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Public university systems should invest in training and support for quality teaching, Félix V. Matos Rodríguez and Penny MacCormack write.
As the pandemic hits the two-year mark and higher education takes full stock of its impact, the challenges we face are multiple—but so are the opportunities.
We face the largest enrollment decline in a decade. The pandemic continues to disrupt learning and affect the mental health of too many of our students. Our nation cannot afford to lose any more students in an economy that demands postsecondary education and a democracy desperate for informed citizens.
At the same time, as readers of Inside Higher Ed know all too well, few faculty members are prepared to teach. Instead, they’re prepared as subject-matter experts and researchers with the presumption that they will be good teachers by default. Traditionally, fostering good pedagogy is an afterthought at best, and most professors don’t receive the same level of support or formal training in teaching.
Faculty members should not be expected to solve the educational challenges we face on their own. We must invest in quality teaching across higher education and equip faculty members with practices that can improve student learning, persistence and achievement.
This is why, at the end of last year, we joined higher education leaders across the country to kick off the Power of Systems, a transformation agenda for the future of American higher education developed by the National Association of System Heads (NASH) through generous support from the Lumina Foundation, Strada Education Network, the ECMC Foundation, the Open Society Foundations and the Carnegie Corporation of New York.
The learning imperative—focusing on quality teaching—is one of five core imperatives that make up the Power of Systems agenda that leaders are coalescing around to advance student success and equity. In addition, NASH’s learning imperative calls for the development, teaching and assessment of equity-centered academic and experiential curricula; flexible pathways of study with a more effortless transfer of credits from one institution to another; and better use of technology.
Across the City University of New York, we are advancing the learning imperative by making instructional excellence one of our signature issues, and we are leading a full-scale, multipronged effort to accomplish these goals. CUNY’s systemwide Innovative Teaching Academy works to improve pedagogy and innovation. A $10 million gift from the Mellon Foundation supports this work, including our new Transformative Learning in the Humanities program to promote new more equitable and engaged ways to teach the humanities. A new CUNY task force is identifying ways to enhance the importance of teaching in performance reviews and promotion and tenure decisions. Additional grants from the Carnegie Corporation of New York and the Charles Koch Foundation have enabled us to credential hundreds of faculty members in evidence-based teaching practices through the Association of College and University Educators (ACUE).
This partnership has been instrumental in CUNY’s efforts. ACUE has codified and validated the teaching skills and knowledge that every professor should have. ACUE’s Effective Practice Framework is now embraced by colleges and universities nationwide, too. Hundreds of faculty members across CUNY, and tens of thousands across the country, are developing these evidence-based teaching skills and earning the only nationally recognized collegiate teaching credential endorsed by the American Council on Education. A body of large-scale and rigorous impact studies shows that ACUE-certified faculty members retain more students, measurably improve student achievement and close equity gaps by using evidence-based teaching approaches in the classroom.
NASH’s bold agenda asks more of system leaders who may be accustomed to largely setting goals, distributing resources and holding campuses accountable. As it should. In addition to CUNY, systems like the Texas A&M University system, the University of Missouri system and California State University are leading major initiatives to invest in effective teaching at scale. For too long, the quality of teaching and learning was understood as a campus, or faculty, responsibility. But we know system leaders have the power to set the tone and put forward the necessary resources and conditions that directly impact the classroom.
When we think of learning, we usually think of the work of our students. But just imploring them to learn more is about as useless as a coach yelling at his players to score more runs. Instead, like the best coaches, we have an imperative to create the environments, provide the supports and set the paths that lead to true learning.
The systems NASH represents, including CUNY, have direct responsibility for approximately 75 percent of all students in public four-year colleges and universities. That is the Power of Systems, and the future is in our hands.
Bio
Félix V. Matos Rodríguez is chancellor of the City University of New York. Penny MacCormack is chief academic officer for the Association of College and University Educators.
We have retired comments and introduced Letters to the Editor. Letters may be sent to [email protected].
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Dream chaser: Local dirt biker not afraid to race with nation's best
Tri-Valley freshman Bobby Christman Jr. hasn't let physical pitfalls stop him from aiming high
DRESDEN — Dirt bikes are in the blood of Bobby Christman Jr.
The 14-year-old freshman at Tri-Valley High School has been racing them since he was 6, following in the footsteps of his father who shares the same passion.
Bobby Sr., rode until his son was old enough to ride his own. Then the focus went on Bobby Jr., who got his first dirt bike in 2009.
Bobby Jr. competes in the Big Wheel 85cc class, where he races in the super mini series and has done so across almost every state in the eastern seaboard.
He has yet to win a race, something he says is due largely to high-level competition from riders whose families devote their lives to the sport.
Bobby Jr. usually more than holds his own, however, as evidenced by a sixth-place finish in the KNCC Camp Coker Bullet race last season in Society Hill, South Carolina, and a ninth-place finish at a KNCC series race in Florida.
He will return to the Camp Coker Bullet this weekend.
Bobby Jr. has experience in a variety of facing formats, from long races through the woods to motocross and supercross. It’s the races through the woods, where the trails are narrow and competition gets fierce, where he gets the most enjoyment.
“You’re always anxious on the starting line until you get out there,” Bobby Jr. said. “The tracks are just nasty and you have to push for like an hour-and-a-half to get with the other kids. The main key is just to stay on the bike.”
That was sometimes far easier in theory than reality, especially when he first began racing. Some tracks, like those in West Virginia and other Appalachian states, often feature rocky, rugged terrain and narrow trails that force drivers to avoid being too aggressive. Others have sand-based tracks.
"One of the tracks in Florida had a six-mile track of nothing but sand," he said. "It was just up and down, up and down."
He said he now prefers to race against better competition, but he admitted that finding his groove took time, particularly against more experienced drivers.
"I didn't do very well," Bobby Jr. said. "I crashed a lot and didn't finish very high. Those tracks were just nasty and took a while to adjust to. Sand, rocks, hills, mud, (tree) roots. When we go to West Virginia it's just rocks."
Learning to navigate the terrain, between the ground conditions, narrow tracks and directions in the woods that can be difficult to discern on the fly, adds to the challenge.
It hasn't come without some growing pains.
In addition to being a Type 1 diabetic since he was a child, spills during races have resulted in a few mild concussions, a bruised wrist and a fractured ankle. Amber said none were considered serious.
Earlier in 2021, a crash into a tree sent him flying over the handlebars, bending the frame and flattening his front tire on his bike.
"Then I got ran over by another kid," Bobby Jr. explained.
"He has been lucky," Amber added. "He blacked out at one of the races when I wasn't there."
The danger element is overshadowed significantly by the thrill of the race, however. He recently moved up an age group with his 15th birthday fast approaching and figures to move up to 125cc class soon.
He has long since become more comfortable with the various challenges and potential pitfalls that each venue provides, but he admitted nerves are still a factor at the start of races.
"The starting line, it's just crazy," Bobby Jr. "I just want to go and get into the woods and away from everybody."
Practicing has required some ingenuity. When they can't find a local track, Bobby Jr. chases his dad around on their property near Dresden, with the former riding an three-wheel ATV.
That has its benefits. Riding at home allows Bobby Jr., to ride at his own pace and learn new racing techniques, such as using front braking.
"You can practice new stuff that don't want to try during a race," Bobby Sr. said.
Bobby Jr. has experience in many race formats, such as in supercross, motocross and grand prix events before racing full time in the woods in 2021.
"I like (most formats), but I like the woods the best," Bobby Jr. said. "You get to ride longer and it's more fun. It's just a lot better."
He dabbled in soccer, basketball and baseball, but it was the track that piqued his interest most.
"I just love the bikes," Bobby Jr. said.
As Amber said lightheartedly: "He's not a team player. He doesn't do well doing that. When he's on the bike and just doing that, he does better."
The racing lifestyle is one that is demanding monetarily, between travel expenses and meals to providing fuel, tires and other items for the bike.
Bobby Sr. works full time and is a one-man pit crew, handling the wrench work on the bike, while Amber often picks up extra shifts as a server at The Barn in Zanesville to help offset the costs.
The family has received help building the bike from Jay Downour, who handles suspensions, Dalton Schmidt, whose company performed the powder coating, and Jimmy King, who did the graphics work for the bike and trailer.
His local GNCC races are in suburban Glouster at the Sunday Creek Raceway, where he will be named a GNCC Hometown Hero at either the John Penton event in the summer or the Burr Oak race in the fall.
He is chasing the dream many riders nationwide, of all ages, aspire to become — fully sponsored.
"I want to try and become factory," Bobby Jr. said. "Basically it's where I get free bikes and it's what I do for a living. A full-blown ride."
That will be a tall order. His plans of entering the power lineman program at the Muskingum Valley Joint Vocational School as a junior is much more easily attained. He aspires to travel and help with storm cleanup.
For now, however, he's going to enjoy the ride — even if it makes his mother worry at times.
"But I enjoy it," Amber said. "I enjoy it because I see how much he enjoys it."
sblackbu@gannett.com
740-450-6723
Twitter: @SamBlackburn
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https://www.zanesvilletimesrecorder.com/story/news/2022/04/07/tri-valley-high-school-freshman-chasing-dirt-biking-dreams/7160960001/
| 2022-04-07T10:05:50Z
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Fiscal policy is the use of government spending and tax policies to influence economic conditions. Like the central bank, the government can pursue an expansionary or contractionary fiscal policy.
When the economy is weak the government can lower taxes to encourage people to spend or invest because their disposable income (income minus taxes) increases making them feel wealthier.
This can
help demand to grow making businesses to hire workers and causing even more
demand as people start to see a better environment eventually helping the
overall economy. The government can also increase spending like for example for
infrastructure that increases employment pushing up demand and overall growth.
Such expansionary fiscal policy is associated with deficit spending. This means that the government spends more than it earns through taxes and borrows the rest from the open market selling bonds. This eventually creates debt that will need to be repaid in the future.
On the other hand, when the economy is strong the government can increase taxes and lower spending therefore slowing down demand and growth. Unfortunately, contractionary fiscal policy is rarely used because it’s politically unpopular as people most likely wouldn’t want to vote for a government that raises taxes. This is one of the reasons why government debt eventually grows gradually.
Generally, it’s the central bank that pursues a contractionary monetary policy to slow demand and growth and that’s also why an independent central bank is vital as it’s not aiming for political approval but just to make sure the economy remains stable.
This article was written by Giuseppe Dellamotta.
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| 2022-04-07T10:06:20Z
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- Prior +0.2%
- Retail sales +5.0% vs +4.8% y/y expected
- Prior +7.8%
Euro area retail sales improved slightly in February as it seems that spending is still keeping up for now but amid the inflation outlook, it will be a challenging next few months or quarters at least. The details show that the volume of retail trade increased by 3.2% for automotive fuels, and by 0.8% for non-food products, while it fell by 0.5% for food, drinks and tobacco.
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| 2022-04-07T10:06:26Z
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BENTON COUNTY, Wash. -
Ballots for the April 26 special election went out April 6.
If you aren't registered to vote, you can register online or in person.
Ballot drop-off locations are listed on the ballot return envelope.
If you return your ballot by mail, USPS recommends mailing your ballot at least one week before the election day for postmarking and delivering.
Voters in the Kennewick School District will see the the districts Replacement Programs and Operations Levy on their ballot.
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https://www.nbcrightnow.com/news/special-election-ballots-mailed-out-in-benton-county/article_b8c5f13a-b647-11ec-b4a4-0780affea221.html
| 2022-04-07T10:11:22Z
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Stock markets globally have been volatile in recent months given numerous uncertainties, which include continuing supply chain pressures, escalating prices, rising inflation, regional lockdowns in China, staffing issues, raw material cost increases, and Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, to name a few.
Unable to decide where to safely park their funds for investments, investors are left in a tizzy.
One way to make smart investments in these uncertain times is to keep a close watch on how the holding positions of insiders are changing on a particular stock.
Insiders truly know what’s going on “inside” the company, and their buys or sells paint a picture of the stock movement in the coming times.
The question is, how can a common investor get access to insider information that is not all that readily available?
Well, TipRanks comes to investors’ rescue with the TipRanks Insiders’ Hot Stocks tool that makes it possible to quickly find and track insiders’ moves.
Let us take a look at two stocks that should ignite investor interest: Shift4 Payments from the fintech sector, and TC Energy from the energy space.
Shift4 Payments (NYSE: FOUR)
Shift4 Payments, Inc. is an American payment processing company that provides integrated payment processing and technology solutions. Its software provides a single integration to an end-to-end payments offering, a powerful gateway, and a robust suite of technology solutions to enhance the value of their software suites and simplify payment acceptance.
It operates through three major segments: gateway processing (13% of revenue), end-to-end (E2E) processing (67% of revenue), and subscription software (19% of net revenue).
Notably, shares of the company, with a current market capitalization of $5.3 billion, have gained 60% over the past month despite reporting mixed Q4 results last month.
On March 1, Shift4 Payments reported mixed Q4 results, missing EPS estimates by ten cents but beating on the revenue front. Adjusted fourth-quarter earnings were $0.08 a share, below analysts’ estimates of 18 cents. Revenue of $399.4 million in the quarter was well ahead of the $382.86 million consensus projections.
Insiders at Shift4 Payments are clearly optimistic about the stock’s near-term prospects, and have bought $11.3 million worth of Shift4 Payments shares in the past three months.
Specifically on the insider front, we note that Chairman and CEO Isaacman Jared is positive on the stock with a recent informative buy.
He spent $1.74 million buying 35,958 shares of FOUR stock at $47.72 to $49.62 price levels, and now holds 334,742 shares worth $21.9 million.
Earlier this week, Susquehanna analyst James Friedman initiated coverage on Shift4 Payments with a Buy rating and a price target of $97 (51.75% upside potential).
Despite faster growth expected in 2022 and expansion into new markets, Friedman believes that Shift4 Payments is trading at a huge discount to its peers.
The Wall Street community is cautiously optimistic about the stock, with a Moderate Buy consensus rating based on seven Buys and three Holds. The average Shift4 Payments price target of $74.50 implies 16.55% upside potential to current levels.
TC Energy (NYSE: TRP)
Based in Canada, TC Energy Corporation is an energy infrastructure company that develops and operates energy infrastructure in Canada, the United States, and Mexico.
TRP operates Canadian Natural Gas Pipelines, U.S. Natural Gas Pipelines, Mexico Natural Gas Pipelines, Liquids Pipelines, and Power and Storage.
Shares of the company, with a current market capitalization of $57.5 billion, have gained 25% over the past year and are trading close to its 5-year highs at $58.77.
In February, TC Energy reported weaker-than-expected Q4 results as it faced C$60 million in charges related to the scrapping of its Keystone XL pipeline.
On the insider front, there has been consistent insider buying activity by the senior officials in the company, especially over the last two weeks.
Last week, two senior officers, Mark Yeomans and CEO Mark Zagorski, made the most recent informative buys. They picked up shares worth C$29,906 and C$72,410, respectively.
Furthermore, Industrial Alliance analyst Matthew Weekes recently upgraded TC Energy to Buy from Hold with a C$74 price target.
Looking at the Wall Street community, the analyst consensus is cautiously optimistic about the stock, with a Moderate Buy consensus rating based on six Buys and five Holds. The average TC Energy price target of $55.99 implies 4.7% downside potential to current levels.
Conceding to the insiders, TipRanks’ Stock Investors tool shows that retail investors currently have a Very Positive stance on TC Energy, with a whopping 14% of investors increasing their exposure to TRP stock over the past 30 days.
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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https://www.tipranks.com/news/article/resilient-insiders-buys-push-these-2-stocks-in-green/
| 2022-04-07T10:13:21Z
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HONOLULU (KITV4) -- Hawaii's largest mall on Wednesday announced four new tenants.
Coming soon to Ala Moana Center: Kamukura Ramen, Meet Fresh, The Experience, and Yomie's Rice X Yogurt.
Kamukura Ramen is expected to open this summer at the Lanai @ Ala Moana Center. It serves its ramen with a French consommé-based soup. It was founded in Osaka in 1986 and now has nearly 70 restaurants throughout Japan.
Meet Fresh is expected to open next month on Street Level 1 in the Ewa Wing. It was established in 2014 in Irvine, CA, and specializes in freshly made Taiwanese desserts, including taro balls, taro pudding and jelly desserts.
The Experience is expected to open this spring on Level 3 in the Mauka Wing. The Search For Snoopy: A Peanuts Adventure will take fans on an adventure inside the Peanuts world.
Yomie's Rice X Yogurt is expected to open this month in the Center Court. While it got its start in Australia, Yomie's Rice X Yogurt is now one of the leading yogurt shop brands in Asia.
In addition, previously announced tenants opening soon at Ala Moana Center include: Himalayan Kitchen and Wahlburgers.
Himalayan Kitchen is expected to open this month on Street Level 1 in the Diamond Head Wing. The restaurant serves a blend of Nepali, Indian, and Tibetan cuisines.
Wahlburgers is expected to open next month on Mall Level 2 in the Ewa Wing. It's a casual dining restaurant & bar founded by brothers Mark, Donnie and Chef Paul Wahlberg.
Marisa Yamane joined KITV4 in January 2022 as an anchor and executive producer. She is an award-winning veteran journalist, who’s spent most of her career in Hawaii. She’s a proud graduate of Iolani School and UCLA.
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| 2022-04-07T10:13:23Z
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Imagine making investment decisions in an ideal world with the absence of war, favorable interest rates, demand-supply equilibrium, and enough disposable income at consumers’ discretion to spend on goods and services. One would have a plethora of stocks to invest in with an appealing risk-reward appetite.
Now, coming back to the reality of a slew of uncertain economic factors and limited resources, investors are fraught with making the right investment choices that suit their palate.
Don’t worry! TipRanks has the perfect solution to the problem. The TipRanks Smart Score tool gives investors a simple way to gauge a stock’s performance. This is a data-driven score that evaluates a stock based on eight key market factors. Six of these are based on TipRanks’ unique data and take into consideration Wall Street analyst consensus; whether hedge funds are buying or selling shares; what the companies’ insiders are up to on the open market; and the opinion of financial bloggers, along with technical and fundamental indicators.
Notably, since 2016, Top Smart Score stocks (available only to TipRanks Premium Members) with a “Perfect 10” score have significantly outperformed the S&P 500, generating an alpha of 76.1% over the index, indicating that at volatile times, stocks with the maximum Smart Score offer market protection.
Let’s look at two consumer goods stocks with a Smart Score of “Perfect 10,” which implies that these stocks are some of the best bets in the sector at current times.
Lowe’s Companies (LOW)
Lowe’s is a home improvement retailer with operations in the U.S., Canada, and Mexico. With the pandemic-mandated stay-at-home practices, the retailer witnessed a boom in the demand for its offerings as consumers spent more time in the convenience of their homes.
The stock has lost 21.2% year-to-date amid a broader market sell-off, and gained more than 5% over the past year. The company boasts of over 19 million customer transactions per week through more than 2,200 home improvement and hardware stores.
In its upbeat Q4 results, the company beat expectations on both the revenue and earnings fronts and also raised guidance for full-year Fiscal 2022.
A rising interest rate scenario deters the home buying interests of consumers, albeit the effects will not be visible in the short term but will roll over in the longer term. However, millennials continue to rent out homes at an accelerated pace, which also boosts industry growth.
With the spring season kicking off soon, the retailer is expecting a resurgence in demand for its offerings. Lowe’s typically organizes its Lowe’s SpringFest event, where customers are welcomed to best-in spring products, virtual experiences, and DIY tours to beautify their homes.
As per Statista, the U.S. home improvement market size in 2021 stood at $538 billion, and by 2025 the market size is expected to grow north of $620 billion, representing a huge opportunity for the players in the sector.
Undoubtedly, Home Depot (HD) is the largest player in the space and Lowe’s biggest competitor. Lowe’s currently trades at 1.48x sales, higher than the industry average of 0.96x sales, but lower than HD’s multiple of 2.13x sales.
Wall Street analysts are highly optimistic about the LOW stock, with a Strong Buy consensus rating based on 12 Buys and two Holds. The average Lowe’s price forecast of $275.77 implies 37.4% upside potential to current levels.
Lowe’s Stock Analysis
Remarkably, according to TipRanks’ Smart Score, Lowe’s scores a “Perfect 10,” indicating that the stock is highly likely to outperform the market.
Bloggers and news articles are bullish on the stock. Meanwhile, in the last quarter, hedge funds bought 2.0 million shares of LOW stock, and retail investors have increased their exposure to the stock by 7.1%, indicating an inclination towards the retailer’s future performance.
Dollar Tree (DLTR)
Dollar Tree is an American discount retailer that traditionally sells products for $1 or less across the U.S. and Canada. The company operates more than 16,000 stores under the brands Dollar Tree, Family Dollar, and Dollar Tree Canada. The company’s offerings include quality everyday merchandise such as candy and food, housewares, seasonal goods, health and beauty care, stationery, toys, party goods, and other consumer items.
Surprisingly, the DLTR stock has gained 10.6% year-to-date even amid the broader market sell-off. Similarly, the stock has gained more than 33% during the past year.
The retailer reported mixed Q4FY21 results, with earnings topping expectations and sales missing expectations. Furthermore, the retailer’s guidance for FY22 also provided a mixed outlook, with earnings above and revenue below analysts’ estimates.
Hit by the historically high inflation and absence of state cash stimulus, which incentivized shoppers last year, the company decided to move its price range for its majority of product lines to $1.25 in the U.S. Additionally, DLTR also continues to expand its $3 and $5 Plus assortment in its stores to skirt the diminishing margins.
Moreover, the company also noted that persistent supply chain and logistics issues have raised the prices it pays to move the products to stores, further hitting their bottom lines.
Although the move has helped boost the retailer’s margins, it has also driven away consumers to competitors like Dollar General (DG). Currently, DLTR trades at 1.35x sales, above the industry median of 0.96x, but below the multiple of DG of 1.57x, making it a cheaper investment option.
Notably, Wall Street analysts have awarded the DLTR stock a Strong Buy consensus rating based on 13 Buys and two Holds. The average Dollar Tree price forecast of $173.33 implies 11.1% upside potential to current levels.
Dollar Tree Stock Analysis
Furthermore, according to TipRanks’ Smart Score, Dollar Tree scores a “Perfect 10,” indicating that the stock is highly likely to outperform the market.
Bloggers and news articles are bullish on the stock. Meanwhile, in the last quarter, hedge funds bought 3.6 million shares of DLTR stock, and retail investors increased their exposure to the stock by 8.3%. Even corporate insiders have bought 66.3K shares of the stock over the last three months, reflecting optimism about the company’s future potential.
Bargaining Points
Although the ongoing geopolitical environment and rising inflationary pressures are changing consumer behavioral patterns, both Lowe’s and Dollar Tree offer comforting insights, according to the TipRanks Smart Score tool.
With a proven track record of generating above-average market returns, investors can safely invest in the Top Smart Score Stocks in the TipRanks universe to protect their investment in the volatile market.
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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https://www.tipranks.com/news/article/two-perfect-10-consumer-goods-stocks-to-fight-off-inflation/
| 2022-04-07T10:13:27Z
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KIHEI, Hawaii (KITV4) – Kihei police officers arrested three people following an undercover drug bust at a drum circle at Poolenalena Beach on Maui on Sunday.
During the investigation, officers said they recognized two people at the event that were wanted on outstanding warrants. Those two people were identified as gary Gadient, 55, and Kayla Phelan, 26.
At approximately 7:13 p.m., Gadient was arrested and taken to the Kihei Police station. While Gadient was being processed, police said they found about 1/8 of an ounce of suspected crystal methamphetamine and drug paraphernalia on him.
Gadient would have been released pending investigation for a third degree drug complaint, however, police said he was being held violating a protective order. His bail set at $1,000 and police say he remains in custody at the Maui Community Correctional Center.
Phelan of Haiku was arrested and charged with promoting a dangerous drug in the first degree, promoting a controlled substance near a park, and prohibited acts related to drug paraphernalia. Her bail was set at $10,000 and police say she is out on supervised release pending her court hearing.
During the investigation, police say a 44-year-old Napili woman approached officers and offered “edible chocolates” containing “shrooms” (psilocybin mushrooms) for a “set price.”
The Napili woman was arrested and released pending investigation for promoting a dangerous drug in the first degree, promoting a detrimental drug in the first degree, and promoting a controlled substance near a public park.
Through further investigation, officers successfully recovered:
Nine pieces of wrapped chocolate containing suspected psilocybin mushrooms
Over an ounce of marijuana.
Nine homemade capsules with a suspected ecstasy
13 gold foil wrapped round pills of suspected ecstasy
One digital scale consistent with the sale and distribution of narcotics.
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https://www.kitv.com/news/crime/multiple-arrests-made-after-undercover-drug-bust-at-poolenalena-beach/article_d138bc84-b61a-11ec-9206-1f2ef8eb3913.html
| 2022-04-07T10:13:29Z
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Retail giant Bed Bath & Beyond Inc. (NASDAQ: BBBY) recently revealed its e-commerce venture with grocery giant The Kroger Co. (NYSE: KR). The launch follows the announcement of their collaboration in November 2021.
Following the news, shares of Bed Bath & Beyond remained almost static and closed at $21.81 in Wednesday’s extended trading session.
The venture will be powered by Kroger’s Ship marketplace and will include several items like bedding and storage, and baby furniture and gear from both Kroger and Bed Bath & Beyond. Further, a branded shop-in-shop experience in select stores will also follow.
With an easy and convenient interface to assist customers in their shopping experience, the e-commerce venture is expected to be customer-centric at its core.
Management Commentary
The Chief Operating Officer of Bed Bath & Beyond, John Hartmann, said, “We are very pleased to expand our customer base through the extensive reach of Kroger, the largest grocer in the U.S. With our authoritative line of products for every room of the home, including our exclusive Owned Brands, and leading line of items that help welcome moms and dads to parenthood, we are excited to provide Kroger shoppers with a compelling one-stop shopping experience.”
Wall Street’s Take
Consensus among analysts is a Hold based on four Buys, 10 Holds and three Sells. Bed Bath & Beyond’s average price target of $54.13 implies downside potential of 7.8% from current levels. Shares have declined 23.5% over the past year.
Conclusion
The stock has been under pressure for quite some time. However, with this move, Bed Bath & Beyond is expected to receive the thrust that it warrants.
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(CNN) -- Prosecutors declined to file charges against the Minneapolis police officer who fatally shot Amir Locke or any other officers involved in the no-knock warrant service that led to the 22-year-old Black man's death in early February.
An officer shot Locke within a few seconds of entering the apartment after prosecutors said Locke emerged from a couch with a handgun and raised it toward an officer. The officer, and others on the Minneapolis SWAT team, were there serving a warrant in a homicide investigation.
"After a thorough review of all available evidence ... there is insufficient admissible evidence to file criminal charges in this case," according to a statement from the county attorney and state attorney general released Wednesday.
At the time Locke was shot, he was in legal possession of the firearm, inside the apartment, according to prosecutors, but they said that wasn't relevant to the investigation. According to the statement from prosecutors, Locke's actions after officers entered the apartment "on a judicially authorized search warrant" constituted a "specifically articulable threat."
"These circumstances are such that an objectively reasonable officer in Officer (Mark) Hanneman's position would have perceived an immediate threat of death or great bodily harm that was reasonably likely to occur, and an objectively reasonable officer would not delay in using deadly force," according to the statement from Attorney General Keith Ellison and Hennepin County Attorney Michael Freeman.
Jeff Storms, an attorney for Locke's family, said it was a "disappointing day for the family."
"They just have a very strong belief that the incredible wrong that happened to Amir is going to save other people's lives," Storms told CNN. "They're not going to let the lack of criminal charges slow them down one bit."
Locke's mother said he was working as a food delivery driver and had the gun for protection. She said her son was cremated because she didn't want her son's remains to stay in Minneapolis.
"Did you think I was gonna bury my son in the ground of the place that murdered him? No, wherever I go, my baby's going. I don't live in the Twin Cities. I left the Twin Cities. I took my son with me when I left the Twin Cities," Karen Wells said.
The Police Officers Federation of Minneapolis praised the prosecutors' decision, saying Hanneman was "faced with a deadly threat and he had to make a split-decision decision" to protect himself and others.
"MPD SWAT was executing a search warrant signed by a judge who authorized the use of a 'no knock' warrant," the federation said in a statement Wednesday.
It added: "The use of deadly force by an officer is never taken lightly and weighs heavy on the officers involved. This incident was a tragedy for everyone involved and will have a lasting impact on many lives."
The shooting drew national attention, in part, because of Minneapolis' place as the epicenter of the country's most recent police-reform movement, prompted by an officer in the same department killing George Floyd by kneeling on him during an arrest in 2020. Video of that encounter went viral and led to protests across America, sometimes violent and often involving property destruction, and reignited a debate over the role of police in American society.
City officials didn't release a lot of information in the days after an officer shot Locke, other than 14 seconds of video that they said showed Locke with the gun. Locke wasn't named in the warrant; Locke's cousin was.
What video they did release showed an officer quietly sliding a key into the apartment's door. After the door opens, a group of officers enter, yelling commands. After officers keyed into the apartment, Locke looked over the back of the couch, ducked down under a blanket, lowered a handgun, and then raised it toward the officer who then shot him three times, according to the statement from prosecutors announcing their decision.
During a news conference Wednesday, Ellison and Freeman said they met with Locke's family in the morning to inform them of their decision.
"We expressed our personal sympathies and empathies with the family," said Freeman. "They, like us, are very frustrated with no-knock warrants."
Hanneman, the officer who shot Locke, was wearing a body-worn camera and provided a written statement to investigators.
"I felt in this moment that if I did not use deadly force myself, I would likely be killed," he wrote. "There was no opportunity for me to reposition myself or retreat. There was no way for me to de-escalate this situation. The threat to my life and the lives of my teammates was imminent and terrifying."
Hanneman returned to active duty on February 28, less than a month after shooting Locke, a city spokesperson told CNN on Wednesday. "Officer Hanneman was assigned to a role that fits the needs of the department and his service to the City of Minneapolis. That assignment does not include SWAT," according to the spokesperson.
Some renewed calls for an end to the practice of no-knock warrants following Locke's death, and many in leadership positions in departments and policing advocacy groups have said there are almost no circumstances where no-knock warrants are appropriate.
Ellison noted that his office was not allowed to evaluate the case "from the perspective of the victim," and that it would have been "unethical" to file charges in a case that would not be able to prevail, because the law does not support criminal charges.
In their statement, Freeman and Ellison said that Locke might be alive today "absent the no-knock warrant used in this case." But they also said their role in this investigation wasn't to evaluate the use of the warrant -- it was to look at the killing to determine whether criminal charges were warranted.
Storms said the family still plans to move forward with a civil lawsuit and the lack of criminal charges has "no impact" on that plan.
The shooting death of Breonna Taylor in Louisville during warrant service reintroduced the dangers of warrants into the American consciousness. Ellison said that the killing of Locke "calls for reform, and I think it's appropriate for community to engage to have a policy that's going to preserve life for everyone involved."
"I will add this, no-knock warrants aren't particularly safe for officers either. They have attendant risks on both sides, civilians and officers, so it's appropriate to investigate and come up with policy that works," Ellison said at the press conference.
The city garnered significant national media attention in November 2020 when it announced, amid a nationwide reckoning over police policies prompted in part by the murder of Floyd and the killing of Taylor, it was changing its policy. Some touted as an "accomplishment" that Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey banned no-knock warrants. But the city did not outright ban no-knock warrants, and like most police department policies, its policy gives wide leeway to field supervisors to make decisions based on conditions they encounter and allows for no-knock warrants in certain situations.
A policy announced after Locke's death required the city's police chief to approve no-knock warrant service. But on Tuesday night, Frey's office said a new policy would prohibit officers from executing no-knock warrants in most cases. The policy will prohibit the MPD from requesting no-knock search warrants and from responding to requests of similar searches from other jurisdictions, according to a Tuesday statement from Frey's office.
The-CNN-Wire
™ & © 2022 Cable News Network, Inc., a WarnerMedia Company. All rights reserved.
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Aerospace and defense technology company L3Harris Technologies (NYSE: LHX) recently revealed that it has been awarded $117 million for the third year of a U.S. Space Force and U.S. Space Command contract. The 10-year contract of the Maintenance Of Space Situational Awareness Integrated Capabilities (MOSSAIC) program has a total value of $1.2 billion.
Following the news, shares of the company rose marginally to close at $257.90 on Wednesday.
Under the program, L3Harris will maintain and upgrade radar and optical sensors, and command and control systems that provide timely, accurate space domain awareness data for military, civil and commercial users.
Management Commentary
The President of L3Harris Space and Airborne Systems, Ed Zoiss, said, “Better understanding the behavior of objects in space is critical to warfighting operations. Our modernization initiatives enable the U.S. Space Force to better understand threats to satellites.”
Wall Street’s Take
Recently, Jefferies analyst Sheila Kahyaoglu reiterated a Buy rating on the stock with a price target of $320, which implies upside potential of 24.1% from current levels.
The Wall Street community is cautiously optimistic about the stock and has a Moderate Buy consensus rating based on nine Buys and four Holds. L3Harris Technologies’ average price forecast of $267.62 implies that the stock has upside potential of 3.8% from current levels. Shares have gained 23.6% over the past year.
Hedge Funds’ Confidence
TipRanks’ Hedge Fund Trading Activity tool shows that hedge fund confidence in L3Harris is currently Neutral. Further, the cumulative change in holdings across all 14 hedge funds that were active in the last quarter was an increase of 5,800 shares.
Conclusion
L3Harris’ stock has rewarded investors handsomely over the past year. The unabated continuation of this contract with the U.S. Space Force is further expected to provide revenue certainty over the next few years, along with a likely stock price appreciation.
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Clothing major Levi Strauss & Co. (NYSE: LEVI) recently reported better-than-expected results for the first quarter ended February 27, 2022. The robust results can be attributed primarily to the overall growth witnessed in net revenues.
Following the results, shares of the company rose 3% to close at $19.99 in Wednesday’s extended trading session.
Revenue & Earnings
For the first quarter, Levi Strauss reported quarterly net revenues of $1.6 billion, up 22% year-over-year. Further, the figure outpaced the consensus estimate of $1.54 billion. The company’s Global Direct-to-Consumer and Global Wholesale segments grew 35% and 15%, respectively, during the quarter.
Levi Strauss’ earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter stood at $0.46, up 35.3% from the same quarter last year. Further, the figure surpassed the consensus estimate of $0.41 per share.
Other Operating Metrics
The company’s EBIT margin improved from 13.3% in the prior year to 14.9%. Further, its adjusted gross margin improved from 57.7% in the previous year to 59.4%
LEVI ended the quarter with total liquidity of about $1.6 billion and net debt of $248 million.
Management Commentary
The CEO of Levi Strauss, Chip Bergh, said, “We started the year with strong consumer demand and solid momentum across geographies, channels and categories. Our teams’ disciplined execution of our strategic priorities enabled us to deliver strong top and bottom-line growth as we capitalize on structural tailwinds and successfully manage a dynamic operating environment. The strength of our brands and strategy position us to deliver sustainable growth well into the future.”
Stock Rating
Consensus among analysts is a Strong Buy based on seven unanimous Buys. LEVI’s average price forecast of $30 implies upside potential of 54.6% from current levels. Shares have declined 20.7% over the past year.
Positive Sentiments
TipRanks’ Stock Investors tool shows that investors currently have a Very Positive stance on LEVI, as 0.9% of portfolios tracked by TipRanks increased their exposure to LEVI stock over the past 30 days.
Conclusion
Although the stock has been a laggard, like most apparel lifestyle brands, over the past year due to headwinds like lockdowns, supply chain constraints and geopolitical events, the company now stands to benefit from the rapid reopening of the economy and increased demand, which can also be gauged from its solid financial results and robust liquidity position.
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Japanese automaker Toyota Motor (TM) has discovered that it can use low-cost cameras to develop a self-driving system that performs just as well as systems based on Light Detection and Ranging (Lidar) and other expensive sensors. Toyota is developing autonomous cars through its Woven Planet subsidiary.
Although Alphabet’s (GOOGL) Waymo unit and many other companies use lidar in their self-driving cars, the technology is expensive, which in turn makes scaling self-driving tests difficult because only a small fleet of cars can be deployed to collect data to train the systems.
Toyota’s Woven Planet has tried low-cost cameras that are 90% cheaper than sensors like lidar to collect the data to train its autonomous driving system, according to a Reuters report.
Toyota Taking a Long Shot With Cameras for Self-Driving Cars
However, it may take time before camera technology reaches lidar and other sensors’ levels of safety and reliability. As a result, Toyota will for now continue to use lidars, radars, and other sensor technologies for autonomous vehicles it brings to the road.
Woven Planet’s Vice President of Engineering, Michael Benisch, said, “But in many, many years, it’s entirely possible that camera type technology can catch up and overtake some of the more advanced sensors.”
Toyota and Tesla Agree on Camera Technology for Self-Driving
Elon Musk-led Tesla (TSLA) has also bet on camera technology to power its self-driving system. Tesla even expects to offer its customers fully autonomous driving capability based on cameras as early as this year.
Autonomous vehicles have a variety of potential applications. Many self-driving companies, including Waymo and General Motors’ (GM) Cruise, have targeted the rideshare market.
Wall Street’s Take
The Street is cautiously optimistic about Toyota stock with a Moderate Buy consensus rating. That’s based on one Buy rating. The average Toyota price target of $210 implies 19% upside potential to current levels. Shares have increased 15% over the past year.
Blogger Opinions:
TipRanks data shows that financial blogger opinions are 100% Bullish on TM, compared to a sector average of 69%.
The Takeaway for Investors
High costs can be a barrier to adopting new technologies like self-driving cars. If Toyota’s camera technology proves to be a success, then it could allow the company to produce affordable autonomous cars and even dominate the self-driving car market. It looks similar to how General Motors and Honda are counting on cheap electric cars to enable them to overtake Tesla in the global electric vehicle market.
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(WWLP) – As covid-19 cases continue to decline in the community, Baystate Medical Center has reopened its Blood Donor Center to the public.
The reopening comes in the midst of a nationwide blood shortage due to the surge of the Omicron variant.
Hours of operation are Monday to Thursday from 8:00 a.m. until 4:30 p.m. and Fridays from 8:00 a.m. until 12:00 p.m.
At this time the center is only accepting red-blood donations. Appointments are required.
To set up an appointment, contact Baystate Medical Center at 413-794-4600.
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| 2022-04-07T10:14:32Z
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HARTFORD, Conn. (AP) — Alex Jones was being questioned Wednesday by lawyers for families of Sandy Hook victims in Connecticut, where a judge had ordered the Infowars host toface mounting finesuntil he appeared for a deposition.
Relatives of some of the 20 children and six educators killed in the 2012 Newtown, Connecticut, massacre sued Jones for defamation after he said the shooting never happened. A judge found Jones liable for damages and a trial on how much he should pay the families is set for August.
Jones, who lives in Texas, had defied a judge’s order to appear for a deposition in the case, saying he was too ill. But Connecticut Judge Barbara Bellis said there wasn’t enough evidence that Jones was too sick to attend and ordered him to come to Connecticut for questioning and pay escalating daily fines until he did so. Jones paid $25,000 in fines for Friday and $50,000 in fines for Monday, according to court records.
A spokesperson for the families and their lawyers at Bridgeport-based Koskoff, Koskoff & Bieder declined to comment on the deposition Wednesday.
Jones said in a video on the Infowars website that the deposition began Tuesday and was to continue Wednesday. He said in the video that the families’ lawyers began the deposition by “demonizing” him for his questioning official versions of events.
“It’s just totally insane to sit there and watch this happen and to watch them lick their lips and lick their chops and think we’re going to finally shut Alex Jones down,” Jones said. “These people want to put us in prison for our speech.”
Jones’ lawyer, Norman Pattis, said tempers flared at times during the deposition on Tuesday, and much of the questioning was not related to the school shooting.
“I had the impression watching the attack on Mr. Jones that this trial will be about something far greater than what happened at Sandy Hook,” Pattis said on the video. “The trial’s going to be about ordinary people’s ability to say I’m not buying it, I want to raise questions, I want to draw my own conclusions.”
Jones missed the originally scheduled deposition in the case on March 23 and 24 in Austin, Texas. He cited a health issue including vertigo that his doctors initially thought was a serious heart problem but turned out to be a sinus infection.
The plaintiffs have said they have been subjected to harassment and death threats from Jones’ followers because of the hoax conspiracy promoted on his website show. Jones has since conceded the shooting did happen.
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KYIV, Ukraine (AP) — Ukraine told residents of its industrial heartland to leave while they still can and urged Western nations to send “weapons, weapons, weapons” Thursday after Russian forces withdrew from the shattered outskirts of Kyiv to regroup for an offensive in the country’s east.
Russia’s six-week-old invasion failed to take Ukraine’s capital quickly and achieve what Western countries say was President Vladimir Putin’s initial aim to oust the Ukrainian government. Russia’s focus is now on the Donbas, a mostly Russian-speaking region in eastern Ukraine.
