text stringlengths 237 126k | date_download stringdate 2022-01-01 00:32:20 2023-01-01 00:02:37 ⌀ | source_domain stringclasses 60 values | title stringlengths 4 31.5k ⌀ | url stringlengths 24 617 ⌀ | id stringlengths 24 617 ⌀ |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Nweke leads Quinnipiac against Manhattan after 21-point outing
Quinnipiac Bobcats (9-5, 0-3 MAAC) at Manhattan Jaspers (4-8, 2-1 MAAC)
BOTTOM LINE: Quinnipiac faces the Manhattan Jaspers after Ike Nweke scored 21 points in Quinnipiac’s 83-76 loss to the Siena Saints.
The Bobcats are 0-3 in conference play. Quinnipiac is fourth in the MAAC with 12.9 assists per game led by Luis Kortright averaging 3.9.
The Jaspers and Bobcats match up Sunday for the first time in conference play this season.
TOP PERFORMERS: Samir Stewart is shooting 38.1% and averaging 16.1 points for the Jaspers. Anthony Nelson is averaging 14.3 points over the last 10 games for Manhattan.
Paul Otieno is averaging 6.4 points and 6.9 rebounds for the Bobcats. Nweke is averaging 11.8 points over the last 10 games for Quinnipiac.
LAST 10 GAMES: Jaspers: 4-6, averaging 71.0 points, 28.7 rebounds, 11.7 assists, 8.0 steals and 4.2 blocks per game while shooting 43.2% from the field. Their opponents have averaged 72.5 points per game. | 2022-12-31T09:20:56Z | www.washingtonpost.com | Nweke leads Quinnipiac against Manhattan after 21-point outing - The Washington Post | https://www.washingtonpost.com/sports/colleges/nweke-leads-quinnipiac-against-manhattan-after-21-point-outing/2022/12/31/683ad9ee-88e0-11ed-b5ac-411280b122ef_story.html | https://www.washingtonpost.com/sports/colleges/nweke-leads-quinnipiac-against-manhattan-after-21-point-outing/2022/12/31/683ad9ee-88e0-11ed-b5ac-411280b122ef_story.html |
Oklahoma State visits No. 4 Kansas after Wilson's 21-point outing
Oklahoma State Cowboys (8-4) at Kansas Jayhawks (11-1)
Lawrence, Kansas; Saturday, 2 p.m. EST
FANDUEL SPORTSBOOK LINE: Kansas -10; over/under is 139
BOTTOM LINE: No. 4 Kansas hosts the Oklahoma State Cowboys after Jalen Wilson scored 21 points in Kansas’ 68-54 victory against the Harvard Crimson.
The Jayhawks have gone 7-0 at home. Kansas is fifth in the Big 12 shooting 35.9% from deep, led by Cam Martin shooting 100.0% from 3-point range.
The Cowboys are 2-1 on the road. Oklahoma State ranks ninth in the Big 12 shooting 32.5% from downtown. Weston Church leads the Cowboys shooting 100% from 3-point range.
The Jayhawks and Cowboys square off Saturday for the first time in Big 12 play this season.
TOP PERFORMERS: Wilson is averaging 21.1 points and nine rebounds for the Jayhawks. Gradey Dick is averaging 15.4 points over the last 10 games for Kansas.
Avery Anderson III is averaging 12.2 points, 3.3 assists and 2.3 steals for the Cowboys. Bryce Thompson is averaging 1.7 made 3-pointers over the last 10 games for Oklahoma State.
LAST 10 GAMES: Jayhawks: 9-1, averaging 77.5 points, 34.6 rebounds, 17.3 assists, 10.2 steals and 4.1 blocks per game while shooting 47.8% from the field. Their opponents have averaged 64.9 points per game. | 2022-12-31T09:21:02Z | www.washingtonpost.com | Oklahoma State visits No. 4 Kansas after Wilson's 21-point outing - The Washington Post | https://www.washingtonpost.com/sports/colleges/oklahoma-state-visits-no-4-kansas-after-wilsons-21-point-outing/2022/12/31/e22decce-88df-11ed-b5ac-411280b122ef_story.html | https://www.washingtonpost.com/sports/colleges/oklahoma-state-visits-no-4-kansas-after-wilsons-21-point-outing/2022/12/31/e22decce-88df-11ed-b5ac-411280b122ef_story.html |
Rhode Island visits Duquesne after Freeman's 21-point game
BOTTOM LINE: Rhode Island visits the Duquesne Dukes after Brayon Freeman scored 21 points in Rhode Island’s 75-66 loss to the Georgia State Panthers.
The Dukes have gone 9-2 at home. Duquesne is seventh in the A-10 with 32.3 points per game in the paint led by Tre Williams averaging 6.0.
The Rams are 0-2 on the road. Rhode Island is 1-2 in one-possession games.
TOP PERFORMERS: Dae Dae Grant is scoring 17.2 points per game with 4.1 rebounds and 2.4 assists for the Dukes. Jimmy Clark III is averaging 11.6 points and 3.9 rebounds while shooting 42.3% over the past 10 games for Duquesne.
Ishmael Leggett is shooting 37.7% from beyond the arc with 1.7 made 3-pointers per game for the Rams, while averaging 16.2 points and 5.8 rebounds. Freeman is shooting 37.2% and averaging 12.8 points over the last 10 games for Rhode Island. | 2022-12-31T09:21:44Z | www.washingtonpost.com | Rhode Island visits Duquesne after Freeman's 21-point game - The Washington Post | https://www.washingtonpost.com/sports/colleges/rhode-island-visits-duquesne-after-freemans-21-point-game/2022/12/31/b152811e-88df-11ed-b5ac-411280b122ef_story.html | https://www.washingtonpost.com/sports/colleges/rhode-island-visits-duquesne-after-freemans-21-point-game/2022/12/31/b152811e-88df-11ed-b5ac-411280b122ef_story.html |
BOTTOM LINE: Phillip Russell and the Southeast Missouri State Redhawks host Ray’Sean Taylor and the SIU-Edwardsville Cougars.
The Redhawks are 2-2 on their home court. Southeast Missouri State ranks fifth in the OVC shooting 33.7% from downtown, led by Tevin Gowins shooting 66.7% from 3-point range.
The Cougars have gone 1-0 against OVC opponents. SIU-Edwardsville is ninth in the OVC with 12.4 assists per game led by Damarco Minor averaging 3.1.
TOP PERFORMERS: Russell is averaging 15.4 points and 4.3 assists for the Redhawks. Chris Harris is averaging 11.8 points over the last 10 games for Southeast Missouri State.
Taylor is scoring 13.5 points per game with 4.5 rebounds and 2.3 assists for the Cougars. Minor is averaging 11.3 points, 3.1 assists and 1.6 steals over the past 10 games for SIU-Edwardsville. | 2022-12-31T09:21:56Z | www.washingtonpost.com | Russell, Southeast Missouri State Redhawks host the SIU-Edwardsville Cougars - The Washington Post | https://www.washingtonpost.com/sports/colleges/russell-southeast-missouri-state-redhawks-host-the-siu-edwardsville-cougars/2022/12/31/7defcd58-88e0-11ed-b5ac-411280b122ef_story.html | https://www.washingtonpost.com/sports/colleges/russell-southeast-missouri-state-redhawks-host-the-siu-edwardsville-cougars/2022/12/31/7defcd58-88e0-11ed-b5ac-411280b122ef_story.html |
Saint Mary's (CA) visits Santa Clara following Saxen's 20-point game
BOTTOM LINE: Saint Mary’s (CA) visits the Santa Clara Broncos after Mitchell Saxen scored 20 points in Saint Mary’s (CA)’s 85-58 win against the San Diego Toreros.
The Broncos have gone 10-1 in home games. Santa Clara averages 73.9 points while outscoring opponents by 5.1 points per game.
The Gaels play their first true road game after going 11-4 with a 3-2 record in neutral-site games to start the season. Saint Mary’s (CA) is 0-1 in games decided by 3 points or fewer.
TOP PERFORMERS: Keshawn Justice averages 2.7 made 3-pointers per game for the Broncos, scoring 12.4 points while shooting 35.0% from beyond the arc. Brandin Podziemski is averaging 18.3 points, 8.4 rebounds, 3.3 assists and 2.4 steals over the past 10 games for Santa Clara. | 2022-12-31T09:22:09Z | www.washingtonpost.com | Saint Mary's (CA) visits Santa Clara following Saxen's 20-point game - The Washington Post | https://www.washingtonpost.com/sports/colleges/saint-marys-ca-visits-santa-clara-following-saxens-20-point-game/2022/12/31/08e4a970-88e0-11ed-b5ac-411280b122ef_story.html | https://www.washingtonpost.com/sports/colleges/saint-marys-ca-visits-santa-clara-following-saxens-20-point-game/2022/12/31/08e4a970-88e0-11ed-b5ac-411280b122ef_story.html |
Smith leads East Tennessee State against VMI after 20-point game
BOTTOM LINE: East Tennessee State faces the VMI Keydets after Justice Smith scored 20 points in East Tennessee State’s 73-71 victory over the Wofford Terriers.
The Keydets have gone 5-0 at home. VMI averages 12.9 turnovers per game and is 4- when it has fewer turnovers than its opponents.
The Buccaneers have gone 1-0 against SoCon opponents. East Tennessee State ranks sixth in the SoCon with 13.8 assists per game led by Allen Strothers averaging 3.9.
The Keydets and Buccaneers meet Saturday for the first time in conference play this season.
TOP PERFORMERS: Sean Conway averages 2.7 made 3-pointers per game for the Keydets, scoring 15.2 points while shooting 46.3% from beyond the arc. Asher Woods is averaging 14.7 points over the past 10 games for VMI.
Strothers is averaging 4.4 points and 3.9 assists for the Buccaneers. | 2022-12-31T09:22:33Z | www.washingtonpost.com | Smith leads East Tennessee State against VMI after 20-point game - The Washington Post | https://www.washingtonpost.com/sports/colleges/smith-leads-east-tennessee-state-against-vmi-after-20-point-game/2022/12/31/99640618-88df-11ed-b5ac-411280b122ef_story.html | https://www.washingtonpost.com/sports/colleges/smith-leads-east-tennessee-state-against-vmi-after-20-point-game/2022/12/31/99640618-88df-11ed-b5ac-411280b122ef_story.html |
Stony Brook visits Northeastern following Telfort's 31-point game
BOTTOM LINE: Northeastern plays the Stony Brook Seawolves after Jahmyl Telfort scored 31 points in Northeastern’s 88-76 win against the North Carolina A&T Aggies.
