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Trackhouse Racing PR
Trackhouse Racing Ross Chastain and Daniel Suárez Martinsville Race Advance
Speedway Digest Staff
Follow us on Twitter @SpeedwayDigest
Latest from Speedway Digest Staff
- NMPA announces passing of former Darlington Raceway track president Chris Browning
- Naväge Nasal Care and McDowell Eye Rebound at Martinsville
- Yahoo and Toyota Racing Development Announce a Multi-year Agreement
- Speedway Children’s Charities Raises More Than $15,000 for Austin Area Children During NASCAR at COTA Race Weekend
- Burton, Wood Brothers Ready To Make More Martinsville Memories
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https://www.speedwaydigest.com/index.php/news/nascar-cup-series-news/68451-trackhouse-racing-ross-chastain-and-daniel-suarez-martinsville-race-advance
| 2022-04-06T15:26:28Z
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DGR PR
NASCAR Camping World Truck Series Advance: Martinsville Speedway
Speedway Digest Staff
Follow us on Twitter @SpeedwayDigest
Latest from Speedway Digest Staff
- NMPA announces passing of former Darlington Raceway track president Chris Browning
- Naväge Nasal Care and McDowell Eye Rebound at Martinsville
- Yahoo and Toyota Racing Development Announce a Multi-year Agreement
- Speedway Children’s Charities Raises More Than $15,000 for Austin Area Children During NASCAR at COTA Race Weekend
- Burton, Wood Brothers Ready To Make More Martinsville Memories
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https://www.speedwaydigest.com/index.php/news/nascar-truck-series-news/68402-nascar-camping-world-truck-series-advance-martinsville-speedway
| 2022-04-06T15:26:34Z
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The mother of slain US aid worker Kayla Mueller testified at the trial of an alleged ISIS captor that the family sent a personal plea to the terror group’s leader in a desperate attempt to secure her release.
Marsha Mueller revealed that the family sent a video message to her daughter’s captors, as she took the stand against El Shafee Elsheikh, a 33-year-old former British national, on Tuesday.
“Kayla is not your enemy. Show your mercy and release our daughter,” Marsha said in the video message.
Her emotional testimony came on the fifth day of the trial in US federal court in Alexandria, Virginia.
Elsheikh, an alleged member of the British-born ISIS executioners dubbed “The Beatles,” is accused of involvement in the murders of Mueller and three other Americans, fellow aid worker Peter Kassig and journalists James Foley and Steven Sotloff.
Occasionally wiping tears from her eyes, Marsha recalled how her daughter had worked at an orphanage in India and taught English to Tibetan refugees in Dharamsala before going to Syria, according to Agence France-Presse.
“She was always interested in helping people,” she said.
Her daughter was captured by ISIS in August 2013 while accompanying her boyfriend, Syrian national Rodwan Safarjalani, on a trip to a hospital in Aleppo where he was contracted to repair a satellite dish.
Marsha testified about email exchanges with her daughter’s captors, who were demanding a ransom of 5 million euros or the release of Aafia Siddiqui, a Pakistani woman who is imprisoned in the US for the attempted murder of American soldiers.
“We don’t want to harm her,” the hostage-takers reportedly told the family in a May 2014 email. “She is like a guest with us at the moment.”
But they warned that if their demands were not met, Kayla would serve “a life sentence just like Siddiqui.”
The Muellers told the kidnappers they were asking for “an astronomical amount of money from a family with limited resources.”
In one email, the family said Kayla’s father, Carl Mueller, had retired from an auto repair business he ran in Prescott, Arizona, but the terrorist replied: “Retiring will not help you get your daughter back so go back to work and earn some money.”
Marsha said the US government told the family that the captors “will not harm a woman,” but they decided to make a personal appeal to then-ISIS leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi.
It has been reported that Kayla was handed over to Baghdadi, who allegedly raped her repeatedly before killing her.
In February 2015, ISIS claimed that Kayla had been killed in an airstrike by Jordanian warplanes.
During a break in Tuesday’s court session, Safarjalani approached Elsheikh as he was being led out by US Marshals and shouted at him in Arabic that he would end up in hell.
Judge T.S. Ellis warned him that he would be thrown out if there was another outburst, adding that he was allowing him to remain in the courtroom because he had only made a “prediction” and not a “threat.”
Elsheikh and terrorist pal Alexenda Kotey — another member of “The Beatles” — were captured together and brought to Virginia to face trial. Kotey pleaded guilty last year and received a life sentence, avoiding the death penalty.
A third Beatle, Mohammed Emwazi, served as executioner in the video of Foley’s execution. He was killed in a drone strike.
Elsheikh’s defense attorneys claim there is insufficient evidence to prove he was a member of the group that took part in the hostage-taking scheme.
Prosecutors plan to present evidence that Elsheikh confessed to his role in interviews with authorities and the media.
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https://nypost.com/2022/04/06/kayla-muellers-mom-recalls-plea-to-isis-to-spare-daughters-life/
| 2022-04-06T15:26:41Z
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Rural Telecommunications of America, Inc. (RTA) has joined Michael Roberts Construction (MRC) as a sponsor of Zane Smith and the No. 38 Front Row Motorsports Ford F-150 team. RTA’s partnership with MRC will feature a full primary truck sponsorship at Charlotte Motor Speedway on May 27, plus associate sponsorship at all other MRC primary sponsored races starting at Martinsville Speedway this Thursday, followed by Sonoma Raceway, Kansas Speedway and the season finale at Phoenix Raceway.
RTA initially joined MRC and Smith last year and are looking forward to being part of Smith’s championship run later this fall.
“We are extremely excited this year to continue our partnership with Zane, MRC and now with Front Row Motorsports,” said RTA Chairman Donald Workman. “Zane is an extremely talented driver and incredible person on and off the track. He exhibits all the qualities that RTA is built upon. We are so pleased to be a part of his racing family to support him and his team.”
RTA is a Rural Internet Service Provider based in Houston, Texas that is on a mission to bring affordable gigFAST INTERNET™ to America’s rural communities. Smith, who moved from California to a more rural area in North Carolina to pursue his NASCAR dreams, has experienced first-hand the need for more options and faster internet in places underserved. Both RTA and Smith share the need for speed and passion for connecting rural America.
“RTA is a perfect partner for our sport as they are leading the way in bringing high-speed internet to NASCAR fans all over rural America,” said Smith. “Speed and technology is what drives the sport and I trust their gigFAST service to help me win races. Hopefully we can win another one with them on the No. 38 RTA Ford F-150 at Charlotte Motor Speedway this May.”
For more information about RTA, visit www.rtatel.com.
FRM PR
Michael Roberts Construction Adds Partner to Truck Series Program
Speedway Digest Staff
Follow us on Twitter @SpeedwayDigest
Latest from Speedway Digest Staff
- NMPA announces passing of former Darlington Raceway track president Chris Browning
- Naväge Nasal Care and McDowell Eye Rebound at Martinsville
- Yahoo and Toyota Racing Development Announce a Multi-year Agreement
- Speedway Children’s Charities Raises More Than $15,000 for Austin Area Children During NASCAR at COTA Race Weekend
- Burton, Wood Brothers Ready To Make More Martinsville Memories
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https://www.speedwaydigest.com/index.php/news/nascar-truck-series-news/68417-michael-roberts-construction-adds-partner-to-truck-series-program
| 2022-04-06T15:26:52Z
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What’s next for LeBron James and the Lakers after L.A. was eliminated from playoff contention Tuesday with a 116-97 loss to the Suns?
The disastrous end to an injury-plagued season brings on a slew of questions about how the Lakers will move forward. Which role players will return? Will L.A. trade Russell Westbrook? Can they even trade the former league MVP, who has a $47 million player option for the 2022-23 season?
Last month, Westbrook and the Lakers reportedly had mutual interest in finding him a new team this summer. But after his season ended Tuesday, Westbrook said he expects to remain with the team.
“I mean, that’s the plan,” Westbrook said about returning next season to finish the last year on his Lakers contract. “But nothing is promised. Yes, we want to be able to see what that looks like, what that entails over the course of an 82-game season. But we’re not sure if that’s guaranteed, either. So I just hope that we have a chance to be able to do something.”
The Westbrook trade took away any safety net the Lakers had for the immediate future. He is the highest-paid player on L.A.’s roster, earning $44 million, ahead of LeBron James ($41 million). One possibility of dumping the Westbrook contract could be to flip it for John Wall, who has a similar remaining contract with the Rockets.
The Lakers acquired Westbrook last summer in hopes of forming a Big 3 with James and Anthony Davis, who was limited to 40 games this season due to injury. James also dealt with injuries throughout his career-high scoring season, and Westbrook struggled offensively. Those factors contributed to the Big 3 playing just 21 games together.
“Who knows?” Davis said Tuesday about what the future holds in L.A. — after recording 21 points and 13 rebounds in the Suns loss. Tuesday’s defeat marked L.A’s seventh straight loss in a Hail Marry attempt to qualify for the play-in tournament.
The Lakers are 31-48 on the season — already the most losses in a season by any James-led team in his career with still three to go. The collapse of L.A’.s season began right after the All-Star break, which marked the worst post-break record in franchise history.
After uniting a Hall of Fame roster that included Carmelo Anthony and Dwight Howard, L.A’s master plan was quickly foiled when James and co. couldn’t gel together on the floor.
The Lakers’ plan for key role players also failed. Talen Horton-Tucker was a non-factor. Kendrick Nunn never appeared in a single game this season due to a knee injury. Other key role players, including Kent Bazemore and Trevor Ariza, played just a third of the season.
“This year, we had more starting lineups than wins,” Davis said. “Our goal was to win a championship. Feel like we had the pieces, but injuries got in the way of that. And that was the difference in the season.”
On Monday, Lakers legend Earvin Magic Johnson went on an ESPN morning show spree and torched the Lakers for choosing a Westbrook experiment over acquiring Bulls star DeMar DeRozan, who is playing history-making basketball in Chicago.
Johnson also said Lakers coach Frank Vogel would likely be the fall guy. Soon after Johnson’s comments, Vogel was the subject of a firing report, which wasn’t a surprise, as his job has been questioned all season long due to L.A’s continuous struggles.
“Extremely disappointed,” Vogel said after the Lakers’ season ended Tuesday. “Disappointed for our fan base. Disappointed for the Buss family, who gave us all this opportunity and we want to play our part in bringing success to Laker basketball and we fell short.”
The ending of the Lakers’ season begs another question: Will James commit to a contract extension this summer?
The 37-year-old is eligible for a contract extension on Aug. 4 — and by then, the Lakers could have an adjusted roster and a different coach.
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| 2022-04-06T15:27:35Z
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Find out how to bet on golf online with our in-depth betting guide on Golf. Check out how to place your PGA tour bets, as well as the Masters, Ryder Cup and plenty more.
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- Check out the best golf betting sites
More on How to bet on Golf
- Most common golf bets
- Golf Betting Resources
- Where to bet on golf
- Upcoming Golf Calendar
- Tips & Tricks for Betting on Golf
- Golf Betting FAQs
Common Golf Bets
Outright Winner
The most common way to bet on golf is to pick which player will win the tournament. The easiest comparison to this is the moneyline bet, where you need your player to win outright in order for the bet to payout. An example of this market would look something like this:
For example, let’s say you bet $100 on Jon Rahm to win The Masters outright at +900. This would return a profit of $900, with an overall payout of $1000 (profit + stake).
Due to the huge pool of players competing in golf tournaments, predicting an outright winner is very hard, hence the odds are a lot longer than other sports.
To Finish in the Top-10
The best golf betting sites will offer markets on players to finish in the higher players. Sometimes known as each-way betting, this allows you to bet on a player to finish within a certain number of players, such as Top 3 or Top 8. Some golf betting sites will offer more places, meaning your player will have a bit more freedom to finish in the higher places.
Of course, for many of the favorites, their odds of finishing in the top-10 are shorter than their outright winner odds, but it allows you to relax a little if your player drops a few strokes.
An example of an each-way market would look something like this:
These bets are a great way to find some value in an outsider, who you may not think will have a chance of winning. If a golfer has a strong opening two rounds, but fades in the closing stages, they may still place inside the top-10, meaning you would receive a payout.
To Make the Cut
Wagering on players to make the cut is a way of earning a payout before the tournament has concluded. ‘The Cut’, is set halfway through the tournament and is set at a specific score.
Let’s say the cut is set a +2 over par, every player with +3 or worse, will not proceed to the final two days of the tournament, and have ‘missed the cut’.
However, if you’ve bet on a player to make the cut, and their score is +2 or better, then your bet is a winner. Often with the favorites their odds of making the cut are very short, but you can cash in on some big odds for the outsiders to have a good opening two rounds.
Round Leader
Similar to the outright winner market, bettors can wager who will be the leader after the opening round, or even the second round.
The player you back may not go on to win the tournament and needs only to lead the tournament at the end of the specified round for this bet to pay out.
Player vs. Player
Rather than bet on one player versus the entire field, you can bet one player versus another in head-to-head golf betting odds, similar to a moneyline.
Golf betting sites will set odds on which player will post the higher finishing position and you can pick which player you think will have the better tournament.
This may also be known as three-way golf betting. These odds simply put the three players playing in the same group together, and odds of the lowest scoring player is the favorite.
Golfers are often grouped into a variety of categories. Due to the large number of players in golf tournaments, sportsbooks will offer markets on the top player from certain countries.
Golf has often been a sport dominated by the USA, and you will find plenty of American players at all golf tournaments, meaning you can often find odds for the highest placing American golfer.
Golf Futures
Futures odds to win the major tournaments are often open well before the week of the event, perhaps even months. Golf betting markets for those big tournaments are taking action months before Round 1 begins.
Live Golf Betting
The best golf betting sites will offer live golf odds as a tournament plays out, constantly adjusting to the results on the course. This includes outright winner odds, odds to win the round, and hole-by-hole odds for select players.
Odds are constantly chopping and changing for each shot, making golf live betting one of the most volatile types of in-play betting there is.
- Check out the best live betting sites
Golf Props
There are plenty of golf props you can get stuck into, with the best golf betting sites offering a wide variety of props on the biggest golf tournaments.
We’ll also see plenty of types of props during bigger tournaments like the Masters. Top senior, highest placing amateur or best left-handed golfer. These offer value on occasions where they can eliminate large portions of the group because of course type or form and whittle it down to a couple of players we think can come out ahead of the rest.
As mentioned, it’s hard to win a tournament, but usually, we can figure out what type of player should succeed at a given course and this is another place to take advantage of that knowledge.
Individual single prop bets are also available to bet on, often resulting in giving the bettor a choice to answer a yes or no question. An example of these could be:
- Will there be a hole in one?
- Any golfer to go bogey-free?
- Will the course record be broken?
- Will there be a playoff?
Golf Betting Resources
With the nature of betting on golf events being much different then the head-to-head nature of team matchups basically everywhere else, it’s important to determine statistical categories that tend to perform well at specific golf courses.
The Post gives you a headstart on some of the most in-depth golf statistic sites, to help craft your golf bets.
Some stats are worth noting depending on the course that is being played. Driving accuracy can be very important for courses with narrow fairways and strong winds, whereas driving distance comes in handy for those courses with wide fairways and short par fours.
Golf Betting Sites
Now you’ve learned about how to bet on golf, it’s best to point you in the direction of the best golf betting sites. The New York Post ranks the top golf betting sites, and gives a detailed breakdown of all the best golf betting sites, and what they can offer you.
- Check out the best golf betting sites
Upcoming Golf Schedule
Coming into the summer months, the golf calendar really starts to heat up. The Masters is next on the agenda, as golfers head to Augusta National.
Check out the best sports betting sites and apps
- Check out the best sports betting sites
- Download the best sports betting apps
Golf Betting Tips & Tricks
Form over Class
Whilst always backing the best seems the likely play, it does not always play out as you may think. Just like any sports team, golfers can go through hot and cold streaks, and it happens to the very best of players.
These streaks can include tournament wins, Top-5, and Top-10 finishes or just playing beyond their usual standard and average finish. You’ll want to look closely at these streaks and what’s driving them. Sometimes it’s an uptick in performance but other times it’s simply competing against weaker tournament fields.
Cold streaks can also manifest themselves, and many times these skids can be connected to a particular part of a player’s game, like poor putting or driving accuracy. Injuries and recovery time, as well as tinkering with swing mechanics, and techniques, and working in new clubs, can also impact a golfer’s results.
Beating the Course
As strange as it may seem, some golfers are better suited to certain courses than others. Some golf courses have wider fairways and boast a longer average length per hole, making them better suited to golfers who carry a hefty average distance per drive and can quickly find the green.
On the flip of this, courses with narrow fairways and hazards off the tee box reward player’s with greater driving accuracy.
A surplus of water and sand bunkers, as well as tricky pin placement, emphasizes finding players with an accurate approach and solid scrambling metrics, while unpredictable undulating greens can quickly give those elite putters the edge on the leaderboard.
Players will often perform better at courses they’re most familiar with, such as at Augusta National for the Masters.
There are also courses that open up the field massively, due to the difficult nature of the course, meaning the heavy favorites are often not as favored as you may believe.
Match Play vs. Stroke Play
Most of the tournaments taking place in the world of golf are stroke play, meaning whoever takes the least shots overall wins the tournament.
One of the greatest golfing events, the Ryder Cup, follows the format of Match Play, whereby scoring the lowest on a hole wins you a point. It’s often the case that certain players perform better under match-play situations, where the golf can be played as part of a team.
For example, Sergio Garcia is Europe’s most successful Ryder Cup player, winning 28.5 points. In the same regard, Garcia has just one major win to his name, no mean feat, but is certainly more tailored to match play golf.
Check the Weather Forecast
Weather can completely change how a course plays, from strong winds forcing players to shorten their drives and lean on accuracy to rain soaking the fairways and greens, making the course play slower. Before betting the golf futures, head-to-head markets, or prop odds, always look at the extended forecast for the entire tournament as well the detailed daily forecasts.
From there, you can measure how much the weather can help or hurt a player based on their skill sets or look at which players are used to playing in less-than-ideal conditions based on where they’re from.
Depending on start times, golfers could face varying degrees of weather during the day. A player scheduled to go out in the early morning could face a softer and slower course than a golfer playing later in the afternoon when the sun and heat have dried out the fairways and greens, making them play faster.
Golf Betting FAQs
Is Golf Betting Legal In America?
Yes. If sports betting is legal and licensed in your state, betting on golf and the PGA Tour is legal.
Why Do All The Golfers In A Tournament Have Long Odds?
Golf tournaments can often host plenty of players, meaning there can be a field of players up to 150. For example, with a 120-players field, each player would have odds of 120 to 1 (assuming there were no favorites).
The best golfers may be heavily favored over the competition and still have odds of 50 to 1 or higher.
Where Can I Bet On Golf In The USA?
Betting on golf in the US is easier now than ever before. States, where you can bet on golf, include Arkansas, Iowa, Colorado, Indiana, Michigan, Montana, Mississippi, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New Mexico, Delaware, New York, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Illinois, Rhode Island, Tennessee, West Virginia, DC, and Virginia.
Can You Bet On A Golf Tournament After It Started?
Yes, you can, and this is known as live betting. Virtually all betting operators that offer golf markets feature live betting. Through live betting, players can place wagers on unsettled sports events, including ongoing golf tournaments. However, keep in mind that odds can shift quickly when betting live, especially on golf.
What Are The Best Tournaments For Betting On Golf?
Golf has a number of prestigious tournaments, taking place throughout the year. You can bet on the PGA Majors, which are the four most popular tournaments in the game and are held every year.
Additionally, you can bet on the Masters, an extremely exclusive invitational event held annually in April. Finally, there’s the Ryder Cup, a professional tournament that takes place every two years. It pits American and European teams against each other, in a match-play format.
Can You Win Real Money Betting On Golf?
Yes. In legal sports betting states, you can make real-money wagers on a variety of golf betting markets. If your picks turn out to be winners, you can win real money payouts. However, keep in mind that you should always gamble responsibly, and manage your bank balance.
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| 2022-04-06T15:27:41Z
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Hocevar on making his first short track start of the 2022 season: “I feel pretty confident going into Martinsville this week. We were on the front row last fall before a penalty set us back, but we rallied to drive back up into the top-10. Our No. 42 team had good speed last year and I know we’re bringing an even better truck to the track this year – we made big gains during the offseason. Hopefully we can go from good to great, capitalize with some stage points, and finally put a win banner up in the shop at Niece Motorsports.”
Hocevar at Martinsville Speedway: Hocevar makes his third career start at Martinsville Speedway in the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series Thursday night. He owns an average finish of 12.5 at the Virginia short track with a 13th-place finish in 2020 and a 12th-place result during his rookie season in 2021.
In 2020, Hocevar started 33rd and made his way through the field to lead five laps en route to a top-15 showing. In last season’s event, he started eighth and led four laps before finishing 12th.
On the Truck: Hocevar and the No. 42 Chevrolet Silverado will run the Premier Security Solutions paint scheme for Thursday’s Blue-Emu Maximum Pain Relief 200.
Last time out (XPEL 225 – Start: 6th / Finish: 8th): Hocevar held on to his top-10 starting position for a majority of the opening stage before pitting from sixth-place on lap nine for a scheduled four tire stop before the end of stage one. After rejoining the field in 19th, Hocevar came across the line 16th in the opening stage and opted to not pit at the stage break, allowing him to restart stage two in sixth-place.
Hocevar picked his way through traffic in the first two laps of stage two to make his way up to fourth-place before pitting under caution on lap 21 for four tires and fuel. He made up 11 positions from the time of the restart to the end of stage two to pick up three stage points with an eighth-place result.
With ten laps to go, Hocevar restarted third and quickly made his way into second-place with a pass on the inside in turn one. On the following restart on the outside of the front row, Hocevar was shoved up the race track and fell back to eighth-place before ultimately restarting 10th for the first overtime. Despite the race ending under caution in the second overtime, Hocevar was able to secure his second top-10 finish of the season with an eighth-place result.
Niece Motorsports PR
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https://www.speedwaydigest.com/index.php/news/nascar-truck-series-news/68444-carson-hocevar-blue-emu-maximum-pain-relief-200-race-advance
| 2022-04-06T15:28:02Z
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After a hugely successful Better Half iRacing Dash last year, there was no doubt the event would return. Featuring the significant others of 12 NASCAR drivers and industry leaders racing virtually in Legend Cars on the inner oval of Texas Motor Speedway, this year’s event airing on FS1’s “NASCAR Race Hub, May 19 at 6 PM ET, is shaping up to be bigger than 2021.
Proceeds from this much-anticipated fundraiser go directly to Motor Racing Outreach, with a winner-take-all $10,000 purse going to the champion’s charity of choice.
The 2022 roster will be announced on Thursday, April 7, when drivers will share their NASCAR connection, sponsors, charity of choice and motivation for participating in the event. Drivers have already begun seeking sponsorship and fundraising, with the top two fundraisers receiving the pole starting position in each of two heat races before the main.
Each Better Half driver will have their significant other serving alongside them as Crew Chief, advising and guiding them throughout practices and during the race itself. Airing on “NASCAR Race Hub” on FS1 on the Thursday before the All-Star Race at TMS, every driver seeks to do their best to represent the many sponsors and donors backing them through custom designed virtual paint schemes and their racing prowess.
Making this event possible is a collaborative effort between Motor Racing Outreach, FS1, NASCAR, iRacing, US Legends and Breaking Limits.
“We are back,” proclaimed Billy Mauldin, President and Senior Chaplain for MRO. “Last year’s race proved that the ‘Better Halves’ are just that; better, exciting and fun to watch.
“This year’s race will be no different and there is no better place to have this ‘Showdown’ than Texas Motor Speedway. Making it even better is ‘NASCAR Race Hub’s’ broadcast of the race; from the heats to the main event from green flag to checkers it will be non-stop excitement.
“MRO is grateful to everyone who is a part of making this event possible. So, with that said, let’s drop the green flag on the 2022 #BetterHalfDash and see who is out front when the dust settles.”
Before the dustup, all 12 drivers will be able to take part in several practice sessions leading up to the race. Through those efforts, they will hone their on-track skills before the race.
“FOX Sports is thrilled to again showcase NASCAR drivers’ partners in a unique way and environment as they raise money for Motor Racing Outreach, and other worthy causes,” said Lindsey Mandia, FOX Sports VP of Production. “Last year’s Better Half Dash gave us a lighthearted and fun glimpse into their sim racing skills, personalities and relationships, and we look forward to shining a spotlight on this amazing group once again.”
Heading up production of the Better Half iRacing Dash is the official/unofficial “Commissioner” Kristin Labonte, who is also the President of a marketing company she and her husband Bobby Labonte own, Breaking Limits. The wife of the NASCAR Cup Series champion was a rookie last year, and is more than happy to remove her yellow stripe for 2022.
“The drivers were quite serious and very competitive last year, but the laughs we had and the friendships we forged were second-to-none,” Kristin Labonte said. “I am also honored to follow in the footsteps of MRO’s own Melanie Self, who produced the original Better Half Dash, and to take her idea virtual again this year.
“We hope this event is fun for everyone from the drivers to the sponsors to the fans who watch us. We really hope we raise a lot of money which goes right back into supporting those in this sport of NASCAR we all love so much.”
For more information and how to sponsor a driver or donate to the overall effort log on to www.MotorRacingOutreach.com, @followmro on Twitter and @MotorRacingOutreach on Instagram.
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If you have questions which are specifically related to any work being done during this project by the city departments mentioned. When contact details cannot also include any problems that are being worked due on and your queries get respondent back or if any new ideas have generated then do contact this team on Monday, or during week ends from16 September as stated through news letters\nQs About City Intranete Web Page\nQ’s/ comments about: If I see an announcement of vac EAST LANSING, Mich. — Students aren't the only ones living on campus at Michigan State University. In fact, peregrine falcons decided to make MSU their home, thanks to a recently installed falcon nesting box.
“Peregrine falcons are typically cliff dwellers. They really just need a flat surface with rocks or gravel where they can make a scrape and lay their eggs," said the President of MSU’s Fisheries and Wildlife Club, Molly Engleman. "So the nest box provides them with that area where they can make a nest and hopefully reproduce."
The box is the work of MSU’s Fisheries and Wildlife Club. They have been seeing the falcons above the Spartan Stadium for the last five years.
When they noticed the endangered birds weren’t reproducing, they decided to do something about it.
“We figured, hey, let's pool our resources together, try the best we can, see if we can help them out there. That's really where the project started,” said the club’s Treasurer, Eddie Yago.
Last year, the club spent a lot of time writing grants and trying to get donations.
By January, they had all the money they needed; close to $5,000.
The nesting box was installed in January and last week two peregrine falcons made the box their home.
They’re the fastest birds in the world, so if you see a falcon diving out of the sky at 200 miles per hour, it might be them.
“They’re top predators, so they have an important role in the ecosystem as well. And the fact that they're taking to this urban environment is just kind of showing us and what we want to show other people is, you know, it's possible for wildlife and people to coexist in the same area,” Engleman said.
Last week there were only two eggs in the nest box. Now, there are four.
You can watch the 24/7 live stream on top of Spartan Stadium below.
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AURORA, Colo. — Aurora Police Department Chief Vanessa Wilson is officially out after weeks of speculation she would no longer be the chief of the embattled department.
On Wednesday, Aurora City Manager Jim Twombly confirmed the decision to “search for new leadership” for the department is effective immediately, and Division Chief Chris Juul will temporarily oversee operations at the department.
Twombly will hold a news conference at 11 a.m. to discuss the decision further.
“It is clear that Chief Wilson has prioritized community involvement," Twombly said. "However, the police chief also needs to effectively manage the operations of the department, effectively engage with staff, build morale, and validate employee feedback. To provide the level of public safety that our community deserves, a change in leadership must occur."
The city management team will immediately work to name an interim chief in the near future and begin a nationwide search for a permanent chief of police for Aurora.
Wilson’s ouster has been anticipated for more than a week.
On March 23, Denver7 broke that Aurora Police Chief Vanessa Wilson, who's led the department since December 2019, was planning on leaving the department in the coming weeks over concerns regarding her performance leading the department.
The following day, Wilson’s attorney Paula Greisen said the chief does not plan to resign or retire but acknowledged that the city manager did request a meeting to discuss an exit strategy with the chief last week.
And it comes a day after an independent report was released that criticized a backlog of more than 2,500 criminal investigations still awaiting processing by the records department, which a consulting firm hired by the city called a “high-liability matter.”
Among those crimes still awaiting further investigation, according to the report, were allegations involving child sexual abuse, murder, and carjacking.
In a lengthy statement Tuesday, Twombly said the city was already working to address some of the issues but called the preliminary report’s findings “alarming.”
Several city council members said they had concerns over Wilson’s leadership, and the mayor pro tem said the report revealed “a very serious problem, and there must be accountability.”
Blair Miller and Blayke Roznowski at KMGH first reported this story.
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Headlining the Dale Parson Memorial this Saturday, April 9, at Abilene Speedway, the ASCS Elite Non-Wing Series presented by Abilene Powder Coating will run for a $4,000 to win A-Feature.
Round three on the season, Saturday’s appearance at Abilene Speedway is the only time the non-wing tour will see action at the quarter-mile oval in 2022. Making their return in 2021 after a two-year absence, Steven Shebester went to Victory Lane in the City Vending No. 22x. Five winners in just as many visits, Paul White (2018), Justin Zimmerman (2017), Justin Melton (2016), and Dustin Gates (2015), have also earned wins.
Going into the weekend, Justin Zimmerman holds the points lead by a single point over Shane Cockrum. Rolling into the season post Wingless Short Track Nationals, the full-time runners of the series will make significant moves in the points this weekend.
Saturday, April 9, opens at 5:30 P.M. with racing at 8:00 P.M. (CDT). Tickets are $18 for Adults, $12 for Military, and $5 for Kids. Other classes include IMCA Stock Cars, Modifieds, Sport Compacts, Sport Mods, Street Stocks, Minis, and Junior Sport Compacts.
Abilene Speedway is located at 6825 West Hwy. 80 in Abilene, Texas. For more information, follow the track on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/ AbileneSpeedway, at http://www.abilenespeedway. com, or by calling (325) 692-8800.
The 2022 season will mark the 31st year of competition for the American Sprint Car Series. Spearheaded by the Lucas Oil American Sprint Car Series presented by the MAVTV Motorsports Network, the ASCS Nation includes 11 Regional Tours encompassing both wing and non-wing competition.
For other news, notes, and information on any of the tours under the ASCS banner, log onto http://www.ascsracing.com , follow on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter (@LucasOilASCS).
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A survey released on Wednesday shows the average interest rate kept climbing last week.
The average contract rate on a 30-year fixed-rate mortgage rose to 4.9% last week from the previous week, the Mortgage Bankers Association reported.