In Brussels, Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba urged NATO to provide more weapons for his war-torn country to help prevent further atrocities like those reported in Kyiv’s northern suburbs. Ukrainian authorities are working to identify hundreds of bodies they say were found in Bucha and other towns after Russian troops withdrew and to document what they say were war crimes.
“My agenda is very simple… it’s weapons, weapons and weapons,” Kuleba said as he arrived at NATO headquarters for talks with the military organization’s foreign ministers about Ukraine’s fight to defend itself.
“The more weapons we get and the sooner they arrive in Ukraine, the more human lives will be saved,” he said.
Some NATO nations worry they may be Russia’s next target, but the alliance is striving to avoid actions that might pull any of its 30 members directly into the war. Still, he NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg urged member nations to send Ukraine more weapons, and not just defensive arms.
“Ukraine is fighting a defensive war, so this distinction between offensive and defensive weapons doesn’t actually have any real meaning,” he said.
Western countries have provided Ukraine with portable anti-tank and anti-aircraft weapons, but they have been reluctant to supply aircraft or tanks plus any equipment that Ukrainian troops would have to be trained to use.
Asked what more his country was seeking, Kuleba listed planes, land-based missiles, armored vehicles and air defense systems.
A U.S. defense official speaking on condition of anonymity said Russia had pulled all of its estimated 24,000 or more troops from the Kyiv and Chernihiv areas in the north, sending them into Belarus or Russia to resupply, reorganize and likely prepare to return to fight in the east.
Growing numbers of Putin’s troops, along with mercenaries, have been reported moving into the Donbas, where Russia-backed separatists have fought Ukrainian forces for eight years and control two areas.
Ahead of its Feb. 24 invasion, Moscow recognized the Luhansk and Donetsk areas as independent states. Military analysts have said Putin also could be seeking to expand into government-controlled parts of the Donbas.
Donetsk Gov. Pavlo Kyrylenko said at least five civilians were killed and another eight were wounded by Russian shelling on Wednesday. Ukrainian Deputy Prime Minister Iryna Vereshchuk urged civilians to evacuate to safer regions before it was too late.
“Later, people will come under fire, and we won’t be able to do anything to help them,” ,” Vereshchuk said.
Another Western official, also speaking on condition of anonymity to discuss intelligence estimates, said it may take Russia’s battle-damaged forces as much as a month to regroup for a major push on eastern Ukraine.
Oleksandr Shputun, spokesman for the General Staff of the Ukrainian Armed Forces, reported Thursday that near Donbas, Ukraine’s second-largest city, Kharkiv, remained blockaded. He said Russian forces also were carrying out “brutal measures” in the southern Kherson region, which they hold.
In his nightly address to the nation late Wednesday, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said Ukraine, too, was preparing for battle.
“We will fight and we will not retreat,” he said. “We will seek all possible options to defend ourselves until Russia begins to seriously seek peace. This is our land. This is our future. And we won’t give them up.”
In areas north of the capital, Ukrainian officials gathered evidence of Russian atrocities amid signs Moscow’s troops killed people indiscriminately before retreating.
Ukrainian authorities said the bodies of least 410 civilians were found in towns around Kyiv, victims of what Zelenskyy has portrayed as a Russian campaign of murder, rape, dismemberment and torture. Some victims had apparently been shot at close range. Some were found with their hands bound.
Western officials warned that similar atrocities were likely to have taken place in other areas occupied by Russian troops. Zelenskyy accused Russian forces of trying to cover up war crimes in areas still under their control, “afraid that the global anger over what was seen in Bucha would be repeated.”
“We have information that the Russian troops have changed tactics and are trying to remove the dead people, the dead Ukrainians, from the streets and cellars of territory they occupied,” he said in a nighttime video address. “This is only an attempt to hide the evidence and nothing more.”
Switching from speaking Ukrainian to Russian, Zelenskyy urged ordinary Russians “to somehow confront the Russian repressive machine” instead of being “equated with the Nazis for the rest of your life.”
He called on Russians to demand an end to the war, “if you have even a little shame about what the Russian military is doing in Ukraine.”
In reaction to the alleged atrocities outside Kyiv, the U.S. announced sanctions against Putin’s two adult daughters and said it is toughening penalties against Russian banks. Britain banned investment in Russia and pledged to end its dependence on Russian coal and oil by the end of the year.
The U.S. Senate planned to take up legislation Thursday to end normal trade relations with Russia, paving the way for higher tariffs on some imports, and to codify President Joe Biden’s executive action banning imports of Russian oil.
The European Union is also expected to take additional punitive measures, including an embargo on coal.
The Kremlin has insisted its troops have committed no war crimes and alleged the images out of Bucha were staged by the Ukrainians.
Bodies were still being collected in the city. On Wednesday, The Associated Press saw two in a house in a silent neighborhood. From time to time, the muffled boom of workers clearing the town of mines and other unexploded ordnance interrupted the silence.
Workers at a cemetery began to load more than 60 bodies into a grocery shipping truck for transport to a facility for further investigation.
Police said they found at least 20 bodies in the Makariv area west of Kyiv. In the village of Andriivka, residents said the Russians arrived in early March, taking locals’ phones and detaining and then releasing some people. Others met unknown fates. Some described sheltering for weeks in cellars normally used for storing vegetables.
“First we were scared, now we are hysterical,” said Valentyna Klymenko, 64. She said she, her husband and two neighbors weathered the siege by sleeping on stacks of potatoes covered with a mattress and blankets. “We didn’t cry at first. Now we are crying.”
In the southern port city of Mariupol, Mayor Vadym Boichenko said that of the more than 5,000 civilians killed during weeks of Russian bombardment and street fighting, 210 were children. Russian forces bombed hospitals, including one where 50 people burned to death, he said.
Boichenko said more than 90% of the city’s infrastructure was destroyed. The attacks on the strategic city on the Sea of Azov have cut off food, water, fuel and medicine and pulverized homes and businesses.
British defense officials said 160,000 people remained trapped in the city, which had a prewar population of 430,000. A humanitarian relief convoy accompanied by the Red Cross has tried to get into the city for days, without success.
Capturing Mariupol would allow Russia to secure a continuous land corridor to the Crimean Peninsula, which Moscow seized from Ukraine in 2014.
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Oleksandr Stashevskyi and Cara Anna in Bucha, Ukraine, Edith M. Lederer at the United Nations, Yuras Karmanau in Lviv, Ukraine, and Associated Press journalists around the world contributed to this report.
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Follow the AP’s coverage of the war at https://apnews.com/hub/russia-ukraine
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The Biden administration on Wednesday announced that federal student loan payments will remain paused through Aug. 31, extending a freeze that began in 2020 but was set to end after this month. The actionis meant to help millions of borrowers regain financial footing before they’re back on the hook for payments.
Here’s more on the decision:
WHAT DOES IT MEAN FOR BORROWERS?
The extension gives Americans another four months to get ready for student loan payments to restart. Borrowers won’t be asked to make payments until after Aug. 31, and interest rates will remain at 0% during that time. Under the new action, people who were behind on payments before the pandemic will automatically be put in good standing. That’s a change from previous policy, which required borrowers in default to make nine consecutive loan payments and apply to exit default. Education Secretary Miguel Cardona said the extra time will help his agency prepare borrowers for a “smooth transition back to repayment.”
WHO IS ELIGIBLE?
The moratorium applies to most federal student loan programs, including the Direct Loan Program, which issues subsidized and unsubsidized student loans. It does not apply to private loans issued by banks or schools. The latest federal data show that more than 43 million Americans have student loans amounting to a combined $1.6 trillion.
WHY IS IT BEING EXTENDED?
The freeze has been extended multiple times as a reprieve for Americans facing financial hardship during the pandemic. In announcing the latest action, President Joe Biden said that while the nation has seen economic growth, Americans are still recovering. He said the extension will help borrowers “continue to get back on their feet after two of the hardest years this nation has ever faced.” It came amid rising fear that many borrowers would quickly fall behind if payments resumed in May. A memo from the Federal Reserve last month warned that without more time, delinquency rates “could snap back from historic lows to their previous highs.”
HOW HAS IT HELPED?
Colorado’s Alisa Rizo said the pause in payments has provided a path toward independence. After graduating from Colorado State University, Pueblo in 2018, she has been living with her parents in Pueblo while she pays down $24,000 in student loans. The pause has allowed her to save money in hopes of living on her own, closer to her work in Colorado Springs. “It’s lifted a huge burden from my back and it has provided me a lot of flexibility to save money,” said Rizo, who works at a housing nonprofit.
Kristin McGuire of Covina, California said the freeze has given her a break from her $50,000 in student debt, allowed her to repair her credit and refinance her home with her husband. But she said the piecemeal extensions have brought their own stress. “We still have this huge balance that’s looming over our heads, and we’re constantly just hoping and praying for reprieve,” said McGuire, executive director of Young Invincibles, which is among the groups pressing for debt cancellation as a more permanent solution. “We can put folks right back into good standing, but we’re setting them up to fail again when we have these ballooned balances,” she said.
HOW LONG HAVE LOANS BEEN PAUSED?
Federal student loans have been suspended for more than two years. In March 2020, the Trump administration gave borrowers the option to pause payments for at least 60 days. Congress made it automatic soon after as part of a pandemic relief package. The moratorium was later extended multiple times by Trump and Biden.
WILL THE FREEZE BE EXTENDED AGAIN?
White House press secretary Jen Psaki didn’t rule a further extension when questioned at a Wednesday briefing. “We’ll continue to assess,” she said. “While of course the economy is in better shape than it was a year ago and we have a strong recovery, we also understand that there are a range of impacts that are still longer lasting because of the pandemic.”
WHAT ELSE IS BEING DONE?
In addition to the loan pause, the Biden administration has been working to revamp certain programs that allow borrowers to have debt erased. The Education Department has relaxed rules for a notoriously complex program known as Public Service Loan Forgiveness and for another program that erases student debt for Americans with disabilities. The agency has approved $2 billion in debt cancellation for people who were defraudedby their colleges, plus $1 billion for students who attended the now-defunct ITT Tech for-profit college but left before graduating. Some Democrats have called for additional changes to the student loan system, including an overhaul of repayment plans that critics say are overly complex and difficult to navigate.
WHAT ABOUT WIDER LOAN FORGIVENESS?
As a presidential candidate in 2020, Biden said he would “immediately cancel a minimum of $10,000 of student debt per person.” That hasn’t happened. The White House has said Biden would sign legislation canceling up to that amount if it were passed by Congress, but it has resisted calls to erase debt using executive action. Democrats including Sen. Chuck Schumer and Sen. Elizabeth Warren have pressed Biden to cancel $50,000 across the board, saying it would further boost the economy and address racial inequities in student debt. In a statement, those Democrats applauded the new extension but said it underscores the need for “swift executive action” to cancel debt. Asked about it Wednesday, Psaki said Biden “has not ruled out” the possibility, but had no further updates.
WHAT ARE PEOPLE SAYING ABOUT THE PAUSE?
Borrower advocacy groups welcomed the extension, but many said it isn’t enough. The NAACP urged Biden to forgive at least $50,000 for student borrowers. “With each and every repayment extension, you make a stronger case for canceling it,” the group said. The Center for Responsible Lending made the same demand, saying that while the latest action will give some borrowers a fresh start, “their debts remain the same.” Democrats in Congress applauded the pause, while Republicans blasted it as a drain on taxpayers. Sen. Richard Burr, the ranking Republican on the Senate education committee, said the administration “wants to have their cake and eat it, too: they want to tout America’s return to normal following the pandemic, but also want to keep extending emergency relief policies.”
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| 2022-04-07T10:17:27Z
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WASHINGTON (AP) — Federal Reserve officials are signaling that they will take an aggressive approach to fighting high inflation in the coming months — actions that will make borrowing sharply more expensive for consumers and businesses and heighten risks to the economy.
In minutes from their March policy meeting, released Wednesday, Fed officials said that half-point interest rate hikes, rather than traditional quarter-point increases, “could be appropriate” multiple times this year.
Atlast month’s meeting, many of the Fed’s policymakers favored a half-point increase, the minutes said, but held off then because of the uncertainties created by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. Instead, the Fed raised its key short-term rate by a quarter-point and signaled that it planned to continue raising rates well into next year.
The minutes said the Fed is also moving toward rapidly shrinking its huge $9 trillion stockpile of bonds in the coming months, a move that would contribute to higher borrowing costs. The policymakers said they would likely cut those holdings by about $95 billion a month — nearly double the pace they implemented five years ago, when they last shrank their balance sheet.
The plan to quickly draw down their bond holdings marks the latest move by Fed officials to accelerate their inflation-fighting efforts. Prices are surging at the fastest pace in four decades, and officials have expressed increasing concern about inflation.
The Fed’s plans “reflect their great discomfort with the rapid pace of inflation,” said Kathy Bostjancic, chief U.S. financial economist at Oxford Economics.
The Fed is “increasingly worried” that consumers and businesses will start expecting price surges to persist, Bostjancic added, a trend that can itself prolong high inflation.
Many economists have said they worry the Fed has waited too long to start raising rates and could be forced to respond so aggressively as to trigger a recession. Indeed, economists at Deutsche Bank predict that the economy will tumble into a recession late next year, noting that the Fed, “finding itself now well behind the curve, has given clear signals that it is shifting to a more aggressive tightening mode.”
The stock market sold off when the minutes were released but later rebounded from its worst levels. Still, the S&P 500 index closed down nearly 1% after a sharp drop on Tuesday.
Markets now expect much steeper rate hikes this year than Fed officials had signaled as recently as their meeting in mid-March. At that meeting, the policymakers projected that their benchmark rate would remain below 2% by the end of this year and 2.8% at the end of 2023, up from its current level below 0.5%. But Wall Street now foresees the Fed’s rate reaching 2.6% by year’s end, with further hikes next year.
Higher Fed rates will, in turn, heighten costs for mortgages, auto loans, credit cards and corporate loans. In this way, the Fed hopes to cool economic growth and rising wages enough to tame high inflation, which has caused hardships for millions of households and poses a severe political threat to President Joe Biden.
Chair Jerome Powell opened the door two weeks ago to increasing rates by as much as a half-point. Lael Brainard, a key member of the Fed’s Board of Governors, and other officials have also made clear they envision such sharp increases. Most economists now expect the Fed to raise rates by a half-point at both its May and June meetings.
In a speech Tuesday, Brainard underscored the Fed’s increasing aggressiveness by saying its bond holdings will “shrink considerably more rapidly” over “a much shorter period” than the last time it reduced its balance sheet, from 2017-2019. At that time, the balance sheet was about $4.5 trillion. Now, it’s twice as large.
After the pandemic hammered the economy two years ago, the Fed bought trillions in Treasury and mortgage bonds, with the goal of lowering longer-term loan rates. It also cut its short-term benchmark rate to near zero.
As a sign of how fast the Fed is reversing course, the last time the Fed bought bonds, there was a three-year gap between when it stopped its purchases, in 2014, and when it began reducing the balance sheet, in 2017. Now, that shift is likely to happen in as few three months or less, with the reduction in the balance sheet likely to be announced as early as May.
Brainard’s remarks caused a sharp rise in the rate on the 10-year Treasury note, which influences mortgage rates, business loans and other borrowing costs. On Wednesday, that rate reached 2.6%, up from 2.3% a week earlier and 1.7% a month ago. Average mortgage rates have leapt higher, reaching 4.67% last week, according to mortgage buyer Freddie Mac, the highest since 2018.
Shorter-term bond yields have jumped more, in some cases to above the 10-year yield, a pattern that has often been taken as a sign of an impending recession. Fed officials say, however, that shorter-term bond market trends aren’t flashing the same warning signals.
Gennadiy Goldberg, senior U.S. rates strategist at TD Securities, said the narrow gap between longer- and shorter-term bond yields indicates that investors think the economy will slow enough in the next two years to force the Fed to scale back its rate hikes.
To shrink its balance sheet, the Fed will let some of its bonds mature without reinvesting the proceeds. What impact this might have is uncertain. Powell said last month that the reduction in bond holdings would be equivalent to another rate hike. Economists estimate that reducing the balance sheet by $1 trillion a year would be equal to anywhere from one to three additional quarter-point increases in the Fed’s benchmark short-term rate each year.
Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen, who preceded Powell as Fed chair, suggested at a congressional hearing Wednesday that Russia’s invasion of Ukraine would likely keep escalating inflation in the coming months.
“The sanctions we’ve placed on Russia are pushing up the price of energy,” Yellen said. “When energy prices are going up, the price of wheat and corn that Russia and Ukraine produce are going up, and metals that play an important industrial role are going up.”
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| 2022-04-07T10:17:34Z
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PARIS (AP) — French financial prosecutors have opened a preliminary investigation into suspected tax fraud by American management consulting firm McKinsey & Company.
The national financial prosecutor’s office said Wednesday the investigation was launched last week for alleged “money-laundering aggravated by tax fraud.”
French President Emmanuel Macron said he was “shocked” by the suspicions of tax evasion on the part of consulting firms. “The response will be European, since we have passed a reform which will allow … a minimum tax on these companies which do not pay it in the countries where they nevertheless make profits,” he said, speaking on TF1 evening news Wednesday.
A report by the French Senate issued last month said McKinsey had not paid corporate profit taxes in the country since at least 2011. The report also questioned the government’s use of private consultants.
The so-called “McKinsey Affair” hasprompted criticism from President Emmanuel Macron’s rivalsand is dogging him at campaign stops ahead of the first round of voting in France’s presidential election vote on Sunday.
The report of the Senate, where opposition conservatives hold a majority, found that state spending on consulting contracts doubled in the past three years despite mixed results and the potential for conflicts of interest.
Dozens of private companies have provided consulting, including giants like Ireland-based multinational Accenture and French group Capgemini.
The report alleged that McKinsey used a system of “tax optimization” through its Delaware-based parent company.
McKinsey issued a statement saying it “respects French tax rules that apply to it” and defending its work in France.
The American company was notably hired to advise the French government on its COVID-19 vaccination campaign and other policies.
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| 2022-04-07T10:17:41Z
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WASHINGTON (AP) — The Supreme Court on Wednesday reinstated for now a Trump-era rule that curtails the power of states and Native American tribes to block pipelines and other energy projects that can pollute rivers, streams and other waterways.
In a decision that split the court 5-4, the justices agreed to halt a lower court judge’s order throwing out the rule. The high court’s action does not interfere with the Biden administration’s plan torewrite the rule. Work on a revision has begun, but the administration has said a final rule is not expected until the spring of 2023. The Trump-era rule will remain in effect in the meantime.
The court’s three liberal justices and Chief Justice John Roberts dissented. The court’s other conservative justices, including three nominated by President Donald Trump, voted to reinstate the rule.
Writing for the dissenters, Justice Elena Kagan said the group of states and industry associations that had asked for the lower court’s ruling to be put on hold had not shown the extraordinary circumstances necessary to grant that request.
Kagan said the group had failed to demonstrate their harm if the judge’s decision were left in place. She said the group had not identified a “single project that a State has obstructed” in the months since the judge’s decision and had twice delayed making a request, indicating it was not urgent.
Kagan said the court’s majority had gone “astray” in granting the emergency petition and was misusing the process for dealing with such requests. That process is sometimes called the court’s “shadow docket” because the court provides a decision quickly without the full briefing and argument. The liberal justices have recently been critical of its use.
As is typical, the justices in the majority did not explain their reasoning.
Kagan wrote that her colleagues’ decision “renders the Court’s emergency docket not for emergencies at all.”
The Biden administration had told the justices in a court filing that it agreed that the U.S. District Court Judge William Alsup lacked the authority to throw out the rule without first determining that it was invalid.But the administration had urged the court not to reinstate the rule, saying that in the months since the Alsup’s ruling, officials have adapted to the change, reverting to regulations in place for decades. Another change would “cause substantial disruption and disserve the public interest,” the administration said.
Alsup was nominated to the bench by President Bill Clinton.
The section of federal law at issue in the case is Section 401 of the Clean Water Act. For decades, it had been the rule that a federal agency could not issue a license or permit to conduct any activity that could result in any discharge into navigable waters unless the affected state or tribe certified that the discharge was complied with the Clean Water Act and state law, or waived certification.
The Trump administration in 2020 curtailed that review power after complaints from Republicans in Congress and the fossil fuel industry that state officials had used the permitting process to stop new energy projects. The Trump administration said its actions would advance then-President Donald Trump’s goal to fast-track energy projects such as oil and natural gas pipelines.
States, Native American Tribes and environmental groups sued. Several mostly Republican-led states, a national trade association representing the oil and gas industry and others have intervened in the case to defend the Trump-era rule. The states involved in the case are: Arkansas, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, West Virginia, Wyoming and Texas.
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| 2022-04-07T10:18:51Z
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BANGKOK (AP) — World shares were mixed Thursday after a retreat on Wall Street spurred by comments indicating the Federal Reserve intends to more aggressively tackle inflation.
Benchmarks rose in Paris and Frankfurt after declines in most Asian markets. U.S. futures fell while oil prices were higher.
The Fed comments have added to investor unease over the war in Ukraine, coronavirus outbreaks in China and persistent high inflation.
Minutes from the Fed’s meeting last month showed policymaker s agreed to begin cutting the Fed’s stockpile of Treasurys and mortgage-backed securities by about $95 billion a month, starting in May. That’s more than some investors expected and nearly double the pace the last time the Fed shrank its balance sheet.
European shares wobbled after the open, with the CAC 40 in Paris up 0.2% at 6,508.50 and Germany’s DAX edging 0.1% lower to 14,141.12. The FTSE 100 in London shed 0.3% to 7,554.73.
On Wall Street, the future for the S&P 500 was nearly unchanged. The future for the Dow Jones Industrial Average was 0.1% lower.
The S&P 500 fell 1% on Wednesday, while the Dow lost 0.4%. The tech-heavy Nasdaq lost 2.2%.
In Asian trading, Tokyo’s Nikkei 225 index lost 1.7% to 26,888.57 while the Hang Seng in Hong Kong slipped 1.2% to 21,808.98. The Shanghai composite index shed 1.4% to 3,236.70. South Korea’s Kospi declined 1.4% to 2,695.86 and Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 gave up 0.6% to 7,442.80.
Chinese markets declined despite state media reports that Premier Li Keqiang, the country’s top economic official, promised support for the economy as it battlesits worst coronavirus outbreaks so far.
Li told a meeting of the State Council, or Cabinet, that monetary policy would be used to “effectively support the real economy,” Xinhua reported.
The State Council agreed to postpone required payments of pension insurance premiums on a time-limited basis for industries facing “special difficulty,” and to channel unemployment insurance funds to help companies keep people on payrolls, it said.
While China is contending with slumping growth, the U.S. central bank is moving to cool inflation by reversing low interest rates and the extraordinary support it began providing for the economy two years ago when the pandemic knocked the economy into a recession.
A faster reduction in the Fed’s balance sheet would help push up longer-term rates, but also raise borrowing costs for consumers and businesses.
At its meeting in March, the Fed raised its benchmark short-term rate by a quarter percentage point, the first increase in three years. The minutes showed many Fed officials wanted to hike rates by an even bigger margin last month, and they still saw “one or more” such supersized increases potentially coming at future meetings.
Higher rates tend to reduce the price-to-earnings ratio of stocks, a key valuation barometer. Such a scenario can particularly hurt stocks that are seen as the priciest, which includes big technology companies.
Early Thursday, the yield on the 10-year U.S. Treasury, which is used to set interest rates on mortgages and many other kinds of loans, was at 2.57%. It is at the highest levels it’s been in three years.
Traders are now pricing in a nearly 77% probability the Fed will raise its key overnight rate by half a percentage point at its next meeting in May. That’s double the usual amount and something the Fed hasn’t done since 2000.
Inflation is running at a four-decade high and threatens to crimp economic growth. Higher prices on everything from food to clothing have raised concerns that consumers will eventually pull back on spending. Russia’s invasion of Ukraine has has pushed up prices of energy and commodities such aswheat and nickel.
Western governments have been stepping up sanctions against Russia following evidence its soldiers deliberately killed civilians in Ukraine. But European governments have resisted appeals to boycott Russian gas, Putin’s biggest export earner, due to the possible impact on their economies.
U.S. benchmark crude oil prices fell 5.6% Wednesday, but are more than 30% higher this year. That has pushed gasoline prices higher, putting more stress on shipping costs, prices for goods and consumers’ wallets.
On Thursday, U.S. benchmark crude gained 30 cents to $96.53 per barrel in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange. Brent crude, the standard for international pricing, rose 27 cents to $101.34 per barrel.
The dollar fell to 123.77 Japanese yen from 123.81 yen. The euro fell to $1.0882 from $1.0985.
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| 2022-04-07T10:18:57Z
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BANGKOK (AP) — World shares were mixed Thursday after a retreat on Wall Street spurred by comments indicating the Federal Reserve intends to more aggressively tackle inflation.
Benchmarks rose in Paris and Frankfurt after declines in most Asian markets. U.S. futures fell while oil prices were higher.
The Fed comments have added to investor unease over the war in Ukraine, coronavirus outbreaks in China and persistent high inflation.
Minutes from the Fed’s meeting last month showed policymaker s agreed to begin cutting the Fed’s stockpile of Treasurys and mortgage-backed securities by about $95 billion a month, starting in May. That’s more than some investors expected and nearly double the pace the last time the Fed shrank its balance sheet.
European shares wobbled after the open, with the CAC 40 in Paris up 0.2% at 6,508.50 and Germany’s DAX edging 0.1% lower to 14,141.12. The FTSE 100 in London shed 0.3% to 7,554.73.
On Wall Street, the future for the S&P 500 was nearly unchanged. The future for the Dow Jones Industrial Average was 0.1% lower.
The S&P 500 fell 1% on Wednesday, while the Dow lost 0.4%. The tech-heavy Nasdaq lost 2.2%.
In Asian trading, Tokyo’s Nikkei 225 index lost 1.7% to 26,888.57 while the Hang Seng in Hong Kong slipped 1.2% to 21,808.98. The Shanghai composite index shed 1.4% to 3,236.70. South Korea’s Kospi declined 1.4% to 2,695.86 and Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 gave up 0.6% to 7,442.80.
Chinese markets declined despite state media reports that Premier Li Keqiang, the country’s top economic official, promised support for the economy as it battlesits worst coronavirus outbreaks so far.
Li told a meeting of the State Council, or Cabinet, that monetary policy would be used to “effectively support the real economy,” Xinhua reported.
The State Council agreed to postpone required payments of pension insurance premiums on a time-limited basis for industries facing “special difficulty,” and to channel unemployment insurance funds to help companies keep people on payrolls, it said.
While China is contending with slumping growth, the U.S. central bank is moving to cool inflation by reversing low interest rates and the extraordinary support it began providing for the economy two years ago when the pandemic knocked the economy into a recession.
A faster reduction in the Fed’s balance sheet would help push up longer-term rates, but also raise borrowing costs for consumers and businesses.
At its meeting in March, the Fed raised its benchmark short-term rate by a quarter percentage point, the first increase in three years. The minutes showed many Fed officials wanted to hike rates by an even bigger margin last month, and they still saw “one or more” such supersized increases potentially coming at future meetings.
Higher rates tend to reduce the price-to-earnings ratio of stocks, a key valuation barometer. Such a scenario can particularly hurt stocks that are seen as the priciest, which includes big technology companies.
Early Thursday, the yield on the 10-year U.S. Treasury, which is used to set interest rates on mortgages and many other kinds of loans, was at 2.57%. It is at the highest levels it’s been in three years.
Traders are now pricing in a nearly 77% probability the Fed will raise its key overnight rate by half a percentage point at its next meeting in May. That’s double the usual amount and something the Fed hasn’t done since 2000.
Inflation is running at a four-decade high and threatens to crimp economic growth. Higher prices on everything from food to clothing have raised concerns that consumers will eventually pull back on spending. Russia’s invasion of Ukraine has has pushed up prices of energy and commodities such aswheat and nickel.
Western governments have been stepping up sanctions against Russia following evidence its soldiers deliberately killed civilians in Ukraine. But European governments have resisted appeals to boycott Russian gas, Putin’s biggest export earner, due to the possible impact on their economies.
U.S. benchmark crude oil prices fell 5.6% Wednesday, but are more than 30% higher this year. That has pushed gasoline prices higher, putting more stress on shipping costs, prices for goods and consumers’ wallets.
On Thursday, U.S. benchmark crude gained 30 cents to $96.53 per barrel in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange. Brent crude, the standard for international pricing, rose 27 cents to $101.34 per barrel.
The dollar fell to 123.77 Japanese yen from 123.81 yen. The euro fell to $1.0882 from $1.0985.
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| 2022-04-07T10:18:57Z
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WASHINGTON (AP) — Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen warned a House panel Wednesday that Russia’s aggression in Eastern Europe will have “enormous economic repercussions in Ukraine and beyond.” She added that the rising price of energy, metal, wheat and corn that Russia and Ukraine produce “is going to escalate inflationary pressures as well.”
Russia’s invasion “including the atrocities committed against innocent Ukrainians in Bucha, are reprehensible, represent an unacceptable affront to the rules-based global order, and will have enormous economic repercussions for the world,” she told the House Financial Services Committee.
Her remarks were part of her annual testimony on the state of the international financial system.
Along with touching on the need for food and energy security and debt sustainability globally, Yellen called on Congress to provide support to the International Monetary Fund and World Bank organizations, which have provided grants and humanitarian funds financing to the world’s poorest and most vulnerable.
“Globally,” she said, “spillovers from the crisis are heightening economic vulnerabilities in many countries that are already facing higher debt burdens and limited policy options as they recover from COVID-19.”
“The sanctions we’ve placed on Russia are pushing up the price of energy. It’s a price that’s important to pay to punish Russia for what it’s doing in Ukraine,” she added, drawing on how the conflict is impacting Americans at home.
Inflation has reached 40-year highs as an inflation metric closely monitored by the Federal Reserve jumped 6.4% in February compared with a year ago, the largest year-over-year rise since January 1982.
The United States and Western allies have imposed an avalanche of sanctions against Russia in the first weeks of the war and administration officials in recent days have put more focus on closing loopholes that Russia might try to use to circumvent them.
On Wednesday morning, the U.S. announced more sanctions, this time targeting Russian President Vladimir Putin’s two adult daughters and toughening penalties against Russian banks in retaliation for “war crimes” in Ukraine.
“Treasury is committed to holding Russia accountable for its actions so it cannot benefit from the international financial system,” Yellen said.
Lawmakers also questioned Yellen on China and the threat of an invasion of Taiwan as the U.S. and its allies continue to impose sanctions on Russia. She said the U.S. is prepared to impose sanctions against China if Beijing moves aggressively toward Taiwan, as some fear it might.
“I believe we’ve shown that we can in the case of Russia,” she said. “I think you should not doubt our ability to resolve to do the same in other situations.”
She was also asked about Russia’s involvement in the G-20 summit, which is set to take place in Indonesia later this year.
The Indonesian government has said it would hold the G-20 Summit impartially, resisting calls to exclude Russia.
“I’ve made clear to my colleagues in Indonesia that we will not be participating in a number of meetings” at the annual summit where Russia would be involved, Yellen said.
White House press secretary Jen Psaki clarified later in the day that Yellen was referring to ministerial-level meetings and that the U.S. would not boycott the summit in its entirety.
“It shouldn’t be business as usual,” she said.
President Joe Biden has said he would like to kick Russia out of the G-20.
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| 2022-04-07T10:19:12Z
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LONDON (AP) — European health officials say they are investigating a “rapidly evolving” outbreak of salmonella in 134 children that appears to be linked to chocolate Easter eggs that normally contain a surprise toy inside.
In a statement on Wednesday, the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control said chocolate products were identified “as the likely route of infection,” adding that children mainly under 10 years of age were affected. The first case was detected in Britain in January.
Officials said the epidemic has been characterized “by an unusually high proportion of children being hospitalized” and noted that product recalls have been started in Belgium, France, Germany, Ireland, Luxembourg and the U.K. British authorities said the Italian company Ferrero had begun recalling specific batches of Kinder Surprise chocolate eggs.
“We are voluntarily recalling select batches of Kinder Surprise as a precautionary step,” the company said, noting there was a “possible link” to the reported salmonella cases. Ferrero said the affected chocolate was made in Belgium, but that it was possible the recall could be extended to other countries.
Britain’s Health Security Agency said it had identified 63 cases of salmonella linked to the chocolate eggs and that most were children under five. Salmonella typically causes symptoms including diarrhea, fever and stomach cramps. Most people who get sick do not need any medicine but severe cases that result in hospitalization may require antibiotics or other treatment.
In Norway, authorities recalled several Ferrero products Wednesday, saying they have been sold in stores all over the country. They said people who have bought the products should either discard them or return them to the store.
Swedish authorities also recalled the chocolates on Wednesday. ”Anyone who has these products at home should not eat them,” said Mats Lindblad of the National Food Administration.
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| 2022-04-07T10:19:26Z
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SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP) — The mass killing that left six people dead and 12 wounded outside bars just blocks from California’s Capitol last weekend was a gunfight involving at least five shooters from rival gangs, Sacramento police said Wednesday.
Police said they identified at least five gunmen but there may have been more. Only two suspects — both brothers wounded by gunfire — have been arrested in connection with the shooting and, so far, only face firearms charges.
“We’re still working through … who the actual shooters are in the case,” Sgt. Zach Eaton said.
Until Wednesday’s announcement, police had been silent on what led to the shooting that erupted early Sunday as bars were letting out. Rapid-fire bursts of over 100 gunshots echoed through the streets as terrified patrons ran for their lives and others were hit by bullets.
Police said at least two gangs were involved. They declined to provide more details or name the gangs involved or the affiliation of any suspects.
Experts said that if gangs were to blame, it would mark an unusually bloody feud.
In 20 years of researching gangs in Los Angeles, Alex Alonso said he can’t remember a gang-related shooting with such a high body count.
“It’s extremely rare that a gang shooting happened as the way this one is being characterized,” Alonso said. “It’s extremely rare to have that happen in a public place with so many victims.”
Gregory Chris Brown, a criminal justice professor at California State University, Fullerton, said gangs often target rivals in drive-by shootings with fewer victims, though innocent bystanders are sometimes also struck.
The location of the Sacramento shooting – in a bustling area of watering holes near the entertainment district — was incidental to whatever fueled the fight.
“If rival gang members see each other it doesn’t matter if they’re in the Capitol of the United States of America,” Brown said. “If you see a rival gang member and you’re going to attack them, it doesn’t matter where they are.”
The large number of casualties was the result of high-capacity weapons in a crowded area, he said.
Berry Accius, founder of Voice of the Youth who leads gun intervention and prevention programs and offered his services to counsel families who lost loved ones in the shooting, criticized police for characterizing the crime as gang-related, which he said will lead some to “think Black people.”
He said people will see the photos of the Black women and men who were shot, assume they were in a gang and wonder why gang members are downtown.
“That’s the narrative we don’t need at this particular time,” Accius said. “This idea that we’re going to put blame to one demographic of folks and blame them for the violence that ensued.”
Bill Sanders, a criminologist at Cal State LA, said he wanted to see more evidence the shooting was gang-related, a term police often use to drum up support. He said gang shootings are more mundane and most occur in what are considered gang neighborhoods.
“If you looked at a map of gang homicides in the city — or any city — over time, you’d see the same areas lighting up — meaning that’s where they occur. If these guys were white, this wouldn’t be considered gang related — not even for a minute.”
Authorities credited witnesses who contributed nearly 200 videos, photos and other tips with helping the investigation.
Police were trying to determine if a stolen handgun found at the crime scene was used in the massacre. It had been converted to a weapon capable of automatic gunfire.
They are also investigating whether a gun one of the brothers, Smiley Martin, 27, brandished in a video was used in the shooting, a law enforcement official told The Associated Press. The official was briefed on the investigation but was not authorized to publicly discuss details and spoke on condition of anonymity.
Martin and his brother were among those wounded in the gunfire that erupted about 2 a.m. Sunday as bars closed and patrons filled the streets.
The Sacramento County coroner identified the three women killed as Johntaya Alexander, 21; Melinda Davis, 57; and Yamile Martinez-Andrade, 21. The three men killed were Sergio Harris, 38; Joshua Hoye-Lucchesi, 32; and De’vazia Turner, 29.
Ten people were wounded in addition to the Martin brothers. At least two remained hospitalized with gunshot wounds.
Smiley Martin faces charges of possession of a firearm by a prohibited person and possession of a machine gun. He remained hospitalized and it wasn’t clear if he had an attorney who could speak for him.
His brother, Dandrae Martin, 26, was arrested as a “related suspect” and appeared briefly Tuesday in Sacramento Superior Court on a charge of being a convict carrying a loaded gun.
He did not enter a plea and his attorney said she would wait to see if prosecutors brought more serious charges before deciding whether to seek his release.
Both men have criminal records. Smiley Martin was released from prison in February after serving about half of a 10-year prison sentence for beating a girlfriend. He was denied parole last year after prosecutors said he “clearly has little regard for human life,” documents show.
Sacramento Mayor Darrell Steinberg questioned why the brothers were on the streets.
“Those questions need to be answered and they will be answered over the days ahead,” Steinberg said.
A 31-year-old man seen carrying a handgun immediately after the shooting was arrested Tuesday on a weapons charge. Police said they don’t believe his gun was used in the shooting.
___
Melley reported from Los Angeles. Associated Press writers Stefanie Dazio, Christopher Weber in Los Angeles, Don Thompson in Sacramento, Michael Balsamo in Washington, Jacques Billeaud in Phoenix and News Researcher Rhonda Shafner in New York City contributed to this report.
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| 2022-04-07T10:19:56Z
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KYIV, Ukraine (AP) — Ukraine told residents of its industrial heartland to leave while they still can and urged Western nations to send “weapons, weapons, weapons” Thursday after Russian forces withdrew from the shattered outskirts of Kyiv to regroup for an offensive in the country’s east.
Russia’s six-week-old invasion failed to take Ukraine’s capital quickly and achieve what Western countries say was President Vladimir Putin’s initial aim to oust the Ukrainian government. Russia’s focus is now on the Donbas, a mostly Russian-speaking region in eastern Ukraine.
In Brussels, Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba urged NATO to provide more weapons for his war-torn country to help prevent further atrocities like those reported in Kyiv’s northern suburbs. Ukrainian authorities are working to identify hundreds of bodies they say were found in Bucha and other towns after Russian troops withdrew and to document what they say were war crimes.
“My agenda is very simple… it’s weapons, weapons and weapons,” Kuleba said as he arrived at NATO headquarters for talks with the military organization’s foreign ministers about Ukraine’s fight to defend itself.
“The more weapons we get and the sooner they arrive in Ukraine, the more human lives will be saved,” he said.
Some NATO nations worry they may be Russia’s next target, but the alliance is striving to avoid actions that might pull any of its 30 members directly into the war. Still, he NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg urged member nations to send Ukraine more weapons, and not just defensive arms.
“Ukraine is fighting a defensive war, so this distinction between offensive and defensive weapons doesn’t actually have any real meaning,” he said.
Western countries have provided Ukraine with portable anti-tank and anti-aircraft weapons, but they have been reluctant to supply aircraft or tanks plus any equipment that Ukrainian troops would have to be trained to use.
Asked what more his country was seeking, Kuleba listed planes, land-based missiles, armored vehicles and air defense systems.
A U.S. defense official speaking on condition of anonymity said Russia had pulled all of its estimated 24,000 or more troops from the Kyiv and Chernihiv areas in the north, sending them into Belarus or Russia to resupply, reorganize and likely prepare to return to fight in the east.
Growing numbers of Putin’s troops, along with mercenaries, have been reported moving into the Donbas, where Russia-backed separatists have fought Ukrainian forces for eight years and control two areas.
Ahead of its Feb. 24 invasion, Moscow recognized the Luhansk and Donetsk areas as independent states. Military analysts have said Putin also could be seeking to expand into government-controlled parts of the Donbas.
Donetsk Gov. Pavlo Kyrylenko said at least five civilians were killed and another eight were wounded by Russian shelling on Wednesday. Ukrainian Deputy Prime Minister Iryna Vereshchuk urged civilians to evacuate to safer regions before it was too late.
“Later, people will come under fire, and we won’t be able to do anything to help them,” ,” Vereshchuk said.
Another Western official, also speaking on condition of anonymity to discuss intelligence estimates, said it may take Russia’s battle-damaged forces as much as a month to regroup for a major push on eastern Ukraine.
Oleksandr Shputun, spokesman for the General Staff of the Ukrainian Armed Forces, reported Thursday that near Donbas, Ukraine’s second-largest city, Kharkiv, remained blockaded. He said Russian forces also were carrying out “brutal measures” in the southern Kherson region, which they hold.
In his nightly address to the nation late Wednesday, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said Ukraine, too, was preparing for battle.
“We will fight and we will not retreat,” he said. “We will seek all possible options to defend ourselves until Russia begins to seriously seek peace. This is our land. This is our future. And we won’t give them up.”
