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package brsdevopm.drivo.controller.service;\n ALLEGAN, Mich — Lexi Koopman is making sure no kids are left out from participating in a popular spring tradition.
The 16-year-old is busy organizing an Easter egg hunt for kids with disabilities on Saturday, April 16th.
"It's like such a staple in many kids life and kids that struggle with disabilities may not get an opportunity to participate or may not get an opportunity to participate in it safely and fairly," explained Koopman. "I have started collecting prizes and eggs and stuff like that. Right now I am in need of donations and volunteers and sponsors to help sponsor the silent auction."
Koopman knows there's a need because she's grown up with a disability. She is legally blind and suffers from Functional neurological disorder, which affects her walking.
The event is scheduled from 11am to 3pm at Faith Baptist Church in Allegan.
It's not her first time giving back to the community.
In the past, Koopman has had bake sales to raise money for Helen DeVos Children's Hospital.
"I've just always had a passion for helping kids. That's just always been what I've been drawn to," she told FOX 17 News.
Koopman plans to use the proceeds from the silent auction to benefit the pediatric unit at Mary Free Bed Rehabilitation Hospital.
To learn more, or to help out with the Easter egg hunt, email Koopman at lexikoopman263@gmail.com or head to the event page on Facebook. | https://www.fox17online.com/news/coronavirus/something-good/hunting-for-hope-teen-organizing-easter-egg-hunt-for-kids-with-disabilities | 2022-04-08T18:23:36Z | fox17online.com | control | https://www.fox17online.com/news/coronavirus/something-good/hunting-for-hope-teen-organizing-easter-egg-hunt-for-kids-with-disabilities | 1 | 1 | green-iguana-35 | null |
It’s likely you’ve never heard of John Lewis Barkley.
The Missouri native fought in World War I, winning the Congressional Medal of Honor and later writing a book about his experience. Yet his book, “No Hard Feelings!” and his name remain in relative obscurity, even as the nation marks the 100th anniversary of World War I’s end.
That surprises Steven Trout, who helped get the book reprinted under the title “Scarlet Fields” in 2014.
“I’m astonished, in fact, and I don’t really know the reason,” he told St. Louis Public Radio.
Trout is an English professor at the University of South Alabama who specializes in war literature.
He first learned of Barkley during visits to the National World War I Museum and Memorial in Kansas City. The museum’s director asked Trout whether he’d read Barkley’s book.
“I frankly had never heard about it and he said, ‘You need to get a copy of this and you need to read this.’” Trout recalled. “I picked it up and could not put it down; I was absolutely riveted by his experiences.”
Barkley was born in 1895 and grew up on a farm near Holden in west central Missouri. He prided himself on being a woodsman and claimed to be a descendant of Daniel Boone.
While he knew how to handle a gun, Barkley had a bad stammer that made it difficult to pass the Army’s medical examination, even after the U.S. entered the war. Once he was accepted to the military, his officers soon recognized his skills.
“He could hunt. He could trap. He was an excellent shot. So when he was sent to Camp Funston in 1917 the Army realized here was someone that could do this kind of intelligence work,” Trout said.
Barkley would do dangerous reconnaissance work in wartime France; scouting ahead of American troops, observing the enemy and reporting back, as well as serving as a sniper. He excelled in the role.
His actions on Oct. 7, 1918 made him one of the most decorated soldiers of World War I.
That afternoon, he was sent ahead of the American lines near Cunel, France, to try to learn where the German force was located. Shortly after, his telephone wire back to camp was cut and Barkley saw German soldiers advancing. He quickly spotted a German machine gun nest and an abandoned French tank.
He grabbed a light machine gun, as much ammunition as he could carry and took cover in the tank.
“Probably to the tune of an hour and a half to two hours, he fended off a German force of several hundred enemy soldiers and did this single-handedly from this tank,” Trout said.
Barkley would win the Congressional Medal of Honor, along with five medals for bravery from other Allied nations.
Back at home
After the war Barkley returned to the farm in Missouri.
But the bottom fell out of the agriculture economy and Barkley soon was looking for a way to support his widowed mother and himself.
He decided to capitalize on the wave of books about what was then known as the Great War. Barkley would send notes to a military friend, Mike Mulcahy, who wrote the manuscript. After being turned down by several publishers the Cosmopolitan Book House in New York took on the project and had five editors fine tune the book.
“No Hard Feelings” came out in 1930, just after the Great Depression set in and Americans had less money to spend. The tone of the book was also very different from many of the anti-war books of the time, such as “All Quiet on the Western Front” and “Goodbye to All That.”
“Barkley’s book was not this anti-heroic, grim treatment of impersonal slaughter, which is what we usually associate with World War I literature,” Trout said. “His book was about individual initiative.”
Barkley was unapologetic about his wartime exploits and his recollections of the Great War were at odds with the time.
The book would barely sell.
Reviving a wartime memoir
Barkley had wanted to name it “Scarlet Fields,” but the editors used an anecdote in the book to name it "No Hard Feelings," instead.
“I personally think ‘Scarlet Fields’ is a much stronger title.” Trout said, "I have no idea what possessed the Cosmopolitan Book House to change it. I certainly suspect it didn’t help with book sales for this book that came out at an inauspicious time.”
With the blessing of Barkley’s daughter, Joan Barkley Wells, Trout approached the University Press of Kansas about reprinting the book. It came out in 2014 under the title Barkley preferred: “Scarlet Fields: The Combat Memoir of a World War I Medal of Honor Hero.”
Today, a century after the war’s end, Trout said Barkley’s memoir provides a unique view of a World War I American intelligence platoon. Despite the fact that Barkley had a lot of help in telling his story, the story is truly his.
“One of the amazing things about this book is that Barkley’s voice is absolutely authentic,” Trout said. “I mean, he sounds like this Missouri woodsman out on the front porch of his home in west central Missouri just telling you what happened to him in a laconic, matter-of-fact voice.”
What became of Barkley?
Trout said for a while, Barkley worked for a detective agency in Kansas City, but it didn’t last. Eventually, he met and married Marguerite Mullen, who had grown up on a large dairy farm in Johnson County, Kansas, southwest of Kansas City.
The Mullen family owned quite a bit of land in an area that would become a city suburb.
“Long story short, he sort of went from rags to riches,” Trout said. “He went from being a person who was struggling to hang on to the family farm to a person of means, partly through marriage.”
Barkley worked as a park supervisor in Johnson County.
“He had a real passion for public parks and believed very strongly that people needed to experience the great outdoors and get out and have the kinds of experiences he had as a boy in Missouri,” Trout said.
A park building and roadway in the Johnson County park system are named after Barkley.
He died in 1966 at the age of 70.
Follow Maria on Twitter: @radioaltman
Copyright 2020 St. Louis Public Radio. To see more, visit St. Louis Public Radio. | https://www.kcur.org/2018-11-12/the-wwi-hero-from-missouri-you-dont-know-but-no-hard-feelings | 2022-04-08T18:25:14Z | kcur.org | control | https://www.kcur.org/2018-11-12/the-wwi-hero-from-missouri-you-dont-know-but-no-hard-feelings | 1 | 1 | green-iguana-35 | null |
ROME (AP) — Prices for food commodities like grains and vegetable oils reached their highest levels ever last month largely because of Russia’s war in Ukraine and the “massive supply disruptions” it is causing, threatening millions of people in Africa, the Middle East and elsewhere with hunger and malnourishment, the United Nations said Friday.
The U.N. Food and Agriculture Organization said its Food Price Index, which tracks monthly changes in international prices for a basket of commodities, averaged 159.3 points last month, up 12.6% from February. As it is, the February index was the highest level since its inception in 1990.
FAO said the war in Ukraine was largely responsible for the 17.1% rise in the price of grains, including wheat and others like oats, barley and corn. Together, Russia and Ukraine account for around 30% and 20% of global wheat and corn exports, respectively.
While predictable given February’s steep rise, “this is really remarkable,” said Josef Schmidhuber, deputy director of FAO’s markets and trade division. “Clearly, these very high prices for food require urgent action.”
The biggest price increases were for vegetable oils: that price index rose 23.2%, driven by higher quotations for sunflower seed oil that is used for cooking. Ukraine is the world’s leading exporter of sunflower oil, and Russia is No. 2.
“There is, of course, a massive supply disruption, and that massive supply disruption from the Black Sea region has fueled prices for vegetable oil,” Schmidhuber told reporters in Geneva.
He said he couldn’t calculate how much the war was to blame for the record food prices, noting that poor weather conditions in the United States and China also were blamed for crop concerns. But he said “logistical factors” were playing a big role.
“Essentially, there are no exports through the Black Sea, and exports through the Baltics is practically also coming to an end,” he said.
Soaring food prices and disruption to supplies coming from Russia and Ukraine have threatened food shortages in countries in the Middle East, Africa and parts of Asia where many people already were not getting enough to eat.
Those nations rely on affordable supplies of wheat and other grains from the Black Sea region to feed millions of people who subsist on subsidized bread and bargain noodles, and they now face the possibility of further political instability.
Other large grain producers like the United States, Canada, France, Australia and Argentina are being closely watched to see if they can quickly ramp up production to fill in the gaps, but farmers face issues like climbing fuel and fertilizer costs exacerbated by the war, drought and supply chain disruptions.
In the Sahel region of Central and West Africa, the disruptions from the war have added to an already precarious food situation caused by COVID-19, conflicts, poor weather and other structural problems, said Sib Ollo, senior researcher for the World Food Program for West and Central Africa in Dakar, Senegal.
“There is a sharp deterioration of the food and nutrition security in the region,” he told reporters, saying 6 million children are malnourished and nearly 16 million people in urban areas are at risk of food insecurity.
Farmers, he said, were particularly worried that they would not be able to access fertilizers produced in the Black Sea region. Russia is a leading global exporter.
“The cost of fertilizers has increased by almost 30% in many places of this region due to the supply disruption that we see provoked by a crisis in Ukraine,” he said.
The World Food Program has appealed for $777 million to meet the needs of 22 million people in the Sahel region and Nigeria over six months, he said.
To address the needs of food-importing countries, the FAO was developing a proposal for a mechanism to alleviate the import costs for the poorest countries, Schmidhuber said. The proposal calls for eligible countries to commit to added investments in their own agricultural productivity to obtain import credits to help soften the blow. | https://www.kitv.com/news/business/food-prices-soar-to-record-levels-on-ukraine-war-disruptions/article_e8e41ea4-b74c-11ec-ab88-7b719d676f88.html | 2022-04-08T18:29:56Z | kitv.com | control | https://www.kitv.com/news/business/food-prices-soar-to-record-levels-on-ukraine-war-disruptions/article_e8e41ea4-b74c-11ec-ab88-7b719d676f88.html | 1 | 1 | green-iguana-35 | null |
Stocks edged lower in morning trading on Wall Street Friday, weighed down by more drops in chipmakers and other technology companies.
The S&P 500 fell 0.4% as of 10:20 a.m. Eastern. The benchmark index is in the red for the week following three straight weekly gains.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 23 points, or 0.1%, to 34,607 and the Nasdaq fell 1.2%.
Technology stocks were the biggest drag on the market. The sector’s lofty valuations often put outsized pressure on moving the broader market up or down. Apple fell 1.1% and Microsoft fell 1%.
Big tech stocks have been particularly sensitive to rising interest rates, which can make pricey growth stocks look less attractive relative to their earnings.
Treasury yields continued rising as traders get accustomed to the Federal Reserve’s ongoing policy pivot to fighting inflation instead of stimulating the economy. The yield on the 10-year Treasury rose to 2.69% from 2.65% late Thursday, its highest level in three years.
The Fed has already announced a quarter-percentage point increase for its benchmark interest rate and is prepared to take aggressive measures to help temper inflation’s impact on the economy.
Minutes from the Fed’s meeting last month showed policymakers agreed to begin cutting the central bank’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.
Traders are now pricing in a greater than 80% probability the Fed will raise its benchmark 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.
Investors have been weighing the impact of the Fed’s monetary policy shift as they also closely watch the conflict in Ukraine. Energy prices have been volatile and food prices have been rising since Russia invaded Ukraine. That adds to lingering uncertainty over how long inflation will last and how bad it will get.
Crude oil prices were relatively stable on Friday, but they are still up about 30% for the year. Wheat prices are up about 35% and corn prices are up 30%.
The conflict in Ukraine has prompted sanctions from the U.S. and much of Europe that have dented Russia’s economy. Still, Russia’s central bank has managed to stabilize key aspects of its economy with severe controls. It is lowering a key interest rate and said more cuts could be on the way.
Wall Street is also watching the latest reaction from China over a surge in COVID-19 cases. Shanghai residents face severe restrictions on movement and activities because of the surge and that has some companies concerned.
ACM Research, which makes equipment used in the production of computer chips, warned investors about a hit to its revenue because of limits to operations. The stock fell 7.9%.
A jump in COVID-19 cases is also behind airline disruptions in Europe. Two major airlines, British Airways and easyJet, canceled about 100 flights Wednesday. The industry is suffering from staff shortages because of virus. | https://www.kitv.com/news/business/stocks-edge-lower-on-wall-street-head-for-weekly-losses/article_cfa260a0-b74b-11ec-9b63-83ea23b5ffbe.html | 2022-04-08T18:29:57Z | kitv.com | control | https://www.kitv.com/news/business/stocks-edge-lower-on-wall-street-head-for-weekly-losses/article_cfa260a0-b74b-11ec-9b63-83ea23b5ffbe.html | 1 | 1 | green-iguana-35 | null |
...SMALL CRAFT ADVISORY NOW IN EFFECT UNTIL 6 AM HST SATURDAY...
* WHAT...East winds 20 to 30 knots with rough seas 7 to 10 feet,
except north winds and lower seas in Maalaea Bay.
* WHERE...Most central through eastern waters and channels.
* WHEN...Until 6 AM HST Saturday.
* IMPACTS...Conditions will be hazardous to small craft.
PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS...
Inexperienced mariners, especially those operating smaller
vessels, should avoid navigating in these conditions.
&&
HONOLULU (KITV4) - Breezy trades persist on Aloha Friday. Partly cloudy skies with scattered windward and mauka showers, some showers may drift to leeward spots. Highs 80 to 85. Trades 15 to 25 mph today decreasing to 15 to 20 mph by tonight
Locallly strong trades will weaken slightly today, becoming locally breezy by tonight. Showers will tend to focus over windward and mauka zones through the weekend. A few locally heavy showers are possible, but strong trades will ensure any heavier showers move quickly.
A northwest swell will peak today with surf heights remaining well below Surf Advisory criteria. The northwest swell will decline rapidly from Friday into Sunday, with near flat conditions expected along north and west facing shores by early next week. A period of fresh to strong trades upstream of the islands will keep short period, higher wind wave chop along many northeastern and eastern facing shores into the weekend.
A small background south swell will continue through Friday. A slightly larger, longer period, south swell will begin to build by Friday afternoon with south swell energy peaking Saturday. This next south swell will build surf heights along south facing shores by a couple of feet into the fun size range through Tuesday.
Do you have a story idea? Email news tips to news@kitv.com | https://www.kitv.com/news/local/aloha-friday-weather-breezy-trade-winds-with-scattered-showers-trades-expected-to-slow-down/article_38ae0660-b749-11ec-9b49-bb932bdee60e.html | 2022-04-08T18:29:58Z | kitv.com | control | https://www.kitv.com/news/local/aloha-friday-weather-breezy-trade-winds-with-scattered-showers-trades-expected-to-slow-down/article_38ae0660-b749-11ec-9b49-bb932bdee60e.html | 1 | 1 | green-iguana-35 | null |
WASHINGTON (AP) — President Joe Biden on Friday celebrated the confirmation of Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson as the first Black woman to reach the Supreme Court, hailing “a moment of real change in American history.”
It was a moment 46 days — and more than two centuries — in the making. Jackson, who was confirmed by the Senate on Thursday, will take the bench later this year, filling the shoes of retiring Justice Stephen Breyer on a court that was made up entirely of white men for almost two centuries, that declared her race unworthy of citizenship and endorsed American segregation.
Jackson, at times speaking through tears as she thanked her family and mentors for their support, promised to follow in retiring Justice Breyer’s footsteps on the bench.
“I have done my level best to stay in my lane and to reach a result that is consistent with my understanding of the law,” she said, “And with the obligation to rule independently, without fear or favor.”
Jackson’s arrival on the bench won’t upend the current 6-3 conservative balance. But in addition to the racial history, it will put for the first time four women on the court at one time.
Biden nominated her on the second anniversary of his pledge ahead of the South Carolina presidential primary to select a Black woman for the court. The move helped resurrect his flailing campaign and preserved his pathway to the White House, and Biden said the promise of putting someone like Jackson on the court helped motivate his bid for the Oval Office.
“I could see it as a day of hope, a day of promise, a day of progress, a day when once again the moral arc of the universe — as Barack (Obama) used to quote all the time — bends a little more toward justice,” Biden said at a boisterous event on the South Lawn of the White House. “I believe so strongly that we needed a court that looks like America.”
Biden praised Jackson’s “incredible character and integrity” during the confirmation process, saying she put up with “verbal abuse, the anger, constant interruptions, the most vile baseless assertions and accusations.” He praised the three Republican senators who joined Democrats to back her for the court: Maine Sen. Susan Collins, Alaska Sen. Lisa Murkowski and Utah Sen. Mitt Romney.
Jackson will be the high court’s first former public defender — with the elite legal background of other justices as well. She has degrees from Harvard and Harvard Law School and held top clerkships, including for Breyer himself.
The crowd on the White House lawn included Jackson’s family, members of Biden’s Cabinet, some of the Democratic senators who backed her nomination, as well as Democratic representatives and allies. The White House said all current and former justices of the Supreme Court were invited, but none attended.
The event came amid a COVID-19 outbreak among Washington’s political class that has sidelined members of Biden’s administration and lawmakers, including Collins and Georgia Sen. Raphael Warnock, who tested positive for the virus just hours after voting for Brown’s confirmation. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, who was on the invite list, tested positive for the virus on Thursday.
Psaki on Thursday addressed concerns that the White House event could be a “super-spreader” for the virus, like President Donald Trump’s Rose Garden ceremony announcing the nomination of now-Justice Amy Coney Barrett. Psaki emphasized that the risks from the virus are now much lower because of vaccinations and treatments.
“At that point in time, vaccines were unavailable, people were not vaccinated, it certainly puts us in a different space,” Psaki said.
While not all attendees would be newly tested for the virus, Psaki said those close to Biden would be. Vice president Kamala Harris was to attend and deliver remarks, though she was identified on Wednesday as a close contact of a staffer who tested positive. Under Centers for Disease Control and Prevention guidelines she was expected to wear a mask while around other people.
On Thursday, Jackson had joined Biden at the White House to watch the Senate vote unfold on TV, the two of them clasping hands in the Roosevelt Room as her confirmation became reality.
As a longtime Senate Judiciary Committee chairman, Biden had a front-row seat to some of the most contentious confirmation battles in the court’s history, as well as the hearings for Justice Stephen Breyer, whose retirement this summer is clearing the way for Jackson to join the bench.
“History doesn’t happen by accident — it’s made,” said White House chief of staff Ron Klain. He took note on MSNBC of the vote on Brown’s nomination being presided over in the Senate by Harris, the first Black vice president, also selected by Biden.
Throughout his 50 years in Washington, Biden has played an instrumental part in shaping the court, both inside and out of the Senate. But this was his first opportunity to make a selection of his own.
Biden may not get another chance. Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, in an interview Thursday with Axios, refused to commit to hold confirmation hearings for a future Biden nominee to the high court if the GOP retakes control of the Senate in 2023.
Biden took part in confirmation hearings for Supreme Court nominees Sandra Day O’Connor in 1981 and Antonin Scalia in 1986, both nominated by President Ronald Reagan. He also participated in the 1986 hearing to elevate Justice William Rehnquist to the position of chief justice of the United States.
As committee chairman, he presided over the hearings for failed nominee Robert Bork, then the successful confirmations of Anthony M. Kennedy, David Souter, and Clarence Thomas — the last dominated by allegations of sexual harassment against Thomas by law professor Anita Hill — as well as Ruth Bader Ginsburg and Breyer.
He was on the committee in 2005 but no longer chairman when now-Chief Justice John Roberts was confirmed, and in 2006 when Samuel Alito became a justice.
As vice president, Biden helped counsel President Barack Obama on his three Supreme Court picks: Sonia Sotomayor and Elena Kagan, who were confirmed, and now-Attorney General Merrick Garland, whose nomination was blocked by the GOP ahead of the 2016 presidential election.
Jackson won’t take office immediately. Breyer is to step down after the court concludes its current term, which is usually in late June or early July. Only then will she take the oath to become an associate justice. A White House official said Jackson will remain on the Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit until then but will continue to recuse herself from cases.
___
AP writer Darlene Superville contributed to this report. | https://www.kitv.com/news/national/cheers-for-jackson-as-biden-declares-moment-of-real-change/article_ce117482-b760-11ec-89aa-8fad94569aaa.html | 2022-04-08T18:29:59Z | kitv.com | control | https://www.kitv.com/news/national/cheers-for-jackson-as-biden-declares-moment-of-real-change/article_ce117482-b760-11ec-89aa-8fad94569aaa.html | 1 | 1 | green-iguana-35 | null |
ROCK SPRINGS — Work will begin soon to repair damage caused during a late-February water break in the fire suppression system at Memorial Hospital of Sweetwater County’s Emergency Room entrance.
April 11-13, ER Entrance OPEN: Work will begin Monday, April 11. Patients and visitors can continue to use the ER entrance to gain access to the hospital and emergency room through Wednesday, April 13. The main doors to the hospital continue to remain closed.
“Monday through Wednesday should be business as usual,” said public information officer Deb Sutton. “On Thursday and Friday, the ER entrance will be closed, and patients will be diverted to the back of the building.”
April 14-15, ER Entrance CLOSED: The ER entrance will be closed Thursday, April 14, and Friday, April 15, for final repairs, Sutton said. On those two days, patients and visitors will be diverted to door No. 46 located directly in back of the emergency room. A ramp to the door is available, and it will be monitored. Security officers – stationed in a white Durango – and other liaisons will be available to help direct traffic.
Those with Medical Imaging, Respiratory or General Surgery appointments on April 14-15, are asked to use door No. 46 behind the ER. Staff and signage will be available to help with directions to registration.
The ambulance bay is not affected, Sutton said. The Specialty Clinics of Sweetwater Memorial also will not be affected.
“We apologize for the inconvenience,” Sutton said. “We thank everyone for their patience as the ER entrance floors are repaired.”
For more on this and all Sweetwater Memorial has to offer, go to sweetwatermemorial.com, or call 307-362-3711. | https://www.wyomingnews.com/rocketminer/emergency-room-entrance-undergoes-repairs/article_795fa039-a097-54f6-89fd-9600decb85bf.html | 2022-04-08T18:42:24Z | wyomingnews.com | control | https://www.wyomingnews.com/rocketminer/emergency-room-entrance-undergoes-repairs/article_795fa039-a097-54f6-89fd-9600decb85bf.html | 1 | 1 | green-iguana-35 | null |
ROCK SPRINGS – The Rock Springs Main Street/URA is pleased to announce their March Volunteer of the Month – Casey Kuckert.
Kuckert has had an extensive career in the insurance industry and loves training and supportig small business owners (specifically women in business) through her consulting practice. She believes small businesses are the heartbeat of their communities.
She loves to think outside the box and pave new ways for networking and growing business relationships. She has grown over eight businesses of her own throughout her career.
Kuckert spends her free time traveling and exploring new places, gardening, crafting and spending time with her grandchildren. You’ll also find her warming up from the cold Wyoming winters in Southern Utah.
Over the past few months, she has been helping the Rock Springs Main Street/URA plan various programs to aid business owners in growing their businesses including the “Ladies That Lunch” series of focused conversations and the upcoming Small Business Week. She also helped plan last fall’s Women’s Business Summit.
The Rock Springs Main Street/URA is charged with the redevelopment of Downtown Rock Springs. As part of their mission, there are three standing committees –Promotions, Business Development, and Arts & Culture. For more information contact the Rock Springs Main Street/URA at 307-352-1434 or visit their website at DowntownRS.com | https://www.wyomingnews.com/rocketminer/ura-announces-kuckert-as-volunteer-of-the-month/article_3c558b78-00e2-57fa-81b1-0e6223d5b8d9.html | 2022-04-08T18:42:36Z | wyomingnews.com | control | https://www.wyomingnews.com/rocketminer/ura-announces-kuckert-as-volunteer-of-the-month/article_3c558b78-00e2-57fa-81b1-0e6223d5b8d9.html | 1 | 1 | green-iguana-35 | null |
Boomerang Writer
As the 2021-22 academic year begins winding down and University of Wyoming students switch out their pencils for diplomas, school administrators continue to set their sights on the future.
The campus has seen multiple new building projects over the past few years, with the most recent being a new $100 million Science Initiative Building. Located near 9th and Lewis streets, the 153,000-square-foot complex will house a variety of entry and upper-level science courses.
The UW Science Initiative began in 2014 when members of the science and business community endorsed a plan to improve education and research opportunities, according to a press release. Construction on the building started in 2018.
Built with money from the state, the facility is designed to emphasize hands-on learning. Instead of sitting in a lecture hall, students will gather around tables. The building also will house a variety of scientific equipment that can be used for research and education.
“It demonstrates the investment made by our elected leaders, (and their) commitment to state facilities in providing great programs, particularly in the STEM areas,” said UW spokesperson Chad Baldwin.
The building is expected to be in full use during the upcoming fall semester once furniture and equipment can be installed.
Long-awaited projectsAround the time work on the Science Initiative Building comes to a close, another highly anticipated project is scheduled to begin.
The university plans to finally break ground this fall on a pair of new residence halls located West of 15th Street. The south hall will be built at the intersection with Willett Drive, and the north hall at the intersection with Lewis Street.
Interior and exterior design plans for the project have been approved, and the $250 million for the project is secured through bonding, Baldwin said. The university is waiting on final construction planning documents.
The project also will include a new dining facility attached to the north residence hall, and a parking garage will be located along Ivinson Avenue between 10th and 11th streets. The 375 permitted parking spaces will make up for a loss of parking outside the Wyoming Union and is expected to be completed in January 2023.
“The residence halls demonstrate a clear statement from the Board of Trustees that residential living will continue to be a big part of our student experience,” Baldwin said. “We’re going to have that on-campus, in-person experience for students and that’s the foundation upon which our enrollment will be built in the future.”
Providing enough on-campus living space for students hasn’t been a problem for the university, especially with decreased admission rates brought on by the pandemic, but the current facilities are outdated.
The new residence halls and dining center are intended to replace those old facilities. Though the administration hasn’t made any final decisions, the university may demolish some buildings and keep others such as Crane Hall as a housing overflow area, Baldwin said.
The College of Law building also could see an expansion come fall if the Board of Trustees grants the project its final approval. A decision could come on that next month.
“It’s been a pretty collaborative effort all the way,” Baldwin said of the recent projects. “We really do have world-class facilities and world-class researchers and teachers to use them.” | https://www.wyomingnews.com/wyomingbusinessreport/industry_news/construction/if-you-build-it-uw-on-track-with-long-term-construction-projects/article_fb9687dc-b763-11ec-979d-1750f5f27413.html | 2022-04-08T18:42:42Z | wyomingnews.com | control | https://www.wyomingnews.com/wyomingbusinessreport/industry_news/construction/if-you-build-it-uw-on-track-with-long-term-construction-projects/article_fb9687dc-b763-11ec-979d-1750f5f27413.html | 1 | 1 | green-iguana-35 | null |
Laramie County Community College freshman guard Lucia Fleta, right, is defended by Casper College's Natalia Otkhmezuri during the Golden Eagles' 88-65 loss Saturday, March 20, 2021, at the LCCC gym in Cheyenne.
CHEYENNE – Laramie County Community College is beginning the final stages of transforming one of its oldest buildings on campus, the Recreation & Athletics Complex (RAC).
The RAC, originally build in 1971, has seen minor improvements and structural changes over the past 50 years. With the buildings electrical capacity maximized, no air conditioning and aging infrastructure, the college is now looking at substantial improvements that will address these issues and more.
Working with local contractor GH Phipps and architect Plan One, the college has completed a feasibility study of the original project proposal from 2017. With an original project cost of $14 million, the college is now dealing with increased construction costs and inflation, and is working to bring the project into the current $20 million budget.
The college plans to move forward with some of the original project designs which include moving the competition gym into the existing Multipurpose Room (MPR), increasing the ceiling height to align with NJCAA requirements and increasing seating. The new seating will accommodate 1,300 spectators at LCCC athletic competitions and community events. The project, which includes a two-story addition to the west end of the current MPR, will allow for additional office spaces, student-athlete locker rooms and weight training facilities and storage. Additionally, there will be more space for both fitness and weight training for all LCCC students and employees.
The college will continue to utilize the current competition gym as a space for recreational use by the community and campus. Allowing for homeschool student P.E. classes to continue being offered at LCCC and expanding intramural opportunities for LCCC students.
The scope of work does include the removal of both the rock wall and swimming pool. The rock wall will be removed to accommodate the west expansion of the MPR, and the area currently occupied by the swimming pool will be used to increase fitness, weight training, and recreation spaces desired by LCCC students.
Work on the renovation and expansion of the RAC will begin in September, and is expected to be done in December of 2023. The college is currently in discussions with Laramie County School District 1 regarding where future athletic competitions will be held during the construction cycle. | https://www.wyomingnews.com/wyomingbusinessreport/industry_news/construction/lccc-moves-forward-with-renovations-to-recreation-athletics-complex/article_0ec9bd60-b764-11ec-ad69-cb88d64fb67d.html | 2022-04-08T18:42:49Z | wyomingnews.com | control | https://www.wyomingnews.com/wyomingbusinessreport/industry_news/construction/lccc-moves-forward-with-renovations-to-recreation-athletics-complex/article_0ec9bd60-b764-11ec-ad69-cb88d64fb67d.html | 1 | 1 | green-iguana-35 | null |
(KTVX) – Cracker Barrel’s virtual brand Chicken n’ Biscuits has become the latest establishment to offer a fried chicken sandwich.
The Chicken n’ Biscuits brand — described as part of Cracker Barrel’s “virtual brand marketplace” — will be making the sandwich available at 400 locations nationwide through DoorDash, UberEats, and Grubhub.