This kept mortgage rates at their highest level since late 2018.
Since the beginning of 2022, mortgage rates have risen by 1.6%, bringing up home borrowing costs.
The numbers come as the Federal Reserve says it will take steps to curb inflation, including raising its benchmark overnight lending rate.
UBS estimates that 30-year fixed mortgage rates will be of concern when they reach 5.75%, according to MarketWatch.
However, UBS said it does not anticipate another housing crisis like the one the U.S. experienced in 2008.
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Adriana Trejo-Davis, certified occupational therapy assistant, assists a patient with upper extremity strengthening exercises at the CPT Jennifer M. Moreno Primary Care Clinic, For Sam Houston, Texas, March 18, 2022. Occupational therapists play a key role in the rehabilitation of upper extremity using individualized treatment plans to reduce pain, improve range of motion, restore strength, and maximize function. (U.S. Army photo by Jason W. Edwards)
This work, April is Occupational Therapy Month [Image 17 of 17], by Jason W. Edwards, identified by DVIDS, must comply with the restrictions shown on https://www.dvidshub.net/about/copyright.
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U.S. Air Force Staff Sgt. Aleah Little, occupational therapy assistant, instructs a patient on alternate wrist placement for doing push-ups during injury recovery at the Wilford Hall Ambulatory Surgical Center, Lackland Air Force Base, Texas, March 24, 2022. Occupational Therapy’s unique role emphasizes enhancing individual functional performance in various life roles, such as Airman, worker, parent, student and retiree. (U.S. Army photo by Jason W. Edwards)
This work, April is Occupational Therapy Month [Image 17 of 17], by Jason W. Edwards, identified by DVIDS, must comply with the restrictions shown on https://www.dvidshub.net/about/copyright.
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Riley Herbst Notes of Interest • Back-to-back races in the Commonwealth of Virginia have Riley Herbst seeking additional riches in the NASCAR Xfinity Series race Friday night at Martinsville (Va.) Speedway. The driver of the No. 98 Monster Energy Ford Mustang for Stewart-Haas Racing (SHR) finished a strong fifth last Saturday at Richmond (Va.) Raceway, and in addition to it being his fourth top-10 in the last four short-track races on the Xfinity Series schedule, it also placed Herbst into the Dash 4 Cash. If Herbst finishes ahead of his fellow Dash 4 Cash combatants – Ty Gibbs, Sam Mayer and AJ Allmendinger – he will get a $100,000 payday and automatic entry into the next Dash 4 Cash round April 23 at Talladega (Ala.) Superspeedway. • Herbst didn’t become Dash 4 Cash eligible on his own. He got by with a little help from his friends, namely crew chief Richard Boswell and the No. 98 Monster Energy pit crew. They helped orchestrate Herbst’s fifth-place drive at Richmond. The 23-year-old racer started 24th, but Herbst didn’t stay there long. He was 13th at the end of the first stage and, thanks to quick pit work by his crew, Herbst was among the top-10 for the start of the second stage, ultimately finishing the stage in ninth to pick up two valuable bonus points. The third and final stage consisted of 100 laps and Herbst was methodical on every tour of the track as the race stayed green to the checkered flag, culminating with his third top-five of the season. • Herbst has made just three Xfinity Series starts at Martinsville. He finished sixth in his debut at the track in October 2020, but then endured a 29th-place finish in his return to Martinsville last April. Herbst rebounded from that spring setback when he returned to Martinsville in fall, earning a solid 10th-place result. • Getting that 10th-place finish last fall in the Xfinity Series’ prior visit to Martinsville proved Herbst’s resiliency. While running eighth, Herbst was collected in a multicar accident that left him 26th with less than 60 laps remaining. His top-10 track position was out the window as Herbst had to pit so his Monster Energy crew could fix the damage to the right-front of his No. 98 Ford Mustang and get him back on track with four fresh tires and fuel. Herbst methodically made his way forward, rejoining the top-10 with less than 40 laps to go. He then survived two late-race restarts and held steady among the top-10 to collect his 12th top-10 of the season. • Friday night’s race at Martinsville will mark Herbst’s 84th career Xfinity Series start and his 14th on a short track. Herbst’s history on short tracks has been strong. After finishing an impressive sixth in his first career start in June 2018 at Iowa Speedway in Newton, Herbst has gone on to earn eight other top-10s on short tracks, including in his last four short-track starts – fifth last September at Richmond, third the very next week at Bristol (Tenn.) Motor Speedway, 10th last October at Martinsville, and fifth last Saturday at Richmond. Riley Herbst, Driver of the No. 98 Monster Energy Ford Mustang Your fifth-place finish last Saturday at Richmond earned you a spot in the Dash 4 Cash Friday night at Martinsville. What are your thoughts heading into this race with a $100,000 payday on the line? “I honestly feel like we could’ve had a shot to win last weekend at Richmond, which makes me excited to head to another short track this weekend. We’re not only racing for the win this weekend, but also a $100,000 check, which is awesome. I have to have a good day from qualifying to checkered flag if I want to win both, but I think we can do it. This No. 98 Monster Energy team can get the job done.” Your success on shorts tracks has been impressive with top-10s in each of the last four short-track races. Do you these tracks suit your driving style? “Man, I’m excited to head to Martinsville under the lights – the second short track in two weeks. I think these tracks are good for a lot of the drivers coming up because it’s like the short tracks we grew up on. We’re all going for the win, but there’s a lot of strategy that goes into short tracks. We have to qualify well to be able to race for wins, though, and that’s what we’re working on. The cars are fast, but we need to put it all together.” You chose a different path from the other members of your family as their respective racing careers happened in the off-road racing world. Who do you go to for racing advice when your career is on asphalt? “For racing and in life, I think my cousins and I just go to our dads. We all just kind of talk about racing like the fans do. We’re fans of the sport, and really, of any sport. We just like to watch and take in the motorsports action. The biggest thing is what our grandfather instilled in us. He told us that hard work pays off. He was the vital resource and the role model for that. We always looked up to him. If you wanted something, you had to work for it. Anything was achievable. That’s what I can credit for getting me into NASCAR, where I’m working hard trying to win some races.” TSC PR
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QUOTES
"I'm excited to get to Martinsville, a track that fits my driving style pretty well. As a short track racer, you look forward to the day you get to race at a track like Martinsville, and it's a dream come true. I know the team is working hard at the shop to get our Toyota GR Supra ready for the race. We didn't finish where we were hoping at Richmond, but I learned a lot behind the wheel and about how the team operates. I have a few more things to work on as a driver in this series, and I'm looking forward to taking all of that new knowledge over to Martinsville."
-- Derek Griffith, Driver of the No. 26 Toyota GR Supra
“I'm excited to travel to Martinsville, especially with Derek who is an extremely talented short track racer. He learned a lot at Richmond, especially regarding restarts and how to give feedback, and we're looking forward to seeing that new knowledge carry over. We as a team have continued to get better each time we go to Martinsville, and I'm looking forward to seeing what Derek can do with his short track skill.
-- Sam Hunt, Owner of Sam Hunt Racing
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| 2022-04-06T15:37:48Z
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The US announced new sanctions Wednesday on Russian financial institutions and individuals, including Russian President Vladimir Putin's two adult daughters, as it aims to increase economic pressure on Russia and Putin himself following horrific images from the Ukrainian city of Bucha.
The US also announced sanctions on the wife and daughter of Putin's foreign minister, Sergey Lavrov.
"Today we're dramatically escalating the financial shock by imposing full blocking sanctions on Russia's largest financial institution, Sberbank, and its largest private bank, Alfa Bank," a senior administration official briefing reporters said.
CNN reported on Tuesday that the sanctions would come in coordination with Group of 7 nations and the European Union.
The US is targeting Putin's two adult daughters because they believe the Russian President may be hiding some of his assets with them, according to the senior administration official.
Without detailing which of Putin's assets could be hiding with Mariya Putina and Katerina Tikhonova, the official said the practice was common among the Russian elite.
"We have reason to believe that Putin and many of his cronies and the oligarchs hide their wealth, hide their assets, with family members that have placed their assets and their wealth in the US financial system, but also many other parts of the world," the official said.
"That's why the coordination, the coordinated efforts to freeze their assets and seize their physical luxury goods -- their cars, their yachts, their homes, etc. -- that's why it's so important that we act together," the official added.
The latest sanctions also go after the Russian financial sector, a top target for Western governments.
Sberbank holds nearly one-third of Russia's total banking sector assets, the official noted, adding that the US has now fully blocked "more than two-thirds of the Russian banking sector."
The senior official announced a ban on new investment in Russia that will be executed in alignment with the G7 and EU. The ban will be implemented with an executive order signed by President Joe Biden.
Members of Russia's Security Council, including former President and Prime Minister of Russia Dmitry Medvedev and Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin, are also being targeted by individual sanctions. The US has already sanctioned more than 140 oligarchs and their family members and over 400 Russian government officials, the senior official said.
The US will also apply full blocking sanctions on critical major Russian state-owned enterprises, which will be announced by the Department of Treasury on Thursday. The official also noted Tuesday's announcement that the Department of Treasury has blocked Russia from making debt payments with dollars stockpiled at US banks.
The senior official noted the crippling effect of US measures on the Russian economy since its invasion of Ukraine.
"Russia's GDP is projected to shrink by double digits this year. ... It's now in the process of being isolated as a pariah state. The economic shock this year alone is projected by the IMF (International Monetary Fund) to wipe out the past 15 years of economic gains," the official said.
While the US and its allies have imposed the most sweeping sanctions regime targeting a country of the size of Russia in history, officials acknowledge it has done little to shift Putin's calculation. The threat of the sanctions didn't deter the invasion itself, and the piling on of economic penalties hasn't brought Russia any closer to a withdrawal or negotiated settlement since.
Pressed about the efficacy of sanctions in ending Putin's war in Ukraine, the senior official sought to underscore the effect they are having on life in Russia and said Putin would eventually have to reckon with his people.
"Even an autocrat like Putin has a social contract with the Russian people. He took away their freedom in exchange for promising stability, and so he's not giving them stability," the official said.
"The question really is not so much: What can we do and when will that have an effect? I think it's: What's the endgame here for Putin? What's he playing for?" the official said. "This is very clearly becoming a failure for him and at some point he will have to recognize that reality."
This is a breaking story and will be updated.
The-CNN-Wire
™ & © 2022 Cable News Network, Inc., a WarnerMedia Company. All rights reserved.
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When Biden announced the 180 million barrel US SPR release, he said other countries would add 30-50 million barrels. This report says the release will be 120 million barrels but that includes 60m of the 120m US barrels. So we're talking about 60 million, which is more than Biden said but I'd be careful with this one until the details are clearer. Those other barrels might be double-counted as well.
This is from a Reuters report, citing two sources.
WTI has stabilized near $101.50 after falling on the US inventory report.
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AUDUSD reverses to the swing area
Yesterday, the RBA shifted their bias more toward tightenings earlier vs later as they took out the word"patient" with regard to inflation . Expectations are now for a hike by June.
The shift sent the AUDUSD
AUD/USD
The AUD/USD is the currency pair encompassing the Australian dollar of the Commonwealth of Australia (symbol $, code AUD), and the dollar of the United States of America (symbol $, code USD). The pair’s rate indicates how many US dollars are needed in order to purchase one Australian dollar. For example, when the AUD/USD is trading at 0.7500, it means 1 Australian dollar is equivalent to 0.75 US dollars. The Australian dollar (AUD) is the world’s fifth most traded currency, whilst the US Dollar (USD) is the world’s most traded currency, resulting in a very liquid pair, with tight spreads, often staying within the 1 pip to 3 pip spread range on most forex brokers. AUD/USD Popular Among Various Types of TradersA lot of traders consider the AUD/USD to perhaps be the most consistent currency pair with respect to swing trading, as it has often moved in steadfast cycles.Having said that, every pair presents its own challenges for traders.The AUD/USD is very popular with swing traders, with the four-hour timeframe being, historically at least, more dependable than others. Historically the AUD/USD is influenced by interest rate differentials, commodity prices, government credit ratings, and overall sentiment and speculation.
The AUD/USD is the currency pair encompassing the Australian dollar of the Commonwealth of Australia (symbol $, code AUD), and the dollar of the United States of America (symbol $, code USD). The pair’s rate indicates how many US dollars are needed in order to purchase one Australian dollar. For example, when the AUD/USD is trading at 0.7500, it means 1 Australian dollar is equivalent to 0.75 US dollars. The Australian dollar (AUD) is the world’s fifth most traded currency, whilst the US Dollar (USD) is the world’s most traded currency, resulting in a very liquid pair, with tight spreads, often staying within the 1 pip to 3 pip spread range on most forex brokers. AUD/USD Popular Among Various Types of TradersA lot of traders consider the AUD/USD to perhaps be the most consistent currency pair with respect to swing trading, as it has often moved in steadfast cycles.Having said that, every pair presents its own challenges for traders.The AUD/USD is very popular with swing traders, with the four-hour timeframe being, historically at least, more dependable than others. Historically the AUD/USD is influenced by interest rate differentials, commodity prices, government credit ratings, and overall sentiment and speculation.
Read this Term trending to the upside yesterday, and that move had the pair moving above a swing area on the daily chart between 0.7540 to 0.7560. The price squeezed up through the 61.8% retracement at 0.76094 and up to another upside target at 0.76449. The high price reached 0.76607, but ran out of steam.
Stocks started to move lower, The USD started to move higher after Vice Chair nominee Brainard's comments shifted the Fed to an even more hawkish stance. In the AUDUSD, the focus shifted from the AUD
AUD
The Australian dollar (AUD) is the official currency of Australia, which is also used in Christmas Island, Cocos (Keeling) Islands, Norfolk Island, as well as independent pacific states.Introduced in 1966, the AUD is currently the fifth most traded currency in the world, behind only the US dollar, euro, Japanese yen, and British pound.The currency is very important to forex markets and is routinely used as a carry trade against other majors.The Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) is the central banking authority tasked with the management and issuance of AUD banknotes.What Factors Affect the AUD?The AUD is more susceptible than other currencies to macroeconomic factors. Overall, monetary policy is the largest mover of the currency, including interest rate differentials.Beyond Australia, commodity prices such as those of precious metals and others are also important to the AUD and can cause fluctuations in its value relative to other currencies.Global risk sentiment and confidence are also indicators that are closely tracked given their correlation to the AUD.This is due to the AUD being seen as a commodity currency, and also used as one of the most popular growth and risk proxies in global financial markets.Any positive mood in the global market will likely cause the AUD to climb, while if there is a prevailing pessimism, the AUD will often decline.On a domestic scale, government credit ratings can also impact the AUD. Australia’s credit rating influences the risk profile of its debt.This trend directly influences the cost the government has to pay on the debt it owes.
The Australian dollar (AUD) is the official currency of Australia, which is also used in Christmas Island, Cocos (Keeling) Islands, Norfolk Island, as well as independent pacific states.Introduced in 1966, the AUD is currently the fifth most traded currency in the world, behind only the US dollar, euro, Japanese yen, and British pound.The currency is very important to forex markets and is routinely used as a carry trade against other majors.The Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) is the central banking authority tasked with the management and issuance of AUD banknotes.What Factors Affect the AUD?The AUD is more susceptible than other currencies to macroeconomic factors. Overall, monetary policy is the largest mover of the currency, including interest rate differentials.Beyond Australia, commodity prices such as those of precious metals and others are also important to the AUD and can cause fluctuations in its value relative to other currencies.Global risk sentiment and confidence are also indicators that are closely tracked given their correlation to the AUD.This is due to the AUD being seen as a commodity currency, and also used as one of the most popular growth and risk proxies in global financial markets.Any positive mood in the global market will likely cause the AUD to climb, while if there is a prevailing pessimism, the AUD will often decline.On a domestic scale, government credit ratings can also impact the AUD. Australia’s credit rating influences the risk profile of its debt.This trend directly influences the cost the government has to pay on the debt it owes.
Read this Term higher to the USD higher.
Today, the price is lower and the price has moved into a swing area on the daily chart between 0.7540 and 0.7560. The low reached 0.7550 so far. The area is a key area. A broken ceiling becomes a floor. Staying above the floor is important..
Drilling to the hourly chart below, the pair is also approaching the rising 100 hour MA at 0.7539 currently. That too increases the daily swing area's importance (the daily low of the swing area is at 0.7540). A break below the 100 hour MA would next target the 200 hour MA at 0.75209. Move below both (and stay below) and the sellers can further probe the downside.
AUDUSD moves toward the 100 hour MA
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Looking at the 5-minute chart above, the Nasdaq index gapped lower from the close yesterday, moved lower and has seen a modest "dead cat bounce" off the low. The index is retesting it's low for the day.
Drilling to the hourly chart, the Nasdaq's move to the downside today gapped below the 100 hour MA (bearish). The index's low tested the 38.2% of the move up from the low on March 14. A move below that level, and the traders will be looking toward the rising 200 hour MA at 13692.97 as the next major target. That is near a swing low from March 21as well.
The S&P index also gapped below its 100 hour MA at 4519.29. It would take a move back above that MA to take some of the bear out of the run lower now. It's 38.2% comes in at 4437.65 and is the next major target on the hourly chart.
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AURORA, Colo. — Aurora Police Department Chief Vanessa Wilson is officially out after weeks of speculation she would no longer be the chief of the embattled department.
On Wednesday, Aurora City Manager Jim Twombly confirmed the decision to “search for new leadership” for the department is effective immediately, and Division Chief Chris Juul will temporarily oversee operations at the department.
Twombly will hold a news conference at 11 a.m. to discuss the decision further.
“It is clear that Chief Wilson has prioritized community involvement," Twombly said. "However, the police chief also needs to effectively manage the operations of the department, effectively engage with staff, build morale, and validate employee feedback. To provide the level of public safety that our community deserves, a change in leadership must occur."
The city management team will immediately work to name an interim chief in the near future and begin a nationwide search for a permanent chief of police for Aurora.
Wilson’s ouster has been anticipated for more than a week.
On March 23, Denver7 broke that Aurora Police Chief Vanessa Wilson, who's led the department since December 2019, was planning on leaving the department in the coming weeks over concerns regarding her performance leading the department.
The following day, Wilson’s attorney Paula Greisen said the chief does not plan to resign or retire but acknowledged that the city manager did request a meeting to discuss an exit strategy with the chief last week.
And it comes a day after an independent report was released that criticized a backlog of more than 2,500 criminal investigations still awaiting processing by the records department, which a consulting firm hired by the city called a “high-liability matter.”
Among those crimes still awaiting further investigation, according to the report, were allegations involving child sexual abuse, murder, and carjacking.
In a lengthy statement Tuesday, Twombly said the city was already working to address some of the issues but called the preliminary report’s findings “alarming.”
Several city council members said they had concerns over Wilson’s leadership, and the mayor pro tem said the report revealed “a very serious problem, and there must be accountability.”
Blair Miller and Blayke Roznowski at KMGH first reported this story.
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WASHINGTON, D.C. — The Justice Department says it has charged a Russian oligarch with sanctions and that officials have taken down a cybercrime operation controlled by a Russian military intelligence agency.
The actions were announced at a news conference Wednesday with Attorney General Merrick Garland and other officials.
The case against Konstantin Malofeyev accuses him of trying to evade earlier Treasury Department sanctions by seeking to secretly acquire media organizations across Europe.
Malofeyev reportedly provided financing to Russians who promoted separatism in Crimea.
Officials also seized millions of dollars they say are traceable to the sanction violations.
"The Justice Department will continue to use all of its authorities to hold accountable Russian oligarchs and others who seek to evade U.S. sanctions," Garland said Wednesday.
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No charges will be filed in the death of Amir Locke. He died in a police shooting during a no-knock warrant raid in Minneapolis in February.
Hennepin County Attorney Michael Freeman and Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison called Locke's death a "tragedy" and added that he was not a suspect in the underlying criminal investigation that led to the no-knock warrant.
However, they said there is "insufficient admissible evidence to file criminal charges in this case."
Under Minnesota law, the attorneys say law enforcement was justified in using deadly force after encountering Locke under a blanket with a firearm pointed in the direction of at least one officer.
The officer "perceived that Mr. Locke’s movements and production of a firearm presented a threat of death or great bodily harm that was reasonably likely to occur and to which the officers had to respond without delay," the attorneys said.
No-knock warrants have come under increased scrutiny in recent years amid calls for police reform. Following Locke's death, Minneapolis decided to ban no-knock warrants. The new policy will take effect on April 8, according to CNN.
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The U.S. announced new sanctions against Russia on Wednesday for its invasion of Ukraine and the atrocities documented in the town of Bucha, where civilians have been found bound and murdered.
The sanctions target Russian President Vladimir Putin's adult children and family members of his inner circle.
"This action cuts them off from the U.S. financial system and freezes any assets they hold in the United States," the White House said in a statement.
Other sanctions include:
- Blocking Russia's largest financial institution, Sberbank, and the country's largest private bank, Alfa Bank, from "touching the U.S financial system."
- Prohibiting new investments in Russia
- Blocking U.S. persons from working with Russian state-owned enterprises
The U.S. says it has been joined by more than 30 allies and partners in sanctioning Russia since the beginning of its invasion of Ukraine.
The sanctions are expected to wipe out the last 15 years of economic gains in Russia, according to the White House.
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A good way to get people talking about your band is to create a name that is tricky to pronounce. Like Cockaphonix.
Or bring a 100-year-old upright grand piano to each of your shows. Or play the zaniest, most indescribable music.
In 2017, Raymond Malstead was playing his piano while living in Daniel Koenig’s house. Malstead thought the stuff he was writing and playing wouldn’t work well with drums, but Koenig jumped in and Cockaphonix was formed.
The band became a trio in 2020 when Chris Nobbs joined with his superbone trombone. Ramiro Espino (trumpet) and Nathan McCartney (tuba) rounded out the horn section in fall of 2021.
Cockaphonix is a Yakima band, but members live all over the state. Malstead drives from Wenatchee to Yakima for band rehearsal. McCartney hauls his tuba all the way from Whidbey Island.
“There was a drummer that I worked with before, he just came up to me and said, ‘You know, you guys sound like deranged saloon music.’ Well, with horns, I’ve added to that and it’s deranged carnival saloon. Carnival-style, circus,” said Malstead, describing Cockaphonix’s sound.
Like a cog in a wheel, each member creates his own sound to make the wheel turn. But this cog is missing a few teeth and it still works.
“We’re a cacophony of sight and sound,” said Nobbs.
The sound may be hard to describe, but it’s even harder to not take your eyes off the band while they perform.
Espino sways while he plays trumpet, and between parts he prowls between his bandmates. Nobbs easily stands above everyone, a lengthy man with a lengthy instrument, his trombone an extension of his body.
Koenig’s hair bounces in tempo with the song being played. Malstead turns away from his piano and playfully leers at the audience. He hoots and howls vocals while exposed strings and hammers dance atop his piano.
The music and stage presence are captivating enough to keep an audience enthralled — but the band also plays in costumes and face paint.
Nobbs is known to wear all black with a skeleton design on his clothes and his face painted like a skull. Espino saunters around the stage wearing different headpieces, including devil bunny ears.
Malstead dons eccentric clothing and face paint that never appears the same yet is still recognizable as a part of Rayko, his alter ego.
“There’s this transition that you go through to become a performer and, you know, the different phases or whatever. I used to have performance anxiety. But then when I started painting the face, it sort of got me into that place I needed to be and it helped with the performance anxiety,” Malstead said.
Each member has his stage alter ego. Koenig is Holiday Dan, Espino is Ramses, Nobbs is Tom Bone and McCartney is Tubano.
During two years of limited-to-no social events because of the COVID-19 pandemic, Cockaphonix played some private and outdoor shows. They had their first horn player on board, and it was just practice, practice, practice, Malstead said.
Cockaphonix recorded an album in 2020 at Tacoma’s Shindig Records. After Nobbs joined, the band added his horn to the recording. The album will be out soon.
As COVID-19 precautions waned, Cockaphonix hit the road, performing home shows and away. They are booked through August.
“We only played shows that we were invited to play up until very recently. So we just started getting invites, ‘Come play here, come play there.’ Man, every show we go and play, we leave there with like two more offers. It just kind of cascaded into ‘Oh s---! We’re busy every weekend,’” Koenig said.
“It’s easy to do a lot of shows, but it’s not easy to do a lot of good shows,” said Malstead.
Cockaphonix released its first music video for “Holiday Ska” in September. It was shot in Parker and features the Wreckless Freeks, a circus sideshow troupe. Pianos were set ablaze and demolished with sledgehammers.
Pianos ablaze — it’s a fitting image for Cockaphonix.
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https://www.yakimaherald.com/explore_yakima/arts_and_entertainment/yakimas-colorful-cockaphonix----a-cacophony-of-sight-and-sound/article_71c1bd76-b73f-59e9-a80b-2252c65e6b40.html
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Developer of 'Lucille Ball pond' on Edison and Metuchen border unveils revised plans
EDISON – A developer wants to subdivide the lot at 110 Clive St., locally known as the Lucille Ball pond site, to build two single-family homes, and nearby residents want to ensure the pond is protected and not split between the new lots.
Residents have said they would like to see the pond and its buffer zone in a separate lot and designated as an environmentally sensitive area with a deed restriction protecting it forever. In addition, residents want to see Middlesex County open space funds used to purchase the pond, and have it managed by the county, or jointly by Edison and Metuchen because the lot borders both towns.
The two large homes could be built in the area of an existing home on the site, as far north of the pond as possible, said residents who also want to see fencing and other protections put in place to safeguard the pond during construction.
S + A General Construction + Development Inc. has applied to the Edison Planning Board for minor subdivision approval to build the homes on the site. The application is scheduled to be heard 7 p.m. April 18 in the Council Chambers of the Municipal Building, 100 Municipal Boulevard.
Joseph Rydarowski, a Mason Drive resident, said the current proposal shows the two homes and the pond being split in half between the two lots. He said that scenario creates too many variables for future cleanup, the use of fertilizer, fencing and the possibility of leaves, grass and other yard debris being deposited in the pond.
Rydarowski said if the pond property was segmented on its own and put in trust or purchased by Middlesex County, Edison and Metuchen, or even volunteer groups, they could jointly maintain it.
"I'm sure there are options out there," Rydarowski said.
Earlier:Edison planners tell 'Lucille Ball pond' developer to revise plans. Here's why
Earlier:'Lucille Ball pond' on the Edison and Metuchen border may be saved
In 2018 the governing bodies in both towns approved resolutions seeking to have Middlesex County purchase, rehabilitate, preserve and maintain the pond as protected wetlands.
Edison Mayor Sam Joshi could not be reached for comment Tuesday about the project.
Rydarowski also is concerned about a driveway onto the property from Mason Drive, which would run close to the pond.
The 20,000-year-old glacial pond in front of the existing large house at 110 Clive St., at the corner of Mason Drive, is home to turtles, frogs, salamanders, heron and other wildlife. Residents from both Edison and Metuchen have been fighting to preserve the pond for several years since learning about plans to develop the site.
Rydarowski said the plans indicate a circular driveway for one house facing Clive Street, but the latest plans also show another house facing Mason Drive with a driveway off that street, creating two separate driveways to the site. He would prefer to see two driveways for the homes off Clive Street, and eliminate any driveway near the pond.
"There is plenty of room to have access off of Clive Street," Rydarowski said, adding the property would still need to be graded and retaining walls may need to be installed.
Last year the Planning Board asked the developer to address engineering issues on the site related to a steep slope on the property. The developer, whose original plans had called for a four-lot subdivision, also indicated at that time he was no longer planning to fill in the pond or impact the wetlands.
Those plans showed the pond would be about 75% on one property and 25% on the other and both homes would be in the general vicinity of the existing home that will be torn down.
Famed comedian Lucille Ball has no direct link to the home or property but is believed to have met with a local real estate agent in the early 1960s after divorcing Desi Arnaz and while she was working on stage in New York. That meeting led to speculation she was house shopping in the area and perhaps considering the stately home at 110 Clive St.
Email: srussell@gannettnj.com
Suzanne Russell is a breaking news reporter for MyCentralJersey.com covering crime, courts and other mayhem. To get unlimited access, please subscribe or activate your digital account today.
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Spotswood settles with current, former police chiefs for $470K in harassment suit
SPOTSWOOD – The borough's former and current police chiefs will receive $470,000 in an out-of-court settlement of a lawsuit they filed against the borough, former mayor and former business administrator.
In addition to receiving $120,000, the settlement also called for Capt. Philip Corbisiero to be promoted to chief on April 1.
Corbisiero's annual salary as chief is $197,676. He will also receive 2% raises for the next three years, according to the settlement obtained by MyCentralJersey.com through an Open Public Records Act request.
Former Chief Michael S. Zarro Jr. will receive $350,000 in the settlement package.
In addition, the retired chief will receive payment for unused vacation and personal days accrued in 2021 and 2022.
The monetary awards will be paid by the Middlesex County Municipal Joint Insurance Fund on behalf of the borough.
The lawsuit, filed in January 2020 by Zarro and Corbisiero, alleged they were victims of harassment and a hostile work environment and accused former Mayor Edward Seely and former Business Administrator Dawn McDonald of misconduct.
More:Spotswood police chief, captain allege misconduct, harassment in lawsuit against borough
More:Spotswood lawsuit: 'Our police department doesn't like being told what to do by a woman'
More:Former Spotswood EMS director files lawsuit over 'hostile work environment'
In the settlement agreement, Zarro and Corbisiero dismissed all claims in the lawsuit against Seely and McDonald.
Still pending in court is a lawsuit McDonald filed in December against the two police officers, Seely, current mayor Jackie Palmer and council members Ted Ricci and Larry Kraemer.
The suit by McDonald, who was the borough administrator from January 2013 to Dec. 31, 2020, alleges gender discrimination, harassment, sexual harassment and hostile work environment.
McDonald, who also served as director of public safety, is accusing the borough officials of engaging "in a conspiracy" and acting jointly "to subject plaintiff McDonald to retaliatory acts and an intolerable, abusive and hostile work environment."
The police officers' settlement says they may reactivate any claims against McDonald if she does not dismiss her lawsuit or a motion of dismissal is not granted in court.
The officers' settlement also says their agreement should not be construed as an admission of any wrongdoing or liability on the part of the borough, Seely and McDonald or as an admission by the borough, Seely or McDonald of the validity of any of the officers' allegations.
In December 2019, the borough's former Emergency Medical Services director, David Nichols, filed a lawsuit alleging he was the victim of "retaliatory acts” by Seely, McDonald and other borough officials. That suit was dismissed in May 2021.
Email: sloyer@gannettnj.com
Susan Loyer covers Middlesex County and more for MyCentralJersey.com. To get unlimited access to her work, please subscribe or activate your digital account today.
