CWG in India's 1-2 finish, will not feature in the Games, their coach Harikrishnan confirmed.
As expected, athletics will see most number of participants out of the 36 sports, with more than 600 set to take part. That would make nearly 10 per cent of the total number of participants in the Games, which is likely to be around 7,000.
The Games are being held across six cities of Gujarat -- Ahmedabad, Gandhinagar, Surat, Vadodara, Rajkot and Bhavnagar.
Track and field events will be held at IIT Gandhinagar Ground from September 30 to October 4. | https://www.onmanorama.com/sports/other-sports/2022/09/19/sable-sreeshankar-to-compete-in-national-games.html | 2022-09-20T01:55:16Z | onmanorama.com | control | https://www.onmanorama.com/sports/other-sports/2022/09/19/sable-sreeshankar-to-compete-in-national-games.html | 1 | 0 | green-iguana-35 | null |
Lil Durk has finally addressed what many fans have been waiting for, breaking his silence about he and his fiancéeIndia Royale’s break up.
He posted a photo and message on Monday (Sept. 12) that said, “That [cat emoji] ,mines 4ever welcome to death row [expletive].”
Royale argued against his statement on her Instagram story uploading a cap emoji in response.
The back and forth comes after Royale tweeted she was a “free agent” on Sunday (Sept. 11). Fans believe from her post and finding out she unfollowed Durk on Instagram add up to their relationship going downhill.
They started dating in 2017 and share a daughter named Willow, they welcomed her in October 2018. Durk just proposed to Royale in his hometown Chicago at a concert last December.
Earlier this year Durk went viral for his interview with “Million Dollaz Worth of Game Podcast” after he said Royale’s bodycount made him most attracted to her. | https://www.stlamerican.com/arts_and_entertainment/hot_sheet/india-royale-lil-durk-break-up-following-rumors-of-him-cheating/article_ef85f708-33a4-11ed-b411-97acf8d19374.html | 2022-09-20T01:58:32Z | stlamerican.com | control | https://www.stlamerican.com/arts_and_entertainment/hot_sheet/india-royale-lil-durk-break-up-following-rumors-of-him-cheating/article_ef85f708-33a4-11ed-b411-97acf8d19374.html | 1 | 0 | green-iguana-35 | null |
Megan Thee Stallion disputes Nicki Minaj’s claims of him telling her to get an abortion.
Minaj not new to having rap beef went on her Queen Radio show discussing her rivals including an unidentified person believed to be Megan, who recommended she get an abortion.
On the epsiode she explained how the alleged person told her to terminate her pregnancy at an abortion clinic after she turned down a drink offer.
“Imagine telling someone you didn’t want a drink… you know, because you were, at the time, possibly pregnant, because you were actively trying to have a baby,” Minaj said. “Imagine that person saying, ‘Oh girl, you can go to the clinic!'”
Minaj also talked about how the unknown person attempted to send congratulation flowers to her house honoring the birth of her son after seeing Beyoncé sent her flowers.
Several of Minaj’s cult following fanbase, “The Barbz” accused Megan of being the culprit.
One of her fans tweeted “@theestallion Nicki Minaj is accusing you of encouraging abortion & child endangerment w/ alcohol.. This isn’t something to stay quiet on.”
Megan saw the tweet and responded back saying that’s a lie.
Megan and Minaj’s fans tussled back and forth in a war of words, with Megan eventually clearing the air on the rumors.
“No names were mentioned but u were first to respond? Oh baby the shoe fits,” Megan replied. “So this person didn’t mention me?”
“If someone @ you you can respond right or that don’t apply for every user on twitter? If someone directly @ my name …why do they be confused when I reply lol?” | https://www.stlamerican.com/arts_and_entertainment/hot_sheet/megan-thee-stallion-slams-critics-who-claim-she-suggested-nicki-minaj-get-an-abortion/article_9be1af98-3854-11ed-adc5-0b5359b67678.html | 2022-09-20T01:58:38Z | stlamerican.com | control | https://www.stlamerican.com/arts_and_entertainment/hot_sheet/megan-thee-stallion-slams-critics-who-claim-she-suggested-nicki-minaj-get-an-abortion/article_9be1af98-3854-11ed-adc5-0b5359b67678.html | 1 | 0 | green-iguana-35 | null |
Ray J’s name may be synonymous with the tabloids, but in this case he doesn’t want smoke. He’s simply trying to prove a point and address what he believes is the truth.
The singer and actor who once appeared in a viral sex tape with his ex-girlfriend Kim Kardashian, slams her mother Kris Jenner for taking what he calls a fake lie detector test.
He addressed the matter by calling Jenner out in an Instagram post.
His post comes in response to Jenner’s appearance on the “Late Late Show with James Corden” where she responded to multiple questions Corden asked while she was attached to a polygraph machine.
On the episode, Jenner swears she had no involvement with Kardashian’s sex tape. John Grogan, the lie detector examiner, determined that was the truth.
Ray J also said in his post the test was inaccurate and created to paint him out to be a liar. He alleges he and Kardashian filmed three different tapes.
The singer claimed the former couple filmed three separate tapes. He shared what is assumed to be a sex tape contract stating both would receive $400,000 each in compensation.
The former couple dated in the 2000s and their controversial tape was released in 2007.
Kardashian and Jenner’s rep did not provide comment to Page Six on the matter. | https://www.stlamerican.com/arts_and_entertainment/hot_sheet/ray-j-calls-kris-jenner-a-liar-for-sex-tape-lie-detector-test-question/article_781211d2-33a6-11ed-bf59-9b1a647f1bd3.html | 2022-09-20T01:58:44Z | stlamerican.com | control | https://www.stlamerican.com/arts_and_entertainment/hot_sheet/ray-j-calls-kris-jenner-a-liar-for-sex-tape-lie-detector-test-question/article_781211d2-33a6-11ed-bf59-9b1a647f1bd3.html | 1 | 0 | green-iguana-35 | null |
CHICOPEE, Mass. (WWLP) – Car break-ins continue to be a rising issue across the country.
22News spoke with the Chicopee Police Department. A spokesperson said that most car break-ins in our area are what they described as “easy-targets,” meaning thieves will go up to the car to see if its unlock and if it is, they will break into them.
They add that this is happening across the country, however, its being reported that thieves are also finding ways to get into cars that don’t require a key for the ignition.
“So there’s people out there that is actual scamming the frequency of the key fob to get into your vehicle and things like that. We are not seeing that here as of yet but there are ways and protective measures,” said Chicopee Police Spokesperson Travis Odiorne.
Chicopee Police want the public to know this type of break-in has not been seen yet in our area but there are ways to help protect your car. If you have a keyless car, consider getting a “blocking pouch” for your key fob to prevent remote access to your car from scammers. You may even be able to manually turn off the wireless signal from your fob.
Other ways to protect your car is to park close to security cameras, make sure your car is locked or purchasing a steering wheel lock or alarm. | https://www.wwlp.com/news/local-news/hampden-county/increase-of-keyless-car-thefts-across-the-country/ | 2022-09-20T02:00:35Z | wwlp.com | control | https://www.wwlp.com/news/local-news/hampden-county/increase-of-keyless-car-thefts-across-the-country/ | 1 | 0 | green-iguana-35 | null |
SPRINGFIELD, Mass. (WWLP) – Inflation may have fallen slightly for the month of August but the sticker shock is not stopping for local consumers.
“It’s just going to keep going up… it feels like its not going to change,” said Wallace Brierley-Bowers of West Springfield.
Wallace told 22News he’s made some small sacrifices to keep up with the inflated prices but even a trip to the grocery store is starting to weigh heavy on his wallet.
“It’s hard to get your hands on even simple things like lettuce or cucumbers that’s not going to break the bank,” Wallace said.
As of August, inflation stands at 8.3% compared to one year ago. Food prices have climbed to 11.4%, the cost of electricity is up by nearly 16%. However, gas prices are still inches lower.
Experts say external factors like the war in Ukraine and even the lockdown in China are causing supply issues and only worsening inflation overseas.
“I think we are going to have a very difficult supply chain,” said American International College Professor John Rogers. He explained, “You got the supply side of it, can you supply the goods and services at a reasonable price…. if not, then people bid up the price and that feeds inflation. But if you can’t address the supply then you only solve half the problem.”
Professor Rogers advises consumers to continue to ride out the inflation storm adding that by next year, we may start seeing more signs of it slowing down.
Later this week it is expected that the Federal Reserve will raise interest rates again to combat inflation. | https://www.wwlp.com/news/local-news/local-economics-professor-weighs-in-on-future-of-inflation/ | 2022-09-20T02:00:41Z | wwlp.com | control | https://www.wwlp.com/news/local-news/local-economics-professor-weighs-in-on-future-of-inflation/ | 1 | 0 | green-iguana-35 | null |
A Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department’s investigation into alleged corruption, involving a lucrative contract awarded by the county’s transportation agency to an organization headed by a good friend of county Supervisor Sheila Kuehl, has reached the White House.
President Joe Biden’s nominee to head the Federal Aviation Administration is former LA Metro CEO Phillip Washington, who played a pivotal role in awarding the contract before he moved on to become CEO of Denver International Airport. In light of the local investigation, at least one U.S. senator wants to ensure Washington is properly vetted before he is confirmed as FAA chief.
The sheriff’s investigation included search warrants issued simultaneously on Wednesday, Sept. 14, at Metro headquarters in downtown L.A. and the homes of Kuehl and Civilian Oversight Commissioner Patti Giggans, who is CEO of the organization Peace Over Violence that received the contract from Metro.
According to the search warrant, the sheriff detectives sought the contract between Metro and POV related to operation of a sexual harassment hotline for the county transportation system. They also wanted call logs and internal evaluations or audits of the hotline and communications between the two entities, Giggans, Kuehl and others, including Washington, from 2014 to 2020.
The contract was approved by Washington without a vote of the board that Kuehl sits on, and it was not subject to competitive bidding, meaning Giggans’ group was the sole source sought by the agency. LA Metro paid out $890,000 from 2014 to 2020 to Giggans’ group, according to the Sheriff’s Department.
The Sheriff’s Department alleges that others at LA Metro found nonprofit agencies willing to do the work for free. Also, a Fox 11 report in September 2020 found the harassment hotline received only a few dozen calls per month, costing LA Metro about $8,000 per call. The Sheriff’s Department called the hotline “a failure.”
“We have partnered with law enforcement and government institutions for more than 51 years to fill the gaps that exist in supporting survivors including operating the nation’s first and longest running sexual assault and domestic violence hotline,” said Peace Over Violence in a statement from Sept. 15.
Washington resigned from LA Metro in May 2021 after serving as CEO for six years. After about a year into his position in Denver, Biden nominated him on July 6 to head the FAA.
Washington must be confirmed by the U.S. Senate, a process that now has become more difficult since the search warrants were served and the allegations were splashed across social media, reaching the halls of Congress.
On the same day as the local searches, U.S. Sen. Roger Wicker, R-Mississippi, a ranking member of the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Technology, issued a statement saying the committee and the Senate at large will be bringing more scrutiny to Washington, intimating a successful confirmation of Biden’s nominee may be problematic.
In the statement, Wicker said he was “deeply troubled” to learn Biden’s nominee was named in the search warrant and tied to allegations of corruption at LA Metro.
“The committee’s vetting process will require additional scrutiny and review into his leadership at LA Metro,” Wicker said. He did not elaborate on what kind of extra investigating he would pursue. And there is no date set for the committee to vote on Washington’s appointment to head the FAA.
Wicker added: “I anticipate that this nominee’s credibility will also be a key focus of the committee.”
A spokesperson from Wicker’s Washington, D.C., office was contacted by email to elaborate on the Sept. 14 statement released by the senator, but he did not respond to requests for further comment.
A White House official who asked not to be named wrote a response to questions in an email received on Monday, Sept. 19: “His (Washington’s) nomination is working its way through the Senate and will be evaluated through that process. We’re going to let that process play out, but don’t have anything more.”
Messages left for Washington at Denver airport were not answered.
The search warrant relies on a whistleblower who worked at LA Metro and said the contract for the hotline was “pushed forward” by Washington so he could remain “in good graces” with Kuehl, a Metro board member. The warrant also alleges a bill for $75,000 from POV arrived on the whistleblower’s desk, and when she confronted Washington, he told her to pay it out of the purchase order process normally used for office supplies. It went on to say Washington told her he did not want to upset Kuehl’s friends by disputing the bill.
The warrant, however, has run into legal roadblocks. A Los Angeles County Superior Court judge has ordered the Sheriff’s Department to cease searching the computers seized from the offices of L.A. County Metro’s inspector general. A court hearing is set for Thursday, Sept. 22.
The judge said the Sheriff’s Department went around an order by Judge Eleanor Hunter. In nearly identical warrants issued last year, Hunter had already stated she would appoint a special master to oversee future searches, due to the possibility that the inspector general’s computers could contain information protected by attorney-client privilege.
Kuehl, meanwhile, has accused Sheriff Alex Villanueva of targeting her and Giggans in retaliation for their calls for his resignation. Both have been outspoken critics of Villanueva for years and have said the sheriff’s probe is an attempt at intimidation.
Staff Writer Jason Henry contributed to this article.
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GREENVILLE COUNTY, S.C. (WSPA) – Two people were taken to the hospital after a shooting Monday evening in Greenville County.
The Greenville County Sheriff’s Office responded to a home on West Bramlett Road just before 7:30 p.m.
When deputies arrived at the home, they found a man and woman who had each been shot.
Both victims were alert and conscious when they were taken to the hospital.
There’s no word yet on suspects in the shooting.
Anyone with information is asked to call Crime Stoppers of Greenville at 864-23-CRIME. | https://www.wspa.com/news/local-news/2-shot-at-greenville-co-home/ | 2022-09-20T02:10:05Z | wspa.com | control | https://www.wspa.com/news/local-news/2-shot-at-greenville-co-home/ | 1 | 0 | green-iguana-35 | null |
A homeless man was in custody on Monday, Sept. 19, for allegedly starting a fire that destroyed a historic church in South Los Angeles and left three firefighters injured, authorities said.
Carlos Diaz, 23, was arrested Sunday and booked on suspicion of arson of a structure, with additional charges pending, according to the Los Angeles Fire Department. The fire was reported at 2:22 a.m. on Sept. 11 at the two-story Victory Baptist Church, 4802 S. McKinley Ave.
“LAFD Arson Investigators and the multi-agency House of Worship Arson Task Force initiated an investigation into the fire’s cause,” an LAFD statement said. “Initial information did not immediately reveal any evidence of an intentionally set fire; however, their (investigators’) persistence later uncovered security footage to help connect the dots.”
The joint investigation included personnel from the Los Angeles School Police Department and the U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives. Investigators were aided by eyewitnesses.
About 150 firefighters were sent to the fire on Sept. 11.
“Crews initially made entry to find heavy smoke inside the structure,” Nicholas Prange, a LAFD spokesman, said in a statement. “As firefighters made entry, inevitably introducing more air to the conditions inside, fire behavior worsened quickly. Approximately 30 minutes after the arrival of firefighters, there was a structural collapse inside, trapping several LAFD members.”
Crews quickly rescued three firefighters. One was taken to a hospital in moderate condition, a second finished battling the fire and was later hospitalized in fair condition, and a third followed up with care on his own after the incident, Prange said.
Victory Baptist Church was a spiritual center of Los Angeles’ Black community for decades, and a site of major significance for gospel music and the civil rights movement. Mahalia Jackson was one of many noted gospel singers to perform there, and Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. spoke at the church a handful of times.
The church was founded by Arthur Atlas Peters on Easter Sunday in 1943, and moved into the McKinley Avenue building in 1944. Pastor W. Edward Jenkins has vowed that the church will continue on.
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It's getting tougher and tougher to survive as a family on a farm these days because the cost of doing business is just getting so high. But there's a new, environmentally friendly way of farming that's putting thousands of dollars back into farmers' pockets.
Since 1926, Todd Olander's family has worked on this land to make a living.
"We grow corn, alfalfa, barley, wheat, rye. I am the last remaining farmer that's left out of everyone," said Olander.
He's trying to keep his family's legacy alive, but, to do that, he's had to embrace change.
"I'm always open to trying different things," he said.
The corn fields that once provided a stable paycheck weren't making as much of a profit, so he started a malting operation that works with Colorado breweries and distilleries. It's called root shoot malting.
Mike Myers helps him run it.
"We wanted to focus on quality more than anything. So that also kind of is why we've changed some of our farming practices is to make sure that our barley is the highest quality possible," said Myers.
SEE MORE: California Heat Threatens Agriculture With 8th Day Of Triple Digits
The biggest change to their farming practices: becoming a carbon farming operation.
What does that mean? When plants grow, they remove carbon from the atmosphere and store it. Now, companies are making natural compounds to help crops do that better. The goal is to slow or reverse the impacts of climate change and grow crops better and faster.
Todd is getting paid to try this carbon farming assistant on his crops.
"It's not going to replace actually growing the crops. It's going to be just extra money to kind of offset maybe some of the extra fertilizer costs or fuel costs that we're seeing," said Olander.
It's earned him several thousand dollars at a time when every penny counts. The company that he's working with has paid family-owned farms across the country more than $1.5 million for carbon farming.
"That'd be my hope is that farmers are going to see the incentive to actually earn a little bit of extra money and they're going to take some of these steps towards regenerative farming," he said.
And Todd is taking his carbon farming one step further — he's growing radishes as ground cover to keep the soil cool, moist, and full of nutrients.
TODD OLANDER: Once you get the cycle working together, you should be able to eliminate fertilizer.
SCRIPPS' ALEXA LIACKO: And that's better for the planet, too.
OLANDER: It is. Exactly.
These two know, every farmer that takes on these changes can help better feed our nation and better protect our environment.
"I think we can reverse global warming. I mean, that's that's my hope," said Olander.
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The U.S. life expectancy is 76 years according to the Centers For Disease Control and Prevention. Others are living beyond that benchmark. Government numbers show there are more than 72,000 centenarians in the U.S., or those who've reached the age of 100.
The CDC predicts life expectancy for all Americans grow to 85.6 years by 2060. They credit current patterns in mortality caused by an more vaccinations, fewer infectious diseases, and alcohol and smoking prevention programs.
Jan Gantz is already past that. She celebrated her 90th birthday in April surrounded by friends and family at her home in Sarasota, Florida.
"I'm almost 5-6 months from my 91st year and I still don't know how I got to be 90. And as I told somebody, it happens one day at a time. And then all of a sudden, it's like what?" said Gantz. "The party was beautiful, they put so much planning into it."
You're probably wondering what her secret is to staying happy and healthy.
"I play mahjong several times a week, I go to the gym twice a week — that doesn't mean it's fun necessarily, I try and do water aerobics, entertain at least once a week and I go out socially," said Gantz.
The number of Americans 90-and-older has nearly tripled since the 1980s.
But Jan still has some ways to go to reach the bar set by these two: Jeanne Louise Calment of France and Jiroemon Kimura of Japan.
SEE MORE: Why Does Our Vision Get Worse As We Age?
The oldest female and male ever lived to 122 years and 116 years, respectively, according to Guinness World Records.
Family members say Calment had a good diet, but had a sweet tooth and ate about two pounds of chocolate a week.
Kimura's life motto was reportedly "eat light to live long."
There might be some truth to the old saying "an apple a day keeps the doctor away."
A study out this year in the Journal of the American Medical Association showed obesity and diabetes can deter how long we live. Researchers recommended a Mediterranean diet focused on seafood and veggies and went light on meat and sugar.
Regular exercise can slow down father time and reduce the risk of diabetes and heart disease.
German researchers analyzed a handful of studies and determined regular exercise can add almost four years to some people's life span. Good genes also factor in. It's estimated about a quarter of the variation in life span is dictated by genetics.
Yet the science to all the specific genes and how they help longevity is still in the works. And then there's lifestyle.
The more seniors stay mentally active, the more it can prevent Alzheimer's disease, according to the National Institute on Aging.
It's something Jan Gantz at 90 has been able to do, even through isolation during the pandemic.
"I spent time reading, interacting on the computer with people playing mahjong and games, and it was just a different time. And I feel very blessed to have gotten through that and not feeling scarred by a lot of it," said Gantz.
When asked what advice Gantz has for others looking to live a long and happy life, she gave an answer that's reflective of how she's lived hers.
"Be kind. And smile. You go out with a smile, you're always going to meet somebody. And kindness I think in today's world is going to go so far," she said.
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MEXICO CITY (CN) — A magnitude 7.7 earthquake shook southern Mexico on Monday — the same day as major quakes in 2017 and 1985.
Mexico’s National Seismological Service reported the epicenter was in the Pacific Coast state of Michoacán, about 260 miles west of Mexico City. The original magnitude reported was 6.8, but this was later updated to 7.4 and finally 7.7 within a matter of hours. The U.S. National Geological Survey maintains the quake was a magnitude 7.6.
At least 168 aftershocks were reported in the hours following the initial quake, the largest of which registered a magnitude of 5.3.
Mexico held its annual seismological drill just an hour before the real earthquake struck.
Sept. 19 has come to be a traumatic day for citizens of Mexico City, many of whom have lived through several major seismological events on the date throughout their lifetimes.
“We had the drill at 12:19, and less than an hour later, we heard the siren again,” said Clemente Ruiz López, who has lived in Mexico City’s Roma neighborhood for over 21 years. “When I saw the ceiling lights swaying, I said, ‘Oh, I don't like this.’”
Most of Mexico City is built on the sediment of an ancient lakebed. Areas like Roma are on some of the loosest subsoil in the capital, making them especially dangerous during seismic events.
Although earthquakes have become a fact of life for residents like Ruiz, Sept. 19 has become a rather worrisome day of the year.
“You have to take precautions and be calm when it happens,” he said. “People don’t want to be scared, but what can you do?”
Despite residents’ learned fear of the month, there is still no scientific evidence to prove that September is more seismically active than other months, according to Raúl Valenzuela Wong, a seismologist at Mexico’s National Autonomous University.
“There’s nothing special about the month of September, but by now no one is going to believe me,” said Valenzuela. “It’s a wicked, tragic coincidence, but it’s still a coincidence.”
Still, that is a hard argument to make to those who have lived through so many seismic Septembers.
Grant Cogswell has seen several earthquakes during his 11 years owning and operating Under the Volcano Books, an English-language used bookstore in the neighborhood of Condesa. Like Roma, Condesa is built on loose subsoil and often sees the worst of the quakes that affect the city.
When it comes to earthquakes on Sept. 19, he no longer believes in happenstance.
“There are 365 days in a year. Twice is a coincidence, three times is something else,” he said only half-jokingly.
The 7.1 magnitude quake that brought the capital to a standstill on Sep. 19, 2017, toppled his bookshelves and left a mountain of literature on the floor. After that, he secured the shelves to the walls with braces in preparation for future tremors.
That earthquake was actually the second of September 2017. An 8.2 magnitude quake rocked the southern state of Oaxaca on Sep. 7. While it was larger than the Sept. 19 quake, it was further away and did not cause as much damage as the second of that month.
Those 2017 quakes also greatly damaged Terminal 2 of the Mexico City International Airport. In July, President Andrés Manuel López Obrador announced that the facilities are at risk of collapse.
The tremor on Sept. 19, 2017, left nearly 400 people dead and over 180,000 residences damaged. That event, however, paled in comparison to the devastation on the same day in 1985. The official death count from that 8.1 magnitude quake was 3,692, though some estimates were as high as 20,000.
No major damage was reported in Mexico City as a result of Monday’s earthquake.
Michoacán’s Civil Protection agency said on Twitter that it was checking for damage in the state, but had not reported any major issues as of press time.
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CHICAGO (CN) — A Cook County jury on Monday ordered medical technology firm Sterigenics, its parent company Sotera Health and food manufacturer Griffith Foods International to pay $363 million to an Illinois breast cancer survivor.
Following a five-week trial and a full day of deliberations, the jury found the companies were responsible for exposing Susan Kamuda and thousands of other residents of DuPage County to a carcinogenic gas known as ethylene oxide.
Kamuda's suit represented over 700 other consolidated cases. The jury ordered the companies to pay her $38 million in compensatory damages, plus another $325 million in punitive damages for polluting the local area with the toxic gas. Sterigenics took the the lion's share of the penalty, $220 million, while Sotera Health was ordered to pay $100 million and Griffith Foods another $5 million.
“[Sterigenics] did not treat EtO like a carcinogen, they treated it like an ATM,” Kamuda's attorney Patrick Salvi II, of the law firm Salvi, Schostok & Pritchard, said during trial. “They consistently underplayed their EtO use in reports to regulators so they could fly under the radar and continue making money off this toxic operation. They were paying their executives hundreds of millions of dollars, all while Sue and her neighbors were unknowingly being exposed to this insidious chemical.”
The ethylene oxide was emitted from Sterigenics' sterilization plant in the Chicago suburb of Willowbrook, built by Griffith Foods in the early 1980s. The plant used the gas to sterilize medical devices and surgical tools from 1984 to its shuttering in 2019, and while the process allowed for various materials to be sterilized at low temperatures, ethylene oxide emissions into the air of nearby communities increased the local cancer rate. As late as 2016, the plant was emitting over 4,000 pounds of ethylene oxide annually.
Kamuda, a Willowbrook resident who lives less than half a mile from the shuttered Sterigenics facility, was diagnosed with breast cancer in 2007. She filed her complaint in Cook County in September 2018, after learning from a report prepared that year by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services that said those living near the Sterigenics facility faced an elevated cancer risk due to the ethylene oxide emissions.
The 2018 report was based in part on the Environmental Protection Agency's 2014 National Air Toxics Assessment which found the Willowbrook census tract in DuPage County to have the highest cancer risk in Illinois and the 19th highest cancer risk in the U.S. A separate study by the Illinois Department of Public Health found that between 2014 and 2018, DuPage had the second-highest cancer incidence rate in Illinois, behind only Cook County.
Willowbrook residents fought for years to shutter Sterigenics' facility, which also earned the ire of multiple Illinois politicians. In February 2019, Democratic Governor J.B. Pritzker's administration shut the plant down amid mounting pressure from local activists and the accompanying litigation in state courts. Despite a brief reopening in May 2019, Sterigenics announced that September that it would not be renewing its lease on the plant.
In a 2019 press release that is no longer available on Sterigenics' website, the company said that "inaccurate and unfounded claims regarding Sterigenics and the legislative regulatory landscape in Illinois have created an environment in which it is not prudent to maintain these critical sterilization operations.”
On Monday following the jury's verdict, Sterigenics maintained the allegations against it were unfounded.
“We do not believe the jury verdict in this matter reflects the evidence presented in court. Sterigenics is evaluating the verdict and plans to challenge this decision through all appropriate process, including appeals," the company said in a statement to Courthouse News. "We will continue to vigorously defend against allegations about our ethylene oxide operations and emissions."
Kamuda’s son Brian, who was diagnosed with non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma in 2021, has also filed a lawsuit against Sterigenics. His case will go to trial at a later date.
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TRAVERSE CITY, Mich. (AP) — Seven Midwestern states are teaming up to accelerate the development of hydrogen as a clean-energy alternative for automobiles and factories that rely largely on climate-warming fossil fuels, governors said Monday.
The partnership includes Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, Michigan, Minnesota, Ohio and Wisconsin, whose economies are dominated by agriculture and heavy industry such as steel and automobile manufacturing.
“The Midwest will continue leading the future of mobility and energy innovation and has enormous potential for transformative hydrogen investments,” Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer said.
Hydrogen is a colorless, odorless gas that already powers some cars, trucks, buses and trains. But a shortage of fueling stations limits their appeal. Some environmentalists are skeptical because most commercially produced hydrogen in the U.S. comes from natural gas, which emits carbon dioxide and other greenhouse pollutants.
But hydrogen can be derived using electric currents from wind, solar or other means that produce few if any emissions contributing to global warming. Such “clean hydrogen” releases only water as a byproduct when used in a fuel cell.
“We don’t have to choose between clean energy and clean air and creating good-paying jobs and a strong economy — we can do both,” Wisconsin Gov. Tony Evers said.
The federal infrastructure law enacted last year included $8 billion for the U.S. Department of Energy to fund regional “hubs” that would step up clean hydrogen production and distribution.
Climate legislation that President Joe Biden signed last month offers a tax credit intended to make clean hydrogen more competitive.
Those measures “made it almost certain that clean hydrogen development will become a major alternative for producing energy both in the Midwest and nationally,” said Zachary Kolodin, Michigan’s chief infrastructure officer.
States in the Rocky Mountains and the Deep South announced regional associations earlier this year. Another was proposed for the Los Angeles Basin in California.
The Midwestern Hydrogen Coalition hasn't committed to joint pursuit of federal funding, although smaller groups of states or industries might seek grants.
Instead, the seven-state partnership will focus on boosting development, markets, supply chains and a workforce for clean hydrogen, according to a joint statement.
It will take advantage of assets such as the region's pipelines and tanks for distributing and storing ammonia, which consists largely of hydrogen and is a key ingredient in fertilizer.
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By JOHN FLESHER AP Environmental Writer
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NEW YORK (AP) — Sharply rising cases of some sexually transmitted diseases — including a 26% rise in new syphilis infections reported last year — are prompting U.S. health officials to call for new prevention and treatment efforts.
“It is imperative that we ... work to rebuild, innovate, and expand (STD) prevention in the U.S.,” said Dr. Leandro Mena of the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in a speech Monday at a medical conference on sexually transmitted diseases.
Infections rates for some STDs, including gonorrhea and syphilis, have been rising for years. Last year the rate of syphilis cases reached its highest since 1991 and the total number of cases hit its highest since 1948. HIV cases are also on the rise, up 16% last year.
And an international outbreak of monkeypox, which is being spread mainly between men who have sex with other men, has further highlighted the nation's worsening problem with diseases spread mostly through sex.
David Harvey, executive director of the National Coalition of STD Directors, called the situation “out of control.”
Officials are working on new approaches to the problem, such as home-test kits for some STDs that will make it easier for people to learn they are infected and to take steps to prevent spreading it to others, Mena said.
Another expert said a core part of any effort must work to increase the use of condoms.