Cracker Barrel is also positioning the sandwich as the newest entrant in “the chicken sandwich competition,” which is already crowded with offerings from outlets including Popeyes, KFC, Burger King and even Chili’s.
“For years, the debate around ‘the best chicken sandwich’ has been growing, and Chicken n’ Biscuits by Cracker Barrel is excited to enter the competition with our new Homestyle Chicken Sandwich,” said Matthew Schaefer, the senior director of strategy and innovation at Cracker Barrel. “The best part is that guests can enjoy this new sandwich plus other homestyle comfort food made with care like Hand-Breaded Fried Chicken Tenders or scratch-made Biscuit Beignets right at home through their favorite on-demand delivery partners.”
The new sandwich from Chicken n’ Biscuits features hand-breaded fried chicken with pickles and Duke’s mayonnaise, all served on a brioche bun. The dish comes with a side of steak fries.
The brand’s press release didn’t specify a price, but menus from DoorDash and UberEats in several markets advertise the sandwich (and a side of steak fries) for $9.99.
Customers can order the sandwich through an on-demand delivery app from 10:30 a.m. to 9 p.m. | https://www.wwlp.com/news/cracker-barrels-virtual-brand-debuts-new-chicken-sandwich-excited-to-enter-the-competition/ | 2022-04-08T18:46:49Z | wwlp.com | control | https://www.wwlp.com/news/cracker-barrels-virtual-brand-debuts-new-chicken-sandwich-excited-to-enter-the-competition/ | 1 | 1 | green-iguana-35 | null |
I love that the world is being made better for future generations by vehicles going electric; it’s the right thing to do. But I also love the past and, to be frank, I sometimes wish I was born a bit earlier so I could experience all the car-related craziness the world had to offer when emissions targets weren’t even a thing.
While car dealerships here in Sweden are moving at a slow but steady pace towards an all-electric automotive future, there are a handful of shops still keeping it old school. One of them is Kaiser Classic.
Most car geeks in Sweden will recognize the name Kaiser; it’s been part of our racing heritage since the 1950s. In the early days, the main focus for Gert Kaiser was Porsche, and as a factory driver for the German automaker he smashed the Swedish speed record in a blue 550 Spyder.
Gert became a regular at races across Europe, competing in and winning events such as the Nürburgring 500km, Nürburgring 1,000km, the Berlin Grand Prix, Sweden Grand Prix, Rally des Alpes, Rally Monte Carlo, and the Midnight Sun Rally in Sweden, just to name a few.
Gert, who passed away in 1999, loved all things auto-related, and that shows in the numerous pictures and memorabilia that line the walls of Kaiser Classic today. He even went as far as competing in Swedish yacht racing and winning a race between the 1990 to 1997 seasons. Gert sounds like the kind of guy that I would’ve loved to be friends with.
Despite the early focus being entirely on Porsche, as the years went by Kaiser’s specialized auto dealership branched out to include a wide array of brands. Gert’s passion for cars was soon adopted by his sons, and Staffan, who runs the family business today, holds the same standards his father did all those years ago. Which brings us to my favorite part…
A Warm WelcomeAs the large, heavily reinforced steel doors opened at Kaiser Classic, I was greeted by not one, but two Porsche 356 1500 GS Carreras. Both cars are in immaculate condition, so I was pleasantly surprised to hear that they’re still driven and raced regularly.
They really do scream vintage racing. Their interiors and engine bays are spotless, and the hand-painted ‘255’ on the doors and hood of the red car gives me an idea on how it was back in the day. I will be taking a closer look at the history of these 356s at another time, so until then I can only imagine what it’s like seeing them on the road.
Greg Copeland describes the feeling as “surreal”. He drove behind the two 356s in a ’71 Porsche 911 to a Midnight Run event in Stockholm.
Having joined Kaiser back in 2020, Greg’s history with cars starts early.
“My whole family are into cars; Top Gear was like church for us, every Sunday at 8pm. My grandfather took us to races at an early age, and even in his 80s would still join us at Goodwood and race meets. To now work somewhere like this is just a dream; I wish he had seen it. To be around these cars every day, unearthing their stories and meeting some of the people that are a part of this narrative is a real privilege. And of course it is awesome to work with so many Porsches, especially given the Kaiser family’s storied history with the marque. I’ve always loved the 911, the simplicity of that form and engineering ingenuity that is repeated through every generation. I’m really drawn to their lack of flashiness and theatre.”
The best thing about my visit to Kaiser was seeing Greg signing the documents to his dream purchase. A two-owner, matching-numbers 1969 Porsche 911T that’s only been driven 4,700 miles.
“To own one now – especially an early one – is something I never thought would happen. And inevitably for a guy who grew up reading Max Power and can quote lines from The Fast & the Furious for days, I was buying parts for it before I even had the keys. I’m so excited to make it my own little period-correct weekend racer.”
The Show CarsGreg’s office is nothing short of awesome, and just a short distance away from his desk I found this 1 of 86 Porsche 964 Turbo S ‘Leichtbau’. A quick Google search will tell you everything you need to know about this model, but to see and sit in it felt really good. For a cool €1.5m (US$1.62m), it’s yours.
Moving further down the halls, this Porsche 911 (964) Speedster was just begging to be photographed. After being sold new in Japan, the owner handed it over to Mitsuwa Motors who gave it a more aggressive look by fitting the OEM 964 wide-body. With the top up, the car kind of resembles a mix between a Porsche 365 Carrera, a Porsche 365B Carrera Abarth GTL and a Porsche 911; with the top down it’s a stunner.
One of the highlights for me was the RUF 930 BTR Slantnose. Not because of the car itself but because of the colour.
This version of Royal Blue comes very close to my favorite color, Porsche Zenith Blue. Heck, it might even be the same color. Don’t be surprised to see a Toyota 86 rolling with this color combo in future…
By the looks of it, the car has been well used during its lifetime. Chipped fenders and scratched paint is fine by me if it happened through driving.
Almost 300,000km on the odometer is almost unheard of when it comes to modern classic cars, but I welcome it. For many, it’s all about preserving a car’s condition these days. To me, that sounds like a load of bollocks.
This 1990 Audi Quattro has certainly seen some good times since it was bought and shipped over to Switzerland back in 1990. The first owner racked up 290,000km over the course of 21 years, so I bet the car has some stories to tell. After getting a mechanical refresh recently, it’s only been driven 1,500km.
If Americana is more your thing, Kaiser has that side of the automotive spectrum covered too. I am not a fan of American cars in general, but even so, it’s hard not to appreciate the craftsmanship when they look as good as this. I’m sure by the time I’m in my 60s I’ll probably want one.
There were so many interesting cars in the showroom, but I was itching to take a look behind the scenes, so let’s head there…
The WorkshopEvery car that comes through the Kaiser Classic workshop as inventory goes through a thorough inspection, followed by servicing and any repair work required to bring it up to spec. New wheels, tires, paint, engine and driveline, suspension, brakes – you name it, everything is done in house.
In Kaiser’s newly-refreshed engine room, I met Porsche guru Bertil Karlsson, who had a number of jobs on the go. With 50 years dedicated to the German brand, Bertil has become a household name in the Swedish Porsche scene.
If you’re a Porsche racing history buff, you’ll no doubt recognize this 1975 Porsche-Kremer Carrera 3.0 RSR with Jägermeister livery. Bertil owned this piece of motorsport heritage for a short period of time.
The car was in pretty bad shape when Bertil purchased it, and he subsequently completed a full restoration at great expense. So great in fact, that he ultimately needed to sell it on. It’s changed hands numerous times since then, but today is still being raced in the US in its restored 1975 specification.
Behind Bertil sat an odd-looking Ferrari engine with its internals missing. You’d think that this motor would be put back into a Ferrari, but you’d be wrong. This would probably make Enzo Ferrari roll in his grave.
On my second visit, the team had moved the bare shell back to the workshop to test fit the engine and see if this crazy idea would work. Yes, that’s a Shelby Cobra replica body.
The Ferrari 360 Modena motor looks tiny in the Cobra’s expansive engine bay, and as I was taking pictures I overheard the guys discussing ways to utilize all the extra space. I’m definitely keeping my eyes on this project.
One of Kaiser’s bigger projects right now is not really a secret, but it’s not that public either. I’ll meet you in the middle and say this: a road-legal Porsche that can be used for driving to, at, and then back from race events. Sounds pretty cool to me and another one to look out for.
The Race CarsGiven that the Kaiser name has a rich racing history, it would be wrong of me not to include some of the awesome race cars they have on display. Rally seems to be the most common theme, and when I saw what was lurking at the far end of the lineup, my jaw dropped.
This is what I mean when I said I sometimes wish I was born earlier.
I am a huge fan of Group B and the madness that made the golden era of rallying so amazing. It might be a replica, but this stunning Audi Quattro S1 has all the things to make it a perfect Group B car, including many period parts. The earth-like smell, exposed wiring, an uncomfortable-looking racing seat and an old team radio – it’s so cool.
I walked around the car for a good 20 minutes soaking it all in and checking out every detail that’s hard to see when watching grainy videos from the ’80s.
The engine bay wasn’t too bad either, and seeing the hardware in use I’m sure the turbocharged five-cylinder packs a serious punch. If it’s anything like this Audi Quattro S1, who wouldn’t want a drive?
Next to the Audi was this 1969 Ford Escort Mk1 which, remarkably, has only had two owners from new. After being used and abused as a race car for 10 years, in 1979 the car underwent some major upgrades. The intake manifold, exhaust manifold, camshaft and sump were all replaced with new parts and the Ford raced again. In 2005, there was a change of ownership and the car was treated to a full nut and bolt restoration.
Kaiser Classic only ever accept cars that meet certain criteria, and rarity is one of them. Looking at what they had in stock when I visited, I can safely say that I’ll be keeping a close eye on their inventory from now on. In the meantime, I very much look forward to taking a certain pair of 356s out…
Alen Haseta
Instagram: hazetaa
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Candy shop^^
Wow!!! What a seriously awesome feature! There are so many awesome pieces of machinery, that I don’t even know where to begin! A Turbo S Leichtbau? A 911 Speedster? A Ruf BTR Slantnose? (Yes that colour is quite stunning!) Homologation specials? Lots of great features lately on SH, keep up the great work!
I can’t edit my previous comment of course, but I can’t wait to see the Cobra replica once it’s complete! Hopefully it can be featured once it’s done!
Freakin awesome! What a great read and excellent photos and cars to boot!
"I love that the world is being made better for future generations by vehicles going electric; it’s the right thing to do"
I wish you could see how hard my eyes are rolling right now. When you lead a story (let alone one that is a pretty infomercial) you might want to reconsider leading with a hard virtue signal.
Love the dash mounted pill-style fuse panel mounted in the Audi.
To build an electric car uses exponentially more harmful materials that is bad for the environment than a petrol powered car. To run it uses much more carbon aswell overall because of coal power stations. ELECTRIC CARS ARE WORSE FOR THE ENVIRONMENT. | http://www.speedhunters.com/2022/04/a-visit-to-swedens-kaiser-classic/ | 2022-04-08T18:46:59Z | speedhunters.com | control | http://www.speedhunters.com/2022/04/a-visit-to-swedens-kaiser-classic/ | 1 | 1 | green-iguana-35 | null |
You can’t stop progress. The world keeps turning, the past soon becomes history, and new and shiny replaces old and rusty. At least, that’s how society usually plays it. Thankfully though, some aren’t so quick to forget.
During my recent visit to J-Garage, owner Sehoji-san told me about an upcoming dirt racing event featuring around 20 hot rods. Seeing my eyes light up just at the thought of it, he graciously invited me out to Motor Cross Offroad Park in Kagoe, Saitama so I could experience the spectacle firsthand.
When the day arrived, I was pretty exicted. Motor Cross Offroad Park has a few tracks for both motorbikes and cars, and after arriving at the former – and then driving another 25 minutes to the correct circuit for cars – I found Sehoji-san in a paddock full of old pick ups, vans, roadsters and coupes.
I’ve never been to the Burning Man festival, but stepping out of my Impreza into the dry spring air, I immediately thought about friends’ holiday snaps and wished I had brought a bandana, aviation goggles and a psychedelic parasol.
Cars were lining up for runs in basic circuit formation, running three or four laps, one at a time. It was only a very small track so I suspect that’s why they weren’t racing in pairs.
This was a first for me. Sure, I’ve watched vintage cars race and I’ve seen plenty of hot rods at events across the globe, but this was something else.
This event was hosted by self-proclaimed “semi-pro” hot rod shop Side Motors, a local garage out of Saitama. As you might expect from any event in Japan, everything was extremely well organised. The day’s running was structured and drinks and lunch were available, and even offered to photographers.
I think it would be fair to say that 90% of these cars fall in to the rat rod category of hot rod subculture – especially those with engine swaps, chopped roofs and missing body parts. Others were just in good, old original condition; they were by no means museum pieces but far from being junkers.
Regardless of their condition, I was surprised to see classic cars of this vintage out on the dirt, ready to be thrashed.
But dirt racing like this has been going on in Japan for as long as the automobile has been guzzling dinosaur juice. In fact, I wouldn’t be surprised if at least one of the Fords in attendance had been built at Henry J’s factory in Yokohama.
While Toyota was still building sewing machines, Ford had a monopoly on car manufacturing in Japan from 1925 to 1934. Considering Japan’s reputation for high quality manufacturing, I wondered if the Ford cars assembled in Yokohama were of a higher standard than their America-assembled counterparts…
Back then, owning a car in Japan must have cost a pretty penny. Truth be told, annual costs still make the eyes water, so to be out racing in the late-1920s and ’30s would’ve really only been for the wealthy and upper class.
It’s funny to think that 100 years ago, with automobiles in their infancy and traveling at speeds no faster than Usain Bolt at maximum stride, people still felt that racing each other was only the natural thing to do. You can’t change human nature, I guess.
Initially, people were racing each other on horse racing tracks or fields and even land fills, but as momentum gathered a dedicated circuit needed to be built.
Around this time, Soichiro Honda (yes, that Honda) was a 15-year-old student mechanic lending his hands to build race cars. He and the team of mechanics at Art Shokai were motorsport enthusiasts when Tamagawa Speedway, the first permanent circuit in Asia, was constructed.
Now, before you get too excited, Tamagawa Speedway is long gone, although the grandstands remained until very recently. Because of the speedway’s riverbank location and the subsequent urban build up which now utilises the land, government officials deemed the flood barrier created by the historic grandstands was no longer safe. Like I said, you can’t stop progress. When I heard about the removal of the grandstands I was a bit disappointed, but the safety of thousands obviously outweighs the teary nostalgia of a few petrol heads. Thankfully, they did save a small section of about three meters in width and relocated it a little further away from the danger zone.
Rewinding back to our story with a very young Soichiro Honda… By the early ’30s, automobile racing was in full swing in Japan, and finally in 1936 with ¥70,000 (US$565) in backing from Tokyo-Yokohama Electric Railway and ¥30,000 (US$245) from Mitsubishi Group shareholder Masami Iida, the country had a purpose-built facility. Honda-san competed in the first ever race at Tamagawa, entering his Hamamatsu, a modified Ford which famously clipped another car, rolled, and ended his racing career. All clouds have a silver lining though, because giving up racing gave the so-called ‘Edison of Hamamatsu’ plenty of time to make some pretty cool stuff.
So as you can see, dirt racing is as much a part of Japanese automotive history as the great Soichiro Honda himself. Unfortunately, there weren’t any open wheelers with Curtiss ‘Jenny’ A1 biplane engines fitted at the event I attended, but there was plenty of American V8 muscle filling the air with glorious roars.
In a way, this kind of event is probably closer to the kind of dry lake racing that made hot rods popular in the late 1940s and ’50s in the US. Or at least that’s what I thought…
It turns out the lakes racers fought long and hard to distance themselves from the hoons racing hot rods on the streets of Southern California. When young lads started racing on the dry lakes, accidents weren’t uncommon and police began paying some unwanted attention to the new sport.
But in 1937 (around the same time as the dirt track in Japan opened) the Southern California Timing Association was formed and still exists to this day. In fact, the SCTA run a little competition on the Bonneville Salt Flats that you might have heard of before.
It’s fascinating history and so many of these stories have connections all over the world. There were quite a few Japanese hot rodders in the Southern California area, one prominent racer being Danny Sakai, a second-generation Japanese-American who broke land speed records four times in his open wheeler.
With the advent of WWII, it’s sad to note that many young Japanese living in the US were forcibly removed from their homes and sent to internment camps. It’s a dark time in the world’s history, but there is some warmth in knowing that many of the Japanese-American’s hot rods were kept safe by American friends until their owners were released from the camps.
Displaced from their homes, the Japanese-Americans who returned to American society after the war tried to mend their broken social networks and from that, various automobile clubs where born. Clubs like the Shogans and the Squires helped a lost generation of Japanese-American youths find some identity, and look pretty damn cool while doing it. Think white t-shirts, Levi’s and flathead Fords.
So, it turns out that driving big ol’ American cars around a dirt track isn’t just about driving big ol’ American cars around a dirt track. This is deep. Proper, peeling back the onion deep.
As we come to the end of our story, let’s forget the history lessons and talk a little about this colourful event. After the first round of single car loops around the track, the next bit of fun was a round of doughnuts. Not the glazed type.
Most of these old girls barely managed a wheel spin, but others sent clouds of dust high into the atmosphere and rocks hurtling towards my camera. Regardless of how rowdy the doughnuts were, the grins from the drivers were sweet enough.
The cars really gave me a taste of the kind of open wheelers that Honda-san would have raced back in the day. I can understand how he might have clipped another car on the circuit at Tamagawa Speedway, because seeing these cars in action showed just how wild they are on the dirt, even at relatively low speeds.
There’s plenty of power coming from these old V8s (can you imagine what a Cummins airplane engine could do…) and next to no traction from the old period-correct tyres. Throw into the mix dust clouds and goggles caked in dirt and you’ve got a recipe for disaster.
The next round was a slalom and a figure of eight course, and I’m genuinely surprised that more traffic cones weren’t destroyed. The way the old cars rocked and rolled through the corners was straight out of a ’50s Disney cartoon.
After lunch it was time for me to head out on the track to shoot a couple of feature cars, which I’ll show you next time. My tracking car was pretty wild.
Laying in the back of the rust-riddled Ranchero was definitely up there with my most memorable shoots. Bouncing over the dirt track with some random guy holding my ankles while getting caked in dust makes life worth living. When I got home, I was blowing dust out my nose for a few days. But each time I did, it made me think of those, past and present, who make days like this special.
Toby Thyer
Instagram _tobinsta_
tobythyer.co.uk
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I love this. Seriously. This and the 300ZX feature you posted are absolutely killing it rn. Stop posting air bag show car BS and give us more of this. You are speed hunters. This is speed!
Did I mention I love this?
Holy Cow..... this is awesome. These photos are next-level and the relevant history is icing on the donut!
This is a Masterpiece.
Thank you Toby Thyer... Saved nearly every picture, some will get printed. More of these beasts please, especially in jdm flavor!
This is actually a decent rebuttal to Paddy's article promoting automotive diversity at shows/events.
Could you imagine how fast this awesome event would be ruined if all of a sudden, a bunch of other random cars (maybe some camaros, skylines, and civics) joined in?
Very enjoyable in every respect. Well done. Thank you.
In the early 1960's I was allowed to tour Mickey Thompson's shop, in Long Beach, CA, I think, I was young. Toyopet (not Toyota) had given Mickey a couple of 4 bangers to fool around with. They received some performance enhancement and ran good. What goes around comes around. Hot rodding must be a universal passion. | http://www.speedhunters.com/2022/04/getting-dusty-with-japans-hot-rod-dirt-racers/ | 2022-04-08T18:47:05Z | speedhunters.com | control | http://www.speedhunters.com/2022/04/getting-dusty-with-japans-hot-rod-dirt-racers/ | 1 | 1 | green-iguana-35 | null |
When it has been over two years since your last major car show, it’s natural to be eager.
While that last show was in a slightly warmer climate for me, I had no issue getting an early start and heading north towards the Eikon Exhibition Centre, just outside of Belfast for Dubshed 2022. It was what we would describe as ‘fresh’ out, along with a couple of downpours to remind me I was still in Ireland.
For as long as I’ve contributed to Speedhunters, Dubshed has been show that’s catered towards the sharp end of modified car culture on the island. But what was once an exclusive VW Group event, has slowly become more inclusive of other brands, and some people are not happy about this. I can sort of see their point, but I think the organisers are going in the correct direction. Let me explain…
When I first attended Dubshed in 2011, the idea of anything non-VW Group being allowed to exhibit would have been laughed at. Even the eventual inclusion of BMW and other German marques raised an eyebrow or two. The show was held at a different venue back then, which allowed you to explore several enclosed halls and outside areas. It was glorious from both a spectator and photographer’s perspective. It was intimate, varied and rewarded your curiosity and sense of adventure.
Times change, and the show moved south to its current home at the Eikon a few years ago. While the new venue is much more modern, it doesn’t have the same charm as the old King’s Hall. It does have a seemingly infinite amount of space in comparison, however.
This is both a blessing and a curse at the same time. While the venue has grown so much, the organisers now have the ability to really expand Dubshed. But I don’t feel that Irish car culture, and in particular the VW scene, has grown enough to keep up with it.
Don’t get me wrong, there are a lot of cars here worthy of your attention, but they’re not all necessarily related to the Volkswagen family.
While some would have found the inclusion of other German makes palatable, the prominent inclusion of Japanese cars from around 2016 ruffled more than a few feathers. The thing is, if you were to remove the non-VW or even the non-German stuff from the show, I’m not sure there would be much left.
In case you’re wondering, that is indeed the Spirit Rei S13 Silvia that Dino spotlighted in Japan nearly seven years ago. It’s still wonderful.
To be quite honest, some of my personal highlights of Dubshed 2022 were very much not German. Sean Reilly‘s olive green Renault Clio RS 200 on Air Lift Performance suspension was a real standout.
While there was a lot of very impressive non-VW stuff on display, you could perhaps make an argument that at the very least, there was some VW scene influence present in most if not every car being exhibited.
Wheel fitment and stance are not exclusive to the VW world of course, but the VW world is (or least should be) about much, much more than just ride height, camber angle and wheel fitment.
It’s a holistic approach to modifying a vehicle. Wheels, exterior, paint, interior, engine, suspension and personal flourishes should all be considered. Sometimes the modifications are so subtle that only the owner is likely aware of them.
For me personally, it should be so much more than a new car on finance with air suspension and wheels. They’re only two pieces of a much larger puzzle.
It’s only logical that, in an attempt to stand out from the crowd, previous Volkswagen owners will take what they’ve learned and apply it to a non-VW-badged car.
It’s also understandable that there are still those who want to push the envelope of a particular make or model. Christian Gale‘s and Jack Fanning‘s MkV Golfs are about as impressive versions of either car that you will ever see. I would be stunned if there was still a standard bolt on either car.
I’m not sure if any amount of photographs will ever do these cars justice, although I will try and arrange something in the future to disprove this theory.
While I’m aware that out and out show cars aren’t to everyone’s taste, then perhaps something like this 500+hp Edition 30 MkV GTI might be? That’s the beauty of the VW scene; in theory, there should be something for everyone.
That people are then embracing these various approaches and applying them to whatever takes their fancy should only be welcomed. Cross pollination between the varying automotive sub-cultures is a thing of wonder, and results in builds like John Peden‘s Zetec-powered and custom air suspension-equipped Mk2 Ford Escort.
It goes both ways, with Japanese influence on German vehicles, too.
You’ll likely have guessed by now that I personally think this is the way forward, and that ‘one-make’ shows are for the most part, going to become irrelevant. As with everything, there’s always an exception or two, but when you have the same people building the same cars, going to the same car shows where their friends have all built the same cars, it doesn’t lend itself to innovation.
While there has been, and will continue to be, some hesitation about the continued increase in non-VW and non-German cars at the likes of Dubshed, I hope more people approach these events with an open mind.
If anything, the situation might lend itself to some healthy rivalry between sub-cultures, and who knows what sort of progress and new ideas could evolve from this.
Like it or not, it’s not getting any easier to be a car enthusiast or to attract younger people into our world. Cars are more expensive than ever, fuel is as expensive as most of us have ever seen, and that’s before we even have a conversation about burning dinosaur juice in order to drive around in circles and make brum-brum noises.
We must look like lunatics to the rest of the world, but both you and I know that we love what we love, and we really can’t help ourselves. We should help ourselves though, and I really think that bringing sub-cultures together under one roof is key to that.
We know it works because you only have to look at the likes of the Players shows in the UK to see how they have gone from strength to strength.
I know a lot of people who profess to be car enthusiasts, but they’re not really. It would be more accurate to say that they’re Ford enthusiasts or late-’90s JDM enthusiasts, or August 1964 to June 1965 Chevrolet Corvette enthusiasts (but only cars built on a Thursday).
I’m being hyperbolic of course, but it would be no harm for people who have gone on a deep-dive of a very specific and niche automotive sect, to come up for air and see what everyone else is up to.
If you’re looking at this coverage and thinking ‘where are the race cars and track cars’, maybe you should consider bringing your race car or track car to a local show. You might enjoy it, you might not. You might learn something, you might not. Most importantly though, you might inspire someone else, someone young, to get started into the automotive life. Some things are bigger than us.
It would be impossible to create a show or event that pleases everyone. We will never all agree on what is best and that’s absolutely fine. What we could all benefit from is knowing our own tastes, being able to take something away from most situations and knowing that just because we personally don’t like something, doesn’t make it bad.
It’s also not an organiser’s responsibility to build the cars that make their shows. They just need to create the occasion, and the rest is essentially them shining a spotlight on the current state of car culture. If you don’t like what you see, then take some responsibility and try to do something better rather than waiting for someone else to do it.
Dubshed is no longer and will likely never be a VW-only show again, and that’s okay. But it’s just a name, and it’s up to us to make the most of it.
Paddy McGrath
Instagram: pmcgphotos
Twitter: pmcgphotos
paddy@speedhunters.com
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Finally a motorcycle on SH
I'd happily see one-make car shows evolve into something more diverse, seeing row after row of the same car with the same sort of wheels and other similar mods is so mundane that it makes the show pointless. Give me an event that has an aired out Karmann Ghia sat next to Defender 90 with an extreme body-lift, towering over a PS13 drift car, rubbing elbows with delivery-mileage Escort Cosworth.
Lately, I've found the car parks at track events to be better than any one make show I've been to anyways! Bring the diversity!
To be honest, I'm glad these types of shows are becoming more inclusive. I believe it leads to a higher turnout with it having more than just 15 submodels of a certain brand.
I love diversity when I go to a show/meet. I want to see something I have never seen before. This is why the cars and coffee format appeals to me.
My suspicion is that the guys at Luftgekuhlt will disagree with us.
This has been our argument or at least our stance (no, not that use of stance) since we started RR in 2004. The melting pot is where the interest is at.
Without being trite the whole "be the change you want to see" works for car shows. If you have a race car and you go to a show that has a disappointing (to you) lack of race cars, take yours next time. Can almost guarantee you'll find the following year at least one or two more turn up, and so scenes and sub-scenes build.
I think there are a few "I only like VW's" or whatever make type people around, however if they step out their niche a bit they will usually find something that piques their interest. I think there is a different type of car enthusiast out there though, they are "my car" enthusiasts. They are easy to spot in this day and age, IG feeds that are 100% pictures of their cars, they come back from a show with pictures of their cars at the show. Which is all its own kind of little niche that people end up consumed in.
Also that Grey MG is super.
I can respect the exclusivity of it all. There was a time where I was a "BMW guy" and didn't care to congregate with anyone else that didn't drive Bimmers. At this point and at my age, however, I couldn't care less. It's all for the love of automobiles. Nothing wrong with having a litte variation in a one-make car show. If anything, I see it as a nice show of humility and fraternity to have other makes present in a show like Dubshed.
Nice, a necessary and obvious article to spell it out for usually-young, naiive and narrow minds. One make shows peaked every decade since there were enough makes to race against each other in 1910, but 2010 was definitely the swan song. Sure there might be some icon cult members having circle jerks in random parking lots about having their (only, really) "best" car ever made in the 2020's, but as far as populated shows with well thought out events, including all is beyond just "key" - a new normal, expected even. Most older, experienced car nerds wouldn't bother showing up if an event was "for chip-tuned, "stage 2+" germans only" or "slammed JDM only"... But having either/both show up is "typical" when there's enough other stuff, even a oem tesla model 3 but they taped a gurney strip and got a vanity plate sort of "other" would make for enough diversity (for most). Really, it's the feeling of being at an event that has people that enjoy their cars for what they really are, that is the "new key" to events. I've been to events that were basically just Lamborghinis and corvette c8's, few 911's that have been unbearable - the hearts weren't in it so the energy was dull since everyone can afford the other's choice anyways. Same went for a college car club that was 100% wannabe rally racers because their sedans and street cars had pops and bangs/straight pipes, but zero idea who Sebastian Loeb is, or what brake bias does. Problem is few understand the difference between mere taste and Passion, yet most feign passion since it makes them feel their opinions matter when it's all absurd BS - be honest, you just like the boom boom noise and the attention, even if negative, since you're a nobody with no other quality to be noticed. Turn down your noise, shut up, listen instead, and do something important, or at least positive. Like learning to drive rather than insisting on speed because we all have access to throttle.
Paddy, please note that I'm going to be a little hyperbolic in my rebuttal.
1) "Hyper-focused car shows (like SoCalVintage, Luftgekult, Grand National Roadster Show, Low Rider shows, etc.) are a lot of fun BECAUSE they put a microscope on each car. Each builder is inspired to find new and innovative ways to stand out. The result was absolutely incredible workmanship. I'm reminded of your great coverage highlighting absolutely mind blowing details at the older VW-centric shows. This stuff you've shown here are either left-overs from that golden-age of innovation or boring derivatives that only stand out by being a different make/model than the one next to it.
I mean where would the low-rider scene be if they were forced to park next to a late model Passat with wheels and a tune?
A focused show highlights enjoying friendly competition and comradery with like-minded enthusiasts. The result is a higher quality of cars.
2) I don't agree with you "either, or" stance. I like the "why can't we have both" stance.
