text string | url string | crawl_date string | label int64 | id string |
|---|---|---|---|---|
5 school staffers charged after boy told to eat own vomit
BROWNSBURG, Ind. (AP) - Five staff members at a suburban Indianapolis school have been charged with neglect or failure to report neglect after a 7-year-old special education student was told to eat his own vomit.
The Hendricks County Prosecutor’s Office on Tuesday charged a teacher and instructional aide at Brown Elementary School in Brownsburg with neglect and they as well as a second teacher, a second aide and a behavioral technician have been charged with failure to report the incident.
The teacher charged with neglect told the student during lunch that if he vomited, he would need to eat whatever he threw up, Brownsburg police said. The child vomited on a tray provided by the second teacher, and the aide charged with neglect then gave the child a spoon, police said.
The boy ate some of the vomit, then used paper towels to clean up what remained, police said. The alleged incident occurred in February.
The Brownsburg Community School Corp. said it learned of the incident on April 12 and removed the five staffers from contact with students and placed them on administrative leave.
Superintendent Jim Snapp said in a statement, “We are deeply saddened by the actions of these staff members and will work in conjunction with our local law enforcement as they move forward with possible criminal charges.”
Copyright 2023 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. | https://www.azfamily.com/2023/04/27/5-school-staffers-charged-after-boy-told-eat-own-vomit/ | 2023-04-27 04:55:56 | 0 | https://www.azfamily.com/2023/04/27/5-school-staffers-charged-after-boy-told-eat-own-vomit/ |
LOS ANGELES (AP) — Hall of Fame broadcaster Vin Scully, whose dulcet tones provided the soundtrack of summer while entertaining and informing Dodgers fans in Brooklyn and Los Angeles for 67 years, died Tuesday night. He was 94.
Scully died at his home in the Hidden Hills neighborhood of Los Angeles, the team announced after being informed by family members. No cause of death was provided.
“He was the best there ever was,” pitcher Clayton Kershaw said after the Dodgers’ game in San Francisco. “Just such a special man. I’m grateful and thankful I got to know him as well as I did.”
As the longest tenured broadcaster with a single team in pro sports history, Scully saw it all and called it all. He began in the 1950s era of Pee Wee Reese and Jackie Robinson, on to the 1960s with Don Drysdale and Sandy Koufax, into the 1970s with Steve Garvey and Don Sutton, and through the 1980s with Orel Hershiser and Fernando Valenzuela. In the 1990s, it was Mike Piazza and Hideo Nomo, followed by Kershaw, Manny Ramirez and Yasiel Puig in the 21st century.
“You gave me my Wild Horse name. You gave me love. You hugged me like a father,” tweeted Puig, the talented Cuban-born outfielder who burned brightly upon his Dodgers debut in 2013. “I will never forget you, my heart is broken.”
The Dodgers changed players, managers, executives, owners — and even coasts — but Scully and his soothing, insightful style remained a constant for the fans.
He opened broadcasts with the familiar greeting, “Hi, everybody, and a very pleasant good evening to you wherever you may be.”
Ever gracious both in person and on the air, Scully considered himself merely a conduit between the game and the fans.
“His voice played a memorable role in some of the greatest moments in the history of our sport,” Major League Baseball Commissioner Rob Manfred said. “I am proud that Vin was synonymous with baseball because he embodied the very best of our national pastime.”
After the Dodgers’ 9-5 win, the Giants posted a Scully tribute on the videoboard.
“There’s not a better storyteller and I think everyone considers him family,” Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said. “He was in our living rooms for many generations. He lived a fantastic life, a legacy that will live on forever.”
Although he was paid by the Dodgers, Scully was unafraid to criticize a bad play or a manager’s decision, or praise an opponent while spinning stories against a backdrop of routine plays and noteworthy achievements. He always said he wanted to see things with his eyes, not his heart.
“We have lost an icon,” team president and CEO Stan Kasten said. “His voice will always be heard and etched in all of our minds forever.”
Vincent Edward Scully was born Nov. 29, 1927, in the Bronx. He was the son of a silk salesman who died of pneumonia when Scully was 7. His mother moved the family to Brooklyn, where the red-haired, blue-eyed Scully grew up playing stickball in the streets.
As a child, Scully would grab a pillow, put it under the family’s four-legged radio and lay his head directly under the speaker to hear whatever college football game was on the air. With a snack of saltine crackers and a glass of milk nearby, the boy was transfixed by the crowd’s roar that raised goosebumps. He thought he’d like to call the action himself.
Scully, who played outfield for two years on the Fordham University baseball team, began his career by working baseball, football and basketball games for the university’s radio station.
At age 22, he was hired by a CBS radio affiliate in Washington, D.C.
He soon joined Hall of Famer Red Barber and Connie Desmond in the Brooklyn Dodgers’ radio and television booths. In 1953, at age 25, Scully became the youngest person to broadcast a World Series game, a mark that still stands.
He moved west with the Dodgers in 1958. Scully called three perfect games — Don Larsen in the 1956 World Series, Sandy Koufax in 1965 and Dennis Martinez in 1991 — and 18 no-hitters.
He also was on the air when Don Drysdale set his scoreless innings streak of 58 2/3 innings in 1968 and again when Hershiser broke the record with 59 consecutive scoreless innings 20 years later.
When Hank Aaron hit his 715th home run to break Babe Ruth’s record in 1974, it was against the Dodgers and, of course, Scully called it.
“A Black man is getting a standing ovation in the Deep South for breaking a record of an all-time baseball idol,” Scully told listeners. “What a marvelous moment for baseball.”
Scully credited the birth of the transistor radio as “the greatest single break” of his career. Fans had trouble recognizing the lesser players during the Dodgers’ first four years in the vast Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum.
“They were 70 or so odd rows away from the action,” he said in 2016. “They brought the radio to find out about all the other players and to see what they were trying to see down on the field.”
That habit carried over when the team moved to Dodger Stadium in 1962. Fans held radios to their ears, and those not present listened from home or the car, allowing Scully to connect generations of families with his words.
He often said it was best to describe a big play quickly and then be quiet so fans could listen to the pandemonium. After Koufax’s perfect game in 1965, Scully went silent for 38 seconds before talking again. He was similarly silent for a time after Kirk Gibson’s pinch-hit home run to win Game 1 of the 1988 World Series.
He was inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1982, received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame that year and had the stadium’s press box named for him in 2001. The street leading to Dodger Stadium’s main gate was named in his honor in 2016.
That same year he received the Presidential Medal of Freedom from President Barack Obama.
“God has been so good to me to allow me to do what I’m doing,” Scully, a devout Catholic who attended Mass on Sundays before heading to the ballpark, said before retiring. “A childhood dream that came to pass and then giving me 67 years to enjoy every minute of it. That’s a pretty large thanksgiving day for me.”
In addition to being the voice of the Dodgers, Scully called play-by-play for NFL games and PGA Tour events as well as calling 25 World Series and 12 All-Star Games. He was NBC’s lead baseball announcer from 1983-89.
While being one of the most widely heard broadcasters in the nation, Scully was an intensely private man. Once the baseball season ended, he would disappear. He rarely did personal appearances or sports talk shows. He preferred spending time with his family.
In 1972, his first wife, Joan, died of an accidental overdose of medicine. He was left with three young children. Two years later, he met the woman who would become his second wife, Sandra, a secretary for the NFL’s Los Angeles Rams. She had two young children from a previous marriage, and they combined their families into what Scully once called “my own Brady Bunch.”
He said he realized time was the most precious thing in the world and that he wanted to use his time to spend with his loved ones. In the early 1960s, Scully quit smoking with the help of his family. In the shirt pocket where he kept a pack of cigarettes, Scully stuck a family photo. Whenever he felt like he needed a smoke, he pulled out the photo to remind him why he quit. Eight months later, Scully never smoked again.
After retiring in 2016, Scully made just a handful of appearances at Dodger Stadium and his sweet voice was heard narrating an occasional video played during games. Mostly, he was content to stay close to home.
“I just want to be remembered as a good man, an honest man, and one who lived up to his own beliefs,” he said in 2016.
In 2020, Scully auctioned off years of his personal memorabilia, which raised over $2 million. A portion of it was donated to UCLA for ALS research.
He was preceded in death by his second wife, Sandra. She died of complications of ALS at age 76 in 2021. The couple, who were married 47 years, had daughter Catherine together.
Scully’s other children are Kelly, Erin, Todd and Kevin. A son, Michael, died in a helicopter crash in 1994.
___
Former Associated Press staffer Stan Miller contributed biographical information to this report.
___
More AP MLB: https://apnews.com/hub/MLB and https://twitter.com/AP_Sport | https://www.fox16.com/sports/vin-scully-dodgers-broadcaster-for-67-years-dies-at-94/ | 2022-08-03 18:10:30 | 0 | https://www.fox16.com/sports/vin-scully-dodgers-broadcaster-for-67-years-dies-at-94/ |
WFO HOUSTON/GALVESTON Warnings, Watches and Advisories for Friday, December 30, 2022
_____
Advertisement
Article continues below this ad
SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING
The National Weather Service in League City has issued a
* Severe Thunderstorm Warning for...
Advertisement
Article continues below this ad
Eastern Chambers County in southeastern Texas...
Southeastern Liberty County in southeastern Texas...
* Until 215 AM CST.
* At 144 AM CST, a severe thunderstorm was located 9 miles east of
Advertisement
Article continues below this ad
Anahuac, or 16 miles southwest of Hamshire, moving northeast at 30
mph.
HAZARD...60 mph wind gusts.
SOURCE...Radar indicated.
Advertisement
Article continues below this ad
IMPACT...Expect damage to roofs, siding, and trees.
* Locations impacted include...
Winnie and Stowell.
PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS...
Advertisement
Article continues below this ad
For your protection move to an interior room on the lowest floor of a
building.
_____
Copyright 2022 AccuWeather | https://www.seattlepi.com/weather/article/TX-WFO-HOUSTON-GALVESTON-Warnings-Watches-and-17684896.php | 2022-12-30 08:00:18 | 0 | https://www.seattlepi.com/weather/article/TX-WFO-HOUSTON-GALVESTON-Warnings-Watches-and-17684896.php |
SINGAPORE (AP) — The start of the Singapore Grand Prix was delayed by more than one hour to clear water off the Formula One track following heavy rainfall on Sunday.
The 8 p.m. (1200 GMT) start time was pushed back with the formation lap set to start at 9:05 p.m. (1305 GMT) local time. F1 said a full start procedure was expected, rather than starting behind a safety car.
Ferrari driver Charles Leclerc was starting from pole position with runaway championship leader Max Verstappen going from eighth place after a team blunder in qualifying cost him pole. He needed to win the race and finish 22 points ahead of Leclerc to be crowned world champion for a second straight season.
Spanish veteran Fernando Alonso was competing in his record 350th GP — one more than Kimi Raikkonen. The 41-year-old Alonso has won two F1 titles and made his debut in 2001.
___
More AP auto racing: https://apnews.com/hub/auto-racing and https://twitter.com/AP_Sports | https://www.ksn.com/sports/ap-sports/ap-f1-heavy-rain-delays-start-of-singapore-grand-prix/ | 2022-10-02 13:45:15 | 0 | https://www.ksn.com/sports/ap-sports/ap-f1-heavy-rain-delays-start-of-singapore-grand-prix/ |
- New offering provides rapid solar tracking design through installation for sites under 20 megawatts
- FTC will utilize its proprietary Voyager+ tracker, a next-generation 2P single-axis tracker, which provides ease of installation, high energy yields vs. fixed-tilt systems, and reliability even when faced with harsh weather conditions.
- AUI Partners to manage lead generation, plant design, and construction, ensuring fast quoting, delivery, and rapid installation times
AUSTIN, Texas, Aug. 8, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- As reports indicate the global distributed generation (DG) market could reach $386 billion by 2026, and with North America being the fastest-growing region, solar tracking provider FTC Solar (Nasdaq: FTCI) is collaborating with solar contracting company AUI Partners on a new offering for the DG market. With faster delivery and installation times than current solutions on the market for smaller projects, FTC Solar's DG Solutions Business Unit with AUI Partners will provide solar tracking services for sites under 20MWs. This new collaboration will help FTC Solar's customers achieve maximum energy optimization by utilizing FTC Solar's proven Voyager+ 2P solar tracker and AUI's extensive experience in site design and construction. The partnership will leverage an innovative sourcing strategy and inventory capabilities with the goal of providing delivery lead times of as short as 8 weeks – based on project specifications.
"Despite the growth in DG as a result of federal and state-wide pushes for increased solar projects, there is still a shortage of comprehensive solutions that give customers what they need in a timely manner," said Mario Carbone, Partner at AUI Partners. "By combining FTC's resilient and versatile Voyager tracker and optimization software with our lead generation, design, delivery, and installation services, we are able to offer customers an innovative design-through-installation service that ultimately benefits developers by reducing the number of project partners they need to commission."
FTC Solar and AUI Partners are targeting multiple segments for this offering, including commercial and industrial (C&I), community solar programs, projects for independent power producers (IPP), and smaller one-off projects for sectors such as agriculture. FTC Solar and AUI Partners will utilize proprietary automation technology to provide a fast turnaround time on project quotes. The partnership is available throughout the United States.
"By ensuring materials are readily available for these projects, DG Solutions will deliver faster than many other providers in the market, which can require more than six months," said Sean Hunkler, CEO of FTC Solar. "We see tremendous growth potential for this market over the next few years. However, for it to grow successfully, resilient turnkey solutions are imperative, and working with the team at AUI Partners will help us complete these projects quickly, which is a win for both the customer and the planet."
FTC Solar unveiled its Voyager+ product in September of 2021 to optimize for large format modules, withstand wind speeds up to 120mph, and provide tracking solutions for complex sites. To optimize the Voyager+ tracker, FTC offers a variety of software solutions, including its SunPath platform, which will also be available for Distributed Generation projects.
Meet the team during this year's RE+ on September 19th to 22nd at booth #504. Come see how FTC Solar and AUI Partners can reduce your lead time and increase your energy yields.
For more information, please visit https://ftcsolar.com/dg-solution/
FTC Solar is a fast-growing, global provider of solar tracker systems, technology, software, and engineering services. FTC Solar's innovative tracker designs provide compelling performance and reliability, with an industry-leading installation cost-per-watt advantage. Founded in 2017 by a group of renewable energy industry veterans, FTC Solar is headquartered in Austin, Texas, and maintains a sales and support presence in the Middle East, Asia, Europe, Australia, India, and Africa. For more information, please visit https://www.ftcsolar.com/.
AUI was formed in 1983 and is a full-service commercial and renewable energy contractor based in Fort Worth, Texas. AUI Partners offers the Solar Power and BESS Industries a team of construction professionals who are capable of providing turn-key services for all design and construction needs. AUI is capable to plan and fast-track schedules, without compromising quality and safety. AUI has also been recognized four years in a row by Solar Power World as a Top Solar EPC Contractor. For more information, please visit https://www.auipartners.com/.
This press release contains forward-looking statements. These statements are not historical facts but rather are based on our current expectations and projections regarding our business, operations, and other factors relating thereto. Words such as "may," "will," "could," "would," "should," "anticipate," "predict," "potential," "continue," "expects," "intends," "plans," "projects," "believes," "estimates" and similar expressions are used to identify these forward-looking statements. These statements are only predictions and as such are not guarantees of future performance and involve risks, uncertainties, and assumptions that are difficult to predict. Actual results may differ materially from those in the forward-looking statements as a result of a number of factors, including those described in more detail in our filings with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, including the section entitled "Risk Factors" contained therein.
FTC Solar undertakes no duty or obligation to update any forward-looking statements contained in this release as a result of new information, future events, or changes in its expectations, except as required by law.
Media Contact:
Sarah Malpeli
Technica Communications
+1 (408) 806-9626 Ext. 6840
ftcsolar@technicacommunications.com
View original content to download multimedia:
SOURCE FTC Solar | https://www.wcjb.com/prnewswire/2022/08/08/ftc-solar-aui-partners-shorten-build-times-increase-energy-yields-with-new-distributed-generation-solar-tracking-solutions/ | 2022-08-08 12:52:24 | 0 | https://www.wcjb.com/prnewswire/2022/08/08/ftc-solar-aui-partners-shorten-build-times-increase-energy-yields-with-new-distributed-generation-solar-tracking-solutions/ |
Which ‘Alien vs. Predator’ toy is best?
Since the release of the “Alien vs. Predator” crossover movie, action figures have been manufactured featuring the two terrifying aliens. The action figures have become increasingly popular among fans and collectors.
If you want to start a collection or just own a great piece of memorabilia, a top choice that’s great to start with is the NECA – Aliens vs. Predator 7″ Arachnoid.
What to know before you buy an ‘Alien vs. Predator’ toy
In 1979, the movie “Alien” featured a terrifying creature called a xenomorph. Arnold Schwarzenegger starred in the sci-fi horror movie “Predator” in 1987, which featured a soldier-hunting alien as the titular character. The “Alien vs. Predator” movie features both of these creatures.
There are many toys from both the “Alien” and “Predator” franchises. The “Alien” franchise contained many movie sequels and prequels, while the “Predator” franchise featured four movies. In between, there were crossover movies, video games and comic books.
Scare factor
“Aliens vs. Predator,” or AVP, may be a sci-fi movie, but it is unsuitable for young children. The creatures from these movies are simply terrifying and could cause nightmares in sensitive children. The toys are usually quite detailed and authentic in appearance, and some may be unsuitable for youngsters. There are action figures from other franchises that may be better options for younger movie fans.
Play or display?
AVP movies are aimed at teenagers and adults, so it’s safe to assume that the toys are also aimed at these age groups. Some are geared more for display rather than imagination-fueled play. However, that doesn’t mean play is out of the question.
Toy or collectible
AVP toys make great collectibles. Some are part of a series and can be used for display. They can even accrue value and be sold at a later time. A collectible toy that you want to profit from needs to be cared for appropriately. They can be played with, but keep in mind that used toys do not hold their value like new ones.
What to look for in a quality ‘Alien vs. Predator’ toy
Articulation
Action figures are the most popular toy in the AVP franchise. Good action figures should have articulation points regardless of whether you want to use them for play or display. Points of articulation in an action figure allow you to create realistic action poses. The more points of articulation there are, the better and more varied the poses. A display AVP figure can be posed differently every day, and play figures with good articulation can act out terrific battles.
Detail
Using incredible painting and molding techniques, AVP toys tend to have excellent detail—at least, they should have. Consider the price of the toy against the detail in the creature’s face, attire and any accessories it has before purchasing. Even a moderately priced figure should have a good amount of detail.
Packaging
Expect your AVP toy to come in suitable and undamaged packaging. This is essential if you are a collector and want to maximize the toy’s value. The packaging should feature artwork of the creatures and protect the toy from the elements.
How much you can expect to spend on ‘Alien vs. Predator’ toys
A high-end AVP collectible action figure can go as high as $600-$700, while the least expensive is around $20. Because AVP toys are often considered collectibles, expect to pay approximately $20-$70 for a good quality toy.
‘Alien vs. Predator’ toy FAQ
How can I maximize my action figure’s value?
A. For the highest valuation, the toy must be in an undamaged box with all the featured parts. Removing the toy from the packaging will immediately reduce the potential future value.
If the toy is removed from the packaging, enhance its potential value by taking proper care of it. Store the original packaging. Clean the toy regularly using a duster or cloth and warm water. Don’t store the toy in cold or heat. Keep it stored at room temperature.
Are action figures suitable for young children?
A. Generally, action figures are great toys for young children. However, AVP toys are geared towards adults and older kids. These particular figures may be a little on the frightening-side for younger ones.
What’s the best ‘Alien vs. Predator’ toy to buy?
Top ‘Alien vs. Predator’ toy
NECA – Alien vs. Predator 7″ Arachnoid
What you need to know: This xenomorph is based on the 1994 AVP arcade game and is aimed at collectors and older children.
What you’ll love: The creature stands about 9 inches tall, and more than 30 points of articulation make it an ideal figure for display posing into precise battle positions.
What you should consider: This toy is not meant for rough play and may not be suitable for younger children.
Where to buy: Sold by Amazon.
Top ‘Alien vs. Predator’ toy for the money
Hiya Toys Alien vs. Predator: Invisible Celtic Predator
What you need to know: Based on the movie character, this figure utilizes clear molding to simulate stealth mode.
What you’ll love: The predator stands 4 inches tall and features wrist blades, a combistick and a shuriken. It has a pegged stand for posing.
What you should consider: This item is available for pre-order, and will be released January 26, 2022.
Where to buy: Sold by Amazon
Worth checking out
Rubie’s Alien Vs. Predator Deluxe Child’s Latex Hands & Mask
What you need to know: This bundle contains both the officially licensed hands and mask, which can also be purchased separately.
What you’ll love: The latex gloves measure 14 inches from end to end and are designed to fit most children. Both the Predator mask and gloves are highly detailed. The gloves feature black fingernails and pewter-look cuffs.
What you should consider: The items in this bundle can be purchased separately, as well.
Where to buy: Sold by Amazon
Want to shop the best products at the best prices? Check out Daily Deals from BestReviews.
Sign up here to receive the BestReviews weekly newsletter for useful advice on new products and noteworthy deals.
Barry Peacock writes for BestReviews. BestReviews has helped millions of consumers simplify their purchasing decisions, saving them time and money.
Copyright 2022 BestReviews, a Nexstar company. All rights reserved. | https://www.cbs42.com/reviews/br/toys-games-br/theme-toys-br/best-alien-vs-predator-toys/ | 2022-11-16 16:40:28 | 1 | https://www.cbs42.com/reviews/br/toys-games-br/theme-toys-br/best-alien-vs-predator-toys/ |
WFO LUBBOCK Warnings, Watches and Advisories for Tuesday, May 10, 2022
_____
SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING
Severe Weather Statement
National Weather Service Lubbock TX
716 PM CDT Tue May 10 2022
...A SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING REMAINS IN EFFECT UNTIL 745 PM CDT
FOR FLOYD...NORTHEASTERN HALE...SWISHER AND BRISCOE COUNTIES...
At 715 PM CDT, severe thunderstorms were located along a line
extending from 7 miles west of Wayside to near Claytonville to 7
miles northwest of Petersburg, moving east at 45 mph.
THESE ARE DESTRUCTIVE STORMS FOR THE INTERSTATE 27 CORRIDOR BETWEEN
TULIA AND HALE CENTER EASTWARD INTO BRISCOE AND FLOYD COUNTIES.
HAZARD...80 mph wind gusts and nickel size hail.
SOURCE...West Texas Mesonet. At 707 PM CDT, the West Texas Mesonet
at Tulia measured a wind gust of 79 mph.
IMPACT...Flying debris will be dangerous to those caught without
shelter. Mobile homes will be heavily damaged. Expect
considerable damage to roofs, windows, and vehicles.
Extensive tree damage and power outages are likely.
Locations impacted include...
Plainview, Tulia, Floydada, Hale Center, Silverton, Caprock Canyon
State Park, Lockney, Kress, Happy, Quitaque, Vigo Park, South Plains,
Claytonville, Dougherty, Mackenzie Reservoir, Aiken and Seth Ward.
PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS...
For your protection move to an interior room on the lowest floor of a
building.
To report severe weather contact your nearest law enforcement agency.
They will send your report to the National Weather Service office in
Lubbock Texas.
Wind damage with these storms will occur before any rain or
lightning. Do not wait for the sound of thunder before taking cover.
SEEK SHELTER IMMEDIATELY inside a sturdy structure and stay away from
windows.
_____
Copyright 2022 AccuWeather | https://www.sfgate.com/weather/article/TX-WFO-LUBBOCK-Warnings-Watches-and-Advisories-17163805.php | 2022-05-11 00:40:37 | 1 | https://www.sfgate.com/weather/article/TX-WFO-LUBBOCK-Warnings-Watches-and-Advisories-17163805.php |
This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate
EDMONTON, Alberta (AP) — Connor Bedard had a goal and an assist and Canada opened play in the postponed world junior hockey championship with a 5-2 victory over Latvia on Wednesday night.
The tournament was rescheduled after being called off Dec. 29 after four days as rising COVID-19 cases forced games to be forfeited.
Ridly Greig and William Dufour also each had a goal and an assist for Canada in the Group A game. Lukas Cormier and Olen Zellweger also scored, captain Mason McTavish had two assists and Sebastian Cossa made 24 saves.
Rainers Darzins and Bogdans Hodass scored for Latvia, a 6-1 loser to Finland in its opener Tuesday. Patriks Berzins stopped 39 shots.
The Canadians will continue round-robin play Thursday against Slovakia.
Earlier in Group B, Daniel Torgersson scored twice in Sweden's 3-2 victory over Switzerland.
Isak Rosen also scored for Sweden, and Jesper Wallstedt made 21 saves. Attilio Biasca and Dario Allenspach scored for Switzerland.
In the late game, Germany faced Austria in Group B.
The United States, a 5-1 winner over Germany on Tuesday, will face Switzerland on Thursday night. | https://www.mrt.com/sports/article/Canada-opens-world-junior-hockey-with-5-2-win-17365811.php | 2022-08-11 02:08:17 | 0 | https://www.mrt.com/sports/article/Canada-opens-world-junior-hockey-with-5-2-win-17365811.php |
DALLAS, July 5, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Highland Global Allocation Fund (NYSE: HGLB) ("the "Fund") today announced the declaration of monthly distributions of $0.084 per share, payable on the dates noted below. Under the Fund's level distribution policy, the annual distribution rate has been reset to an amount equal to 8.5% of the average of the Fund's net asset value ("NAV") per share, as reported for the final five trading days of the 2022 calendar year. The Fund is declaring distributions of $0.084 per month for July through September 2023.
The following dates apply to the distributions declared:
About the Level Distribution Policy
In March 2019, the Fund's Board of Trustees (the "Board") approved a level distribution policy (the "Level Distribution Policy") under which the Fund makes monthly distributions to stockholders at a constant and fixed (but not guaranteed) rate that will reset annually to a rate calculated based on the average of the Fund's NAV per share (the "Distribution Amount"), as reported for the final five trading days of the month preceding the announcement of distributions. The Distribution Amount applicable to Q1 2023 was reset based upon the results of the distribution rate calculation. The Distribution Amount applicable for future periods may be reset based upon the results of the distribution rate calculation.
There can be no guarantee that the Level Distribution Policy will be successful in its goals. The Fund's ability to maintain a stable level of distributions to shareholders will depend on a number of factors, including changes in the financial market, market interest rates, and performance of overall equity and fixed-income markets. As portfolio and market conditions change, the ability of the Fund to continue to make distributions in accordance with the Level Distribution Policy may be affected.
Shareholders have the option of reinvesting distributions in additional common shares through the Fund's Dividend Reinvestment Plan, or electing to receive cash by contacting AST, their financial adviser or their brokerage firm. Shareholders who wish to receive their distribution in cash must opt out of the Fund's Dividend Reinvestment Plan. For further information, shareholders should carefully read the description of the Dividend Reinvestment Plan in the prospectus.
The Board may amend the Level Distribution Policy, the Distribution Amount or distribution intervals, or the Fund may cease distributions entirely, at any time, without prior notice to shareholders. The announcement of, amendment to, or later termination of this Level Distribution Policy may have an adverse effect on the market price of the Fund's shares of common stock.
The Fund may at times, in its discretion, pay out less than the entire amount of net investment income earned in any particular period and may at times pay out such accumulated undistributed income in addition to net investment income earned in other periods in order to permit the Fund to maintain a stable level of distributions. As a result, the dividend paid by the Fund to shareholders for any particular period may be more or less than the amount of net investment income earned by the Fund during such period. The Fund intends to distribute all realized net long-term capital gains, if any, no more than once every twelve months.
To the extent that sufficient investment income is not available on a monthly basis, the Fund's distributions may consist of return of capital in order to maintain the distribution amount. A return of capital occurs when some or all of the money that shareholders invested in the Fund is paid back to them. A return of capital does not necessarily reflect the Fund's investment performance and should not be confused with 'yield' or 'income.' Any such returns of capital will decrease the Fund's total assets and, therefore, could have the effect of increasing the Fund's expense ratio. In addition, the Level Distribution Policy may require the Fund to sell its portfolio securities at a less than opportune time to meet the distribution amount.
Shareholders should not make any conclusions about the Fund's investment performance from the amount of the Fund's distributions or the Fund's Level Distribution Policy. With each distribution that does not consist solely of net investment income, the Fund will issue a notice to shareholders that will provide detailed information regarding the amount and composition of the distribution and other related information. The amounts and sources of distributions reported in the notice to shareholders are only estimates and are not being provided for tax reporting purposes. The actual amounts and sources of the distributions for tax reporting purposes will depend upon the Fund's investment experience during its full fiscal year and may be subject to changes based on tax regulations. The Fund will send individual shareholders a Form 1099-DIV for each calendar year that will tell them how to report these distributions for federal income tax purposes. Please consult your tax advisor about any tax implications applicable to you in light of your particular circumstances.
About the Highland Global Allocation Fund
The Highland Global Allocation Fund ("HGLB") (NYSE: HGLB) is a closed-end fund managed by NexPoint Asset Management, L.P. For more information visit www.nexpointassetmgmt.com/global-allocation-fund.
About NexPoint Asset Management, L.P.
NexPoint Asset Management, L.P. is an SEC-registered investment adviser. It is the adviser to a suite of registered funds, including open-end mutual funds, closed-end funds, and an exchange-traded fund. For more information visit nexpointassetmgmt.com.
The distribution may include a return of capital. Please refer to the 19(a)-1 Source of Distribution Notice on the Highland Funds website for Section 19 notices that provide estimated amounts and sources of the fund's distributions, which should not be relied upon for tax reporting purposes.
No assurance can be given that the Fund will achieve its investment objectives.
Shares of closed-end investment companies frequently trade at a discount to net asset value. The price of the Fund's shares is determined by a number of factors, several of which are beyond the control of the Fund. Therefore, the Fund cannot predict whether its shares will trade at, below or above net asset value. Past performance does not guarantee future results.
Investors should consider the investment objectives, risks, charges and expenses of the Highland Global Allocation Fund carefully before investing. This and other information can be found in the Fund's prospectus, which may be obtained by calling 1-866-745-0264 or visiting www.highlandfunds.com. Please read the prospectus carefully before you invest.
CONTACTS
Investor Relations
Media Relations
Prosek Partners for NexPoint
View original content:
SOURCE Highland Global Allocation Fund | https://www.ktre.com/prnewswire/2023/07/05/highland-global-allocation-fund-declares-monthly-distributions-0084-per-share/ | 2023-07-06 00:32:19 | 1 | https://www.ktre.com/prnewswire/2023/07/05/highland-global-allocation-fund-declares-monthly-distributions-0084-per-share/ |
WASHINGTON (AP) — The United States on Wednesday imposed sanctions against three more Iranian security officials in response to the Tehran government’s continued crackdown on protests after 22-year-old Mahsa Amini died while being held by the morality police for violating the country’s strictly enforced Islamic dress code.
Hassan Asgari, Alireza Moradi and Mohammad Taghi Osanloo were the latest Iranian officials cited by the Treasury Department. The three allegedly assisted in spreading military control over largely Kurdish areas, including Sanandaj and Mahabad, which have “faced a particularly severe security response” since the protests began in September, according to the department.
Activists said Iranian security forces on Monday used heavy gunfire against demonstrators in a western Kurdish town, killing at least five during an anti-government protest at the funeral of two people killed the day before.
The Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control said the Iranian government has increased its aggressive actions against its citizens “as part of its ongoing suppression of peaceful protests against a regime that denies human rights and fundamental freedoms to its people, especially women and girls.”
The demonstrations started after Iran’s morality police arrested Amini on Sept. 13 in Tehran, which she was visiting from her hometown in the country’s western Kurdish region. Police detained her over wearing her hijab too loosely. Iran requires women to wear the headscarf in a way that completely covers their hair when in public.
She collapsed at a police station and died three days later.
Amini remains a potent symbol in protests that have posed one of the most serious challenges to the Islamic Republic since the 2009 Green Movement protests drew millions to the streets.
At least 426 people have been killed and more than 17,400 people have been arrested, according to Human Rights Activists in Iran, a group that is monitoring the unrest.
“The Iranian regime is reportedly targeting and gunning down its own children, who have taken to the street to demand a better future,” said Brian Nelson, undersecretary for terrorism and financial intelligence. “The abuses being committed in Iran against protestors, including most recently in Mahabad, must stop.”
Sanctions against Iran have accelerated in recent months as the Biden administration tries to bring Tehran back to negotiations for a return to the 2015 nuclear deal. Iranian state media reported Tuesday that the country has begun producing enriched uranium at 60% purity at the country’s underground Fordo nuclear plant, which is seen as a significant addition to the country’s nuclear program.
Earlier this month, Iran’s foreign minister, Hossein Amirabdollahian, acknowledged that Iran has supplied Russia with drones, insisting the transfer came before Moscow’s war against Ukraine, during which drones have attacked infrastructure and civilian targets in Ukraine.
The U.S. already has imposed sanctions on members of Iran’s intelligence agency, leaders of Iran’s Revolutionary Guard, prison wardens and others. The Treasury Department has also increased access to American companies that want to provide internet in the country.
___
Follow AP’s coverage of Iran at https://apnews.com/hub/iran | https://www.yourbasin.com/political/ap-us-sanctions-more-iranian-officials-as-crackdowns-continue/ | 2022-11-23 20:33:23 | 1 | https://www.yourbasin.com/political/ap-us-sanctions-more-iranian-officials-as-crackdowns-continue/ |
DALLAS (AP) — Dallas Mavericks star Luka Doncic has been ruled out of a game against New Orleans after exiting in the third quarter with a right heel injury.
Doncic stayed in the game after taking a hard fall Thursday night when he was winding up for a one-handed dunk on a drive and Brandon Ingram knocked the ball out of his hand as Doncic was bumped by Jonas Valanciunas.
Ingram was called for a foul, and New Orleans successfully challenged. Doncic returned after the break for the review, but went straight to the locker room after one trip down the court. He screamed in frustration without even looking toward the Dallas bench.
Doncic had 31 points in 23 minutes when he left the game. He had a 20-point first quarter for the second consecutive game for the first time in his career, getting 21 after scoring 24 of his 53 in a 111-105 victory over Detroit.
___
AP NBA: https://apnews.com/hub/NBA and https://twitter.com/AP_Sports | https://www.wearegreenbay.com/sports/ap-sports/ap-mavs-star-doncic-injures-heel-on-fall-out-against-pelicans/ | 2023-02-03 21:55:27 | 1 | https://www.wearegreenbay.com/sports/ap-sports/ap-mavs-star-doncic-injures-heel-on-fall-out-against-pelicans/ |
NP Profession Previously Named #1 Job in Health Care and #2 Job in Any Field
AUSTIN, Texas, March 13, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- The American Association of Nurse Practitioners® (AANP) is celebrating the news that U.S News & World Report ranked the nurse practitioner (NP) role first on its "2023 Best Jobs That Help People" list. The annual rankings noted that these jobs "enhance people's well-being and help them accomplish their personal goals, big or small." The publication had previously ranked the NP profession first on its "2023 Best Health Care Jobs" list, second on its "100 Best Jobs of 2023" list and second on its "2023 Best STEM Jobs" list.
"Nurse practitioners are grateful to be recognized by U.S. News World & Report for their invaluable contributions to our society. This is why we become NPs, to help people," said April N. Kapu, DNP, APRN, ACNP-BC, FAANP, FCCM, FAAN, president of AANP. "This top ranking for the tireless work of NPs in helping others lead better lives is yet another well-deserved testament to the outstanding care delivered by more than 355,000 licensed NPs to patients in more than 1 billion visits each year."
NPs are the providers of choice for millions of Americans seeking high-quality health care. As clinicians who blend clinical expertise in diagnosing and treating health conditions with an added emphasis on disease prevention and health management, NPs bring a comprehensive perspective and personal touch to health care.
All NPs must complete a master's or doctoral degree program and have advanced clinical training beyond their initial professional registered nurse preparation. NPs provide high-quality care in rural, urban and suburban communities and in many types of settings, including clinics, hospitals, emergency rooms, urgent care sites, nursing homes, schools and public health departments.
"The nurse practitioner role is more than a job — it's a calling," said Jon Fanning, MS, CAE, CNED, chief executive officer of AANP. "With nearly 100 million people living in primary care health professional shortage areas, NPs are leading the way to expand access to care across the nation. They are inspiring a new generation of providers heeding that special call to serve and build healthier lives."
The American Association of Nurse Practitioners® (AANP) is the largest professional membership organization for nurse practitioners (NPs) of all specialties. It represents the interests of the more than 355,000 licensed NPs in the U.S. AANP provides legislative leadership at the local, state and national levels, advancing health policy; promoting excellence in practice, education and research; and establishing standards that best serve NPs' patients and other health care consumers. As The Voice of the Nurse Practitioner®, AANP represents the interests of NPs as providers of high-quality, cost-effective, comprehensive, patient-centered health care. To locate an NP in your community, visit npfinder.com. For more information about NPs, visit aanp.org.
View original content to download multimedia:
SOURCE American Association of Nurse Practitioners | https://www.wbay.com/prnewswire/2023/03/13/nurse-practitioner-role-named-best-job-that-helps-people/ | 2023-03-13 12:31:39 | 0 | https://www.wbay.com/prnewswire/2023/03/13/nurse-practitioner-role-named-best-job-that-helps-people/ |
No American downtown has lost more car traffic since the pandemic than San Francisco, a new report from the transportation analytics firm Inrix found.
Vehicular trips to downtown San Francisco are down 41% from 2019, the report indicated. The sluggish recovery has prompted some city officials and community leaders to reimagine how downtown spaces are used, a long-term move that Inrix transportation analyst Bob Pishue said is necessary to bring people back to the area.
“Revitalizing downtown, that’s not something you do in a year or two years. That is a strategy for a decade-plus, so it remains to be seen,” said Pishue. Some experts initially believed that downtowns would recover by last year, but Pishue added that “if you were to ask me over the next two, three years, I bet it stays pretty close to the same.”
Researchers aggregated data from more than 300 million vehicles and devices across 20 different metropolitan areas to evaluate return to office patterns. Eighteen of 20 downtowns named in the report sit well below their number of pre-pandemic vehicle trips, with only Phoenix and San Diego having more traffic than in 2019.
Transit ridership in San Francisco is still 45% below pre-COVID levels, which researchers calculated to be the fourth-worst drop out of the cities named in the report. However, ridership in May was 2% higher than the end of last year.
San Francisco had the third-highest shift to working from home between 2019 and 2021, with 37% of workers making the jump. A 2022 report from the Bureau of Labor Statistics revealed that workers in computer, mathematical and legal occupations had the largest ability to shift to telecommuting at more than four times the rate of a typical U.S. worker.
Inrix found that workers in the information, finance and professional services (IFPS) make up 42% of The City’s workforce. Of those people, nearly two-thirds (64%) opt to work from home, the highest of all 20 downtown metropolitan areas researchers examined.
Ex // Top Stories
Following last year's Men's World Cup Village that drew over 12,000 spectators, matches will be live-streamed at three locations
An unclear resolution to rehire laid off faculty causes confusion and growing waitlists
Footage of the stunning crash has been viewed more than 750,000 times on Twitter
“I think the world we live in now is less focused on office buildings. It’s just to what degree do we sort of divorce from that,” said Pishue.
Even with the rise of telecommuting, downtowns remain pivotal to cities’ economic output, and that of the region and state.