The Huskies are 3-1 in home games. Northeastern is 2-7 against opponents with a winning record.
The Huskies and Seawolves meet Saturday for the first time in CAA play this season.
TOP PERFORMERS: Telfort is averaging 17.3 points and 5.1 rebounds for the Huskies. Jared Turner is averaging 6.3 points over the last 10 games for Northeastern.
Tyler Stephenson-Moore is averaging 14.9 points and 6.4 rebounds for the Seawolves. Frankie Policelli is averaging 11.3 points and 10.1 rebounds over the past 10 games for Stony Brook. | 2022-12-31T09:22:45Z | www.washingtonpost.com | Stony Brook visits Northeastern following Telfort's 31-point game - The Washington Post | https://www.washingtonpost.com/sports/colleges/stony-brook-visits-northeastern-following-telforts-31-point-game/2022/12/31/f0385b74-88df-11ed-b5ac-411280b122ef_story.html | https://www.washingtonpost.com/sports/colleges/stony-brook-visits-northeastern-following-telforts-31-point-game/2022/12/31/f0385b74-88df-11ed-b5ac-411280b122ef_story.html |
Temple hosts Nolley and Cincinnati
Cincinnati Bearcats (10-4, 1-0 AAC) at Temple Owls (7-7, 1-0 AAC)
BOTTOM LINE: Cincinnati plays the Temple Owls after Landers Nolley II scored 23 points in Cincinnati’s 88-77 win over the Tulane Green Wave.
The Owls have gone 4-3 at home. Temple is fifth in the AAC shooting 32.8% from downtown, led by Jamille Reynolds shooting 50.0% from 3-point range.
The Bearcats have gone 1-0 against AAC opponents. Cincinnati averages 80.9 points and has outscored opponents by 11.8 points per game.
The Owls and Bearcats face off Sunday for the first time in AAC play this season.
TOP PERFORMERS: Reynolds is averaging 11.1 points and 6.3 rebounds for the Owls. Khalif Battle is averaging 18.7 points over the last 10 games for Temple.
David Dejulius is averaging 16.4 points and 3.3 assists for the Bearcats. Nolley is averaging 15.1 points over the last 10 games for Cincinnati. | 2022-12-31T09:22:51Z | www.washingtonpost.com | Temple hosts Nolley and Cincinnati - The Washington Post | https://www.washingtonpost.com/sports/colleges/temple-hosts-nolley-and-cincinnati/2022/12/31/0ccea11c-88e0-11ed-b5ac-411280b122ef_story.html | https://www.washingtonpost.com/sports/colleges/temple-hosts-nolley-and-cincinnati/2022/12/31/0ccea11c-88e0-11ed-b5ac-411280b122ef_story.html |
Tomlin and Kansas State host No. 24 West Virginia
West Virginia Mountaineers (10-2) at Kansas State Wildcats (11-1)
BOTTOM LINE: Kansas State hosts the No. 24 West Virginia Mountaineers after Nae’Qwan Tomlin scored 26 points in Kansas State’s 73-65 victory against the Radford Highlanders.
The Wildcats have gone 6-0 in home games. Kansas State is third in the Big 12 in team defense, allowing 60.8 points while holding opponents to 41.5% shooting.
The Mountaineers are 1-1 on the road. West Virginia is third in the Big 12 scoring 81.3 points per game and is shooting 49.2%.
The Wildcats and Mountaineers meet Saturday for the first time in Big 12 play this season.
TOP PERFORMERS: Keyontae Johnson is scoring 17.7 points per game and averaging 6.8 rebounds for the Wildcats. Markquis Nowell is averaging 13.7 points and 3.0 rebounds over the last 10 games for Kansas State.
Erik Stevenson is averaging 14.5 points for the Mountaineers. Emmitt Matthews Jr. is averaging 1.3 made 3-pointers over the last 10 games for West Virginia. | 2022-12-31T09:23:03Z | www.washingtonpost.com | Tomlin and Kansas State host No. 24 West Virginia - The Washington Post | https://www.washingtonpost.com/sports/colleges/tomlin-and-kansas-state-host-no-24-west-virginia/2022/12/31/c9e07eb6-88df-11ed-b5ac-411280b122ef_story.html | https://www.washingtonpost.com/sports/colleges/tomlin-and-kansas-state-host-no-24-west-virginia/2022/12/31/c9e07eb6-88df-11ed-b5ac-411280b122ef_story.html |
Tubelis and No. 5 Arizona host Arizona State
Arizona Wildcats (12-1, 1-1 Pac-12) at Arizona State Sun Devils (11-2, 2-0 Pac-12)
FANDUEL SPORTSBOOK LINE: Arizona State -6; over/under is 155.5
BOTTOM LINE: No. 5 Arizona visits the Arizona State Sun Devils after Azuolas Tubelis scored 26 points in Arizona’s 93-68 win against the Morgan State Bears.
The Sun Devils have gone 6-0 at home. Arizona State is third in the Pac-12 with 26.5 defensive rebounds per game led by Warren Washington averaging 4.5.
The Wildcats have gone 1-1 against Pac-12 opponents. Arizona ranks second in college basketball with 20.8 assists per game led by Kerr Kriisa averaging 6.1.
The Sun Devils and Wildcats match up Saturday for the first time in Pac-12 play this season.
TOP PERFORMERS: Desmond Cambridge is shooting 33.3% from beyond the arc with 2.1 made 3-pointers per game for the Sun Devils, while averaging 11.5 points and 1.7 steals. DJ Horne is shooting 36.5% and averaging 12.5 points over the last 10 games for Arizona State.
Kriisa is averaging 11.4 points and 6.1 assists for the Wildcats. Tubelis is averaging 20.1 points over the last 10 games for Arizona. | 2022-12-31T09:23:09Z | www.washingtonpost.com | Tubelis and No. 5 Arizona host Arizona State - The Washington Post | https://www.washingtonpost.com/sports/colleges/tubelis-and-no-5-arizona-host-arizona-state/2022/12/31/72c4783a-88df-11ed-b5ac-411280b122ef_story.html | https://www.washingtonpost.com/sports/colleges/tubelis-and-no-5-arizona-host-arizona-state/2022/12/31/72c4783a-88df-11ed-b5ac-411280b122ef_story.html |
BOTTOM LINE: Taylor Hendricks and the UCF Knights visit Marcus Sasser and the No. 3 Houston Cougars in AAC play Saturday.
The Cougars are 8-1 on their home court. Houston has a 9-1 record against teams over .500.
The Knights have gone 1-0 against AAC opponents. UCF ranks fifth in the AAC with 13.7 assists per game led by Darius Johnson averaging 4.5.
The Cougars and Knights face off Saturday for the first time in AAC play this season.
TOP PERFORMERS: Jamal Shead is averaging 7.8 points, 5.6 assists and two steals for the Cougars. Sasser is averaging 15.7 points over the last 10 games for Houston.
Hendricks is scoring 14.8 points per game and averaging 6.8 rebounds for the Knights. CJ Kelly is averaging 10.8 points and 4.3 rebounds over the last 10 games for UCF. | 2022-12-31T09:23:22Z | www.washingtonpost.com | UCF travels to No. 3 Houston for conference showdown - The Washington Post | https://www.washingtonpost.com/sports/colleges/ucf-travels-to-no-3-houston-for-conference-showdown/2022/12/31/79f06140-88e0-11ed-b5ac-411280b122ef_story.html | https://www.washingtonpost.com/sports/colleges/ucf-travels-to-no-3-houston-for-conference-showdown/2022/12/31/79f06140-88e0-11ed-b5ac-411280b122ef_story.html |
Utah State hosts Baker and Fresno State
Fresno State Bulldogs (5-7, 1-0 MWC) at Utah State Aggies (11-2)
Logan, Utah; Saturday, 2 p.m. EST
BOTTOM LINE: Fresno State visits the Utah State Aggies after Jemarl Baker Jr. scored 20 points in Fresno State’s 58-53 victory over the Wyoming Cowboys.
The Aggies have gone 6-1 at home. Utah State leads the MWC averaging 85.1 points and is shooting 49.9%.
The Bulldogs are 1-0 in MWC play. Fresno State is 2-5 against opponents over .500.
TOP PERFORMERS: Steven Ashworth is scoring 17.4 points per game and averaging 2.7 rebounds for the Aggies. Taylor Funk is averaging 13.1 points and 6.1 rebounds over the last 10 games for Utah State.
Isaiah Hill is averaging 8.2 points for the Bulldogs. Isaih Moore is averaging 11.8 points and 7.8 rebounds while shooting 53.8% over the last 10 games for Fresno State. | 2022-12-31T09:23:40Z | www.washingtonpost.com | Utah State hosts Baker and Fresno State - The Washington Post | https://www.washingtonpost.com/sports/colleges/utah-state-hosts-baker-and-fresno-state/2022/12/31/de934406-88df-11ed-b5ac-411280b122ef_story.html | https://www.washingtonpost.com/sports/colleges/utah-state-hosts-baker-and-fresno-state/2022/12/31/de934406-88df-11ed-b5ac-411280b122ef_story.html |
Wilkins and Longwood host Campbell
FANDUEL SPORTSBOOK LINE: Campbell -1.5; over/under is 139.5
BOTTOM LINE: Longwood takes on the Campbell Fighting Camels after Isaiah Wilkins scored 25 points in Longwood’s 87-73 win against the High Point Panthers.
The Fighting Camels are 3-2 on their home court. Campbell averages 70.5 points while outscoring opponents by 1.9 points per game.
The Lancers are 1-0 against Big South opponents. Longwood averages 14.3 assists per game to lead the Big South, paced by Walyn Napper with 3.6.
The Fighting Camels and Lancers face off Saturday for the first time in conference play this season.