3) You're implying that a child would only be inspired by a diverse car show. I've experienced the opposite recently, my oldest has become very interested in Cobra kit cars. He'd be much more inspired by a one-make show featuring Cobras vs wandering through a hall to find one or two that were actually interesting to him.
4) Coming up from a deep dive into a particular realm of the automotive world is great! I loved the old Cars and Coffee in Irvine for this very reason. The diversity was fun and awesome. However, sticking those same diverse group of cars into a formally judged "show" situation like DubShed, and the affair seems more like an equity fallacy. The idea that someone could walk out of the show with a trophy for coilovers and wheels while the guy down the way with his ground-up restoration could walk away empty handed seems like an injustice.
More about the green Jaguar (Type S I think) please. | http://www.speedhunters.com/2022/04/the-end-of-the-one-make-car-show/ | 2022-04-08T18:47:11Z | speedhunters.com | control | http://www.speedhunters.com/2022/04/the-end-of-the-one-make-car-show/ | 1 | 1 | green-iguana-35 | null |
TAMPA, Fla. (WFLA) — A Florida woman was arrested for domestic battery after she allegedly scratched her girlfriend in the face with the couple’s cat, according to an affidavit.
Police said things escalated after Susan Freudenthal, 53, and her girlfriend got into an argument at a home in Largo.
According to the report, Freudenthal took their cat, held it up to her girlfriend’s face and “swore on the animal’s life that she was not cheating.”
The animal was in distress and scratched her girlfriend, the affidavit said. The woman had multiple lacerations on her face, according to the report.
Police went to the home and arrested Freudenthal for domestic battery.
“Upon taking the defendant into custody, she said that she was the true victim,” the affidavit said. “The defendant was polite and compliant.”
Freudenthal was released on her own recognizance. Online jail records show it was her second arrest for domestic battery since March 2021. | https://www.wspa.com/news/national/florida-woman-accused-of-using-cat-to-batter-girlfriend/ | 2022-04-08T18:49:36Z | wspa.com | control | https://www.wspa.com/news/national/florida-woman-accused-of-using-cat-to-batter-girlfriend/ | 1 | 1 | green-iguana-35 | null |
AIKEN COUNTY, S.C. (WSPA) – The South Carolina Law Enforcement Division investigated an officer-involved shooting Thursday morning.
According to SLED, an armed man was shot during an encounter with an ATF agent and a US Marshals Service task force officer. Both officers were assigned to the US Marshals Service Carolinas Regional Fugitive Task Force.
Robert L. Wright, 34, died from his injuries, SLED said.
Details are limited at this time.
SLED agents will conduct a thorough criminal investigation by interviewing potential witnesses, collecting all relevant evidence and forensically testing evidence as needed, according to the agency.
This was the ninth officer involved shooting in South Carolina in 2022, according to SLED. | https://www.wspa.com/news/state-news/sled-investigates-an-armed-man-shot-and-killed-by-officers/ | 2022-04-08T18:49:54Z | wspa.com | control | https://www.wspa.com/news/state-news/sled-investigates-an-armed-man-shot-and-killed-by-officers/ | 1 | 1 | green-iguana-35 | null |
CLEMSON, S.C. (Clemson Athletics) – Clemson announced the next generation of the Tigers’ Name, Image and Likeness (NIL) programming dubbed “Reign.”
Clemson said the multifaceted program is aggressive, comprehensive, education-focused and suited to the ever-changing landscape.
“We’ve talked for a while about our intent to become more aggressive in the NIL environment, and I feel that Reign. personifies that notion,” said Director of Athletics Graham Neff. “While many of these services have been available to our student-athletes since last year, our department has worked tirelessly to evolve our NIL philosophy. It’s critical that our student-athletes have the education and tools to succeed in this area, and that our coaches have a direct way to address the questions they receive on the recruiting trail. NIL is ever-changing, and we will continue to monitor, adapt and innovate.”
THE WHY
Easy.
Clemson Athletics is dedicated to investing in resources that allow our student-athletes to gain an advantage in athletic performance, the classroom, and the marketplace.
There is a new paradigm. College athletics represents the pinnacle of athletics for many student-athletes, and Reign. helps students realize this opportunity while on campus. Clemson is committed to success, and a robust NIL program is the next evolution.
THE WHAT
Where do we start? Clemson Athletics invests heavily in the student experience – on the field, in the classroom, and publicly. Opportunities now exist for student-athletes to activate their Name, Image and Likeness for financial gain. Clemson is dedicated to ensuring we provide best-in-class tools to our student-athletes, and education sits at the heart – the main thing is still the main thing. From ideation to creative to business development and execution, Reign immediately places Clemson at the forefront of NIL programming to allow student-athletes to capitalize.
THE WHERE
NIL is new, and we’re building our program from the ground up. Clemson will be the first athletics program in the nation to construct a space dedicated to the development of NIL activity – The Clemson Athletics Branding institute. The institute will provide an environment to educate students, incubate ideas, and serve as a launchpad for student-athlete opportunities. The CAB will feature a photo studio, video studios, audio suite, office space and a media training area in more than 12,000 square feet. The building, presently under construction, is located adjacent to the Poe Indoor Football Complex.
Neff: “We’re incredibly thankful to the families who have made the building possible through their support. This community has shown time and again its commitment to Clemson Athletics and what it takes to be great.”
THE WHO
A building without the right people is just a place. The people give it meaning. Internally and externally, we’re taking an inclusive approach to understanding the market, ramping up internal staffing, and executing key external partnerships in highly-specialized areas.
Our program starts with our in-house creative agency, College Avenue Creative. We’re leaning on more than 10 years of experience as a nationally-recognized social media and branding powerhouse.
Clemson has additional vital partnerships in several areas to accelerate quickly for all student-athletes. The world-renowned Arthur M. Spiro Institute for Entrepreneurial Leadership, national-leader Altius Sports Partners in education and policy, and the Collegiate Licensing Company (CLC), Fanatics and OneTeam in the licensing space. Clemson has also been engaged with Opendorse since 2016 as a platform for students to build their brand. Clemson distributed more than 100,000 pieces of content to student-athletes last year, and is on pace to easily surpass that number in 2022.
THE HOW
It starts with integrity. We’re rolling up our sleeves and looking at every part of the NIL process, from ideation to tax considerations and everything in between – and doing it the right way. Countless alumni, charities, collectives and businesses are looking to leverage the Power of the Paw and the young men and women who represent Clemson. The Clemson community is fiercely loyal and is mobilizing. They’re looking for student-athletes to represent, serve, and drive value.
WHAT’S NEXT?
We’re just beginning. Personalized jerseys, co-branded apparel, video games, NFTs, trading cards, podcasts, photos, videos, and other exciting opportunities are on the horizon for our student-athletes. Clemson is constantly and rapidly developing new partnerships and opportunities to enhance its educational resources and provide student-athletes the tools to make decisions that can positively impact their futures. | https://www.wspa.com/sports/clemson-tigers-sports/clemson-announces-new-nil-program-reign/ | 2022-04-08T18:50:00Z | wspa.com | control | https://www.wspa.com/sports/clemson-tigers-sports/clemson-announces-new-nil-program-reign/ | 1 | 1 | green-iguana-35 | null |
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Posted: Apr 8, 2022 / 01:26 PM EDT
Updated: Apr 8, 2022 / 01:26 PM EDT | https://www.wspa.com/your-carolina/high-school-standoutsjonah-biggar-soccer-oakbrook-prep/ | 2022-04-08T18:50:13Z | wspa.com | control | https://www.wspa.com/your-carolina/high-school-standoutsjonah-biggar-soccer-oakbrook-prep/ | 1 | 1 | green-iguana-35 | null |
Posted: Apr 8, 2022 / 01:31 PM EDT Updated: Apr 8, 2022 / 01:31 PM EDT SHARE Spring is here and time to get your yard and garden set! Joining us is Jean Cartee and Mary Ann Repaire with the Greater Greenville Master Gardener Association to tell us all about a plant sale on April 30, 2022 at Jeff Lynch Appliance Center. GGMGA.org | https://www.wspa.com/your-carolina/plant-sale/ | 2022-04-08T18:50:19Z | wspa.com | control | https://www.wspa.com/your-carolina/plant-sale/ | 1 | 1 | green-iguana-35 | null |
To protect and serve, how would you like to do that? The City of Greenville is looking for some amazing men and women to join their team. We have representative here today from Police, Fire and Communications to tell us a little about what they do and tell us about a Career Fair coming up on April 18th. | https://www.wspa.com/your-carolina/public-safety-career-fair/ | 2022-04-08T18:50:25Z | wspa.com | control | https://www.wspa.com/your-carolina/public-safety-career-fair/ | 1 | 1 | green-iguana-35 | null |
With Easter just around the corner, we thought it would be fun to invite a representative from the Rabbit Sanctuary in Simpsonville. Our guest today is Val Magin who serves on the board of the sanctuary, and she’s going to take us through Rabbit 101. | https://www.wspa.com/your-carolina/rabbit-sanctuary/ | 2022-04-08T18:50:31Z | wspa.com | control | https://www.wspa.com/your-carolina/rabbit-sanctuary/ | 1 | 1 | green-iguana-35 | null |
The Beacon Car Show Fundraiser For CFADD and USC Upstate
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The Beacon Drive In, famous for food and amazing car shows. This year’s car show is a fundraiser for Christian Families Against Destructive Decisions and USC Upstate. | https://www.wspa.com/your-carolina/the-beacon-car-show-fundraiser-for-cfadd-and-usc-upstate/ | 2022-04-08T18:50:39Z | wspa.com | control | https://www.wspa.com/your-carolina/the-beacon-car-show-fundraiser-for-cfadd-and-usc-upstate/ | 1 | 1 | green-iguana-35 | null |
St. Louis native Cedric the Entertainer and his sister Sharita Kyles Wilson’s mission to financially support and acknowledge the launch of SSM Health Foundation’s Women’s Health Initiative took them throughout St. Louis on March 31, 2022.
The siblings lost their mother, longtime educator and reading specialist Rosetta Boyce Kyles, to cancer in 2015. Kyles received cancer treatment and care at SSM Health St. Mary’s Hospital, and her children say they were “inspired by the compassion and care their mother received.”
Cedric and Kyles Wilson have supported SSM Health’s with donations and fundraising efforts, and the SSM St. Mary’s Rosetta Boyce Kyles Pavilion was established in 2016.
According to SSM, $1.9 million has been raised to help launch the Women’s Health Initiative, which includes patient-centered programs affecting all women. Cedric and his sister donated $25,000 to the fundraising effort at an event the evening of March 31.
“When my mother got diagnosed with cancer and started on her journey of recovery, SSM showed us great compassion,” Cedric said at the KSDK downtown studios.
“We saw that was the natural way they cared about all their patients. It was an opportunity to get involved and bring awareness to work that’s done there to be able to help other people. I wanted to be able to contribute and build upon that.”
Kyles Wilson said the SSM Initiative can help reduce health care disparities that that exist between women in white and minority communities between health care provided between Black women and white women.
“We have to be mindful, ask questions, seek other opinions and search for all the resources we can find to make sure that we’re okay,” she said.
“Women often overlook their health, and we want to change that. We’re typically caregivers and don’t always take good care of ourselves because we’re so busy taking care of others and meeting their needs. With this initiative, we want to make sure women have the resources they need.”
The siblings have hosted benefit galas to help financially support, and they have decided to take a more direct approach.
“Our long-term plan for the program is to [increase] public service announcements, radio, and TV ads for people to hear the message throughout the year,” Cedric said.
“We think this kind of fundraising and crowdsourcing resonates more with people than expecting all the rich people to [lend support.] It's about donating money to someone in need. It could help them catch an Uber ride to the doctor’s office or pay for their bus pass. We have to be more intentional about caring for the women in our lives and communities.”
“This campaign gives each of us an unprecedented opportunity to tangibly improve the lives of women in our region, by providing high-quality care for the evolving health needs a woman experiences throughout her lifetime,” said Paul R. Ross, SSM Health Foundation – St. Louis president said in a release.
“When women don't have access to specialized and comprehensive health care, they too often end up suffering in silence or delaying care until it's too late. This campaign gives the community an opportunity to unite behind the women in our lives and ensure they receive the care they need and deserve.”
According to SSM, the program “will integrate care across specialties from preventative visits to community needs assessments, to behavioral health support and beyond in order to create a holistic approach to each individual woman's needs.”
It will address pregnancy-related mental health issues such as depression, anxiety, and mood disorders; standardization of screening timelines, tools, and referrals; coordination of care with a Nurse Navigator to obtain needed supports and additional access to nurse practitioners experienced in women's and behavioral health.
There is also a partnership with SSM Health DePaul Behavioral Health Urgent Care Center for acute needs.
“The fundraising campaign will provide vital support needed to reach women in all of SSM Health's service areas in the entire St. Louis region,” Ross said.
To donate or learn more about the initiative visit https://www.givetossmhealth.org/womenshealth/ or call 314-523-8044. | https://www.stlamerican.com/news/local_news/a-family-affair/article_e88959ce-b684-11ec-b850-a34bf79d172a.html | 2022-04-08T18:50:40Z | stlamerican.com | control | https://www.stlamerican.com/news/local_news/a-family-affair/article_e88959ce-b684-11ec-b850-a34bf79d172a.html | 1 | 1 | green-iguana-35 | null |
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Check them out at LoveYourTeeth.com or 1-800-783-1045 | https://www.wspa.com/your-carolina/whiten-your-teeth-7-shades-in-7-days-with-love-your-teeth/ | 2022-04-08T18:50:45Z | wspa.com | control | https://www.wspa.com/your-carolina/whiten-your-teeth-7-shades-in-7-days-with-love-your-teeth/ | 1 | 1 | green-iguana-35 | null |
After years of having a wee bottle of Tabasco to spice up their rations, troops now will be using powdered hot sauce.
According to a story in Stars and Stripes, the batch of Meals, Ready to Eat in production this year will include powdered hot sauce for the first time.
The iconic tiny bottles of Tabasco sauce will be phased out by 2024, Julie Smith, senior food technologist for the Army’s Combat Feeding Division, told Stars and Stripes.
The hot sauce shift is one of several changes to MREs approved in February. The 2022 batch will introduce fruit pouches, a coconut almond bar, and a Mexican-rice-and-bean-bowl meal, an Army document summarizing the changes said.
According to the article, the military also approved 10 new items for MREs in the coming years. Chicken stir-fry meals with carrots, bamboo shoots and ginger soy sauce are slated to arrive by 2024. A new recipe for spaghetti with beef and sauce, granola, lemon cheesecake, an apple dessert spread and larger portions of jalapeno cashews and smoked almonds are also on the way within the next two years.
Subtractions from this year’s menu include the creamy spinach fettucine meal, wheat snack bread and flavored cappuccino powder, the document said.
The changes were the result of troop feedback and an emphasis on reducing weight in MREs, Smith said.
Military rations have featured mini bottles of Tabasco for decades. Generations of troops have used the iconic red pepper sauce to liven up field rations.
But the glass bottles add up in weight and cost when produced by the millions, Smith said.
To read the whole story, click here. | https://www.katc.com/news/covering-louisiana/oh-the-humanity-powdered-hot-sauce-coming-to-mres | 2022-04-08T18:51:04Z | katc.com | control | https://www.katc.com/news/covering-louisiana/oh-the-humanity-powdered-hot-sauce-coming-to-mres | 1 | 1 | green-iguana-35 | null |
The author of “The House on Mango Street”, Sandra Cisneros, is about to publish a new book this year.
Cisneros announced the news on her Instagram page.
The award-winning author said her new book, “Woman Without Shame”, will feature a series of “unseen” poems.
It will also be published in Spanish, under the title, “Mujer Sin Vergüenza.”
The book, published by Alfred A. Knopf, will be published September 13, Cisneros said.
The internationally renowned author is known for her poems and stories depicting life as a Latina and Chicana in the U.S.
Some of her most famous works include “Woman Hollering Creek” and “Caramelo.” | https://www.katc.com/news/national/award-winning-author-sandra-cisneros-announces-new-poetry-book | 2022-04-08T18:51:22Z | katc.com | control | https://www.katc.com/news/national/award-winning-author-sandra-cisneros-announces-new-poetry-book | 1 | 1 | green-iguana-35 | null |
Voters across St. Louis County and city made their voices heard on Tuesday, ushering in a wave of transformative laws and charter amendments for the region.
Most notably was voters’ overwhelming support for Proposition R in the city, which garnered 69% of supportive votes. Prop R installs a code of ethics for the Board of Aldermen – long overdue -- and requires that alderpersons disclose any potential conflict of interest prior to taking an action, like sponsoring a bill or voting on it. This means, for instance, that Alderman Jeffrey Boyd (Ward 22) would have been required to publicly disclose his conflict of interest involving a $40,000 federal grant that he received through SLDC’s Neighborhood Commercial District Improvement Program, in part due to his position as an alderman serving as chair of the Neighborhood Development Committee.
Unsurprisingly, Boyd and his allies were among the most vocal opponents to the passage of Prop R. Opposition efforts were lead and primarily funded by the St. Louis city Republicans, although President Lewis Reed and Alderpersons Brandon Bosley (Ward 3), Carol Howard (Ward 14), Tom Oldenberg (Ward 16), Marlene Davis (Ward 19), John Collins-Muhammad (Ward 21), Joe Vaccaro (Ward 23), and Pamela Boyd (Ward 27), all jumped in to fight against Prop R’s passage. Interestingly, the city’s Democratic Central Committee found itself aligned with city Republicans in opposition to Prop R, although it’s worth noting that the DCC also opposed 2020’s Prop D, which reformed the city’s electoral system and brought us approval voting.
Prop R also requires that each alderperson make their financial disclosure statements available to the public and explicitly prohibits the Board of Aldermen from undoing voter-enacted laws (such as Prop D). Finally, Prop R establishes an independent commission to redraw ward lines, although this piece of the new law will not take effect for another decade since a new ward map was just redrawn in December.
Although opponents of Prop R loudly decried the 10% voter turnout across the city, they showed little effort to register voters, to educate voters on the ballot issues, or to inform voters of the now-past April 5 Election Day. Instead, they engaged in a fear-mongering campaign with non-specific “threats” to voters, that the proposition would “end critical checks and balances” for aldermen or that an “inequitable process that limits African-American & Minority judges” from participating in redistricting -- all which were misrepresentations of what the law actually said. But this is a new political era in St. Louis, where misleading voters and pushing narratives of fear no longer work.
With its overwhelming support, Prop R is the first citizen-initiated petition to pass in the city to amend the charter in nearly 70 years. The last proposition introduced by citizens to pass was in 1941 and established the Civil Service Commission.
Conversely, Proposition 1 passed with 84% of the vote and with little controversy. It was endorsed by nearly every city elected official. Prop 1 allows the city to issue and allocate up to $50 million in municipal bonds (read: no additional taxes!) for fixing potholes, repairing crumbling bridges, upgrading city parks and recreational centers, and improving accessibility.
In St. Louis County, voter turnout fared slightly better, with 19.1% of total registered voters casting their ballots. County residents resoundingly rejected efforts to add a county-wide sales tax for online purchases (Prop C) and to lease part of Queeny Park to a charter school (Prop D). More concerning, however, were the number of voters who fell victim to another misleading campaign involving the County Executive and whether the person holding that office can hold a second job. Although current County Executive Sam Page has not found himself in any actual conflict or danger between his elected role and the one weekend per month that he works as an anesthesiologist, the narrative still is pushed predominantly by police lobbyist Jane Dueker, the cacophonous small fry challenging Page in the August primary.
Finally, and perhaps long overdue was the passage of Prop A, which requires the County Executive’s Office to disclose the salaries of politically-appointed persons who work within that office. This means, for example, that any work that Dueker did for her old boss, former County Executive and now-convicted white collar criminal Steve Stenger, would have had to be disclosed under the new law.
With so many ethical reforms passed this week, one thing is for certain: St. Louis’ old guard should pay close attention to what voters want, instead of telling them what they need. | https://www.stlamerican.com/news/political_eye/voters-prioritize-ethics-infrastructure-in-tuesday-s-election/article_76f81e22-b73c-11ec-a16b-e78318bad402.html | 2022-04-08T18:51:40Z | stlamerican.com | control | https://www.stlamerican.com/news/political_eye/voters-prioritize-ethics-infrastructure-in-tuesday-s-election/article_76f81e22-b73c-11ec-a16b-e78318bad402.html | 1 | 1 | green-iguana-35 | null |
Before Taylor Swift went to Nashville to become a young musical sensation, she lived in the Reading, Pennsylvania, area. She has immortalized the farm she grew up on through songs like “Christmas Tree Farm” and “Seven.” This was before her family moved to a home at 78 Grandview Boulevard in Wyomissing, Pennsylvania, where the budding singer-songwriter lived from about ages 8-14 and attended the area junior high school before the family moved in 2004 so she could pursue a career in country music.
Turns out the house is now on the market. How about that for a piece of pop-culture memorabilia?
The home, which the family is said to have purchased for $280,000 in 1997, is a 1929 Georgian-style residence of 3,560 square feet. It has five bedrooms, 3 1/2 baths and a 3/4-acre lot with a nice backyard and detached two-car garage. In February, it was listed for more than $1 million and is now yours for the taking at just $999,900.
According to reports, the house was originally built as an in-law house for the prominent Lauer family in an upscale neighborhood supported by the textile mill industry. It has changed hands and gone through renovations several times since Swift and her family lived there. Residents tell stories of people coming to take pictures of the house, or of finding artifacts of Swift’s time there.
Let’s take a look inside! The house features many historic details, including a stately profile with an ornate foyer.
It also has a formal dining room with decorative molding.
The living room features two sets of French doors that lead to a covered side patio and a wood-burning fireplace flanked with bookshelves. Looks like an idyllic place for a family to gather and talk about the tea that has been spilled by its famous former resident!
The kitchen, like the rest of the house, is large, with a marble-top island, big sink, wooden cutting board, commercial-grade Viking range with double oven, and plenty of cabinets for storage. Built-in appliances like a refrigerator, dishwasher and microwave are included.
Attached to the kitchen is a cute little breakfast room with plenty of natural light. You might say you could “only see daylight” in here.
The property also includes a den, butler’s pantry with wet bar, a second floor with a primary and secondary bedroom, three bedrooms on the top floor, and a basement. Outside, there’s a playground, pool (unfilled in the pictures due to the time of year) and fenced-in garden.
If you’re interested in purchasing this property, you’ll want to contact Eric J. Miller & Eric P. Miller at Re/Max of Reading, who are the agents representing the property. Get a virtual tour of the inside of the home on agent Eric Miller’s YouTube page. You’ll see there are plenty of wreaths hung up, which play on the Swift connection.
If you’re looking for a place in this world, this might be the one!
This story originally appeared on Simplemost. Checkout Simplemost for additional stories. | https://www.katc.com/taylor-swifts-childhood-home-market-look-inside | 2022-04-08T18:52:05Z | katc.com | control | https://www.katc.com/taylor-swifts-childhood-home-market-look-inside | 1 | 1 | green-iguana-35 | null |
Alaska is gearing up for two special elections this summer to fill the state’s sole seat in the U.S. House of Representatives left vacant by the death of Rep. Don Young.
This year’s election will be Alaska’s first after voters adopted big changes to statewide elections in 2020. And those changes may pose a whole host of challenges for officials.
KTOO’s Andrew Kitchenman reports.
This article was originally published on WBUR.org.
Copyright 2022 NPR. To see more, visit https://www.npr.org. | https://www.klcc.org/2022-04-08/alaska-gears-up-to-vote-for-new-representative-in-special-elections | 2022-04-08T18:56:18Z | klcc.org | control | https://www.klcc.org/2022-04-08/alaska-gears-up-to-vote-for-new-representative-in-special-elections | 1 | 1 | green-iguana-35 | null |
Many older residents in Vermont are relying on the kindness of volunteer drivers to help them get around. Ride programs often run on limited funding but neither that nor the pandemic has stopped volunteers from assisting those in need.
Vermont Public Radio’s Nina Keck reports.
This article was originally published on WBUR.org.
Copyright 2022 NPR. To see more, visit https://www.npr.org. | https://www.klcc.org/2022-04-08/transportation-assistance-for-older-vermonters-is-driven-by-kindness | 2022-04-08T18:56:48Z | klcc.org | control | https://www.klcc.org/2022-04-08/transportation-assistance-for-older-vermonters-is-driven-by-kindness | 1 | 1 | green-iguana-35 | null |
Yung Lean has never been afraid to experiment. You don't become a widely-acknowledged trailblazer of what's come to be known as "cloud rap" by playing it safe, but "Bliss" finds him taking on a new genre he's barely touched before: post-punk. Perhaps in making a conscious effort to separate his sound from the lighter, esoteric side of the drainer aesthetic (see: Bladee), Lean goes full Joy Division by rapping over a brooding, fuzzy guitar line with the tonality of a Swedish Ian Curtis.
Stardust, out today,isYung Lean's first full-length project since 2020's Starz. The two records are similar in more than just name, with both heavily featuring the layered, songwriting-forward haziness Lean has adopted in recent years. When it comes to "Bliss," though, the pivot to doomer groove is what makes the song so surprising: It's like if you fused together Molchat Doma with Crystal Castles and Yves Tumor, aided by FKA twigs doing her best electroclash impression. The combination is nuanced and, honestly, quite cool — never in my life did I think I would hear twigs and Lean doing a cold wave track — reaffirming Lean's status as one of the most creative and post-genre rappers making music today.
Copyright 2022 NPR. To see more, visit https://www.npr.org. | https://www.klcc.org/npr-music/2022-04-08/yung-lean-feat-fka-twigs-bliss | 2022-04-08T18:56:55Z | klcc.org | control | https://www.klcc.org/npr-music/2022-04-08/yung-lean-feat-fka-twigs-bliss | 1 | 1 | green-iguana-35 | null |
Updated April 8, 2022 at 2:16 PM ET
NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg told Morning Edition that he anticipates heavier fighting in the weeks and months ahead as the Ukraine war moves into a "new phase."
He believes that Russian President Vladimir Putin "totally underestimated" the strength of Ukrainian forces and the support of its Western allies. But he doesn't think Putin has changed his overall aim of controlling Ukraine — and now the Russian military has changed its strategy to focus in on the east.
"What we have seen so far is extremely bad. It has caused a lot of casualties, civilian suffering, destruction," he said. "But the scale and the scope of the fight we may see in Donbas will be even much heavier and even more dangerous."
Stoltenberg said now is the time for NATO allies to reinforce the Ukrainians, both by providing them with advanced weapons systems and resupplying them with basic necessities like fuel, ammunition, food rations and medical kits.
Interview highlights
On the war's predicted duration
It's President Putin who is responsible for this senseless war, and he can end that war tomorrow by withdrawing his troops and sit down and engage in good faith in negotiations for a political solution. But you have to be realistic and realize that that's not very likely. So therefore, we need to also be prepared for the long haul. And it's hard to predict. Wars are always unpredictable. But this can last for months and even years, and that's reason also why we need to continue to provide support to Ukraine and be prepared for doing so for a long time.
On the long-term impact of the war on Russia's relationship with NATO
There's no way we can go back to the meaningful dialogue we tried to establish with Russia for many, many years. We need now to continue to talk to Russia, to address issues like deconfliction, to prevent incidents and accidents — and if they happen to ensure that they don't spiral out of control — and also, of course, talk to Russia on issues like arms control. But the kind of dialogue and even more what we strive for to establish a better relationship with Russia, that doesn't have any meaning in the current situation.
On the morale of the Ukrainian people
I'm impressed by the courage and by the strength of not only the Ukrainian armed forces, but also the Ukrainian people, and not least the Ukrainian leadership. And its high spirit, morale has, of course, been absolutely essential for the strength in the resistance we have seen from Ukraine.
This interview was produced by Taylor Haney and Sean Saldana and edited by Raquel Maria Dillon.
The digital version of this story originally appeared in the Morning Edition live blog.
Copyright 2022 NPR. To see more, visit https://www.npr.org. | https://www.klcc.org/npr-news/2022-04-08/nato-chief-warns-of-heavier-fighting-in-new-phase-of-ukraine-war | 2022-04-08T18:57:25Z | klcc.org | control | https://www.klcc.org/npr-news/2022-04-08/nato-chief-warns-of-heavier-fighting-in-new-phase-of-ukraine-war | 1 | 1 | green-iguana-35 | null |
MADRID — Spain is awaiting the publication in coming days of a new law banning the intimidation or harassment of women entering abortion clinics.
The law comes into force when it is published in the Government Gazette, possibly next week, after the Spanish Senate on Wednesday endorsed a law passed earlier by parliament.
The Senate gave its blessing by 154 to 105 votes for changes to the penal code in Spain, where abortions are available for free in the public health service through the 14th week of pregnancy.
The legal changes mean that anyone harassing a woman going into an abortion clinic will be committing a crime that can be punished with up to one year in prison.
Spain's government, led by the center-left Socialist government, proposed the law last year and lawmakers approved it in September.
In the Senate, as in parliament, the changes were opposed by right-of-center political groupings.
They argued that the alterations flew in the face of the constitutional right to free speech and the right to assemble.
Anti-abortion groups said their gatherings outside abortion clinics were organized to pray and offer help to the women.
The national Association of Accredited Clinics for Pregnancy Termination says that more than 100 cases of harassment are reported outside clinics each year.
Copyright 2022 NPR. To see more, visit https://www.npr.org. | https://www.klcc.org/npr-news/2022-04-08/spain-bans-harassment-of-women-entering-abortion-clinics | 2022-04-08T18:57:37Z | klcc.org | control | https://www.klcc.org/npr-news/2022-04-08/spain-bans-harassment-of-women-entering-abortion-clinics | 1 | 1 | green-iguana-35 | null |
Casino Insider is a weekly newsletter with all the best bets for food, entertainment and fun at Southern California’s casinos. It’s delivered to your inbox on Thursdays. Subscribe now.
The Palms Las Vegas is set to reopen on Wednesday, April 27. The Las Vegas property is owned and operated by the San Manuel Band of Mission Indians, who also own and operate Yaamava’ Resort & Casino in Highland.