“It's pretty simple. More sexually transmitted infections occur when people are having more unprotected sex,” said Dr. Mike Saag, an infectious disease expert at the University of Alabama at Birmingham.
Syphilis is a bacterial disease that surfaces as genital sores but can ultimately lead to severe symptoms and death if left untreated.
New syphilis infections plummeted in the U.S. starting in the 1940s when antibiotics became widely available. They fell to their lowest ever by 1998, when fewer than 7,000 new cases were reported nationwide. The CDC was so encouraged by the progress it launched a plan to eliminate syphilis in the U.S.
But by 2002 cases began rising again, largely among gay and bisexual men, and they kept going. In late 2013, CDC ended its elimination campaign in the face of limited funding and escalating cases, which that year surpassed 17,000.
By 2020 cases had reached nearly 41,700 and they spiked even further last year, to more than 52,000.
The rate of cases has been rising, too, hitting about 16 per 100,000 people last year. That's the highest in three decades.
Rates are highest in men who have sex with men, and among Black and Hispanic Americans and Native Americans. While the rate for women is lower than it is for men, officials noted that it's has been rising more dramatically — up about 50% last year.
That ties to another problem — the rise in congenital syphilis, in which infected moms pass the disease on to their babies, potentially leading to death of the child or health problems like deafness and blindness. Annual congenital syphilis cases numbered only about 300 a decade ago; they surged to nearly 2,700 last year. Of last year's tally, 211 were stillbirths or infant deaths, Mena said.
The increases in syphilis and other STDs may have several causes, experts say. Testing and prevention efforts have been hobbled by years of inadequate funding, and spread may have gotten worse — especially during the pandemic — as a result of delayed diagnosis and treatment. Drug and alcohol use may have contributed to risky sexual behavior. Condom use has been declining.
And there may have been a surge in sexual activity as people emerged from Covid-19 lockdowns. “People are feeling liberated,” Saag said.
The arrival of monkeypox added a large additional burden. CDC recently sent a letter to state and local health departments saying that their HIV and STD resources could be used to fight the monkeypox outbreak. But some experts say the government needs to provide more funding for STD work, not divert it.
Harvey's group and some other public health organizations are pushing a proposal for more federal funding, including at least $500 million for STD clinics.
Mena, who last year became director of the CDC's Division of STD Prevention, called for reducing stigma, broadening screening and treatment services, and supporting the development and accessibility of at-home testing. “I envision one day where getting tested (for STDs) can be as simple and as affordable as doing a home pregnancy test,” he said.
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By MIKE STOBBE AP Medical Writer
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.
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BERLIN (AP) — Qatar’s ambassador to Germany was urged Monday to abolish his country’s death penalty for homosexuality at a human rights congress hosted by the German soccer federation two months before the Middle East country stages the World Cup.
Fan representative Dario Minden switched to English to directly address the Qatari ambassador, Abdulla bin Mohammed bin Saud Al Thani, at the congress in Frankfurt.
“I’m a man and I love men,” Minden said. “I do — please don’t be shocked — have sex with other men. This is normal. So please get used to it, or stay out of football. Because the most important rule in football is football is for everyone. It doesn’t matter if you’re lesbian, if you’re gay. It’s for everyone. For the boys. For the girls. And for everyone in between.”
Minden continued: “So abolish the death penalty. Abolish all of the penalties regarding sexual and gender identity. The rule that football is for everyone is so important. We cannot allow you to break it, no matter how rich you are. You are more than welcome to join the international football community and also, of course, to host a big tournament. But in sports, it is how it is. You have to accept the rules.”
Al Thani was to be given a chance to respond later, though his comments were to remain off the record. Only the opening 90 minutes of the federation's congress were broadcast to the public and no journalists were invited to the event.
Federation spokesman Steffen Simon said it was not the organization's decision to hold the majority of the congress off camera, but “we received a clear request from some participants that they would like to discuss these matters internally with us. They did not want to discuss in public. We respected that.”
Qatar’s laws and society have come under increased scrutiny in the past decade.
Major General Abdulaziz Abdullah Al Ansari, a senior leader overseeing security for the tournament, previously told The Associated Press that rainbow flags could be taken from fans at the World Cup in Qatar to protect them from being attacked for promoting gay rights.
Al Ansari insisted that LGBTQ couples would still be welcomed and accepted in Qatar for the World Cup despite same-sex relations remaining criminalized in the conservative Gulf nation.
Before Minden spoke Monday, Al Thani complained to the congress that the issue of human rights was diverting attention from the tournament.
“We all care about human rights. But I would have enjoyed (it) more if I saw some concentration not only on just one subject, but the enjoyment of football and the football effect on people around the world,” Al Thani said.
The ambassador referred to the last World Cup in Russia, its invasion and takeover of Crimea in Ukraine, and human rights abuses in that country, “and there was not focus, neither from Germany, neither from any country in Europe.”
Al Thani said Qatar abolished the controversial kafala system that required migrant workers to have a sponsor, a system that left many workers vulnerable to abuse and exploitation, and that the country had introduced a minimum working wage and a compensation fund for workers to make claims of rights abuses.
“Yes, we are not perfect. We are not claiming we are perfect, but it’s a journey that we will write,” Al Thani said.
The ambassador invited soccer fans to go for themselves to “enjoy the football, see the different cultures,” and meet with migrant workers once they get there.
“You’ll see them in hotels. You’ll see them in public transport. Ask them,” Al Thani said.
He then referred to Bayern Munich’s long-standing sponsorship deal with Qatar.
“Bayern Munich has been spending the last four or five years coming for a winter camp in Doha. Why don’t they speak out? Why don’t they say they’ve been to Doha? (If) they think it’s appalling, say it publicly, or just shut up,” Al Thani said. “Because you know, you have the ability to be there. You have the ability to meet the people, speak to them. If you think there is something wrong, say it. Do not hide behind the bush.”
German soccer federation president Bernd Neuendorf called on the Qatari government to establish, “without any ifs or buts,” working centers where migrants can go in the event of employer violations, and a compensation fund for the relations of workers who died or were injured on World Cup construction sites.
“The last demand for the fund is also addressed to FIFA,” Neuendorf said.
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By CIARÁN FAHEY AP Sports Writer
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BALTIMORE (AP) — A Baltimore judge on Monday ordered the release of Adnan Syed after overturning his conviction for the 1999 murder of Hae Min Lee — a case that was chronicled in the hit podcast “Serial.”
At the behest of prosecutors, Circuit Court Judge Melissa Phinn ordered that Syed’s conviction be vacated and she approved the release of the now-41-year-old who has spent more than two decades behind bars.
Phinn ruled that the state violated its legal obligation to share exculpatory evidence with Syed’s defense. She ordered him released from custody and placed on home detention with GPS location monitoring. She also ordered the state to decide whether to seek a new trial date or dismiss the case within 30 days.
Syed, who has always maintained his innocence, received widespread attention in 2014 when the debut season of “Serial” focused on Lee’s killing and raised doubts about some of the evidence prosecutors had used, inspiring countless dinner table debates about Syed’s innocence or guilt.
Last week, prosecutors filed a motion saying that a lengthy investigation conducted with the defense had uncovered new evidence that could undermine the 2000 conviction of Syed, Lee’s ex-boyfriend.
Syed was serving a life sentence after he was convicted of strangling 18-year-old Lee, whose body was found buried in a Baltimore park.
The investigation “revealed undisclosed and newly-developed information regarding two alternative suspects, as well as unreliable cell phone tower data,” State’s Attorney Marilyn Mosby’s office said in a news release last week. The suspects were known persons at the time of the original investigation, but weren’t properly ruled out nor disclosed to the defense, said prosecutors, who declined to release information about the suspects, due to the ongoing investigation.
Prosecutors said they weren’t asserting that Syed is innocent, but they lacked confidence “in the integrity of the conviction” and recommended he be released on his own recognizance or bail. The state’s attorney’s office had said if the motion were granted it would effectively put Syed in a new trial status, vacating his convictions, while the case remained active.
Syed was led into the crowded courtroom in handcuffs Monday. Wearing a white shirt with a tie, he sat next to his attorney. His mother and other family representatives were in the room, as was Mosby.
In 2016, a lower court ordered a retrial for Syed on grounds that his attorney, Cristina Gutierrez, who died in 2004, didn’t contact an alibi witness and provided ineffective counsel.
But after a series of appeals, Maryland’s highest court in 2019 denied a new trial in a 4-3 opinion. The Court of Appeals agreed with a lower court that Syed’s legal counsel was deficient in failing to investigate an alibi witness, but it disagreed that the deficiency prejudiced the case. The court said Syed waived his ineffective counsel claim.
The U.S. Supreme Court declined to review Syed’s case in 2019.
The true-crime series was the brainchild of longtime radio producer and former Baltimore Sun reporter Sarah Koenig, who spent more than a year digging into Syed’s case and reporting her findings in almost real-time in hour-long segments. The 12-episode podcast won a Peabody Award and was transformative in popularizing podcasts for a wide audience.
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By BRIAN WITTE Associated Press
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National
Biden quietly making a radical shift in opioid policy
In dealing with the opioid crisis, the Biden administration is quietly embracing “harm reduction” — a controversial approach that could save thousands of lives but create a political firestorm because it appears to be giving up and accepting illegal drug use as normal.
Regional
Eighth Circuit revives Courthouse News bid for quick access to Missouri cases
A lawsuit by Courthouse News to force Missouri courts to provide quicker access to civil complaints was revived Monday by the Eighth Circuit, which said the court system’s foot-dragging might violate the First Amendment.
Medical sterilization firm ordered to pay breast cancer survivor $363 million
A Cook County jury on Monday ordered medical technology firm Sterigenics, its parent company Sotera Health and food manufacturer Griffith Foods International to pay $363 million to an Illinois breast cancer survivor.
International
Queen Elizabeth burial brings post-war British imperial era to an end
Queen Elizabeth II was buried with great pomp and ceremony at Windsor Castle on Monday, bringing to an end an era that she helped define following World War II as she oversaw the fading of the world's largest empire in history.
Bread prices hit all-time high in EU as war disrupts food supply
Prices for many food staples in the European Union have spiked in recent months, with bread reaching its highest price ever.
Iran calls US asset seizure part of destabilization strategy
In opening arguments before the United Nations' high court Monday, Tehran slammed the United States for confiscating some $2 billion in state assets in what it called an effort to force a regime change.
Science
Researchers use acoustic waves to locate meteoroids on Mars
In a study published Monday in Nature Geoscience, researchers including University of Toulouse professor Raphael Garcia and Dr. Ingrid Dauber of Brown University analyzed seismometer data from NASA’s InSight lander and calculated the location of four meteor impact events by having their instruments listen for seismic waves.
New research shows the lasting devastation of wildfires
A study published Monday in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences found shocking effects from wildfires as the season turns, proving that rampant summer burns go beyond havoc on habitats.
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DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — The United Arab Emirates will launch its first lunar rover in November, the mission manager said Monday.
Hamad Al Marzooqi told The National, a state-linked newspaper, that the “Rashid” rover, named for Dubai's ruling family, would be launched from the Kennedy Space Center in Florida sometime between Nov. 9 and Nov. 15. The exact date will be announced next month, he said.
The rover is to be launched aboard a Falcon 9 SpaceX rocket and deposited on the moon by a Japanese ispace lander sometime in March.
“We’ve finished with the testing of the rover and we are happy with the results,” Al Marzooqi was quoted as saying. “The rover has been integrated with the lander and it is ready for launch.”
The lunar mission is part of the UAE’s broader strategy to become a major player in the field of space exploration. If the moon mission succeeds, the UAE and Japan would join the ranks of only the U.S., Russia and China as nations that have put a spacecraft on the lunar surface.
Already, an Emirati satellite is orbiting Mars to study the red planet’s atmosphere. The UAE partnered with Japan’s Mitsubishi Heavy Industries to launch that probe, which swung into Mars’ orbit in February 2021.
The Rashid rover is expected to study the lunar surface, mobility on the moon’s surface and how different surfaces interact with lunar particles. The 10-kilogram (22-pound) rover will carry two high-resolution cameras, a microscopic camera, a thermal imagery camera, a probe and other devices.
The UAE has plans to develop the Middle East’s most advanced commercial satellite to produce high-resolution satellite imagery. It has also set the ambitious goal of building a human colony on Mars by 2117.
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WASHINGTON (AP) — An American contractor held hostage in Afghanistan for more than two years has been released in exchange for a convicted Taliban drug lord jailed in the United States, the White House said Monday, announcing a rare success in U.S.-Taliban talks since the militant group took power a little more than a year ago
Mark Frerichs, a Navy veteran who had spent more than a decade in Afghanistan as a civilian contractor, was abducted in January 2020 and is believed to have been held since then by the Taliban-linked Haqqani network. He was traded for Bashir Noorzai, a Taliban associate convicted of heroin trafficking conspiracy who had spent 17 years behind bars before his release Monday.
The exchange is one of the most significant prisoner swaps to take place under the Biden administration, coming five months after a deal with Russia that resulted in the release of Marine veteran Trevor Reed. Though his case has received less public attention than those of other Americans held abroad, including WNBA star Brittney Griner and corporate security executive Paul Whelan — who are both held in Russia and whose relatives met with President Joe Biden on Friday — U.S. officials said the deal for Frerichs was the culmination of months of quiet negotiations.
Those discussions gained new momentum in June when Biden granted Noorzai relief from his life sentence, setting the stage for what one administration official described as a “very narrow window of opportunity this month" to carry out the deal.
Biden said in a statement released by the White House, “Bringing the negotiations that led to Mark’s freedom to a successful resolution required difficult decisions, which I did not take lightly."
Frerichs, 60, had been working on civil engineering projects at the time of his Jan. 31, 2020, abduction in Kabul. He’s believed to have been lured into a meeting to discuss a new project and then transported to Khost, a stronghold of the Taliban-linked Haqqani network near the border with Pakistan.
He was last seen in a video posted last spring by The New Yorker in which he appeared in traditional Afghan clothing and pleaded for his release. He was accompanied Monday by the administration’s special presidential envoy for hostage affairs and was in stable health, a U.S. official said. His ultimate destination was not immediately clear.
A sister of Frerichs, who is from Lombard, Illinois, thanked U.S. officials who helped secure her brother's release.
“I am so happy to hear that my brother is safe and on his way home to us. Our family has prayed for this each day of the more than 31 months he has been a hostage. We never gave up hope that he would survive and come home safely to us," said a statement from the sister, Charlene Cakora.
Noorzai, at the time of his 2005 arrest, hardly seemed an ideal recipient for presidential clemency. He'd been designated on a list reserved for some of the world's most prolific drug traffickers, and was prosecuted in federal court in New York on charges that accused him of owning opium fields in Kandahar province and relying on a network of distributors who sold the heroin.
When he was sentenced to life imprisonment, the then-top federal prosecutor in Manhattan said Noorzai's "worldwide narcotics network supported a Taliban regime that made Afghanistan a breeding ground for international terrorism."
The deal underscored the two sides to the Taliban’s approach to illegal drugs. In April, they announced a ban on harvesting the poppies that produce opium for making heroin -- an order that also outlawed the manufacture and transportation of narcotics. However, during the years-long Taliban insurgency, they reportedly made millions of dollars taxing farmers and middle men who moved their drugs outside Afghanistan.
A senior administration official who briefed reporters on condition of anonymity under ground rules set by the administration said that the U.S. government had now determined that Noorzai's release would “not materially change any risk to Americans or fundamentally alter the contours of the drug trade there." Officials also took into account that Noorzai had spent 17 years in prison, and said that it became clear from negotiations that releasing him was the key to getting Frerichs home.
At a press conference Monday, Noorzai expressed gratitude at seeing his “mujahedeen brothers” — a reference to the Taliban — in Kabul.
“I pray for more success of the Taliban,” he added. “I hope this exchange can lead to peace between Afghanistan and America, because an American was released and I am also free now.”
Even before their takeover of Afghanistan in August last year, the Taliban had demanded the U.S. release Noorzai in exchange for Frerichs. But there had been little public indication of Washington proceeding along those lines.
Eric Lebson, a former U.S. government national security official who had been advising Frerichs family, said in a statement that “everything about this case has been an uphill fight.” He criticized the Trump administration for having given away "our leverage to get Mark home quickly by signing a peace accord with the Taliban without ever having asked them to return Mark first.''
“Mark’s family then had to navigate two administrations, where many people viewed Mark’s safe return as an impediment to their plans for Afghanistan,” the statement said.
The collapse of the Western-backed Afghan government and takeover by the Taliban in August 2021 raised additional concern that any progress in negotiations could be undone or that Frerichs could be forgotten. But his name was invoked last month when Biden was said by his advisers to have pressed officials to consider any risk posed to Frerichs by the drone strike in Afghanistan that killed al-Qaida leader Ayman al-Zawahri.
The Taliban-appointed foreign minister, Amir Khan Muttaqi, hailed the exchange Monday as the start of a “new era" in U.S.-Taliban relations and the opening of a “new door for talks.”
U.S. officials were more circumspect. Though it does not recognize the Taliban government, the U.S. does have interests at stake in Afghanistan and will continue to engage with the Taliban in addressing the hunger and humanitarian crisis gripping the country, administration officials said Monday.
But officials say they remain concerned about whether the Taliban are committed to fighting terrorism and by the exclusion of girls from high schools there, an issue that drew a United Nations reprimand on Sunday.
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By ERIC TUCKER and RAHIM FAIEZ Associated Press
Faiez reported from Islamabad. Associated Press writer Aamer Madhani in Washington contributed to this report.
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LOCKPORT — It will be a test of skill and speed and Niagara County Sheriff Mike Filicetti says he can’t wait to get behind the wheel of a sports car and run laps at the Watkins Glen International Speedway on Oct. 13.
Filicetti will be competing against 27 other sheriffs from across New York in what is being billed as the Watkins Glen International “Sheriffs Showdown 2”.
The event is a a fundraiser for the New York State Sheriffs’ Institute Summer Camp.
“I am looking forward to taking the checkered flag at The Glen and putting Niagara County in the number one spot,” Filicetti said.
At a race track where professional drivers regularly hit triple digits on their speedometers, and the G-forces on the turns can be intense, Filicetti said the competition will be “pretty neat.”
“It’s a great opportunity for us and will certainly build camaraderie among the sheriffs,” Filicetti said. “And it’s for such a good cause.”
Founded nearly 100 years ago by the YMCA as “Camp Iroquois”, the property on Keuka Lake in Yates County, has been home to the Sheriffs’ Summer Camp since 1986. The camp is designed for boys and girls between the ages of 9 and 12, who, because of economic disadvantages have not had an opportunity to attend a summer camp.
Filicetti said each year his office selects about 20 children from across Niagara County to attend the camp. Campers are provided with athletic, musical, aquatic, recreational, and creative activities throughout their week-long camping session.
“I’ve been out there with our kids,” Filicetti said, “and their excitement at being there is just so great to see.”
The sheriffs will received instruction on how to drive the twisting road course and then race for a pre-determined number of laps. The sheriff with the fast lap speed will be declared the winner.
Asked if he’s driven at triple digits anytime recently, Filicetti replied, with a chuckle, “Probably earlier this year.”
The sheriff said he’s hopeful that folks from Niagara County will travel down for the event. General admission tickets to the racetrack are free and, in addition to the racing sheriff’s, there will be demonstrations by specialized units from sheriff’s offices across the state.
The demo teams will include SWAT, Bomb Detection, Scuba, Mounted, K-9 and Drone divisions. Attendees will also be able, for a fee, be able to ride five laps in a race car driven by a professional driver, drive five laps on the race course themselves, or receive one hour of training in emergency vehicle (police patrol car) operation and control (EVOC) and then an EVOC course.
“The sheriffs are all excited to hit the track and raise money for a great cause,” Filicetti said. “The Sheriffs’ Summer camp means so much to our kids that attend each year. I hope people can join us or sponsor to make this a great event for the kids.”
Those interested in sponsorship opportunities can contact the New York State Sheriff’s Institute at 518-434-9091 ext. 117. | https://www.lockportjournal.com/news/local_news/county-sheriffs-to-race-at-watkins-glen-to-raise-funds-for-kids-summer-camp/article_5128336a-3871-11ed-9efb-c36b1dacde36.html | 2022-09-20T02:39:38Z | lockportjournal.com | control | https://www.lockportjournal.com/news/local_news/county-sheriffs-to-race-at-watkins-glen-to-raise-funds-for-kids-summer-camp/article_5128336a-3871-11ed-9efb-c36b1dacde36.html | 1 | 0 | green-iguana-35 | null |
The first phase of the Green Infrastructure project on Main, Washburn, South and Pine streets will be complete by Nov. 25, according to City Engineer Steve Pump, but parts of it may be finished before that date.
The project’s aim is to reduce the amount of stormwater that goes into the Erie Canal through the Combined Sewer Overflow system. About 70% of the City of Lockport uses a combined sewer system in which sanitary waste and storm water are run through one pipe that leads to the wastewater treatment facility, but overflow during heavy rain does find its way into 18-Mile Creek and the Erie Canal.
Phase One of the project includes the installation of “rain gardens,” “tree pits,” and "bio-retention areas” along the sidewalk of those streets. These additions to the landscape of downtown introduces water-absorbing plants to lessen the amount of rain and snow that currently makes its way into the storm drain.
“We’re trying to find ways to reduce that (overflow) from happening,” Mike Marino, an engineer from Nussbaumer and Clark said last year. “In the past that meant replacing broken sewers or lining broken sewers, but this is a different technology.”
Another aspect of the project is creating a more beautiful, green and safe area for pedestrians through the addition of these plants, Pump said, as well as through the installation up to a-foot more of sidewalk along Main Street at the intersections of Pine and Main streets, and Washburn and Main streets.
This new “bump” of sidewalks on both sides of Main Street will make crossing the road safer for pedestrians.The existing sidewalk along Pine and Washburn Streets is also going to be revamped through the construction phase of the project.
“Moving curblines will make things safer by decreasing the distance for people to cross,” Pump said.
The first phase of the project cost approximately $2.2 million with $1.5 million coming from a New York State Green Infrastructure Grant Program (GIGP) which required a 10% match, paid from funds coming from a Community Development Block Grant of $172,000, as well as a portion of the Downtown Revitalization Initiative.
The biggest piece of Phase One is the transformation of South Street from a two-way street bordered on the north by the former-Harrison Radiator factory and by residential homes on the south, to a one-way street with diagonal parking along the northside that formerly was sidewalk. The road will also be recrowned to improve traffic and water flow into rain gardens.
Pump said he understood that no one wants months of construction – the job is being undertaken by 4th Generation Construction of Niagara Falls – but he does foresee a light at the end of the tunnel.
“A lot of people complain about construction downtown,” Pump said. “But we hope that when the project is complete, that they will enjoy the final product.”
The Green Infrastructure project was first proposed in April of 2021. | https://www.lockportjournal.com/news/local_news/green-streets-project-to-be-done-by-thanksgiving/article_3682bdec-3866-11ed-87dd-1b275c67fc11.html | 2022-09-20T02:39:44Z | lockportjournal.com | control | https://www.lockportjournal.com/news/local_news/green-streets-project-to-be-done-by-thanksgiving/article_3682bdec-3866-11ed-87dd-1b275c67fc11.html | 1 | 0 | green-iguana-35 | null |
The last set of mass hiring done by the Lockport Fire Department will come in 2023, placing the department “back to par” with its status in 2014 before the City of Lockport fired 12 firefighters, a move later determined to be illegal by an arbitrator.
Surrounded by financial turmoil, the 2014 decision to put a dozen firefighters on the street was made during former Mayor Anne McCaffrey’s term who dropped the fire department’s ambulance service and cut the department’s minimum staffing levels from nine to six firefighters per shift.
In September of 2019, Michael Lewandowski, an arbitrator said that the city violated the union’s collective bargaining agreement, because a reduction of the LFD’s minimum manning put the residents of Lockport at risk.
“The decision of the former administration to unilaterally reduce fire department manpower was ill-conceived and inevitably left our firefighters and residents at risk,” Mayor Michelle Roman said after the arbitrator’s decision. “The prior administration’s actions, and failure to create a contingency plan, has placed the city in further economic turmoil.”
Roman said she planned to discuss with the union how to hire back those 12 positions.
The end result, according to Fire Chief Luca Quagliano, was that the addition of the 12 jobs was done gradually. The taxpayers were not “burdened,” he said, because the negotiations that led to the 12 new hires also stipulated spreading out the hiring to four per-year for three-years.
“The mayor worked with us to make an agreement without putting a huge tax burden on the public,” Quagliano said to the US&J, Monday.
Financial Director Tim Russo said that the increase to the budget was an additional $350,000 each-year, though SAFER grants for the fire department were awarded two years before the plan began in the amount of $96,468. He noted there were "slight" increases to the property taxes of Lockport residents in the last two years.
The implementation of the three-year agreement led to hiring five firefighters in 2021 and six firefighters in 2022. In January, five more firefighters will be hired to complete the three-year plan and replace retirees.
"I wouldn't consider them extra," Quagliano said. "We're back to par to where we were in 2014, not extra."
Quagliano said that almost all of the new hires have worked out well, many who are paramedics, including the six hired in 2022 who just graduated from the training. He also said that the next and last batch of hires could hold some paramedic trained candidates, as well, which may help if the city decides to restart it's ambulance services. Currently, Freed Maxick, an accounting firm out of Buffalo, has signed a contract to perform an audit
“Luckily it’s worked our very well,” Quagliano said of his department's restoration. “We have a good list to work from and all but one of the candidates chosen have worked out great, except one.”
Still, the sting of the past lay-offs has not been forgotten. Quagliano said this new group, while talented, do not have the experience that comes from working in the department for years, which instead of staying in the city, went to any department that was hiring for the last eight years.
“In 2014 they laid off some really experienced firefighters,” he said. “Those 12 found other jobs in Niagara Falls, North Tonawanda and Batavia.” | https://www.lockportjournal.com/news/local_news/lfd-looking-forward-to-getting-back-to-par/article_c0ab9a8a-3856-11ed-a072-6f0fda3c4c0e.html | 2022-09-20T02:39:50Z | lockportjournal.com | control | https://www.lockportjournal.com/news/local_news/lfd-looking-forward-to-getting-back-to-par/article_c0ab9a8a-3856-11ed-a072-6f0fda3c4c0e.html | 1 | 0 | green-iguana-35 | null |
Queen Elizabeth II mourned by Britain and world at funeral
AP-EU-Britain-Royals-Funeral, 40th Ld-Writethru
Sep 19, 2022 5:51 PM - 984 words
By DANICA KIRKA, MIKE CORDER and SAMYA KULLAB Associated Press
Eds: UPDATES: With AP Photos.; adds video. AP Video.
Summary
LONDON (AP) — Britain and the world said farewell to Queen Elizabeth II with pomp and pageantry. Crowds massed in the streets of London and at Windsor Castle to honor a monarch whose 70-year reign defined an era. The first state funeral since Winston Churchill’s drew world leaders and other royalty. Before the service, a bell tolled 96 times for each year of Elizabeth’s life. Royal Navy sailors pulled a gun carriage carrying her flag-draped coffin to Westminster Abbey before pallbearers carried it inside. Atop the coffin was a handwritten note from King Charles III. After a committal service at a chapel in Windsor Castle, the coffin was lowered into the royal vault.
Story Body
LONDON (AP) — The United Kingdom and the world bade farewell to Queen Elizabeth II on Monday with a state funeral that drew presidents and kings, princes and prime ministers — and crowds in the streets of London and at Windsor Castle — to honor a monarch whose 70-year reign defined an age.
In a country known for pomp and pageantry, the first state funeral since Winston Churchill’s was filled with spectacle: Before the service, a bell tolled 96 times — once a minute for each year of Elizabeth's life. Then, 142 Royal Navy sailors used ropes to draw the gun carriage carrying her flag-draped coffin to Westminster Abbey, where pallbearers carried it inside and about 2,000 people ranging from world leaders to health care workers gathered to mourn.
The trappings of state and monarchy abounded: The coffin was draped with the Royal Standard and atop it was the Imperial State Crown, sparkling with almost 3,000 diamonds, and the sovereign’s orb and scepter.
But the personal was also present: The coffin was followed into the church by generations of Elizabeth’s descendants, including King Charles III, heir to the throne Prince William and 9-year-old George, who is second in line. On a wreath atop the coffin, a handwritten note read, “In loving and devoted memory,” and was signed Charles R — for Rex, or king.
“Here, where Queen Elizabeth was married and crowned, we gather from across the nation, from the Commonwealth, and from the nations of the world, to mourn our loss, to remember her long life of selfless service, and in sure confidence to commit her to the mercy of God our maker and redeemer,” the dean of the medieval abbey, David Hoyle, told the mourners.
The service ended with two minutes of silence observed across the United Kingdom, after which the attendees sang the national anthem, now titled “God Save the King.”
The day began early when the doors of Parliament's 900-year-old Westminster Hall were closed to mourners after hundreds of thousands had filed in front of her coffin.
Monday was declared a public holiday in honor of Elizabeth, who died Sept. 8 — and hundreds of thousands of people descended on central London to witness history. They jammed sidewalks to watch the coffin wend its way through the streets of the capital after the service. As the procession passed Buckingham Palace, the queen's official residence in the city, staff stood outside, some bowing and curtseying.
Mark Elliott, 53, who traveled from the Lake District in northern England with his wife and two children to watch the procession, got up at 1:30 a.m. to stake out a good viewing location near the palace.
“I know we don’t know the queen, but she’s been our head of state for 70 years, you feel as though you know her, you feel as though she’s part of the family. It is kind of moving,” he said.
Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby said in his sermon at Westminster Abbey that “few leaders receive the outpouring of love we have seen” for the queen.
More people lined the route the hearse took from the capital to Windsor Castle, and many tossed flowers at the cortege as it passed. Millions more tuned into the funeral live, and crowds flocked to parks and public spaces across the U.K. to watch it on screens. Even the Google doodle turned a respectful black for the day.
As the coffin arrived at the castle, there were poignant reminders of her love of animals: A groom stood at the roadside with one of her ponies, Emma, and another member of staff held the leashes of two of her beloved corgis, Sandy and Muick.