TOP PERFORMERS: Jay Pal is averaging 10.1 points and 7.2 rebounds for the Fighting Camels. Ricky Clemons is averaging 13.0 points over the last 10 games for Campbell.
Napper is averaging 10.3 points, 3.6 assists and 1.5 steals for the Lancers. Wilkins is averaging 12.4 points over the last 10 games for Longwood. | 2022-12-31T09:23:52Z | www.washingtonpost.com | Wilkins and Longwood host Campbell - The Washington Post | https://www.washingtonpost.com/sports/colleges/wilkins-and-longwood-host-campbell/2022/12/31/fe009eba-88df-11ed-b5ac-411280b122ef_story.html | https://www.washingtonpost.com/sports/colleges/wilkins-and-longwood-host-campbell/2022/12/31/fe009eba-88df-11ed-b5ac-411280b122ef_story.html |
Williams leads Cornell against Dartmouth after 23-point outing
Cornell Big Red (10-3) at Dartmouth Big Green (4-10)
Hanover, New Hampshire; Sunday, 2 p.m. EST
BOTTOM LINE: Cornell faces the Dartmouth Big Green after Nazir Williams scored 23 points in Cornell’s 86-70 win over the Binghamton Bearcats.
The Big Green are 3-2 on their home court. Dartmouth is third in the Ivy League with 25.7 defensive rebounds per game led by Dame Adelekun averaging 4.5.
The Big Red have gone 4-3 away from home. Cornell scores 84.8 points and has outscored opponents by 12.4 points per game.
TOP PERFORMERS: Adelekun is averaging 10.5 points, 7.3 rebounds and 1.9 blocks for the Big Green. Cade Haskins is averaging 1.6 made 3-pointers over the last 10 games for Dartmouth.
Sean Hansen is averaging 9.7 points and 5.3 rebounds for the Big Red. Greg Dolan is averaging 2.2 made 3-pointers over the last 10 games for Cornell.
LAST 10 GAMES: Big Green: 3-7, averaging 64.2 points, 34.0 rebounds, 12.6 assists, 5.4 steals and 5.0 blocks per game while shooting 39.8% from the field. Their opponents have averaged 63.5 points per game. | 2022-12-31T09:24:04Z | www.washingtonpost.com | Williams leads Cornell against Dartmouth after 23-point outing - The Washington Post | https://www.washingtonpost.com/sports/colleges/williams-leads-cornell-against-dartmouth-after-23-point-outing/2022/12/31/491cd2e2-88e0-11ed-b5ac-411280b122ef_story.html | https://www.washingtonpost.com/sports/colleges/williams-leads-cornell-against-dartmouth-after-23-point-outing/2022/12/31/491cd2e2-88e0-11ed-b5ac-411280b122ef_story.html |
‘My strengths, due to an advanced age, are no longer suited’ to the role, German-born Pope Benedict XVI said in 2013, when he became the first pontiff in 600 years to step down
By Anthony Faiola
Michelle Boorstein
Jacqueline L. Salmon
Pope Benedict XVI celebrates his installation Mass in St. Peter's Square at the Vatican on April 24, 2005. (Gregorio Borgia/AP)
The moment that transformed Pope Benedict XVI’s legacy — and perhaps his church — passed so quietly that it was initially missed.
The pontiff was closing what one reporter described as an “extremely banal,” routine ceremony with Vatican cardinals on Feb. 11, 2013, when he uttered, in Latin, that he had made “a decision of great importance for the life of the church.”
The white-haired, German-born theologian, then 85, said he had “repeatedly examined my conscience before God” and concluded that the modern world, “subject to so many rapid changes and shaken by questions of deep relevance for the life of faith,” required a pope in better physical and intellectual condition. “My strengths, due to an advanced age, are no longer suited” to the papacy.
Many people at the meeting did not understand Latin. Confused looks were swapped until the meaning seeped in. To Angelo Sodano, dean of the cardinals, Pope Benedict’s words came like “a bolt of lightning in a clear blue sky.” A reporter in the room began to cry.
Pope Benedict, 95, died Saturday in the Mater Ecclesiae Monastery in the Vatican. His death was announced by the Vatican.
The first resignation of the spiritual leader of the Catholic Church in 600 years would crystallize the full weight of the crises then battering the world’s largest Christian denomination. An intellectual giant and rock of moral certitude who had spent a lifetime defending the faith from outside forces, Pope Benedict would ultimately see his tenure as pope undone in large part by a rot within.
Documents leaked by his former butler to the Italian media would pull back a curtain on the Roman Curia, the Holy See’s bureaucracy accused of corruption and conniving behind Vatican walls. The Vatican bank faced mounting criticism over its opaque operations, leading foreign financial institutions to temporarily suspend credit transactions in the world’s smallest state.
Yet one challenge, which first emerged under his predecessor, Pope John Paul II, towered above all the others: the ongoing revelations of rampant sexual abuse by Catholic priests and decades-long efforts by the church hierarchy to cover it up. With his resignation, Pope Benedict, a figure dubbed “God’s Rottweiler” for his fierce protection of church dogma, seemingly conceded his very human limitations, and his inability to manage a church in the face of existential crises.
His decision to leave his post would demystify an office shrouded in transcendental authority, upending the papal role that at times had seemed in danger of losing relevance.
Video shows Pope Benedict XVI speaking to a crowd after being elected pope in Vatican City on April 19, 2005. (Video: Vatican Media, Photo: AFP/GETTY IMAGES/Vatican Media)
“We can reveal the face of the church and how this face is, at times, disfigured,” Benedict would say in his final homily as pope. “I am thinking in particular of the sins against the unity of the church, of the divisions in the body of the church.”
After being for decades the guardian of Vatican orthodoxy and a barricade against change — first as head of its doctrinal office, then as pontiff — Pope Benedict ended his run as a revolutionary.
Pope Benedict’s successor, Pope Francis, has used his pulpit to spotlight social issues including the plight of migrants, the dangers of climate change and the loneliness particular to the internet age. For theologically and politically conservative Catholics, the Francis era is one of dangerous inattention to traditional family values; for the more liberal faithful, it represents a long-overdue shift to a more open and inviting pastoral approach. But Pope Benedict’s place in the history of Catholicism has not been set, and remains one of the great Catholic debates of the early 21st century.
When then-Cardinal Joseph A. Ratzinger was elected pope on April 19, 2005, his selection at the conclave was understood to be an affirmation of a rigid view of orthodoxy. One of the leading Catholic theologians of his time, Cardinal Ratzinger was the longtime head of the Vatican’s powerful Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith and a vastly influential cleric forging church policy.
He was widely seen as the church’s strongest possible weapon against the pressures of secularism and relativism. Following in the stead of the charismatic John Paul II, he was expected to continue firming the barriers around an explicitly conservative Catholicism. Many observers predicted he would drive out the doctrinally ambivalent, resulting in a smaller, but more faithful, church.
To the surprise of supporters and detractors, Pope Benedict presided over the world’s 1.1 billion Catholics with a gentler touch.
A bookish priest, he revived ancient clothing and music. In his best-selling books and weekly audiences before thousands, he preached on major figures in church history in the manner of an erudite professor, often delving into allocutions on rarefied topics, including a Christian faith he saw as spliced with Hellenistic thought.
But he could display a humanity distinct from his reputation as an icy intellectual. During a 2010 visit to the Mediterranean island-nation of Malta, he wept with adults who alleged they had been victims of child-sexual abuse by priests in the 1980s and 1990s and expressed what the Vatican described as “shame and sorrow” over their suffering.
Pope Benedict, while stirring the affections of devoutly conservative Catholics, never achieved the rock-star adulation that greeted his charismatic predecessor. But he had chosen a different route. Pope Benedict did not have the globe-trotting, bear-hugging, larger-than-life persona of John Paul II. Whereas that pontiff embraced the world as his parish, Pope Benedict’s attentions remained largely within his church.
“Benedict’s focus was very much on the church internally,” journalist David Gibson, who wrote a biography of the pontiff, said in an interview. “And not even the structures of the church, but the faith — promoting the faith as a kind of foundation to everything else. He just wasn’t interested in reforming the church or opening the church to new things. He wanted to get back to basics. To him, devotion, piety, faith came first. If people were true to that, everything else would not matter.”
Pope Benedict tried to shut down internal conversations on ordaining women and reinforced the church’s blanket condemnation on the use of contraception. A traditionalist, he revived the centuries-old Latin-language Tridentine Mass, and sought a reconciliation with the Society of St. Pius X, an ultra-Orthodox breakaway group that rejected the modernizing changes ushered in by the Second Vatican Council in the 1960s.
The earlier years of Pope Benedict’s tenure were marked by occasional public relations stumbles. He offended many Muslims with a 2006 speech in Regensburg, Germany, in which he quoted a Byzantine emperor who said Islam encouraged violence and brought things “evil and inhuman.”
In the speech, Pope Benedict did not say whether he agreed with the comment, but he apologized after it provoked widespread denunciations and episodes of extremist violence against Catholics in the Muslim world. “These were, in fact, quotations from a medieval text, which do not in any way express my personal thought,” the pope said. To help quell the protests, he made a high-profile trip to Turkey, where he prayed alongside the grand mufti in Istanbul’s Blue Mosque.
He infuriated health agencies working to halt the spread of HIV/AIDS in Africa when he said during a visit there in 2009 that the distribution of condoms aggravates the problem. Like his predecessor, he said sexual abstinence was a better way to control the disease.
The same year, Pope Benedict acknowledged that he had mishandled the rehabilitation of British Bishop Richard Williamson, a member of the Society of St. Pius X, who expressed skepticism about the deaths of millions of Jews in Nazi concentration camps. The furor was stoked in part by the pope’s German heritage and participation, albeit unenthusiastic, in the Hitler Youth.
Pope Benedict’s stated intent was to unify church factions. He claimed not to have been made aware of Williamson’s public record of Holocaust denials. He was also unsuccessful in ordering the bishop to renounce his views. Williamson was subsequently expelled from the Society of St. Pius X and again declared excommunicated, in 2015, by Francis.
Other issues hampered Pope Benedict’s tenure and raised questions about his control of Vatican management. In 2010, prosecutors in Rome impounded $30 million from the Vatican Bank in an investigation linked to money laundering.