City officials have stated that San Francisco accounted for more than a quarter of the Bay Area’s $250 billion gross domestic product. Prior to the pandemic, downtown supplied more than two-thirds of San Francisco’s jobs.
In 2021, downtown businesses generated half of San Francisco’s sales tax revenue and 95% of The City’s business tax revenue, which funds services such as public safety, transportation and cleaning.
Pishue said continuing to reach those benchmarks will require major cities to reevaluate their central business districts. While office buildings are still important to San Francisco’s future, he said there should also be cognizant efforts to make downtown a recreation hub that invites people from all over The City and Bay Area to spend their time and money.
“If you can go downtown, go to work for a few hours, go hit some arts and entertainment, go back to work then have a little nightlife there, I think that’ll actually have a pretty significant effect,” said Pishue. | https://www.sfexaminer.com/news/business/downtown-sf-traffic-drop-post-covid-worst-of-20-major-cities/article_71eee976-2be7-11ee-bb48-bb92fa4b06f3.html | 2023-07-27 02:38:26 | 1 | https://www.sfexaminer.com/news/business/downtown-sf-traffic-drop-post-covid-worst-of-20-major-cities/article_71eee976-2be7-11ee-bb48-bb92fa4b06f3.html |
New Manatee County Schools superintendent signs contract
Published: Jun. 8, 2023 at 2:20 PM EDT|Updated: 39 minutes ago
BRADENTON, Fla. (WWSB) - The new Manatee County Schools superintendent, Dr. Jason Wysong, officially signed his contract last week.
It’s a three-year contract, paying Dr. Wysong $235,000 a year.
He will receive 25 vacation days per year and one paid sick leave per month. He will also receive an extra $650 per month intended for automobile and in-county travel.
Manatee County Schools retiring superintendent, Cynthia Saunders, was making $196,000 a year. Dr. Wysong is being paid $39,000 more.
He will officially begin the job July 1.
Copyright 2023 WWSB. All rights reserved. | https://www.mysuncoast.com/2023/06/08/new-manatee-county-schools-superintendent-signs-contract/ | 2023-06-08 19:05:47 | 1 | https://www.mysuncoast.com/2023/06/08/new-manatee-county-schools-superintendent-signs-contract/ |
Humorist Samantha Irby is not afraid to tell you about her mental health struggles, the "glamorous hoarding" in her house or her bowel movements. She's made a career out of writing about these things, and spinning them into comedy.
So is there such a thing as oversharing? Irby says whatever she writes about, she has to be prepared for it to follow her for a long time.
"When you put a book out into the world, you have to be prepared for people to talk to you about it until you die," she says. "If I can't have a conversation with a stranger about the thing that I wrote, I won't put it in a book."
The title of Irby's new memoir in essays, Quietly Hostile, was inspired by her own public persona, which she describes as a "a constant low-grade frustration with everything" wrapped in "an outer shield of Midwestern politeness and charm."
She says the deaths of her own parents when she was 18 opened her up to living life on her own terms — and writing about it: "Excuse the callousness of this, but it's real: Dead parents, you can do whatever you want. Truly."
In the book, Irby chronicles a variety of funny situations, including her rise as a TV writer on the Hulu series Shrill and the trials of getting turned away at swanky LA restaurants for not dressing hip enough. She also writes about almost getting a popular cable network to adapt her first book into a TV show — the operative word being almost.
Irby refers to her memoir as a survival guide, of sorts: "I have some tools and tricks that if people want to adopt, it'll get them from point A to point B, because that's essentially what I'm doing," she says. "I don't have any long-term goals. I don't make any plans. I just am trying to find a way to get to whatever is happening after this."
Interview highlights
On why she has no interest in doing stand-up
I wouldn't consider it because ... it's the only medium where the audience is encouraged to be rude to the person on stage, and I can't get heckled. Like, I will pass away on stage if I get heckled. Oh, my God. Just thinking about it, I'm going to break out in a cold sweat.
On her recent OCD diagnosis
The pandemic really broke my brain. I didn't leave the house at all, like, for two years, and I sort of regressed into this feral creature who all of a sudden was terrified of everything outside. In the grocery store, I'd feel like people were chasing me, or in the car I always thought people are trying to run me off the road. ... So I found a psychiatrist who's really great. And we talked, and I described the way I think and ... some of my habits, and she was like, "Yeah, that's OCD." ... I thought it was just, like, hand-washing and checking the light switch a million times. But no, it's a lot of stuff that I do, like glamorous hoarding and ruminating on the same thought for two years.
On how the isolation of pandemic lockdown made her paranoid
It was so bad. As an inside person, I thought I was made for quarantine, right? Like, I hate going places. I had a book come out at the beginning of the pandemic, and I didn't have to go anywhere to sell it to anyone. I could just sit in my chair and do a virtual thing and talk to people on the computer and that felt really great. But, like, a year into that, I could feel myself kind of shriveling up.
Just not talking to people or seeing people or interacting with people made everyone seem like a danger to me. Once we were free, or once I freed myself — I think I stayed holed up a little longer than most people — then I just was like, Oh, everyone looks like they want to attack me. Meanwhile, no one cares about me ever. No one's watching me. No one's noticing what I'm doing. But it was like every person on the street posed a threat in my mind. It was scary enough for me to call a psychiatrist [that] I have to pay out of pocket, so, pretty terrifying!
On writing the "fat babe" pool party episode of Shrill
We had a 10-episode season and we knew that we wanted Annie to have kind of the same epiphany that [show creator] Lindy [West] had. ... We needed to come up with a vehicle that would be like something that would open her eyes. And Lindy and I both had been to separate fat babe pool parties. I went to the Chunky Dunk and there are some others, and we've been to fat girl exercise classes and fat girl clothing swaps, that kind of thing.
And we just wanted a catalyst through which Annie would emerge feeling better about being fat. And we thought a pool party would be great, because then we could do a thing that I don't know that has ever been done – nobody research and tell me – but like actual fat people in bathing suits on TV. I was like, if we get away with this, it's going to feel like a coup.
So I wrote the episode, I turned it in, and then I remember walking in and seeing the pool and being like, "Oh my God. This is perfect." What a vision. And then, because I'm always waiting for the other shoe to drop, I was like, "Oh, but is this room full of extras going to be like 'Hollywood fat?'" I was worried that I would go in to say hello, and — there's nothing wrong with a size six, but that is not a fat person or a size eight, even — and I was just holding my breath, like, Oh, please.
This might be our one unicorn fat naked people episode. But it was a dream. I still am in disbelief that we got to do it with no pushback.
And then Lindy and I walked in to say hi to all the extras, and there were just all these big, glorious bodies being treated well. I don't want to divorce them from, like, being people, but it's the bodies you notice first. They were making custom swimsuits for people and hair and makeup was happening, and it was just like this beautiful dream. And I was like, I cannot believe that we get to do this. No one has let anyone do this since, so this might be our one unicorn fat naked people episode. But it was a dream. I still am in disbelief that we got to do it with no pushback.
On providing end-of-life care for her mother, who had multiple sclerosis
There was no like, help-mom-get-into-assisted-living-fund. It was just like, oh, we made all these decisions, then everything fell apart and now we're ill-equipped to deal with them. Good luck, Samantha! So that was hard. It's so hard to know in the moment what effect a thing is going to have on you. So now I can look back like, "Whoa, what a traumatic time!" But when it was happening, it was just like, "Well, this is my life. This is what I got to do."
On being bisexual and having a policy of not making fun of women
I have gotten some pushback from queers who are like, "You never write about the women you dated." I have a policy of not making fun of women, [only men] ... Not to turn this into Misandry Today, but come on! Of course they can take it. I also have never had a woman pull the kind of stuff men pull. I guess I could write about that lady I'd calmly watch TV with until it was like, "Man, this commute to your house takes too long. Let's stop seeing each other." ... Men are like bulls in China shops. At least the ones I have dated ... have given me fodder or hurt me in ways that I've spun into comedy.
On being open about Crohn's disease and bowel movements
The way we are about bathroom stuff as a society is bonkers, because it literally is a thing we all do. Why do we have to act like it's a shameful, secret thing that we're slipping off to do and lying and saying we've got to make a phone call? If I can free up even one person to just announce to a dinner party, "I will be gone. It will be longer than a minute. See you when I get back. Don't send out a search party," then my work on Earth is complete.
Sam Briger and Thea Chaloner produced and edited this interview for broadcast. Bridget Bentz, Molly Seavy-Nesper and Beth Novey adapted it for the web.
Copyright 2023 Fresh Air. To see more, visit Fresh Air. | https://www.wbaa.org/2023-05-16/quietly-hostile-is-samantha-irbys-survival-guide-of-sorts | 2023-05-16 17:38:31 | 1 | https://www.wbaa.org/2023-05-16/quietly-hostile-is-samantha-irbys-survival-guide-of-sorts |
Updated February 1, 2023 at 1:24 PM ET
The Justice Department searched President Biden's home in Rehoboth, Del. on Wednesday as part of its investigation into classified documents found among his personal files, Biden's lawyer said in a statement.
Bob Bauer called it a "planned search" and said that it had Biden's "full support and cooperation."
No documents with classified markings were found during the search, Bauer said later Wednesday, though "some materials and handwritten notes that appear to relate to his time as vice president" were taken by the DOJ for further review. The search went from 8:30 a.m. until noon.
The Rehoboth search is the latest in a series of developments that have unfolded over the past three months surrounding classified documents found in the president's belongings. The Justice Department assigned former Maryland Attorney General Robert Hur as special counsel to oversee the investigation into how they got there.
Biden's lawyers had searched the Rehoboth vacation home last month as part of a review and did not find any classified documents.
The DOJ search comes a few weeks after federal agents searched Biden's home in Wilmington, Del., for more than 12 hours, where they found classified documents. Last month his lawyers said they had discovered among personal and political papers "a small number" of additional Obama-Biden Administration records with classified markings. White House counsel Richard Sauber said the Justice Department was notified and that Biden and his legal team were cooperating with the National Archives and the Department of Justice.
In November some classified documents were found in November at the Penn Biden Center, a think tank office in Washington, D.C., that Biden used for about three years.
Copyright 2023 NPR. To see more, visit https://www.npr.org. | https://www.kcbx.org/npr-top-news/npr-top-news/2023-02-01/doj-searched-bidens-delaware-vacation-home-as-part-of-classified-document-probe | 2023-02-01 19:10:44 | 1 | https://www.kcbx.org/npr-top-news/npr-top-news/2023-02-01/doj-searched-bidens-delaware-vacation-home-as-part-of-classified-document-probe |
KYIV, Ukraine (AP) — Award-winning Ukrainian writer Victoria Amelina was among those killed by a deadly Russian missile attack on a popular restaurant frequented by journalists and aid workers in eastern Ukraine, PEN America said.
Amelina, 37, who had turned her attention from literature to document Russian war crimes after the invasion, died from her injuries after the June 27 strike in the city of Kramatorsk, the literature and human rights organization said Sunday in a statement.
Ukraine’s Culture Minister Oleksandr Tkachenko expressed condolences to Amelina’s family, adding that Russia bears the responsibility. “For every crime on our soil, for every interrupted life and unspoken word, the terrorist must bear the harshest punishment,” he said.
Friends, colleagues and admirers of Amelina mourned her, with many saying hers was a life full of potential that was tragically cut short. “So many books unwritten, stories untold, days unlived,” tweeted journalist Olga Tokariuk, a friend of Amelina’s.
“Victoria was documenting war crimes perpetrated by the Russians. She was killed in yet another such war crime. We bear witness to her death and that of thousands killed in Ukraine,” tweeted historian Olesya Khromeychuk.
At least 11 others were killed and 61 were wounded in the attack around dinnertime, when the restaurant was usually busy. Ukrainian authorities arrested a man a day later, accusing him of helping Russia direct the strike.
The attack and others across Ukraine that day suggested the Kremlin is not easing its bombardment of the country, despite political and military turmoil at home after a short-lived armed uprising in Russia on June 24.
PEN Ukraine announced Amelina’s death after her family was informed of it. Amelina was in Kramatorsk with a delegation of Colombian writers and journalists. She had been documenting Russian war crimes with the human rights organization Truth Hounds.
“Victoria Amelina was a celebrated Ukrainian author who turned her distinct and powerful voice to investigate and expose war crimes after the full scale military invasion of Ukraine in February 2022,” said Polina Sadovskaya, Eurasia director at PEN America. “She brought a literary sensibility to her work and her elegant prose described, with forensic precision, the devastating impact of these human rights violations on the lives of Ukrainians.”
Amelina was born Jan. 1, 1986, in Lviv. In 2014 she published her first novel, “The November Syndrome, or Homo Compatiens,” which was shortlisted for the Ukrainian Valeriy Shevchuk Prize.
She went on to write two award-winning children’s books, “Somebody, or Waterheart” and another novel, “Storie-e-es of Eka the Excavator.” In 2017, her novel, “Dom’s Dream Kingdom,” received national and international accolades — including the UNESCO City of Literature Prize and the European Union Prize for Literature.
A popular young writer, her fiction and essays have been translated into many languages, including English, Polish, Italian, German, Croatian, Dutch, Czech, and Hungarian.
In 2021, she founded the New York Literature Festival, which takes place in a small town called New York in the Donetsk region of Ukraine.
Since the start of the invasion, Amelina devoted herself to documenting Russian war crimes in eastern Ukraine, PEN America said. In Kapytolivka near Izium, she discovered the diary of Volodymyr Vakulenko, a Ukrainian writer killed by the Russians.
In a powerful essay, Amelina described the plight of Soviet era conformists caught in the crossfire of the 2014 Russian invasion by focusing on the sad tale of Hanna, an elderly woman evacuated from the Donbas to the relative security of western Ukraine. Until her death Hanna expresses her desire to go back home, even after it is explained to her that there is a Russian tank possibly parked in her garden.
“I did what I could: I’m a writer, and writing the truth is perhaps my best way of defending Hanna’s garden. I could not protect anyone from the Russian artillery, so I tried to take up arms against their lies,” Amelina wrote.
She also began writing her first work of English nonfiction shortly before her death. In “War and Justice Diary: Looking at Women Looking at War,” Amelina recounts stories of Ukrainian women collecting evidence of Russian war crimes. It is expected to be published soon, according to PEN Ukraine. | https://www.wane.com/news/national-world/ap-international/ap-prize-winning-ukrainian-writer-dies-of-injuries-suffered-from-russian-missile-attack-on-restaurant/ | 2023-07-03 22:28:28 | 0 | https://www.wane.com/news/national-world/ap-international/ap-prize-winning-ukrainian-writer-dies-of-injuries-suffered-from-russian-missile-attack-on-restaurant/ |
Reese scores 33, No. 22 Arizona tops USC 81-75 in 2OT
LOS ANGELES - Cate Reese scored a career-high 33 points, including four clinching free throws in the last 7.5 seconds of the second overtime, to give No. 22 Arizona an 81-75 win over USC on Sunday.
Shay Pellington and Jade Loville both had 17 points for the Wildcats (18-5, 8-4 Pac-12 Conference), who picked up a critical sweep in Los Angeles after beating No. 14 UCLA 71-66 in overtime on Friday.
Helena Pueyo had her only two points from the foul line with 15 seconds to go for a 77-73 Arizona lead, the first time it became a two possession game in the second overtime.
The Wildcats had a four-point lead midway through the first overtime, but the Trojans scored six straight before Maya Nnaji tied it at 68 with 5.2 seconds left.
Arizona had a five-point lead in regulation with just over two minutes to go but Rokia Doumbia hit a 3-pointer and a layup to tie it and Destiny Littleton made a pair of free throws after an offensive rebound to put USC up 58-56 with 43 seconds to go.
Loville quickly answered. The Trojans missed a shot with six seconds to go, but Arizona couldn't get off a final shot.
Littleton had 21 points for the Trojans (17-6, 7-5), playing all 50 minutes, as did Kadi Sissoko, who scored 15 points. Rayah Marshall had 17 points, 20 rebounds and six blocks in 48 minutes. Doumbia, a senior transfer from Purdue, had a career-high 17 in 28 minutes off the bench before fouling out in the first OT.
USC went 4 of 13 from the field and 9 of 10 from the foul line in the two overtimes. Arizona was 7 of 15 with three 3s and made 6 of 8 free throws.
Reese, who only had eight points at halftime, and Pellington, who had four, played 49 minutes.
Arizona is home on Friday against No. 2 Stanford, which will drop after losing 72-67 at Washington Sunday when USC goes to Oregon.
___
More Sports headlines:
- WM Phoenix Open events begin Feb. 6
- Chiefs, Eagles land in Phoenix, prepare for Super Bowl LVII
- $100K in property stolen from Super Bowl Experience in downtown Phoenix | https://www.fox10phoenix.com/sports/reese-scores-33-no-22-arizona-tops-usc-81-75-in-2ot | 2023-02-06 17:50:48 | 0 | https://www.fox10phoenix.com/sports/reese-scores-33-no-22-arizona-tops-usc-81-75-in-2ot |
CANBERRA, Australia (AP) — Papua New Guinea police shot a young mother dead at a polling station in the capital, Port Moresby, in the latest violence to mar national elections, according to a news report on Friday.
Homicide detectives were investigating the fatal shooting, which occurred on Monday, a police statement said.
Annaisha Max, 22, was holding her 1-year-old son when she was shot, Australian Broadcasting Corp. reported citing witnesses.
“They (police) came with force, excessive force. It was unprovoked,” Emmanuel Kiangu, a community leader who was on the scene, told ABC.
Police gave no warning they would open fire, according to Max’s friend, Anna Koip.
“They didn’t even say a word. They switched their guns to auto and fired into the crowd, where a lot of us were waiting to vote,” Koip said through a translator.
Since voting began on July 4, fights between rival groups have broken out over allegations of vote-fixing.
Prime Minister James Marape has apologized to thousands of people who have been turned away from polling stations because of problems with the electoral roll.
The crowd on Monday reportedly became agitated after waiting hours for voting to begin. A group gathered around police cars asking where the ballot boxes were. Police called for reinforcements before the shooting started, ABC said.
Police Metropolitan Superintendent Gideon Ikumu said in a statement Tuesday that police reinforcements were sent to “restore order when a rowdy and quarrelsome crowd threatened to harm election officials and disrupted polling.”
“Rocks were hurled at police and gunshots were fired to disperse the unruly crowd,” Ikumu added.
Ikumu said he had personally assured angry residents after Max's death that a police investigation would “establish how the victim was killed and who was responsible for her death.”
“Homicide detectives are now collecting evidence including video footage and statements from potential witnesses,” Ikumu said.
Max died in an electorate where polling had been delayed three times.
Peter Aitsi, a Papua New Guinea representative for Transparency International, a global movement to end corruption, said the election risked failing.
“Unfortunately, it hasn’t been a successful and peaceful and safe election,” Aitis said. “But I encourage all of our stakeholders out there, particularly the candidates and their supporters, to support the process, try and conclude the elections the best we can.”
Polling lasts weeks and the composition of the new government — with more than 50 parties contesting 118 seats — will not be known until Parliament next sits in August.
The top contenders to lead the new government are Marape and his predecessor, Peter O’Neill, who resigned in 2019.
Since Papua New Guinea’s independence from Australia in 1975, elections in the nation of 9 million have been marred by violence, fraud and bribery.
At the outset of voting, police urged citizens not to sell their votes to any of the 3,625 candidates vying for election. Candidates in Papua New Guinea routinely pay poor constituents to vote for them.
Papua New Guinea is a diverse tribal society of mostly subsistence farmers with more than 800 languages. | https://www.seattlepi.com/news/article/Papua-New-Guinea-police-accused-of-killing-woman-17306689.php | 2022-07-15 05:57:43 | 1 | https://www.seattlepi.com/news/article/Papua-New-Guinea-police-accused-of-killing-woman-17306689.php |
Doctor: Lesion removed from Biden’s chest was cancerous, no treatment needed
WASHINGTON (AP) — A skin lesion removed from President Joe Biden’s chest last month was a basal cell carcinoma — a common form of skin cancer — his doctor said Friday, adding that no further treatment was required.
Dr. Kevin O’Connor, the White House doctor who has served as Biden’s longtime physician, said “all cancerous tissue was successfully removed” during the president’s routine physical on Feb. 16.
O’Connor said the site of the removal on Biden’s chest has “healed nicely” and the president will continue regular skin screenings as part of his routine health plan.
Basal cells are among the most common and easily treated forms of cancer — especially when caught early. O’Connor said they don’t tend to spread like other cancers, but could grow in size, which is why they are removed.
Copyright 2023 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. | https://www.wflx.com/2023/03/03/wh-doctor-lesion-removed-biden-was-cancerous-basal-cell-no-treatment-needed/ | 2023-03-03 20:37:49 | 0 | https://www.wflx.com/2023/03/03/wh-doctor-lesion-removed-biden-was-cancerous-basal-cell-no-treatment-needed/ |
Since the Federal Reserve started raising interest rates and slowing the economy last year, tech companies and their investors have been on a wild rollercoaster ride. But this month, some big local players have started to demonstrate that they can thrive even in a slower-growth economy.
The key takeaway in first-quarter earnings reports over the past week has been companies including DraftKings, Wayfair, and HubSpot showing that they have a path to increasing profitability, in part thanks to cost-cutting and layoffs.
Wayfair has been struggling to work off excess hiring and spending from the height of the pandemic, when online furniture sales boomed. In two rounds of layoffs since last summer, the company has cut more than 2,600 workers.
Advertisement
In the first quarter, revenue was still declining — falling 7 percent to $2.8 billion — but the company cut its net loss per share much more. Wayfair’s adjusted net loss per share of $1.13 was down 42 percent from a year ago and 58 cents better than analysts expected. The improvements reflected annual labor cost savings of $750 million plus other efficiency gains, such as using better packaging to cut the rate of damaged-product returns by 15 percent since last summer.
The company is now on track in the second quarter to be cash-flow positive excluding costs such as stock-based compensation, interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization, chief executive and cofounder Niraj Shah told analysts. “We’ve always known and now we are clearly demonstrating that the Wayfair model is inherently profitable,” Shah said.
Wayfair’s stock has jumped 22 percent since the May 4 earnings report through midday trading on Tuesday.
At HubSpot, profitability also improved more quickly than sales. Revenue increased 27 percent to $502 million, while adjusted earnings per share more than doubled to $1.20.
Chief executive Yamini Rangan also impressed analysts, noting that customers have rapidly started using the company’s new AI features based on ChatGPT. “We are in the early stages of a transformative shift,” she said.
Advertisement
HubSpot’s software and data “represent the ingredients which will define the winners from generative AI’s impacts,” analyst Mark Murphy at JP Morgan wrote in a report on the earnings. The company is “a quickly emerging leader in operationalizing the technology,” he wrote.
HubSpot’s stock has gained 7 percent since the May 3 report.
Online-betting giant DraftKings reported strong first-quarter revenue, growing 84 percent to $770 million, while its adjusted loss per share of 51 cents was 31 percent less than a year earlier. “What we’re doing is working,” chief executive Jason Robins told analysts.
DraftKings’ stock is up 15 percent since the May 4 report.
A few other tech companies offered less of the results investors wanted. Tripadvisor’s stock has dropped 7 percent since its May 3 report that showed higher costs for acquiring some customers. Definitive Healthcare and Cerence also disappointed on the bottom line, and their stocks have dropped 2 percent and 11 percent, respectively, since their first quarter reports.
Some of the area’s biggest tech companies have yet to give their first-quarter results. Restaurant-tech company Toast and Internet company Akamai report later on Tuesday, while semiconductor maker Analog Devices reports on May 24. Analysts are forecasting more profitability improvements, and investors will be watching.
Aaron Pressman can be reached at aaron.pressman@globe.com. Follow him on Twitter @ampressman. | https://www.bostonglobe.com/2023/05/09/business/tech-stars-draftkings-hubspot-wayfair-shine-first-quarter-earnings/ | 2023-05-09 20:03:52 | 1 | https://www.bostonglobe.com/2023/05/09/business/tech-stars-draftkings-hubspot-wayfair-shine-first-quarter-earnings/ |
(KTXL) — A body and a car have been found in a lake where teams have been searching for 16-year-old Kiely Rodni, who has been missing for more than two weeks.
According to a Facebook post from Adventures with Purpose, an independent group of searchers, a car believed to belong to Rodni was found upside down 14 feet down in Prosser Lake. A body believed to be Rodni was found inside.
Law enforcement has been notified, according to Oregon-based Adventure with Purpose, but has not yet confirmed the identity of the body or if the car is Rodni’s.
The Nevada County Sheriff’s Office, one of the agencies working to find Rodni, confirmed it is aware of Adventure with Purpose’s findings and had staff heading to Prosser Lake.
“We will provide additional information when it becomes available,” the Sheriff’s Office said Sunday.
Rodni was last seen shortly after midnight on Aug. 6 near the Prosser Family Campground in Truckee, California, about 100 miles northeast of Sacramento. She was reportedly at a party where more than 100 minors and young adults.
On Aug. 7, the Placer County Sheriff’s Office told KTXL they were treating Rodni’s disappearance as a possible abduction since her car, a 2013 silver Honda CRV, was also missing. The last known ping from Rodni’s cellphone was near Prosser Lake but previous searches had not turned up any signs of Kiely or her vehicle.
Over 14 agencies including, the California Highway Patrol, the FBI, Homeland Security, Truckee Police Department and the Washoe County Sheriff’s Office joined the Placer County Sheriff’s Office and the Nevada County Sheriff’s Office to help locate Rodni.
The agencies used helicopter aerial searches along with motorcycles, ATVs, K9s, and even boats, which searched nearby bodies of water. Over 100 volunteers joined the search to find her.
A $50,000 reward was offered for any information that led to finding Rodni. Family, friends, and local businesses also all donated to a GoFundMe account to increase the size of the reward, which had reached $75,000 as of Sunday.
Nexstar’s KTXL accompanied Adventures with Purpose on Saturday when they arrived at Donner Lake to start searching for Rodni or her car. The group, which travels around the country to help solve cases like Rodni’s, also searched ponds in the area and Boca Reservoir.
On Sunday, Adventures with Purpose began searching Prosser Lake. | https://www.wane.com/news/body-car-found-in-lake-during-search-for-missing-california-teen-kiely-rodni/ | 2022-08-22 01:10:08 | 0 | https://www.wane.com/news/body-car-found-in-lake-during-search-for-missing-california-teen-kiely-rodni/ |
Can money buy happiness? The research is intriguing | David Moon
We’ve all been told that “money can’t buy happiness,” but European researchers have concluded that millionaires tend to become more extroverted, conscientious, and emotionally stable than others – especially self-made millionaires, implying that money can buy happiness.
Researchers from the German Institute for Economic Research found that millionaires who inherited their wealth tend to exhibit fewer pronounced signs of emotional stability than millionaires who were born into modest economic circumstances and had to earn their wealth.
Curiously, the relationship between earned wealth and emotional health also holds true among non-millionaires. People who earned their way into higher income and wealth brackets tend to exhibit the same emotionally healthy traits as do earned millionaires.
Does this mean that maybe money can buy happiness? Or does happiness buy money? The study suggests that an individual accrues an intrinsic emotional benefit from doing the things necessary to accumulate wealth. But isn’t it just as likely that emotionally stable, conscientious extroverts are more likely to accumulate wealth than are unstable hermits who don’t follow through on their commitments?
My current philosophy is that money doesn’t buy happiness, but it doesn’t buy misery, either. Although my only evidence is anecdotal – albeit 30 years’ worth – my observation is that money doesn’t change people; it reveals them. If someone who is a jerk suddenly (or even slowly) comes into bunch of money, the money simply allows him to be a bigger and more extravagant jerk. Likewise, when someone who is genuinely good and kind accumulates wealth, the money simply allows them to do more good for more people.
So does money buy happiness, or are happy people more suited to accumulate money?
Earning extraordinary amounts of money is hard. It is even harder to accumulate wealth. The people I’ve seen do that often work extraordinary numbers of hours, with an intense focus. That’s hard to do when you are miserable and in an emotionally unhealthy place.
Several other researchers confirm a positive relationship between income and self-reported levels of happiness but find that the relationship begins to diminish above a certain income level. In 2021, Matthew Killingsworth at Wharton found that increased income improves a person’s happiness only up to $80,000 of annual income. Above that level, self-reported emotional well-being tends to flatten.
English writer and philosopher John Ruskin said that the highest reward for our work is not what we get for it, but what we become by it. If Ruskin is right – and I believe he is – our work is the machine by which our attitude and our outcomes feed each other. That is, our well-being affects our wealth, which affects our well-being in an ever-continuing process.
More David Moon:Crypto exposes common investment mistakes
David Moon, president of Moon Capital Management, may be reached at david@mooncap.com. | https://www.knoxnews.com/story/money/columnists/david-moon/2022/07/15/david-moon-can-money-buy-happiness-research-intriguing/10046683002/ | 2022-07-15 11:45:27 | 1 | https://www.knoxnews.com/story/money/columnists/david-moon/2022/07/15/david-moon-can-money-buy-happiness-research-intriguing/10046683002/ |
NEW YORK — Carlos Rodón earned his first victory in four starts with the New York Yankees, who got an offensive spark from Harrison Bader in beating the New York Mets 3-1 on Wednesday night for a two-game split of their Subway Series.
Clay Holmes worked the ninth for his 14th save in 17 chances, giving the Yankees a four-game split of the season series with the Mets. The crosstown rivals also split two games last month at Citi Field.
It was an encouraging outing for Rodón, who got off to a rough start in his Yankees tenure after signing a $162 million, six-year contract as a free agent in December. The two-time All-Star missed the first three-plus months of the season because of forearm and back injuries, then lost his first three starts with his new team while compiling a 7.36 ERA.
Last week in a road game against the Los Angeles Angels, he sarcastically blew a kiss toward a fan while walking to the dugout after the second inning.
This time, a fired-up Rodón allowed one run and four hits in 5 2/3 effective innings. He struck out four, walked three and received a warm hand from Yankees fans in the sellout crowd of 46,761 as he came off the mound.
After getting hit in the back by a 95 mph fastball from Rodón, Mets right fielder Jeff McNeil made a couple of excellent catches — robbing Gleyber Torres of a home run with a leaping grab in the fifth.
Torres’ first-inning single extended his hitting streak to a career-high 15 games, longest by a Yankees player this season.
DJ LeMahieu drew a leadoff walk in the second and went to third on Bader’s double. Volpe walked to load the bases with nobody out, and the Yankees scored twice on the strength of some outstanding baserunning.
With one out, Volpe got a great jump and beat third baseman Mark Vientos’ throw to second on Oswald Peraza’s RBI grounder. The speedy Bader then scored by a wisp with a headfirst dive on Isiah Kiner-Falefa’s shallow sacrifice fly to right, where McNeil made a sliding catch before popping up for a strong throw to the plate.
Danny Mendick’s double set up Brandon Nimmo’s sacrifice fly in the third, but Rodón prevented further damage by retiring Pete Alonso on a line drive to left with two runners aboard.
Rodón also struck out Alonso with two on to end the fifth. Alonso, who had two homers and five RBIs in the series opener, went 0 for 4 with two strikeouts.
Bader scored again in the fourth on Volpe’s single to make it 3-1 after a costly throwing error by Vientos.
Quintana (0-2) was charged with three runs — two earned — and six hits over six innings in his second start for the Mets. The veteran left-hander missed the first 3 1/2 months of the season following rib surgery.
TRAINER’S ROOM
Mets: RF Starling Marte (migraines) is feeling much better and working out, but manager Buck Showalter said he doesn’t anticipate the team activating Marte from the injured list Thursday when he becomes eligible because his wife is due to give birth very soon. ... McNeil was shaken up and fired his helmet away in frustration after getting drilled in the back by Rodón’s fastball in the fourth. He was checked by an athletic trainer and stayed in. Rodón apologized to McNeil when the two crossed paths later in the game. ... Tommy Pham (groin) was back in the lineup at DH after sitting out Tuesday night. ... Rookie catcher Francisco Álvarez was behind the plate after exiting Tuesday night’s game in the ninth inning when he was hit on the middle finger of his right hand by a 97 mph pitch from Albert Abreu. X-rays were negative. Umpires ruled Álvarez swung at the pitch for strike three.
Yankees: RF Aaron Judge (toe) played another simulated game at the team’s complex in Tampa, Florida. Once again, manager Aaron Boone did not rule out Judge coming off the injured list Friday in Baltimore. Boone said Judge homered in Tuesday’s simulated game.
UP NEXT
Mets: Return home to Citi Field for a four-game series against last-place Washington. In a matchup of All-Star pitchers, rookie RHP Kodai Senga (7-5, 3.27 ERA) starts Thursday night versus Nationals RHP Josiah Gray (7-8, 3.45).
Yankees: Following an off day, All-Star RHP Gerrit Cole (9-2, 2.78 ERA) goes Friday night in the opener of a three-game series at AL East-leading Baltimore.
___ | https://www.washingtonpost.com/sports/mlb/2023/07/26/yankees-mets-rodon-bader-quintana/aed4a746-2c22-11ee-a948-a5b8a9b62d84_story.html | 2023-07-27 02:43:01 | 1 | https://www.washingtonpost.com/sports/mlb/2023/07/26/yankees-mets-rodon-bader-quintana/aed4a746-2c22-11ee-a948-a5b8a9b62d84_story.html |
This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate
HARARE, Zimbabwe (AP) — After working as an overnight security guard at a church in Harare's impoverished Mabvuku township, Jeffrey Carlos rushes home to help his wife fetch water to sell.
Prolonged water shortages mean most residents of the capital city of more than 2.4 million must source their own water. Carlos is lucky because the property he rents has a well and his family can haul up buckets of water to sell to neighbors.
“This is our gold," he says of the well water.
"If we are lucky, we can sell up to 12 buckets of water (per day) for $2,” said the 50-year-old father of three. That’s about enough money to buy the family’s food for the day, he said.
Rising prices and a fast depreciating currency have pushed many Zimbabweans to the brink, reminding people of when the southern African country faced world-record inflation of 5 billion% in 2008. With inflation jumping from 191% in June to 257% in July, many Zimbabweans fear the country is heading back to such hyperinflation.
To prevent a return of such economic disaster, President Emmerson Mnangagwa's government last month took the unprecedented step of introducing gold coins as legal tender. The country’s central bank, the Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe, said that because the value of the one-ounce, 22-carat coins would be determined by the international price of gold they will help tame the runaway inflation and stabilize the nation's currency.
The glitter of the gold coins is hard to see for Zimbabweans struggling each day to eke out a living. The government sees things differently and is pleading for time.
Although expensive at an average price of just below $2,000 per coin, central bank governor John Mangudya said the coin will have a trickle-down effect that will eventually help average folk.
“The ordinary man will benefit more from the stability (provided by) these gold coins. Where there is stability, money will have value and stability in prices,” said Mangudya ahead of the launch. He said the central bank plans to introduce smaller denominated gold coins in November to allow ordinary people to also use them as a saving mechanism. The smaller coins will be half an ounce, a quarter of an ounce and 10% of an ounce, he said.
But many such as Carlos say they can hardly afford a meal, let alone earn enough to save.
“Where will I get the money to buy the gold coins? It is for them, the rich. Poor people like me do not see any difference. Things continue to be hard in this country,” he told The Associated Press between trips to the well to pull up buckets of water.
“Gold coins are a scheme for the elite. The rich get richer, the poor get poorer,” said Gift Mugano, an economics professor during an online roundtable debate titled: “Is there gold in the coins?”
With so many Zimbabweans scrambling to get food to eat each day, there are questions if the gold coins will help them.
“People are struggling. They are living from hand to mouth so most people may not actually have the money to save in the first place. Most people are in survivalist mode because of inflation,” said Prosper Chitambara, a Harare-based economist.
To get by, many are forced to take up multiple jobs.
Carlos, in Mabvuku, says he gets about $100 dollars a month from his job as an overnight security guard for a church and the bar next door. That's hardly enough to pay rent, school fees and other basic needs. Sometimes, he exchanges water for food items.
“If we fetch water for someone but they don’t have money, so we get tomatoes, vegetables, beans or maize. That’s how we get food,” he said.
His wife, Christwish, 43, prepares the day’s evening meal — the staple maize (corn) meal and vegetables plucked from a small home garden — over a wood fire. Because of Zimbabwe's lengthy power cuts, the children do their homework by a candle, although their parents press them to use it sparingly.
“The firewood costs a dollar for a small bundle enough (to cook) for a single meal. The candles are also expensive,” lamented Christwish, who supplements the family income by doing household chores for better-off families in exchange for money or food items.
Items previously regarded as basics are now out of reach, she said.
“We last ate bread with margarine on Christmas Day," she said. "Now we just see these things in the shops and leave them there.” | https://www.mrt.com/news/article/Zimbabweans-hit-by-soaring-inflation-Will-gold-17383784.php | 2022-08-19 09:44:25 | 0 | https://www.mrt.com/news/article/Zimbabweans-hit-by-soaring-inflation-Will-gold-17383784.php |
Navy football continues an extremely tough season-ending stretch Saturday when it welcomes No. 20 Notre Dame at M&T Bank Stadium in Baltimore.
This will be the 95th meeting between the Midshipmen and Fighting Irish, who lead the all-time series 80-13-1.
Up until two years ago, it was the longest continuous intersectional rivalry in college football. However, the worldwide pandemic forced cancellation of the Navy-Notre Dame game scheduled for the 2022 season opener in Dublin, Ireland.
History was slated to be made when it was announced the Midshipmen would host the Fighting Irish at Navy-Marine Corps Memorial Stadium instead. However, scheduling restrictions placed upon Notre Dame by the Atlantic Coast Conference prevented that from happening.
There is a reason why these two institutions have met on the gridiron every year (except 2020) since 1927. During World War II, Notre Dame’s student population dwindled to 2,623 students, causing the university serious financial issues.
In April 1943, the United States Navy created the V-7 Indoctrination School at Notre Dame and 900 men were enlisted. That government contract paid the university located in South Bend, Indiana, nearly $488,000 for infrastructure needs and administrative expenses.
“All I can say is without Navy during the war, this institution would have gotten down to a few hundred students. Instead of that, we were almost twice our normal size during the war and we were able to contribute something to the Navy,” said Father Edmund Joyce, the late Notre Dame vice president.
Notre Dame has never forgotten the Navy’s kindness and support during its time of dire need and vowed to maintain an annual football rivalry for as long as the academy wished to play.
“The history of this rivalry is pretty special. It shows what both schools are all about,” Navy coach Ken Niumatalolo said Monday during his weekly news conference.
“There are a lot of [schools] that want to play Notre Dame and we’re grateful for a chance to play such a historic program. We just wish we had a couple more [wins] on our side of the ledger.”
Navy coaches have always used the Notre Dame series as a recruiting tool. Telling prospects they will get to play one of the most legendary programs in college football four times — twice at fabled Notre Dame Stadium and twice in NFL venues — is persuasive.
Many critics called for an end to the lopsided rivalry during Notre Dame’s remarkable 43-game winning streak against Navy. While the Midshipmen had many near misses, most of the games were blowouts by the Fighting Irish.
Navy brought an abrupt end to that ignominious losing streak, longest in the history of college football, in 2003. The Midshipmen did so in dramatic fashion, pulling out a 46-44 victory in triple-overtime.
Niumatalolo has enjoyed relative success in the series. In 13 games, he’s beaten Notre Dame three times and had four losses come by 10 points or less. Niumatalolo is tied with College Football Hall of Fame head coach Wayne Hardin for most wins against Notre Dame in Navy football history.