During the committal ceremony in St. George’s Chapel on the castle grounds, Dean of Windsor David Conner praised Elizabeth for her “life of unstinting service” to the nation but also her “kindness, concern and reassuring care for her family and friends and neighbors.”
Then the crown and the orb and scepter were removed from atop the coffin and placed on the altar — separating them from the queen for the last time. Her coffin was lowered into the royal vault through an opening in the chapel's floor. Charles looked weary and emotional as mourners sang the national anthem.
At a private family service, the queen was later laid to rest with her husband, Prince Philip.
The mourners at Westminster Abbey included U.S. President Joe Biden, French President Emmanuel Macron, all of the living former British prime ministers and European royalty.
In Japan, whose Emperor Naruhito also attended, several people sipped beer and watched the service at The Aldgate British pub in Tokyo’s fashionable Shibuya district.
“The queen had an especially long history in a country that boasts a long history, and so she deserves deep respect,” said one of them, Tomotaka Hosokawa.
The global outpouring of sympathy touched the king, who on the eve of the funeral, issued a message of thanks to people in the U.K. and around the world, saying he and his wife, Camilla, the queen consort, have been “moved beyond measure” by the large numbers of people who have turned out to pay their respects.
Jilly Fitzgerald, who was in Windsor, said there was a sense of community among the mourners as they prepared to wait hours to see the procession carrying the queen’s coffin.
“It’s good to be with all the people who are all feeling the same. It’s like a big family because everyone feels that … the queen was part of their family,” she said. | https://www.lockportjournal.com/news/queen-elizabeth-ii-mourned-by-britain-and-world-at-funeral/article_6553dd20-387c-11ed-9a98-bf0705da5623.html | 2022-09-20T02:39:56Z | lockportjournal.com | control | https://www.lockportjournal.com/news/queen-elizabeth-ii-mourned-by-britain-and-world-at-funeral/article_6553dd20-387c-11ed-9a98-bf0705da5623.html | 1 | 0 | green-iguana-35 | null |
Japan's LDP governs in coalition with the Komieto Party (Komeito is the junior partner in the alliance).
Head of Komeito says the yen has weakened more than previously, we need to monitor the impact on households.
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A very notable impact on households is on the price of iported goods (a weaker yen means imports are more expensive).
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Yeah, yen sure is weak! | https://www.forexlive.com/news/japan-govmt-junior-coalition-partner-are-concerend-about-the-weak-yen-20220920/ | 2022-09-20T02:52:50Z | forexlive.com | control | https://www.forexlive.com/news/japan-govmt-junior-coalition-partner-are-concerend-about-the-weak-yen-20220920/ | 1 | 0 | green-iguana-35 | null |
Costa Cruises will be removing the need for a negative test result by fully-vaccinated individuals for all voyages departing on October 8 and beyond. The Carnival-owned cruise brand is also implementing further relaxed protocols throughout the fleet.
The new measures are in place mainly for voyages in the Mediterranean, the Caribbean, and the United Arab Emirates. For longer voyages, Costa maintains stricter measures than many other cruise lines.
Relaxed Measures for Costa Cruises This Fall and Winter
Guests cruising onboard the Costa Cruise ships this fall and winter in the Mediterranean, the Caribbean, and the United Arab Emirates, will have a more accessible, stress-free experience to get onboard.
As a guideline, starting October 8, guests that have been fully vaccinated will no longer need to provide proof of a negative test.
Guests that have not been fully vaccinated will then be allowed to sail as long as they provide evidence of a negative antigen test result. However, there will be some differences for each destination the Costa Cruises ships sail to.
The new protocols come on top of the earlier changes to onboard protocols that the cruise line implemented in Spring when the company removed restrictions on onboard activities and lounges and the need for booking a shore excursion to go ashore.
Mediterranean & Caribbean Cruises
Guests sailing on a Mediterranean cruise or Caribbean cruise this winter with Costa, with proof of full vaccination and booster, or full vaccination and recovery certificate, will not be required to show evidence of a negative test result before sailing.
Those who have not been vaccinated will need proof of a negative antigen test or PCR-RT test taken within 48 hours of sailing.
These protocols do not apply to voyages with a call in Greece. These cruises will only be accessible to fully vaccinated guests who have undergone antigen testing with a negative result within 48 hours of embarkation.
For Mediterranean cruises, which include a call to Morocco, guests not fully vaccinated will be required to undergo RT-PCR testing onboard 48 hours before arrival.
There is also a restriction for cruises in the Caribbean. Shore leave in Barbados, St. Vincent, and St. Maarten is only allowed for unvaccinated guests if they can show a negative result of an antigen test taken within 24 or 48 hours before the ship’s arrival at the destination.
Onboard testing is available for both Antigen and RT-PCR methods. While Costa Cruises does not provide a specific cost price for these tests, it does mention there will be a charge.
Other Destinations
With the Costa Cruise ships fanning out across the globe again this fall and winter, there will be many different protocols as the cruise line tries to keep up with global changes.
Cruises in the UAE, Oman, and Qatar are available only to fully vaccinated guests. However, there is no need for pre-embarkation testing.
For any cruises longer than 14 days, which includes World Cruises, transatlantic cruises, and voyages around South America, all guests must be fully vaccinated and provide proof of an antigen test with a negative result within 48 hours of embarkation time.
In addition, mask use on board will be mandatory in public areas during the first seven days of the cruise, while in other destinations (Mediterranean, Caribbean, UAE), mask use is simply recommended.
Costa has been in the news recently due to several changes in its fleet. Carnival Corporation announced earlier this year that three ships in the Costa fleet would be transferred to Carnival Cruise Line, under the Costa by Carnival name. These include Costa Venezia, Costa Firenze, and Costa Luminosa. | https://www.cruisehive.com/costa-cruises-simplifies-protocols-for-upcoming-sailings/81889 | 2022-09-20T02:53:31Z | cruisehive.com | control | https://www.cruisehive.com/costa-cruises-simplifies-protocols-for-upcoming-sailings/81889 | 1 | 0 | green-iguana-35 | null |
Hurricane Fiona continued to strengthen over the weekend, crossing over Puerto Rico and moving over the Dominican Republic as of Monday morning. The storm is now a strong Category 1 hurricane with maximum sustained winds of 90 miles per hour (145 kilometers per hour), moving northwest at eight miles per hour (13 kph).
The storm is forecast to continue turning north and strengthening in the next few days, with strong impacts on Bermuda expected by the end of the week.
Hurricane Fiona Hits Puerto Rico
The most impactful Caribbean hurricane yet in the 2022 Atlantic hurricane season, Hurricane Fiona passed over southwestern Puerto Rico on Sunday, causing widespread, complete-island power outages. Power was slowly being restored Monday morning.
The extent of damage on the island is not yet known, but the storm has been a significant rainmaker and widespread flooding is likely. Roads and bridges are reported to be washed out due to landslides, and the water supply is compromised for much of the island.
At the moment, only MSC Seashore is scheduled to call on the Puerto Rico today, September 19, 2022. That visit was canceled several days ago in anticipation of the storm. The next vessel scheduled to visit is Carnival Cruise Line’s flagship, Mardi Gras, on September 27, 2022. It is too early to determine whether that visit will be affected by any storm-related damage.
Storm Moving Northwest
As Hurricane Fiona continues on its track to the northwest, hurricane warnings are now in effect across much of the Dominican Republic and the Turks & Caicos Islands, with hurricane watches still remaining in effect in Puerto Rico and into the easternmost islands of The Bahamas.
Different cruise lines have already changed itineraries to stay away from the storm, including Royal Caribbean International’s Harmony of the Seas completely changing from and Eastern Caribbean itinerary to a Western Caribbean sailing this week.
Additional changes will be decided after Hurricane Fiona moves out of the area and any resultant storm damage is assessed, including the impact on port facilities necessary for cruise ships to safely dock.
While the storm is still moving northwest, it is forecast to shift to a more northerly track late Tuesday and into Wednesday. This should keep the hurricane away from the most populous area of The Bahamas as it likely strengthens into a major Category 3 storm.
At this time, there are no cruise ship itinerary changes anticipated for sailings in The Bahamas, as most cruises call either on Nassau or Freeport, both of which are in the easternmost part of the archipelago.
It is still possible, however, that those ports of call may be impacted if the storm stays further east than expected, and higher waves, wind, and rain can be felt far from the center of any hurricane.
Any cruise traveler with a Caribbean or Bahamas sailing in the next few days should stay in close communication with their cruise line to be alerted to any itinerary or schedule changes as they are confirmed.
Bermuda to Be Impacted
Hurricane Fiona is likely to make a slight eastern turn late Wednesday or early Thursday, putting Bermuda quite central to the storm’s predicted path. If the storm remains on its predicted track and at forecasted speeds, it will reach its closest approach to Bermuda early Friday morning, September 23.
The Breakaway-class Norwegian Getaway is scheduled to visit Bermuda on Saturday, September 24. The storm is forecast to be moving much more quickly at that time, however, and may be far from Bermuda at the scheduled port of call time.
Whether or not Norwegian Getaway changes its visit times or drops the call altogether will depend on how the storm behaves in the coming days, and any damage that may occur at port facilities.
No other ships are scheduled for Bermuda in the coming days while the storm is a concern.
Stay tuned to Cruise Hive for further updates on Hurricane Fiona and the storm’s impact on cruise travel and ports of call, as well as any other storms that develop. | https://www.cruisehive.com/hurricane-fiona-strengthens-continues-cruise-impacts/81884 | 2022-09-20T02:53:37Z | cruisehive.com | control | https://www.cruisehive.com/hurricane-fiona-strengthens-continues-cruise-impacts/81884 | 1 | 0 | green-iguana-35 | null |
Norwegian Cruise Line has implemented several changes to its Lattitudes Rewards loyalty program and built-in flexibility regarding where guests may use their dinner vouchers.
The cruise line has removed the need to go to certain restaurants to enjoy their free dinner with a bottle of wine and made this option apply to more specialty restaurants.
The restrictions to where dinner coupons can be used have been an eyesore for many guests, making the Freestyle cruising that Norwegian offers somewhat restrictive.
Latitude Dinner Program Now Available In More Locations
Norwegian Cruise Line, which recently launched its newest cruise ship, Norwegian Prima, has made some changes to its Lattitudes rewards loyalty program, which was in effect from September 14, 2022.
Where guests would have been restricted previously to enjoy their ‘Dinner for Two with a Bottle of Wine’ perk in either Cagney’s or Le Bistro, this has now been expanded to include all restaurants with a complimentary wine list.
The Dinner for Two option, previously only available to be used at Moderno or La Cucina, can now be used for dinner at La Cucina, Food Republic Q Texas Smokehouse, Teppanyaki, American Diner, and more. Both dining options are only available on sailings of five days or longer and entitles each guest to an appetizer, one entrée, and dessert of choice.
In a letter sent to guests, the cruise line said the following: “We have also increased the flexibility of our Latitude dinner vouchers! You may now use your first voucher towards a dinner for two at Cagney’s, Le Bistro, or Ocean Blue, which will include a free bottle of wine. The second voucher can now be redeemed at La Cucina, Food Republic. Q Texas Smokehouse, Teppanyaki or American Diner.”
The two free dinner coupons become available to all guests who reach the Platinum tier of the loyalty program, as well as the Sapphire, Diamond, and Ambassador Tiers.
The restrictive nature of the program previously has been an eyesore to many guests, mainly as Norwegian Cruise Line has been the pioneer in freestyle cruising, marketing heavily towards a dine anywhere anytime culture. Norwegian will certainly satisfy demand with the new rules regarding the free specialty dining options.
Other additions to the newly released benefits are one free Flow water carton from the Gold tier and two free cartons from the Sapphire tier, and the Unlimited Open Bar Package Discount. The open bar package includes discounts of 30% for Brons members through to 50% discount for all Diamond and Ambassador members.
Not Everything is Back to Normal Yet
The changes Norwegian Cruise Line has implemented for the Lattitudes Loyalty program also come with bad news. For now, NCL is not returning the Behind the Scenes ship tour and the Dinner with officers.
“In order to ensure the health and safety of our guests and crew members, we have suspended the Behind-the-Scenes Ship Tour and Dinner with the Officers. We apologize for any inconvenience this may have caused and thank you for your support and understanding.”
These perks are usually offered to all guests with Platinum status for the Behind the Scenes tour and a Sapphire status for dinner with officers.
Read Also: Norwegian Cruise Ships – Newest to Oldest
Guests automatically enroll in the Lattitude rewards program when they first cruise with Norwegian. Besides dining and beverage rewards, the program has many more benefits that guests can enjoy, such as discounts in duty-free shops onboard, discounts on excursions and photos, laundry service, and even a free seven-day cruise once they reach ambassador status. | https://www.cruisehive.com/norwegian-cruise-line-makes-changes-to-loyalty-program/81902 | 2022-09-20T02:53:43Z | cruisehive.com | control | https://www.cruisehive.com/norwegian-cruise-line-makes-changes-to-loyalty-program/81902 | 1 | 0 | green-iguana-35 | null |
In an email sent to booked guests, Carnival Cruise Line has announced the need to adjust six upcoming itineraries for Carnival Vista.
The changes impact alternating Western Caribbean sailings from mid-October through mid-November, and again from mid-January through mid-February.
Work Schedule Requires Itinerary Change
Due to cruising speed reductions necessary for onboard maintenance, Carnival Vista‘s itinerary will be changed for six upcoming sailings. The ship’s 2022 departures on October 15, October 29, and November 12, are affected, as well as 2023 departures on January 21, February 4, and February 18.
“We have had to implement a work schedule to address an unexpected issue on Carnival Vista and will be conducting maintenance on the ship during your cruise, which means the ship will be unable to sustain the maximum cruising speed required to operate your itinerary,” the email reads.
Each of the impacted 2022 itineraries is a 7-night roundtrip Western Caribbean cruise from Galveston. The original schedules featured two days at sea, followed by visits to Montego Bay, Jamaica; Grand Cayman, the Cayman Islands; and Cozumel, Mexico. The schedule was to conclude with another day at sea before arriving back in Galveston.
The 2023 departures are similar, with the ship following the same route but visiting Falmouth, Jamaica, instead of Montego Bay.
Now, all six itineraries have been changed, and will no longer call on either Grand Cayman or Jamaica.
Instead, the ship will stay much further west, substituting Belize and Roatan (Honduras) as alternative ports of call. The ship’s stay in Cozumel will also be lengthened.
The exact port times have not been announced, nor have any changes to the ship’s departure or arrival times to Galveston been indicated.
“We regret not being able to deliver the original itinerary and apologize for the unexpected change,” the email reads.
Compensation Offered
Because of the extent of the change, Carnival Cruise Line is offering impacted guests $50 per person (up to $100 per stateroom) of onboard credit, which will be posted to guests’ Sail & Sign accounts for the cruise.
All pre-booked shore excursions booked through Carnival for both Jamaica and Grand Turk will also be fully refunded to the original form of payment, and all port fees will be adjusted as necessary to account for the itinerary changes.
If guests no longer wish to sail on Carnival Vista with the revised itinerary, they may also reschedule their sailing or cancel their cruise vacation and request a refund. Such changes must be made no later than September 26, 2022. Refunds may take up to three weeks to process through guests’ financial institutions.
Why the Change?
Other than “maintenance” that impacts the 133,500-gross-ton ship’s maximum cruising speed, no details have been provided on the nature of the work that needs to be done to Carnival Vista.
As the speed is affected, it is likely the maintenance is related to the ship’s engines or directly connected engineering or navigational systems.
Hotel operations, food and beverage service, and entertainment options are unlikely to be affected, and the guest experience onboard will remain the same.
The itinerary change still permits the ship to sail a 7-night itinerary, but without covering as much distance. The sailing distance along a typical cruise ship route from Galveston to Jamaica, for instance, is roughly 1,400 miles (2,253 kilometers), while Galveston to Honduras is just 1,180 miles (1,900 km).
This can permit the ship to sail at slower speeds necessary for safer engineering work.
Carnival Vista first entered service in 2016, and has a history of engine and propulsion issues. Earlier this year, the ship had technical issues that canceled Grand Cayman and altered Jamaica port times on the same itinerary as the now altered future sailings. The ship also had propulsion issues that necessitated an unscheduled dry dock in 2019.
The two other ships in the Vista class, Carnival Horizon and Carnival Panorama, have also had their share of propulsion issues resulting in canceled cruises, itinerary changes, and slower cruising speeds. | https://www.cruisehive.com/six-itineraries-changed-for-carnival-ship-due-to-unexpected-issue/81927 | 2022-09-20T02:53:49Z | cruisehive.com | control | https://www.cruisehive.com/six-itineraries-changed-for-carnival-ship-due-to-unexpected-issue/81927 | 1 | 0 | green-iguana-35 | null |
Carnival Freedom and Carnival Legend, both operating Eastern Caribbean sailings this week, have announced itinerary changes due to Hurricane Fiona.
Both ships have now canceled planned ports of call, but are substituting visits in The Bahamas instead, well away from the storm’s predicted impact.
Carnival Freedom and Carnival Legend Itinerary Changes
Carnival Freedom and Carnival Legend both departed on their current sailings on Saturday, September 17, 2022, while Hurricane Fiona was still classified as a tropical storm.
As the storm strengthened over the weekend, however, the decision was made to alter both ships’ schedules to avoid the roughest seas and to provide smoother, safer experiences for all passengers onboard.
The Conquest-class Carnival Freedom set sail from Port Canaveral, Florida on Saturday on a 5-night Exotic Eastern Caribbean voyage meant to visit Nassau, Princess Cays, and Grand Turk.
The ship’s visits to Nassau and Princess Cays – Carnival Cruise Line’s private island destination in The Bahamas – went ahead as planned, but the ship will no longer be visiting Grand Turk as expected on Tuesday, September 20.
Instead, the ship will spend Tuesday at sea, while adding a day at Freeport on Wednesday. On the original itinerary, Wednesday was planned as a day at sea before the ship returns to Port Canaveral on Thursday, September 22.
Similarly, Carnival Legend‘s itinerary has also been altered to avoid Hurricane Fiona. The Spirit-class vessel departed Baltimore, Maryland on Saturday for a 8-night Exotic Eastern Caribbean voyage, with planned port visits to Half Moon Cay, Carnival’s private island in The Bahamas on Tuesday; Grand Turk on Wednesday; and Amber Cove in the Dominican Republic on Thursday.
Because Hurricane Fiona is currently in the Eastern Caribbean and having a dramatic impact on both the Turks & Caicos as well as the Dominican Republic, both Grand Turk and Amber Cove have been removed from Carnival Legend‘s current sailing.
Instead, the ship will visit Nassau instead of Grand Turk on Wednesday and Bimini in lieu of Amber Cove on Thursday. Tuesday’s call on Half Moon Cay is unchanged, as are the two days at sea on Friday and Saturday as the ship returns to Baltimore on Sunday, September 25.
Aboard both ships, guests received letters advising them of the changes and reminders to tune in to their stateroom televisions for further updates.
“Together with our Fleet Operation Center in Miami, we have been actively monitoring Tropical Storm Fiona, which is located in the Caribbean. Since the safety of our guests and crew is our number one priority, we will remain a safe distance from the storm at all times,” the letters read.
“We will continue to monitor the weather and provide you with timely updates should our itinerary be impacted. To stay up to date on information about the storm, you may tune in to the Good To Know Channel on your stateroom television.”
In addition to the television announcements, each ship’s captain will make appropriate announcements as itinerary changes are confirmed, and the Carnival Hub app will be updated with new destinations, times, and activities.
Hurricane Fiona Update
As of 8 p.m. (EDT) Monday evening, Hurricane Fiona was located just north offshore of the Dominican Republic, moving north and slightly west at 10 miles per hour (16 kilometers per hour). This is slightly faster than the storm’s motion earlier in the day, as expected.
Maximum sustained winds have been recorded at 105 miles per hour (169 kph), classifying Fiona as a solid Category 2 hurricane. The storm is expected to continue to strengthen and may reach Category 3 (major) status within the next 24-36 hours.
It is also possible the storm could reach Category 4 status, which would mean sustained winds greater than 130 miles per hour, later in the week.
On Wednesday, the storm is predicted to begin a slight turn to the northeast, and it will likely impact Bermuda late Thursday or early Friday, though the exact track is difficult to predict several days in advance.
Stay tuned to further updates on Hurricane Fiona and how the storm is impacting cruise travel and ports of call throughout the week. | https://www.cruisehive.com/two-carnival-cruise-ships-alter-itineraries-due-to-hurricane-fiona/81920 | 2022-09-20T02:53:55Z | cruisehive.com | control | https://www.cruisehive.com/two-carnival-cruise-ships-alter-itineraries-due-to-hurricane-fiona/81920 | 1 | 0 | green-iguana-35 | null |
Bank of America CEO Brian Moynihan is defending a new program offering zero-down-payment home loans in black and Hispanic neighborhoods. Don’t worry, he says, about a rerun of the 2008 financial crisis, sparked by easy money and lax underwriting: The new policy carries no such risks because it’s small-scale and limited to select neighborhoods.
“This is about granting a down-payment to a buyer who, no matter who they are, as long as they meet the income requirements, to buy a house in a majority-minority neighborhood,” Moynihan told Fox News.
Criticism has centered on the reverse racial discrimination the policy would seem to encourage. But that’s not what should most worry those concerned about minority upward mobility and neighborhood improvement.
Moynihan’s defense is itself the red flag. Good neighborhoods and wealth appreciation depend on strict underwriting standards — and are threatened by easy credit. The hard work of saving up a down payment won’t apply in Bank of America’s program.
But saving for a down payment is a virtue, not an obstacle. Every neighborhood is a virtuous conspiracy in which we depend on our neighbors to maintain their homes, watch over their children and take an interest in civic life.
Making it too easy to obtain a home mortgage risks extending credit to those without the means to fix that roof or repaint — or make their payments. A vacant or dilapidated home next door threatens the property value of those who work hard and play by the rules.
The concern here should be focused on those Bank of America’s policy purports to help. Unfortunately, we’ve seen this movie before, with the Community Reinvestment Act and its regulatory pressure on banks to extend credit based on ZIP code rather than standards. As my colleague Edward Pinto, former Fannie Mae chief economist, noted, the 2008 “financial crisis had a single major cause: the accumulation of an unprecedented number of weak mortgages in the U.S. financial system.”
That crisis and its resulting widespread mortgage foreclosures disproportionately affected blacks, with 240,000 black homeowners losing their homes. The causes crucially included federal “affordable-housing goals” for low-income neighborhoods that encouraged lenders to extend credit to those who did not meet traditional standards.
It is that same pressure — from Federal Reserve and Treasury regulators — that creates the perverse credit incentives Bank of America is adopting.
Banks seeking regulatory approval to merge or grow through acquisition face a gauntlet of regulators and advocacy groups demanding they show a network of branches in select ZIP codes and a record of extending commercial and residential credit to low-income and minority borrowers.
Banks face five different types of Community Reinvestment Act exams. Moynihan is not wrong, as CEO, to signal the bank’s intentions to target black and Hispanic neighborhoods; it’s exactly what regulatory overseers insist upon. They call it “meeting the credit needs of the community.”
But the focus of such easy credit — premised on factors other than the ability to repay a loan — is on the volume of lending rather than the important measure prudent banks have historically paid attention to: How well do those loans perform?
The Community Reinvestment Act has never required loan-performance reporting. Notably, it dates from 1977 — long before banks could compete across state lines and long before the start of Quicken Loans and other online lenders, which don’t face the regulatory pressure banks do but are available to creditworthy borrowers no matter where they live. They know better than to provide unqualified borrowers with a down-payment grant.
For the major banks, extending easy credit in minority neighborhoods is, in other words, a virtue signal that’s a cost of doing business.
The victims about whom we should be concerned are not white homebuyers denied credit but minority homeowners for whom lax underwriting standards are the enemy of stable, improving neighborhoods.
Here’s what fair housing should really mean: the chance for any household with adequate means to obtain a mortgage. Denying credit based on race is wrong. Extending it on that basis does recipients no favors.
Howard Husock is a senior fellow at the American Enterprise Institute and author of “The Poor Side of Town: And Why We Need It.” | https://nypost.com/2022/09/19/bank-of-americas-race-based-lending-program-will-hurt-the-people/ | 2022-09-20T03:02:13Z | nypost.com | control | https://nypost.com/2022/09/19/bank-of-americas-race-based-lending-program-will-hurt-the-people/ | 1 | 0 | green-iguana-35 | null |
Salisbury, Md. --- As the queen's passing affects the everyday lives of those across the Atlantic Ocean. Here at Salisbury University, some students like, Alyssa Moisan, are up to date on the royal family and are aware of how impactful the queen's life was.
"Kind of shocked," Moisan said. "Because of how many people showed up and how many people loved the queen and all the flowers and drawings they had of her which was really sweet. "
David Phillips is a professor at SU who is from Swindon a town in England. He said the death of the queen make him miss his homeland.
"It's made me quite homesick really," Phillips said. "It's all I ever known. she has been on the throne as a monarch for my entire life and of course, that would be the same for many many people. In the UK. That we haven't known anything different, know new king no new queen, its always been Elizabeth."
Phillips also believes the queen was laid to rest properly.
"The traditions of a royal funeral and the way one acts in public life go back hundreds of years," Phillips said. "And no one does pomp and pageantry better than the British."
The queen passed away earlier this month after 70 years on the throne. | https://www.wboc.com/news/su-students-and-facilities-reactions-to-the-queens-funeral/article_2110df94-3888-11ed-a86b-0b8dd23c7fde.html | 2022-09-20T03:02:48Z | wboc.com | control | https://www.wboc.com/news/su-students-and-facilities-reactions-to-the-queens-funeral/article_2110df94-3888-11ed-a86b-0b8dd23c7fde.html | 1 | 0 | green-iguana-35 | null |
Experts and social media users are warning against the viral #OneChipChallenge that is allegedly sending people to the hospital.
The viral food challenge is a recurring online dare created by Paqui, a flavored tortilla chip company, that releases a new spicy chip for the challenge.
The 2022 One Chip Challenge features the Carolina Reaper Chip.
“This year’s high voltage chip contains the super-charged Carolina Reaper Pepper and stinging Scorpion Pepper with a shocking twist, it’ll turn your tongue BLUE,” the Paqui website reads.
Social media users are encouraged to eat the entire chip, wait as long as possible before drinking or eating anything and then post their reactions online.
But medical experts and social media users who have attempted the spicy challenge are warning against the possibly dangerous trend that has reportedly sent some, including children, to the hospital in excruciating pain.
TikTok user @angela_b157 posted a now viral video showing her niece in the hospital after attempting the challenge. The video has amassed 10.7 million views and led to several follow-up videos explaining the scary situation.
One follow-up video shows the young girl being hyped up by her family members.
“Oh no,” the girl says after taking one bite as she immediately stands up.
“Chew it!” someone is heard shouting in the background as the small crowd cheers her on. “Fifty bucks. Do the rest,” someone yells out.
The girl is seen stomping her feet and shaking her hands in the video.
“It’s not that bad,” the girl finally responds and shows her blue mouth as she wipes the chip dust off her hands with a wet wipe.
In a later video, the girl explains that she had been bet $50 to eat the chip. As time went on, the burn increased and pushed her to tears.
She was eventually taken to the hospital where she was given different medications that took hours to ease her intense stomach pains.
The girl seemed in good spirits as she giggled through her story but others have warned against the viral challenge.
States like California, Texas and Alabama have reportedly seen hospitalizations due to the chip. School districts in states including Georgia and Colorado have warned parents of the challenge after several students missed class thanks to allegedly becoming sick from consuming the chip.
One student in Texas even lost consciousness and began seizing in his classroom, KBTX reported.
Dr. Gaylord Lopez with the Georgia Poison Control Center has warned that eating the chips can cause serious harm. | https://nypost.com/2022/09/19/experts-warn-against-the-onechipchallenge/ | 2022-09-20T03:03:38Z | nypost.com | control | https://nypost.com/2022/09/19/experts-warn-against-the-onechipchallenge/ | 1 | 0 | green-iguana-35 | null |
Gov. Kathy Hochul on Monday trashed the charges brought against the Big Apple’s infamous “ax man” as too light — despite ignoring calls to remove Manhattan’s soft-on-crime district attorney and refusing efforts to toughen the state’s bail law.
During an unrelated news conference at her Manhattan office, Hochul said she wanted to know why alleged hatchet-wielding madman Michael Palacios was only charged with offenses that led him to be automatically sprung without bail.
The governor said there were “many players in a criminal justice system, starting with the arresting officers who determine which charge to bring, as well as the district attorney, who will decide whether or not to stay with that course or have an upcharge from what is recommended.”
“We’re actually asking what the thought process was and the decisions that were just made because we have a question about it,” she said. “Because they have the discretion to charge in a different way that would make them bail-eligible.”
In January, Hochul threatened to remove Manhattan DA Alvin Bragg from office amid outrage over the “Day One” memo in which he ordered Manhattan prosecutors to only seek bail and prison sentences in cases involving homicides and other serious crimes.
But Hochul quickly walked back that warning and also rebuffed Mayor Eric Adams’ request for a special session of the state Legislature to consider rolling back bail reform.
During a separate news conference on Monday, Hochul’s Republican rival in the November election, outgoing US Rep. Lee Zeldin (R-NY) of Long Island, said, “I believe that the Manhattan district attorney, Alvin Bragg, should be fired.”
“Kathy Hochul says, ‘He just got there, cut him some slack. He’s doing his job,'” Zeldin said.
“Let’s debate it.”
Speaking outside the fast-food restaurant at 114 Delancey St. on the Lower East Side, Zeldin also repeated his call for an overhaul of “cashless bail,” saying, “You could see the fear in the eyes of other people who are here at this McDonald’s just a few days ago.”
“The individual who ends up arrested is instantly released back out on the street because the crimes he was charged with are not eligible,” he said.
Zeldin added: “This is exactly why judges should have discretion to weigh dangerousness. Right now there should be a special session in Albany. They could do this tomorrow. This is not a Republican vs. Democrat issue.”
Hochul, meanwhile, said she was shocked by the video clip of Palacios, 31, allegedly using a hatchet to smash a glass partition and terrorize customers inside the McDonald’s around 2:30 a.m. Friday.