The newly revamped property includes a resort pool area featuring a multi-level, 73,000-square-foot space, two main pools, 39 cabanas, several restaurants and more
More casino news
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Beyond Southern California
Las Vegas’ embrace of professional sports is driving tourism and profits to casinos on and off the Strip. The Street has more. | https://www.pasadenastarnews.com/2022/04/08/casino-insider-san-manuels-las-vegas-property-sets-a-reopening-date/ | 2022-04-08T18:57:46Z | pasadenastarnews.com | control | https://www.pasadenastarnews.com/2022/04/08/casino-insider-san-manuels-las-vegas-property-sets-a-reopening-date/ | 1 | 1 | green-iguana-35 | null |
The United Kingdom is following in the United States' footsteps by introducing new sanctions on the two adult daughters of Russian President Vladimir Putin.
U.K. officials are enacting an asset ban and travel freeze on Putin's daughters as well as the daughter of Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov — exactly two weeks after placing similar sanctions on Lavrov's stepdaughter. They say the new sanctions target their "lavish lifestyles."
"By freezing the assets and limiting the travel of Putin's allies, the UK Government is sealing off reservoirs of cash funding the conflict, while also making sure those who have benefited from Putin's rule feel the consequences," officials said in a statement Friday.
The move comes as Western countries step up sanctions against Russia in response to reports of its forces committing alleged war crimes in Bucha and other parts of Ukraine. Citing a new analysis, officials said that the sanctions placed on Russia in the weeks since its invasion have frozen a majority of its foreign currency reserves, triggered rapid inflation and set it on track for a significant recession.
"Our unprecedented package of sanctions is hitting the elite and their families, while degrading the Russian economy on a scale Russia hasn't seen since the fall of the Soviet Union," said Foreign Secretary Liz Truss.
But she said more needs to be done to hold Russia accountable and shrink Putin's war chest, adding that the U.K. is working with partners through the G-7 to end the use of Russian energy.
Officials said last month that the U.K. will phase out the import of Russian oil and oil products by the end of 2022.
This story originally appeared in the Morning Edition live blog.
Copyright 2022 NPR. To see more, visit https://www.npr.org. | https://www.klcc.org/npr-news/2022-04-08/uk-sanctions-the-daughters-of-putin-and-foreign-minister-lavrov | 2022-04-08T18:57:50Z | klcc.org | control | https://www.klcc.org/npr-news/2022-04-08/uk-sanctions-the-daughters-of-putin-and-foreign-minister-lavrov | 1 | 1 | green-iguana-35 | null |
One side of the supporters in the rivalry want to rename the series. The other side doesn’t seem to care what it’s called, but that’s probably just to antagonize the other side.
Whatever it’s called, the rivalry between the Galaxy and Los Angeles Football Club takes on a different sort of vibe this year.
LAFC enters Saturday’s first meeting of 2022 in first place in the Western Conference. The Galaxy, thanks to last week’s 3-1 win on the road over the Portland Timbers, is in third place.
Factor in a national television audience on Fox at 4:30 p.m., with LAFC’s Carlos Vela and the Galaxy’s Javier “Chicharito” Hernandez in good form, and this has big moment written all over it.
“In games like this, is you usually don’t have to overly motivate guys, it’s more keeping guys focused on the intentions and the execution of things,” Galaxy coach Greg Vanney said. “A big chunk of these games sometimes is just winning duels and little things, hustle, things like that, but it’s also staying focused on the attention to the game and what you’re trying to accomplish.”
In the short history of the series known as “El Trafico” – a nickname that is part nod to L.A.’s notorious freeway congestion, part play on words for “El Clasico,” and widely chided by LAFC faithful and personnel – the Galaxy has found a way, even when things have looked bleak.
No one will ever forget the first meeting, when newly signed Zlatan Ibrahimovic entered in the second half and, in less than 30 minutes, engineered a memorable Galaxy comeback for a 4-3 win.
In the COVID-19 season of 2020, the teams met four times, including once in Florida.
Last year’s meetings included a 3.7 earthquake during the May 8 meeting that saw the Galaxy record a 2-1 win. In August, the Galaxy rallied from a 3-1 deficit to secure a point with a 3-3 draw and the third meeting ended 1-1.
During their brief history, the Galaxy (3-2-0, 9 points) has a 5-3-5 advantage, but LAFC has the one win when the teams met in the 2019 MLS Cup playoffs.
Galaxy midfielder Raheem Edwards was on the other side last year with LAFC. He joined the Galaxy in the offseason as a free agent.
“When I was with LAFC, it was, ‘We need to be the better L.A. team,’” Edwards said. “Here, it is more of the same. We need to be the better L.A. team. We’re not going to look at the past scores, we’re just going to take it one game at a time and obviously this is the Battle of L.A., so it’s going to be electrifying, like it’s always been.
“Getting a win against your rival is always a good thing. A little extra boost to your season.”
LAFC, under new coach Steve Cherundolo, is one of three teams yet to lose this season (4-0-1, 13 points).
“They have a lot of quality that they can execute in one or two plays,” Vanney said. “And next thing you know, you’re on the wrong side of it. They have that capacity to hurt you in limited number of chances, which is always a tough team to play against.
“They’ll play a little bit on the edge and force you to beat them.”
The excitement and buzz on the field have taken a different tone in the crowd between the supporters.
Violence between the two groups seemed to escalate last season. Last month, both teams agreed to “an enhanced security plan” for this season’s games.
The plan features “designated sections on the concourse for the safe division of supporter areas and includes seat relocation opportunities, specific stadium services for traveling supporters and rules regarding opposing team colors in supporter sections.”
LAFC at GALAXY
When: 4:30 p.m. Saturday
Where: Dignity Health Sports Park, Carson
TV: Fox 11 | https://www.pasadenastarnews.com/2022/04/08/galaxy-lafc-kick-off-new-season-of-el-trafico-series/ | 2022-04-08T18:57:59Z | pasadenastarnews.com | control | https://www.pasadenastarnews.com/2022/04/08/galaxy-lafc-kick-off-new-season-of-el-trafico-series/ | 1 | 1 | green-iguana-35 | null |
By Melissa Alonso and Jason Hanna | CNN
Hundreds of thousands of homes and businesses in Puerto Rico were still without power Friday, two days after the start of an island-wide outage that began with a fire at a power plant.
About 600,000 to 650,000 of the island’s 1.5 million utility customers had electric service restored, the territory’s power grid operator said Friday morning.
That leaves about 800,000 to 850,000 homes and business without power in an outage that has closed schools island-wide for two days and caused other interruptions for Puerto Rico’s 3.2 million residents.
“We hope that at some point tonight, we will be able to have 1 million customers back online. This is subject to safety — for the system, for the employees and for the community,” Kevin Acevedo, vice president of LUMA Energy, the operator of Puerto Rico’s power grid operator, told reporters in San Juan.
An unspecified failure led to a fire at the Costa Sur power plant outside the town of Guayanilla on the southwest coast around 8:45 p.m. Wednesday, cutting power across the island, Acevedo has said. Firefighters have since extinguished the flames.
All customers on the island lost power initially, Josue Colon, Puerto Rico’s lead telecommunications and infrastructure engineer, told reporters Thursday, “because all the generating units went offline.”
The exact cause wasn’t immediately known, the utility has said.
“Every single (piece of) equipment (at the plant’s switchyard) needs to be inspected and tested to make sure that when it’s back in service, we can restore power for customers reliably and safely,” Shay Bahramirad, LUMA Energy’s senior vice president of engineering and asset management, told reporters in San Juan on Friday.
The power outage also has interrupted water service tens of thousands of homes and businesses, Gov. Pedro Pierluisi said, citing the island’s aqueducts and sewers authority.
Puerto Rico canceled classes Friday for students for a second straight day. But school principals, custodians, and school cafeteria employees still were told to report to work Friday, the island’s education department said.
The island’s courts also were closed Friday because of the outage, though some court services will be available online for urgent matters like mental health and restraining orders, the territory’s judicial system said.
All hospitals were operational by Thursday afternoon, whether their power was restored or they were operating via a generator, according to Secretary of the Interior Noelia García Bardales.
Replacement power plant parts ordered, official says
Early Thursday, the utility said the “massive island-wide blackout” might have been “caused by a circuit breaker failure” at the Costa Sur plant.
Firefighters extinguished flames that affected two substations at the plant, the Bureau of Puerto Rico Fire Departments said Wednesday.
The cause of the fire is being investigated, Acevedo said Thursday morning, adding that the equipment was up to date on maintenance inspections.
Cleanup at the plant is underway, and replacement parts have been identified and ordered, Acevedo said.
LUMA is a joint venture of Quanta Services and the Canadian energy company ATCO, which the Puerto Rican government chose to take over the operation of the power grid from its previous public electric utility, the Puerto Rico Electric Power Authority. LUMA has been in charge of the power grid since June 1. | https://www.pasadenastarnews.com/2022/04/08/more-than-half-of-puerto-rico-remains-without-power/ | 2022-04-08T18:58:11Z | pasadenastarnews.com | control | https://www.pasadenastarnews.com/2022/04/08/more-than-half-of-puerto-rico-remains-without-power/ | 1 | 1 | green-iguana-35 | null |
As Apple TV+’s Severance has built its devoted audience over the course of its nine-episode first season, its fans have happily drawn parallels to Lost—another show that seemed to revel in dangling mysteries in front of its audience and waiting a looooooong time to explain them.
For Adam Scott, a devoted sci-fi fan who also happens to star in the show, the parallels are pretty clear too—especially when it comes to the brutal cliff-hanger that ends the season.
Spoilers ahead for the season finale of Severance.
“It is, isn’t it?” Scott says with a grin, having been told that the episode’s final scene is “brutal.” His character, Mark, whose work life and regular life are fully severed thanks to an implant in his brain, has had no idea that the wife he thought was dead is in fact working with him on the severed floor of Lumon Industries. (The audience was told this a few episodes ago, in yet another wicked cliff-hanger.) “She’s alive!” Mark shouts to his sister before, back in the Lumon office, his coworker Dylan (Zach Cherry) is forced to flip the switch that allows Mark’s severed work self to be conscious out in the real world.
The scene is combined with a masterful parallel action sequence as Mark’s coworkers Helly (Britt Lower) and Irving (John Turturro) have their own real-world revelations. Helly is in fact a high-ranking Lumon employee who has been promoting the Severance program even as her severed self rails against it; when the switch is flipped, she’s in the middle of giving a stirring speech about the torture the severed “innies” endure at the office. And Irving, having embarked on the year‘s best workplace romance with Burt (Christopher Walken) before Burt is forced to retire, finds Burt out in the real world for the first time—seemingly happy at home with his husband. Irving is left pounding on the door when the switch gets flipped.
What happens when their “outie” selves take back over, with no memory of life at Lumon or any of these earth-shattering moments? We have to wait until next season to find out—and at least, anticipating this torture, Apple went ahead and confirmed a second season earlier this week. But for Scott, it’s all part of a grand TV tradition. “As an audience member, I’ll never forget the moment Lost season one ended,” he says. “And just how I think I leapt up from the couch and just screamed, ‘No!’”
That Lost season, for those who need a reminder, ended with Locke and Jack peering down the mysterious hatch, ready to finally learn what was in there…but not until next season. “The discipline it took them to wait until that moment to get that camera to go down that hole and looking up at the actors…it was incredible,” Scott says. “I know it’s in some ways cruel and unusual, but I also think it’s just so much fun to be watching something and have that feeling. And when we were doing it, we were thinking the same thing, just like, Oh Jesus, if people are still with us, this is going to be a lot of fun.”
In his appearance on the Little Gold Men podcast last week, Scott acknowledged that he does know more about the world of Severance than the audience—like, say, the meaning of the baby goats he and Helly discovered a few episodes back. But he’s not dropping any hints about it, except, maybe, one. “Did you notice what the very last sound of the episode is?” he asks casually at the end of our conversation. I hadn’t, but went back to hear it—the ding of the elevator on the Lumon severed floor.
What does it mean? Scott isn’t saying. But Severance fans have one more thing to ponder in the interminable wait for season two.
— For Better or Worse, With One Slap, Will Smith Electrified the Oscars
— So What Did We Learn From the Oscars?
— Mark Seliger’s Vanity Fair Oscar Party Portraits
— CODA’s Triumph Revealed What It Takes to Win Best Picture Now—And Why Netflix Lost (Again)
— Oscars 2022: What You Didn’t See on TV
— Sign up for the “Awards Insider” newsletter for must-read industry and awards coverage. | https://www.vanityfair.com/hollywood/2022/04/awards-insider-adam-scott-severance-finale | 2022-04-08T19:00:05Z | vanityfair.com | control | https://www.vanityfair.com/hollywood/2022/04/awards-insider-adam-scott-severance-finale | 1 | 1 | green-iguana-35 | null |
If last year’s thrilling race for best actress in a limited series was defined, largely, by characters facing down their pain—winner Kate Winslet in Mare of Easttown, Anya Taylor-Joy in The Queen’s Gambit, Michaela Coel in I May Destroy You, Elizabeth Olsen in WandaVision—then this season’s cycle is sure to turn that on its head with glee. Instead of portraits of grief and trauma, we’re overflowing with tales of scams and cons.
And just as with 2021’s crop, we’ve got a similarly impressive batch of actors playing these roles too: Emmy winner Julia Garner had a ball as a fake German heiress in Inventing Anna, while right now, you can watch Anne Hathaway spin new age mumbo jumbo in WeCrashed and Elle Fanning text a boyfriend toward tragedy in The Girl From Plainville. But heading into the homestretch, and with a bracing finale behind her, The Dropout’s Amanda Seyfried seems like the one to beat right now.
It helps that the Oscar nominee (Mank) has headed up such a popular, widely acclaimed series. WeCrashed and Inventing Anna, particularly, boast similar star power but have met more mixed reviews. Hulu’s The Dropout, which chronicles the rise and fall of Theranos founder Elizabeth Holmes, led spring’s scammer craze by operating in a delicate kind of tragicomic mode, and fleshing its world out with a compelling supporting cast. Seyfried ably led the way.
Her vocal transformation—another big trend this season, extending also to HBO Max’s Julia and the upcoming The Staircase—evoked Holmes’s iconic, exceedingly deep affectation without mimicking it. In tune with the writing, Seyfried found sympathetic notes to hit early on, playing Holmes as an ambitious college student with a big idea before seamlessly charting her descent into darkness. Seyfried moved sharply between the character’s public and private selves. She keyed into a certain unknowability too, playing harrowing scenes with layers ranging from ambivalence to guilt to a cruel sort of thrill.
This comes to a head in the finale, now streaming on Hulu, as Elizabeth effectively meets her fate and Theranos’s house of cards tumbles. Here showrunner Elizabeth Meriwether confronts, head on, what may have been going on in her troubled protagonist’s head. Upon being thrown under the bus, Elizabeth’s lover and business partner, Sunny (Naveen Andrews), wonders whether she’s all but dead inside. Elizabeth can’t respond, choosing to literally run away instead, but in the episode’s final moments, as she waits outside for an Uber, she lets out a loud, primal scream, a freeing expression of agony. In Seyfried’s explosion, The Dropout makes a convincing argument that there’s surely life underneath that black turtleneck—hot, messy, and boiling over. You see eight episodes of careful buildup play out on her face.
It’s the sort of ending, to be very simplistic about these things, that wins you an Emmy. Seyfried presents a complete embodiment of a well-known public figure, striking a tricky balance with the confidence of a star in her prime. As we can expect the show to go reasonably far come Emmy time, so too is she a contender with legs. Indeed, this category has long been kind to careful reclamations of well-known public figures, from Julianne Moore’s Sarah Palin (Game Change) to Sarah Paulson’s Marcia Clark (The People v. O.J. Simpson) to Michelle Williams’s Gwen Verdon (Fosse/Verdon).
Of course, the limited races are also more competitive than ever. Seyfried will have to fend off Maid’s Margaret Qualley, already a SAG nominee for her heartbreaking turn, as well as newly minted Oscar winner Jessica Chastain (Scenes From a Marriage). And we’ve yet to gauge the chances of the starry trio of The First Lady, or Claire Foy in A Very British Scandal (yes, more scandal!), or Julia Roberts in Gaslit, or Jessica Biel in Candy, all of whom will get a push. I could go on! But if we can call this a true race, we can also call Seyfried our early front-runner. She’s got what it takes.
— For Better or Worse, With One Slap, Will Smith Electrified the Oscars
— So What Did We Learn From the Oscars?
— Mark Seliger’s Vanity Fair Oscar Party Portraits
— CODA’s Triumph Revealed What It Takes to Win Best Picture Now—And Why Netflix Lost (Again)
— Oscars 2022: What You Didn’t See on TV
— Sign up for the “Awards Insider” newsletter for must-read industry and awards coverage. | https://www.vanityfair.com/hollywood/2022/04/awards-insider-amanda-seyfried-emmys-race | 2022-04-08T19:00:11Z | vanityfair.com | control | https://www.vanityfair.com/hollywood/2022/04/awards-insider-amanda-seyfried-emmys-race | 1 | 1 | green-iguana-35 | null |
To say that Everything Everywhere All at Once takes big swings is a profound understatement. This movie’s swings proliferate wildly and take their own swings, which then give birth to thousands more swings, all of which drop acid together and explode in a display of fireworks (which may or may not involve butt plugs).
In the race to make the most meta piece of entertainment of all time, the competition is fierce. (Before the screening of Everything Everywhere I attended, there was a preview of the upcoming movie in which Nicolas Cage plays Nicolas Cage). But thanks to an extraordinary cast and an emotional undertow that proves irresistible, Everything Everywhere ends up being — if you can ride all those big swings — satisfyingly bonkers. Or bonkersly satisfying. I am not sure the latter phrase is grammatically correct, but this movie may have broken my brain.
I have no complaints on that score, because the incandescent Michelle Yeoh, making the most of the roles of a lifetime, did much of the breaking. That choice of the word “roles,” by the way, was not an error: Yeoh plays an astonishing array of versions of one woman, and these filmmakers understood she was the only woman on Earth that could have made this batshit ride actually work.
Although, confession time: Did I love the scenes of her with hotdogs where her fingers should be as much as directors Daniel Kwan and Daniel Scheinart clearly did? I did not. But Everything Everywhere is that kind of movie. It’s a lot on top of a lot, and then more is piled on top of that concatenation of concepts. You’re unlikely to vibe with every element of it, but never mind: because before you know it, it’s sprinting on to the next thing. Anyway, the kindest thing to do at this point would be to pause and let you have a moment to process the concept of “hotdog fingers.” If it’s any consolation, they end up being one of the least weird elements of the film. I really want to tell you about the desolate cliff where a [blank] talks to a [blank] – a truly lovely moment in which the film slows down to let you catch your breath – or the scene in which a vengeful woman beats a man with [blanks], but I also don’t want to spoil too much of its exuberant loopiness.
Everything Everywhere is certainly a very 2022 movie, in that its characters are often overwhelmed, confused and rarely sure that linear time exists anymore (and if it does… ehnnnnh? Does it matter?). That’s not to say that the main character, Evelyn (Yeoh), allows herself the luxury of feeling exhausted. There is too much to do in her personal life and in the struggling laundry she runs with her earnest husband, Waymond (Ke Huy Quan). The first half of the film spends a lot of time laying out the strange things that happen to Evelyn and her family, and the rules (“rules”??) of how it all works. Suffice to say that she is, in spite of the humdrum nature of her existence, a crucial Chosen One destined to fight a titanic battle. Out of a vast multiverse of Evelyns — a film star, a chef, a martial arts expert and so on — the overworked Evelyn, the one just trying to plan a party for her dad (James Hong), is the One who must defeat an equally powerful foe. Due to the laundry’s tax issues, a good deal of that battle takes place inside a truly cursed IRS office.
A lesser actor would have used this expansive Into the Spiderverse meets Inception meets Airplane! premise to go broad and abandon subtlety. But the directors and Yeoh understand that the audience won’t buy into any of it unless Evelyn — all the Evelyns — are real, textured, intelligent people. The main Evelyn is not always likable and not always able to truly see her husband and her daughter Joy (Stephanie Hsu). This is largely because she’s allowed herself to be swallowed up by her responsibilities, which distract her, at least some of the time, from her lack of self-confidence and hope. (And that may be the most impressive trick of Everything Everywhere — that Yeoh could believably play a woman in her flop era). | https://www.vanityfair.com/hollywood/2022/04/everything-everywhere-all-at-once-movie-review | 2022-04-08T19:00:17Z | vanityfair.com | control | https://www.vanityfair.com/hollywood/2022/04/everything-everywhere-all-at-once-movie-review | 1 | 1 | green-iguana-35 | null |
Some movies you just can’t quit. Jake Gyllenhaal recently sat down with Vanity Fair to talk through his career timeline—from his child-acting days in City Slickers to his bank-robbery-action flick Ambulance. During the chat, he also opened up about working with the late Heath Ledger on Brokeback Mountain.
“The relationship between me and Heath while we were making this movie was something that was based on a profound love for a lot of people that we knew and were raised by in our lives,” said Gyllenhaal. “A deep respect for their love and their relationship.”
Gyllenhaal went on to recall how seriously Ledger took the film and its subject matter. “There were many jokes being made about the movie, or poking fun at, things like that,” Gyllenhaal said. "And [Ledger’s] consummate devotion to how serious and important the relationship between these two characters was—it showed me how devoted he was as an actor and how devoted we both were to the story and the movie.”
Gyllenhaal described the experience of shooting Brokeback Mountain with Ledger as a “really deep and fun one.” “We spent three weeks shooting, making everyone coffee and then eating a little breakfast and then walking to work,” he said. ”It’s a technique of movie-making that I wished we did more of, where we all just powwowed and lived together in the space.”
Brokeback Mountain has stuck with Gyllenhaal ever since. “There’s a moment that I go back to a lot,” Gyllenhaal said. “Heath and I were at a Q&A at the Aero Theatre in Los Angeles, and I remember us going to dinner while the movie was screening. And I remember us joking backstage, and I remember us coming on to stage in a humorous mode because we were just having fun with each other. We sat down, the lights came up, and a man stood up—and the movie had been out for a week and a half—and he said, ‘I just want to say, this is my 11th time seeing this movie, and I can’t stop watching it, and I just want to thank you all for making it.’ And I thought, 11 times in 10 days.”
“I remember the wash of that over us,” Gyllenhaal recalls. “We were poking fun at each other before we go on, and then the profound realization of—the profundity of this thing washed over us. It happens constantly to this day, and I can’t really express how proud I am of it. ”
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In the five years since the premiere of The Crown, the Windsors have seen an abundance of scandal and drama—from Prince Andrew’s Jeffrey Epstein woes to Meghan Markle’s entrance and subsequent exit from the family. So it was a relief when news broke last year that Peter Morgan is planning to continue the show for a surprise sixth season after Elizabeth Debicki makes her debut as Princess Diana in the upcoming fifth season. But along with a report in the Sun that the show is already searching for a Kate Middleton–lookalike for the series’ next installment comes the news that Morgan might also be looking to Queen Elizabeth’s ancestors for a prequel show.
On Thursday, the Daily Mail reported that production company Left Bank is in talks with Netflix for a show that might take the story back to the Victorian era. Deadline confirmed the report, but added that the talks for another royals show from the Crown creator are only preliminary.
Hopefully, any Crown prequel would avoid focusing on the character of Queen Victoria. The costume-drama industrial complex can support many different approaches to the same source material, but ITV’s Victoria already delivered a fairly definitive look at the monarch’s early life and love affair with her husband, Prince Albert, over three seasons that ran from 2016 to 2019. After Albert’s death, Victoria spent the last four decades of her life in mourning, and was so averse to public appearances that it sparked complaints that threatened her reign. But between Victoria and Elizabeth were four kings who all took meandering paths to the throne. Here are a few of the most promising pieces of royal gossip from their eras—more than enough material for Morgan to sink his teeth into.
Though Victoria herself might not be an ideal topic for a Crown prequel, her children got up to plenty of decadent mischief in the waning years of her reign. During this time, she also ensured that all nine of her children married into royal families across Europe, along with serving as a matchmaker for her grandchildren and the nobility of Britain—including her son, Prince Leopold, whose illness and early death was the first sign that hemophilia would soon afflict royals across the continent. By the end of the 1860s, her three eldest daughters had married German noblemen, and eventually their children would watch as the empire fell and Adolf Hitler’s regime sprouted.
Her oldest son, the prince who would become Edward VII, led a hedonistic lifestyle and became known as what biographer Theo Aronson called “the celebrated royal womanizer.” He carried on long-term love affairs with a handful of women who have illustrious biographies of their own, including world-famous stage actress Lillie Langtry and Alice Keppel, who stayed in his entourage throughout his reign. Eventually Keppel’s great-granddaughter, Camilla Shand (later known as Camilla Parker-Bowles), would go on to marry Prince Charles.
Any story about George V—Edward VII’s second-born son, who would eventually reign through World War I and the upheaval of the 1920s—would have to begin with the dramatic circumstances that introduced him to his wife. The British-born German princess who would become Queen Mary was engaged to George’s older brother, Eddy, until he died in a flu pandemic in 1892. George was in love with one of his cousins, Princess Marie of Edinburgh, but his parents had disapproved of the match. While mourning Eddy, Mary and George grew close and in 1893, the pair was wed.
George ascended to the throne in 1910, and his reign is synonymous with the beginning of the modern royal family. In fact, he made the decision to change the family name to Windsor to avoid the German connotations of their former surname, Saxe-Coburg-Gotha. He was known for being ruthless in defense of the British monarchy, even denying refuge to his cousin, Tsar Nicholas of Russia, before Nicholas’s eventual execution by Russian revolutionaries. He and Mary famously spent their summers touring around the U.K. to stay at country homes—one such visit is at the center of the Downton Abbey movie—and were very involved in the ins and outs of upper-class social life, though Mary did get a reputation as a slight kleptomaniac.
Royal watchers know him as the man who sacrificed the throne for love, and viewers of The Crown saw him played amusingly by Alex Jennings and Derek Jacobi in the show’s first three seasons. But there is still so much about the most confounding member of the Windsor clan that hasn’t yet made it to the screen. In his 20s, he was known as a heartthrob and was even described as a matrimonial “catch” in a 1914 issue of Vanity Fair. He loved to buy and commission jewelry for his lovers, and was so known for shopping at the jewelers on Paris’s Rue de la Paix that it was even the subject of an editorial cartoon. His eventual wife, Wallis Simpson, was only the last in a line of mistresses that kept him company in the years before his accession to the throne. He even helped his brother Bertie (who would eventually become King George VI) carry on a love affair before Bertie married the Queen Mother.
George VI’s struggle after his brother’s abdication was depicted in Tom Hooper’s 2010 film The King’s Speech, but Edward’s life might have actually been more interesting during that period. One of his first acts as a private citizen was a trip to Germany, where he and Wallis visited with Hitler in the run-up to war mobilization. In recent years, books like Andrew Lownie’s Sunday Times bestseller Traitor King have looked back at the increasing alarm in the CIA and British intelligence services over Edward’s behavior as war broke out. At one point, the Nazis even tried to kidnap him. | https://www.vanityfair.com/hollywood/2022/04/royal-gossip-should-for-the-crowns-potential-prequel | 2022-04-08T19:00:29Z | vanityfair.com | control | https://www.vanityfair.com/hollywood/2022/04/royal-gossip-should-for-the-crowns-potential-prequel | 1 | 1 | green-iguana-35 | null |
Alabama Republicans on Thursday advanced what may be the most extreme anti-transgender bill any state has put forth yet: a package that bans gender-affirming medical treatment for kids, threatens doctors who provide such care with felonies, and requires schools to inform parents if a child indicates they may be transgender. Separate legislation passed by state GOP lawmakers requires children to use the bathrooms corresponding with the gender listed on their birth certificate and polices discussion of sexual orientation and gender identity in classrooms, a version of the “Don’t Say Gay” law Florida Governor Ron DeSantis signed last week. The legislation, the latest and perhaps most sweeping, goes to Republican Governor Kay Ivey’s desk for consideration, though she has yet to say if she’ll sign it.
“This is wrong,” State Representative Neil Rafferty, the only openly gay member of the Alabama Legislature, said Thursday, per the Associated Press. “Y’all sit there and campaign on family being the foundation of our nation…but what this bill is doing is totally undermining that. It’s totally undermining family rights, health rights, and access to health care.”
If signed, healthcare providers who assist in the gender transition of people under age 19 could face up to 10 years in prison. The bill, which passed the Alabama House 66-28, is part of a constellation of anti-LGBTQ laws across the country, particularly ones targeting trans youth. There’s the “Don’t Say Gay” bill DeSantis signed last week. There’s the thirteen states — including, most recently, Oklahoma — that have banned transgender women and girls from competing in female sports. And then there’s Texas, Arizona, and Arkansas, each of which has recently restrictions on gender affirming treatment. (The Arkansas law, the first of its kind when it overrode GOP Governor Asa Hutchinson’s veto last year, has been on hold amid a legal battle. The Alabama law will face a similar challenge if it is signed.)
The surge of legislation comes amid what appears to be a sharp increase in brazen anti-LGBTQ rhetoric on the right. During the confirmation hearings of Supreme Court Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson, for instance, Republican Senator Marsha Blackburn asked the nominee to “provide a definition for the word ‘woman’” and berated her when she declined. “The fact that you can’t give me a straight answer about something as fundamental as what a woman is underscores the dangers of the kind of progressive education that we are hearing about,” Blackburn said. (Health and Human Services Secretary Xavier Becerra endured a similar line of questioning from Lauren Boebert during a Capitol Hill hearing this week.) In response to condemnations of their toxic rhetoric and the dangerous laws that have come out of it, Republicans have cast their critics as “groomers,” as DeSantis’s spokesperson did last month.
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Anti-LGBTQ discrimination obviously didn't disappear with Obergefell, the 2015 high court decision that legalized same-sex marriage in the United States. (One of Donald Trump's first moves upon entering office was to revoke Obama-era protections that allowed transgender students to use restrooms corresponding with their gender identity). In the last year, Republicans have escalated manufactured moral panic campaigns to great political profit. Whether it be about critical race theory allegedly being taught in schools, or reinvigorating the broader anti-LGBTQ movement, conservatives have created a bogeyman that can easily shapeshift into whatever they need to rail against that week, be it woke kindergarten teachers or transgender athletes.