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https://www.mycentraljersey.com/story/news/local/middlesex-county/2022/04/06/spotswood-nj-settles-new-former-police-chiefs-harassment-case/7270176001/
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Bridgewater announces major road projects this year. Is yours on the list?
BRIDGEWATER – The township is planning to upgrade 51 roads this year and is already taking steps to decide which roads will be on next year's list.
The Township Council on Monday approved a $35,000 contract with Pennoni Associates of Philadelphia to conduct an updated assessment of township roads this year.
The initial study by Pennoni Associates in 2020 surveyed the condition of Bridgewater's more than 200 miles of the township's 600 streets. The survey was conducted by driving down each street with panoramic photos taken at 10-foot intervals.
That study resulted in a priority list of roads that needed upgrades. The township launched a website, ourbwroads.com, to let residents see not only where their street places on the list, but what projects the township is undertaking.
After that study, Mayor Matthew Moench announced the township was launching a five-year $40 million plan to improve roads.
Eighty roads have been improved since then.
But since that study, Bridgewater was hit with the flash floods from the remnants of Hurricane Ida on Sept. 1, 2021, which resulted in widespread damage to roads.
Local:Bridgewater student killed while bicycling was 'full of love and light'
“Bridgewater has been through a lot since the last assessment, and while many great strides have been made in the intervening time, there have also been struggles – the impact of Hurricane Ida to name a major one,” Moench said this week.
The longest projects on this year’s list are 5,554 feet of Stony Brook Drive, 3,854 feet of Rolling Knolls Way, 3,558 feet of Rector Road and 3,562 feet of Rolling Hills Road.
The shortest projects are 293 feet of Richard Street, 314 feet of McGovern Court, 410 feet of Maple Street between Old York Road and Ardmaer Avenue and 409 feet of Cole Road.
The list of the roads to be upgraded this year can be found at ourbwroads.com.
“I made a promise to the residents of Bridgewater to make sure they have the infrastructure they deserve, and I am thrilled to go into year two of our plan with that goal firmly in our sights,” Moench said. “I am proud to continue our aggressive pace to comprehensively address our residential road infrastructure and deliver our residents the results they expect in a timeframe that they can count on.”
Email: mdeak@mycentraljersey.com
Mike Deak is a reporter for mycentraljersey.com. To get unlimited access to his articles on Somerset and Hunterdon counties, please subscribe or activate your digital account today.
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The City of Prosser is having two Spring clean-up days at the City Yard on 10th St. and Sharman Ave.
The clean-up days will be April 8 and 9 from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.
The City of Prosser has listed what the yard will and won't accept.
Residential garbage is accepted on both days.
The City Yard will not accept hazardous waste or concrete. It also won't accept pesticides, paint, motor oil or other liquids.
Recycling will not be accepted during the clean-up event.
Tires are accepted for $9.92 per tire and they can only be car or pickup truck tires, no commercial or farm implement sizes.
Refrigerators will also be accepted for $63.97 plus tax.
The City says brush is allowed but no stumps or limbs bigger than six inches in diameter and longer than four feet.
The City says it is only allowed for people living in the city limits of Prosser. I.D. and proof of address are required.
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https://www.nbcrightnow.com/regional/city-of-prosser-offering-free-residential-spring-clean-up-days/article_1c378be2-b5b3-11ec-bf59-df56f322c3b3.html
| 2022-04-06T16:07:57Z
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WALLA WALLA, Wash. -
Downtown Walla Walla is hosting its Spring Job Fair at 1st St. and Main St. from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. today.
Downtown Walla Walla says on their Facebook page, the job fair will have 40 employers in person hiring for over 300 positions.
Below is a list of employers that is posted to Downtown Walla Walla's Facebook page:
American 35
Franklin County Corrections
Nelson Construction
Tektonicks Corporation
Transportation Security Administrations
United States Army
United States Navy
United States Post Office
Walla Walla Investors
Washington Odd Fellows Home
Downtown Walla Walla saysthe event is hosted in partnership with WorkSource Walla Walla, the Walla Walla Valley Chamber of Commerce and the Downtown Walla Walla Foundation.
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https://www.nbcrightnow.com/regional/downtown-walla-walla-is-hosting-its-spring-job-fair/article_a59ab3b8-b5af-11ec-b61f-9776f4467673.html
| 2022-04-06T16:08:03Z
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Colorado's top wind gusts were over 100 mph. How long will the wind stick around?
Since this wicked wind will stick around at least for another day or two, let's look at just how windy it is and how it has compared with Colorado's biggest winds so far.
Tuesday's top wind gusts in Colorado
The National Weather Service reported two gusts topping 100 mph Tuesday. A reporting station 8 miles south-southeast of Fraser recorded a gust of 116 mph and one 7 miles southwest of Frisco reported 103 mph.
State climatologist Russ Schumacher said Colorado’s unofficial highest recorded wind gust is 201 mph atop 14,259-foot Longs Peak in Rocky Mountain National Park. There also was a gust reported at 148 mph in February of 2016 on Monarch Pass. Schumacher said the state doesn't have officials wind records.
Here's how those compare to hurricane wind speeds:
- Category 1: Winds of 74-95 mph
- Category 2: Winds of 96-110 mph
- Category 3: Winds of 111-129 mph
- Category 4: Winds of 130-156 mph
- Category 5: Winds greater than 157 mph
Fort Collins' top gust Tuesday was reported at 50.7 mph, Schumacher said.
Here's a look at other top gusts near geographical locations Tuesday.:
Statewide
- Tabernash: 98 mph
- Berthoud Pass: 91 mph
- Briggsdale: 80 mph
- Loveland Pass: 80 mph
- Boulder: 76 mph
- Buckeye: 75 mph
- Carr: 70 mph
- Mishawaka: 70 mph
Local
- Wellington: 67 mph
- Severance: 66 mph
- Virginia Dale: 64 mph
- Nunn: 57 mph
- Greeley: 55 mph
- Johnstown: 51 mph
- Red Feather Lakes: 51 mph
Wind wreaks havoc: Vehicles overturned, power outages and roads closed
Here are top wind speeds for Fort Collins, Denver and Boulder
Fort Collins
- 84 mph: Dec. 30, 2008
- 77 mph: Nov. 18, 2015
- 72 mph: April, 8, 1999
- 72 mph: Dec. 15, 2021
- 70 mph: Nov. 2, 2018
Note: Christman Field, northwest side of Fort Collins. Station in place since 1997
Denver
- 97 mph: June 18, 2013 (tornado)
- 96 mph: Oct. 20, 1878
- 80 mph: March 13, 2019 (blizzard)
- 78 mph: May 6, 2020 (thunderstorm)
- 75 mph: Aug. 6, 1877 (thunderstorm)
Boulder
- 147 mph: Jan. 23, 1971
- 143 mph: Jan. 24, 1992
- 137 mph: Jan. 16-17, 1982
- 131 mph: Sept. 24, 1986
- 130 mph: Jan. 7-8, 1969
Red flag warning days
The National Weather Service has issued red flag warnings from 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. Wednesday and 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. Thursday for much of the northeastern section of the state.
Wind in the warning area is forecast to blow from the north-northwest 35 mph to 45 mph with gusts to 65 mph and relative humidity of 10% to 15%.
That will create extreme fire conditions and outdoor burning should be avoided as well as any activity that may produce a spark.
What's causing all this wind?
Caitlyn Menseh, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service in Boulder, said the wind is caused by a strong, slow-moving jet stream making its way from northwest to southeast across the state. She said the wind will persist into Thursday.
A look back: Remember the December wind storm?
Fort Collins forecast calls for wind much of the week
Wednesday: High near 46 degrees with northwest winds of 30 to 38 mph, gusting to 55 mph, during the day and 18 to 28 mph overnight with gusts to 39 mph.
Thursday: High near 52 with north-northwest winds of 18 to 23 mph increasing to 31 to 36 mph in the afternoon, with gusts to 55 mph during the day; and 19 to 24 mph decreasing to 8 to 13 mph after midnight but gusting to 37 mph.
Friday: High near 66 with northwest winds of 7 to 12 mph increasing to 15 to 20 mph in the afternoon and gusting to 31 mph.
Saturday: Mostly sunny, with a high near 73, and breezy.
Sunday: A slight chance of snow before 10 a.m., then a chance of rain in the afternoon and rain/snow mix chance in the evening. Partly sunny, with a high near 58, and breezy.
Wildfire season: What's behind the rash of spring grass fires?
Reporter Miles Blumhardt looks for stories that impact your life. Be it news, outdoors, sports — you name it, he wants to report it. Have a story idea? Contact him at milesblumhardt@coloradoan.com or on Twitter @MilesBlumhardt. Support his work and that of other Coloradoan journalists by purchasing a digital subscription today.
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Windsor election results: Incumbents retain seats on Town Board
Incumbents held on to their seats in Windsor's municipal election Tuesday, according to preliminary results posted late Tuesday night.
Barry Wilson and Julie Cline will retain their seats after beating challengers Amy Kilcoyne and Hunter Rivera, respectively.
That means Jason Hallett will be the lone new member on the seven-member board. Hallett ran unopposed in the District 6 race to replace Town Board member David Sislowski.
Wilson, first elected in 2018, defeated Kilcoyne 935 to 409 in District 2.
Wilson said his record and reputation helped him win reelection. He followed through on campaign promises from 2018, he said, including getting a foot bridge over the Poudre River and extending trail networks.
"I wasn't ready to be done," he said. "I think I did a good job, made good decisions and treated people well while in office. I have a good reputation for being responsive."
Cline, appointed in 2020 to fill Paul Rennemeyer's seat after he was elected mayor, was elected to her first four-year term representing District 4. She beat Rivera 577 to 463 in a relatively close race.
Get more results:Johnstown, Timnath, Wellington and Windsor 2022 election results
With two years spent learning the ropes of town government, Cline said she can be even more effective with the learning curve behind her.
She credited her education and 20 years of business experience going against Rivera, the youngest candidate in Tuesday's election.
A Windsor resident for 11 years, Cline has a master's in business administration with an emphasis in management information systems from the University of Mississippi and has worked as a supply chain manager for Hewlett Packard for more than 20 years.
"People saw that I listen to all sides regardless of background," Cline said. "I want to hear exactly what (people think) is best for Windsor, that was the mainstay. I have no political aspirations beyond my town. I have a career, a family and I'm here to make sure Windsor is the best place it can be."
Results of Tuesday's election cannot be finalized until all absentee ballots are counted. Official results will not be available until April 15, according to the town clerk's office.
The town, with a population closing in on 40,000, is facing a couple hot button issues in the next couple months. The town's planning board and town board will face decisions on whether to increase building height limits in parts of downtown to help accommodate growth and what to do about parking problems in downtown as growth occurs.
More:Town of Windsor, Windsor DDA refute claims that Windsor Lake access will be limited
It is also expected to grapple with an expected redevelopment project of the backlots, two gravel lots owned by the town and Downtown Development Authority that serve as unofficial town parking.
"Downtown parking is the big one for me regardless of what happens with the backlots," said Wilson, who supports building a parking garage somewhere in downtown. The town is negotiating to buy land for parking that might be suitable for a parking garage at some point. "If may be a parking lot now, but in three to five years it's a parking garage."
Cline said she opposes raising the building height limits to 65 feet in some portions of downtown but would prefer raising them to 45 feet then allowing developers to seek variances if they want to build taller structures.
"It gives the planning commission and town board the opportunity to look at projects individually and not give a blanket approval for a certain height."
Pat Ferrier is a senior reporter covering business, health care and growth issues in Northern Colorado. Contact her at patferrier@coloradoan.com. Please support her work and that of other Coloradoan journalists by purchasing a subscription today.
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Fort Collins City Council mulls an unusual path for preventing oil and gas development
One way or another, Fort Collins City Council is interested in limiting oil and gas activity as much as possible in the city’s boundaries and growth management area.
What’s less clear is how they’ll try to do it. The city could adopt regulations, currently being drafted by staff, that effectively ban new drilling in city limits. It could incentivize the plugging and abandoning of wells or leverage new state rules to do so. Or Fort Collins could pursue another idea that attracted some City Council members’ attention at a March 22 work session: What if the city bought all the mineral rights in Fort Collins?
“I'm talking about buying out the operators who own the oil and gas,” Mayor Jeni Arndt said at the work session. “That just seems like an elegant solution that is probably cheaper than all these rules and regulations and potential lawsuits for takings.”
Arndt said the idea seem potentially promising but emphasized it's just that — an idea that she wants to know more about.
Staff are investigating the feasibility of Arndt's idea while continuing to work on the regulations and considering how to facilitate the plugging of inactive or low-producing wells. Ralph Cantafio, a Colorado attorney who specializes in oil and gas, told the Coloradoan the buy-out idea seems “wildly impractical.”
Draft city regulations would effectively prohibit new drilling
But first, a rundown of the city's draft regulations. Staff have been working on them since 2019, with the process drawn out as they awaited new state regulations on everything from setbacks to financial assurances. A 2018 state law gave municipalities the right to adopt oil and gas regulations that are stricter than the state standards and triggered the overhaul of the state’s regulations.
City staff are considering draft regulations that would allow drilling only in areas with industrial zoning, located at least 2,000 feet from homes, parks, natural areas, schools, hospitals and anything defined as “occupiable space.” The 2,000-foot standard, unlike the state's regulations, would leave no room for exceptions. It’s based on a Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment study that found the greatest health risks of living near oil and gas wells were for those living within 2,000 feet of the site.
Fort Collins oil and gas:Operator replaces leaking tanks at oil site near Fort Collins, but concerns persist
No land in city limits meets all the city’s draft requirements, so they would essentially prohibit new drilling. Council members haven't expressed any discomfort at that possibility, pointing to the 2013 ballot measure where about 55% of voters supported a five-year moratorium on fracking.
There are six wells already operating in city limits, though, and more in Fort Collins’ growth management area — parcels that are currently located in unincorporated Larimer County that are likely to be annexed by the city in the future. The active wells in city limits are owned by Prospect Energy and include three injection wells and three producing oil wells.
Staff estimate that less than 1% of land in the city’s growth management area meets the state’s and Larimer County’s recently adopted drilling standards. Senior environmental planner Kelly Smith said that figure is a high-level estimate and doesn’t consider the possibility of variances.
So, even if council adopts the draft regulations, there could still be some oil and gas activity in Fort Collins. For those sites, staff is considering an array of regulations related to air quality, water, land reclamation, noise and odor, among other things.
Loveland oil and gas:McWhinney details plans for 26 oil and gas wells in Loveland's Centerra area
At the recent work session, a few council members told staff they were displeased with the draft regulations. Council member Kelly Ohlson said they’ve taken too long to compile and don’t seem to adequately address impacts to wildlife and other environmental concerns.
A target implementation date of December 2022 seems like “a very long time for this kind of thing,” Ohlson said. “It annoys me, because if it involves a business, a corporation, a development, we seem to fast-track things. But if it involves basic health and safety, it’s going to take three-and-a-quarter years to develop and implement. That’s not OK with me at all, and I view it as a failure.”
Smith said the main reason for the delay was the new state rules, which “changed the landscape we were developing our regulations upon.”
“Without knowing where the gaps are in the state regulations, it was difficult for us to formulate,” she said. “And in fact, we saw Larimer County adopt regulations right after Senate Bill 181 and then take the painstaking process to update the regulations over a nine-month period after the rulemaking occurred.”
Previously:Larimer County adopts first ever regulations on oil and gas facilities
City considers rules' impacts on future housing and commercial development
Beyond the frustrations about the timeline, Arndt wondered if the regulations would be worth the cost. The city would need to deal with monitoring and enforcement indefinitely, and Arndt said the city could be at risk of a lawsuit if it adopts reverse setbacks that prevent landowners from fully developing their property.
Reverse setbacks, also called reciprocal setbacks, set a mandatory distance between a new building and an existing well. They’re the flip side of traditional setbacks, which set a mandatory distance between an existing building and a new well. The city’s current standard for reverse setbacks is 500 feet or whatever the state has adopted for its (non-reverse) setbacks, whichever is greater. Since the new state-mandated setback is 2,000 feet, the same rule applies for reverse setbacks in Fort Collins. Staff said the council could revisit that by eliminating an exception for areas where a road stands between the new building and existing well, among other options.
Reverse setbacks could affect one undeveloped 46-acre parcel south of Douglas Road and east of Turnberry Road, staff said. They could also prevent property owners from adding units to some existing developments near wells.
“If you do a reverse setback on a development that's under construction now, you could really be open to a takings claim,” Arndt said. “I would file a takings claim.”
Could Fort Collins really buy up mineral rights beneath the city?
That’s why Arndt, with support from Ohlson and council members Shirley Peel and Julie Pignataro, asked staff to assess how much it would cost to buy the “tiny sliver” of mineral rights lying under city limits and the GMA.
Fort Collins’ underground fossil fuel reserves are relatively minor compared to areas south and east of the city. Much of the Fort Collins Field, located near the northeast corner of the city, produces about 97% water, 3% oil and small amounts of gas.
Arndt said she heard an estimate years ago that the minerals beneath Fort Collins were worth roughly $9 million, though it’s not clear if that figure is correct. Mineral rights are typically severed from surface rights in Colorado.
“Mineral rights are extremely expensive,” attorney Matt Sura told Arndt during the work session. “Depending on where they are, they can be $10,000-$20,000 an acre.”
Sura, an environmental attorney who’s consulting with the city on its oil and gas regulations, added that oil and gas operators can access minerals under Fort Collins from up to three miles away through horizontal drilling. Cantafio brought up the same point in an interview, noting that the most significant impacts from oil and gas development occur near the location of the well.
“My concern is that if they start buying minerals, they're just throwing good money after bad,” Cantafio said, adding he’s never heard of a city taking that approach in his 35-year career. “I would suggest there are reasons why no one else is doing it. Because it’s not a very good idea.”
Cantafio, speaking based off his first impressions, described a few potential pitfalls: First, the city would need to find willing sellers. Second, it would need to negotiate reasonable payments for the rights. Third, the city couldn’t prevent drilling if other entities own a “working interest” in any of the mineral rights, he said. And fourth, the city would need to pursue plugging and abandoning of existing wells to fully address their environmental impacts.
It could be more cost-effective to pay operators to plug and abandon their wells, which staff said they’ve previously discussed. Plugging and abandoning a well prevents it from polluting the air and potentially leaking chemicals into groundwater. It costs about $100,000 per well, which is why many wells in the Fort Collins area are “shut-in” — no longer used — but not plugged.
“… frankly, there are some wells that should have been plugged and abandoned decades ago that are now sitting idle within the city limits of Fort Collins,” Sura said at the work session.
Industry representatives didn't support the idea of Fort Collins buying mineral rights to prevent development. Lynn Granger, executive director of American Petroleum Institute Colorado, said the group is "opposed in principle to regulatory or related action that would preclude or prohibit safe and efficient production in Colorado."
"Whether Fort Collins City Council adopts prohibitive regulations or purchases the city’s mineral rights to keep natural resources in the ground, its intent is diametrically opposed to President Biden’s recent call for increased domestic energy production," Granger said in a statement provided to the Coloradoan. "We urge council to reconsider its approach and stand ready to work with the city to create a more productive path forward.”
Smith said staff are open to whatever approach council wants to take and interested in the possibility of an innovative way to reduce impacts from oil and gas development. Staff are meeting with attorneys this week to discuss the considerations of buying mineral rights. They hope to share some cost analysis information with council later this month, comparing the estimated cost of buying mineral rights with the cost of enacting regulations.
Meanwhile, they’ll continue to work on the draft regulations and assess possibilities for plugging wells. City attorney Carrie Daggett suggested at the March 22 work session that council plan a closed-door executive session to further discuss Arndt’s concerns about lawsuits.
While the city could consider paying operators to plug their wells, it could also try to leverage new state regulations. The Colorado Oil and Gas Conservation Commission adopted new rules for financial assurances, effective April 30, that require operators to pay bonds to the state for low-producing wells.
Cities are also now able to file applications with the COGCC to plug and abandon some low-producing wells, a power Fort Collins staff pushed for during the COGCC rulemaking.
Council is planning a follow-up work session to discuss oil and gas regulation, potentially in September. Staff said at the work session that they plan to release draft regulations for review in June, followed by more public engagement this summer, further refining in the fall and potential implementation in December.
Jacy Marmaduke covers government accountability for the Coloradoan. Follow her on Twitter @jacymarmaduke. Support her work and that of other Coloradoan journalists by purchasing a digital subscription today.
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Miles Tate, Murfreesboro Half Marathon co-founder, dies at 62, weeks away from marathon
Murfreesboro Half Marathon co-founder Miles Tate has died.
The 62-year-old was weeks away from competing in a marathon, one of countless he's participated in — including the Boston and New York marathons — since beginning his road to running in 2001.
Visitation will be 2 p.m. Saturday at Woodfin Memorial Chapel, 1488 Lascassas Pike in Murfreesboro, followed by celebration of life at 4 p.m.
"He was all about building community," said Krista Dugosh, fellow runner, race organizer and owner of Fleet Feet Murfreesboro.
Tate is survived by his wife of 41 years, Melinda Tate, daughter, Natalie Gay, and son Nick Tate, along with grandchildren, Tate, Anna, Andrew, Ruby and Charlotte.
The avid runner founded the half marathon in Murfreesboro, dubbed the Middle Half, in 2007. Since then, it has become one of the city's premier events, drawing thousands from across the country to compete each October.
This is a developing story.
Reach reporter Nancy DeGennaro at degennaro@dnj.com.
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Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs of the United Kingdom Elizabeth Truss arrives at NATO headquarters for the meeting of NATO Ministers of Foreign Affairs in Brussels on 6 April 2022.
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The products and services mentioned below were selected independent of sales and advertising. However, Simplemost may receive a small commission from the purchase of any products or services through an affiliate link to the retailer's website.
Spring is in full bloom at Krispy Kreme, where the doughnut shop is celebrating the season with their first-ever spring collection of filled mini doughnuts.
The Spring Mini “Egg” Doughnut collection includes four small doughnuts shaped and decorated like Easter eggs. A fan-favorite from last Easter, the Mini Chick Doughnut is returning, along with three new hand-decorated doughnuts: the Mini Chocolate Egg, Mini Cake Batter Egg and Mini Strawberries & Kreme Egg.
The Mini Chocolate Egg Doughnut is an unglazed shell filled with chocolate Kreme, dipped in chocolate icing and drizzled with light sky-blue and yellow icing stripes. The Mini Cake Batter Egg Doughnut is similar, but filled with cake batter Kreme, drizzled with three light sky-blue stripes and dipped in mini pastel nonpareils sprinkles.
Strawberry fans should enjoy the Mini Strawberries & Kreme Egg Doughnut, which is an unglazed shell filled with white Kreme, dipped in strawberry icing and sprinkled with pastel sequins. The most-decorated of the four, the Mini Chick Doughnut is filled with white Kreme, dipped in yellow icing, then half-dipped in white sanding sugar. It’s then decorated like a chick with yellow, orange and chocolate icing.
The doughnuts are available in a custom, basket-inspired 16-count box that includes four of each doughnut from now until Easter, which takes place on April 17 this year.
If you don’t have a Krispy Kreme near you, you’ll find a handful of other Easter treats at grocery stores nationwide so you can still get your holiday sugar rush.
Dunkin’s iced coffee-flavored jelly beans are back for the season and Peeps has created two kinds of coffee-flavored chicks, while Hershey has Whoppers Bunny Tails and Cookies ‘N’ Creme Polka Dot Eggs. You’ll find Hershey’s Kisses Milk Chocolates with Vanilla Frosting Flavored Creme, which are wrapped in cute plaid foils and filled with creme that tastes like vanilla frosting.
If you’re looking for some other new treats to celebrate spring after Easter, Fanta has a new Dragon Fruit flavor, while Coca-Cola has added a mocha flavor to their coffee lineup. There is now a spiked version of Simply Lemonade and you can buy all kinds of new flavored popcorn, from Cocoa Puffs to Doritos Nacho Cheese.
And to kick off some nostalgia vibes for the warmer weather, The Icee Company has launched Icee Crème Filled Sandwich Cookies at Kroger. The cookies feature either Cherry- or Blue Raspberry Icee-flavored crème between two vanilla wafers.
Which spring treat are you most excited to try?
This story originally appeared on Simplemost. Checkout Simplemost for additional stories.
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Giles Automotive and Subaru of America presented a donation to Dreams Come True of Louisiana to better the lives of children with life-threatening illnesses.
For the second year in a row, Giles Automotive and Subaru donated $20,000 to the organization. The annual contribution is a part of The Subaru Share the Love Event, which started in 2008.
According to Giles Automotive, during the last months of the year, Subaru of America donated $250 per sold or leased car purchased to charities all over their dealerships’ communities as well as major charitable organizations across the country. Giles Automotive chose to duplicate the amount accumulated by Subaru, and each year a donation is made to Dreams Come True of Louisiana.
"It's important to have an organization like Dreams Come True Louisiana for Louisiana children to assist the families with children with life-threatening illnesses and help fulfill the dreams they may have," said Giles
Dreams Come True is an organization dedicated to making dreams a reality for Louisiana children with life-threatening illnesses.
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DETROIT (AP) — General Motors is recalling nearly 682,000 compact SUVs because the windshield wipers can fail.
The recall covers the Chevrolet Equinox and GMC Terrain from the 2014 and 2015 model years.
Ball joints in the wiper module can rust, causing one or both wipers to fail, increasing the risk of a crash.
Dealers will inspect the module and repair or replace it if needed. Owners will be notified by letter starting May 2.
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DETROIT (AP) — General Motors is recalling nearly 682,000 compact SUVs because the windshield wipers can fail.
The recall covers the Chevrolet Equinox and GMC Terrain from the 2014 and 2015 model years.
Ball joints in the wiper module can rust, causing one or both wipers to fail, increasing the risk of a crash.
Dealers will inspect the module and repair or replace it if needed. Owners will be notified by letter starting May 2.
------------------------------------------------------------
Stay in touch with us anytime, anywhere.
To reach the newsroom or report a typo/correction, click HERE.
Sign up for newsletters emailed to your inbox. Select from these options: Breaking News, Evening News Headlines, Latest COVID-19 Headlines, Morning News Headlines, Special Offers
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Doorstep statement by the Estonian Minister of Foreign Affairs Eva-Maria Liimets at the meeting of NATO Ministers of Foreign Affairs in Brussels on 6 April 2022.
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CHICAGO, Ill. — For many, two years of masks, social distancing and hand hygiene has meant not getting sick at all.
But as we move toward a more pre-pandemic day-to-day normalcy the return of runny noses, coughs and the common cold are inevitable. But what do years of germ-free existence mean for our immune systems?
Last year, the flu was nearly wiped out thanks to pandemic precautions.
But now as travel booms, masking becomes optional and social distancing wanes - illnesses like the common cold and flu are making a comeback.
“This year. we haven't really had much influenza, but now that people are unmasking, we're starting to see the numbers tick up for influenza as well,” said Dr. Emily Landon, an infectious disease specialist at the University of Chicago Medicine
While COVID-19 cases are down, since January outbreaks of the highly contagious norovirus stomach bug have spiked.
Some might be wondering if being too germ-free has weakened our immune systems over time - something known as the “hygiene hypothesis.”
Landon says that’s a misnomer.
“For the first 12 to maybe 20 years of your life, you're really shaping immunity at that time,” she said. "Once you're over that age, we don't think that there's any real benefit to having additional exposures to other things.”
Dr. Yanina Purim-Shem-Tov, vice-chair of the emergency department at Rush University Medical Center points out that our immune systems actually remember what we’ve been exposed to previously, though it might take a little while for the immune response to kick in after so much time.
“You do have antibodies towards the common cold once you get a trigger. Because we haven't seen this common cold in two years, the antibody has to be built up again,” said Dr. Purim-Shem-Tov.
Doctors say the explanation for why these colds may feel worse and last longer than ever before has more to do with your brain than your immune response.
“More likely than not, that cold that you think is the worst cold you ever had just feels that way because you haven't had one in a while,” said Landon.
The bottom line: experts say there’s no evolutionary benefit to getting sick more often. It doesn’t lessen the severity or length of the infections.
The best advice to boost your immune system they say hasn’t changed.
“Vitamin C, lots of fluids. Keep your body healthy. Chicken noodle soup, just like your grandma said. Absolutely. All of those things that you normally would do, lots of rest,” said Dr. Purim-Shem-Tov.
And a little extra hand hygiene couldn’t hurt.
Doctors say the average cold lasts about three to seven days. But could be longer depending on how much you were exposed. And it’s not unusual for coughs to linger for weeks afterward.
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WASHINGTON, D.C. — The Justice Department says it has charged a Russian oligarch with sanctions and that officials have taken down a cybercrime operation controlled by a Russian military intelligence agency.
The actions were announced at a news conference Wednesday with Attorney General Merrick Garland and other officials.
The case against Konstantin Malofeyev accuses him of trying to evade earlier Treasury Department sanctions by seeking to secretly acquire media organizations across Europe.
Malofeyev reportedly provided financing to Russians who promoted separatism in Crimea.
Officials also seized millions of dollars they say are traceable to the sanction violations.
"The Justice Department will continue to use all of its authorities to hold accountable Russian oligarchs and others who seek to evade U.S. sanctions," Garland said Wednesday.
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No charges will be filed in the death of Amir Locke. He died in a police shooting during a no-knock warrant raid in Minneapolis in February.
Hennepin County Attorney Michael Freeman and Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison called Locke's death a "tragedy" and added that he was not a suspect in the underlying criminal investigation that led to the no-knock warrant.
However, they said there is "insufficient admissible evidence to file criminal charges in this case."
Under Minnesota law, the attorneys say law enforcement was justified in using deadly force after encountering Locke under a blanket with a firearm pointed in the direction of at least one officer.
The officer "perceived that Mr. Locke’s movements and production of a firearm presented a threat of death or great bodily harm that was reasonably likely to occur and to which the officers had to respond without delay," the attorneys said.
No-knock warrants have come under increased scrutiny in recent years amid calls for police reform. Following Locke's death, Minneapolis decided to ban no-knock warrants. The new policy will take effect on April 8, according to CNN.
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| 2022-04-06T16:17:20Z
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The calendar turned to spring and violence erupted. In a single weekend, the U.S. experienced its largest scale of mass shootings in more than two years, and there were numerous other shooting incidents with victims who didn't have to die.
Special Agent David Booth, with the Denver ATF office, says there is a surge in violent crime.
“Last couple of years there has been a very strong anti-police sentiment and I think that police departments have pulled back in fear of becoming the criminals themselves for doing their jobs and I think that’s emboldened a certain few people in this country to commit violent crimes," Booth said.
“It is connected to COVID but it’s also connected to a lot of the societal struggles that our systems are going through, primarily law enforcement," said Christina Amparan, who is with the Aurora Youth Violence Prevention Program. “And so we have seen, not just in Colorado but across the country, there is a trend where there is a reduction in youth being contacted by law enforcement.”