“The images are disturbing, absolutely,” she told reporters at her Manhattan office.
“I understand the concern of the people who are certainly in that location.”
Palacios was charged with criminal mischief and fourth-degree criminal possession of a weapon, both misdemeanors, and released without bail because the offenses are covered by the state’s controversial 2019 bail reform law.
Neither the NYPD nor a spokesperson for Bragg — who’s come under fire for his progressive, soft-on-crime policies — immediately returned requests for comment.
A witness to last week’s incident said it erupted after Palacios was spurned by a young woman who “rejected” his repeated efforts to talk to her.
Palacios allegedly told ABC7 New York he’d been drinking and that his “intentions were not to hurt anyone.”
Instead, Palacios said, he just wanted to “get back at these guys” who he said attacked him after a security guard refused to let him use the restroom.
Palacios also allegedly admitted that he carried the weapon in a backpack because he works as a bicycle messenger.
“I’m always out there on the road, so I’m always actually getting into it with drivers, which is what the tomahawk is for,” he said.
“It’s not for people. It’s for trees and, you know, vehicles.”
Additional reporting by Elizabeth Rosner and Tina Moore | https://nypost.com/2022/09/19/hochul-says-da-bragg-went-soft-on-mcdonalds-ax-man/ | 2022-09-20T03:04:32Z | nypost.com | control | https://nypost.com/2022/09/19/hochul-says-da-bragg-went-soft-on-mcdonalds-ax-man/ | 1 | 0 | green-iguana-35 | null |
Use it. Don’t lose it.
The Jets must remember the winning feeling of euphoria they raced off the field with Sunday in Cleveland and use it as fuel for the future, beginning with Sunday’s home game against Super Bowl runner-up Cincinnati.
The Jets cannot waste Sunday’s remarkable 31-30 comeback victory over the Browns. They cannot allow that to be one fleeting moment. Avoid being a one-hit wonder, a flash in the pan. The Jets need to sustain what they did against the Browns, crave that feeling again and again.
The Jets — head coach Robert Saleh with his “receipts’’ rant last week and his players, too — talked about having the confidence that they can (will) be a winning team. Sunday’s victory, as improbable as it was, gave them tangible evidence that they can win.
Now they’ve got to build on it or they’ll reduce the significance of Sunday’s win.
“Losing can be contagious, but also winning can be contagious,’’ linebacker C.J. Mosley said. “You could just feel that energy when we came in [to the locker room after the win in Cleveland]. This win was really for our young guys. They balled out. I hope this game lets them know that we need them to play like that every single week to get to where we want to go. It’s going to take everybody, especially the younger guys.’’
Leave it to one of the youngest guys of all on the roster, second-year running back Michael Carter, to speak some of the sagest words of all in the aftermath of the win.
“We look to enjoy this win — we do appreciate it, we appreciate it a lot,’’ Carter said. “But it’s not the Super Bowl. It’s Week 2. We’ve got to win next week and we’ve got to try to put some momentum together and then … who knows? We might look back in six weeks and say, ‘Hey, we went six for six.’
“We’re a confident group. We had unwavering confidence [Sunday], and instead of just having confidence we exuded it.’’
Carter, in no disrespectful way at all, chided those who portrayed the sky falling after the Jets lost their season opener to the Ravens.
“I know you [reporters] have a job to do, but you all were taking one loss a little too seriously,’’ he said. “I can’t blame you. I wasn’t here two years before. But [the previous losing] is not our fault. We’re here to change that.’’
It, of course, is going to take more than one win to change that narrative, but Sunday was a good place to start. The Jets played a representative game against the Browns, particularly on offense and special teams — the two units that ultimately won the game.
But, until 90 seconds remained in the game, it looked like it wasn’t going to be good enough as the Browns had pulled away late in the fourth quarter before committing a calamity of mental errors that opened the door for the Jets to pull off the victory.
The trick for Saleh this week is, while encouraging his players to soak in the win, to also make sure they realize they were on the brink of being 0-2 and that the play has to be even better this week.
The Giants managed to handle the prosperity of their season-opening upset victory at Tennessee with a second consecutive win Sunday against the Panthers — albeit an ugly win, but a win nonetheless to get to 2-0.
“The toughest thing to do in this league — especially when you haven’t had a lot of success — is to learn how to deal with success and move onto the next page,’’ Saleh said Monday.
Defensive tackle John Franklin-Myers called Sunday’s win “a great step of confidence’’ for a young team trying to figure out how to win.
“These guys got to understand what it feels like to win; they got a taste of it,’’ he said.
“You’ve got to learn how to win,’’ tight end Tyler Conklin said. “That’s something all team teams have to do. [Sunday] was a step in the right direction to prove that to ourselves that we’re never out of a game and no matter the situation is we can win it. That the first one to get the momentum going. We knew we could do it and we went out there and we proved it.
“Now keep building the momentum.’’
Use it. Don’t lose it. | https://nypost.com/2022/09/19/jets-must-take-momentum-from-unlikely-win-over-browns/ | 2022-09-20T03:05:15Z | nypost.com | control | https://nypost.com/2022/09/19/jets-must-take-momentum-from-unlikely-win-over-browns/ | 1 | 0 | green-iguana-35 | null |
Jimmy Garoppolo is cashing in on his new deal with the 49ers.
With Sunday’s 27-7 win against the Seahawks, Garoppolo earned an extra $350,000 when he took over for 49ers starter Trey Lance, who was carted off the field in the first quarter of the game with an ankle injury.
Based on the restructured contract Garoppolo agreed to in August, which cut his base salary from $25.62 million to $6.5 million, the quarterback can make $250,000 for every game that he plays at least 25 percent of the offensive snaps. The former second-round pick can also net an additional $100,000 every time one of those outings results in a win, much like Sunday.
“You’re not thinking about that stuff out there. You’re in the game, you’re flowing with the game, trying to get guys ready… But yeah, it’s always a nice positive,” Garoppolo said Sunday when a reporter brought up the quarterback’s six-figure bonus.
Garoppolo, who was widely expected to be out of San Francisco ahead of the 2022 regular season, said postgame that “it felt good to be back out there.”
“Just like riding a bike,” Garoppolo remarked, adding that he feels for Lance, who underwent season-ending surgery on Monday morning.
“Feel terrible for Trey. I’ve been on that side of it. This league is tough.”
Lance had completed two of three passes for 30 yards, along with 13 rushing yards, prior to Sunday’s early exit. As for Garoppolo, he completed 13 of 21 attempts for 154 yards and a touchdown. Garoppolo also recorded a one-yard sneak late in the fourth quarter.
The 49ers head to Denver to face the Broncos in Week 3. | https://nypost.com/2022/09/19/jimmy-garoppolo-nets-49ers-bonus-after-replacing-injured-trey-lance/ | 2022-09-20T03:05:21Z | nypost.com | control | https://nypost.com/2022/09/19/jimmy-garoppolo-nets-49ers-bonus-after-replacing-injured-trey-lance/ | 1 | 0 | green-iguana-35 | null |
The Issue: The Post editorial on Donald Trump’s claim that him being indicted would “tear this country apart.”
Former President Donald Trump said: “I think you’d have problems in this country the likes of which perhaps we’ve never seen before. It would tear this country apart” if he were indicted (“Stop Threatening Violence, Don,” Editorial, Sept. 17).
This man is a deranged lunatic who only cares about himself. He has the unmitigated gall to make a statement like this after what he did to encourage the Jan. 6 riot.
He has caused nothing but hatred and division amongst the people of the United States because of his self-centered, narcissistic personality.
He doesn’t deserve to be respected or remembered as a decent human being, still less a former president.
Henry Beyer
Woodmere
When Trump says the country will be torn apart if he were indicted, he is absolutely right. He is not calling for violence, but I can certainly see violence erupting if it were to happen.
People are sick of the two-tiered justice system we currently have. An indictment of Trump would be the straw that breaks the camel’s back, even for peace-loving 73-year-old ladies like me.
Rosemary Hughes
Freeport
The Post has been quite objective and fair when it comes to Trump.
It has duly noted how he’s been persecuted by the Dems and their media cadres. It has underscored how his America First policies were good for the country.
Yet it rightly gives no quarter to his incorrigible combativeness.
By irresponsibly predicting an eruption of civil disorder if he gets indicted for not parting with classified documents, Trump has crossed a dangerous line here, like when he refused to concede the election.
James Hyland
Beechhurst
Trump is 100% correct in making his observation that we would have “problems in this country the likes of which perhaps we’ve never seen before” if he were indicted.
The law-abiding Trumploving citizens are not the ones damaging this country.
It would be more honest to list each rotten politician who has called for things like surrounding those they don’t like in restaurants and gas stations to let them know they’re not “welcome here.” And then follow up with those who are arrested for violence and are released by the woke district attorneys. That is fueling the violence — not Trump.
Sara Gershon
Syosset
The Issue: Nicole Gelinas’ piece on the cost to taxpayers for city workers’ guaranteed pensions.
Not everyone who worked for the city or state was a lazy slug just sitting around and waiting for their pension when they retired (“Tale of Two Pensions,” Nicole Gelinas, PostOpinion, Sept. 19).
I worked for the Workers’ Compensation Board for 35 years as a court reporter, and during my final years, I took testimony from people who lost loved ones on 9/11 and those who were in the towers who were injured on that day as well.
To generalize and say the pensions are out-of-whack as opposed to the bonuses Wall Street gives out is asinine.
Larry Falk
Howard Beach
Retired public service workers, such as police officers, firefighters, teachers and sanitation workers, have dedicated 25 to 40 years of their lives doing the jobs that most people did not want to do or were unable to do.
These are the most dangerous and stressful city jobs that keep us safe and provide vital services and a decent standard of living for New Yorkers.
Gerard Rosenthal
Manhattan
Want to weigh in on today’s stories? Send your thoughts (along with your full name and city of residence) to letters@nypost.com. Letters are subject to editing for clarity, length, accuracy and style. | https://nypost.com/2022/09/19/letters-to-the-editor-sept-20-2022/ | 2022-09-20T03:05:39Z | nypost.com | control | https://nypost.com/2022/09/19/letters-to-the-editor-sept-20-2022/ | 1 | 0 | green-iguana-35 | null |
Brig. Gen. Joseph R. Harris II, Hawaii Air National Guard commander, receives the guidon as Brig. Gen. Dann S. Carlson, outgoing 154th Wing commander, relinquishes command Sept. 7, 2022, at Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam, Hawaii. Throughout Carlson's three-year tenure as wing commander, beginning in August 2019, he has placed 'ohana as the organization's number one priority, emphasizing a need to take care of every member and their families as they set out to accomplish the 154th Wing's mission. (U.S. Air National Guard photo by Staff Sgt. John Linzmeier)
This work, Symbolic F-22 flight marks 154th Wing change of command [Image 15 of 15], by SSgt John Linzmeier, identified by DVIDS, must comply with the restrictions shown on https://www.dvidshub.net/about/copyright. | https://www.dvidshub.net/image/7424645/symbolic-f-22-flight-marks-154th-wing-change-command | 2022-09-20T03:06:41Z | dvidshub.net | control | https://www.dvidshub.net/image/7424645/symbolic-f-22-flight-marks-154th-wing-change-command | 1 | 0 | green-iguana-35 | null |
We thought Week 1 was wild, but we truly had no idea what was in store in Week 2. Three teams erased a deficit of at least 13 points in the fourth quarter, which had only happened on the same day once before in NFL history (Oct. 4, 1992). Two of those included 20-point second-half comebacks, both of which featured two of the craziest endings you’ll ever see.
That sets the stage for Week 3, which has to be at least a little bit calmer … right? Here’s a look at the full slate of games at BetMGM, including which ones we’re targeting early in the week:
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NFL Week 3 betting odds, point spreads (via BetMGM)
Ravens -3 @ Patriots
I can’t believe oddsmakers had the audacity to hang this line after what we’ve seen through the first two weeks of the season.
Yes, the Ravens deserve plenty of criticism after allowing the Dolphins to erase a 21-point comeback in the fourth quarter. But did you see the first three quarters? This offense is clearly humming with Lamar Jackson (437 total yards, 4 TDs) at the helm, and this young defense mostly did its job until a few crucial – and inexcusable – lapses in the final quarter.
I’d expect veteran coach John Harbaugh to have his group prepared for this get-right spot against the Patriots, who might be the most quintessentially average team in the NFL across the entire roster. Mac Jones simply doesn’t have the experience nor innovative play-calling to overcome the mediocre weapons around him, and this ho-hum defense will have its hands full containing Jackson in a revenge spot from his frustrating loss at New England in 2020.
Chiefs -6.5 @ Colts
Are we sure the Colts are good? Or, let me rephrase: are we sure they aren’t one of the worst teams in the league?
I hate to overreact after the first two weeks, but this team clearly has some underlying issues after tying with the Texans and getting blanked by the Jaguars a week ago. It seems like maybe Carson Wentz wasn’t the problem on the heels of Matt Ryan’s 3-INT day, and even Jonathan Taylor (54 yards) couldn’t save this offense from a shutout.
The Chiefs need no introduction after a blowout win in Week 1 and a physical win over the Chargers in Week 2, and I’m frankly surprised they aren’t laying a touchdown or more in this spot. Don’t be surprised if that changes by kickoff.
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Chargers -7 vs. Jaguars
This feels like a pretty obvious numbers play to grab early in the week, which might be the only time we see this line at 7 if Justin Herbert (ribs) can’t suit up for Week 3.
He’s questionable for this one after gutting it out to close last Thursday’s loss in Kansas City. It was obvious to anyone watching how much pain the third-year star was fighting through, and we still don’t have much clarity on his status for this one. However, it seems like an obvious spot to rest the MVP candidate against a clearly inferior opponent.
The talent gap between these two doesn’t mean you should discount the Jaguars entirely, though, after their dominant win over the Colts. As we said above, it’s hard to know how much stock to put into that, but the post-Urban Meyer era is already off to a much better start, and Trevor Lawrence (235 yards, 2 TDs) looks like a different quarterback, too. I’m fine grabbing the points in this one, anyway, but it’ll prove especially fruitful if Herbert can’t go. | https://nypost.com/2022/09/19/nfl-week-3-betting-odds-lines-early-predictions-and-picks/ | 2022-09-20T03:06:45Z | nypost.com | control | https://nypost.com/2022/09/19/nfl-week-3-betting-odds-lines-early-predictions-and-picks/ | 1 | 0 | green-iguana-35 | null |
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Texas Gov. Greg Abbott accused Mayor Eric Adams of hypocrisy for attacking his migrant-relocation program while giving a pass to President Biden and the Democratic mayor of El Paso.
The broadside came amid Adams’ repeated threats to sue “Texas” — without specifying who — over the busloads of migrants who’ve been arriving almost daily in the Big Apple for more than a month.
An Abbott spokesperson accused Adams of “flat-out lying and selectively attacking Texas’ busing operation, while conveniently ignoring migrants bused into New York City by Democrat-led El Paso and flown by President Biden.”
“Instead of complaining about a couple thousand migrants being bused into his self-declared sanctuary city and using these migrants for political attacks, Mayor Adams should call on President Biden to take immediate action to secure the border — something the President continues failing to do,” Abbott press secretary Renae Eze added.
Adams, a Democrat, as been engaged in a war of words with Abbott since the Republican governor began busing migrants to Washington, DC, then expanded the program to New York City.
Abbott, who began sending migrants to Chicago late last month, has said the program is intended to protest Biden’s “irresponsible open-border policies” and their impact on border communities in the Lone Star State.
Last week, The Post revealed that Adams recently spoke with Democratic El Paso Mayor Oscar Lesser, who also began sending busloads of migrants to the city amid a surge that’s seen the city overwhelmed by around 1,400 a day, up from between 200 and 300.
“We’re very thankful to Mayor Adams from New York that really stepped up to help us and, you know, he did tell me when I, when I spoke with him that there is not a community there within New York from Venezuela,” Leeser said at an El Paso City Council work session on Sept. 12.
Migrant crisis moves North: Here’s what’s happening around the country as border states bus migrants around the US
- National Guard called into Martha’s Vineyard for 50 migrants
- Migrants dropped off on Kamala Harris’ DC doorstep dispute her ‘secure’ border claim: ‘We come in free, no problem’
- Flood of migrants helps lead to worst NYC shelter failure in more than decade
- DC now a ‘border town’ as mayor declares public emergency over bussed migrants
- Huge rise in border deaths from drowning, dehydration overwhelm Texas border town’s morgues
“But he will welcome them into his community and then work with them to get them to a community where there is, there are peers, so they can continue to be there and that’s really important to him.”
Last year, The Post also revealed that the Biden administration was secretly using charter airplanes to fly underage migrants to the Westchester County Airport north of the city.
From there, they were bused to meet up with relatives or sponsors, or taken to a church-run housing facility for kids on Long Island.
Those flights were suspended amid the ensuing outrage but the practice was later quietly resumed.
On Sunday, Adams said that “our legal team is looking at what legal challenges we could do with Texas.”
“We believe there’s some options we have because when you involuntarily place someone on a bus, we believe that actually skates the law,” he added.
Abbott’s spokesperson insisted that his operation was 100% legal.
“Migrants on Texas’ buses willingly chose to go to New York, having signed a voluntary consent waiver available in multiple languages upon boarding that they agreed on the destination,” Eze said.
“Each bus is stocked with food and water and makes stops along the trip to refuel and switch drivers. Migrants are allowed to purchase any needed provisions or disembark at any of these stops, as they have been processed and released by the federal government.” | https://nypost.com/2022/09/19/texas-gov-abbott-hits-mayor-adams-on-migrants-sent-to-nyc-by-biden-el-paso-democrat/ | 2022-09-20T03:07:39Z | nypost.com | control | https://nypost.com/2022/09/19/texas-gov-abbott-hits-mayor-adams-on-migrants-sent-to-nyc-by-biden-el-paso-democrat/ | 1 | 0 | green-iguana-35 | null |
HONOLULU (KITV4) -- U.S. Navy Rear Adm. John Wade has been named the commander of Joint Task Force Red Hill, which will implement the defueling of the Red Hill Bulk Storage Facility.
The creation of the Joint Task Force by the Department of Defense will focus on safety and speed for the defueling efforts. Wade will lead the Joint Task Force, in coordination with key federal, state and local stakeholders.
The @deptofdefense and the @USNavy remain focused on the health and safety of our military families and the people of Hawaii. To that end, I'm pleased to announce U.S. Navy Rear Adm. John Wade as the Commander of the Joint Task Force – Red Hill. https://t.co/fgCrWYI1Ma
U.S. Sen. Mazie K. Hirono (D-HI), a member of the Senate Armed Services Committee, released the following statement on Wade's appointment:
“Now that a JTF commander has been named, I am hopeful that the work necessary to prepare for Red Hill’s defueling can begin in a timely manner. I’ll continue working with my colleagues in Congress, military leadership, and our partners in Hawaii to help ensure the success of this critical task, while ensuring the protection and the health and safety of the people of Hawaii.”
Wade will report through Indo-Pacific Command Adm. Aquilino, to the Secretary, which will ensure awareness and support at the highest levels of the Department and as well as provide accurate and timely information to the local community.
The Department of the Navy is responsible for the continued monitoring of the drinking water and repairs in preparation for the closure of the Red Hill site.
U.S. Sen. Brian Schatz also issued a statement on Wade's appointment:
“Shutting down Red Hill cannot be delayed. With a commander now in place, the Joint Task Force can become fully operational and begin to work on-site with state, local, and community leaders to safely and quickly defuel Red Hill. The Department of Defense is perfectly capable of meeting a tight timeframe in an emergency situation. And this is an emergency. Our water was poisoned. Of course they need to assess, prepare, and drain the tanks in a way that is safe and doesn’t cause more contamination, but anything resembling a delay, intentional or not, is totally unacceptable. As a member of the Defense Appropriations Subcommittee, I will use every tool, every power, and every resource at my disposal to drain the tanks as soon as possible.”
Do you have a story idea? Email news tips to news@kitv.com | https://www.kitv.com/news/local/navy-appoints-new-joint-task-force-commander-for-red-hill-defueling-efforts/article_ce3fe328-3878-11ed-8f57-6bf3ea7871b1.html | 2022-09-20T03:07:48Z | kitv.com | control | https://www.kitv.com/news/local/navy-appoints-new-joint-task-force-commander-for-red-hill-defueling-efforts/article_ce3fe328-3878-11ed-8f57-6bf3ea7871b1.html | 1 | 0 | green-iguana-35 | null |
Over the past two years, Mililani Waena Elementary School has had two grade levels eating during lunch, with one grade sitting in the cafeteria, and another in a covered outdoor area. All kindergarteners, however, eat indoors.
The policy was intended to minimize COVID spread, but the school has since decided to keep it in place.
Kristina Tullos, whose daughter is in the first grade at the school, learned of the rule after she noticed her child was not eating her home lunch.
"I asked her, 'honey, why aren't you eating your lunch?' She said, 'mommy it's so hot outside' and I go, 'what do you mean?'...and she goes, 'yeah we have to sit outside," Tullos recalled.
"I mean, who wants to eat a warm lunch in warm weather?"
After Tullos questioned the rule, she said her daugher's teacher messaged her, "It has been unbearably hot. Unfortunately we've been assigned to sit outside until the end of the quarter."
According to the Department of Education, lunch operations are determined at the school level, and Tullos has been pressing campus administration to change the rule.
"I can't even walk to the mailbox without melting and you have these little babies out there? Come on," Tullos said.
In a statement, a DOE spokesperson explained the policy, "started out for COVID mitigation but the school realized other benefits to students and staff including the covered outdoor areas being cooler/more ventilated than the cafeteria (it is not AC), students being able to sit and eat more comfortably while spread out, and more comfortable noise levels in the cafeteria with less students in there at once."
Tullos is not satisfied with the response and said she will continue to plead her case with other state officials.
Do you have a story idea? Email news tips to news@kitv.com
'A'ali'i is a reporter with KITV. He was born and raised on the island of Maui and graduated from the University of Southern California with a bachelor's degree in Journalism. | https://www.kitv.com/news/this-is-horrible-parent-pushes-back-against-rule-requiring-some-students-to-eat-outside-during/article_37f96f8a-3880-11ed-9deb-43b3c3f29bfb.html | 2022-09-20T03:07:54Z | kitv.com | control | https://www.kitv.com/news/this-is-horrible-parent-pushes-back-against-rule-requiring-some-students-to-eat-outside-during/article_37f96f8a-3880-11ed-9deb-43b3c3f29bfb.html | 1 | 0 | green-iguana-35 | null |
SPOKANE, Wash. — During Monday's legislative meeting, Spokane City Council voted in favor of an emergency ordinance to lower the city's threshold for activating safe air centers during unhealthy air quality days.
The ordinance passed unanimously.
Sponsored by councilmember Zack Zappone, the ordinance lowers the threshold from an AQI (Air Quality Index) of 250, which is classified as "very unhealthy," to an AQI of 150, which is considered "unhealthy."
Ultimately, this ordinance allows the city to open safe air centers, getting Spokane residents out of the smoke faster.
This development comes after much of Washington state was blanketed in wildfire smoke with AQIs reaching very unhealthy levels.
For future events involving smoke and other factors affecting air quality, residents can consult the following AQI chart:
AQI (Air Quality Index) Levels:
- Good - 0-50
- Moderate - 51-100
- Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups - 101-150
- Unhealthy - 151-200
- Very Unhealthy- 201-300
- Hazardous - 301-500
DOWNLOAD THE KREM SMARTPHONE APP
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To report a typo or grammatical error, please email webspokane@krem.com. | https://www.krem.com/article/news/local/spokane-city-council-emergency-ordinance-lower-threshold-clean-air-shelters/293-d69790e1-6f36-4851-9919-553a43c49a2a | 2022-09-20T03:14:29Z | krem.com | control | https://www.krem.com/article/news/local/spokane-city-council-emergency-ordinance-lower-threshold-clean-air-shelters/293-d69790e1-6f36-4851-9919-553a43c49a2a | 1 | 0 | green-iguana-35 | null |
MOSCOW, Idaho — The Idaho Vandals football team was back on the practice field today following the team's first win of the season on Saturday against Drake. It was also the first win for Jason Eck as a head coach.
Eck and his team celebrated their first win, but they have to turn around and get ready for the beginning of Big Sky conference play this week.
"This is a big game right away. They're a good team and I know Coach Ball has been there for a few years and wants to get his team over the hump and into the playoffs," Eck said.
Idaho had a tremendous special teams performance against Drake. Kicker Ricardo Chavez was 4/4 on field goals, which earned him Big Sky special teams player of the week honors. Wide receiver Jermaine Jackson had a 58 yard punt return for a touchdown and the Vandals also blocked a punt.
As excellent as the special teams performance was, Coach Eck would like his offense to put the ball in the end zone, rather than settling for a field goal.
"You cannot beat really good teams counting by threes, you have to count by sevens down there. We need to do a better job of execution, sometimes we shot ourselves in the foot (in the red zone). The guys need to look each other in the eye in the huddle and say, 'We need to lock in and do what it takes to finish this drive,'" Eck said.
Defensively, Eck is hoping to see his guys do something they did not do in the first half against Drake.
"I think the biggest stride we have to make is stopping the run and not allowing teams to bleed us. We cannot be giving up five yards a pop in the run game," Eck said.
While his first win was special, Eck is focused on moving forward to conference play and says he is even more excited for the possibility of winning his first Big Sky conference game.
Idaho and Northern Arizona will kick off at 1 p.m. on Saturday in Flagstaff. KREM will have full coverage of highlights following the game.
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HOW TO ADD THE KREM+ APP TO YOUR STREAMING DEVICE
ROKU: add the channel from the ROKU store or by searching for KREM in the Channel Store.
Fire TV: search for "KREM" to find the free app to add to your account. Another option for Fire TV is to have the app delivered directly to your Fire TV through Amazon.
To report a typo or grammatical error, please email webspokane@krem.com. | https://www.krem.com/article/sports/ncaa/university-of-idaho/idaho-vandals-prepared-conference-play/293-e9ae01d3-e13b-43ba-b09e-9078522c7402 | 2022-09-20T03:14:41Z | krem.com | control | https://www.krem.com/article/sports/ncaa/university-of-idaho/idaho-vandals-prepared-conference-play/293-e9ae01d3-e13b-43ba-b09e-9078522c7402 | 1 | 0 | green-iguana-35 | null |
Junior quarterback Jalon Daniels has been named the Week Three Big 12 Offensive Player of the Week, after a stellar performance against Houston on Saturday.
With the award, Daniels becomes the third Jayhawk to win such an award this year, as redshirt junior defensive end Lonnie Phelps and sophomore cornerback Cobee Bryant won defensive player of the week in Weeks One and Two.
Daniels accounted for 281 total yards and five total touchdowns. He passed for 158 yards and three touchdowns through the air, and led Kansas in rushing with 123 yards and two touchdowns on the ground.
Daniels is leading the Jayhawk offense, which is ranked fifth in the country in scoring with 51 points per game.
In the 2021 season, the Jayhawks scored a total of 249 points during their 12 game season. Through three games of 2022, they have accumulated 153 points through just three games.
However, the takeoff of the offense could be seen last year when Daniels took over the starting quarterback position. His first start of the year was the 57-56 overtime win over Texas, which accounted for over 20% of the Jayhawks’ total point output during the 2021 season.
Having appeared in the games versus Coastal Carolina, Baylor, Kansas State, and Texas, he had a choice to make. The NCAA allows football players to redshirt if an athlete has only played in four games in one season.
After Daniels had 202 yards and three touchdowns in the upset win over Texas, Daniels was given the choice to either redshirt and save the year of eligibility, or keep the momentum going for the final two games of the 2021 season.
Daniels decided to play the last two games, and kept his foot on the gas. In the final two games against TCU and West Virginia, he totaled 44/62 passing for 504 yards and three touchdowns.
All in all, it looks as if Daniels made the right decision to keep his momentum going with the offense, as they were able to start this year without missing a beat after the high notes that they ended on this year.
Daniels and the Jayhawk offense look to keep rolling as they take on Duke on Saturday at 11 a.m. at David Booth Memorial Stadium. | https://www.kansan.com/sports/jalon-daniels-named-big-12-offensive-player-of-the-week/article_8d76b6ee-384d-11ed-91ef-438b480b8bc5.html | 2022-09-20T03:18:53Z | kansan.com | control | https://www.kansan.com/sports/jalon-daniels-named-big-12-offensive-player-of-the-week/article_8d76b6ee-384d-11ed-91ef-438b480b8bc5.html | 1 | 0 | green-iguana-35 | null |
Junior quarterback Jalon Daniels is the Walter Camp National FBS Offensive Player of the Week after scoring 5 touchdowns and accounting for nearly 300 total yards against Houston last week, adding to his growing list of recognitions to open the season.
After being named a Manning Award Star of the Week and being listed on the Davey O’Brien Great 8 List for his 3-touchdown performance against West Virginia, Daniels received both of those honors again for his performance against Houston.
His role in the Jayhawk’s 48-30 win over the Cougars also earned him recognition as the Big 12 Conference Offensive Player of the Week.
Kansas head coach Lance Leipold praised Daniels’ positive impact on the team, leading them to their first 3-0 start since 2009.
“He made some big plays, scrambling, keeping drives alive, saw some things, didn't hesitate…The big picture of what he did for this team is really remarkable,” Leipold said in a press conference after the game.
By being flexible Daniels has found a place to thrive in Offensive Coordinator Andy Kotelnicki’s system. He targeted 11 different receivers in the win over Houston and found success on the ground with Kotelnicki’s triple-option plays that allowed the Jayhawk's depth at running back to cause problems for opposing defenses.
“Coach [Kotelnicki] puts a big emphasis on trying to distort the defense and those running backs we have out there allow us to distort defenses because they don’t know who’s going to have the ball at the end of the play,” Daniels said after the Houston win.
Daniels and the Jayhawks will return to David Booth Kansas Memorial Stadium after the two-game road trip to face Duke on Sept. 24 in their last non-conference game of the season.