Republicans, of course, have suggested they’re doing all this in the name of protecting kids; Wes Allen, who introduced the Alabama bill, said Thursday that kids’ “brains are not developed to make the decisions long term about what these medications and surgeries do to their body.” But the anti-LGBTQ hostility poses a dramatic risk to gay and trans youth, with 85% of transgender and nonbinary kids in a recent Morning Consult survey saying the debates over these bills have hurt their mental health. And the laws themselves, of course, denies them access to life-saving health care, as Lynly Egyes, legal director of the Transgender Law Center, emphasized in a statement on the Alabama legislation Thursday. “Our goal is to ensure that trans youth become trans adults,” Egyes said, “and bills like this are antithetical to trans people thriving in this country.”
Some Republicans have recognized that. Last month, Utah Governor Spencer Cox vetoed a transgender sports ban, citing the small number of trans kids participating in high school sports in the state and the staggeringly high risk of suicide among trans kids in his reasoning. “Rarely has so much fear and anger been directed at so few,” Cox wrote. “I don’t understand what they are going through or why they feel the way they do. But I want them to live.” For much of the GOP apparatus, though, politics has outweighed those calls for compassion. “You’re saying this is about children. It’s not,” Chris England, a state representative and chair of the Alabama Democratic Party said Thursday. “What it is about is scoring political points and using those children as collateral damage.”
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— Not a subscriber? Join Vanity Fair to receive full access to VF.com and the complete online archive now. | https://www.vanityfair.com/news/2022/04/alabama-anti-trans-bill | 2022-04-08T19:00:35Z | vanityfair.com | control | https://www.vanityfair.com/news/2022/04/alabama-anti-trans-bill | 1 | 1 | green-iguana-35 | null |
Republican politicians and pundits love to claim liberals are easily “triggered” “snowflakes,” but when it comes down to it, it appears conservatives are actually the most ridiculously sensitive people on earth. There are many data points to support this conclusion, but one of the biggest is probably their current crusade to ban schools from teaching race in America in a historically accurate way, i.e., a way that might make white people a little—or very—uncomfortable. That’s led to a raft of bills from the party of “personal freedom” dictating what can and cannot be said in the classroom, and while many a Republican-controlled legislature has had the good fortune of having a politically aligned governor willing to sign these attempts at censorship into law, the Kentucky GOP does not.
On Wednesday, Kentucky governor Andy Beshear, a Democrat, vetoed Senate Bill 1, which, while not using critical race theory—the right’s bogeyman du jour—explicitly, quite obviously attempts to regulate what teachers can discuss with their students when it comes to race. “Senate Bill 1 tries to police classroom discussions on topics such as race,” Beshear wrote in letter vetoing the bill. “These are discussions our children are having with or without adults in our schools. Prescribing a rigid approach to what must be ‘taught’ in those discussions will lessen if not erase them.”
As CNN notes, S.B. 1 states that public schools must provide instruction that makes it clear that “an individual, by virtue of the individual’s race or sex, does not bear responsibility for actions committed by other members of the same race or sex” and that “the institution of slavery and post–Civil War laws enforcing racial segregation and discrimination were contrary to the fundamental American promise of life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness, as expressed in the Declaration of Independence, but that defining racial disparities solely on the legacy of this institution is destructive to the unification of our nation.” In other words, teachers would have had to explain to their students that while slavery and Jim Crow–era segregation were bad, they really amounted to more of a “few bad apples” situation that has no impact on America today.
In the letter, Beshear insisted that adults and children alike have First Amendment rights that allow them to have important conversations, like ones about race, without being censored by the government. He also blasted the bill’s requirement that teachers incorporate “a specific set of historical documents and speeches” into lessons, including a political campaign speech Ronald Reagan gave in 1964. “These texts were not selected by historians or scholars, but by a political body,” Beshear wrote, adding, “The fact that this text is included over others like Dwight Eisenhower’s statement to troops in advance of the D-Day invasion suggests the bill is aimed more at politics than at history.”
In a released statement, Samuel Crankshaw, a spokesperson for the ACLU of Kentucky, said that S.B. 1 is “part of a nationwide strategy to whitewash history, perpetuate white supremacy, and erase marginalized people—particularly people of color and LGBTQ people.” Which, apparently, is all part of the plan.
Senator Brian Schatz rearranges Josh Hawley’s internal organs
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Mitch McConnell confirms there’s literally nothing Donald Trump could do to lose his support in 2024
Obviously this should come as no surprise, but it’s nice to be reminded now and again that the Senate minority leader has no soul.
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This week Inside the Hive cohost Joe Hagan talks to Florida congressman Charlie Crist, former Republican and onetime governor, about the culture wars emanating from his home state and from Governor Ron DeSantis specifically. As DeSantis passes discriminatory new laws targeting gay and trans people, generating cultural-war bile for a potential presidential run, Crist is betting DeSantis is a “paper tiger” who is weaker than he appears. “I think he’s terribly vulnerable,” he says. “[His] support is a mile wide and an inch deep.”
Taking a page from Joe Biden’s playbook against Donald Trump in 2020, Crist thinks voters secretly want civility over bullying, Disney over DeSantis, even if current polling shows DeSantis trouncing Crist in a theoretical matchup. “I’m an optimist, I’m idealistic, and I believe good will triumph over bad,” Crist says.
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Calling all spring brides who are in search of elegant white dresses for their various wedding festivities. It's no secret that brides today end up wearing more than one special white dress for all the events surrounding their wedding. Sure, the wedding dress is the main event, but in addition to the winning white look that goes down the aisle, brides also need an assortment of elegant white dresses for all the special events leading up to the big day—and even after.
But with such a vast assortment of bridal options, shopping for the perfect looks can be overwhelming at the start. To help make the shopping process easier, we’ve curated a list of elegant white dresses for all the wedding events on your list.
Whether you're just getting started and searching for a bridal shower frock or getting ready for the big bachelorette bash, with our selection of elegant white dresses, you're sure to be best-dressed bride.
Bridal Shower
In between the engagement and the wedding, some brides are showered with a special celebration featuring bridal gifts, games, and gabbing with close friends and family. Not every bride decides to partake in a traditional bridal shower, but for those brides that do, you'll most likely want to kick off the wedding festivities (and your parade of white dresses) in an elegant ensemble. Look spring fresh in this embroidered Jonathan Simkhai halter dress or, if you don't want to go fully all white, add some subtle color to your look with this Zimmerman floral panel mini dress.
Bachelorette
While a bridal shower might call for an elegant white dress, a look for the bachelorette party can be, well, a little less formal. In fact, why not ditch the dress completely and change it up with a sexy cut-out jumpsuit by Patbo or shine in a metallic maxi by Baobab. Whether you're hitting the town for a wild night out or lounging with your bridal party at a spa or on a beach, there's a fun white dress (or jumpsuit) look for any type of bachelorette soirée.
Rehearsal Dinner
The night before the big day, the bride and groom gather with their respective wedding parties, close family and friends to toast to the union before the official ceremony. Rehearsal dinners can range from an intimate dinner to a big pre-wedding bash. But no matter what kind of rehearsal dinner you decide to have, the event's attire calls for an elegant white dress that has the essence of a wedding look without being the actual wedding gown. It's a preview of what is to come down the aisle the next day so you have to ensure it does your bridal look justice. From romantic silk sheaths to a voluminous mini dress, you'll be the blushing bride in any of these looks.
Wedding After Party
Whether you have a big wedding dress that might be difficult to dance in or you just like the idea of having yet another bridal ensemble, changing into a second look for the wedding reception or after party has become a common trait for some brides. There are those brides who go all out and change into a second wedding dress for the reception, but an elaborate cocktail dress has become the new second-look staple. Rock and fun and flirty Rotate mini or sparkle in a glittering Retrofête wrap dress that can be styled with some chic mules or sleek sneaks for stylish dance floor comfort.
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In challenging times, it can be a comfort to remember that some things follow a simple progression. For example, you can trust that when a seed sprouts, it becomes a sapling that grows big and tall, its leaves changing with the seasons of the earth and the seasons of our lives. It grows old or falls to the ground and decays. Real circle-of-life stuff. You can count on that being the way it is for the most part, and that can soothe when there’s so much chaos around.
It’s why I’m absolutely thrilled to announce, or at least repeat, that Kim Kardashian and her beau made their red-carpet debut Thursday night, an essential step in the life cycle of a Hollywood relationship. She wore a design by the late Thierry Mugler for the occasion. They’ve hit all the progressive steps: the meet-cute, the public appearance and/or announcement, the social media couples post, the late-night talk show story—something light and humorous, a small window into their relationship for the adoring fans—and this, the red-carpet debut (sort of).
And you already know who the man on her arm was. He’s the guy from a certain line in her new show’s trailer: “Who are you texting? Does his name rhyme with feet?” He’s been described as this generation’s Warren Beatty, and called himself, at least once, this generation’s Dennis Rodman. Yes, we’re talking about Pete Davidson, folks. They were out there together at a red-carpet event, an international sign of mutual support and solidarity between couples. He’s wearing, for what it’s worth, Midnight Studios by Shane Gonzales.
Now, it was a premiere red carpet for Kardashian’s own Hulu show, The Kardashians, which was certainly exciting and a real moment for them, but it was not an awards show red carpet. It was not a moment where they were out there together, sitting in seats for three to four hours next to each other and among all of their industry peers. And though there are photos of them arriving together, Davidson didn’t actually walk the red carpet with her. “It’s my thing. I don’t think it’s his thing to be all out here with me,” she told E! So it’s kind of like a half step in the grand tradition of famous couples moving through the world together. Let’s see what happens at the next Emmys.
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— Sign up for “The Buyline” to receive a curated list of fashion, books, and beauty buys in one weekly newsletter. | https://www.vanityfair.com/style/2022/04/pete-davidson-kim-kardashian-took-an-important-half-step-in-the-hollywood-life-cycle-of-relationships | 2022-04-08T19:00:59Z | vanityfair.com | control | https://www.vanityfair.com/style/2022/04/pete-davidson-kim-kardashian-took-an-important-half-step-in-the-hollywood-life-cycle-of-relationships | 1 | 1 | green-iguana-35 | null |
FAA seeks biggest fines yet against 2 unruly passengers
Published: Apr. 8, 2022 at 1:47 PM EDT|Updated: 1 hour ago
WASHINGTON (AP) — The price is going up for disrupting airline flights.
The Federal Aviation Administration said Friday that it’s seeking record civil fines against two passengers who assaulted other people on flights last summer.
In one case, a woman tried to open a cabin door, then headbutted and spit at crew members and passengers after she was placed in flexible handcuffs. The FAA is seeking a $81,950 fine.
In the second case, the FAA is proposing a $77,272 fine against a woman who tried to open a cabin door during a flight and bit another passenger repeatedly before she was restrained by crew members.
The FAA isn’t identifying the people.
Copyright 2022 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. | https://www.witn.com/2022/04/08/faa-seeks-biggest-fines-yet-against-2-unruly-passengers/ | 2022-04-08T19:05:28Z | witn.com | control | https://www.witn.com/2022/04/08/faa-seeks-biggest-fines-yet-against-2-unruly-passengers/ | 1 | 1 | green-iguana-35 | null |
PARK PLACE THEO TIMETABLE – APPARITT EN DER MOTORWELT If there is one thing nearly every midterm election has told us, it is that our country thirsts for change.
In the 19 elections since World War II, the president’s party has lost seats in the House of Representatives in 17 of them.
This year, that same outcome is anticipated as polls show Republicans gaining control of the lower chamber, but the electorate that is expected to get them there is vastly different than that of years past.
“You know, in 2012 we were talking about equity and environmental justice matters, but I think the sense of urgency and the intensity of the issues facing today’s generation of voters is much different,” said Joelle Martinez, a former political strategist under President Barack Obama and the current president of the Latino Leadership Institute.
During the 2018 midterms, Latinos set a voting record when 11.7 million cast their vote. At the time, it was thought to be an outlier, but in this year’s midterms, 11.6 million are expected to vote, according to the National Association of Latino Elected and Appointed Officials. It is a 71.4% increase from the number of Latinos that voted in 2014.
“I think the thing that has changed the most is that Democrat and Republican parties are no longer magnets for Latino voters,” said Martinez. “And we saw that in two parts of evidence. One, this last election cycle where you saw voters, Latino voters, voting conservatively in areas where they hadn’t predicted that to happen. And two, young Latino voters are registering to be Independent more times than not.”
“We’re sort of in a realignment period right now,” added Lonna Atkeson, director of the LeRoy Collins Institute, a non-partisan public policy center at Florida State University.
Atkeson says the change our electorate is undergoing right now goes against many assumptions politicians have based their strategies on for decades- that young people will consistently turn out to vote and that minorities are by and large monolithic.
“Maybe the things that we relied on previously about how groups were going to vote is less reliable,” said Atkeson. “I think the culture war is just raging and I think that’s a piece of that and the other piece of that is the economy.”
The Brookings Institution’s Metropolitan Policy Program projects that 17 million young people will turn 18 between the 2020 and 2024 elections and that 49% of them will be kids of color, only adding to the increasingly diverse electorate that is the future of American politics. | https://www.fox17online.com/news/national/why-the-2022-midterms-will-be-one-of-the-most-diverse-elections-in-history | 2022-04-08T19:08:50Z | fox17online.com | control | https://www.fox17online.com/news/national/why-the-2022-midterms-will-be-one-of-the-most-diverse-elections-in-history | 1 | 1 | green-iguana-35 | null |
SPRINGFIELD, Mass. (WWLP) – Crews from the Springfield Fire Department were called to a car on fire Friday afternoon.
According to the Springfield Fire Department, the car fire was reported on 90 Robbins Road and had been put out. There are no injuries reported.
The investigation is being conducted by the Springfield Arson And Bomb Squad. | https://www.wwlp.com/news/local-news/car-fire-on-robbins-road-in-springfield/ | 2022-04-08T19:12:55Z | wwlp.com | control | https://www.wwlp.com/news/local-news/car-fire-on-robbins-road-in-springfield/ | 1 | 1 | green-iguana-35 | null |
San Francisco 49ers star wide receiver Deebo Samuel could be eyeing an even larger contract extension than previously believed, according to a report by Fort Worth Star-Telegram reporter Clarence Hill Jr. Hill, who primarily covers the Cowboys, tweeted on Thursday that Samuel “wants to be the highest-paid non-quarterback” in the NFL.
Samuel is entering the final year of his rookie deal and is hoping to land a new contract with the 49ers after emerging as one of the best offensive weapons in the NFL last season. Up to this point, however, the Niners have been unable to reach a deal with their 2019 second-round pick.
There’s reason to remain cautious about overreacting to any Samuel contract rumors. Under head coach Kyle Shanahan, San Francisco has waited until July and August to agree to large extensions with stars like tight end George Kittle and linebacker Fred Warner. Still, Shanahan’s regime also opted to trade All-Pro defensive lineman DeForrest Buckner in a trade that shocked the NFL.
If Samuel is unwilling to accept a contract that does not make him the highest-paid non-quarterback in the NFL, it could force the 49ers into a difficult situation. With several other premium talents due for big contracts, they might become more enticed with trading Samuel for a massive haul from a team like the New York Jets.
However, the NFL’s unique (and complicated) contract structure means there are multiple ways to make Samuel the highest-paid non-quarterback, including ones that have less impact on the Niners’ salary cap.
For one, the average annual value of contracts is inflated by the way their reported. Suppose a player is under contract for one more season, as most players are when they sign premium extensions.
In that case, reporters will usually only report the money and years added to an already existing deal. For example, when Steelers edge rusher T.J. Watt signed a record-setting extension last September, it was reported as a four-year, $112 million contract. However, his overall deal with Pittsburgh was actually a five-year, $122 million pact.
Why the disparity? Because he was already under contract in 2021 for a roughly $10 million base salary.
Watt’s extension had an average annual value of more than $28 million, the highest for a defensive player in league history. However, that’s not how it will impact the Steelers’ salary cap. Instead, they converted virtually all of his 2021 salary into a massive $35 million signing bonus that will be spread over the five-year length of the contract.
Tyreek Hill technically received the largest contract for a non-quarterback in terms of average annual value through the four-year, $120 million contract extension he signed with the Dolphins this offseason. However, a significant portion of the contract’s value is baked into a non-guaranteed $43.9 million base salary in 2026. The deal itself really only pays Hill roughly $23 million a season over the next four years.
Nothing prevents the 49ers from doing a similar thing with Samuel. That kind of structure would give Samuel some added leverage in any future contract negotiations if he remains an elite player but would also give the front office a lot of flexibility.
Davante Adams is currently the only other non-quarterback with a contract that has an average annual value of at least $28 million. However, a closer look reveals that number is more for show than practicality. As a result, the Raiders could release Adams after this season, having paid him just $23.6 million, and not be on the hook for a dollar more.
Even if they hold onto him through next season (when some additional guarantees in his contract trigger), Adams is slated to receive just under $67.8 million over the next three seasons (roughly $22.6 million per year) and count for even less against the cap. Like Hill, most of Adams’ contract’s value is baked into non-guaranteed base salaries north of $35 million in 2025 and 2026.
Watt’s contract technically has the lowest potential total value between his, Adams, and Hill’s, but it is easily the most secure of the three. Every dollar in the first three years of Watt’s deal (2021-2023) was fully guaranteed, and his contract is not as heavily backloaded, meaning more of the money reported is guaranteed. Watt will receive $80 million over the first three years of the deal, but notice, even that, is slightly less than the reported value of his extension.
This is no guarantee that Samuel will come to an agreement with the 49ers anytime soon. It’s still possible he insists on a deal that leads the franchise to trade him. However, the Niners will not get to that place because they are unwilling to make him the highest-paid receiver (or non-quarterback) in the NFL. That means little beyond bragging rights for Samuel and his agent. If San Francisco does get to that, it will be because of contract structure and guarantees.
The reality is in the world of the NFL. Contracts are rarely as costly to teams as advertised. That’s why until proven otherwise, there’s no reason to believe the 49ers will not get a deal done with a star like Deebo Samuel.
For more on Samuel, check out our own Kyle Posey discussing the human element and whether Samuel has a legitimate beef with the 49ers below with former KNBR host Larry Krueger: | https://www.ninersnation.com/2022/4/8/23016163/49ers-news-deebo-samuel-extension-rumors | 2022-04-08T19:16:29Z | ninersnation.com | control | https://www.ninersnation.com/2022/4/8/23016163/49ers-news-deebo-samuel-extension-rumors | 1 | 1 | green-iguana-35 | null |
The recent Deebo Samuel news has been a nice change of pace from the nonstop Jimmy Garoppolo “when will he be traded” talk. Mike Sando of The Athletic reached out to NFL executives around the league to get their opinions, both good and bad, of each teams’ moves and strategies during free agency.
Waiting game
One exec suggested that Jimmy has value: “I’d just hold onto him. Wait. Someone will get desperate. I’d even keep him through the season. Why get rid of a guy just to get rid of him to play the other guy (Trey Lance) if you know Jimmy has value? And Jimmy has value.”
“The other guy” is a quarterback that you mortgaged your future for. You can make an argument for keeping Garoppolo but ignoring the investment the 49ers have in Lance is silly.
Another executive told Sando he was happy his team went in a different direction this offseason instead of landing Garoppolo:
“I’ve got no issue with what we did because it’s better than drafting one of these guys, and it’s better than waiting on Garoppolo, because if you are waiting on Garoppolo, it’s not like you are waiting on Drew Brees and his labrum,” this exec said. “You are waiting on Garoppolo, who is happy throwing it less than 20 times in big games.”
I wonder how much the rest of the NFL agrees with the last jab there from the exec. The 49ers have won ten games when Garoppolo has thrown the ball fewer than 25 times during the past three seasons.
So, for as much as fans throw out Jimmy’s win-loss record, it ignores the Week 10 from 2021 games when Garoppolo went 15-for-19 for 182 yards when the team dismantled the Rams 31-10.
The final executive hinted at the Niners paying some of Garoppolo’s salary to make him more attractive to other teams:
“The answer is holding onto Jimmy and hoping someone doesn’t draft someone, or there is an injury, but at $24 million, no one is going to have the ability to carry that anyway,” another exec said. “The question for the 49ers is, would you pay Jimmy a bunch of it now and try to make him more palatable? If you are Jimmy and the money is unguaranteed, how much would you take from the 49ers as a guarantee knowing you may get stuck there, and they can control your destination? Both sides have risk.”
In theory, paying a portion of Garoppolo’s salary makes sense if you’re going to eventually move him — especially if the plan is to wait for a desperate team to come calling.
The issue is cap space. Over the Cap has the 49ers at $1.7 million in team cap space. The Niners would need to extend or restructure a few contracts to pay Jimmy temporarily, only to trade him in the coming months. You’d have a tough time convincing your boss that this move makes financial sense from the business side. | https://www.ninersnation.com/2022/4/8/23016736/49ers-nfl-executive-news | 2022-04-08T19:16:35Z | ninersnation.com | control | https://www.ninersnation.com/2022/4/8/23016736/49ers-nfl-executive-news | 1 | 1 | green-iguana-35 | null |
Monroe-area boat clubs to arrange for recycling of boat shrink wrap
Monroe Boat Club is hoping to keep at least 17,000 square-feet of plastic out of local landfills this spring.
The club is working with the Michigan-based program Recycling Run to recycle shrink wrap covers from boats.
“Each winter, many boats are covered with plastic shrink wrap when they are put away for the winter," said David Ryan, president of the Monroe Boat Club Association (MBC-A)." Come springtime, all that plastic is cut apart and thrown away, generating waste and adding to the area landfills."
MBC-A is the Monroe Boat Club's non-profit entity. It was formed to create clean-water harbor communities.
This spring, the MBC-A partnered with the Michigan Recycling Coalition and the Michigan Department of Environment, Great Lakes and Energy to bring the shrink wrap recycling service to Monroe County. Recycling Run has been offered in Michigan for 10 years, and the program is growing.
“In 2019, about 940 bags (of plastic shrink wrap) were collected in Michigan. In 2021 we collected about 1,620 bags,” Katie Fournier, project coordinator at the Michigan Recycling Coalition, said. “With an average weight of 40 lbs. (in each bag), that’s about 32 tons of plastic. We had 38 businesses, marinas, boat storage facilities and clubs of varying sizes participate in the program last year. There are around 500 to 600 marinas in the state of Michigan total.”
A Monroe-based boat club tried the program at one time.
“Trout's Yacht Basin has tried the program in the past, but has not had a lot of interest in recent years,” Ryan said.
MBC-A is hoping to change that. It's spreading the word to area boaters and has included several other Bolles Harbor marinas in this year's recycling effort.
“Not only does this reduce disposal costs for the marinas, but it keeps our neighborhoods and the Great Lakes clean and waste free," Ryan said. "Participation is better than expected. Trout’s Yacht Basin is participating this year, as customer demand supports it. Terry Gerin owns the newly opened Big Daddy's Boat Yard and says he is ‘all in’ with the recycling program."
Harbor Marine also is taking part. That’s dozens of local boats and lots of plastic kept out of local landfills.
“MBC has 135 docked boats, plus more in the storage yard. About 45 use plastic shrink wrap covers," Ryan said. "There are approximately another 250 boats in the Trout's Basin, Harbor Marine and Big Daddy's Boat Yard, plus many more along the LaPlaisance waterway. We are planning to collect 20 bags of plastic this year, each holding up to 850 square-feet of plastic, so at least 17,000 square-feet of plastic. Each recycled bag represents a savings of 13.5 gallons of oil, 115 kwh of energy and 16-20 cubic-feet of landfill space.”
Other area boat clubs and individual boaters also can take part.
“We can take 15 bags in addition (to ours). The state will pickup 35 from MBC by early June,” Ryan said.
All shrink wrap must be placed in the special recycling bags.
“MBC can only accept shrink wrap that is already in the special recycling bags. It must be the plastic only, no strapping, wood or foam," Ryan said.
The MBC-A is selling the bags for $5. The association also is covering the cost of shipping the bags to Monroe. The regular cost is $7 per bag.
The filled bags will be picked up by early June.
“Monroe Boat Club is registered with the State of Michigan to serve as a pick-up location for these bags, and the Michigan Recycles organization will pick up and haul them away by June 6,” Ryan said. “For our boat club to register for the program with the state of Michigan and have the state come and pick up the bags, bale all the plastic and recycle it into new products has no cost (to us).”
The collected shrink wrap will be used to make new products, such as decking.
“Once collected, the plastic is baled and recycled to fuel the economy of Michigan. Recycled plastics from this program are used by the manufacturer Trex Decking to give the plastic new life as composite decking planks,” Recycling Run said.
Shrink wrapping boats for winter storage is a long-time practice.
“John Gagne Sr. of Monroe runs the Shrink Wrap Service Inc. business, and he says he has been shrink-wrapping boats since 1986,” Ryan said.
Most of this plastic material ends up in landfills. Occasionally it finds its way into the water.
“Nearly all boaters are conscious of the environment and do not want to spoil the areas they enjoy. Boaters do make the effort to minimize debris, but as boat work is done outdoors, strong spring winds can blow light plastic pieces away from even the most careful people,” Ryan said.
On the Net: www.michiganrecycles.org | https://www.monroenews.com/story/business/2022/04/08/monroe-boat-club-begin-recycling-boat-shrink-wrap/9494511002/ | 2022-04-08T19:19:13Z | monroenews.com | control | https://www.monroenews.com/story/business/2022/04/08/monroe-boat-club-begin-recycling-boat-shrink-wrap/9494511002/ | 1 | 1 | green-iguana-35 | null |
Meadow Montessori middle-schoolers visiting Philadelphia
Middle school students from Meadow Montessori are in Philadelphia this week.
Students in Grades 7-9 are on a two-week trip.
“Travel is an essential part of the Montessori curriculum and, beginning in middle school, Meadow Montessori’s students take two week-long trips each year,” Tiffany Mason from the school said. “However, their travel is different from typical middle school travel. For their spring trip, it’s Meadow’s students who do the planning.”
Students are divided into groups, and each group plans one day of the trip.
“They must do things such as map the city, locate and navigate public transportation, make dining reservations, locate landmarks and more, all while staying within budget,” Mason said. “By the time they reach high school, the students are seasoned, confident travelers who are ready to explore the wider world, as annual international travel begins.” | https://www.monroenews.com/story/news/education/2022/04/08/meadow-montessori-middle-schoolers-visiting-philadelphia/9482969002/ | 2022-04-08T19:19:19Z | monroenews.com | control | https://www.monroenews.com/story/news/education/2022/04/08/meadow-montessori-middle-schoolers-visiting-philadelphia/9482969002/ | 1 | 1 | green-iguana-35 | null |
Brownstown Township resident makes bid for Michigan House seat
A Downriver nurse has announced her candidacy for the State Legislature.
Jamie Thompson, a resident of Brownstown Township, is looking to serve as the representative of the newly-formed 28th House District in Michigan.
She is running as a Republican.
"(I have found) that everyone wants the best for their community — we have become so divided we can't even agree on what we agree on anymore," Thompson said. "I want to be that person in leadership who brings people together. I want to fight division. I want to do this for my grandchildren and all of our children. They're what's important."
The 28th District covers communities in Monroe and Wayne counties. The district includes portions of Frenchtown, Berlin, Rockwood and Brownstown townships, and the cities of Flat Rock, Taylor and Woodhaven.
The district was formed after an inaugural independent citizens commission redrew legislative boundaries after the 2020 Census.
Thompson said she is building her campaign on the promise of advocating for the freedoms of her potential constituents.
Last year, Thompson and her husband, Ronald Matte, formed the Michigan Leadership Group, a nonprofit based in Brownstown. Thompson said the group aims to educate communities about their constitutional rights while also being a voice for constitutional conservative values in Downriver communities.
As part of that group's efforts, Thompson and Matte traveled across the state, connecting with grassroots organizations. Thompson said the group was hoping to find and support prospective candidates who reflected the group's values.
In June, the couple's daughter died in an accident, leaving behind three children. Thompson and Matte were awarded guardianship of their grandchildren. And, as she prepared to once again raise a new generation of kids, Thompson said she felt inspired to run for office and reflect the values she holds dear.
"I started this organization and this fight because our rights were being taken away from us," Thompson said. "And then I realized I could either drown in my sorrow and go to a dark place ... or I could stand up and fight for what I believe in and be a voice for our community."
Thompson said that, if elected, there are three issues on which she would pursue action: medical freedom; education; and election integrity.
Thompson said she strongly believes that Michigan residents have the right to choose whether or not they receive vaccinations. She advocates that people have the ability to educate themselves on what they put into their bodies, and make a choice according to their beliefs. Such a practice is an empowerment to their rights, she added.
"If people want to receive a vaccination, it is their right to do so; if they don't, that's also their choice," Thompson said. "We have the right to choice."
Education is also extremely important, Thompson said, adding she opposes Critical Race Theory.
Raising three grandchildren ages 7 and younger, Thompson believes the education system has failed children and parents. Recent events are eye opening, she said, adding that if parents want to make a difference in their children's lives, they need the opportunity to be involved.
Actions by the state government during the COVID-19 pandemic were also concerning to Thompson. Students with Individual Education Plans were left behind, she said, adding that she believes that, as schools turned to distance learning and alternative education models, students' mental health were severely impacted.
"I am afraid how those decisions affected our children ... every child deserves an education," Thompson said. " There is no reason Michigan should be ranked as low as it is (compared to other states)."
Thompson also advocates that both major political parties must address concerns relating to election integrity. Many Michiganders are distrustful of the process, she said, adding both parties must address those concerns.
"This issue shouldn't be politicized," Thompson said. "It is our right as Michiganders to be able to fully trust that our elections are done right."
Thompson has lived in Brownstown since she was 15. A graduate of Wayne County Community College, she has been a practicing licensed practical nurse for ten years.
She resides with her husband and three grandchildren. The couple also has two adult sons.
Thompson's name will appear on the August Primary Election ballot. The winner of that race will advance to the November General Election ballot. | https://www.monroenews.com/story/news/politics/elections/candidate-profiles/2022/04/08/thompson-makes-bid-michigan-house-seat/9497026002/ | 2022-04-08T19:19:25Z | monroenews.com | control | https://www.monroenews.com/story/news/politics/elections/candidate-profiles/2022/04/08/thompson-makes-bid-michigan-house-seat/9497026002/ | 1 | 1 | green-iguana-35 | null |
Local Sports: Bedford's Shammo pushes average to .786 by going 6-for-6
DEARBORN -- Sydney Shammo is off to a torrid start for Bedford’s softball team.