Less involvement with at-risk children equals more opportunity for them to get involved with criminal behaviors, experts say.
“There is not enough supports or interventions in place, or processes in place, to intervene at that early age in time to keep them from reaching that higher risk factor or them getting involved in some of the violent behaviors," Amparan said.
Experts believe access to guns is a major problem.
“Unfortunately policymakers across the country have made it easier to get access to guns, not harder and that has created more violence in our country," claimed Kiersten Stewart, who is with Futures without Violence.
She points out, specifically, violence with youth goes beyond that.
“For the first time ever, the national sexual assault hotline reported that more children than adults were calling them for help," Stewart said.
President Joe Biden released his budget, which includes significant increases in programs for community violence and youth violence intervention.
Stewart believes there must be immediate implementation before things get worse.
“We need to invest younger in terms of helping kids both address the impacts of violence or trauma that they may have witnessed or experienced," Stewart said.
Adult support, school involvement and community intervention are just a few solutions Stewart says will help.
“There are things we can do right now to reduce the amount of violence in our communities this summer, but we have to make the commitment, we have to have the political will, and we have to put the resources into it," Stewart said.
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| 2022-04-06T16:17:45Z
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The city of Los Angeles announced a settlement of the homelessness lawsuit that resulted from the settlement of a homelessness lawsuit that resulted from the settlement of a homelessness lawsuit.
That gives you some sense of how it’s going in Los Angeles. It’s going in circles.
The most recent settlement ends the city’s part of the lawsuit filed in March 2020 against both the city and county of Los Angeles by the L.A. Alliance for Human Rights. The city has agreed to provide enough beds over the next five years in each city council district for 60% of the homeless population, as defined.
The city’s definition of homeless, for these purposes, excludes “the person who is mentally unable to take care of themselves,” explained City Council president Nury Martinez. Those people are the county’s responsibility, Martinez said. “We do not run hospital beds. We’re not clinicians. We’re not social workers. The type of housing that individual would need is the responsibility of the county,” she told the L.A. Times.
For its part, the county says it is not settling, and it contends that the lawsuit has no merit. “We intend to litigate and win this case,” said Skip Miller, a partner in the law firm that is “outside counsel” for Los Angeles County. That means the meter is running for taxpayers while this lawsuit continues.
The high cost of litigation is one reason that governments settle these cases over homelessness and the various public policies in place to try to address the problem. However, the cost of the settlements is being paid by every resident and taxpayer as the problem gets worse.
The city’s settlement of the L.A. Alliance lawsuit will cost an estimated $2.4 billion to $3 billion over the next few years, including what the city already planned to spend on homeless housing.
How many people will qualify for those city beds? No one knows. In addition to the difficulty in evaluating who is ineligible due to being “mentally unable to take care of themselves,” the final numbers will be based on the point-in-time homeless count that was conducted in January. The results of that count have not yet been released.
The L.A. Alliance for Human Rights is a group of downtown residents and business groups that filed the lawsuit against the city and county for failing to provide housing for the homeless despite massive spending, for making the downtown area dangerous and unlivable due to public camping, for reducing property values without compensation and for violating the Americans with Disabilities Act by allowing bulky property storage to block sidewalks.
The L.A. Alliance lawsuit followed the settlement of the Mitchell v. Los Angeles lawsuit, which challenged a city ordinance limiting property storage on the sidewalks. A settlement of that lawsuit, negotiated in secret by City Attorney Mike Feuer, essentially removed all restrictions on how much property could be stored on the sidewalk by a homeless person or group of people. The settlement banned the city from removing any item unless city employees documented that each item to be removed was abandoned, evidence of a crime, contraband or a threat to public safety.
City sanitation crews and police have to comply with so many procedures that clean-ups can’t begin to keep up with the growth of encampments.
The ordinance that triggered the Mitchell lawsuit was a response to a settlement in another lawsuit over homelessness, Jones vs. Los Angeles. In 2007, the city of L.A. settled the lawsuit filed by the ACLU over a municipal ordinance banning sitting, lying or sleeping “in or upon any street, sidewalk or other public way” unless attending a parade. In the settlement, the city agreed not to enforce the ordinance anywhere in the city between the hours of 9:00 p.m. and 6:00 a.m. until another 1,250 units of housing for the chronically homeless were constructed, half of them in the Skid Row area.
The housing was built, but the city never went back to court to try to get out of the settlement. As a result, tent encampments became effectively legalized everywhere in Los Angeles.
Under the Supreme Court’s Martin v. Boise decision, local governments may enforce anti-camping ordinances if they have enough shelter beds. The latest settlement will test whether L.A. officials will ever really do that.
Write Susan at Susan@SusanShelley.com and follow her on Twitter @Susan_Shelley.
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Baby Seal Is Rescued After Wandering Long Island's East End
Harbor seals are one of the most common animals on both the West and East Coast, and are protected under the Marine Mammal Protection Act, a report said.
A baby harbor seal appeared to be a long way from home when it was found wandering around the streets of Southhampton, officials said, according to a published news report.
On Sunday, Southhampton police said 911 dispatchers received a call about a seal in the roadway at the traffic circle in Riverside. When officers responded they found the baby harbor seal in the roadway near the Budget Host Inn, the Southampton Town Police Department said in a Facebook statement.
“Our officers were able to detain the seal until the seal was taken into custody by the Riverhead Foundation,” the department said.
Police said residents called 911 to report the sea creature that had been moving through a park, according to a report.
In the Facebook post, Southhampton police posted photos of the seal in different areas of the street. One photo shows the seal in the middle of the road and another photo shows the animal next to the police officer’s vehicle, KIRO 7News reported.
Sgt. Jim Cavanagh told CNN that he believed “the seal swam up the Peconic River, probably behind a big school of alewife fish,” he said.
“The seal probably climbed up out of the river ending up in a park,” Cavanagh said. “There, it probably just got turned around and then traveled somewhere between 500 and 700 feet into the traffic circle.”
The seal was rescued by a team from the New York Marine Resource Center and was then transported the animal to a rehabilitation center, CNN reported.
Maxine Montello, the rescue center’s program director, told the news outlet the “animal is in good condition.”
“We think he just wandered a little too far from the beach,” Montello said. “Hopefully we’ll be able to get him back to the beach as soon as possible.”
Many people following the story wished the seal well. While others were getting a kick out of the animal's unexpected adventure.
“Oh poor baby! He looks tired,” wrote one person.
Another person said: “Seal is now serving 6 months on a Public indecency charge at Riverhead Correctional Facility Suffolk County Sheriff’s Office.”
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| 2022-04-06T16:19:27Z
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Covina high’s Kerry Smith found out something about himself during last week’s Covina Invitational, where he trailed one of the state’s best, Villanova Prep’s Liam Gair, in the 400 meter race.
“I saw him in (Gair) front of me, and I hate losing so much,” the senior sprinter said. “I just had to push myself.”
And that he did, overtaking Gair in the final stretch to not only win the 400 meter race, but he also ran the fastest time in California this season, touching home in 47.33, ahead of Gair’s 47.54.
The winning time also set a Covina school record, and let Smith know that competition brings out the best in him.
“He (Gair) pushed me to a faster time,” Smith said. “I knew I ran pretty fast, but I was shocked it was that fast. All our coaches were kind of surprised. I made up a lot of time. It felt good, it tells me I can still be a lot better.”
That’s a scary thought.
Smith was scheduled to run in a 400 meter seeded race at this weekend’s prestigious Arcadia Invitational, which runs on Friday and Saturday at Arcadia HS. But after his performance at the Covina Invite, he was bumped to Saturday night’s prestigious 400 Invitational race.
Arcadia meet director Rich Gonzalez, one of the most established track guru’s in Southern California and the prep editor at PrepCalTrack.com, said Smith is just scratching the surface.
“He is the best thing the (San Gabriel) Valley has seen since (Damien’s) Zach Shinnick, but a different style,” Gonzalez said of Smith. “Zach had great torque and was a powerful runner. Kerry is more smoothness and he’s really still just finding his groove so his upside is very exciting.”
Smith also beat Gair in the 200 meters at the Covina Invite, winning in 21.44, which is also among the top marks in the state this season, and also helped the Colts team to a win in the 400-meter relays.
Now Smith his looking forward to Arcadia, where he will be a busy man this weekend.
On Friday, Smith will join his Covina teammates in the 200-meter relay invite, and 800-meter sprint medley. On Saturday, he joins his teammates again in a 400-meter seeded relay before taking center stage that evening in the 400 meter invite.
Smith is a late bloomer of sorts. When he arrived at Covina his freshman year, he was new to track. But Covina track coach Kevin Glaspy saw his potential, and introduced him to the San Gabriel Valley’s best sprinter ever, Remontay McCLain.
McClain also ran for Covina, and was the state champion in the 100 and 200 meters his junior and senior years in 2010 and ’11, and then went on to have a great sprint career professionally.
McClain is an assistant at Covina, and see’s greatness in Smith.
“Kerry is a one of a kind kid,” McClain said. “I believe he can be a better track runner than I was. He has the talent to go professionally in track and field, that’s what I see.
“In his (400 meter) win (at the Covina Invite), he was relaxed, he wasn’t tense, and it showed. Races like that bring out the best in him, so I’m excited to watch him grow.”
But it’s his work ethic that McClain raves about. Smith didn’t run track during his sophomore season during the Covid-19 sports shutdown, but over the past year, he has been a relentless worker, and his body has grown and matured.
“Every day you have to come to practice and work hard, you can’t have no days off and he (Smith) brings that mentality,” McClain said. “Right now Kerry is number one in the state in the 400. But a lot of people don’t know how hard it is to maintain that. You have to continue to get better, and I believe he will.”
Smith has had plenty of talks with McClain, and one thing he has learned for sure, is nothing replaces your work ethic.
“When he (McClain) was coming up and running fast times, he said a lot of his opponents were cocky, and they could have been better,” Smith said. “He reminds me, nothing comes to you without hard work. There is always someone faster, so there are no shortcuts to catching them. You have to put in the work. You have to outwork them. He knew how to handle it, and he thinks I can be there eventually.”
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Husky Mom and Her Puppies Rescued From Arizona House Fire
The homeowners were not at home when the fire broke out.
It was a race against time as first responders rescued a litter of husky puppies from a house fire in Arizona.
Bodycam footage shows officers rush into the smoke-filled garage in Glendale. The mother of the litter was barking and high-pitched squeals came from her tiny babies.
Using a shovel, cops pried open the door. The mom bolted out, but all seven of the puppies were trapped inside.
One of the puppies was found, but others were gasping for air. Then, a police officer loaded all six into a large food bowl and rushed them outside.
The officers massaged the tiny little guys. One was in bad shape from smoke inhalation and received oxygen from a special mask designed for pets.
Dr. Enrico Carluen treated the dogs.
“They’re doing fantastic. They’re nursing on mom very well. They’re breathing very well. They’re very bright, they’re alert,” Carluen said.
Sadly, one of the puppies didn’t make it. The homeowners were not at home when the fire broke out.
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Here we are at the start of another season and the Dodgers are arguably the best team in baseball again.
On paper.
The alchemy of a baseball season, however, makes it uniquely difficult to turn paper into “a piece of metal” – MLB commissioner Rob Manfred’s ill-chosen description of the World Series trophy. Only five times (including ties) in the past 22 full seasons has the team that won the most games in the regular season also raised that trophy after the World Series.
The Dodgers also did it following the pandemic-shortened 2020 season – their only championship during a run of nine consecutive playoff appearances (eight consecutive division championships) with a winning percentage of .604, – .614 since Andrew Friedman became president of baseball operations in 2015 – including franchise-record win totals (106) in each of the past two full seasons.
“Before the season starts, I’ll take it because it beats all other descriptors. But ultimately, it doesn’t mean all that much,” Friedman said of assembling the best team on paper. “You have a 162-game marathon to navigate that will help determine how accurate that is or not. Then the month of October ultimately determines the best team for that season.
“I mean, it’s what I love and hate about baseball. A lot of Octobers are determined by who’s playing best in that moment in time and isn’t always won by the best team.”
A lot happens on the journey from April to October. A year ago, the Dodgers – on paper – had an overwhelming wealth of starting pitching. By October, however, they stretched the only three they had left (Walker Buehler, Julio Urias and Max Scherzer) to the breaking point. An Atlanta team that won just 88 games during the regular season went on its own journey, rebuilding its outfield on the fly and then eliminated the Dodgers in the NL Championship Series (the sixth consecutive year the Dodgers were eliminated by the eventual World Series champ or won it themselves).
“We were gassed,” Dodgers manager Dave Roberts admitted this spring. “Having to play tooth and nail to ultimately concede the division to the Giants – which they earned it – and then to play a one-game, do-or-die (wild-card game), to find a way to win a game. Then to go up to the Bay and play five games and then to go on the road and play Atlanta.
“We were gassed. No excuses. We lost to a better team, playing better.”
Roberts’ response to falling short in 2021? He has guaranteed a World Series win in 2022.
“Our goal is to win the World Series. It is every single year,” Roberts said of that promise. “So to not shy away from it, not run from it – if guys think that’s too much pressure then we have the wrong players. And I don’t believe that.”
The Dodgers believe they added the right players this winter to reach that goal – most prominently, first baseman Freddie Freeman. Freeman faced the Dodgers with the Braves three times in the past four postseasons and called it “mentally exhausting” to try and beat the Dodgers.
So why does he think they have won just one championship during this run?
“It’s a simple explanation. That’s baseball,” Freeman said. “I mean, just like we look good on paper … any team can beat you any single different night. I think we’re setting ourselves up to be on the other side of that, but we’ve still got to go out there and play. We’ve got the names to do it and the guys to do it.”
Dodgers infielder Max Muncy dismisses the “best team on paper” designation as having “not a whole lot” of meaning and pauses when asked to explain why the Dodgers have not been able to parlay their talent advantages into multiple championships.
“The answer is simple. Describing it is not simple,” Muncy said. “You almost have to go out there and act like you have no talent. You’ve got to go out there and do the fundamentals, prepare the right way, make sure you have a good game plan going into the game and you’ve got to execute it.
“You can’t just assume you can win a game because of who the name on the back of the jersey says – or even who the name on the front says. … You just can’t assume anything.”
The names are impressive. The Dodgers can field an everyday lineup featuring eight former All-Stars. With catcher Will Smith a good bet to make his first All-Star team, that could grow to a full nine by midseason. The bullpen features the active leader in saves (Craig Kimbrel) thanks to a late-spring trade and a wealth of impressive options in front of him.
If there is an early favorite to make the trip from April through October a bumpy ride for the Dodgers, it is their starting rotation. They have less depth than they have had in years and will be counting on a series of things to all go right. Buehler and Urias can’t take a step back after carrying the heaviest workloads of their lives last season, 34-year-old Clayton Kershaw needs to stay healthy, Dustin May must find his form quickly when he returns from Tommy John surgery in the second half of the season – and it would certainly help if one (or more) of the Dodgers’ top pitching prospects (Bobby Miller, Ryan Pepiot or Landon Knack) made a precocious arrival in the big leagues.
“I think our starting rotation is less of a strength than it has been in years past,” Friedman acknowledged. “But that is a lot in how we start the year. I think with the guys we have right now and certain guys emerging, coupled with guys we either have coming back from injury as well as really talented guys in the minor leagues that we feel have a chance to knock the door down that we will be in a much better position.
“But I think that is less of a strength than it has been in years past.”
If the lineup is as loaded as it looks (on paper) and the wealth of bullpen options live up to their potential, the starting rotation won’t have to do as much heavy lifting and the Dodgers will make good on Roberts’ guarantee.
“I don’t think we have a choice,” Freeman said of embracing the expectations that have made the Dodgers’ overwhelming preseason favorites to win it all. “We’ve got a lot of good guys. You got a city that expects to win and we expect to win too, as players. So every day you got to come in here and expect that. If it doesn’t get done that day, gotta come back and try the next day.
“I think we’ve got a good group, Dave is leading the charge and I think everyone is falling in line and just trying to win the World Series.”
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Michigan Man Arrested After Allegedly Stealing Marijuana Plants Off Someone's Property, Police
An arrest warrant was authorized on March 8 once police identified Kirk Gilders as the alleged owner of the truck seen on the property, clickondetroit.com reported.
A Michigan man was arrested after a homeowner received an alert from her home surveillance system that captured a stranger stealing marijuana plants off her property, according to the authorities.
The man, identified as Kirk R. Gilders 56, was arrested on Saturday at his home in Mesick, according to police, more than six months after the theft, WPBN/WGTU News reported.
On Monday, Gilders was arraigned at 84th District Court in Wexford County for one count of larceny between $1,000 and less than $20,000 and trespassing, according to WPBN/WGTU News. He was given a $1,000 bond, the news outlet reported.
The incident took place in September 2021 at a residence in Springvale Township, Michigan, the new outlet reported.
The female homeowner, whose name was not disclosed, contacted a Michigan State Police trooper about the ordeal. She told the authorities that when she reviewed the footage, she saw someone in a pickup truck pulling up to her home and removing the plants off her property, police said, clickondetroit.com reported.
The authorities said the woman made a record of the car’s registration plate and then located the man’s truck at a nearby repair facility, the news outlet said.
When police intervened they noticed that the truck had potting soil in the truck bed and on the bumper, according to clickondetroit.com.
An arrest warrant was authorized on March 8 once police identified Gilders as the owner of the truck, the news outlet reported.
Gilders is scheduled to appear in court on April 19 at 2 p.m., WPBN/WGTU News reported.
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Mom of Natalee Holloway Confronted by Cops During Her Return to Aruba, Where Her Daughter Disappeared
Beth Holloway was joined by Nancy Grace on their recent trip to Aruba, where they discovered new information about the timeline of Natalee's disappearance.
Beth Holloway is making an emotional return to Aruba, the Caribbean Island where her teen daughter Natalee Holloway disappeared during spring break 17 years ago. But the Alabama mom and television personality Nancy Grace, who joined her on the trip, weren’t met with the friendliest of welcomes.
The pair said they were confronted by local police while filming for the new television series “A Natalee Holloway Investigation,” now airing on Fox Nation.
“They wanted to arrest us,” Grace told Inside Edition. “They wanted to arrest Natalee’s mother.”
The police confrontation in Aruba, which was partially caught on camera, took place after Grace and Natalee’s mother allegedly filmed in a hotel without permission – which they called a trumped-up charge.
She speculated, “They do not want bad PR, public relations, about Aruba. Summer is coming up, spring break right now, they want to welcome everybody in.”
Their recent investigation ended with new information about the timeline of Natalee’s disappearance. While her mom never received closure, she said she has found peace with what happened to her daughter.
“Natalee was with God, and he wrapped his heavenly arms around her and cared for her, whatever ordeal she encountered that night,” she said.
Natalee Holloway, who was just 18 at the time, disappeared while on a trip with her high school class in 2005. She and her senior classmates from Mountain Brook High School had just graduated days before, and they were celebrating the milestone.
Her body has never been found, and officially, the case of her disappearance has never been solved. “You can see how small [the island] is. They should have had it solved in 24 hours,” Grace said.
The primary suspect in the case is Joran van der Sloot, whom many describe as a local party boy.
“I’m not flabbergasted, I’m embarrassed that law enforcement did not do their duty," Grace said. "They did not put van der Sloot behind bars for murder."
Joran van der Sloot is currently in prison in Peru, convicted for the murder of a 21-year-old woman in a hotel room. He has not been charged in Natalee's murder.
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Road Rage Gun Violence Has Spiked During the Pandemic: Report
According to a recently released report by Everytown for Gun Safety, 522 people were injured or killed in 2021 due to a gun-related road rage incident.
Over 500 people were victims of road rage shootings in the U.S. in 2021, according to a report by Everytown for Gun Safety.
The recently released report shows the drastic increase in road rage violence during the pandemic, showing that 2021 has been the worst year since the organization began compiling their statistics in 2016.
The number of shootings and incidents involving a gun has increased from 702 in 2020 to 728 total, with almost two thirds of that number leading to injury or death.
The number of people killed went from 102 in 2020 to 131 the next year.
According to CBS, Sarah Burd-Sharps, Everytown's senior director of research, believes that the increase in violence is connected to an increase in gun purchases over the last two years, as the presence of a gun in a vehicle has been shown to make drivers more aggressive, according to a 2017 study published in the Journal of Experimental Social Psychology.
"You can't ignore the record increase in gun sales. In the 10 years through 2019, there were about 13.5 million guns sold (annually). So over a decade it was pretty stable. In 2020, it jumped up to 22 million sold and in 2021, 19 million, so millions more guns," Burd-Sharps told the outlet.
Burd-Sharps says that rage violence in the U.S. is unparalleled elsewhere, according to CBS.
"Driving certainly gets heated in plenty of other countries. And we've looked at road rage in a number of countries, but only in the U.S. is someone shot and injured or killed every 17 hours, is what we've calculated, in a road rage incident," Burd-Sharps said to the outlet.
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Wisconsin Doctor Found Dead After Being Reported Missing During Hiking Trip
The investigation is ongoing for doctoral fellow Kelsey Musgrove, who went hiking in Iron County and was later found dead.
Twenty-six-year-old cardiothoracic fellow Kelsey Musgrove was hiking at Potato River Falls in Wisconsin when she was reported missing, according to authorities.
Musgrove’s last contact with others was on March 26 and she was reported missing on March 30, according to a press release from the Iron County Sheriff’s department.
Authorities say after the young woman’s vehicle was located in a parking area, deputies alongside 25 other agencies assisted in an air, ground, and water search.
"All indications at the scene and information from family and friends lead us to believe she had gone hiking along Potato River and had not returned to her vehicle," Sheriff Paul Samardich said in the release.
That Sunday, Musgrove’s body was found near the falls. The release states that foul play is not suspected, and that the investigation is ongoing.
"We would like to express our sincere condolences to Kelsey's family," the sheriff's office said.
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The last couple of years have seen many of us welcome a new four-legged friend into our homes, as the Kennel Club saw dog ownership rise by nearly eight per cent.
But with 221 different breeds of pedigree dog to choose from, there’s plenty of thinking to do before you select your perfect pup.
Those with active lifestyles might want to consider a larger dog, while somebody with allergies will be looking for a hypoallergenic dog.
There’s even academic guidance to seek out, with Psychologist Stanley Coren’s book ‘The Intelligence of Dogs’ ranking breeds by instincts, obedience, and the ability to adapt.
One dog that often appears on prospective owner’s canine wishlists is the Akita – a breed that can be willful but are alert, courageous, and fiercely loyal to their family.
Here are 10 fun and interesting facts about the breed.
Read more:
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| 2022-04-06T16:22:15Z
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Scott McLaughlin won the NTT IndyCar Rookie of the Year award in 2021, a year after having won his third consecutive Australian Supercars series title.
Big deal, one might say. After all, the runner-up – former Formula One driver Romain Grosjean – did 13 of the 16 races while McLaughlin did them all.
Still, it is, in a way, a cool accolade because McLaughlin went from driving touring cars to open-wheel cars. He is also the first from Team Penske to win the award.
“I guess the Supercar really doesn’t rely too much on the aerodynamics, where the Indy car does,” McLaughlin said, when asked about the adjustments he had to make. “So it took me a good year or so to really trust the aerodynamic forces of the car and the power that it actually has on car set-up, and your confidence level and what it can help with.”
One year, indeed. McLaughlin finished 14th in IndyCar points in 2021, with one podium – he was second at the EXPEL 375 in Texas – and five top 10 finishes highlighting his rookie campaign.
Don’t look now, but the second-year man is off to a hot start this season. He won at St. Pete in the season opener and was second at the XPEL 375, giving him a series-leading 97 points heading into this Sunday’s Acura Grand Prix of Long Beach main event.
Official practices are Friday and qualifying is Saturday on the streets of Long Beach.
One could say McLaughlin is pleased with the start to 2022.
“Not winning Texas was probably the biggest blip on the radar, and it’s awesome,” he said. “If we were upset about a second place, it’s a good thing. But it’s a great start. We need to keep the consistency.”
He said that’s what it takes to contend for the series championship.
“And I feel we can continue that at Long Beach,” McLaughlin said. “I enjoy the race there and enjoy the track. Hopefully, we can make it happen.”
The New Zealander intimated that about halfway through the 2021 season, he began to get a good feel for the differences in the two types of cars.
“I think it clicked with me in the last sort of three months of the season last year and then, obviously, having the whole offseason to work on that, fine-tuning a few things of what I want,” he said. “That certainly helped and allowed us to come out with this fast start.”
How it started
Like so many racers, McLaughlin got his start in a go-kart.
“Six years old, you try anything,” he said. “It was a hobby, and stuff that I did with my dad. We sort of got a couple of years in on the track and was winning a few titles and, obviously, at 8, 9 years old you have pretty big dreams and I wanted to be a race-car driver from that age.
“When I learned I could earn money doing this, it was going to be pretty cool, you know? Yeah, I’m just one of the lucky few who’s turned a hobby into a profession, and (I’m) really privileged.”
McLaughlin and his family moved from New Zealand to Australia when he was 9. That presented a challenge of a different type – changing schools in a different country. But he said that actually helped him in his career as he got older.
“Moving around and having to meet new people and speak to new people and stuff sort of got me almost groomed to speak to sponsors, to speak to people in corporate boxes and suites and, yeah, to just groom me for what was going to happen later on in life,” he said.
Already a contender
Penske teammate Will Power is impressed, to be sure, but it sounds like he’s not surprised at what McLaughlin is doing.
“He definitely can be a contender,” said Power, who is currently second in series points with 69. “He has a lot of experience at a high level. He raced in Australia in a very competitive series in Supercars.”
To get an idea of just how well McLaughlin did during his nine years in Supercars – the last four of which were for DJR Team Penske – he won 56 races and had 76 poles and 106 podiums.
Power said one thing is certain: McLaughlin is not your typical sophomore racer.
“Yeah, he’s more than a step above someone who’d be in their second year, you know, like a young 20-year-old,” Power said. “He’s certainly capable. As you’ve seen, he can win races, he’s good on ovals. Yup, he’ll be a contender, no question.”
Jim Michaelian, CEO of the Grand Prix Association of Long Beach, likes the professionalism with which McLaughlin goes about his business.
“First year around, I thought he did reasonably well for a rookie,” Michaelian said. “Every track you go to is a brand-new experience and no matter how much (simulation) training you have, why there’s nothing like being on the track itself and actually experiencing what it requires to get around quick.
“And I think that’s helped him out in terms of his approach over the winter time and now that the new season is here and he’s returning to a lot of the tracks where he raced at before, he’s run really well and he seems like a very reasoned, focused kind of a driver.”
Michaelian suggested that the way McLaughlin operates, he’s strong enough to stay in the race for a series title.
“And I would suspect that he’ll be in that group along with (Scott) Dixon and (Alex) Palou, who are constantly looking to accumulate points as they go along,” Michaelian said. “And not necessarily always even podium finishes, but most important of all, steady compilation of points so that at the end of the season, I suspect he’s going to be in that top group when it comes down to the final race at Laguna Seca (on Sept. 11).”
Dixon has won six series championships. Palou won the 2021 title in his second year in IndyCar. Both drive for Chip Ganassi Racing.
McLaughlin, 28, believes he is already a challenger to the series title.
“I have no doubt,” he said. “And I’ve never probably had one little bit of doubt in my talent. You’ve gotta have that belief, you’ve gotta have almost that selfishness that you’re better than everyone else.
“But at the same time, I knew I had a lot to learn and still do. I think I believe I’m good enough right now to win the title. But I know that I need to focus on certain areas to make sure my consistency stays the same.”
McLaughlin said he and his crew are always prepared for a race, so they know exactly what they need from the car.
“I fully believe that I’m good enough and, hopefully, I’ll be there in the fight at the end,” he said.
A good showing at Long Beach will help in that regard. McLaughlin was 11th there in September, when the race ran almost six months later than normal because of the coronavirus pandemic.
“It’s a very historic race course,” McLaughlin said. “You understand the history of the place and how dear it is to IndyCar’s heart. So it makes it very cool as a driver to get on there and compete in it there. For me, love the track. I think the track’s a cool layout. It’s tough, it’s difficult.”
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Los Angeles County Supervisor Holly J Mitchell during the Board of Supervisors meeting on April 5, 2022. (Bryan Chan / Los Angeles County)
Los Angeles County Supervisor Kathryn Barger during the Board of Supervisors meeting on April 5, 2022. (Bryan Chan / Los Angeles County)
Los Angeles County Supervisor Janice Hahn during the Board of Supervisors meeting on April 5, 2022. (Bryan Chan / Los Angeles County)
Los Angeles County Supervisor Sheila Kuehl during the Board of Supervisors meeting on April 5, 2022. (Bryan Chan / Los Angeles County)
Los Angeles County Supervisor Hilda L Solis during the Board of Supervisors meeting on April 5, 2022. (Bryan Chan / Los Angeles County)
Los Angeles County Supervisors during the Board of Supervisors meeting on April 5, 2022. From left: Sheila Kuehl, Kathryn Barger, Holly J Mitchell, Janice Hahn and Hilda L Solis. (Bryan Chan / Los Angeles County)
Los Angeles County Supervisors during the Board of Supervisors meeting on April 5, 2022. From left: Sheila Kuehl, Kathryn Barger, Holly J Mitchell, Janice Hahn and Hilda L Solis. (Bryan Chan / Los Angeles County)
The Los Angeles County Supervisors met in its chambers for the first time in two years on Tuesday, April 5.
Forced into virtual meetings by the pandemic, the board welcomed supervisors back to the chambers but stopped short of letting the public in.
For the immediate future, the meetings remain virtual with only the five supervisors and limited support staff actually inside the cavernous downtown hall.
That poked at a sore spot among critics and longtime board-watchers, who have been pressuring supervisors to reopen the downtown chambers immediately for meetings.
Nonetheless, officials touted the the action as a first step in a “gradual plan to return to the Board Hearing Room.”
According to a statement from the county, the board will continue to adhere to public health protocols before fully reopening.
Officials anticipate an announcement in the “near future” on when meetings will be reopened to the public.
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PHOENIX — The Lakers faced possible elimination from the postseason Tuesday night, and LeBron James was not in the lineup.
The 37-year-old was ruled out by the Lakers on Tuesday morning ahead of their game against the Phoenix Suns, the NBA’s winningest team this season. It was the fourth game James has missed since spraining his left ankle on March 27 against the New Orleans Pelicans, and the Lakers entered Tuesday night with five straight losses since that injury occurred.
As of Tuesday afternoon, the Lakers (31-47) were pushed to the brink of postseason elimination: Their next loss and San Antonio’s next win would leave them no mathematical route to the single-elimination play-in game.