In 2017, two former top managers of the bank were convicted of minor violations of anti-money laundering norms. Angelo Proietti, an Italian contractor, who had done work for several Vatican offices, was sentenced in 2018 to 2½ years in jail for using a Vatican bank account for money laundering.
Although Pope Benedict is credited with seeking to instill a new measure of transparency at the Vatican bank — creating an anti-money laundering agency and entrusting the project to a lay Swiss lawyer, René Brülhart — he was also seen as unable to prevent powerful figures within the church’s bureaucracy from undermining his cleanup of the Holy See’s books.
The scandal facing Pope Benedict reached a fever pitch after Paolo Gabriele, the pope’s personal butler since 2007, was arrested by Vatican police in 2012, after confidential letters and documents addressed to the pope and other Vatican officials were found in his Vatican apartment. He appeared to have been leaking the classified information to the journalist Gianluigi Nuzzi.
Nuzzi published a book, “His Holiness: The Secret Papers of Benedict XVI,” consisting of confidential letters and memos. The scandal that would become known as “Vatileaks” seemed to reveal fierce internal power struggles and corruption, including inflated contracts for the annual Nativity scene in St. Peter’s Square.
A subsequent Vatican investigation would allegedly uncover evidence of blackmail schemes against homosexual clerics in the Holy See hierarchy, a story first reported by the Italian daily La Repubblica. In the book “The Last Conversations of Benedict XVI,” a collection of interviews conducted by biographer Peter Seewald, the longtime Vatican watcher, Pope Benedict denied being pressured to resign, but made reference to a powerful “gay lobby” within the Vatican that he claimed to have broken up.
Vatican insiders would privately cite the Vatileaks scandal as a key factor in Pope Benedict’s historic decision to resign. Publicly, however, church officials downplayed the scandal.
“They are little things, pebbles in the shoe that hurt so much and seem to prevent you from going forward,” Cardinal Giovanni Lajolo told The Washington Post in 2013. “If one looks at the act of betrayal, it is in itself a grave act, even more so because it is near the apex of the church. But what does this tell us? It tells us only about the fragility of a person or of some people.”
In 2012, Vatican magistrates indicted Gabriele for aggravated theft. He was found guilty and given a reduced sentence of 18 months in jail before Pope Benedict pardoned him later that year.
‘A deeply learned man’
Unlike John Paul II, Pope Benedict was not especially well traveled as pope. Vatican officials cited his advanced age; he was 78 when he took office, while his predecessor was 58. Pope Benedict traveled mostly on the European continent, although he also visited Brazil, Australia and the Middle East.
In 2008, he made a six-day visit to the United States, where he held the first publicly known meeting between a pope and victims of abuse by Catholic priests and apologized for a scandal that has upended the trust of many Catholics in the West, where many such cases have surfaced.
The U.S. trip was initially hailed as a success that humanized a man seen sometimes as an aloof, hard-line theologian.
But in the months after the meeting, leaders of sex-abuse victims groups criticized the lack of follow-up by the Vatican on its promises to step up its legal, juridical, and pastoral response to the problem of pedophile priests.
“Pure show, no substance,” David Clohessy, then-national director of SNAP (Survivors Network of Those Abused by Priests), the nation’s largest victims’ group, said of the meeting.
In another unusually dramatic stroke, Pope Benedict in 2009 reached out to conservative members of the Anglican Communion possibly seeking reunification with the Catholic Church. He created a structure within Roman Catholicism that allowed them to keep not only their distinctive Anglican spiritual and liturgical heritage but their married priests as well.
The bid to create a kind of “church within a church” raised questions about whether Catholic priests might be allowed to marry, ending a tradition of celibacy that had lasted a millennium. But defenders of Pope Benedict said the move was simply an effort to build ties with conservative Anglicans.
“He’s not trying to force everyone and everything into a similar pattern,” George Weigel, a biographer of Pope Benedict at Washington’s Ethics and Public Policy Center, said in a 2009 interview with The Post. “He recognizes as a deeply learned man that there are many forms of expression of Catholic faith, that there are different schools of theology within the Catholic Church and that there are different liturgical and spiritual traditions within the Catholic Church.”
Pope Benedict wrote three encyclicals — a high form of papal writing — during his tenure.
His first, “God Is Love,” was an elaboration on love and charity that was largely praised as seeking to express beliefs that are common to all Catholics. In his second, “Saved in Hope,” he wrote that attempts to banish God have “led to the greatest forms of cruelty and violations of justice … A world without God is a world without hope.”
His third, “Charity in Truth,” was the most controversial. In it, he criticized the international economic system and called for a global structure based on social responsibility, concern for the dignity of the worker and a respect for ethics. Liberals embraced it, but conservatives resisted the idea of a strong international institution to regulate the global economy.
The third encyclical “showed him to be very liberal, seeing a major role for government in regulating the economy and redistributing wealth,” said the Rev. Thomas J. Reese, a Jesuit priest, author and journalist.
Pope Benedict saw relativism as the core challenge facing the Catholic Church. The church, he believed, must reassert objective truth, with the person of Jesus as the focal point. In an address the day before he was elected pontiff, he decried the “dictatorship of relativism” for “not recognizing anything as for certain and which has as its highest goal one’s own ego and one’s own desires.”
“If the heart of John Paul’s papacy was the struggle against the Soviet dictatorship, the heart of Benedict’s papacy is the struggle against a dictatorship of relativism in the West,” John L. Allen Jr., a former Vatican correspondent for the National Catholic Reporter and a papal biographer, said in a 2009 interview.
Pope Benedict was deeply concerned — some say pessimistic — about the Catholic Church’s prospects in this fight. Yet his critics noticed that in a widely quoted 1997 interview he sounded undisturbed that people were leaving Christianity. The faith might be in better hands with “small, insignificant groups that nonetheless live an intensive struggle against evil and bring the good into the world that let God in.”
Bureaucratic morass
As Pope Benedict explored the theological and societal challenges facing the church, he showed less interest in its inner bureaucratic workings, which according to many Vatican insiders desperately needed to be brought into the 21st century.
“This was part of the understanding of what was supposed to happen in April 2005 — that this guy who had worked in Rome for 25 years and who knew how badly in need of redesign and reconfiguration the central machinery of the Catholic Church is would take that on,” Weigel said in 2009.
At the time of his resignation, as well as in the years before his death, Pope Benedict would be viewed as a pontiff who took important, initial steps toward confronting clerical abuse, but who never followed through with concrete reforms. He proved reluctant to dish out broad and swift punishment to bishops who buried accusations, or move forward with much-called-for public lists of the predator priests.
When he was elected pope, Benedict was the oldest person to assume the office since Clement XII’s elevation in 1730. Pope Benedict himself predicted a brief, transitional papacy.
He suffered a hemorrhagic stroke in 1991, which slightly and temporarily impaired his eyesight, and a mild stroke sometime between 2003 and 2005. He suffered from a heart condition and had been on medication for years. In 2009, he was hospitalized after falling and breaking his right wrist while on vacation in the Alps.
In explaining his decision to resign, Pope Benedict invoked his infirmity and his belief that the modern papacy requires more vigor than he possessed.
“In order to govern the bark of Saint Peter and proclaim the Gospel, both strength of mind and body are necessary,” he said in his announcement, “strength which in the last few months has deteriorated in me to the extent that I have had to recognize my incapacity to adequately fulfill the ministry entrusted to me.”
Some praised the pope’s decision as an expression of humility; others said it recast a divine office as a secular CEO-like position from which one may step down or be removed. His decision to resign was so mind-boggling that many Vatican experts spent the day arguing about what verb to use to description his action, because “retiring” seemed technically impossible.
On March 13, 2013, he was succeeded by Archbishop Jorge Mario Bergoglio, an Argentine Jesuit who took the name Francis. The Vatican had to put out a statement clarifying that Pope Benedict would use the title “pope emeritus” because no one knew what to call a second living pope. Vatican insiders would later describe the two men as holding each other in high regard, something that perhaps eased the otherwise awkward situation of two popes coexisting within Vatican walls.
Pope Benedict’s “esteem [for Francis] is very high,” the former pontiff’s private secretary Archbishop Georg Gänswein told The Post in 2014. “And it has grown because of the courage of the new pope, week after week. At the beginning, they did not know each other very well. But then Pope Francis phoned him, wrote him, visited him, phoned him again and invited him [to private meetings], so that their contact became very personal and confidential.”
A life in Catholicism
Joseph Alois Ratzinger was born April 16, 1927, in the Bavarian village of Marktl am Inn. He was 5 when Adolf Hitler became chancellor, but the rise of Nazism did not much affect the quiet, studious boy until he reached his teens.
In the meantime, young Joseph enjoyed an idyllic — though not affluent — childhood. His father, a rural police officer, was transferred frequently, and the family moved through predominantly Catholic and rural Bavaria in southeast Germany. The family finally settled in Traunstein, where the father retired at 60.
In his autobiography, “Milestones,” Pope Benedict recalls a happy childhood — hiking with his mother and older brother and sister, watching puppet shows, constructing the family Nativity scene. The family went to Mass most weekdays and three times on Sunday. Joseph collected missals — the books a priest uses to celebrate Mass.
At 14, he was enrolled in the Hitler Youth, the main organization for indoctrinating young people. Membership was mandatory, but he was spared having to attend meetings when a friendly math teacher told him that he would sign him in.
Nazism, which dominated Germany, had begun its march through Europe. Religious instruction was banned at Joseph’s school, and lyrics in Christian songbooks were replaced by verses that celebrated Hitler. He served for a time in an antiaircraft unit that guarded a BMW plant outside Munich, but, because of a badly infected finger, he never had to fire a gun.
At one time, he saw enslaved laborers conscripted from a branch of the Dachau concentration camp. He remembered seeing Hungarian Jews being shipped to their deaths and had a cousin with Down syndrome who died as a result of the Nazi euthanasia program to exterminate the physically and mentally infirm.
The brutality he witnessed strengthened his conviction of religion’s role in society.
“Only the Christian faith had the possibility to heal these people and give a new beginning,” he said in a 2001 interview with Time magazine.