In areas north of the capital, Ukrainian officials gathered evidence of Russian atrocities amid signs Moscow’s troops killed people indiscriminately before retreating.
Ukrainian authorities said the bodies of least 410 civilians were found in towns around Kyiv, victims of what Zelenskyy has portrayed as a Russian campaign of murder, rape, dismemberment and torture. Some victims had apparently been shot at close range. Some were found with their hands bound.
Western officials warned that similar atrocities were likely to have taken place in other areas occupied by Russian troops. Zelenskyy accused Russian forces of trying to cover up war crimes in areas still under their control, “afraid that the global anger over what was seen in Bucha would be repeated.”
“We have information that the Russian troops have changed tactics and are trying to remove the dead people, the dead Ukrainians, from the streets and cellars of territory they occupied,” he said in a nighttime video address. “This is only an attempt to hide the evidence and nothing more.”
Switching from speaking Ukrainian to Russian, Zelenskyy urged ordinary Russians “to somehow confront the Russian repressive machine” instead of being “equated with the Nazis for the rest of your life.”
He called on Russians to demand an end to the war, “if you have even a little shame about what the Russian military is doing in Ukraine.”
In reaction to the alleged atrocities outside Kyiv, the U.S. announced sanctions against Putin’s two adult daughters and said it is toughening penalties against Russian banks. Britain banned investment in Russia and pledged to end its dependence on Russian coal and oil by the end of the year.
The U.S. Senate planned to take up legislation Thursday to end normal trade relations with Russia, paving the way for higher tariffs on some imports, and to codify President Joe Biden’s executive action banning imports of Russian oil.
The European Union is also expected to take additional punitive measures, including an embargo on coal.
The Kremlin has insisted its troops have committed no war crimes and alleged the images out of Bucha were staged by the Ukrainians.
Bodies were still being collected in the city. On Wednesday, The Associated Press saw two in a house in a silent neighborhood. From time to time, the muffled boom of workers clearing the town of mines and other unexploded ordnance interrupted the silence.
Workers at a cemetery began to load more than 60 bodies into a grocery shipping truck for transport to a facility for further investigation.
Police said they found at least 20 bodies in the Makariv area west of Kyiv. In the village of Andriivka, residents said the Russians arrived in early March, taking locals’ phones and detaining and then releasing some people. Others met unknown fates. Some described sheltering for weeks in cellars normally used for storing vegetables.
“First we were scared, now we are hysterical,” said Valentyna Klymenko, 64. She said she, her husband and two neighbors weathered the siege by sleeping on stacks of potatoes covered with a mattress and blankets. “We didn’t cry at first. Now we are crying.”
In the southern port city of Mariupol, Mayor Vadym Boichenko said that of the more than 5,000 civilians killed during weeks of Russian bombardment and street fighting, 210 were children. Russian forces bombed hospitals, including one where 50 people burned to death, he said.
Boichenko said more than 90% of the city’s infrastructure was destroyed. The attacks on the strategic city on the Sea of Azov have cut off food, water, fuel and medicine and pulverized homes and businesses.
British defense officials said 160,000 people remained trapped in the city, which had a prewar population of 430,000. A humanitarian relief convoy accompanied by the Red Cross has tried to get into the city for days, without success.
Capturing Mariupol would allow Russia to secure a continuous land corridor to the Crimean Peninsula, which Moscow seized from Ukraine in 2014.
___
Oleksandr Stashevskyi and Cara Anna in Bucha, Ukraine, Edith M. Lederer at the United Nations, Yuras Karmanau in Lviv, Ukraine, and Associated Press journalists around the world contributed to this report.
___
Follow the AP’s coverage of the war at https://apnews.com/hub/russia-ukraine
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| 2022-04-07T10:20:39Z
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UNITED NATIONS (AP) — The U.N. General Assembly is voting Thursday on a U.S.-initiated resolution to suspend Russia from the world organization’s leading human rights body over allegations that Russian soldiers killed civilians while retreating from the region around Ukraine’s capital.
U.S. Ambassador Linda Thomas-Greenfield made the call for Russia to be stripped of its seat on the 47-member Human Rights Council in the wake of videos and photos of streets in the town of Bucha strewn with corpses of what appeared to be civilians. The deaths have sparked global revulsion and calls for tougher sanctions on Russia, which has vehemently denied its troops were responsible.
“We believe that the members of the Russian forces committed war crimes in Ukraine, and we believe that Russia needs to be held accountable,” Thomas-Greenfield said Monday. “Russia’s participation on the Human Rights Council is a farce.”
General Assembly spokeswoman Paulina Kubiak said the assembly’s emergency special session on Ukraine would resume Thursday morning, when the resolution “to suspend the rights of membership in the Human Rights Council of the Russian Federation” will be put to a vote.
While the Human Rights Council is based in Geneva, its members are elected by the 193-nation General Assembly for three-year terms. The March 2006 resolution that established the rights council says the assembly may suspend membership rights of a country “that commits gross and systematic violations of human rights.”
The brief resolution to be voted on expresses “grave concern at the ongoing human rights and humanitarian crisis in Ukraine, particularly at the reports of violations and abuses of human rights and violations of international humanitarian law by the Russian Federation, including gross and systematic violations and abuses of human rights.”
Approval would require a two-thirds majority of the assembly members that vote “yes” or “no,” with abstentions not counting in the calculation.
The General Assembly voted 140-5 with 38 abstentions on March 24 on a resolution blaming Russia for the humanitarian crisis in Ukraine and urging an immediate cease-fire and protection for millions of civilians and the homes, schools and hospitals critical to their survival.
The vote was almost exactly the same as for a March 2 resolution that the assembly adopted demanding an immediate Russian cease-fire, withdrawal of all its forces and protection for all civilians. That vote was 141-5 with 35 abstentions.
Thomas-Greenfield urged the 140 members who voted in favor of those two resolutions to support Russia’s suspension from the Human Rights Council.
She issue is simple, she said: “The images out of Bucha and devastation across Ukraine require us now to match our words with action.”
“We cannot let a member state that is subverting every principle we hold dear to continue to sit on the U.N. Human Rights Council,” she said.
Supporters of the resolution were optimistic about its approval, though not necessarily with the support of 140 countries.
Russia called on an unspecified number of countries to vote “no,” saying an abstention or not voting would be considered an unfriendly act and would affect bilateral relations.
In its so-called “non-paper” obtained by The Associated Press, Russia said the attempt to expel it from the Human Rights Council is political and being supported by countries that want to preserve their dominant position and control over the world.
Those nations want to continue “the politics of neo-colonialism of human rights” in international relations, it said, saying that Russia’s priority is to promote and defend human rights, including multilaterally in the Human Rights Council.
Russia’s ambassador in Geneva, Gennady Gatilov, called the U.S. action “unfounded and purely emotional bravado that looks good on camera — just how the U.S. likes it.”
“Washington exploits the Ukrainian crisis for its own benefit in an attempt either to exclude or suspend Russia from international organizations,” Gatilov said, in comments relayed by a Russian diplomatic mission spokesman.
Russia and the other four veto-wielding permanent members of the U.N. Security Council — Britain, China, France, and the United States — all currently have seats on the Human Rights Council, which the U.S. rejoined this year.
The only country to have its membership rights stripped at the council was Libya in 2011, when upheaval in the North African country brought down longtime leader Moammar Gadhafi, said council spokesman Rolando Gomez.
No permanent member of the Security Council has ever had its membership revoked from any U.N. body.
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UNITED NATIONS (AP) — The U.N. General Assembly will vote Thursday on whether to suspend Russia from the U.N.’s premier human rights body. The move was initiated by the United States in response to the discovery of hundreds of bodies after Russian troops withdrew from towns near the Ukrainian capital Kyiv, sparking calls for its forces to be tried for war crimes.
U.S. Ambassador Linda Thomas-Greenfield made the call for Russia to be stripped of its seat on the 47-member Human Rights Council in the wake of videos and photos of streets in the town of Bucha strewn with corpses of what appeared to be civilians. The videos and reporting from the town have sparked global revulsion and calls for tougher sanctions on Russia, which has vehemently denied responsibility.
“We believe that the members of the Russian forces committed war crimes in Ukraine, and we believe that Russia needs to be held accountable,” Thomas-Greenfield said Monday. “Russia’s participation on the Human Rights Council is a farce.”
General Assembly spokeswoman Paulina Kubiak said Wednesday the assembly’s emergency special session on Ukraine will resume at 10 a.m. EDT on Thursday when the resolution “to suspend the rights of membership in the Human Rights Council of the Russian Federation” will be put to a vote.
While the Human Rights Council is based in Geneva, its members are elected by the 193-nation General Assembly for three-year terms. The March 2006 resolution that established the Human Rights Council states that the assembly may suspend membership rights of a country “that commits gross and systematic violations of human rights.”
The brief resolution to be voted on expresses “grave concern at the ongoing human rights and humanitarian crisis in Ukraine, particularly at the reports of violations and abuses of human rights and violations of international humanitarian law by the Russian Federation, including gross and systematic violations and abuses of human rights.”
To be approved, the resolution requires a two-thirds majority of assembly members that vote “yes” or “no.” Abstentions don’t count.
The General Assembly voted 140-5 with 38 abstentions on March 24 on a resolution blaming Russia for the humanitarian crisis in Ukraine and urging an immediate cease-fire and protection for millions of civilians and the homes, schools and hospitals critical to their survival.
The vote was almost exactly the same as for the March 2 resolution the assembly adopted demanding an immediate Russian cease-fire, withdrawal of all its forces and protection for all civilians. That vote was 141-5 with 35 abstentions.
Thomas-Greenfield said Monday that her message to the 140 members who voted in favor of those two resolutions to support Russia’s suspension from the Human Rights Council is simple: “The images out of Bucha and devastation across Ukraine require us now to match our words with action.”
“We cannot let a member state that is subverting every principle we hold dear to continue to sit on the U.N. Human Rights Council,” she said.
Russia’s ambassador in Geneva, Gennady Gatilov, called the U.S. action “unfounded and purely emotional bravado that looks good on camera — just how the U.S. likes it.”
“Washington exploits the Ukrainian crisis for its own benefit in an attempt either to exclude or suspend Russia from international organizations,” Gatilov said, in comments relayed by a Russian diplomatic mission spokesman.
Russia and the other four veto-wielding permanent members of the U.N. Security Council — Britain, China, France, and the United States — all currently have seats on the Human Rights Council, which the U.S. rejoined this year.
The only country to have its membership rights stripped at the council was Libya in 2011, when upheaval in the North African country brought down longtime leader Moammar Gadhafi, said council spokesman Rolando Gomez.
No permanent member of the Security Council has ever had its membership revoked from any U.N. body.
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| 2022-04-07T10:21:05Z
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MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — Minnesota prosecutors declined to file charges Wednesday against a Minneapolis police SWAT team officer who fatally shot Amir Locke while executing an early morning no-knock search warrant in a downtown apartment in February.
Locke, 22, who was Black, was staying on a couch in his cousin’s apartment when authorities entered it on Feb. 2 without knocking as part of an investigation into a homicide in neighboring St. Paul.
Prosecutors said body camera video showed that Locke pointed a gun at Officer Mark Hanneman, justifying his use of deadly force. Locke’s family has disputed that, arguing that the footage suggests Locke was startled awake and that he grabbed for a gun he was licensed to carry.
Locke’s mother, Karen Wells, said she was disgusted by the decision. At a news conference in New York with attorney Ben Crump and civil rights leader the Rev. Al Sharpton, she vowed to keep up pressure on Minneapolis city leaders and spoke directly to Hanneman.
“This is not over. You may have been found not guilty, but in the eyes of me, being the mother who I am, you are guilty,” Wells said. “And I’m not going to give up. Continue to have your restless nights, because I know you do.”
Locke was shot seconds after officers entered the apartment. The body camera footage shows that Locke was holding a gun before he was shot.
Attorney General Keith Ellison and Hennepin County Attorney Michael Freeman, whose offices reviewed the case, said Locke might never have been shot if not for the no-knock warrant. But they said there was insufficient evidence to prove beyond a reasonable doubt that Hanneman violated the state statute governing when police can use deadly force.
“It would be unethical for us to file charges in a case in which we know that we will not be able to prevail because the law does not support the charges,” Ellison said.
Locke’s death came as three former Minneapolis police officers were on trial in federal court in St. Paul in George Floyd’s killing. It sparked protests and a reexamination of no-knock search warrants. Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey announced an immediate moratorium on such warrants, and on Tuesday, he formalized a new policy requiring officers to knock and wait before entering a residence, with limited exceptions. Some lawmakers have been pushing for a statewide ban on no-knock warrants, except in rare circumstances.
The department issued a statement from Interim Chief Amelia Huffman saying that Hanneman returned to active duty on Feb. 28 but is no longer on a SWAT team. She did not comment directly on Hanneman’s actions but said, “Officers never want to face split-second decisions that end in the loss of life.”
Locke’s family was angry that police initially described him as a suspect, which police later said was a mistake.
“Our investigation found no evidence that he had any role in the homicide investigation that brought the police to his door at 6:48 on Feb. 2,” Ellison said. “Amir was a victim. He never should have been called a suspect.”
In their applications for search warrants of the Minneapolis apartment and other locations, authorities said a no-knock warrant was necessary to protect the public and officers as they looked for guns, drugs and clothing worn by people suspected in a violent killing. Authorities asked that officers be allowed to conduct the search without knocking, and outside the hours of 7 a.m. and 8 p.m., because the suspects being sought in the Jan. 10 killing of Otis Elder had a history of violence.
Locke was killed seconds after the SWAT team entered the apartment at 6:48 a.m. Body camera video shows an officer using a key to unlock the door and enter, followed by at least four officers in uniform and protective vests. As they enter, they repeatedly shout, “Police, search warrant!” They also shout “Hands!” and “Get on the ground!”
The video shows an officer kicking a sectional sofa, and Locke is seen wrapped in a comforter, holding a pistol. Three shots are heard and the video ends.
“I was convinced that the individual was going to fire their handgun and that I would suffer great bodily harm or death,” Hanneman wrote in his statement to investigators. “I felt in this moment that if I did not use deadly force myself, I would likely be killed.”
Ellison and Freeman said they spoke with Locke’s parents on Wednesday before announcing they wouldn’t file charges.
“They, like us, are very frustrated with no-knock warrants. They, like us, believe that if a no-knock warrant hadn’t been used Amir Locke might well be here today,” Freeman said, declining to give further details about their conversation.
Sharpton said the family will demand that the U.S. Justice Department review the case. Crump faulted police for creating a life-or-death situation, and said gun rights groups should join with the family in demanding an end to no-knock warrants.
He connected Locke’s death with that of Breonna Taylor, who was killed in a botched police raid in Kentucky in 2020 in which her boyfriend shot at officers first as they broke into her apartment.
“Because if it can happen to Amir, it can happen to Breonna Taylor, it could happen to your children, too,” Crump said.
Although Locke was not named in the warrant, his then-17-year-old cousin, Mekhi Camden Speed, was named and has been charged with two counts of second-degree murder in Elder’s killing.
Elder, a 38-year-old father, was found shot and laying in the street in what police believe was an apparent robbery. Drugs and money were found in Elder’s SUV, according to court documents.
The police department hired Hanneman in 2015. City records show there were three complaints made about him and that all were closed without him being disciplined, but they give no details. Data on the website of the citizen group Communities United Against Police Brutality shows a fourth complaint, in 2018, that remains open. No details were given.
___
Associated Press writer Amy Forliti contributed to this report.
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Find the AP’s full coverage of the death of Amir Locke: https://apnews.com/hub/amir-locke
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WASHINGTON (AP) — The Senate will take up legislation Thursday to end normal trade relations with Russia and to ban the importation of its oil, Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer announced Wednesday.
Both bills have been bogged down in the Senate, frustrating lawmakers who want to ratchet up the U.S. response as the Ukraine war enters a gruesome new phase.
“It’s a big, big deal that we are finally getting them done,” Schumer said. “Now, I wish this could have happened sooner, but after weeks of talks with the other side, it’s important that we have found a path forward.”
It’s been three weeks since the House passed the trade suspension measure that paves the way for President Joe Biden to enact higher tariffs on certain Russian imports. At the time, the legislation was billed as sending a message to Russian President Vladimir Putin and his allies about the economic isolation Russia will face for invading Ukraine.
The House vote in mid-March came one day after Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy told Congress in a virtual speech that “new packages of sanctions are needed constantly every week until the Russian military machine stops.”
“They cannot just go kill a bunch of people, destroy cities, kill women and children, and then go back and have business as usual,” Ukrainian-born U.S. Rep. Victoria Spartz, a Republican from Indiana, said as the trade bill was debated in the House.
Reports of civilians being tortured and killed in Ukraine, with streets on the outskirts of Kyiv being strewn with corpses, had some lawmakers this week questioning why the Senate had not yet taken action on the bill.
“What I’m telling the senators is that all this foot-dragging in the face of the atrocities that everybody saw this weekend is just really beyond imagination,” said Sen. Ron Wyden, the Democratic chairman of the Senate Finance Committee.
House lawmakers concurred.
“It sends a message of weakness,” said Rep. Michael McCaul, R-Texas, on the Senate’s inaction. “It seemed like a pretty bipartisan, easy thing to do, just like not importing Russia energy, so it’s disappointing.”
There is overwhelming support for suspending preferential trade treatment for Russia. But Sen. Rand Paul, R-Ky., has objected to speedy consideration of the bill over concerns that its language on who can be sanctioned for human rights abuses is too broad, leaving it ripe for abuse. He blocked a request for a voice vote on the bill, which requires consent from all 100 senators. Schumer opted to let senators work it out rather than chew up floor time to overcome the filibuster.
Sen. Ben Cardin, D-Md., said, practically speaking, the impact of the delay on the trade bill is minimal “because there’s virtually no trade right now coming in from Russia.” Still, he said passage is important.
“Messaging is important here and showing action is important,” Cardin said. “You’ve got the Ukrainians on the battlefield every day. The least we can do is get these bills passed.”
Sen. John Thune, the No. 2 Republican in the Senate, said the delay in the Senate was hard to explain. But he placed the onus on Schumer.
“I think part of it really is just having leadership in the Senate that is going to manage the floor and is willing to do what it takes to get this thing done,” Thune said. “If this had been a priority, I think it would have been done.”
Democrats counter that going the route Thune suggested requires dedicating precious floor time for a bill that passed 424-8 in the House.
Rep. Kevin Brady, the ranking Republican on the House Ways and Means Committee, which has jurisdiction over trade, said it was important for Schumer to get senators together and get the bill passed.
“We’ve been watching these atrocities. America needs to weigh in now and stop funding the war,” Brady said. “President Zelenskyy asked a month ago for this and here we are — still fussing around.”
The House also passed the oil ban about a month ago. The bill would codify restrictions on Russian oil that Biden has already put in place through executive action.
Schumer said Putin needed to be held accountable for what he said were war crimes against Ukraine. He also said Putin was guilty of genocide.
“Formally revoking normal trade relations with Russia is precisely the right thing for the Senate to do because it will land another huge blow to Putin’s economy,” Schumer said. “It’s a key part of any strategy for holding Putin accountable for his savage attacks on innocent civilians.”
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| 2022-04-07T10:22:50Z
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Which bar stool is best?
Whether you have a breakfast bar or a bar height table, the right bar stools bring it all together. Most buyers are searching for comfortable and practical stools that also look great.
Choosing a bar stool of the right height is essential, so don’t get confused with smaller counter stools. Ball & Cast Bar Height Swivel Stools are sturdy with comfortable seats and backs, so they’re ideal for many buyers.
What to know before you buy a bar stool
Height
The average height for a bar stool is 28-30 inches. This measurement is the seat height, rather than the height at the tallest part of the stool if it has a back. Bar height tables and other surfaces measure approximately 42 inches, so stools of this height allow you comfortably tuck yourself in at a counter or high-top table. That said, you will find some bars of a non-standard height, or what you think is a bar height island or breakfast bar might be counter height. There are other stools of better heights for these surfaces. If you aren’t sure of the height of your bar, measure it before buying stools.
Back and arms
Some bar stools are backless, while others have backs and arms or just backs. Many people don’t find backless stools comfortable for long periods. As such, they aren’t ideal if your bar height table or island is your main eating area and you might spend long meal times sitting there. If you choose a stool with arms, check that the arms will fit under your bar top, as it gets annoying if you can’t tuck your stool in all the way.
Style
You’ll find a huge range of stool styles, so consider your existing decor or what style you’re going for if you’re redecorating. No matter how good a bar stool looks, it will appear out of place if it doesn’t fit with your decorative style. For instance, if you choose a rustic stool for a room with a sleek, modern decorative style, it will just look odd. It’s possible to combine different styles within one room, but it requires careful consideration and the styles must make sense together.
What to look for in a quality bar stool
Swivel seat
It’s easier to hop on and off your stool if it has a swivel seat. Attempting to tuck in a tall stool while you’re sitting on it can be tricky.
Color choices
It’s nice to have a range of choices of color and finish so you can find something that works with your existing furniture.
Footrest
Bar stools should have a footrest, so your feet aren’t left dangling uncomfortably. Check the footrest height to check it will be comfortable, especially if you’re particularly short or tall.
How much you can expect to spend on bar stools
You can pay anywhere from $25-$50 for a basic stool to $250-$500 for an elaborate one. They’re often sold in pairs or sets of four, so consider the price per stool rather than the overall price.
Bar stool FAQ
What’s the difference between a counter stool and a bar stool?
A. Average counter height is 36 inches, so counter stools measure roughly 24 to 26 inches to let you comfortably sit at a counter. The standard bar height is 42 inches, so you need a taller 28-30 inch bar stool for sitting at a bar or bar height table. It’s worth noting that breakfast bars and kitchen islands with areas designed for seating may be at either standard counter height or bar height, so measure before buying so you don’t get the wrong type of stool.
Do bar stools have to match your other furniture?
A. They don’t have to match other furniture unless you want them to, but going for a mismatched look is trickier to get right. Say you have a bar table with a mahogany finish, light pine bar stools would look like they were unintentionally mismatched and you hadn’t thought much about your furniture choices. Bar stools with black legs and bright mustard or dark green velvet seats, on the other hand, wouldn’t match a mahogany table but would create a cohesive look that appears well-thought-out. So, consider how your chosen stools will look with the rest of the furniture in the room.
What’s the best bar stool to buy?
Top bar stool
Ball & Cast Bar Height Swivel Stools
What you need to know: Comfortable and durable, these stools are a sturdy choice for any bar.
What you’ll love: You can choose from five finishes: black, white, cappuccino, cherry and oak. The comfy faux leather seats are padded on all finishes, while some versions have padded backs and others have open backs.
What you should consider: Assembly is time-consuming, especially for those without much DIY know-how.
Where to buy: Sold by Amazon
Top bar stool for the money
Leopard Products Modern Bar Stools
What you need to know: With padded faux leather seats, these stools are comfortable and have a contemporary design.
What you’ll love: The stools are height adjustable, so you can use them at bar height and counter height surfaces. There’s a choice of 12 color options, including black, mint green and wine red.
What you should consider: While they’re good for the price, they feel slightly flimsy compared to more expensive stools.
Where to buy: Sold by Amazon
Worth checking out
Powell Company Big and Tall Bar Stool
What you need to know: This attractive stool has a comfortable padded seat, and a copper stamped back.
What you’ll love: It’s wider and roomier than average bar stools, which is great for people who often feel constricted by them. It has a durable reinforced metal frame. The seat swivels 360 degrees.
What you should consider: It only comes in one color, so it may not go with all decor styles.
Where to buy: Sold by Amazon
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Lauren Corona writes for BestReviews. BestReviews has helped millions of consumers simplify their purchasing decisions, saving them time and money.
Copyright 2022 BestReviews, a Nexstar company. All rights reserved.
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Which towel sets are best?
While you can buy individual towels, it’s more cost-effective to invest in towel sets. It’s also an easy way to make sure you have coordinating accessories in your bathroom — particularly those that complement the overarching color scheme.
Towel sets come with up to eight pieces, including washcloths, hand towels, bath towels or bath sheets. The Enchante Home Incanto 4-Piece Turkish Towel Set includes plush towels that stay fluffy no matter how often you wash them.
What to know before you buy a towel set
Types of bathroom towels
There are four main types of bathroom towels, and depending on the towel set, it may include one or more of these.
- Washcloths: These towels are approximately 13 by 13 inches. They’re used for cleaning your face and body, but sometimes, they’re only used decoratively in bathrooms.
- Hand towels: Hand towels measure up to 20 by 30 inches. More often than not, they’re hung on a towel bar or ring near the sink.
- Bath towels: Bath towels range from 20 by 40 to 32 by 58 inches. They’re usually used as body towels, and some people use them to wrap wet hair.
- Bath sheets: The largest bathroom towels are bath sheets, which can be as large as 40 by 72 inches. Many people prefer them over bath towels because they’re easier to wrap about the body.
Bath towel colors
It’s not a stretch to say there are dozens, if not hundreds of colors for towel sets. As far as choosing the best color for your bathroom, it’s a matter of matching other decor. Towels can coordinate with the dominant color, or they can complement accent colors around the bathroom.
White towels remain a perennial favorite because they’re versatile and have a crisp, clean appearance. Neutral colors are a close second, particularly ivory, beige, tan and gray. Jewel-toned towels add a bold touch to bathrooms with rich, luxurious colors. Pastel towel sets give bathrooms a light, airy ambiance.
What to look for in a quality towel set
Grams per square meter
Towel weight is measured in grams per square meter. The higher the GSM, the better the towel’s quality. As far as bathroom towels are concerned, it’s best to opt for ones with 400 GSM or above. The most luxurious towels, including hotel-quality sets, range from 600 to 900 GSM.
Loop style
Most towels are available in single- and double-loop styles. Single-loop towels are thinner and dry quickly, whereas double-loop towels are thicker and can take a few hours to dry. There are also loop-free towels that resemble dense, low-pile carpets. They’re ultra-soft and cozy, but they’re nowhere near as absorbent as single- and double-loop towels.
Coordinating collections
Certain towel sets are part of coordinating collections with other bathroom accessories, including shower curtains, bath mats, soap dispensers or trash baskets. Some collections feature patterns, such as florals or stripes, whereas other collections have only one color. While you can purchase the entire bathroom collection — towels and all — it can be expensive. To offset the cost, you can buy the towel set and coordinate it with more affordable bathroom accessories in the same color family.
How much you can expect to spend on a towel set
Basic towel sets with four or fewer pieces usually cost $30 and below. Quality sets, including those manufactured by popular brands, run from $40-$100. Luxury towel sets with fine construction or details range from $125-$250.
Towel set FAQ
How often should I wash towels?
A. At the very least, wash your towels once a week. If you’re sick, you should wash them every other day to minimize the risk for reinfection or spreading germs. Washcloths and hand towels should be washed more often than bath towels and sheets — ideally twice a week.
How long will towel sets last?
A. Generally speaking, a quality towel set can last up to five years or longer. Low-quality sets may not last more than a couple years. If you’re not sure whether it’s time to replace towels, key indicators include threadbare areas, unraveling seams and rough texture.
What’s the best towel set to buy?
Top towel set
Enchante Home Incanto 4-Piece Turkish Towel Set
What you need to know: This luxurious towel set promises a high level of absorbency with ultra-plush construction.
What you’ll love: The set includes four 28- by 54-inch bath towels that come in five neutral colors. They are made with fine Turkish cotton and become progressively softer with washing. The textured design gives the otherwise simple towels a bit of character.
What you should consider: A few buyers said that the seams fray over time.
Where to buy: Sold by Macy’s
Top towel set for the money
American Soft Linen 3-Piece Towel Set
What you need to know: If you need a basic bath towel set for one person, this three-piece set is a top choice.
What you’ll love: The high-pile towels are absorbent and dry quickly once they’re hung. They’re vat-dyed, which means they’re less likely to fade. Because they have double-edged stitching, they won’t fray. The towels come in 16 colors, including jewel tones.
What you should consider: The towels shed more than expected, including in the dryer.
Where to buy: Sold by Amazon
Worth checking out
Utopia Towels 8-Piece Towel Set
What you need to know: This deluxe towel set is suitable for main and guest bathrooms alike.
What you’ll love: The set, which includes four 13- by 13-inch washcloths, is durable and withstands repeated washing and drying. It’s available in eight colors that match virtually any color scheme. Unlike other plush and fluffy towels, these don’t produce much lint.
What you should consider: Some people said the towels unravel or become thin after a couple months.
Where to buy: Sold by Amazon
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Sian Babish writes for BestReviews. BestReviews has helped millions of consumers simplify their purchasing decisions, saving them time and money.
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Which rustic shower curtain is best?
From the country cottage to the backwoods hunting lodge, rustic homes are all about authentic, humble living. Redecorating your house to look like a log cabin may prove a tall order, but there are other clever ways to evoke this down-to-earth aesthetic. One overlooked accent that’s affordable and easy to change up is your shower curtain.
With the right design, you can soften the look of any modern bathroom. The Lush Decor Button Shower Curtain is the best shower curtain to complete your rustic sanctuary.
What to know before you buy a rustic shower curtain
Aesthetics of rustic decor
Rustic decor is all about creativity, especially because it’s inspired by frontier and country living. After all, living off the land meant making the most of what you could find. For this reason, you will see a lot of natural materials in rustic homes, such as raw-finish woods, wrought or cast-iron, animal skins and knits or canvas.
Rustic bathrooms
You don’t have to turn your bathroom into an old-fashioned outhouse to get a more rustic vibe. But looking to the past can be a great source of inspiration. Consider the big picture and the finer details when shopping for your bathroom. Antiques capture the generational qualities of rustic furniture and old-fashioned toiletries, such as ivory safety razors and horsehair brushes, really enhance the farmhouse aesthetic.
Rustic qualities in a shower curtain
A shower curtain can feel rustic in a few ways. If you want something a little more subtle, look for materials that enhance the aesthetic without overdoing it. A billowy linen curtain with large buttons can evoke the homespun feel of rustic decor.
If you want to take a more obvious approach, shower curtains with prints are your best bet. These can simulate the appearance of slatted wooden doors or depict nature scenes that remind guests of life out in the country.
Solid color vs. patterned
Achieving that rustic look with your shower curtain can also be a matter of color modulation. While beige feels like a no-brainer, rust oranges or reds and sage greens pair beautifully with rustic materials. If you’re after patterns, look for vintage floral motifs.
What to look for in a quality rustic shower curtain
Material
Shower curtains are made from any number of materials. Whichever one you choose will have different durability, feel and cost.
- Cotton is thick, luxurious and looks natural in a rustic home. You’ll need a liner because it’s not waterproof. This material is also the most expensive.
- Vinyl is the cheapest option. Made from PVC or non-toxic EVA, this plastic option is completely waterproof. However, it won’t last as long as fabrics.
- Polyester offers the best of both worlds. It’s water-resistant but textured like cotton. However, you’ll be hard-pressed to find one that looks completely natural, like cotton.
Size
Shower curtains come in many sizes, so make sure you find one that’s right for your tub or shower.
- Standard: The typical shower curtain is approximately 72 inches by 72 inches. This size will cover one long edge of the standard bathtub.
- Extra-wide: For freestanding bathtubs, such as a claw-foot, you need an extra-wide shower curtain. These extend up to 180 inches to wrap around any additionally exposed sides.
- Extra-long: Contemporary buildings with high ceilings can place your shower curtain up higher, which reduces splash coverage. Extra-long curtains add another foot or two to account for tall showers.
- Narrow: If you have a stall shower, a standard shower curtain will bunch up. Narrow curtains halve the width to about 36 inches, so you don’t have to sacrifice precious space in an already-small bathroom.
Installation
Shower curtains have small reinforced holes, or grommets, sewn into their top quarter-panel. If your grommets are big enough, you can slide the curtain directly onto the rod. This is the easiest method but can lead to bunching. On the other hand, shower hooks may be a little more difficult to install, but they let you pull your curtain completely taught. They’re also a fun opportunity for some decorative flair.
How much you can expect to spend on a rustic shower curtain
Vinyl shower curtains are the best budget option and usually cost $5-$20. If you want something a little more substantial, you can find a quality polyester curtain for $25-$60, or a premium cotton one for $80-$120.
Rustic shower curtain FAQ
How do I care for my shower curtain?
A. Most shower curtains are machine-wash friendly. For cotton and polyester, you’ll want to do this once a month. Vinyl is a little easier to care for since you can just spray and wipe it down with a household cleaner. In addition to washing, make sure to ventilate your bathroom after showering to air out any excess moisture.
Do I need a shower curtain liner?
A. Liners provide a protective barrier from mold, mildew and soap scum. Cotton will need a liner because it’s not water-resistant. Liners will also boost the longevity of your vinyl or polyester curtain.
What’s the best rustic shower curtain to buy?
Top rustic shower curtain
Lush Decor Button Shower Curtain
What you need to know: The pleated, duo-tone construction of this shower curtain gives it a homemade look.
What you’ll love: With two canvas-colored panels separated by ivory buttons, this shower curtain looks almost handmade. The curtain is made from a sturdy, soft cotton-linen blend for a spa-like feel every time you shower.
What you should consider: It only comes in 72 inches by 72 inches.
Where to buy: Sold by Amazon
Top rustic shower curtain for the money
Gibelle Rustic Wood Shower Curtain
What you need to know: If you’ve ever wanted a sliding barn door in your bathroom, but renovation is out of the question, this curtain is the next best thing.
What you’ll love: Gibelle offers a range of faux-wood-door prints to bring that quintessentially rustic look of weathered wood into your bathroom. Each is made from polyester and attaches to your curtain rod via hooks. These curtains also have an array of sizes from narrow to extra-long and extra-wide.
What you should consider: This curtain might be a little too busy if you already have a well-decorated bathroom.
Where to buy: Sold by Amazon
Worth checking out
Simple Comfort Abigail Traditional Hydrangea Floral-Print Shower Curtain
What you need to know: When it comes to country-home style, you can’t go wrong with a traditional floral print.
What you’ll love: The hydrangeas are colored in a subtle palette, similar to prairie dresses and hand-crafted tapestries. The polyester-cotton blend is also available as window dressing to match around the house.
What you should consider: You will need a liner with this curtain. It’s also only available in standard sizing.
Where to buy: Sold by Amazon
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Karl Daum writes for BestReviews. BestReviews has helped millions of consumers simplify their purchasing decisions, saving them time and money.
Copyright 2022 BestReviews, a Nexstar company. All rights reserved.
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Which Intel processor is best?
The central processing unit is one of the most crucial components of a computer. It tells all the other PC bits and pieces how and when to execute instructions. It works with the RAM and graphics card to keep the device running smoothly.
The CPU fits into the motherboard, and gamers generally choose Intel or AMD. If you prefer the former, then the Intel Core i9-10900K Desktop Processor 10 Cores is an excellent choice. It has 10 cores with a maximum clock speed of 5.3 gigahertz.
What to know before you buy an Intel processor
Compatibility with your motherboard
The motherboard in a computer is the base to which all the components connect. The CPU slots into a dedicated space and must therefore be compatible. For example, Intel CPUs will only work when placed into an Intel-compatible motherboard. It is impossible to use an Intel CPU with an AMD-compatible motherboard as the pins and sockets of the CPU are different.
Correct chipset
You must make sure that you use an Intel motherboard with an Intel CPU, but another crucial aspect is the chipset. As technology evolves, CPUs and motherboards use different connection points that aren’t backward compatible. So, for example, you can’t use an Intel 300 Series CPU on a 200 Series motherboard.
Number of cores for what you need
There’s an extensive range of Intel CPUs to choose from, so you must get the right one for your needs. For example, for playing video games or creating digital content, more cores are great for a smoother experience. But you don’t need many cores for general browsing or streaming. The more cores a CPU has, the faster and harder it can work. At the top of Intel’s range are the X-Series and the i9 with 18 and eight cores, respectively.
What to look for in a quality Intel processor
The clock speed is everything
The most straightforward measure of a processor’s performance is clock speed. Measured in gigahertz, it is the equivalent of a vehicle’s top speed measured in miles per hour. The higher the clock speed, the faster it can execute multiple instructions. A clock speed between 4.8 gigahertz and 5.3 gigahertz is more than enough for gaming and content creation.
Hyper-threading
If overclocking is too daunting for you, look for a good-quality Intel processor that features hyper-threading. The technology lets single cores in the CPU handle two or more tasks simultaneously. Hyper-threading is great for multitasking, as it splits physical cores into several virtual ones, taking the load off the entire system.
Overclocking
While some CPUs already have blazingly fast clock speeds, there is always the potential to squeeze a little more out of their processing power. For example, you can overclock a CPU to work faster than Intel recommends through special software. However, it won’t harm the processor if done correctly, and some CPU makers even consider it a selling point.
How much you can expect to spend on an Intel processor
The average price of an Intel processor will depend on the number of cores and the clock speed. Core i7 or i5 chips can retail for $200-$250, while faster and more powerful Core i9 chips can retail for $400-$500.
Intel processor FAQ
Can you put an Intel PC processor in a laptop?
A. No, as the component are vastly different. For example, a CPU for a laptop is much thinner and smaller than a desktop CPU, and the motherboard sockets are incompatible.
Is thermal paste essential?
A. Yes, as without it, the CPU will burn out in minutes. Thermal paste is a thin layer of heat-resistant liquid filling the air gaps between the CPU and the heatsink. The paste squeezes the air out, which would otherwise prevent the CPU from cooling.
What’s the best Intel processor to buy?
Top Intel processor
Intel Core i9-10900K Desktop Processor 10 Cores
What you need to know: Few Intel processors can keep up with the 10900K, as it uses some of the latest available technology.
What you’ll love: What makes this CPU so powerful is that it has a maximum clock speed 5.3 gigahertz through 10 cores. It is compatible with Intel 400 Series chipsets and uses the LGA 1200 socket type. It employs Intel’s Hyper-threading technology to make things run smoother and access files faster with compatible Intel Optane memory.
What you should consider: The base clock speed is set to 3.7 gigahertz, and you can only reach the 5.3 gigahertz through overclocking software.
Where to buy: Sold by Amazon
Top Intel processor for the money
Intel Core i7-10700F Desktop Processor 8 Cores
What you need to know: This CPU is perfect if you want to balance an affordable component with power and speed.
What you’ll love: With eight cores able to handle 16 tasks simultaneously, this i7 CPU has a base clock speed of 2.9 gigahertz. If you need extra computing power, it can be overclocked to 4.8 gigahertz. It is compatible with Intel 400 series chipset motherboards and includes a cooler.
What you should consider: The CPU can only be used with an external graphics card, as it doesn’t have graphical capabilities.
Where to buy: Sold by Amazon
Worth checking out
Intel Core i7-12700KF Desktop Processor 12 (8P+4E) Cores
What you need to know: This CPU divides the workload between Performance and Efficient cores to get the most out of processes.
What you’ll love: Compatible with 600 Series motherboards, this CPU has a maximum clock speed of 5.0 gigahertz when overclocked from the base speed of 3.8 gigahertz. In addition, it is compatible with DDR5 memory and has eight Performance cores for light working and execution. Furthermore, it engages the four efficient cores for hyper-threading when more power is needed.
What you should consider: The price tag might be a bit steep, but it is excellent value for money.
Where to buy: Sold by B&H Photo
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Charlie Fripp writes for BestReviews. BestReviews has helped millions of consumers simplify their purchasing decisions, saving them time and money.
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Which Toshiba Dynabook laptop is best?
There are countless lines of laptops available today with fancy marketing, flashy designs, novel hardware and exorbitant prices. Dynabook (formerly Toshiba) laptops are not among them. Instead of the cutting edge of design and innovative features, Dynabook laptops occupy a very utilitarian space. They sport relatively Spartan designs and straightforward yet often high-powered configurations.
The best one overall is the Toshiba Dynabook Tecra A50-J because it’s equipped with some of the most capable hardware currently available and costs less than comparable models from other manufacturers.
What to know before you buy a Toshiba Dynabook laptop
They’re meant for school and business use
They certainly won’t win any awards for style and you won’t find any outfitted with gaming-grade graphics cards. There aren’t even a ton of different configurations to choose from. Instead, Dynabook produces a relatively small family of laptops that are equipped with highly efficient, recently released hardware. Since they’re not particularly fancy, you can expect to get somewhat better value than you’d get with a razor-thin gaming laptop.
They offer a great price-to-performance ratio
With most laptops, you’ll have to make a significant investment to get components like 32 gigabytes of RAM or a terabyte of solid-state storage. That’s decidedly not true of Dynabook laptops. Case in point, the highest-performing Dynabook model boasts exactly those storage and memory specs, yet it costs considerably less than options from brands like Lenovo and Dell with similar hardware.
You can upgrade the storage and RAM
Nonupgradeable laptops with permanently installed solid-state drives and RAM are increasingly common, to the dismay of power users. Refreshingly, Dynabook laptops eschew that recent trend as part of their utilitarian approach. While a larger SSD and more RAM might not seem like much, they can be the difference between extending your laptop’s life by a half-decade or having to replace it entirely just a few years after purchase.