The senior centerfielder, who already owns the school record for career stolen bases, went 6-for-6, scored 8 runs, drove in 3, smacked a pair of triples and stole two bases as the Mules whipped Dearborn 19-2 and 19-1 to run their record to 4-0.
Shammo is 11-for-14 (.786) in the young season with 8 stolen bases, 7 RBI and 12 runs.
Aubrey Hensley homered twice and fellow freshman Makayla Johnson also went deep along with junior McKenna Dunlap.
Dunlap and Payton Pudlowski both went 4-for-5 with Pudlowski driving in 8 runs, scoring 5 and stealing 5 bases. Johnson finished with 3 hits.
Both pitching wins went to Maddie Henegar and Adrianna Kester pitched well in relief.
PREP BASKETBALL
Region players mentioned
Five Monroe County Region boys basketball players and one coach drew special mention on Associated Press All-State teams.
The players were Roman Iott of Summerfield (Division 4), Carson Brown of Erie Mason (Division 3), Graham Junge of Flat Rock (Division 2), Andrew Hollinger of Bedford (Division 1) and Xavier Middleton of Monroe (Division 1).
Flat Rock coach Rick Smith also was on the honorable mention list.
PREP SOCCER
Davis logs shutout
WYANDOTTE – Evelyn Davis recorded a shutout as Flat Rock played to a 0-0 tie with Wyandotte Roosevelt Wednesday.
“The Lady Rams showed some great promise in tonight’s effort,” Flat Rock coach Sam Murphy said.
ADULT SOCCER
Leagues forming
Registrations are being taken at the Monroe YMCA to for a coed adult league that begins May 1 at Munson Park.
Teams will play an eight-game schedule on Sundays. The league is open to players ages 17 and older for all skill levels. The registration fee is $75 and players can sign up individually and will be placed on teams.
Further information is available by visiting the Y at 1111 W. Elm Ave. or calling the Y at 241-2606 or e-mail info@monroefamilyymca.org. | https://www.monroenews.com/story/sports/2022/04/08/local-sports-bedfords-shammo-pushes-average-786-going-6-6/9510280002/ | 2022-04-08T19:19:31Z | monroenews.com | control | https://www.monroenews.com/story/sports/2022/04/08/local-sports-bedfords-shammo-pushes-average-786-going-6-6/9510280002/ | 1 | 1 | green-iguana-35 | null |
Brittany Matthews continues to showcase her husband’s photography talents.
The wife of Chiefs superstar Patrick Mahomes has been praising the quarterback’s behind-the-camera skills on social media in the new “Instagram Husband series.”
“On the Instagram Husband series, here’s todays update… @patrickmahomes killed it,” she captioned Thursday’s post.
Last week, Matthews published a different poolside photo that was snapped by Mahomes.
The couple, who just got married in a lavish ceremony in Hawaii in March, went to St. Barths for their honeymoon.
Unsurprisingly, both the wedding and honeymoon looked like what events dreams are made of.
The pair have been together since high school, and Mahomes proposed at Arrowhead Stadium in 2020 — on the same day the Chiefs received their Super Bowl rings.
This past season, Mahomes faced backlash because people didn’t like how his now-wife and brother, Jackson Mahomes, carried themselves on social media.
In February, Pat McAfee called the two the “tag-team of insufferability” and wondered if the Chiefs quarterback would pull them aside and tell them to tone down their antics.
“I don’t want to spotlight, gaslight or anything, but it’s gonna be a long offseason for those two,” McAfee said. “I think there’s going to be some personal growth in this offseason … I wonder if we will see the same tag team duo off the field around the Mahomes family next season as we saw this season. I would take a strong guess at no.”
Earlier this week, Matthews was asked how she deals with detractors on social media, and she said she is detaching herself from the networks to help her “inner peace.”
“It’s always gonna be there, at times its worse then [sic] others & at those times is when you won’t see me on here or the internet. Hence why I have taken such huge steps away from social media. It’s a toxic and horrible place at times and those are when I say peace out,” Matthews wrote in her Instagram story.
“My world outside of social media is great. I have the right people around me always and that’s where I stay when people on here wanna be s—-y,” she continued. “Not my problem, bye 🤣.” | https://nypost.com/2022/04/08/brittany-matthews-praises-instagram-husband-patrick-mahomes/ | 2022-04-08T19:22:35Z | nypost.com | control | https://nypost.com/2022/04/08/brittany-matthews-praises-instagram-husband-patrick-mahomes/ | 1 | 1 | green-iguana-35 | null |
Iowa (KCAU) — The Iowa Department of Natural Resources (DNR) and its partners are now monitoring the presence of avian influenza in Iowa’s wild birds.
Avian influenza is a naturally occurring disease found in certain waterfowl and shorebirds. It is highly transmissible, and strains can range from causing no harm to strains that are lethal to domestic birds. The disease can exist in a deceased bird for several weeks, depending on environmental conditions, according to a Friday release from the DNR.
“Bird loss in the wild is a natural occurrence, so seeing one dead bird shouldn’t be cause for alarm,” said Wildlife Veterinarian with the Iowa DNR Dr. Rachel Ruden, “but if someone is finding a number of dead birds, especially ducks, geese, or raptors, we want to know about it.”
Ruden said residents who discover five or more dead wild birds within one week should report it to their state conservation officer or local wildlife biologist. Contact information can be found under the ‘About’ tab on the Iowa DNR homepage.
“We are encouraging the public not to handle sick or dead birds or to take sick birds to a wildlife rehabilitator to avoid unintentionally spreading avian influenza in the event that the bird is positive,” said Dr. Ruden.
Ruden added that backyard bird feeders are not yet of concern unless mallards are actively using the feeder. Avian influenza has less of an impact on upland birds such as wild turkeys. The release specified that this is because their behaviors and habitats make them less likely to encounter the disease.
Spring turkey hunters can find information on handling and preparing wild turkeys here.
The U.S. Department of Agriculture provided an online database that tracks avian influenza by state. | https://www.siouxlandproud.com/news/iowa-news/iowa-dnr-monitoring-for-avian-flu-asks-residents-to-report-dead-birds/ | 2022-04-08T19:22:51Z | siouxlandproud.com | control | https://www.siouxlandproud.com/news/iowa-news/iowa-dnr-monitoring-for-avian-flu-asks-residents-to-report-dead-birds/ | 1 | 1 | green-iguana-35 | null |
This flock already lacks a shepherd, and now they’re losing their pasture too.
A small but passionate group of Upper West Side churchgoers have been forced to sell their church in order to save the tiny congregation.
West-Park Presbyterian Church — which notably lacks a pastor and has only 12 congregants — will hand its landmarked, 140-year-old, 165 West 86th St. church to a developer to escape a $50 million restoration bill. The dozen parishioners were on the hook for fixing their house of God’s crumbling facade and structure, and have instead decided to let a company demolish it and build them a new worship space — along with market-rate housing — in its place, according to the Commercial Observer.
“It has no resources left to maintain the building at all and, because it’s a designated landmark and because of the condition it’s in, it’s unclear if we were to just try and sell the building that we would even be able to find a buyer,” Roger Leaf, chair of the church’s administrative commission, told the publication. “But if we were in a position to sell the building and not get any real money for it … the likely outcome — the inevitable outcome — would be that the congregation would have to disband.”
The Presbytery of New York City — which is in charge of all Presbyterian parishes in NYC — unanimously approved the congregation’s plan this week. The Presbytery recently lent the congregation money to address the particularly urgent issue of a collapsing exterior wall. Other slightly less dire structural disintegrations, including bricks parting from rafters and crumbling sandstone, have remained unaddressed for years. (Protective scaffolding has wrapped the building for two decades.)
Now that its governing body has approved the sale, congregants have filed an application to appeal the Landmark Preservation Commission’s 2010 landmarking of the structure. With the landmark designation in place, developer Alchemy Properties — with which the congregants have come to a purchase and sale agreement — cannot demolish the church, a contingency of the deal.
“In the face of our steep financial challenges to address the church building’s safety and maintenance needs, the congregation’s only viable choice to support West-Park’s ongoing mission is to pursue the sale of the property and the application to the Landmarks Preservation Commission to demolish the existing building on the grounds of financial hardship,” a West-Park Presbyterian Church spokesperson told The Post. “This plan ensures a new spiritual home for worship and community space that will help West-Park continue to be a resource for our neighborhood and fellow New Yorkers.”
Should the LPC approve the appeal, Alchemy will raze the structure and build an apartment tower and a 10,000-square-foot worship space in its place. The church would also receive $8.8 million from the developer to furnish the new parish.
“If we were in a position to [just] sell the building, and not get any real money for it, then the congregation, which is dwindling in the numbers and no longer has a pastor, would also no longer have a place for worship,” Leaf explained to the Observer of the logic which led them to the current plan.
Alchemy Properties declined The Post’s request for comment. | https://nypost.com/2022/04/08/nyc-parish-sells-church-to-save-12-person-congregation/ | 2022-04-08T19:24:12Z | nypost.com | control | https://nypost.com/2022/04/08/nyc-parish-sells-church-to-save-12-person-congregation/ | 1 | 1 | green-iguana-35 | null |
Tyler Motte is out for the near future, Filip Chytil is sidelined, and Kaapo Kakko and Kevin Rooney could be back as soon as Saturday.
It was a busy day for the soon-to-be playoff-bound Rangers.
The team announced prior to Friday’s practice that Motte suffered a “significant” upper-body injury on the win over the Penguins on Thursday that didn’t involve his head, and while coach Gerrant Gallant said Motte won’t miss the rest of the season, he isn’t expected back anytime soon. Kakko and Rooney, meanwhile, returned to practice for the first time and could be in the lineup against the Senators at the Garden Saturday night.
“There’s definitely a chance,” Gallant said.
In Friday’s brief workout, Kakko skated on the right side of the third line that was centered by Barclay Goodrow. Rooney was the pivot on the fourth line. As for Motte, he suffered the injury after a big hit from Penguins winger Anthony Angello that sparked a few scuffles in the final minutes of the contest.
“I thought actually last night it was a blow to the head, but it was the back part of the shoulder that got him,” Gallant said. “I don’t think it was as bad as I thought originally, but still, I didn’t like it. … He knew Motte didn’t see him.”
Chytil (upper-body) isn’t expected to be out long, the coach said. | https://nypost.com/2022/04/08/tyler-motte-out-with-significant-injury-as-kaapo-kakko-nears-rangers-return/ | 2022-04-08T19:24:42Z | nypost.com | control | https://nypost.com/2022/04/08/tyler-motte-out-with-significant-injury-as-kaapo-kakko-nears-rangers-return/ | 1 | 1 | green-iguana-35 | null |
Noche de Agave tequila tasting and dinner returns April 23, 2022.
The Yakima-Morelia sister city association’s annual event features entertainment, a traditional Michoacán dinner and tequila and mezcal tasting.
Noche de Agave run from 5:30 p.m. to 9:30 p.m. at the Yakima Valley College Conference Center, South 16th Avenue and West Nob Hill Boulevard.
The Yakima-Morelia sister city association‘s yearly event has been canceled and rescheduled because of COVID-19 the last two years.
Tickets start at $75 and include a dinner paired with three types of tequila, entertainment and a silent auction.
The Yakima-Morelia Sister City Association is a nonprofit organization promoting mutual understanding and the sharing of cultural diversity by encouraging interaction in social, cultural, artistic, economic, and educational areas, according to the Yakima-Morelia Sister City Association website.
For more information and tickets, visit https://bit.ly/nochedeagave. | https://www.yakimaherald.com/explore_yakima/arts_and_entertainment/yakimas-noche-de-agave-returns-april-23/article_cc3431e0-368f-5cb7-9193-66893e96ee23.html | 2022-04-08T19:30:15Z | yakimaherald.com | control | https://www.yakimaherald.com/explore_yakima/arts_and_entertainment/yakimas-noche-de-agave-returns-april-23/article_cc3431e0-368f-5cb7-9193-66893e96ee23.html | 1 | 1 | green-iguana-35 | null |
Yakima police arrested a 27-year-old man they say tried to kill another man who was seeing his girlfriend.
Austin James Butler was arrested Thursday on a warrant charging him with attempted first-degree murder, first-degree assault, drive-by shooting and first-degree unlawful firearms possession in connection with the March 4 incident.
A man told Yakima police that he had been “hanging out” with a woman during the past year, and she had texted him shortly before 3:40 a.m. March 4 asking if he wanted to hang out, and he agreed, according to a probable cause affidavit.
The woman’s Jeep pulled up outside his home in the 1100 block of South 43rd Avenue and a man got out who said, “Stop talking with my girl,” the affidavit said. When the man walked away, he was shot in the leg by the man in the Jeep, the affidavit said.
Police were able to identify Butler as the suspect through anonymous tips, and the victim was able to pick Butler out from a photo lineup, the affidavit said.
Using surveillance video showing the woman’s home, police found Butler had left the woman’s apartment in her Jeep shortly before the shooting, and came back shortly after the shooting, the affidavit said.
Butler has 10 prior felony convictions, according to the affidavit, and is barred from owning a firearm.
He is scheduled to appear in Yakima County Superior Court Friday afternoon. | https://www.yakimaherald.com/news/local/crime_and_courts/suspect-in-south-43rd-avenue-shooting-arrested/article_98a467d8-3971-5be9-b74d-6e5a6d34cc75.html | 2022-04-08T19:30:18Z | yakimaherald.com | control | https://www.yakimaherald.com/news/local/crime_and_courts/suspect-in-south-43rd-avenue-shooting-arrested/article_98a467d8-3971-5be9-b74d-6e5a6d34cc75.html | 1 | 1 | green-iguana-35 | null |
The Yakima chapter of the United States Submarine Veterans will play host to the 122nd Submarine Birthday Ball on Saturday.
The event starts at 5 p.m. at the Holiday Inn, 802 E. Yakima Ave. There will be dinner, a "Tolling of the Boats" to memorialize U.S. Navy submarines and their crews lost throughout history, a short business meeting, and auctions and raffles of prizes donated by local businesses and supporters, according to a news release.
Submarines are routinely called "boats" by their crews. The U.S. Navy celebrates the "birthday" of its critically important submarine fleet each spring. On April 11, 1900, the Navy purchased the USS Holland for $150,000, marking the start of the submarine service.
The Yakima "Base" is made up of submarine veterans from throughout Central and Eastern Washington.
Interested persons may contact Mark Briggs at 509-480-8245 for more information. | https://www.yakimaherald.com/news/local/submarine-veterans-from-around-the-region-to-have-event-on-saturday-in-yakima/article_8d706a9b-56ba-56f2-b1c2-0f02f0895ba1.html | 2022-04-08T19:30:19Z | yakimaherald.com | control | https://www.yakimaherald.com/news/local/submarine-veterans-from-around-the-region-to-have-event-on-saturday-in-yakima/article_8d706a9b-56ba-56f2-b1c2-0f02f0895ba1.html | 1 | 1 | green-iguana-35 | null |
Ashanti was joined by her collaborators Tichina Arnold and Ja Rule as she gave an emotional speech during the ceremony to install her star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.
“Through the good times, the bad times where it means the most, I am so grateful for our incredible, unbreakable bond. It just means so much, we’ve been through so many dark moments, so to be here today celebrating life together as a family and as a unit, I’m so grateful. It’s still hitting me and I’m still stunned. This is proof to everyone out there that dreams really do come true,” she said, thanking her fans.
Meanwhile, Ashanti recently revealed she is re-recording her Grammy-winning debut album after reclaiming ownership of her masters.
The R&B singer’s 2002 self-titled LP is back in the rightful hands of its creator, and she is “blessed” to be in the position.
“I have an amazing legal team. I was first signed to a record label at the age of 14. Seeing how things have changed so much from then to now; conceptually understanding what you are signing is so important. The fact that I’ll be able to re-record my album and put everything together is such a blessing, I am grateful. The fact that we are still here and living through a pandemic and these blessings are still coming in makes me so humbled,” she said.
The landmark record — which included the hit singles “Foolish,” “Happy” and “Baby” — sold six million copies worldwide and saw the star nominated for three Grammy Awards for Best New Artist, Best Female R&B Vocal Performance and Best Contemporary R&B Album, the latter of which she took home.
The LP features guest vocals from Gotti, Ja Rule, and the late The Notorious B.I.G.. Ashanti recalled how she recorded the songs in her basement while watching kids’ TV shows.
She recalled: “I wanted to feel like I had my own apartment. So I used to be downstairs in my own section and I would put on the Cartoon Network on mute and I would just write. It allowed me to kind of get into my zone.”
Ashanti followed up her debut album with four more records, her most recent being 2014’s Braveheart. It was released on her independent record label, Written Entertainment. | https://rollingout.com/2022/04/08/ashanti-shares-feelings-after-getting-star-on-the-hollywood-walk-of-fame/ | 2022-04-08T19:41:39Z | rollingout.com | control | https://rollingout.com/2022/04/08/ashanti-shares-feelings-after-getting-star-on-the-hollywood-walk-of-fame/ | 1 | 1 | green-iguana-35 | null |
Davion Farris is a part of R&B and hip-hop royalty. His two brothers, SiR and D Smoke, have already established themselves as solo artists. Now, Farris is climbing the ranks as a solo act, and he’s already won a Grammy for his writing abilities working with Lucky Daye.
Farris’ latest single, “Bad Guy,” is now available on all streaming platforms, and to promote the song, he stopped by rolling out to detail his relationship with love songs and R&B.
Why do you think it’s important for men to show emotion?
I feel like it’s important that men show emotion and vulnerability because we kind of have this rep that we don’t have that side. We don’t have the emotions so that we don’t go through what women go through, which is absolutely absurd. It really is. We feel things, we feel hurt, we feel pain, we get disappointed when relationships don’t work out.
That’s why I think I try to hold that toward, “Look. We are human just like you. We feel and we can have conversations about it so that we can work together better.”
Why have love songs become your lane?
If I can be honest, I write about love because, at the core of me as a person, that’s what’s there. I was raised in a family full of love. Both my parents are ministers; my mom just happens to be a musician as well. If you were to pick a few words to describe me, you have to use the word love. Even in music, there’s now this resurgence of that, but there had been a really big vacuum where it didn’t exist for a while. So I want to do my part by first being true to myself, and then making sure the world of music gets the love that it needs.
What does loving yourself look like when you’re loving someone else passionately?
Loving yourself, while you’re loving others looks like setting boundaries. A lot of times we can excuse things people do to us that might be hurtful, or we might not even bring it up or we try to wash it away under the guise of, “Oh, well. I know they love me, and I know they didn’t mean it.”
It is still a part of loving yourself to say, “Hey. This is one of my boundaries, you stepped a few feet over. So we have to address that so that we don’t have to have this problem again.” That’s loving yourself in the midst of loving someone else.
Watch Farris play his favorite love song, Michael Jackson’s “She’s Out of My Life” below. | https://rollingout.com/2022/04/08/davion-farris-performs-michael-jackson-cover-prior-to-release-of-new-single/ | 2022-04-08T19:41:50Z | rollingout.com | control | https://rollingout.com/2022/04/08/davion-farris-performs-michael-jackson-cover-prior-to-release-of-new-single/ | 1 | 1 | green-iguana-35 | null |
Donald Glover is different.
On April 7, Interview Magazine published an interview of Glover asking himself questions, then answering them.
There are a number of things that Glover touched on in the interview, such as being a good man, culture, Zendaya and more. The one thing that many people were confused about was his question to himself regarding Black women.
The question he asked himself was “Are you afraid of Black women?” To which he responds, “Why are you asking me that?”
“I feel like your relationship to them has played a big part in your narrative,” Glover said. In response, Glover says, “I feel like you’re using Black women to question my Blackness.”
Some people on social media didn’t understand the point of the interview.
I try to think of editorial from all angles— executive level, impact level, story level, etc— but I quite literally don’t understand the point of this https://t.co/DSsgUsGVnM
— Ivie Ani (@ivieani) April 7, 2022
For chaos reasons, now I need a Black woman to interview Donald Glover since he said he’s not afraid of us.
— Najma Sharif (@overdramatique) April 7, 2022
Donald Glover said “so why do you hate black women?” pic.twitter.com/EyyPq5nYbK
— Meech (@MediumSizeMeech) April 7, 2022
Glover explains later on in the interview why he decided to do this type of article by talking to himself.
“I think part of it is that the questions are usually the same. This way I can get questions I usually don’t get asked,” Glover said.
interviewing yourself is some next level narcissism. really started to peep it when donald glover was talking to quinta brunson on the shop and somehow found a way to make her success about him
— christopher. (@chrisfrmkro) April 7, 2022
Oh I just found it.
Donald Glover makes it very difficult to like what Donald Glover makes because Donald Glover is so annoying.
— Robert Daniels (@812filmreviews) April 7, 2022
As you can see, Donald Glover is making it hard for people to like him. | https://rollingout.com/2022/04/08/donald-glover-is-making-it-hard-for-black-women-to-like-him/ | 2022-04-08T19:42:00Z | rollingout.com | control | https://rollingout.com/2022/04/08/donald-glover-is-making-it-hard-for-black-women-to-like-him/ | 1 | 1 | green-iguana-35 | null |
The Board of Governors for the Academy of Motion Pictures Arts and Sciences met on April 8, 2022, to discuss the consequences for Will Smith following his slap at Chris Rock during the Academy Awards. The board came together on a vote and said that Smith will be banned from attending the Oscars for 10 years because of the “harmful behavior” he displayed when he struck Rock on March 27. | https://rollingout.com/2022/04/08/film-academy-bans-will-smith-for-10-years/ | 2022-04-08T19:42:10Z | rollingout.com | control | https://rollingout.com/2022/04/08/film-academy-bans-will-smith-for-10-years/ | 1 | 1 | green-iguana-35 | null |
An 18-year-old Las Vegas student was arrested for a deadly home invasion after leaving his math homework in a getaway vehicle, helping authorities apprehend him.
Kamari Oliver faces charges of murder, robbery, burglary and kidnapping in connection with a home invasion that left a woman dead.
Natalie Manduley was shot on March 25 , 2022, after a group of suspects allegedly broke into her home and demanded cash and other valuables. Manduley tried to defend herself with her own firearm but was shot by one of the suspects.
The four suspects then tried to flee the scene and crashed their vehicle into a wall, leaving them to continue their getaway on foot.
Authorities found $5,000 in cash and a red backpack inside the getaway car. Inside the backpack was a laptop and schoolwork, with Oliver’s name on the paper.
Authorities then went to Oliver’s school on March 28 and learned that he had an unexcused absence the last two periods on the same day the robbery occurred. Police also said they had camera footage of Oliver disposing of the weapon near the crime scene.
According to Oliver’s attorney, the evidence will show that he wasn’t involved in the killing and he never went inside the house. | https://rollingout.com/2022/04/08/how-math-homework-in-a-getaway-car-helped-police-nab-teen-suspect/ | 2022-04-08T19:42:20Z | rollingout.com | control | https://rollingout.com/2022/04/08/how-math-homework-in-a-getaway-car-helped-police-nab-teen-suspect/ | 1 | 1 | green-iguana-35 | null |
Melissa Ingram, SVP, multicultural networks and strategy at UP Entertainment, is the Black media executive driving growth at AspireTV | https://rollingout.com/2022/04/08/jamika-pessoa-shares-cooking-style-and-her-love-of-being-a-chef/ | 2022-04-08T19:42:30Z | rollingout.com | control | https://rollingout.com/2022/04/08/jamika-pessoa-shares-cooking-style-and-her-love-of-being-a-chef/ | 1 | 1 | green-iguana-35 | null |
Actors Laci Mosley and Jaidyn Triplett join the original cast of the 2007 series “iCarly.” The story centers on a group of best friends who are creating a webcast while grappling with everyday problems and adventures. “ICarly” is playing now on Paramount Plus. | https://rollingout.com/2022/04/08/laci-mosley-and-jaidyn-triplett-are-perfect-addition-to-icarly-reboot/ | 2022-04-08T19:42:40Z | rollingout.com | control | https://rollingout.com/2022/04/08/laci-mosley-and-jaidyn-triplett-are-perfect-addition-to-icarly-reboot/ | 1 | 1 | green-iguana-35 | null |
Serena Williams has been out of action for a year after withdrawing from the championships in the first round last year with an ankle injury.
Williams also missed the 2021 Olympics and U.S. Open with a hamstring injury. She was also absent from the Australian Open earlier this year, but has now given an indication about a possible return.
“We’ve been talking about my comeback and he’s been hyping me up and getting me ready for Wimbledon. Can’t wait,” the 40-year-old star said during an Instagram story with NFL star Aaron Rodgers at a Bitcoin conference in Miami.
When Rodgers asked if she would wait until the U.S. Open before making a return, Williams replied: “Wimbledon’s before the US Open, I’ve got to play Wimbledon first. Exciting!”
The 23-time Grand Slam champion recently suggested that she had no idea when she would retire from tennis and was simply “living for the day”.
“I think every tennis player thinks about the r-word [retirement] as soon as they hit five years because tennis is so intense. It’s literally 11 months out of the year.” Williams said.
“But I don’t know. I’m living for the day and I always tell people, ‘I’m not planning for tomorrow, only in business, and when it comes to tennis, I’m planning just for today.'”
Williams also relates to the struggles of Naomi Osaka after she was heckled at Indian Wells after she suffered a similar reception at the same event in 2001.
“That was my whole life, trying to prove to people that I was better than [their meanness].
“And that’s what I’m doing now in a different way. I love proving that athletes can turn and have an amazing career.” | https://rollingout.com/2022/04/08/serena-williams-gives-fans-hope-for-return-after-making-this-statement/ | 2022-04-08T19:42:51Z | rollingout.com | control | https://rollingout.com/2022/04/08/serena-williams-gives-fans-hope-for-return-after-making-this-statement/ | 1 | 1 | green-iguana-35 | null |
Steph Curry, widely considered the greatest shooter in the NBA, resoundingly rejected the fantasy of LeBron James to be teammates on a future team.
Curry, 33, was a guest on 95.7 “The Game” radio show when the hosts played the most recent episode of King James’ HBO show “The Shop.” Curry began to laugh as soon as he heard LeBron’s baritone voice bellowing his make-believe world in which he gets to play with Curry.
Both Curry and James, 37, were born at the same hospital in Akron, Ohio, four years apart, and their geographical connection was talked about often during their four-year NBA championship battles between the Golden State Warriors and Cleveland Cavaliers from 2015-2108. (Curry’s father, Dell, played for the Cavaliers at the time of Steph’s birth and chose Akron General Hospital 40 miles south of Cleveland for his wife to deliver Steph).
But Curry was not feeling James’ fantasy. And he made it known in no uncertain terms.
“Well, he got his wish. He’s the captain. He’s picked me the last two All-Star Games. I don’t know if that suffices, but I’m good right now. I’m good right now,” Curry said.
Steph Curry’s reaction to hearing LeBron James comments about wanting to play with him 🔥 pic.twitter.com/frblnCNQGK
— 95.7 The Game (@957thegame) April 6, 2022
This what James articulated about his dreams of playing with two particular players, with one being his own son LeBron “Bronny” James Jr.
“In today’s game, s—, there some motherf—ers in today’s game, but Steph Curry,” James said. “Steph Curry is the one that I want to play with for sure in today’s game. I love everything about that guy. Lethal. Steph, when he get out his car, you better guard him right from the moment he pulls up to the arena. Soon as he get out of his car, you better guard his a–.”
Curry was diplomatic in his rejection of James but simultaneously made it unequivocally clear that it’s not going to happen.
“Whenever you get the interest or curiosity of what it’d be like to play with arguably an MVP-caliber dude like he is and one of the greatest of all time, cool. It’s amazing. We all can’t live in that fantasy world, though,” Curry said.
The timing of the release of James’ video is bad. His Lakers have been eliminated from playoff contention after suffering their seventh consecutive loss. His miscast band of teammates failed to mesh, played bad defense and became the laughingstock of the league in what is undoubtedly James’ worst season as a pro.
James has also been the subject of stinging criticism for moving to get to the summit of the sport, as he has won titles in Miami, Cleveland and Los Angeles.
Curry seemingly wants no part of that narrative, but he let the hosts of the show know that he was flattered by James’ endorsement of his singular greatness. | https://rollingout.com/2022/04/08/steph-curry-gives-biting-rebuke-to-lebron-james-fantasy-to-play-with-him/ | 2022-04-08T19:43:01Z | rollingout.com | control | https://rollingout.com/2022/04/08/steph-curry-gives-biting-rebuke-to-lebron-james-fantasy-to-play-with-him/ | 1 | 1 | green-iguana-35 | null |
On April 7, Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson was confirmed to join the Supreme Court, with three GOP senators joining Democrats to vote in favor of her confirmation. When she is sworn in later this year, Jackson will become the first Black woman to serve on the court.
On April 8, Jackson spoke at the White House about becoming the 116th Supreme Court justice, with President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris standing behind her.
“It’s hard to find the words to express the depth of my gratitude,” Jackson said. “First, as always, I have to give thanks to God for delivering me as promised and for sustaining me throughout this nomination and confirmation process. As I said at the outset, I have come this far by faith and I know that I am truly blessed.”
Jackson will be sworn in as an associate justice after Justice Stephen Beyer retires at the end of the court’s term, which is expected to be sometime in the summer.
Listen to Judge Jackson’s remarks in the video below. | https://rollingout.com/2022/04/08/what-ketanji-brown-jackson-said-after-confirmation-to-supreme-court-videos/ | 2022-04-08T19:43:11Z | rollingout.com | control | https://rollingout.com/2022/04/08/what-ketanji-brown-jackson-said-after-confirmation-to-supreme-court-videos/ | 1 | 1 | green-iguana-35 | null |
Covid Scotland: Figures show ‘welcome fall’ in coronavirus cases in Scotland
There has been a “welcome fall” in Covid cases in Scotland, new figures show, although experts say it is “too early to say if infections have peaked”.
The latest data from the Office for National Statistics (ONS) shows the proportion of people infected with the virus in Scotland has dropped for the second week in a row to an estimated one in 13.
That compares to a record high of one in 11 that was seen in Scotland in the week to Sunday March 20, as the BA2 Omicron variant saw cases surge.