After the war ended, Joseph Ratzinger resumed his seminary studies and was ordained along with his brother, Georg, in 1951. Georg died in 2020 at age 96. Maria Ratzinger, his sister, managed her cardinal brother’s house until she died in 1991.
As a young priest, he acquired a reputation as one of the church’s most promising theologians, working at a succession of universities in Germany. In 1962, Cardinal Josef Frings, archbishop of Cologne, chose the young star to accompany him to Rome as a peritus, or expert, for the Second Vatican Council.
Among his efforts at Vatican II was his drafting of a speech for Frings that was instrumental in thwarting conservative efforts to control the council and opening the event to proposals from bishops around the world. But before the council ended in 1965, he was already expressing serious reservations about its course and the extent of the changes.
He grew to believe that reformers had gone too far, opening the door too wide to the surrounding culture and radically weakening the church. He wrote later in his memoir that “the impression grew steadily that nothing was now stable in the Church, that everything was open to revision … The faith no longer seemed exempt from human decision-making but rather was now apparently determined by it.”
After Vatican II
The young theologian was horrified by the protest culture that swept through Europe in the 1960s. At the University of Tubingen, where he was chairman in dogmatic theology, student protesters disrupted lectures and staged daily protests. Some students embraced Marxism and chanted “accursed be Jesus” as a revolutionary slogan.
In 1969, he resigned from Tubingen and moved to the more peaceful University of Regensburg, in his native Bavaria, where eventually he was elevated to dean and vice president. He also became theological adviser to the German bishops.
He supported some of the changes of Vatican II. He believed that the church had become too inward-looking and had to reengage with the modern world. He also believed that the changes were intended, in part, to restore some aspects of the church’s ancient traditions. But he watched with dismay as liberal reformers rejected such traditions as the Latin Mass and made what he considered too many concessions to modern culture. He was wary of ecumenism that might subvert Catholicism’s idea of itself as Jesus’ one true church.
He told Time magazine in 2001: “It is absolute nonsense to say Vatican II left it up to the individual to decide which religious ideas he would adopt and which he would not.”
In 1977, he was named the archbishop of Munich and Freising, and he was elevated to cardinal later that year. During the conclave that elected the short-lived tenure of John Paul I, Archbishop Ratzinger got to know Karol Wojtyla, a little-known Polish cardinal. They shared a deep orthodoxy, and shortly after Wojtyla became pope in 1978, he chose him to take over as prefect of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith.
Under John Paul II, it became the second most powerful job in the Vatican — and the most controversial.
Cardinal Ratzinger was seen as guardian of the church’s most orthodox teachings on matters such as homosexuality, divorce and remarriage, celibacy and the all-male priesthood.
He infuriated liberals by issuing strong denunciations of homosexual relationships, and he campaigned against liberation theology — popular in Latin America — which he and John Paul II believed was leading people toward Marxism. The congregation also reaffirmed that artificial contraception was an “intrinsically evil act” prohibited without exception.
Academic freedom at Catholic institutions became an issue. The Vatican mandated that all professors of theology at Catholic universities receive permission to teach from the local bishop.
Estimates are that formal censure — such as an order not to speak publicly or to publish — was imposed on a dozen theologians during his tenure as head of the congregation and that investigations were opened on about 80 more.
Critics said moves during his time as head of church doctrine stifled debate and innovative research in controversial theological areas. His defenders maintained that he was merely carrying out the agenda of John Paul II and unfairly became a lightning rod for criticism.
Yet even his critics acknowledged his keen mind and prodigious memory. He could recall exact quotations at great length in several different languages, in some cases from books he had read decades earlier. He was an accomplished pianist with a fondness for Mozart.
He was also known for his collegiality and courtesy. When he was a cardinal, restaurateurs around Rome kept pictures of him on their walls. He was known as a friendly, talkative customer who asked about their children and otherwise engaged them in conversation.
His kindness toward the stray cats of Rome was the stuff of Vatican legend. When Cardinal Ratzinger was the head of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, the German newspaper Bild wrote, he tended to the cats that frequented a Vatican garden and bandaged their wounds.
As pope, he took the name Benedict in honor of Pope Benedict XV, who sought to negotiate peace among warring countries during World War I, and Saint Benedict of Nursia, the founder of Christian monasticism.
Pope Benedict later said that he had been reluctant to assume the papacy, that he would have preferred to retire to his house in a Bavarian village near Regensburg, with his brother, and dedicate himself to writing books.
“At a certain point, I prayed to God, ‘Please don’t do this to me,’ ” he told a group of German pilgrims shortly after his election. “Evidently, this time He didn’t listen to me.”
The pope emeritus foreshadowed the final stage of his life in 2018, writing in a rare letter to the Italian newspaper Corriere della Serra that he was on “a pilgrimage toward Home.”
During his retirement, Benedict largely avoided controversy. He chose, however, to wear papal white robes and voiced his thoughts on occasion, including to contradict Francis’s ideas on the nature of clerical abuse and later in objection to proposed exceptions on priestly celibacy.
After a church-commissioned report accused him of mishandling four abuse cases during his time running the archdiocese of Munich between 1977 and 1982, he expressed his “profound shame” even as his legal team insisted that he had never participated in coverups of abuse. | 2022-12-31T10:46:25Z | www.washingtonpost.com | Pope Benedict XVI, who shockingly resigned the papacy, dies at 95 - The Washington Post | https://www.washingtonpost.com/obituaries/2022/12/31/pope-benedict-dead/ | https://www.washingtonpost.com/obituaries/2022/12/31/pope-benedict-dead/ |
Pope Benedict XVI during a visit to Germany in 2011. (Johannes Simon/Getty Images)
Benedict was America’s pope
For more than a century, from the time when Ireland’s potato crop failed and starvation sped a great migration of Irish to the United States, nativists feared the influence of Roman Catholicism over American life. Anti-Catholic sentiment helped fuel the Know Nothing movement of the 1840s and 1850s. The prejudice poisoned the 1884 presidential campaign with charges of “rum, Romanism, and rebellion” against Republican James G. Blaine. It marched alongside racism in Ku Klux Klan parades of the 1920s and doomed Democrat Alfred E. Smith’s presidential bid in 1928. John F. Kennedy’s narrow victory in 1960 was thought to be a stake through the heart of hatred.
Ironically, the influence ran in the opposite direction. Popes had relatively little impact on the formation of American morals and culture compared with the enormous changes wrought on the Vatican by U.S. modernizing power. Pope John XXIII’s historic decision to call the Second Vatican Council to begin gathering in 1962 was, in many senses, a recognition that the Catholic Church must engage with the free and individualistic world that the postwar United States was making.
Two priests who served as theological experts at Vatican II would go on to alter that dynamic and to bring Roman Catholicism to a place of prominence in American life unmatched throughout our history. One, from Poland, was Karol Wojtyla, then an auxiliary bishop of Krakow, now Pope Saint John Paul II. The other, a brilliant young professor from the University of Bonn, was Joseph Ratzinger, who would serve John Paul II as chief keeper of the faith and succeed him as Pope Benedict XVI.
With Benedict’s death at 95 on Saturday in Rome, the shared work of these two men can be read in American Catholicism’s dramatic shift toward the cultural right. From John Paul’s election to the papacy in 1978 to Benedict’s unusual resignation from office in 2013, every bishop consecrated in the United States (and worldwide) was approved by one of these two, and every professor licensed to teach Catholic theology according to church doctrine was subject to their potential review.
Marc A. Thiessen: The tragedy of Benedict XVI's papacy is that it was all too short
Their view of Vatican II was not the one that prevailed in the United States immediately after the council adjourned in 1965. Most observers expected that engagement with the modern world would liberalize Catholicism and lead quickly to new policies on birth control, abortion, marriage for priests and so on.
John Paul’s strong anti-communist activism in Poland, along with his movie-star looks and approachable smile, led many Americans to mistakenly believe he would align the church with modern Western culture. But they had not read his theological work, especially the series of meditations that elevated him to eminence in Rome and were published as “A Sign of Contradiction.”
Written for a 1976 retreat called by Pope Paul VI for the Roman Curia, these essays explained John Paul’s view that post-Vatican II engagement with modernity was not meant to change the church so much as it was meant to change the modern world. Catholicism would stand in contradiction to liberal trends in society, offering its unchanging doctrines as an alternative to a world evolving for the worse.
John Paul took his smile on the road, traveling the globe as no pontiff had ever done before. He appointed Ratzinger, then an archbishop and cardinal, prefect of the powerful Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith — the old Inquisition — and there he served as the hammer within the velvet, purging liberal theologians, clipping the wings of left-leaning bishops and elevating cultural conservatives to positions of power.
Their work continued after John Paul’s death in 2005 as Ratzinger became Pope Benedict XVI and kept up the countercultural momentum. Storms of scandal over priestly sex abuse prompted some thinkers to ask if the ideal of celibate male leaders in the church had fostered a culture of lies. But for Benedict and his like-minded churchmen, modern promiscuity was to blame. Their solution: tighter screening of seminarians for mental health and orthodox commitment.
The defining engagement in American politics has been over the issue of abortion. As John Paul’s hammer, Ratzinger taught that “not all moral issues have the same moral weight as abortion.” Under his influence, opposition to abortion became a defining aspect of Catholic identity here: Catholic schools bus students to protest rallies. Catholic hospitals refuse to offer certain medical procedures. Catholic churches raise money to fund antiabortion campaigns.
On June 24, the U.S. Supreme Court contradicted nearly 50 years of its own jurisprudence by holding that the Constitution does not protect a woman’s right to choose an abortion. Five of the six justices who voted to overturn Roe v. Wade are conservative Roman Catholics. (The sixth was a graduate student under a leading expert in Catholic legal philosophy.)
Catholic leaders hailed the decision — which might never have happened without the ministry of Pope Benedict XVI. | 2022-12-31T10:46:31Z | www.washingtonpost.com | Opinion | Pope Benedict XVI changed politics in America - The Washington Post | https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2022/12/31/pope-benedict-ratzinger-changed-american-society/ | https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2022/12/31/pope-benedict-ratzinger-changed-american-society/ |
By Stefano Pitrelli
Sammy Westfall
Pope John Paul II's funeral, in St. Peter's Square on April 8, 2005, was at the time the largest attended funeral in history. (Franco Origlia/Getty Images)
VATICAN CITY — Benedict XVI broke with tradition when he became the first pope in six centuries to abdicate. His death at 95, announced by the Vatican on Saturday, has raised questions about which papal funeral traditions may apply to an ex-pope.