“We’re 3-0,” Daniels said, “and we’re just going to try to build off of that and just keep going into next week.” | https://www.kansan.com/sports/jalon-daniels-named-walter-camp-national-fbs-offensive-player-of-the-week/article_4476b744-385e-11ed-8c6a-a79eb460efba.html | 2022-09-20T03:18:59Z | kansan.com | control | https://www.kansan.com/sports/jalon-daniels-named-walter-camp-national-fbs-offensive-player-of-the-week/article_4476b744-385e-11ed-8c6a-a79eb460efba.html | 1 | 0 | green-iguana-35 | null |
For the first time since 2009, Kansas football is receiving votes in the AP Top 25 poll, coming up with 23 points in the Week Four edition.
The Jayhawks’ 48-30 win over Houston propelled them into this spot. Houston was ranked at 25 in the week two AP poll, before dropping out of it with an overtime loss to Texas Tech before playing Kansas week three.
Since Kansas was last ranked, they have seen five head coaching departures (six if you count interim Clint Bowen after Charlie Weis’ firing in 2014), 13 losing seasons, 12 straight seasons of three or less wins, and two winless seasons.
The 2009 team that was the most recent Jayhawk team to be in the AP poll, had started 5-0. A heartbreaking loss to Colorado in Boulder dropped them from No.17 to No.24. The next week, the Jayhawks hosted No. 25 Oklahoma, and lost 35-13, dropping them from the poll.
The Jayhawks are now the closest to the AP Top 25 that they have been since the week after the 2009 loss to Oklahoma where they received 12 votes.
Yesterday’s release of the AP Top 25 makes for 209 consecutive polls from the AP that the Jayhawks have not received votes for the Top 25.
The AP poll is made up of 63 writers from around the country, all of whom get equal say into who goes where in the poll. Each writer makes their own Top 25 and the results are collected and put into a point system.
A first place vote earns 25 points, while a vote for the No. 25 spot earns one point.
Miami (FL) owns the No. 25 spot right now, as it received 123 points. If the poll were to continue their rankings past the No. 25 spot, Kansas would be ranked No. 34 because it received the 34th-most points.
The key to the Jayhawks finding their way into the poll is to have voters convinced that they are higher than No, 25. In this week’s poll, the highest ranking they received was No. 21 from Michael Lev of the Arizona Daily Star.
Meanwhile, Miami was able to receive as high as a No. 16 vote from Kirk Kennedy of the San Diego Union-Tribune. Of the 10 voters that included Kansas in their poll, five had them right at No. 25.
Whether the Jayhawks are ranked or not likely won’t change the process for head coach Lance Leipold, as he and his team prepare for Duke next Saturday at 11 a.m. at David Booth Memorial Stadium. | https://www.kansan.com/sports/jayhawks-receiving-votes-in-ap-poll-for-the-first-time-since-2009/article_f129afaa-384a-11ed-b7f2-37e55bfaf6a6.html | 2022-09-20T03:19:05Z | kansan.com | control | https://www.kansan.com/sports/jayhawks-receiving-votes-in-ap-poll-for-the-first-time-since-2009/article_f129afaa-384a-11ed-b7f2-37e55bfaf6a6.html | 1 | 0 | green-iguana-35 | null |
NEW YORK, Sept. 19, 2022 /PRNewswire/ --
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Weiss Law is investigating possible breaches of fiduciary duty and other violations of law by the board of directors of STORE Capital Corporation (NYSE: STOR) in connection with the proposed acquisition of STOR by GIC and funds managed by Oak Street. Under the terms of the merger agreement, STOR shareholders will receive $32.25 in cash for each share of STOR common stock owned. If you own STOR shares and wish to discuss this investigation or your rights, please call us or visit our website: https://www.weisslaw.co/news-and-cases/stor
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Weiss Law is investigating possible breaches of fiduciary duty and other violations of law by the board of directors of Gemini Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ: GMTX), in connection with the proposed merger of GMTX with Disc Medicine, Inc. ("Disc"). Pursuant to the merger agreement, GMTX shareholders are expected to own approximately 28% of the combined company and Disc shareholders are expected to own approximately 72% of the combined company. Prior to the closing of the proposed merger, GMTX shareholders will be issued contingent value rights ("CVR's) representing the right to receive certain payments from proceeds received by the combined company, if any, related to pre-transaction legacy assets during the period ending one year following the closing of the merger. If you own GMTX shares and wish to discuss this investigation or your rights, please call us or visit our website: https://www.weisslaw.co/news-and-cases/gmtx
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SOURCE Weiss Law | https://www.wave3.com/prnewswire/2022/09/20/shareholder-alert-weiss-law-reminds-stor-avlr-lotz-gmtx-shareholders-about-its-ongoing-investigations/ | 2022-09-20T03:24:38Z | wave3.com | control | https://www.wave3.com/prnewswire/2022/09/20/shareholder-alert-weiss-law-reminds-stor-avlr-lotz-gmtx-shareholders-about-its-ongoing-investigations/ | 1 | 0 | green-iguana-35 | null |
The good news is that Marquette volleyball went 3-0 last week, running their winning streak to seven straight matches, staying undefeated at home this season, and picking up another win over a ranked team.
The bad news is that said ranked team was #25 in the country last week, and they lost twice in the same day that the Golden Eagles beat them. Thus, the AVCA top 25 poll voters didn’t give Marquette that much credit for beating Illinois, and that’s why the Golden Eagles are the #19 team in the country this week, just like they were last week.
They did receive more points in the poll, which means more voters are assured of MU’s place in the top 25, so that’s good. Marquette picked up 489 points this week after being at #19 with 403 points last week. Baby steps, etc., etc. Washington is #18 with 521 points, while Arkansas came in at #20 with 411 points. That also moves Marquette closer to 18 than to 20, and it was the other way around in last week’s poll.
Wisconsin remains the top ranked team on Marquette’s schedule, but their loss to Florida means that the Badgers dropped from #4 to #6 this week. Kentucky is now just 5-4 on the year, so they also fell in the new poll, going from #13 to #15. Proving exactly how great it is that Marquette stayed steady, Creighton also dropped in the top 25 this week, falling five spots to #22.
Illinois now occupies a spot in the Receiving Votes department, and depending on how you want to feel about them losing in five sets to both Marquette and Illinois State on Saturday, that determines your feelings about the voters that put the Illini in. It’s only five points worth of voters, for the record, so keep that in mind when getting out your judgement sticks.
Marquette starts up Big East play this week, and they’ll play two contests as their 10 match homestand continues. First up is DePaul on Wednesday night with first serve set for 7pm, and then Butler comes to town on Saturday with start time for that one scheduled for 6pm Central time.
You can check out the entire top 25 right here. | https://www.anonymouseagle.com/2022/9/19/23362025/marquette-golden-eagles-volleyball-avca-top-25-poll-rankings | 2022-09-20T03:26:55Z | anonymouseagle.com | control | https://www.anonymouseagle.com/2022/9/19/23362025/marquette-golden-eagles-volleyball-avca-top-25-poll-rankings | 1 | 0 | green-iguana-35 | null |
Florida deputies find enough fentanyl to kill 1.5 million people during search of Jacksonville home
JACKSONVILLE, Fla. - The Jacksonville Sheriff's Office said its narcotics unit recently found enough fentanyl inside a home that could reportedly kill up to 1.5 million people. In total, the unit found 3 kilos – or about six pounds – of fentanyl, 1.2 kilos – or a little more than two pounds – of cocaine, and over 6,000 pills, some of which were laced with fentanyl, the sheriff's office said.
Some 2,400 of those 6,000 pills – or 40% – had "lethal amounts" of fentanyl in them, the Jacksonville Sheriff's Office said in a Facebook post, which included a photo of the haul. The pills alone could kill 2,500 adults, they said.
"As if those numbers are not staggering enough, according to the DEA, the 3 kilos of fentanyl seized is enough to kill up to 1.5 MILLION people."
Fentanyl is a synthetic opioid that is 50 to 100 times more potent than morphine, according to the CDC.
Last week, a Florida man was arrested in Florida County and allegedly found with 219 grams of fentanyl, which authorities said could kill over 100,000 people.
Photo is courtesy of Flagler County Sheriff's Office
Also last week, a small packet of fentanyl was found in the bathroom at a high school in Port Orange, Florida, which is outside of Orlando.
A student found the packet on the ground, according to the Volusia County Sheriff's Office. | https://www.fox32chicago.com/news/florida-deputies-find-enough-fentanyl-to-kill-1-5-million-people-during-search-of-jacksonville-home | 2022-09-20T03:33:28Z | fox32chicago.com | control | https://www.fox32chicago.com/news/florida-deputies-find-enough-fentanyl-to-kill-1-5-million-people-during-search-of-jacksonville-home | 1 | 0 | green-iguana-35 | null |
Video shows patrons at West Town bar scramble after shots fired
CHICAGO - A West Town bar says it was the target of a random shooting Friday night.
According to a Facebook post from The Aberdeen Tap, the victim was on the patio when they were struck by gunfire.
Chicago police said the victim was shot around 10:30 p.m. Friday night.
An occupant in a white Durango fired shots.
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The victim was shot in the leg, and transported to an area hospital in good condition, police said.
No offender is currently in custody.
Part of the Facebook post from the bar can be found below:
"There’s no easy way to put this, but our corner patio was the target of a random shooting on Friday night. One of our Aberdeen family members was hit, but is luckily doing just fine.
We want to thank everyone for the outpouring of love and well-wishes so far, it is greatly appreciated. We’re thankful no one else was hit, but want to send love and support to everyone who was there or affected by what happened." | https://www.fox32chicago.com/news/video-shows-patrons-at-west-town-bar-scramble-after-shots-fired | 2022-09-20T03:33:59Z | fox32chicago.com | control | https://www.fox32chicago.com/news/video-shows-patrons-at-west-town-bar-scramble-after-shots-fired | 1 | 0 | green-iguana-35 | null |
Bears regroup after getting picked apart by Rodgers, Packers
CHICAGO - The Chicago Bears were feeling good about themselves following a surprising, rain-soaked victory over the San Francisco 49ers at Soldier Field to start coach Matt Eberflus’ first season.
Leave it to Aaron Rodgers and the rival Green Bay Packers to bring them down a peg, this time 27-10 at Lambeau Field on Sunday night. The Bears will try to bounce back next Sunday when they host Lovie Smith and the Houston Texans (0-1-1).
Rodgers gave them headaches, as usual, throwing for 234 yards and two touchdowns, and the Packers improved to 24-5 in games he has started against Chicago. The Bears couldn’t stop Aaron Jones, who went off for 132 yards and a rushing touchdown. He also caught a scoring pass.
Chicago at least got its ground game going. But when it came to passing, well, it was a different story. Quarterback Justin Fields had another difficult time, and receiver Darnell Mooney and tight end Cole Kmet were nonfactors.
"We need to highlight our skill," Eberflus said Monday. "We know that. We know that. So we’re going to try to do a better job of that. We will do a better job. Like I said last night, we got great coaches. Those guys are smart. They know how to get it done and we will get it done."
WHAT’S WORKING
The Bears ran for 180 yards and 6.7 per attempt. It was a big improvement coming off Week 1, when Chicago had 99 on 37 carries. David Montgomery finished with 122 yards on 15 attempts, and Khalil Herbert carried four times for 38 yards.
WHAT NEEDS HELP
The Bears ranked last in the NFL in passing through Sunday. Fields has completed just 15 of 28 passes for 191 yards with two touchdowns and two interceptions. That reads like one bad game. That it’s over two makes it look even worse. Fields was 7 of 11 for 70 yards against the Packers, and the Bears can’t blame that on the weather.
STOCK UP
Coming off a tough opener, Montgomery looked more like the 1,000-yard rusher he was in 2020 than the guy who ran for 849 yards last season and averaged 3.8 per attempt. The 122 yards were the most since he had a career-high 146 in a win at Minnesota on Dec. 20, 2020. Montgomery, who ran for just 26 yards in Week 1, had 38 on a 71-yard touchdown drive in the first quarter that gave Chicago a 7-3 lead over Green Bay. The big question is why the Bears didn’t give him the ball on fourth down and less than 1 yard at the goal line with the Packers up 24-10 in the fourth. Fields lined up in the shotgun, and officials ruled that Preston Smith and Jarran Reed stopped him just short of the end zone.
STOCK DOWN
Cornerback Kyler Gordon can chalk this up as a learning experience. Rodgers opted to pick on the rookie, as expected, rather than go after star Jaylon Johnson, and it added up to a difficult night. Sammy Watkins beat Gordon on a 55-yard catch and finished with 93 yards receiving.
INJURIES
DB Dane Cruikshank hurt his hamstring in the first half. ... Rookie WR Velus Jones Jr. (hamstring) missed his second game.
KEY NUMBER
2 — Through two games, Mooney has just two receptions for four yards. He has been targeted five times. The Bears clearly need to get Mooney more involved after he had 1,055 yards last season — his second. On the plus side ... he has two more receptions than Kmet.
NEXT STEPS
The Bears host Smith and the Texans. Smith, who led the Bears from 2004 to 2012 and guided the 2006 team to the Super Bowl, is 0-2 against his former team. The Bears beat Tampa Bay when he was coaching the Buccaneers in 2014 at Soldier Field and in 2015 at Raymond James Stadium. Smith also coached Illinois to a loss against South Florida on the lakefront in 2018. | https://www.fox32chicago.com/sports/bears-regroup-after-getting-picked-apart-by-rodgers-packers | 2022-09-20T03:34:05Z | fox32chicago.com | control | https://www.fox32chicago.com/sports/bears-regroup-after-getting-picked-apart-by-rodgers-packers | 1 | 0 | green-iguana-35 | null |
← A little of THR\nIn the meantie we die, so live fully now. You will only get so many chanes!! →\nIn this little country where life comes fast… so the sunshade that covers her like skin was the last day i’be felt love like we feel every night… now on our days that i try like my whole family do but every single time the time and everything will become what you cant’ escape from … and so we become the BYRON CENTER, Mich. — Taylor Johnson has had quite the playing and coaching career, but is now stepping into a new role. He was hired on Monday as the head boys basketball coach at South Christian High School.
Johnson most recently was an assistant coach at Grand Valley. He served in that role for six seasons, helping the Lakers to a 101-66 record. He also has had stops at North Carolina State, Western Michigan, and Southeastern University in Florida.
"You know this is a really, really good school. They have a great AD in David Kool and that's a big part of it. But they're really good, they've got a lot of talented players, but also it's a faith based school and that's really important to me. I coached at a school called Southeastern University, that was a faith based school, and I wanted to make a change over to this type of team, and I think it will be really good," said Johnson.
The Sailors were 16-5 last season and finished third in the OK Gold.
For more scores, highlights, and the latest news on high school sports in West Michigan, go to the FOX 17 Blitz page. | https://www.fox17online.com/sports/blitz/south-christian-hires-new-basketball-coach | 2022-09-20T03:40:51Z | fox17online.com | control | https://www.fox17online.com/sports/blitz/south-christian-hires-new-basketball-coach | 1 | 0 | green-iguana-35 | null |
TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (WTXL) — The goal is to get the community to welcome refugees with open arms.
"They gave us hope."
Muhammad Masood and his family are refugees from Afghanistan. They've been in Tallahassee for 2 months... with the help of the Tallahassee International Rescue Committee and members of the community.
"They took my wife to English school and my children to school they enrolled them into the school."
The Tallahassee International Rescue Committee, or IRC, is a local nonprofit serving refugees often displaced by war and conflict. The IRC is trying to get more support from local faith and civic group leaders, in addition to community members, to better assist refugees in need that come to Tallahassee.
Karen Duncan is the Development Manager at IRC. She says one of their key programs is called the HOME Team. Home stands for Housing, Outreach, Mentorship, and Education. Each Home team is made up of 8 to 10 people… all with a goal of making sure refugees feel right at home.
"We've seen these Home Teams take the kids out for ice cream and you just see the biggest smiles on their face when they go to get ice cream at Lofty Pursuits."
Duncan says some refugees left their countries with only the clothes on their back…so many of them need basic items like clothing, furniture, and food. That's not all…they also need friendship and moral support since many left their own family and friends behind back in their home countries.
But it doesn't stop there…refugees also need help finding affordable housing, access to medical care, transportation, and securing good jobs. Kristin Barnett is the Operations Director of Neighborly…a local nonprofit that serves Afghan and Syrian refugees on their way to self-sufficiency. She says she hopes more community members will get involved to make an impact.
"I'm helping someone tomorrow get a bank card and we also do really fun things we've hosted pool parties at our house so women come in their hijab swimsuits we teach them how to swim, English language practice, painting nails, and really it's just about friendship."
Masood is hopeful he will find a job soon and says…
"I love everything in Tallahassee yes strategically we're going to be here for awhile."
The IRC helps people from Afghanistan, Syria, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Colombia, and El Salvador. So far, over 900 refugees have come to the Big Bend over the last 7 years.
The Tallahassee IRC is expecting 400 more refugees to arrive over the next year.
If you're interested in volunteering or donating with the IRC or Neighborly, click the links on their names! | https://www.wtxl.com/news/local-news/community-working-together-to-help-local-refugees-in-tallahassee | 2022-09-20T03:45:45Z | wtxl.com | control | https://www.wtxl.com/news/local-news/community-working-together-to-help-local-refugees-in-tallahassee | 1 | 0 | green-iguana-35 | null |
YAKIMA, Wash. - In May, a new law that requires the Washington State Crime Lab to test new sexual assault kits coming in within a 45-day period took effect. Since then, Washington State Patrol said the lab tested almost all the new kits by that deadline. Thousands of backlog kits have also been tested.
According to the Communications Director for Washington State Patrol Chris Loftis, the state crime lab received 372 new sexual assault kits between May and now. All but two of them were tested within 45 days. One took 47 days to test and the other 48 days.
Loftis said a lot of changes needed to be made in order to meet this deadline like hiring additional staff, updating equipment and better use of lab space.
"The external pressure is good," Loftis said. "Its forced us to improve our systems, its forced the legislature to provide the funding and resources."
Sergeant Jake Lancaster with the Yakima Police Department said getting those kits back sooner could be key in solving some cases.
"We need some evidence," Sgt. Lancaster said. "Sometimes that's the only physical evidence that we have."
Loftis said it could also help exonerate the innocent people accused a lot quicker.
A big dent in the Washington's backlog of sexual assault kits was also made with about 95% of them tested. According to Loftis, thousands of kits were outsourced to other labs to speed up testing. Now the backlog stands at 427 kits, compared to the over nine thousand the state started with.
Of the kits tested, so far 2,763 DNA profiles have been entered in the national information database, CODIS, resulting in 1,059 hits to people already in the database. Two-hundred and twenty-seven people have been linked to another case.
"The assumptions of the past that these were of little value, was wrong and it was disrespectful to victims," Loftis said.
In the past, kits were not tested if the evidence wasn't needed like if other physical evidence was available or if the suspect confessed. Loftis said that sent the wrong message. All kits sent to the lab are tested now.
Sgt. Lancaster said he believes all kits need to be tested for stronger prosecutions.
"I don't believe it to be a pleasant experience for a victim to go through that so I think they should even if the suspect were to confess," Sgt. Lancaster said. "I think that the kit should be tested because it makes the case even stronger."
YPD sends all their sexual assault kits to the crime lab to be tested every two weeks and has cleared all the backlogged cases at their department.
Evidence Technician Amanda Tricky-Morris said the Yakima County Sheriff's Office tries to send the kits to the crime lab right away. Sometimes it can take longer depending on the case but they try to send it off to the lab within a 30-day period. Only rarely do they wait past 30 days.
"If there is somebody we wanted to get a reference sample from in order to maybe eliminate them, we would sometimes wait to collect that to send it in and that could delay shipment past the 30 days," Tricky-Morris said.
She added the crime lab like reference samples and kits to be sent together.
YCSO has also cleared their backlog of kits except four kits they've kept because the victims didn't want to press charges. Tricky-Morris said they will keep those until the 20-year statue of limitations is up or until victims decide to press charges.
The state crime lab continues to face a backlog of nonsexual assault related cases and they are working to test evidence for other crimes like homicides.
Loftis said this can be harder to clear because the evidence can be as big a couch so each case is different. He said right now the average turn around for testing nonsexual assault related evidence is 186 days. However, 55% of evidence is tested in a 45-day period. | https://www.nbcrightnow.com/news/progress-made-on-testing-of-backlogged-sexual-assault-kits-new-kits-tested-within-45-days/article_4f799d20-387f-11ed-9791-1f495fd8ab1d.html | 2022-09-20T03:58:55Z | nbcrightnow.com | control | https://www.nbcrightnow.com/news/progress-made-on-testing-of-backlogged-sexual-assault-kits-new-kits-tested-within-45-days/article_4f799d20-387f-11ed-9791-1f495fd8ab1d.html | 1 | 0 | green-iguana-35 | null |
A 20-year-old woman was seriously injured when the parked police patrol car she was detained in was struck by a train in Colorado.
The incident occurred about 7:30 p.m. Friday near U.S. 85 and County Road 38, just north of Platteville, near Denver, the Colorado Bureau of Investigation said in a news release.
"Although early in the investigation, it's believed the initial call was reported as an alleged road rage incident involving a firearm in Ft. Lupton earlier in the evening," the bureau said.
The bureau identified the woman Monday as Yareni Rios-Gonzalez, a Greeley resident.
A Platteville police officer stopped Rios-Gonzalez's car just past a set of railroad tracks and parked the patrol car on the crossing.
Two Fort Lupton officers arrived, and she was placed in the back of the Platteville officer's vehicle, which the train hit as it was traveling northbound while officers searched her car. It was not immediately clear what type of train struck the car. No one else was injured.
Rios-Gonzalez was detained on suspicion of felony menacing, the bureau said, and taken to a Greeley hospital. She remained hospitalized with multiple injuries Monday and is expected to survive, a spokesperson for the Colorado Bureau of Investigation said.
In response to an inquiry Monday, Platteville Police Chief Carl Dwyer said the officer involved from his department has been placed on paid administrative leave while an investigation is completed.
Fort Lupton police are investigating the road rage report, while the Colorado State Patrol is investigating the crash. The Colorado Bureau of Investigation said it is investigating the woman's injury while she was in police custody.
Ian Farrell, an associate professor at the University of Denver Sturm College of Law, said the officer who parked the car on the tracks could be charged with reckless endangerment.
"If you recklessly put someone in a position where there is a risk of serious bodily injury, that's a class 2 misdemeanor," Farrell said.
The officer could also be charged with third-degree assault, which occurs when someone causes serious bodily injury to another person through recklessness.
"Stopping your car on the train tracks, getting out of your car and leaving your car parked on the train tracks with someone inside — if that's not recklessness I don't know what is," Farrell said.
Farrell said the woman could seek civil damages as compensation for her injuries.
To be guilty of a more serious crime, like first-degree assault, the officer would have had to know that the person would be hurt, Farrell said, whereas for the lesser charges he referred to, the standard is at most recklessness.
"In order to be reckless, you just have to be aware of circumstances that would make a reasonable person not do what you're doing," he said. "So the police officer was aware that the vehicle was on the train tracks, and, in my view at least, a reasonable person in that situation knowing what the police officer knew would not take that risk."
Had it not been a police officer who parked on the train tracks, Farrell said, he suspects charges would already have been filed.
"Imagine what people would be saying and the charges that would be laid if it wasn't a police officer," he said. "Imagine if a mother parked her car across train tracks with a 2-year-old child inside and the car got hit. There'd be all manner of criminal charges being laid along the lines that I just described." | https://www.nbcrightnow.com/news/woman-seriously-hurt-after-colorado-police-car-she-was-placed-in-is-hit-by-a/article_3cae290e-3884-11ed-b767-8faff91fc263.html | 2022-09-20T03:59:01Z | nbcrightnow.com | control | https://www.nbcrightnow.com/news/woman-seriously-hurt-after-colorado-police-car-she-was-placed-in-is-hit-by-a/article_3cae290e-3884-11ed-b767-8faff91fc263.html | 1 | 0 | green-iguana-35 | null |
September—perhaps by virtue of being Virgo season —has always been emblematic of a sense of order and routine. With in-person work schedules slowly coming back to life, plus New York Fashion Week , the Emmy Awards , and the Venice and Toronto Film Festivals in the rearview mirror, it’s no wonder this month feels like a perpetual back-to-school whirlwind, even years after graduation.
Oh yeah, and don’t forget about your social life.
Both coasts have been brimming with late-night celebrations, libations, and endless evening gossip (which, of course, makes sense only after two-plus glasses of wine). A few short hours later still beckons an early morning meeting or inbox that has no mercy for your sleep deprivation, your unintentional hangover, or the fact that you’ve simply become socially burned out. We all have our own specific tools for next-day body perk-ups—whether workouts, meditations, or triple espressos—but what about that face of yours, out way too late every night this weekend? Lack of sleep, diet, or alcohol consumption will dehydrate your skin and put your dark circles and crow’s feet on view as prominently as a new Fendi Baguette on the runway .
Aestheticians and dermatologists all concur that masks, gels, and patches are quick and intelligent fixes for puffiness, dehydration, or tired eyes. Currently, there happens to be several hundred varieties on the market—and we recently tested the top selections, then narrowed them down to a curated list of the most effective products.
This is our desert island pick (especially if Brad Pitt happens to be on that island). In all seriousness, it’s one of our favorites for lifting and firming, especially because the composites—retinol, high-grade-hyaluronic acid, and extensive plant extracts—not only respond well to the eye area’s skin, the vibrance and the elasticity lasts all day long. Most eye masks make the eye area look fabulous and plumped for a few hours; maybe that’s all you need, but if you want maximum hydration and visible results, this is one to consider. Aestheticians recommend using the mask as a final skincare step 2-3 times a week. We unfortunately don’t have that much dilly-dallying time on our hands—but still saw results with once-a-week usage.
We fell in love with Chanel’s eye mask because post-application, the skin around the eyes looked dewy, soft, and had a legitimate glow. This two-step application utilizes a rollerball applicator for the serum itself, which you then cover with hydrogel patches. The result was never taut or uncomfortably tight and sticky, and will be a definite mainstay in our beauty regimen.
Hydration, Hydration, Hydration
It’s par for the course to thoroughly test out various Retin-A or retinol strengths—it’s what we do, and we do it often. What is not received well, however, is our skin becoming parched during trials. Dempsey’s eye masks are super hydrating and tremendously beneficial, bringing soothing relief to the eye area. It’s also one of the best eye masks to resurrect a tired and lackluster eye area before makeup application (what else should be expected from a lauded MUA who’s dealt with this issue more times than she can count?). The eye mask goes on seamlessly and contains enough milky prebiotic serum left over to spread it onto your frown lines and forehead, too.
Sleepless nights can not only make you feel bloated the next morning, but they can also cause your face to look as if it’s retaining excess water. MBR crafted these remedying eye patches that lift, tighten, and firm the upper eyelids (cellular proliferation travels even if applied under the eye) as well as the crow’s feet areas. The patches use a combination of seaweed extract, Panthenol B5, caffeine, and hyaluronic acid to make you look as if you slept for ten hours and hit the gym—instead of crashing into your bed at 4 AM. An added plus: they’re lightweight and very easy to apply.
Two beauty experts we have come to trust over the years are revered dermatologists, Dr. Jessica Wu and Kristie Streicher—the latter of whom is an eyebrow maven and founder of West Coast eyebrow salon STRIIKE. Both rate these eye gels as their absolute favorite. Personally, we found Skyn’s eye gels to feel great (there was an intensely soothing, cooling effect) with super-quick results that last all day. Dr. Wu, the board-certified derm and Harvard Medical School graduate, further advocates the benefits of these eye-saving patches. “They’re super easy to incorporate into your morning schedule,” Wu says. “Store them in the fridge, and if you need to depuff quickly, put them on in the morning when you’re brushing your teeth and having breakfast. They contain a peptide called acetyl hexapeptide-8, along with angelica extract, which has anti-inflammatory properties to help reduce puffiness.”
Bid your fine lines goodbye and good riddance, because the power in this eye mask lies in its firming capability. It tightens and minimizes eye-area wrinkles without feeling too weighted. Like most eye masks, you don’t wash off the liquid formula after application—and it feels wonderful and cool on the skin. Unlike most eye masks, there’s no heavy residue feeling afterward.
This is the absolute winner for the eye mask with the most brightening power. Nousha Salimi, the Beverly Hills-based RN and rejuvenation specialist, recently recommended these to us and fondly calls them her secret weapon for rejuvenated eyes in less than 15 minutes. The fusion blends a robust mix of diamond powder, niacinamide, and CoQ10 to revitalize the eye area quickly, and for hours. We concur and think this is a wise investment for those who suffer from dark circles, or just want their eye area to look healthy and awake.
Providing immediate relief, this eye mask will literally temporarily stop your wrinkles. The formulation contains a peptide called argirelin, which prevents muscle movement and gives the appearance of a rested eye area for several hours. There’s also retinol in the composition, to aid with brightness and lines.
We had to indulge in this red carpet staple—and were not disappointed. The thin, clear, gel masks go on very light and comfortably after you maneuver them carefully under and around the eye area. You can also layer this mask under Vargas’s antiaging sheet mask , but we preferred to test it out on its own for singular results. After one application, the lines around the eyes ceased to exist, even when smiling really, really wide (and smiling wide is very hard for me, thanks to Botox). We indulged by popping them in the fridge overnight for a cooling effect during the recent L.A. heatwave.
The last time I used this product was during a four-day marathon of morning-and-night events. Naturally, my skin—especially the eye area—was depleted, tired, and needed a boost. Zamani’s mask feels not only refreshing and cooling, but it also adds a beautiful glow to the skin. I was in awe of how well-rested I looked after application. The Hydra-Bright Eye Treatment Mask is to be used twice a week for 15 minutes; its proprietary blend of collagen, chamomile, seaweed, and niacinamide check all the right boxes to properly firm, brighten, and plump. | https://www.wmagazine.com/beauty/best-eye-masks-patches-brightening-lifting-antiwrinkle-crows-feet | 2022-09-20T04:04:00Z | wmagazine.com | control | https://www.wmagazine.com/beauty/best-eye-masks-patches-brightening-lifting-antiwrinkle-crows-feet | 1 | 0 | green-iguana-35 | null |
Ahead of A Simple Favor 2, Anna Kendrick Filmed Her Darkest Movie Yet
It’s somewhat difficult to understand why Anna Kendrick signed on to Alice, Darling, the film that’s been winning her praise at this week’s Toronto Film Festival. It’s not only a tale of emotional abuse; Kendrick was also still traumatized from a similar experience of her own when she arrived to set in Toronto. (The city premiered the film at its festival’s 47th annual edition, where Kendrick was praised for her best performance since Don’t Look Up [2009] earned her an Oscar nomination.) But from the moment she read the script, Kendrick knew that Alice, Darling wasn’t your typical take on a subject that’s often portrayed without nuance on-screen. So, she signed on—and ended up having a blast. From the way she tells it, when they weren’t filming, the cast and crew were basically at summer camp. Here, more about her experience and what pop culture she’s been consuming lately in her Culture Diet.