While the Lakers have been driving down this road for some time, losing six straight games, missing the postseason for the second time in four years of James’ Lakers tenure would be a profound disappointment for a team that trumpeted championship expectations at the beginning of the season.
Despite his age and the team’s struggles, James is having one of the best scoring seasons of his career and was among the leading eligible NBA scorers with a 30.3 average. But to clinch his second career scoring title, James will have to play at least two more games to reach the 58-game minimum requirement. As of Tuesday night, he narrowly trailed Philadelphia’s Joel Embiid (30.4 ppg) and was slightly ahead of Milwaukee’s Giannis Antetokounmpo (30.1 ppg), who are both considered top MVP contenders.
James’ last scoring title came during the 2007-08 season, when he beat out the Lakers’ Kobe Bryant and Philadelphia’s Allen Iverson for the league’s top average.
The bigger question for the Lakers might be whether they shelve James and All-Star big man Anthony Davis after they’re eliminated from the playoffs. Both have missed significant time due to injury this season, and both are hurt now. Coach Frank Vogel side-stepped a question about what the franchise would do in that situation: “I’ll answer that question at the right time.”
Another less desirable milestone could lie ahead: The Lakers are within reach of 50 losses for the season, which would be the most defeats for any of James’ teams in his 19-year career. His worst team record came during his rookie season with the Cleveland Cavaliers (33-49), one of the three other times his teams have missed the playoffs.
Davis (right foot sprain) was questionable for Tuesday’s game, but he was able to play. Kendrick Nunn – who has not played all season – was the only other scratch for the Lakers.
Vogel added that Davis’ foot sprain was healing, but soreness in neighboring areas had been bothering him: “He’s dealing with some other soreness in the area that’s causing him to come up limping and wincing at times. Just his body getting used to playing on the foot again.”
The Lakers finish the season with games at Golden State on Thursday, at home against Oklahoma City on Friday and at Denver on Sunday.
ABDUL-JABBAR WALKS BACK CRITICISM OF JAMES
After saying Sunday morning that LeBron James should be “embarrassed” by some of the things he has said over the years, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar has had some regret about his comments.
The 74-year-old Laker legend made the remarks before the Lakers’ game against the Nuggets, when he presented an award named after himself to Carmelo Anthony to honor the current Laker’s work in social justice. After his comments proved to be a bigger headline than the award presentation itself, Abdul-Jabbar issued a statement on Sunday, and followed that with a Tuesday appearance on NBA Sirius XM radio.
“It wasn’t my intention to criticize LeBron in any way,” Abdul-Jabbar said. “He has done so much for the Black community as well as for the game of basketball. We may not always agree, but I want to wholeheartedly apologize to LeBron and make it clear to him that I have tremendous respect for him. And if he can accept that, I’ll be very happy.”
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East Lothian crime news: A drunk firebug caused around £20,000 of damage after he set a blaze at an East Lothian university
Jonathan Brown lit the fire within a storage area that contained canisters of butane gas, CO2 and helium at Queen Margaret University, in Musselburgh, East Lothian.
Brown had made his way to the university by bus and was spotted wandering about the campus smoking and drinking from a can at around 11.45pm on July 5, 2020.
The 33-year-old made his way to the secluded storage area where flames and smoke were subsequently seen to erupt minutes later.
Edinburgh Sheriff Court was told fire fighters raced to the scene and managed to extinguish the blaze before it could reach the gas canisters.
The court heard several rooms within the university were damaged and the repair bill was in the region of £20,000.
Brown pleaded guilty to a charge of wilfully setting fire to the university storage area when he appeared at the capital court yesterday.
Prosecutor Jennifer McLaren said Brown arrived at the Queen Margaret University campus by bus and was seen on CCTV walking about the grounds for around 90 minutes.
He was seen drinking from a can and smoking before heading to the storage area where the flames were seen and a fire alarm activated at around 1.45am.
Security staff spotted Brown on the CCTV footage “running off” from the area and the fire service arrived just after 2am to find the area under a main stairwell on well alight.
Ms McLaren said fire fighters took around “15 minutes to gain control of the fire” before the fire commander spotted 18 gas canisters within the area.
Police were called and retrieved a cigarette from the surrounding area before viewing the CCTV which showed Brown walking about while “under the influence”.
The court was told Brown, of Wardlaw Place, Edinburgh, then handed himself in to police two days after the incident.
Solicitor Lesley Cunningham, defending, said her client had one previous conviction and had no connection to the university.
Sheriff Alistair Noble deferred sentence for the preparation of reports to next month.
Brown admitted to wilfully setting fire to a storage area and causing damage to the area at Queen Margaret University, Musselburgh, East Lothian, on July 5, 2020.
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The Rams will give Riley Dixon the first crack at replacing longtime punter Johnny Hekker.
The team said Tuesday it came to terms on a one-year contract with Dixon, 28, a former Denver Bronco and New York Giant who was released by the Giants last month.
He’s familiar to Rams special teams coordinator Joe DeCamillis, who was on the Denver staff when Dixon broke in as a seventh-round draft choice from Syracuse in 2016 and earned All-Rookie Team honors.
The 6-foot-4, 221-pound Dixon has averaged 45.3 yards per punt in his six NFL seasons, including 44.4 in 2021.
Hekker averaged 46.7 in his 10 years with the Rams, 44.2 last season, before being released March 16 with two years left on his contract, saving the team about $2 million against the NFL salary cap.
Hekker signed with the Panthers five days later.
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Rhino Records is planning to depart from Claremont, a move that will leave a gap in the city’s cultural life, according to the store’s first manager.
“How can you have a college town without a record store?” said Mark Leviton in a phone interview.
Rhino Records has been part of the Village, Claremont’s quaint downtown area, since 1974. But on April 1 the shop announced on its website and Facebook page that this summer it will be closing down at its current location, 235 N. Yale Ave., and moving to a location in Montclair. It did not provide details about closing or an address for the new location, although it described it as a larger space one block east of Montclair Place.
Taylor Kingsbury, floor manager, said the store expects to be open through the end of June.
Rhino’s operation included an adjoining video rental shop called Video Paradiso. The two will be combined into one store at the new location, acccording to the Facebook post.
Rhino has outlived most of its competitors in Southern California, bigger chains that included Tower Records, the Wherehouse and Licorice Pizza.
From the day it opened, Rhino filled a niche in Claremont, according to Leviton.
He was part of a circle of music lovers at UCLA in the early 1970s that brought the store about.
The first Rhino record store was opened in Westwood, UCLA’s neighborhood, in 1973 by Richard Foos, who went on to found the Rhino record label.
Leviton shopped there and knew Foos. In 1974, he moved to Claremont to be near his girlfriend, who was a graduate student at the Claremont Colleges.
“It’s kind of weird that there’s a college town with no record store,” she told him. “Why don’t you talk to Richard and ask him if he wants to start another store, and that could be your job?”
The store was on Second Street, but after a couple of years he moved to the back of a small shopping arcade on Yale Avenue. It was next to Bentley’s Food Market, a family-run grocery store that was itself a local institution for decades.
After Bentley’s closed, Rhino moved into the space in 1991.
From the start, Rhino appealed to customers who wanted to expand their musical horizons, acccording to Leviton.
“There were people who depended on me, especially younger people who would come in and say, ‘What should I listen to? What should I be hearing?’ 12- and 13-year-olds, sometimes. And a lot of those kids started bands.”
Rhino had connections with British importers and independent labels that gave it a broader inventory than the top 40. It also did brisk business on discontinued albums and traded-in used LPs.
“We carried a lot of deleted titles. Richard had a line on buying what were called ‘cutouts’ at the time. When an album went out of print, you could buy them pretty cheap,” he said. “Our prices were cheaper than anywhere else, even for new stuff.”
The Claremont store is the last remaining Rhino store. The Westwood store closed in 2006. A sister store, Mad Platter in Riverside, that closed in 2020 in the midst of the novel coronavirus pandemic.
After nearly five decades,Rhino’s core business hasn’t changed that much. Kingsbury said it sells “a ton of vinyl,” both new and used.
He expects to move a lot of in on Record Store Day, a day to promote independent stores with sales and special merchandise. It takes place on April 23, and Rhino is taking reservations so that customers won’t have to camp out for it. Deals will include $10 LPs and several bins of fresh used merchandise.
Leviton left Rhino in 1979 for a job with Warner Music Group He now lives in Northern California but hasn’t lost touch with Claremont.
He said the idea of Rhino moving off of Yale Avenue and away from the Claremont Colleges changes what it was about.
“Moving 2 1/2 miles away from the campus kind of takes the wind out that original idea, that a college town should have a record store.
“I think music is a positive influence in the world. And anything that gets more music to people is a good thing. I wish them luck. But in the history of Claremont it’s kind of a sad thing.”
Information: rhinorecords.cc
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East Lothian: First cracks discovered in the Torness nuclear reactor
The first cracks have appeared in the Torness nuclear power station in East Lothian prompting anti-nuclear campaigners to argue the plant should be shut down sooner than planned.
The Ferret reported the operator of the plant, EDF Energy, said three cracks had been found in the graphite core of one of the reactors in a letter to a local liaison group in February.
According to EDF the cracks were expected and would not “on their own” impact the safety of the power station. Despite this, campaigners are calling for its closure date to be brought forward from 2028.
The Office for Nuclear Regulation (ONR) predicted in 2020 that Torness would start cracking six years sooner than previously expected, in 2022. At this point EDF brought the plant's planned closure date forward by two years from 2030 to 2028.
Anti-nuclear campaigners are arguing that it may need to shut as early as 2024 to avoid any “unnecessary” risks as the cracking continues to escalate.
The two reactors have been operational at Torness near Dunbar since 1989 when the plant was opened by Margaret Thatcher, the then-Prime Minister. According to EDF the plant employs around 500 staff and 200 contractors, and contributes around £45 million to the local economy.
The cracks were identified at the start of the year on one of the reactors as part of an inspection process which takes place every six months. They are fissures at the base of key slots in the graphite cores and are known as keyway root cracks.
Another inspection is due to be carried out in May which will assess whether additional cracks have formed in the last few months.
Dr Richard Dixon, who stepped down as director of Friends of the Earth Scotland on March 31, said the cracking raised more questions about the safety of keeping the plant open for another six years.
He added: “Nuclear is incredibly expensive, and suffers from complex problems, as well as creating waste which will have to be looked after for thousands of years. Scotland is well on its way to getting all of our power from safe renewables whilst nuclear is yesterday’s technology.”
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By Mary Clare Jalonick, Lisa Mascaro and Farnoush Amiri | Associated Press
WASHINGTON — Ivanka Trump, former President Donald Trump’s daughter and one of those closest to him during the insurrection at the Capitol, is testifying before the House panel investigating the Jan. 6, 2021, attack.
Mississippi Rep. Bennie Thompson, the committee’s chairman, said Tuesday afternoon that she had been answering investigators’ questions on a video teleconference since the morning and was not “chatty” but had been helpful to the probe.
“She came in on her own” and did not have to be subpoenaed, Thompson said.
Ivanka Trump, who was with her father in the White House that day, is one of more than 800 witnesses the committee has interviewed as it works to compile a record of the attack, the worst on the Capitol in more than two centuries. She the first of Trump’s children known to speak to the committee and one of the closest people to her father.
Whether she gives the committee new information or not, her decision to cooperate is significant for the panel, which has been trying to secure an interview with her since late January. The nine-member panel is particularly focused on what the former president was doing as his supporters broke into the Capitol and interrupted the certification of President Joe Biden’s victory.
Ivanka Trump’s testimony comes less than a week after her husband, Jared Kushner, testified to the committee in a separate virtual meeting that lasted more than six hours. Members of the panel said his testimony was helpful and were hoping to further fill in the gaps with her help.
The panel is using the interviews to compile a comprehensive record and will begin to release information in the coming months as it holds public hearings and releases a series of reports on the insurrection. While Congress doesn’t have power to charge anyone with a crime, members of the panel say the objective is to create the most comprehensive record possible so nothing like it ever happens again.
Lawmakers have said they want to discuss what Ivanka Trump knew about her father’s efforts, including a telephone call they say she witnessed, to pressure then-Vice President Mike Pence to reject Biden’s 2020 election win as part of his ceremonial role overseeing the electoral count. Pence rejected those efforts.
The committee is also interested in any concerns she may have heard from Pence’s staff, members of Congress and the White House counsel’s office about Trump’s pressure on Pence.
Ivanka Trump’s cooperation stands in contrast with some of her father’s other top advisers, several of whom have refused to cooperate as the former president has fought the probe. Trump has tried to exert executive privilege over documents and interviews, but in many cases has been overruled by courts or Biden, who has that authority as the sitting president.
The House is expected to vote this week to recommend contempt charges for Trump advisers Peter Navarro and Dan Scavino, both of whom the committee says have been uncooperative. The committee previously voted to recommend contempt charges against longtime Trump ally Steve Bannon, who defied a congressional subpoena, and White House chief of staff Mark Meadows, who ceased cooperating with the panel.
Bannon was later indicted by a federal grand jury and is awaiting prosecution by the Justice Department. The Justice Department has not taken any action against Meadows.
Other witnesses who are still close to the former president — and several who were in the White House that day — have declined to answer the committee’s questions.
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Edinburgh council elections 2022: Lib Dems launch manifesto
Liberal Democrats today launched their manifesto for next month's Edinburgh council elections, promising to reverse school budget cuts, invest more in road and pavement repairs and deliver 10,000 more affordable homes.
Let us know what you think and join the conversation at the bottom of this article.
The party is fielding 22 candidates across the city's 17 multi-member wards and aiming to increase its current contingent of six councillors.
Other pledges include improving the city's public transport network and expanding park-and-ride sites and EV charging.
The Lib Dems say they would review existing Spaces for People schemes and work with communities and active travel groups to deliver higher quality projects more sensitive to local concerns.
The manifesto says: "We will seek to expand the planned low emission zone so it covers buses, coaches and goods vehicles across the whole city, not just within the core city centre."
They say they would ensure "genuine public consultation" before key decisions are taken, reintroduce locality committees and introduce a question time for the public at council committees.
The manifesto says they support a "modest tourist tax" and would campaign for Edinburgh to receive a special payment in recognition of its capital status.
On education, the party pledges to continue free instrumental and vocal lessons for primary and secondary children and expand nursery provision across the city.
And it says: “Year on year cuts to devolved school budgets by the SNP and Labour coalition administration have resulted in teachers buying supplies for their classes from their own salary. Liberal Democrats will reverse the SNP and Labour cuts which stop our schools deciding at a local level what their schools and their young people need.”
The party says it would increase the percentage of affordable homes required in new housing developments as part of delivering 10,000 more affordable homes by 2030.
On care, it says it supports moving the balance of care towards care-at-home where possible and appropriate and believes there should be a diverse range of providers in the public, private and not for profit sectors.
It says it would invest extra in staffing to tackle littering and dog fouling; scrap the charges for bulky uplifts; review the “garden tax”; halt the decision to remove gull-proof bags in historic parts of Edinburgh; ensure more public bins in key locations; and open new permanent public toilets.
And it says it would seek a new partnership with local police, with additional funding for enhanced speed enforcement, a stronger emphasis on community-based policing and a targeted increase in the use of CCTV.
Lib Dem group leader Robert Aldridge said: “A decade of SNP and Labour control has failed our city. Under the arrogant ‘we know best’ attitude of SNP and Labour councillors, too many people feel the council doesn’t listen or, worse still, doesn’t care.
“In too many areas, Edinburgh is not working as it should. Too many people don’t have a safe place to call home. Getting around the city is not as easy as it should be. The quality of your child’s education too often depends on where you live. Recycling rates are falling, roads and pavements are crumbling, and streets are dirtier and more littered.
“Liberal Democrats believe the people of this city deserve better. With more Liberal Democrats elected to Edinburgh council, we can get the new approach and the fresh start our city desperately needs."
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| 2022-04-06T16:26:49Z
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Edinburgh has highest number of council employees on over £100,000 in Scotland
Edinburgh has more council employees on over £100,000 a year than any other local authority in Scotland, according to the annual Town Hall Rich Liist.
Let us know what you think and join the conversation at the bottom of this article.
The Capital tops the league for the second year running with a total of 29 people employed by the council or its arms-length companies receiving packages worth more than £100,000 in 2020/21 – one more than the previous year.
And Paul Lawrence, director of place – with a remit which includes planning, transport, economic development, housing and waste collection – has been named the council’s employee with the highest remuneration at £198,011, made up of £161,247 salary and £36,764 in pension.
The Capital’s second highest remuneration went to Edinburgh Trams managing director Lea Harrison who received a total of £186,531. That included salary of £150,523 – a pay increase of £18,498 on the previous year – as well as £19,971 pension and £16,037 “other benefits”. But the absence of a bonus meant his overall package fell from £194,123.
The man with the third biggest package was council chief executive Andrew Kerr with a salary of £179,364, but nothing listed for pension because he is not a member of the local government pension scheme.
The list, put together by the Taxpayers' Alliance, only names ten of the 29 Edinburgh employees on over £100,000.
The fourth biggest package – £170,438 – went to Stephen Moir, director of resources who recently left the council.
He was followed by Marshall Dallas, chief executive of Edinburgh International Conference Centre, whose remuneration totalled £167,073, then Nigel Serafini, interim managing director of Lothian Buses on £162,779. George Lowder, chief executive of Transport for Edinburgh, received £152,350.
Alastair Gaw, who left as director of communities and families in October 2020, was on £146,739. Hugh Dunn, head of finance, received £143,724. And Jackie Irvine, chief social work officer, £136,635.
The Taxpayers’s Alliance said during the Covid pandemic, the number of council staff across the UK receiving more than £100,000 had increased by 119 to at least 2,921 people, with 739 getting more than £150,000.
The biggest remuneration package paid by a Scottish council was £612,412 received by Glasgow's executive director of City Building (Contracts) Dr Graham Paterson.
John O’Connell, chief executive of the Taxpayers' Alliance, said: “Taxpayers facing a cost of living crisis want to know they are getting value for money from their local authority leadership. With households having suffered through the pandemic and now struggling under colossal tax bills, the country needs councils to prioritise key services without resorting to punishing tax hikes. These figures will allow residents to judge town hall bosses for themselves and hold their local councils to account.”
A council spokesperson said: “We want to promote transparency and accountability within the council and always publish the salaries and expenses of our most senior managers as part of our annual accounts. Rates of pay are determined by a wholly objective job evaluation scheme aligned to the national pay arrangements for chief officials, which reflect the level of responsibility for the roles concerned.”
She pointed out that four of the 29 staff were not directly employed by the council and said seven of the 29 did not earn more than £100,000 a year because the totals quoted included one-off sums paid as part of early retirement or voluntary release.
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| 2022-04-06T16:26:56Z
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Ukraine: Sandbags flown from Edinburgh Airport to help protect monuments in Kyiv
More than 3,000 sandbags are currently on route from Edinburgh to Kyiv – where they will be used to protect monuments and statues.
After travelling from Edinburgh Airport as the ‘personal luggage allowance’ of an easyJet Captain, they are now on board a train to Ukraine’s capital city.
The bags, which were donated to Edinburgh by Falkirk Council, will be used by officials in Kyiv to erect sand barricades to preserve important historical monuments, memorials, and statues for future generations.
They will arrive in the city less than two weeks after Kyiv called on its twin city Edinburgh for help.
The appeal to the office of Edinburgh’s Lord Provost, Frank Ross, soon saw 11 organisations step into action, delivering the bags less than two weeks after the request came in.
Mr Ross said: “I’m delighted we were able to answer our twin city Kyiv’s call for help so quickly and that the sandbags will soon be put to good use protecting their treasured monuments and, with that, their history.
The coordination and delivery involved in turning this around has required a real ‘can do’ attitude and a true team effort between all of the organisations involved. They each deserve great credit for their ingenuity and input.
“This is typical of the response since the invasion began a month ago, which has seen a characteristically caring and generous response from the people and organisations from across Edinburgh, with many coming forward with offers of help and donations.
“As people flee the war and choose to seek refuge here, our teams will continue to work around the clock to welcome families with open arms and make sure they receive the safety and support they need.”
Dorothy Reid, roads and grounds manager for Falkirk Council, said: “There’s already a massive humanitarian effort going on, however, this seemed something that was a bit different, and we were really happy to offer a hand with.
“We hope that some of the city’s historic landmarks can be protected with the sandbags and our small donation helps Kyiv and its citizens maintain its cultural identity.”
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky was made a freeman of Edinburgh last month, joining an exclusive club which includes the Queen and Olympic cyclist Sir Chris Hoy.
Councillors in the capital unanimously awarded freedom of the city to Mr Zelensky and Vitali Klitschko, the mayor of Edinburgh’s twin city Kyiv, in honour of their “leadership and heroism”.
Adam McVey, leader of City of Edinburgh Council, said the authority was “standing firm in friendship with the people of Ukraine, committing to doing whatever we can to help”.
“I hope this decision demonstrates our absolute solidarity and admiration of the people of Kyiv and Ukraine, who have literally taken up arms in defence of their country against this illegal and murderous invasion by Putin’s forces, and I very much hope that, one day, they’ll be able to receive this honour in person,” he said.
The freedom of the city is Edinburgh’s most prestigious honour, and dates back more than 560 years to 1459.
The president and mayor join an exclusive club of freemen of the capital, with others including the Duke of Edinburgh, Sir Sean Connery and Nelson Mandela.
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| 2022-04-06T16:27:55Z
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The Carteret County Chamber of Commerce Military Affairs Committee (MAC) invited active duty families from Marine Corps Air Station (MCAS) Cherry Point and Coast Guard Sector North Carolina to a Family Fishing Day at Oceana Fishing Pier, Atlantic Beach, North Carolina, April 2, 2022. The event included a scavenger hunt and face painting for the kids, free fishing rods and bait for the attendees, and lunch. The Carteret County MAC encourages and supports strong relations between service members and the community. One way they do this is by hosting events like this to get military members involved in a fun way.
“I appreciate all the volunteers from the Chamber of Commerce, Cherry Point, and the Coast Guard that came out to help us,” said Cindy Davison, the program director of the Carteret County Chamber of Commerce. “We couldn’t do it without all the people.”
This work, Family Fishing Day, by LCpl Jade Farrington and LCpl Lauralle Walker, identified by DVIDS, must comply with the restrictions shown on https://www.dvidshub.net/about/copyright.
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Photo by Giuseppe Lombardo
By Laura Itzkowitz
Apr 6, 2022
Photo by Kristi Blokhin/Shutterstock
Sfogliatella were supposedly invented by a nun on the Amalfi Coast.
Tiramisu, cannoli, and panna cotta are a few of the best, most classic Italian desserts you must try while traveling in Italy.
It’s fair to say that Italians have a sweet tooth. Breakfast is usually coffee and a pastry and, in the summer, Italians will head to their favorite gelateria after lunch or dinner. Traditionally, a meal consists of an antipasto, primo (pasta, soup, or rice), a secondo (a main dish, usually meat or fish), and a dolce (dessert), even if people will often choose just two or three courses at a restaurant. After school, kids usually have an afternoon snack known as a merenda that consists of something sweet like crostata (a baked tart usually made with jam or ricotta).
Italian cuisine is very regional, so you’ll find different desserts in each of the country’s 20 regions. There are even some towns known for a particular sweet. That said, some desserts like tiramisu and gelato have become so widespread that you can find them all over Italy. And nearly every holiday has a dessert, like panettone for Christmas, colomba for Easter, and frappe and castagnole for Carnevale. If you have a sweet tooth, use this guide to Italy’s essential desserts and where to find them.
Found in pasticcerie and cafés around Naples and the Amalfi Coast, this flaky pastry is shaped a bit like a seashell or a lobster tail (there’s a version called coda d’aragosta, or lobster tail) and filled with ricotta scented with citrus peel and cinnamon. There are two versions: either made with frolla (smooth) or riccia (curly) dough. Legend has it that they were invented by a nun at the cloistered convent of Santa Rosa in the village of Conca dei Marini on the Amalfi Coast.
Now a luxury hotel, Monastero Santa Rosa still serves sfogliatella for breakfast in homage to the nun’s original recipe. Another excellent place to get it is the historic Pasticceria Andrea Pansa in Amalfi.
Literally translating to “cooked cream,” this soft, silky pudding is as simple as it gets. The main ingredients are heavy cream, sugar, vanilla, and gelatin, which get blended and then set in a refrigerator for a few hours or overnight. It’s believed to originate in Piedmont, though it didn’t enter the mainstream until the 1960s. Often garnished with a fruit coulis or perhaps fresh fruit, it can be found in restaurants and hotels across Italy.
The pastry chef at Rome’s Hotel de Russie makes a fantastic panna cotta with strawberry coulis.
One of Italy’s best-known desserts, cannoli (the singular is cannolo) originated in Sicily, but can be found all over the country and beyond. The tube-shaped dessert is made of fried pastry dough filled with whipped ricotta sweetened with sugar and candied orange. You’ll sometimes see versions featuring pistachios, chocolate chips, or candied cherries. Their origin can be traced back to the 10th or 11th century, when Arabs ruled Sicily, with one legend saying that cannoli were invented in a Moorish harem as a vaguely phallic tribute to the sultan, while another legend attributes their invention to the nuns of a convent in Caltanissetta.
Look for them at Sicilian pasticcerie such as Pasticceria Cappello in Palermo and Dagnino in Rome.
Perhaps the most iconic Italian dessert, tiramisu appears on menus at restaurants not only throughout Italy but also all over the world. An irresistible combination of layers of coffee-soaked savoiardi and mascarpone whipped with sugar and eggs, topped with cacao powder, it’s either served as slices like a cake or in individual glasses or cups. Its origins are hotly contested between the regions of Veneto and Friuli Venezia Giulia, although the Italian government has officially recognized it as a product of Friuli—a bit surprising, since its name translates to “pick-me-up” in the dialect of Veneto. Countless variations have been born, from matcha tiramisu to deconstructed tiramisu. It’s usually eaten at the end of a meal, though bakeries sometimes sell individual portions.
Bar Pompi is the self-declared king of tiramisu and has versions flavored with strawberry, pistachio, or hazelnut as well as the classic tiramisu. It has six locations in Rome (including one near the Spanish Steps and another near the Trevi Fountain), plus a location in Florence.
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Aside from gelato, granita is the best way to cool down during the heat of a Sicilian summer. Made with water, sugar, and fruit or nuts, it’s slowly frozen and stirred continuously, resulting in a consistency somewhere in between the creaminess of gelato and the granularity of sorbet. In past centuries, it was made with the snow that fell on Mount Etna and derives from the Arab sherbet made with rose water. Nowadays, you can find dozens of flavors, but the most traditional ones are almond, pistachio, coffee, and lemon. Sicilians start their day by dunking a brioche into granita for breakfast, but it can be eaten throughout the day.
Caffè Sicilia in Noto serves a superlative version, but you can find it all over Sicily at gelaterias and little food trucks parked near popular beaches.
This rich, chocolate pudding is served throughout Piedmont, especially in the Langhe hills around Alba. Eaten with a spoon, it’s made like a crème caramel, with crumbled amaretti cookies, eggs, sugar, cocoa, milk, and rum. It’s sometimes served with hazelnuts, which grow in the region. The exact origins of bonet are unknown, but there are references to a chocolate-less version of it being served at noble banquets during the 13th century. Cocoa was added sometime after the European conquest of South America.
Turin’s Farmacia del Cambio, an elegant bar/pasticceria inside a pharmacy that dates back to 1833, is one of the best places to try bonet, but you’ll also see it on menus across the region.
Invented in 1978 by pastry chef Carmine Marzuillo, who worked at the hotel Parco dei Principi in Sorrento, this delightful little cake makes use of the lemons that the area is famous for. Shaped like a dome, it’s composed of sponge cake filled with lemon cream, soaked in limoncello, and topped with pale yellow icing. Usually eaten at the end of a meal, it can be found at restaurants and in pasticcerie all over the Campania region.
For a superlative delizia al limone and many other sweets, head to Pepe Mastro Dolciere in the small town of Sant’Egidio del Monte Albino near Salerno.
A sweet that’s found almost exclusively in Rome, the maritozzo is a soft bun split down the middle and filled with whipped cream. Its origins can be traced all the way back to ancient Rome, but it became popular during the Middle Ages, when the church allowed it to be eaten during the fasting days of Lent. Its name derives from the word marito, which means husband, and during the 19th century, men would propose by hiding a ring in a maritozzo.
You can find traditional versions at old school bakeries like Regoli and Roscioli Caffè, where they can be eaten for breakfast or as an afternoon snack. Roman chefs also like to play with the recipe by making savory versions with chicken salad or burrata and tomatoes, which you can try at MadeITerraneo run by Michelin-starred chef Riccardo Di Giacinto.
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Hibs boss Shaun Maloney wants full-time referees as he speaks on VAR preference
Hibs boss Shaun Maloney has welcomed the upcoming vote on introducing VAR to the cinch Premiership – but feels that a decision should have been made on full-time referees before looking at implementing VAR.
The 42 SPFL clubs will vote on Tuesday April 19 over the introduction of VAR to the top flight, with the vote requiring 75 per cent of Premiership clubs, 75 per cent of Championship clubs, and a combined 75 per cent of clubs in Leagues 1 and 2 to vote in favour.
Maloney is a big fan of the technology and feels Scotland is lagging behind other leagues.
"I’m a big fan of VAR. I understand there are results that don’t go your way sometimes – I think it feels like it might be going the opposite way at the moment – but I’m a fan,” he said during a question and answer session with Hibs season ticket holders.
"We are way behind other countries. We should now be able to see the very best of VAR around Europe and then bring it to our league so that we don't spoil all the good things that we have in our league.
"It will help because the officials are part-time, so they have jobs Monday to Friday. To ask them to go into the weekend to big pressure games – we’re going for the top six – to ask a referee who isn’t a professional is also a hard job so the more we can do to help them the better and ideally we get a bit more on our side."
Maloney is keen for officials to get more help doing what he says is a difficult job – and that full-time whistlers would be a start.
"Why we’re going for VAR when referees aren’t full-time… I think it’s maybe the wrong one to do first,” he added.
"It’s a big positive. I’ve been desperate for VAR in our league and now we have seen other leagues use it, we have to bring the best version of that.
"A couple of years ago it was killing the momentum of the game and now it seems in England that it’s just seen as part of the game so hopefully we bring in a really good version and it doesn’t spoil what we’ve got.”
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Lowland League: Bonnyrigg Rose and East Stirlingshire confirm they voted against guest clubs
Bonnyrigg Rose and East Stirlingshire have both confirmed they were among the four Lowland League clubs who voted against re-admitting guest clubs for another season.
Celtic and Rangers B teams are hoping to continue after member clubs voted 11-4 in favour of approving guest clubs in principle for a second season. They would not eligible for promotion to the Scottish Professional Football League.