For sure some customs aren’t relevant. There’s no need to destroy the Fisherman’s Ring that doubles as a papal seal — his customized ring was already slashed to make it unusable when he stepped down in 2013. And the mourning period won’t be followed by the drama of a conclave to select his successor. That’s already happened, too.
But what shape the ceremonies will take for Benedict remains unclear. Will he lie in state wearing red pontifical vestments? Will a traditional nine-day mourning period, the novemdiales, be observed after his burial? The Holy See press office, announcing that Benedict passed away at the Mater Ecclesiae Monastery within Vatican City, said only that further information would be provided soon.
Church watchers anticipate that Pope Francis will preside over the funeral itself, whereas that responsibility traditionally falls to the dean of the College of Cardinals. A sitting pope celebrating Mass for his predecessor would mark a historic moment for the church. Though it was Benedict, then known as Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger, who led the funeral Mass for his predecessor, Pope John Paul II.
Will this be as elaborate an affair, with world leaders invited? For John Paul II, the exequial Mass lasted three hours and was at the time the largest attended funeral in history.
“Rites and ceremonies after the death of a reigning pope are clear and already well elaborated,” said Ulrich Nersinger, who studies the Vatican and has worked for the papal ceremonial office. “The big problem is: What do you do if it’s a pope emeritus who dies? That’s a new experience.”
Nersinger suggested that some direction may come from Benedict’s last will and testament, but much will also depend on the decisions of Francis.
Where will Benedict be buried?
How are popes buried? Why three coffins?
What are the rules for a pope’s body? Can he be cremated or donate organs? | 2022-12-31T10:46:36Z | www.washingtonpost.com | What will Pope Benedict XVI's funeral, burial look like? - The Washington Post | https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/2022/12/31/pope-benedict-funeral-burial-rituals/ | https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/2022/12/31/pope-benedict-funeral-burial-rituals/ |
How Pope Benedict’s death could reshape the Catholic Church
Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI is pushed on a wheelchair onto a bus, to be with his ailing brother, in Regensburg, Germany, on June 18, 2020. (Daniel Karmann/DPA via AP, File)
VATICAN CITY — Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI death Saturday is an epochal loss for a church that was defined first by his resolute conservatism and later by his radical decision to abdicate power.
In a short bulletin, the Vatican said that Benedict had died at 9:34 a.m., local time and that his body would be placed in St. Peter’s Basilica starting Jan. 2 for a salute “from the faithful.”
His death is likely to reshape the church on several fronts, given how Benedict — who lived longer than anybody who had ever been pope — spanned so many eras, opined on so many subjects, and influenced so many conservative faithful.
Even in retirement, he had been embraced by traditionalists as the embodiment of their ideals. His death leaves that movement — which is at times vocal and oppositional to Francis — without a figure of comparable clout. His death, in the short-term, also sets the church on a more conventional path, ending a polarizing 10-year period in which the Vatican had two figures wearing white, a pope and an ex-pope.
Now Pope Francis, in another church novelty, will be there for the funeral of his predecessor.
For all Benedict did to shape the church, though, his death does not cause the extraordinary tremors that would have resulted had he remained pontiff. In the coming days there will be no conclave, no intrigue, no white smoke. Instead, the church will simply have the chance to reflect on an often-controversial figure who girded the church against the forces of modernization, and who presided over some of the rockiest years of the clerical abuse crisis.
Sandwiched between two popes more skilled in reaching out to non-Catholics, Benedict was seen as a bookish purist. He first gained prestige as a theologian and academic. He later wrote comprehensive volumes on Jesus. As cardinal, he served as one of John Paul II’s most trusted lieutenants. As pope, he vouched for an economic system that works for the “common good.”
“You had John Paul, who was huge, and Francis — both very demonstrative men. I think of them as grand pipe organs,” said Elizabeth Scalia, a Catholic author and culture editor of the Catholic wire service OSV News. “And then there’s Benedict, who was kind of an unassuming little guy playing piano in the corner.”
Church historians say that the greatest ramification for Catholicism’s future could stem from his decision in 2013 to abdicate power, becoming the first pontiff in 600 years to do so. Francis has several times indicated that Benedict created a precedent for future pontiffs, and he said this month that he’d already pre-written a resignation letter — in case of dire health problems.
Francis is 86 and slowed by knee pain but keeps a busy schedule, and there is no indication he might step down soon. But Benedict’s death makes it easier for him to consider it in the future. One retired pope is less tricky than two.
Is Pope Francis nearing the end of his pontificate?
Benedict’s abdication ultimately looked prescient, given the CEO-like demands of the job and Benedict’s frailty. For years, he had been moving with a walker, barely speaking above a whisper.
Still, the details of how Benedict conducted himself as a retiree proved problematic for the church. He elected not to revert to his given name, Joseph Ratzinger. He remained in the Vatican rather than returning to Germany. He continued dressing in papal white. Despite clearly asserting that Francis was the lone authority figure, he was embraced by conservatives as an alternate power, particularly as Francis sought to modernize the church.
“You can’t have a former pope walking around wearing white and then be surprised when some people say mistakenly that there are two popes,” said Christopher Bellitto, a papal historian at Kean University in New Jersey. “His [death] allows the church to have some serious conversations about how it would handle a future post-papacy. And the answer is, not this way.”
Conservatives loyal to Benedict tended to acknowledge faults in his retirement plan while applauding him for thinking about the good of the church. Even before his death, church traditionalists had felt under siege, losing ground in the Francis era.
Francis last year reversed Benedict by placing restrictions on the Latin Rite, a form of Mass favored by traditionalists.
These Americans are devoted to the old Latin Mass. They are also at odds with Pope Francis.
Francis has also steadily selected new cardinals who share his worldview, increasing the odds that a subsequent pope skews more toward Francis than Benedict. His appointments account for about 63 percent of voting-age cardinals, nearly enough to reach the two-thirds threshold.
Even without Benedict, conservatives won’t be “intellectual orphans,” said Juan Miguel Montes, director of a Catholic group that advocates for the traditional family. “What he wrote will stay with us. Nobody can erase that. That point of reference will linger.”
Marisa Iati in Washington contributed to this report. | 2022-12-31T10:59:31Z | www.washingtonpost.com | Pope Benedict's death will have a major impact on the Catholic church - The Washington Post | https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/2022/12/31/pope-benedict-death-catholic-church/ | https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/2022/12/31/pope-benedict-death-catholic-church/ |
After holiday surge, viral illnesses could derail school, work plans
A sign advertising coronavirus testing at the entrance of a health center in Silver Spring, Md., in November. (Eric Lee for The Washington Post)
Christmas would have been the first time in a year that Lorenzo Simpson saw extended family members because of pandemic cancellations, but he woke up that day with a sore throat and a sinking feeling. Covid positive for the second time, the 30-year-old isolated in his Hyattsville home with supplies from CVS instead of holiday helpings.
“I like to eat, so that’s a huge low,” he said.
The coronavirus, combined with lingering flu, RSV and even Strep A cases, derailed many a holiday celebration this year — with more disappointment to come as new infections lead to missed school and work.
In addition, a new and more contagious variant of the coronavirus is widely circulating in the Northeast, leading to new infections better at evading immunity from vaccinations and previous illness, public health experts say. Schools, which have seen surges in illness after the holidays throughout the pandemic, are aiming to reduce absences with required testing and immunizations.
The variant XBB.1.5 rapidly emerged as the dominant strain in the Northeast in recent weeks, according to modeling data from the Centers of Disease Control and Prevention. In the region that includes D.C., Maryland and Virginia, the variant makes up nearly half of new infections, followed by BQ variants.
“This is what happens when a variant gets displaced. A variant is not going to displaced by a variant that moves more slowly,” said Neil J. Sehgal, an assistant professor of health policy and management at the University of Maryland School of Public Health.
As with previous strains, monoclonal antibodies are ineffective against XBB, but Sehgal stressed that the bivalent booster, updated in the fall, still offers some protection against the new variant.
“All signs right now point to significant cross-protection from the bivalent booster,” he said. “Not perfect but still quite good and certainly better than not being boosted at all … Yet we’ve still seen pitifully low uptake of the bivalent booster.”
While about 37 percent of people over 65 have gotten the updated booster nationwide, that number shrinks to about 17 percent for people 18 and older, CDC data show.
Although reluctant to predict the behavior of an unpredictable virus, public health experts expect to see an increase in coronavirus infections and more hospitalizations after the holidays, as has happened consistently over the past three years.
Everyone seems to know someone who is sick at the moment. Simpson said he was disappointed to miss celebrating the Yuletide with his mother and extended family, including a brother who traveled from Rochester, N.Y., but he couldn’t ignore his runny nose and telltale loss of taste and smell signaling a coronavirus infection.
Nearly a week later, he still felt woozy but was reluctant to miss a shift at the restaurant where he works as a server — a lucrative gig during the holidays. Simpson’s boss will allow him to return to work since he has isolated for five days, the period of time in which the CDC says people are most infectious after a positive test result.
Pediatricians are seeing a decline in flu, covid and RSV among school-aged children, but Gabrina Dixon, a pediatric hospitalist at Children’s National Hospital, said she anticipates a resurgence after the holiday break.
“When kids go back to school and they start commingling, we are concerned that we will see an increase in the numbers again,” Dixon said. “The most important thing is [preventive] care.”
Dixon encourages parents to make sure they have had flu and coronavirus vaccinations to lessen the severity of illness. She said parents and schools should also stress the importance of hand washing and using hand sanitizer to prevent the spread of germs. Wearing high-quality masks, she said, would also protect children from contracting viruses as they return to school.
Rising illness rates are leading two school systems in New Jersey — Paterson Public Schools and Camden City School District — to require mask after the winter break, and Philadelphia schools will also require masks for the first 10 days when classes resume in January.