Congrats on this film—and congrats on avoiding all the drama that’s come with the other current one with “Darling” in its title.
So weird, right? We were like, Oh, that’s funny—there’s a movie with “darling” in the title, and the main character’s name is Alice? Parallel thinking is so terrifying to me. It feels like there shouldn't be coincidences in the world like that.
You recently talked about your own recent experience with emotional abuse. Why did you decide to put yourself through what I would have imagined to be a triggering shoot?
I guess I don’t think of it as “putting through,” as it were. The reason why the script really resonated with me is that Alanna Francis, the screenwriter, did such an amazing job of putting the heaviness of the atmosphere—that relentless, oppressive tone—on the page. We had to quarantine when we got to Canada, so by the time we arrived on set, we were making up for lost time. The first day was me meeting with every department and having 17 conversations about everybody’s personal experience with this stuff. It was remarkable to see how common [abuse] is, and also encouraging, because it meant everybody had the same reaction to the script as I did, and had the same sense of wanting to make something honest and subtle and trust that would be enough. Whether somebody on the crew or in the cast had had an experience like [Alice] themselves, or knew someone that did, it felt very personal. It felt like there was a sense of responsibility.
How do you decompress after a day on an emotionally taxing set?
Again, the quarantine rules were very, very strict when we shot this. We could only really see each other, so it’s a good thing the cast fell in love. It was picturesque, and frankly, adorable. We stayed in these little cabins on the lake right next door to each other and would have barbecues, wade in the pool, walk to the ice cream place, and just make each other laugh. We were joking that the film would have a great blooper real. There was such room for levity and playfulness in between the scenes, because you can’t live in that [heaviness] for that long.
Getting into the Culture Diet questions, what’s the first thing you read in the morning?
Oh god. Don’t ask me that, because it’s Twitter, and that’s so humiliating.
Actually, people normally say emails, so it’s nice to have a change.
Oh no, I can’t start the day with emails. I have to actually check my email to check my email because I don’t have notifications for it. It feels more digestible if it’s like, “Okay, I’m choosing to engage with my email.” Actually, the first thing I do is go to my texts, and usually there’s one from my best friend being like, “How do we feel about this real housewife?” I don’t watch the Real Housewives, but I’m absolutely going to admit that if he asks me, “How do we feel about so and so from Love Island,” I’m going to have opinions.
What are some of your favorite accounts to follow on Twitter?
I love Louis Virtel [host of the podcast Keep It and writer on Jimmy Kimmel Live]. I actually remember trying to explain to Shirley MacLaine what Twitter is, what Twitter does—and I was showing her Louis Virtel’s Twitter feed because I thought she would enjoy his the most.
I’m a big Keep It fan, too. What other podcasts do you listen to?
I love Armchair Expert, You Made It Weird with Pete Holmes, and Psychology in Seattle. Oh, and you have to listen to Sweet Bobby, but don’t read anything about it first.
When’s the last time you went to the movie theater?
I saw Last Night in Soho, and then I saw the new Scream. So it’s been a while. That’s bad.
What’s the last movie you streamed?
I actually had to buy it, because finding it on streaming was challenging. The English title is usually Footprints on the Moon (1975), but on Amazon it was called Primal Impulse, which should have been my first clue. I swear, it felt like I was streaming someone’s bootlegged copy.
What’s your phone background right now?
It has been, and will remain, Rosalind Russell in The Women (1939).
Do you read your horoscope?
I don’t. I don’t get astrology. When the new generation started getting really into rising signs and moon signs and stuff, I was like, “Oh, this is work.” You have to really be in it to follow it, so kudos. Maybe I’m missing out, but I don’t have the bandwidth.
What’s the last thing you do before you go to bed?
Again, I wish it was something useful, but it’s probably just online shopping and then closing out of all of the online shopping tabs. It’s very therapeutic to me to imagine a world where I buy this flowing dress and this sensible heel and wear them around on my long walks that I don’t take. And then by the end of the night, I’m like, “You’re not this person,” and I just click out of it.
Lastly, what can you tell me about A Simple Favor 2?
The goal is to make it next year. I don’t think I can tell you anything other than that the script is unbelievably clever and so good and I can’t wait.
Do you think she escapes from prison or gets off? Well, I guess you know...
Well, I know, but I’m not going to tell you. [Laughs.] | https://www.wmagazine.com/culture/anna-kendrick-alice-darling-a-simple-favor-2-interview | 2022-09-20T04:04:06Z | wmagazine.com | control | https://www.wmagazine.com/culture/anna-kendrick-alice-darling-a-simple-favor-2-interview | 1 | 0 | green-iguana-35 | null |
Danielle Pinnock will never forget the day she booked her first series regular role on Ghosts, the charming CBS sitcom about a young married couple that inherits a quaint country house inhabited by many of its deceased previous residents.
The actress was on a Zoom call with her best friend, LaNisa Frederick, with whom she hosts a web series about the misadventures of being an actress of color in the entertainment industry, when her manager, Frank Gonzales, showed up outside her house with a gift. The present, Pinnock soon realized, was a box of Champagne chocolates to celebrate her casting as Alberta, a Prohibition-era lounge singer who is akin to the mother hen of the group of eccentric ghosts.
“For so long in my career, I’ve heard the word ‘no,’ and to get the big ‘yes’ on a project that I’m completely obsessed [with], I was shocked,” Pinnock tells W from Montreal, where she is currently filming the show’s sophomore season, which premieres September 29. In her Culture Diet interview, Pinnock—whose other TV credits include This Is Us and the iconic Scandal/How to Get Away With Murder crossover—speaks about the career-defining role that has changed her life, the importance of creating her own content, and the Black creatives who inspire her the most.
You’ve spoken before about the importance of shining a light on Black women artists from the 1920s, who are often overlooked. How did your research help you to capture the essence of Alberta and the women from that era?
Usually, as a plus-size Black woman in the entertainment industry that’s getting co-stars and guest stars, you come in and come out, and a lot of the roles are occupationally driven, like the sassy librarian. I wanted to bring my full self to [Ghosts], so I took dance lessons for the Charleston and the Lindy Hop. I remember watching the film Bessie, which Queen Latifah produced and starred in. I had a ton of books, and I made all these spreadsheets. I was like, “Girl, this is a half-hour comedy on CBS. They don’t need this deep dive!” But it was so good for me to know this character through and through, because there were some storylines that came from that research. The showrunners allowed us to meet with the writers and share all the things that we discovered.
What’s the biggest plot twist that has changed how you view Alberta?
There was something this season that changed my whole view on her: We will get Alberta back into the 1920s jazz club. It’s a stunning episode. I’m not a trained singer at all, and I was shocked they cast me in this role knowing that, but I’ve been taking lessons. I hadn’t been on stage since 2016 to perform, and hearing that applause for the first time and stepping out on stage, I got a visceral understanding of who this character is. She lives for the hype, and I think, in her afterlife, she misses that.
Who are your dream guest stars and who would they play?
I have to say Lizzo, without question. I want Lizzo to be Alberta’s great-great-great granddaughter, who is a musician. I have been campaigning for her to be on the show, and the showrunners are like, “Yeah, if you can get her, let’s do it! We’ll write something.” Bring Sasha the Flute, sis!
My aunt [Patrice Johnson Chevannes] is an incredible stage actress. She’s done Shrill, The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel, and The First Lady. She was my greatest inspiration coming into the industry and showed me that as a Caribbean person, you can be in the arts. They did a race reversal of Othello where she actually got to play Desdemona against Patrick Stewart. That was the first play I ever saw in my life, and I was like, “That’s what I want to do.”
Who would Ghosts superfan Mark Hamill play?
Honestly, Mark could be a ghost. Mark could be Sam’s father, which I’m kind of campaigning for. Mark could also be… Mark. [Laughs.] Mark Hamil comes to visit the B&B! He’s welcome any time.
You’ve credited your own family for helping you recognize the power of laughter to get through tough times. How has your upbringing influenced your comedic timing?
Growing up, I had comedians all around me who didn’t know they were comedians. My grandmother, Una, and my mom, Joan, are probably the funniest human beings on the planet. My mom is also my greatest inspiration. She speaks four languages, she’s an immigration attorney—and I used to be my mom’s receptionist. Can you imagine an 11-year-old girl answering the phone, talking about immigration issues?
My whole life is comedy: [The story of] my husband and I, and how we ended up getting married. I thought I was going to England to meet Idris Elba—I met Ed Sheeran instead. [Laughs.] When I tell people these stories, they’re like, “That’s a show!” So that’s what I’ve been working on during the pandemic—getting all of these things to paper. One day, they could be on your TV and movie screens.
Outside of Ghosts, you’re developing and producing an adult animated series (Unmentionables), a web series (Hashtag Booked), and your own pop-culture sketches. Have you always felt the need to create your own content?
It’s been a necessity to create my own content, because no one was writing for me—plus, it gives me the freedom to just play. I never want to lose my imagination, and that really goes back to my theater roots.
I had a one-woman show called Body/Courage, which was a one-woman documentary play. I interviewed over 300 people from around the world about how they felt about their bodies. I was always getting these very stereotypical roles and I wanted to show, at least the theater industry, that I could be more than that. I performed as these people I interviewed, from a little girl from the south side of Chicago who was getting bullied because of her weight, to a Northern Irish priest who was dealing with early onset Parkinson’s, and a woman who worked in the sex industry but had just turned 50 years old. People really responded to it, because everybody has ideas about their own body.
A lot of times, creating my own work is also creating my own legacy. I want to talk about my Caribbean heritage, because when people talk about Caribbean heritage in America, we’re just drug-dealing psychics who bobsled. [Laughs.] I want to tell the stories about finding love as a plus-size woman in the entertainment industry to somebody that I did not expect to find love with.
You’re an avid reader of W’s Culture Diet vertical, so let’s jump right in to those questions. What time do you wake up in the morning and what’s the first thing you do?
Nowadays, if I’m shooting Ghosts, I’m waking up at 3:30 a.m. [Winces, then laughs.] I hop in the shower, and I’ve been on this hard-boiled egg kick. I don’t know why, but with the salt and the pepper and a little bit of hot sauce, it is phenomenal.
What books are on your bedside table right now?
Quinta Brunson’s autobiography [She Memes Well]. I’m currently reading A Mother of Black Hollywood—I’m always going back to that book, I’m obsessed with Jenifer Lewis.
What TV shows have been keeping you up at night?
Okay, I love reality TV... But I just finished A League of Their Own and was obsessed with it. Shout out to Chanté Adams and Gbemisola [Ikumelo]. Their storyline was by far the one that I connected with the most.
Danielle Brooks has this reality home renovation show on Netflix [called Instant Dream Home]. They’re literally going into people’s houses and renovating the homes in 12 hours, like, “We’re gonna renovate your house. Go swim, and by the time you’re back from the pool, it’ll be done.” It is one of the best shows that I’ve seen in so long; Danielle is such a phenomenal host.
You also seem to be a big fan of Abbott Elementary.
Quinta and I went to college together. I’m so proud of her. I’ve watched the [first] season twice already, and I’m ready to guest star on there. I was like, “Let me just come in as a drama teacher!” [Laughs.]
What’s the last thing you Googled on your phone?
“What are monkeypox?” I’m very much a hypochondriac, so I got to know exactly what’s happening. If I swim in a pool, am I getting it? Are they in water? What’s going on?
What’s the last concert that you went to?
I think it was Beyoncé, the “Lemonade” tour. My husband surprised me when we were still living in Chicago, and he flew me to Houston—her hometown. That concert changed my life. She splashed some water on us, and I almost passed out.
Do you have any favorite social media accounts to follow?
Yes, Ryan Ken on Twitter is my favorite. The Joke’s on Eddie is a really fun page, he’s a dear friend of mine.
Do you believe in astrology? And what’s your zodiac sign?
I have this character called “Terrica Tarot” that I’ve been playing around with on social media, where she has Tarot cards but they’re really Uno cards. I’m a Taurus, so I love a nap, I love snacks, I am loyal to a fault. These are really serious character traits for me, so I do believe them to an extent.
What’s the last thing that you do before you go to bed?
I’m not going to lie: I have snacks. Cheetos are my favorite snack in the world—not hot Cheetos. The way this acid reflux is set up, I cannot do it. But before bed, I like a good snack with some ice-cold water. | https://www.wmagazine.com/culture/danielle-pinnock-ghosts-season-2-interview | 2022-09-20T04:04:12Z | wmagazine.com | control | https://www.wmagazine.com/culture/danielle-pinnock-ghosts-season-2-interview | 1 | 0 | green-iguana-35 | null |
House of the Dragon Season 1, Episode 5: The Emancipation of Alicent
We are officially at the halfway point of House of the Dragon season one, so it’s no surprise that creators Ryan Condal and George R.R. Martin served up a hot plate of drama and intrigue on Sunday night, in an episode that all but solidified the Game of Thrones prequel as its own, standalone success. Of course, Thrones traditionalists were well-fed as well, thanks to the classic tropes and easter eggs sprinkled throughout the hour. We got this season’s wedding-gone-awry— a Thrones staple—some nice symbolism in the form of color, and enough love triangles and squares to require a refresher course in geometry. Next week, a ten-year time jump will find us with a new cast of older characters and a whole new political terrain to explore. But, before that, it seems necessary to breakdown all the complex relationships encircling King’s Landing, so you can go into episode six straightened out and prepared for civil war.
Rhaenyra, Criston, Laenor, and Joffrey (RIP)
Laenor and Rhaenyra are set to be wed, which is a little odd as they refer to each other as “cousin” up until their wedding night (no matter how much incest they throw at us, I’ll never get used to it). The two seem decently content with the match, however, which is more than many victims of arranged marriages can say. It helps that they make a bit of an agreement ahead of their nuptials. Both of them prefer roast duck to goose (yes, in this metaphor, roast duck means men). So, Rhaenyra—who makes it clear she’s not sexually attracted to Laenor anyway—proposes an open marriage. They get married, sire heirs, but other than that, are free to enjoy whatever meat they desire. Laenor, of course, seems pleased with this offer, as it means he does not need to give up his lover, Ser Joffrey Lonmouth. Unfortunately for Rhaenyra, her sidepiece, Ser Criston Cole, isn’t as content with being her “whore.” He suggests they run away together and get married, a proposal that is immediately shut down by Rhaenyra (whom, may I remind you, is set to inherit the Iron Throne. You’re going to have to offer something more enticing than a few oranges, Cole).
The knight swallows his pride for the time being, but looks absolutely tortured as he stands guard over Laenor and Rhaenyra’s wedding reception. He seems to be just barely hanging on when Lonmouth AKA the Knight of Kisses makes quite the indecent proposal. Lonmouth lets Cole know he’s aware of the affair with Rhaenyra, finishing off his little secret chat with what seems to be an off-camera unsolicited grab of some sort. The conversation is just enough the send Cole over the edge and, moments later he snaps, likely filled with guilt over breaking his chastity oath, heartbreak over seeing his love marry someone else, and possibly a sprinkle of homophobia. Unfortunately, the Knight of Kisses finds himself on the other end of Cole’s rage, and before the end of the evening, this love square becomes a triangle. Cole later tries to make it a simple old love line by removing himself from the equation as well, but it seems that he is stopped by Queen Alicent just before it’s too late.
Rhaenyra, Daemon, and Laena
Just because Rhaenyra is set to be wed doesn’t mean she’s over her little crush on her uncle. In fact, she basically begs him to marry her during her wedding festivities. “Cut through my father’s Kingsguard. Take me to Dragonstone and make me your wife,” Rhaenyra says in a way that sounds vaguely like a threat, but also somehow a plea. They embrace to kiss (in front of Viserys, I might add, proving they just do not care about getting caught) before the room breaks up in chaos due to Cole’s aforementioned snap.
Unfortunately for the Daenyra fans out there, the Bronze Bitch (rest in peace) may no longer be an obstacle, but by the end of the episode, it’s clear there’s someone else entering into this already complicated situation. Daemon makes his interest in Laenor’s sister, Laena, pretty obvious in his usual rakish way as they dance together at the feast and Laena seems just as enticed by Daemon (“A Targaryen prince, a dashing knight, and a dragonrider.” What more could a teenage girl ask for?). Hey, the only way to truly spice up an uncle and niece relationship is to throw a good ol’ cousin in there.
Alicent, Her Royal Duty, and Her Familial Loyalty
I would like to take this moment to welcome Queen Alicent to King’s Landing. For four episodes, Alicent was a bit of a throwaway character. While everyone around her played chess, maneuvering the King’s Landing game board, Alicent remained a pawn in other peoples’ games. She moved where her father told her to move, she produced the male heir expected of her, she played the role she thought she had to play as the subservient, caring wife and queen. It was all very boring. And as her former friend, Rhaenyra, rode dragons, slept with her sworn protector, and had nighttime jaunts outside the confines of the Red Keep, one couldn’t help but feel pity for Alicent, stuck in her castle under the decaying body of her husband.
Then, Rhaenyra pushed her lame duck friend to the edge. When the Princess insisted on firing Otto Hightower from the position of Hand of the King (a demand that her father, Viserys, did without protest, once again proving his own incapacity to make decisions), something changed in Alicent. Otto’s effectiveness as a father is up for debate, but he did what had to be done before he left King’s Landing, he finally knocked a bit of sense into his daughter’s head. And thank goodness for that. Otto makes it clear to Alicent that, while she may trust her husband and her best friend/stepdaughter, which is all well and good and so sweet, in the end, Rhaenyra will have no choice but to betray Alicent. The only way for Rhaenyra to stake her claim to the throne is to get rid of her father’s sons. Alicent has to choose between her children and her former friend who has already proven she has no allegiance to Alicent. Suddenly, Alicent is stuck in a crossroads of her own, pulled between her conscience and her royal duty to care for her King and his desires, and her loyalty to her family name and home of Oldtown.
By the end of the episode, Alicent makes her decision and comes into her own. She seems to realize she has better uses for her time than attempting to comfort her crying babies (she has people for that anyway), or caring for her increasingly defective husband. At the banquet, she finally makes her first move, joining the chess game, and proving she’s not just a royal womb, she’s a Queen. Alicent’s arrival to the reception hall in her emerald green dress is a turning point for the series. The writers couldn’t have made it any clearer—they literally had Larys Strong spell it out for us. “The beacon on the Hightower, do you know what color it glows when Oldtown calls its banners to war?” he asks his likely less bright, but hunkier brother, who responds, “Green.” With one well-chosen dress, Alicent is declaring war, and ending this love triangle between her two frames of mind. Alicent has chosen the Hightowers. Her husband and stepdaughter seem too self-involved to understand the statement, but within minutes, Alicent already gains numbers on her side. | https://www.wmagazine.com/culture/house-of-the-dragon-episode-5-recap-love-triangles-alicent | 2022-09-20T04:04:18Z | wmagazine.com | control | https://www.wmagazine.com/culture/house-of-the-dragon-episode-5-recap-love-triangles-alicent | 1 | 0 | green-iguana-35 | null |
Kanye West Compares Books to Brussels Sprouts, Claims He Doesn’t Read Them
The past few years have seen a rise in celebrity book clubs, with everyone from Kaia Gerber to Reese Witherspoon regularly assigning and discussing their fiction and nonfiction picks. You can rest assured that Kanye “Ye” West won’t be following in their footsteps—nor getting in close proximity to any book at all. In a new episode of the podcast Alo Mind Full, the rapper made a surprising reveal when host Danny Harris mentioned that West hadn’t read his favorite book. “When you said I hadn't read this book, I actually haven't read any book,” West said. (We’re going to guess he’s excluding the Bible.) “Reading is like eating brussels sprouts for me,” he continued. “And talking is like getting the Giorgio Baldi corn ravioli.”
Before you get started on another Lea Michele-style conspiracy theory, we know that West is indeed literate. He routinely sends (and screenshots) lengthy text messages—and, ironically enough, he went on to share that he only reads the first and last sentences of the ones he gets in return. (You can hear his remarks beginning at the 3:30 minute mark below.)
For his sake, let’s hope that West is open to other types of reading material. He’s been flooded with legal documents ever since his bold move to terminate his 10-year partnership with Gap. If Queen Elizabeth II really did inspire him to “releas[e] all grudges,” it may be in his best interest to get started with Kim Kardashian; she’s actually been making progress with her goal to become of becoming a lawyer. | https://www.wmagazine.com/culture/kanye-west-reading-books-vegetables | 2022-09-20T04:04:24Z | wmagazine.com | control | https://www.wmagazine.com/culture/kanye-west-reading-books-vegetables | 1 | 0 | green-iguana-35 | null |
J.W. Anderson Will Always Be Dedicated to the Absurd
His spring 2023 collection, which showed at London Fashion Week over the weekend, proved that very fact.
There are a few signatures designer Jonathan Anderson has picked up lately—and indulging in the particularly surreal, definitively bizarre is one of them. You only have to look at his recent work for Loewe and J.W. Anderson to see that.
The spring 2023 J.W. Anderson collection was no exception. This season, his show took place inside the Las Vegas Arcade in Soho during London Fashion Week. The sound of waves crashing, keyboards clacking, and ’60s synth sounds played as the various arcade games lit up the runway inside the darkened space. What came next was a procession of looks that demonstrated the designer’s dedication to perplexing oddities, as well as what felt like a nod to mother earth, transience between IRL and digital worlds, consumerism, and capitalism.
The first look: a t-shirt, complete with an oversized clothing tag with text that read like a newspaper headline. Next came dolphin-printed bodysuits, oversized keyboard keys tacked to little black dresses, lemon-yellow frocks with hints of wrinkles, a fishnet dress that dragged across the floor, tropical turtlenecks with palm dresses, and tops that were designed with the waistband of jeans as the collar.
There were plenty of hints at that state of existence between the phone screen and your real life, as well as what appeared to be commentary on consumerism and its effects on our planet. Garments touched on the ocean—there were shark fins in vibrant blue and deep purple on the backs of a t-shirt—while some pieces felt silly upon first glance, but turned out to be decadently deranged upon second look. Think: dresses made of plastic trash bags adorned by trapped fishes, upside-down sweaters hanging low as dresses, their shop hangers still attached to the bottom.
But, of course, it wouldn’t be a J.W. Anderson collection without a few pieces that felt perfectly primed for an everyday wardrobe moment: slip dresses with one shoulder, sequined cut-away numbers with asymmetric hems and gowns that bared the hips didn’t feel completely detached from the collection, as they still incorporated the washed-away, beach vibe.
Was this a message about waste and earth and the future state of a new reality, or just another surrealist fantasy illusion by Anderson? With the retro-futuristic globular shapes we saw in the second half of the show, it was enough to make one wonder. Bulbous bubble hems and Space Age structures in mirrored silver felt like the pinnacle of the collection. The final look that closed the collection was a tribute to Queen Elizabeth II—a printed black tee inspired by mourning posters seen around the streets of London.
It has become eminently clear that TikTok maximalists’ influence has undoubtedly touched high fashion. You’ve likely seen one of @Myramagdalen’s videos on the app, old keyboards lining her backdrop; she’s a fan of pinning dated tech objects, like computer mouses and robot toys, onto her outfits. If her account and J.W. Anderson’s recent collection are any indication, we’ll soon see more and more fashion references that capitalize on the nostalgia of technology from the early and mid 2000s. | https://www.wmagazine.com/fashion/jw-anderson-spring-2023-london-fashion-week-review | 2022-09-20T04:04:30Z | wmagazine.com | control | https://www.wmagazine.com/fashion/jw-anderson-spring-2023-london-fashion-week-review | 1 | 0 | green-iguana-35 | null |
Margot Robbie Goes Bridal for the Premiere of Amsterdam
After spending much of the summer on set of Greta Gerwig’s upcoming Barbie movie, Margot Robbie is out and about, promoting a film that will actually be released this year, Amsterdam, which means get ready to see a lot more Chanel in your future. The actress just hit the red carpet for the first time in over a year and, you guessed it, she wore the French brand like the good ambassador she is.
At the film’s world premiere on Sunday night, Robbie was joined by costars like Mike Myers, Michael Shannon, and Rami Malek to celebrate David O. Russell’s latest film. For the occasion, the actress went very bridal. Her white Chanel resort 2023 look featured a strapless ruched top paired with a lace tiered skirt. Add a veil to this look and Robbie would have made a convincing bride, but the actress smartly went very simple with the styling, wearing her hair in loose curls and adding a coral lip. Robbie ditched the pearl choker from the runway and instead wore some diamond earrings and no necklace.
Robbie proved the versatility of the ensemble when, following the premiere, she traded in the skirt for some jeans, pairing them with the strapless top, white pumps, and a little white Chanel chain purse for the after party. Robbie seemed very comfortable in this new ensemble as she greeted fans outside the event.
Amsterdam is the first of two major films the actress will be promoting over the next few months. Russell’s film pairs Robbie with Christian Bale and John David Washington as they travel through 1930s Amsterdam looking to prove their innocence after Robert De Niro accuses them of killing his friend. Then, there’s also Babylon, Damien Chazelle’s latest project, which stars Robbie alongside Brad Pitt in an unabashedly loud story about Hollywood in the ‘20s, as the industry made the transition from silent films to the talkies. The trailer, which dropped just last week shows off the chaotic party atmosphere of Babylon, which Chazelle has called “the hardest thing” he’s ever done. Between Amsterdam’s premiere on October 7th and Babylon’s over the holidays, Robbie is in for quite a busy few months. | https://www.wmagazine.com/fashion/margot-robbie-amsterdam-premiere | 2022-09-20T04:04:36Z | wmagazine.com | control | https://www.wmagazine.com/fashion/margot-robbie-amsterdam-premiere | 1 | 0 | green-iguana-35 | null |
Zendaya Blooms in Loewe Ahead of the Brand’s Paris Fashion Week Show
It’s always impressive when a celebrity nabs a look right off the runway for an event. At one of the House of Gucci premieres last year, Lady Gaga wore a dress from Gucci’s spring 2022 collection less than a week after it walked the runway. And if Ariana DeBose’s Emmy Awards dress from last week looked familiar, it’s because a similar version of it debuted at Prabal Gurung’s NYFW presentation just days before. Zendaya too, has been known to snatch up looks quickly after their first appearance, but she took “access” to a completely different level over the weekend when she showed off a dress from a collection that won’t debut for almost two weeks.
On Saturday, Zendaya’s stylist, Law Roach, shared a video of the actress engaged in what looks to be a bathroom photoshoot. The 26-year-old is seen in a white silk gown, featuring a slit up the side and one small strap on her left shoulder. The centerpiece of the look, though, is the giant lily petal attached to the bodice, turning Zendaya into a blooming flower. “Plucked from a beautiful garden...a Lily named @zendaya wearing custom @loewe,” Roach captioned the video, which shows Zendaya with wet, slicked back hair, posing in the shower.
Loewe’s creative director, Jonathan Anderson, shared one of the resulting shots from the photoshoot on Instagram, calling the dress “a little preview of Loewe SS2023.” Anderson’s upcoming collection for the Spanish brand will show during Paris Fashion Week on September 30th, and who better to up the excitement for the presentation than Zendaya?
Anderson just debuted his namesake brand’s spring/summer 2023 collection in London, showing off the distinct, quirky style for which he has become known. That collection had some nature motifs woven throughout, with photos of dolphins and palm trees printed on jumpsuits and picturesque sunsets covering bags and shoes. It’s a theme he has been exploring with Loewe as well. The spring 2023 menswear collection featured pieces in collaboration with Spanish bio-designer Paula Ulargui Escalona. Shoes, jackets, and various other pieces were covered in different types of grasses and plants, grown “in a specially constructed polytunnel on the outskirts of Paris,” according to the brand so that “over time, the pieces merge with nature.” From Zendaya’s preview, it seems that Anderson’s upcoming collection could explore similar themes, in a more artificial—yet still beautiful—way. | https://www.wmagazine.com/fashion/zendaya-loewe-lily-dress-spring-summer-2023-collection-preview | 2022-09-20T04:04:42Z | wmagazine.com | control | https://www.wmagazine.com/fashion/zendaya-loewe-lily-dress-spring-summer-2023-collection-preview | 1 | 0 | green-iguana-35 | null |
CUMBERLAND (WPRI) – The LaSalle girls field hockey team brought the offensive firepower to the northern part of the state on Monday night. The Rams scored five times en route to an easy 5-0 win. Three of the goals were scored by all-state talent Callanan Caito.
To For more highlights of local high school sports, click here. | https://www.wpri.com/sports/lasalle-blanks-cumberland-behind-caitos-hat-trick/ | 2022-09-20T04:07:55Z | wpri.com | control | https://www.wpri.com/sports/lasalle-blanks-cumberland-behind-caitos-hat-trick/ | 1 | 0 | green-iguana-35 | null |
As a record-high number of migrants were bused into New York City on Sunday, city officials are examining their legal options to respond to the waves of asylum seekers that continue to arrive in the city, officials said.
At least nine buses reached the city Sunday, the most recorded in a single day in this recent wave, according to two city officials. At least 1,011 asylum seekers arrived in the city from Friday through Sunday, according to a third city official.
The city may not be aware of additional migrants who have arrived in recent days.
New York City Mayor Eric Adams said Monday that officials are assessing how they will respond to the influx of migrants, including examining legal options.
"Once we finalize how we're going to continue to live up to our legal and moral obligation, we're going to announce it. Until then, we're just letting people know what we're thinking of and how we're going to find creative ways to solve this man-made humanitarian crisis," Adams said at an unrelated event.