The ONS said the percentage of Scots with the virus had decreased in the week ending April 3.
Its latest report estimates 396,800 people, or 7.54% of the population, in Scotland had Covid that week, equating to around one in 13 people.
England and Wales also had infection levels of one in 13, the ONS said, with one in 14 of the population in Northern Ireland said to be infected in the same week.
Sarah Crofts, head of analytical outputs for the Covid-19 infection survey at the ONS, said: “While infections remain high, there are early signs in our latest data that they may no longer be increasing in some parts of the UK.
“Across English regions, there is a mixed picture in trends and we have seen a welcome decrease in Scotland.
“However, rates in Wales continue to rise and the trend in Northern Ireland is uncertain.
“It is too early to say if infections have peaked in England and Scotland. We will continue to monitor the data closely.”
Meanwhile, the latest daily figures from the Scottish Government show another 35 Covid deaths and 6,215 more cases of the virus were recorded in the past 24 hours.
It takes the total number of people who have died within 28 days of testing positive for Covid to 11,650.
Statistics show there were 2,252 people in hospital on Thursday with recently confirmed coronavirus, down from 2,304 the previous day.
The hospital total includes 23 people in intensive care, which is down from 27 on Wednesday.
A total of 4,369,103 people have now received their first dose of Covid vaccine, 4,097,075 have had a second jab, and 3,457,690 have had a third dose or booster. | https://www.edinburghnews.scotsman.com/health/coronavirus/covid-scotland-figures-show-welcome-fall-in-coronavirus-cases-in-scotland-3647381 | 2022-04-08T19:52:34Z | scotsman.com | control | https://www.edinburghnews.scotsman.com/health/coronavirus/covid-scotland-figures-show-welcome-fall-in-coronavirus-cases-in-scotland-3647381 | 1 | 1 | green-iguana-35 | null |
But it seems not all dogs are spoilt equally, with research from online pet care marketplace Rover.com finding that certain breeds get significantly more cash splashed on them than others.
Bespoke beds (46 per cent) and gourmet treats (45 per cent) topped the list of items Brits were shelling out on the most, while designer collars and leads (20 per cent) and ‘bark home’ technology such as pet cams (25 per cent) follow closely.
More than one-third (34 per cent) of dog owners even confessed they regularly chauffeur their dog to a puppy parlour or grooming service.
Read more
When it comes to the essentials, most think that pet insurance (34 per cent), adoption fees (34 per cent), and breed-specific healthcare and anticipated expenses (32 per cent) were the doggy costs that would leave a hole burning in their pocket.
However, the research showed that no expenses will ever be spared when it comes to pet parenthood – the love of a pet has outweighed any financial impact, with 61 per cent of Brits confirming they have not been deterred from getting an additional dog.
Adem Fehmi, Rover’s Canine Behaviourist, said: “With dogs being such an integral part of the family, it is no surprise that owners want to treat their pets with nice gifts. It’s important to remember that, whilst adorable, dogs are a financial responsibility and the basic costs can tally up quickly.
"People looking to welcome a puppy into the home should ensure that they are able to afford the extra costs necessary to give a dog a happy and healthy life. Not just now, but over the lifetime of their pet.”
So, here are the 10 breeds of dog that have the most spent on them on average.
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If you haven't already, please consider supporting our trusted, fact-checked journalism by taking out a digital subscription. | https://www.edinburghnews.scotsman.com/lifestyle/family-and-parenting/10-breeds-of-lovable-dogs-that-owners-spend-the-most-money-on-including-the-pampered-chihuahua-3626803 | 2022-04-08T19:52:41Z | scotsman.com | control | https://www.edinburghnews.scotsman.com/lifestyle/family-and-parenting/10-breeds-of-lovable-dogs-that-owners-spend-the-most-money-on-including-the-pampered-chihuahua-3626803 | 1 | 1 | green-iguana-35 | null |
Ukraine-Russia: Edinburgh Council leader Adam McVey demands Russian consul leaves Capital until 'illegal' war is halted
The Russian ambassador to the UK has been told that his country's consulate is no longer welcome in Edinburgh.
In a strongly-worded letter to Andrei Kelin on Friday, Edinburgh Council leader Adam McVey told him the consulate is "no longer welcome in Edinburgh until Russia stops this illegal war and Russian troops leave Ukrainian soil".
The warning comes after the council voted to condemn the war and made the president of Ukraine and mayor of Kyiv freemen of the city last month.
In his letter, Mr McVey said Edinburgh is "not an enemy of the Russian people" and "we recognise the courageous actions across the Russian population who have expressed opposition to this war at great cost to themselves at the hands of their own government in Moscow".
He added: "We are witnessing the actions of the government you represent and the murder of brave Ukrainian civilians and soldiers - which will be investigated as war crimes in due course.
"Our wholehearted sympathy and thoughts are with the Ukrainian people is resisting the Russian government's illegal and senseless war.
"Until Russia withdraws from Ukraine, I reiterate that we will not be accepting any civic invitations or collaborations of any kind and I ask that you withdraw the consul from our city immediately.
"They are not welcome in Edinburgh."
When Russia ordered its troops into Ukraine, protesters gathered outside the consulate in Edinburgh's New Town and chanted "Glory to Ukraine".
The council said it is supporting aid efforts to Poland and Ukraine and is helping refugees settle into their new lives, with £100,000 allotted to the cause. | https://www.edinburghnews.scotsman.com/news/politics/council/ukraine-russia-edinburgh-council-leader-adam-mcvey-demands-russian-consul-leaves-capital-until-illegal-war-is-halted-3647746 | 2022-04-08T19:53:46Z | scotsman.com | control | https://www.edinburghnews.scotsman.com/news/politics/council/ukraine-russia-edinburgh-council-leader-adam-mcvey-demands-russian-consul-leaves-capital-until-illegal-war-is-halted-3647746 | 1 | 1 | green-iguana-35 | null |
WESTERNPORT, Md. — From the top of a hill, with his dogs by his side, David Grove always has a good perspective on things.
Unfortunately, that perspective is not quite as positive as it once was.
"There's not much industry left," Grove said. "All the industry is as moved out."
David retired from a paper mill in the Appalachian town of Westernport before it closed three years ago.
The closure put hundreds of people out of a work. Since it was the largest employer for miles, its exit left his neighbors hurting. Now, inflation is making the existing hardships tougher.
"The things shutting down in this whole area makes inflation, you know, what, 10-times worse," Grove said.
Grove's wife still works, which makes him one of the lucky ones.
"We're surviving, but these other people, probably not so much," he said.
Those living in America’s rural corners and those with low incomes are being disproportionately hit by inflation.
Bank of America Research compared how rural and urban households spend their money. It found rural homes spend more money on energy, cars and food compared to urban households. Rural households also put less in savings.
Rural residents also need to drive farther to get to stores and doctor's offices, which adds to the costs families face.
According to Gallup, 71% of households making less than $40,000 per year are experiencing hardships, and 42% consider their hardships severe.
"It's just hard that to get back to where, where we was, and I don't know whether it's going back to where we was and it's just a shame," Grove said.
The last three years for john Shingly, owner of Port West Restaurant, have been a one-two-three punch— with the mill closure, the pandemic and now inflation.
"$1.79 for a head of lettuce right now, you know, it's crazy," said Shingler.
Even though they lost 30% of their customers when the mill closed, the food prices have given him no choice but to raise his own prices.
"It's hard for these small rural communities like this to understand why we have to raise prices because it's not like in a big city where they're used to paying those prices," he said.
His customers, though, remain loyal.
"They've kind of rescued us through this," Shingler said. "They've supported us tremendously."
Communities like Westernport are used to picking each other up when times get hard, and the fact that they’re there for each other is why people choose to stay despite how bleak the outlook may be.
"This is my home, and I like my home," said Grove. | https://www.wtxl.com/news/national-politics/the-race/rural-communities-bearing-the-brunt-of-inflation | 2022-04-08T19:54:23Z | wtxl.com | control | https://www.wtxl.com/news/national-politics/the-race/rural-communities-bearing-the-brunt-of-inflation | 1 | 1 | green-iguana-35 | null |
The jury has reached a partial verdict in the trial for the men accused of plotting to kidnap Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer.
Daniel Harris and Brandon Caserta have been found not guilty in the case and a mistrial has been declared for the other counts.
The counts and jury decisions for Adam Fox, Barry Croft Jr., Brandon Caserta and Daniel Harris are as follows:
Adam Fox was charged with two counts. One count of kidnapping conspiracy and a count of conspiracy to use a weapon of mass destruction.
Count: 1 | Kidnapping conspiracy
NO VERDICT
Count: 2 | Conspiracy to use a weapon of mass destruction
NO VERDICT
Barry Croft Jr. was charged with three counts. One count of kidnapping conspiracy, a count of conspiracy to use a weapon of mass destruction, and a count of possession of an unregistered destructive device.
Count: 1 | Kidnapping conspiracy
NO VERDICT
Count: 2 | Conspiracy to use a weapon of mass destruction
NO VERDICT
Count: 3 |Possession of an unregistered destructive device
NO VERDICT
Daniel Harris was charged with four counts. One count of kidnapping conspiracy, a count of conspiracy to use a weapon of mass destruction, a count of possession of an unregistered destructive device, and a count of possession of an unregistered short-barreled rifle.
Count: 1 | Kidnapping conspiracy
VERDICT: NOT GUILTY
Count: 2 | Conspiracy to use a weapon of mass destruction
VERDICT: NOT GUILTY
Count: 3 | Possession of an unregistered destructive device
VERDICT: NOT GUILTY
Count: 4 | Possession of an unregistered short-barreled rifle
VERDICT: NOT GUILTY
Brandon Caserta was charged with one count of kidnapping conspiracy.
Count: 1 | Kidnapping conspiracy
VERDICT: NOT GUILTY
Jury deliberations started Monday, and the defense wrapped up its closing arguments last Friday after a 14-day trial. In all, 34 witnesses testified, including two former defendants who pleaded guilty and were star witnesses for the prosecution.
One of the defendants – Daniel Harris – testified in his own defense. He was the only one of the four men charged who testified.
All of the men were arrested in October 2020 after the government said they were planning to kidnap Whitmer before the 2020 election.
The jury was made up of six men, six women, and three alternates in a separate room.
This story was first reported by WXYZ in Detroit, Mich. | https://www.wtxl.com/news/national/verdict-2-men-found-not-guilty-in-mi-governor-kidnap-plot-trial-mistrial-declared-on-other-counts | 2022-04-08T19:54:35Z | wtxl.com | control | https://www.wtxl.com/news/national/verdict-2-men-found-not-guilty-in-mi-governor-kidnap-plot-trial-mistrial-declared-on-other-counts | 1 | 1 | green-iguana-35 | null |
If there is one thing nearly every midterm election has told us, it is that our country thirsts for change.
In the 19 elections since World War II, the president’s party has lost seats in the House of Representatives in 17 of them.
This year, that same outcome is anticipated as polls show Republicans gaining control of the lower chamber, but the electorate that is expected to get them there is vastly different than that of years past.
“You know, in 2012 we were talking about equity and environmental justice matters, but I think the sense of urgency and the intensity of the issues facing today’s generation of voters is much different,” said Joelle Martinez, a former political strategist under President Barack Obama and the current president of the Latino Leadership Institute.
During the 2018 midterms, Latinos set a voting record when 11.7 million cast their vote. At the time, it was thought to be an outlier, but in this year’s midterms, 11.6 million are expected to vote, according to the National Association of Latino Elected and Appointed Officials. It is a 71.4% increase from the number of Latinos that voted in 2014.
“I think the thing that has changed the most is that Democrat and Republican parties are no longer magnets for Latino voters,” said Martinez. “And we saw that in two parts of evidence. One, this last election cycle where you saw voters, Latino voters, voting conservatively in areas where they hadn’t predicted that to happen. And two, young Latino voters are registering to be Independent more times than not.”
“We’re sort of in a realignment period right now,” added Lonna Atkeson, director of the LeRoy Collins Institute, a non-partisan public policy center at Florida State University.
Atkeson says the change our electorate is undergoing right now goes against many assumptions politicians have based their strategies on for decades- that young people will consistently turn out to vote and that minorities are by and large monolithic.
“Maybe the things that we relied on previously about how groups were going to vote is less reliable,” said Atkeson. “I think the culture war is just raging and I think that’s a piece of that and the other piece of that is the economy.”
The Brookings Institution’s Metropolitan Policy Program projects that 17 million young people will turn 18 between the 2020 and 2024 elections and that 49% of them will be kids of color, only adding to the increasingly diverse electorate that is the future of American politics. | https://www.wtxl.com/news/national/why-the-2022-midterms-will-be-one-of-the-most-diverse-elections-in-history | 2022-04-08T19:54:41Z | wtxl.com | control | https://www.wtxl.com/news/national/why-the-2022-midterms-will-be-one-of-the-most-diverse-elections-in-history | 1 | 1 | green-iguana-35 | null |
LOS ANGELES (AP) — The motion picture academy has banned Will Smith from attending the Oscars or any other academy event for 10 years following his slap of Chris Rock at the Academy Awards.
The move comes after a meeting Friday of the academy’s board of governors to discuss a response to Smith’s actions.
The academy in a statement called Smith’s actions “unacceptable and harmful.”
Smith pre-emptively resigned from the academy last week during the run-up to the meeting and said he would accept any punishment the academy handed down.
Smith slapped Rock in the middle of the awards show after the comedian joked about Jada Pinkett Smith's short hair. The actress suffers from alopecia.
Smith was allowed to remain at the show and won an Oscar for best actor later that night. He has since apologized to Rock and the academy for his actions. | https://www.wtxl.com/news/national/will-smith-gets-10-year-oscars-ban-over-chris-rock-slap | 2022-04-08T19:54:48Z | wtxl.com | control | https://www.wtxl.com/news/national/will-smith-gets-10-year-oscars-ban-over-chris-rock-slap | 1 | 1 | green-iguana-35 | null |
SEATTLE, Wash. — It’s a hobby for some and a way to commute for others. No matter the reason, more people are saying ‘yes’ to pedal power.
“People learned during COVID that cycling is fun again,” said Martin Pluth, general manager for Gregg’s Cycle in Seattle.
After a year of record sales in 2020 and a year of record supply chain holdups in 2021, this year is set to come with a different challenge: inflation.
“We're up 20% and there's really nothing that can account for that other than the fact we have bikes in stock that we didn't have a year ago, and I think the gas prices are having an impact as well,” said Pluth. “It definitely, I think, will have a long-term effect if the prices remain where they're at today. I don't think high gas prices are good nationwide, but at the same time, it's good for our business.”
Pluth said the bike shop, normally quiet in the cooler spring months, is bustling with people coming in for repairs and new bikes.
“We've seen a few bike booms and in the over the years where we've seen a real surge in sales and then it will taper back. This is not predicted to do that this time,” said Pluth.
Pluth thinks the pandemic and the inflation crisis are starting to permanently change attitudes. More people see cycling as a viable transportation solution.
The electric bike market is growing the most.
“I started this company when I was 15 years old, and I did it because I couldn't afford to keep my old broken-down car running,” said Mike Radenbaugh, founder and CEO of Rad Power Bikes.
Radenbaugh said his sales have spiked across the country as customers started to feel that same pain.
“We're finding that about 30% of customers today, the primary reason for coming in is to it's to skirt high gas prices,” said Radenbaugh.
With more than 250 million cars on the road, Radenbaugh is hoping this moment becomes an opportunity to put some of those cars in the garage for good.
“Electric bikes get 1,600 miles per gallon, energy equivalent. Compare that to an electric car, which gets about 100 miles per gallon and equivalent or traditional car, which gets between 20 and 40 miles per gallon, energy equivalent,” said Radenbaugh.
With 77% of car trips being less than 10 miles and 60% less than 5 miles, replacing a couple of drives for a cycle might not be as tough as most think.
“E-bikes go up to 45 miles on a charge, and on a single charge. And they do that with about nine cents of electricity,” said Radenbaugh. “There really is no better solution right now to some of these major macro challenges in our society.”
These avid cyclists hope this seemingly endless price hike gives more people a chance to see the value of having two wheels instead of four. | https://www.fox17online.com/news/national-politics/the-race/inflated-gas-prices-boosting-bicycle-sales | 2022-04-08T19:55:08Z | fox17online.com | control | https://www.fox17online.com/news/national-politics/the-race/inflated-gas-prices-boosting-bicycle-sales | 1 | 1 | green-iguana-35 | null |
The jury has reached a partial verdict in the trial for the men accused of plotting to kidnap Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer.
Daniel Harris and Brandon Caserta have been found not guilty in the case and a mistrial has been declared for the other counts.
The counts and jury decisions for Adam Fox, Barry Croft Jr., Brandon Caserta and Daniel Harris are as follows:
Adam Fox was charged with two counts. One count of kidnapping conspiracy and a count of conspiracy to use a weapon of mass destruction.
Count: 1 | Kidnapping conspiracy
NO VERDICT
Count: 2 | Conspiracy to use a weapon of mass destruction
NO VERDICT
Barry Croft Jr. was charged with three counts. One count of kidnapping conspiracy, a count of conspiracy to use a weapon of mass destruction, and a count of possession of an unregistered destructive device.
Count: 1 | Kidnapping conspiracy
NO VERDICT
Count: 2 | Conspiracy to use a weapon of mass destruction
NO VERDICT
Count: 3 |Possession of an unregistered destructive device
NO VERDICT
Daniel Harris was charged with four counts. One count of kidnapping conspiracy, a count of conspiracy to use a weapon of mass destruction, a count of possession of an unregistered destructive device, and a count of possession of an unregistered short-barreled rifle.
Count: 1 | Kidnapping conspiracy
VERDICT: NOT GUILTY
Count: 2 | Conspiracy to use a weapon of mass destruction
VERDICT: NOT GUILTY
Count: 3 | Possession of an unregistered destructive device
VERDICT: NOT GUILTY
Count: 4 | Possession of an unregistered short-barreled rifle
VERDICT: NOT GUILTY
Brandon Caserta was charged with one count of kidnapping conspiracy.
Count: 1 | Kidnapping conspiracy
VERDICT: NOT GUILTY
Jury deliberations started Monday, and the defense wrapped up its closing arguments last Friday after a 14-day trial. In all, 34 witnesses testified, including two former defendants who pleaded guilty and were star witnesses for the prosecution.
One of the defendants – Daniel Harris – testified in his own defense. He was the only one of the four men charged who testified.
All of the men were arrested in October 2020 after the government said they were planning to kidnap Whitmer before the 2020 election.
The jury was made up of six men, six women, and three alternates in a separate room.
This story was first reported by WXYZ in Detroit, Mich. | https://www.fox17online.com/news/national/verdict-2-men-found-not-guilty-in-mi-governor-kidnap-plot-trial-mistrial-declared-on-other-counts | 2022-04-08T19:55:26Z | fox17online.com | control | https://www.fox17online.com/news/national/verdict-2-men-found-not-guilty-in-mi-governor-kidnap-plot-trial-mistrial-declared-on-other-counts | 1 | 1 | green-iguana-35 | null |
New Virginia Transportation Secretary Sheppard Miller paid a visit to Northern Virginia Friday morning, promising to bring a “metrics-driven” approach to the state’s transportation authorities.
Miller spoke with Northern Virginia Transportation Alliance President Jason Stanford in Annandale, where he defended Gov. Glenn Youngkin’s proposed gas tax holiday and called a new American Legion Bridge a regional priority of the new gubernatorial administration.
The bridge connecting Fairfax County in Virginia and Montgomery County in Maryland has long been a chokepoint for commuters across the Potomac River, but hang-ups over cost, cross-jurisdictional negotiations and questions over its overall efficacy at reducing travel times have stalled plans for a widened replacement. With Republicans now in office in both states – and Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan in the final year of his term – Miller said now is the time to get a deal in place.
“The best way to get it done is to get it done now, because we’re going to have another election and get another administration in Maryland, and you just don’t know where you’re going to end up,” Miller said. “I’m focused on trying to get that done.”
Statewide, Miller said, his focus in Youngkin’s cabinet is to spend money efficiently and only on things with a high return on investment. The commonwealth and its localities have more transportation funding than in previous years due to the 2021 bipartisan infrastructure bill out of Washington, but Miller said it won’t go as far as it would have due to high inflation, particularly on fuel and construction materials.
A Hampton Roads native, Miller made his name in military technology as the chair of KITCO Fiber Optics. He then served on the Commonwealth Transportation Board under Govs. Bob McDonnell (R) and Ralph Northam (D). He admitted that when he was first nominated for the board, he had little background in transportation policy.
“What’s that?” he said he asked McDonnell about the transportation board.
Now, at a 30,000-foot level, Miller said he’s focused on making transportation planning more oriented to future conditions, talking about 50-100-year time frames. The trouble is, he conceded, little is known about what commuting patterns will look like in the future.
“But it’s going to be very different 50 years from now than it is today … We’re not really building for 50 years from now. Flying cars … it’s going to happen and it’s going to happen within 50 years, there’s no doubt in my mind,” he said, adding that policymakers need to “reexamine transit.”
Metro and Virginia Railway Express, as well as commuter buses in the region, have seen ridership plummet from pre-pandemic highs. Transit providers in the area have seen recent increases in riders as more workers have returned to the office this year, but still far fewer people are paying to ride the region’s transit systems than in 2019.
Metro and VRE both face looming budget shortfalls if ridership doesn’t recover more fully in the coming fiscal year, and Metro’s been hampered by a defect in its newest fleet of railcars that drastically reduced service and resulted in a train derailment last year.
Miller had little to say about the administration’s commitment to Metro, which has a dedicated funding agreement through fiscal 2026 in place between D.C., Maryland and Virginia.
“It has to be reliable and it has to be safe. If it’s not those two things, it’s not going to be successful,” Miller said. “It’s a difficult problem. The capital [funding] is a difficult problem, the operations [funding] is a difficult problem. We’ve got to find a way that it’s right-sized.”
Just over three months into his new job, Miller also had few specifics to offer on Virginia’s project-rating system, Smart Scale, or what changes might be made ahead of its sixth round beginning in 2024. He did say he wanted future development patterns to be given some weight in project scoring.
Miller said he’s currently focused on ensuring that current Virginia Department of Transportation projects like the Interstate 495 express lanes, Interstate 66 outside-the-beltway tolling and Route 7 widening in Fairfax are completed “on time and on budget.”
As for the gas tax proposal, Youngkin says he’s hoping to give Virginia drivers some help at the gas pump. But transit officials in the region are warning that it will come at a significant cost to Northern Virginia’s bus and rail operators, as well as regional transportation bodies like the Northern Virginia Transportation Authority. For now, Miller said, Youngkin’s plan is not to backfill lost local funding from the state. Ultimately, though, the issue will only be settled when the General Assembly finalizes the state budget.
“I think the governor’s view – the administration’s view – is there’s enough money in the system with the monies that we’ve talked about to, in essence, backstop that at this point … But the House and the Senate will have a say,” Miller said. “So we’ll stay tuned.” | https://www.insidenova.com/headlines/state-transportation-secretary-swings-through-northern-virginia-pledges-metrics-driven-approach/article_196205ac-b76e-11ec-9361-5794366454f1.html | 2022-04-08T19:58:15Z | insidenova.com | control | https://www.insidenova.com/headlines/state-transportation-secretary-swings-through-northern-virginia-pledges-metrics-driven-approach/article_196205ac-b76e-11ec-9361-5794366454f1.html | 1 | 1 | green-iguana-35 | null |
I am writing in response to the letter titled “Data centers will harm the environment” (March 24 edition).
As someone who grew up in Gainesville, it's important to me that we, together, protect our local environment. So if the creation of these data centers is so bad, what should we do about it?
I believe protesting and bringing this issue to the local government would prove most effective. Maybe with some social solidarity we could somehow recycle the waste and detritus that comes from the data centers so the carbon footprint is minimized. Our current governor might not care at all about this, so local legislation will be the route to follow for legitimate change.
Our water supply and forestry is incredibly important and to have that ruined by data centers is incredibly sad and shameful. It is up to us as a community to bring about these changes.
– Maxwell Brown, Harrisonburg | https://www.insidenova.com/opinion/letter-protect-the-environment-from-data-centers/article_0cbdef2e-b772-11ec-9b58-c749e0e91c6e.html | 2022-04-08T19:58:21Z | insidenova.com | control | https://www.insidenova.com/opinion/letter-protect-the-environment-from-data-centers/article_0cbdef2e-b772-11ec-9b58-c749e0e91c6e.html | 1 | 1 | green-iguana-35 | null |
Hundreds of thousands of homes and businesses in Puerto Rico were still without power Friday, two days after the start of an island-wide outage that began with a fire at a power plant.
About 600,000 to 650,000 of the island's 1.5 million utility customers had electric service restored, the territory's power grid operator said Friday morning.
That leaves about 800,000 to 850,000 homes and business without power in an outage that has closed schools island-wide for two days and caused other interruptions for Puerto Rico's 3.2 million residents.
"We hope that at some point tonight, we will be able to have 1 million customers back online. This is subject to safety -- for the system, for the employees and for the community," Kevin Acevedo, vice president of LUMA Energy, the operator of Puerto Rico's power grid operator, told reporters in San Juan.
An unspecified failure led to a fire at the Costa Sur power plant outside the town of Guayanilla on the southwest coast around 8:45 p.m. Wednesday, cutting power across the island, Acevedo has said. Firefighters have since extinguished the flames.
All customers on the island lost power initially, Josue Colon, Puerto Rico's lead telecommunications and infrastructure engineer, told reporters Thursday, "because all the generating units went offline."
The exact cause wasn't immediately known, the utility has said.
"Every single (piece of) equipment (at the plant's switchyard) needs to be inspected and tested to make sure that when it's back in service, we can restore power for customers reliably and safely," Shay Bahramirad, LUMA Energy's senior vice president of engineering and asset management, told reporters in San Juan on Friday.
The power outage also has interrupted water service tens of thousands of homes and businesses, Gov. Pedro Pierluisi said, citing the island's aqueducts and sewers authority.
Puerto Rico canceled classes Friday for students for a second straight day. But school principals, custodians, and school cafeteria employees still were told to report to work Friday, the island's education department said.
The island's courts also were closed Friday because of the outage, though some court services will be available online for urgent matters like mental health and restraining orders, the territory's judicial system said.
All hospitals were operational by Thursday afternoon, whether their power was restored or they were operating via a generator, according to Secretary of the Interior Noelia García Bardales.
Replacement power plant parts ordered, official says
Early Thursday, the utility said the "massive island-wide blackout" might have been "caused by a circuit breaker failure" at the Costa Sur plant.
Firefighters extinguished flames that affected two substations at the plant, the Bureau of Puerto Rico Fire Departments said Wednesday.
The cause of the fire is being investigated, Acevedo said Thursday morning, adding that the equipment was up to date on maintenance inspections.
Cleanup at the plant is underway, and replacement parts have been identified and ordered, Acevedo said.
LUMA is a joint venture of Quanta Services and the Canadian energy company ATCO, which the Puerto Rican government chose to take over the operation of the power grid from its previous public electric utility, the Puerto Rico Electric Power Authority. LUMA has been in charge of the power grid since June 1.
The-CNN-Wire
™ & © 2022 Cable News Network, Inc., a WarnerMedia Company. All rights reserved. | https://www.local3news.com/regional-national/hundreds-of-thousands-of-puerto-ricos-homes-and-businesses-still-without-power-2-days-after/article_180d4ec2-98d0-54c6-a8cc-513937f9380a.html | 2022-04-08T19:58:34Z | local3news.com | control | https://www.local3news.com/regional-national/hundreds-of-thousands-of-puerto-ricos-homes-and-businesses-still-without-power-2-days-after/article_180d4ec2-98d0-54c6-a8cc-513937f9380a.html | 1 | 1 | green-iguana-35 | null |
BOSTON (WWLP) – Senate staffers are continuing their push to unionize, despite very little response from state leaders.
This has been a huge topic of debate here on Beacon Hill. A majority of senate staffers say they want to unionize but so far their requests haven’t been addressed by the senate president. This week senate staffer announced their plans to join the IBEW union, making them only the second group of legislative staffers in the country to do so.
Staffers believe this move would improve their working conditions and provide them with a buffer when issues arise with their bosses.
“We never want to be in a situation where a senator needs to decide between using their time and political capitol for their staff or on behalf of their constituents.” Tara Wilson, Senate Staffer
Senate President Karen Spilka has been pretty quiet on this issue. She released a statement earlier this week noting that the Senate Council is reviewing their proposal. When asked about it on Thursday, she wouldn’t give an update on where that review process stands now.
Critics of the plan say some lawmakers are being hypocritical. The legislature, which frequently promotes collective bargaining rights, has been very quiet on the union push occurring in their own workplace.
Some lawmakers have taken to social media to share their support for senate staffers. The proposal is now in the hands of the senate council. | https://www.wwlp.com/news/state-politics/senate-staffers-continue-push-to-unionize/ | 2022-04-08T20:01:15Z | wwlp.com | control | https://www.wwlp.com/news/state-politics/senate-staffers-continue-push-to-unionize/ | 1 | 1 | green-iguana-35 | null |
Fire strikes two Zanesville homes in 24 hours
ZANESVILLE — Two fires broke out in separate Zanesville houses over a period of 24 hours, according to the Zanesville Fire Department.
Thursday morning at 4 a.m., fire personnel responded to an unoccupied house at 921 Goddard St. to find it fully engulfed in flames. The building was left at a total loss.
Code enforcement was called in to knock down the remaining structure, which could be dangerous if anyone tried to get inside, Zanesville Assistant Fire Chief Doug Hobson said.
No one was injured in the blaze. The fire remains under investigation.
On Friday, personnel responded to a fire at a home at 626 Lenox Ave. around 4 a.m. The blaze, which started in the living room, is believed to be an electrical fire, Hobson said.
The fire alarm had gone off, and the two occupants and a dog escaped. One person was transported to the hospital with smoke inhalation.