What to look for in a quality Toshiba Dynabook laptop
Central processing unit capability
Laptop CPUs come in a couple of different flavors, and the majority of Dynabook laptops are built around Intel processors. The Core CPU family is the most common Intel line, and laptop Core CPUs are somewhat similar to the desktop versions. In particular, pay attention to laptops with Intel Core i5 and i7 processors, which feature quad-core designs or better and are ideal for running Windows 10 and 11 smoothly with no hiccups or slowdowns.
There are Dynabook laptops equipped with the more economical yet significantly less powerful Celeron family of CPUs. Celeron CPUs are almost all built with a dual-core architecture and lack the high Turbo clock speeds of more powerful Core CPUs. Celeron processors use less electricity and therefore deliver longer battery lives, but they’re also not suitable for heavy workloads and can even bog down during simple browsing.
To save money, look for a model with a 10th-generation Core i3 CPU or newer. The i3-1005G1, for example, has similar power usage to Celeron CPUs but offers considerably better performance at a similar price.
System memory capacity
Technically, you can run Windows with as little as 2GB of system memory, but you should never attempt that unless you want to pull your hair out in frustration. It’s just not feasible, especially in today’s world of complex apps and ad-heavy webpages. Similarly, while some people may be patient enough to use a laptop with 4GB of RAM, it’s still not recommended. These days, the generally accepted minimum amount of system memory is 8GB, and you’ll notice a significant performance difference between that and anything less.
Enough storage space
Again, it’s highly recommended to go above and beyond Microsoft’s recommended size for your system drive. You could theoretically load Windows 10 on a 64GB drive, but it would likely be agonizingly slow and would certainly fill up after adding a few common applications. For the most part, 128GB is considered the minimum for running Windows 10 or 11.
How much you can expect to spend on a Toshiba Dynabook laptop
The most affordable Toshiba Dynabook laptops worth buying cost about $500. At the top end, their best ultralight and high-powered models will set you back just shy of $1,500.
Toshiba Dynabook laptop FAQ
Can you upgrade a Dynabook’s Wi-Fi card?
A. You can by using a specialized internal Wi-Fi radio that uses a plug format called the M.2 key. However, all new Dynabook laptops come with Wi-Fi 6 technology, so you won’t need to upgrade that for quite some time.
Do Dynabook laptops have a lot of ports?
A. Yes, most Dynabook laptops have more ports than a majority of the competition. That includes two to three USB Type-A ports (some of which are capable of 10-gigabit-per-second transmission) and a USB-C port that supports the Power Delivery protocol. Most also sport an HDMI output and some even have a VGA port for legacy monitors.
What’s the best Toshiba Dynabook laptop to buy?
Top Toshiba Dynabook laptop
What you need to know: This no-nonsense laptop has more ports than nearly every other laptop on the market, and better hardware, too.
What you’ll love: Did you know that someone still produces laptops with DVD drives in 2022? It’s true, and this Tecra A50-J is one of the last such notebook PCs (possibly ever). In addition, it’s got plenty of USB ports, full-size and microSD card readers, HDMI and VGA video outputs and a wired Ethernet jack. Aside from its impressive connectivity options, it boasts an advanced Intel CPU with a powerful integrated GPU, a 1TB NVMe solid-state drive and 32GB of RAM.
What you should consider: It’s not stylish, nor particularly cheap — but for the hardware it has, it’s actually a fantastic deal.
Where to buy: Sold by Amazon
Top Toshiba Dynabook laptop for the money
Toshiba Dynabook Satellite Pro C50-H
What you need to know: The base model version of one of Dynabook’s premium laptops, it delivers impressive performance at a low price.
What you’ll love: The Intel Core i3-1005G1 won’t win any bench mark competitions, but it will provide a relatively smooth Windows experience without sucking a ton of battery power or costing you a fortune. In terms of ports, it’s got one Type-C, two 10-gigabit Type-As, an Ethernet jack, HDMI output and combination headphone/microphone jack.
What you should consider: The CPU should run Windows 10 and 11 fine, but its middling performance will make high-level multitasking difficult.
Where to buy: Sold by Amazon
Worth checking out
What you need to know: This interesting variant is about as light as a laptop gets while still delivering impressive performance.
What you’ll love: It’s outfitted with an 11th-generation Intel Core i7 that has a great GPU embedded and plenty of high-speed RAM connected. However, the most impressive thing about this high-end laptop is that it weighs less than 2 pounds, which is quite an impressive feat. Its 13.3-inch screen sports a Full HD resolution, which at that size is about as crisp as you could possibly need.
What you should consider: It’s one of the most expensive options in Toshiba’s Dynabook laptop lineup.
Where to buy: Sold by Amazon
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Chris Thomas writes for BestReviews. BestReviews has helped millions of consumers simplify their purchasing decisions, saving them time and money.
Copyright 2022 BestReviews, a Nexstar company. All rights reserved.
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| 2022-04-07T10:26:05Z
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Which Naruto video games are best?
“Naruto” is a popular anime series with numerous spinoffs, board games and video games. Naruto video games allow fans to control their favorite characters from the animated series.
If you or your child is interested in playing a Naruto game, you can’t go wrong with Naruto Shippuden Ultimate Ninja Storm 4: Road To Boruto for the Nintendo Switch.
What to know before you buy a Naruto video game
Is ‘Naruto’ appropriate for children?
Most parents feel comfortable allowing their children to watch “Naruto.” The series features self-harm in many episodes, and Naruto’s “Sexy Jutsu” move involves implied nudity. Still, most parents seem to agree these themes are mild compared to many things on television. The series’ protagonist, Naruto, teaches children the importance of believing in yourself when the odds are against you. Additionally, the importance of friendship is an ongoing theme in the “Naruto” series.
Which consoles support Naruto games?
- Nintendo Switch: The Nintendo Switch allows fans to take their favorite Naruto games on the go. Nintendo Switch games often have lower-quality graphics than other consoles, but many people prefer the system for its ease of use and portability.
- PlayStation 4: The PlayStation 4 is known for superior graphics and top-notch gameplay. The PlayStation 4 features numerous Naruto games available on disc and direct download. Most PlayStation 4 games are playable on the PlayStation 5 as well.
- Xbox One: Most Naruto games are released on the Xbox One. Even so, this system seems to be the least popular option for playing Naruto games.
Naruto gameplay
Most Naruto games allow players to fight each other as characters from the anime series. Still, every Naruto game features slight variations on gameplay.
For example, the Ninja Storm games feature an open-world environment. When players engage other ninjas, the game shifts into a one-on-one fight between you and the enemy ninja. On the other hand, the Shinobi Striker game allows up to eight players to fight simultaneously.
What to look for in a quality Naruto video game
Graphics
Naruto games aren’t known for superior graphics, but some games have more visual appeal than others. Most Naruto games feature cel-shaded graphics that resemble the anime. In many cases, the game’s graphics depend on the system you use, with the Xbox and PlayStation consoles having the best graphics.
Gameplay
Many Naruto games allow fans to relive key moments from the anime. If you prefer open-world games, the Ninja Storm games will likely be your favorite. On the other hand, consider the Shinobi Striker Naruto game if you like MOBA-style games like League of Legends.
Online play
If you enjoy playing video games with others, you’ll want a game with online play. Most Naruto games allow you to fight other players online. Some Naruto games feature one-on-one online play, and others enable you to join teams and play against others.
How much you can expect to spend on a Naruto video game
Most Naruto video games cost $20-$50.
Naruto video game FAQ
Do you need to watch ‘Naruto’ anime to understand the video games?
A. Many Naruto video games retell the stories from the animated series. You’ll see most of the content from the series play out when playing the games. Still, watching the series before playing the games gives you a better understanding of what you’re playing and prevents you from seeing spoilers.
How many Naruto games are there?
A. There are over 40 different Naruto video games, although many are for older consoles.
Are Naruto video games similar to Dragon Ball Z video games?
A. Naruto and Dragon Ball Z video games feature similar art styles and gameplay, but the stories are entirely different.
What’s the best Naruto video game to buy?
Top Naruto video game
Naruto Shippuden Ultimate Ninja Storm 4: Road To Boruto (Nintendo Switch)
What you need to know: Although many people are critical of the “Naruto” spinoff series “Boruto,” most agree this game is one of the best in the Naruto series.
What you’ll love: This game features some of the most pivotal moments from the “Naruto” series and many of Naruto and Sasuke’s most powerful forms. You can play as Boruto and Naruto characters in this game. This version of the game contains all DLC for Ninja Storm 4.
What you should consider: Some buyers received the EU version of the game, causing severe lag when playing online.
Where to buy: Sold by Amazon
Top Naruto video game for the money
Naruto Ultimate Ninja Storm Trilogy (PS4)
What you need to know: This disc includes three different Naruto games at a fair price.
What you’ll love: This collection includes Naruto Ultimate Ninja Storm, Naruto Shippuden: Ultimate Ninja Storm 2 and Naruto Shippuden: Ultimate Ninja Storm 3 Full Burst. This trilogy is a great way to relive nearly the entire Naruto series. These games allow you to choose between English and Japanese voices.
What you should consider: Because these games are older, the graphics aren’t fantastic.
Where to buy: Sold by Amazon
Worth checking out
Naruto to Boruto: Shinobi Striker (PS4)
What you need to know: This game features unique gameplay compared to other Naruto games.
What you’ll love: This game is ideal for people who love MOBA games like League of Legends or Pokemon Unite. Unlike other MOBA games, this title features aerial combat and wall-running. Up to eight players can play at once. This game features solid graphics and vibrant colors. You can create your own character.
What you should consider: This game doesn’t offer many features outside of the online battles.
Where to buy: Sold by Amazon
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Cody Stewart writes for BestReviews. BestReviews has helped millions of consumers simplify their purchasing decisions, saving them time and money.
Copyright 2022 BestReviews, a Nexstar company. All rights reserved.
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| 2022-04-07T10:27:08Z
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Which travel toilet is best?
If you are engaged in an activity, such as camping, that doesn’t have access to modern bathroom facilities, it can cause a little stress. You never know when nature will call, and you want to be prepared when it does. This is why there are travel toilets.
A well-built travel toilet has an odor seal and is large enough to accommodate both you and your needs. The SereneLife Outdoor Portable Toilet is a perfect example of a top-notch portable toilet. It is flushable, has a dedicated 5.3-gallon waste tank and features splash-free emptying.
What to know before you buy a travel toilet
Who can benefit from a travel toilet
If you love camping or boating, you would obviously benefit from owning a travel toilet. Hunters, construction workers, long-haul truckers or people who do a lot of traveling by car or van also should consider a travel toilet. If you have a child you are potty training, a family member who has trouble with stairs or you are having work done on your home, a quality travel toilet will come in handy. Some people simply find using a public toilet an unacceptable option. For these people, a travel toilet can be a suitable alternative.
There are two types of travel toilets
The two types of travel toilets are flushing and non-flushing
- Flushing: If you want the closest experience to being at home, a flushable portable toilet is the way to go. These models have two sections: a fresh water tank and a waste tank. When you activate the mechanism that releases fresh water into the bowl, it flushes the waste down into the waste tank. This lower tank can be sealed to prevent unpleasant odors from escaping. When it is full, you dump the waste and clean the toilet.
- Nonflushing: A nonflushing portable toilet is best for emergencies or for people on a tight budget. It is little more than a bucket (often with a sealable lid) with a seat on top. Some higher-end models feature a removable waste bucket that accepts a waste liner to make cleaning effortless.
What to look for in a quality travel toilet
Size
There are two aspects of size. First, you want a portable toilet that is large enough for the biggest person who will use it. Second, you want a waste area that is large enough to contain all of the waste until you get to a dump station.
Odor trapping capabilities
A portable toilet needs an airtight seal to keep the offensive odors locked away. However, if there isn’t a pressure relief valve on the waste tank, you could be in for an unpleasant surprise when you remove the seal.
Lightweight but durable
A portable toilet needs to be lightweight so you can travel with it. A portable toilet also must be strong enough to support your full weight while using. If you go for the lightest weight model, it might not be very durable. If you go for a heavy-duty build, the toilet might be difficult to transport. Look for a balance.
Tank level indicator
If you want to know how much waste is in your toilet without opening it up and peeking or lifting it to see how heavy it is, get a model with a tank level indicator.
Easy emptying
At some point, you will need to empty your portable toilet. You want a system that is easy to use and protects you from backsplash.
Extras
Each manufacturer has its own little incentives. It could be anything from an onboard toilet paper roll holder to a built-in handle. Don’t be seduced by bells and whistles. Put functionality and reliability at the top of your criteria list.
How much you can expect to spend on a travel toilet
If you want something more than a bucket, prices for travel toilets start at around $40. While it is possible to spend $400 or more on a high-end model, most people will find what they need for around $150.
Travel toilet FAQ
Where do I empty my portable toilet?
A. As long as you have a model that does not use chemicals, you can empty your portable toilet in the wilderness as long as the 6-inch hole you dig to bury the waste is at least 100 feet away from trails, camps and any water sources. If your toilet uses chemicals, however, it needs to be emptied at a designated location, such as a dump station at a campsite.
How do I clean a portable toilet?
A. A portable toilet with a dedicated waste tank will have a drain. When it is time to empty the toilet, open the drain and dump the waste. Once all the solid matter is gone, you can fill the waste tank with water to rinse it out as needed. A model without a dedicated waste tank can usually be fitted with a toilet waste bag to make cleaning up as easy as taking out the trash. For a deep cleaning, you will need to refer to your owner’s manual, as some models can not tolerate abrasive cleaning solutions.
What’s the best travel toilet to buy?
Top travel toilet
SereneLife Outdoor Portable Toilet
What you need to know: This flushable portable toilet has a waste tank with a double-seal to help keep odors to a minimum.
What you’ll love: The fresh water tank holds 3.2 gallons of water. It can provide up to 50 flushes. The large waste tank has a capacity of 5.3 gallons. This portable toilet features a splash-free, rotating pour spout that makes emptying a breeze.
What you should consider: While this portable toilet may be easy to empty, you still have to clean it. And that can sometimes be challenging.
Where to buy: Sold by Amazon
Top travel toilet for the money
PLAYBERG Portable Travel Toilet for Camping and Hiking
What you need to know: This is an affordable, no-frills portable toilet that is a step up from using a bucket.
What you’ll love: This model accepts 8-gallon toilet waste bags, so there is no cleanup needed. It is extremely lightweight, only 5.5 pounds and equipped with a built-in toilet paper roll holder. The waste bucket has a removable lid that seals in odor.
What you should consider: The removable waste bucket is smaller than expected.
Where to buy: Sold by Amazon and Home Depot
Worth checking out
What you need to know: This portable toilet has a lot of convenient features that make it easy to use and clean.
What you’ll love: This portable toilet is flushable, and it has a sealable waste tank to keep odors from leaking out. The toilet features a built-in handle, which makes it easy to transport, and a large drain opening for simplified emptying and cleaning.
What you should consider: In changing temperatures (or elevations), pressure can build up in the waste tank and cause a little burping, which can be messy if you’re not expecting it.
Where to buy: Sold by Amazon
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Allen Foster writes for BestReviews. BestReviews has helped millions of consumers simplify their purchasing decisions, saving them time and money.
Copyright 2022 BestReviews, a Nexstar company. All rights reserved.
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| 2022-04-07T10:27:15Z
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The Los Angeles Lakers begin life as a lottery team when they start a three-game stretch of meaningless games to close out their 2021-22 season by visiting the playoff-bound Golden State Warriors on Thursday night in San Francisco.
Playing a second straight time without LeBron James, the Lakers (31-48) were eliminated from playoff contention for the first time since 2018-19 when they fell 121-110 at Phoenix on Tuesday night.
Generally ineffective Russell Westbrook (28 points) and oft-injured Anthony Davis (21), who have shared much more of the blame for the underachieving season than James, paced the club in the must-win contest.
Dealing with a sprained left ankle, James could finish the season on the sidelines. But he does have one incentive to play — at 30.3 points per game, he has fallen percentage points behind Joel Embiid (30.4) in his pursuit of a second career scoring title.
Davis, who missed 18 straight games with a sprained right foot before returning for the last three contests, seemed resigned to taking the rest of the year off himself after Tuesday’s dream-crusher.
“Our goal was to win a championship,” he said. “Feel like we had the pieces, but injuries got in the way of that. And that was the difference in the season.”
Injuries have gotten in Golden State’s way as well, yet the Warriors (50-29) not only have assured themselves of playing next week, but also have clinched a home-court advantage in their first-round playoff series.
The questions now become: Will they enter the playoffs in their current position (No. 3 in the West, entering Wednesday) or perhaps fall behind the Dallas Mavericks and into the fourth spot? And who will they draw in the first round, with the Mavericks, Utah Jazz, Denver Nuggets and Minnesota Timberwolves remaining as possible opponents?
Golden State has plowed ahead despite the absence of Stephen Curry, currently out with a foot injury. But Klay Thompson and Draymond Green, both of whom missed large chunks of the season, have returned to team with Jordan Poole in leading the way of late.
Thompson ignited a stirring comeback in a 111-107 victory over the Utah Jazz on Saturday, hitting four 3-pointers in an 18-0 fourth-quarter flurry that flipped the score. He finished with 36 points, then sat out Sunday’s second night of a back-to-back at Sacramento, a game Golden State won, 109-90.
Green has averaged 8.0 points, 8.0 rebounds and 6.0 assists in the last two wins, but his biggest contribution was a block on a Rudy Gobert point-blank attempt that could have given Utah a late lead.
The Warriors, who wrap up their home schedule Thursday, can assure themselves of the No. 3 seed by sweeping their final three games. They finish the regular season Saturday at San Antonio and Sunday at New Orleans.
Then it becomes a waiting game to see if Curry is able to return for the playoff opener.
Thompson is confident his sidekick is doing everything in his power to assure he’ll be back on the Chase Center court for Game 1, regardless of the opponent.
“He’s just doing what he’s always done: Working as hard as he can,” Thompson said. “The great thing about Steph is you don’t have to worry about him getting the work in.”
The Warriors have taken two of three from the Lakers this season, but came up short in the most recent meeting when James exploded for 56 points in a 124-116 home win last month.
–Field Level Media
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| 2022-04-07T10:28:39Z
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The Boston Celtics will attempt to continue their winning ways on Wednesday when they open a three-game, season-ending road trip against the Chicago Bulls.
Jaylen Brown scored 32 points and Jayson Tatum added 22 as the Celtics (49-30) recorded their 13th victory in their past 16 games with an emphatic 144-102 romp over the Washington Wizards on Sunday.
“Man, we’ve come a long way,” Brown said of Boston’s ascent in the Eastern Conference standings.
The hot streak has propelled the Celtics into a tie for second with the Philadelphia 76ers and Milwaukee Bucks, 2 1/2 games behind the first-place Miami Heat in the Eastern Conference. Boston could find itself as high as first place or as low as fifth place when the dust settles.
First things first, however, for Celtics coach Ime Udoka, who is toying with several lineup decisions ahead of the Wednesday game against the sixth-place Bulls (45-34). Boston will complete a back-to-back set with a game against the Milwaukee Bucks on Thursday.
“A lot of it obviously has to do with seeding and standings and kind of what happens as far as that,” Udoka said. “We’re going one by one, honestly, and start with Chicago. Based on results and whatever else happens around us, it’s a back-to-back, so we’re just taking it (to) Chicago first and then figuring it out down the line.
“And, obviously, it has to do with opponents and what they end up doing as well. But the health and playing well are the keys and then seeding and standings and everything that you can’t really kind of determine will play into it afterwards.”
With that in mind, the Celtics released a packed injury report on Tuesday.
While Brown (knee), Tatum (knee) and Al Horford (back) are considered probable, Juwan Morgan (health and safety protocol) and Nik Stauskas (ankle) have been ruled out for the contest.
Chicago’s Zach LaVine is expected to return after sitting out the team’s 127-106 home loss to the Bucks on Tuesday. The Bulls have been managing LaVine’s knee injury for the past several weeks, notably on back-to-back sets.
DeMar DeRozan scored 40 points to pace the Bulls, who clinched a playoff berth when the Cleveland Cavaliers fell to the Orlando Magic earlier on Tuesday. Chicago resides one game behind fifth-place Toronto, but the Bulls own the tiebreaker over the Raptors.
DeRozan erupted for 37 points in Chicago’s 128-114 win in Boston on Nov. 1 and added 23 in a 114-112 road loss to the Celtics on Jan. 15. Nikola Vucevic had 11 points, 10 rebounds and nine assists in the first meeting before scoring 27 points in the rematch.
On Wednesday morning, the Bulls ruled guard Lonzo Ball out for the remainder of the season. Ball underwent surgery on a torn meniscus in his left knee on Jan. 28 in Los Angeles.
Per the Bulls on Wednesday, Ball “continues to experience pain with high-level physical activity. He will continue daily treatment and rehabilitation in preparation for the 2022-23 season.”
Bulls coach Billy Donovan wasn’t too optimistic on Tuesday when asked about Ball’s recovery.
“It’s disappointing from the standpoint you were hoping that the time that he had off could help him kind of maybe propel going forward and do a little bit more,” Donovan said. “But that certainly hasn’t been the case.”
–Field Level Media
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| 2022-04-07T10:29:13Z
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Timeline of the National Basketball Association during the 2010s to the NBA’s 75th season. The timeline includes milestone moments in the league’s history and key moments off the court as the NBA celebrates its 75th season:
June 17, 2010: The Los Angeles Lakers beat the Boston Celtics 83-79 in Game 7 of the NBA Finals to win the title in a renewal of one of the greatest rivalries in team sports and their 12th Finals meeting. Phil Jackson adds to his record by coaching his 11th championship team. Kobe Bryant wins his fifth title and is named Finals MVP.
July 8, 2010: LeBron James ends weeks of speculation over his future by announcing his decision on an ESPN special that he has decided to leave Cleveland after seven years and join Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh at the Miami Heat seeking his first championship.
May 3, 2011: Derrick Rosebecomes the youngest MVP in NBA history at 22 years, 191 days old after leading Chicago to 62 wins. Five-time MVP Michael Jordan is the only other Chicago player to win MVP.
July 1, 2011: A 161-day lockout begins, eliminating the preseason and trimming the regular season from 82 to 66 games. It ends on Dec. 8 after players and owners come to agreements on revenue sharing and the salary cap. The season begins on Dec. 25.
June 21, 2012: LeBron James finallywins his first NBA championship in his ninth season.He averages 28.6 points, 10.2 rebounds and 7.4 assists as Miami wins the NBA Finals in five games. The Heat beat Oklahoma City, a young team that features Kevin Durant, Russell Westbrook and James Harden.
Aug. 12, 2012: The Americans win their second straight Olympic gold medal in men’s basketball. After winning by an average margin of victory of 32.1 points a game, the U.S. gets 30 points from Kevin Durant to beat Spain 107-100 for gold in London.
Oct. 29, 2012: Superstorm Sandy hits New Jersey, New York and parts of Connecticut after merging with other storm systems. Sandy becomes one of the costliest storms in U.S. history, flooding 36,000 homes, killing 72 in the eastern United States and causing $62.5 billion damage.
Dec. 14, 2012: Twenty first graders and six educators are shot to death at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Connecticut. Adam Lanza, 20, killed his mother at their home before going to the school. He kills himself with a handgun as police arrive.
April 15, 2013: Two bombs go off near the finish line of the Boston Marathon, killing three and wounding more than 260. Police arrest Dzhokhar Tsarnaev, 19, while his older brother Tamerlan Tsarnaev, 26, dies after a shootout with authorities.
June 18, 2013: Ray Allen knocks down a 3-pointer with 5.2 seconds left in the fourth quarter, capping Miami’s rally from 10 points down in the quarter and forcing overtime in Game 6 of the NBA Finals against the San Antonio Spurs. The Heat win 103-100 in overtime. The Heat win Game 7 two days later for their second straight championship.
July 2013: Alicia Garza, Patrisse Cullors and Opal Tometi start Black Lives Matter as a social media hashtag following the acquittal on July 13 of George Zimmerman in the shooting death of Trayvon Martin. The group grows and now has chapters throughout the U.S. and in Britain and Canada fighting against white supremacy, police brutality and systemic racism.
Oct. 30, 2013: Allen Iverson announces his retirement nearly four years after his last NBA game after a second stint with the Philadelphia 76ers. He wound up playing 14 years and finished 19th on the career scoring list with 24,368 points.
May 6, 2014: Oklahoma City’s Kevin Durant is named league MVP. His run of 41 consecutive games with at least 25 points helps him pull away from the field. During his acceptance speech, he famously calls his mother ”the real MVP.”
June 15, 2014: This time, the San Antonio Spurs close out the Miami Heat in the NBA Finals in five games for their fifth championship.
July 11, 2014: LeBron James returns to the Cleveland Cavaliers as a free agent after four seasons with the Miami Heat.
Nov. 29, 2015: Kobe Bryant, 37, announces in a post titled ”Dear Basketball” on The Players’ Tribune that his 20th NBA season will be his last. It amounts to a farewell tour, and he is showered with love throughout the season. He retires as the NBA’s third-leading scorer all-time.
June 4, 2015: Stephen Curry and the Golden State Warriors tip off Game 1 of the NBA Finals against LeBron James and the Cleveland Cavaliers. It’s the first of four straight Finals between the teams. The Warriors win the franchise’s fourth championship by claiming the series 4-2.
June 26, 2015: Same-sex couples win the right to marry with the Supreme Court’s 5-4 ruling in the civil rights case.
April 13, 2016: The Golden State Warriors beat the Memphis Grizzlies 125-104 for a 73-9 season, breaking the 72-10 mark set by Michael Jordan and the Chicago Bulls. Kobe Bryant scores 60 points in his final NBA game, a mark he hadn’t reached since 2009.
May 10, 2016: Golden State’s Stephen Curry repeats as league MVP and is the first unanimous winner in league history.
June 19, 2016: The record-setting Warriors fall in seven games in the NBA Finals. LeBron James and the Cleveland Cavaliers become the first team to rally and win after trailing 3-1, ending the city of Cleveland’s 42-year championship drought.
July 4, 2016: Four-time scoring champ Kevin Durant decides to leave the Oklahoma City Thunder and join the Golden State Warriors, sending tremors through the NBA. The Warriors had rallied from a 3-1 deficit to beat the Thunder in the Western Conference Finals. Angry Oklahoma City fans call their once beloved hero a traitor for joining their top rival.
July 11, 2016: Tim Duncan announces his retirement after five championships with the San Antonio Spurs and 19 NBA seasons after being the only player to win titles in three different decades. Duncan joins Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and Robert Parish as the only players to win at least 1,000 games in their careers.
July 27, 2016: Hillary Clinton formally wins the nomination as the Democratic Party’s candidate for president, becoming the first woman to lead a major American political party.
Aug. 21, 2016: The United States wins its third straight men’s basketball gold medal, this time routing Serbia 96-66 in the Rio Games with Kevin Durant scoring 30 points.
Nov. 2, 2016: The Chicago Cubs end the longest drought in baseball by beating the then-Cleveland Indians in the 10th inning of Game 7. The Cubs trailed 3-1 before rallying to win three straight for their first title since 1908.
April 8, 2017: Oklahoma City’s Russell Westbrook joins Oscar Robertson as the only players in NBA history to average a triple-double for a season. Westbrook secured the mark in a loss to Phoenix but finishes the season averaging 31.6 points, 10.7 rebounds and 10.4 assists.
April 9, 2017: Oklahoma City’s Russell Westbrookbreaks Oscar Robertson’s single-season record for triple-doubles with his 42nd. He has 50 points, 16 rebounds and 10 assists and hits a deep game-winning 3-pointer in Denver to eliminate the Nuggets from playoff contention.
Aug. 25, 2017: Hurricane Harvey smashes into Texasas a Category 4 storm and the fiercest to hit the U.S. in more than a decade. The storm kills 68 and causes an estimated $125 billion in damage in Texas.
June 8, 2018: The Golden State Warriors win their third NBA championship in four seasons and second straight, this time sweeping Cleveland a year after needing five games to win the title. Kevin Durant wins his second straight NBA Finals MVP.
Dec. 18, 2019: President Trump is impeached on charges of abuse of power and obstruction of Congress. He becomes the fourth U.S. president impeached, joining Andrew Johnson, Richard Nixon and Bill Clinton.
Jan. 26, 2020: Kobe Bryant, his 13-year-old daughter and seven others are killed in a helicopter crashon a steep hillside in dense morning fog in Southern California. Bryant’s death at 41 shocks the sports and entertainment worlds.
March 12, 2020: The NBA suspends the season ”until further notice” after Rudy Gobert of the Utah Jazz tests positive for the coronavirus. The move comes hours after the majority of the league’s owners were leaning toward playing games without fans in arenas.
July 30, 2020: The NBA restarts the season in a bubble against the coronavirus pandemic inside the Disney complex.
Aug. 26, 2020: NBA players walk out on playoff games inside the league’s bubble, upset over racial injustice and the shooting of Jacob Blake, a Black man, by police in Kenosha, Wisconsin. Two more days of games also are postponed while players wrestle with emotions about wanting to bring change in their communities.
Oct. 11, 2020: The Los Angeles Lakers win the franchise’s first title in a decade, beating the Miami Heat in six games wrapping up three months in an NBA bubble at Walt Disney World designed to keep inhabitants safe from the coronavirus. LeBron James and Danny Green join John Salley and Robert Horry as the only players to win titles with three different franchises.
Jan. 6, 2021: Violent pro-Trump loyalists storm the U.S. Capitol, egged on by President Trump’s calls for them to ”fight like hell” against the election results. Lawmakers are forced into hiding in a stunning attempt to overturn America’s presidential election.
Jan. 14, 2021: President Donald Trump is impeached for the second time, charged with ”incitement of insurrection” over the deadly mob siege of the Capitol in a swift and stunning collapse of his final days in office.
May 20, 2021: The Washington Wizards beat Indiana for the Eastern Conference’s No. 8 seed and Ja Morant and the Memphis Grizzlies beat the Golden State Warriors for the Western Conference’s No. 8 seed a day later to cap the NBA’s first play-in tournament.
July 20, 2021: Giannis Antetokounmposcores 50 points and grabs 14 rebounds with five blocked shotsleading the Milwaukee Bucks to a 105-98 win over the Phoenix Suns, clinching the franchise’s first NBA title in 50 years. The Bucks take the NBA Finals 4-2 in a series played before fans after the bubble of 2020.
Aug. 7, 2021: Kevin Durant leads the U.S. to another gold medal. He scores 29 points as the Americans beat France 87-82 at the Tokyo Olympics, postponed a year because of the coronavirus pandemic.
—
More on the NBA At 75: https://apnews.com/hub/nba-at-75
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ATLANTA (AP)Jonas Hayes, who as interim coach led Xavier to its first NIT championship in 64 years, was hired as Georgia State’s coach on Wednesday.
Hayes, an Atlanta native and University of Georgia alumnus, replaces Rob Lanier, who left Georgia State to head SMU’s program.
Hayes, 40, was an assistant coach at Xavier before being promoted to interim coach after Travis Steele was fired following a win over Cleveland State in the first round of the NIT.
Hayes then led Xavier to its first NIT title since 1958 with wins over Florida, Vanderbilt and St. Bonaventure before a 73-72 victory over Texas A&M in Thursday night’s championship game.
Georgia State athletic director Charlie Cobb said Hayes was the school’s choice following interviews with ”multiple” candidates.
”Jonas is an experienced leader who will build a staff that embraces our expectation of competitive success, develops men of character and engages our community positively and with energy,” Cobb said.
Lanier was 53-30 in three seasons at Georgia State and took the Panthers to this year’s NCAA tournament. It was Georgia State’s fourth NCAA appearance in eight years. Former Arizona coach Sean Miller was hired for his second stint at Xavier.
Hayes spent four years at Xavier following six seasons as an assistant at Georgia.
Hayes began his coaching career as an assistant coach at Atlanta’s Morehouse College in 2005. He launched his collegiate playing career at Western Carolina before transferring to Georgia with his twin brother, Jarvis, where he played from 2001-04.
—
More AP college basketball: https://apnews.com/hub/college-basketball and https://apnews.com/hub/ap-top-25-college-basketball-poll and https://twitter.com/AP-Top25
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| 2022-04-07T10:29:48Z
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ISTANBUL — A Turkish court ruled Thursday to suspend the trial in absentia of 26 Saudis accused in the gruesome killing of Washington Post columnist Jamal Khashoggi and for the case to be transferred to Saudi Arabia.
Kaghoggi, a United States resident who wrote for The Washington Post, was killed on Oct. 2, 2018, at the Saudi Consulate in Istanbul, where he had gone for an appointment to collect documents required for him to marry his Turkish fiancee, Hatice Cengiz. He never emerged from the building.
The court's decision comes despite warnings from human rights groups that turning the case over to the kingdom would lead to a cover up of the killing which has cast suspicion on Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman.
It also comes as Turkey, which is in the throes of an economic downturn, has been trying to repair its troubled relationship with Saudi Arabia and an array of other countries in its region. Some media reports have claimed that Riyadh has made improved relations conditional on Turkey dropping the case against the Saudis.
Prosecutor says a trial in Turkey would be inconclusive
Turkish officials alleged that Khashoggi, who wrote critically about the crown prince, was killed and then dismembered with a bone saw inside the consulate by a team of Saudi agents sent to Istanbul. The group included a forensic doctor, intelligence and security officers and individuals who worked for the crown prince's office. His remains have not been found.
Last week, the prosecutor in the case recommended that the case be transferred to the kingdom, arguing that the trial in Turkey would remain inconclusive. Turkey's justice minister supported the recommendation, adding that the trial in Turkey would resume if the Turkish court is not satisfied with the outcome of proceedings in the kingdom. It was not clear however, if Saudi Arabia, which has already put some of the defendants on trial behind closed door, would open a new trial.
The court ruled to halt the trial in line with the Justice Ministry's "positive opinion," the private DHA news agency reported.
Human rights advocates had urged Turkey not to transfer the case to Saudi Arabia.
"By transferring the case of a murder that was committed on its territory, Turkey will be knowingly and willingly sending the case back into the hands of those who bare its responsibility," said Amnesty International's Secretary General Agnes Callamard. "Indeed, the Saudi system has repeatedly failed to cooperate with the Turkish prosecutor and it is clear that justice cannot be delivered by a Saudi court."
"What has happened to Turkey's declared commitment that justice must prevail for this gruesome murder and that this case would never become a pawn in political calculations and interest?" she asked.
The New York-based Human Rights Watch said: "Given the complete lack of judicial independence in Saudi Arabia, the role of the Saudi government in Khashoggi's killing, its past attempts at obstructing justice, and a criminal justice system that fails to satisfy basic standards of fairness, chances of a fair trial for the Khashoggi case in Saudi Arabia are close to nil."
Turkey apparently had the Saudi Consulate bugged and shared audio of the killing with the CIA, among others.
The slaying sparked international outrage and condemnation. Western intelligence agencies, as well as the U.S. Congress, have said that an operation of that magnitude could not have happened without knowledge of the prince.
Turkey, which vowed to shed light on the brutal killing, began prosecuting the defendants in absentia in 2020 after Saudi Arabia rejected requests for their extradition. The defendants included two former aides of the prince.
Some of the men were put on trial in Riyadh behind closed doors. A Saudi court issued a final verdict in 2020 that sentenced five mid-level officials and operatives to 20-year jail terms. The court had originally ordered the death penalty, but reduced the punishment after Khashoggi's son Salah, who lives in Saudi Arabia, announced that he forgave the defendants. Three others were sentenced to lesser jail terms.
Copyright 2022 NPR. To see more, visit https://www.npr.org.
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https://www.klcc.org/npr-news/2022-04-07/turkish-court-rules-that-khashoggi-trial-should-be-transferred-to-saudi-arabia
| 2022-04-07T10:49:18Z
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Photographer Magali Polverino recently released images of El Abascay, a farm in Buenos Aires. Mother-daughter duo Rosario and Consuelo started the farm after frustration with the dairy industry inspired them to create their own products. This radical shift from factory farming allows the family to focus on ethical agriculture and a more thoughtful, slow-paced process.
Polverino uses gorgeous, colorful macro images to bring the farm’s fresh atmosphere to life. Playful backgrounds and motionless repetition adds a sense of magic and wonder to the space and its subjects.
El Abascay is a farm run by a family of women who decided to stop selling their milk to the mass-produced dairy industry and started making their own products.
They also sell the best free range eggs and we wanted to reflect that by showing how the hens live. They roam free in the fields and even inside the house!
Project Credits
Photography Magali Polverino | @magalipolverino
Photo Assistant Cande Cortes
Chef @totiquesada
Brand @elabascaybrandsen
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| 2022-04-07T10:53:08Z
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Wind gusts of up to 50mph are set to batter Kent today (April 7). This comes as part of a cold and drizzly start to the month as the UK waits for spring weather conditions to kick in.
After the county was hit with -4C temperatures last weekend, day temperatures have rarely gone above 12C since. This follows a warm end to March, when the mercury struck 18C on consecutive days.
Today, temperatures are set to follow the same trend of hovering at about 11C or 12C, with Dartford set to enjoy slightly warmer 13C temperatures. Sunny conditions are set to dominate the skies across Kent.
READ MORE: Dover council chief threatens 'major incident' over getaway chaos
Particularly strong wind gusts will affect the county between 11am and 6pm. This should peak at about 1pm, with maximum wind gusts expected to be 50mph in Gillingham and Thanet, 49mph in Dover, Folkestone and Maidstone, and 48mph in Dartford.
Yellow weather warnings are in place by the Met Office for snow in the north of Scotland and strong winds on Thursday morning for the north west of England and North Wales. The Met Office is warning of snow until 9am stating: “Wintry conditions overnight and early Thursday may lead to some travel disruption in a few areas.”
It has told people: “Some roads and possibly railways may be affected by snow leading to longer journey times. Possibly icy surfaces leading to increased likelihood of injuries or accidents, probably mainly on higher roads.
South East England weather forecast
Today:
Starting dry with sunny periods, once any residual overnight rain quickly clears Kent. Cloud then increases, bringing scattered sometimes heavy showers this afternoon, although Hampshire may remain largely dry with the highest temperatures. Becoming very windy everywhere, with localised gales. Maximum temperature 13 °C.
Tonight:
This evening the wind eases and showers quickly fade away, leaving clear and chilly conditions. Later tonight cloud spread across southern areas, with a chance of coastal rain by daybreak. Minimum temperature 0 °C.
Friday:
Generally cloudy, with outbreaks of rain for southern areas, the rain most likely along the coast. The rain clears south late morning, with brighter conditions following and isolated showers. Maximum temperature 11 °C.
Outlook for Saturday to Monday:
Mainly dry with bright or sunny spells, except perhaps patchy rain arriving Monday. Rather cold initially, with frosty starts Saturday and Sunday, then becoming rather warm or warm for Monday.
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P&O Ferries is preparing to restart sailings on suspended routes "from this weekend" after it sacked nearly 800 seafarers last month. They originally penned the resumption of crossings for after Easter on April 19.
But now the firm plans to resume operations for four of its ships. It has been prevented from running all but one of its vessels since it announced widespread redundancies on March 17. A spokesman for the firm said: "From this weekend, P&O Ferries are getting ready to resume services across a number of vital routes. P&O has been working closely with regulators to ensure our ships are safe to sail.
"P&O is looking forward to welcoming back vital services and we expect to have two of our vessels ready to sail on the Dover/Calais route by next week, subject to regulatory sign-off, namely both the Pride of Kent and Spirit of Britain between Dover/Calais.
READ MORE: DFDS announces capacity warning ahead of busy weekend before Easter
"P&O are also expecting to be able to sail both the European Causeway, which runs between Larne and Cairnryan, and the Pride of Hull, which runs services between Hull and Rotterdam. We thank our customers for their patience during this time and we apologise to those customers whose journeys have been cancelled and disrupted."
The company sparked outrage by replacing its crews with cheaper agency workers, without notice. The RMT put out a statement on April 4 announcing it would continue to protest against the callous actions of the now disgraced company which was previously a flagship British company. In a statement, the RMT said: "RMT will keep the pressure up on the company and government over the sacking of 800 maritime staff last month."
The ferries will need to pass inspections by the Maritime Coastguard Agency (MCA) before operations can restart. However, the MCA said: "There are no further inspections of P&O Ferries at the moment and we will reinspect at the appropriate time".
P&O complained of "unprecedented rigour" when two ships failed inspection and were detained. European Causeway was held in Larne, Northern Ireland, and Pride Of Kent was detained in Dover.
The announcement comes as a former P&O Ferries chef is reportedly suing the company for unfair dismissal, racial discrimination and harassment. The BBC reported that John Lansdown has filed a tribunal claim against the firm and its chief executive, and is seeking financial compensation and exemplary damages of up to £76 million.