This will be the fourth time Navy has played Notre Dame at M&T Bank Stadium, having previously done so in 2002, 2006 and 2008. Two of those contests were close with the Fighting Irish escaping Baltimore with wins of 30-23 in 2002 and 27-21 in 2008.
“It’s exciting to be able to play in Baltimore, which is really close to the Naval Academy. We enjoy playing up there. It’s always a great venue with a great atmosphere,” Niumatalolo said. “We also recognize there will be a lot of Notre Dame fans, too.”
Navy has played a lot of games at M&T Bank Stadium since its opening in 1998. Niumatalolo chuckled when asked if the Midshipmen “felt comfortable” at the facility. The 15-year coach pointed out that Navy’s opponents have been Notre Dame, Maryland, Ohio State and Army. The Midshipmen are 1-7 in games played at M&T Bank Stadium.
Notre Dame (6-3) is under the direction of first-year head coach Marcus Freeman, who was promoted from defensive coordinator after Brian Kelly left for LSU.
Daily Top Stories
The Fighting Irish started the Freeman era with two straight losses, including a 26-21 upset to Marshall. However, Notre Dame has won six of its last seven, with last Saturday’s 35-14 rout of formerly fourth-ranked Clemson certainly catching the notice of the Navy coaching staff.
“It looks like they’ve really picked it up lately,” Niumatalolo said of the Fighting Irish. “Obviously, the thorough beating they gave Clemson was very impressive.”
Linebackers JD Bertrand and Jack Kiser anchor a Notre Dame defense that ranks 27th nationally in both total yards (328.60) and points allowed (21.2). Meanwhile, the offense has come to life, scoring between 35 and 45 points in four of the last six games.
“They’ve been pretty stout defensively the whole season. It looks like they’re catching their groove offensively and have kind of found their identity,” Niumatalolo said.
Notre Dame has now won 16 straight games during the month of November, the longest such active streak in the Football Bowl Subdivision.
Junior quarterback Xavier Arline will make his second straight start for Navy (3-6), which is coming off a 20-10 loss at Cincinnati. Arline brings more of a perimeter element and home-run threat to the position, breaking loose for runs of 32 and 29 yards Saturday afternoon.
Arline played the entire second half of last season’s 34-6 loss to Notre Dame in South Bend. He was tackled for a safety after recovering his own fumble in the end zone. | https://www.capitalgazette.com/sports/navy/ac-cs-navy-football-reset-notre-dame-20221108-hhujrs56azeqbbxe2c6h5nf5ji-story.html | 2022-11-08 18:22:43 | 0 | https://www.capitalgazette.com/sports/navy/ac-cs-navy-football-reset-notre-dame-20221108-hhujrs56azeqbbxe2c6h5nf5ji-story.html |
Shady, Sarilynne
Age 83, of Moraine, OH, passed away March 27, 2023. Visitation 6-8 PM, Fri. March 31, 2023 Swart Funeral Home , West Carrollton, OH.
View the obituary on Legacy.com
Funeral Home Information
Swart Funeral Home - West Carrollton
207 E Central Ave | https://www.springfieldnewssun.com/obituaries/shady-sarilynne/4COZSAUJ65BMZBLG6HJFHONJAE/ | 2023-03-30 06:25:08 | 0 | https://www.springfieldnewssun.com/obituaries/shady-sarilynne/4COZSAUJ65BMZBLG6HJFHONJAE/ |
Across the span of nearly a week, the saga of a lost submersible that had gone into the depths of the ocean to see the Titanic wreckage rippled across the national and global conversation — culminating in news that the craft had imploded and its five occupants were dead.
But a far bigger disaster days earlier, the wrecking of a ship off Greece filled with migrants that killed at least 80 people and left a horrifying 500 missing, did not become a moment-by-moment worldwide focus in anywhere near the same way.
One grabbed unrelenting, moment-to-moment attention. One was watched and discussed as another sad, but routine, news story.
What makes these two events at sea different in how they were received? Viewed next to each other, what do they say about human reactions to tragic news? And why did the saga of the submersible grab so much attention?
By the time the world learned about the Greek shipwreck, the event had already taken place and, to some extent, the outcome was already known. All that was left was the aftermath.
Conversely, the Titan (the world thought) was an event in the process of happening — something that unfolded in real time with a deadline attached. As with any narrative, a ticking clock increases tension and attention.
The fact that no one could communicate with the submersible — or learn anything about what the people inside were experiencing — only added to the potential for close attention.
Before anything even went awry, the Titan was already venturing into a realm of existing high interest — the wreck of the Titanic, itself the archetype of modern disasters long before James Cameron’s popular 1997 film. So there was an interest already baked in that had nothing to do with the submersible itself.
Cameron’s reaction to the Titan disaster only made that connection more intense.
He told the BBC in an interview broadcast on Friday that he “felt in my bones” that the Titan submersible had been lost soon after he heard it had lost contact with the surface during its descent to the wreckage of the ocean liner at the bottom of the Atlantic Ocean. He said focus in the media over the next few days about the submersible having 96 hours of oxygen supply — and that banging noises had been heard — were a “prolonged and nightmarish charade.”
Many reactions and memes this week centered around the notion — fair or not — that one event involved rich people using the ocean as a playground, while the other was a sadly frequent recurrence of misfortune befalling people who lack status, resources or even a voice in the modern marketplace of ideas.
Apryl Alexander, a public health professor at University of North Carolina-Charlotte who has studied trauma and survivors, said the migrants on the ship in Greece didn’t seem to engender the same interest from the public as did the wealthy individuals who paid $250,000 apiece to explore the Titanic.
That reminded Alexander of the differences in news coverage of crime in the United States. Crimes get more attention when the victim is white and wealthy compared to a person of color in poverty, Alexander says.
Tim Recuber, an assistant professor of sociology at Smith College who studies mass media, digital culture and emotions, says people tend to be drawn to stories that allow them to empathize with the suffering of others — and that it’s easier to empathize when there are smaller numbers of people involved.
“I think some people are calling out this time around the sort of inequalities that are baked into it around class,” Recuber said. “We are able to learn who the people on the sub are because of who they are. They’re wealthy and they have access to the press. Divisions of race and national identity matter in terms of who gets empathized with.”
Risk-takers who choose their risks have grabbed headlines almost since there have been headlines. So the public was likely enthralled about others cheating death by doing something dangerous, says Daryl Van Tongeren, a psychology professor at Hope College in Michigan who has studied the meaning around big events and their effect on people.
In other words, he said, readers and viewers can feel alive by living vicariously through others who are taking risks. “There’s this fascination with people who engage in these high-risk experiences,” Van Tongeren said. “Even though we know that death is the only certainty in life, we invest in these activities where we get close to death but overcome it. We want to demonstrate our mastery over death.” he said.
The pandemic. Mass shootings. Economic problems. War. Climate change. It can be hard for another piece of bad news to punch through. “People are starting to tune out,” Alexander said.
In the end, she said, she’d like to see the same level of societal interest in human tragedies regardless of race, religion, demographics, or other factors: “For all of us, we hope that if any of our loved ones go missing that the media and the public would pay the same attention to all stories.”
___
Associated Press journalist Cara Rubinsky contributed to this report. | https://www.krqe.com/news/world/what-the-submersible-saga-and-the-greek-migrant-shipwreck-say-about-our-reactions-to-tragedy/ | 2023-06-24 04:26:55 | 0 | https://www.krqe.com/news/world/what-the-submersible-saga-and-the-greek-migrant-shipwreck-say-about-our-reactions-to-tragedy/ |
HOUSTON (AP) — A federal judge ruled Friday that the current version of a federal policy that prevents the deportation of hundreds of thousands of immigrants brought to the U.S. as children can continue, at least temporarily.
U.S. District Judge Andrew Hanen — who last year declared the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program illegal — said that the policy, which is set to proceed under new regulations at the end of the month, can continue with limitations that he previously set. Those limitations say there can be no new applicants for DACA and that those who are already in the program can continue to be in it and renew their applications.
During a court hearing Friday, Hanen ordered attorneys for the federal government to provide more information on the new rule and said he expects additional legal arguments related to it, but there was no timetable set for future hearings. It’s also unclear when Hanen will give his final decision on the case, which is expected to end up at the U.S. Supreme Court.
“The legality of the new DACA regulation … is now the task before this court,” said Nina Perales, an attorney with the Mexican American Legal Defense and Educational Fund, or MALDEF, who is representing DACA recipients, said after attending Friday’s hearing.
Karina Ruiz De Diaz, one of the DACA recipients being represented by MALDEF, said she was relieved Hanen kept the program in place but upset the judge declined to open it up to thousands of new applicants who need its protections.
Ruiz was part of a group of more than 50 community activists and DACA recipients who gathered before and after the hearing in support of the program at a park next to the federal courthouse. They held up signs that said, “Judge Hanen Do the Right Thing Protect DACA” and “Immigrants Are Welcomed.”
“It was important to show up to the hearing. We don’t want the judge to think that this is just an abstract concept. I want him to see our faces, to see that it’s impacting real people,” said Ruiz, 38, who traveled from her home in Phoenix to attend the hearing.
The current version of DACA, which the Biden administration created to improve its chances of surviving legal scrutiny, is set to take effect Oct. 31.
The case went back to Hanen after the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in New Orleans said last week he should take another look at DACA following revisions adopted by the Biden administration.
Hanen last year declared DACA illegal after Texas and eight other Republican-leaning states filed a lawsuit claiming they are harmed financially, incurring hundreds of millions of dollars in health care, education and other costs, when immigrants are allowed to remain in the country illegally. They also argued that the White House overstepped its authority by granting immigration benefits that are for Congress to decide.
“Only Congress has the ability to write our nation’s immigration laws,” Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton said Thursday in a statement.
Hanen found DACA had not been subjected to public notice and comment periods required under the federal Administrative Procedures Act. But he left the Obama-era program intact for those already benefiting from it, pending the appeal. There were 611,270 people enrolled in DACA at the end of March.
A three-judge panel of the New Orleans-based appeals court upheld Hanen’s initial finding but sent the case back to Hanen so he could review the impact of the federal government’s new DACA regulation.
The new rule’s 453 pages are largely technical and represent little substantive change from the 2012 memo that created DACA, but it was subject to public comments as part of a formal rule-making process.
During Friday’s hearing, Hanen seemed hesitant about tackling the constitutionality of the DACA program with any ruling he would make and said he wanted all parties involved to initially focus on issues related to the federal Administrative Procedures Act in reviewing the new regulation.
Perales said the uncertainty about DACA’s ultimate fate in the courts should be another signal to Congress that it needs to act to provide permanent protections.
After last week’s appeals court ruling, President Joe Biden and advocacy groups renewed their calls for Congress to pass permanent protections for “Dreamers,” which is what people protected by DACA are commonly called. Congress has failed multiple times to pass proposals called the DREAM Act to protect DACA recipients.
Whatever Hanen decides, DACA is expected to go to the Supreme Court for a third time. In 2016, the Supreme Court deadlocked 4-4 over an expanded DACA and a version of the program for parents of DACA recipients. In 2020, the high court ruled 5-4 that the Trump administration improperly ended DACA, allowing it to stay in place.
___
Follow Juan A. Lozano on Twitter: https://twitter.com/juanlozano70
___
Follow AP’s coverage of immigration: https://apnews.com/hub/immigration | https://phl17.com/us-news/ap-us-news/ap-daca-programs-fate-again-before-judge-who-ruled-it-illegal/ | 2022-10-14 23:53:40 | 1 | https://phl17.com/us-news/ap-us-news/ap-daca-programs-fate-again-before-judge-who-ruled-it-illegal/ |
CA Reno NV Zone Forecast for Monday, November 7, 2022
_____
375 FPUS55 KREV 081131
ZFPREV
Western Nevada-Eastern Sierra-Northeast California Zone Forecast
National Weather Service Reno NV
331 AM PST Tue Nov 8 2022
This is an automatically generated product that provides averaged
values for large geographic areas and may not be representative
of a specific area. To get a more specific forecast for your area,
please visit www.nws.noaa.gov/wtf/udaf/area/?site=rev
CAZ072-NVZ002-090300-
Greater Lake Tahoe Area-
Including the cities of South Lake Tahoe, Tahoe City, Truckee,
Markleeville, Stateline, Glenbrook, and Incline Village
331 AM PST Tue Nov 8 2022
...WINTER STORM WARNING IN EFFECT UNTIL 10 AM PST WEDNESDAY...
.TODAY...Heavy snow. Snow accumulation of 5 to 11 inches with
8 to 14 inches above 7000 feet. Highs 27 to 32. South winds 10 to
15 mph with gusts up to 30 mph. Ridge gusts up to 65 mph.
.TONIGHT...Heavy snow likely in the evening, then chance of snow
after midnight. Snow accumulation of 2 to 6 inches with 4 to
10 inches above 7000 feet. Lows 11 to 21. Southwest winds 10 to
20 mph with gusts up to 30 mph. Ridge gusts up to 60 mph.
.WEDNESDAY...Mostly cloudy with a chance of snow showers. Snow
accumulation up to 2 inches. Highs 28 to 33. Southwest winds
10 to 15 mph. Gusts up to 30 mph in the morning. Ridge gusts up
to 60 mph in the morning.
.WEDNESDAY NIGHT...Partly cloudy. Lows 1 to 11. West winds around
10 mph in the evening becoming light.
.THURSDAY...Partly cloudy in the morning then clearing. Highs
32 to 42. Light winds.
.THURSDAY NIGHT...Clear in the evening then becoming partly
cloudy. Lows 6 to 16.
.VETERANS DAY...Mostly cloudy in the morning then becoming partly
cloudy. Highs 32 to 42.
.FRIDAY NIGHT THROUGH SUNDAY...Mostly cloudy with a slight chance
of snow. Lows 10 to 20. Highs 36 to 46.
.SUNDAY NIGHT...Mostly cloudy. Slight chance of snow and rain.
Lows 16 to 26.
.MONDAY...Mostly cloudy with a slight chance of snow. Highs 36 to
46.
$$
CAZ070-NVZ005-090300-
Surprise Valley California-Northern Washoe County-
Including the cities of Cedarville, Eagleville, Fort Bidwell,
Empire, and Gerlach
331 AM PST Tue Nov 8 2022
...WINTER WEATHER ADVISORY IN EFFECT UNTIL 10 AM PST WEDNESDAY...
.TODAY...Chance of snow and rain. Snow accumulation of 1 to
4 inches. Highs 35 to 40. East winds 10 to 15 mph. Gusts up to
30 mph in the afternoon.
.TONIGHT...Mostly cloudy with a chance of snow. Snow accumulation
up to 2 inches. Lows 19 to 24. Southwest winds 10 to 15 mph.
.WEDNESDAY...Mostly cloudy. Chance of snow showers in the
morning. Snow accumulation up to 1 inch. Highs 34 to 44. West
winds 10 to 15 mph. Gusts up to 35 mph in the afternoon.
.WEDNESDAY NIGHT...Clear in the evening then becoming partly
cloudy. Lows 10 to 20. West winds 10 to 15 mph. Gusts up to
30 mph in the evening.
.THURSDAY...Mostly cloudy in the morning then clearing. Highs
31 to 41. Light winds becoming southeast around 10 mph in the
afternoon.
.THURSDAY NIGHT...Clear in the evening then becoming partly
cloudy. Lows 9 to 19.
.VETERANS DAY THROUGH SUNDAY...Mostly cloudy. Highs 37 to 47.
Lows 11 to 21.
.SUNDAY NIGHT AND MONDAY...Mostly cloudy with a slight chance of
snow. Lows 14 to 24. Highs 35 to 45.
$$
CAZ071-090300-
Lassen-Eastern Plumas-Eastern Sierra Counties-
Including the cities of Portola, Susanville, Westwood,
Sierraville, and Loyalton
331 AM PST Tue Nov 8 2022
...WINTER STORM WARNING IN EFFECT UNTIL 10 AM PST WEDNESDAY...
.TODAY...Heavy snow. Snow accumulation of 3 to 7 inches. Highs
34 to 39. East winds 10 to 15 mph with gusts up to 35 mph.
.TONIGHT...Mostly cloudy with a chance of snow. Snow accumulation
of 1 to 5 inches west of highway 395 with up to 2 inches east of
highway 395. Lows 15 to 25. Southwest winds 10 to 15 mph.
.WEDNESDAY...Mostly cloudy with a chance of snow showers. Snow
accumulation up to 1 inch. Highs 31 to 41. West winds 10 to
15 mph. Gusts up to 30 mph in the afternoon.
.WEDNESDAY NIGHT...Partly cloudy. Lows 7 to 17. West winds around
10 mph in the evening becoming light.
.THURSDAY...Mostly cloudy in the morning then clearing. Highs
31 to 41. Light winds becoming east around 10 mph in the
afternoon.
.THURSDAY NIGHT...Clear in the evening then becoming partly
cloudy. Lows 8 to 18.
.VETERANS DAY...Mostly cloudy in the morning then becoming partly
cloudy. Highs 31 to 41.
.FRIDAY NIGHT AND SATURDAY...Mostly cloudy with a slight chance
of snow. Lows 10 to 20. Highs 33 to 43.
.SATURDAY NIGHT...Mostly cloudy. Lows 14 to 24.
.SUNDAY...Mostly cloudy. Slight chance of snow in the afternoon.
Highs 36 to 46.
.SUNDAY NIGHT AND MONDAY...Mostly cloudy with a slight chance of
snow and rain. Lows 15 to 25. Highs 35 to 45.
$$
CAZ073-090300-
Mono County-
Including the cities of Bridgeport, Coleville, Lee Vining,
and Mammoth Lakes
331 AM PST Tue Nov 8 2022
...WINTER STORM WARNING IN EFFECT UNTIL 10 AM PST WEDNESDAY...
.TODAY...Heavy snow. Snow accumulation of 3 to 7 inches with
10 to 18 inches above 7000 feet. Highs 30 to 35. South winds
10 to 15 mph increasing to 15 to 25 mph in the afternoon. Gusts
up to 40 mph. Ridge gusts up to 65 mph.
.TONIGHT...Heavy snow likely in the evening, then chance of snow
after midnight. Snow accumulation of 1 to 5 inches with 4 to
10 inches above 7000 feet. Lows 4 to 14. Southwest winds 10 to
20 mph with gusts up to 30 mph. Ridge gusts up to 60 mph.
.WEDNESDAY...Mostly cloudy in the morning then becoming partly
cloudy. Slight chance of snow showers. Highs 28 to 38. West winds
10 to 15 mph. Gusts up to 30 mph in the morning. Ridge gusts up
to 65 mph in the morning.
.WEDNESDAY NIGHT...Clear. Lows 2 below to 8 above zero. West
winds 10 to 15 mph.
.THURSDAY...Sunny. Highs 31 to 41. Light winds.
.THURSDAY NIGHT...Clear. Lows 3 to 13.
.VETERANS DAY AND FRIDAY NIGHT...Partly cloudy. Highs 34 to 44.
Lows 8 to 18.
.SATURDAY...Mostly cloudy in the morning then becoming partly
cloudy. Slight chance of snow. Highs 36 to 46.
.SATURDAY NIGHT AND SUNDAY...Partly cloudy. Lows 10 to 20. Highs
38 to 48.
.SUNDAY NIGHT...Mostly cloudy in the evening then becoming partly
cloudy. Slight chance of snow. Lows 12 to 22.
.MONDAY...Mostly cloudy with a slight chance of snow. Highs 36 to
46.
$$
_____
Copyright 2022 AccuWeather | https://www.ourmidland.com/weather/article/CA-Reno-NV-Zone-Forecast-17567120.php | 2022-11-08 13:12:11 | 0 | https://www.ourmidland.com/weather/article/CA-Reno-NV-Zone-Forecast-17567120.php |
ISLAMABAD (AP) — Pakistani Prime Minister Shahbaz Sharif told an American diplomat Thursday that the world must step up its fight against climate change to avoid more deadly flooding in the impoverished Islamic nation, the government said.
Sharif made the comment in a meeting with Derek Chollet, a senior State Department official visiting Islamabad to assess damages and arrange for aid in the wake of floods that have killed 1,355 people, affected 3.3 million people and made more than half a million homeless.
According to the statement, Chollet “affirmed that the U.S. would stand by Pakistan in the wake of this immense challenge, extend vital support, and help affected people rebuild their lives and communities.”
The meeting came a day ahead of the first American planeload expected to arrive in Pakistan with supplies. U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres also was to arrive in Pakistan Friday to travel to flood-hit areas.
Guterres is arriving in Pakistan less than two weeks after he issued an appeal for $160 million in emergency funding to help millions affected by record-breaking floods that have caused at least $10 billion in damages.
Last week, Guterres warned about the effects of climate change in the future.
“Let’s stop sleepwalking toward the destruction of our planet by climate change,” he said on August 31 in a video message to a ceremony in Islamabad. “Today, it’s Pakistan. Tomorrow, it could be your country,” he said at the time.
So far, U.N. agencies and several countries have sent dozens of planeloads of aid to Pakistani flood victims. Washington has announced the U.S. will provide $30 million in assistance to help victims of the flood.
The catastrophe has added new burdens to the cash-strapped Pakistan and highlighted the disproportionate effect of climate change on improverished populations. Experts say Pakistan is responsible for only 0.4% of the world’s historic emissions blamed for climate change. The U.S. is responsible for 21.5%, China for 16.5% and the EU 15%. | https://www.wjhl.com/news/international/ap-pakistani-pm-world-should-ramp-up-climate-change-fight/ | 2022-09-08 13:46:03 | 1 | https://www.wjhl.com/news/international/ap-pakistani-pm-world-should-ramp-up-climate-change-fight/ |
ATLANTA (AP) — Nevada’s most populous county and Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger have received subpoenas related to special counsel Jack Smith’s investigation of former President Donald Trump, who focused strongly on the states as he sought to overturn his 2020 election loss.
Smith was appointed last month to oversee not only the Justice Department’s Mar-a-Lago investigation but also aspects of Trump’s scramble to stay in power — including his efforts in Georgia and Nevada — and the violent attack on the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021.
In a Jan. 2 phone call, Trump had suggested that Raffensperger “find” the votes needed to give him a win in Georgia.
The Georgia subpoena, which is dated Friday and was received by Raffensperger’s office Monday, follows others served last week in several states and counties. Like those other locations, Georgia was a target of Trump and his allies as they sought to overturn his loss in the 2020 election.
The special counsel is seeking “any and all communications in any form” between June 1, 2020, and Jan. 20, 2021, “to, from or involving” Trump, his campaign, lawyers and aides, including former campaign officials such as Bill Stepien and Justin Clark and lawyers John Eastman, Boris Epshteyn, L. Lin Wood, Sidney Powell and former New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani, according to the subpoena, which was obtained by The Associated Press.
Separately Monday, the AP obtained through a public records request the copy of a Nov. 22 subpoena sent by Smith to local election officials in Clark County, Nevada, the state’s most populous county. The subpoena seeks similar information as the ones sent to other states.
Efforts by Trump and his associates to reverse his loss in Georgia are currently the subject of a separate investigation led by Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis in Atlanta. A special grand jury seated to aid that investigation has heard from dozens of witnesses, including a number of high-profile Trump allies, over the past six months and is expected to wrap up its work soon.
Among other things, Willis is investigating the Jan. 2, 2021, phone call between Trump and Raffensperger.
It was not immediately clear whether any counties in Georgia had also received subpoenas from the special counsel.
In the weeks following the 2020 election, Trump focused in part on Fulton County, which includes most of the city of Atlanta, making unsupported allegations of election fraud. But the county had not received a subpoena by Monday morning, a spokesperson said.
__
Associated Press writer Eric Tucker contributed to this report. | https://www.wric.com/news/politics/ap-trump-probe-subpoena-for-georgia-secretary-of-state-from-doj/ | 2022-12-13 18:50:34 | 1 | https://www.wric.com/news/politics/ap-trump-probe-subpoena-for-georgia-secretary-of-state-from-doj/ |
How inflation is changing the way people use payment apps
As inflation continues to affect the spending habits of many, a new survey reveals that some Americans are relying on payment apps to manage their expenses.
Forbes released a survey focused on how people use payment apps to split bills due to high inflation. Apps used for their purchases are Venmo, Zelle, PayPal, and Cash app.
The global media company polled 1,000 adults who use these apps, and some young adults say they use them to split bills for restaurant tabs, groceries, and rent, the survey finds.
According to the survey, almost half (47%) of adults say they rely on using payment apps in ways they typically would not because of inflation.
Inflation declined to 6.5% in December compared with a year earlier. It was the sixth straight year-over-year slowdown. Monthly, prices slipped 0.1% from November to December, the first such drop since May 2020, according to the Associated Press.
RELATED: Delayed IRS reporting rule to require many Venmo, Cash App users to pay taxes
The survey finds that 18-25-year-olds (64%) are using payment apps to split restaurant bills and groceries, with 47% using them to split the cost of rent. Only 25% of this demographic use apps to cover bar tabs.
Approximately 58% of 26 to 41-year-olds use payment apps to split restaurant bills compared to 51% of them who use them to split grocery costs and 35% who use them to split payments for gas.
The survey reveals that some adults rely on payment apps to split bills at least once a week, with the highest rate among 18-25-year-olds (60%) and 26-to-41-year-old groups (58%).
Another notable trend respondents discussed is requests they have received for "petty amounts," a payment under $5. Most payment app users (86%) in the survey say this amount is not worth requesting.
According to the survey, 30% of young adult app users say people repeatedly come to them for small payment requests, known as "Venmo Vultures."
Respondents said the "vulture" is commonly a friend, sibling, or significant other.
The Associated Press contributed to this report. This story was reported from Washington, D.C. | https://www.fox35orlando.com/news/payment-apps-inflation-spending-consumers | 2023-01-18 00:20:18 | 0 | https://www.fox35orlando.com/news/payment-apps-inflation-spending-consumers |
PENNSYLVANIA, USA — With help from a friend and WNEP's Skycam, Mike Stevens gave us a closer look at those big marshmallows in the sky.
On this trip back down the Pennsylvania Road, Skycam's pilot Jack Ruland showed us what he saw every day going to work.
Check out stories from WNEP's Video Vault/Back Down the Pennsylvania Road on YouTube. | https://www.wnep.com/article/entertainment/places/on-the-pa-road/back-down-the-pennsylvania-road-clouds-skycam-pilot-jack-ruland-bdpr-throwback/523-41d9b50a-b139-412c-b7b0-d00c7a26aab4 | 2022-07-26 00:45:14 | 1 | https://www.wnep.com/article/entertainment/places/on-the-pa-road/back-down-the-pennsylvania-road-clouds-skycam-pilot-jack-ruland-bdpr-throwback/523-41d9b50a-b139-412c-b7b0-d00c7a26aab4 |
Shapiro will nominate former Philly Commissioner Al Schmidt to be secretary of state
A former Philadelphia election official who has told of enduring death threats for defending the city’s 2020 vote-counting against former President Donald Trump’s lies will be nominated for the top election administration post in Pennsylvania.
Al Schmidt will be nominated to be Pennsylvania Gov.-elect Josh Shapiro’s secretary of state, the campaign said Thursday, setting him up to oversee what is expected to be a hard-fought 2024 election in the critical presidential battleground.
Shapiro, a Democrat, made the post his first Cabinet selection to be publicly announced ahead of his Jan. 17 inauguration.
Protecting elections and voting rights were central to Shapiro’s campaign, as he emphasized his intention to nominate a “pro-Democracy” secretary of state and his role, as attorney general, in fighting efforts in court by Trump and his allies to overturn the 2020 presidential election.
“Al Schmidt has a proven track record of defending our democracy, protecting voting rights and standing up to extremism — even in the face of grave threats,” Shapiro said in a statement.
Schmidt, 51, is a Republican, fitting in with Shapiro’s theme of fashioning a bipartisan administration in politically divided Pennsylvania.
Schmidt is currently president and CEO of the Committee of Seventy, a good-government group in Philadelphia. Before he joined the group a year ago, Schmidt spent a decade as a Republican elected to the three-member board that oversees elections in Philadelphia.
Holding the post of secretary of state is subject to confirmation in the Republican-controlled Senate.
The $165,000-salary job involves overseeing how the state’s 67 counties run their elections, giving them guidance and assistance on how to manage it — a task that has grown in complexity with the advent of the state’s no-excuse mail-in voting law and conspiracy theorists inspired by Trump’s lie that the 2020 election was stolen from him.
The department also administers a long list of professional licensing commissions that report to the department.
In 2020, Schmidt became the face of Philadelphia’s protracted vote count when Trump and his campaign repeatedly claimed that “bad things happen in Philadelphia” and spread lies to sow doubt about the legitimacy of the election in the heavily Democratic city.
With help from Philadelphia, Trump lost Pennsylvania to Democrat Joe Biden.
Few, if any, Republicans came to Schmidt’s defense during a time when he has said he received Trump-inspired death threats against him and his family that he has called “domestic terrorism.” No lawsuit, prosecutor or election worker has produced evidence of widespread fraud in Philadelphia’s 2020 election.
In the wake of the election, Schmidt testified in front of a U.S. Senate committee and the congressional committee investigating the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol.
He has since become a prominent critic of what he has called the “vicious cycle” of conspiracy theorists and politicians who spread lies about elections.
The falsehoods prompt deceived constituents to demand that politicians do something — usually resulting in a push to restrict voting rights and violent threats to election workers, Schmidt has said.
WHYY is your source for fact-based, in-depth journalism and information. As a nonprofit organization, we rely on financial support from readers like you. Please give today. | https://whyy.org/articles/josh-shapiro-al-schmidt-secretary-of-state-nomination/ | 2023-01-05 13:47:55 | 1 | https://whyy.org/articles/josh-shapiro-al-schmidt-secretary-of-state-nomination/ |
Woman in critical condition after being struck by fallen tree branch in backyard, police say
PHILADELPHIA - A Philadelphia woman is fighting for her life after police say she was struck by a fallen tree branch while in her backyard on Monday.
The 49-year-old woman was taken from her home on the 6600 block of Lincoln Drive to Albert Einstein Medical Center just after 11 a.m.
Police did not disclose what injuries the woman sustained from being hit with the branch.
It's unknown what caused the branch to fall. | https://www.fox29.com/news/woman-in-critical-condition-after-being-struck-by-fallen-tree-branch-in-backyard-police-say | 2022-08-22 23:26:13 | 1 | https://www.fox29.com/news/woman-in-critical-condition-after-being-struck-by-fallen-tree-branch-in-backyard-police-say |
LAS VEGAS (AP) — Victor Wembanyama’s first, and likely last, Summer League is over.
The San Antonio Spurs said Monday that they have seen all they needed from the No. 1 pick in this year’s draft and won’t play him during their remaining games in Las Vegas.
Wembanyama’s final numbers from two games: 36 points, 20 rebounds, eight blocks and three assists on 41% shooting from the floor. He played about 54 minutes.
The shutdown wasn’t a surprise; the Spurs never planned for Wembanyama to play the entirety of Summer League, and now they’ll have a chance to use the minutes he would have gotten to take a look at other players.
“I’m going to sit down with the Spurs to know what the next months are going to be like,” Wembanyama said Sunday night after what became his summer finale. “When to go on vacation, when to start back working out, where I’m going to practice, in San Antonio or somewhere else. I just know I’ve got two to three months — two to three great months — that are coming and they’re going to change my life.”
Shutting him down from games — San Antonio has either three or four games left in Las Vegas — starts what will be a needed break for the 19-year-old from France whose last professional season in his homeland started nearly a year ago. He was in the French playoffs up until a few days before the draft in June, and his schedule has been crazed since.
Put simply, the Spurs believe he needs a chance to rest and reset to get ready for training camp that starts in early October and then an 82-game regular season.
“In the past month, I think basketball wasn’t even 50% of my schedule,” Wembanyama said. “I can’t stand it. I know it’s a special moment in my life, but I’m glad it’s over. Honestly. I just want to hoop. I just want to work out, lift because this is my life. Obviously, every first pick is going to go through this. And it just makes me better for the future.”
It has been a whirlwind few days in Las Vegas for the Spurs. Wembanyama’s debut on Friday night had a circus-like atmosphere with a sold-out crowd and enormous attention; Sunday’s game wasn’t quite the same, but the crowd was still huge. And more big news came between those games on Saturday when Gregg Popovich’s new five-year contract to remain coach and president of the team was announced.
As would be expected, the Popovich signing delighted Wembanyama.
“There’s something great going on, starting,” Wembanyama said. “We kind of knew it was going to happen, but now it’s, let’s get it rolling. We can get started now.”
And everyone from teammates, opponents and even NBA greats like Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and Jerry West have raved about what they’ve seen from Wembanyama in recent days.
“The difficulty is learning how you can best contribute to a winning effort,” Abdul-Jabbar told him. “That’s what you’ve got to learn how to do with your skill set. You will find out what that is basically in preseason. You’ll find out a lot about that.”
Vegas is a showtown. Wembanyama put on a show, and the Spurs said it was enough. And now his focus shifts to his first real season.
“He’s amazing,” San Antonio guard Blake Wesley said. “He’s an amazing person on and off the court.”
___
AP NBA: https://apnews.com/hub/nba and https://twitter.com/AP_Sports | https://www.ksn.com/sports/ap-sports/ap-spurs-decide-that-wembanyamas-summer-league-is-over-after-2-games/ | 2023-07-10 21:22:03 | 0 | https://www.ksn.com/sports/ap-sports/ap-spurs-decide-that-wembanyamas-summer-league-is-over-after-2-games/ |
LONDON (AP) — George Cohen, a defender who played on England’s World Cup-winning team in 1966, has died, the English Football Association said Friday. He was 83.
Cohen played every minute of England’s victorious campaign on home soil. He made 37 appearances for his national team as a right back.
A cause of death was not announced.
Cohen played his entire club career for Fulham, where he made 459 appearances between 1956 and 1969. He retired from playing at 29 after a serious knee injury.
“Everyone at Fulham Football Club is deeply saddened to learn of the passing of one of our greatest ever players — and gentlemen — George Cohen,” the Premier League club said in a statement.
Cohen was the vice-captain for England when the team beat West Germany 4-2 in the 1966 World Cup final at Wembley Stadium. England striker Geoff Hurst scored a hat trick in that match, which went to extra time.
“Very sad to hear my friend and England teammate George Cohen has died,” Hurst wrote on Twitter. “Everyone, without exception, always said that George was such a lovely man. He will be sadly missed, my heartfelt thoughts are with George’s wife Daphne and his family.”
Hurst and Bobby Charlton are the only surviving members of the England squad from the final.
The FA said a tribute for Cohen will be planned at Wembley in March when England faces Ukraine.
“We are very sad to hear the news of George Cohen’s death today,” FA chair Debbie Hewitt said.
Fulham recognized Cohen’s contribution to the club by unveiling a statue of him at Craven Cottage in 2016.
“I find it absolutely wonderful that they even thought I was worthy of it,” Cohen said at the time, according to a tribute posted Friday on the club’s website. “Especially as it was alongside Johnny Haynes, the greatest name in Fulham’s history.”
Cohen had worked within the west London club’s hospitality suites, regaling guests with stories from his incredible career.
___
AP World Cup coverage: https://apnews.com/hub/world-cup and https://twitter.com/AP_Sports | https://www.cenlanow.com/sports/ap-england-world-cup-winner-george-cohen-dies-at-83/ | 2022-12-23 13:52:30 | 1 | https://www.cenlanow.com/sports/ap-england-world-cup-winner-george-cohen-dies-at-83/ |
Which Under Armour hat is best?
Under Armour offers an array of hats for adults and children in different styles and colors, though the classic baseball cap is perhaps the best known. All Under Armour hats are designed for athletic use, providing a comfortable fit for outdoor sports and activities. The Under Armour Men’s Launch Run Hat is a practical, breathable hat that stays comfortable in all kinds of weather.
What to know before you buy an Under Armour hat
How it’s made
Most Under Armour hats feature a threaded logo or design on the exterior. They are made from polyester or acrylic. Polyester is durable, breathable and abrasion-resistant, while acrylic is better insulated for cold weather use. Polyester is best for maintaining a distinct shape, while acrylic pairs well with elastic components.
Select Under Armour hats have a feature called Armour Vent, which includes foam-filled panels designed by Under Armour for better airflow. These panels help you stay cool and dry even as you engage in physical activity.
Types of hats
Under Armour sells four hat styles, though its widest selection focuses on baseball caps.
- Baseball caps have a soft rounded exterior that covers the top of the head with a curved visor to protect you from sun glare. While “baseball” is in the name, this style is also popular with golfers and joggers.
- Knit beanies fit snugly on the head and are designed to keep you warm in chilly weather. Made from an elastic material for a secure yet comfortable fit, they are ideal for skiing and snowboarding.
- Visors are similar to baseball caps but have no top-of-head coverage, fitting around the head like a headband while providing sun glare protection. Visors are more breathable overall, but expose the top of your head to the sun. They are frequently seen on the tennis court.
- Bucket hats are loose fabric hats with narrow brims that slope down around the face. Unlike with baseball caps and visors, the sun-shading rim goes all the way around the hat. They are the preferred hats in the fishing community and among those who spend a lot of time out by the water.
Size
Most men’s and women’s hats are available in small/medium, medium/large and large/extra-large sizes. The only significant difference between men’s and women’s hats is sizing, so size up or down according depending on the circumference of your head. Youth hats are available in small/medium and medium/large.
What to look for in a quality Under Armour hat
Adjustability
When it comes to athletic wear, adjustability is key to comfort and ease of use. While not all Under Armour hats are adjustable, plenty of the baseball caps and visors use webbed or hook and loop closure for adjusting the size. Bucket hats feature an interior cord you pull to to tighten the fit.
Sweatband
A great sweatband is smooth and comfortable against your forehead. It keeps sweat from dripping down your face but also dries quickly so your head isn’t damp all day. Under Armour sweatbands have some stretch to them and are soft to the touch.
Room for hair
If you have longer hair, a space in the back through which a ponytail can be slipped is important. This lets you tie your hair back without the hat pressing down on the bump produced by the hair tie.
How much you can expect to spend on an Under Armour hat
They cost $12-$30 with the average price landing between $20-$25.
Under Armour hat FAQ
Does Under Armour run true to size?
A. Some Under Armour apparel and accessories run a little small, so keep this in mind when looking at hats. This applies to both one-size hats and hats that come in different sizes.
Are the hats machine-washable?
A. Most Under Armour baseball caps and knit caps are machine-washable, but always double-check by looking at the tag. Even machine-washable hats should not go in the dryer, which can adversely affect shape or elasticity.
Are they made in the United States?
A. Under Armour products are made by manufacturers in 18 countries, including Vietnam, Jordan, Malaysia and China.
What’s the best Under Armour hat to buy?
Top Under Armour hat
Under Armour Men’s Launch Run Hat
What you need to know: Available in several colors, this polyester baseball cap features the Under Armour logo on the front and an adjustable hook and loop closure in the back.
What you’ll love: It’s comfortable and breathable, keeping your head cool in warm weather. There’s an opening in the back that can accommodate a ponytail. It’s durable and lightweight, and it wicks sweat well. Additionally, it’s machine-washable.
What you should consider: It runs a little on the small side.
Where to buy: Sold by Amazon
Top Under Armour hat for the money
Under Armour Women’s Play Up Visor
What you need to know: Available in three colors, this polyester visor features the Under Armour logo embroidered on the front and an adjustable webbed closure in the back.
What you’ll love: There’s a sweatband with odor protection and some stretch to it. It is durable and maintains its shape well over time.
What you should consider: It is not machine-washable.