The mayor pointed to Texas Gov. Greg Abbott as being partly responsible for the current situation.
"I think the Governor of Texas and others are at fault for creating this man-made humanitarian crisis, that's what I think," he said.
Texas has spent more than $12 million busing migrants to Washington and New York, according to figures from the Texas Division of Emergency Management. As part of Gov. Abbott's response to the Biden administration's immigration policies, the state has bused more than 11,000 migrants to New York City, Washington, DC, and Chicago since August, Abbott's office announced last week.
Adams said he has spoken with the mayor of El Paso and told him New York City cannot accommodate this many asylum seekers. The mayor also said the city has been in contact with Abbott's office, adding that the Texas governor and his team have not been open to communication.
CNN is reaching out to Gov. Abbott's office and the city of El Paso for comment.
Adams reiterated that New York City is still a sanctuary city, but stressed it is unable to handle such an overwhelming influx of migrants.
"We are not telling anyone that New York can accommodate every migrant in the city," the mayor said Monday. "We're not encouraging people to send eight, nine buses a day. That is not what we're doing. We're saying that as a sanctuary city with right to shelter, we're going to fulfill that obligation. That's what we're doing."
Migrant died by suicide in city shelter, mayor says
An asylum seeker died by suicide in a city shelter on Sunday, according to Adams, who said the woman was a mother.
The city was not able to provide details on the woman or her death, but Adams expressed that the death "just really highlights how this issue is real."
Our hearts break for this young woman and any loved ones she may have, and we, as a city mourn her. This tragedy is a reminder that we have an obligation to do everything in our power to help those in need," the mayor said in a statement released by his office.
The-CNN-Wire
™ & © 2022 Cable News Network, Inc., a Warner Bros. Discovery Company. All rights reserved. | https://www.local3news.com/regional-national/as-record-numbers-of-migrants-arrive-in-new-york-city-officials-say-they-are-examining/article_d0b95482-59ed-5210-92d8-5bd94330e683.html | 2022-09-20T04:13:09Z | local3news.com | control | https://www.local3news.com/regional-national/as-record-numbers-of-migrants-arrive-in-new-york-city-officials-say-they-are-examining/article_d0b95482-59ed-5210-92d8-5bd94330e683.html | 1 | 0 | green-iguana-35 | null |
A piece on the Ford earnings announcement Monday.
- Ford said Monday that it expects to have 40,000 to 45,000 unfinished vehicles on its hands when the quarter ends Sept. 30.
- The company did, however, say it expected the vehicles that it couldn’t fully assemble in the third quarter to be completed and sold to dealers in the final three months of the year. As a result, it reaffirmed its full-year 2022 profit forecast of $11.5 billion to $12.5 billion.
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Via AP, link here ICYMI | https://www.forexlive.com/news/supply-chain-woes-grinds-on-ford-to-cut-its-3q-earnings-forecast-on-parts-shortage-20220920/ | 2022-09-20T04:19:43Z | forexlive.com | control | https://www.forexlive.com/news/supply-chain-woes-grinds-on-ford-to-cut-its-3q-earnings-forecast-on-parts-shortage-20220920/ | 1 | 0 | green-iguana-35 | null |
Exclusive: Lynk raises $3M to lower transaction fees
Lynk, a startup that helps merchants create customer loyalty programs and reduce transaction fees, has raised $3 million in seed funding from investors that include Samsung Next, Plug and Play, Tribe Capital, Simplex Trading, and N49P, the company tells Axios.
Why it matters: Merchants are always looking for ways to lower transaction fees, and Lynk’s platform does just that.
How it works: Lynk built a closed-loop payments platform that enables companies to collect payments and launch loyalty programs, while skirting high credit card processing fees.
- Through the platform, Lynk enables merchants to have users pre-fund accounts through ACH or wire transfers.
- Merchants can also provide loyalty rewards to incentivize end customers to do so.
- Lynk founder and CEO Nabi Awada compares the experience to the Starbucks wallet: “It's brandless so you can put your own brand around it and accept payments without having a lot of intermediaries in between that increase the cost of processing,” he says.
Between the lines: By transitioning customers to lower-cost ACH transfers, merchants can cut down on credit-card processing fees by as much as 90%, Awada says.
- Traditional card processing fees can range from 2.9%-5% per transaction, while Lynk’s transaction fees typically range from 0.5%-1%.
- “We're also able to see an increase in the average order value of about 48% because we help these businesses embed rewards into the payment stream,” Awada says. | https://www.axios.com/pro/fintech-deals/2022/09/20/lynk-raises-3m | 2022-09-20T04:20:37Z | axios.com | control | https://www.axios.com/pro/fintech-deals/2022/09/20/lynk-raises-3m | 1 | 0 | green-iguana-35 | null |
Tech. Sgt. Joseph Cole, 374th Security Forces Squadron flight sergeant, fires in the kneeling position during the Excellence in Competition Sept. 15, 2022, at Yokota Air Base, Japan. Competitors fired from the standing, kneeling, sitting and prone positions to test their marksmanship skills. Each firing position had a specific round count and time limit. Competitors were then scored based on the number of rounds that hit their target and level of accuracy. (U.S. Air Force photo by Machiko Arita)
This work, 374th SFS hosts Excellence in Competition [Image 12 of 12], by Machiko Arita, identified by DVIDS, must comply with the restrictions shown on https://www.dvidshub.net/about/copyright. | https://www.dvidshub.net/image/7424732/374th-sfs-hosts-excellence-competition | 2022-09-20T04:37:59Z | dvidshub.net | control | https://www.dvidshub.net/image/7424732/374th-sfs-hosts-excellence-competition | 1 | 0 | green-iguana-35 | null |
Expended shell casings from an M4 carbine lay on the Combat Arms Training and Maintenance firing range Sept. 15, 2022, at Yokota Air Base, Japan. During a three-day Excellence in Competition, participants fired a M4 carbine with the intent to score on a target 25 meters away. (U.S. Air Force photo by Machiko Arita)
This work, 374th SFS hosts Excellence in Competition [Image 12 of 12], by Machiko Arita, identified by DVIDS, must comply with the restrictions shown on https://www.dvidshub.net/about/copyright. | https://www.dvidshub.net/image/7424734/374th-sfs-hosts-excellence-competition | 2022-09-20T04:38:11Z | dvidshub.net | control | https://www.dvidshub.net/image/7424734/374th-sfs-hosts-excellence-competition | 1 | 0 | green-iguana-35 | null |
Airman 1st Class Tristan Howell, 374th Aircraft Maintenance Squadron aircraft hydraulic journeyman, loads ammunition into a magazine during the Excellence in Competition Sept. 15, 2022, at Yokota Air Base, Japan. During a three-day competition, participants fired a M4 carbine with the intent to score on a target 25 meters away. (U.S. Air Force photo by Machiko Arita)
This work, 374th SFS hosts Excellence in Competition [Image 12 of 12], by Machiko Arita, identified by DVIDS, must comply with the restrictions shown on https://www.dvidshub.net/about/copyright. | https://www.dvidshub.net/image/7424742/374th-sfs-hosts-excellence-competition | 2022-09-20T04:39:01Z | dvidshub.net | control | https://www.dvidshub.net/image/7424742/374th-sfs-hosts-excellence-competition | 1 | 0 | green-iguana-35 | null |
ABRAHAM Lincoln, that great and 16th President of the United States, once remarked: “Always bear in mind that your own resolution to succeed is more important than any other.” And Lincoln should know, having steered the United Sates through a costly civil war that tasked the civic bond of that state. And it took all his prowess and military genius, and most especially his resolution, to keep the United States as one nation. Abraham Lincoln was a man calling the shots in a world of men. It takes double such resolution for a woman who is determined to succeed in a world of men. All the women who have succeeded in life have had to do more, run the gauntlet of denigration, sexism, impediments, and crippling circumstances to be able to achieve their goals in life. The list is inexhaustible—Hypatia, Joan of Arc, Queen Idia, Golda Meir, Queen Amina, Margaret Thatcher, Oronpoto the female Alaafin, Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf, etc.
Lady Adaora Chukwudozie is made from that same template that molded determined and relentless women who dared to succeed in a man’s world. This is a woman that grew up and started climbing the ladders of progress in the Southeast. For those who have read Chinua Achebe’s classic novel Things Fall Apart, we understand immediately the constricting context of cultural norms, present in almost all cultures in Nigeria, that circumscribe the present and future circumstances and progress of women. Okonkwo, the tragic hero, typifies the nature of masculinity, and the patriarchal domination inherent in such cultures. Patriarchy suppresses the individual initiative and all attempt at self-definition by women, to the whims of the men. Women all over the world have had to stand up to those hindrances to their progress, from the cultural to the psychological. They have to keep the home, satisfy the husbands, raise the children, comport to cultural norms, and generally allowing themselves to be subject to the self-definition by others.
This automatically makes Sir Dr. Dan Chuwkudozie one of a kind. His greatness is not just in raising the Dozzy Group to the height of success, but in ensuring that his wife stands all the way by his side in entrepreneurial equality sustained by mutual love and understanding. That, by my definition, is what masculinity demands. To be masculine is not just to express brawn in putting down the feminine. On the contrary, it is contributing to the self-definition of your spouse, while putting everything at her disposal to match you step by step on the way to progress. And Sir Chukuwdozie has proven beyond doubt his love and masculinity. What other proof of his dedication to his family is there than not just his wife attaining the managerial height, but also his daughter, Sandra Chukwudozie, featuring on the pages of Forbes Africa “30 Under 30” list of visionaries and innovation catalysts? This is the essence of a man: a successful home.
But Lady Adaora Chukwudozie is a woman with a gut all of her own. It is one thing to have a husband who is determined to stand by his spouse and put all of his resources at her disposal. But it is another to have a woman who is motivated to succeed, no matter the obstacles and limitations on success. This is a woman who understands her society, and who has the acumen to negotiate her entry into the circle of men on her own right and credentials. When I first encountered Lady Chukuwudozie at the Manufacturers Association of Nigeria (MAN) think tank—a space for innovative brainstorming—I had an inkling of what such a woman in such a space connotes. This is a woman with grit who lacks the usual and compelled temerity of an average woman locked in patriarchal trepidation. Lady Chukwudozie is not one to fear, or cower within the home just to raise children and be a good housewife. She was determined to take on all the roles and many more. Of course, this is all the more reason to celebrate someone who has raised a good family, and has stepped into the entrepreneurial ecosystem of no less a place than the Southeast as a business and innovative mind to be reckon with.
Or how else do we explain the struggle and determination it took to not just join the Southeast (Anambra, Enugu and Ebonyi) branch of the MAN, but also to have risen to the pinnacle of its administrative echelon? MAN is one of those seminal spaces that requires the utmost in entrepreneurial intelligence and deep foresight concerning the state of manufacturing vis-à-vis Nigeria’s development agenda. And those who will rise to the top of that association must have it in them to bear scrutiny for their intellectual energy and professional acumen. Lady Chukwudozie qualifies eminently. And I rejoicely reminds me of Mahatma Gandhi’s iteration of the seven deadly sins: wealth without work; pleasure without conscience; knowledge without character; commerce without morality; science without humanity; religion without sacrifice; and politics without principle.
These deadly sins are an attempt to conceptualize those who would use others to feather their own nest without minding the consequences. Commerce without morality speaks to the rampant profiteering that would hurt others, or even harm their health, like the fake drug industry. Wealth without work shame the current 419 spirit and yahoo-yahoo enterprise of the youth that scorns hard work in order to scam the unsuspecting public. MAN aims to be the very essence of all values that are ennobling, and Lady Adaora Chukwudozie embodies the sort of integrity that an association like MAN requires to keep itself in focus and within the ambit of its objectives. When I saw Lady Chukwudozie’s six-point agenda for her tenure as chairperson, I marveled at its humor, its fundamental diagnostic depth, and her commitment to MAN. She calls it MRS MAN—membership, relationship, structure, media, alliance, networking, backed by a strategic implementation plan woven around “intervention opportunities,” “priority opportunities,” and “impact opportunities.”
Behind these strategies are values to keep pushing the bounds of ethical business dealings, starting from the Southeast. I have just one fundamental addition to this laudable agenda. It concerns the Igbo apprenticeship system, an incubator model for what has been called stakeholder capitalism. The significance of this model has already caught the attention of the world, and the Harvard Business School is already investing in its propagation. If the world is taking notice already, then it behooves the owners of the idea themselves to continue pushing the frontier of this model in ways that will benefit the business environment of the Nigerian economy. Part of the critique of the development agenda of the Nigerian state is the lack of indigenous content that ensures that Nigerians can own whatever paradigms are introduced to alleviate the predicament. As a communal framework for business enterprise, this system flows seamlessly into existing attempts at promoting grassroots development through the deployment of subsidiarity principle and social capital. Lady Adaora, the amazon, has an immense opportunity now to push through a MAN-assisted framework for ensuring that the depth of this enterprising system is recognized and harnessed. She has the capacity to achieve this, and to achieve even more for MAN.
I have never been in doubt of her excellence as an entrepreneur, her vintage professional acumen, and high-end integrity as a woman of purpose. Lady Chukwudozie’s story is one of dogged womanhood, a fundamental embodiment of discipline, hard work and professionalism that has not only kept the Dozzy Group afloat in an inclement business environment, but is also rewriting the business narrative in the Southeast.
- Olaopa is Professor, National Institute for Policy and Strategic Studies (NIPSS), Kuru, Jos, Plateau State.
ALSO READ FROM NIGERIAN TRIBUNE | https://tribuneonlineng.com/celebrating-the-resilient-woman-at-man/ | 2022-09-20T04:41:18Z | tribuneonlineng.com | control | https://tribuneonlineng.com/celebrating-the-resilient-woman-at-man/ | 1 | 0 | green-iguana-35 | null |
HILO, Hawaii-- 52 year old Duncan Mahi appeared via monitor in court Monday, initially for a traffic violation.
Mahi was later charged for kidnapping, sexual assault, terroristic threatening, robbery and methamphetamine trafficking according to the County of Hawaii's Prosecuting Attorney.
Mahi is the suspect, accused of abducting 15 year old Makella Debina from Anaeho'omalu Beach Friday afternoon. Mahi is now being held on 2 million dollars bail.
For 22 hours friends and relatives assembled search teams to look for the teenager, who was with her boyfriend and allegedly taken at knifepoint.
Debina was able to break free from her captor late Saturday morning, 54 miles away from the Kona side beach, at the host stand of Cafe Pesto in Hilo. The restaurant host and others came to the teen's aid and separated her from her abductor.
"Mikella convinced the guy to take her to Cafe Pesto to get her something to eat. And he told her to stay in the car. And she got out. And he tried to scuffle with her," Debina's mother told the crowd of volunteers describing how the 15-year-old broke free.
"Hawai’i Island police have charged 52-year-old Duncan Mahi, with two counts each of kidnapping, terroristic threatening in the first degree, robbery in the first degree and one count each of methamphetamine trafficking and sex assault in the first degree," Hawai'i Police Department said in a statement.
Mahi will appear in court Tuesday morning. Stay tuned for more updates.
Do you have a story idea? Email news tips to news@kitv.com
Jeremy Lee joined KITV after over a decade & a half in broadcast news from coast to coast on the mainland. Jeremy most recently traveled the country documenting protests & civil unrest. | https://www.kitv.com/news/big-island-suspect-accused-of-kidnapping-teen-charged-with-multiple-felonies/article_1ed3df5a-3893-11ed-8c7b-1f83e089faf8.html | 2022-09-20T04:50:50Z | kitv.com | control | https://www.kitv.com/news/big-island-suspect-accused-of-kidnapping-teen-charged-with-multiple-felonies/article_1ed3df5a-3893-11ed-8c7b-1f83e089faf8.html | 1 | 0 | green-iguana-35 | null |
HONOLULU (KITV4) - A downtown business issued a security advisory after an unknown man aggressively approached a female state employee. She was able to escape to a nearby office building and call police.
She was walking alone on Alakea Street.
Some business owners said they want to see a stronger security presence downtown - like an officer on every other block. Despite the high number of crimes in downtown, business owner Brian Han said foot traffic is increasing.
"There is a lot of homeless folks that are coming in to either start an argument or get something cheaper. We just have to be professional about it. Call the cops or call the security if you need to. As an owner, don’t ask your employee to encounter any issues," said Han.
As a resident of downtown, he also said more people are moving in which makes the need for increased security even greater.
However, some security officials said they are on top of making sure everyone is safe by escorting employees to bus stops and their offices.
“There are cameras on us too so we know we are safe. We also feel safer when we are helping people in and out of downtown,” said Mildred Serrano, patrol officer at Allied Universal Security.
A valet driver at Ampco System Parking said the company is beefing up security at the parking garage since it serves as public and residential parking in downtown.
These alerts also come after a security guard was murdered in downtown a few months ago.
Do you have a story idea? Email news tips to news@kitv.com | https://www.kitv.com/news/crime/security-advisory-sent-out-in-downtown-to-ask-residents-to-stay-alert/article_cb426220-3898-11ed-8031-8b152de1b630.html | 2022-09-20T04:50:56Z | kitv.com | control | https://www.kitv.com/news/crime/security-advisory-sent-out-in-downtown-to-ask-residents-to-stay-alert/article_cb426220-3898-11ed-8031-8b152de1b630.html | 1 | 0 | green-iguana-35 | null |
- MIR2M: The Warrior was launched in the global market (except Korea, China) on September 1st.
- In commemoration of the global launch, an airdrop event will be held for the first 4 million users on FCFS(a first-come, first-served basis).
- It is a role-playing game featuring Eastern Oriental Martial art. It is being developed using the IP of The Legend of Mir 2.
SINGAPORE, Sept. 20, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- WEMADE (CEO: Henry Chang)'s subsidiary company ChuanQi IP has launched in the global market (except Korea, China) offers for its first game in the MIR2M series, 'MIR2M: The Warrior' on September 1st.
'MIR2M: The Warrior' Global launch commemorative airdrop events is in progress. It is an event where a total of 1.2 million CQBs will be given to the first 4 million people on a first-come, first-served basis. In addition to this, various events are underway in which a total of 100 thousand CQBs will be given to the first 1 million people only by growing their characters.
'MIR2M: the Warrior' is a role-playing game that features Eastern Oriental Martial Art, which is being developed using the IP of WEMADE's representative work The Legend of Mir 2. In this game, players can enjoy a variety of PK contents (Battle of Sabuk, the War of the Territorial Occupation, etc.) and clan contents (Clan Boss, Boss Raid, etc.).
More fun is added with a Play and Earn (P&E) method that uses CQB tokens, which can be produced with septaria. The septaria can be obtained for free while playing the game. CQB token will be applied to future games in the MIR2M series.
Jointly developed by ChuanQi IP and Hunter Games 'MIR2M: The Warrior', was onboarded to WEMADE's blockchain game platform 'WEMIX PLAY'. Playable on both mobile devices and PC client versions.
Detailed information on MIR2M: The Warrior and Air-Drop Event could be found on the game's official website www.mir2m.world.
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SOURCE Wemade Co., Ltd | https://www.wave3.com/prnewswire/2022/09/20/chuanqi-ip-mir2m-warrior-global-airdrop-event/ | 2022-09-20T04:55:13Z | wave3.com | control | https://www.wave3.com/prnewswire/2022/09/20/chuanqi-ip-mir2m-warrior-global-airdrop-event/ | 1 | 0 | green-iguana-35 | null |
SPOKANE, Wash. — In Monday night's legislative meeting, Spokane City Council approved an ordinance updating the city's illegal camping ordinance.
The ordinance was approved unanimously. Before the vote, council members heard from several people who called the ordinance cruel. Councilman Michael Cathcart fired back, saying there's nothing compassionate about letting people live on the street.
Ultimately, this update to the city's illegal camping ordinance is designed to bring city code into better alignment with the Martin v. City of Boise ruling. In addition, people will not be allowed to set up a tent within 50 feet of viaducts, three blocks of congregate shelters or in places where Spokane police determine is a danger to public safety.
The revised ordinance also removes the condition that shelter beds must be made available to reinforce restrictions except for camping along the Latah Creek and Spokane river banks.
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To report a typo or grammatical error, please email webspokane@krem.com. | https://www.krem.com/article/news/local/homeless/city-council-approves-updated-illegal-camping-ordinance-spokane/293-96f59396-a73e-4126-8c19-0067d976cc8d | 2022-09-20T05:03:09Z | krem.com | control | https://www.krem.com/article/news/local/homeless/city-council-approves-updated-illegal-camping-ordinance-spokane/293-96f59396-a73e-4126-8c19-0067d976cc8d | 1 | 0 | green-iguana-35 | null |
It’s the most wonderful time of the year in Washington — if you’re a federal contractor.
The annual “Christmas in September” spending season is well under way, with billions of dollars that that need to be allocated before the government’s fiscal year ends Sept 30.
And if fiscal 2022 is anything like previous years, the final three months will account for about a third of total obligations. Large government contractors get most of that payout, with small businesses following behind, according to analysis from The Pulse of GovCon, a woman-owned business intelligence advisory firm focused on government contracting.
The need to spend may be especially acute this year as supply chain issues and Congress’ habit of passing continuing resolutions instead of new budgets, a practice borne of political gridlock, ties the hands of agency procurement officials, leaving them with a backlog of requests and less time left to fill them.
“I would attribute at least some of this to the fact that we haven’t had a budget passed at the start of the fiscal year for who knows how many years,” said Amanda Swanson Goff, the director of research and analysis at The Pulse.
Though agencies tend to spend most of their discretionary dollars before July 1, data shows that the largest splurges in contract awards in any one month of the year have happened in September. What’s the rush? Any unused funds will be returned to the Department of the Treasury as of Oct. 1, and the “use-it-or-lose-it” bonanza of buying has become an annual autumn tradition in Washington.
Fourth quarter spending for this year on procurement could exceed $200 billion, an analysis by Bloomberg Government estimated.
The September effect is well documented and annually draws criticism from critics who say it encourages waste.
A study of government spending by nonprofit watchdog OpenTheBooks found that the federal government spent $97 billion in the final month of fiscal 2018, with more than $61 billion attributed the Pentagon. Purchases included guns and ammo, but also batteries and books — and $2.3 million on lobster tail. Federal agencies also spent $293,245 on steak, to include rib eye, top sirloin and flank steak that month
As agencies look for ways to disburse their coffers, 70 out of 73 agencies examined by The Pulse make a purchase in the final quarter of the fiscal year.
Where priorities stand, and how they might change
“When you think about these continuing resolutions that are taking up most of the first quarter, sometimes extending into the second quarter, you have a complete freeze on any new starts,” Goff said in an interview. “So the government really is handcuffed in terms of spending money.”
Lawmakers are working on a continuing resolution that would extend government funding levels through Dec. 16, as current funding for fiscal 2022.
Agencies that deal with public health emergencies or frequently changing national security demands may also intentionally reserve part of their budget for the end of the year as a cushion.
Yet as the COVID-19 pandemic showed, even unforeseen circumstances can redirect priorities for the future, as it did with the transition to remote work.
Experts at The Pulse predict a government-wide commitment to modernization, whether that’s further building out telework infrastructure or getting in front of rapidly evolving cybersecurity threats.
The Department of Defense in particular makes up half of discretionary spending, so its budget priorities can reflect what’s happening within the Pentagon.
Lately, such clues have been withdrawing from Afghanistan, funneling aid to Ukraine and restructuring internally to shape peacetime functions and address burgeoning threats.
Outlook for contractors
In the last quarter, sole-source awards and single-bid competitions also tend to increase because the government can move quickly on them.
Though what agencies spend their sprint money on has come under fire for being frivolous or wasteful, the most popular spending category is professional and administrative services.
The least popular spending category at this stage is for physical science programs, which play a larger role for agencies like the National Institutes of Health.
More broadly, the federal government spends large chunks of its budget on Medicare, social security and defense needs, although funding for income security rocketed at the start of the COVID-19 pandemic.
In total, 2022 discretionary appropriations are 8% more than last year’s.
Still, past years’ last-minute purchases have led members of Congress and unions to scrutinize the final transactions of the fiscal year.
“This ‘use-it-or-lose-it’ feature of time-limited budget authority has the potential to result in low-value spending, since the opportunity cost to organizations of spending about-to-expire funds is effectively zero,” said a report by Harvard University’s Kennedy School of Government. “Exacerbating this problem is the incentive to build up a rainy day fund over the front end of the budget cycle.”
Members of Congress have proposed legislation to limit an agency’s discretionary spending in the last two months of the fiscal year, but no progress has been made.
Molly Weisner is a staff reporter for Federal Times where she covers labor, policy and contracting pertaining to the government workforce. She made previous stops at USA Today and McClatchy as a digital producer, and worked at The New York Times as a copy editor. Molly majored in journalism at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. | https://www.federaltimes.com/by-the-numbers/2022/09/19/federal-agencies-racing-to-spend-billions-of-dollars-before-sept-30/ | 2022-09-20T05:11:00Z | federaltimes.com | control | https://www.federaltimes.com/by-the-numbers/2022/09/19/federal-agencies-racing-to-spend-billions-of-dollars-before-sept-30/ | 1 | 0 | green-iguana-35 | null |
WASHINGTON ― A select panel exploring a revamp of Pentagon budgeting is making “significant progress” with meetings and research efforts after some “organizational problems,” according to its chairman.
The congressionally mandated Commission on Planning, Programming, Budgeting, and Execution Reform, has been quietly convening for more than five months, interviewing witnesses and hiring staff, according to its chairman, former Pentagon comptroller Bob Hale. The panel ― made up of former officials from Congress, the Pentagon and industry ― has also hired two federally funded research and development centers to assist its work.
“We have made significant progress. We’ve had some organizational problems, but, since we first met in March, we’ll have our 10th meeting tomorrow,” Hale told Defense News in an interview last week. “We have finally started to hire staff; that was tied up in some of the organizational issues we confronted.”
While the panel is chartered by Congress, it’s funded by the Defense Department, and that sparked internal debates that held up its plans to hire staff, according to Hale.
Chartered by the 2022 defense policy bill to recommend improvements to the Pentagon’s 40-year-old process for allocating its immense resources, the panel’s findings could have far-reaching effects. It comes as critics say the process is too slow and cumbersome for the Pentagon to quickly buy cutting-edge technologies and outpace China.
“I spent 12 years as a political appointee in the financial area of DoD, trying to make PPBE work, and I think for the most part we did. But I never had time to step back and ask: How well is the system working? How long does it take? I hope the commission can do that,” said Hale, who served as the Department of Defense comptroller from 2009 until 2014.
Among the panel’s 13 members are its vice chair, Ellen Lord, a former undersecretary of defense for acquisition and sustainment and former chief executive of Textron Systems; former Air Force Undersecretary Lisa Disbrow; former Defense Innovation Unit director Raj Shah; Aerospace Industries Association CEO Eric Fanning and National Defense Industrial Association CEO David Norquist.
“All of us have a common goal: to see if we can make some changes in this process that will make it better able to support the warfighter,” Hale said.
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So far, the panel has heard from Deputy Defense Secretary Kathleen Hicks, Pentagon Comptroller Mike McCord, DoD’s Cost Assessment and Program Evaluation director Susanna Blume and officials from the armed services. The commission has met with industry executives, former Pentagon officials and staff from Congress’s Armed Services and defense appropriations panels, Hale said.
“What we’ve done has been a listening tour as we try to hear various views and concerns people have with the PPBE system ― or support for it,” Hale said. “We’re now at how do we digest it and begin to think about areas for change. Now that we are starting to get staff on board, we can do some research and not just get expert opinion.”
Part of the spillover effect is that the panel may miss the September 2023 deadline for its interim report and March 2024 deadline for final report. In the meantime, researchers will likely focus on how to make the system more communicative and transparent to Congress and more flexible overall, Hale said.
“From the time the services begin their programming and planning process, with congressional review and contracting, it can take two to four years for an idea to go to contract,” Hale said. “That’s not going to work for high-tech stuff where technology can change in two to four months. Can we speed up the process? Are there ways to improve flexibility and execution?”
The panel has engaged the Rand Corp. to study budgeting systems in other countries, like China and Russia, and allies Australia and the UK. Another research area the panel is exploring is budgeting in the private sector and at federal agencies other than the Defense Department who have “backed off from the use of the DoD PPBE,” Hale said.
Joe Gould is the senior Pentagon reporter for Defense News, covering the intersection of national security policy, politics and the defense industry. He served previously as Congress reporter. | https://www.federaltimes.com/federal-oversight/congress/2022/09/19/budget-reform-panel-at-work-after-organizational-problems/ | 2022-09-20T05:11:07Z | federaltimes.com | control | https://www.federaltimes.com/federal-oversight/congress/2022/09/19/budget-reform-panel-at-work-after-organizational-problems/ | 1 | 0 | green-iguana-35 | null |
WASHINGTON — The National Security Agency issued a request for proposals for a contract at the center of antitrust litigation involving Booz Allen Hamilton, court records show, adding urgency to a case that the U.S. says has national security implications.
The release of the RFP for the Optimal Decision signals intelligence and simulation contract comes as the Justice Department and defendants Booz Allen Hamilton, one of the largest U.S. defense contractors, and EverWatch, a provider of intelligence support services, filed a flurry of arguments to a Maryland district court.
“The timing of the release of the RFP was a surprise to plaintiff’s counsel,” the Justice Department stated in a memo provided to the court Sept. 14. “But the RFP’s release also creates certainty about the timeframe for the final stage of the nearly three-year competition for the OD procurement, which before was missing.”
An inquiry made to the NSA late Wednesday afternoon was not immediately answered. The final version of the RFP is similar to a draft circulated months ago, according to court documents.
The Justice Department in June sued to block Booz Allen — the 22nd largest defense contractor by revenue in the latest Defense News ranking — from acquiring EverWatch. In its complaint, the government alleged the combination would imperil market competition, harm taxpayers and crimp services provided to the NSA.
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Booz Allen and EverWatch are thought to be the only serious bidders on Optimal Decision, meaning a merger would produce a monopoly, according to the government. Spokespersons for the companies could not be immediately reached for comment.
Attorneys for Booz Allen have told the court the merger, announced mid-March, would actually stimulate competition and allow it to take on bigger companies, such as Lockheed Martin, and pursue “billions of dollars” in federal contracts.