Boston Public Schools is also requiring masking for eight days after winter break. Masking is optional in school systems in the D.C. area, but with much of the metro area in a “medium” covid community level, as determined by the CDC, Montgomery Schools encouraged masking indoors.
“After prior holiday breaks, we have seen the highest transmission risk for respiratory infections in the 2 weeks after students return to school,” the school system’s medical officer said in a message to families before the break.
Montgomery Schools sent home coronavirus test kits with staff and students and recommended testing before returning to school.
D.C. schools also provided test kits and will require students and staff to submit proof of a negative coronavirus test before they return to class. The school system’s “test-to-return” requirement has been in place throughout the pandemic at the beginning of the school year and after holiday and other breaks.
D.C. officials have said the required testing is necessary to safely reopen schools and maintain in-person learning.
But Dixon noted there is no screening for the flu or RSV and even some symptomatic children test negative for covid, hence this blanket recommendation: “If you are sick, don’t go to school.”
At-home testing and much less frequent data reporting mean secondary markers such as work and school absences will define the next surge, Sehgal said. The Virginia Department of Health began updating covid data less frequently as of this week and moved data on outbreaks and other metrics off the main dashboard; the agency stopped recommending widespread masking long ago.
Montgomery County on Friday urged residents to “play it safe traveling over the holidays” and to wear masks, tweeting “spread love not germs” and the hashtag #MaskUpMoCo.
Although masking has fallen by the wayside on public transportation and elsewhere, Sehgal said the simple act of wearing a mask can curb the spread of the coronavirus as well as other illnesses wreaking havoc on families.
“There’s been this collective forgetting about how we protect ourselves and each other,” he said, calling the move away from masks a “self-inflicted wound.”
William Petri, a professor of infectious diseases at the University of Virginia School of Medicine, said that given the decline in RSV cases, without a vaccine, the region could be seeing the end of the worst of the respiratory illness season.
Or, he said, “maybe it’s the eye of the storm.”
Lauren Lumpkin contributed to this report. | 2022-12-31T11:08:15Z | www.washingtonpost.com | A new covid variant emerges just in time for back to school - The Washington Post | https://www.washingtonpost.com/dc-md-va/2022/12/31/covid-variant-school-vaccines-flu/ | https://www.washingtonpost.com/dc-md-va/2022/12/31/covid-variant-school-vaccines-flu/ |
Homicides drop in D.C., but mayor calls youth violence an emergency
Killings also decline in Prince George’s County, but carjackings in both jurisdictions remain problematic
Jasmine Hilton
John D. Harden
A mural outside the D.C. Office of Neighborhood Safety and Engagement in the District, where the number of homicides in 2022 is down compared with the previous year. (Eric Lee for The Washington Post)
The number of homicides in the District and neighboring Prince George’s County dropped in 2022, but remained high compared to pre-pandemic years as leaders struggled to confront gun violence and carjackings involving youth.
Authorities said 202 people were killed in D.C. in 2022 as of Friday afternoon, ending four consecutive years of rising homicides in the nation’s capital. The 11 percent drop marked a reversal from 2021, which had been the District’s deadliest since 2003. Still, the District hit 200 homicides for the second time in nearly two decades.
Prince George’s County police investigated 102 killings in 2022, 23 percent fewer than in 2021.
The downward trend in homicides in the D.C. region is reflected in cities across the country, with drops ranging from 5 to 8 percent, according to a database maintained by The Washington Post that includes data from more than 80 police departments. Cities where killings went down in 2022 include New York City, Philadelphia and Chicago.
Though killings decreased over the prior year, the number of homicides in D.C. was still up 21 percent and nearly 38 percent in Prince George’s from 2019 — before covid upended the social safety net. And seemingly encouraging statistics, including a 7 percent drop in overall crime in the District, were tempered by concerns over carjackings and violence involving juveniles as both perpetrators and victims.
Two juveniles arrested in the shooting and attempted robbery of a Washington Commanders running back in Northeast Washington were each linked by police to other unrelated killings, and a 15-year-old was arrested in the fatal shooting of another teen at a street festival on U Street. In Prince George’s, a 13-year-old was fatally shot while raking leaves, and the county executive reinstated juvenile curfew enforcement after one of the deadliest months on record.
D.C. police said they confiscated 3,154 illegal firearms in 2022, 30 percent more than in 2021. Shootings in the District went down in 2022 compared with 2021, but through Dec. 29, nearly twice has many juveniles — 105 — were struck by gunfire as the year before. And 18 people under the age of 18 were victims of homicide in the city in 2022, 16 felled by gunfire. That is up from eight juveniles fatally shot of 12 killed in 2021.
“An emergency” is how Mayor Muriel E. Bowser (D) described the rising violence among youth at a graduation this month for workers trained to mediate street conflicts. In an interview later, the mayor, noting the overall crime drop, said efforts through policing and public health programs are starting to see results. But she cautioned: “We’re not satisfied until we get guns out of the hands of kids, and families feel safe in their neighborhoods.”
Authorities have blamed crime, particularly involving youth, on disruptions of schools, courts and organized activities following covid lockdowns, as well as a continuing struggle to get back on track after most restrictions ended. Bowser said that children are “showing up in our criminal justice system, after covid, in tough shape,” and that “unfortunately, the [police] chief and his team have seen younger and younger people involved in more serious crime.”
Carjackings continue
Elsewhere in the D.C. region, homicides in Montgomery County dropped from a near-two decade high of 32 in 2021 to 26 in 2022, according to The Post’s totals. Several gained widespread attention, including a man who police said fatally shot a gas station clerk after having killed his pregnant girlfriend.
In Virginia, homicides in Fairfax County, Alexandria and Loudoun did not shift dramatically. In Prince William, nine more people than in 2021 were killed, driven in part by a domestic-related shooting that left four dead inside a home.
Of the 102 homicides investigated by Prince George’s police, 85 were fatal shootings. Prince George’s Police Chief Malik Aziz said his department worked with lawmakers, the courts and the community to “put a blanket” over specific neighborhoods seeing mounting violence by increasing patrols, working with residents and targeting resources. Those efforts have required cross-border collaboration with District officials to curtail a wave of carjackings across the region since the onset of the pandemic.
In Prince George’s, detectives have made arrests in four carjacking-related killings and are investigating a possible fifth. By late December, police said they had arrested 108 juveniles and 104 adults for carjacking crimes, up from 84 juvenile and 72 adults arrests the previous year.
In D.C., carjackings have spiked more than 200 percent since 2019. D.C. police said nearly 70 percent of carjacking cases in 2022 involved juvenile offenders.
D.C. wants to save at-risk people. Violence, missteps marred the effort
Bowser is promoting an all government approach to confronting crime, putting every agency on notice that they are responsible for helping extricate people from lives and situations that can lead to violence. She launched an ambitious program called People of Promise that aimed to help more than 230 people identified on a list as at risk for being the next victim of or perpetrator of a shooting.
The initiative struggled at the start; in its first five months, two people on the list were killed, eight others were shot and a dozen were charged in violent crimes.
Bowser’s team has struggled to explain how various initiatives fit under one cohesive anti-crime plan, and she said officials are working to consolidate programs and initiatives, “so there is a clear, clear direction.” She said that People of Promise is growing and that officials are getting the most vulnerable “on a pathway of where they need to go.”
The Bowser administration has poured at least $139 million on efforts outside of policing to combat gun violence in the past two fiscal years, including jobs programs and violence interrupters, who embed in their own often dangerous and under-resourced neighborhoods trying to stamp out grievances before they escalate to gunfire.
But the mayor continues make traditional policing an important part of her plan. She said she will continue in 2023 to push for hundreds more officers to reach a force of 4,000, despite reluctance from the D.C. Council that cut back on similar plans in 2022.
D.C. mayor’s budget would expand police ranks amid crime worries
Bowser and Police Chief Robert J. Contee III said a public health approach to violence needs to be coupled with a criminal justice system that holds violent offenders, including juveniles, to account. Contee said there is a question of “whether or not young people are really being committed to the city’s care.”
Progress without police?
The city began making significant investments in violence interrupters five years ago, and programs run by D.C. and the independently elected attorney general have expanded. By the end of 2021, there were more than 300 people working in communities across the District and, for the first time, a privately funded academy to train them.
One neighborhood in Southeast Washington once known for its high concentration of killings went months without a homicide. This area, spanning Fort Dupont and Benning Ridge, also saw assaults with guns fall by more than 45 percent compared with the same time in 2021, and more than 65 percent compared with the same time in 2020.
“This used to be a danger zone,” said Dodson Robey, an operations manager at the Office of Neighborhood Safety and Engagement, as he drove around a cul-de-sac in Fort Dupont. The area was quiet, with air conditioning units hanging out of windows and three young men watching the van pass by.
Some people in the neighborhood held cookouts for the first time this summer, feeling safe enough to spend time outdoors.
That improvement, city officials and community members said, came after front-line workers negotiated a truce between two crews who had been feuding for more than a decade. It took over a year and drew on the ability of outreach workers to navigate sensitive conversations with key players both inside and outside the D.C. jail.
The success, officials said, shows the power of violence interruption — a non-law enforcement approach to crime reduction.
Dwayne Falwell helped negotiate the truce. Asked why he could play a role in diffusing a volatile dynamic, he pointed to his years of building relationships with people who had grown up with him around the neighborhood. He also said their shared experiences gave him credibility.
“I used to be part of the problem,” he said.
Delano Hunter, interim director of the Office of Neighborhood Safety and Engagement, called those agreements “a contributing factor to us experiencing a decrease in homicides and also in violent crime” in 2022.
“It is something that is tangible,” he said.
Curfews and crime
In neighboring Prince George’s, authorities said they relied on the county executive’s youth summer programming and the Hope in Action initiative, which offers microgrants to community anti-violence organizations to address crime beyond policing.
The courts, prosecutors and public defenders were also working with law enforcement and elected officials to alleviate burdens on the system and address juvenile justice concerns exacerbated by the pandemic.
But 24 killings in August — the county’s highest monthly death toll in more than three decades — tested those relationships. On Labor Day, County Executive Angela D. Alsobrooks (D) and Aziz announced a curfew for juveniles under age 17. Officials blamed the crime spike on young people, their parents and the courts, accusing them of failing to hold juveniles accountable.