Where to buy: Sold by Amazon
Worth checking out
Under Armour Men’s Tactical Stealth Beanie 2.0
What you need to know: This acrylic black beanie is ribbed with the embroidered Under Armour logo on the front of the fold-over cuff.
What you’ll love: The acrylic knit design keeps your head warm. It wicks sweat and dries quickly. It stretches so you get a good fit. It’s machine-washable.
What you should consider: It runs a little small.
Where to buy: Sold by Amazon
Want to shop the best products at the best prices? Check out Daily Deals from BestReviews.
Sign up here to receive the BestReviews weekly newsletter for useful advice on new products and noteworthy deals.
Emily Verona writes for BestReviews. BestReviews has helped millions of consumers simplify their purchasing decisions, saving them time and money.
Copyright 2022 BestReviews, a Nexstar company. All rights reserved. | https://www.binghamtonhomepage.com/reviews/br/fashion-accessories-br/headwear-br/best-under-armour-hat/ | 2022-08-22 22:58:53 | 0 | https://www.binghamtonhomepage.com/reviews/br/fashion-accessories-br/headwear-br/best-under-armour-hat/ |
BEIJING, June 1, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- About three quarters of Beijing's water supply comes from a reservoir more than 1,000 kilometers south of the Chinese capital.
That reservoir is Danjiangkou, the starting point of the middle route of China's South-to-North Water Diversion Project, the largest of its kind in the world. The water level of the reservoir on the Hanjiang River has been raised 14.6 meters to 176.6 meters, so that the water, driven by gravity, can flow downstream to the drought-prone north. The massive project has benefited over 150 million people over the past eight years, according to China's Ministry of Water Resources.
The South-to-North Water Diversion Project has three routes. The middle route is the most prominent of the three due to its role in feeding water to the nation's capital. Starting from the Danjiangkou Reservoir in central China's Hubei Province, it runs across Henan and Hebei provinces before reaching Beijing and Tianjin municipalities. It began supplying water in December 2014.
The eastern route began operations in November 2013, transferring water from east China's Jiangsu Province to feed areas including Tianjin Municipality and Shandong Province.
The western route is in the planning stage and is yet to be built.
For any country, building such a megaproject constitutes a huge challenge, with difficulties ranging from engineering to ecological conservation and the massive relocation of residents along the routes.
In Xichuan County, Nanyang City, Henan Province, 367,000 people were relocated to accommodate the project.
People in Zouzhuang Village of the county, who used to grow maize and wheat, now earn their living by managing an orchard of kiwifruit trees. With the help of local authorities, they make more money than before, said Zou Yuhua, an official in the village.
How did China overcome these difficulties and make this megaproject a reality? Many factors contribute to the feat, but the key is the leadership of the Communist Party of China (CPC).
"As long as the fundamental principles are upheld, all work will fall in place," Chinese President Xi Jinping, also general secretary of the CPC Central Committee, said at the launch meeting of a campaign on Party history learning and education in February 2021, stressing the importance of upholding the authority and the centralized, unified leadership of the CPC Central Committee.
The magic of China
"As long as the fundamental principles are upheld, all work will fall in place."
This saying comes from "Lyu Shi Chun Qiu," or "Master Lyu's Spring and Autumn Annals," a comprehensive Chinese classic text compiled around 239 BC under the patronage of Lyu Buwei, prime minister of the Qin Kingdom. It literally means that once you open the main rope of a net, everything falls into place, indicating that you must grasp the key of the whole situation so that everything will be put under control and you will get the desired result.
The saying captures the logic behind China's political system today and explains why the country can accomplish megaprojects like the South-to-North Water Diversion Project. In the Chinese system, cells of the Party play key roles everywhere in the economy and society, from the very top to villages. Thus, under the leadership of the CPC, the whole society works in the same direction and serves the people's interests.
This is the magic of China, where solidarity among its 1.4 billion people makes hard causes achievable.
"We must uphold and strengthen the centralized, unified leadership of the Party's Central Committee," Xi said when delivering the report to the 20th CPC National Congress last October.
"We will improve the leadership systems by which the Party exercises overall leadership and coordinates the efforts of all sides," he said. "This will maintain the Party's solidarity and unity."
The Party's leadership is the key to the smooth relocation of villagers in Xichuan County. To help them build a new and better life, local authorities provide technical training for kiwifruit tree planting and organize collective sales through a cooperative. According to Zou Yuhua, Zouzhuang Village aims to expand the orchard from the current 33 to 40 hectares to 200 hectares in the future.
The villagers are satisfied with what they have today. "Now almost every family owns a car," Zou said, describing the relocation as a good opportunity for the villagers.
View original content to download multimedia:
SOURCE CGTN | https://www.wkyt.com/prnewswire/2023/06/01/cgtn-why-can-china-accomplish-mega-water-diversion-project/ | 2023-06-01 11:09:00 | 0 | https://www.wkyt.com/prnewswire/2023/06/01/cgtn-why-can-china-accomplish-mega-water-diversion-project/ |
HMO, PPO, FSA – OMG!
Open enrollment season is upon us, and it's time to sign up for a health insurance plan for the next calendar year. But between the alphabet soup of acronyms and all those daunting data tables, it can be hard to figure out which plan to choose.
While we know this task isn't as exciting as spooky szn or pumpkin-spiced everything, it's important for your health (and will serve you a lot longer than that polyester Halloween costume).
The good news: Life Kit has expert advice to help take the scary out of this process. Here's a cheat sheet of what to keep in mind as you make a decision.
Read your plan's summary of benefits
The first step is to know what's in your health insurance plan, says Tasha Carter, the insurance consumer advocate for the state of Florida. "Many consumers fail to take advantage of the benefits that are offered by their health insurance policy simply because they don't know they exist – or even worse, they end up paying out of pocket for expenses that may have been covered."
So, even though you've had the same plan for years, take a few moments to look over your plan's latest summary of benefits. Health insurance companies are required to provide a summary of benefits and coverage written in simple language. If you don't get it in the mail at the beginning of the year, log on to your health insurance website or call the number on the back of your insurance card and ask for it.
"Oftentimes, insurance companies make changes to benefits, so you want to make sure you understand what those changes are and how they may impact you" and your health, Carter says. Listen to our episode on how to maximize your health insurance coverage here.
Get a sense of your medical needs from a doctor you trust
That can dictate what kind of health insurance you might need in the coming year. "Having someone who's been following you, ideally for years, is extremely valuable in helping you to make decisions" about your health care — and therefore your coverage plan, says pediatrician Dr. Nicole Rochester.
And make sure your preferred primary care doctor and prescription medications are still covered by your insurance, says Aaron DeLaO, formerly the director of health initiatives at the nonprofit group Foundation Communities. Otherwise, he says, you should it "eliminate it" and "find a plan that's going to cover those."
Demystify health insurance jargon
Learn what common health insurance terms like "CHIP," "cost-sharing" and "deductible" mean. It can empower you to better understand what signing on to a plan might mean for your budget and your health. Read our handy glossary of terms here.
Take advantage of freebies ...
Even if you have a bare-bones plan with high deductibles, screenings and other preventive care should be included in your coverage, says Carter, the insurance consumer advocate. That includes screenings for diabetes, cholesterol and blood pressure. To get a handle on what you might need in the coming months, check out this list of recommended screenings by age compiled by the American Academy of Family Physicians.
... and perks
Another advantage of reading your insurance coverage plan super carefully? You might discover useful benefits. Your insurer, for example, might offer discounts to your local gym membership or services that improve your quality of life, like LASIK surgery or massages.
The digital story was edited by Malaka Gharib. We'd love to hear from you. Leave us a voicemail at 202-216-9823, or email us at LifeKit@npr.org.
Copyright 2022 NPR. To see more, visit https://www.npr.org. | https://www.iowapublicradio.org/news-from-npr/news-from-npr/2022-10-07/picking-a-good-health-insurance-plan-can-be-confusing-heres-what-to-keep-in-mind | 2022-10-07 18:28:35 | 0 | https://www.iowapublicradio.org/news-from-npr/news-from-npr/2022-10-07/picking-a-good-health-insurance-plan-can-be-confusing-heres-what-to-keep-in-mind |
Work to be done: 23.5 million students attend schools that still lack adequate bandwidth to support digital learning in every classroom, every day
WASHINGTON, Nov. 16, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Connected Nation's (CN) Connect K-12 Program has released its 2022 Report on School Connectivity in collaboration with Funds For Learning (FFL). The annual report, now in its third iteration, includes findings on the nation's progress toward meeting the Federal Communication Commission's (FCC) bandwidth goal of 1 Mbps per student in U.S. schools.
The latest data show that 67% of schools districts across the country are now meeting that bandwidth target. In addition, the median cost per megabit for schools meeting the FCC goal has dipped below $1 for the first time.
"These are significant milestones for our nation's school districts as they strive to ensure that digital teaching and learning are possible for all students, regardless of location," said Emily Jordan, CN's Vice President of Education Initiatives. "Only two years ago, the number of districts meeting the FCC 's goal was less than half, at just 47%. The good news is the cost of internet access is now lower than ever before, making it possible for more districts to upgrade affordably."
In fact, the median cost per megabit for schools meeting the FCC goal has decreased substantially in less than 10 years — from $11.73 in 2015 to $4.90 in 2017 to $0.97 in 2022. However, there is still more work to be done.
"Right now, a third of school districts still are not meeting the capacity threshold needed to enable digital learning in every classroom, every day," said Jordan. "That accounts for 23.5 million students across the United States who still need improved access."
The data in the 2022 Report on School Connectivity was compiled and analyzed by CN in partnership with FFL and is available to the public on the ConnectK12.org website.
The free site aggregates, analyzes, and visualizes federal E-rate program data and school internet pricing to provide state and district leaders with the critical information they need to negotiate better internet pricing packages and identify broadband solutions.
As a result, Connectk12.org provides both a national snapshot of school connectivity as well as a district-level look at the data. Key takeaways include:
- 67% of school districts nationwide now meet or exceed the 1 Mbps per student
- 21.3 million students have adequate bandwidth in their classrooms, an increase of more than 3 million students since 2021
- 4,304 districts nationwide have internet service contracts about to expire — representing a significant opportunity to upgrade for less
- Districts not meeting the FCC goal are paying a higher median price per megabit — $1.75 per Mbps, compared with $0.97 Mbps for those meeting the goal
- The states of Arkansas, Hawaii, and North Dakota have achieved or surpassed the FCC bandwidth goal for 100% of their students
For questions about CK12, contact Emily Jordan at ejordan@connectednation.org.
View original content to download multimedia:
SOURCE Connected Nation | https://www.wbay.com/prnewswire/2022/11/16/connect-k-12s-2022-report-shows-67-us-school-districts-now-meet-fcc-internet-connectivity-benchmark/ | 2022-11-16 19:33:43 | 1 | https://www.wbay.com/prnewswire/2022/11/16/connect-k-12s-2022-report-shows-67-us-school-districts-now-meet-fcc-internet-connectivity-benchmark/ |
Former Trump White House counselor Kellyanne Conway met Monday with investigators from the House committee investigating the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the Capitol, according to multiple reports.
Conway was seen entering the O’Neill House Office Building, where the panel conducts its depositions and interviews.
Conway was not publicly subpoenaed by the committee and, according to NBC News, told reporters that “I’m here voluntarily” when leaving the room during a break.
She was not in the Trump administration on Jan. 6, but, according to reporting from The Washington Post, Conway called an aide to the former president and urged him to call off his supporters who were storming the Capitol and noted that she had received a call from the Washington, D.C., mayor’s office seeking help in securing assistance from the National Guard.
Conway’s attorney and the Jan. 6 committee did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
The interview was conducted as the panel races to complete its final report in December before the committee sunsets at the end of this Congress.
Conway, often one of Trump’s staunchest defenders, wrote that he lost his 2020 reelection bid in her recent memoir.
“Despite the mountains of money Trump had raised, his team simply failed to get the job done. A job that was doable and had a clear path, if followed,” she wrote in the book released in May.
“Rather than accepting responsibility for the loss, they played along and lent full-throated encouragement (privately, not on TV) when Trump kept insisting he won,” she wrote. | https://www.ksn.com/hill-politics/kellyanne-conway-meets-with-jan-6-panel-reports/ | 2022-11-28 21:00:22 | 0 | https://www.ksn.com/hill-politics/kellyanne-conway-meets-with-jan-6-panel-reports/ |
CEDAR FALLS – Northern Iowa took its seat at the top of the mountain after beating Drake 3-1 for the No. 1 spot in Missouri Valley Conference volleyball.
The Panthers won the first two sets 25-18 and 29-27 – coming from behind at 22-17 to win the second. After losing to the Bulldogs 25-18 in the third set, they readjusted, pulling away at 25-18 again in the fourth.
UNI put up a sturdy lead in the first set with 10 consecutive points before Drake fought its way to 24-18. However, the Panthers managed to close out the Bulldogs as senior Emily Holterhaus connected on a pass from Tayler Alden for the set-winning kill and a 1-0 lead in the match.
“I think just with Drake, we’ve seen it on video where they’ve been able to be down a significant amount and be able to come back and we’ve had some matches like that too,” said head coach Bobbi Petersen. “So never, ever felt comfortable at all, no matter what the score was at any point.”
Northern Iowa had a rally of its own the next set as the Panthers trailed by five with Drake at 22. After working back the deficit, they forced the set into extra points, eventually coming out on top. However, the set came at at the cost of an injury to Olivia Tjernagel, who remained out for the rest of the game.
Tjernagel's absence was felt on the court in the third set as the Bulldogs got a six-point lead, winning as UNI struggled to keep up. However, the Panthers got up to 10-9 and built on the lead in the fourth and final set, ending it at 25-18 and winning the top ranking.
Holterhaus served as the cornerstone in UNI's win, earning 16 kills in 34 attempts in what Petersen called one of her best games.
"Kills are always fun, but it was very well-rounded tonight and I thought that was really cool," Holterhaus said. "Just whenever Tayler gives someone a set, I feel super confident in knowing that anyone on the team can put the ball away."
The win against Drake puts UNI at 14-6, while remaining undefeated against MVC rivals in seven games. | https://wcfcourier.com/sports/college/uni/volleyball/college-volleyball-uni-takes-no-1-spot-with-drake-victory/article_91a505a3-790f-5121-abd4-f5e8ec1f4bbb.html | 2022-10-12 04:48:07 | 0 | https://wcfcourier.com/sports/college/uni/volleyball/college-volleyball-uni-takes-no-1-spot-with-drake-victory/article_91a505a3-790f-5121-abd4-f5e8ec1f4bbb.html |
PORTSMOUTH — Legendary coach Bear Bryant once said defense wins championships.
On Friday night, defense and some explosive offensive plays helped elevate the Portsmouth Trojans to a 34-0 shutout win over visiting Fairland at Trojan Coliseum.
The 34-point victory over the Dragons was the first time a Trojan defense pitched a shutout since a 39-0 win vs. South Point on Oct. 20, 2017.
Two big pass plays from Fairland’s Peyton Jackson to Steeler Leep accounted for 129 of their 178 yards on offense.
The Dragons picked up just six first downs on 37 plays from scrimmage.
Portsmouth picked up 18 first downs, accounted for 440 yards on offense, and turned Fairland’s offense over three times via interception.
Portsmouth senior Beau Hammond intercepted a Jackson pass on Fairland’s second drive of the game, taking it to the end zone for a 30-yard pick six for the game’s first score with 2:59 left in the first quarter.
Zach Roth’s made extra point put the Trojans ahead 7-0.
Senior Nolan Heiland intercepted two Fairland passes in the win.
“We’ve harped on defense, last year we had a great year putting an emphasis on stopping the run. We knew Fairland could throw the ball well and that they had playmakers. We played a lot of man coverage, felt we had an edge in the athleticism and came up with three huge turnovers. To get a defensive score was awesome. Really pleased with how they stepped up and answered the call.”
After getting the scoring started on defense, Hammond took an option run for an eight-yard touchdown run to put the Trojans up 13-0.
Hammond was the Trojans’ leading ballcarrier, rushing for 76 yards on 14 carries.
With a 13-0 lead at half, Portsmouth kept the pressure on in the final 24 minutes.
Tyler Duncan scored from three yards out on a run to put the Trojans ahead 20-0 on their first offensive series of the second half.
Portsmouth’s next two offensive series’ also resulted in touchdowns — and ultimately turned on the running clock inside the Coliseum.
The score that gave the Trojans a four-possession lead was a wild one.
Facing a 3rd and 25, Duncan found senior Jayden Duncan on a comeback route along the Trojan sideline.
Instead of turning up-field, Duncan lateraled the ball to Heiland, who out-ran several Dragon defenders for a 41-yard touchdown.
The play was situation, Kalb said, and his players executed to perfection.
“We call it a Philo flick, a play that Philo used on us way back in the 80s and still carry that name. What a catch by Jayden Duncan and the flip to Nolan Heiland who took it the distance,” Kalb said. “It was exactly how you draw it up, so happy to go out there see the kids execute it.”
On the next drive, Portsmouth took advantage of Fairland’s eighth stalled drive.
Duncan connected with Jayden Duncan on a 25-yard leaping, acrobatic catch in the south end zone — putting Portsmouth ahead by the game’s final score.
Duncan threw for 293 yards and two touchdowns on 18-of-26 passing.
Jayden Duncan hauled in four catches for 76 yards and the score.
“It started on Monday with our practice,” Kalb said. “These kids showed up, knew there was a lot at stake this week. The fact we’re playing Fairland whose a good ballclub, and that it had implications for the league and postseason. They came in Monday focused and had a great day each week — our best week of practice all season and it showed tonight on the field. They took to heart everything we were telling them day one.”
The win gives Portsmouth its third-straight and improves its record to 5-3.
More importantly, the victory gives the Trojans a major edge in the OHSAA’s computer ratings — and keeps their hopes alive in the Ohio Valley Conference race.
As of Friday’s results, Portsmouth (5-3, 4-1 OVC) and Gallia Academy (7-1, 4-1 OVC) are tied for second place in the OVC race behind first-place Ironton (8-0, 5-0 OVC).
The Blue Devils suffered their first loss of the season, 35-31 to Rock Hill in week eight, and travel to Ironton to face the Fighting Tigers in week nine.
Portsmouth closes its regular season with a road trip to South Point (3-5) in week nine, and its annual meeting with the Fighting Tigers at home in week 10.
“We need to continue to play good football. If we can keep going off what we did tonight, the sky’s the limit,” Kalb said. “We started to really settle to who we are and what we’re capable of and I feel like it showed against who we felt was a really good Fairland team.”
***
BOX SCORE
Fairland 0 0 0 0 — 0
Portsmouth 7 6 14 7 — 34
Scoring Plays
P — Beau Hammond, 30-yard interception (Zach Roth XP good); 7-0 P 2:59 1Q
P — Beau Hammond, 8-yard run (XP no good); 13-0 P 11:33 2Q
P — Tyler Duncan, 3-yard run (Zach Roth XP good); 20-0 P 8:09 3Q
P — Nolan Heiland, 41-yard pass from Tyler Duncan (Zach Roth XP good); 27-0 P 1:55 3Q
P — Jayden Duncan, 25-yard pass from Tyler Duncan (Zach Roth XP good); 34-0 P 6:49 4Q
Individual Stats
Passing — Peyton Jackson (F) 3/10 131 2INT, Brycen Hunt (F) 4/7 20 yards INT, Kam Kitts (F) 0/1; Tyler Duncan 18/26 293 yards 2TD
Rushing — Brycen Hunt (F) 7-10, Zion Martin (F) 8-7, Kam Kitts (F) 1-9, Steeler Leep (F) 1-1, Peyton Jackson (F) 1-0; Beau Hammond (P) 14-76 TD, Brenden Truett (P) 9-30, Tyler Duncan (P) 5-30 TD, J.T. Williams (P) 1-9, Nolan Heiland (P) 2-5
Receiving — Nolan Heiland (P) 3-94 TD, Reade Pendleton (P) 7-76, Jayden Duncan (P) 4-76 TD, Beau Hammond (P) 4-45
Reach Jacob Smith at (740) 370-0713 ext. 1930, by email at [email protected], or on Twitter @JacobSmithPDT © 2022 Portsmouth Daily Times, all rights reserved | https://www.portsmouth-dailytimes.com/sports/80883/trojans-dismantle-dragons-portsmouth-pitches-first-shutout-since-17 | 2022-10-10 22:05:08 | 0 | https://www.portsmouth-dailytimes.com/sports/80883/trojans-dismantle-dragons-portsmouth-pitches-first-shutout-since-17 |
WFO SACRAMENTO Warnings, Watches and Advisories for Monday, January 30, 2023
_____
WIND ADVISORY
URGENT - WEATHER MESSAGE
National Weather Service Sacramento CA
200 AM PST Mon Jan 30 2023
...WIND ADVISORY REMAINS IN EFFECT UNTIL 1 PM PST THIS
AFTERNOON...
* WHAT...North winds 15 to 25 mph with gusts up to 45 mph. Local
gusts up to 60 mph in the mountains.
* WHERE...Portions of the Sacramento Valley, Carquinez Strait
and Delta, Mountains of Southwestern Shasta County to Western
Colusa County, Northeast Foothills/Sacramento Valley, Western
Plumas County/Lassen Park and West Slope Northern Sierra
Nevada.
* WHEN...Until 1 PM PST this afternoon.
* IMPACTS...Gusty winds could blow around unsecured objects. Tree
limbs could be blown down and a few power outages may result.
PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS...
Use extra caution when driving, especially if operating a high
profile vehicle. Secure outdoor objects.
_____
Copyright 2023 AccuWeather | https://www.beaumontenterprise.com/weather/article/ca-wfo-sacramento-warnings-watches-and-17750716.php | 2023-01-30 11:07:10 | 0 | https://www.beaumontenterprise.com/weather/article/ca-wfo-sacramento-warnings-watches-and-17750716.php |
2022 Fall Sweepstakes
Sweepstakes Rules
Pledge your support to KCBX and be entered for a chance to win a $500 Visa gift card.
All existing, active KCBX sustaining members as of September 16, 2022, will receive one entry into our sweepstakes automatically.
Donate any amount to KCBX by midnight on September 16, 2022 to receive one entry into our drawing. Staff of KCBX are not eligible to win. Limited to one entry per person per day.
No purchase or donation is required to enter the sweepstakes. You may enter by making a pledge to KCBX or by mailing a 3" x 5" card by September 16, 2022, with your name, address and phone number to:
KCBX Fall Sweepstakes Entry
4100 Vachell Lane
San Luis Obispo, CA 93401
Method of Selection: A file containing names of all eligible entrants between August 10 and September 16, 2022 will be created. The list will be sorted by last name and numbered consecutively. The corresponding number range will be entered into Random.org, a random number generator, and a screenshot will be taken to document the number generated. The person whose name corresponds with the randomly selected number will be notified by email, then phone, and will have ten days from the date of the email to respond and claim their prize. If the prize is unclaimed or the winner declines it, a new winner will be selected according to the same procedure above.
DONATE NOW | https://www.kcbx.org/2022-fall-sweepstakes | 2022-08-08 23:10:52 | 1 | https://www.kcbx.org/2022-fall-sweepstakes |
NEW YORK — A former Indiana congressman and Persian Gulf War veteran was convicted Friday of insider trading charges after a two-week jury trial.
Buyer once chaired the House Veterans’ Affairs committee and served for a time as a House prosecutor during former President Bill Clinton’s 1998 impeachment trial.
The jury returned guilty verdicts on four securities fraud charges. Judge Richard M. Berman set sentencing for July 11.
Prosecutors said at trial that Buyer took information from clients and used it to make illegal stock trades.
His lawyers, though, argued that he was a stock market buff who did research that led to legal profitable trades. They said it was a coincidence that his clients purchased two companies that he had invested in.
Authorities said Buyer made over $320,000 illegally for himself, relatives and a woman with whom he’d had an affair.
Buyer, 64, was an Army reservist with a solo law practice in Monticello, Indiana, when he was called for active duty during the 1990-91 Gulf War. He served as a legal adviser in a prisoner of war camp.
On returning home, he ran for Congress and unseated three-term Democrat Jim Jontz in 1992.
While in Washington, Buyer helped draw attention to Gulf War-related illnesses, and he worked on other issues relating to the military, veterans, prescription drugs and tobacco. | https://www.washingtonpost.com/national/2023/03/10/buyer-republican-congressman-indiana/d41a2060-bf8c-11ed-9350-7c5fccd598ad_story.html | 2023-03-10 22:18:20 | 1 | https://www.washingtonpost.com/national/2023/03/10/buyer-republican-congressman-indiana/d41a2060-bf8c-11ed-9350-7c5fccd598ad_story.html |
Rocky Wirtz, the team chairman who oversaw the revitalization of the Chicago Blackhawks from a laughingstock into a Stanley Cup power, died Tuesday, a source confirmed to the Tribune. He was 70.
Born William Rockwell Wirtz on Oct. 5, 1952, he took over the team after his father, Bill, died in September 2007. It came as a surprise that Rocky took over the Hawks instead of his brother Peter, who had served as team vice president and worked for the franchise for about two decades.
But after Bill Wirtz’s death, Peter, who was in deep mourning over his father, announced he was leaving the team and Rocky would take control — even though Rocky had shown little interest before Bill’s death.
He wasted little time in remaking the Hawks on and off the ice.
Bill Wirtz, known derisively as “Dollar Bill” for his penny-pinching ways, did not allow Hawks games to be broadcast on local television and attendance plummeted, resulting in the team having the second-lowest average ticket price in the league upon his death. In 2004, ESPN named the Hawks “The Worst Franchise in Professional Sports,” and Bill Wirtz, who inherited the team from his father, Arthur, was even booed — loudly — at the United Center after his death.
People are also reading…
But Rocky Wirtz changed the franchise’s image in a hurry.
“We had to be decisive,” Wirtz told Chicago Magazine in 2008. “We had to be quick. And we had to do things that were dramatic.”
Wirtz inherited a team that was bleeding money — Bill Wirtz told the Toronto Star in 2007 the team had lost $191 million over 10 years — so change had to happen quickly.
“I couldn’t understand it,” Rocky Wirtz told Chicago Magazine. “If I could ask (my father) one question, I’d ask him, Why? He was a superb businessman, and other stuff wasn’t this way.”
Wirtz lured John McDonough away from the Cubs to become president and CEO and overhaul the Hawks’ marketing efforts to help increase attendance. Wirtz also reached out to several Hawks alumni who had been out of touch with the organization during Bill Wirtz’s tenure, including Tony Esposito, Bobby Hull and Stan Mikita.
Wirtz and McDonough immediately put Hawks games on local television, and McDonough also secured radio broadcasting rights.
Those moves coincided with a rejuvenation of the Hawks on the ice. They used high draft picks to select Jonathan Toews (the No. 3 pick in 2006) and Patrick Kane (the No. 1 pick in 2007). Their emergence alongside winger Patrick Sharp, acquired in 2005 in a trade from the Philadelphia Flyers, and defensemen Duncan Keith and Brent Seabrook ushered in a new age of hockey on the West Side.
By 2009, just a year and a half after Bill Wirtz’s death, the Hawks were back in the playoffs for the first time since 2002.
Forbes Magazine dubbed the Hawks’ revitalization the “Greatest Sports-Business Turnaround Ever” in 2009.
“I am not familiar with this kind of massive turnaround that occurred in a blink of an eye,” Marc Ganis, then president of Sportscorp, a sports-business consultancy, told Forbes in 2009. “It’s arguably the most remarkable turnaround in the history of sports in the United States.”
The Hawks’ season-ticket base jumped from 3,400 to 14,000 by that year and they led the league in attendance.
That offseason, Wirtz made one of the biggest moves of his tenure and gave the go-ahead to sign free agent Marian Hossa to a 12-year, $63.3 million contract, a deal that might never have happened under Wirtz’s frugal father. It signaled that the Hawks and Wirtz would spare no expense in the effort to bring a Stanley Cup back to Chicago.
In 2010, the Hawks captured their first Stanley Cup since 1961 when they beat the Flyers in six games. It would be the first of three Stanley Cups they would win in six seasons during that decade. They boasted hundreds of consecutive sellouts at the United Center and enjoyed surging TV ratings.
But behind the scenes, the Hawks were not the model franchise depicted during their 2010 Stanley Cup run.
In May 2021, former prospect Kyle Beach sued the team, alleging negligence over a claim former video coach Brad Aldrich sexually assaulted him. In October of that year, law firm Jenner & Block released its finding after investigating Beach’s claims. The firm found that Hawks upper management — including McDonough, Stan Bowman, Kevin Cheveldayoff and coach Joel Quenneville — failed to act on Beach’s sexual assault claim until after the championship was secured.
Wirtz said he was unaware of the 2010 allegations until the lawsuit was filed in 2021.
“If we had, we certainly wouldn’t be standing here today,” he said.
During a February 2022 town hall, Wirtz bristled at questions about the incident that were directed at Danny Wirtz, Rocky’s son and Blackhawks CEO.
“I’m going to answer the question, not him,” Rocky Wirtz interjected. “I think the report speaks for itself. The people that were involved are no longer here. We’re not looking back at 2010, we’re looking forward and we’re not going to talk about 2010.”
Wirtz also sparred with Tribune reporter Phil Thompson over the outlet’s sports section.
“I didn’t realize you were in our ticket department,” Wirtz said when asked about how the scandal impacted ticket sales. “Come on, come on. Let’s talk about all the negative stuff. Let’s talk about the paper and what the sports page looks like. Should I do that? And you can’t even get our late scores?”
Wirtz later apologized for his outburst, but not after it drew plenty of attention and criticism.
In 2017, the Hawks completed construction on a new practice facility Wirtz and the team funded near the United Center. The facility cost $55 million and features two NHL-size rinks. Wirtz wanted the facility for use by players and youth leagues around the Chicago area along with serving as an updated state-of-the-art practice facility for the Hawks, who formerly practiced at Johnny’s IceHouse West.
Before taking control of the Hawks, Wirtz ran the family’s beverage business, Wirtz Beverage Group. In 2016, the Wirtz Beverage Group merged with New-York based Charmer Sunbelt to form Breakthru Beverage Group, which at one time was the third-largest alcohol distributor in the U.S.
“To be honest, (Rocky) is very deferential,” Danny Wirtz told the Tribune in 2016. “This is his approach with the executives who work for him. … He does not believe in micromanagement. He hires good people and lets them run.”
During his tenure with the Hawks, Wirtz largely maintained a low profile in the public eye.
“Club presidents aren’t in the business of being loved by fans,” Wirtz told Chicago Magazine. “I learned that from my father.” | https://www.nwitimes.com/sports/professional/nhl/rocky-wirtz-chicago-blackhawks-nhl-hockey/article_3a456548-2b49-11ee-9a13-4b35b2d7886c.html | 2023-07-26 02:33:10 | 1 | https://www.nwitimes.com/sports/professional/nhl/rocky-wirtz-chicago-blackhawks-nhl-hockey/article_3a456548-2b49-11ee-9a13-4b35b2d7886c.html |
HELENA – Bears are emerging from dens with the onset of spring, and people who are headed outdoors should “Be Bear Aware.”
Bears can be found throughout Montana.
Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks (FWP) notes grizzly bear populations have expanded and bears are sometimes found in historic ranges beyond Western Montana/
People can avoid conflict by removing or securing food attractants such as garbage, bird feeders and pet food as bears begin foraging for food.
According to FWP, the most common human-bear conflicts involve unsecured food attractants.
People venturing into the outdoors can “Be Bear Aware” by following these precautionary steps:
- Carry and know how to use bear spray.
- Travel in groups whenever possible and plan to be out in the daylight hours.
- Stay on trails or rural roads.
- Avoid carcass sites and concentrations of ravens and other scavengers.
- Watch for signs of bears such as bear scat, diggings, torn-up logs and turned over rocks, and partly consumed animal carcasses.
- Keep children and pets close.
- Make noise, especially near streams or in thick forest where hearing and visibility is impaired. This can be the key to avoiding encounters. Most bears will avoid humans when they know humans are present.
- Don't approach a bear.
If you are camping in bear country, follow these guidelines:
- Camp away from areas where you see grizzly bear sign.
- Keep a clean camp at all times. Keep tents and sleeping bags free of food.
- Follow all food storage regulations. Contact the applicable land management agency to learn what food storage rules apply where you’re recreating. Hang all food, trash and other odorous items well away from camp and at least 10 feet above ground and 4 feet from any vertical support, or store in a bear-proof container. Livestock feed should be treated the same as human food.
Anglers also need to practice safe behavior in bear country:
- Don't leave fish entrails on shorelines of lakes and streams.
- Sink entrails in deep water.
- If you don't properly dispose of entrails you increase danger to yourself and to the next person to use the area.
- Carry bear spray when fishing along rivers or streams with dense streamside cover.
FWP offers additional advice on how to "Be Bear Aware" here. | https://www.kbzk.com/news/montana-news/be-bear-aware-when-recreating-in-montanas-outdoors | 2023-03-24 22:08:33 | 0 | https://www.kbzk.com/news/montana-news/be-bear-aware-when-recreating-in-montanas-outdoors |
Schwazze Will Host A Grand Opening on July 9, 2022 To Debut The Remodeled Star Buds In Aurora, Colorado
DENVER, July 7, 2022 /PRNewswire/ - Schwazze, (OTCQX: SHWZ) (NEO: SHWZ), a vertically integrated regional cannabis company with assets in Colorado and New Mexico, announces the evolution of the Star Buds brand with the remodel of two Star Buds cannabis dispensaries in Colorado. Schwazze will debut the first Star Buds dispensary to display the brand evolution and renovation on July 9, 2022 at its Montview store located at 10100 E Montview Blvd, Aurora, CO 80010.
Star Buds is a premier marijuana dispensary that offers a wide selection of products and best-in-class service. The Star Buds evolution is designed to capture a 70s retro persona; fun-loving, easy-going, and one that never lets you down. The Star Buds evolution highlights that each location is more than a dispensary, as they embody a nostalgic presence about the good times, while also helping customers find their way.
The Star Buds brand evolution moves away from a color theme traditionally used within the cannabis industry and incorporates a warmer color scheme of kelly green, yellow, and orange. The dispensaries feature in-store signage that highlight distinctly unique Star Buds phrases such as, "Good Vibes This Way," "Find Your Happy," "The Freshest Greens Served Daily," including brand pillar messaging of the Company's core values: "Top Quality, Widest Selection, Stellar Service." The new design provides an enhanced consumer experience and more space for budtenders to better serve customers.
"We're proud to debut the Star Buds brand evolution, driven by the team at Schwazze, to offer our customers a fun, colorful environment that combines the traditional bud bar model with a shop-the-store, more hands-on experience," said Collin Lodge, Vice President of Retail for Schwazze. "As owners of Star Buds in Colorado, our stores are entering a new era that aligns perfectly with our mission of offering the widest selection of top quality products with stellar service."
The festivities celebrating the debut of the first Star Buds brand evolution and renovation kick off on Saturday, July 9, 2022 at 11 am. The first 50 customers will receive a backpack filled with Star Buds branded swag. The celebration will feature games, giveaways, a social media scavenger hunt, and representatives from various prominent cannabis brands, such as Wana, O.Pen, Willie's Reserve, Ripple and more. The dispensary, located at 10100 E Montview Blvd, Aurora, CO will offer in-store discounts all weekend.
In late summer 2022, Schwazze will complete the remodel of Star Buds Glendale located at 492 S Colorado Blvd, Glendale, CO 80246. The brand evolution and remodel follows the acquisition of 13 Colorado Star Buds locations in March of 2021. The acquisition and brand evolution of the Star Buds retail spaces are part of a proven integration, which has grown the total number of Colorado dispensaries to 23 along with four cultivation facilities.
Star Buds N. Aurora
Aurora
10100 E Montview Boulevard
Aurora, CO 80010
Grand Reopening Celebration
Saturday, July 9, 2022
11 am to 3 pm
Schwazze (OTCQX:SHWZ, NEO:SHWZ) is building a premier vertically integrated regional cannabis company with assets in Colorado and New Mexico and will continue to take its operating system to other states where it can develop a differentiated regional leadership position. Schwazze is the parent company of a portfolio of leading cannabis businesses and brands spanning seed to sale. The Company is committed to unlocking the full potential of the cannabis plant to improve the human condition. Schwazze is anchored by a high-performance culture that combines customer-centric thinking and data science to test, measure, and drive decisions and outcomes. The Company's leadership team has deep expertise in retailing, wholesaling, and building consumer brands at Fortune 500 companies as well as in the cannabis sector. Schwazze is passionate about making a difference in our communities, promoting diversity and inclusion, and doing our part to incorporate climate-conscious best practices.
Medicine Man Technologies, Inc. was Schwazze's former operating trade name. The corporate entity continues to be named Medicine Man Technologies, Inc. Schwazze derives its name from the pruning technique of a cannabis plant to enhance plant structure and promote healthy growth.
This press release contains "forward-looking statements." Such statements may be preceded by the words "plan," "will," "may,", "predicts," or similar words. Forward-looking statements are not guarantees of future events or performance, are based on certain assumptions, and are subject to various known and unknown risks and uncertainties, many of which are beyond the Company's control and cannot be predicted or quantified. Consequently, actual events and results may differ materially from those expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements. Such risks and uncertainties include, without limitation, risks and uncertainties associated with (i) our inability to manufacture our products and product candidates on a commercial scale on our own or in collaboration with third parties; (ii) difficulties in obtaining financing on commercially reasonable terms; (iii) changes in the size and nature of our competition; (iv) loss of one or more key executives or scientists; (v) difficulties in securing regulatory approval to market our products and product candidates; (vi) our ability to successfully execute our growth strategy in Colorado and outside the state, (vii) our ability to consummate the acquisition described in this press release or to identify and consummate future acquisitions that meet our criteria, (viii) our ability to successfully integrate acquired businesses and realize synergies therefrom, (ix) the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, * the timing and extent of governmental stimulus programs, (xi) the uncertainty in the application of federal, state and local laws to our business, and any changes in such laws, and * out ability to satisfy the closing conditions for the private finding described in this press release. More detailed information about the Company and the risk factors that may affect the realization of forward-looking statements is set forth in the Company's filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), including the Company's Annual Report on Form 10-K and its Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q. Investors and security holders are urged to read these documents free of charge on the SEC's website at http://www.sec.gov. The Company assumes no obligation to publicly update or revise its forward-looking statements as a result of new information, future events or otherwise except as required by law.
View original content to download multimedia:
SOURCE Schwazze | https://www.kfyrtv.com/prnewswire/2022/07/07/schwazze-debuts-star-buds-brand-evolution-with-remodel-star-buds-aurora-colorado/ | 2022-07-07 13:05:32 | 0 | https://www.kfyrtv.com/prnewswire/2022/07/07/schwazze-debuts-star-buds-brand-evolution-with-remodel-star-buds-aurora-colorado/ |
US to unseal thousands of classified JFK assassination documents
The National Archives will soon unseal troves of formerly classified documents relating to the assassination of President John F. Kennedy.
President Biden is expected to order the release of 8,000 documents relating to the attack, including many from the CIA's personality file on Lee Harvey Oswald that it maintained both before and after JFK's killing, Politico reported Thursday.
Conspiracies surrounding JFK's killing have piqued the curiosity — and sometimes obsession — of Americans for decades. Nevertheless, White House officials have reportedly indicated that nothing in the documents will support the two most popular conspiracies: That Oswald was not the shooter and that JFK's killing was a government conspiracy.
The release will be the largest since December of last year when the Biden administration released 1,500 documents, most of them related to Oswald.