EverWatch, owned by Maryland-based investment firm Enlightenment Capital, supplies artificial intelligence, cloud capabilities, data science, insider-threat analysis and other services. It is smaller than Booz Allen, which employs some 30,000 people.
Colin Demarest is a reporter at C4ISRNET, where he covers military networks, cyber and IT. Colin previously covered the Department of Energy and its National Nuclear Security Administration — namely Cold War cleanup and nuclear weapons development — for a daily newspaper in South Carolina. Colin is also an award-winning photographer. | https://www.federaltimes.com/industry/2022/09/14/nsa-seeks-proposals-for-contract-at-heart-of-booz-allen-antitrust-case/ | 2022-09-20T05:11:14Z | federaltimes.com | control | https://www.federaltimes.com/industry/2022/09/14/nsa-seeks-proposals-for-contract-at-heart-of-booz-allen-antitrust-case/ | 1 | 0 | green-iguana-35 | null |
The federal government hasn’t always scored high for customer experience, and this situation has implications for equity.
Consider the many steps involved in applying for, and keeping, federal benefits, for example. A constituent must find the services they need in the first place. Then they must prove their identity, fill out an application, and follow up if there are any problems. And the administrative complexity doesn’t end when they pass the initial eligibility hurdle. Maintaining eligibility often requires assembling complex paperwork, tracking compliance with requirements, scheduling in-person visits, and more.
It’s a time-consuming process and often the most difficult for people with the least time to spare, and most need for federal benefits. In fact, historically marginalized communities often have a worse experience accessing public services than their white counterparts.
One solution for addressing this situation is to improve the federal customer experience, making services and eligibility requirements easier to find and navigate. Here’s how data, consolidated into a Life Experience Framework, in which information about an applicant is shared by agencies across government, can help.
How can eligible applicants be processed more quickly?
Imagine if much of the information a benefits applicant needed to submit was already captured in a unified, cross-agency customer relationship management system. There’d be no need to re-input data the applicant had already submitted before, or re-scan and upload supporting documents—reducing the time, hassle, and obstacles involved in obtaining federal benefits.
Moreover, this information could be captured into a Life Experience Framework to streamline the eligibility process itself. If one agency has already collected information about a constituent’s income, work history, or other eligibility criteria, another agency could use this information in their own programs. This means that eligible applicants move more quickly through the process, with fewer steps, and those who aren’t eligible know of their status earlier, before they sink more time into entering data and gathering documents.
That’s the power of the Life Experience Framework, and how sharing data on eligibility lowers the burden for both constituents and federal agencies. In fact, this is just the beginning of the potential benefits.
Expanding awareness, streamlining access
Qualifications for one federal program, like meeting a specific income threshold, can make someone eligible for other services and benefits. But too often these constituents aren’t aware of their options beyond the application in front of them, and they often lack the time and resources to search online, make phone calls, and ask questions about what else is out there. As a result, they may be missing out on other services or benefits that could improve their lives, or programs that might be a better fit for their needs.
This is where the Life Experience Framework comes in. Such a framework would connect the consolidated information about an individual constituent with the consolidated view of government services. Guided by accessible, situationally appropriate tools, constituents would be able to see a fuller picture of their options, within departments and agencies and across the federal government. Then, through consolidated data on their eligibility status and program requirements, they would be able to access the best ones for their needs, with less time and frustration and fewer obstacles.
In terms of customer experience, the Life Experience Framework reduces time and hassle. In terms of equity, the Life Experience Framework improves access by removing barriers from those with the fewest resources.
A powerful fraud-fighting tool
Whenever a criminal accesses a federal benefit or service under false pretenses, they take this resource away from an individual or family who really needs it. This makes fraud prevention a critical part of customer experience and equity, and another area where the Life Experience Framework can help:
— Delivering agencies a consolidated, shared view of eligibility criteria and status
— Strengthening identity verification, to ensure people are who they say they are
— Streamlining otherwise time-consuming security checks, for greater compliance and fewer attempted workarounds
As the federal government aims to increase equity in areas from health care to the wealth gap, a data-powered Life Experience Framework across government can help. It will require inter-agency cooperation. It will require clear metrics, starting with spending data for individual programs and departments and continuing with metrics for progress and success, to ensure resources are being allocated in the most effective places.
Finally, such a solution will require data-sharing permissions from those applying for services, an area recently challenged by fear and a lack of trust. But improved customer experience helps improve constituent trust in the long run. When people are able to access the services they need in less time and with greater efficacy, they’ll realize that the data they share is being put to work for their own benefit. And they’ll be more comfortable being a part of a continually improving system, delivering a high-quality experience to all constituents and streamlined access to needed services.
Santiago Milian is a principal at Booz Allen Hamilton, who leads customer experience leads programs including for the General Service Administration’s Center of Excellence for CX and the U.S. Postal Service’s mobility programs. Jenna Petersen is a program design strategist for the company.
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This article is an Op-Ed and the opinions expressed are those of the author. If you would like to respond, or have an editorial of your own you would like to submit, please email Federal Times Senior Managing Editor Cary O’Reilly. | https://www.federaltimes.com/management/2022/09/19/life-experience-frameworks-can-speed-delivery-of-federal-benefits/ | 2022-09-20T05:11:21Z | federaltimes.com | control | https://www.federaltimes.com/management/2022/09/19/life-experience-frameworks-can-speed-delivery-of-federal-benefits/ | 1 | 0 | green-iguana-35 | null |
More than half of government employees say that they are burned out from their jobs, notably higher than their private sector counterparts, and a third are getting ready to leave their posts, according to a survey
The burnout levels are higher among women, Millennials and lower income government workers, according to a workforce survey for Eagle Hill Consulting.
When it comes to the cause of burnout, government employees cited workload, a lack of communication and support from managers, staffing shortages, the challenge of juggling personal and professional lives and time pressures. More than two-thirds of government workers say that a four-day work week and increased flexibility would alleviate stress.
“Given the immense demand for government services, it is prudent for public sector employers to constantly assess the state of their workforce,” said Melissa Jezior, president of Eagle Hill, in a statement. “Public employers need workers who can deliver on the agency mission, and they need employees who will stay on the job. When government employees are exhausted and stressed, or feel like they can’t perform at their best they may start looking elsewhere for employment.”
When asked how staff shortages are impacting their workload, 82% of workers at all levels of government said it’s covering the workload for unfilled positions, 45% said it’s helping others learn their job, 35% said it’s training new hires and 23% said it’s recruiting.
In addition to a reduced workweek, other solutions offered by survey respondents include decreasing workloads, more working from home, better health and wellness benefits, reducing administrative burdens, offering more on-site amenities and providing workers with the ability to relocate or work from multiple locations.
The research also signals that the so-called Great Resignation may linger, as more than one-third of the government workforce plans to leave their job in the next 12 months. The planned departure rates are even higher for Millennials and lower income workers.
Eagle Hill Consulting LLC is a woman-owned business based in Washington, D.C., that provides management consulting services.
The 2022 Eagle Hill Consulting Workforce Burnout Survey included 1,003 respondents from a random sample of employees across the U.S., including 739 federal, state, and local government workers. Respondents were polled Aug. 11-16 by Ipsos. | https://www.federaltimes.com/management/2022/09/19/staff-shortages-fueling-government-worker-burnout-survey-says/ | 2022-09-20T05:11:28Z | federaltimes.com | control | https://www.federaltimes.com/management/2022/09/19/staff-shortages-fueling-government-worker-burnout-survey-says/ | 1 | 0 | green-iguana-35 | null |
With little progress on advancing full year appropriations bills for federal agencies, lawmakers have just two weeks to negotiate a budget extension or risk a partial government shutdown at the start of October.
House and Senate leaders have said in recent days they are working on a short-term budget plan but have not yet released any details. The new fiscal year starts on Oct. 1, one day after both chambers are scheduled to begin a pre-election recess.
Significant progress on a full year budget deal is not expected until after the midterm election, when voters will decide which party will hold control of the House and Senate for the next two years.
A partial government shutdown would not close Veterans Affairs hospitals or cancel major military activities, but could delay some training, programming and paychecks.
Senate Banking — 9 a.m. — 538 Dirksen
Russian sanctions
Treasury and Justice Department officials will testify on U.S. sanctions against Russian officials for that country’s war against Ukraine.
Senate Armed Services — 9:30 a.m. — G-50 Dirksen
U.S. nuclear strategy
Outside experts will testify on current U.S. nuclear strategy and policy issues.
House Veterans' Affairs — 10 a.m. — H210 Visitors Center
VA acquisition failures
Department officials and outside experts will testify on problems with recent VA acquisition efforts.
Wednesday, Sept. 21
House Foreign Affairs — 10 a.m. — 2172 Rayburn
Middle East/North Africa security
Outside experts will testify on regional security cooperation efforts in the Middle East and North Africa.
Senate Appropriations — 10 a.m. — 124 Dirksen
VA health records
Department officials will testify on continued problems with VA’s electronic health records modernization initiative.
House Foreign Affairs — 2 p.m. — 2172 Rayburn
Russian war crimes
Outside experts will testify on reports of Russian war crimes in Ukraine.
House Armed Services — 2 p.m. — 2118 Rayburn
Military sexual assault
Undersecretary of Defense for Personnel Gil Cisneros and service officials will testify on the findings of the Independent Review Commission on Sexual Assault in the Military.
Senate Foreign Relations — 2:15 p.m. — 419 Dirksen
Women leadership
Outside experts will testify on women leaders countering authoritarian regimes.
Senate Veterans' Affairs — 3 p.m. — 418 Russell
Veterans' access to care
VA officials will testify on patient access to department health care and community care programs.
Senate Armed Services — 3:30 p.m. — 222 Russell
Military recruiting
Service officials will testify on current challenges to recruiting and retention efforts.
Leo covers Congress, Veterans Affairs and the White House for Military Times. He has covered Washington, D.C. since 2004, focusing on military personnel and veterans policies. His work has earned numerous honors, including a 2009 Polk award, a 2010 National Headliner Award, the IAVA Leadership in Journalism award and the VFW News Media award. | https://www.federaltimes.com/news/pentagon-congress/2022/09/19/this-week-in-congress-two-weeks-to-negotiate-a-budget-extension/ | 2022-09-20T05:11:34Z | federaltimes.com | control | https://www.federaltimes.com/news/pentagon-congress/2022/09/19/this-week-in-congress-two-weeks-to-negotiate-a-budget-extension/ | 1 | 0 | green-iguana-35 | null |
The U.S. government’s research and development efforts should promote small experiments because if they fail, we learn something; and when they succeed, we can build on that success. Likewise, Congress needs to act now to keep one of the smallest and most successful R&D programs from disappearing Sept. 30 to ensure continued progress and access to critical industries and technologies.
The Small Business Innovation Research program, or SBIR — perhaps the preeminent research and development program in the federal government — makes modest R&D grants to small businesses. This approach has delivered results. For example, a 2019 Defense Department study found SBIR delivered a 22-to-1 return on investment, $28 billion in sales to the military and $347 billion in economic impact over 23 years. And 16% of new drugs that made a significant advance over available medicines came from SBIR awards by the National Institutes of Health.
There are two reasons given for Congress’ failure to reauthorize the 40-year-old program: national security and so-called SBIR mills.
Given that the Defense Department documented cases when foreign governments used SBIR status to target investments in critical technologies, Congress and the relevant agencies should revisit the application of Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States reviews to investment in these firms.
However, when it comes to SBIR mills — companies that repeatedly win early-stage grants — we should proceed with caution. With $3.9 billion in 2022 R&D awarded through the SBIR program, Congress and agencies need to ensure taxpayer dollars are protected. However, the frequency with which a small business participates in the program is not itself a reliable metric for gauging abuse of the program.
Current Senate proposals restrict eligibility based on the ratio of federal contract dollars to SBIR grant dollars over the life of the firm, or the ratio of gross revenue to SBIR grants over a five-year period. If enacted, the DoD estimates between 47% and 95% of current SBIR participants would be excluded from the program, including companies successfully received prime contracts based on their SBIR work.
The Defense Department opposes these proposals and cautions that the delay in reauthorization “will cause irreparable harm to the small business community and have an adverse impact on national security.” It also means agencies will no longer be able to make awards they deem in the best interest of the government. They will need to forgo follow-up research projects or other proposals they deem to be for the best R&D in order to make awards to new companies.
Proponents of these restrictions point to a 2014 Air Force study for the proposition that “the more SBIR ... awards companies received, the less likely they were to successfully commercialize their products.” However, the study demonstrated that companies with 100 awards averaged commercialization returns of about $2 million per award, or roughly $200 million. Companies with one to four awards averaged returns of about $10 million per award, or $10-40 million.
While the latter group had higher returns per contract, the ultimate benefit from the former is substantially higher. While many of the individual Phase II awards were unsuccessful, the R&D ultimately delivered successful results.
The 2019 Defense Department study found over 23 years that 58% of Phase II awards resulted in contracts with sales, meaning 42% did not. The important question is: What was learned from those failures?
Rather than trying to legislate a formula for how many times modern day inventors are allowed to fail, Congress should make it easier to fund the most meritorious R&D proposals. It can do so in two ways. First, Congress should encourage agencies to share the outcomes from past awards to promote collaboration and create a common foundation for future R&D. Currently, the SBIR.gov database only provides information on R&D proposals rather than outcomes; information on results is poorly documented and rarely shared, to the detriment of overall innovation.
Second, to promote new entrants to the R&D space, Congress should increase the use of open topics for early-stage SBIR awards. Rather than asking applicants how to solve a specific problem, open topics ask what R&D could benefit a particular agency or program. While conventional SBIR topics attract firms with expertise in grant-writing as well as R&D, open topics are more likely to attract smaller companies that have never participated in government contracting. By encouraging the use of open topics, Congress would mitigate the advantage of companies that prioritize grant-writing expertise over substantive R&D.
Notably, the Defense Department has announced that unless Congress acts, it will no longer be able to purchase the successful technologies that came out of the SBIR program without issuing new contracts. In a race for global technological superiority, this is time and money the department can ill-afford to lose. It will also dissuade contracting officers and businesses from relying on the program.
SBIR awards should be based on merit and promote national security, transparency and innovation. A formula attempting to quantify how many times a business may iterate its innovation to achieve success is dangerous because it takes away the ability of an agency to judge whether sufficient progress is being made. Congress should reauthorize the program now.
Emily Murphy is a senior fellow with the Center for Government Contracting at George Mason University. She most recently served as administrator for the U.S. General Services Administration. | https://www.federaltimes.com/opinion/commentary/2022/09/19/congress-must-act-on-small-biz-innovation-research-reauthorization/ | 2022-09-20T05:11:41Z | federaltimes.com | control | https://www.federaltimes.com/opinion/commentary/2022/09/19/congress-must-act-on-small-biz-innovation-research-reauthorization/ | 1 | 0 | green-iguana-35 | null |
Organizers behind the new VetTheVote initiative want to get more veterans involved in American elections.
Not politics — just the elections.
At a time when major political parties are recruiting veterans to run in upcoming state and federal contests across the country, the new advocacy group is asking former service members to also consider working as election officials, helping to make sure votes in all of those critical races are cast and counted properly.
“Elections run on people that raise their hand [and serve as] poll workers who give you the pens that you need, check your IDs, make sure that people’s election signs are 40 feet from the door of the polling place,” said Ellen Gustafson, co-executive director of the initiative.
“All of those incredibly important jobs need to be done by citizens. And what better group of citizens than veterans and military family members who have already proven their commitment to stand up and protect our democracy?”
State election officials report that about 130,000 poll workers have stepped down from those posts over the last 12 years, in large part because of age and coronavirus concerns. About 60% of the current poll workers registered across America are 61 or older, and 25% are 70 or older.
VetTheVote officials said they expect a “looming poll worker crisis” for the 2022 midterm elections and beyond. That in turn creates potential challenges in conducting basic election work, like keeping poll locations open long enough for all voters to cast their ballots.
“It just seems clear to me that a smart, diverse, trusted and committed group of men and women who have already had the courage to serve their country in difficult times … would be just the kind of people to oversee a disciplined election process and help restore a level of confidence to our electoral system,” said former Army Chief of Staff Gen. George Casey at the group’s launch event on Tuesday.
VetTheVote is partnering with 15 veterans organizations — including groups like Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America, Student Veterans of America, the National Military Family Association and the Military Officers Association of America — as well as other civic groups and the National Football League’s “NFL Votes” initiative.
Supporters say the effort can solve two problems simultaneously: the need for help running local elections, and the need to give veterans and military family members a way to continue to serve their communities. Past studies have shown that younger veterans in particular can face anxiety and depression after separating from military service, and that finding ways to connect to their communities can prove critical in their transition.
Group officials will work with partners in coming months to raise awareness and begin connecting volunteers with local election officials.
Gustafson said nationwide about 100,000 new poll workers are needed, in some states more than others. Officials in Wisconsin, Michigan, Ohio, Georgia, Arizona, Nevada — all potential swing states in the 2024 presidential election — have reported significant shortages in their staffing.
“This is 100% purely a pro-democracy effort,” said Anil Nathan, VetTheVote’s other co-executive director. “It has zero connection or affiliation to any level of partisanship.
“This is purely a means to support and strengthen the electoral process, because we know that without poll workers, there are a lot of consequences: election site delays, closures, bad outcomes when people are not able to exercise their right to vote freely and fairly.”
Typically poll worker posts pay a nominal sum and require some advanced training on non-partisan requirements and logistical issues.
More information on the effort and how to sign up to be a poll worker can be found at the group’s web site.
Leo covers Congress, Veterans Affairs and the White House for Military Times. He has covered Washington, D.C. since 2004, focusing on military personnel and veterans policies. His work has earned numerous honors, including a 2009 Polk award, a 2010 National Headliner Award, the IAVA Leadership in Journalism award and the VFW News Media award. | https://www.federaltimes.com/veterans/2022/06/28/advocates-call-on-veterans-to-serve-as-poll-workers-for-upcoming-elections/ | 2022-09-20T05:11:47Z | federaltimes.com | control | https://www.federaltimes.com/veterans/2022/06/28/advocates-call-on-veterans-to-serve-as-poll-workers-for-upcoming-elections/ | 1 | 0 | green-iguana-35 | null |
ROCK SPRINGS – The sounds of chatter turns into silence as a small group of students read words of abuse, written by survivors of physical and sexual violence.
Objects dangle over notes as reminders of how they met their aggressive partners.
ROCK SPRINGS – The sounds of chatter turns into silence as a small group of students read words of abuse, written by survivors of physical and sexual violence.
Objects dangle over notes as reminders of how they met their aggressive partners.
The Tunnel of Oppression is a community display that addresses types of abuse and suffering that happen around the world and locally, such as human trafficking, domestic violence, racism, bullying, poverty, homophobia, ableism/disability issues, food insecurity and other personal issues.
Representatives from YWCA of Sweetwater County, Uprising, Sweetwater County Sheriff’s Office and Southwest Counseling Services were on-site to provide information during the opening reception at Western Wyoming Community College on Monday, Sept. 19.
The content may be difficult for some visitors as descriptions of sexual coercion, bullying, digital abuse and other personal hardships are displayed on poster boards and art.
On the tunnel, messages such as “1 in 5 children will be manipulated into physical content” stop visitors in their tracks.
Rock Springs resident Rosa Reyna-Pugh viewed the display with her husband.
“It was just a small glimpse of trafficking and abusive relationships but it was so powerful,” said Reyna-Pugh. “I hope more people will see it because they would see these issues in a different light.”
She also pointed out that it is, especially, important for young men and women to see this display since it may help them make the decisions that will keep them safe.
Objectives of the display include helping visitors understand the importance of leaning into discomfort and having an authentic discussion about oppression.
Charlie Folks, board member of Uprising, is a survivor of human trafficking. He said he has been “very moved by what Uprising is doing.”
After he had discovered he was a victim of human trafficking, he wanted to get involved in spreading awareness.
“I wanted to do anything I can to make a difference,” said Folks. “If we can prevent one child from going through that, then it’s worth it.”
“I think it can help bridge the gap between people thinking ‘I’m the only one experiencing this’ or ‘I’m part of a low percentage of people experiencing this.’ Hopefully, they will see that there are other folks, statewide, nationwide and in this community, who have gone through similar things.”
According to Folks, the display is about building authentic relationships.
"I think it’s really great to bring awareness, even in a college campus setting. Seeing the people walking around, you don’t know their stories so having that exposure will hopefully bring a little bit of compassion and it will help shape a great community.”
Viewing is free and open to the public Sept. 19-23, in the atrium at Western Wyoming Community College.
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A receipt was sent to your email. | https://www.wyomingnews.com/rocketminer/tunnel-of-oppression-survivors-share-pain-in-community-display/article_1ba51954-389b-11ed-a1af-1b80c248a6ed.html | 2022-09-20T05:33:22Z | wyomingnews.com | control | https://www.wyomingnews.com/rocketminer/tunnel-of-oppression-survivors-share-pain-in-community-display/article_1ba51954-389b-11ed-a1af-1b80c248a6ed.html | 1 | 0 | green-iguana-35 | null |
More businesses turning to ‘boomerang’ employees amid hiring challenges
More and more companies are turning to former staff to fill roles as a result of recruitment issues and skills shortages, according to an HR expert.
Jane Watson, head of Prism HR, the human resources consultancy operated by Edinburgh-headquartered legal firm Lindsays, which has offices in Edinburgh, Glasgow and Dundee, says she is seeing increasing evidence of so-called “boomerang employees” returning to their former workplaces.
She believes it’s a trend that could become more widespread in the jobs market, as some businesses struggle to fill vacancies. “It remains an incredibly challenging recruitment market, with employers often struggling to find the skills they need when filling roles,” she said. “We know that both lifestyle decisions made during the Covid-19 lockdowns and Brexit have had a significant impact.
“It’s natural, given the challenges, that employers use all of their contacts and turn to those they have previously employed – people who have the skills they are looking for. I have been advising a number of businesses in relation to this across various sectors.”
The HR expert also pointed out that internationally, bigger companies have established alumni networks especially for rehires.
Ms Watson added that the advantages of rehires, whether in the same or a more senior role than previously, include securing experienced staff and lower recruitment and training costs, an important factor as companies manage rising bills elsewhere. Flagged challenges include that they may be likely to leave again and that there could be resentment among other staff who had remained if the person returns to a more senior, better-paid, post.
Ms Watson added: “Rehires should be viewed as largely positive and can be especially useful when looking for specific skills in specialist sectors. It can also say a lot for a workplace that someone wants to return.
“It’s also not unusual for people to boomerang to the post that they left. Some people simply want their old job back as they realise the grass is not greener wherever they have moved on to. The days of leavers not even considering returning to a workplace are over. Attitudes and the jobs market have evolved. Peoples’ views have changed.”
Want to join the conversation? Please or to comment on this article. | https://www.scotsman.com/business/more-businesses-turning-to-boomerang-employees-amid-hiring-challenges-3848294 | 2022-09-20T05:38:52Z | scotsman.com | control | https://www.scotsman.com/business/more-businesses-turning-to-boomerang-employees-amid-hiring-challenges-3848294 | 1 | 0 | green-iguana-35 | null |
PROVIDENCE, RI (WPRI) — This week’s Cardi’s Furniture & Mattresses Hometown Sports Hero is Patrick Conserve.
The two-time reigning 1st Team All-State pick, has made big plays on the Offensive and Defensive lines, helping Cumberland to jump out to a 2-0 start this season.
“He came out as a Freshman and was one of our best players, as a Freshman,” said Cumberland Head Coach Josh Lima. “And a lot of the local schools I talked to, I said we’ve got a local kid who’s a young kid, who’s going to be a stud for us. Through the years he just keeps progressing, every single year, every week, as a leader of our program and also just as a football player.”
Patrick already has scholarship offers from Merrimack, Central Connecticut State and URI, and a few FBS programs are continuing to track his progress this Fall. But the senior is trying to keep his focus on his team as the Clippers look to make a run at the D-II Championship.
“Hes been doing a good job, he’s taking care of business in the classroom, which is the most important thing, and then his play on the field,” Lima said. “And my job as a coach is to put coaches in front of him and introduce him to coaches and he does a great job selling himself because he’s such a great kid.”
“Of course, I have my individual goal of getting more offers, but that aside, I am focused on the team and winning a championship, first and always,” Conserve said. “You know I’ve been working with my brothers for four years so that’s the goal, and it’s been the goal since the jump.”
If you have a Hometown Sports Hero you’d like to nominate, email sports@wpri.com. | https://www.wpri.com/sports/hometown-hero-patrick-conserve-cumberland/ | 2022-09-20T05:48:08Z | wpri.com | control | https://www.wpri.com/sports/hometown-hero-patrick-conserve-cumberland/ | 1 | 0 | green-iguana-35 | null |
With the Fed in focus, traders are not seemingly settled as yesterday's early gains in the dollar failed to hold as price action ran back the other way towards the end of the day. That came amid a recovery in equities while Treasury yields did keep higher, reflecting some mixed tones in markets in general.
A plausible factor that is in play right now is that perhaps the dollar is running up against key technical levels across the board. In some sense, the bulls need added impetus to really chew through that layer of resistance in order to pull off the next leg higher in the greenback. However, it looks like we will need the Fed to settle that this week and to provide more clarity before any real commitment. Here's a look at the charts to give a better overview.
USD/JPY is finding it tough to breach 145.00 with barrier options also reported at the figure level. That said, buyers are keeping the faith and holding around 142.00 to 143.50 for the most part in recent sessions.
Meanwhile, EUR/USD continues to stick closer to parity with little appetite to drive the next downside leg firmly below 0.9900. Then, GBP/USD is also still holding at weekly support near 1.1400 - a key support region as defined by the pandemic low:
Looking over to the commodity currencies..
AUD/USD is also knocking on the door of its weekly trendline support at around 0.6681 - which also coincides with the 14 July low at that same level. Put together, that is a key support region to watch as a firmer break will spell out a move towards 0.6500 next potentially.
Then, there was the impressive break in USD/CAD at the end of last week above 1.3200 and that straight away pushed buyers into testing the 50.0 Fib retracement level at 1.3337. That is ultimately still holding for now and will be a critical point to watch in determining the next trending move for the pair as clearance would pave the way towards 1.3400 and potentially the 61.8 Fib retracement level at 1.3651 next for the pair.
All of this comes as 10-year Treasury yields are running up against a key level of its own i.e. 3.50% on the charts:
That put a lid on the topside push back in June and with the Fed in focus, it is a key psychological level in determining the next range so to speak for yields to settle around in the aftermath. | https://www.forexlive.com/news/dollar-up-against-the-apex-20220920/ | 2022-09-20T05:55:25Z | forexlive.com | control | https://www.forexlive.com/news/dollar-up-against-the-apex-20220920/ | 1 | 0 | green-iguana-35 | null |
Nanoplastics ‘Damage’ Human Organ Cells, Affecting Vital Functions: Study
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We know that microplastics — fragments of plastic that are less than five millimeters in length — are everywhere: the soil, rain, water, air, clothes, and even in our food. They’ve even contaminated our bodies already. Now, nanoplastics — a class of plastic particles thought to be even smaller than microplastics, but with no consensus on a definition yet — represent a new threat that could be even more difficult to contend with. With the debate to properly define nanoplastics continuing, we still don’t know much about how nanoplastics affect our health, but we’re beginning to find out — at a cellular level.
A group of scientists in China, in a study published late last month in the journal Environmental Science and Technology, have now learnt how nanoplastics affect human organs, such as the liver and the lungs. The researchers chose these two organs in particular as humans are most likely to ingest nanoplastic particles through their food, or inhale them in through the air. Some earlier studies have observed the presence of nanoplastics and microplastics in the environment and their impact on human health, but none so far have clearly displayed studied how bodily functions are affected by these particles.
For their study, the scientists created separate cultures of human liver and lung cells in laboratory plates and then treated those cultures with varying amounts of 80-nanometre (where 1nm = 0.000000001m) wide particles. On observing the plates through an electron microscope after two days, the researchers observed that nanoplastics had made their way into both liver and lung cells without killing them. To understand the impact of their entry in these cells, the scientists closely inspected the mitochondria — organelles that generate the chemical compound adenosine triphosphate (ATP), which cells use as an energy source.
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Plants Can Absorb Nanoplastics, Causing Adverse Effects for Ecology, Food Safety
“… transmission electron microscopy analysis showed that the nanoplastics could enter the cells and cause mitochondrial damage,” the researchers wrote. They further observed that liver and lung cells produced more reactive oxygen species — oxygen variants that can cause irreparable damage to the DNA — on interacting with nanoplastics.
But it doesn’t stop here: they also found that the quantities of nucleotides, nucleosides, amino acids, peptides, and carboxylic acids — all crucial byproducts of metabolism — that the cells produced varied greatly from the usual numbers, indicating that metabolic processes became unbalanced when nanoplastics entered them. Scientists further observed that metabolic function was more severely impaired in liver cells than in lung cells.
This indicates that even though organ cells didn’t die due to a nanoplastic invasion, they can drastically disrupt metabolic processes, which can then lead to metabolic disorders such as diabetes. Other symptoms caused by metabolic imbalances include severe weight loss or gain, jaundice, lethargy, and seizures.
The study comes at a time when there is increasing caution about the presence of microplastics and nanoplastics in environment. A recent study, for instance, observed that microplastics present in the soil are absorbed by plants and travel across the food web. Earlier studies have reported finding these particles even in baby poop. This indicates that the existing plastic in the world is in a constant loop, apart from all the newer plastic that is manufactured every day.
Some studies in the past have observed that antarctic krill could help disintegrate microplastics into even finer particles — or nanoplastics. But with the current research indicating that nanoplastics are equally harmful as microplastics if not more, the question of how to manage plastic pollution remains unanswered — even as their risks loom bigger by the day. | https://theswaddle.com/nanoplastics-damage-human-organ-cells-affecting-vital-functions-study/ | 2022-09-20T05:55:26Z | theswaddle.com | control | https://theswaddle.com/nanoplastics-damage-human-organ-cells-affecting-vital-functions-study/ | 1 | 0 | green-iguana-35 | null |
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