The Red Cross has stepped in to assist the residents affected by the fire.
ecouch@gannett.com
740-334-3522
Twitter: @couchreporting | https://www.zanesvilletimesrecorder.com/story/news/2022/04/08/fire-strikes-two-zanesville-homes-24-hours/9509648002/ | 2022-04-08T20:04:59Z | zanesvilletimesrecorder.com | control | https://www.zanesvilletimesrecorder.com/story/news/2022/04/08/fire-strikes-two-zanesville-homes-24-hours/9509648002/ | 1 | 1 | green-iguana-35 | null |
Local News Briefs: ODOT update, lane restrictions and closures
ODOT doing work in Muskingum County
ZANESVILLE — Ohio Department of Transportation is doing projects this week in Muskingum County.
Ohio 16 will be restricted to one lane near the Monroe Basin for one week starting April 11 from Stillwell Road to Burvil Road. It will then be closed for two weeks in the same area starting April 18 for continued drainage work and culvert replacements. The suggested detour is Ohio 16 to Ohio 60 to Ohio 541 to Ohio 16 and reverse for the other direction.
Seventh Street is expected to be closed for three months starting April 11 for continued reconstruction related to work on Interstate 70. Motorists should also expect daytime lane closures on Underwood Street for bridge work and intermittent nightly lane closures of 15 minutes at a time on Underwood Street.
There will also be overnight lane closures starting April 11 for bridge work on I-70 from U.S. 22 in Norwich to Ohio 83 in New Concord. Overnight closures will also start April 18 for shoulder and pavement work on I-70 from County Road 330 in Licking County to the Muskingum County line and from the line to just east of County Road 30. I-70 will be restricted to one lane April 12 and 13 eastbound from Ohio 13 to Mt. Hope Road for pavement related work from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. with the right lane closed from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. April 14.
Zanesville Schools to hold work session
ZANESVILLE — Zanesville City Schools Board of Education will have a work session at 6 p.m. April 12 in the administration building, 956 Moxahala Ave. Purpose will be to discuss possible building additions and other items. No action will be taken.
Haddox joins Allen and Baughman
ZANESVILLE — Kallen Haddox has jointed Allen and Baughman LLP and ABC Title Agency, 111 N. Fourth St.
The Zanesville native is a 2018 graduate of Ohio State University with a bachelor's degree in psychology and earned her juris doctor from Capital University Law School in 2021. She's the daughter of Mike and Kerry Haddox.
Haddox is a member of the Muskingum County, Perry County and Ohio State bar associations.
Chamber luncheon in New Lex
NEW LEXINGTON — The Perry County Chamber of Commerce monthly business luncheon will be at 1 p.m. April 19 at the Ludowici Factory of Ideas, 4757 Tile Plant Road, New Lexington.
Guest speaker is Bryn Stepp, regional liaison for the Office of Ohio Lt. Governor Jon Husted. Call 740-342-3547 or email pcccofc@yahoo.com by 10 a.m. April 18 for registration.
Recycling events set in Perry County
NEW LEXINGTON — Drive-Thru Recycling Day will be from 9 a.m. to noon April 23 in the parking lot of Perry County Waste Reduction and Recycling, 2231 Ohio 13, New Lexington.
The first 50 cars will receive a free Pepsi product and each vehicle will be registered to win a $25 gift card. The event is a fundraiser for New Lexington High School.
A Hard to Recycle Collection Day will be from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. April 16 at the Perry County Fairgrounds, 5445 Ohio 37, New Lexington.
Accepted will be clothing and textiles, scrap metal, mattresses and box springs, rechargeable batteries, books, medical supplies and equipment and E-waste. Flat screen televisions will be taken for $20 and tube televisions are $40. Bulk trash, tires and prescription drugs won't be taken. Email ed@ruralaction.org for more information.
ZMHA to meet
ZANESVILLE — The Zanesville Metropolitan Housing Authority will meet in regular session at 5:15 p.m. April 28 at the board office, 407 Pershing Road.
Genesis to hold Girls Night Out
ZANESVILLE — Genesis Spirit of Women will hold a Girls Night Out at 4 p.m. May 12 at EagleSticks Golf Club, 2655 Maysville Pike.
There will be presentations by Dr. Deanna Holdren of Genesis Primary Care and Elva Hurst, a chalk artist. There will be a dinner, wine tasting and shopping. The For Your Health pavilion will have demonstrations by the Dancing Divas, Genesis Behavioral Health, the Yoga Booth and Casa Bella Gifts. There will be door prizes and a purse contest.
Register for the free event at genesishcs.org. Lifetime membership for Genesis Spirit of Women is $10. | https://www.zanesvilletimesrecorder.com/story/news/local/2022/04/08/local-news-briefs-odot-update-lane-restrictions-and-closures/9502037002/ | 2022-04-08T20:05:05Z | zanesvilletimesrecorder.com | control | https://www.zanesvilletimesrecorder.com/story/news/local/2022/04/08/local-news-briefs-odot-update-lane-restrictions-and-closures/9502037002/ | 1 | 1 | green-iguana-35 | null |
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2022 Charleston | https://www.wtatennis.com/videos/2567702/bogota-defending-champ-osorio-advances-past-avanesyan-to-semis | 2022-04-08T20:06:47Z | wtatennis.com | control | https://www.wtatennis.com/videos/2567702/bogota-defending-champ-osorio-advances-past-avanesyan-to-semis | 1 | 1 | green-iguana-35 | null |
LOS ANGELES — The motion picture academy on Friday banned Will Smith from attending the Oscars or any other academy event for 10 years following his slap of Chris Rock at the Academy Awards.
Smith pre-emptively resigned from the academy last week during the run-up to Friday's meeting and said he would accept any punishment the academy handed down.
Here is the full letter sent by the Academy to its members:
"Open Letter to Our Academy Family
The 94th Oscars were meant to be a celebration of the many individuals in our community who did incredible work this past year; however, those moments were overshadowed by the unacceptable and harmful behavior we saw Mr. Smith exhibit on stage.
During our telecast, we did not adequately address the situation in the room. For this, we are sorry. This was an opportunity for us to set an example for our guests, viewers and our Academy family around the world, and we fell short — unprepared for the unprecedented.
Today, the Board of Governors convened a meeting to discuss how best to respond to Will Smith's actions at the Oscars, in addition to accepting his resignation. The Board has decided, for a period of 10 years from April 8, 2022, Mr. Smith shall not be permitted to attend any Academy events or programs, in person or virtually, including but not limited to the Academy Awards.
We want to express our deep gratitude to Mr. Rock for maintaining his composure under extraordinary circumstances. We also want to thank our hosts, nominees, presenters and winners for their poise and grace during our telecast.
This action we are taking today in response to Will Smith's behavior is a step toward a larger goal of protecting the safety of our performers and guests, and restoring trust in the Academy. We also hope this can begin a time of healing and restoration for all involved and impacted.
Thank you,
David Rubin
President
Dawn Hudson
CEO" | https://www.krem.com/article/entertainment/events/oscars/letter-from-the-academy-on-will-smith-punishment-oscars-slap/507-165bb4ef-fc66-443a-9661-746bbda54499 | 2022-04-08T20:13:41Z | krem.com | control | https://www.krem.com/article/entertainment/events/oscars/letter-from-the-academy-on-will-smith-punishment-oscars-slap/507-165bb4ef-fc66-443a-9661-746bbda54499 | 1 | 1 | green-iguana-35 | null |
LOS ANGELES — The motion picture academy on Friday banned Will Smith from attending the Oscars or any other academy event for 10 years following his slap of Chris Rock at the Academy Awards.
The move comes after a meeting of the academy's Board of Governors to discuss a response to Smith's actions.
“The 94th Oscars were meant to be a celebration of the many individuals in our community who did incredible work this past year; however, those moments were overshadowed by the unacceptable and harmful behavior we saw Mr. Smith exhibit on stage,” the academy said in a statement.
Smith pre-emptively resigned from the academy last week during the run-up to the meeting and said he would accept any punishment the academy handed down.
“I accept and respect the Academy’s decision," Smith said in a statement.
The academy also apologized for its handling of the situation and allowing Smith to stay and accept his best actor award for “King Richard.”
“During our telecast, we did not adequately address the situation in the room. For this, we are sorry,” the academy said. “This was an opportunity for us to set an example for our guests, viewers and our Academy family around the world, and we fell short — unprepared for the unprecedented. ”
In a statement in the days following the Oscars, the academy said Smith was asked to leave the ceremony but refused.
But it's not clear how the message was delivered to Smith or what form it took, and several media outlets reported that he was never formally told to leave the Dolby Theatre. The Los Angeles Times reported in a story Thursday that Oscars producer Will Packer told Smith: “Officially, we don’t want you to leave. We want you to stay.”
The ban means Smith will not be presenting one of the major awards at next year's Oscars, as is tradition for the best actor winner.
The academy in its Friday statement also expressed “deep gratitude to Mr. Rock for maintaining his composure under extraordinary circumstances.”
The academy's statement did not address whether Smith could be nominated for Oscars during his 10-year ban. Nor did it take any action to revoke Smith's Academy Award.
The academy has not revoked Oscars from expelled members Harvey Weinstein or Roman Polanski. | https://www.krem.com/article/entertainment/events/oscars/will-smith-banned-from-oscars-for-10-years-slapping-chris-rock-academy-awards/507-9f654076-c9f2-448e-b4cf-5981a60cee80 | 2022-04-08T20:13:47Z | krem.com | control | https://www.krem.com/article/entertainment/events/oscars/will-smith-banned-from-oscars-for-10-years-slapping-chris-rock-academy-awards/507-9f654076-c9f2-448e-b4cf-5981a60cee80 | 1 | 1 | green-iguana-35 | null |
MOUNT VERNON, Wash. — Spring has sprung in western Washington as picturesque fields of colorful tulips and daffodils once again blanket Skagit Valley.
This is the second year visitors are allowed back into the fields for the Skagit Valley Tulip Festival after it went virtual in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Those looking to get outside and peep at the colorful fields of flowers have until April 30 to visit the annual event and get their Instagram-worthy photo.
People from all 50 states and more than 85 foreign countries visit the festival during a “normal” year, according to the festival website.
Below are a few things you should know before visiting the annual event:
Where is the festival?
The Skagit Valley Tulip Festival is located about 60 miles north of Seattle and 70 miles south of Vancouver, British Colombia, adjacent to Interstate 5.
There is no specific “site” to enter the festival as millions of tulips and daffodils are scattered across multiple fields throughout the Skagit Valley.
The festival is designed as a driving tour as the fields are in different locations each year due to crop rotations.
Festival officials suggest visitors stop in town to take advantage of public restrooms before going to the tulip areas because “it can take a fair amount of time to journey from the I-5 exits to the tulip area” on busy days.
There are public restrooms at all visitor information centers and the transit station in downtown Mount Vernon. According to the festival website, “the Shops at Burlington is an easy stop with a chance to use the restrooms, stretch your legs (perhaps shop a bit) and then journey on to the tulip area.”
Three tulip gardens to visit
In addition to the fields of tulips, there are three gardens guests can walk around and explore.
RoozenGaarde is a world-renown garden with over 1 million flowering spring bulbs. The flower garden features a 30-acre tulip field, a 20-acre daffodil field and a full-sized Dutch windmill. The display garden is hand-planted and redesigned each year with more than 200 flower varieties on display. RoozenGaarde is located at 15867 Beaver Marsh Rd in Mount Vernon.
For nearly 40 years, Tulip Town has been a blossoming boutique tulip farm. The farm planted five acres of colorful tulips but has about an acre of outside flowers to show for their work due to regional flooding during the planting season last fall. Though the field may look a bit different this year, visitors can explore 10,000-square-feet of indoor garden space “brimming with goods and gifts from area artisans" and "thousands of potted tulips for purchase." Tulip Town is located at 15002 Bradshaw Rd in Mount Vernon.
Garden Rosalyn is the newest addition to the Skagit Valley Tulip Festival. The garden is a 13-acre complex with six acres of tulips “planted in fun designs, including stars, animals and manicured beds.” Garden Rosalyn is the only garden of the three that allows leashed, well-behaved dogs. Garden Rosalyn is located at 16648 Jungquist Rd in Mount Vernon.
RoozenGaarde is open year-round, while Tulip Town and Garden Rosalyn are only open during the Skagit Valley Tulip Festival.
When is peak bloom?
Bloom dates vary “according to Mother Nature” and peak bloom depends on the weather. Tulips were blooming and the gardens were "looking very pretty" as of April 7. "With that said, every day more tulips are coming into bloom. The tulip bloom has not yet reached its peak," according to the Tulip Festival website.
RoozenGaarde said Facebook post, “The entire month of April will be filled with tulips (plus daffodils for at least the first half) and we will keep the bloom going as long as nature allows - possibly into May.”
Visitors can check the Skagit Valley Tulip Festival website and the three tulip garden Facebook pages for up-to-date bloom information before visiting.
An interactive bloom map is also available on the festival website to help guests plan their trip.
Tulips in bloom: A look at the 2022 Skagit Valley Tulip Festival
Do I need tickets?
While tickets are not required to enjoy festival events in town or to drive around looking at the colorful fields, tickets are required if you plan on visiting the unique tulip gardens.
Garden owners set admission pricing and hours.
RoozenGaarde is open from 9 a.m. until 7 p.m. during the week, and 8 a.m. until 7 p.m. on weekends during the spring bloom. Visitors are allowed entry into the garden until 7 p.m., and guests can stay until sunset. Parking lot gates close and are locked 5 minutes after sunset. Tickets are $15 for ages 3 and up, and admission is free for ages 2 and below. Tickets can be purchased online or at the gate. Click here for more information.
Tulip Town is open daily from 8 a.m. until 7 p.m. Tickets are $15 for ages 12 and up, $7 for ages 6-11 and kids under 5 are free. Tickets can be purchased online or at the gate. Click here for more information.
Garden Rosalyn is open from 8 a.m. until 7 p.m. from April 1-30. Tickets are $12, and admission is free for kids ages 5 and under. Tickets can be purchased online or at the gate. Click here for more information.
What about parking?
Parking is available for free at all three of the participating display gardens, but roadside parking is limited in the fields due to traffic regulations and shoulder conditions. Paid parking is also available in some locations.
Weekends are the busiest time to visit the festival. Festival officials suggest anyone visiting as a group with multiple cars should meet at a Park N Ride location and carpool.
COVID-19 precautions
Anyone experiencing COVID-19 symptoms is asked to stay at home.
According to the Skagit Valley Tulip Festival website, “Our office/store/information center, the three gardens (Garden Rosalyn, RoozenGaarde and Tulip Town), our venues and the flower fields will all be adhering to COVID-19 regulations. Aggregated outdoor venues are a great outing and we know we can have you visit safely IF YOU HELP US.”
Washington state lifted its indoor mask mandate at 11:59 p.m. on March 11 after the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention released new guidance. However, some businesses may still require visitors to wear a mask inside.
More information
The festival is open rain or shine from April 1-30. Saturdays are the busiest days of the festival, followed by Sundays, Fridays and Mondays.
Photography is allowed, but drones are not allowed in the tulip gardens or the fields.
Pets are not allowed at Tulip Town or RoozenGaarde, but leashed dogs are allowed at Garden Rosalyn. | https://www.krem.com/article/entertainment/events/tulip-festival-skagit-valley-mount-vernon-2022/281-2ad2deb0-e9cd-4d9c-abc3-b80ce8105adb | 2022-04-08T20:14:00Z | krem.com | control | https://www.krem.com/article/entertainment/events/tulip-festival-skagit-valley-mount-vernon-2022/281-2ad2deb0-e9cd-4d9c-abc3-b80ce8105adb | 1 | 1 | green-iguana-35 | null |
SAN JOSÉ, Costa Rica — A DHL cargo jet slid off the runway and broke in half while landing at San Jose’s international airport Thursday, shutting down the airport, but not injuring crew.
The fire department said the Boeing 757 had taken off from Juan Santamaría Airport just west of the capital, but decided to return after detecting a failure in the hydraulic system.
Héctor Chaves, director the Costa Rica Fire Department, said that upon landing the aircraft skidded, turned and broke in two, exposing its cargo.
“Units mobilized to remove the pilot and co-pilot,” Chaves said. “Then they applied foam to prevent a spill and now they are working on an earthen dike to avoid any fuel from reaching the drainage system.”
A spokesman for cargo carrier DHL said both pilots were unharmed but one was being undergoing a medical check as a precaution.
DHL spokesman Daniel McGrath said the company was working with airport authorities to move the plane so flights could resume. He said an investigation would be conducted to determine the cause of the incident.
DHL is a subsidiary of Deutsche Post DHL Group.
Luis Miranda, deputy director of civil aviation for Costa Rica, said the plane had gone only about 35 miles from the airport when it requested permission to turn back from its planned flight to Guatemala City. He said the pilot and co-pilot were the only crew members aboard the plane, which was carrying only about 2½ hours worth of fuel.
The airport administration said the crash would keep the airport closed to incoming and outgoing flights until at least 6 p.m. Some flights would be diverted to Daniel Oduber International Airport in Liberia, about 125 miles northwest of San Jose. | https://www.krem.com/article/news/nation-world/cargo-jet-breaks-in-half/507-43cbaa4f-59af-4053-8d31-db769d59b427 | 2022-04-08T20:14:06Z | krem.com | control | https://www.krem.com/article/news/nation-world/cargo-jet-breaks-in-half/507-43cbaa4f-59af-4053-8d31-db769d59b427 | 1 | 1 | green-iguana-35 | null |
WASHINGTON — As European health officials investigate a growing outbreak of salmonella that appears to be linked to chocolate surprise eggs, some Kinder chocolate products have now also been recalled in the United States.
The U.S. recall is limited to just the Kinder Happy Moments Chocolate Assortment and Kinder Mix Chocolate Treats basket sold at three retailers, according to Ferrero North America. The recalled Happy Moments product was sold at BJ's Wholesale Club stores and Costco stores in the Bay Area and Northern Nevada. The recalled treats baskets were only sold at 14 Big Y Supermarket locations in Connecticut and Massachusetts.
The company has stressed that no other Kinder or Ferrero products sold in the U.S. are impacted by the voluntary recall.
The company explained that these specific products are being recalled as a precaution due to reported salmonella cases linked to products sold in Europe that were manufactured in the same facility in Belgium.
On Wednesday, European health officials said 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. Salmonella typically causes symptoms including diarrhea, fever and stomach cramps.
As of Friday, there have been no confirmed salmonella cases in the U.S., Ferrero said.
Over in Europe, specific batches of Kinder chocolate products have been recalled in Denmark, Finland, Belgium, France, Germany, Ireland, Luxembourg, the U.K, Sweden and Norway.
“The presence of salmonella in chocolate is particularly critical, as the high fat content of the chocolate will be a protective factor for salmonella bacteria when passing through the stomach acid,” the Danish Veterinary and Food Administration said in a statement. It “is especially critical when it comes to chocolate products marketed directly to children.”
Those in the U.S. who have bought the recalled products should contact the Ferrero customer service line at 1-800-688-3552 or via https://www.ferreronorthamerica.com/contact-US-residents for a replacement.
The Associated Press contributed to this report. | https://www.krem.com/article/news/nation-world/some-kinder-chocolates-in-us-recalled-over-salmonella-concerns/507-c73e7511-aed1-4ca1-80f2-ea64ef651e00 | 2022-04-08T20:14:18Z | krem.com | control | https://www.krem.com/article/news/nation-world/some-kinder-chocolates-in-us-recalled-over-salmonella-concerns/507-c73e7511-aed1-4ca1-80f2-ea64ef651e00 | 1 | 1 | green-iguana-35 | null |
On April 6, a tweet with over 3,600 retweets and more than 6,800 likes, claimed that effective April 7, the CDC “will now allow infectious #COVID19 cases to fly & stop such reporting.”
The tweet’s author told VERIFY that his tweet was based on a “CDC alert on travel” that was sent via email to health department officials in Virginia. The email was forwarded to him by a Virginia local health department source and was sent to VERIFY for review.
THE QUESTION
Did the CDC change its COVID-19 public domestic air travel guidance?
THE SOURCES
THE ANSWER
No, that is not true. The CDC’s public guidance for domestic air travel has not changed.
The email alert cited in the tweet was sent to some health departments as a notice of changes in how health departments report individual cases and a positive person’s travel plans to the CDC. The CDC has never had a policy that specifically states COVID-19 infected individuals couldn’t fly.
WHAT WE FOUND
The tweet that was posted on April 6 said the CDC would “discontinue applying health travel restrictions to most COVID-19 cases and contacts with reported air travel.”
The tweet is missing important context.
The CDC has not issued any new guidance to the public. What they have done is issued new reporting guidelines to state and local health departments.
VERIFY spoke to the Fairfax County, Virginia Health Department about this tweet. The claim in the tweet stemmed from an email alert sent to local Virginia health departments. Under the health department guidance, the CDC is discontinuing the use of the “Do Not Board” list in most cases. It also states the health departments can stop reporting the following to the CDC:
- If a COVID-19 infected person has upcoming air travel
- If individuals had traveled recently and tested positive after arriving at their destination
A person on the “Do Not Board” list can’t obtain a boarding pass for any flight into, out of, or within the United States. The Transportation Security Administration (TSA) enforces this rule. The CDC has never had a policy that specifically did not allow COVID-19 positive individuals to fly, but individual airlines could have conducted their own screening that prevented a person with symptoms from flying (i.e. temperature screening prior to boarding).
In order to be placed on the “Do Not Board” list, a person would have had to meet criteria outlined by the CDC. The CDC does not place every COVID-19 positive individual on the list.
Officials with the Fairfax County Health Department explained how the previous guidance for COVID-19 positive case reporting worked, and how it impacted travel for infected individuals.
Previously, when an individual received a positive COVID-19 result from a doctor’s office or lab, the local health department would be notified, Fairfax County officials told VERIFY. Then, that health department would receive a list of close-contact individuals and encourage them to quarantine. That original positive and close contact data would then be reported to the CDC.
If the infected person had indicated an intent to travel during the time they were advised to quarantine and the CDC would place that person on the “Do Not Board” list.
So, now with the new guidance, health departments aren’t required to send the information about an infected person and their upcoming or past travels plans to the CDC.
Because the memo from the CDC did not change any public recommendations, Fairfax County officials told VERIFY that is why the CDC would not publicize this update on their website. A spokesperson with the San Diego County Health Department in California told VERIFY they were also aware of the change in data reporting.
The CDC is still encouraging all individuals to be vaccinated against COVID-19, wear a mask during travel. The CDC is encouraging tests for domestic travel for people who are not vaccinated or someone who had a close contact with someone who tested positive.
“Do not travel if you are sick, tested positive for COVID-19 and haven’t ended isolation, had close contact with a person with COVID-19 and haven’t ended quarantine, or are waiting for results of a COVID-19 test,” the CDC’s website said.
The CDC did not respond to VERIFY’s request for comment. | https://www.krem.com/article/news/verify/coronavirus-verify/cdc-did-not-change-its-covid-19-air-travel-guidance/536-f2e27ff3-922b-4513-814d-3bb537e2f1e2 | 2022-04-08T20:14:24Z | krem.com | control | https://www.krem.com/article/news/verify/coronavirus-verify/cdc-did-not-change-its-covid-19-air-travel-guidance/536-f2e27ff3-922b-4513-814d-3bb537e2f1e2 | 1 | 1 | green-iguana-35 | null |
Though COVID-19 cases and deaths continue to fall worldwide, medical experts and public health agencies continue to identify new variants of the virus.
BA.2, a subvariant of omicron that experts believe is more contagious than the original BA.1, became dominant in the U.S. in late March.
More recently, some people have expressed concerns online about a potential new coronavirus variant called XE, with one Twitter user claiming that it was found in the United Kingdom and “could be the most transmissible variant yet.” Another person said XE combines BA.1, the original version of omicron, and omicron subvariant BA.2.
THE QUESTION
Is there a new coronavirus subvariant called XE?
THE SOURCES
- The World Health Organization (WHO)
- Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)
- United Kingdom Health Security Agency
- Saralyn Mark, M.D., former senior medical advisor to the White House and American Medical Women's Association COVID-19 Lead
THE ANSWER
Yes, there is a new coronavirus subvariant called XE. It combines the BA.1 and BA.2 versions of omicron.
WHAT WE FOUND
Viruses like the one that causes COVID-19 mutate as they replicate. People can be infected with different strains of a virus at the same time and sometimes they combine during replication, Saralyn Mark, M.D., former senior medical advisor to the White House and American Medical Women's Association COVID-19 Lead, explained.
In its weekly epidemiological update released on March 29, the World Health Organization (WHO) said XE is a recombinant variant, or combination, of the BA.1 and BA.2 versions of omicron. It was first detected in the United Kingdom on Jan. 19.
The United Kingdom Health Security Agency (UKHSA) said in an update on March 25 that 637 cases of XE had been confirmed in the country so far. In the last week alone, more than 333,000 people had tested positive for COVID-19 in the UK, the agency reported on April 8.
A “small number” of XE cases have been detected in the US, where the new subvariant is considered “another lineage of omicron and not a new variant of interest or concern,” a spokesperson for the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) told VERIFY.
Is XE more contagious than other COVID-19 strains?
Early data show the XE subvariant may be about 10% more transmissible than BA.2, but it’s too early to know exactly how contagious it is, the WHO and other experts say. According to UKHSA, the data “cannot yet be interpreted as an estimate of growth advantage” for the XE subvariant.
If XE is 10% more transmissible than BA.2, that would make it “one of the most transmissible viruses in the world,” Mark said.
Medical experts don’t have enough evidence yet to draw conclusions about severity or vaccine effectiveness either. But the CDC expects the XE subvariant to behave similarly to BA.2 because they share the same spike protein.
Some medical experts believe BA.2 is about 50% more contagious than BA.1. But vaccines provide the same level of protection against severe illness and hospitalization of BA.2 compared to other variants.
How common are recombinant variants?
Recombinant variants “are not an unusual occurrence, particularly when there are several variants in circulation, and several have been identified over the course of the pandemic to date,” Professor Susan Hopkins, chief medical advisor with UKHSA, said.
Another recombinant variant identified during the pandemic is a combination of the delta and omicron variants that some have called “deltacron.” Delta-omicron recombinant cases are “exceedingly rare” in the United States, the CDC previously told VERIFY.
Most recombinant variants “die off relatively quickly,” Hopkins said. It’s unclear right now if this will happen with the XE subvariant.
Though immunity to BA.1 and BA.2 currently remains high due to COVID-19 vaccines and natural infection, it could wane over time and allow a new subvariant like XE to take hold in the US, Mark said. | https://www.krem.com/article/news/verify/coronavirus-verify/new-covid-subvariant-xe-combines-omicron-ba1-ba2/536-f8cea186-9c15-497b-889a-2499c4d249fb | 2022-04-08T20:14:30Z | krem.com | control | https://www.krem.com/article/news/verify/coronavirus-verify/new-covid-subvariant-xe-combines-omicron-ba1-ba2/536-f8cea186-9c15-497b-889a-2499c4d249fb | 1 | 1 | green-iguana-35 | null |
FAA issues record fines against 2 unruly passengers
The Federal Aviation Administration said Friday it would seek to impose the biggest fines ever for the disruptive passengers who caused two separate incidents last summer.
Why it matters: The agency said it has proposed $2 million worth of fines since Jan. 1 in an effort to cut down on "unruly behavior."
Details: The first fine, which totals $81,950, is for a passenger who allegedly tried to open a cabin door and "spit at, headbutted, bit and tried to kick the crew and other passengers" on an American Airlines flight from Dallas to Charlotte.
- The second fine, totaling $77,272, is for a passenger who tried to open the cabin door and bit another passenger on a Delta flight from Las Vegas to Atlanta. That passenger had to be restrained.
- The FAA didn't identify either passenger and said they have 30 days to respond to the accusations.
What they're saying: "If you are on an airplane, don’t be a jerk and don’t endanger the flight crews and fellow passengers. If you do, you will be fined by the FAA," Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg said, according to the press release. | https://www.axios.com/faa-record-fines-unruly-passengers-34fa0274-6217-4123-83ae-98103545e18e.html | 2022-04-08T20:14:46Z | axios.com | control | https://www.axios.com/faa-record-fines-unruly-passengers-34fa0274-6217-4123-83ae-98103545e18e.html | 1 | 1 | green-iguana-35 | null |
SnowTALK! Weather Blog Update 4/7
Published: Apr. 7, 2022 at 8:01 AM EDT
A mix of sun, clouds, wind, showers and small hail today. One of those days.
It will be a mix of rain/snow Friday AM and PM. Better chance for snow showers Saturday AM before warming back to drizzle and ending.
Sunday will make it all better before we reset and gear up for a busy setup next week.
Copyright 2022 WAVE. All rights reserved. | https://www.wave3.com/2022/04/07/snowtalk-weather-blog-update-47/ | 2022-04-08T20:14:47Z | wave3.com | control | https://www.wave3.com/2022/04/07/snowtalk-weather-blog-update-47/ | 1 | 1 | green-iguana-35 | null |
Former USC coach found guilty in college admissions scandal
A former University of Southern California water polo coach on Friday was found guilty of taking bribes to facilitate the acceptance of applicants as athletic recruits.
Why it matters: Jovan Vavic, who led the USC men's and women's water polo teams to 16 national championships, is the only coach implicated in the so-called Operation Varsity Blues investigation to stand trial instead of taking a guilty plea, according to the New York Times.
The big picture: The FBI's Operation Varsity Blues investigation revealed in 2019 that numerous wealthy parents had paid thousands of dollars in bribes to coaches at elite colleges to designate their children as athletic recruits and facilitate their acceptance, despite a lack of athletic experience.
Driving the news: A federal jury in Boston found Vavic guilty on all counts, the U.S. Attorney's Office for the District of Massachussetts said on Twitter.
- Prosecutors said Vavic received more than $200,000 in bribes from William Singer, a college admissions consultant, in exchange for accepting recruits, according to the New York Times.
- Singer pleaded guilty in 2019 to facilitating cheating on college entrance exams and bribing officials to help secure the admission of his client's children as phony athlets, per Reuters. | https://www.axios.com/former-usc-coach-guilty-varsity-blues-admissions-scandal-f86467e9-6dce-4c39-878a-48cc11bb7364.html | 2022-04-08T20:14:52Z | axios.com | control | https://www.axios.com/former-usc-coach-guilty-varsity-blues-admissions-scandal-f86467e9-6dce-4c39-878a-48cc11bb7364.html | 1 | 1 | green-iguana-35 | null |
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