The vote in favour of retaining guest teams follows the 16 member clubs’ decision last month not to increase the number of teams relegated to the three tier 6 leagues below.
That has prompted a wave of criticism from supporters of clubs in the East, West and South of Scotland Leagues who want the pyramid system to be far more fluid. Like this season, only one team in the 18-team league will be automatically relegated next season.
Bonnyrigg Rose and East Stirlingshire both consulted with supporters before submitting their vote against the proposal. Rumours that Bo’ness United also voted against have not been confirmed by the club.
Bonnyyrigg’s decision was made after a vote by their members and the club said in a statement: “We had just over double the response of the previous season but the results were broadly similar, with over 90% voting against the motion, which is why we can confirm that we were one of the four clubs that voted against last night.
“We published our vote result ahead of the meeting last season and for similar reasons our members rejected the motion once more. We have been consistent in our thoughts on pyramid integrity since moving back to the senior leagues in 2018, which is also why we voted in favour of additional promotion spots into the SLFL last month, which was rejected with our SLFL board member immediately resigning as a result.
“The process followed in both instances has been a democratic one and while we were on the opposite sides of both they are decisions which clubs are absolutely entitled to make.”
East Stirling’s statement read: “Over the last few days we sought the views of our season ticket holders, regular supporters and sponsors as to their views about guest clubs remaining for another season beyond the initial agreement
Our support was clear that this was NOT something they would wish to see continue. And as such we voted against the continuation for another season of guest clubs during tonight’s vote.
“We acknowledge that both guest clubs have seen major benefits to player development over the initial year and potentially the national teams as well. Our supporters are our club and we are grateful for their feedback and help in our decision making.
“We respect the vote from fellow members of the Lowland league was to continue with guest clubs and we respect that decision. We will welcome every club for the new 2022/23 season.”
The Lowland League board has also issued a statement, acknowledging the criticism that has come its way.
It stated: "While conscious it is, understandably, a divisive and emotive subject, the overriding feeling is their presence has been of benefit in a commercial sense, while there are promising early indications of young, emerging Scottish talents benefitting from early exposure to senior football in a competitive environment.”
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| 2022-04-06T16:29:39Z
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Making a song and dance out of Scottishness might make be a saviour for theatres - Brian Ferguson
It’s one of the most anticipated stage shows to emerge from Scotland in years and a contender for one of the most ambitious cultural projects of the year.
When Orphans, the new National Theatre of Scotland production opening in Glasgow on Thursday, was announced last year it already had an unmistakable wow factor.
A new stage show combining the talents of director Cora Bissett, songwriters Roddy Hart and Tommy Reilly, and playwright Douglas Maxwell would normally be enough to grab the attention.
But there was something boldly ambitious about the idea of turning Peter Mullan’s acclaimed Glasgow drama into NTS’s big comeback show in 2022.
A turbulent and traumatic night for three brothers and their sister as the clock ticks towards their mother’s funeral might not seem obvious material for a rousing roof-raising musical to herald NTS's return to the big stage.
Yet the more I heard about the show from Mullan, Bissett, Hart, Reilly and Robert Florence, the Scottish comedy favourite who has a starring role in the show, the more it all began to make sense.
Bissett told me that when she, Hart and Reilly started searching for a story to turn into a musical they were on the hunt for something “intrinsically Scottish” that would appeal to a modern-day audience but also had a gritty, dark humour at its heart.
They certainly saw a lot in the characters created by Mullan 25 years ago that captured the different sides of Scottishness – and more than enough “take-off points” for a song, more than 20 as it has turned out.
Not so long ago, the idea of launching a Glasgow-set musical in Glasgow would have been deemed a massive risk for any theatre company, never mind one with NTS’s profile and budget.
However NTS scored a huge long-running hit a decade ago with Bissett’s Glasgow Girls, which explored an even less-likely issue, the schoolgirl campaign over the treatment of asylum seekers in the city.
However the modern-day revival of musicals in Scotland can probably be traced back to Dundee Rep five years earlier, when Sunshine on Leith saw Stephen Greenhorn turned the music of The Proclaimers into a story about two soldiers returning to Leith. The show has been so successful it will be backing for another tour of duty in Pitlochry and Edinburgh this year.
There was a further surge of interest in Scottish musical theatre in 2015 when Dundee Rep revived the John McGrath classic The Cheviot, the Stag and the Black, Black Oil and took it out on the road for the first time in two decades to huge acclaim.
Hart and Reilly, the songwriting double act behind Orphans, traced their interest in working on a new Scottish musical to Our Ladies, Our Ladies of Perpetual Succour, one of NTS’s most successful shows to date, which saw artistic director Vicky Featherstone join forces with Billy Elliot creator Lee Hall to adapt Alan Warner’s cult schoolgirls-on-the-rampage novel for the stage.
Intriguingly, Orphans is being launched at a time when three other new musicals are being developed from cornerstones of Scottish culture – Trainspotting, the music of Runrig and William Wallace.
As theatres attempt to recover from the prolonged pandemic shutdowns, making a song and dance out of Scottishness might just be their saviour.
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Marty Joe Murray, Jr. was recently named adjunct professor and will teach project management at Harris Stowe State University. Under Murray the MIS 0491 course will become available for students this fall. The curriculum is structured in a way to help students pursue a career in project management and become certified. The course includes industry professionals from the region's Fortune 500 companies and will offer students a chance at internships. Murray graduated from Southern Illinois University Carbondale with a baccalaureate of science in business management, and acquired his PMP, PMI-ACP and an MBA at the University of Missouri - Trulaske Executive Program.
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Interview: Estonia PM warns against "peace at any price" with Putin
The international community shouldn’t push for “peace at any price” with Vladimir Putin, Estonia Prime Minister Kaja Kallas told Axios in an interview on Tuesday.
Why it matters: Estonia, like Latvia and Lithuania, is a member of NATO and the EU but also a neighbor to Russia. The Baltic states fear if Putin is not defeated in Ukraine he could become more aggressive.
- Kallas, 44, became Estonia's first woman prime minister in January 2021, following in the footsteps of her father, Siim Kallas, who served as prime minister from 2002 to 2003.
- She's been one of Putin's most vocal critics in Europe, particularly since the invasion of Ukraine.
What she's saying: Speaking to Axios two days after images of a reported massacre in the town of Bucha emerged, Kallas said occupied areas of Ukraine were "not only a battlefield, but also a crime scene."
- She said Russia's targeting of civilians should be prosecuted as war crimes, but stopped short of calling Putin himself a war criminal, as President Biden did.
State of play: Kallas expressed concern that pressure to reach a ceasefire would allow Russia to claim victory and keep the territories it has occupied. In such a scenario, she stressed, Putin’s “appetite” would grow.
- “If he is not punished for the crimes committed, then he will just go on. There will be a pause of one year, two years and when he gets his act together, it will all repeat in a much harder or harsher way," she warned.
- "We have already made this mistake twice, that if there's peace in place, then let's forget about what happened," she said, referring to Putin's invasion of Georgia in 2008 and Ukraine in 2014.
Rather than pushing Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky to reach an immediate ceasefire on any terms, she's urging the international community to do more to help Ukraine and stop Putin.
- “We can give more military aid, we can give more humanitarian aid and also politically isolate Russia in order for this to stop," Kallas added.
The big picture: Kallas said she was reassured by statements from U.S. Secretary of State Tony Blinken and leaders of other NATO powers that they will defend "every inch" of the alliance's territory.
- “We have no doubt about this. No NATO country has ever been attacked. So we feel safe," she said, adding that the Biden administration had not rejected any requests from Estonia.
- Still, she said more needs to be done to strengthen the Baltic states on NATO's eastern flank to deter Putin.
What to watch: Kallas said she wants to boost NATO’s presence in Estonia to have a “division-sized” military force in the country made up of Estonian and allied troops.
- Kallas said she hopes such decisions will be made at the NATO summit in June in Madrid.
Worth noting: Asked about the position of the Israeli government, which has tried to play the role of a neutral mediator in the conflict, Kallas said Israel should call Putin out for “playing on the suffering of the Jews."
- "One thing maybe that is very specific to Israel is that Putin is using this argument of de-Nazification. And I think it deeply undermines the sufferings of your people, and you could be more vocal about this and saying that this is not OK," she said.
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| 2022-04-06T16:35:50Z
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Near secures new $350m investment in giant bet on fast blockchains
Near just secured a new $350 million investment from heavyweight investors, representing a giant bet on fast blockchains and a potential future challenge to Ethereum, the world's second-largest blockchain.
Why it matters: Well, that's a lot of money, right? It's a bet on super fast and cheap transactions in a decentralized fashion.
- Users follow apps, not infrastructure. This funding will enable more use cases — likely particularly in lending, trading and risk management — powered by the Near blockchain.
Driving the news: Tiger Global, which raised $8.8 billion in a fund last year, led the round with additional participation from firms including FTX Ventures, Hashed, Dragonfly, ParaFi and others.
- According to its announcement, the new investment will be used to increase its decentralization, support growth of applications built on its blockchain and expand regional hubs.
Like Ethereum, Near can run code ("smart contracts") as well as transactions, but Ethereum is slow, befuddling and expensive to use. So, the market has shown a hunger for Ethereum-but-less-janky.
- This is its second round in very little time. In January 2022, Near raised $150 million, led by Three Arrows Capital, Alameda, and Jump.
The intrigue: Last year, the buzzy super fast blockchain was Solana, but the chain got stopped twice by denial-of-service attacks, which has stripped it of some of its shine.
- Over the last year, Solana's coin, sol, 10X'ed its value from last April, reaching $258 in November. But today it trades around $130.
- Solana's market cap remains roughly four-times that of Near's. Over the same period the coin has ranged between under $2 and $20. The near coin currently trades at $16.13.
Near's secret sauce is "sharding." A simple way to think about that is this: it's sort of like it is several blockchains that run fast because they each have less data to manage, but they check in with each other as they go. It has four shards now.
Quick take: Just like no region in the U.S. is likely to ever unseat Silicon Valley as the top tech hub, don't look for any of its imitators to ever unseat Ethereum.
- Both have unstoppable network effects. But just as there is plenty of room for other cities to grow great tech scenes, there will also be many great blockchains.
Details: According to its announcement, the new investment will be used to increase its decentralization, support growth of applications built on its blockchain and expanding regional hubs.
State of play: Near announced an $800 million fund last year to support new apps built on the blockchain, with a special focus on decentralized finance (DeFi).
- Blockchain projects have lots of crypto assets because they give themselves coins when they launch the blockchain (called a pre-mine). In Near's case, it also puts some of the new tokens the protocol generates in its treasury.
- That said, projects like Near need outside capital because if they fund partners by selling their token stores too quickly it will tank the price and alienate users.
Bottom line: The crypto market only really has two indispensable coins right now, bitcoin and ether, but investors believe there is room for more.
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| 2022-04-06T16:36:27Z
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Shares of Coinbase Global (NASDAQ: COIN) have fallen over 13% in the past two days. This came after Mizuho Securities analyst Dan Dolev slashed the price target on the stock to $190 from $220. Dolev’s new price target implies an upside potential of 14% on the stock.
The analyst remained sidelined on COIN with a Hold rating, as he viewed COIN chasing Non-Fungible Tokens (NFTs) as “costly.”
Dolev was referring to COIN’s plans to launch an NFT marketplace this year. Back in October, COIN had announced Coinbase NFT, a “peer-to-peer marketplace that will make minting, purchasing, showcasing, and discovering NFTs easier than ever.”
The reason Dolev does not view COIN chasing NFTs as a good move at this time is that the hype around NFTs seems to be waning. The analyst cited his analysis of internet searches which indicated “interest in NFTs has dramatically declined from its highs earlier this year.”
Moreover, by the analyst’s estimate, COIN may spend up to $300 million on setting up the NFT marketplace this year, which could result in the cryptocurrency exchange’s operating expenses ballooning by 130% year-over-year.
In addition to a rise in operating expenses, the company’s outlook this year has been marred by volatility.
COIN had cautioned in its Q4 letter to shareholders that the volatility in crypto asset prices and macroeconomic headwinds are unknowns making its “business all the more difficult to forecast.” As a result, the company expects that retail monthly transacting users (MTUs) and total trading volume will decline in Q1 of 2022 as compared to the fourth quarter of 2021.
As a result, COIN has projected its annual average retail MTUs in 2022 to vary anywhere from 5 million to 15 million.
The company also added that if COIN performed at the low end of its range, its adjusted EBITDA losses could be $500 million in Fiscal Year 2022.
Considering this volatility in the crypto marketplace and business uncertainties, Dolev reduced his estimates and price target for the stock. What’s more, the analyst’s proprietary volume analysis also points to a downswing in COIN volumes at $306 billion for the first quarter of Fiscal 2022.
Wall Street’s Take
Other analysts on Wall Street, however, remain cautiously optimistic about the stock with a Moderate Buy consensus rating based on 12 Buys, two Holds, and two Sells. The average COIN stock forecast is $300.60, implying 80.8% upside potential from current levels.
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To find good ideas for stocks trading at attractive valuations, visit TipRanks’ Best Stocks to Buy, a newly launched tool that unites all of TipRanks’ equity insights.
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| 2022-04-06T16:36:56Z
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Gaming talent agency Loaded raises new funding
Loaded, a Los Angeles-based company supporting creators and brands in gaming, has raised $20 million in growth equity funding, CEO Josh Swartz tells Axios.
Why it matters: As gaming continues to scale, creators and brands need resources and guidance to work together and grow in the industry.
Details: Coral Tree Partners led the round. Other participants were not disclosed.
- Loaded had raised $9 million from Makers Fund and Korea Investment Partners in 2018 as part of Popdog, a company comprised of three gaming-related companies — Loaded, Noscope and Catalyst Sports & Media.
- Swartz declined to share valuation or revenue, but he says Loaded is profitable.
- Loaded's brand clients include Gillette, Red Bull, Capitol Records and Verizon. Its talent roster includes Shroud, DrLupo, CouRage and Myth.
Meanwhile, Loaded also updated its C-suite. Swartz, who was co-founder of Catalyst Sports & Media and joined Popdog as COO, was promoted to CEO of Loaded last fall.
- Bridget Davidson, formerly of Riot Games, is now president of talent. Loaded co-founder and former president of talent Brandon Freytag is chief creator monetization officer. Popdog co-founder Niles Heron is chief communications and culture officer of Loaded.
- FaZe Clan CRO Jeff Pabst is Loaded's chief commercial officer. Paul Conroy, who helped build The Vans Park Series and Good Dye Young, is president of Loaded Ventures.
- Alan Resnikoff and Henry Shapiro from Coral Tree Partners — who work as a partner and executive adviser, respectively — are joining Loaded's board.
What's next: With this new funding, Loaded is looking to acquire companies that can expand its global reach and improve its data and analytics.
- "We're also big fans of web3 and companies that look at the metaverse for its utility and not just its buzzwordiness," Swartz says.
- Loaded plans to grow from 50 to at least 65 employees this year.
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Inflation is at an all-time high, with rates rising faster than they have in decades. As a result, costs on a variety of items, including necessities like food, are being driven higher.
Consumer staple companies, which sell items like food and cleaning supplies, are not immune to the consequences of inflation. These stocks, which had mostly escaped damage during the previous two years, are no longer safe-havens.
Inflation Statistics on the Rise
The Consumer Price Index (CPI), one of the most important gauges of economic inflation, has taken the wind out of investors’ sails. According to the most recent statistics, CPI rose 7.9% year-over-year in March, a four-decade high. Notably, cost pressures are expected to worsen further as a result of oil and commodity market disruptions brought on by the Ukraine crisis.
Inflation appears to be affecting many equities across multiple sectors and to some extent, damaging the economy.
Inflation Upsets Consumer Sentiment
Given the continuing rise in inflation levels, consumers are undoubtedly beginning to feel the effects of rising costs. Many consumers are finding it harder to meet their basic needs as prices rise faster than incomes.
Krishnakumar Davey, president of strategic analytics at IRI said that the consumer-staples market “has crossed a threshold.” He further added, “Consumers have been pinched for some time, they are observing that they are paying more and more, and they are beginning to drop some items from their basket because they can’t afford it.”
As a result, researchers and retailers argue that shoppers are purchasing fewer essentials in smaller quantities, moving to less expensive store-name brands, and searching the internet for savings. They believe that the shift is most visible among lower-income customers who overspent on household goods during the peak of the pandemic.
Here, we’ve compiled a list of two consumer staple equities that appear to be inflation-affected.
Kellogg’s (K)
Kellogg’s has the largest share in the market for breakfast cereals. Apart from that, it owns a number of well-known frozen food and snack businesses.
The food manufacturer is looking to grow its business through acquisitions and worldwide development. However, it is dealing with cost inflation, supply-chain interruptions, and a cereal business strike in the United States.
Inflationary effects are reflected in Kellogg’s fourth-quarter earnings. Revenues and profitability at Kellogg’s both fell from the year-ago quarter. Net sales dipped 1.3% to $3.42 billion year-over-year, while adjusted earnings slid 3.5% to $0.83 per share.
Furthermore, management anticipates supply-chain bottlenecks and shortages to persist at least through the first half of 2022, posing a risk to the company’s growth.
Furthermore, TipRanks’ Insider Trading tool shows that insider confidence in Kellogg’s is currently Negative, as corporate insiders sold shares worth $9.7 million in the last three months.
Turning to Wall Street, Kellogg’s stock earns a Hold consensus rating based on two Buys, six Holds, and two Sells. The average K price target of $67.80 implies just 3.1% upside potential.
Clorox (CLX)
Clorox is the second consumer staple name to be discussed. It has a market capitalization of $17.7 billion.
Demand for the company’s cleaning and disinfecting goods was at an all-time high during the early days of the pandemic, pushing its stock skyward. Things, however, have now changed. The stock has dropped 24% over the past year.
Clorox’s inflation-affected earnings report, released in the first week of February, revealed that the company’s once-thriving pandemic-driven business was now fighting to maintain its margins. Clorox’s net sales fell by 8% to $1.7 billion, and adjusted profits per share fell by 67%.
Furthermore, the company issued a shaky forward outlook, stating that cost challenges are expected to endure. Further, commodity pricing concerns appear to be a longer-term headwind for the company.
Also, on TipRanks, Clorox has received a Sell consensus recommendation from Wall Street analysts based on one Buy, three Holds, and nine Sells. The average CLX price target of $138.92 represents around 4% downside potential over the next 12 months.
Final Words
In a period of global uncertainty, when inflation has gripped almost every sector, Kellogg’s and Clorox stocks could be risky as rising material costs continue to weigh on their top and bottom lines.
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| 2022-04-06T16:37:02Z
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The year 2022 has been a mixed bag of emotions. With the worst of the pandemic behind us, most of the employment data is picking up, real wages are rising, and pent-up demand is resurging. Meanwhile, the Russia-Ukraine war has resulted in an uptick in commodity prices, which is hurting consumer spending. The inflationary threat particularly to groceries and high gas prices is impeding consumers from spending on discretionary items as much as they would have loved to.
Echoing a similar story, Stifel Nicolaus analyst Chris O`Cull recently released a Restaurants’ industry update under which he has explained the current positives and negatives that are impacting the industry.
According to O`Cull, “The geopolitical environment and rapidly rising prices have presumably been the driving factors behind a recent weakening in forward-looking consumer confidence measures. Moreover, findings from our recently completed survey indicate that consumers, especially low-income cohorts, have started adjusting their buying plans due to inflation.”
Notably, the analyst’s survey showcased those consumers who are much more likely to cut their spending on restaurants if the situation deteriorates further. In such an uncertain consumer spending environment, we decided to take a look at two pizza stocks that could take a hit from the current pullback in discretionary spending.
Moreover, Russia is one of the largest producers of wheat, which is an essential ingredient in pizza dough. The ongoing war has significantly increased the prices of wheat and with several trade restrictions with Russia, the prices are nowhere near their tipping points, further raising the input costs for the pizza makers.
Domino’s Pizza (DPZ)
Founded in 1960, the Domino’s Pizza brand is one of the hot favorites of pizza lovers with its array of everyday value meals and combo deals suiting each individual’s appetite. The pizzeria operates through a mix of company-owned and franchise models both in the U.S. and international markets.
The DPZ stock has lost over 29% year-to-date and gained 3.6% over the past year. The company even pays a regular quarterly dividend of $1.10 per share, reflecting a current yield of 0.99%. To date, the company has approximately $700 million in share repurchases remaining under the current program.
In its recent results for Q4 and the year ending January 2, 2022, Domino’s missed expectations on both revenue and earnings. However, the company did manage to report moderate growth in same-store sales for both Q4 and FY21. At the end of the quarter, Domino’s had a total of 18,848 stores across the globe.
As a tradition, Domino’s provides an outlook for the next two to three years’ time frame, and likewise, the company has projected a Global retail sales growth between 6% and 10% and Global net unit growth of between 6% and 8%. Historically, Domino’s has a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of global store count growth of 6.6%.
Typically, a restaurant’s business growth is measured by store growth, the higher the number of stores open; the higher the growth, and vice versa.
Interestingly, yesterday, Cowen & Co. analyst Andrew Charles downgraded the DPZ stock to a Hold rating from Buy, and also lowered the price target on the stock to $390 (almost fully valued at current levels) from $480. Following the news, the DPZ stock fell 3.1%, closing at $391.17 on April 5.
According to Charles, Domino’s is expected to open a lesser number of stores in the U.S. as compared to its optimistic outlook. The analyst had a glimpse into Domino’s Franchise Disclosure Document (FDD) given to prospective franchisees. The FDD showcased lower projections of future store openings, which compelled the analyst to lower his forecast for 2022-2024.
Accordingly, Charles now expects Domino’s new stores’ growth to be in line with its CAGR of between 6.2% and 6.5% for 2022 and 2023, at the lower end of the company’s guidance. After Domino’s Q4 earnings miss, several analysts lowered the price target on the stock and a few even downgraded their stance.
The other analysts on the Street are cautiously optimistic about the stock, with a Moderate Buy consensus rating based on eight Buys, 14 Holds, and one Sell. The average Domino’s price target of $469.26 implies almost 20% upside potential to current levels.
Papa John’s International (PZZA)
Founded in 1984, Papa John’s operates on a similar business model to Domino’s, with operations both in the U.S. and abroad. Papa John’s focus on always using fresh ingredients instead of frozen has propelled consumers’ favor towards the pizzeria’s offerings.
PZZA stock has lost 19.6% year-to-date amid the broader market sell-off compared to a 18.3% gain over the past year.
Papa John’s also pays regular quarterly dividends to the tune of $0.35 per share to shareholders with a current dividend yield of 1.19%. The company also has approximately $411.5 million remaining under its current share repurchase program as of February 17, 2022.
In its Q4 and full-year fiscal 2021 results ending December 26, 2021, Papa John’s beat both revenue and earnings estimates despite supply chain, labor, and Omicron-related challenges. Moreover, the company even reported a solid jump in both its comparable sales growth and global system-wide restaurant sales growth figures.
Notably, Papa John’s ended the fiscal with 5,650 stores worldwide, with 250-unit additions in the year. The story doesn’t end here! Post its earnings, PZZA has announced a historic strategic deal with FountainVest Partners to open over 1,350 new stores in South China by 2040, which is one of the world’s fastest-growing pizza delivery markets.
Similarly, on March 31, Papa John’s also announced a major strategic refranchising agreement with long-term partner Sun Holdings to accelerate domestic development. The latter is also committed to opening 100 new stores across high-growth markets, including Texas, by 2029.
Earlier in March, analyst O`Cull revisited the impact of rising wheat prices on Papa John’s performance due to the ongoing war. The analyst noted that PZZA uses hard red spring (HRS) wheat in its pizza dough, which is mostly sourced domestically as opposted to the winter varietals produced in Russia.
Nevertheless, the analyst stated, “Prices remained elevated YoY in early 2022, however, the recent conflict has exacerbated the rise in wheat prices. In the short term, we do not believe the company has significant exposure to rising wheat prices given its forward buying strategy; however, if recent market prices persist, we estimate it could pressure restaurant margin by roughly 50 bps 2H22.”
Analyst O`Cull has the most conviction towards PZZA under his restaurant coverage. He has a Buy rating on the stock with a price target of $155, which implies 45.2% upside potential from current levels.
The other analysts on the Street are highly optimistic about the stock, with a Strong Buy consensus rating based on 10 Buys and two Holds. The average Papa John’s price target of $139.36 implies 30.6% upside potential to current levels.
Key Take-Aways
On the valuation front, DPZ currently trades at a 3.45x sales multiple, and PZZA trades at 1.81x sales. While both trade above the industry average of 0.98x sales, the PZZA stock is relatively cheaper compared to DPZ.
Besides, both companies have limited exposure to rising wheat prices since they hedge their purchases in advance. Moreover, considering the factors discussed above and the Street’s inclination towards the PZZA stock, it would be worth investing in Papa John’s story which has more ambitious plans to widen its footprint and enhance performance.
Download the TipRanks mobile app now
To find good ideas for stocks trading at attractive valuations, visit TipRanks’ Best Stocks to Buy, a newly launched tool that unites all of TipRanks’ equity insights.
Read full Disclaimer & Disclosure
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| 2022-04-06T16:37:09Z
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Twitter’s (NYSE: TWTR) shares have been having a great week since Tesla (TSLA) CEO Elon Musk announced a $3.7-billion investment in the social media company on Monday, making him the largest shareholder of the company.
Shares spiked 27% at market close on April 4, and gained about 2% more at Tuesday’s closing bell. These gains have propelled Twitter in green territory for the first time this year, after the shares slogged through the first quarter.
Looking back, Musk began accumulating Twitter shares since January this year, and now, according to an SEC filing, is an active investor who will be a part of the decision-making board.
Thanks to holding 9.2% of Twitter’s stake, Musk has surpassed former Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey who owns 2.3% of the company.
Musk’s love for Twitter also reflects in his activeness on the platform. He is an avid Twitter user with more than 80 million followers, making him one of the top 10 most followed users.
However, Jeffries analyst Brent Thill is not sure about the reason behind Musk’s interest in Twitter. Therefore, he believes that the stock price jump may just be an “over-reaction.”
Musk’s Move May Have to Do With Moderation
There is also a very interesting observation that Thill made on the possible rationale behind Musk’s pursuit of a position of power in Twitter.
In a Twitter poll created on March 25, Musk asked his followers “Free speech is essential to a functioning democracy. Do you believe Twitter rigorously adheres to this principle?”
In the comment section, he added, “the consequences of this poll will be important. Please vote carefully.”
Following this, 70.4% of over 2 million poll participants voted for “No,” indicating that most users don’t believe that Twitter defends free speech as aggressively as it should.
Thill guessed that the results of the poll might be a motivator for Musk to take his position in the company seriously.
“We believe one of Musk’s main motives could be to influence TWTR’s moderation policies, which he has often criticized as being too restrictive,” speculated Thill.
Thill not Thrilled
Although Thill recommends against betting against Musk, he is cautious about the share’s performance prospects after the initial enthusiasm dies down.
“With the stock up 27% over the last day, we believe it is increasingly important for TWTR to show progress toward its goal of $7.5+ billion in revenues and 315+ million mDAUs (monetizable daily active users) by FY23,” noted Thill, estimating that Twitter will need to achieve a two-year user CAGR of 20%, which is a far cry from the growth rate of 13% achieved in FY21.
The above observations prompted Thill to reiterate a Hold rating on Twitter. However, showing some optimism with regard to Musk’s new position, the analyst raised his price target to $48 from $40.
“We like TWTR’s value proposition as a mobile-first platform well positioned to benefit from industry tailwinds as ad dollars continue to flow into mobile. Improved user products and ad products present addressable growth opportunities, with commerce as a long-tail opportunity. However, recent management changes and concerns around the 2023 revenue and user growth targets keep us cautious on the stock,” concluded Thill, justifying his mixed stance.
Wall Street Opines
Wall Street sentiment also resonates with that of Thill, with a Hold consensus rating, based on eight Buys, 18 Holds, and two Sells. The average TWTR price target is $45.58.
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| 2022-04-06T16:37:15Z
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Shares of graphics hardware behemoth Nvidia (NVDA) really excited investors during its 2022 Investor Day presentation, shedding light on a plan to become the first $1 trillion semi company. If there’s a company that can pull it off, it’s Nvidia, with its brilliant leader Jensen Huang.
Undoubtedly, the total addressable market (TAM) for Nvidia is enormous. The innovative graphics-processing unit (GPU) maker has a front-row seat to video gaming, automotive tech, AI, and data center. Undoubtedly, a nice slice of each of the following markets could propel the company’s market cap above the $1 trillion mark.
Still, it’s Nvidia’s Omniverse initiative that could be the key to unlocking next-level growth over the next decade once we move closer to the concept of the metaverse.
However, although Nvidia is on the cutting edge of next-generation technology, I am neutral on the stock. It’s not that I wasn’t excited about Nvidia’s investor day or the $1 trillion opportunities at hand. It’s the valuation of the stock going into a higher-rate environment.
The growth sell-off has been unforgiving thus far, and it may not be over. With a 22.7 times sales multiple, NVDA stock faces tremendous downside risk if the broader growth sell-off continues.
For that reason, I’m in no rush to chase Nvidia stock to trillion-dollar market cap territory. It will come in due time, but it will surely be a rocky road to the level, with the growth trade starting to show its wobbly legs.
Nvidia’s Omniverse is the Answer to Meta’s Metaverse
Add the exciting Nvidia Omniverse effort into the equation, and the trillion-dollar aspirations are not at all far-fetched. Thanks to a timely name change, Meta Platforms (FB) has propelled the concept of the metaverse to the forefront. In recent months, though, the growth trade has faded, and the metaverse ambitions of Mark Zuckerberg have started to seem more far-fetched.
With interest rates on the rise, profitability matters more than exciting stories. Still, there’s no denying the long-term potential in the metaverse. Arguably, Nvidia is one of the better-equipped companies to construct the metaverse, not Meta. Unlike Meta, Nvidia has been in the gaming business for a very long time, with its top-of-the-line hardware that helps gamers run their favorite titles.
Not only does Nvidia’s background give its Omniverse offering a greater chance at success, but it also lacks the questionable reputation that Facebook has. Further, early teases of Nvidia’s Omniverse appear so much more exciting than the Meta presentation that revealed the firm’s new name and focus.
Simply put, Nvidia is a graphics power king, and it’s this hardware edge that could allow it to transition consumers into virtual worlds, which will likely be gaming-centric.
Nvidia Stock’s Valuation Remains Excessive
Nvidia’s Investor Day did not fail to impress this year. In many ways, its presentation is becoming more exciting than the likes of an Apple keynote (at least until the company has a chance to unveil the Apple Car or mixed-reality headset). The initial reaction was profoundly positive. Still, the stock has been shedding some of its recent gains.