Texas Rangers escort accused Kennedy assassin Lee Harvey Oswald into a Dallas police facility. (Getty Images)
ROBERT KENNEDY'S ASSASSIN SIRHAN SIRHAN GRANTED PAROLE BY CALIFORNIA BOARD
Last year's release was disappointing for many interested in the issue, with Fox News legal analyst Gregg Jarrett stating at the time that the government had much more to release.
"There are some surprising results and information in those documents," Jarrett said. "But, thousands more are yet to be released."
"The government, to this day, continues to hide thousands of assassination records," he added.
JFK ASSASSINATION: NATIONAL ARCHIVES RELEASES 1,500 DOCUMENTS
Jarrett went on to assert that most Americans do not believe the official story that Oswald operated as a lone gunman in the attack, as was found in the 1964 Warren Commission.
The exterior of the National Archives Building in Washington, D.C., on Friday September 16, 2022. (Photo by Sarah Silbiger for The Washington Post via Getty Images)
Adding fuel to the fire was Oswald's own assassination in 1963 at the hands of a Texas nightclub owner.
The chief topic Thursday's expected release will cover is Oswald's 80-volume "personality file," a document containing essentially everything the CIA knew about Oswald both before and after the attack, according to Politico.
Flanked by Chair of the Council of Economic Advisers Cecilia Rouse (L) and Director of the National Economic Council Brian Deese (R), U.S. President Joe Biden speaks in the Roosevelt Room of the White House. (Drew Angerer/Getty Images)
The documents will also reportedly offer insight into the CIA's surveillance operation against Oswald in Mexico City just weeks before the assassination. | https://www.fox4news.com/news/us-unseal-thousands-classified-jfk-assassination-documents | 2022-12-15 19:45:03 | 1 | https://www.fox4news.com/news/us-unseal-thousands-classified-jfk-assassination-documents |
(The Hill) – The retail chain Party City filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protections on Monday in an attempt to reduce its massive debt.
Party City Holdco Inc. (PCHI), the company that runs the chain, filed for bankruptcy to the Securities and Exchange Commission. It received $150 million in financing to support its continuing operations, according to the filing.
CNN reported that the company has more than $1.7 billion in debt.
Party City thrived for years but has struggled amid the growth of online shopping.
The company’s sales dropped by 8 percent from 2017 to 2021, according to CNN.
When a company files for Chapter 11 bankruptcy, it can usually continue its business and can borrow additional money with court approval.
The company said in a press release that it reached an agreement with a group that holds more than 70 percent of its senior secured debt, which is backed by an asset as collateral, to reduce it.
CEO Brad Weston cited the financial impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic, global supply chain issues and other macroeconomic trends in the industry as challenges facing the company, but he said the company has created a “solid foundation for long-term growth.”
“Today’s action to strengthen PCHI’s balance sheet will bolster our ability to further advance our strategic priorities and continue to innovate and elevate the customer experience,” he said.
The release states the company still runs more than 800 store locations and offers online shopping.
The restructuring of the company’s debt is expected to be completed in the second quarter of 2023.
Bed, Bath & Beyond, another retail store that has struggled as a result of the expansion of online sellers, warned investors earlier this month that it may file for bankruptcy soon.
–Updated at 2:20 p.m. | https://www.wjhl.com/news/national/party-city-files-for-bankruptcy-protection/ | 2023-01-19 00:08:20 | 0 | https://www.wjhl.com/news/national/party-city-files-for-bankruptcy-protection/ |
LOUISVILLE, Ky. (AP) — A federal judge on Thursday temporarily blocked a state law that effectively eliminated abortions in Kentucky after the state’s two remaining clinicssaid they couldn’t meet its requirements.
The decision by U.S. District Judge Rebecca Grady Jennings was a victory for abortion rights advocates and a setback for the Republican-led legislature, which passed the law in March and then overrode Democratic Gov. Andy Beshear’s veto of the measure last week. One of the clinics said Thursday that it would immediately resume abortion services.
The new law bans abortions after 15 weeks of pregnancy and requires women to be examined by a doctor before receiving abortion pills. It also contains new reporting requirements that the Kentucky clinics said they couldn’t immediately comply with. Noncompliance can result in stiff fines and felony penalties.
Jennings’ order did not delve into the larger issue of the new law’s constitutionality. Instead, it focused on the clinics’ claims that they’re unable to comply with the measure because the state hasn’t yet set up clear guidelines.
Jennings, who was appointed by former President Donald Trump, said she decided to block the entire law because she lacked information “to specifically determine which individual provisions and subsections are capable of compliance.”
Abortion rights activists said they were relieved by the decision but noted more rounds are ahead in the legal fight.
“This is a win, but it is only the first step,” said Rebecca Gibron, the CEO for Planned Parenthood in Kentucky, where its clinic is immediately resuming abortion services. “We’re prepared to fight for our patients’ right to basic health in court and to continue doing everything in our power in ensure abortion access is permanently secured in Kentucky.”
Supporters say the goal of Kentucky’s new law is to protect women’s health and strengthen oversight. Opponents say the objective all along was to stop abortions in the state completely.
Kentucky is among the GOP-led states that have passed restrictive abortion laws in anticipation of a U.S. Supreme Court decision that could reverse the landmark Roe v. Wade decision that established a right to abortion nationwide nearly 50 years ago.
Pending before the high court is a challenge to a law passed in a fifth state, Mississippi, that bans abortion after 15 weeks. The court has indicated that it will allow Mississippi’s ban to stand and conservative justices have suggested they support overruling Roe. | https://www.wane.com/news/kentucky-abortion-law-blocked-in-win-for-clinics/ | 2022-04-21 22:18:39 | 1 | https://www.wane.com/news/kentucky-abortion-law-blocked-in-win-for-clinics/ |
The 2023 U.S. Open Odds & Preview: Jon Rahm
Held from June 15-18, Jon Rahm is set to play in the 2023 U.S. Open at The Los Angeles Country Club in Los Angeles, California.
Looking to place a wager on Rahm at the U.S. Open this week? Read on for the betting odds and stats you need to know before you make your picks.
Put together your best lineup of golfers and you could win cash prizes! Sign up for FanDuel Fantasy using our link for the best first-time player offer.
Jon Rahm Insights
- Rahm has finished below par on 13 occasions, completed his day without a bogey three times and finished 16 rounds with a better-than-average score over his last 20 rounds played.
- He has carded the best score of the day three times while finishing in the top-five four times and with a top-10 score in seven of his last 20 rounds played.
- Over his last 20 rounds, Rahm has finished within three strokes of the best score of the round seven times, and within five strokes of the top score of the day on 12 occasions.
- In his past five appearances, Rahm has one win and two top-five finishes.
- In his past five appearances, Rahm has finished within three shots of the leader twice and posted a score better than average four times.
- Rahm hopes to qualify for the weekend for the sixth straight time.
Sign up for ESPN+ to get access to PGA Tour Live, which broadcasts the main feed, featured holes and marquee groups from over 35 events per year! Plus, get tons of other live sports, original shows and the full "30 for 30" library. Sign up today!
Over the last year
Sign up today for BetMGM and get our new player bonus offer! Once you've signed up, check out the latest PGA odds and place your bets with BetMGM.
U.S. Open Insights and Stats
- The past seven times Rahm has played this tournament, he has finished atop the leaderboard once. He's also been among the top five two times and his average finish has been 12th.
- Rahm has five made cuts in his past seven appearances at this tournament.
- Rahm finished 12th on the leaderboard in his previous appearance at this event, in 2022.
- The Tour has played courses with an average length of 7,259 yards in the past year, while The Los Angeles Country Club is set for a longer 7,423 yards.
- The average course Rahm has played i the last year (7,395 yards) is 28 yards shorter than the course he'll be playing this week (7,423).
Rahm's Last Time Out
- Rahm was relatively mediocre on the 16 par-3 holes at The Memorial Tournament presented by Workday, averaging 3.19 strokes to finish in the 47th percentile of the field.
- He averaged 4 strokes on par-4 holes (of which there were 40) at The Memorial Tournament presented by Workday, which was good enough to land him in the 90th percentile among all competitors on par 4s (the tournament average was 4.14).
- On the 16 par-5 holes at The Memorial Tournament presented by Workday, Rahm shot better than 39% of the field (averaging 4.81 strokes).
- Rahm did not record a birdie on any of the 16 par-3s at The Memorial Tournament presented by Workday (the other competitors averaged 1.2).
- On the 16 par-3s at The Memorial Tournament presented by Workday, Rahm had three bogeys or worse (the other competitors averaged 3.3).
- Rahm's eight birdies or better on par-4s at The Memorial Tournament presented by Workday were more than the tournament average of 4.5.
- In that last competition, Rahm's par-4 performance (on 40 holes) included a bogey or worse nine times (worse than the field average, 8.2).
- Rahm ended The Memorial Tournament presented by Workday underperforming compared to the tournament average of birdies or better on par-5s (4.8), with four on the 16 par-5 holes.
- On the 16 par-5s at The Memorial Tournament presented by Workday, Rahm recorded one bogey or worse, fewer than the field average of 1.7.
U.S. Open Time and Date Info
- Date: June 15-18, 2023
- Course: The Los Angeles Country Club
- Location: Los Angeles, California
- Par: 70 / 7,423 yards
- Rahm Odds to Win: +1000 (Bet now with BetMGM!)
Watch live golf without cable on all your devices with a seven-day free trial to Fubo!
Not all offers available in all states, please visit offer pages for the latest promotions for your area. Must be 21+ to gamble, please play responsibly. If you or someone you know has a gambling problem, contact 1-800-GAMBLER.
© 2023 Data Skrive. All rights reserved. | https://www.kfyrtv.com/sports/betting/2023/06/17/jon-rahm-u-s-open-pga-odds/ | 2023-06-13 01:20:28 | 1 | https://www.kfyrtv.com/sports/betting/2023/06/17/jon-rahm-u-s-open-pga-odds/ |
NEW YORK, Jan. 9, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Attention Gaotu Techedu Inc. F/K/A Gsx Techedu Inc. ("Gaotu") (NYSE: GOTU) shareholders:
The Law Offices of Vincent Wong announce that a class action lawsuit has commenced on behalf of investors. This lawsuit is on behalf of persons or entities who purchased or otherwise acquired publicly traded Gaotu American depository shares between March 5, 2021 and July 23, 2021, inclusive.
If you suffered a loss on your investment in Gaotu, contact us about potential recovery by using the link below. There is no cost or obligation to you.
https://www.wongesq.com/pslra-1/gaotu-techedu-loss-submission-form?prid=35392&wire=4
ABOUT THE ACTION: The class action against Gaotu includes allegations that the Company made materially false and/or misleading statements and/or failed to disclose that: (1) China was barring tutoring for profit in core school subjects, and this policy change would restrict foreign investment in a sector that had become essential to success in Chinese school exams; and (2) the impact such regulations would have on Gaotu's operations and profitability and the value of Company securities.
DEADLINE: February 28, 2023
Aggrieved Gaotu investors only have until February 28, 2023 to request that the Court appoint you as lead plaintiff. You are not required to act as a lead plaintiff in order to share in any recovery.
Vincent Wong, Esq. is an experienced attorney who has represented investors in securities litigations involving financial fraud and violations of shareholder rights. Attorney advertising. Prior results do not guarantee similar outcomes.
CONTACT:
Vincent Wong, Esq.
39 East Broadway
Suite 304
New York, NY 10002
Tel. 212.425.1140
E-Mail: vw@wongesq.com
View original content:
SOURCE The Law Offices of Vincent Wong | https://www.dakotanewsnow.com/prnewswire/2023/01/09/class-action-alert-law-offices-vincent-wong-remind-gaotu-investors-lead-plaintiff-deadline-february-28-2023/ | 2023-01-09 11:17:09 | 1 | https://www.dakotanewsnow.com/prnewswire/2023/01/09/class-action-alert-law-offices-vincent-wong-remind-gaotu-investors-lead-plaintiff-deadline-february-28-2023/ |
The postseason has fully arrived. On Monday, the 2023 New Jersey high school boys volleyball state tournament was seeded.
The top seeds in each bracket are No. 3 Southern, No. 4 Harrison, No. 5 Livingston, No. 6 Fair Lawn, No. 8 St. John Vianney, No. 9 Summit, No. 20 St. Joseph (Met.), and Northern Burlington.
Check out the full state tournament brackets below.
- North Jersey, Group 1
- North Jersey, Group 2
- North Jersey, Group 3
- North Jersey, Group 4
- South Jersey, Group 1
- South Jersey, Group 2
- South Jersey, Group 3
- South Jersey, Group 4
The N.J. High School Sports newsletter is now appearing in mailboxes 5 days a week. Sign up now and be among the first to get all the boys and girls sports you care about, straight to your inbox each weekday. To add your name, click here.
Thank you for relying on us to provide the journalism you can trust. Please consider supporting NJ.com with a subscription.
You can reach Donovan Hugel at dhugel@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @donohugel.
You can reach Greg Patuto at gpatuto@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @GregPatuto. | https://www.nj.com/highschoolsports/2023/05/boys-volleyball-2023-njsiaa-state-tournament-brackets.html | 2023-05-22 17:35:54 | 0 | https://www.nj.com/highschoolsports/2023/05/boys-volleyball-2023-njsiaa-state-tournament-brackets.html |
Albums from Lukas Nelson and Kool & The Gang plus a Spanish-language spin-off of “Bird Box” are among the new television, movies, music and games headed to a device near you.
Among the offerings worth your time as selected by The Associated Press’ entertainment journalists are the dinosaur-hunting video game Exoprimal and the new Netflix series “Quarterback,” which takes an unprecedented look at the lives of popular QBs Patrick Mahomes, Kirk Cousins and Marcus Mariota.
NEW MOVIES TO STREAM
— Wes Anderson’s stylish and star-studded “Asteroid City” arrived on premium video on demand (VOD) on Tuesday. This outing is a whimsically constructed play-within-a-play that’s set in the American midcentury Desert West at a junior stargazer convention, bringing together several kid geniuses, their parents, including Scarlett Johansson’s Marilyn-esque movie star and Jason Schwartzman’s widowed war photographer, scientists, military types, some singing cowboys and a very special cameo from Jeff Goldblum. I wrote in my review that it is very, very Wes Anderson and also a return to form. It’ll also still be available in theaters around the country for anyone still hoping to catch it on the big screen.
— Remember the Sandra Bullock-in-a-blindfold movie “Bird Box” that seemingly everyone with a Netflix account watched over the holidays in 2018? Well, the streamer made a spin-off, in Spanish, debuted Friday. The blindfolds are once again paramount in “Bird Box Barcelona,” in which a father played by Mario Casas tries to protect his daughter from the monsters. Álex and David Pastor wrote and directed this installment based on Josh Malerman’s 2014 novel. Is it worth your time? Check out AP’s review here.
— Several other films big and small also arrived on VOD this week, including “Transformers: Rise of the Beasts,” set in 1994 and starring Dominique Fishback and Anthony Ramos. There’s also the independent gem “The Starling Girl,” a coming-of-age story about a teenage girl (Eliza Scanlen) who is trying to find her identity while adhering to the rules of her isolated religious community. Her life gets complicated when she develops a crush on the handsome youth pastor (Lewis Pullman).
— AP Film Writer Lindsey Bahr
NEW MUSIC TO STREAM
— Country star Lukas Nelson calls his latest album “the perfect setlist.” “Sticks and Stones,” the follow-up release to his 2021 album “A Few Stars Apart,” includes the first single, “More Than Friends,” featuring Lainey Wilson. Another single, “Alcohallelujah,” touches on both the highs and lows of drinking, with Nelson singing: “Forgive me, Father, for I’ve been inspired /I got bars and bars of melodies and memories/May this spirit lift me ever higher.” The new 12-track album, out Friday, sees Nelson backed by his longtime band Promise of the Real.
— Kool & The Gang and summer go together like peanut butter and jelly. The R&B, funk and soul icons — celebrating their 60th anniversary next year — have a new album, “People Just Wanna Have Fun.” The first single is infectious stuff, the happy, funky “Let’s Party,” featuring vocals from Sha Sha Jones. The band is led by founding members Robert “Kool” Bell on bass and George “Funky” Brown, the keyboardist, drummer and producer, whose memoir “Too Hot: Kool & The Gang & Me” arrives Tuesday. In addition to Jones, vocals on the album also include Shawn McQuiller, Lavell Evans, Dominique Karan, Rick Marcel and Walt Anderson, plus rappers Ami Miller & Ole’.
— A 1998 video recording of Rodgers & Hammerstein’s music theater classic “Oklahoma!” — starring then-newcomer Hugh Jackman — is hitting movie theaters for a lot less than a Broadway ticket. Jackman starred as Curly, alongside Maureen Lipman, Josefina Gabrielle and Shuler Hensley, during the show’s cheered run in London. The film will be screened in more than 800 cinemas around the globe for two days only, on Sunday and Wednesday, July 19 – including the U.S., U.K., Canada, Ireland, Norway and Australia. It features some very hummable songs, including “Oh, What a Beautiful Mornin’,” “The Surrey with the Fringe on Top” and the joyous title tune.
— AP Entertainment Writer Mark Kennedy
NEW SERIES TO STREAM
— The title “Secrets of Playboy” alone sparks intrigue and the docuseries was a big hit for A&E because of its in-depth look at an alleged underbelly of the brand and its founder Hugh Hefner. The series returned for its second season on Monday with more interviews with former Playboy models, Playmates, and archival footage that examines Playboy’s impact on pop culture and those directly involved with the company.
— Football fans: would you like to know exactly what your favorite team’s quarterback is thinking during a season, from practices, to wins and losses, and what they say and do in a huddle? A new Netflix series called – you guessed it – “Quarterback” —takes an unprecedented look at the lives of popular QBs Patrick Mahomes, Kirk Cousins and Marcus Mariota for the entire 2022 season. The players were mic’d for every game and cameras followed them home. “Quarterback” premiered Wednesday.
— Season five of the silly, witty, Emmy-nominated comedy “What We Do in the Shadows” arrived Thursday on FX. The mocumentary-style show follows the adventures of a group of vampire roommates living in a decrepit mansion. These hundreds-year-old vampires go out into the world and interact with the population. If it sounds ridiculous, it is, and that’s the point.
— Alicia Rancilio
NEW VIDEO GAMES TO PLAY
— California indie developer Night School Studio charmed gamers in 2016 with Oxenfree, the tale of a group of meddling teens who stumble across a series of dimensional rifts while exploring a mysterious island. Night School, which has since been acquired by Netflix, is at long last returning to the story with the much anticipated Oxenfree II: Lost Signals. The sequel revolves around Riley, an environmental researcher who’s assigned to her coastal Oregon hometown to investigate puzzling radio transmissions. Fans of the original — not to mention the supernatural smash “Stranger Things” — can now book a return visit on PlayStation 5/4, Nintendo Switch, PC and the Netflix mobile app.
— Most of us who think about what 2040 will look like are worried about things like war, climate change and our new AI overlords, but Capcom’s Exoprimal proposes a different existential threat: dinosaur outbreaks! Your mission is to team up online with four other players and send the voracious beasts back to extinction. You are armed with futuristic weapons and high-tech “exosuits” of armor — but you also have to compete with other squads to collect the most trophies. Capcom has plenty of experience with fearsome creatures, thanks to its popular Monster Hunter series, but even veterans of that franchise may be overwhelmed when Exoprimal drops dozens of raptors on them at once. The dinos arrived Friday on PlayStation 5/4, Xbox X/S/One and PC.
— Lou Kesten
___
Catch up on AP’s entertainment coverage here: https://apnews.com/entertainment. | https://www.binghamtonhomepage.com/entertainment-news/ap-what-to-stream-this-weekend-asteroid-city-lukas-nelson-quarterback-and-secrets-of-playboy/ | 2023-07-14 22:17:25 | 1 | https://www.binghamtonhomepage.com/entertainment-news/ap-what-to-stream-this-weekend-asteroid-city-lukas-nelson-quarterback-and-secrets-of-playboy/ |
PBE associates raise additional funds to support local veterans
DUNBRIDGE, Ohio, Nov. 17, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Ohio-based incontinence product manufacturer Principle Business Enterprises, Inc. (PBE), and the Elizabeth Dole Foundation, a Washington, D.C. nonprofit that advocates for military caregivers, exceeded their joint goal for a year-long fundraising drive, with contributions totaling $295,000 to provide essential relief to these "Hidden Heroes."
Earmarked for the Foundation's "Respite Relief for Military and Veteran Caregivers" program that gives qualifying caretakers a much-needed break, the money will directly benefit an estimated 340 military families and indirectly impact more than 1,000 individuals. Respite Relief recipients – spouses, parents, relatives and friends who take care of America's wounded, ill and injured veterans – enjoy 35 hours of free help from in-home care professionals.
"This gift of time is critical for caregivers who typically prioritize the well-being of the person they're caring for over their own, which leads to stress and fatigue," said PBE Board Chairman Chuck Stocking.
According to AARP, 23% of caregivers find it hard to take care of their own health and believe caregiving has made their health worse.
Over the past 12 months, the Elizabeth Dole Foundation sought donations to match a $100,000 gift from the Principle Family Fund, a philanthropic affiliate established by PBE's founding family. The Foundation nearly doubled that goal by collecting $195,000 from donors in support of this cause.
"We wanted to help get the word out about the challenges tied to caregiving, the lack of support these individuals receive, and awareness required to have caregivers understand that it's OK to take a break," said Angie Williams, PBE vice president of marketing. "Partnering with the Dole Foundation aligns with our long history of employing and serving veterans."
As part of the campaign, one Foundation Respite Relief recipient, Robert Grier, Jr., shared his story of caring for his father, an Air Force Veteran living with incontinence and other conditions in this video.
"Incontinence is significantly more common among veterans than in the general population due to their higher risk of certain disabilities and disease states. PBE is proud to offer products that help solve for their complex care needs," Stocking said. "With 61 years of intentional innovation manufactured into our Tranquility® high-performance incontinence products, PBE has long sought to improve the caregiving experience."
"We're proud of the fact that over 70% of VA facilities nationwide use Tranquility products," Williams added.
Veterans or those caring for a veteran can apply for Respite Relief and request a free Tranquility sample product kit at TranquilityProducts.com/Respite.
PBE supports local veterans
As a mission-based, family-owned company, PBE is deeply committed to supporting its workforce and the communities where it operates. The company is celebrating and honoring veterans throughout November with activities such as the "Wall of Honor," an annual tradition that showcases photos of veterans within its ranks or related to employees.
The company also conducts an annual silent auction to raise funds for veterans' organizations. This year's proceeds will benefit the Toledo Buffalo Soldiers, which promotes awareness of the U.S. Army Cavalry and Infantry Buffalo Soldiers, which began in 1866 as six regiments of black soldiers after the Civil War.
Over the years, PBE associates have raised funds to provide veterans with equine therapy, assistance dogs, indigent lodging and care packages for troops.
Principle Business Enterprises (PBE), Inc., manufactures high-performance absorbent products and footwear safety solutions with applications in healthcare, industrial processing and in-home settings. PBE is a family-owned business with two locations in northwest Ohio. Founded in 1961, PBE has maintained a mission to operate as a principle-centered business that uplifts, enlightens and enriches the lives of people through an exceptional workplace environment for associates and innovative products that dramatically improve the quality of life for customers. Please visit PrincipleBusinessEnterprises.com for more information.
Contact: Kristopher Keating, 1-800-467-3224
View original content to download multimedia:
SOURCE Principle Business Enterprises, Inc. | https://www.cleveland19.com/prnewswire/2022/11/17/principle-business-enterprises-elizabeth-dole-foundation-exceed-goal-benefit-veterans-caregivers-by-nearly-100000/ | 2022-11-17 20:34:58 | 1 | https://www.cleveland19.com/prnewswire/2022/11/17/principle-business-enterprises-elizabeth-dole-foundation-exceed-goal-benefit-veterans-caregivers-by-nearly-100000/ |
WASHINGTON (AP) — After a moment when hopes dimmed that the United States could become an international leader on climate change, legislation that Congress is poised to approve could rejuvenate the country’s reputation and bolster its efforts to push other nations to reduce greenhouse gas emissions more quickly.
The head-snapping turn of events, which has generated a joyful case of whiplash among Democrats and environmentalists, is a reminder of how domestic politics is intertwined with worldwide diplomacy.
Advocates feared that last month’s breakdown in negotiations in Congress had undermined efforts to limit the catastrophic effects of global warming. Now they’re energized by the opportunity to tout an unprecedented U.S. success.
“This says, ‘We’re back, baby,’” said Jennifer Turner, who works on international climate issues as director of the Woodrow Wilson Center’s China Environment Forum in Washington.
The legislation, which also has provisions on taxes and prescription drugs, includes about $375 billion over the next decade for clean energy development and financial incentives for buying electric cars, installing solar panels and weaning the power grid off fossil fuels. Although the proposals were downsized during difficult negotiations, it’s the single biggest investment in climate change in U.S. history, and a significant shift from years of inaction that limited Washington’s clout overseas.
The Senate passed the legislation on Sunday, and the House is expected to approve it on Friday. Then it goes to President Joe Biden for his signature.
Poor nations remain concerned that rich countries like the United States have not fulfilled financial commitments to help them cope with global warming and transition to clean energy, something the legislation does not address. But Biden can still point to it as evidence that the U.S. political system can address the world’s most pressing problems.
“Our ability to have credibility on the global stage depends on our ability to deliver at home,” said Ali Zaidi, the White House deputy national climate adviser. “We are the pace car. That helps other people go faster and faster.”
After President Donald Trump withdrew from the Paris climate accord, Biden entered office pledging to rejoin the fight against global warming. He set an ambitious new target for reducing greenhouse gas emissions — at least 50% below 2005 levels by 2030 — and began proposing policies to put the country on track.
The legislation that Biden is expected to sign is estimated to reduce emissions between 31% to 44%, according to an analysis by the Rhodium Group, an independent research firm. Further regulatory steps by the administration could close the rest of the gap.
“It’s good that finally the U.S. is trying to catch up after years of dragging its feet on climate change and this investment will go a long way to undoing some of the harm caused by the administration of President Trump,” said Mohamed Adow, director of Power Shift Africa, a think tank based in Nairobi, Kenya.
The movement on the bill comes just three months before the next U.N. conference on climate change, which is known as COP27 and will take place in Egypt.
“Let’s hope this legislation is the start of more international cooperation in the lead up to the COP27 summit, where the most vulnerable get the support they need,” Adow said.
Although the U.S. will still face entrenched skepticism, the progress in Washington may also give John Kerry, the White House’s special envoy on climate, more momentum going into the conference in November.
“It puts wind in his sail, it gives him a real credibility boost,” Turner said. “This will change the whole dynamic.”
Several experts said the U.S. will be empowered to put more pressure on China, India and other nations that have high emissions but have been unwilling to cut back for economic reasons.
“This restores some diplomatic legitimacy to the U.S. as an influential player in international climate negotiations,” said Scott Moore, director of China Programs and Strategic Initiatives at the University of Pennsylvania.
Shayak Sengupta, a fellow at the Observer Research Foundation America, a Washington-based affiliate of a think tank in India, was less enthusiastic.
“Considering that this bill is long over due after years of U.S. climate inaction, many countries may view this as the ‘bare minimum’ of the U.S.’s historical and moral responsibility for climate,” he said.
Sengupta emphasized that poor nations are still looking for rich countries to fulfill their $100 billion commitment for financial assistance to address global warming, an issue that’s been a sore spot during international negotiations.
There will be no shortage of other challenges, too. If Republicans retake Congress or the White House, they could unravel Biden’s progress. Supply chains could struggle to accommodate increased demand for equipment like solar panels and batteries. China’s foreign ministry on Friday announced the country is cutting off direct climate talks with the U.S. in response to House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s trip to Taiwan, severing a rare point of longstanding, if sometimes tumultuous, cooperation between the two countries.
However, experts said China will still take notice if the U.S. succeeds in becoming a clean energy powerhouse.
“For a while now, China has been leading in clean energy investment globally,” said Xizhou Zhou, an expert in climate and sustainability at S&P Global, a global research firm. “They will probably see this legislation as a competitive move.”
Deborah Seligsohn, an expert on China’s politics and energy at Villanova University and a former U.S. diplomat in Beijing, said the result could be lower prices globally.
“To the extent the U.S. starts really investing in things that compete with key Chinese businesses — in solar, wind, electric vehicles, batteries — I think you’re going to see Chinese businesses interested in ramping up their competitiveness in these industries, by making better products and bringing prices down,” she said.
That could have a ripple effect around the world.
“Developing countries may see prices for renewable energy going down, and adoption going up,” Seligsohn said.
Vibhuti Garg, an energy economist focused on India, said U.S. investment in clean energy research could pay dividends in poorer nations that don’t have the same resources to develop new technologies.
“The U.S. can share the technology know-how with other countries, especially the Global South,” she said.
Aditya Ramji, from the Institute of Transportation Studies at University of California, Davis, said that cooperation — along with financial help — will be critical.
“At some point there will have to be discussions on how they can provide intellectual property access or lower costs to countries like India and others to leverage electric vehicle technology,” he said.
Climate activists said the U.S. legislation is just one step on a larger path towards climate action. More progress is needed to put the world on track to limit global warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius (2.7 degrees Fahrenheit), a target that some scientists believe is slipping out of reach.
“We need to fight for political commitments in other countries,” said climate activist Luisa Neubauer, a leading figure in the Fridays for Future activist movement.
“That’s the only way we will manage to turn this from a year of fossil fuel backlash to a year of climate justice,” she said.
___
Associated Press writers Frank Jordans in Berlin and Sibi Arasu in Bangalore, India, contributed to this report.
___
Associated Press climate and environmental coverage receives support from several private foundations. See more about AP’s climate initiative here. The AP is solely responsible for all content. | https://www.wivb.com/news/political-news/ap-politics/were-back-baby-new-bill-boosts-us-climate-credibility/ | 2022-08-10 21:31:27 | 1 | https://www.wivb.com/news/political-news/ap-politics/were-back-baby-new-bill-boosts-us-climate-credibility/ |
DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) _ The winning numbers in Sunday afternoon's drawing of the Iowa Lottery's "Pick 3 Midday" game were:
3-3-4
(three, three, four)
DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) _ The winning numbers in Sunday afternoon's drawing of the Iowa Lottery's "Pick 3 Midday" game were:
3-3-4
(three, three, four) | https://www.ourmidland.com/lottery/article/Winning-numbers-drawn-in-Pick-3-Midday-game-17562807.php | 2022-11-06 19:51:44 | 1 | https://www.ourmidland.com/lottery/article/Winning-numbers-drawn-in-Pick-3-Midday-game-17562807.php |
WASHINGTON (AP) — Rep. Chip Roy of Texas, an outspoken member of the far-right House Freedom Caucus, preemptively endorsed Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis for president on Wednesday, pushing his fellow Republican House members to look beyond former President Donald Trump for the 2024 GOP nomination.
The public showing of support appears to be DeSantis’ first endorsement from a member of Congress and comes as the governor has been courting conservative lawmakers ahead of a formal announcement expected after the end of the state legislative session in May.
Roy wrote in an email sent from his campaign that the party needs “a new generation of leadership” at the helm, and he argued that DeSantis has “proven his ability to win at the ballot box time and time again.” The comments were implicit knocks on the 76-year-old Trump, who lost his own reelection bid in 2020 and was blamed for an unexpectedly poor showing by Republican candidates in last year’s midterms.
“When other Republicans were faltering in key races, Governor DeSantis provided a positive vision for the future with prudent, conservative action. The result was crystal clear: Republicans enjoyed sweeping, historic performances statewide,” Roy wrote.
Roy made clear that he will support the eventual Republican nominee even if it isn’t DeSantis.
“America has been built upon and defined by the sacrifices of one generation for the next,” Roy wrote. “When Republicans choose our 2024 presidential nominee — whom I intend to support against Joe Biden or any other Democrat candidate — I believe it’s time for a new generation of leadership. It’s time for younger, but proven, leadership to offer America eight solid years of transformational change.”
His endorsement of DeSantis could open the door for other members of Congress to defy Trump by backing DeSantis as well. More than two dozen House members have already endorsed Trump’s reelection bid, including the No. 3 House Republican, Rep. Elise Stefanik of New York.
Roy also attended a weekend retreat hosted by DeSantis last month that included Arkansas Sen. Tom Cotton, Wisconsin Sen. Ron Johnson, Utah Sen. Mike Lee and Kentucky Rep. Thomas Massie.
Roy has clashed with the former president in the past and voted to certify the results of the 2020 election that Trump had falsely claimed was stolen from him through voter fraud.
The congressman has held a House seat since 2019 and emerged as a boisterous member of the chamber’s Freedom Caucus. He was a key holdout against House Speaker Kevin McCarthy’s leadership election earlier this year.
The endorsement came the same day that MAGA, Inc., a Trump-supporting super PAC, filed an ethics complaint against DeSantis in Florida, accusing him of violating campaign finance and ethics rules with a shadow run for the White House. A DeSantis spokesperson dismissed the complaint as “frivolous and politically motivated.” | https://www.qcnews.com/news/politics/election/desantis-nabs-presidential-endorsement-from-gop-house-member/ | 2023-03-16 12:14:34 | 0 | https://www.qcnews.com/news/politics/election/desantis-nabs-presidential-endorsement-from-gop-house-member/ |
WASHINGTON (AP) — Scientists have discovered the world’s largest plant off the Australia coast — a seagrass meadow that has grown by repeatedly cloning itself.
Genetic analysis has revealed that the underwater fields of waving green seagrass are a single organism covering 70 square miles (180 square kilometers) through making copies of itself over 4,500 years.
The research was published Wednesday in Proceedings of the Royal Society B.
Scientists confirmed that the meadow was a single organism by sampling and comparing the DNA of seagrass shoots across the bed, wrote Jane Edgeloe, a study co-author and marine biologist at the University of Western Australia.
A variety of plants and some animals can reproduce asexually. There are disadvantages to being clones of a single organism — such as increased susceptibility to diseases — but “the process can create ‘hopeful monsters’” by enabling rapid growth, the researchers wrote.
The scientists call the meadow of Poseidon’s ribbon weed “the most widespread known clone on Earth,” covering an area larger than Washington.
Though the seagrass meadow is immense, it’s vulnerable. A decade ago, the seagrass covered an additional seven square miles, but cyclones and rising ocean temperatures linked to climate change have recently killed almost a tenth of the ancient seagrass bed.
___
The Associated Press Health and Science Department receives support from the Howard Hughes Medical Institute’s Department of Science Education. The AP is solely responsible for all content. | https://cw33.com/news/science-technology/ap-science/worlds-largest-plant-is-a-vast-seagrass-meadow-in-australia/ | 2022-06-02 16:49:54 | 0 | https://cw33.com/news/science-technology/ap-science/worlds-largest-plant-is-a-vast-seagrass-meadow-in-australia/ |
Shooting kills 1, hurts 3 in Tulsa, Oklahoma; suspect on loose
Published: Jun. 15, 2023 at 9:29 AM MST|Updated: 36 minutes ago
TULSA, Okla. (KJRH) - One man is dead and three people are injured after a shooting in Tulsa, Oklahoma, Wednesday evening.
Police said they’re still looking for the suspect.
They consider that person armed, dangerous and a threat to the public.
Police say two of the victims were in critical condition Thursday.
The status of the third is unknown.
Copyright 2023 CNN Newsource. All rights reserved. | https://www.kold.com/2023/06/15/shooting-kills-1-hurts-3-tulsa-oklahoma-suspect-loose/ | 2023-06-15 17:06:30 | 0 | https://www.kold.com/2023/06/15/shooting-kills-1-hurts-3-tulsa-oklahoma-suspect-loose/ |
WFO CORPUS CHRISTI Warnings, Watches and Advisories for Sunday, April 23, 2023
_____
SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING
The National Weather Service in Corpus Christi has issued a
* Severe Thunderstorm Warning for...
Southeastern Webb County in south central Texas...
* Until 1115 AM CDT.
* At 1027 AM CDT, a severe thunderstorm was located 8 miles south of
Aguilares, or 22 miles north of Bustamante, moving southeast at 35
mph.
HAZARD...Quarter size hail.
SOURCE...Radar indicated.
IMPACT...Damage to vehicles is expected.
* Locations impacted include...
Oilton, Mirando City and Aguilares.
PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS...
For your protection move to an interior room on the lowest floor of a
building.
_____
Copyright 2023 AccuWeather | https://www.sfchronicle.com/weather/article/tx-wfo-corpus-christi-warnings-watches-and-17913613.php | 2023-04-23 17:03:03 | 1 | https://www.sfchronicle.com/weather/article/tx-wfo-corpus-christi-warnings-watches-and-17913613.php |
New York Rangers coach Gerard Gallant was displeased with the skirmish at the end of his team’s Game 3 win against the Carolina Hurricanes.
One day later, he was ready to put it behind them.
“Last night in the heat of the moment, you’re (upset),” Gallant said Monday. “Game’s over and you get a big win. Today, you move on towards a huge game, so you don’t do something stupid. There’s opportunities to make sure you make people pay a price, but you don’t do that.
“You’re worried about winning the game and getting this series tied 2-2 and that’s the biggest thing.”
Gallant was angry after the buzzer of Sunday’s 3-1 win that cut the Rangers’ series deficit to 2-1, when Carolina forward Max Domi hit New York’s Ryan Lindgren and the defensemen struck him back, resulting in some fighting. The coach also had a verbal exchange with Hurricanes defenseman Tony DeAngelo.
“No, I wasn’t happy with the (things) at the end of the game they initiated,” Gallant said after Sunday’s game. “We didn’t do that when the games were close. They want to play like that, we got the guys that can match that.”
The Rangers will be looking to even the series in Game 4 on Tuesday night (7 p.m. EDT, ESPN).
On Monday, Hurricanes coach Rod Brind’Amour downplayed what happened.
“I don’t know what he’s talking about,” Brind’Amour said. “It’s not like we have guys that send messages.”
Though he didn’t want to dwell on it, Gallant believed it could help his team get engaged.
“I don’t think it hurts us one bit,” he said. “I think it helps us. It’s good when guys get a little (upset) once in a while. We play better. It gets us more focused.”
Ryan Reaves, one of the Rangers players Gallant referenced who can respond, agreed.
“Some of those top guys, I think they start playing a little more physical and getting into battles a little more,” he said. “I think our team thrives on it. Some teams shy away, I think we do well with it.”
The Hurricanes aren’t concerned by it, and expect a playoff series to get physical.
“It’s playoffs, it’s pretty normal to get hit or make a hit,” Carolina forward Sebastian Aho said. “It’s intense and fast and it’s a battle out there, so there’s nothing new there. I’m not surprised if I get hit in a playoff game. Obviously you’ve got to be ready for it.”
Gallant shuffled his lines at the start of Game 3 after totaling one goal in the first two games. In the third period, he reverted to the usual combinations. He indicated there could be more changes for Game 4.
Brind’Amour mixed up his lines during practice Monday to try to get his team’s offense jump-started the same way.
The Hurricanes have struggled on the power play. After converting on 22% of their chances with the man-advantage during the season, they are at 11.6% during the playoffs — including 0 for 7 in this series.
“One group’s been actually very good creating a lot of chances,” Brind’Amour said. “Our so-called top unit hasn’t been very good. They’re the ones that have really struggled. Just trying to shake it up a little bit there and see where it goes. … We’ve got to find some goals.”
FLAMES at OILERS, Oilers lead 2-1 (9:30 p.m. EDT, ESPN)
The Calgary Flames know they need to figure out a way to contain Edmonton’s Connor McDavid as they try to avoid being pushed to the brink of elimination.