P&O Ferries said its job cuts were "categorically not based on race or the nationality of the staff involved", in a statement carried by the broadcaster. Mr Lansdown said the action was about the "bigger picture".
"This is not just about me. Seven hundred and ninety-nine of my seafaring family have lost their livelihoods, their way of life, their homes for half the year," he told the BBC.
Criminal and civil investigations have also been launched into P&O Ferries' move. Business Secretary, Kwasi Kwarteng, said on April 1 that the Insolvency Service had started "formal criminal and civil investigations".
The Insolvency Service said: "Following its inquiries, the Insolvency Service has commenced formal criminal and civil investigations into the circumstances surrounding the recent redundancies made by P&O Ferries.
"As these are ongoing investigations, no further comment or information can be provided at this time."
P&O Ferries chief executive, Peter Hebblethwaite, told a joint hearing of the Commons' business and transport committees that his company broke the law by not consulting with trade unions before sacking workers.
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| 2022-04-07T11:01:13Z
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BERLIN (AP) — German lawmakers are debating Thursday whether to require all people aged 60 and over in the country to be vaccinated against the coronavirus — a compromise solution the government hopes will receive a parliamentary majority.
Chancellor Olaf Scholz and his health minister had originally called for a vaccine mandate to apply to all adults in Germany, but some government lawmakers and most of the opposition have balked at the idea.
After months of haggling, a cross-party group has proposed that only older people will be required to get the shot, though there will be compulsory counseling for all adults to help them weigh up the advantages and risks of vaccination against COVID-19.
Two opposition proposals are also being debated: the center-right Union bloc has proposed preparing a vaccine register to determine who has received a shot, but opposes a requirement to get one. The far-right Alternative for Germany party objects to any mandate and wants the existing vaccine requirement for health workers repealed.
Germany has managed the pandemic well compared to some of its European neighbors, with fewer deaths per capita than Italy, France, Britain or Sweden.
Social Democratic lawmaker Dagmar Schmidt, who presented the compromise bill targeting over-60s, noted that the number of infections has been going down lately.
Official figures show the confirmed coronavirus cases in Germany declined in recent weeks from a peak of about 300,000 daily to just over 200,000 in the past 24 hours. There were 328 COVID-related deaths, according to Germany’s disease control agency.
But Schmidt said it was necessary to prepare for a new rise in cases and a possible new variant later in the year.
“We will face the same challenge next fall that we did last fall,” she said. “The virus won’t simply disappear.”
___
Follow AP’s pandemic coverage at https://apnews.com/hub/coronavirus-pandemic
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| 2022-04-07T11:02:41Z
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ISTANBUL (AP) — A Turkish court ruled Thursday to suspend the trial in absentia of 26 Saudis accused in the gruesome killing of Washington Post columnist Jamal Khashoggi and for the case to be transferred to Saudi Arabia.
Kaghoggi, a United States resident who wrote critically about Saudi Crown Prince Prince Mohammed bin Salman, was killed on Oct. 2, 2018, at the Saudi Consulate in Istanbul. He had gone into the consulate for an appointment to collect documents required for him to marry his Turkish fiancee, Hatice Cengiz. He never emerged from the building.
Turkish officials alleged that Khashoggi was killed and then dismembered with a bone saw inside the consulate by a team of Saudi agents sent to Istanbul. The group included a forensic doctor, intelligence and security officers and individuals who worked for the crown prince’s office. His remains have not been found.
The Istanbul court’s decision comes despite warnings from human rights groups that turning the case over to the kingdom would lead to a cover up of the killing, which has cast suspicion on the crown prince.
It also comes as Turkey, which is in a deep economic downturn, has been trying to repair its troubled relationship with Saudi Arabia and an array of other countries in its region. Some media reports have claimed that Riyadh has made improved relations conditional on Turkey dropping the case, which had inflamed tensions between two countries.
The move would pave the way to a resolution of disputes between the two regional heavyweights since the 2011 Arab Spring, including Turkey’s support for Islamist movements like the Muslim Brotherhood, which Riyadh considers a terrorist group. Turkey also sided with Qatar in a diplomatic dispute that saw Doha boycotted by Bahrain, Egypt, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates.
Last week, the prosecutor in the case recommended that it be transferred to the kingdom, arguing that the trial in Turkey would remain inconclusive. Turkey’s justice minister supported the recommendation, adding that the trial in Turkey would resume if the Turkish court is not satisfied with the outcome of proceedings in the kingdom. It was not clear, however, if Saudi Arabia, which has already put some of the defendants on trial behind closed doors, would open a new trial.
During Thursday’s hearing, lawyers representing Cengiz asked the court not to move the proceedings to Saudi Arabia, the private DHA news agency reported.
“Let’s not entrust the lamb to the wolf,” the agency quoted lawyer Ali Ceylan as telling the court, using a Turkish saying. “Let’s protect the honor and dignity of the Turkish nation.”
The court however, ruled to halt the trial in line with the Justice Ministry’s “positive opinion,” DHA reported. It also decided to lift arrest warrants issued against the defendants and gave the sides seven days to lodge any opposition.
There was no immediate reaction from Saudi Arabia to the court’s decision.
Human rights advocates had also urged Turkey not to transfer the case to Saudi Arabia, arguing that justice for Khashoggi would not be delivered by Saudi courts.
“It’s a scandalous decision,” said Emma Sinclair-Webb, the Turkey director for the New York-based Human Rights Watch, asserting that the court had “rubber stamped” a political decision that would allow the Turkish government to repair its ties with Saudi Arabia.
“In the interest of realpolitik, Turkey is ready to sacrifice justice for an egregious crime on its own soil,” she told The Associated Press. “(The decision) opens the way for other countries to commit assassinations on Turkish territory and get away with it.”
Cengiz said she would continue to seek justice.
“We will continue this (judicial) process with all the power given to me, as a Turkish citizen,” she told reporters outside the courthouse.
“The two countries may be making an agreement, the two countries may be opening a new chapter … but the crime is still the same crime,” she said. “The people who committed the crime haven’t changed. Governments and states must have a principled stance.”
At the time of the crime, Turkey apparently had the Saudi Consulate bugged and shared audio of the killing with the CIA, among others.
The slaying sparked international outrage and condemnation. Western intelligence agencies, as well as the U.S. Congress, have said that an operation of such magnitude could not have happened without knowledge of the prince.
Turkey, which had vowed to shed light on the brutal killing, began prosecuting the defendants in absentia in 2020 after Saudi Arabia rejected requests for their extradition. The defendants included two former aides of the prince.
Some of the men were put on trial in Riyadh behind closed doors. A Saudi court issued a final verdict in 2020 that sentenced five mid-level officials and operatives to 20-year jail terms. The court had originally ordered the death penalty, but reduced the punishment after Khashoggi’s son Salah, who lives in Saudi Arabia, announced that he forgave the defendants. Three others were sentenced to lesser jail terms.
___
Fraser reported from Ankara, Turkey.
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| 2022-04-07T11:03:09Z
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NEW YORK (AP) — CBS News reporter Debora Patta has covered conflicts in Africa and the Middle East, and the aftermath of terrorist attacks in Europe. She has seen violence and death at close range before. But the atrocities she witnessed in Bucha, Ukraine this week stood out, and overwhelmed her.
“We need to be disturbed by these pictures,” Patta said on “CBS Mornings,” after describing what she and other journalists witnessed in the outskirts of Kyiv.
The war changed this week from a media perspective, which is how most people outside of Ukraine experience it.
Before, events had been seen primarily from a slight distance — fiery explosions caught on camera or drone-eyed views of burned-out buildings. Now, with the Ukrainian army retaking control of villages near Kyiv that had been brutalized by Russian soldiers, journalists are capturing the aftermath of horrific violence at close range — of dead bodies bound, tortured and burned.
While there’s a sense that images like these might change public opinion or have an impact on how a war plays out, historically that hasn’t often been the case, said Rebecca Adelman, a communications professor at the University of Maryland who specializes in war and the media.
Still, several countries, including the United States and Britain, imposed additional sanctions on Russia this week, and they cited the brutality in Bucha as compelling them to do more.
Whatever the impact, Adelman said it is critical to have journalists on hand to document what is going on. “Bearing witness is crucially important, particularly in cases of catastrophic loss,” she said. “Sometimes the photograph is all you have left.”
Photographs and video from Bucha showed body bags piled in trenches, lifeless limbs protruding from hastily dug graves, and corpses scattered in streets where they fell, including one man blown off a bicycle.
Journalists from around the world also interviewed Ukrainians emerging from their hiding places to tell stories about the barbarism they witnessed from Russian soldiers.
TV anchors and correspondents warned viewers that they were about to see graphic and disturbing pictures — a warning that came four times in one episode of “World News Tonight” on ABC. “I’m sorry I have to show you this,” CNN’s Frederik Pleitgen apologized, before motioning a camera to show body bags piled in a van.
“While we may want to look away, it is becoming harder and harder to close our eyes to what’s happening,” NBC “Nightly News” anchor Lester Holt said in his warning to viewers.
Veteran television news producer Rick Kaplan said that, from what he’s seen, news organizations have been careful in what they’ve shown without flinching from the story.
“Every day we have these images it brings (the war) home more and more,” said Kaplan, a former president of both CNN and MSNBC. “It’s a good thing that this horrifies us. Can you imagine if we were blase about it?”
The gruesome images from Bucha, in particular, have dominated news reports around the world.
The BBC reported on the continued “world revulsion.” Italian state TV gave no warning before showing bodies with bound hands, half-buried in sandy terrain. “What you see from here, unfortunately, are signs of torture on the face,” journalist Stefania Battistini said. “All are wearing civilian clothes.”
Narrating a story on Fakty, Poland’s most-watched evening news program, anchor Grzegorz Kajdanowicz said “it is our duty to warn you, but also to show you what the Russians did in Bucha and several other places.”
It was different in Russia, where state television falsely claimed Ukraine was responsible for either killing civilians themselves or perpetrating a hoax. Russian TV has also run images of dead bodies in Bucha, some taken from CNN, with the word “fake” stamped on the screen, according to Internet Archive, a company that monitors Web and television content.
The Russian propaganda prompted many Western news organizations to debunk those claims by using satellite imagery to show that many dead bodies that were documented on the ground this week by journalists had been in the same spots when Russia controlled the town.
Some of the most graphic images were compiled in a short video made by Ukraine to accompany President Volodymyr Zelenskyy’s speech to the United Nations on Tuesday. To a soundtrack of somber music and the cries of children, the video showed close-ups of corpses and body parts.
Technical difficulties delayed its airing until well after Zelenskyy talked, giving networks like CNN and Fox News Channel that had aired the speech time to present it later in edited form. But MSNBC appeared to show it in full, leaving anchor Andrea Mitchell visibly shaken.
“That’s just horrific,” she said. “I don’t think the world has seen anything like it.”
Ukraine has a clear motivation to show the world what is happening, and journalists accompanied Zelenskyy on a visit to Bucha on Monday.
While television and the Internet give greater immediacy to war coverage, heart-wrenching images — and their potential to shape public opinion — are hardly new.
Harvard historian Drew Faust, author of “This Republic of Suffering: Death and the American Civil War,” noted that when Matthew Brady had an exhibit of his Civil War photographs in 1862, The New York Times wrote, “if he has not brought bodies and laid them in our dooryards and along the streets, he has done something very like it.”
When a memorable photo was circulated of a 5-year-old boy sitting dazed and bloodied after being rescued from a bombing in Aleppo, Syria in 2016, NPR asked in a headline, “Can one photo help end a war?”
It hasn’t yet.
A danger, too, is that in a world not easily shocked people will become numb to the pictures. That’s Faust’s fear, particularly as she expressed surprise that many people became strangely disconnected to the news of so many people dying of COVID-19.
As more communities are liberated from Russian rule, the number of ghastly images will almost certainly multiply.
“A little caution will be needed going forward so every news program doesn’t become a parade of horrible images,” said news consultant and retired NBC News executive Bill Wheatley.
Yet one of the surprises of this war, along with Ukraine’s ability to stave off a quick defeat, is the way Zelenskyy has been able to win the information battle and unite opposition in a way that was not anticipated. In that context, the images may help make a difference.
___
Associated Press correspondents Colleen Barry in Milan, Italy; Louise Dixon in London; Vanessa Gera in Warsaw, Poland; and Amanda Seitz in Washington, D.C., contributed to this report.
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| 2022-04-07T11:03:37Z
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https://www.parrysound.com/news-story/10602786-today-s-coronavirus-news-more-ontarians-including-those-over-60-can-book-fourth-doses-today-germ/
| 2022-04-07T11:06:08Z
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Minister of Foreign Affairs of Luxembourg Jean Asselborn arrives at NATO headquarters for the meeting of NATO Ministers of Foreign Affairs in Brussels on 7 April 2022.
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https://www.dvidshub.net/video/838086/minister-foreign-affairs-luxembourg-arrives-nato-hq-meeting-nato-ministers-foreign-affairs-7
| 2022-04-07T11:07:18Z
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Hungarian Minister of Foreign Affairs Péter Szijjártó arrives at NATO headquarters for the meeting of NATO Ministers of Foreign Affairs in Brussels on 7 April 2022.
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https://www.dvidshub.net/video/838087/hungarian-minister-foreign-affairs-arrives-nato-hq-meeting-nato-ministers-foreign-affairs-7-april
| 2022-04-07T11:07:24Z
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With most pandemic restrictions lifted, the Easter Bunny is certainly hopping this spring. Here are just some of the many Easter egg hunts, visits with the Bunny and other springtime celebrations around Northern Virginia this month.
Easter Bunny Photos at Potomac Mills
Daily through April 15, times vary
Potomac Mills, Woodbridge
Sign up: whereisbunny.com
Easter Photos at Manassas Mall
Daily through April 16, times vary
Manassas Mall, Manassas
More info: manassasmall.com
Rippon Lodge Easter Egg Trail
April 9, timed hunts from 10:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m.
Rippon Lodge, Woodbridge
More info: visitpwc.com
Dumfries Easter Egg Hunt
April 16, 11 a.m. to 1 p.m.
Ginn Memorial Park, Dumfries
More info: “Dumfries Easter Egg Hunt” on Facebook
Flashlight Egg Hunt
April 9, 7-8 p.m.
Ages 8-11
Manassas Park Community Center, Manassas Park
www.manassasparkcommunitycenter.com
Easter Egg Hunt, Manassas Park
April 10, 10 a.m. to noon
Ages 1-7
Manassas Park Community Center, Manassas Park
More info: www.manassasparkcommunitycenter.com
Hop Around Downtown Manassas
April 9-16. Daily, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.
Learn more: visitmanassas.org
Easter Egg Hunt at Ida Lee Park
April 9, noon to 3 p.m.
Ida Lee Park, Leesburg
More info: leesburgva.gov/departments/parks-recreation/events/easter-egg-hunt
Occoquan Peep Week
April 12-14, all day
Historic Downtown Occoquan
Details: occoquanva.gov/occoquan-events/peep-week/
Morven Park Bunny Trail
April 9, 10 a.m. to 1 p.m.
Morven Park, Leesburg
More info: www.MorvenPark.org/Easter
Easter Egg Hunt in Old Town Alexandria
April 9, 11 a.m. to 2 p.m.
218 N. Lee St., Alexandria
Details: oldtownbusiness.org
Eggs-streme Teen Night Egg Hunt
April 7, 7 p.m.
City of Fairfax Parks and Recreation, Fairfax
fairfaxva.gov/government/parks-recreation
Stafford Egg Hunt & Bunny Picture
April 14 and 15
$5 per child for egg hunt and bunny photo-op
Rowser Building, Stafford
Pre-register: staffordparks.com or (540) 658-5116
Easter Egg Hunt at The Farm Brewery at Broad Run
April 10, 2 p.m. to 6 p.m.
The Farm Brewery at Broad Run, Haymarket
Meet the Easter Bunny
April 16, 9:30 a.m.-1 p.m. and 2-5:30 p.m.
Braehead Farm, Fredericksburg
Spring Carnival
Daily through April 17, 2-10 p.m.
Prince William Fairgrounds
More info: pwcfair.com
Lee-Fendall House Annual Easter Egg Hunt
April 16-17, times vary
Lee-Fendall House garden, Alexandria.
Sign up: leefendallhouse.org/events/
Easter Egg Hunt, Wesley Chapel UMC
April 9, 11 a.m.
Wesley Chapel UMC, Orlean
Egg-stravaganza at Sky Meadows State Park
April 16, noon to 4 p.m.
Sky Meadows State Park, Delaplane
Learn more: virginia.org/event/egg-stravaganza!/4748/amp/
Easter Egg Hunt at Leesburg Animal Park
April 9-10 and April 16-17, starting at noon
Leesburg Animal Park, Leesburg
Details: leesburganimalpark.com/event/easter-egg-hunt/2022-04-09/
Easter Spring Fling, Roer’s Zoofari
April 9-10 and April 16-17
Roer's Zoofari, Reston
Includes a parade!
More info: roerszoofari.com
Potomac Overlook Park Egg Hunt
April 9-10 and April 12-17
Potomac Overlook Park, Arlington
Sign up: novaparks.com/parks/potomac-overlook-regional-park
Dinosaur Egg Hunt at Sully Historic Site
April 9, all day
Sully Historic Site, Chantilly
More info: fairfaxcounty.gov/parks/sully-historic-site
Meadowlark Gardens Egg Hunt
April 11-13, daily 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.
Meadowlark Botanical Gardens, Wolf Trap
Sign up: novaparks.com/parks/meadowlark-botanical-gardens/events
Easter Egg Hunt and Marshmallow Harvest
Through April 16
Great Country Farms, Bluemont
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https://www.insidenova.com/headlines/northern-virginia-easter-egg-hunts-bunny-visits-and-spring-celebrations/article_3ff32a98-b656-11ec-b388-d74cd2a92ae7.html
| 2022-04-07T11:12:35Z
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You’d think it would be hard to mess up the all-American classic hamburger, but somehow way too many places do just that.
A hamburger should be simple and to the point. All I want is meat, bread, and cheese. That’s all I need. I don’t want a burger 3 feet tall. I don’t want to use a knife and fork at 1 in the morning.
Brews and Cues bar, 104 S. Second St. in Yakima, has exactly what I crave. There are no eggs on these burgers. I don’t even want you to add bacon to it.
It certainly shouldn’t cost more than what some people make an hour. If you charge or pay more than $15 for a hamburger, you should be jailed.
A patty, bread, three pickles. Ketchup, mustard and American cheese. If that’s good enough for you, you’re good enough for me.
Brews and Cues is open from 8 a.m. to 2 a.m. every day of the year. And I do mean every day. Every Wednesday something special happens. Once a week, this burger and a healthy two-handfuls of french fries can be yours. The best part? It’s freaking $4! So eat two. Or three. Or 11. I don’t care. They’re $4!
Do you hear what I’m saying?
You can get the best burger in town for less than a gallon of gas. And I do mean the best burger. Too many places have taken burgers to such an extreme level it scares me. I’m not going to name names, but you know who you are. Put me on a bar stool around midnight with one of these bad boys and a couple of cold Rainier beers in my belly and I’m in my happy place.
I know I’ve said before I don’t like people showing up at my favorite places, but I can make an exception for this joint. And now that COVID-19 seems to have been beaten into submission for the time being, we can get back to watching live bands.
A couple times a month you can expect some rowdy punk or metal show to be thrashing away on a Saturday night. Local band Probably Drunk have thrown some of my favorite sets.
The Brews and Cues hamburger is also loved by Probably Drunk Front man Grant Layne. He looked me dead in the eyes and proclaimed, “These things absolutely slap.” I’ll admit I had to edit that quote down a bit, but let’s just say he’s enthusiastic about it.
Brews doesn’t try to be anything it’s not. This is a place to throw darts on a quiet Tuesday. It’s a place to watch the Seattle Kraken and put back a couple cheap PBRs. It’s definitely the place to have a $4 burger at 8 in the morning. Why am I at the bar eating burgers first thing in the morning? That’s my business.
“It’s the perfect first date night. If whoever you treat to Brews and they’re too uptight to enjoy a classic dive bar, they’re not the one,” said bartender Jon Lopez. And bartenders usually have some pretty solid life advice.
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https://www.yakimaherald.com/explore_yakima/food_and_drink/review-yakimas-brews-and-cues-a-worthy-spot-for-first-dates-burgers-and-punk-rock/article_571544b3-cf95-56a9-a915-6585f3f34c47.html
| 2022-04-07T11:14:43Z
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yakimaherald.com
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https://www.yakimaherald.com/explore_yakima/food_and_drink/review-yakimas-brews-and-cues-a-worthy-spot-for-first-dates-burgers-and-punk-rock/article_571544b3-cf95-56a9-a915-6585f3f34c47.html
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The Yakima City Council decided to move forward with the proposed redistricting plan, making no changes after a public hearing Tuesday.
The map, which uses 16th Avenue as the east-west district boundary and adjusts district boundaries to follow arterial city streets, could not be adopted at Tuesday’s meeting, but the council directed staff to add it to the agenda for the April 19 business meeting. A vote will be taken on the map at that meeting.
The plan was developed by city staff members with input from the American Civil Liberties Union and the Southcentral Coalition of People of Color for Redistricting. The map adds a third Latino-majority district in the city. Districts 1, 2 and 4 will have a Latino majority.
A handful of people spoke during the public hearing on the plan.
David Morales, a Yakima resident and member of the Southcentral Coalition of People of Color for Redistricting, voiced support for the plan. He said the coalition supports a third Latino voting district and using 16th Avenue as the dividing line.
“We believe that splitting the map along 16th Avenue is the most … division on the ground and in real life, that there are distinct differences in our town’s geography, which could be considered communities of interest,” Morales said.
The map does not create a third district that has a majority of Latino citizens of voting age, but with a Latino voter makeup of 49.79%, District 4 could grow to be a majority over the next decade. The total Latino population in District 4 is 64.72%.
Yakima resident and former council candidate Kenton Gartrell said the plan dilutes the Hispanic vote in the districts that don’t have a Latino majority. He is in District 1, a Latino-majority district, and he lives in a mixed household, he said during the hearing.
“All these people say it creates a third Hispanic majority. That’s great and all, but you’re actually diluting your own Hispanic vote,” Gartrell said.
The total share of Latino residents does decrease in all districts except for District 4 and District 6 under the new map, according to current population data for the existing districts. The largest decrease is in District 1, where the total Latino population drops by about 5.5%, from 77.15% in the existing district to 71.69% in the new district.
Another commenter asked about specific lines on the map, wondering why they weren’t as clean or straightforward.
“I just wanted to ask why we have the different jogs in the changes that you’ve made,” Yakima resident Jeanna Hernandez said during the hearing.
City Attorney Sara Watkins said the GIS mapping and IT staff members went block-by-block to meet the population requirements for the map, while also keeping communities of interest together. Redistricting parameters require the districts to be as equal in population as possible. The map uses 16th Avenue as a guide, Watkins said, but there are some spots where the districts cross east or west of that line.
Council member Patricia Byers said the redistricting plan has much cleaner boundaries than the current map.
Council member Eliana Macias said she supports the map.
“It definitely keeps the communities of interest together, and in light of the new census data we reviewed and due to the imbalance of population between the existing districts, I really believe this is the best map that we have been presented,” Macias said.
She also said she’s excited to see a possible third Latino voter majority district in the future.
About redistricting
The city can revise council districts every 10 years based on population changes reflected in census data.
The 2020 Census showed that the number of Yakima residents who identified themselves as white dropped by about 9%, going from 52.2% to 43.5% of the total population from 2010 to 2020. At the same time, the number of those identifying themselves as Latino increased by about 7% in the past 10 years, moving from 41.3% to 48.5%.
The Latino population grew by 20% to 40% in the eastern part of the city, where the three Latino-majority districts fall in the plan.
This will be the first time the boundaries have been adjusted since a voting rights lawsuit resolved six years ago changed how residents are represented by the City Council.
A city redistricting plan must be enacted by November 2022. Once adopted, the map will go into effect immediately and be in use for the next municipal election, Watkins said.
No council seats are up for election in 2022. The next regular council election will happen in 2023.
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https://www.yakimaherald.com/news/local/yakima-city-council-moves-forward-with-third-latino-majority-district/article_f61e451e-4dcf-5c1a-8643-979ade2c5407.html
| 2022-04-07T11:14:49Z
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https://www.yakimaherald.com/news/local/yakima-city-council-moves-forward-with-third-latino-majority-district/article_f61e451e-4dcf-5c1a-8643-979ade2c5407.html
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The Yakima City Council decided to move forward with the proposed redistricting plan, making no changes after a public hearing Tuesday.
The map, which uses 16th Avenue as the east-west district boundary and adjusts district boundaries to follow arterial city streets, could not be adopted at Tuesday’s meeting, but the council directed staff to add it to the agenda for the April 19 business meeting. A vote will be taken on the map at that meeting.
The plan was developed by city staff members with input from the American Civil Liberties Union and the Southcentral Coalition of People of Color for Redistricting. The map adds a third Latino-majority district in the city. Districts 1, 2 and 4 will have a Latino majority.
A handful of people spoke during the public hearing on the plan.
David Morales, a Yakima resident and member of the Southcentral Coalition of People of Color for Redistricting, voiced support for the plan. He said the coalition supports a third Latino voting district and using 16th Avenue as the dividing line.
“We believe that splitting the map along 16th Avenue is the most … division on the ground and in real life, that there are distinct differences in our town’s geography, which could be considered communities of interest,” Morales said.
The map does not create a third district that has a majority of Latino citizens of voting age, but with a Latino voter makeup of 49.79%, District 4 could grow to be a majority over the next decade. The total Latino population in District 4 is 64.72%.
Yakima resident and former council candidate Kenton Gartrell said the plan dilutes the Hispanic vote in the districts that don’t have a Latino majority. He is in District 1, a Latino-majority district, and he lives in a mixed household, he said during the hearing.
“All these people say it creates a third Hispanic majority. That’s great and all, but you’re actually diluting your own Hispanic vote,” Gartrell said.
The total share of Latino residents does decrease in all districts except for District 4 and District 6 under the new map, according to current population data for the existing districts. The largest decrease is in District 1, where the total Latino population drops by about 5.5%, from 77.15% in the existing district to 71.69% in the new district.
Another commenter asked about specific lines on the map, wondering why they weren’t as clean or straightforward.
“I just wanted to ask why we have the different jogs in the changes that you’ve made,” Yakima resident Jeanna Hernandez said during the hearing.
City Attorney Sara Watkins said the GIS mapping and IT staff members went block-by-block to meet the population requirements for the map, while also keeping communities of interest together. Redistricting parameters require the districts to be as equal in population as possible. The map uses 16th Avenue as a guide, Watkins said, but there are some spots where the districts cross east or west of that line.
Council member Patricia Byers said the redistricting plan has much cleaner boundaries than the current map.
Council member Eliana Macias said she supports the map.
“It definitely keeps the communities of interest together, and in light of the new census data we reviewed and due to the imbalance of population between the existing districts, I really believe this is the best map that we have been presented,” Macias said.
She also said she’s excited to see a possible third Latino voter majority district in the future.
About redistricting
The city can revise council districts every 10 years based on population changes reflected in census data.
The 2020 Census showed that the number of Yakima residents who identified themselves as white dropped by about 9%, going from 52.2% to 43.5% of the total population from 2010 to 2020. At the same time, the number of those identifying themselves as Latino increased by about 7% in the past 10 years, moving from 41.3% to 48.5%.
The Latino population grew by 20% to 40% in the eastern part of the city, where the three Latino-majority districts fall in the plan.
This will be the first time the boundaries have been adjusted since a voting rights lawsuit resolved six years ago changed how residents are represented by the City Council.
A city redistricting plan must be enacted by November 2022. Once adopted, the map will go into effect immediately and be in use for the next municipal election, Watkins said.
No council seats are up for election in 2022. The next regular council election will happen in 2023.
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https://www.yakimaherald.com/news/local/yakima-city-council-moves-forward-with-third-latino-majority-district/article_f61e451e-4dcf-5c1a-8643-979ade2c5407.html
| 2022-04-07T11:14:49Z
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https://www.yakimaherald.com/news/local/yakima-city-council-moves-forward-with-third-latino-majority-district/article_f61e451e-4dcf-5c1a-8643-979ade2c5407.html
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The establishment of Fox News in the late 1990s forever changed both media and politics in America, transforming the formerly staid world of television news into the series of political shoutfests we know and love-hate today. More than a quarter-century after its founding, however, the question persists: Does watching Fox News actually change voters’ minds?
It’s worth noting that, in a famous study published 15 years ago, economists showed that exposure to Fox could have a measurable impact on elections. Comparing markets that had received Fox to those where it was not yet available, the study concluded that the presence of Fox News was good for a Republican gain of 0.4 to 0.7 percentage points between the 1996 and 2000 elections. It was a decidedly modest effect — but large enough to sway that super-close election.
It’s a slightly different question how watching Fox affects someone’s views of the day-to-day controversies of politics. One view is that Fox is such an echo chamber that it can’t possibly be changing minds. Only committed conservatives, the theory goes, would bother to tune in to Sean Hannity or Tucker Carlson, so what difference could it make what they say?
A pretty big difference, as it turns out, according to a new study by political scientists David Broockman of the University of California at Berkeley and Joshua Kalla of Yale. The research offers a much more granular look at the impact of Fox on its viewers, thanks to reliance on a resource-intensive experiment, rather than the broad aggregates of that earlier paper.
Broockman and Kalla recruited a sample of regular Fox News viewers and paid a subset of them to watch CNN instead. (Compliance was enforced with some news quizzes, for which additional compensation was offered.) Then the treatment group of switchers and the control group of non-switchers took three waves of surveys about the news.
The results: Not only did CNN and Fox cover different things during the September 2020 survey period, but the audience of committed Fox viewers, which started the month with conservative predispositions, changed their minds on many issues.
Switchers were five percentage points more likely to believe that people suffer from long COVID, for example, and six points more likely to believe that many foreign countries did a better job than the U.S. of controlling the virus. They were seven points more likely to support voting by mail. And they were 10 points less likely to believe that supporters of then-candidate Joe Biden were happy when police officers get shot, 11 points less likely to say it’s more important for the president to focus on containing violent protesters than on the coronavirus, and 13 points less likely to agree that if Biden were elected, “we’ll see many more police get shot by Black Lives Matter activists.”
These are meaningful differences, even if the group that switched to CNN remained very right-wing in their view of the American political landscape. While far fewer of them believed that Biden supporters were happy about police shootings, for example, the overall share who did believe was still 46%. And only 24% of the CNN switchers said they supported voting by mail.
Still, these are reasonably large changes from a one-month experiment. And they occurred despite the long-term effort of then-President Donald Trump to discredit CNN and other mainstream media outlets.
What’s more, only so much news occurs at any given time. One story that broke while the experiment was ongoing was Bob Woodward’s revelation that Trump was aware early that the new virus was “deadly” — specifically, that it was much worse than the flu, contradicting the president’s later public efforts to downplay the virus. Those in the treatment group were more likely to know about this, as well as the fact that Trump did not meet with the family of Jacob Blake, the victim of a police shooting in Wisconsin the month before.
Over a longer span of time, presumably, more stories ignored by Fox News would have piled up. And indeed one of the things that switchers changed their minds about was Fox News itself: They became more skeptical that Fox would cover a story that reflected poorly on Trump, even if it were true.
This mode of political influence, where partisan media can simply ignore stories that are inconvenient, is a potentially powerful challenge to democratic accountability. It’s also probably not symmetrical. Even media outlets that skew liberal in their coverage generally don’t shy away from covering the COVID death toll or the rise in inflation.
Of course, Democrats can’t improve their standing with the public by paying Fox viewers to switch channels. But one lesson they can take from this experiment is that nobody is impossible to reach.
Republicans have relentlessly criticized the mainstream media for decades, but they also gleefully participate in it. Republican members of Congress routinely accept invitations to appear on the network Sunday-morning talk shows. Former Trump Chief of Staff Mick Mulvaney has signed on as a CBS News contributor.
The left, by contrast, tends to stigmatize any engagement with right-wing media, as if fearing contamination through association. If it were true that this media is consumed exclusively by people who are totally impervious to dissonant information, boycotting the RWM might be a defensible strategy. But Broockman and Kalla’s research indicates that information flows at the margin really do matter. Any opportunity to present new facts to people, and new arguments, is valuable.
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https://www.yakimaherald.com/opinion/column-what-if-fox-news-viewers-watched-cnn-instead/article_7b53f405-a4f2-5ce4-b57d-8170e7cf8a80.html
| 2022-04-07T11:14:55Z
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https://www.yakimaherald.com/opinion/column-what-if-fox-news-viewers-watched-cnn-instead/article_7b53f405-a4f2-5ce4-b57d-8170e7cf8a80.html
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Russia’s example serves as a warning and an example of what not to do
To the editor — Your editorial, “Death by Indifference” in the March 23 publication, was very good.
I would just like to add a few more comments. I don’t think the term “authoritarian” government means enough to the average person, but if the word “dictator” is used, it would have a clear and more practical meaning.
I believe that if this term were used more it would help to awaken our country.
I believe that death by indifference is brought on by big government, regulations and creeping socialism.
We are all guilty of accepting government assistance, which moves us more to government dependence. I believe that this makes for larger government and more taxes, not smaller government.
Our country is one with the most freedoms of any country in the world. To keep our freedoms we don’t need a big centralized government with more regulations and taxes, but a smaller government.
The best example of a dictatorship government today and what they are doing is in the headlines every day and it is Russia, the former USSR. The initials USSR stand for Union of Soviet Socialist Republics.
Do we need any better example of socialism and a dictatorship than this?
BEN DOVER
Yakima
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https://www.yakimaherald.com/opinion/letter-russia-serves-as-a-warning-of-what-not-to-do/article_16c5a1a3-3cce-5306-b182-301179922bc7.html
| 2022-04-07T11:15:01Z
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https://www.yakimaherald.com/opinion/letter-russia-serves-as-a-warning-of-what-not-to-do/article_16c5a1a3-3cce-5306-b182-301179922bc7.html
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Former President Donald Trump — whose various slanders against his real and perceived political foes made him the most libelous president ever to hold the post — is now suing Hillary Clinton and others who highlighted his suspicious behavior toward Russia during and after the 2016 presidential campaign. If and when Trump submits to being deposed by the defendants, we’ll believe this is something more than his usual empty bluster. If that doesn’t happen (prediction: it won’t), Trump should be on the business end of a major frivolous-litigation judgment.
In addition to the unprecedented penchant for insults and lies, Trump is the most litigious president in America’s history. For decades, he was known for throwing around frivolous lawsuits, often based on his inability to brook even the mildest criticism. USA Today tallied it up in 2016, and at that time he’d been party to some 3,500 lawsuits, almost 2,000 of those as the plaintiff.
He has sued people for saying he’s worth less than he claims (this despite his documented habit of lying about his own wealth). As a real estate developer, he once sued the Chicago Tribune’s architecture critic for disputing Trump’s prediction that he would build the world’s tallest building. He once sued a small drugstore company — whose owners weren’t related to him but happened to be named Trump — for using their own name on their company.
And, of course, Trump’s 2020 reelection campaign went to court almost 60 times with its bogus claims that the election was stolen — a claim he could never prove because it plainly wasn’t true.
The 100-plus-page federal lawsuit Trump filed in Florida against Clinton, former FBI Director James Comey, the Democratic National Committee and others alleges they created a “false narrative” that his 2016 presidential campaign colluded with Russia, designed to “destroy his life.”
A few small problems here: One, Comey effectively handed the presidency to Trump by implying days before the election that there was something to the meaningless controversy over Clinton’s email servers (which Trump relentlessly promoted), only to acknowledge later that there wasn’t. Two, Trump’s behavior during the campaign invited suspicion about Russia (as when he publicly called on the Kremlin to hack Clinton’s email, and Russia promptly did). And, three, Trump ultimately won the election.
Come to think of it, maybe Clinton should be suing Trump.
Trump’s lawsuit almost certainly will get thrown out like most of his actions do — or, more likely, he will drop it himself as soon as he is faced with having to be deposed under oath. His history indicates that he views litigation as just another version of his rallies: a consequence-free way to tweak his enemies and salve his ego. In this case, though, there should be consequences. Nothing would spell justice in this case better than a frivolous-litigation ruling against Trump.
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https://www.yakimaherald.com/opinion/opinion-trumps-latest-frivolous-lawsuit-against-clinton-and-others-should-cost-him/article_de6e75e3-795b-5b42-918f-36c3444750a6.html
| 2022-04-07T11:15:07Z
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yakimaherald.com
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https://www.yakimaherald.com/opinion/opinion-trumps-latest-frivolous-lawsuit-against-clinton-and-others-should-cost-him/article_de6e75e3-795b-5b42-918f-36c3444750a6.html
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WESTFIELD, Mass. (WWLP) – Westfield and Granby police departments are asking for the public’s help in finding a young boy that has been reported missing since Wednesday afternoon.
According to the Westfield Police Department, 15-year-old Luke Scott is 6’2, weighs 140 lbs., and has blue eyes and brown hair.
His last known location was Westfield Technical Academy, where he was seen wearing the clothes shown below.
If you have any information on his whereabouts, you are asked to call the Westfield Police Department at 413-562-5411 or the Granby Police Department at 413-467-9222 or your local police department.
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https://www.wwlp.com/news/westfield-police-searching-for-missing-15-year-old-boy/
| 2022-04-07T11:15:24Z
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https://www.wwlp.com/news/westfield-police-searching-for-missing-15-year-old-boy/
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COVID cases rise again in half the states
Half of the states are seeing COVID case numbers rise again while nationwide totals continue to fall.
The big picture: The Omicron subvariant known as BA.2 is the dominant strain circulating around the U.S., accounting for almost three out of every four cases.
- As in-person gatherings have begun again, COVID has sickened a number of Washington A-listers, reminding everyone — yet again — we're not out of the woods with this pandemic.
By the numbers: Overall, cases dropped 5% across the U.S. to an average of about 28,700 cases from an average of more than 30,000 cases two weeks ago.
- Three states — Alaska, Vermont and Rhode Island — had more than 20 new cases per 100,000 people.
- Nine states — Utah, Montana, South Dakota, Kansas, Louisiana, Iowa, Arkansas, Indiana and Tennessee — had three or fewer new cases per 100,000 people.
Between the lines: Deaths fell to an average of 600 a day, down 34% from just over 900 a day two weeks ago.
What we're watching: While U.S. officials have said they aren't expecting a significant rise in hospitalizations or deaths, there have been signs of hospitalizations rising among older individuals in the U.K., the Guardian reported.
- Since those numbers lag behind new cases, we won't have a clear view of that impact in the U.S. for a few weeks.
- The highly contagious subvariant surged through parts of Europe but probably will spare many Americans, thanks in part to this winter's Omicron surge.
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https://www.axios.com/covid-cases-rise-again-in-half-the-states-43180a96-9339-450d-966a-0631d04d9490.html
| 2022-04-07T11:16:39Z
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axios.com
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https://www.axios.com/covid-cases-rise-again-in-half-the-states-43180a96-9339-450d-966a-0631d04d9490.html
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The bills that didn't become Georgia law in 2022
The 2022 Georgia legislative session ended with a flurry of bills, including a last minute amendment that could restrict transgender girls from playing high school sports.
Yes, but: Many proposals did not become law.
The big picture: Even in an election year, some of the most polarizing issues did not see final passage, including a bill to effectively ban abortion pills by mail and add a new ultrasound requirement for abortion-seekers.
Some of the proposals sent to the scrap heap:
Elections: State House Republicans proposed a slew of election administration changes rooted in misinformation about the 2020 election, as the AJC reported. After extensive protests from elections officials, the state Senate scrapped the ideas and batted down a Hail Mary attempt to revive them Monday night.
- Instead, a more limited change passed, giving the Georgia Bureau of Investigation original jurisdiction over elections.
- Guns: Republicans failed to pass changes to Georgia gun laws that would have automatically permitted firearms in places of worship. Currently, weapons are only allowed in those places if the organization’s leadership gives the OK.
- The bill would have also prevented local governments from restricting firearm use on private property larger than 10 acres.
Protest restrictions: A bill that would have increased penalties for protestors and punished localities for failing to control protests, a priority of the state Senate Republican caucus, never got traction in the state House.
Medical marijuana revamp: Late Monday, the state Senate rejected a compromise to solve problems facing the controversial Medical Cannabis Commission and its secretive licensing process.
- Thus, the status quo persists: Patients still cannot access medical cannabis oil in Georgia years after its cultivation became legal.
Gambling: Several bills seeking to expand access to legal gambling, from horse racing to online sports betting, failed yet again.
Leaf blower regulation: Remember our coverage of a bill proposing to preempt local regulation on gas-powered leaf blowers? It didn’t get a vote before either chamber.
School accreditation: A proposal that would have changed how accrediting agencies evaluate school districts failed to progress in the state House.
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Where to find Japanese cherry blossoms in Columbus
Eager to see picturesque cherry blossoms? No need to travel to Washington, D.C. — trees are blooming right here in Columbus.