At the end of the day, valuation matters. As one of the priciest semi stocks out there, Nvidia stock could be one of the growth stocks to face amplified damage as the rate-driven valuation reset continues.
Further, many industries Nvidia is pushing towards may not be tremendously profitable until many years down the road. Think nascent markets like AI and Omniverse. They’re undoubtedly exciting, but it’s unclear when next-generation AI and the metaverse will be ready for prime time.
If sizeable profits from such awe-inspiring initiatives are closer to 2030 than 2022, the stock will undoubtedly take a hit, especially now that the Fed has shown signs of increased hawkishness.
Wall Street’s Take
Turning to Wall Street, NVDA stock comes in as a Strong Buy. Out of 26 analyst ratings, there are 21 Buy recommendations and five Hold recommendations.
The average Nvidia price target is $351.74, implying an upside of ~44%. Analyst price targets range from a low of $245 per share to a high of $410 per share. (See NVDA stock forecast on TipRanks)
The Bottom Line
Nvidia is such a great company with a visionary founder-led leader. Nvidia’s TAM is huge and seems virtually unbounded, but the real risk to the stock at these valuations is what happens with the growth trade.
The company itself will be firing on all cylinders, and I do not doubt that it will deliver. That alone may make the stock worth a hefty premium, but is ~23 times sales too hefty a premium? I’m not so sure.
In any case, I’d take a raincheck on the name because the “growth at any price” trade seems all but done now that the Fed is so focused on inflation.
To find good ideas for stocks trading at attractive valuations, visit TipRanks’ Best Stocks to Buy, a newly launched tool that unites all of TipRanks’ equity insights.
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| 2022-04-06T16:37:21Z
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Between June 2020 and December 2021, either via IPOs or the SPAC route, 24 fintech companies went public. It has been a bruising introduction, however. Since going public, the majority have endured steep share price losses.
MoffettNathanson analyst Eugene Simuni lays part of the blame on macro headwinds such as interest rates, inflation, and a ‘risk-off’ mood. However, given the “ferocious” nature of the selloff in fintech names, the analyst thinks the sector wide pullback is “entirely tied to investors’ loss of confidence in the long-term growth potential (and profitability prospects) of Fintech disruptors.”
Of course, battered stocks do not equate broken companies and interestingly, says Simuni, the struggles are not necessarily linked to “operational underperformance.”
In fact, the analyst sees several fintech names which are well-positioned to take market share. One of which is SoFi Technologies (SOFI), whose shares have taken a hammering since the June 2021 debut (down by 60%).
Simuni calls SoFi a “diversified provider of digital financial services with three distinct pillars.”
Leading the way and generating 75% of revenue is the lending business, the fintech infrastructure business brings in 20% of revenue while the digital banking business accounts for ~5%.
Although Simuni believes each part is exposed to “distinct sets of risks and opportunities,” the analyst believes that, put together, the company’s “portfolio of assets currently offers an attractive risk/return profile.”
The digital banking business might be a risky start-up but has “tremendous upside potential,” while the infrastructure business generates “highly recurring revenue streams” and offers the company entry into the global fintech market.
And promisingly, Simuni thinks the most immediate threat is “not as risky as it appears.” This pertains to the extension of the Federal student loans payments moratorium, which has been extended to the end of August from the prior May expiry date. While the refinancing of Federal student loans is an “important driver” of SoFi’s loan originations, the company offers private student loans too and with a total book of ~$7.5 billion is one of the personal loan market’s leaders. The company also has a “rapidly growing presence in the mortgage market (~$5 billion total book).” In any case, the analyst reckons that an extension of the moratorium through the end of the year is “already priced into the stock.”
So, promising for the banking disruptor but what does it all mean for investors? Simuni initiated coverage on SOFI with a Buy rating and $13 price target. This target puts the upside potential at ~52% from current levels.
Overall, SOFI holds a Moderate Buy rating from the analyst consensus, with 13 reviews on record, which include 7 Buys and 6 Holds. SOFI is selling for $8.54 and the $16.50 average price target implies ~93% upside from that level. (See SOFI stock forecast on TipRanks)
To find good ideas for stocks trading at attractive valuations, visit TipRanks’ Best Stocks to Buy, a newly launched tool that unites all of TipRanks’ equity insights.
Disclaimer: The opinions expressed in this article are solely those of the featured analyst. The content is intended to be used for informational purposes only. It is very important to do your own analysis before making any investment.
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| 2022-04-06T16:37:28Z
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After the stock market’s miserable open to the year, the past month saw strong stock bounces across the board. Both the S&P 500 and the NASDAQ have delivered strong rallies. However, the markets appear to be wobbling again faced with the prospect of more sanctions on Russia and some hawkish comments from the Fed. So, have investors gotten too confident, too quickly?
Tracie McMillion, Head of Global Asset Allocation Strategy at Wells Fargo Investment Institute thinks the risks are “definitely rising,” and notes that the US economy has moved from a “steep recovery” to what appears to be a late cycle within just a couple of years. “Usually,” says McMillion, “it takes about 5 years for the economy to transition through early-cycle to mid-cycle to late-cycle.”
While McMillion remains “concerned” with the transition from 2022 into 2023, for now, she sees “positive growth continuing” this year.
Against this backdrop, then, the analysts at Wells Fargo have spotted three stocks which are well setup to charge ahead in this environment. And by charge ahead, we mean stocks with the potential to climb at least 60% higher over the coming months.
We ran the tickers through the TipRanks database to get a feel for what the rest of the Street has in mind for these names; turns out all are rated as Strong Buys and predicted to deliver excellent returns in the year ahead. Let’s take a closer look.
Terex (TEX)
We’ll start with Terex, one of the U.S.’s largest manufacturers of aerial work platforms and materials processing machinery. The company’s products are used in construction, energy, mining, infrastructure, and maintenance. They range from trailer-mounted articulating booms, scissor lifts, and replacement parts for construction – all part of the Aerial Work Platforms (AWP) segment – to specialty equipment such as concrete mixer trucks, biomass and recycling equipment, crushers and washing systems used by its other segment of Materials Processing (MP). Terex was founded in 1986, boasts 8,600 full-time employees and the company has a market cap just under $2.4 billion.
Like many other names, Tex has suffered from recent macro woes such as supply chain bottlenecks (for products such as chips and hydraulics) and this has made for a logistically challenging environment. As a result, TEX shares have been on a downtrend and sit 23% into the red on a year-to-date basis.
Nevertheless, the company delivered beats on both the top-and bottom-line in its latest quarterly report – for 4Q21. Revenue increased by 26% year-over-year to reach $990.1 million, coming in $37.2 million above the consensus estimate. EPS of $0.83 came in some way above the $0.54 analysts were expecting. Additionally, an operating margin of 7.0% improved on last year’s performance by 300 basis points.
Terex’s solid performance has caught the eye of Wells Fargo analyst Seth Weber, who sees the stock in a sound position.
“We view shares as inexpensive for a company with an estimated 2021-2024 EPS CAGR of 25% and revenue CAGR of 8%. We expect the combination of healthy end market demand across segments, better price/cost dynamics, a cleaner balance sheet, extensive portfolio moves and cost/efficiency initiatives should support strong growth, better cash flow/returns, and improve financial leverage,” Weber wrote.
“We see multiple catalysts ahead, including rising U.S. nonresidential construction and infrastructure activity, higher utility capex, improving supply chain bottlenecks, impact from recent price increases, and potential balance sheet actions given year-end 2021 net leverage just over 1x,” the analyst added.
Accordingly, Weber rates TEX an Overweight (i.e. Buy), while his $64 price target suggests shares will climb ~95% higher over the coming year. (To watch Weber’s track record, click here)
It’s clear that most on the Street agree with Weber’s assessment; Barring 1 skeptic, all 7 other recent reviews are positive, making for a Strong Buy consensus rating. Moreover, the average price target is a bullish one; at $61.50, the figure implies share appreciation of 87% in the months ahead. (See Terex stock forecast on TipRanks)
Academy Sports and Outdoors (ASO)
The lockdown and social distancing policies of 2020, followed by the sometimes erratic economic reopening in 2021, put people in the mind to shop for outdoor leisure activities. The advantage – these activities could be enjoyed ‘on the road,’ with family or friends, and without the need to worry about social distance or masking.
Academy Sports, a major chain in the field of sports and outdoors supply, saw clear gains in the aftermath of COVID. The company, which operates some 259 stores in 16 states, saw 4Q21 revenues (the last reported) hit a quarterly record at $1.8 billion. Comparing to 4Q19, the last pre-COVID quarter, this revenue figure was up 32%. Compared to 4Q20, it was up 12.5%. The company reported total sales of $6.77 billion in fiscal year 2021, representing a 19% year-over-year gain.
Looking at earnings, Academy Sports brought in $1.57 per share for Q4, easily beating the forecast of $1.37. Academy only went public in the fall of 2020; since then, the company has released 6 sets of quarterly financial results. During that time, EPS increased 72% from 3Q20 to 4Q21.
In the past year, Academy has used its rising revenues to return profits to investors. The company repurchased 10.6 million shares in fiscal year 2021, worth a total of $411.4 million. And, in March of this year, Academy announced its first common share dividend. On March 3, the company declared a dividend of 7.5 cents per common share, to be paid on April 14.
That’s a key point for Wells Fargo analyst Kate Fitzsimons, who writes, “We expect we can see additional share repurchase authorizations to come into 2022 as management puts that cash to work. Looking ahead, 2022 cash priorities include the company’s new dividend and reinvestment in the business including a return to unit growth as ASO ultimately eyes 80-100 new store openings in the next 5 years… With a healthier balance, we continue to see ASO as one of the most underappreciated stories in consumer today, and the stock remains a top pick.”
These comments back up Fitzsimons’ Overweight (i.e. Buy) rating on the stock, while her $62 price target indicates she sees a 66% upside in the coming year. (To watch Fitzsimons’ track record, click here)
That’s a bullish outlook, but it’s no outlier. ASO shares have picked up a unanimous 6 Buy ratings in recent weeks, for a Strong Buy consensus view. The shares are selling for $37.36, and their $58.80 average price target implies a one-year upside of ~57%. (See ASO stock forecast on TipRanks)
Farfetch, Ltd. (FTCH)
Now we’ll turn to e-commerce company Farfetch, a specialist in luxury goods. Farfetch’s platform connects buyers and sellers across 190 countries around the world, and offers over 1,400 luxury brands, in everything from jewelry to fashion for men and women, to high-end shoes, to various accessories. Based in Portugal, the company boasts headquarters in London and offices in New York and LA, Tokyo and Shanghai.
Farfetch has been posting some strong numbers in recent years. The company claimed over 3.7 million active consumers as of the end of 2021, and saw $4.2 billion in gross merchandise value sold on the site last year. That number was up 33% year-over-year, and a whopping 98% from the pre-pandemic year of 2019. Revenue grew in 2021, from $485 million in Q1 to $666 million in Q4. The Q4 result was up 23% y/y.
In recent months, Farfetch has been making acquisitions, part of a concerted effort to eliminate competition and expand its own platform. In December, the company acquired LUXCLUSIF, a B2B service provider in luxury e-commerce. LUXCLUSIF brings with it a propriety tech platform that is now available for Farfetch’s use.
Following this move, in January, Farfetch acquired the luxury beauty retailer Violet Grey. Violent Grey has developed a reputation for launching beauty brands, and has cultivated a devoted community of followers. Farfetch plans to use these assets when launching its own beauty marketplace later this year. Both of these acquisitions were made for undisclosed sums.
Farfetch shares have been on the backfoot in 2022 and have shaved off 48% of their value since the turn of the year. Yet, in his coverage for Wells Fargo, Ike Boruchow sees several reasons for going all-in on Farfetch now, including: “1) impending M&A catalyst on hand; 2) secular tailwinds supporting a 30% + GMV run rate over time, including increased contribution from FPS; 3) increased confidence in the ability of the business to scale margins multi-year as the marketplace leverages demand creation expense particularly as more customers come into the funnel and garner marketplace loyalty…”
Boruchow’s bullish stance comes with an Overweight (i.e. Buy) rating on the stock, and a $35 price target that implies a robust 135% one-year upside potential. (To watch Boruchow’s track record, click here)
All in all, this high-end online retail platform has picked up no fewer than 14 reviews from the Street and these include 12 Buys against just 2 Holds, for a Strong Buy consensus rating. The stock is selling for $14.91 and has an average price target of $33.50; this suggests an upside for the next 12 months of ~124%. (See FTCH stock forecast on TipRanks)
To find good ideas for stocks trading at attractive valuations, visit TipRanks’ Best Stocks to Buy, a newly launched tool that unites all of TipRanks’ equity insights.
Disclaimer: The opinions expressed in this article are solely those of the featured analysts. The content is intended to be used for informational purposes only. It is very important to do your own analysis before making any investment.
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| 2022-04-06T16:37:34Z
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Data streaming platform Confluent, Inc. (NASDAQ: CFLT) announced plans to deepen its partnership with Microsoft (NASDAQ: MSFT) to smoothen Azure’s management of data streams and accelerate real-time application development on the cloud.
Under the partnership, the companies will be investing in technology integrations, solution development and go-to-market activities.
The alliance between Microsoft and Confluent started in January 2021, under which Confluent’s fully managed Apache Kafka service was embedded into the Azure platform with cloud-native capabilities.
Executive Comments
The President of Field Operations at Confluent, Erica Schultz, said, “COVID-driven disruption has drastically accelerated timelines for delivering end-to-end digital experiences and real-time operations. We are extremely dedicated to ensuring our customers can innovate fast in the cloud, and have deepened our partnership with Microsoft to support businesses at this critical time in their transformation.”
“Through Microsoft and Confluent’s expanded relationship, more organizations will be able to fully realize the power of cloud-native data streaming and benefit from faster development of modern applications with easier access to real-time data in the cloud,” said, Judson Althoff, the Executive Vice-President and Chief Commercial Officer at Microsoft.
Stock Rating
Last month, Wells Fargo analyst Michael Turrin maintained a Buy rating on Confluent and lowered the price target to $55 (implying 28.8% upside potential from current level) from $75.
The rest of the Street is cautiously optimistic about the stock and has a Moderate Buy consensus rating based on five Buys and six Holds. Confluent’s average price target of $74.55 implies 74.6% upside potential to current levels.
Insider Trading
Based on the recent corporate insider activity, sentiments seem positive about the stock. This means that over the past quarter there has been an increase in insiders selling their shares of CFLT.
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Related News:
Roblox CEO’s Pay Package Increases More than 3,200%
Marathon Digital Dips Despite Positive Bitcoin Production News
Why Are Analysts Cautiously Optimistic on AGCO?
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| 2022-04-06T16:37:46Z
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Smart Global Holdings (SGH) has reported better-than-expected quarterly earnings and revenue for the fiscal second quarter of 2022 (ended February 25, 2022). The company designs, manufactures and sells specialty memory solutions and services for the Electronics industry.
Adjusted earnings of $0.87 per share surpassed Street’s expectations of $0.72 per share. The figure also compares favorably with earnings of $0.44 per share reported in the year-ago quarter.
Revenue jumped 48% year-over-year to $449 million. Also, it surpassed analysts’ expectations of $435 million. Further, gross margin came in at 25.1%, up 750 basis points from the year-ago quarter.
Alongside earnings, Smart Global announced that its board of directors approved a share buyback program of up to $75 million. The repurchases will be made from time to time through open market purchases or privately negotiated transactions. Also, the program has no expiration date but may be suspended or terminated by the board at any time.
The CEO of Smart Global, Mark Adams, said, “The results reflect our commitment to operational excellence by focusing on specialty solutions targeting growth markets such as AI, machine learning, data analytics, enterprise storage and edge/IoT. Across all of our businesses, we are investing to capitalize on the growth opportunities in these market segments.”
Outlook
For the third quarter of the Fiscal Year 2022, the company expects net sales between $435 million and $475 million. Further, the company’s adjusted earnings are anticipated in the range of $0.75 to $0.80 per share and gross margin between 23% and 25%.
Stock Rating
Overall, the Street is bullish on the stock and has a Strong Buy consensus rating based on four unanimous Buys. Smart Global’s price forecast of $43.13 implies upside potential of about 86.2% from current levels.
Positive Sentiments
According to TipRanks’ Stock Investors tool, investors seem bullish on Smart Global. Per the tool, 9.2% of investors holding portfolios on TipRanks have increased their stake in SGH stock over the last 30 days. Further, 3.4% of these individuals have raised their holdings in the recent week.
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Read full Disclaimer & Disclosure
Related News:
Roblox CEO’s Pay Package Increases More than 3,200%
Marathon Digital Dips Despite Positive Bitcoin Production News
Why Are Analysts Cautiously Optimistic on AGCO?
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| 2022-04-06T16:37:58Z
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Vaccine stock Novavax (NVAX) dropped a massive 13.4% on Tuesday and reached a new 52-week low of $64.64 during the day. The stock declined a further 3.9% in today’s trading session so far.
Wondering what could have happened that resulted in such a pessimistic reaction for the stock?
Investors are likely to have been eagerly waiting for Novavax’s COVID-19 vaccine, NVX-CoV2373, to be approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) under Emergency Use Authorization (EUA) as a booster shot in adults aged 18 years and above.
However, comments of the director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, Dr. Anthony Fauci, might have pulled hopes down to some extent. Fauci said that it is a bad idea to wait for vaccines to be approved in the U.S.
Notably, the FDA has recently approved the second booster shots of Moderna (MRNA) and Pfizer (PFE)/ BioNTech (BNTX) vaccines for people aged over 50 years.
Takeaway
A fresh surge of cases in China is likely to be welcomed as good news by vaccine stocks, including Novavax. It would be a way to boost their top lines by selling their vaccines in the most affected countries.
Novavax’s vaccine is among the first to be approved for use in adolescents aged 12 to below 18 years in India. Further, in case the FDA approves the vaccine, it would come as another major positive factor for the company and provide support in achieving its targets for 2022.
Wall Street’s Take
B.Riley Financial analyst Mayank Mamtani reiterated a Buy rating on the stock with a price target of $250 (~300% upside potential).
Mamtani said, “…the near-term backdrop on NVAX shares remain largely centered on the company and its strategic partners, e.g., SRII, SK Bio, Takeda, Fujifilm, meeting on stated delivery goals globally that build into company’s FY22 revenue guidance of $4-5 billion.”
He continued, “We believe NVAX’s manufacturing capacity issue remains misunderstood by investors, notably the 2 billion annual run rate for 2022, and is often confused with procurement dynamics from large-scale bulk buyers, …and pediatric vaccination campaigns centered around the most effective, safe vaccine platforms.”
NVAX stock comes in as a Moderate Buy on Wall Street based on five Buys and two Holds assigned in the past three months. The average Novavax price target stands at $179.86 and implies an upside potential of 187.6% from current levels.
News Sentiment
News Score for Novavax is Neutral, based on 30 articles written over the past seven days. All articles have Bullish sentiment, compared to a sector average of 62%. None have Bearish Sentiment, compared to a sector average of 38%.
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To find good ideas for stocks trading at attractive valuations, visit TipRanks’ Best Stocks to Buy, a newly launched tool that unites all of TipRanks’ equity insights.
Read full Disclaimer & Disclosure
Related News:
Roblox CEO’s Pay Package Increases More than 3,200%
Marathon Digital Dips Despite Positive Bitcoin Production News
Why Are Analysts Cautiously Optimistic on AGCO?
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| 2022-04-06T16:38:05Z
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Missing Indiana couple found in Nevada desert; man dead, wife hospitalized, family says
ESMERALDA COUNTY, Nev. (Gray News) – A couple from Indiana who was reported missing more than a week ago in Nevada has been found, according to the Nye County Sheriff’s Office.
Ronnie and Beverly Barker’s nephew, Travis Peters, posted an update on Facebook Tuesday night saying rescue teams found the couple near Silver Peak, according to KVVU.
He said Ronnie had died and Beverly was being airlifted to a hospital in Reno where she is doing OK.
KOLO reports the couple left Oregon on March 26, and were headed to Tucson, Arizona.
Their daughter, Jennifer Whaley, says all contact with her parents ceased over a week ago – all cell phone pings stopped March 27.
“It is literally like they fell off the face of the earth. Like they just vanished,” Whaley said.
According to a missing persons flyer shared by the Nye County Sheriff’s Office, they were driving a 2015 Forest River Sunseeker RV with a gold stripe and Indiana license plate C128H.
Ronnie and Beverly also were towing a white 2020 Kia Soul with Indiana license plate FL211A.
Family members say the couple’s RV was found stuck in the mud and their car was not at the scene.
AZFamily reports the Esmeralda County Sheriff’s Office said the couple never made it to the campground at Nellis AFB, where they were supposed to spend the night before hitting the road to Tucson again.
“My parents were supposed to meet them in Tucson on Tuesday evening March 29. That’s when they were supposed to be pulling into the campgrounds in Tucson. They didn’t show up,” Whaley said about her parents meeting up with their friends in Tucson who they’ve known for more than three decades.
Peters told KVVU it is unclear to them what happened to the couple as details surrounding Ronnie’s death have not been released.
He said the Mineral County undersheriff provided them with limited information and only said that Beverly was OK.
“Thank God that Beverly is alive, because she will be able to fill in those blanks that we don’t know. Why did they go up the mountain? What happened?” Peters said.
Copyright 2022 Gray Media Group, Inc. All rights reserved.
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The Arlington County Civic Federation’s task force on local governance is ready to deposit its recommendations into the court of public opinion.
Civic Federation officials aim to present the findings of the body to the organization’s delegates at the monthly meeting slated for April 12.
As has been the case since the start of the pandemic, the meeting will be held online, starting at 7 p.m., and those wishing to watch must register by noon the day before. For information, see the Website at www.civfed.org.
The study group, agreed to by Civic Federation delegates in late 2020, is dubbed “TiGER” (Task Force in Governance and Election Reform). Under the leadership of Chris Wimbush, it has been tasked with proffering changes to the county’s 90-year-old governance structure.
The panel has no statutory authority; Civic Federation delegates are not obligated to accept its recommendations, and whether the county government’s power structure (and the Democratic oligarchy behind it) will embrace any or all proposals is an open question. Some changes also would require General Assembly action, a matter that could be complicated (or, perhaps, aided) by the fact that there now is a Republican governor and Republican House of Delegates.
Among the issues that were considered during the study period:
• Are the five-member County Board and School Board the right size for a geographically small but very densely populated community?
• Should the current at-large voting for County Board and School Board seats be changed to a district-based approach?
• How much should elected officials be paid?
• Should there be term limits imposed on local elected officials?
• Should the county manager be made an elected official?
• Should Arlington consider becoming a city, and if so, what powers should be delegated to a mayor?
From Reconstruction in the 1870s until the early 1930s, Arlington – known until 1920 as “Alexandria County” – was governed by a three-member board of supervisors, elected by districts and serving in effect as laws unto themselves. In 1931, the General Assembly approved a request from Arlington residents to change the government structure to a five-member County Board and professional county manager. On Nov. 3, 1931, Arlington held its first County Board elections.
In both the 1931 and 1935 elections, all five seats were elected simultaneously, with all winners serving concurrent four-year terms. But as 1939 approached, some in the local civic arena thought a change was in order, and convinced the General Assembly to permit Arlington to elect its board members by staggered terms. That election cycle, with one board member elected three out of every four years and two board members elected during the fourth, has remained in place.
In 2010, a coalition that included public-safety unions launched a change-of-government petition drive that, if placed on the ballot and approved by voters, would have turned Arlington’s at-large County Board into a district-based body.
The effort, however, was strenuously opposed by the Arlington County Democratic Committee and failed to reach the electorate, with the petition drive falling about 4,000 signatures short of the 14,350 needed.
More recently, advocates have called for the county government to embrace “ranked-choice voting” for County Board elections. The local government has since 2020 had the power to switch from the current winner-take-all approach to the instant-runoff process, but has chosen not to do so, in part because of perceived splits among the five members on whether such a move should take place and how the technical complexities of doing so should be addressed.
County Board have used the ongoing Civic Federation deliberations as a reason to wait before moving forward on ranked-choice voting, making it unlikely it could be implemented for the November 2022 election, where the County Board seat of Matt de Ferranti is on the ballot.
(Whether ranked-choice voting would have any impact on general-election results is an open question; last year, Democratic Takis Karantonis won 60 percent of the vote in a four-way race, meaning the instant-runoff provision wouldn’t have been triggered even if it had been in place.)
Instant-runoff voting could, however, be put into practice for the November 2023 election, when two County Board seats will be on the ballot, theoretically giving non-Democrats more of a shot at victory. And it also could be applied to Democratic primaries, which – with rare exceptions – constitute the de-facto determination of who will win office the subsequent November.
[Sun Gazette Newspapers provides content to, but otherwise is unaffiliated with, InsideNoVa or Rappahannock Media LLC.]
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| 2022-04-06T16:53:47Z
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Taking advantage of picture-perfect (if slightly chilly) weather, area residents crowded the streets of central Merrifield April 2 and 3 to sample the offerings of the “Art Blooms at Mosaic” festival.
The event, sponsored by the Mosaic District, featured sales of photography, handmade and vintage craft fairs; live music; children’s activities; cooking demonstrations; a farmers’ market; a wide selection of food offerings; and vendors providing beer and wine.
Attendees, some of them with dogs and children in tow, thronged the streets. The Vienna Singing Princesses, dressed in fairy-tale costumes, painted children’s faces in one tent.
The crowd had the opportunity to ogle a pair of flower-bedecked antique red pickup trucks brought in by Merrifield Garden Center.
Fairfax County police also took part in the vehicle display, rolling out a 1993 Ford Crown Victoria police cruiser that the department took out of service in 2005.
Mosaic District, like many places, lost some businesses during the pandemic, but most of the storefronts at the festival had tenants offering an eclectic array of food, products and services.
[Sun Gazette Newspapers provides content to, but otherwise is unaffiliated with, InsideNoVa or Rappahannock Media LLC.]
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| 2022-04-06T16:53:53Z
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When the construction dust settles, the orange cones are gone and work crews have relocated to snarl traffic elsewhere after completion of the 495 NEXT Project, the Great Falls Citizens Association (GFCA) hopes an extra-nice-looking bridge will take Georgetown Pike over the Capital Beltway.
In a recent letter to Virginia Department of Transportation (VDOT) Secretary W. Sheppard Miller III, GFCA president William Canis laid out the case for using a “signature” design for the Georgetown Pike replacement bridge and asked for the group to have the chance to work with the design/build contractor regarding those aesthetics.
While in the past, transportation agencies designed highways and their related infrastructure with the idea of moving vehicles efficiently, the Federal Highway Administration (headquartered not far from Georgetown Pike) and state transportation departments in recent decades have focused on “context-sensitive” designs that also “reflect the values, culture, and history of the communities they pass through,” Canis wrote.
This design method “results in built projects that give as much consideration to community needs and values as they do to commuter needs,” the letter read. Maryland, Ohio, Oklahoma and Texas have active aesthetic programs for bridges, Canis wrote.
VDOT has built “signature” bridges before, including a span near Virginia Tech in Blacksburg that in 2019 received the Engineering Excellence Award from the American Council of Engineering Companies, Canis wrote.
VDOT now is using a “utilitarian but unattractive,” standard interstate-overpass design for the Georgetown Pike span, the letter read. Building a signature bridge instead would add only 1 or 2 percent to the project’s cost and possibly not even that much if addressed early enough in the process, Canis wrote. Gov. Youngkin, along with VDOT officials and other dignitaries, broke ground March 14 for the 495 NEXT (495 Express Lanes Northern Extension) Project, which will add two high-occupancy-toll lanes in each direction on 2.5 miles of the Beltway between the Dulles Toll Road and George Washington Memorial Parkway.
The privately financed $660 million project will be built by Transurban. Officials hope the new lanes will be ready for use in 2025.
Canis also hit the highlights of Georgetown Pike’s history, including that it had:
• Begun as a trail carved out by grazing bison herds centuries ago.
• Served as a trade route for the Susquehannock and Iroquois Indians in the 1600s and farmers in Virginia’s Piedmont and Shenandoah areas by the late 1700s.
• Been built and operated as a toll road by the Georgetown and Leesburg Pike Co., which in 1813 had received a charter from the U.S. Congress.
• Been purchased in 1934 by Madeira School founder Lucy Madeira Wing, who transferred ownership to the commonwealth of Virginia, which then added the roadway to the state’s highway system.
• Been designated in 1973 as Virginia’s first Scenic and Historic Byway and the following year was added to the National Register of Historic Places by the National Park Service.
“Importantly, this overpass may be the first practical one to welcome people crossing into Virginia from Maryland with an impactful design highlighting the history and beauty of our state,” Canis wrote.
[Sun Gazette Newspapers provides content to, but otherwise is unaffiliated with, InsideNoVa or Rappahannock Media LLC.]
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Virginia has more than 250 specialized license plates for all manner of organizations and causes, and Vienna officials for years have wanted to add a town-themed plate to that lineup.
But there was one nearly insurmountable hurdle: State law required cities, counties and towns seeking specialized plates to obtain at least 350 pre-paid orders first.
Those requirements changed April 1 after Gov. Youngkin signed a bill patroned by local Del. Mark Keam (D-Oakton-Vienna) that lets local governments pay the initial-issuance-fee costs for specialty license plates displaying the locality’s seal, symbol, emblem or logotype in lieu of getting those prepaid applications.
The bill, HB 703, passed unanimously in the state Senate and House of Delegates and takes effect July 1.
Vienna officials years ago had a license plate designed that featured an artist’s rendition of Town Hall in the center, with three blue letters or numbers arrayed on either side of the graphic.
Town officials earlier asked the General Assembly for a code amendment to remove the requirement for pre-paid orders, but it never got out of committee, said Town Attorney Steven Briglia.
“We tried a different approach, and the General Assembly approved the language and the governor signed the bill,” he said.
Although Vienna already has the earlier design for a specialized license plate, Briglia thought it likely the Town Council would determine a process for selecting a new license plate and then move forward.
Town officials would work with the Virginia Department of Motor Vehicles commissioner regarding the initial layout costs, Briglia said.
“The design costs for doing the original art would depend on how the Town Council wanted to proceed, either with an existing design or a new design,” he said.
“I think it is exciting to have the opportunity for a Vienna license plate,” said Mayor Linda Colbert. “I believe the Town Council will need to have a work session first to determine the next steps.”
Virginia’s specialty license plates span the gamut from colleges, universities and military academies to museums, associations, geographical sites, fraternities and ideological positions.
[Sun Gazette Newspapers provides content to, but otherwise is unaffiliated with, InsideNoVa or Rappahannock Media LLC.]