McDavid has totaled two goals and seven assists in the first three games of the series, and has six goals and 17 assists through 10 playoff games. Only Wayne Gretzky (29 in 1983 and 25 in 1985), Mario Lemieux (25 in 1992) and Rick Middleton (23 in 1983) have more points in that number of games.
“We’ve let one guy beat us a few nights now,” Flames forward Matthew Tkachuk said. “Back to the drawing board and figure out a way to stop him.”
On Sunday night, McDavid had three assists, including the primary one on two of Evander Kane’s three goals in a 4-1 win that gave the Oilers their second straight victory after losing a 9-6 slugfest in the series opener.
Edmonton scored four goals in a 12:06 stretch of the second period to jump ahead and cruise to the win at home.
“I think we had a lot of our younger guys that haven’t been in this situation before (and) were a little bit intimidated by the atmosphere,” Calgary coach Darryl Sutter said.
___
Follow Vin Cherwoo at http://www.twitter.com/VinCherwooAP
___
More AP NHL: https://apnews.com/hub/NHL and https://twitter.com/AP_Sports | https://www.wjhl.com/sports/us-world-sports/rangers-hurricanes-series-getting-chippy-heading-into-game-4/ | 2022-05-24 18:17:23 | 0 | https://www.wjhl.com/sports/us-world-sports/rangers-hurricanes-series-getting-chippy-heading-into-game-4/ |
BUFFALO, N.Y. — A 911 dispatcher accused of hanging up on a Tops Market worker who called for help as the shooting was happening has been fired.
A disciplinary hearing was held Thursday.
As 2 On Your Side's Claudine Ewing first reported, Latisha Rogers was working at Tops on May 14. She says she called 911 and was questioned for whispering then was disconnected.
The dispatcher was initially placed on administrative leave.
An Erie County spokesperson now says that dispatcher is no longer employed by the county. | https://www.kvue.com/article/news/special-reports/911-dispatcher-fired-after-hanging-tops-worker-during-mass-shooting/71-5c38c212-f282-4e8c-84dc-9b522a023725 | 2022-06-04 02:01:53 | 1 | https://www.kvue.com/article/news/special-reports/911-dispatcher-fired-after-hanging-tops-worker-during-mass-shooting/71-5c38c212-f282-4e8c-84dc-9b522a023725 |
WFO HOUSTON/GALVESTON Warnings, Watches and Advisories for Tuesday, December 13, 2022
_____
SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING
Severe Weather Statement
National Weather Service Houston/Galveston TX
512 PM CST Tue Dec 13 2022
...THE SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING FOR CENTRAL HOUSTON COUNTY WILL
EXPIRE AT 515 PM CST...
The storm which prompted the warning has weakened below severe
limits, and no longer poses an immediate threat to life or property.
Therefore, the warning will be allowed to expire.
_____
Copyright 2022 AccuWeather | https://www.sfchronicle.com/weather/article/TX-WFO-HOUSTON-GALVESTON-Warnings-Watches-and-17652169.php | 2022-12-13 23:59:35 | 0 | https://www.sfchronicle.com/weather/article/TX-WFO-HOUSTON-GALVESTON-Warnings-Watches-and-17652169.php |
BELGRADE, Serbia (AP) — Independent Serbian journalists on Tuesday marked the 24th anniversary of the killing of a prominent editor and newspaper publisher who was fiercely critical of the government in Belgrade.
Slavko Curuvija was shot dead at the entrance to his Belgrade apartment during the 1999 NATO bombing of Serbia over its crackdown against Kosovo Albanian separatists.
His killing became a symbol of the struggle for a free press in the Balkan nation that is seeking membership in the European Union.
Independent media organizations, both local and international, warn that critical journalists still face threats because of their work. The government of populist President Aleksandar Vucic — who was information minister at the time of Curuvija’s death — maintains tight control over mainstream media outlets.
“We are in danger that a killing of a journalist could happen again, or serious violence,” Veran Matic, who heads a commission investigating attacks on journalists, said at a discussion held for the anniversary.
Four state security officials were charged with planning and carrying out Curuvija’s killing, but no final verdict has been reached despite several retrials and appeals. A final retrial wrapped up last month, and media experts described the forthcoming expected verdict as a crossroads for media freedoms in Serbia.
“It would be a huge legal milestone,” said Jamie Wiseman, the Advocacy Officer focusing on Europe at the International Press Institute. “Paradoxically, there is risk also in a sense that it could give Serbian authorities an argument in international forums.”
“We have to make clear that this is just a first step,” he added.
Foreign rights groups attended the gatherings of independent journalists on Tuesday to mark Curuvija’s killing and show solidarity and support with Serbia’s media today.
Carrying a banner reading “Truth is our victory,” dozens of journalists and citizens later walked through central Belgrade, retracing the path that Curuvija took with his partner prior to the killing.
‘’Our visit comes amidst a spate of recent death threats and pressure, which reflect a wider toxic climate for independent and investigative journalism,’’ the international Media Freedom Rapid Response group said.
‘’It is alarming that leading journalists are still receiving death threats and being branded with the same dangerous labels of ‘traitors’ and ‘foreign mercenaries’ that were used to lay the groundwork for Curuvija’s assassination,’’ the group said in a statement.
Curuvija was regarded as an enemy of the state by the regime of former Serbian President Slobodan Milosevic. The state-run media controlled by Milosevic’s family accused him of ‘’inviting’’ NATO to bomb Serbia. The 1999 NATO intervention in Serbia was in response to Milosevic’s bloody crackdown on ethnic Albanians in Kosovo, a former Serbian province that declared independence in 2008.
‘’Despite repeated attempts by the Milosevic regime to shut down his newspapers, the journalist refused to be cowed into silence and paid the ultimate price for his bravery,’’ Media Freedom Rapid Response said.
While the charges in Curuvija’s case do not formally include alleged instigators who ordered the killing, Matic claimed they were Milosevic — who died in prison in The Netherlands in 2006, awaiting trial for crimes against humanity — and his wife Mirjana Markovic, who died in 2019.
“Unfortunately, the instigators are no longer alive,” he said.
Nowadays, independent journalists in Serbia face a campaign of intimidation that starts with politicians, continues in the tabloids that are firmly under Vucic’s control and culminates with threats on social media, Matic charged.
Most recently prominent author and talk show host Marko Vidojkovic left the country in the face of threats, and scores of other prominent journalists reported receiving hate messages threatening violence.
In a rare, quick court outcome, a man was sentenced to year-long house arrest for threatening television editor Jelena Obucina, who is known for her critical commentaries on Nova TV news, media reported on Tuesday.
“I can’t help noticing that the moment when the verdict was brought is interesting and encouraging, because a witch hunt is ongoing against journalists, and spearheaded by the bearers of power,” Obucina said on Tuesday.
Serbian government officials have repeatedly denied any pressure on non-government media. | https://phl17.com/news/international/ap-international/serbian-journalists-mark-unsolved-1999-killing-of-journalist/ | 2023-04-11 23:08:16 | 0 | https://phl17.com/news/international/ap-international/serbian-journalists-mark-unsolved-1999-killing-of-journalist/ |
How do viruses do their job of infecting humans? Some of them are experts at evading the immune system so that it won't knock them out.
Take hepatitis C, a sneaky and potentially deadly viral infection of the liver that is transmitted by contact with human blood – for example, through needles, sex and childbirth.
Scientists have known for a long time that hep C can hide from our immune system. While the immune system might attack the invading virus at first, leading to mild symptoms like fever or fatigue, the virus eventually hides so the immune system gives up the chase. Which is why most patients with hep C never show symptoms.
That gives hep C plenty of time to replicate and spread throughout healthy liver cells, leading to a chronic case of hepatitis C.
"We have this constant battle going on with these viruses," says Jeppe Vinther, a professor of biology at the University of Copenhagen who studies hepatitis C. "We are trying to defeat them and they are trying to avoid being detected and defeated."
But scientists didn't know how hep C pulled off its hiding trick. A new study led by Vinther and published in the journal Nature offers an explanation.
The cap is the key
So how does hep C do it? The virus uses standard villain fare to evade detection: a mask.
Hepatitis C is an RNA virus – one of several viruses that rely on their RNA instead of their DNA to carry information needed to take over the body's healthy cells. Other RNA viruses include measles, mumps, influenza and SARS-CoV-2.
RNA molecules in our body have a protecting group of DNA building blocks at their end known as a cap. These caps have various functions, including sending a message to our immune system: Leave us alone! Do not destroy us!
Since RNA viruses lack caps, once they invade our body, says Vinther, the cell control alarm bells go off and the immune system is activated to kill the foreign RNA.
This new study shows that when your body is infected with hep C, the virus attracts a cap for its RNA – like the protective cap on the body's own RNA. The researchers don't know exactly how the hep C virus does this — one of the many mysteries about viruses.
What's extra sneaky is that hep C uses something that's already in our body as its cap — a molecule known as FAD. With this handy mask, hep C fools the immune system into ignoring it. Unchecked, it can replicate and infect the liver.
The study shows that this cap could also play a role in enabling the virus's RNA to multiply in infected cells and spread throughout the body.
Do other RNA viruses use similar tricks?
Selena Sagan, a professor of microbiology and immunology at the University of British Columbia who was not involved in this study, says that this study reveals "a novel strategy viruses use to hide from our antiviral defense." She's interested in whether other RNA viruses do the same: "If hep C is doing it, what other viruses are using a similar strategy?"
Indeed, Vinther says the next steps for his research will be to look at other RNA viruses to see if they use a similar cap.
And that additional research could lead to benefits for humans. While FAD, the hep C cap, has many functions in our body, human RNA does not use FAD as a cap. This means scientists could use the FAD cap to target a specific virus. "This can potentially be used to detect viral infection or even interfere with the viral replication," says Vinther. "We have some ideas that we will test, but for now these are not tested and quite preliminary."
Using caps as a way to track and diagnose hep C could prove beneficial, given that many cases of chronic hep C go undetected and that only about 15% of patients are treated according to the World Health Organization. And without detection and treatment, the hep C virus has time to cause significant liver damage and even death. The yearly death toll for Hep C is an estimated 290,000.
But these findings are not going to be a boon for better treatment for hep C in particular. For those diagnosed with hep C, there's a very good oral treatment that's 95% effective — although as NPR reported in June, getting treatment isn't always easy because of the expense.
Copyright 2023 NPR. To see more, visit https://www.npr.org. | https://www.knau.org/npr-news/2023-07-26/hep-c-has-a-secret-strategy-to-evade-the-immune-system-and-now-we-know-what-it-is | 2023-07-26 19:51:36 | 1 | https://www.knau.org/npr-news/2023-07-26/hep-c-has-a-secret-strategy-to-evade-the-immune-system-and-now-we-know-what-it-is |
(The Hill) – An average American income isn’t enough for a comfortable living in 2023, according to two recent reports.
The typical U.S. family earns about $71,000 per year, according to the Census. Yet, the average American believes a family needs at least $85,000 in annual household income to get by, according to a recent Gallup poll.
That finding tracks with a recent study from SmartAsset, a financial technology company, which found the average American worker needs $68,499 in after-tax income to live comfortably. (That works out to around $85,000 in total income, assuming a 20-percent tax hit.)
The two releases point to the same conclusion: Many Americans earn too little in 2023 to attain a decent standard of living in their communities.
American households are feeling the pinch after three years of relentless economic headwinds.
Inflation, a negligible factor in recent years, surged to 5 percent in 2021 and 8 percent in 2022. It stands now at 6 percent, according to federal data for the first quarters of 2022 and 2023.
Rising prices prompted an unprecedented run of interest-rate hikes by the Federal Reserve, lifting the benchmark federal funds rate from effectively zero to around 5 percent in little over a year.
All of this came amid the COVID-19 pandemic, which pushed the nation’s jobless rate close to 15 percent at the height of the national lockdown in 2020.
“We’re just coming out of this really unusual time when we had pandemic scarcity, we had loss of work. And I think it’s sort of distorted perceptions about the cost of living,” said Peter C. Earle, an economist at the American Institute for Economic Research. “Lockdowns were a sort of existential experience for a lot of people.”
The Gallup poll, taken in April, found that 30 percent of Americans believe a family needs a six-figure income to “get by in your community.” Only 14 percent of respondents said a household could make do on less than $50,000, and even that threshold is $20,000 higher than the federal poverty line for a family of four, $30,000.
“I think the real crux of this issue is, what does it mean to quote-unquote get by?” said Douglas Holtz-Eakin, an economist and president of the American Action Forum, a conservative think tank.
Lower-income families, earning less than $40,000 per year, told Gallup pollsters a household needs $66,310 a year to get by, on average. Upper-income households, earning $100,000 or more, said nothing short of $100,000 would suffice.
“There’s lots of other data that says that people whose incomes are relatively high are living paycheck-to-paycheck,” Holtz-Eakin said.
Ten years ago, in an earlier Gallup poll, the average American believed a household could get by on $58,000 a year. That number exceeded the median household income at the time, $52,250.
The gap seems to be growing between what Americans earn and what they consider a sufficient income. The Gallup figure from 2013, $58,000, was about 10 percent higher than the median household income for that year. The 2023 Gallup figure, $85,000, exceeds the current median income by about 20 percent.
A lot has changed in a decade. In 2023 America, the average family might reasonably expect the price of groceries and gas to climb by 5 percent or 10 percent per year into perpetuity. The average homeowner might assume mortgage rates will remain in the 5-percent to 7-percent range for the foreseeable future, after a decade of historically low rates.
Therefore, American families would have good reason, economists say, to dial up their expectations for what it takes to live comfortably.
Salaries haven’t kept pace with inflation. Rising interest rates have pushed up housing costs. The SmartAsset report found that the average income to maintain a “comfortable lifestyle” rose by 20 percent between 2022 and 2023, from $57,013 to $68,499 in take-home pay, in the 25 largest metro areas.
That report, derived from MIT’s Living Wage Calculator, assumes the average family will allocate half of its after-tax income to basic living expenses, 30 percent to discretionary spending and 20 percent to savings and debts.
By that formula, a resident would need to clear $84,000 a year to live comfortably in San Francisco, $78,500 in New York and $76,000 in Washington, D.C., the study found.
Looking at actual salaries in those cities, it would appear that many residents do not live comfortably. Median per-capita income is about $124,000 in San Francisco, $85,000 in New York and $81,000 in D.C., according to the Census. Those are pre-tax figures: take-home pay ranges much lower.
One key factor in rising living costs is spiraling housing expenses. Monthly rents have outpaced inflation. Last spring, the median monthly asking rent surpassed $2,000 for the first time, according to Redfin.
Housing prices, meanwhile, surged by more than 40 percent in two years, from an average of $383,000 in early 2020 to $553,000 in late 2022, according to federal data. The figure slipped to $516,500 this year, as higher mortgage rates sapped purchasing power.
Cars, too, are becoming luxury purchases. The average price for a new vehicle hit $49,500 at the end of 2022, up from $38,948 three years earlier, according to the Kelley Blue Book.
Vehicle prices rose partly because of supply-chain kinks and pandemic shutdowns. Another factor was the demanding American consumer. Buyers pushed up prices by consistently choosing more expensive SUVs and tricked-out trucks over value-priced sedans.
“There’s a lot of debate about how much our expectations are feeding inflation,” said Lisa Gennetian, an applied economist at Duke University.
Homebuyers are seeking ever-larger homes. The average new home grew by 1,000 square feet between the mid-1970s and mid-2010s, according to an analysis by the American Enterprise Institute.
The same principle applies in other areas of family life, Gennetian said. An affluent household might consider private school part of a basic annual budget, while a less wealthy household might struggle to fulfill the fall supply list at public school.
“For some people, private tutoring for my kids, that could be part of my standard of living,” Gennetian said. “Other people, they might be thinking about having a running car.” | https://wgntv.com/business/an-average-american-income-may-no-longer-cut-it/ | 2023-06-22 02:54:59 | 1 | https://wgntv.com/business/an-average-american-income-may-no-longer-cut-it/ |
ALBANY, N.Y. (AP) — Jackson Stormo's 18 points helped Siena defeat Saint Peter's 70-60 on Friday night.
Stormo finished 8 of 13 from the floor for the Saints (10-5, 2-4 Mid-Atlantic). Michael Eley scored 15 points, shooting 6 for 14, including 3 for 9 from beyond the arc. Jared Billups was 3 of 6 shooting and 5 of 8 from the free throw line to finish with 11 points.
Isiah Dasher led the way for the Peacocks (7-8, 4-0) with 18 points and four steals. Jaylen Murray added 10 points for Saint Peter's. Jayden Saddler also had eight points and two steals.
NEXT UP
These two teams both play Sunday. Siena hosts Rider while Saint Peter's hosts Canisius.
___
The Associated Press created this story using technology provided by Data Skrive and data from Sportradar. | https://www.beaumontenterprise.com/sports/article/Stormo-scores-18-Siena-defeats-Saint-Peter-s-17700858.php | 2023-01-07 04:38:49 | 1 | https://www.beaumontenterprise.com/sports/article/Stormo-scores-18-Siena-defeats-Saint-Peter-s-17700858.php |
Making the most of Amazon’s Beauty Haul
During the holiday rush, sometimes you can forget about taking care of yourself. Amazon is making sure that self-care remains a priority this holiday season. Today, the company kicks off its second annual Amazon Beauty Haul, a two-week-long event that’s filled with deals from popular brands such as Dollar Shave Club, CoverGirl, Revlon and more.
What you need to know about the Amazon Holiday Beauty Haul
The second annual Amazon Beauty Haul starts today and runs through Nov. 6. Throughout the two weeks, customers will have the chance to shop over 1,000 deals from Allure Best of Beauty-winning companies to get top products at deep discounts. The official categories this year will be Allure Best of Beauty winners, Winter Self-Care, Holiday Look, Holiday Gifting and Men’s Grooming. During the event, shoppers can chat with creators, such as Chrishell Stause, Kandi Burruss and many others at Amazon Live Festivals to get even more help with their Beauty Haul selections.
Amazon Beauty Haul deals
This low-profile volumizer from a top brand gives you greater control when styling. The additional heat settings can help protect your hair from damage because they offer up to 50% less heat exposure. Sold by Amazon
Paul Mitchell ProTools ExpressIon Ceramic Deep Waver
This top-quality waver from Paul Mitchell ProTools has two 1-inch barrels that let you create stylish waves, no matter what hair type you have. Sold by Amazon
Derma-E Essentials Microdermabrasion Scrub
A facial scrub removes dead skin cells to give your face a fresh, clean, youthful look. This offering smooths and detoxifies with an all-natural formula that includes Dead Sea salt, kaolin clay, grape seed oil and more. Sold by Amazon
This handy facial cleaning device can help give your skin an alluring glow. It’s a rechargeable, self-standing tool that has soft silicone bristles and delivers a warm massage. Sold by Amazon
Pur Minerals Multitasking Essentials Bestsellers Kit
You get four benefits from this cruelty-free beauty kit from Pur Minerals: makeup primer, redness reducer, pore reducer and dry skin soother. The included mascara helps lashes maintain lift and curl while adding shine. Sold by Amazon
Revlon Colorstay Liquid Eyeliner
Revlon’s long-lasting liquid eyeliner can stay on for up to 16 hours with no smearing or smudging. It’s a versatile tool that lets you draw thick or thin lines that draw attention to your eyes. Sold by Amazon
Cacharel Amor Amor Eau de Toilette
This attractively packaged gift pack comes with body lotion and long-lasting fragrance. The alluring aroma has a fruity, vanilla, floral scent that’s perfect for special occasions. Sold by Amazon
Olaplex Hair Perfector No. 3 Repairing Treatment
Olaplex is a best-selling hair treatment program that can repair, nourish and condition damaged hair to return it to its full luster and beauty. Sold by Amazon
Dollar Shave Club Grooming Tool Kit
This men’s grooming kit from the popular Dollar Shave Club includes a fingernail clipper, a toenail clipper, a pair of precision tweezers, a nose hair trimmer and more. It’s lightweight and designed for travel so you can always have the grooming tools you need, no matter where you go. Sold by Amazon
BaBylissPro Barberology MetalFX Series Outlining Trimmer
The BaBylissPro trimmer is a tool that gives you a crisp look that makes you stand out as being impeccably groomed. It’s a top-quality product with a 360-degree trimming head. Sold by Amazon
Want to shop the best products at the best prices? Check out Daily Deals from BestReviews.
Sign up here to receive the BestReviews weekly newsletter for useful advice on new products and noteworthy deals.
Allen Foster writes for BestReviews. BestReviews has helped millions of consumers simplify their purchasing decisions, saving them time and money.
Copyright 2022 BestReviews, a Nexstar company. All rights reserved. | https://www.kron4.com/reviews/br/beauty-personal-care-br/luxury-beauty-br/10-best-amazon-beauty-haul-deals-worth-shopping-from-drybar-to-revlon/ | 2022-10-24 17:59:27 | 0 | https://www.kron4.com/reviews/br/beauty-personal-care-br/luxury-beauty-br/10-best-amazon-beauty-haul-deals-worth-shopping-from-drybar-to-revlon/ |
As someone who enjoys reading and discussing Japanese literature, I have been pleasantly surprised by the growing number of translated Japanese books that have come out in the U.S. in recent years.
Novels by Yōko Ogawa and Mieko Kawakami have been shortlisted for international prizes, and there are more than a dozen translated books from Japan coming out this fall alone — including titles by emerging writers. Much of this trend is owed to the hard work of translators who manage to capture Japanese nuances without exoticizing them, while still providing necessary context for American readers who may or may not have been to Japan.
Out of this massive genre that is as diverse as it is plentiful, there are five book coming out this fall that feel like antidotes to our accumulated stress of the last few years. These books share a common theme of protagonists who have been battered, either physically or emotionally, yet manage to crawl out of the darkness by the end. The stories vary from earnest to cynical, urban to country.
Regardless of your previous exposure to Japanese literature, these books may become your gateway to a country that is now, slowly, just beginning to ease its pandemic-related restrictions to foreign tourists.
Dead-End Memories: Stories by Banana Yoshimoto (translated by Asa Yoneda)
Banana Yoshimoto has been one of the most beloved writers to come out of Japan since her 1988 debut, Kitchen. Her books often feature heartwarming characters and mouthwatering descriptions of food. Dead-End Memories is a collection of five stories first published in 2003, which the author considers to be her "most precious work." As expected, this book will make readers especially hungry for Japanese food like omurice, hot pot, cake rolls, and even a bag of convenience store foods that you share with someone at a park.
In "House of Ghosts," a young couple spends the night in an apartment where the deceased landlords still linger in the kitchen, seemingly unaware of their condition. "Mama!" flips Yoshimoto's usual script and imagines the consequences of a meal meant to harm. The titular story shows how one friendship — however brief — can hold the key to overcoming one's deep-rooted traumas.
These stories don't necessarily have predictable, happy endings, but they left me feeling warm and cozy with a renewed appreciation of my own mundane routines and go-to comfort foods.
Diary of a Void: A novel by Emi Yagi (translated by David Boyd and Lucy North)
In this award-winning debut novel, a woman in her 30s is fed up with her male coworkers who casually pile on misogynistic comments and treat her like a janitor or secretary even though she has other duties as a full-time employee. One day, her supervisor makes a passive-aggressive remark that catalyzes Shibata to come up with a brilliant lie that will solve all her problems: she's pregnant. Her "morning sickness" means she can't help around the kitchen, and she has to go home at 5 p.m. everyday to get plenty of rest. The men immediately oblige — and start treating her with deference.
The novel is cleverly structured as diary entries in a government-issued booklet that allows mothers in Japan to document the pregnancy week by week. I was initially motivated to keep reading just to see how Shibata pulls off a fake pregnancy, but I quickly became enthralled by the narrator's dead-pan humor and her sharp observations of Japanese society's treatment of women.
American readers may notice similarities with the novel's depiction of mommy groups and baby-tracking apps that compare the size of the fetus to various vegetables — but perhaps the most magical aspect of the story will be the normalcy of a year-long maternity leave.
Weasels in the Attic by Hiroko Oyamada (translated by David Boyd)
The acclaimed author of The Factory and The Hole returns with this new installment that might be her strongest, most memorable work yet. Just like the last two titles, Weasels in the Attic is a thin book totaling less than 100 pages, which I happily consumed in a single sitting. Length, however, does not equal weight. Every scene is deeply unsettling, reminiscent of Kōbō Abe's surrealist fiction.
The protagonist is a married man living in the city, and he and his wife are struggling to get pregnant. Meanwhile, his friends — who he had assumed would be bachelors forever — are suddenly getting married, moving to the countryside, and starting families like it's easy. The narrator and his wife are invited into the home of one of these friends, which is infested with weasels that cause skin rashes and psychological torment. The book simmers with eerie tension and bursts with unforgettable monologues.
Idol, Burning by Rin Usami (translated by Asa Yoneda)
Rin Usami was only 21 years old when she won the prestigious Akutagawa Prize for this novel, which tackles J-pop stan culture and the doomed, one-sided relationship between a teenage fan and her oshi, or idol.
Akari is a junior in high school whose love and obsession with Masaki Ueno of pop group Maza Maza makes her a superfan — someone who will go out of her way to purchase all his merch, attend his live shows, write long blog posts analyzing his every move, and not expect anything in return. "My devotion to my oshi was its own reward," she writes.
What's impressive about this novel is the author's ability to empathize with Akari's all-consuming love for Masaki while showing just how damaging this relationship is to Akari and everyone around her. The book left me heartbroken yet hopeful, and excited for more Usami novels to come.
She and Her Cat by Makoto Shinkai and Naruki Nagakawa (translated by Ginny Tapley Takemori)
Many of my friends are winding down at the end of the day with a new adventure video game called Stray, where the player controls an adorable stray cat as it traverses a mysterious world. She and Her Cat would be right up their alleys. The book is a novelization of an early animated film by acclaimed director Makoto Shinkai, best known for Your Name. (His latest, Suzume's Locking Up, will be released in the U.S. in 2023.)
She and Her Cat is broken up into four stories, each one focusing on a cat and a woman that takes care of them. The perspective alternates between the cats' and the women's in an unapologetically cheesy yet satisfying way, much like Shinkai's anime dialogue. Even readers who don't consider themselves Shinkai fans or cat people can still appreciate the novel's creative attention to detail, like the sound of rain experienced by a kitten, and the recurring motif of how we can regain the will to live, no matter how tough life gets.
Yurina Yoshikawa is a writer based in Nashville. She leads the virtual book club for the Japan-America Society of Tennessee where they discuss various works of translated Japanese fiction. Her writing has appeared in The Japan Times, Lit Hub, and elsewhere.
Copyright 2022 NPR. To see more, visit https://www.npr.org. | https://www.wvasfm.org/arts/2022-08-30/5-translated-books-from-japan-to-soothe-battered-souls-this-fall | 2022-08-30 10:10:15 | 1 | https://www.wvasfm.org/arts/2022-08-30/5-translated-books-from-japan-to-soothe-battered-souls-this-fall |
(NEXSTAR) – Participating in the MLB All-Star Game and Home Run Derby is undoubtedly an honor. In addition to some bragging rights, it also comes with a monetary bonus.
Per the MLB’s latest collective bargaining agreement, players elected or selected to the All-Star Game or the Home Run Derby receive six complimentary tickets for guests, first-class flights for themselves and two guests, first-class hotel accommodations for themselves and two guests, meal and tip allowances for three days, a $1,000 cash stipend and a gift from the league.
Additionally, players on the All-Star teams receive a ring. Those attending their fifth, 10th, or 15th game as an All-Star also receive a gift or memento and special recognition, according to the CBA.
Some players will have already secured certain payouts before the game.
According to the CBA, the top vote-getting player at each position (that includes the three outfielders with the most votes) in both the National League and American League receive $15,000 each. Those with the second-most votes (excluding outfielders) receive $5,000, and the third receives $2,500.
That includes Los Angeles Angels two-way star Shohei Ohtani and Atlanta Braves shortstop Ronald Acuña Jr., both of whom received the most votes in their respective leagues.
A highlight of the All-Star Game is, sometimes, players who are mic’d up. Those players receive a stipend for their participation, per the CBA. This year, it’s $10,000, but that is set to increase to $15,000 in 2024.
Players – at least those who were available to play – on the roster of the winning All-Star Game team split an $800,000 bonus, which breaks down to about $25,000 each.
There’s a chance at an even bigger payout for Home Run Derby players.
The overall winner receives $1 million, with the second-place player taking home half that. Six other players who participate in the Derby get $150,000. Whoever hits the furthest home run will win $100,000, according to the CBA.
These payouts differ from postseason bonuses which are calculated based on a pool of funds created by ticket sales.
In the NFL’s Pro Bowl, nearly comparable to the All-Star Game and Home Run Derby, players receive $88,000 if they win (more than if they participated in last year’s Super Bowl) or $44,000 if they lose. Both payouts are set to increase to $116,000 and $58,000, respectively, by 2030.
The winner of the Super Bowl – most recently, the Kansas City Chiefs – took home $157,000 while the losers, the Philadelphia Eagles, earned $82,000. | https://phl17.com/nmw/cha-ching-heres-how-much-extra-money-mlb-all-star-home-run-derby-players-get/ | 2023-07-09 17:21:24 | 0 | https://phl17.com/nmw/cha-ching-heres-how-much-extra-money-mlb-all-star-home-run-derby-players-get/ |
NUSA DUA, Indonesia — A highly anticipated meeting between China's leader Xi Jinping and President Biden finished Monday with both leaders expressing an openness to restoring channels of communication and repairing a relationship that has been compared to a second Cold War.
The leaders of two superpowers met face-to-face and unmasked on the sidelines of the Group of 20 summit in Bali, Indonesia, on Monday evening. In a substantial meeting, they touched on the war in Ukraine, military tension in the Taiwan Strait and North Korean missile tests.
Biden said he and Xi were "very blunt with one another." Xi, according to his spokesperson, viewed the meeting as "in-depth, candid and constructive."
Here's what you need to know about their three-hour discussion.
A "baby step" — but a step in the right direction
Biden and Xi both said in their opening remarks that they were looking for ways to coexist despite their disagreements. The two spent lots of time together when they were both vice presidents more than a decade ago — and both men referenced their lengthy relationship in warm greetings before the talks began.
"Do I believe he's willing to compromise on certain issues? Yes," Biden told reporters afterward about his meeting with Xi. "We were very blunt with one another about places where we disagreed."
Today's meeting was the first face-to-face exchange between the two since Biden became president. It took place after both leaders had just strengthened their respective political positions at home, analysts say.
Yu Jie, a senior research fellow on China at the London-based think tank Chatham House, says that given Biden's "reasonable success" in the midterms, he is in a stronger position to steer Washington's relationship with Beijing.
And for Xi, Yu says his further consolidation of power in the Chinese system may leave him more space for conducting diplomacy. "Xi is keen to resume a routinized mechanism and dialogue to steady the bilateral ties with Biden," she says.
U.S. officials share this relative optimism. "The fact of a leaders' meeting coming together has created space in the Chinese system, for reopening what we believe to just be simply ongoing work between our side to get things done," a senior administration official told reporters before the meeting.
In what analysts called a "breakthrough," Beijing and Washington said they would resume climate talks that had been frozen following House Speaker Nancy Pelosi's controversial visit to Taiwan, which Beijing claims as its own. The White House said the leaders "agreed to empower key senior officials to maintain communication and deepen constructive efforts."
However, Yu warns that Monday's meeting is just "a baby step" towards improving relations: "It will not resolve any substantial grievances both sides have had against each other, but only slowing down the deterioration of their relations."
The State Department said that Secretary of State Antony Blinken will also visit China in person sometime early next year to follow up on the Xi-Biden meeting.
Taiwan, technology and human rights remain areas of intense disagreement
During their meeting, Biden and Xi did not resolve the key issues that have driven competition and disagreement between the U.S. and China.
Last month, the U.S. imposed dramatic export bans on certain advanced semiconductor technology — trade sanctions explicitly designed to hobble critical technology sectors like military modernization and artificial intelligence that are important to China.
Meanwhile, according to the U.S. readout, Biden "raised concerns about PRC practices in Xinjiang, Tibet, and Hong Kong, and human rights more broadly." China has long insisted these issues are of "internal affairs" and has warned against "external interference."
"The world is big enough for the two countries to develop themselves and prosper together," tweeted Hua Chunying, a foreign ministry spokesperson who accompanied Xi in his meeting with Biden.
On Taiwan, despite intense media speculation over Beijing's intention, Biden said he did "not think there's any imminent attempt on the part of China to invade Taiwan."
But the president objected to Beijing's "coercive and increasingly aggressive" Chinese actions in the waters around Taiwan, according to the White House readout, saying such behaviors "undermine peace and stability across the Taiwan Strait and in the broader region, and jeopardize global prosperity."
China regards the "Taiwan question" an internal matter. It is "at the very core of China's core interests, the bedrock of the political foundation of China-U.S. relations, and the first red line that must not be crossed in China-U.S. relations," wrote Hua, the spokesperson, on Twitter after the meeting ended.
Both Chinese and American militaries have recently been beefing up their capabilities in case of a conflict over Taiwan. For Washington, this is also a part of the broader paradigm shift in its strategy in the Indo-Pacific region. After decades of concentrating its fighting power in the Middle East, the U.S. is now shifting its focus to Asia.
China is watching closely, too. Xi recently appointed a new slate of top military leaders from China's Eastern Theater Command, which encompasses Taiwan, indicating that going forward, the island is a priority for China's fighting forces. Last week, he urged his military to "focus all its energy on fighting."
Ukraine and North Korea were elephants in the room
The U.S. has pushed China to take a clearer stand against Russia's war in Ukraine, which China has tried to remain neutral on despite signing a partnership with Moscow in February.
Some analysts say China appeared to be blindsided when Russia invaded Ukraine in February. Beijing has called repeatedly for a peaceful, negotiated end to the war.
During their meeting, Xi and Biden agreed "that a nuclear war should never be fought and can never be won and underscored their opposition to the use or threat of use of nuclear weapons in Ukraine," according to the White House statement. The Chinese readout included no mention of nuclear weapons.
The two leaders also spoke about North Korea — a longstanding regional security issue. Biden warned if Beijing is unable to rein in Pyongyang's weapons ambitions, the U.S. would beef up its presence in the region — a move that will be read by Beijing as a threat to its own security.
U.S. domestic politics also plays a role
Last year, China's foreign minister Wang Yi put out three core demands — "bottom lines" — that China wanted the U.S. to agree to in order for relations to improve: to not get in the way in the country's development, to respect China's claims over places like Taiwan and to respect Beijing's Communist Party rule.
From Beijing's perspective, the U.S. has since done the opposite on all counts. It has imposed the semiconductor export bans and sanctioned some of China's leading technology firms — moves Beijing decried.
Meanwhile, the U.S. has upped ties with Taiwan, with lawmakers including Pelosi visiting the island since August. Congress is considering drawing on the U.S. weapons stockpile to arm the island at American expense. Biden stressed in the press conference after meeting Xi that U.S. policy on Taiwan remains unchanged.
And while Biden came in to the G20 with a stronger position due to the narrow Democratic victory in the battle to control the Senate, he is up for reelection in two years himself.
Many in China now worry that should Republicans win the presidency in 2024, the U.S. will take an even more starkly hostile position against it.
Aowen Cao contributed research from Beijing.
Copyright 2022 NPR. To see more, visit https://www.npr.org. | https://www.wunc.org/2022-11-14/4-takeaways-from-president-bidens-very-blunt-meeting-with-chinas-xi-jinping | 2022-11-14 17:52:31 | 0 | https://www.wunc.org/2022-11-14/4-takeaways-from-president-bidens-very-blunt-meeting-with-chinas-xi-jinping |
DENVER, Colo., Oct. 31, 2022 /PRNewswire/ - Birch Medical Spas ("Birch"), a newly launched medical spa platform, is excited to welcome Matt and Carrie Brinton and the Elase Medical Spas ("Elase") team as its inaugural partner. Elase is the number one medical spa in Utah, providing career opportunities for hundreds of women and helping thousands of clients to feel more confident. Elase was founded 18 years ago with the goal to empower both its employees and clients by providing education, delivering remarkable service, creating innovative solutions and cultivating community.
In addition to operating one of the country's premier medical spas, Matt and Carrie are recognized leaders in the medical aesthetics industry. They founded the National Institute of Medical Aesthetics 14 years ago based on the belief that education is critical to the responsible growth of the medical spa industry and, as a result, over 2,000 students have graduated as licensed master aestheticians and over 350 medical practitioners have been certified in cosmetic injections.
"We are thrilled to partner with the Birch team and are excited for the growth opportunities this creates for our team members. It was this emphasis on putting people first and alignment on creating an unforgettable client experience, that first drew us to Birch," said Carrie Brinton, co-founder of Elase. "Partnering with Birch will provide Elase with the expertise and capital required to accelerate our growth," added Matt Brinton, co-founder of Elase. Carrie and Matt will continue to oversee the day-to-day operations of Elase, with support from the Birch executive team.
This partnership is the first platform investment for Birch, which was founded to reshape the future of the medical spa space by partnering with leading medical spas across the United States. Birch plans to expand across the United States through similar partnerships with best-in-class medical spas.
"We are incredibly excited to formally launch Birch with this partnership," said Stephanie Hu, Chief Executive Officer of Birch. "Matt, Carrie and the entire Elase team have built an exceptional business with a great culture and the Birch team is excited to build on Elase's excellent track record of growth."
Birch is backed by Imperial Capital ("Imperial") as part of the firm's Back, Buy and Build investment strategy. "We see tremendous opportunity within the medical spa industry and are excited to launch Birch with this inaugural partnership," said Nick Moritsugu, Vice President at Imperial.
Elase is the largest medical spa in Utah and a 9x winner of Utah's Best of State Award. Elase offers a variety of non-surgical solutions including injectables, laser hair removal, laser skin rejuvenation, facial treatments, and medical grade skin care. Elase pioneered the membership model in the medical spa space. Elase operates four clinics in Utah and recently opened its fifth clinic in Meridian, Idaho. For further information on Elase, visit www.elase.com.
Birch is the nation's newest medical spa company built on the philosophy of delivering premium customer experience, building lifetime clients and creating a best-in-class team of medical spa industry leaders. Birch will position itself as a leading medical spa platform through partnerships with business owners looking to expand their medical spas and careers. For further information on Birch, visit www.birchmedspa.com.
Imperial Capital is a leading mid-market private equity firm focused on North American opportunities to build or acquire growth-oriented platform investments in targeted industry niches within healthcare, business services and consumer services industries. Based in Toronto, Imperial Capital combines its deep industry focus, active portfolio management and strong partnerships with experienced industry executives to offer a differentiated approach to investing. For further information on Imperial, visit www.imperialcap.com.
Contact Information
Name: Stephanie Hu, Chief Executive Officer
Email: shu@birchmedspa.com
Phone: 612-219-1171
View original content to download multimedia:
SOURCE Birch Medical Spas | https://www.valleynewslive.com/prnewswire/2022/10/31/birch-medical-spas-announces-its-inaugural-partnership/ | 2022-10-31 23:19:30 | 0 | https://www.valleynewslive.com/prnewswire/2022/10/31/birch-medical-spas-announces-its-inaugural-partnership/ |
BATON ROUGE, La. (BRPROUD) — A woman’s social media post is going viral after she claimed to overdose on fentanyl after touching a dollar bill. Misinformation about how this deadly drug can lead to an overdose has been circulating online.