What's happening: The pale pink blossoms surrounding Franklin Park Conservatory finally started emerging from their buds this week, a sure sign of spring.
- Folks at the conservatory tell us peak bloom is just a few days away, so this weekend and early next week will likely be best for a stroll or photo shoot.
Why it matters: This month marks the 10th anniversary of the donation of 20 cherry trees from Japan to Columbus through Ohio State's East Asian Studies Center.
- Known in Japan as sakura, the trees are a symbol of hope and renewal.
Flashback: The 2012 gift commemorated the 100th anniversary of the iconic 3,000 trees donated to D.C. in 1912 by Tokyo's mayor.
- Another 40 trees were added to Franklin Park in 2018 and 42 in 2020.
The latest: Events last weekend commemorated the milestone year, and guests are encouraged to stop by Saturday for a hanami, or flower viewing.
Zoom in: There are three main bloom areas in Franklin Park (1777 E. Broad St.) open to the public — the Broad Street front entrance and parking lot, near the Franklin Park Adventure Center surrounding a lake and near the Cascades.
- There is also one tree inside the conservatory building, where admission is required. (10am-5pm, $15-22, kids under 2 free.)
Of note: If you're in the mood to explore, there are more cherry trees at Goodale Park, the Ohio Statehouse, the oval at Ohio State University and along the streets of German Village.
💡 Pro tip: Don't wait too long to plan a visit. The blooms typically only last a week or two.
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Local health tech startup Olive overpromises
Olive AI is a buzzy local startup that promises to save health systems millions of dollars by using automation software to cut costs and direct more time toward patient care.
- But an investigation by Axios' Erin Brodwin finds Olive inflates its capabilities and has generated only a fraction of the savings it promises.
Why it matters: The Columbus-based company is valued at $4 billion, making it the highest-profile startup in health care automation.
- It raised $400M last year, the largest venture capital investment in the city in 2021, according to Pitchbook.
State of play: Interviews with 16 people, including former and current employees and health tech executives, indicate concerns with the company's tech offerings, tracking of client savings and handling of sensitive patient data.
What they're saying: "There are hospitals that won't touch [Olive] because they know people who've been burned," one former employee told Axios. "And I think people don't want to admit it; there's a big sense of shame about it."
The latest: On Monday, Olive announced plans to move its headquarters from downtown to Worthington and pledged to add hundreds of jobs to its 1,400-employee workforce over the next 10 years.
- Worthington City Council approved an incentive package Monday worth at least $1.3 million that offers the company a payroll grant for the new employees, on top of an existing tax abatement on the building it plans to buy at at 6700 North High Street.
Subscribe at AxiosPro.com to read this story and more scoops in the Axios Pro Health Tech Deals newsletter.
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A feud is festering in Denver's Five Points neighborhood
A rift is brewing between Black-owned businesses in Five Points and a private investment firm focused on reviving the rapidly gentrifying neighborhood.
State of play: Matthew Burkett — who runs Denver-based investment firm FlyFisher Group — is suing the owner of Coffee at the Point for allegedly failing to transfer the assets of the business in exchange for 60% interest in the company, which was outlined in a 2020 agreement.
- Now, the investments and partnerships Burkett established with Coffee at the Point and other area Black-owned businesses — which he also is suing — are crumbling, and what's left of Five Points, described by some locals as "the soul of the city," could be further fractured and in flux.
Context: Burkett, who is Black, has infused capital into Five Points, buying up properties and in 2020 publicly pledging altruistic plans for the historically Black community.
- "The guy was being propped up as the savior of Five Points," Ryan Cobbins, owner of Coffee at the Point, recently told Westword.
- Burkett is also the longtime business partner of Robert Smith — one of the wealthiest Black men in the country.
Driving the news: Burkett sued Cobbins in Denver District Court on March 2, telling Axios Denver in a statement the lawsuit is based on breaches of "standard contract terms" that were "broken with no remedy in sight." He did not share more specifics.
- Cobbins and other FlyFisher Group affiliates, including the owners of Welton Street Cafe, say Burkett is using "predatory" tactics in the hopes of buying business owners out of their property leases and boosting his own bottom line.
- They met Tuesday night to discuss how they would fight back and are weighing a counter suit against Burkett.
What they're saying: Burkett "is burning our neighborhood down" while "controlling the narrative,” Cobbins tells Axios Denver.
- "He is just completely predatory," Sarah Woodson, the founder of advocacy group The Color of Cannabis, told Westword of Burkett. "He's definitely not for community. He's all for himself."
The other side: "We understand the hardships small businesses have gone through in the past few years," Burkett told Axios, describing the lawsuits as a "last resort."
- "Our hope is that these isolated issues do not detract from the good that has come from our ongoing investment in small and micro-businesses in this community."
The intrigue: Business owners tell Axios Denver that city councilwoman Candi CdeBaca, a new-generation leader who represents Five Points, hasn't come to their aid despite publicly acknowledging the issue has hit a "breaking point."
What's next: Members of Colorado's Black Caucus, including Denver Democratic Rep. Leslie Herod and Sen. James Coleman, are meeting with Cobbins and other FlyFisher Group tenants this upcoming weekend in an attempt to resolve the dispute, Axios Denver has learned.
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Philadelphia's historic Divine Lorraine to turn back into a hotel
The Divine Lorraine is ending its apartment leases and turning back into a hotel in the coming months, Billy Penn reports.
Driving the news: Renters received emails over the weekend notifying them that their leases won't be considered for renewal because of the decision.
- The emails didn't include timelines or any specific details about the historic building's plans.
The intrigue: Since the 1890s, the landmark on North Broad Street has been used as apartments, a hotel, a center for a religious movement and then apartments again.
- The building was abandoned in 1999 after Father Divine, the leader of the Universal Peace Mission Movement, closed the hotel, which he had renamed the Divine Lorraine more than 40 years earlier.
- It was redeveloped into apartments in 2017, but it became a hub for graffiti artists during the large gap of non-use.
1 cool thing: The Divine Lorraine was the first racially integrated hotel in the country.
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| 2022-04-07T11:17:52Z
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Federal Donuts eyes expansion across Mid-Atlantic
Philly-based Federal Donuts is aiming to add scores of new stores throughout the Mid-Atlantic region following a capital infusion from a Pennsylvania investment firm.
Driving the news: NewSpring Franchise and Federal Donuts completed a deal last week that will fuel the doughnut and fried chicken chain's expansion to potentially 150 stores.
- The new locations would be run through a combination of corporate-owned, franchised and licensed stores.
State of play: The chain currently has 11 locations — seven brick-and-mortar spots, two in Whole Foods and one each in Citizens Bank Park and the Wells Fargo Center.
- The company was founded in 2011 by Steven Cook and Mike Solomonov — the co-owners of the hospitality group behind Zahav, Goldie and Dizengoff — as well as Tom Henneman, Felicia D'Ambrosio and Bob Logue.
Between the lines: Talks between Federal Donuts and NewSpring Franchise — whose parent company is NewSpring Capital — began two years ago, before the pandemic, Cook said.
- The deal will add three new members, two of which are NewSpring partners, to Federal Donuts' board.
- Both sides declined to detail additional terms of the investment.
What they're saying: "It's about growth and trying to get us from the next level from being a local, mini-chain to something that's got a bigger reach," Cook tells Axios.
- Satya Ponnuru, NewSpring Franchise general partner, said the firm made the investment because Federal Donuts' brand, products and consumer experience are "translatable across a wide variety of both consumer demographics segments and geographic markets," among other things.
What's next: Expect to see new Federal Donuts stores "in the very near term," Cook says.
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| 2022-04-07T11:17:58Z
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Tampa Bay craft breweries rebound from pandemic
American craft brewers rebounded from the pandemic with 8% annual growth and 24.8 million barrels of beer in 2021, new data shows.
Why it matters: Tampa Bay has the most local craft breweries in Florida, with 99 brewers contributing to the state's $3.1 billion industry.
- CANarchy in Tampa was #7 in the top 50 producing craft brewing companies last year.
State of beer: The craft beer increase easily exceeded the overall beer market, which grew by 1% in 2021, as taprooms and brewpubs returned to life, per a report released Tuesday by the Brewers Association, the Boulder-based trade group.
- 9,069 breweries were operating at the end of the year, and openings exceeded closures nearly four-fold.
What they're saying: Bart Watson, the association's chief economist, expects craft beer production to exceed pre-pandemic levels this year, but not all breweries will recover.
- "Even with a bounce-back year, many breweries are still struggling," he told reporters during a media briefing. "2022 is going to be a make-or-break year for many breweries.
Of note: Women making local craft beer told the Tampa Bay Times last year that in the industry's male-dominated culture, colleagues and customers often don't see them as equals. Some detail instances of sexual harassment and misconduct.
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https://www.axios.com/local/tampa-bay/2022/04/07/tampa-bay-craft-breweries-rebound
| 2022-04-07T11:18:29Z
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NORTH ATLANTIC OCEAN (April 4, 2022) - The French frigate Latouche-Tréville (D 646) sails with Allied units in the North Atlantic Ocean in support of exercise Northern Viking 22, April 4, 2022. Northern Viking 22 strengthens interoperability and force readiness between the U.S., Iceland and allied nations, enabling multi-domain command and control of joint and coalition forces in the defense of Iceland and Sea lines of Communication in the Greenland, Iceland, United Kingdom (GIUK) gap. (U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 3rd Class Jesse Schwab)
This work, Kearsarge participates in Northern Viking 2022. [Image 15 of 15], by PO3 Jesse Schwab, identified by DVIDS, must comply with the restrictions shown on https://www.dvidshub.net/about/copyright.
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Country Club Plaza, Kansas City’s historic shopping district, has seen nearly a dozen business closures over the past year. And recent speculation that national retailer Nordstrom is now reconsidering its proposed move to a 122,000-square-foot location on the Plaza’s west side has businesses in the area concerned about who might replace it and when.
Nordstrom was slated to take over the space on Jefferson Street between 47th and 48th streets, after announcing in 2018 that it would move from its current location at Oak Park Mall. Initial plans called for Nordstrom to open on the Plaza in 2021, but COVID-19-related complications delayed those plans to 2023, according to a company spokesperson.
Ella Prater, who works at Paper Source on 48th Street adjacent to the space, said the name recognition of a national chain would help drive customers to other smaller businesses around.
Prater said.
Theresa Ng, co-owner of Bo Lings, which sits directly across the empty lot, said the recent changes on the Plaza have forced her staff to adapt.
“It's been so, so much change and, it's been like this for like a few years now, so we kind of get used to it,” Ng said. “But, you know, we understand that it’s a process of building up things.”
Plaza officials declined to comment and referred inquiries to Nordstrom’s corporate offices. Nordstrom did not respond to requests for comment.
Tanisha Matches, owner of Matches Boutique on the Plaza, said she was aware of Nordstrom’s plans to move to the Plaza when she opened in 2020, but was not worried the national chain would affect business at her location.
“The Plaza has been the Plaza without Nordstrom,” Matches said. “So I don’t see how it would make or break the businesses down here.”
Tyler Enders, co-owner of Made in Kansas City, said it also hasn’t affected his decision to stay on the Plaza.
“We think its better for The Plaza if Nordstrom does go down there,” Enders says, “but if that doesn’t happen, there is also an opportunity for something unique and special to end up in that space.”
Regardless of what Nordstrom decides, local businesses agree that they want to see more Kansas City establishments in the shopping district’s future. Of the 126 shops and businesses currently on the Plaza, just 35 are locally owned.
Caden Shiner, a barista at Messenger, said more local representation is needed to maintain the district’s authenticity.
“I feel like they should definitely try and keep it as much as the feel of the Plaza, no matter what companies are coming and going,” Shiner said. “But definitely to try to keep it more local versus more chains coming in.”
Recently, Flatland reported that Dillard’s, a national clothing retailer, appears to be in talks to take over the Nordstrom space, but the Plaza’s owners, Taubman Centers and Macerich, have not confirmed those rumors.
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| 2022-04-07T11:20:13Z
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Why ‘Sexting’ Is Appealing to People
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In the digital age we live in, exchanging sexually loaded messages — from flirty texts to racy images to sexually explicit videos — has become entrenched in our cultural zeitgeist. With sexting finding its place in varying relationship dynamics, the desire to translate intimacy virtually feels intuitive. A 2013 study found that 80% of the participants had received sexually suggestive texts, while 67% reported sending them. In terms of racy pictures, 64% reported sending them while 46% reported receiving them.
What’s interesting is how a seemingly new concept captured our fantasies and came to be embedded in the sex lives of many people — almost overnight. The psychological dynamics of what makes one desire intimacy virtually are fluid and layered.
What makes sexting appealing is the fact that unlike porn — which for many serves as a substitute for the “real deal” — basically, the act of physically engaging in intercourse — it is more personal. It’s almost as if one was consuming erotic content tailored to their wildest fantasies. Sexting is “crafted for you by someone you know. I think the draw is [the] customization of sexual communication,” Michelle Drouin, a behavioral scientist, explained.
Drouin also adds that sexting has assumed a position akin to the “first base” in relationships. “…people who are in uncommitted sexual relationships — who are just discovering each other — might use sexting as a way to express their passion, express lust, to spur sexual interaction.” Sexting then acquires a vulnerability unfound in other sexual relationships.
Related on The Swaddle:
Why Watching Porn May Make Some Women Develop More Body Image Issues Than Others
According to experts, the neurochemical ripples sexting creates in the human brain may also have something to do with its unwavering popularity. Sexting ignites dopamine, the “happy hormone,” and oxytocin, the “cuddle hormone” in the human brain — essentially inducing feelings we love, and perhaps, even crave. The body can feel all these emotions without a change in geography or setting.
Joseph Currin, a psychologist and assistant professor of counseling psychology at Texas Tech University (TTU), with co-author Kassidy Cox, who is pursuing a Ph.D. at TTU, was involved in research that explored the different motivations behind texting. Sending flirty messages as foreplay; using the text as a means to reassure themselves of their partner’s interest in them; doing it as a favor to their partners expecting it to be returned in non-sexual ways like date nights — people sext for an assortment of reasons. Having gathered data on sexting behaviors from individuals aged 18 to 69, they concluded that almost the same number of people were motivated by each of the different factors.
“It was intriguing that two-thirds of the individuals who engaged in sexting did so for non-sexual purposes,” Cox noted, explaining that people may use sexting as a “means to either gain affirmation about their relationship, relieve anxiety or get something tangible — non-sexual — in return.”
While sexting evidently isn’t just about sex, it can, nonetheless, allow people to feel comfortable and intimate with each other without exposing themselves. It is almost as if people were within a safety bubble with nothing, not even their body image issues, coming in the way of their desires.
In fact, experts note that those with an avoidant attachment style may actually use sexting to fulfill their sexual needs while also maintaining distance from their partners. Interestingly, people with an anxious attachment style — often characterized by insecurity — may “compulsively [seek] proximity and protection” through sexting.
Related on The Swaddle:
How Women’s First Sexual Experiences Shape Their Sexual Desires Later in Life
Sexting, as such, appears to not just be an activity driven by a tangible motivation. If anything, it becomes yet another gift of modern technology in terms of revolutionizing communication — even the sexual kind.
While sexting, per se, might be a modern phenomenon, the concept behind it could be rooted in practices that have existed for centuries. “…sexting among adults is an evolution of how we have communicated our sexual desires to our partners in the past. People used to write love poems and steamy letters, then when photography became more commonplace, couples used to take boudoir photos for each other,” explained Joseph Currin.
Despite its merits, sexting must be consensual. Without it, the activity can, in fact, be rather damaging for the unwilling individual. Drouin warns: “what’s going through your brain could differ greatly, based on what kind of relationship, whether or not you’re doing it willingly, or if someone kept asking you and you’re just giving in… There’s a lot more discomfort and even trauma involved when [someone who was forced to participate, or found themselves at the receiving end of sexts] look back on that episode.”
Currin concurs with this. “As with any sexual behavior, it is important and necessary to have consent to engage in sexting. Individuals who send unsolicited sext messages — such as images of their genitalia — are not actually engaging in sexting; they are sexually harassing the recipient.”
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One of the nation’s most prominent anti-Trump Republicans has taken refuge in an unlikely place — a remote, rural Kansas town that is deeply and almost unanimously devoted to Donald Trump. As KCUR’s Frank Morris reports, she has a warning for her Trump-loving neighbors.
A bill that would create a Department of Corrections nursery for pregnant prisoners is being considered in Jefferson City. The legislation has earned a broad coalition of rare bipartisan support. As Missouri News Networks’ Jana Rose Schleis reports, nurseries for incarcerated mothers are shown to reduce recidivism and have long-term benefits for babies.
Contact the show at news@kcur.org. Follow KCUR on Twitter and Facebook for the latest news.
Kansas City Today is hosted by Nomin Ujiyediin. It is produced by Byron Love with Trevor Grandin and edited by Gabe Rosenberg & Lisa Rodriguez.
You can support Kansas City Today by becoming a KCUR member: kcur.org/donate
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| 2022-04-07T11:20:19Z
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ATLANTIC OCEAN – Lance Cpl. Connor Westberry, a Aviation Ordnanceman assigned to the 22nd Marine Expeditionary Unit attaches a missile launcher to an AV-8B Harrier aboard the Wasp-class amphibious assault ship USS Kearsarge (LHD 3) March 29, 2022. The Kearsarge Amphibious Ready Group with embarked 22nd Marine Expeditionary Unit is on a scheduled deployment in the U.S. 2nd Fleet area of operations. (U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 3rd Class Gwyneth Vandevender)
This work, Kearsarge Operates in the Atlantic Ocean [Image 11 of 11], by PO3 Gwyneth Vandevender, identified by DVIDS, must comply with the restrictions shown on https://www.dvidshub.net/about/copyright.
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Forecast Updated on Thursday, April 7, 2022, at 3:40am by WBOC Meteorologist Mike Lichniak
Today: Partly to mostly cloudy with scattered showers and a few thunderstorms possible throughout the day. Best chances for rain in the afternoon and evening. Windy. Highs: 67-74. Winds: SW 15-30+ mph.
Tonight: A few showers / storms linger in the evening before rain chances dwindle overnight. We are partly cloudy by morning and windy. Lows: 40-47. Winds: NW 15-30+ mph.
Friday: Partly to mostly cloudy with a few pop-up showers possible. Windy. Highs: 55-62. Winds: NW 15-30+ mph.
Friday Night: An instability shower or two linger early, otherwise it will be partly to mostly cloudy and breezy. Lows: 37-45. Winds: NW 15-30+ mph.
Saturday: Partly to mostly cloudy with a few pop-up showers possible. Most of us will be dry. Windy. Highs: 50-56. Winds: NW 15-30+ mph.
Sunday: Partly to mostly sunny and breezy. Highs: 50-58. Winds: NW 10-20+ mph.
Our unsettled weather pattern is starting to establish itself and will keep rain chances in the forecast of the next few days. A cold front is slowly moving closer to Delmarva and will bring with it scattered showers and maybe even a few thunderstorms by the late morning and will continue for much of the day on Thursday. I expect the rain and thunderstorms to be heavy at times and bring frequent lightning and some stronger wind gusts as the front clears in the evening hours. Models are hinting at another 0.50 - 1.00”+ of rain from this cold front by early on Friday morning.
An upper-level low will break off to our north and west by Thursday night and will influence our forecast for Friday and Saturday. Friday will be a gray day across the region with a lot of extra clouds and I am putting the chance of some spotty showers in the forecast with the amount of cold air coming into the area. You need to squeeze some moisture out of the sky when this happens and that is why I am adding a shower chance to Friday’s forecast. Expect to have some extra clouds around on Saturday and the chance of a spotty shower will linger in the forecast. Sunday will have a bit more sunshine, but the temperatures will be below average through the weekend.
High pressure slides into the Bermuda High position early next week leading to sunshine and temperatures well above average!!!!Highs on Monday should be near 60 with highs Tuesday - Friday climbing up into the 70s and some 80s. Another cold front brings more scattered showers and storms late in the week next week.
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| 2022-04-07T11:27:45Z
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Atlantic Ocean:
Thursday: Small Craft Advisory. SE 15-20 knots. Seas: 4-6 feet.
Friday: Small Craft Advisory Likely. W 5-15 knots. Seas: 4-5 feet.
Chesapeake Bay:
Thursday: Small Craft Advisory. SE 5-10 knots. Waves: 1-2 feet.
Friday: Small Craft Advisory Likely. SW 5-25 knots. Waves: 1-2 feet.
Delaware Bay:
Thursday: Small Craft Advisory. E 10-25 knots. Seas: 1-2 feet.
Friday: W 10-20 knots. Seas: 1-2 feet.
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Safaricom, Equity and KQ Among Kenya’s Top Companies to Work in 2022
- LinkedIn has listed the top 25 Kenyan companies to work for in 2022 based on several metrics, including skills growth and company stability
- The 2022 LinkedIn Top Companies list in Kenya lists companies that are not only attracting employees but retaining them
- The list includes Safaricom, Equity Group, Kenya Airways and KCB Group
Pay attention: Become TUKO.co.ke ambassador – get a branded T-shirt, hoodie or water bottle at our TUKO Shop!
LinkedIn has listed the top 25 Kenyan companies to work for in 2022.
The list, seen by TUKO.co.ke, shortlists the best workplaces for employees seeking to grow their careers.
LinkedIn said it used seven pillars to rank the companies: the ability to advance career-wise, skills growth, and company stability.
Other pillars are external opportunity, company affinity, gender diversity and educational background of employees.
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"Our 2022 LinkedIn Top Companies list in Kenya is the first annual ranking of the 25 best workplaces to grow your career in the country, all based on unique LinkedIn data. These are companies offering stability in our ever-changing world of work–the ones that are not only attracting employees but retaining them," LinkedIn said.
Below is the list of the top ten companies as shortlisted by LinkedIn:
1. Safaricom
Safaricom, the country’s most profitable company, is Kenya’s top employer.
According to LinkedIn, Safaricom’s most notable skills include financial statement auditing, external audit and telecommunications.
The firm’s most common titles are customer executive, software engineer and customer service representative. Its largest job functions are sales, engineering and support.
2. Equity Group
Regional lender Equity group comes second on the list of top companies to work for in Kenya in 2022.
The company’s notable skills include banking, consumer services and SME banking.
Equity’s most common job titles are relationship officer, payment officer and account manager.
The bank’s largest job functions are finance, sales and accounting.
3. Kenya Airways
National carrier Kenya Airways is listed as the country’s third-best company to work in.
The airline, which has been undergoing heavy losses in the last two years due to the pandemic effect, has appeared on the list due to its policies.
According to LinkedIn, KQ’s most notable skills include aviation security, airline reservations and airline ticketing.
Its most common job titles include customer service representative, flight attendant and supply officer. Its largest job functions are operations, support and engineering.
4. KCB Group
The country’s fourth best company to work in is KCB Group.
The regional lender’s most notable skills are banking, cross-selling, and credit management.
LinkedIn lists direct sales representatives, relationship managers and bankers as its most common jobs. Its largest job function is sales, finance and information technology.
5. NCBA Group
NCBA Group is Kenya’s fifth-best company to work in.
According to LinkedIn, the company’s notable skills include banking, cross-selling and credit management.
Its most common job titles are operations assistant, customer services officer and relationship manager.
Its largest job functions are finance, support and operations.
Other companies shortlisted in the top ten are ICEA Lion Group, Allianz, KPMG, Standard Chartered Bank and PwC.
Source: TUKO.co.ke
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The products and services mentioned below were selected independent of sales and advertising. However, Don't Waste Your Money may receive a small commission from the purchase of any products or services through an affiliate link to the retailer's website.
If you’re an avid gardener, or even just beginning, and wish you could extend the growing season beyond spring and summer, setting up a greenhouse is a great idea. Unfortunately, it’s not always an affordable option but there’s one selling online at a great price right now.
This indoor/outdoor Home-Complete Walk-In Greenhouse on Amazon is regularly priced at $90, but currently on sale for $77. It has eight sturdy shelves for growing plants, seedlings, herbs or flowers during the traditional planting season or any time of year. To make sure you’re ordering the one that is on sale, be sure you’re adding the “heavy duty” greenhouse to your cart, as the “regular” version is still full price as of publication time.
The greenhouse can be kept in a backyard, on a patio or deck or in a basement or garage and is easy to assemble, with no tools required. To set it up, you’ll simply connect the rods, while rope and anchors are included for stability. Each shelf also comes with zip ties to ensure they won’t tip over.
The clear polyvinyl chloride (PVC) cover on the greenhouse helps protect seedlings from frost or pests so you can grow year-round. You can also use it as a shed, storing equipment and organizing your supplies to make gardening easier. The greenhouse measures 4 feet long by 4 feet wide by 6 feet tall.
The greenhouse has reviews from more than 7,000 Amazon users, with more than half of them giving it a full five stars. It has an overall rating of 3.8 stars out of five, with many reviewers mentioning it is easy to assemble, sturdy and worth the price.
One reviewer said it took them just 45 minutes to put together and the greenhouse survived a serious storm.
“Last night the wind blew 25-35 [miles per hour] with gusts to 44 for over 8 hours, with 4 1/2 inches of rain overnight and trees down and power out in town,” that user wrote. “I expected the little greenhouse would be a wreck. This AM there she stood, good as new, tomatoes were just fine with no damage to their vines.”
There are a few negative reviews — 14% of customers have given it just one star — with a handful of customers saying the greenhouse was missing parts, so you may want to verify that all the parts are there before beginning the assembly. Amazon does offer free returns on the item, so if you order it and are missing parts, you should contact customer service without concern.
There are a handful of other greenhouses on Amazon, as well, some even larger and others smaller and priced lower.
Amerlife Walk-In Greenhouse
Priced at $65.59, you can save an extra 5% on this Walk-in Greenhouse from Amerlife, which takes the price to $62.31. This one has two windows, four shelves and a zippered door. It is designed for use during all four seasons.
Erommy Walk-In Tunnel Tent Greenhouse
For something a bit bigger, this tunnel-shaped greenhouse is 20 feet tall, 10 feet wide and 6.6 feet tall. Regularly priced at $200, it is currently 15% off and priced at $170 on Amazon.
It has eight roll-up windows with mesh netting to allow for cross ventilation and climate control, plus a durable and transparent plastic cover that protects plants while allowing sunlight to pass through.
This story originally appeared on Don't Waste Your Money. Checkout Don't Waste Your Money for product reviews and other great ideas to save and make money.
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- 2-year Treasury yields -6.7 bps to 2.435%
- 5-year Treasury yields -5.4 bps to 2.649%
- 10-year Treasury yields -2.8 bps to 2.581%
- 30-year Treasury yields -1.1 bps to 2.621%
That might be what is offering some respite to stocks, which are hoping to snap quite a modest two-day decline. European equities holding higher with US futures also up around 0.3% at the moment.
I'm not going to attribute much to the drop in bond yields today as it comes on the back of a four-day climb in Treasuries.
In the FX space, the dollar is mostly calmer in a bit of a choppy session but mostly holding little changed. The aussie and kiwi are the notable laggards but have kept near the lows for the day since Asia trading already.
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Which purple comforter is best?
Every day should start and end wrapped up in a fluffy comforter. With the right material and filling, you’ll feel like you’re floating in a cloud. And what better way to create a soothing dreamscape than with the ethereal color purple? With the right hue, this regal color can make you feel like royalty in your bed chambers or add a pop of jazzy spontaneity to your modern interior.
Whatever your design scheme, the cozy Litanika Purple Marble Comforter will elevate your bedroom with its beautiful, modern take on purple.
What to know before you buy a purple comforter
Benefits of purple
Purple is a luxurious color. Loved by nobility for centuries, it plays to both masculine and feminine sensibilities. Purple especially thrives when paired with lush materials and fabrics, making a comforter a no-brainer for this sumptuous hue.
Purple inspires creativity, and if you modulate the shade, you can transform your bedroom’s mood. Take lavender, for example, which has calming properties. Or a deep violet, which evokes a sense of mystery and seduction. Whichever tone you choose will depend on your design scheme and how you want to feel in your bedroom.
Styling purple
Purple can be tricky. Getting the right tone for your bedroom depends on your light quality and decor.
Modern design schemes such as minimalism, mid-century modern and contemporary cheer crave bright purples, from saturated to pastel tones. But make sure your decor can handle this color, especially on a swath as large as your bed. Brighter purples can be quite loud.
Vintage and classical decors should look to deeper purples, which play nicely with warm metal accents, aged woods and lots of ornamentation. If you’re worried about taking too much light out of your bedroom, opt for a deep-purple pattern on a lighter background.
Comforter vs. duvet
Comforters and duvets are often confused. Though they contain similar fillings and perform the same function, they’re two different kinds of bedding.
- A duvet consists of two pieces: a stuffed insert and a duvet cover. Not all duvet inserts are quilted, which can affect their stuffing distribution. These are typically more expensive at outset. One benefit of a duvet is that you don’t have to wash the insert — only the cover. And you can swap the cover out depending on your design whims.
- A comforter is a single piece of quilted bedding without a cover. This means you have to wash the whole thing (and you really should). They’re cheaper and quilted, so you have a little more control over comfort and temperature.
What to look for in a quality purple comforter
Filling
- Down: Down is the premium comforter filling. Taken from the soft underbellies of geese and ducks, it’s the warmest stuffing you can get. And it fluffs the best. Depending on your comforter’s stitch, down can make a great all-season comforter. But it really thrives as a cold-climate layer. This filling is typically the most expensive.
- Synthetic down alternative: These fillings are made from synthetic fibers. They simulate the properties of down and other natural fillers while providing a hypoallergenic substitute. Common synthetics are polyester and rayon, but more advanced fibers such as lyocell make for impressively lightweight, breathable comforters.
- Natural down alternative: Usually either wool or cotton, natural down alternatives are a more sustainable, less cruel means of stuffing your comforter. Wool is a denser and warmer filler with moisture-wicking properties to help hot sleepers. And cotton is often used as a lightweight alternative to wool for cool, all-season comforters.
Fill measurements
Fill is measured in two ways that determine how fluffy and warm your comforter is:
- Fill power: Fill power measures how much volume a single ounce of filling takes up. Denoted in the hundreds, the higher the number, the fluffier your comforter will be.
- Fill weight: Fill weight measures how heavy the stuffing in your comforter is. While a higher number can generally mean a warmer comforter, what matters more is the fill weight in relation to the fill power. Look for high fill powers with modest fill weights. This means lots of stuffing with ample air pockets between fibers to trap and release body heat for a warm, yet breathable comforter.
Stitch
The stitch of your comforter determines the filling distribution and is an important consideration for hot and cold sleepers.
- Sewn-through stitch: This method of quilting sews the two layers of fabric together in squares to create pockets of stuffing. With this design, the filling tends to accumulate toward the center of the pocket, leaving cold, flat spots along the seams. While this can be frustrating in frigid temperatures, a sewn-through stitch improves a comforter in warmer climates.
- Baffle-box stitch: With this method, instead of sewing the top and bottom layer together directly, an extra vertical piece of fabric is added between each pocket to create a box. This allows even distribution of filler throughout and eliminates dead spots. Perfect for cold sleepers and temperate climates, those who overheat will want to pay attention to the filling to avoid waking up drenched in sweat.
How much you can expect to spend on a purple comforter
You can get a good down-alternative comforter on a budget for anywhere between $30-$60. But if you’re looking for premium fabric or quality filler, expect to pay $80-$300.
Purple comforter FAQ
Should I use a cover with my comforter?
A. A cover can help protect your comforter from spills and sweat, which will extend its lifespan. While it isn’t necessary, you might feel a little cleaner with this easy-to-wash barrier. And you can swap it out whenever you want to change your color scheme.
How do I wash my comforter?
A. The secret to washing your comforter is successive rinse cycles. And yes, you can even do this with down. Just make sure you put your machine on delicate, use warm or cold water instead of hot, and only a little bit of detergent. When the first load is done, send it through for another rinse cycle or two. This will help to spin out extra moisture and get rid of stubborn suds.
What’s the best purple comforter to buy?
Top purple comforter
Litanika Purple Marble Comforter
What you need to know: You can put a contemporary spin on the ancient hue with this purple marble comforter that will add texture and class to modern bedrooms.
What you’ll love: This down-alternative comforter has a fluffy microfiber fill designed for all-season use and easy machine washing. It’s lightweight, so you won’t smother yourself during the warmer months. And duvet loops let you add a thick cover should the temperature plummet.
What you should consider: Some find this comforter too cool for cold climates.
Where to buy: Sold by Amazon
Top purple comforter for the money
Homelike Moment Lightweight Down-Alternative Comforter
What you need to know: This bright purple reversible comforter is a great budget option for kids rooms.
What you’ll love: This lightweight down-alternative comforter can flip between lilac and plum purple. Its polyester microfiber fill will keep you warm year-round without overheating. And with duvet hooks at each corner, this comforter can be paired with a cover to change the color and keep it clean.
What you should consider: Though it’s made for year-round use, this might be a little too lightweight for colder climates without a thick duvet cover.
Where to buy: Sold by Amazon
Worth checking out
Madison Park Hampton 7-Piece Queen Comforter Set
What you need to know: A modern take on purple decor, this luxurious ruched-striped comforter comes with a matching bed set to deck out your pad with a little royal flair.
What you’ll love: Replete with a comforter, two shams, a bed skirt and three decorative pillows, this set has your remodel or move-in covered. It’s filled with plush, soft polyester that’s lightweight enough for all-season use, yet warm enough for the winter.
What you should consider: Some feel it runs a little small.
Where to buy: Sold by Macy’s
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Karl Daum writes for BestReviews. BestReviews has helped millions of consumers simplify their purchasing decisions, saving them time and money.
Copyright 2022 BestReviews, a Nexstar company. All rights reserved.
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Which twin comforter set is best?
There’s nothing better for a good night’s sleep than having soft sheets, a warm comforter and matching pillow shams, but it can be quite expensive if you buy all those items separately. To save money, opt for a comforter set instead.
The best twin-size comforter set is the Lacoste Meribel Twin/TwinXL Cotton Bedding Set. It includes the comforter and one sham, has an attractive multicolor striped design and is made from ultra-soft cotton.
What to know before you buy a twin comforter set
What’s included
Twin comforter sets can include a variety of items. The basics that all comforter sets include are the comforter and one pillow sham, with some sets including an extra sham. The rest of the possible inclusions are one or two pillowcases, a fitted and flat sheet and a bed skirt. It’s important to note that the number of items included in a set has less effect on the overall cost than the quality of said items.
Types of toppers
“Comforter set” is occasionally used as a catch-all term for any bedding set with a topper — other toppers being either a duvet or a quilt.
- Comforters have a thick layer of filling, making them heavy and warm. That said, they also come in lightly or extra-heavy filled versions for less or greater warmth, respectively.
- Duvets are really two pieces: the duvet and a duvet cover that’s removed for washing. They’re usually much fluffier than a comforter, and a duvet is filled with goose down or down alternative.
- Quilts are also filled, but here the similarities end. They’re thin and usually made by stitching multiple pieces of fabric together in endless arrays of designs rather than using a simple shell material.
What to look for in a quality twin comforter set
External materials
Comforter sets are typically constructed of the same external material for each included piece, with the two most common being cotton and microfiber.
- Cotton is soft, warm and breathable. There are many types of cotton, including the popular Egyptian cotton, each with its own unique positive and negative twists. It can be expensive, so it’s sometimes mixed with synthetics like polyester.
- Microfiber is a type of weave made from synthetic fibers such as polyester. Due to the tiny fiber lengths, it becomes far softer than standard length synthetic fibers. However, it has breathability issues.
Fill material
The topper may be stuffed with either natural or synthetic down.
- Natural down comes from either ducks or geese. It’s lightweight, even when stuffed to the max, and naturally warm.
- Synthetic down can be made from a variety of materials, though polyester and gel fibers are most common. It may be a little heavier and isn’t quite as warm, but it’s better for those with allergies.
How much you can expect to spend on a twin comforter set
Twin comforter sets cost roughly $50-$100, though there are a surprising amount of quality sets for $30-$50. Higher-end sets come in around $150 or a bit more.
Twin comforter set FAQ
How do I clean a twin comforter set?
A. The specifics depend on what’s included in your set and how it’s constructed. Generally speaking, wash any sheets and shams that may be included separately from your comforter, which should always be washed alone. The sheets and shams should be machine-washable and -dryable, but there are exceptions. The comforter might be machine-washable, but a fair few require dry cleaning. Of the machine-washable comforters, it’s a toss-up if they’ll be safe to machine-dry. The exact instructions for everything included should be located on each piece’s tag.
Do I really need a pillow sham?
A. No. Pillow shams are just a way to spice up the look of your bed and bedroom and increase the value of a comforter set. Many people prefer not to use them for various reasons, including disliking the look or wanting to limit how much bedding they need to wash. Having a set of matching pillowcases for your regular sleep pillows is more than enough.
What’s the best twin comforter set to buy?
Top twin comforter set
Lacoste Meribel Twin/TwinXL Cotton Bedding Set
What you need to know: This set is beautiful and comes from a top brand.
What you’ll love: The design is a striking mix of colors mixed into solid and striped sections, and it’s reversible so you never have to worry about which side is up. It’s made of cotton with a brushed twill weave and a thread count of 220.
What you should consider: It’s expensive — more so considering it only includes the comforter and one pillow sham. Some consumers had issues with the fill clumping after a wash.
Where to buy: Sold by Amazon and Wayfair
Top twin comforter set for the money
Amazon Basics Ultra-Soft Micromink Sherpa Comforter Bed Set
What you need to know: This set somehow feels softer when you factor in the price.
What you’ll love: This set includes the comforter plus one pillow sham and it comes in more than 20 designs. It’s reversible with a patterned micromink side and a white fluffed-up sherpa fleece side. Box stitching on the comforter keeps the fill in place.
What you should consider: Some consumers received colors that didn’t match the images. Others received dirty comforters or shams with rips in the body or tearing seams.
Where to buy: Sold by Amazon
Worth checking out
Elegant Comfort Six-Piece Bed-In-A-Bag Comforter Set
What you need to know: This set throws in some sheets with the comforter and sham.
What you’ll love: This set includes the comforter, a pillow sham and a pillowcase, a fitted and flat sheet and a bed skirt. The fitted sheet has pockets near the top on both sides for keeping your phone and others goods nearby. It comes in nine colors.
What you should consider: Some consumers were unhappy with the thickness of the sheets. Others reported rips after machine-washing, and it shouldn’t be machine-dried at all.
Where to buy: Sold by Amazon
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Jordan C. Woika writes for BestReviews. BestReviews has helped millions of consumers simplify their purchasing decisions, saving them time and money.
Copyright 2022 BestReviews, a Nexstar company. All rights reserved.
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Which rustic shower curtain is best?
From the country cottage to the backwoods hunting lodge, rustic homes are all about authentic, humble living. Redecorating your house to look like a log cabin may prove a tall order, but there are other clever ways to evoke this down-to-earth aesthetic. One overlooked accent that’s affordable and easy to change up is your shower curtain.
With the right design, you can soften the look of any modern bathroom. The Lush Decor Button Shower Curtain is the best shower curtain to complete your rustic sanctuary.
What to know before you buy a rustic shower curtain
Aesthetics of rustic decor
Rustic decor is all about creativity, especially because it’s inspired by frontier and country living. After all, living off the land meant making the most of what you could find. For this reason, you will see a lot of natural materials in rustic homes, such as raw-finish woods, wrought or cast-iron, animal skins and knits or canvas.
Rustic bathrooms
You don’t have to turn your bathroom into an old-fashioned outhouse to get a more rustic vibe. But looking to the past can be a great source of inspiration. Consider the big picture and the finer details when shopping for your bathroom. Antiques capture the generational qualities of rustic furniture and old-fashioned toiletries, such as ivory safety razors and horsehair brushes, really enhance the farmhouse aesthetic.
Rustic qualities in a shower curtain
A shower curtain can feel rustic in a few ways. If you want something a little more subtle, look for materials that enhance the aesthetic without overdoing it. A billowy linen curtain with large buttons can evoke the homespun feel of rustic decor.
If you want to take a more obvious approach, shower curtains with prints are your best bet. These can simulate the appearance of slatted wooden doors or depict nature scenes that remind guests of life out in the country.
Solid color vs. patterned
Achieving that rustic look with your shower curtain can also be a matter of color modulation. While beige feels like a no-brainer, rust oranges or reds and sage greens pair beautifully with rustic materials. If you’re after patterns, look for vintage floral motifs.
What to look for in a quality rustic shower curtain
Material
Shower curtains are made from any number of materials. Whichever one you choose will have different durability, feel and cost.
- Cotton is thick, luxurious and looks natural in a rustic home. You’ll need a liner because it’s not waterproof. This material is also the most expensive.
- Vinyl is the cheapest option. Made from PVC or non-toxic EVA, this plastic option is completely waterproof. However, it won’t last as long as fabrics.
- Polyester offers the best of both worlds. It’s water-resistant but textured like cotton. However, you’ll be hard-pressed to find one that looks completely natural, like cotton.