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Vienna officials announced March 31 that they had hired a planner from the city of Rockville, Md., to serve as director of the town’s Planning and Zoning Department.
Town officials chose David Levy after conducting a nationwide search and receiving applications from candidates in 10 states. Levy will assume his new job May 9 at a salary of $161,000.
Levy has extensive experience both in government and the private sector, town officials said. He has spent the last 16 years working for city of Rockville, Md., first as chief of long-range planning and then as assistant director for planning and business improvement.
“David Levy’s experience successfully updating Rockville’s comprehensive plan and updating the Rockville Pike corridor through a collaborative community process closely mirrors the approach Vienna has planned for similar updates,” Town Manager Mercury Payton said in a statement announcing Levy’s hiring.
“I am confident David will very capably lead Vienna through the next phases of our planning and zoning initiatives, not the least of which is our first major zoning-code update in 60 years,” he said.
That initiative, dubbed Code Create, is about halfway through its process.
Levy said he will work with the community to ensure its desires are being fulfilled. Another key element will be coordinating with other town departments, including police, public works, parks and recreation, public information and economic development, he said.
“Planning work is cross-disciplinary by its nature,” Levy said. “When all of those folks are on board an your working with the team, you not only have a plan but a chance to implement it. You need the departments with implementation authority.”
Payton said he was confident Levy would help achieve consensus amongst the Town Council and Vienna residents on the initiative.
“One of the qualities that was prominent [in the interview process] was his ability to understand communities, elected officials and leadership teams and be able to pivot and adjust, based on the needs of the environment,” Payton said. “Coupled with his educational background and his work in Rockville, he has a really wonderful combination of traits that will make him a good fit for Vienna.”
The town manager also was impressed with Levy’s lengthy tenure in Rockville.
“Serving in one community for 16 years is a unique trait that demonstrates his ability to experience multiple challenges,” Payton said. “It demonstrates stability and a desire to understand the heartbeat of where he serves.”
Levy was born and raised in Baltimore and earned a bachelor’s degree in history from the University of Pennsylvania in 1986 and a master of public policy degree from Harvard Kennedy School in 1992.
Levy also in 1992 obtained a certificate of proficiency in Spanish from the Galápagos Language School, then spent nearly two years as a special assistant to the mayor in the city of Quito, Ecuador.
Levy subsequently was the Brownfields Project coordinator for the Baltimore City Department of Planning from 1995 to 1998, then spent two years as a senior associate with PA Consulting Group in Arlington.
He then did a three-year stint as a project manager of ICF International, a global consulting and technology-services company located just south of the Vienna Metrorail Station. While there, Levy provided technical assistance and analysis to local, state and federal agencies regarding community and economic development, sustainable development and public management, Vienna officials said.
Before assuming his current post in Rockville, Levy was assistant commissioner for land resources for the Baltimore City Department of Housing & Community Development, where he worked on initiatives to redevelop or rehabilitate sections of the city, Vienna officials said.
Levy currently is vice president of the Maryland Chapter of the American Planning Association and a member of the Urban Land Institute, American Planning Association and American Institute of Certified Planners. He also previously spent two years chairing the planning director’s technical advisory committee for the Metropolitan Washington Council of Governments.
The Vienna Planning and Zoning Department has seen some turnover at the top since Greg Hembree, who had led the department for 27 years, committed suicide in September 2014. Patrick Mulhern served as the department’s director from April 2015 until his retirement in January 2018 and was succeeded by Cindy Petkac, who departed in December 2021. Michael D’Orazio, the department’s deputy director, has served as acting director since Petkac left.
Levy lives in Rockville with his wife and two daughters. In his spare time, he likes to ride his bicycle, travel and play guitar (more acoustic than electric, out of consideration for his family).
Levy said he took the Vienna post in part because he wanted to try his hand as a department director. He became familiar with Vienna when working at ICF and said he has been struck by the town’s cohesive neighborhoods, parkland, and strong environmental ethic, as evidenced by its tree-preservation efforts.
“Vienna is a beautiful place,” he said.
[Sun Gazette Newspapers provides content to, but otherwise is unaffiliated with, InsideNoVa or Rappahannock Media LLC.]
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CHEYENNE – Barnes & Noble plans to stick around in the state’s capital city, a company official said Tuesday, even as its local store will move at least once and probably twice.
Last week, the company that describes itself as the No. 1 book retailer in the U.S. announced that it will close its store at 1851 Dell Range Blvd. around May 15. Janine Flanigan, director of store planning and design for B&N, said Tuesday that the company wasn’t able to reach a new agreement to extend the lease at the current location.
Flanigan said that Barnes & Noble, for a few months, may not have a local store in Cheyenne. That’s because its new, temporary premises at the nearby Frontier Mall may not be ready to host the bookstore for a little while. B&N will occupy (at Suite 93) two storefronts in the mall, which used to be stores called Asian Gifts and Wild West, Flanigan told the Wyoming Tribune Eagle.
The period of time without a local store is due to the fact that B&N is going through a permitting process to convert the two separate stores into a single location, Flanigan said. She said the B&N store on Dell Range has been in business for 27 years.
“We are hoping to get it open (at around) the end of July or early August,” the real estate official said of the Frontier Mall location. “We have to get some permits to do some work in the new space.”
This interim store will be about 6,500 square feet, versus the current location’s approximately 23,000 square feet, Flanigan noted.
Another move may be entailed, as the retailer wants to find a permanent location locally.
“Our permanent home is looking to be similar (sized) to our old home, with new furniture and fixtures,” Flanigan said by phone. “Our CEO, James Daunt, is committed to the community and is committed to our booksellers.”
Barnes & Noble, under Daunt’s leadership for the last few years, has received some acclaim for sticking with bookselling and giving its local staff leeway to feature books as they see fit, while the company has revamped some retail locations. In August 2019, Barnes & Noble was bought by Elliott Advisors (UK) Ltd. and taken private, meaning its shares ceased actively trading on a stock market.
“We don’t plan on leaving that space until we have a new space,” Flanigan said about the Frontier Mall location. “It is great to be able to stay in the market.” She noted that B&N is in “a lot” of other small markets, not just Cheyenne.
Barnes & Noble has about 600 stores, with at least one in every U.S. state, according to Flanigan and its corporate website. It plans to open some new stores this year, she said.
Flanigan asked members of the public to contact the company if they have an idea for a new location. “Folks can email us at MyBarnesandNoble@bn.com,” Flanigan wrote in an email. She suggested adding “’Cheyenne’ or other areas in the subject line for new B&N locations.”
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SWEETWATER COUNTY – The Sweetwater County Commissioners voted to approve the submission of a statement of intent to the Fiscal Year 2023 Transportation Alternatives Grant Program for a Scenic Turnout and Overlooks Project during the meeting on Tuesday, April 5.
The executive summary included with the meeting’s agenda states, “Sweetwater County has the opportunity to collaborate with the Sweetwater County Joint Travel and Tourism Board and apply for federal funding under the Transportation Alternatives Program (TAP) through the Wyoming Department of Transportation. If approved, the grant award requires a cash match of 9.51%, and must be completed within three years.
“The purpose of TAP funding is to support community-based projects that expand travel choices and enhance the transportation experience by integrating modes and improving the cultural, historic and environmental aspects of our transportation infrastructure. The proposed project consists of developing two scenic turnouts with possible trails along the All-American Road (Flaming Gorge – Green River Scenic Byway).”
The estimated total budget for the 2023 Transportation Alternatives Program is $200,000 - $300,000.
The TAP grant, which would cover 90.49% of the program, would account for $180,980 - $271,470 of the overall budget.
The SWCO cash match, which would cover 9.51% of the program, would account for $19,020 - $28,530 of the overall budget.
Grants manager Krisena Marchal said that the improved infrastructure won’t be owned by Sweetwater County.
“Usually, we like to pay match money for our own improvements. But, very importantly it is consistent with the 2022 Sweetwater County Tourism Master Plan’s vision and strategy of Outdoor Recreation, which specifically identifies, ‘Work on developing and improving the Flaming Gorge experience from the Sweetwater County side of the gorge.’”
Marchal also said that the submission of the statement of intent is not binding and “does not commit and obligation to carry out the project.”
According to Marchal, Sweetwater County would have to be the official sponsor of the grant application and project, as well as oversee all of the contractual obligations and compliance.
“The required match has been reduced from 20% to 9.51%, and I would include that in the FY 2023 grant projects budget. Joint Travel and Tourism funding cannot be used for the TAP match but they would participate significantly with signage and kiosks at the turnouts, and ongoing contractual costs for restrooms or porta potties,” Marchal said.
Sweetwater County Travel and Tourism executive director Jenissa Meredith said that this is being done to build two different turnouts: one on Hwy 191 and one on Hwy 530.
“There’s a sand dune at the edge of the Butte there that has been forming there over the past several years. We’re hoping to build a turnout there and offer some interpretive signage about the sand dunes and the geology of the area; possibly a nature trail walking path and possibly a mountain biking path,” Meredith said.
Meredith said that the turnout for Hwy 530 included in the application is located near Clay Basin
“There’s a lot of opportunities there. As you know, that’s a beautiful overlook,” Meredith said. “We’re hoping to, either with this or another funding stream, provide restroom facilities near Clay Basin. That’s a great stretch of highway without any restroom facilities, so that’s a really opportune location for that.”
According to Meredith, they are also looking at another grant opportunity through the Federal Highway Administration.
Public works director Gene Legerski said that an estimated range for the budget was given due to the exact cost not being known yet. He said that a lot of it will depend on the exact location.
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ROCK SPRIINGS -- The affirmation of the intent to move forward with the construction of an addition on the Rock Springs campus for the health sciences and nursing programs is up for approval at the Western Wyoming Community College Board of Trustees meeting on Monday, April 11, at 6:45 p.m.
“The board is aware that Western’s health sciences program facilities have been a topic of discussion for the past few years. Western commissioned an abbreviated level I study in late 2018 to explore consolidating the nursing program instructional spaces into one facility, and in September of 2020, the board authorized administration to conduct a level II feasibility study for the health sciences/nursing programs.
“The board reviewed the level II study draft during the workshop on Jan. 14, 2021, and approved the study for submission to the Wyoming Community College Commission on Feb. 11, 2021.”
According to the agenda, the study “explored” three options for the facility: construction of an addition on the Rock Springs campus; renovation of the Green River Center; use of the old Memorial Hospital building in Rock Springs.
Also included in the agenda are the results from the level II study that was conducted.
“As explained in the level II study, ‘the professional analysis of the three locations, in concert with the discussions of the executive committee, resulted in the decision to locate the facility on the Rock Springs campus. This option allows those enrolled in the program to take advantage of the adjacencies to existing student programs and amenities on campus, and allows for more convenient access to other educational programs that are required for the health science students.’”
Through the study, the conclusion was made that the renovation of the old hospital building, which has an estimated cost of $8.44 million, “would not be an optimal solution because ‘the existing structural grid is not conducive to the larger skills labs required and a portion of the program would have to be located in the basement, which is not ideal for access or daylighting.’”
It was also found through the study that due to the age of the building, several of the spaces and systems would need to be brought up to current code.
According to the agenda, the estimated cost of an addition on the Rock Springs campus is $7.6 million.
“Administration is asking that the board affirm the intent to move forward with constructing an addition on the Rock Springs campus for the health sciences and nursing programs.”
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CHEYENNE – Gov. Mark Gordon said that after he has laid the groundwork for success in his first term, he is ready to seek re-election.
He traveled to Buffalo to make the announcement Monday evening, where he asked friends and family to support his effort. His message to the crowd was “there’s more work to do,” which is a sentiment he reiterated to the Wyoming Tribune Eagle on Tuesday.
“It always seemed to me that any governor who gets the job should anticipate doing it for eight years, for two reasons,” he said on a visit to the WTE’s newsroom. “One, it’s hard to get things done in just four. And then, two, it’s a wonderful state, and I just think that people in Wyoming expect you’re going to do your job as long as you can do it.”
Gordon said he ran for governor in 2018 because he wanted to guarantee Wyoming had strong, conservative leadership. He defeated five other Republicans, including attorney Harriet Hageman, in the gubernatorial primary with 33.4% of the vote. Hageman is currently seeking the U.S. House of Representatives seat held by Liz Cheney, R-Wyo., and earned an endorsement from former President Donald Trump last fall.
After prevailing in the primary, Gordon went on to win the general election. The governor obtained nearly 73% of the votes against Democratic contender Mary Throne.
Before he was elected as the 33rd governor of Wyoming, he worked in the treasurer’s office. He was appointed to serve as treasurer by Gov. Mark Mead in 2012, and elected to a full term two years later. It wasn’t until he ran for to be governor that he left the position in 2019.
Gordon also spent a significant portion of his life in Johnson County, although he was not born in Wyoming. But from local business ownership to ranching, he is known for making the state his home.
“It is a place that really values liberty and freedom, and so we have fewer regulations,” he said. “We have government that’s accessible. You just don’t get that from other places.”
Keeping with those values, Gordon said he felt as though his first term in the governor’s office was a success. The budget remained fiscally conservative, investments were made in expanding energy sources, and the state’s economy survived throughout the COVID-19 pandemic.
Economic diversification efforts were also a priority, which Gordon said relied on multiple tools.
The administration recognized it’s not only about bringing new businesses into Wyoming, but also investing in established local businesses looking to grow. He explained that education is the cornerstone of this perspective, because investments need to be made into entrepreneurial and workforce programs.
While commitment to education and community are important, Gordon said there is still value in bringing in outside companies to expand the market. One of the major industries bringing in opportunities he spoke of was technology.
“I think we set ourselves up because we passed some really pioneering legislation,” he said. “Our Special Purpose Depository Institution Act is a phenomenal piece of legislation. We are forcing our way through the federal system to get Wyoming recognized, but it has already brought a lot of attention to Wyoming.”
Gordon said he plans to build on those accomplishments if he is re-elected. He also hopes to reinvent the education model in the state, ensure an accessible and affordable health care system, continue to raise state workforce compensation and create a sustainable government that is not tied to commodity cycles for funding.
He said this does not mean abandoning legacy industries, but rather finding ways they can develop better and continuing diversification efforts. He acknowledged this would benefit addressing climate change, as well, which he has been a proponent of in the past.
“If you care about the climate, the way you address it is by letting the free market find the solutions,” he said. “Wyoming can provide those opportunities. And that’s not left or right, that’s just good sense.”
Energy is not just at the forefront of discussions between state political candidates, but rather receiving national attention due to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. President Joe Biden banned the import of Russian oil, liquefied natural gas and coal to the U.S. at the beginning of March, which left many wondering how the gap would be filled.
Wyoming lawmakers such as Cheney and GOP Sens. John Barrasso and Cynthia Lummis advocate the state become the arsenal of energy for the nation. They were not alone, as Gordon shared the same perspective, and he also pointed to the environmental benefits.
He said Biden reached out to Venezuela to help produce more oil in order to stabilize gas prices, but that country’s practices was not up to American standards. In his fight for oil and gas leasing on federal lands, he said the Biden administration was harming itself by not allowing the Western region to continue developing environmentally sensitive, premium energy. Working toward solutions in the industry is yet another objective in his campaign.
“We shoot our own people who care about the environment in the foot,” he said. “It just doesn’t make sense, which is why I said this year, ‘Mr. Biden, tear up your energy plan. Let America power the world.’”
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(The Hill) — Anthony Fauci, the nation’s leading infectious disease expert, appeared this week on Chris Wallace’s new streaming show for CNN and bemoaned the challenges he says he faced while crafting messaging around the coronavirus pandemic during former President Donald Trump’s administration.
“How tough was that, dealing with and sharing a podium with a president who … was dispensing misinformation?” Wallace asked Fauci, according to a transcript of their conversation.
“Yes, it was very painful,” Fauci answered. “And that’s the reason why I had to do something that I know alienated a lot of the Trump people, in fact, maybe all of the Trump people. But I had to … go to the podium and say, ‘I’m sorry, I disagree with you.’”
According to Fauci, after he would rebuke Trump’s assertions about pandemic science, treatments and preventive measures, the then-president never took Fauci aside or spoke to him privately about the public disagreements, he said.
“But his staff declared war on me. And war on me was they did sort of opposition research on me and sent out information that I didn’t know what I was talking about,” Fauci told Wallace. “So, my position in the White House became extremely uncomfortable and, in fact, untenable, because I kept on telling the truth.
“And I’m sorry, I can’t agree when you say hydroxychloroquine works. I can’t agree when you say something else works,” he continued. “I can’t agree when you say it’s going to go away tomorrow and disappear like magic. I have to get out the next evening and tell the public ‘No, I’m sorry, I disagree.’”
Fauci became a lightning rod for criticism from conservatives who resisted pandemic restrictions and supporters of Trump during the pandemic. Some congressional Republicans in recent months have called for him to be investigated or fired over his statements and recommendations early during the global outbreak.
Conservative pundits in media, most notable on Fox News, have routinely blasted Fauci and his research while accusing Democrats of using the pandemic to control people’s lives.
Wallace, whom Trump famously soured on near the end of the 2020 presidential campaign, left his longtime gig hosting Fox News Sunday to join CNN+ to host an interview-style show late last year.
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Russia’s actions will never be forgotten or forgiven, Tanaiste warns
Tánaiste Leo Varadkar has warned Russia that its actions against the Ukrainian people will never be forgotten or forgiven.
In a powerful speech to the Irish Parliament, Leo Varadkar said that through modern media, the world has seen the atrocities committed during the invasion of Ukraine by Russian forces.
He made the remarks following an historic address by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky to a joint sitting of the Houses of the Oireachtas.
Mr Varadkar said Mr Zelensky’s words “moved and inspired us and shamed us” and the rest of the world for not doing more sooner.
In a direct message to Russian President Vladimir Putin, his government, diplomats, collaborators and his apologists across the world, Mr Varadkar said they have violated the human rights of the Ukrainian people.
“You have raped and defiled the very principles of common humanity which bind us together in peace and harmony,” he added.
“You have betrayed your own people and your own country’s rich history and culture, your own resistance to oppression over many centuries.”
Mr Varadkar said Ireland will do all it can to help Ukraine in its struggle, and to shelter refugees who have fled the country.
“We will stand by them in their greatest hour,” he added.
“In the long history of our own country, we have never invaded another but we do know what it’s like to have been invaded and to have the very existence of our national identity questioned too.
“For these reasons, we feel for the idealism of the Ukrainian people, their defiance and their determination to face down a new evil empire.
“As a country, we are heartbroken watching the scenes we see on television every night and we’re heartbroken to see what the people of Ukraine have had to endure now for 42 days.
He added that Mr Zelensky showed a “burning desire for freedom and self-determination, for democracy and liberty”.
Sinn Fein leader Mary Lou McDonald said Russia should be prosecuted for human rights violations against Ukrainian civilians.
She told the Dail that Mr Zelensky outlined the atrocities against his country in the “most harrowing, most heart-breaking” of terms.
“We have heard testimony of the vicious war crimes committed by the Russian military in Ukraine, and we have been set a challenge, and innocent civilians have been executed with their arms tied behind their backs,” Ms McDonald added.
“There have been horrific accounts of rape and torture, the brutalisation by the powerful of vulnerable ordinary citizens in their war-torn country.
“These are crimes against the Ukrainian people and these are crimes against humanity, and Russia must be held accountable for its barbarism and justice must be done.
“These human rights violations and grave breaches of the Geneva Convention demand investigation by the International Criminal Court and prosecutions to follow.”
She said it is “long past time” that the Russian ambassador to Ireland Yury Filatov should be expelled.
Independent TD Cathal Berry, who is a former deputy head of the Army Ranger Wing, urged the Government to hand over the anti-tank weapons currently stored in the Curragh military camp in Co Kildare.
It is understood there are hundreds of anti-tank bazookas.
Mr Berry said: “One hour’s drive from here, in the Curragh Camp, there are hundreds of anti-tank rockets, nearing the end of their shelf-life, that can very easily be transferred to the Ukraine defence forces.
“The reason that is so important is that we know the Russians are preparing a massive offensive in the east and that this offensive is likely to be successful, but it does not have to be this way.
“Taoiseach, I would urge you to send protective defensive weapons to Ukraine, that we stop the Russia advance and that we drag them to the negotiation table and together we alter the course of history.”
Labour leader Ivana Bacik said stronger measures need to be taken against Russia.
She also repeated her calls to expel the Russian ambassador to Ireland.
She accused Mr Filatov of denying the truth of what is happening in Ukraine.
“We are calling for strong support for Ukraine’s expedited accession to the EU, have full embargo on Russian oil and gas, to join with the welcome move on coal.
“Urgent initiation of investigations into Russian war crimes against civilians, including crimes of sexual violence against women that we are hearing such appalling reports about.”
Speaker of the Dail Sean O Fearghail said Ireland salutes Mr Zelensky’s “outstanding bravery” and the resilience of the Ukrainian people.
“While Ireland is a militarily neutral country, we are not politically neutral. We do not stand idly by,” he added.
“We will continue to offer practical, on-the-ground support for our Ukrainian friends.
“We will also continue to welcome those forced to leave Ukraine seeking safety on foreign shores.
“Mr president, we Irish are aware of the pain of separation, the loss of our people to distant lands.
“At this challenging time, those forced to leave Ukraine are welcome here in Ireland, and they will be supported and assisted until such time as they are free to return to rebuild their damaged homeland.”
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Ireland has not remained neutral on war in Ukraine, says Zelensky
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said Ireland has not remained neutral over the disaster Russia has inflicted on his country.
In a historic address to the Irish parliament, he said Ireland has supported Ukraine from the first days of the war.
Addressing a joint sitting of the Houses of the Oireachtas via a translator, he said: “You did not doubt starting helping us, you began doing this right away and, although you are a neutral country, you have not remained neutral to the disaster and to the mishaps that Russia has brought to Ukraine.”
He said he is grateful to every citizen of Ireland and for the country’s support of sanctions against Russia.
“Thank you for the humanitarian and financial support extended to our country and thank you for your caring about Ukrainian people who found shelter on your land,” he said.
“Just think about it – 10 million Ukrainians have been left without shelter as of today by Russia, who had to leave their native cities because of this war. This is something we cannot come to grips with.”
He also urged Ireland’s political leaders to use their influence to convince other EU nations to introduce even tougher sanctions to halt the Russian war machine.
Mr Zelensky went on to say that he cannot tolerate indecisiveness in sanctions against Russia.
“Now, when we’re hearing new rhetoric about the sanctions against Russian opposition, I can’t tolerate any indecisiveness after everything that we have gone through in Ukraine, after everything that Russian troops have done,” he said.
“Today, when the whole world knows about the crimes against our people, we still have to convince even some of the European companies to abandon Russian markets, we still have to convince Russia of foreign politicians that we need to cut any ties of global banks of Russian banks with the global financial system.
“We still have to convince Europe that Russian oil cannot feed Russian military machinery with new sources of funding.”
TDs and Senators from various political parties watched Mr Zelensky give his address on TV screens dotted throughout the Dail.
Among those watching from the Dail gallery was Larysa Gerasko, the Ukrainian ambassador to Ireland, and a number of foreign dignitaries.
Mr Zelensky told those gathered that Russia is using hunger as a weapon in its war against his country.
“This night, our territory was again hit by Russian missiles,” he said.
“They are destroying things that are sustaining livelihoods to people.
“They also have blocked all of our sea ports, together with the vessels that had already agricultural cargos for exports.
“Why are they doing this? Because for them hunger is a weapon against us ordinary people as an instrument of domination.
“Ukraine is one of the leading food-supplying country in the world with exports.
“This is not just about the deficit and the threat of hunger.
“There will be a shortage of food and the prices will go up, and this is reality for the millions of people who are hungry, and it will be more difficult for them to feed their families.”
Mr Zelensky also said that Russia needs to be held responsible for everything it has done in Ukraine.
He said that in 42 days of war at least 167 children have been killed.
“We don’t know yet all the atrocities of Mariupol and the victims in the areas of Ukraine,” he added.
“Fighting is still going and the fact is that, as a result of Russian shelling, 927 educational institutions were damaged, 258 hospitals, they even shot at 78 ambulances.
“They were targeting even churches and shelters that they knew for sure that there is nobody but women and children, and this is a fact.
“The country which is doing this is not doesn’t deserve to be in the circle of the civil countries.
“It should be held responsible for everything they have done on Ukrainian soil. They have come to Ukraine as a colonising army, their state propagandists, their politicians are not even concealing what they want in the 21st century.
“They’re looking at the country of the colonial empire, who allegedly has the right to subdue neighbouring people and destroy the foundations of independence, destroy their identity, everything that makes us Ukrainians.”
Speaking after the historic address, Irish premier Micheal Martin said he is certain that Ukraine will prevail in its war with Russia.
“Russia will have to live with the shame of what they have done in Ukraine for generations. Those responsible will be held to account,” the Fianna Fail leader added.
“We are with Ukraine and I am certain that, in the end, Ukraine will prevail.
“We are a militarily neutral country. However, we are not politically neutral in the face of war crimes. Quite the opposite.
“Our position is informed by the principles that drive our foreign policy – support for international human rights, for humanitarian law and for a rules-based international order. We are not neutral when Russia disregards all of these principles. We are with Ukraine.
“Ukraine’s political, economic and humanitarian needs are now manifold and pressing.
“Our efforts, as a friend and as a partner of Ukraine, are aimed at using all the levers at our disposal to bring a just end to this war; applying international pressure on Russia; pursuing accountability for violations of international law; and meeting the humanitarian needs of those caught now in the midst of this terrible and immoral war.”
Some 30 minutes before Mr Zelensky’s address, dozens of Ukrainians gathered outside the gates of the parliament buildings.
Adults and children waved Ukrainian flags, while others held placards calling for tougher sanctions against Moscow.
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Volodymyr Zelensky silences Irish parliament all the way from Ukraine
President Volodymyr Zelensky hushed the Dáil on Wednesday all the way from Ukraine, on a day when the languages of the two countries intermingled inside and outside the chamber.
The histories of the two countries are intertwined, the Dail heard, as Mr Zelensky spoke to a state marking 100 years since its foundation.
Those sentiments came not from Mr Zelensky himself, but from the politicians who pledged solidarity to the people of Kyiv, Mariupol, Bucha and a host of other war-torn towns.
The Ukrainian leader, when he spoke at 10am on Wednesday, had a different script to the leaders who have previously addressed a joint sitting of the Oireachtas.
He did not, like Tony Blair in 1998, regale politicians with memories of childhood holidays in Co Donegal.
Neither did he share snapshots from career-making moments in Dublin, as European Commission president Jean-Claude Juncker did in 2018.
The only Irish poetry referenced came from Ceann Comhairle Sean O Fearghail, who cited WB Yeats.
Instead, Mr Zelensky asked for help during the first virtual address in the history of the Oireachtas.
What Irish politicians heard was a demand for Irish and European support for the country in the face of Russian aggression.
Gratitude too, but calls to go further.
Mr Zelensky said Ireland has supported Ukraine from the start of the war.
He said: “You did not doubt starting helping us, you began doing this right away and, although you are a neutral country, you have not remained neutral to the disaster and to the mishaps that Russia has brought to Ukraine.”
The voice of the Ukrainian leader, which has been heard in parliaments all the way from Brussels to Washington, was replaced by that of a translator.
But unmistakable was the impassive face of Mr Zelensky, which loomed above legislators from two screens behind Mr O Fearghail.
Dressed in military green, the Ukrainian president looked on as Irish politicians wore bright hues of blue and yellow.
Lapels, dresses and pocket-squares were all turned into expressions of silent support for Ukraine.
At the entrance to the Dail chamber, Oireachtas staff had also placed two small baskets of yellow and blue flowers.
Looking on too were around 50 ambassadors to Ireland from countries around the globe.
Mr Zelensky told those gathered that Russia is using hunger as a weapon in its war against his country.
“This night, our territory was again hit by Russian missiles,” he said.
“They are destroying things that are sustaining livelihoods to people.
“They also have blocked all of our sea ports, together with the vessels that had already agricultural cargos for exports.
“Why are they doing this? Because for them hunger is a weapon against us ordinary people as an instrument of domination.”
The Ukrainian leader stayed just long enough to hear a message of support from Irish premier Micheal Martin, who had sat upright, leaning forward, as he listened intently.
Mr Zelensky must have heard too, from thousands of miles away in Ukraine, the thunderous applause from senators and TDs inside the Dail chamber.
Not all members applauded – four People Before Profit TDs refused to clap, even as other politicians stood for a minute of applause.
The reason, a spokesperson said, was a disagreement with calls from Mr Zelensky for Nato involvement in the war, as well citing demands for more sanctions and a “decision to ban opposition parties” in Ukraine.
“Russia will have to live with the shame of what they have done in Ukraine for generations. Those responsible will be held to account,” Mr Martin told the Dail.
“We are with Ukraine and I am certain that, in the end, Ukraine will prevail.
“We are a militarily neutral country. However, we are not politically neutral in the face of war crimes. Quite the opposite.”
Outside the gates of Leinster House in the Irish capital, a small group of Ukrainian supporters gathered to listen to proceedings.
Irish and Ukrainian schoolchildren from St Joseph’s in the Dublin suburb of Fairview sang the national anthems of the two countries.
Nick Kozlov, from the Ukrainian Crisis Centre, led the crowd in chants.
“I believe, if we have young people like this, Ukraine will never be beaten,” he said.
As the two languages blended together outside, inside Leinster House the histories of the two countries were explicitly linked.
One hundred years after the creation of the Irish Free State, Ireland’s own struggle for independence was invoked, as was 19th century Irish political leader Daniel O’Connell and African-American abolitionist Frederick Douglass.
“In the long history of our own country, we have never invaded another but we do know what it’s like to have been invaded,” Tanaiste Leo Varadkar told the Dail.
“And to have the very existence of our national identity questioned too. For these reasons, we feel for the idealism of the Ukrainian people – their defiance and their determination to face down a new evil empire.”
Unity and silence reigned for most speeches, punctured only by renewed opposition calls for the expulsion of the Russian ambassador – a move resisted so far by the Irish Government.
Sinn Fein leader Mary Lou McDonald, dressed in white, said it is “long past time” to eject Yury Filatov.
That demand was conspicuously clapped by some TDs on the Government benches.
There was levity too.
Senator David Norris, partially kept from the corridors of the Seanad by ill health, made an appearance.
His particularly loud cheers at various stages in proceedings prompted applause and laughter, as well as compliments from Climate Minister Eamon Ryan.
But above all else, there was poignancy.
“Slava Ukraini,” Mr Martin told the embattled Ukrainian leader as he ended his speech.
Only a few metres above him, invisible to the Taoiseach, Ukrainian ambassador to Ireland Larysa Gerasko looked on.
Ms Gerasko, surrounded by colleagues, echoed quietly: “Slava Ukraini.”
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