It’s important to emphasize how deadly fentanyl is. In the U.S. synthetic opioids (fentanyl) killed 71,238 people in 2021, according to the Center for Disease Control and Prevention. But can you overdose just by touching it? Experts say it’s very unlikely.
LSU Health Professor and Chair of the Pharmacology, Toxicology and Neuroscience Dr. Nicholas Goeders and Ochsner Regional Medical Director Dr. Aldo Russo have been studying drug addiction for years. While they both emphasize the dangers of fentanyl, they said it’s unlikely to accidentally overdose from touching an object with trace amounts of fentanyl.
“To absorb it through your skin, you have to be exposed to a large amount of fentanyl and for a long period of time,” Russo said.
Dr. Goeders said the fentanyl patches made to stick to your skin are a good example of how long it would take to be exposed.
“It takes three to 13 hours before therapeutic blood levels are produced by a fentanyl patch so if you take a dollar bill that may or may not have some powder on it, it’s not going to get into the body where you pass out or overdose in a matter of seconds,” Dr. Goeders said.
But what about accidentally inhaling the substance? Dr. Goeders said you would need to be around a fair amount of the drug for a long time before feeling its effects.
“People that are working in factories producing fentanyl and with fentanyl in the air in these factories, they say it takes 200 minutes of exposure to reach a dose of 100 million equivalent of fentanyl,” Dr. Goeders said.
Both experts said fentanyl is not to be messed with. However, it’s important to have the facts.
“Misinformation is being spread. I think it has to do with a lot of myth out there. People tend to exaggerate certain things, especially when it comes to overdosing with drugs.” Dr. Russo said.
“It is important to realize how dangerous fentanyl is, but then blowing it out of proportion is not really the best way to get across the danger of these drugs,” said Dr. Goeders. | https://www.cenlanow.com/news/fact-check-can-you-overdose-on-fentanyl-by-touching-it-experts-say-its-unlikely/ | 2022-07-13 18:52:59 | 0 | https://www.cenlanow.com/news/fact-check-can-you-overdose-on-fentanyl-by-touching-it-experts-say-its-unlikely/ |
COLUMBUS, Ohio (WOWK) — Nexstar television stations serving Ohio announced on Monday that an exclusive live debate will be televised across the state on Issue 1, a proposal that would require that any future amendment to Ohio’s constitution be approved by at least 60 percent of the eligible voters voting, rather than a simple majority.
“Your Local Election Headquarters: Ohio Issue 1 Debate” will take place on Tuesday, July 25, from 7 p.m. to 8 p.m. ET, at the studios of WCMH-TV NBC4 in Columbus, and will be telecast and live-streamed throughout the state.
The one-hour debate will bring potentially five million voters across the state of Ohio and will air on six Nexstar television stations serving the state, including NBC4 WCMH-TV in Columbus, WJW-TV in Cleveland, WDTN-TV in Dayton, WKBN-TV/WYTV-TV in Youngstown, WTRF-TV in Wheeling, WV/Steubenville, Ohio, and WOWK-TV in Charleston/Huntington, West Virginia.
The debate will be moderated by NBC4 Anchors Colleen Marshall and Matt Barnes, and will feature Secretary of State Frank LaRose (R), Mike Gonidakis (President, Ohio Right to Life), Ohio House Minority Leader Allison Russo (D) and Mike Curtin (Former State Lawmaker, Former Editor of The Columbus Dispatch).
The special election including the vote on Issue One is scheduled to take place on Aug. 8. For more information on the special election, voting requirements and where to vote, please visit https://www.voteohio.gov. | https://www.wowktv.com/news/elections/nexstar-stations-across-ohio-to-host-july-25-exclusive-live-debate-on-issue-1/ | 2023-07-21 20:40:17 | 0 | https://www.wowktv.com/news/elections/nexstar-stations-across-ohio-to-host-july-25-exclusive-live-debate-on-issue-1/ |
TOKYO (AP) — Japan’s economy minister submitted his resignation Monday over ties to the Unification Church after facing mounting criticism in a widening controversy involving dozens of governing party lawmakers.
Daishiro Yamagiwa’s resignation is a further blow to Prime Minister Fumio Kishida’s government, which has been rocked by his party’s close ties to the controversial South Korean-based church following the assassination of former leader Shinzo Abe in July.
Yamagiwa faced opposition lawmakers’ growing demands for his resignation after he repeatedly said he did not remember his past attendance at church meetings during overseas trips and posing for group photos with church leader Hak Ja Han Moon and other executives.
Kishida on Tuesday appointed former Health Minister Shigeyuki Goto to take Yamagiwa’s place as the economy minister.
Kishida said Goto is a veteran politician who is “highly capable of giving explanation” and has ”passion” for economic and social reforms. Kishida said he expected him to play a central role in coordinating and achieving key policy goals, including a major economic package that Kishida plans to announce later this week. Goto’s appointment is to be official after a palace ceremony later Tuesday.
The Kishida government’s support ratings have nosedived over his handling of the scandal and for holding a highly unusual state funeral for Abe, one of Japan’s most divisive leaders who is now seen as a key link between the governing Liberal Democratic Party and the church. Abe sent a video message in 2021 praising Hak Ja Han Moon at a meeting of the church affiliate the Universal Peace Federation.
Since the 1980s, the church has faced accusations of devious business and recruitment tactics, including brainwashing members into turning over huge portions of their salaries to it.
“I just submitted my resignation” to Kishida, Yamagiwa told reporters Monday. He said he routinely discards documents and therefore could not clearly verify past contacts with the church and only provided explanations after reports of his past church ties surfaced.
“As a result, I ended up causing trouble to the administration,” Yamagiwa said. “I attended the church’s meetings a number of times and that provided credibility to the group, and I deeply regret that.” He pledged to stay away from the church in the future.
A governing party survey in September found nearly half of its about 400 lawmakers had ties to the church, including Cabinet ministers, many of whom shared the church’s conservative views and sent messages or attended church meetings, though not as followers of the church theology. Kishida has pledged to cut all such ties, and recently said he instructed the government to probe the church, with the possibility of revoking its legal status.
Media surveys show many Japanese want a clearer explanation of how the church may have influenced party policies.
Kishida said he accepted Yamagiwa’s resignation because “as prime minister, I have to prioritize our work to push forward economic measures, an extra budget and support for victims of the church problems.”
Yamagiwa, who was criticized for clinging to his post and stalling parliamentary sessions because of questioning by opposition lawmakers, was seen as having been forced to quit. He said he has no intention of resigning as a lawmaker because he did not break any law.
Former Prime Minister Abe was shot to death during an outdoor campaign speech in July. The suspect, Tetsuya Yamagami, told police he killed Abe because of his apparent link to a religious group he hated. A letter and social media postings attributed to Yamagami said his mother’s large donations to the Unification Church bankrupted his family and ruined his life.
The church, founded in South Korea in 1954 by Sun Myung Moon, obtained religious organization status in Japan in 1968 amid an anti-communist movement supported by Abe’s grandfather, former Prime Minister Nobusuke Kishi.
The group acknowledged there have been cases in which it received “excessive” donations. It says the problems have been mitigated since it adopted stricter compliance measures in 2009 and has pledged further reforms.
The police investigation of Abe’s killing led to revelations of widespread ties between the church and members of the governing party, including Abe, over their shared interests in conservative causes. The case also shed light on the suffering of adherents’ relatives, some of whom say they were forced to join the church or were left in poverty or neglected because of their parents’ devotion.
Many critics consider the church to be a cult because of problems with followers and their families, including financial and mental hardships. | https://www.wearegreenbay.com/news/ap-top-headlines/ap-japan-cabinet-minister-resigns-over-unification-church-ties/ | 2022-10-26 02:40:49 | 1 | https://www.wearegreenbay.com/news/ap-top-headlines/ap-japan-cabinet-minister-resigns-over-unification-church-ties/ |
Blinken meets Chinese President Xi in bid to ease soaring US-China tensions
BEIJING (AP) — U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken met with Chinese President Xi Jinping on Monday, as the top U.S. diplomat wrapped up a high-stakes two-day visit to Beijing aimed at easing soaring tensions between the countries.
The 35-minute meeting at the Great Hall of the People had been expected and was seen as key to the success of the trip, but neither side confirmed it would happen until a State Department official announced it just an hour beforehand.
In footage of the meeting released by state broadcaster CCTV, Xi is heard to say “The two sides have agreed to follow through on the common understandings President Biden and I have reached in Bali.”
In earlier meetings between Blinken and senior Chinese officials, the two sides expressed willingness to talk but showed little inclination to bend from hardened positions on disagreements ranging from trade, to Taiwan, to human rights conditions in China and Hong Kong, to Chinese military assertiveness in the South China Sea, to Russia’s war in Ukraine.
Xi said that they had made progress and reached agreements on “some specific issues” without elaborating. “This is very good,” Xi said.
“I hope that through this visit, Mr. Secretary, you will make more positive contributions to stabilizing China-US relation,” Xi added.
Despite Blinken’s presence in China, he and other U.S. officials had played down the prospects for any significant breakthroughs on the most vexing issues facing the planet’s two largest economies.
Instead, these officials have emphasized the importance of the two countries establishing and maintaining better lines of communication.
Blinken is the highest-level U.S. official to visit China since President Joe Biden took office, and the first secretary of state to make the trip in five years. His visit is expected to usher in a new round of visits by senior U.S. and Chinese officials, possibly including a meeting between Xi and Biden in the coming months.
Blinken met earlier Monday with China’s top diplomat Wang Yi for about three hours, according to a U.S. official.
China’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs wrote in a statement that Blinken’s visit “coincides with a critical juncture in China-U.S. relations, and it is necessary to make a choice between dialogue or confrontation, cooperation or conflict,” and blamed the “U.S. side’s erroneous perception of China, leading to incorrect policies towards China” for the current “low point” in relations.
It said the U.S. had a responsibility to halt “the spiraling decline of China-U.S. relations to push it back to a healthy and stable track” and that Wang had “demanded that the U.S. stop hyping up the ‘China threat theory’, lift illegal unilateral sanctions against China, abandon suppression of China’s technological development, and refrain from arbitrary interference in China’s internal affairs.”
The State Department said Blinken “underscored the importance of responsibly managing the competition between the United States and the PRC through open channels of communication to ensure competition does not veer into conflict.”
In the first round of talks on Sunday, Blinken met for nearly six hours with Chinese Foreign Minister Qin Gang after which both countries said they had agreed to continue high-level discussions. However, there was no sign that any of the most fractious issues between them were closer to resolution.
Both the U.S. and China said Qin had accepted an invitation from Blinken to visit Washington but Beijing made clear that “the China-U.S. relationship is at the lowest point since its establishment.” That sentiment is widely shared by U.S. officials.
Blinken’s visit comes after his initial plans to travel to China were postponed in February after the shootdown of a Chinese surveillance balloon over the U.S.
A snub by the Chinese leader would have been a major setback to the effort to restore and maintain communications at senior levels.
Biden and Xi had made commitments to improve communications “precisely so that we can make sure we are communicating as clearly as possible to avoid possible misunderstandings and miscommunications,” Blinken said before leaving for Beijing.
And Biden said over the weekend that he hoped to be able to meet with Xi in the coming months to take up the plethora of differences that divide them.
In his meetings on Sunday, Blinken also pressed the Chinese to release detained American citizens and to take steps to curb the production and export of fentanyl precursors that are fueling the opioid crisis in the United States.
Xi offered a hint of a possible willingness to reduce tensions on Friday, saying in a meeting with Microsoft Corp. co-founder Bill Gates that the United States and China can cooperate to “benefit our two countries.”
Since the cancellation of Blinken’s trip in February, there have been some high-level engagements. CIA chief William Burns traveled to China in May, while China’s commerce minister traveled to the U.S. And Biden’s national security adviser Jake Sullivan met with senior Chinese foreign policy adviser Wang Yi in Vienna in May.
But those have been punctuated by bursts of angry rhetoric from both countries over the Taiwan Strait, their broader intentions in the Indo-Pacific, China’s refusal to condemn Russia for its war against Ukraine, and U.S. allegations from Washington that Beijing is attempting to boost its worldwide surveillance capabilities, including in Cuba.
And, earlier this month, China’s defense minister rebuffed a request from U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin for a meeting on the sidelines of a security symposium in Singapore, a sign of continuing discontent.
Copyright 2023 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. | https://www.wibw.com/2023/06/19/blinken-meets-chinese-president-xi-bid-ease-soaring-us-china-tensions/ | 2023-06-19 10:25:23 | 1 | https://www.wibw.com/2023/06/19/blinken-meets-chinese-president-xi-bid-ease-soaring-us-china-tensions/ |
DAVIE, Fla., July 12, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Green Scientific Labs Holdings Inc. ("Green Scientific Labs" or the "Company"), leading multi-state provider of innovative cannabis and hemp testing technologies and methods, was assessed on Thursday, July 7 by an ISO accreditation body for its initial accreditation. Similar to the previous two audits to its other locations in Davie, Florida and Phoenix, Arizona, the Company's New Jersey laboratory met all expectations, and the inspection did not yield a single negative observation (finding), according to the ISO accreditation body. It was recommended for ISO/IEC 17025:2017 accreditation as outlined by the joint ISO-ILAC-IAF Communiqué and met the requirements of the AOAC International Guidelines for Laboratories performing Microbiological and Chemical Analyses of Food and Pharmaceuticals (2018).
"The laboratory facility buildout is complete; equipment is being installed and qualified in preparation for scope expansion to include the many methods Green Scientific Labs performs nationwide. We are excited about this accomplishment and looking forward to receiving the certification in the second half of 2022," said Rafael Bombonato, Chief Compliance Officer of Green Scientific Labs.
The laboratory is continuing to meet the New Jersey state requirements for licensure. It is expected to obtain the required licenses soon to start testing medicinal and recreational cannabis samples to ensure accuracy, safety, and quality.
Since its inception, Green Scientific Labs has been diligently working on ensuring it has a corporate culture where laboratory operations have built-in quality and compliance. The hard work has been authenticated by the consecutive perfect audit results and our third ISO/IEC 17025:2017 accreditation.
Green Scientific Labs (CSE: GSL) is a leading, multi-state provider of innovative cannabis and hemp testing technologies and methods. The company's labs perform product testing to help cultivators, manufacturers, and retailers stay compliant with state and federal regulations. Green Scientific Labs delivers superior marijuana, cannabis, hemp, and CBD testing services, and provides unmatched customer service for its clients. For more information, please visit https://www.greenscientificlabs.com/.
This news release includes forward-looking information and statements, which may include, but are not limited to, information and statements regarding or inferring the future business, operations, financial performance, prospects, and other plans, intentions, expectations, estimates, and beliefs of the Company and statements with regard to the issuance of additional Company Shares in satisfaction of earn-out payments and the expansion of the Company's operations. Words such as "expects", "continue", "will", "anticipates" and "intends" or similar expressions are intended to identify forward-looking statements. These forward-looking statements are based on the Company's current projections and expectations about future events and financial trends that management believes might affect its financial condition, results of operations, business strategy and financial needs, and on certain assumptions and analysis made by the Company in light of the experience and perception of historical trends, current conditions and expected future developments and other factors management believes are appropriate. Forward-looking information and statements involve and are subject to assumptions and known and unknown risks, uncertainties, and other factors which may cause actual events, results, performance, or achievements of the Company to be materially different from future events, results, performance, and achievements expressed or implied by forward-looking information and statements herein. Although the Company believes that any forward-looking information and statements herein are reasonable, in light of the use of assumptions and the significant risks and uncertainties inherent in such information and statements, there can be no assurance that any such forward-looking information and statements will prove to be accurate, and accordingly readers are advised to rely on their own evaluation of such risks and uncertainties and should not place undue reliance upon such forward-looking information and statements. Any forward-looking information and statements herein are made as of the date hereof, and except as required by applicable laws, the Company assumes no obligation and disclaims any intention to update or revise any forward-looking information and statements herein or to update the reasons that actual events or results could or do differ from those projected in any forward looking information and statements herein, whether as a result of new information, future events or results, or otherwise, except as required by applicable laws.
The Canadian Securities Exchange has not reviewed, approved, or disapproved the content of this news release.
View original content:
SOURCE Green Scientific Labs | https://www.kwch.com/prnewswire/2022/07/12/green-scientific-labs-assessed-initial-isoiec-17025-accreditation-its-new-jersey-laboratory/ | 2022-07-12 12:03:45 | 0 | https://www.kwch.com/prnewswire/2022/07/12/green-scientific-labs-assessed-initial-isoiec-17025-accreditation-its-new-jersey-laboratory/ |
WASHINGTON (AP) — Schools and colleges across the U.S. would be forbidden from enacting outright bans on transgender athletes under a proposal released Thursday by the Biden administration, but teams could create some limits in certain cases — for example, to ensure fairness.
The proposed rule sends a political counterpunch toward a wave of Republican-led states that have sought to ban trans athletes from competing in school sports that align with their gender identities. If finalized, the proposal would become enshrined as a provision of Title IX, the landmark gender-equity legislation enacted in 1972.
It must undergo a lengthy approval process, however, and it’s almost certain to face challenges. While opponents sharply criticized the proposal, some advocates for transgender athletes were concerned that it did not go far enough.
The proposal comes on the same day that the Supreme Court said a 12-year-old transgender girl in West Virginia can continue competing on her middle school track and cross-country teams while legal battles over the state’s transgender law continue. The law bans transgender athletes from female teams.
All told, at least 16 states now have bans in effect covering at least high school interscholastic sports. Some also extend to intramural, club or college sports. Enforcement of bans in at least three other states has been put on hold by courts, and one more has adopted a ban that doesn’t take effect until July.
Under the Education Department’s proposed rule, no school or college that receives federal funding would be allowed to impose a “one-size-fits-all” policy that categorically bans trans students from playing on sports teams consistent with their gender identity. Such policies would be considered a violation of Title IX.
Still, the proposal leaves room for schools to develop team eligibility rules that could ultimately result in restrictions around trans athletes’ participation.
That would be allowed only if it serves “important educational objectives,” such as fairness in competition and reduction of injury risks.
Any limits would have to consider the sport, the level of competition and the age of students. Elementary school students would generally be allowed to participate on any teams consistent with their gender identity, for example. More competitive teams at high schools and colleges could add limits, but those would be discouraged in teams that don’t have tryouts or cuts.
“Every student should be able to have the full experience of attending school in America, including participating in athletics, free from discrimination,” said Miguel Cardona, Biden’s education secretary, in a statement.
Biden’s administration used “fairness of competition” as criteria, which has been part of the debate both in the U.S. and globally. But officials offered no specifics on how this could be done.
Of the tens of millions of high school students in the U.S., about 300,000 youth between the ages of 13 to 17 identify as transgender, according to a 2022 study from the Williams Institute, a think tank at UCLA focused on LGBTQ+ issues. The number of athletes within that group is much smaller; a 2017 survey by Human Rights Campaign suggested fewer than 15% of all transgender youth play sports.
Asked about the proposal, Bobbie Hirsch, a transgender man and sophomore on the Wayne State men’s fencing team, said “anything helps.” But he feared the language in the rule would make it easier for schools to tell transgender athletes they can’t play on a team. “That’s the direction things have been going,” he said in a phone interview.
Hirsch competed on the women’s team in the 2021-22 season, and began transitioning socially in high school and medically last summer.
Eli Bundy, an 18-year-old transgender resident of Charleston, South Carolina, said they welcomed the proposal but were stopping short of celebrating.
“I have a hard time feeling relief when positive stuff happens at the national level, because there’s still so much at the state level from the South Carolina Legislature that is antagonistic and sends a really harmful message to trans youth,” said Bundy, who testified in 2021 against the state’s ban on transgender students’ participation in girls’ or women’s sports at public schools and colleges.
Asked about the state bans now in place, a senior Education Department official briefing reporters on condition of anonymity said Title IX is the law of the land and officials would work to ensure it’s being followed in all the states.
In the West Virginia case, the Supreme Court refused to undo an appeals court order that made it possible for the girl, Becky Pepper-Jackson, to continue playing on her school’s teams. The state’s law on transgender athletes defines male and female by looking to the student’s “reproductive biology and genetics at birth.” It applies to middle and high schools, as well as colleges.
Elsewhere, Republican lawmakers insisted they had the right to set policies in their states. The Biden administration’s announcement came a day after Kansas lawmakers succeeded in overriding Democratic Gov. Laura Kelly’s third veto in three years of a bill to ban transgender female athletes from girls’ and women’s sports.
“At what point does the federal government not understand the U.S. Constitution that says we have states’ rights?” said Republican state Rep. Brenda Landwehr, of Wichita. “We can make decisions on our own.”
Critics argue transgender athletes have an advantage over cisgender women in competition. Last year, Lia Thomas became the first transgender woman to win an NCAA swimming title. College sports’ governing body, however, adopted a sport-by-sport approach to transgender athletes in January 2002, though recently the NCAA’s board decided it won’t be fully implemented until 2023-24.
The NCAA released a statement Thursday night saying: “The NCAA’s current transgender student-athlete participation policy aligns with the Olympic movement and balances fairness, inclusion and safety for all student-athletes. That policy remains in place while the lengthy Title IX regulatory process plays out.”
At the same time, international sports-governing bodies are instituting policies that ban all trans athletes from competing in track and field and effectively ban trans women from swimming events.
Donna de Varona, a two-time Olympic gold medalist in swimming and a member of the Women’s Sports Policy Working Group, said her hope is to find a “nuanced approach” to finding space for transgender athletes while allowing for Title IX to make sure girls and women have “fairness, opportunity and safety.”
“There’s plenty of room. … Why does it have to be in the women’s category? We’re already being compromised in our reproductive rights and now we have the other spectrum with sports,” de Varona said in a phone interview.
Sasha Buchert, Lambda Legal senior attorney and director of the group’s Nonbinary and Transgender Rights Project, said the proposed rule provided “critical recognition of the importance of participating in sports for transgender youth.” At the same time, she expressed concern about whether it would eliminate discrimination against transgender students.
But an attorney for cisgender runners decried the proposal as “a slap in the face to female athletes who deserve equal opportunity to compete in their sports.”
“The Biden administration’s rewriting Title IX degrades women and tells them that their athletic goals and placements do not matter,” said Christiana Kiefer, senior counsel at Alliance Defending Freedom. She represented Connecticut runners who sued over the participation of two transgender girls in track and field events.
President Joe Biden’s administration has made it a priority to bolster the rights of trans students. Last year it proposed a separate federal rule that for the first time would extend Title IX rights to LGBTQ+ students, broadly protecting them from discrimination in education.
That rule — which drew more than 240,000 comments from the public and sharp opposition from conservatives — is expected to be finalized as soon as next month.
The new proposal doesn’t offer examples of acceptable limits that could be placed on school sports, but it clarifies that restrictions couldn’t be directed at trans students only. Schools would be left to navigate that tricky legal terrain, with the knowledge that any violation could bring a federal civil rights investigation or lawsuits.
Schools that choose to impose limits must “minimize harms” to students who lose out on athletics opportunities, the proposal says. If a school can achieve objectives like fairness in ways that cause less harm, then the school could be deemed to be violating Title IX.
“Preventing students from participating on a sports team consistent with their gender identity can stigmatize and isolate them,” according to background information provided by the administration. “This is different from the experience of a student who is not selected for a team based on their skills.”
Schools that violate Title IX can face penalties up to a complete loss of federal funding, although no school has ever been dealt that punishment.
___
AP Sports Writers Eric Olson in Omaha, Nebraska, and John Zenor in Birmingham, Alabama, and AP writers Pat Eaton-Robb in Hartford, Connecticut, James Pollard in Columbia, South Carolina, and John Hanna in Topeka, Kansas, contributed to this report.
___
The Associated Press education team receives support from the Carnegie Corporation of New York. The AP is solely responsible for all content. | https://www.wearegreenbay.com/sports/ap-sports/us-would-bar-full-ban-on-trans-athletes-but-allow-exceptions/ | 2023-04-07 13:21:57 | 0 | https://www.wearegreenbay.com/sports/ap-sports/us-would-bar-full-ban-on-trans-athletes-but-allow-exceptions/ |
The Coconino County Board of Supervisors is considering whether to require a permit application and fee for short-term rentals.
In addition to the permit, property owners would also be required to notify neighbors of short-term rental operations, meet building codes and prevent rentals for special events.
County officials say the board is considering this as state legislation now allows local jurisdictions to have more control over short-term vacation rentals.
The public is invited to attend a presentation today via Zoom and a public hearing is scheduled for February 28. The Board is expected to vote on the matter during that meeting. | https://www.knau.org/knau-and-arizona-news/2023-01-24/coconino-county-to-take-on-short-term-rentals | 2023-01-24 13:40:27 | 1 | https://www.knau.org/knau-and-arizona-news/2023-01-24/coconino-county-to-take-on-short-term-rentals |
Sacheen Littlefeather, the actor and activist who declined Marlon Brando’s 1973 Academy Award for “The Godfather” on his behalf in an indelible protest of Hollywood’s portrayal of Native Americans, has died. She was 75.
Littlefeather’s niece, Calina Lawrence, confirmed that she died peacefully Sunday, surrounded by loved ones at her Marin County, California, home. The cause was breast cancer, the family said.
Littlefeather’s appearance at the 1973 Oscars would become one of the award show’s most famous moments. Clad in buckskin dress and moccasins, Littlefeather took the stage when presenter Roger Moore read Brando’s name as the winner for best actor.
Speaking to the audience, Littlefeather cited Native American stereotypes in film and the then-ongoing weekslong protest at Wounded Knee in South Dakota as the reason for Brando’s absence. She said Brando had written “a very long speech” but she was restricted by time to brief remarks. Producer Howard Koch had allegedly warned Littlefeather, then 26, that he would have her arrested if she spoke for more than a minute.
“I beg at this time that I have not intruded upon this evening and that we will in the future, our hearts and our understandings will meet with love and generosity,” Littlefeather said, becoming the first Native American woman to appear onstage at the Oscars.
Although brief, straightforward and courteous, Littlefeather’s appearance was contentious, receiving a mix of applause and boos from the audience. In the years after, Littlefeather endured considerable scorn and abuse for her speech, she said.
“I spoke from my heart,” she told The Associated Press days after the Oscars. “Those words were written in blood, perhaps my own blood. I felt about like Christ carrying the weight of the cross on his shoulders.”
Only recently did the Academy of Motion Pictures Arts and Sciences officially address the treatment Littlefeather received following her appearance. In August, the film academy apologized to Littlefeather. Two weeks ago, it held an evening of “conversation, healing and celebration” in her honor.
“The abuse you endured because of this statement was unwarranted and unjustified,” the academy’s president, David Rubin, wrote in a letter to Littlefeather. “The emotional burden you have lived through and the cost to your own career in our industry are irreparable. For too long the courage you showed has been unacknowledged. For this, we offer both our deepest apologies and our sincere admiration.”
Littlefeather responded in a statement: “We Indians are very patient people — it’s only been 50 years!”
“We need to keep our sense of humor about this at all times,” she added. “It’s our method of survival.”
Littlefeather was born Marie Cruz on Nov. 14, 1946, in Salinas, California. Her father was from the White Mountain Apache and Yaqui tribes and her mother was white. Both were saddle makers. They separated when Littlefeather was four, after which she was raised largely by her grandparents. She took the name Sacheen Littlefeather after high school. Sacheen, she said, was what her father had called her; the surname came from a feather she often wore in her hair.
Littlefeather’s entry into acting corresponded with her activism. She was part of the Native American occupation of Alcatraz Island in 1969, she said, and began acting with San Francisco’s American Conservatory Theater in the early ’70s.
Littlefeather met Brando through her neighbor, “Godfather” director Francis Ford Coppola. She had known Brando for about a year before he called her the night before the 1973 ceremony, invited her to his house and asked her to attend in his place.
Political speeches at the Oscars were then still a rarity, and some in attendance saw the brief address as a break in decorum — and one that raised a subject not everyone was eager to consider.
“I don’t know if I should present this award on behalf of all the cowboys shot in all the John Ford Westerns over the years,” Clint Eastwood said later in the evening, while presenting the award for best picture. Presenting best actress, presenter Raquel Welch cracked: “I hope they haven’t got a cause.”
“I went up there thinking I could make a difference,” Littlefeather told People magazine in 1990. “I was very naive. I told people about oppression. They said, ‘You’re ruining our evening.’”
Littlefeather described the overwhelmingly white crowd as “a sea of Clorox.” She said some audience members did the so-called “tomahawk chop” and that Brando’s house was later shot at.
Over the years, Littlefeather added to the lore, describing John Wayne, who was in the theater wings as she spoke, as “ready to have me taken off stage.” In 2016, Littlefeather told The Los Angeles Times that Wayne “had to be restrained by six security guards.” The film scholar Farran Smith Nehme has since researched the supposed incident and found no evidence it occurred.
But it was indisputable that Littlefeather’s life was altered by those 60 seconds. Following the Oscars, her credentials as an actor and activist — Littlefeather had posed in 1972 for Playboy, which she defended as proof that “red was beautiful” — were questioned in tabloid reports and elsewhere. Her opportunities as an actor dried up. Littlefeather said she was “red-listed” from the industry. She fell out of show business and, in the decades after, worked primarily as an activist for Native Americans.
At the academy event last month, Littlefeather, then in a wheelchair, said despite all the hardship she faced after the Oscars, she would do it all again.
“I was representing all Indigenous voices out there, because we had never been heard in that way before,” Littlefeather said. “And if I had to pay the price of admission, then that was OK, because those doors had to be opened — like Yosemite Sam. Somebody had to do it.”
___
Follow AP Film Writer Jake Coyle on Twitter at https://twitter.com/jakecoyleAP | https://www.wjhl.com/entertainment/ap-entertainment/ap-sacheen-littlefeather-actor-who-declined-brando-oscar-dies/ | 2022-10-03 20:46:11 | 0 | https://www.wjhl.com/entertainment/ap-entertainment/ap-sacheen-littlefeather-actor-who-declined-brando-oscar-dies/ |
ATLANTA (AP) — Pitcher Max Fried became the fifth member of the World Series champion Atlanta Braves to go to salary arbitration, asking for $6.85 million on Tuesday while the team argued for $6.6 million.
A decision by Walt De Treux, Robert Herman and John Woods is expected Wednesday.
Teams have a 9-3 advantage in decisions. New York Yankees outfielder Aaron Judge is the only player still scheduled for a hearing.
Fried, a 28-year-old left-hander, was 14-7 with a 3.04 ERA last year and was 2-2 in the postseason. After losing Game 2 of the World Series against Houston, Fried pitched six shutout innings in Game 6 as the Braves won their first title since 1995. Fried made $3.5 million last year and is eligible for free agency after the 2024 season.
Fried is 7-2 with a 2.77 ERA this season. No statistics or evidence from after March 1 are admissible other than contract and salary comparisons, timing set when Major League Baseball and the players’ association agreed to the deal that ended the lockout.
Shortstop Dansby Swanson ($10 million) won his case against the Braves, while outfielder Adam Duvall ($9,275,000), third baseman Austin Riley ($3.95 million) and injured reliever Luke Jackson ($3.6 million) lost.
Also losing were St. Louis outfielder Tyler O’Neill ($3.4 million), Kansas City infielder Nicky Lopez ($2.55 million), Miami right-hander Pablo López and catcher Jacob Stallings (both $2.45 million), Milwaukee right-hander Adrian Houser ($2,425,000) and Cincinnati pitcher Lucas Sims ($1.2 million).
Also winning were Seattle second baseman/outfielder Adam Frazier ($8 million) and Kansas City outfielder Andrew Benintendi ($8.5 million).
Arbitration hearings usually are held during the first three weeks of February but were delayed by the lockout.
___
More AP MLB coverage: https://apnews.com/hub/MLB and https://twitter.com/AP_Sports | https://phl17.com/sports/max-fried-braves-go-to-salary-arbitration-250000-apart/ | 2022-06-22 20:30:41 | 1 | https://phl17.com/sports/max-fried-braves-go-to-salary-arbitration-250000-apart/ |
LOS ANGELES — The 2023 Emmy Awards will not air on Sept. 18 as originally planned as the Hollywood writers and actors strikes continue, multiple media outlets reported Thursday.
While an exact rescheduled date hasn't been decided, Variety reports that Fox is eyeing a move to January.
Nominations were announced on July 12. The actors union, SAG-AFTRA, went on strike two days later, joining WGA writers who had been on the picket lines for weeks.
As part of the strike, actors cannot campaign for Emmy awards or take part in auditions or rehearsals, and they may not appear at the ceremony. With writers also on strike, there would be no opening monologue for the host or introductions written for presenters.
Canceling the Emmys is likely not an option as the Television Academy is celebrating a milestone: 75 years.
It’s the first time two major Hollywood unions have been on strike at the same time since 1960. | https://www.12news.com/article/news/nation-world/emmy-awards-delayed-wont-air-september-writers-actors-strikes/507-e6113afd-0fd9-4ee8-93b1-9e447c9ba469 | 2023-07-28 04:46:48 | 1 | https://www.12news.com/article/news/nation-world/emmy-awards-delayed-wont-air-september-writers-actors-strikes/507-e6113afd-0fd9-4ee8-93b1-9e447c9ba469 |
WFO BROWNSVILLE Warnings, Watches and Advisories for Wednesday, November 30, 2022
_____
WIND ADVISORY
URGENT - WEATHER MESSAGE
National Weather Service Brownsville TX
409 PM CST Wed Nov 30 2022
...WIND ADVISORY IS CANCELLED...
Breezy northeasterly winds around 20 to 25 mph are expected to
continue along the lower Texas coast into tonight, with occasional
gusts of 30 to 35 mph early this evening. Winds are expected to
gradually diminish late tonight.
_____
Copyright 2022 AccuWeather | https://www.sfgate.com/weather/article/TX-WFO-BROWNSVILLE-Warnings-Watches-and-17622075.php | 2022-11-30 23:58:03 | 0 | https://www.sfgate.com/weather/article/TX-WFO-BROWNSVILLE-Warnings-Watches-and-17622075.php |
Bishop Alfred Schlert of the Diocese of Allentown announced new assignments for diocesan priests on Sunday.
“Every year the Bishop works with the Priest Personnel Board, an advisory body made up of experienced priests who are representative of the Diocese and its many regions and ministries, to make decisions on new assignments,” the diocese said in a news release. “New assignments are designed to meet the needs of the faithful in the Diocese’s 80 parishes, as well as fulfilling pastoral needs at college campuses, at hospitals, at diocesan high schools, and at prisons and nursing homes.”
Priests are reassigned for a number of reasons, the diocese said, including openings due to retirements, requests from clergy members, professional development of priests, and the need for a specific skill or talent that is a good match for a certain ministry.
The following assignments are effective June 21, 2022, unless otherwise noted.
Pastors Emeriti
Pastor Emeritus is an honorary title granted by the Bishop to a Pastor for exemplary service to the local Church.
Rev. William T. Campion, Pastor, Sacred Heart Parish, Palmerton to Pastor Emeritus, Sacred Heart Parish, Palmerton.
Rev. Robert J. Potts, Pastor, Saint Ursula Parish, Fountain Hill to Pastor Emeritus, Saint Ursula Parish, Fountain Hill.
Pastors
Rev. Frans J. Berkhout, Parochial Administrator, Sacred Heart Parish, Bethlehem to Pastor, Sacred Heart Parish, Bethlehem.
Rev. Kevin J. Bobbin, Parochial Administrator, Saint John the Baptist Parish, Pottsville to Pastor, Saint John the Baptist Parish, Pottsville.
Rev. Monsignor Edward R. Domin, Pastor, Saint Catharine of Siena Parish, Reading to Pastor, Saint Benedict Parish, Mohnton.
Rev. Andrew N. Gehringer, Pastor, Holy Infancy Parish, Bethlehem also to Pastor, Incarnation of Our Lord Parish, Bethlehem.
Rev. David J. Kozak, Pastor, Incarnation of Our Lord Parish, Bethlehem and Pastor, Holy Ghost Parish, Bethlehem to Pastor, Saint Ursula Parish, Fountain Hill; while remaining Pastor, Holy Ghost Parish, Bethlehem.
Rev. John C. Maria, Parochial Administrator, Saint Mary Parish, Kutztown to Pastor, Saint Mary Parish, Kutztown.
Rev. Brian M. Miller, Pastor, Saint Charles Borromeo Parish, Ashland; Pastor, Saint Joseph the Worker Parish, Frackville; and Chaplain, Marian High School, Tamaqua to Pastor, Saint Catharine of Siena Parish, Reading.
Rev. Eric N. Tolentino, Parochial Administrator, Annunciation of the Blessed Virgin Mary Parish, Catasauqua to Pastor, Annunciation of the Blessed Virgin Mary Parish, Catasauqua.
Parochial Administrator
Diocesan policy states that a priest being entrusted with the pastoral care of a parish for the first time be appointed a parochial administrator for at least one year.
Rev. Giuseppe C. Esposito, Parochial Vicar, Saint Thomas More Parish, Allentown and Chaplain, Allentown Central Catholic High School, Allentown to Parochial Administrator, Saint Charles Borromeo Parish, Ashland and Parochial Administrator, Saint Joseph the Worker Parish, Frackville.
Parochial Vicars
A Parochial Vicar assists the pastor in the entire parochial ministry. A Parochial Vicar is commonly referred to as an Assistant Pastor.
Rev. Stephan A. Isaac, Parochial Vicar, Saint Catharine of Siena Parish, Reading and Chaplain, Berks Catholic High School, Reading to Parochial Vicar, Cathedral of Saint Catharine of Siena Parish, Allentown and Chaplain, Allentown Central Catholic High School, Allentown.
Rev. Brendon M. Laroche, Parochial Vicar, Cathedral of Saint Catharine of Siena Parish, Allentown and Catholic Chaplain, Newman Center, Muhlenberg College, Allentown to Parochial Vicar, Saint Thomas More Parish, Allentown.
Specialized Ministry
A priest in Specialized Ministry has entrusted to him in a stable manner the pastoral care, at least in part, of some community or particular group of the Christian faithful.
Rev. George Ababio, Parochial Vicar, Holy Guardian Angels Parish, Reading also to Chaplain, Penn State Health – Saint Joseph Medical Center, Reading.
Rev. Christopher S. Butera, Pastor, Sacred Heart Parish, Bath also to Chaplain, Kolbe Academy, Bath; effective 1 July 2022.
Rev. Bernard J. Ezaki, Chaplain, Kolbe Academy, Bethlehem to Chaplain, Bethlehem Catholic High School, Bethlehem; while remaining Parochial Vicar, Notre Dame of Bethlehem Parish; effective 1 July 2022.
Rev. John A. Frink, Pastor, Saint Benedict Parish, Mohnton to Specialized Diocesan Spiritual Ministry and Catholic Chaplain, Newman Center, Muhlenberg College, Allentown.
Rev. Robert J. George, Pastor, Saint Joseph Parish, Summit Hill also to Chaplain, Marian High School, Tamaqua.
First Call
Rev. Kevin M. Gualano, Sacramental and Pastoral Ministry, Schuylkill Deanery with Residence, Saint Clare of Assisi Rectory, Saint Clair to Chaplain, Holy Family Manor, Bethlehem.
Rev. Gregory R. Karpyn, Senior Priest, Diocese of Allentown with Residence, Holy Family Villa, Bethlehem to Sacramental and Pastoral Ministry, Schuylkill Deanery with Residence, Saint Patrick Rectory, Pottsville.
Rev. Simon Kimaryo, A.J., Chaplain, Holy Family Manor, Bethlehem to Chaplain, Lehigh Valley Hospital-Cedar Crest, Allentown.