Size
Shower curtains come in many sizes, so make sure you find one that’s right for your tub or shower.
- Standard: The typical shower curtain is approximately 72 inches by 72 inches. This size will cover one long edge of the standard bathtub.
- Extra-wide: For freestanding bathtubs, such as a claw-foot, you need an extra-wide shower curtain. These extend up to 180 inches to wrap around any additionally exposed sides.
- Extra-long: Contemporary buildings with high ceilings can place your shower curtain up higher, which reduces splash coverage. Extra-long curtains add another foot or two to account for tall showers.
- Narrow: If you have a stall shower, a standard shower curtain will bunch up. Narrow curtains halve the width to about 36 inches, so you don’t have to sacrifice precious space in an already-small bathroom.
Installation
Shower curtains have small reinforced holes, or grommets, sewn into their top quarter-panel. If your grommets are big enough, you can slide the curtain directly onto the rod. This is the easiest method but can lead to bunching. On the other hand, shower hooks may be a little more difficult to install, but they let you pull your curtain completely taught. They’re also a fun opportunity for some decorative flair.
How much you can expect to spend on a rustic shower curtain
Vinyl shower curtains are the best budget option and usually cost $5-$20. If you want something a little more substantial, you can find a quality polyester curtain for $25-$60, or a premium cotton one for $80-$120.
Rustic shower curtain FAQ
How do I care for my shower curtain?
A. Most shower curtains are machine-wash friendly. For cotton and polyester, you’ll want to do this once a month. Vinyl is a little easier to care for since you can just spray and wipe it down with a household cleaner. In addition to washing, make sure to ventilate your bathroom after showering to air out any excess moisture.
Do I need a shower curtain liner?
A. Liners provide a protective barrier from mold, mildew and soap scum. Cotton will need a liner because it’s not water-resistant. Liners will also boost the longevity of your vinyl or polyester curtain.
What’s the best rustic shower curtain to buy?
Top rustic shower curtain
Lush Decor Button Shower Curtain
What you need to know: The pleated, duo-tone construction of this shower curtain gives it a homemade look.
What you’ll love: With two canvas-colored panels separated by ivory buttons, this shower curtain looks almost handmade. The curtain is made from a sturdy, soft cotton-linen blend for a spa-like feel every time you shower.
What you should consider: It only comes in 72 inches by 72 inches.
Where to buy: Sold by Amazon
Top rustic shower curtain for the money
Gibelle Rustic Wood Shower Curtain
What you need to know: If you’ve ever wanted a sliding barn door in your bathroom, but renovation is out of the question, this curtain is the next best thing.
What you’ll love: Gibelle offers a range of faux-wood-door prints to bring that quintessentially rustic look of weathered wood into your bathroom. Each is made from polyester and attaches to your curtain rod via hooks. These curtains also have an array of sizes from narrow to extra-long and extra-wide.
What you should consider: This curtain might be a little too busy if you already have a well-decorated bathroom.
Where to buy: Sold by Amazon
Worth checking out
Simple Comfort Abigail Traditional Hydrangea Floral-Print Shower Curtain
What you need to know: When it comes to country-home style, you can’t go wrong with a traditional floral print.
What you’ll love: The hydrangeas are colored in a subtle palette, similar to prairie dresses and hand-crafted tapestries. The polyester-cotton blend is also available as window dressing to match around the house.
What you should consider: You will need a liner with this curtain. It’s also only available in standard sizing.
Where to buy: Sold by Amazon
Sign up here to receive the BestReviews weekly newsletter for useful advice on new products and noteworthy deals.
Karl Daum writes for BestReviews. BestReviews has helped millions of consumers simplify their purchasing decisions, saving them time and money.
Copyright 2022 BestReviews, a Nexstar company. All rights reserved.
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Which Samsung laptops are best?
There are so many laptops to choose from today. And with the varying hardware and price points, it can be tricky to sift through your options. Computer electronics companies like Samsung now offer more laptops than ever, which is excellent for budget-conscious buyers and tech enthusiasts alike. However, it may be daunting for those who don’t know what they’re looking for in a laptop.
No matter what activities you’ll use it for, the Samsung Galaxy Book Pro Laptop is a safe bet that offers impressive hardware and tons of storage space.
What to know before you buy a Samsung laptop
Use
How you plan to use your Samsung laptop will determine which one may work best for you. Some users primarily use the internet and don’t require high-performing hardware to complete their tasks. Other people may need top-notch processing power for gaming, video editing or audio production.
Samsung Chromebooks vs. notebooks
If you don’t need performance hardware in your laptop, a Chromebook is an excellent option. Samsung’s Chromebooks are a series of affordable, net-based laptop options. While most Samsung laptops include a Windows operating system, Chromebooks have the simplified, internet-oriented Chrome OS. These laptops don’t work as well for performance tasks compared to Samsung’s other high-end notebooks.
Other features
While design isn’t usually the first priority for most buyers, Samsung laptops also come in various styles. You can find them in a range of colors and sizes, and the overall size of a laptop may affect other factors, like its screen, keyboard and hardware orientation. High-performing laptops are usually bigger than budget-friendly netbook options.
What to look for in a quality Samsung laptop
Screen
Samsung’s laptops often vary in screen size. Common screen sizes for Samsung’s laptops range from 13 inches to 16 inches, but most buyers who do editing and other visually-intensive tasks prefer larger screens. You can find several Samsung laptops featuring a two-in-one configuration, meaning they have a touchscreen, and you can use them as a tablet in addition to a laptop.
Processor
The most important piece of hardware in a computer is its processor or its central processing unit (CPU.) A CPU is much like the computer’s brain, which manages all the tasks you perform on your laptop and allocates the hardware needed to fulfill those tasks. Intel and AMD make processors. A processor’s overall speed is measured in gigahertz, with higher numbers representing faster CPUs.
Random access memory
A computer’s random access memory (RAM) refers to the temporary storage that remains in the background while you perform various activities. RAM comes in increments of 2 gigabytes, and computers with more RAM will perform more quickly.
Battery life
Laptop battery life is important to many buyers, especially those who plan to take their computers on the go. Most laptop batteries last between 6-18 hours on a single charge. However, it’s also worth noting that some laptops may not live as long since battery life depends on usage and age.
Storage
Another important aspect of a good Samsung laptop is its storage capacity. Those working with large files should consider laptops with 256GB or 512GB of storage. However, if you have a laptop that saves files on the internet, like the Chromebook, you may not need as much space. In this instance, you may be able to make use of laptops with as little as 64GB.
How much you can expect to spend on a Samsung laptop
Samsung laptops vary in price depending on size, storage and additional features. The company’s cheapest laptops cost as low as $120. However, most Samsung laptops will range from $300-$1,600.
Samsung laptop FAQ
Do Samsung laptops have good battery life?
A. Samsung’s laptops have a wide range of battery life options, lasting from 8 hours to as many as 18. Most batteries tend to top out at around 17-18 hours, so you can expect your Samsung laptop to keep up with the industry standard.
Are Samsung laptops good for gaming?
A. While you can use some Samsung laptops for gaming, it might be worth upgrading to brands with dedicated gaming laptops such as Asus, Acer, Alienware or Razer. Most of Samsung’s laptops include integrated graphics chipsets, which is a step down in performance from graphics cards.
What’s the best Samsung laptop to buy?
Top Samsung laptop
Samsung Galaxy Book Pro Laptop With Windows 11 15.6-Inch Screen
What you need to know: This powerful laptop comes with a vivid 15.6-inch AMOLED screen and powerful hardware that’s suitable for an array of high-performance tasks.
What you’ll love: This Samsung laptop includes an Intel i7 processor and 16GB of RAM for smooth performance. It also has around 17 hours of battery life and includes 512GB of SSD storage, making it great for those dealing in large files and working on the go.
What you should consider: This laptop doesn’t include a touchscreen.
Where to buy: Sold by Amazon
Top Samsung laptop for the money
Samsung Chromebook 4 With Chrome OS and 15.6-Inch Screen
What you need to know: This laptop is perfect for users who only intend on using a few applications and the internet. It features a sleek, lightweight design, a touchscreen and Chrome OS.
What you’ll love: With 6GB of RAM and 64GB of memory, this computer is perfect for web use and simple tasks. It has a battery life of up to 10 hours per charge and you can use voice commands through Google Assistant.
What you should consider: This laptop isn’t as fast as some of Samsung’s other laptops and doesn’t have very much storage.
Where to buy: Sold by Amazon
Worth checking out
Samsung Galaxy 2-in-1 Chromebook With Chrome OS and 13.3-Inch Screen
What you need to know: This Samsung laptop is a high-end two-in-one Chromebook offering fingerprint security, a stylus and a responsive touchscreen.
What you’ll love: It includes a 13.3-inch screen that’s unmatched at this price point. It also includes 256GB of storage. Its two-in-one design lets users fold a full 180 degrees and use the touchscreen at the preferred angle. Buyers can buy this laptop in red or gray.
What you should consider: This laptop only includes about eight hours of battery life.
Where to buy: Sold by Amazon
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Peter McGuthrie writes for BestReviews. BestReviews has helped millions of consumers simplify their purchasing decisions, saving them time and money.
Copyright 2022 BestReviews, a Nexstar company. All rights reserved.
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| 2022-04-07T11:38:50Z
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Which bracelet maker is best?
The friendship bracelet is an iconic tradition that both kids and adults have been participating in for decades. While the look of homemade bracelets has changed over the years, bracelet making is here to stay. However, with innovative bracelet makers, creating jewelry for friends, family or yourself has never been easier.
While there are many types of bracelet makers, the Cool Maker 2-in-1 KumiKreator Necklace and Bracelet Maker Activity Kit is a great choice. It turns bracelet making into an activity as simple as loading and spinning.
What to know before you buy a bracelet maker
What is a bracelet maker?
A bracelet maker is an apparatus that makes it easier to create bracelets of all kinds. Instead of braiding, weaving or tying bracelets entirely by hand, a bracelet maker uses loops, wheels or notches, so you never lose your string.
Types of bracelet makers
There are several types of bracelet makers. Some may be easier or more difficult to use. Determine whether you want to make a braided, spiral or charm bracelet, as each bracelet maker also creates a different style.
Braiding board: One of the most popular bracelet makers is a braiding board. This type usually has a clip to hold the string at the top and notches or loops to separate the string at the bottom. Depending what style of bracelet you want to make, there are different ways to tie the string or braid them over each other.
Wheel: A wheel bracelet maker looks like a wheel. It has a hole in the middle and loops or notches around the wheel’s exterior. The string goes in the middle of the wheel and is held by the loops on the outside. It helps you create a bracelet by rotating the wheel and crossing the strings over one another.
Automatic or spinning: One of the easiest bracelet makers is an automatic or spinning bracelet maker. A fully automatic bracelet maker only requires looping the string and pushing a button. It then braids the yarn together to form a bracelet. A spinning bracelet maker isn’t fully automatic and usually requires turning a handle to weave the string.
What to look for in a quality bracelet maker
Recommended age range
One of the most important features to look for when picking out a bracelet maker is the recommended age. You don’t want to get a bracelet maker that’s too difficult to use. Since you know the skills of yourself or your child, view the recommended age as a suggestion instead of a rule.
Included accessories
If you’re buying a bracelet maker, there’s a good chance you also need the rest of the supplies to start making bracelets. For example, if there’s only one spool of string included, you won’t be able to make very many bracelets before needing to buy more, so look for a kit that comes with extra supplies.
Safety
There are a few safety issues to look for when buying a bracelet maker. First, look for sharp pieces or hooks that could poke you or your child. If you’re using an automatic bracelet maker, be sure there’s no way to get your finger caught in it.
How much you can expect to spend on a bracelet maker
Depending on the type of bracelet maker and included supplies, a bracelet maker costs $10-$50.
Bracelet maker FAQ
Do I need any tools to make a bracelet?
A. If you get a kit, a bracelet maker should come with all the supplies needed to make several bracelets. However, you can also get a bracelet maker or loom by itself, and purchase the string, rubber bands or other supplies separately. You shouldn’t need any tools while using a bracelet maker.
Can I create a bracelet without a bracelet maker?
A. Yes. You don’t need a bracelet maker to create a fun bracelet. However, a bracelet maker simplifies the process and helps children make intricate designs that would have been nearly impossible to create without help. Many adults who sell bracelets also use a bracelet maker to speed up the process.
What’s the best bracelet maker to buy?
Top bracelet maker
Cool Maker 2-in-1 KumiKreator Necklace and Bracelet Maker Activity Kit
What you need to know: With this jewelry maker, creating your ideal bracelet is as simple as loading and spinning.
What you’ll love: This bracelet making kit comes with 60 colorful spools of string to create multiple bracelets or necklaces. It also includes stylish clasps, tassel charms, end caps and two design booklets.
What you should consider: It’s expensive to buy refill spools once you run out of string.
Where to buy: Sold by Amazon
Top bracelet maker for the money
Cra-Z-Art Cra-Z-Loom Ultimate Rubber Band Bracelet Making Kit
What you need to know: Trendy rubber band bracelets are in, and this kit includes everything needed to make your own creations.
What you’ll love: An easy-to-use loom, more than 600 colorful rubber bands, hooks and illustrated instructions are all included in this kit. You can create single, double or triple rubber band combos with this maker.
What you should consider: This isn’t a suitable bracelet maker for kids younger than 8 years old.
Where to buy: Sold by Amazon
Worth checking out
Choose Friendship Company My Friendship Bracelet Maker
What you need to know: This braiding board helps kids and adults create intricate bracelet designs to keep or give away.
What you’ll love: This kit includes 20 precut threads in 10 different colors. Plus, it features a concealed storage compartment underneath the board to keep the threads organized and make it convenient to bring on the go.
What you should consider: The strings can sometimes slip out of the designated slots.
Where to buy: Sold by Amazon
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Bre Richey writes for BestReviews. BestReviews has helped millions of consumers simplify their purchasing decisions, saving them time and money.
Copyright 2022 BestReviews, a Nexstar company. All rights reserved.
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| 2022-04-07T11:39:18Z
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Which Asics wrestling shoes are best?
You probably already know that good footwork is crucial if you’re a wrestler. Although it can be taught, some athletes are naturally gifted with great footwork. Either way, you could have the best footwork in the world, but if you don’t have good wrestling shoes, you won’t perform at your best.
To show off your skills on the wrestling mat, you need reliable shoes. Asics has plenty of excellent wrestling shoes, like the Asics Men’s Dan Gable EVO 2 Wrestling Shoes, which customers love for their comfort, durability and stylish design.
What to know before you buy Asics wrestling shoes
Size
As with all athletic or running shoes, they need to fit securely and feel comfortable. It’s in your best interest to wear shoes that fit you well; otherwise, you won’t perform well, and it increases the chances of injury.
As a rule of thumb, you want to leave some space in the toe box to prevent forceful impacts affecting your toes as you stride or lunge. However, be sure you don’t get shoes that are too big, as they can make you more prone to tripping and falling.
Lightweight
Wrestling is a sport that requires participants to stay on their toes. Often, you’ll need to make quick movements, so you want to wear shoes that are as lightweight as possible so you can move with agility. Most wrestling shoes are manufactured with this in mind, so it’s up to you to determine what’s comfortable, as some shoes may feel lighter to you than others.
Breathable
If your feet feel hot and moist during your wrestling match, you’re going to feel uncomfortable, and it may negatively affect your performance. Look for lightweight shoes with breathable mesh uppers that allow for efficient air ventilation so your feet remain cool and dry for more extended periods.
What to look for in quality Asics wrestling shoes
Traction
Your wrestling shoes should be comfortable, but you need plenty of traction and grip. Most wrestling shoes have durable rubber outsoles that provide traction on the mat so you don’t accidentally slip as you move. Doing so can cost you the match and potentially lead to injury.
Sole style
Wrestling shoes have either a unisole or a split sole. One piece of sole running from the heel to the toe area is a unisole, while a split sole has two distinct sections. Unisoles provide better grip and traction, but they’re not as flexible as split soles. However, it’s worth noting that split sole wrestling shoes are usually more expensive.
Color
Asics wrestling shoes are available in many colors, so it’s up to you to choose something that suits your style and personality. They’re often available in double colors, such as white with orange or black with green. You can also get a pair that matches your school or league’s uniform.
How much you can expect to spend on Asics wrestling shoes
You can find solid Asics wrestling shoes for $50-$100. However, if you want something more durable with superior traction, you can expect to pay $100-$160.
Asics wrestling shoes FAQ
Is there any distinction between wrestling shoes for men and women?
A. Some wrestling shoes have a more traditionally feminine color than others, but in terms of functionality, there’s no difference. Usually, they’re not marketed as men’s or women’s shoes, but if you see such a distinction in the description, they can most likely be worn by anyone, regardless of gender.
What are wrestling shoes made of?
A. Wrestling shoes are usually made with synthetic leather material and have a mesh upper. The outsole is rubber, while the midsole contains cushioning for additional support and comfort.
What are the best Asics wrestling shoes to buy?
Top Asics wrestling shoes
Asics Men’s Dan Gable EVO 2 Wrestling Shoes
What you need to know: These shoes have a stylish look and are engineered with the latest technology to provide superior performance on the mat, regardless of skill level.
What you’ll love: These provide excellent stability and help keep your feet cool and dry, thanks to a comfortable mesh insole. They have a high-quality sock liner and responsive cushioning for optimal bounce after strategic movements.
What you should consider: They run small, so buying one size up is advisable.
Where to buy: Sold by Dick’s Sporting Goods
Top Asics wrestling shoes for the money
Asics Men’s Matflex 6 Wrestling Shoes
What you need to know: These shoes offer terrific support, and although they’re the most budget-friendly option, they’re suitable for both beginners and experienced wrestlers.
What you’ll love: They have a breathable mesh upper for keeping your feet cool, and a rubber outsole with traction pads provides superior grip on the mat. They have a secure fit, and like other Asics wrestling shoes, they feature California Lasting technology for extra stability.
What you should consider: They have a narrow fit, making them uncomfortable for those with wide feet.
Where to buy: Sold by Dick’s Sporting Goods
Worth checking out
Asics Men’s Aggressor 4 Wrestling Shoes
What you need to know: If you’re a wrestler looking for a shoe that offers more traction and durability, these shoes are worth a look.
What you’ll love: These shoes are durable, have a comfortable fit and a form-fitting upper, along with a single-layer mesh tongue for maximum breathability. The Duosole outsole provides excellent grip and traction, and the locked-down fit offers greater stability and flexibility as you move.
What you should consider: Some customers report that they’re stiff out of the box and not as durable as they used to be.
Where to buy: Sold by Dick’s Sporting Goods
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Kevin Luna writes for BestReviews. BestReviews has helped millions of consumers simplify their purchasing decisions, saving them time and money.
Copyright 2022 BestReviews, a Nexstar company. All rights reserved.
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| 2022-04-07T11:39:39Z
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Which travel toilet is best?
If you are engaged in an activity, such as camping, that doesn’t have access to modern bathroom facilities, it can cause a little stress. You never know when nature will call, and you want to be prepared when it does. This is why there are travel toilets.
A well-built travel toilet has an odor seal and is large enough to accommodate both you and your needs. The SereneLife Outdoor Portable Toilet is a perfect example of a top-notch portable toilet. It is flushable, has a dedicated 5.3-gallon waste tank and features splash-free emptying.
What to know before you buy a travel toilet
Who can benefit from a travel toilet
If you love camping or boating, you would obviously benefit from owning a travel toilet. Hunters, construction workers, long-haul truckers or people who do a lot of traveling by car or van also should consider a travel toilet. If you have a child you are potty training, a family member who has trouble with stairs or you are having work done on your home, a quality travel toilet will come in handy. Some people simply find using a public toilet an unacceptable option. For these people, a travel toilet can be a suitable alternative.
There are two types of travel toilets
The two types of travel toilets are flushing and non-flushing
- Flushing: If you want the closest experience to being at home, a flushable portable toilet is the way to go. These models have two sections: a fresh water tank and a waste tank. When you activate the mechanism that releases fresh water into the bowl, it flushes the waste down into the waste tank. This lower tank can be sealed to prevent unpleasant odors from escaping. When it is full, you dump the waste and clean the toilet.
- Nonflushing: A nonflushing portable toilet is best for emergencies or for people on a tight budget. It is little more than a bucket (often with a sealable lid) with a seat on top. Some higher-end models feature a removable waste bucket that accepts a waste liner to make cleaning effortless.
What to look for in a quality travel toilet
Size
There are two aspects of size. First, you want a portable toilet that is large enough for the biggest person who will use it. Second, you want a waste area that is large enough to contain all of the waste until you get to a dump station.
Odor trapping capabilities
A portable toilet needs an airtight seal to keep the offensive odors locked away. However, if there isn’t a pressure relief valve on the waste tank, you could be in for an unpleasant surprise when you remove the seal.
Lightweight but durable
A portable toilet needs to be lightweight so you can travel with it. A portable toilet also must be strong enough to support your full weight while using. If you go for the lightest weight model, it might not be very durable. If you go for a heavy-duty build, the toilet might be difficult to transport. Look for a balance.
Tank level indicator
If you want to know how much waste is in your toilet without opening it up and peeking or lifting it to see how heavy it is, get a model with a tank level indicator.
Easy emptying
At some point, you will need to empty your portable toilet. You want a system that is easy to use and protects you from backsplash.
Extras
Each manufacturer has its own little incentives. It could be anything from an onboard toilet paper roll holder to a built-in handle. Don’t be seduced by bells and whistles. Put functionality and reliability at the top of your criteria list.
How much you can expect to spend on a travel toilet
If you want something more than a bucket, prices for travel toilets start at around $40. While it is possible to spend $400 or more on a high-end model, most people will find what they need for around $150.
Travel toilet FAQ
Where do I empty my portable toilet?
A. As long as you have a model that does not use chemicals, you can empty your portable toilet in the wilderness as long as the 6-inch hole you dig to bury the waste is at least 100 feet away from trails, camps and any water sources. If your toilet uses chemicals, however, it needs to be emptied at a designated location, such as a dump station at a campsite.
How do I clean a portable toilet?
A. A portable toilet with a dedicated waste tank will have a drain. When it is time to empty the toilet, open the drain and dump the waste. Once all the solid matter is gone, you can fill the waste tank with water to rinse it out as needed. A model without a dedicated waste tank can usually be fitted with a toilet waste bag to make cleaning up as easy as taking out the trash. For a deep cleaning, you will need to refer to your owner’s manual, as some models can not tolerate abrasive cleaning solutions.
What’s the best travel toilet to buy?
Top travel toilet
SereneLife Outdoor Portable Toilet
What you need to know: This flushable portable toilet has a waste tank with a double-seal to help keep odors to a minimum.
What you’ll love: The fresh water tank holds 3.2 gallons of water. It can provide up to 50 flushes. The large waste tank has a capacity of 5.3 gallons. This portable toilet features a splash-free, rotating pour spout that makes emptying a breeze.
What you should consider: While this portable toilet may be easy to empty, you still have to clean it. And that can sometimes be challenging.
Where to buy: Sold by Amazon
Top travel toilet for the money
PLAYBERG Portable Travel Toilet for Camping and Hiking
What you need to know: This is an affordable, no-frills portable toilet that is a step up from using a bucket.
What you’ll love: This model accepts 8-gallon toilet waste bags, so there is no cleanup needed. It is extremely lightweight, only 5.5 pounds and equipped with a built-in toilet paper roll holder. The waste bucket has a removable lid that seals in odor.
What you should consider: The removable waste bucket is smaller than expected.
Where to buy: Sold by Amazon and Home Depot
Worth checking out
What you need to know: This portable toilet has a lot of convenient features that make it easy to use and clean.
What you’ll love: This portable toilet is flushable, and it has a sealable waste tank to keep odors from leaking out. The toilet features a built-in handle, which makes it easy to transport, and a large drain opening for simplified emptying and cleaning.
What you should consider: In changing temperatures (or elevations), pressure can build up in the waste tank and cause a little burping, which can be messy if you’re not expecting it.
Where to buy: Sold by Amazon
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Allen Foster writes for BestReviews. BestReviews has helped millions of consumers simplify their purchasing decisions, saving them time and money.
Copyright 2022 BestReviews, a Nexstar company. All rights reserved.
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| 2022-04-07T11:40:07Z
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12 of the weirdest deep-sea creatures that lurk in the oceans' depths
A huge amount of the deep sea is still unknown to us. Take a look at some of the bizarre animals that live down there...
While the ocean remains largely unexplored, we occasionally get a glimpse of the weird and wonderful creatures that eke out a living in the deep (like the ever-popular blobfish). Here are some that are totally out-of-this-world.
Fangtooth
Two hundred metres is all that separates you from an alien world, right here on Earth. Descend that far into the ocean, and you enter the ‘twilight zone’ of the deep sea, where the Sun’s rays gradually fade away and animals play a deadly game of hide-and-seek with predators in the shadows.
Dive down beyond 1,000 metres and you’re in the ‘midnight zone’, a vast darkness punctuated by flashes of light from life forms that hunt for food and seek mates here. It’s a world with terrifying teeth, like those of the fangtooth fish. But don’t let the fangtooth scare you: it’s about the size of a grapefruit.
Zooplankton
Lots of different animals drift in the ‘inner space’ of the deep ocean, where they are collectively known as zooplankton – from the Greek for ‘animal drifters’. Some of them live their whole lives as drifters, such as the ‘seed shrimp’ (1) tucked up in its orange carapace, and the ‘sea butterfly’ (2) – a snail that swims instead of crawls.
Others are only temporary members of the zooplankton – the larval stages of animals such as sea stars (3), which eventually sink back down to continue their lives on the seafloor. Spending time as drifters means they can be carried to new places by ocean currents, if they’re not eaten by other zooplankton on the way.
Leptocephalus larva
Ocean animals often have early stages in their life cycles that are very different from their adult form. This leaf-like leptocephalus larva will eventually develop into an adult eel, transforming the shape of its body.
Having a thin, see-through body as a larva may help it to survive the gauntlet of predators in the zooplankton as it grows. Because the larvae and adults look so different, larval forms were often described as different species from the adults, until marine biologists realised they were different stages of one life cycle.
Sea sapphire copepods
Copepods are tiny crustaceans, typically only a millimetre or two in size, and are often eaten by deep-sea fishes such as the thread-tail and the stoplight loosejaw. Most copepods graze on microscopic algae that thrive near the ocean surface, and their faeces and dead bodies help to carry carbon into the deep below.
But these ‘sea sapphire’ copepods are different: the females live as parasites inside drifting jelly animals called salps, while these colourful males swim free in the ocean. The males have tiny crystal plates in their skin that reflect blue light, giving them a glittering appearance.
Dragonfish & Hatchetfish
Like underwater fireflies, many deep-sea animals can produce spots or flashes of light, known as bioluminescence.
In the twilight zone, the remnants of sunlight cast shadows that reveal animals to predators, so lots of species in this zone are speckled with lights for camouflage. The underside of the hatchetfish, for example, has bioluminescent organs that match the faint light coming from above, breaking up its silhouette.
Down in the midnight zone, animals such as the dragonfish use bioluminescent searchlights to find their prey. And throughout the deep ocean, creatures signal with lights to other members of the same species, to attract a mate, for example.
Stoplight loosejaw
The stoplight loosejaw fish is one of the stealthiest predators in the deep. Its lower jaw is an open frame of bone with no fleshy floor across it, which means it can snap shut very quickly like a mousetrap. And it’s called ‘stoplight’ because the bioluminescent organs near its eyes produce red light.
Most bioluminescence in the deep ocean is blue, as that colour travels well through water, and the eyes of many deep-sea animals aren’t sensitive to red light. But the stoplight loosejaw can see red, so it can light up its prey without alerting them to the danger.
Glass squid
There are around 60 species of glass squid in the ocean, and they get their name from their transparent bodies – a neat trick to avoid casting a shadow that could be spotted by predators in the twilight zone.
The top image is the juvenile of a lyre cranch squid. The two appendages sticking out from it are eyes on long stalks. Those eyes are more opaque than the rest of its body, so each eye also has a bioluminescent organ to mask its shadow. But when this juvenile grows up, those stalks will disappear, and it will move down to live in the midnight zone as an adult.
Cock-eye squid
Squid in the deep ocean come in a range of sizes, from the Kraken-like giant squid that can stretch more than 10 metres to the tips of its longest tentacles, to tiddlers measuring about 15 centimetres long.
And deep-sea squid come in a variety of shapes too: the cock-eye squid, also known as the strawberry squid, has one eye twice the size of the other. It swims in the twilight zone with the large eye looking up for shadows cast by potential prey, and the smaller eye keeping a lookout for possible predators below.
Thread-tail fish & Boxer snipe eel
The thread-tail fish and the boxer snipe eel have long, thin, ribbon-like bodies. The thread-tail’s body is about 30 centimetres long, with streamers twice as long on its tail, which gives this fish its name. Its other name is the ‘tube-eye fish’ thanks to the binocular-like lenses of its eyes, which are used to spot the shadows of prey in the twilight zone. So unusual is the tube-eye fish, that it’s the only species in an entire taxonomic order.
The boxer snipe eel grows to nearly 1.5 metres long, and feeds by sweeping its long jaws through the water, snagging the appendages of passing crustaceans on its fine teeth.
Anglerfish
Life can be scarce in the dark depths, which is a problem when animals need to find a partner for mating. Hanging on to a potential mate is a good solution, and some deep-sea anglerfishes take that to extremes.
The males are much smaller than the females, and when boy meets girl, he gives her body a kiss that lasts the rest of his life. The male’s blood supply joins up with the female’s through his lips, and he lives off her like a parasite while she catches prey with her bioluminescent lure. But the dangling male is a handy accessory for the female to carry around, ready to fertilise her eggs when she releases them.
Read more about the deep sea:
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A dead body can tell us a lot. By monitoring how corpses decompose, we can increase our understanding of the subtleties of the process and improve the accuracy with which we can locate and identify dead people, and determine their time of death.
After death, the body breaks down into simpler organic matter through biological and chemical processes. This process can take anywhere from a few weeks to a few years, depending on a number of factors.
Chemical reactions involved in the decay process will speed up as the temperature increases. Likewise, a body can remain ‘fresh’ for longer in the cooler winter months, or in colder climates. And there are other factors that delay decomposition, including burial in soil or sealing in a casket, while the presence of insecticides in the vicinity of the body will delay the arrival of insects (and therefore slow decay), although it won’t hold them off indefinitely.
A study carried out by researchers at Australia’s first ‘body farm’ also found that corpses can move during the decay process. And it’s more than just a twitch. They found that movement occurred in all limbs after death, including in the advanced decomposition stages. In particular, they noted that the arms moved from being positioned down beside the body, to stretching out on either side.
“We think the movements relate to the process of decomposition, as the body mummifies and the ligaments dry out,” said taphonomy researcher Alyson Wilson.
Stage 1: Rigor sets in
The ‘fresh’ stage can last a few days to a week. One of the first visible changes to occur is the onset of pallor mortis. This is when the body begins to turn pale as a result of the lack of circulation and blood stops moving through the capillaries. Pallor Mortis usually sets in within around 15 minutes after death.
Rigor mortis sets in around two to six hours after death. During this phase, the cells break down as the lack of oxygen and nutrients prevents them from replenishing themselves. After this, proteolysis (the breaking down of proteins) causes dissolution of the stiffness, and the body becomes limp again. In general, rigor mortis disappears 36 hours after death, and the next phase is known as ‘secondary flaccidity’.
If a body is left out, insects will arrive quickly after death, usually after 10 minutes, or so.
Stage 2: Bloating
When bacteria in the gut can no longer be kept in check, they start to reproduce and feed on the body. A study carried out by The Human Microbiome Project, found that it takes bacteria around 58 hours to spread around the body to the liver, spleen, heart and brain. This produces gas that causes the abdomen to bloat. In temperate climates, bloating will occur over a period of two to three days.
Stage 3: Skin sloughs off
Gas building up increases pressure within the body, pushing fluids in between the layers of skin and causing the outer layers to slough off.
Stage 4: Marbling
With no oxygen to bind to, haemoglobin in the blood binds to sulphur instead, filling the arteries and veins with a greenish-black substance. This gives the flesh an appearance known as ‘marbling’.
Stage 5: Expulsion of liquified organs
Increasing pressure forces the body’s fluids and liquefied organs out of any available orifice. Eyeballs can be dislodged and bodies have even been known to explode.
Stage 6: Insects multiply
Chemicals released by the body attract flies, which lay eggs in and around the orifices. Soon after, maggots hatch and begin feeding on the body’s flesh and organs.
Stage 7: Scavengers arrive
Other insects, such as beetles, are attracted to the body, as well as small birds looking to feed on them. Local scavenging animals will also appear to pick the flesh off the bones.
Stage 8: Skeletonisation
The final stage is skeletonisation, when the soft tissue is fully lost. Bleaching and exfoliation of the bones begin at around nine months of exposure. Wind, rain, erosion and abrasion take over and the bones are disarticulated over the following months and years.
Read more about death:
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FHN offering 2 free COVID-19 booster shot clinics in Freeport. Here's what to know
FREEPORT — FHN will offer two options for eligible persons wanting a first or second COVID-19 booster vaccination in April.
A booster-only COVID-19 vaccine clinic will run from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. April 22 at FHN’s 1763 S. Dirck Dr. location in Freeport.
First or second booster shots will be available at this event. Second boosters will be made available to eligible persons who received their first booster shot at least 4 months ago.
Pfizer vaccinations available in the morning, and Moderna vaccines available in the afternoon.
Local news:FHN Wound Center receives patient satisfaction award
Registration is necessary. Area residents can learn more and register at fhn.org/vaccination-booster-signup-april.asp.
A drive-thru vaccination clinic will run from 8:30 a.m. to noon April 30 at the FHN Family Healthcare Center — Burchard Hills, 1010 W. Fairway Dr. in Freeport.
First and second boosters will be available at this event. No registration is required.
FHN is following the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention guidelines regarding eligibility, available at cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/vaccines/booster-shot.
Booster shot recipients must bring a photo ID and their COVID-19 immunization card with them to their appointment.
All patients should plan to stay for 15 minutes after receiving the vaccination (30 minutes for persons who have had immediate reactions to vaccinations such as flu shots, or regularly need to carry an EpiPen).
There is no cost for COVID-19 vaccinations.
FHN is a not-for-profit, award-winning regional healthcare system serving northwest Illinois and southern Wisconsin.
The system includes FHN Memorial Hospital, the Leonard C. Ferguson Cancer Center at FHN Memorial Hospital, 12 family healthcare centers offering primary and specialty medical care, hospice and outpatient mental health services.
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- Monetary policy stance remained very accommodative
- Large number of members held the view that current level of high inflation called for immediate further steps towards policy normalisation
- It was argued, that for all practical purposes, three forward guidance conditions have been met
- A longer period of above-target inflation would lead to increased risk on upward de-anchoring
- In such a circumstance, ECB could no longer afford to look through higher inflation
Inflation
Inflation is defined as a quantitative measure of the rate in which the average price level of goods and services in an economy or country increases over a period of time. It is the rise in the general level of prices where a given currency effectively buys less than it did in prior periods.In terms of assessing the strength or currencies, and by extension foreign exchange, inflation or measures of it are extremely influential. Inflation stems from the overall creation of money. This money is measured by the level of the total money supply of a specific currency, for example the US dollar, which is constantly increasing. However, an increase in the money supply does not necessarily mean that there is inflation. What leads to inflation is a faster increase in the money supply in relation to the wealth produced (measured with GDP). As such, this generates pressure of demand on a supply that does not increase at the same rate. The consumer price index then increases, generating inflation.How Does Inflation Affect Forex?The level of inflation has a direct impact on the exchange rate between two currencies on several levels.This includes purchasing power parity, which attempts to compare different purchasing powers of each country according to the general price level. In doing so, this makes it possible to determine the country with the most expensive cost of living.The currency with the higher inflation rate consequently loses value and depreciates, while the currency with the lower inflation rate appreciates on the forex market.Interest rates are also impacted. Inflation rates that are too high push interest rates up, which has the effect of depreciating the currency on foreign exchange. Conversely, inflation that is too low (or deflation) pushes interest rates down, which has the effect of appreciating the currency on the forex market.
Inflation is defined as a quantitative measure of the rate in which the average price level of goods and services in an economy or country increases over a period of time. It is the rise in the general level of prices where a given currency effectively buys less than it did in prior periods.In terms of assessing the strength or currencies, and by extension foreign exchange, inflation or measures of it are extremely influential. Inflation stems from the overall creation of money. This money is measured by the level of the total money supply of a specific currency, for example the US dollar, which is constantly increasing. However, an increase in the money supply does not necessarily mean that there is inflation. What leads to inflation is a faster increase in the money supply in relation to the wealth produced (measured with GDP). As such, this generates pressure of demand on a supply that does not increase at the same rate. The consumer price index then increases, generating inflation.How Does Inflation Affect Forex?The level of inflation has a direct impact on the exchange rate between two currencies on several levels.This includes purchasing power parity, which attempts to compare different purchasing powers of each country according to the general price level. In doing so, this makes it possible to determine the country with the most expensive cost of living.The currency with the higher inflation rate consequently loses value and depreciates, while the currency with the lower inflation rate appreciates on the forex market.Interest rates are also impacted. Inflation rates that are too high push interest rates up, which has the effect of depreciating the currency on foreign exchange. Conversely, inflation that is too low (or deflation) pushes interest rates down, which has the effect of appreciating the currency on the forex market.
Read this Term
- The view was taken that APP purchases had by now fulfilled its stated objective
- Nonetheless, it is seen as wise to keep some two-sided optionality on policy
- Full account
There are some hawkish mumblings based on the remarks above but recent ECB commentary does not suggest that policymakers are too keen to push the agenda. So, that is making things a bit confusing in my view. I wouldn't say a lot has happened over the course of the past four weeks but it certainly has perhaps.
If the ECB thought that rate hikes could do them some good, they definitely do not share as strongly a view on that now.
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Freeport throws country music fundraiser for downtown beautification
FREEPORT — When Mike Meade relocated to Freeport nearly 15 years ago, one of the perks was the façade improvement grant program offered by the City of Freeport.
Today, Meade owns several downtown buildings that qualify for the program.
Meade's This Is It Eatery located at South Chicago Avenue and Exchange Street is the latest of his downtown properties to get accepted.
“I was drawn to Freeport to be part of something special,” Meade said. “The facade program offered me a chance to not only own buildings but make them appealing to those people who come to Freeport.”
The program gives downtown building owners financial incentives in the form of reimbursable grants to preserve, restore and rehabilitate the outside of their buildings.
Freeport businesses:Freeport is looking to help downtown businesses spruce up their storefronts. Here's how
The City of Freeport proposed a budget of $20,000 for 2022, funded by the Downtown Tax Increment Financing District. The funds are payable as a reimbursement of up to 50% of the project costs, which cannot exceed $15,000 total.
The Greater Freeport Partnership has a multi-year beautification program of its own, as well, and plans to host a fundraiser concert this weekend to help raise money for downtown beautification.
The concert will be held Saturday, April 9 at Masonic Temple with music by Back Country Roads. The musical group will hit the stage at 7 p.m.
Back Country Roads is heralded to be one of the best cover bands in the area opening shows for Country Thunder, the Wisconsin State Fair and many top country artists.
“With the proceeds of this event we will be able to help fund flowers and summer maintenance of our downtown and be able to promote our downtown restaurants, shopping, and activities,” said Katie Gentz, the partnership's event coordinator.
Cal Wescott owns several buildings in downtown Freeport and operates Rite-Way Furniture and Appliance. He said he is hoping for a good crowd to bring a sense of normalcy back now that COVID restrictions are being lifted.
“The money we hope to raise will benefit the downtown in a big way,” Wescott said.
Meade said he takes pride in what he has been able to do by helping improve downtown Freeport.
“I call this my Freeport, not because I own property downtown, but because this is my community, and I care about it,” he said. “It’s a challenge, and it is exciting.”
Tickets for the Back Country Roads concert can be purchased for $20 on the Greater Freeport Partnership Facebook event page or search on Eventbrite.com.
COVID vaccine:FHN offering 2 free COVID-19 booster shot clinics in Freeport. Here's what to know
Tickets can also be purchased in person at Rite-Way Furniture and Appliance (20 E. Stephenson St.) or the Greater Freeport Partnership office (110 W Main St). For larger groups who want to sit together, consider purchasing a VIP table of eight for $200.
Food will be provided by Benchwarmers, and drinks will be available for purchase.
Proceeds from the event will benefit beautification efforts in downtown Freeport including seasonal plantings, mulch, planters, pedestrian furniture and more.
Jane Lethlean is a freelance correspondent.
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Gary Puls, assistant superintendent for the Wyoming Territorial Prison Historical Site in Laramie, has trouble holding onto a metal directional sign Wednesday. Puls was out checking the historic site’s many buildings for any signs of wind damage. The sign was pulled off of its stake during several days of high winds in the area.
Gary Puls, assistant superintendent for the Wyoming Territorial Prison Historical Site in Laramie, has trouble holding onto a metal directional sign Wednesday. Puls was out checking the historic site’s many buildings for any signs of wind damage. The sign was pulled off of its stake during several days of high winds in the area.
Carol Ryczek/For the Boomerang
A tree pulled down a power line after blowing over on Riverside Drive on Wednesday. Laramie saw gusts of up to 63 mph this week.
Laramie residents are checking for damage after strong sustained winds for more than two days with gusts reaching as high as 63 mph in the city.
The wind was even windier west of Laramie with a top gust of 94 mph recorded on a stretch of Interstate 80 near Arlington on Tuesday morning, according to the National Weather Service.
Multiple locations around Laramie had property damage because of the wind. Part of a sign outside of the Wendy’s restaurant on Grand Avenue broke into pieces on Tuesday.
Also Tuesday, material from the roof of the Budget Inn near I-80 blew through the parking lot, despite staff efforts to anchor it down.
On Wednesday, a large tree blew blew over and across Riverside Drive, taking a section of a powerline with it. Rocky Mountain Power was called to the scene to make repairs.
The city of Laramie Public Works Department responded to two calls of heavy glass globes blowing off street lights on 4th and 5th streets near Grand Avenue, but reported little additional damage, said spokesperson Brooks Webb.
Winds should die down in Laramie today with gusts in the 40 mph range expected, the National Weather Service reports.
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WASHINGTON — By announcing they will vote to confirm Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson as the first Black woman to the Supreme Court, three Republican senators are marking the historical moment by building legacies of their own.
The three GOP senators — Susan Collins, Lisa Murkowski and Mitt Romney — have broken with their party at critical junctures, despite the political risks of standing alone.
The three said separately that they don’t expect to agree with all of Jackson’s rulings from the bench. President Joe Biden’s nominee to replace retiring Justice Stephen Breyer will likely join the liberal wing of the high court, and is not expected to tilt its 6-3 balance toward conservatives. But the senators also indicated the Harvard-educated judge is more than just likable, well-qualified and possessing the judicial temperament to do the job. They said she is deserving of confirmation.
As the other Republican senators line up to oppose Jackson, the support from the three outliers gives Biden the bipartisan backing he was seeking for the historic choice. It may do little to shield them from the blowback of party leaders and activists back home.
The votes from Collins, Murkowski and Romney also serve as a rejection of the soft-on-crime attacks leveled at Jackson, some tapping into conspiracy theories.
Voting for the “historic nomination,” Murkowski said it was worth the political risk. She described it as a rejection of a Senate process that “is growing worse and more detached from reality.”
It’s a measure of the nation’s polarizing times that what could be seen as a milestone for the country — the first time in the court’s 233-year history it won’t be made up of mostly white men — has devolved into a political brawl.
Jackson’s nomination is advancing through procedural hurdles, and is on a glide path to confirmation in the Senate by week’s end.
While Democrats hold a narrow majority in the 50-50 chamber, with Vice President Kamala Harris able to break a tie, her vote is unlikely to be needed.
“The confirmation of the nation’s first Black woman to the highest court in the land will resonate for the rest of our nation’s history,” Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., said Tuesday as he launched the weeklong procedural steps toward confirmation.
GOP concerns
It wasn’t always guaranteed that Jackson, who was confirmed by the Senate to be a federal appellate judge just a year ago, would win over Republicans this time.
One key Republican, Sen. Lindsey Graham of South Carolina, who voted to confirm her for the lower court, led the opposition during the Senate Judiciary Committee hearings on her nomination.
Along with other Republicans, Graham saw political value in using Jackson’s hearing to dredge up complaints about the partisan treatment of previous Supreme Court nominees during the Donald Trump era — from Brett Kavanaugh, who faced accusations of sexual assault from his high school years that he strenuously denied during his 2018 confirmation hearing for the Supreme Court, to Amy Coney Barrett’s fervent Catholic faith.
“If we were in charge, she would not have been before this committee,” Graham said about the Republican side ahead of the panel’s deadlocked vote Monday. “You would have had somebody more moderate than this.”
But personal political legacies can be as strong a draw for senators, who like to think of themselves as one of the 100 distinct voices in the Senate.
Collins, Murkowski and Romney have all proven over long careers in Republican Party politics that they can be independent brokers.
Collins, who won re-election in 2020, has long gone her own way to vote for any president’s judicial nominees. An exception was Barrett, whose confirmation in October 2020 she said she could not support so close to the presidential election.
Collins expressed hope that the Senate could get back to a place where there is bipartisan support for qualified Supreme Court nominees “because it’s important for public confidence in the court. The court is not supposed to be a politicized institution.”
Romney, the party’s 2012 presidential nominee and the only Republican senator to vote to convict Donald Trump during both trials of the former president, has emerged as a new force in the Senate, helping to broker bipartisan deals on issues like infrastructure and COVID-19 aid. He declined to back Jackson just a year ago for the lower court, but once he had a chance to meet and review her record he said she “more than meets the standard of excellence and integrity.’’ He would run for re-election in 2024.
Murkowski faces perhaps the most precarious political climate because she is up for re-election this year in Alaska where Republican Party leaders have censured her over voting to convict Trump in impeachment over the aftermath of the Jan. 6, 2021, insurrection at the Capitol, among her other stances.
Alaska party leaders have endorsed Kelly Tshibaka, a Trump-backed candidate, ahead of the August primary. In the state’s new election system, the top four primary vote-getters, regardless of party affiliation, will advance to the general election where voters will rank their choices.
If anyone knows how to use political independence as a political currency, it’s Murkowski who in 2010 won a write-in campaign — voters had to write in M-u-r-k-o-w-s-k-i for Senate — after she lost the primary bid and party backing to a more conservative challenger.
Murkowski shrugged off the political attacks that could come from her decision to back Jackson as worth the risk.
“Is there any safe place in this polarized time?” she said.
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JACKSON — Jackson Hole firefighter Sam Stein is trading in his warm bed for body armor and shipping out to Ukraine.
“There was an attack on a maternity hospital,” Stein said. “It’s just disgusting to watch, and I’m sleeping in my warm bed and I thought, ‘What am I doing here? There’s no reason to be sitting here.’”
The 28-year-old Jackson Hole Fire/EMS member signed on to join 11 other firefighters — nine from the U.S., one from Germany and one from Australia — for a two-week aid mission called Task Force Joint Guardian. The team will deliver donated firefighting equipment, train Ukranians on its proper use and assist with responding to fire calls and caring for the wounded.
Californian Eric Hille, an Army veteran and engineer with the San Miguel Fire Department, organized the all-volunteer relief mission to Ukraine, where Russia’s invasion is exacting a devastating toll on civilians. Hille’s call for qualified volunteers was posted on a news website, which then got passed around social media, where a friend forwarded it to Stein.
“So I sent Eric my resume about 30 days ago,” Stein said.
Stein has asked that his departure date be kept private for security reasons but confirmed the team expects to leave in early April. They will be flying into Poland for the operation.
“Everyone is donating equipment, but getting it in the country is actually really difficult,” Stein said. “People donate gear and then you don’t hear what happens to it. Our goal is to hand deliver that equipment.”
The equipment Stein will be delivering includes medical supplies, extrication equipment such as steel-cutting tools and lifting beams, as well as struts to help stabilize collapsed structures for search and rescue missions.
“The [Ukrainian firefighters] are running all these calls with no break,” Stein said. “Because this is all U.S. gear, we’ll be training them and helping them get used to it. We’ll also be going on calls with them.”
Urban search and rescue also will be a key piece of Stein’s role, responding to bombings and completing body recovery from collapsed buildings.
Notwithstanding the ballistic gear and body armor that the volunteers purchased for their own protection, all of the supplies have been donated.
“We’ve gotten over $300,000 in donated equipment so far,” Stein said. “We received a large number of new equipment donations from companies like Paratech and Holmatro.”
Private donors also have been especially generous. One wealthy individual is flying half the team members and their gear out on his private plane.
The cost of transport to Ukraine from Poland will be significant. The group has budgeted $1,000 in fuel costs.
Stein, a Chicago native, has lived in Wyoming for six years. About three years ago, he was hired at Jackson Hole Fire/EMS and works out of Station 1 as a full-time firefighter and medic.
Stein will be leaving earlier than the others to make sure the gear is loaded onto the plane correctly. He is part of only the first wave of firefighters Hille is hoping to send to Ukraine.
Stein is quick to warn against what he calls “Rescue Randys” who might do more harm than good.
“A lot of people are going there with unclear intentions,” he said. “‘Rescue Randys who don’t have the skill set and are posting on social media where they’re going.”
Stein said he won’t be putting anything on social media and cautions others on the ground to do the same.
“Russians are tracking social media posts to locate recruitment bases,” he said. “Potentially kidnapping foreign agents would be a strong bargaining chip.”
When speaking about the mission, there is one specific moment Stein is looking forward to most.
“Seeing the faces of the Ukrainian firefighters when we show up with gear and supplies and expertise they have been so short on,” he said. “Knowing that they’re not alone will hopefully improve their spirits and make a difference for the public safety workers who have been so gutted by the conflict.”
Inez Brunson has a direct line from Jackson to the bomb shelters in Kyiv: Her family is sheltered there.
Since Brunson, 24, last spoke to the News&Guide during a Town Square protest against Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, her relatives have celebrated two birthdays from the relative safety of their apartment building’s basement. Her aunt, Svetlana Azizova, turned 64. Cousin Ella Yorovai celebrated her 40th with balloons and cake.
“They’re trying their best to make it as normal as possible,” said Brunson, who FaceTimes her cousins frequently and clings to updates on social media.
“By the grace of God they can still use their phones,” she said.
Brunson also calls a cousin living just outside the capital, whose wife and two young children she helped escape in a rental car. Continued fundraising, which Brunson spearheaded and drew many donations from Jackson Hole, allowed the family to buy a used car in Poland, which helps them make the 6-mile trek to the grocery store from their temporary abode.
By a rotten stroke of luck, a tree collapsed on the electrical system of the building where they are staying, Brunson said, stranding her family without power and hot water.
“As if their life could not be harder,” Brunson said, laughing through the strain of her anxiety. She and her mother, Olga, both massage therapists in Jackson, are trying to carry on with their daily routines while praying for their family members under siege.
They wear shirts with the Ukrainian flag in solidarity and to spread awareness.
“It makes me feel better about going through my day-to-day life, because it’s very much so a part of me and a part of what’s going on,” Brunson said. “At least people look at my shirt and they’re like, ‘Oh s--t, right, Ukraine.’”
While much of the world has moved on from images of Ukrainians sheltered in metro stations, the Russian bombardment hasn’t ceased.
“Although there has been talk about fighting dying down around the capital, my family and their friends are experiencing quite the opposite,” Brunson said March 31. “The bombing and fighting there has been the worst since the war began.”
Brunson’s family hasn’t been able to leave their apartment complex; there’s an unspoken curfew every evening.
Her aunt, Azizova, recently started going back upstairs to their apartment because she was getting sick from the basement air. In their unit they have three stocked refrigerators, which they share with a family they took under their wing, and cages full of rescued parrots that neighbors left behind.
“The bird noises bring a sense of calm to the home in between air raid sirens,” Brunson said. “I think that’s also part of the way that they feel as though they have more control over the situation because they’re able to help these other living creatures that are now like animals of war.”
After landing in Warsaw and crossing the border into Ukraine with an ambulance full of donated supplies including old Jackson Hole ski patrol jackets, David Craig is now waking up daily to the sound of gunfire in Kyiv.
“You’re only seeing half of it,” the 64-year-old Jackson resident said of war atrocities in Ukraine. “There’s absolutely no morals. ... They just basically killed everything in sight.”
Craig’s co-pilot for the ambulance was an American surgeon. His host, Alexi Vovk, is a fellow Spartan athlete who brought the popular obstacle course franchise to Ukraine. Through an eclectic global community of athletes, Craig is continuing to raise funds and deliver supplies from warehouses in Poland to shattered Ukrainian cities.
This week he’s headed into Bucha, where images of brutal murders sparked “global revulsion and accusations of war crimes” against Russia, the Associated Press reported Tuesday.
Craig has a slightly more personal connection, having worked with Alina Sheikova, a Ukrainian living in Jackson, to gather donations before his departure. Sheikova lived in Bucha from age 10 to 23 and still has friends and family members in the region.
One of her childhood friends, a humanitarian volunteer, was killed by Russians in the recent attacks, she said.
“He was just helping people who were hiding, who couldn’t get supplies,” Sheikova said. “And they just stopped him, got him out of the car and just shot him dead. For no reason. He has two kids and a wife. ... I still can’t believe that he’s gone.”
Sheikova was inspired by Craig’s bravery and action, especially as she watches helplessly from the U.S.
“If I could, I would rather be there,” Sheikova said.
When he first got into the country, Craig heard medical gloves were needed, so he packed another ambulance with 12,500 pairs, purchased through his online fundraiser.
During his time in the city he has shored up statues and helped outfit pickup trucks with machine guns. Currently he’s working with veterans to order camouflage suits and military goggles.
“I want to give what I can give to these people,” he said Monday over FaceTime. “I don’t plan on leaving until the war is over,” he said.
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CHEYENNE — A jury on Monday found a Cheyenne day care worker guilty of involuntary manslaughter.
Kristina Eileen Croy was charged in Laramie County District Court following the September 2019 death of an 8-month-old girl who was in her care at the time.
Croy pleaded not guilty to the charge in July 2020. Croy was accused of placing the infant in a too-small swaddling device against her mother’s wishes and against state guidelines. She was also accused of directing an employee of her day care to lie to police following the incident and of changing her story about the incident.
The infant, who was referred to during the trial and in court documents as “M.G.,” was identified by family members as Malia Gavagan.
Involuntary manslaughter, a felony, carries a penalty of up to 20 years in prison and/or a $10,000 fine. A sentencing hearing has not yet been scheduled.
The jury came back with the guilty verdict around 4:30 p.m. Monday, following about five hours of deliberation. The trial began March 28, and closing arguments took place Monday morning.
Marcia Bean, the county and prosecuting attorney for Big Horn County, was appointed to prosecute the case.
The victim’s grandmother, Eileen Gavagan, worked for former Laramie County District Attorney Scott Homar and maintains a connection with current Laramie County DA Leigh Anne Manlove, who worked as a prosecutor in Homar’s administration.
Bean said Tuesday that the trial, which she said was delayed by the COVID-19 pandemic and filings by the defendant, was a long time coming. The prosecutor said she was “very happy” that the case was close to a resolution.
“I’m glad for the Gavagans, and I believe that it was an appropriate verdict. The jury worked hard, and so I’m satisfied with how it all came out,” Bean said in an interview.
Eileen Gavagan told the Wyoming Tribune Eagle on Tuesday that “it was very difficult to remain quiet and emotionless” during the roughly five-day trial.
But as the jury’s guilty verdict was read, “finally we could breathe,” she said.
“The family members and those that loved Malia Gavagan are so grateful for the hard work of the prosecution team,” Eileen Gavagan wrote in an email. “We appreciated the jury’s attentiveness in the trial despite the very difficult circumstances and the emotions that arise when hearing about a child’s death, and seeing videos and photos of a deceased child.
“We are grateful that we had this precious child for 8 months (and) 21 days, and we will forever miss her,” she continued. “We hope for healing and peace and look forward to the sentencing hearing.”
Croy’s attorney, Dion Custis, gave a short statement to the WTE on Tuesday.
“It was an incredibly sad case — a very tough case for anyone to consider, including the jury,” he said.
In his opening argument in the trial, Custis called Malia’s death a “tragic accident,” and said Croy had not done anything criminal. Custis said Croy likely wouldn’t have taken the child into her care if she’d known about Malia’s “health issues,” which he said included being born premature and her mother’s use of marijuana while she was pregnant.
Croy’s attorney said the child was taking medication for acid reflux, but that Croy did not know this. He also referred to Malia as having “breathing issues” and “chronic lung disease.”
Custis said there was documentation that the child could not roll over on her own, meaning it would not have been unsafe to place her in a swaddling device, he said.
Regarding the accusation that Croy had changed her version of events, Custis said the day care worker had been “in a frantic state of mind” following the incident.
In Bean’s opening argument, she said Malia’s mother, Julianne Gavagan, stopped using marijuana when she found out she was pregnant.
Bean characterized the infant as “active” and “healthy” immediately before her death.
Croy remains free on bond pending sentencing.
Eileen and Julianne Gavagan also filed a wrongful death lawsuit in May 2021 in Laramie County District Court. The suit, which names Croy and her day care as defendants, has a scheduling conference set for May 9.
The criminal charge stemmed from a Sept. 25, 2019, incident.
The Cheyenne Police Department responded to Cheyenne Regional Medical Center that afternoon, following the report of a deceased infant, according to a probable cause affidavit written by CPD Detective Allison Baca.
Malia Gavagan had been in Croy’s care. Croy operated the day care “It’s a Child’s World They Matter,” which was licensed by the Wyoming Department of Family Services, the affidavit said.
Croy told law enforcement that she’d found Malia at about 1:20 p.m. that day face down on the living room floor. The child was not breathing and had no heartbeat.
Croy said she yelled for her then-18-year-old daughter to call 911.
Croy said that, at about 12:30 p.m., she’d put Malia in a “little sleeper,” which is described in the affidavit as a swaddling device that zips up to the neck with Velcro flaps, restraining a child’s arms. Croy told police she had to use the “swaddler” for prevention of sudden infant death syndrome.
The Mayo Clinic describes SIDS as “the unexplained death, usually during sleep, of a seemingly healthy baby less than a year old.”
Croy said Malia’s mother knew she used the swaddling device, a version of events the parent contradicted.
After putting Malia in the device, Croy put the child on the floor on her back. She described looking over “a couple times” and seeing the infant had “dozed off.”
In at least one instance, Malia had rolled over, which Croy said she didn’t like, so she rolled the child onto her back. When she checked on the child again, Croy said Malia was lying face down and not breathing.
She said another day care employee stayed with the other children – 11 additional small children and infants – as her daughter called 911 and Croy began CPR. At this time, Croy said she heard Malia gurgling and noticed her lips were turning purple.
Croy said that, at the time of the incident, she was in the kitchen cleaning and doing paperwork, moving between the rooms.
Both Croy’s daughter and the second day care employee later contradicted Croy’s account in interviews with law enforcement, according to the affidavit. They said the second day care employee had been at lunch during the incident.
Croy’s daughter said a neighbor had come over to help watch the children while waiting for the employee to return.
The day care employee “immediately reported (in the police interview) that Croy had asked her to lie and say she was there at the time of the incident,” the affidavit said.
Croy contacted a Department of Family Services employee after the incident and asked her to come to the hospital. Croy initially gave the DFS worker similar information to what she provided to law enforcement, though she did not tell the DFS worker she’d found Malia face down, as she’d apparently told law enforcement.
Croy added that, although her home day care had cameras, she did not know if they’d been recording. Croy said she’d noticed the night before that the camera in the living room, where Malia had been at the time of the incident, was pointed toward the ceiling.
In an interview with the DFS worker about a month later, Croy changed her story, according to the affidavit.
She told the DFS worker that Malia could not roll over independently, and when she checked on Malia at one point, the infant’s head was “turned,” and she was not breathing.
Malia’s mother, Julianne Gavagan, told police the infant had no health problems and was not sick on the day she died.
Julianne added that Malia could sit up and “frequently rolled from her back to her stomach,” and had “on occasion” rolled from her stomach to her back, but that it was difficult for her, the affidavit said.
The swaddling device Malia was wearing the day she died had a sewn-in tag indicating it was for babies three to six months old and between 13-18 pounds. It measured 22.5 inches long. Also on the tag were the words: “STOP swaddling when your baby shows signs of rolling over or breaking out of the swaddle.”
At the time of her autopsy, the 8-month-old weighed 19 pounds and was 25 inches long.
An autopsy report concluded Malia died of positional asphyxia, meaning the infant’s position had prevented her from breathing properly.
The DFS worker provided Detective Baca with documentation that showed Croy had been trained in “safe sleep practices,” including that babies should not be swaddled “without a written statement and instructions from physician.”
Wyoming Child Care Licensing Rules say: “Sleeping infants shall not be swaddled without a licensed healthcare professional statement, including instructions and a time frame for swaddling an infant, on file. Swaddling is prohibited for infants that have the ability to roll over independently.”
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https://www.wyomingnews.com/laramieboomerang/news/jury-finds-day-care-worker-guilty-of-manslaughter/article_3620c60c-36d1-5793-ac28-cac3d0037918.html
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Harmful algae season is months away, but Wyoming regulators are already gearing up to test for toxins at some of the state’s most vulnerable waters.
The Wyoming Department of Environmental Quality began tracking harmful algal blooms statewide in 2017. Every spring, the agency revisits the past year’s findings to refine its strategy for the next.
DEQ staff discussed their takeaways from the 2021 bloom season at a virtual public meeting on March 24. The DEQ continued to rely last year on information from citizen reports and satellite imagery to help with detecting and tracking blooms.
In collaboration with other state agencies, DEQ staff also began conducting routine monitoring at 20 popular recreation spots and introduced tiered health advisories — rather than blanket warnings — to distinguish potentially harmful blooms from ones actively producing toxins.
Now the agency must build the lessons from 2021 into its plans for 2022. It’s just starting to work out what that might look like.
“We’re trying to identify other water bodies that we want to do monitoring at — looking at what our resources are,” Lindsay Patterson, surface water quality standards supervisor at the Wyoming Department of Environmental Quality, told the Star-Tribune.
Harmful algal blooms have become a growing concern across the country in recent years.
The tiny organisms that cause the blooms grow better in warmer water — an effect of climate change. And they thrive in water overloaded with nutrients like nitrogen and phosphorus, which rainwater carries from onshore sources, such as manure, to nearby lakes, ponds and streams.
Nutrients can be tough pollutants to regulate. The state is in the process of developing standards intended to lower nutrient levels in surface waters, but according to Patterson, there’s no one-size-fits-all approach the state can take.
“So much of addressing the problem of nutrients has to be driven by the local community,” she said. “That’s what’s going to be the most effective moving forward.”
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) reiterated its commitment to supporting states’ nutrient pollution mitigation efforts in a policy memorandum issued Tuesday.
“Our nutrients memo is a call for scaling up the innovative approaches being used by farmers, ranchers, water agencies, local municipalities, industry, and communities to make progress,” Radhika Fox, EPA assistant administrator for water, said in a statement.
Wyoming regulators know a lot more about harmful algal blooms than they did in 2017.
The DEQ has counted more blooms every year it’s looked — almost certainly, Patterson said, because the agency has improved at finding them.
Last summer, the Wyoming Department of Health issued bloom advisories for 28 bodies of water and toxin advisories for eight of those.
There are “just more eyes on the ground,” Patterson said.
But the state still has plenty to figure out.
It knows, for example, that less than half of documented harmful algal blooms have been found to produce dangerous levels of toxins. But it isn’t sure why.
People exposed to those toxins while recreating in surface water could experience anything from gastrointestinal issues to rashes to cold-like symptoms, and may even need to be hospitalized.
Pets, meanwhile, tend to be more susceptible than humans. After exposure, they might cough or start to stumble. Their condition can quickly deteriorate and lead to death.
If humans or pets become sick after contact with water and a bloom was visible in the area, the illness should be reported to the DEQ, Patterson said.
Harmful algal blooms typically begin in Wyoming in mid-July and end around November. During those months, members of the public can check a map of bloom advisories maintained by the agency before recreating and look out for posted signs warning of toxin risk.
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https://www.wyomingnews.com/laramieboomerang/news/state-officials-warn-of-more-algae-blooms/article_ecd065c0-d316-57c9-ae1c-2853b0a31083.html
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After Marshall Fire chaos, kennel club pushes for microchipping pets and plans free clinic
Diane Simcik remembers the stories from last year's Marshall Fire.
She heard about the Superior dog day care facility that — faced with a wall of flames and no way to safely evacuate all its dogs — had to turn 11 loose in hopes they'd eventually be found. Thankfully, they were.
She also heard stories from the president of Larimer County's Buckhorn Valley Kennel Club, of which Simcik is also a member. The club president and his girlfriend traveled to Boulder County to help assist after the fire. He ultimately took two horses into his care while their owners were evacuated. She, a veterinary technician, had the unfortunate job of identifying pet remains in the fire's wake, according to Simcik.
"That fire was chaos," she told the Coloradoan on Tuesday. "And there are so many pets still missing down there. There are so many people who don't think about or can't afford to have their pets (micro)chipped."
With that in mind, the Buckhorn Valley Kennel Club is holding its first-ever free dog microchipping clinic in Fort Collins later this month in hopes of preventing pets from being lost during emergencies like a wildfire.
In Larimer County:Marshall Fire exposes potential for urban fire risk here at home
From noon to 4 p.m. April 30, Kennel Club members and volunteers from the Front Range Community College Student Veterinary Technician Association will microchip up to 175 dogs for free on a first-come, first-served basis, Simcik said. The clinic will take place at Poudre Pet and Feed, 622 N. College Ave.
Each microchip will also come with a free lifetime registration to the American Kennel Club's Reunite program, which provides recovery service for microchipped animals.
While this is the Buckhorn Valley Kennel Club's first clinic of this kind, Simcik said they'll be accepting donations on April 30 with the hopes of hosting more in the future and possibly expanding the service to cats.
Ask a climatologist:What's behind Colorado's recent rash of wildfires, grassfires?
Erin Udell reports on news, culture, history and more for the Coloradoan. Contact her at ErinUdell@coloradoan.com. The only way she can keep doing what she does is with your support. If you subscribe, thank you. If not, sign up for a digital subscription to the Coloradoan today.
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https://www.coloradoan.com/story/news/2022/04/07/marshall-fire-larimer-county-buckhorn-valley-kennel-club-push-pet-microchip/9474393002/
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The walls evidently aren’t closing in on President Joe Biden.
Despite the mainstream press finally taking up the sleazy business dealings discussed in emails found on Hunter Biden’s laptop, the media’s lack of interest in the president’s knowledge or involvement in this lucrative part of the family business is palpable.
If President Donald Trump were caught up in similar circumstances, he’d be hounded at every press conference and during every walk to Marine One with the question of what he knew and when he knew it. It’d dominate cable news and the Sunday shows, newspaper editorials and op-ed pages.
While it’s nice that the laptop, once dismissed as Russian disinformation, is now finally considered a legitimate source of news by what are supposed to be news outlets, the reporting comes a year and half late and doesn’t add new information commensurate with the delay.
At this rate, the press will develop a keen interest in the Joe Biden angle to the story — the most newsworthy and consequential angle — sometime in late 2023.
The president’s son, Hunter, and his brother, Jim, have made a living from trafficking on their family name and political connections. The laptop is a guide to a particularly ripe example, a deal with CEFC China Energy, a cat’s paw of the Communist Party of China, that funneled nearly $5 million to Hunter and his uncle.
The president has said that he’s “never spoken” to Hunter about “his overseas business dealings.” Let’s stipulate that’s true. It still wouldn’t have taken much conversation for the then-vice president to understand why his son was hitching a ride on Air Force Two with him on a trip to China in 2013. It wasn’t for sightseeing.
Hunter met with banker Jonathan Li, whose private equity fund got approved by Chinese authorities shortly afterward. Hunter sat on the board.
Until they had a falling out over Hunter joining the board of the Ukrainian energy firm Burisma, Biden’s son was in business with John Kerry’s stepson, Chris Heinz. So, that’s two relations of Democrats who had run for president and occupied high government office coincidentally doing buckraking together.
How could Joe Biden and John Kerry, these sophisticated statesmen, not notice what was going on? Had they never encountered the phenomenon of relatives of government officials cashing in on proximity to power before?
Even if Joe Biden wanted to avert his gaze from Hunter, in the grip of a terrible addiction, what about his brother, Jim? Did Joe never talk to him about business either?
Even though we knew about it back in 2020, the CEFC deal remains jaw dropping. The company sought to extend Chinese influence as part of Beijing’s “Belt and Road” initiative. The founder of CEFC, Ye Jianming, roped in Hunter Biden, infamously giving him a 2.8 carat diamond after their first meeting. Everyone knew the score.
Hunter referred to another CEFC official as “the fing spy chief” and was under no illusions about his own value to the firm. He told Tony Bobulinski, recruited to structure the deal, that CEFC was “coming to be MY partner to be partners with the Bidens.”
The only one who didn’t understand the nature of this relationship was Joe Biden, who must have believed well-heeled Chinese companies sought out his son for his business acumen and sound judgment.
A notorious e-mail says that “the big guy,” identified by Bobulinksi as Joe Biden, was going to get a 10% cut of the deal. In a text, Hunter’s associate James Gilliar reminded Bobulinksi, “Don’t mention Joe being involved, it’s only when u are face to face.”
If Republicans take the House, they should make all of this a major focus of investigation. In the meantime, the press ought — out of shame, if nothing else — to bring more skepticism to assurances that Joe Biden knew nothing. Even the president’s fiercest critics don’t believe that he’s that clueless.
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https://www.wyomingnews.com/laramieboomerang/opinion/guest_column/what-did-joe-biden-know-and-when-did-he-know-it/article_9b7252ca-a826-5759-a29a-e5b9dd6c7d99.html
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CHEYENNE – After serving constituents in House District 9 for three terms as a Republican, Rep. Landon Brown said he felt his allegiance to the party was brought into question.
Nonetheless, the Cheyenne lawmaker defended his political identity, values and his recent decision to run for a fourth term.
“It floors me that any party feels they can dictate whether or not you fit into their belief system,” he told the Wyoming Tribune Eagle. “I’m a Republican, and I will continue to be a Republican. The state party doesn’t have that control over me.”
Brown has received criticism by Republicans not only for his more moderate views expressed on the floor of the Wyoming Legislature, but his stance on Rep. Liz Cheney, R-Wyo. He continues to be a vocal supporter of her role in the congressional committee investigating the U.S. Capitol riots, which resulted in her censure by the Wyoming GOP and Republican National Committee. The U.S. congresswoman was also condemned for her vote to impeach former President Donald Trump.
Brown said he doesn’t fear censure by the state party because they are not the ones electing him, nor is he afraid of association with Cheney.
“I’ve been called Liz Cheney 2.0 now probably a dozen times in the past couple of weeks,” he said. “And, to me, that’s an honor. Somebody that stands up and defends the Constitution the way she does, and the way that she fights for the sanctity of law, that’s what I want.”
Where his true concern lies, and what caused hesitation in his decision to seek re-election, is a decline in civility among legislators. He said instability has risen throughout the past term, and it is far worse than it has ever been. From receiving threats on his phone of violence to witnessing “vitriol and hatred” during the 2022 budget session, he said it felt like a tipping point.
“Wyoming used to be the gold standard when it came to civility and rising above all that,” he said. “Now, if anything, I view that we’ve gotten worse than even what many new members of Congress are doing.”
Following his own reflection with family, friends and colleagues, he said he knew he was strong enough to push past the hostility. He wants to be a part of the solution that keeps the state moving forward, especially after he said he has observed growth and success in other areas throughout the past six years.
Brown considers reducing the state budget by nearly a billion dollars, passing kindergarten-third grade reading assessment and intervention legislation and approving pay raises for state employees accomplishments by the Wyoming Legislature.
If he were elected for a fourth term, he said his next priorities would build on the progress made, but ultimately his focus is diversifying the tax base. This is based around moving away from minerals as a main source of income, removing exemptions and lowering taxes overall. Brown said he believes this would level the playing field and stabilize tax revenues.
He also plans to continue representing his constituents’ needs, while balancing the priorities of the entire state. Although he is a legislator in the most populous county in Wyoming and in the state’s Capital City, he said he did not want to end up like the Front Range of Colorado, where he alleged Denver dictates the entire state’s policies.
“Our job in the Legislature is not to cast what’s good for me, or good for my constituents all the time,” he said. “It’s what’s good for Wyoming.”
In representing the residents of the state, Brown said he wants legislators to concentrate on the important issues. His critique coming out of the session was that there were too many arguments about non-related issues in Wyoming, such as abortion and gun rights. Instead, he said he wants the upcoming 67th Legislature to develop a sound economy and strong education system.
“I do believe in the Second Amendment. I do believe in the Constitution. I do believe in the sanctity of life. I just don’t believe that we need to have those discussions every single session to promote that Wyoming is the most pro-life state or the most pro-gun state,” he said. “People know that. That’s why Wyoming is as right as it is, and it will continue to stay red.”
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https://www.wyomingnews.com/news/local_news/wyo-rep-brown-defends-decision-to-seek-re-election-as-a-republican/article_80e3ada9-f22c-5c40-8361-bf0d0dd630b1.html
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https://www.wyomingnews.com/news/local_news/wyo-rep-brown-defends-decision-to-seek-re-election-as-a-republican/article_80e3ada9-f22c-5c40-8361-bf0d0dd630b1.html
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The Supreme Court’s landmark ruling in the case of Brown v. Board of Education, the most-celebrated civil rights decision in our nation’s history, is a reminder of the unpredictable twists and turns that shape American constitutional law.
On May 17, 1954, the Court held that racial segregation of children in the public schools violated the Equal Protection Clause of the 14th Amendment. The Court’s denunciation of the separate-but-equal doctrine, which had provided the legal foundation for segregation in American life, began to open the gates of opportunity for Black Americans that had been closed since the dawn of the republic. No single judicial ruling could be expected to overcome the ills of racism, hundreds of years in the making, but Brown was a start. Indeed, it was a very good start.
Of all the remarkable dimensions of the Court’s ruling in Brown, perhaps the most remarkable was that it happened at all. But for the death of one chief justice, and the succession of a very different chief justice, the Court’s opinion in Brown v. Board of Education might well have upheld Plessy and the separate but equal.
Brown represented the consolidation of four cases, dispersed across the country, that raised the constitutionality of state-ordered segregation in public schools. The cases were argued before the Court in December of 1952, which meant that its ruling would have been delivered at the close of the Court’s term in June of 1953.
The Court, however, was deeply divided on the question. It emerged from the Conference discussion that four justices wished to uphold Plessy. At the head of that bloc was Chief Justice Fred Vinson, a former Treasury Secretary nominated to the Court by President Harry S. Truman. Vinson had written the Court’s earlier opinions striking down segregation in higher education, but he appeared to his colleagues to be opposed to extending the reasoning and rulings to public education.
Chief Justice Vinson’s presentation at the Conference on Dec. 13, 1952, ignored the fact that the separate but equal doctrine had provided the foundation for racial discrimination in the South. He was not prepared to overrule Plessy v. Ferguson, particularly because there was a significant “body of law back of us on separate but equal.”
Justice Felix Frankfurter, who wanted to overturn Plessy, persuaded the Court to hold another round of argument, scheduling it for the 1953 term, which would begin in October. Frankfurter hoped additional time and argument, accompanied by what he expected to be a supportive amicus brief from the incoming Eisenhower administration, might win over his recalcitrant colleagues on the high bench.
Frankfurter offered two plausible pretexts for the delay. First, the Conference had taken no vote, not even a tentative vote, on the segregation issue. Second, as Frankfurter pointed out, “no one on the Court was pushing” for a vote on the issue. Chief Justice Vinson was not eager to hold a vote that he might lose. And, even if a 5-4 majority could be mustered to overturn Plessy, such a thin margin would be regarded by the prevailing justices, and certainly by many in the South, as an insufficient victory, one that might not inspire respect and adherence, and perhaps one soon reversed by a subsequent Court, all of which would undermine a ruling to strike down separate by equal.
The Court’s lack of insistence on a vote, moreover, reflected the justices’ sensitivity to the cultural and political realities of life in the South that could not be ignored. Justice Hugo Black, born and raised in Alabama, predicted “violence and chaos” in the Deep South if the Court overturned Plessy.
The deeply divided Court thus faced not only the matter of deciding whether separate but equal violated the 14th Amendment’s Equal Protection Clause, but also the great challenge of fashioning a remedy, should the Court decide to overturn Plessy. While the justices espoused varying doctrinal approaches to the task of constitutional interpretation, in this case, at least, they were all focused on the issue of the impact of their decision on the South.
Five weeks before oral argument, Chief Justice Vinson died suddenly from a heart attack. With his focus on the Brown case, Justice Frankfurter said in a private comment that since has become widely repeated, “This is the first indication I have ever had that there is a God.” (Note to readers: this is not how we should wish to be remembered by our colleagues.)
The twists and turns of life and death opened a vacancy on the Supreme Court to be filled by President Dwight D. Eisenhower. His nomination of Earl Warren, a former California governor and attorney general, and heralded as a conservative Republican, changed the direction of the Court and the future of the nation. We turn next week to the leadership of Chief Justice Warren in fashioning the Court’s unanimous decision to overturn Plessy v. Ferguson.
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https://www.wyomingnews.com/opinion/guest_column/adler-the-brown-decision-twists-and-turns-shape-the-constitution/article_64377d72-7787-599d-83c4-706608491c0a.html
| 2022-04-07T11:54:36Z
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https://www.wyomingnews.com/opinion/guest_column/adler-the-brown-decision-twists-and-turns-shape-the-constitution/article_64377d72-7787-599d-83c4-706608491c0a.html
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When it comes to electing women, the Equality State has some work to do. In Wyoming, just 16 of 90 state legislators, 16 of 93 county commissioners and 19 of 99 mayors are women.
In fact, new data from the Center for American Women and Politics (CAWP) shows that the Equality State trails the national average for women in municipal office by 10 percentage points and ranks 48th overall for women in elected office.
These figures serve as a reminder that elected offices at the state and local levels – commonly the first steps toward higher office – are still largely male. The numbers have changed only minimally since 1992 – widely declared “The Year of the Woman.”
Why has so little changed in those three decades?
One reason is what researchers Danielle Thomson and Aaron King call the “gendered pipeline to power.” Their research shows that there are gatekeepers who have significant influence over who enters the pipeline.
For example, those who give heavily to politics have (not surprisingly) significant influence over who advances. Thomson and King write, “Women are as likely to vote as men, and report similarly high levels of political interest. [However, m]en are more likely to donate money, and they give far more than women.”
CAWP’s director, Jean Sinzdak, agrees that recruitment is one part of the solution. “Efforts have to be … intentional. Change just doesn’t happen on its own,” she said.
A lot of the early research into why more women don’t run for office focused on individuals. Researchers looked at whether women were as ambitious as men or if, instead, there was an “ambition gap.” Recent studies show that, contrary to lacking ambition, women actually have to be more ambitious – approximately five times more ambitious – than their male counterparts to overcome obstacles and enter the pipeline to power.
Another area of significant concern is the rising threat of violence.
We’ve seen that recently with threats against Sen. Nethercott, Rep. Brown, Rep. LeBeau and former Rep. Burlingame. While all candidates and elected officials are targets of abuse and attacks, both online and in person, the number and nature of those threats tend to be different for women than for men.
The Carnegie Endowment’s research shows that “[f]emale politicians are not only targeted disproportionately, but also subjected to different forms of harassment and abuse. Attacks targeting male politicians mostly relate to their professional duties, whereas online harassment directed at female politicians is more likely to focus on their physical appearance and sexuality, and include threats of sexual violence and humiliating or sexualized imagery.”
Abuse, harassment, alleged death threats. Unfortunately, the specter of violence against women in elected office is rising – even as the number of women in local and state office has plateaued.
We know that representative government benefits everyone because the policies that advance better reflect our communities. So, as we head into the candidate filing period – which opens May 12 and closes May 27 – what can we do to ensure more reflective leadership?
Encourage great candidates – and women, in particular – to run! Support those candidates with your time, your money and your vote. Support groups and PACs, like Cowgirl Run Fund, that support women and seek to build the pipeline to power.
Work to change the systems and support those that will lead to parity in the future. As Thomson and King write, “The gendered pipeline to power matters at least as much as rates of entry, if not more, for future prospects of gender parity.” Making donations to female candidates and supporting policies proven to improve representative government – such as multi-member districts and proportional representation – are two options.
Speak out against threats and hold elected officials accountable to do the same. Demand that leaders put transparent accountability mechanisms into place and call out abuse, harassment and threats of violence. They are all on the rise – especially for women, even right here in Wyoming – and they have a chilling effect on female candidates.
Despite its feel-good name, the Equality State has a long way to go to elect politicians who reflect our communities and to protect the women we do elect. We know that more voices are better for our democracy – reflective government benefits all of us. This year, we have a chance to make a difference for our communities and our state. We can advocate for better government, demand a zero-tolerance environment for threats and elect more women to usher in more representative leadership.
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https://www.wyomingnews.com/opinion/guest_column/simon-the-equality-state-needs-to-do-a-better-job-of-electing-women/article_e719f676-ea39-5475-8449-34461c98456b.html
| 2022-04-07T11:54:42Z
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wyomingnews.com
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https://www.wyomingnews.com/opinion/guest_column/simon-the-equality-state-needs-to-do-a-better-job-of-electing-women/article_e719f676-ea39-5475-8449-34461c98456b.html
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