Rev. Odemary Bahati Kisaka, A.J., Chaplain, Lehigh Valley Hospital-Cedar Crest, Allentown to service within his religious community.
Rev. Daniel E. Kravatz, Chaplain, Bethlehem Catholic High School, Bethlehem to Graduate Studies in Canon Law, Saint Paul University, Ottawa, Canada (distance learning) while remaining Chaplain, Notre Dame High School, Easton; Sacramental Ministry, Newman Center, Lafayette College, Easton, and remaining Resident, Saint Anne Rectory, Bethlehem.
Medical Leave of Absence
Rev. John A. Hutta, Parochial Vicar, Saint Joseph Parish, Reading; Parochial Vicar, Saint Paul Parish, Reading, and Chaplain, Penn State Health-Saint Joseph Medical Center, Reading to medical leave of absence. | https://www.mcall.com/news/local/mc-nws-alklentown-diocese-priest-assignments-20220522-rymnxbuwarfx3lnyfixzmlwuti-story.html | 2022-05-22 18:26:07 | 0 | https://www.mcall.com/news/local/mc-nws-alklentown-diocese-priest-assignments-20220522-rymnxbuwarfx3lnyfixzmlwuti-story.html |
“Think pink! think pink! when you shop for summer clothes. Think pink! think pink! if you want that quelque chose.”
That advice, sung as an epiphany in the 1957 musical film “Funny Face,” has definitely been heeded — just take a look around at fashion and media. The fascination around pink — each shade and hue with its own connotation — has shaped those cultural engines for generations, revving into full force as we reach peak “Barbie” season.
The color has been a crucial detail for films and television — from that scene in “Funny Face,” to Elle Woods sporting her iconic head-to-toe vibrant pink courtroom outfit in 2001’s “Legally Blonde,” to “The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel,” where the shades of pink in costuming play a symbolic role in the final season. And, now, with the Greta Gerwig-helmed film’s release, the vividly hot “Barbie Pink” is inescapable.
Throughout history, designers, artists, and brands have played with the emotions the color evokes, shaping meanings that are ever-evolving. From gender to class, those associations have constantly been challenged, flipped and subverted — while the definition of pink is always in flux, there’s one constant: its cultural staying power.
Pink first became fashionable in the 18th century in the French court, because of a new source of dye that imparted a more vivid, long-lasting color in fabrics, explained Valerie Steele, director of The Museum at FIT and one of the authors of “Pink: The History of a Punk, Pretty, Powerful Color.”
Since then, the cachet of pink has ebbed and flowed; as pink dyes became more accessible to the working class, the color lost its association with wealth and prestige.
When first popularized, it was worn by men and women alike, but in the 1920s, U.S. department stores claimed blue for boys and pink for girls.
“It was really totally arbitrary,” Steele said of the correlation.
Fast forward a few generations to 2016, when Pantone chose “Rose Quartz” as a color of the year: The muted dusty pink is calming but also connotes strength, said Laurie Pressman, vice president of the Pantone Color Institute. She told The Associated Press one of the reasons for the pick was the rise of the “gender blur.” (The color was quickly embraced by fashion and interior designers, earning the moniker of “millennial pink.”)
That symbiotic influence — pink providing texture to and receiving a boost from a cultural force — was evident the next year at the Women’s March on Washington, where demonstrators donned loudly pink “pussy hats.”
“Pink has become, in many ways, the most controversial color in fashion, and fashion is always interested in controversy,” Steele said.
For British artist Stuart Semple, pink is the color of rebellion and taking space. Semple created the “pinkest pink” paint in 2016 as a reaction to artist Anish Kapoor purchasing and reserving the artistic rights to the Vantablack pigment, said to be the world’s blackest black.
Semple has made his paint — intended to be the fluorescent apotheosis of the color — accessible to the world at an affordable price.
“I thought it was wrong for me to hold this amazing color that I’d made. So I wanted to make it available to everyone,” Semple told the AP. “Apart from him (Kapoor), for obvious reasons.”
Semple chose pink because it was the “antithesis” of black and it’s a color that’s political, vibrant and “the perfect thing to sort of challenge conventions.”
Tanisha Ford, a history professor at The Graduate Center at the City University of New York, noted how male artists — specifically male artists of color like Bad Bunny; Tyler, The Creator, and Jaden Smith — have generated more complex conversations about masculinity by wearing pink clothing.
The color is subversive but also used in a very “tongue-and-cheek kind of way,” Ford said.
“People of color have been denied leisure and denied rest,” Ford said. “So … if you’re wearing these preppy clothes or you’re wearing your yacht chic clothes, you are staking a claim into leisure.”
When it comes down to it, there’s a simple reason why people still wear pink: It looks good.
“At its core, it’s a very flattering color,” Barry Manuel, a New York University fashion professor says.
Pink has long been associated with the Barbie brand — she even has her own Pantone color. But even though Barbie was first released in 1959, Mattel didn’t star featuring predominantly pink packaging until the 1970s, said Kim Culmone, Mattel’s senior vice president and global head of Barbie and fashion dolls design.
When discussing shades of pink associated with the brand, Culmone noted that there’s something inspiring and joyful about “Barbie Pink.”
“Most importantly it’s, for us, it’s really a symbolism of empowerment. Barbie is the original girl empowerment brand,” Culmone said.
It was no surprise that the film’s first full-length trailer dripped pink, showing Barbie Land as a fun, cotton candy wonderland that looks a little artificial. After the trailer was released, news reports claimed the production team bought so many cans of pink paint that it depleted the world’s supply.
Gerwig told the AP that she wasn’t so sure about that — but she did confirm the crew did buy every can of pink paint from one particular company. The director explained it was important to use pink paint to capture older film techniques and to make the audience feel like Barbie Land was tactile.
“It’s toys, and what are toys but things that you touch? And so getting all that pink paint, to paint everything was important,” Gerwig said.
Semple, however, has taken issue with the monopoly and the “press done around running out the paint supply.”
“Whether it’s true or not, it’s still not very nice,” he told the AP.
Semple explains he’s standing up to what he calls “Big Color,” where corporations dominate the usage. He cited “Tiffany Blue,” the trademark color of the jewelry company.
In response to “Barbie,” Semple went back to his previous game plan and created “the Barbiest pink.” Called “Pinkie,” anyone can buy the paint color — as long as they attest to not being employed by Mattel.
“Colors should belong to everybody. And corporations should do what they do best, which is corporate stuff, and perhaps leave colors alone,” Semple said.
When asked for comment on Semple’s “Pinkie” paint, a Mattel spokesperson simply responded in an email, “While not a registered trademark, Barbie Pink is recognized as a famous trademark of the brand.”
We’re drawn to colors because they instantly convey various emotions, explained David Loranger, a professor of fashion merchandising and marketing at Sacred Heart University.
“I feel like having a direct line to the senses from a marketing standpoint is so important because it’s a nonverbal, it’s a semiotic vehicle,” Loranger said. “The best marketing is very deeply rooted in emotion.”
But from where do those innate emotional connections stem? It could come from something in nature, a belief system or something we’ve been told.
“Every color has meaning that we almost inherently sense from that color, whether we’ve learned about it by association or just conditioning, which helps us to intuitively understand the message and the meaning that’s delivered,” Pressman said.
When it comes to consumer marketing, the wide variance in pink’s meanings means everyone can get in on the action. From high fashion — Valentino collaborated with Pantone and created a collection out of the resulting custom shade, shown on a pink runway last March — to everyday items, pink abounds.
Brands now help shape our perception of color, and it pays to have a signature shade.
“Color can be an effective marketing tool. But more than I’d say it’s a bigger idea about claiming something, finding something new to talk about telling the consumer a story,” Miguel said.
Encased in pink, “Barbie” captures an artificial dreamland that instills nostalgia and joy, satisfying the audience’s urge to escape.
“People are happy to find something that captures the imagination and transports them to somewhere simple, happy and fun,” Miguel said, “and pink is that.”
___
Associated Press journalist Krysta Fauria contributed to this story. | https://www.conchovalleyhomepage.com/entertainment-news/ap-from-barbie-to-millennial-pink-the-cultural-phenomenon-behind-the-color-that-sells/ | 2023-07-21 21:00:48 | 1 | https://www.conchovalleyhomepage.com/entertainment-news/ap-from-barbie-to-millennial-pink-the-cultural-phenomenon-behind-the-color-that-sells/ |
Published: Jul. 1, 2022 at 9:05 AM CDT|Updated: 19 minutes ago
IRVINE, Calif., July 1, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Mazda North American Operations (MNAO) today reported total June sales of 15,130 vehicles, a decrease of 53.6 percent compared to June 2021. Year-to-date sales totaled 142,803 vehicles; a decrease of 24.5 percent compared to the same time last year. With 26 selling days in June, compared to 25 the year prior, the company posted a decrease of 55.4 percent on a Daily Selling Rate (DSR) basis.
CPO sales totaled 4,121 vehicles in June, a decrease of 31 percent compared to June 2021.
Mazda Canada, Inc., (MCI) reported June sales of 3,419 vehicles, a decrease of 49.8 percent compared to June last year. Year-to-date sales decreased 17.5 percent, with 22,892 vehicles sold.
Mazda Motor de Mexico (MMdM) reported June sales of 2,479 vehicles, a decrease of 25.4 percent compared to June last year. Year-to-date sales decreased 32.7 percent, with 16,421 vehicles sold.
Mazda North American Operations is headquartered in Irvine, California, and oversees the sales, marketing, parts, and customer service support of Mazda vehicles in the United States, Canada, and Mexico through approximately 780 dealers. Operations in Canada are managed by Mazda Canada Inc. in Richmond Hill, Ontario, and operations in Mexico are managed by Mazda Motor de Mexico in Mexico City. For more information on Mazda vehicles, including photography and B-roll, please visit the online Mazda media center at News.MazdaUSA.com.
The above press release was provided courtesy of PRNewswire. The views, opinions and statements in the press release are not endorsed by Gray Media Group nor do they necessarily state or reflect those of Gray Media Group, Inc. | https://www.kalb.com/prnewswire/2022/07/01/mazda-reports-june-sales-results/ | 2022-07-01 14:24:34 | 1 | https://www.kalb.com/prnewswire/2022/07/01/mazda-reports-june-sales-results/ |
WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. — Residents in a West Palm Beach neighborhood are now on edge after a rash of car burglaries overnight.
Neighbors said they were awakened to their car windows smashed in and it was all caught on camera.
Surveillance footage from outside one of the homes showed five men involved in the break-ins at Vedado Park with another driving a silver SUV.
Neighbors called this an invasion of privacy.
“Situations like this happening, it just feels like a violation,” said Hugo Figueroa.
Figueroa said he is lucky that nothing was taken from him. He said he had hundreds of dollars worth of scuba gear in the back of his Jeep.
“They didn’t even touch it,” said Figueroa.
Tarps are now covering windows while glass is still shattered on the ground. Neighbors said at least eight cars were broken into.
“It’s shocking because I’ve never seen it happen,” said Figueroa.
Other neighbors said few things were taken. Instead, things were moved around.
“I guess we kind of figured out a pattern that it’s mainly people that had Jeeps or trucks that mainly got their windows smashed in,” said Jayla Cousins. “Never has this happened to multiple people. Usually, it’s just been one.”
West Palm Beach police are emphasizing to lock your cars at night and not leave any valuables inside the car. | https://www.wptv.com/news/region-c-palm-beach-county/west-palm-beach/multiple-cars-burglarized-and-vandalized-in-west-palm-beach | 2022-05-16 01:25:02 | 1 | https://www.wptv.com/news/region-c-palm-beach-county/west-palm-beach/multiple-cars-burglarized-and-vandalized-in-west-palm-beach |
Judith Heumann was a disability rights activist and a leader of the disability community. In 1977, she helped to revive legislation that set the groundwork for the Americans with Disabilities Act.
Copyright 2023 NPR
Judith Heumann was a disability rights activist and a leader of the disability community. In 1977, she helped to revive legislation that set the groundwork for the Americans with Disabilities Act.
Copyright 2023 NPR | https://www.knau.org/2023-03-06/remembering-disability-rights-activist-linda-heumann | 2023-03-06 22:08:45 | 0 | https://www.knau.org/2023-03-06/remembering-disability-rights-activist-linda-heumann |
Which stationery supplies for your office are best?
Nice stationery supplies can make working and writing in your office feel luxurious. The paper can be adorned with soothing scenes, animals or simply personalized with your name or initials. These sets usually include at least a dozen sheets of paper and matching envelopes. Some also come with a nice box or organizer to keep it all together.
The best stationery supply set for your office is the Sophisticated Letter Writing Set by Lamaworks. The high-quality paper is personalized for your custom letterhead in the color of your choice.
What to know before you buy stationery supplies for your office
What you already have
The unfortunate thing about many quality stationery sets is they don’t include many supplies outside of writing. If you’re just looking for something nice to write on, this won’t be an issue. But if you’re looking for an all-inclusive desk set, make sure the one you get has everything you want or consider purchasing multiple sets until you have it all.
If you’ve been actively sending letters and memos from your desk for a while, chances are you already have some nice pens or another preferred writing utensil. If you already have envelopes and sticky notes you like, you don’t need to spend the extra money on a set that includes them.
Your color palette
If you like to keep your desk in a specific range of colors, consider looking for a stationery set that fits in well. Some stationery sets include several color options so you can change them up with each letter you send. There are classic black and white sets, watercolor sets and even marbled patterned sets available.
How often you’ll use it
If you write memos and letters every day, you might want a stationery set that offers quantity over quality. Stationery sets typically come in packages of one or two dozen, but you may be able to find larger ones that offer up to 36 or 48 papers and envelopes.
What to look for in quality stationery supplies for your office
Personalization
Personalized stationery can add a nice touch to your correspondence. Whether you simply have your initials on your letterhead or your full name, it separates your memos from everyone else’s. If you’re really into it, you can even have a short quote you enjoy at the top or bottom of some custom stationery. However, if you don’t want to personalize it, you can always choose a nice set with no custom options.
Included accessories
Aside from the standard paper, envelope and pens, some stationery sets include various office supplies. These typically range from push pins and sticky notes to paper clips and mini staplers. These items are readily available at office supply shops if they aren’t included in your kit.
Sizing
Make sure the stationery you’re considering is the right size for you before you buy. If you tend to write big, make sure the dimensions of the paper are big enough for you to dictate an entire message. If you have limited space at your desk, make sure the box or organizer won’t take up too much room.
How much you can expect to spend on stationery supplies for your office
Stationery sets for the office usually cost $10-$40, depending on the quality of the paper and the variety of accessories included.
Stationery supplies FAQ
Are stationery supplies worth the money?
A. Only you can decide if good stationery is a good investment for you, but it can make you look more professional and bring more enjoyment to your writing. If you work from home, all of your stationery supplies are likely tax-deductible.
Can you mix and match stationery?
A. As long as the envelopes are the same size and the prints match, you can mix and match papers from different sets.
What’s the best stationery set for your office to buy?
Top stationery set for the office
Sophisticated Letter Writing Set by Lamaworks
What you need to know: A handmade and formal personalized stationery set available in white or ivory with the choice of more than a dozen ink colors.
What you’ll love: It includes high-quality eggshell, 5 by 7-inch paper that is completely customizable. It comes from a responsive seller who emails the customer proofs of the design before shipping to ensure complete satisfaction. You can purchase it as a set of 10 or 20. It’s perfect for thank you notes and short letters.
What you should consider: There aren’t as many sheets as most stationery sets have, and there aren’t any included accessories. It may take longer to receive your order because it’s handmade.
Where to buy: Sold by Etsy
Top stationery set for the office for the money
Gold Butterfly Stationery Set with Box
What you need to know: This is an attractive and subtle butterfly stationery set with a box to organize it all in.
What you’ll love: Each sheet has a simple butterfly on the letterhead and is 5.75 by 7.75 inches. The paper is smooth, thick and embossed with gold highlights. The set is of excellent quality for the price.
What you should consider: It doesn’t come with any additional accessories. There are more sheets of paper than envelopes included.
Where to buy: Sold by Amazon
Worth checking out
Multibey Marble Stationery Set
What you need to know: This is a full stationery set with a pen, pad, binder clips and journal, all in marble print.
What you’ll love: This set has everything you’ll need for your desk, though you’ll need your own envelopes if you plan to send letters. It’s incredibly handy and makes a great gift for beginner writers and office workers.
What you should consider: The box is often damaged upon arrival, and the pen breaks easily.
Where to buy: Sold by Amazon
Sign up here to receive the BestReviews weekly newsletter for useful advice on new products and noteworthy deals.
Anabelle Weissinger writes for BestReviews. BestReviews has helped millions of consumers simplify their purchasing decisions, saving them time and money.
Copyright 2022 BestReviews, a Nexstar company. All rights reserved. | https://www.wowktv.com/reviews/br/office-br/writing-supplies-br/best-stationery-supplies-for-your-office/ | 2022-05-26 03:12:22 | 1 | https://www.wowktv.com/reviews/br/office-br/writing-supplies-br/best-stationery-supplies-for-your-office/ |
VATICAN CITY (AP) — If ever there was an heir to the intellectual legacy of Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI, it’s Cardinal Gerhard Mueller.
Benedict gave his fellow German theologian his old job — prefect of the Vatican’s doctrine office. He entrusted his life’s theological works to Mueller, who has spent nearly two decades organizing them in a 16-volume, 25,000-page opus along the lines of Thomas Aquinas’ “Summa Theologica.”
He even gave Mueller his old flat on the top floor of a Vatican apartment building, where he had lived as Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger.
“Of course, he took his furniture with him, but the whole thing breathes the spirit of Joseph Ratzinger,” Mueller said in an interview with The Associated Press on Wednesday, the eve of Benedict’s funeral.
He meant the flat, but he could have been referring to himself.
Mueller is one of a dwindling number of cardinals firmly associated with Benedict’s doctrinaire papacy, and he has taken up the late pope’s mantle with gusto, thanks in part to his somewhat spectacular falling out with Pope Francis.
The Jesuit pope, who succeeded Benedict after his historic 2013 resignation, dismissed Mueller in 2017 after an unusually brief, single term as prefect for the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith.
Mueller was only 69 at the time, well short of the normal retirement age. And in his free time since, besides compiling Ratzinger’s theological magnum opus, he has become something of Francis’ highest-ranking critic, singling out his two-year initiative to consult laity about everything from church teaching on sexuality to the roles of women.
“Is the church a political party or an NGO that changes all the time the program according to the applause of the multitude?” Mueller asked rhetorically as he sat in his apartment library that once belonged to Ratzinger. “Or is the church the mission of Jesus Christ, of God, to preach the Gospel?”
The numbers aren’t necessarily in his favor, as Francis has appointed 81 of the 125 cardinals who are young enough to vote in a future conclave, many of whom share the pontiff’s more pastoral approach to church leadership.
But Mueller is undeterred on resetting the church’s course. Together with Benedict’s longtime secretary, Archbishop Georg Gaenswein, he seems committed to ensuring the late pope’s legacy.
Just this week, Italian publisher Piemme announced Gaenswein’s tell-all memoir, “Nothing But the Truth: My Life Beside Pope Benedict XVI,” would be published Jan. 12, a week after the pope is laid to rest. Piemme said the book would expose the “blatant calumnies” and “dark maneuvers” that sullied Benedict’s reputation, but also celebrate his historic papacy and life.
“These voices in the mass media, they abused their power for making a primitive polemics against him. But they have no future,” Mueller said of the often negative press that Benedict received. “In the long run of church history, all these stupid voices will become quiet and reason will win.”
He got up from his armchair and opened the window to show a visitor how he used to look out in the morning and wave to Benedict, who did the same from the top-floor corner apartment of the Apostolic Palace a short distance away.
“So many, many links and connections,” he said of their daily ritual.
The connections continued until recently. When Benedict announced on Feb. 11, 2013, that he would become the first pope in six centuries to resign, Mueller was marking the 35th anniversary of his priestly ordination.
On Dec. 31, the day Benedict died, Mueller turned 75.
“My 75th ‘Earthen’ birthday, and his heavenly birthday,” he said. “Coincidences. But also some divine providence.”
___
Geir Moulson contributed from Berlin.
___
Follow AP’s coverage of Pope Benedict XVI at https://apnews.com/hub/pope-benedict-xvi | https://phl17.com/news/ap-top-headlines/ap-german-cardinal-guards-benedicts-intellectual-legacy/ | 2023-01-05 13:09:50 | 0 | https://phl17.com/news/ap-top-headlines/ap-german-cardinal-guards-benedicts-intellectual-legacy/ |
PITTSBURGH (AP) — The victory party took on the feel of an evangelical worship service after Doug Mastriano won Pennsylvania’s Republican gubernatorial primary this month. As a Christian singer led the crowd in song, some raised their arms toward the heavens in praise.
Mastriano opened his remarks by evoking Scripture: “God uses the foolish to confound the wise.” He claimed Pennsylvanians’ freedom would be “snatched away” if his Democratic opponent wins in November, and cast the election in starkly religious terms with another biblical reference: “Let’s choose this day to serve the Lord.”
Mastriano, a state senator and retired Army colonel, has not only made faith central to his personal story but has woven conservative Christian beliefs and symbols into the campaign — becoming the most prominent example this election cycle of what some observers call a surge of Christian nationalism among Republican candidates.
Mastriano — who has ignored repeated requests for comment from The Associated Press, including through his campaign last week — has rejected the “Christian nationalist” label in the past. In fact, few if any prominent candidates use the label. Some say it’s a pejorative and insist everyone has a right to draw on their faith and values to try to influence public policy.
But scholars generally define Christian nationalism as going beyond policy debates and championing a fusion of American and Christian values, symbols and identity.
Christian nationalism, they say, is often accompanied by a belief that God has destined America, like the biblical Israel, for a special role in history, and that it will receive divine blessing or judgment depending on its obedience.
That often overlaps with the conservative Christian political agenda, including opposition to abortion, same-sex marriage and transgender rights. Researchers say Christian nationalism is often also associated with mistrust of immigrants and Muslims. Many Christian nationalists see former President Donald Trump as a champion despite his crude sexual boasts and lack of public piety.
Candidates seen as Christian nationalists have had mixed success in this year’s Republican primaries, which typically pitted staunch conservatives against opponents even further to the right.
There were losses by some high-profile candidates, such as U.S. Rep. Madison Cawthorn and an Idaho gubernatorial hopeful, Lt. Gov. Janice McGeachin. The former spoke of a “spiritual battle” on Capitol Hill and a need for “strong, God-fearing patriots.” The latter was photographed holding a gun and a Bible and said, “God calls us to pick up the sword and fight, and Christ will reign in the state of Idaho.”
Some of Idaho’s Republican primaries for the Legislature were won by candidates touting Christian values or sharing priorities with Christian nationalists, such as sports bans for transgender athletes. U.S. Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, R-Ga., who uses biblical phrasing to “be a watchman on the wall” against those seeking to “destroy our faith,” easily won her primary.
Watchers of Christian nationalism consider Mastriaono’s win — in a rout, with 44% in a crowded field despite opposition from the state party establishment — by far the highest-profile victory for the movement.
Mastriano has called the separation of church and state a “myth.”
After his victory, the comments section of his campaign Facebook page had the feel of a revival tent:
“Praise Jesus!” “God is smiling on us and sending His blessings.” “Thank you Father God!!”
Mastriano “is a unique case where he really does in his speeches highlight this apocalyptic idea” where his supporters and causes are on God’s side, said Andrew Whitehead, sociology professor at Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis and co-author of “Taking America Back for God: Christian Nationalism in the United States.”
“It literally is good and evil,” he continued. “There’s no room for compromise, so that is the threat to democracy.”
In the book, Whitehead and co-author Samuel Perry measured rates of Christian nationalism by drawing on a 2017 Baylor University survey. It gauged opinions on such things as America’s role in God’s plan and whether the U.S. should be declared a Christian nation, advance biblical values and allow school prayer and religious displays in public places.
Their research found about one in five Americans align with many of those views. That’s down from nearly one in four a decade earlier, just as Americans have become less religious overall. But Whitehead said Christian nationalists, who are more numerous among Republicans, can be expected to maintain their fervor.
Christian nationalism is emerging alongside and in some cases overlapping with other right-wing movements, such as the conspiratorial QAnon, white supremacy, and denialism over COVID-19 and the 2020 election. Christian prayers and symbols featured prominently in and around the U.S. Capitol during the Jan. 6, 2021, insurrection there.
Mastriano, who sought to overturn Pennsylvania’s vote for Joe Biden in 2020, attended the rally preceding the attack and chartered buses to bring others. Though he says he left when things turned violent, video showed he passed through “breached barricades and police lines,” according to a Senate Judiciary Committee report.
Robert Jones, CEO of the Public Religion Research Institute, said those Jan. 6 displays were not surprising.
According to a recent survey by the institute, white evangelical Christians were among the strongest supporters of the assertion that God intended America as a “promised land” for European Christians. Those who backed that idea were far more likely to agree that “true American patriots may have to resort to violence … to save our country.”
“To my mind, white Christian nationalism is really the threat,” Jones said.
Conservative Christian themes are also playing a role in local elections, including in blue states, although many proponents say they view it not as nationalism but as supporting their religious freedom and values.
Pastor Tim Thompson of 412 Church in Murrieta, California, who hosts a YouTube channel with more 9,600 subscribers and envisions a conservative future for the state, recently started a political action committee aiming to “take back our school boards” and give parents authority over curriculum.
“We don’t want teachers or any other adults talking to our kids about sex,” Thompson said. “We don’t want teachers categorizing our kids into oppressed or oppressor. These are not political issues. They are moral and biblical issues.”
Judeo-Christian values are the foundation of America, he argued.
“People are afraid to speak up for these values because they are afraid that the left is going to slap a label like ‘racist’ or ‘Christian nationalist’ on them,” Thompson said. “I don’t care about those labels, because my wife, children, church and community know who I am.”
Pastor Jack Hibbs of Calvary Chapel Chino Hills in Chino Hills, California, has also sought to influence local elections. While he does not let candidates campaign at the church, he frequently offers endorsements as a way of signaling to his flock those who are “pro-family, pro-life and pro-freedom.”
But “the hair on my neck goes up” when he hears the term “Christian nationalism,” he said. And he was embarrassed to see Christian imagery during the Jan. 6 riot: “That was a sad day, to see those sacred symbols and words pimped like that.”
Yet while he believes the founders created a secular nation, Hibbs said every Christian should have an equal say.
Elizabeth Neumann, chief strategy officer for Moonshot, a tech company that aims to counter online violent extremism, disinformation and other harms, said Christian nationalism began picking up steam around 2015 amid a rising narrative of purported persecution of Christians.
Neumann, who served in the George W. Bush and Trump administrations and grew up in an evangelical Christian household, called the movement “heretical and idolatry” and an “apocalyptic vision (that) very often leads to violence.” Many pastors are pushing back against it, she added.
“I see Christian nationalism as the gasping, dying breath of the older generation in America that is afraid that Christians are going to be replaced,” she said.
___
Bharath reported from Los Angeles.
___
Associated Press religion coverage receives support through the AP’s collaboration with The Conversation US, with funding from Lilly Endowment Inc. The AP is solely responsible for this content. | https://www.wearegreenbay.com/news/national/christian-nationalism-on-the-rise-in-some-gop-campaigns/ | 2022-05-30 00:17:12 | 1 | https://www.wearegreenbay.com/news/national/christian-nationalism-on-the-rise-in-some-gop-campaigns/ |
The fruity, chewy candy brand – known for 'dad jokes' on every wrapper – invites families nationwide to share the most unique combo of traits about their father figure in exchange for free* Laffy Taffy Fruit Combos
CHICAGO, June 1, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Whether it's mowing the lawn before sunrise or "just resting their eyes" in the recliner, we all know and love the uniquely endearing things dads do. This Father's Day, Laffy Taffy® is sending free packages of their newest candy, Fruit Combos, to 1,000 fans willing to share how #DadThings combined make their father figure special.
On June 18 (AKA, Father's Day), starting at 1 p.m. EDT (while supplies last*) families can visit laffytaffycombos.com to get their hands on Fruit Combos, Laffy Taffy's latest innovation which combines two fruity flavors in one smooth and chewy mini-bar.
Here's How it Works:
- Identify "Dad Things": Discuss amongst your family and identify your two favorite "dad things" that make the dad, or father figure, in your life extraordinary.
- Submit: Be one of the first 1,000 families to submit your top combo of "dad things" and dad will receive a free package of the new Laffy Taffy Fruit Combos to enjoy together.
- Grand Prize: Every participant will be automatically entered for a chance to win a grand prize – the ultimate "dad things starter pack" which includes a year-supply of Fruit Combos and classic Laffy Taffy dad mementos such as a lawn chair, golf towel, duffel bag and socks*.
"Laffy Taffy has been known as the champion of dad jokes for decades, so it is only natural we launch our delicious Fruit Combos in a way that honors this legacy," said Dave Foldes, Director of Marketing at Laffy Taffy. "Dad things often spark moments of connection and laughter, just like our new mini bars which provide a smooth and chewy treat wrapped in a joke worth sharing. We're so excited to help families come together this Father's Day over a delicious combo we know they will love as much as dad's classic socks and sandals mashup."
Laffy Taffy Fruit Combos feature a variety of four new flavor combos that tantalize the taste buds: Strawberry-Kiwi, Strawberry-Orange, Mango-Passionfruit and Wildberry-Banana. Fruit Combos are available now in convenience, value/dollar, grocery and mass-retail stores nationwide in two sizes: 3.5 oz. (SRP $1.25) and 6 oz. (SRP $3.60) bags.
To find a retailer near you and get more Laffy Taffy jokes in time for Father's Day, visit www.laffytaffy.com and follow @LaffyTaffy on Twitter, TikTok, and Instagram.
Thanks for always monitoring the thermostat, dads. Happy Father's Day!
*NO PURCHASE NECESSARY. Void where prohibited. Promotion runs 6/18/23 at 1:00 PM ET to 6/20/23 at 11:59 PM ET, or when all Promotion Prizes have been awarded, whichever comes first. Open to legal residents of 50 US/DC who are 18+ or age of majority in state of residence, whichever older, as of entry. To enter, visit laffytaffycombos.com & complete entry form. 1,000 First Prizes consisting of two (2) 6 oz. peg bags of Laffy Taffy Fruit Combos candy. ARV of each First Prize: $7.20. 1 Grand Prize consisting of fifty two (52) 6 oz. peg bags of Laffy Taffy Fruit Combos candy and a "dad things starter pack" comprised of classic Laffy Taffy dad mementos including items such as a lawn chair, golf towel, duffel bag and socks (actual items may vary and are subject to change). ARV of the Grand Prize: $1,200. Odds depend on # of elig. entries. Rules at laffytaffycombos.com/#rules. Sponsor: Ferrara Candy Co., 404 W Harrison St., #650, Chicago, IL 60607.
About Laffy Taffy:
Since 1971, Laffy Taffy® has been bringing little bites of delight and sweet laughter to small but lasting moments of connection for families and children of all ages. All wrapped up with a joke worth sharing, Laffy Taffy's portfolio of long-lasting, smooth fruit chews include their classic mini-bars, new Fruit Combo mini-bars, Stretchy and Tangy bars, Laffy Taffy Ropes and LAFF BITES® in classic assorted bags, TROPICAL and "GONE BANANAS!™" varieties. Laffy Taffy candy is available in fan favorite fruit flavors including Cherry, Strawberry, Grape, Watermelon, Sour Apple, Banana and Blue Raspberry.
About Ferrara®
For more than 115 years, Ferrara has created sugar confections that share delight in every bite to candy lovers of all generations. Today, the company is the #1 sugar confectioner in the United States. Ferrara boasts a passionate team of more than 4,600 employees working together to create and deliver hundreds of products sold under a portfolio of more than 20 popular brands such as Brach's®, NERDS®, SweeTARTS®, Laffy Taffy®, and Trolli® to more than 66 million U.S. households annually. Ferrara's success in industry-leading innovation has been driven by deep consumer insights, strong retailer co-creation and partnerships, and a dedication to diversity of thought, experience, and people. A privately held company, Ferrara has its global headquarters in Chicago and an operational network of more than 13 locations in North America that includes manufacturing, distribution, sales, and R&D facilities. The company has a close relationship with the Ferrero Group as a related company which provides industry partnership and collaboration opportunities. Learn more at www.ferrarausa.com or www.linkedin.com/company/ferrara-.
Media Contacts:
Amanda Vassall, Agency H5
avassall@agencyh5.com
Brian Camen, Ferrara Candy Company
press@ferrarausa.com
View original content to download multimedia:
SOURCE Laffy Taffy | https://www.wkyt.com/prnewswire/2023/06/01/this-fathers-day-laffy-taffy-celebrates-launch-new-fruit-combos-by-asking-fans-what-combo-iconic-dad-things-makes-dad-special/ | 2023-06-01 15:53:08 | 0 | https://www.wkyt.com/prnewswire/2023/06/01/this-fathers-day-laffy-taffy-celebrates-launch-new-fruit-combos-by-asking-fans-what-combo-iconic-dad-things-makes-dad-special/ |
HOUSTON (AP) — HOUSTON (AP) — W&T Offshore Inc. (WTI) on Tuesday reported first-quarter profit of $26 million.
The Houston-based company said it had profit of 17 cents per share. Losses, adjusted for non-recurring gains, were 2 cents per share.
Advertisement
Article continues below this ad
The results did not meet Wall Street expectations. The average estimate of three analysts surveyed by Zacks Investment Research was for earnings of 16 cents per share.
The independent oil and gas company posted revenue of $131.7 million in the period, also missing Street forecasts. Three analysts surveyed by Zacks expected $150.5 million.
_____
Advertisement
Article continues below this ad
This story was generated by Automated Insights (http://automatedinsights.com/ap) using data from Zacks Investment Research. Access a Zacks stock report on WTI at https://www.zacks.com/ap/WTI | https://www.seattlepi.com/business/article/w-t-q1-earnings-snapshot-18089674.php | 2023-05-09 23:26:04 | 0 | https://www.seattlepi.com/business/article/w-t-q1-earnings-snapshot-18089674.php |
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy met with allies at the G7 summit in Tokyo, right after meeting with Arab leaders at a summit hosted by Saudi Arabia.
We get the latest on the diplomatic push, as Ukraine loses a contested city to Russian control. Here & Now‘s Deepa Fernandes joins Washington Post national security reporter John Hudson for what it all means for the war.
This article was originally published on WBUR.org.
Copyright 2023 NPR. To see more, visit https://www.npr.org. | https://www.kbia.org/2023-05-22/ukrainian-president-zelenskyy-meets-with-world-leaders-as-russia-claims-bakhmut | 2023-05-22 18:52:57 | 0 | https://www.kbia.org/2023-05-22/ukrainian-president-zelenskyy-meets-with-world-leaders-as-russia-claims-bakhmut |
By Ariana Figueroa |Wisconsin Examiner
WASHINGTON — U.S. House lawmakers questioned several labor experts Wednesday before a House Education and Labor panel about how a new bill to amend the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 would protect workers from wage theft.
House Appropriations Chair Rosa DeLauro introduced the bill, H.R. 3712, known as the “Wage Theft Prevention and Wage Recovery Act of 2022.” It would require employers to provide pay stubs to workers, establish new minimum and maximum civil penalties for employers who engage in wage theft and provide grants to organizations and institutions to enhance the enforcement of wage and hour laws.
“It is unacceptable that dishonest employers can steal workers’ wages with little to no consequence,” House Education and Labor Committee Chair Bobby Scott (D-Va.) said. “This bill would take critical steps to help workers receive the full pay they’ve earned for all hours worked, including overtime pay, and level the playing field for law-abiding employers.”
U.S. Sen. Patty Murray, the chair of the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions, sponsored the bill on the Senate side.
Republicans on the Workforce Protections subcommittee said the piece of legislation would harm small business owners and slammed Democrats for calling employers “thieves,” however no Democrat on the subcommittee did.
“Calling our country’s job creators thieves is beyond outrageous,” said Rep. Fred Keller of Pennsylvania, the ranking Republican on the panel. “It would be more predictive to provide compliance assistance, rather than assume employers are bad actors.”
Rep. Alma Adams (D-N.C.), chair of the subcommittee, said that low-income workers are more likely to experience wage theft, which includes minimum wage, overtime, off-the-clock, tip, and meal-break violations. Adams asked one of the witnesses, Karen Cacace, the Labor Bureau chief for the New York State Office of the Attorney General, what the impact of wage theft can be on those low-income workers.
“Low-income workers are typically living paycheck to paycheck,” Cacace said. “They do not have savings in the bank if their employer does not pay them for the wages they are owed for the last week.”
Another witness, Daniel Swenson-Klatt, an owner of a bakery in Minneapolis, said as a small business owner, he didn’t feel that passing a bill to require business owners to provide a pay stub to their employees was burdensome, as many Republicans on the committee, including Keller and Rep. Mariannette Miller-Meeks (R-Iowa), raised concerns about.
“I don’t think it’s ridiculous to take on the bad actors,” Swenson-Klatt said of placing a fine on employers who are found guilty of wage theft.
Cacace added that requiring employers to issue pay stubs to their employees “is the bare minimum.”
“Pay your workers the right amount and nobody is bankrupting your business,” she said.
Keller asked Tammy McCutchen, a senior affiliate at Resolution Economics in Washington, D.C., if she felt the bill by DeLauro (D-Conn.) would be a burden to small businesses.
McCutchen said that the increase in civil penalties would harm small businesses if they made a mistake, potentially bankrupting those businesses.
“Good employers make mistakes because compliance is hard,” she said.
Rep. Donald Norcross (D-N.J.) said he has never heard of an “honest mistake” causing a small business to go bankrupt and said the piece of legislation was meant to go after employers willfully engaging in wage theft.
“The ones we are talking about today are intentional,” he said, “and hurt real people.”
Norcross asked another witness, Francisco Esparza of Upper Marlboro, Maryland, about his experience with dealing with an employer who participated in wage theft.
Esparza, who worked in construction, said that he would work seven days a week and not receive overtime and for weeks on end his paycheck was made out as a personal check, rather than a pay stub.
“This isn’t an accident by any stretch of imagination,” Norcross said after hearing Esparza’s story.
Rep. Ilhan Omar (D-Minn.) said that in her own state contractors have experienced some type of wage theft. Last week, about 40 workers who did work on the Vikings Lake development – owned by the family who owns the NFL Minnesota Vikings team– claimed they experienced wage theft amounting to an estimated $100,000.
“It is clear more DOL (Department of Labor) funding and additional federal reforms are needed in our localities in order to protect our most vulnerable workers,” she said.
Wisconsin Examiner is part of States Newsroom, a network of news bureaus supported by grants and a coalition of donors as a 501c(3) public charity. Wisconsin Examiner maintains editorial independence. Contact Editor Ruth Conniff for questions: info@wisconsinexaminer.com. Follow Wisconsin Examiner on Facebook and Twitter.
This story first appeared in the Wisconsin Examiner and is being republished with permission through a Creative Commons License. See the original story, here. | https://wausaupilotandreview.com/2022/05/14/u-s-house-panel-weighs-labor-law-amendment-to-protect-workers-from-wage-theft/ | 2022-05-14 20:10:21 | 1 | https://wausaupilotandreview.com/2022/05/14/u-s-house-panel-weighs-labor-law-amendment-to-protect-workers-from-wage-theft/ |
Subsets and Splits
No community queries yet
The top public SQL queries from the community will appear here once available.