Some residents and parents praised leaders for taking action to address mounting safety concerns, while others called the curfew a politically motivated attempt to solve a complex problem. Police data showed a decline in homicides and carjackings since the curfew was imposed, though a Post analysis of data back to 2017 demonstrated difficulties in crediting the curfew alone for crime drops.
Prince George’s curfew aimed at curbing violence draws fans and skeptics
Alsobrooks has said there is “still so much work to do,” and that the curfew was one tool to combat violence, such as the string of killings in August, capped by four fatal shootings Labor Day weekend. Those killings included the fatal stabbing of a gas station clerk, with boys 12 and 15 charged, and a 16-year-old boy fatally shot in the parking lot of a convenience store.
Aziz said officers heard from parents who had tried to use the curfew as a way to keep their children home, and from students who cited it as a reason not to stay out late with friends. When the curfew first went into effect, Aziz said officers and community leaders identified places throughout the county where teens were known to congregate or get into trouble. Then officers and violence disrupters focused their attention there, educating children about the curfew and increasing proactive supervision.
“We disturbed those areas, we interrupted those areas, because we were looking for cooperation and compliance,” Aziz said. “We were not looking to put a bunch of young people in the system.”
A spokesperson for Alsobrooks said the curfew will remain in effect pending a reevaluation from the county executive in January 2023.
Jawanna Hardy, director of Hope in Action, said that while the number of violence interrupters working in the county is small, additional hires are being made. She noted that much of the violence in Prince George’s mirrors the District, and that programs and other initiatives to confront crime should be more integrated.
“The community doesn’t see a borderline,” Hardy said.
Dan Morse, Justin Wm. Moyer, Salvador Rizzo and Olivia Diaz contributed to this report. | 2022-12-31T11:08:21Z | www.washingtonpost.com | Homicides in 2022 went down in D.C., Prince George's and other U.S. cities - The Washington Post | https://www.washingtonpost.com/dc-md-va/2022/12/31/homicides-dc-va-md-2022/ | https://www.washingtonpost.com/dc-md-va/2022/12/31/homicides-dc-va-md-2022/ |
New laws take effect in Virginia, Maryland and D.C.
Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin (R) toured a Safeway grocery store in Alexandria in February as he pushed for the elimination of state and local grocery taxes. (Robb Hill for The Washington Post)
Grocery taxes go down in Virginia. The minimum wage for tipped workers goes up in D.C. And low-income Marylanders will get access to free dental care.
Those are some of the changes that New Year’s Day will usher in as a smattering of new laws take effect in the Washington region, including minimum wage increases for non-tipped workers in Virginia and Maryland.
Virginia is eliminating its statewide 1.5 percent tax on groceries and personal hygiene products such as diapers and tampons. Localities will still have the authority to impose a 1 percent levy on groceries, however.
Gov. Glenn Youngkin (R) called for the elimination of both state and local grocery taxes while running for office in 2021, but Democrats who control the state Senate insisted on letting localities retain their portion as an important source of local funding.
Virginia’s minimum wage will rise from $11 an hour to $12 an hour. The hike is the final boost mandated by a law that Virginia Democrats pushed through in early 2020 after flipping the state Senate and House of Delegates. At the time, the state’s minimum wage had been stuck at the federal floor of $7.25 an hour for more than a decade.
The law lays out a plan for the minimum to reach $15 in 2026, but only if the now-divided General Assembly signs off. Under the plan, the minimum would stay at $12 for a year while legislators consider whether to approve further increases envisioned — but not dictated — by the law: $13.50 in January 2025 and $15 in January 2026.
If legislators do not vote for those increases by July 2024, the minimum wage would be adjusted annually to reflect increases in the consumer price index.
In Maryland, the minimum wage for employers with 15 or more workers will rise from $12.50 an hour to $13.25 an hour. It is scheduled to rise again, to $14 an hour, on Jan. 1, 2024.
In the District, January will mark the first wage increase as part of Initiative 82, the ballot measure voters passed in November to raise the minimum wage for workers who receive tips. The measure will increase minimum pay for restaurant servers and other tipped workers from $5.35 per hour to $6 an hour. The minimum is set to reach $16.10 per hour by 2027.
The District’s living wage, which certain D.C. government contractors and subcontractors are required to pay their workers, will also rise on Jan. 1, from $16.10 an hour to $16.50 an hour. The minimum wage, which any employer must pay its non-tipped workers, will remain at $16.10 until July 1, when it and the living wage will both rise to $17 an hour.
Another new law in the District will require all health insurance plans issued on or after Jan. 1 to cover certain foods required for some medical conditions, such as inflammatory bowel disease and gastroesophageal reflux disease.
Also beginning Jan. 1, family and parental leave for District government workers will go up by four weeks, to 12 weeks per year. Those who work for D.C. government also will be newly eligible for paid personal medical leave and prenatal leave.
In Maryland, a new law will require the state’s Medical Cannabis Commission to begin a baseline study on the public health impact of cannabis use in the state. The move comes as Maryland prepares to legalize adult recreational use in July.
Maryland legalized recreational marijuana. Here’s what you should know.
Under a ballot initiative passed overwhelmingly in November, adults 21 and older in Maryland will be allowed to possess up to 1.5 ounces of marijuana and grow two plants out of the public view.
Another new law taking effect aims to improve the collection and distribution of eviction data. The judiciary will be required to collect data from eviction cases and share it monthly with the state Department of Housing and Community Development, which in turn must make the data available to state and local agencies, and to academic institutions.
With the new year also comes the establishment of Maryland’s Family and Medical Leave Insurance program, which will likely operate similarly to the state’s unemployment insurance program, with a tax on workers and employers funding paid leave.
Beginning in 2025, Maryland workers will be able to take up to 12 weeks of paid leave to care for a sick family member, a newborn or a new adopted child, among other instances.
Gov. Larry Hogan (R) vetoed the measure, but the Democratic-controlled legislature overrode him, making Maryland the tenth state to offer the job-protection benefit.
Hogan warned in his veto message that the measure would hurt small businesses. Employers with 15 or more workers will have to pay into a fund and, similar to unemployment insurance, employees would also have to make a weekly contribution. But supporters invoked the plight of pandemic-era workers struggling to balance illness and jobs.
Starting Jan. 1, any adult enrolled in Maryland’s Medicaid program will be eligible for free dental care. Until now, the only adults covered were those enrolled in a pilot program. Another new law will cap the co-pay that insurers can require individuals to pay for insulin at $30 for a 30-day supply.
Jenna Portnoy contributed to this report. | 2022-12-31T11:08:27Z | www.washingtonpost.com | New laws take effect in Virginia, Maryland and D.C. - The Washington Post | https://www.washingtonpost.com/dc-md-va/2022/12/31/new-laws-january-1-dc-maryland-virginia/ | https://www.washingtonpost.com/dc-md-va/2022/12/31/new-laws-january-1-dc-maryland-virginia/ |
How to bet the College Football Playoff semifinals
The College Football Playoff semifinals are Saturday, with Michigan taking on TCU and Georgia facing Ohio State. (Roger Steinman/AP)
After weeks of more or less meaningless bowl games, we finally get to the part of the postseason schedule when things really matter: Saturday’s College Football Playoff semifinals. That, along with two other bowl games on New Year’s Eve, makes for a fun day of college football. Here’s a look at Saturday’s matchups, including any players and coaches who have departed via the transfer portal or are opting out. Spreads and totals were taken Friday from the consensus odds at VegasInsider.com.
In Nashville
Noon Eastern, ABC
The Wildcats (7-5) ranked 105th in the country in points per game (22.1) and the Hawkeyes (7-5) ranked 123rd (17.4), and neither will have their starting quarterback, which is why you’re seeing the lowest total of this bowl season or any bowl season or, for that matter, any regular season. That, and defenses that allowed 14.4 (Iowa) and 19.1 (Kentucky) points per game.
Key personnel losses: Iowa will start third-string quarterback Joey Labas after an injury to first-stringer Spencer Petras and second-stringer Alex Padilla’s transfer. Labas has not attempted a pass in his college career. Safety Kaevon Merriweather, a second-team all-American who had three interceptions, has opted out. Cornerback Cooper DeJean and tight end Sam LaPorta, who both were named first-team all-Big Ten, will play after suffering late-season injuries. Kentucky starting quarterback Will Levis (potentially the No. 1 pick in the NFL draft) has opted out, leaving either Kaiya Sheron, Destin Wade or Deuce Hogan to start for the Wildcats (all three were listed as the No. 1 quarterback on their depth chart, and only Sheron has thrown a pass this season). Running back Chris Rodriguez has opted out and Kavosiey Smoke, his backup, has transferred. They combined for more than half of the team’s rushing attempts. Carrington Valentine, a two-year starter at cornerback, has opted out. Kentucky also fired offensive coordinator Rich Scangarello after the regular season.
Pick: Under 31. Two slow offenses (Iowa ranks 96th in seconds per play, and Kentucky ranks 129th). Two good defenses. Lots of personnel losses at skill positions. This game has 10-7 written all over it.
No. 5 Alabama (-6.5) vs. No. 9 Kansas State
The Crimson Tide (10-2) essentially was knocked out of College Football Playoff contention in early November after its loss to LSU, which is not something usually said about a Nick Saban team. Also abnormal is how sloppy Alabama was this season: It averages 8.5 penalties per game (only Syracuse averaged more). Kansas State (10-3) ended TCU’s hopes of an undefeated season with its upset in the Big 12 title game.
Key personnel losses: Alabama starting guard Javion Cohen and wide receivers Traeshon Holden and JoJo Earle (37 combined catches, eight touchdowns) have transferred, but the expected spate of opt-outs from the Crimson Tide’s future NFL draft picks never materialized. Its stars, including quarterback and 2021 Heisman winner Bryce Young and edge rusher Will Anderson, will play. Will Howard probably will keep the starting quarterback job for Kansas State even if Adrian Martinez has returned to health (Martinez probably will get a few snaps as a change of pace). Otherwise, the Wildcats have not lost much production.
Pick: Alabama -6.5. Kansas State had a great season, but the Crimson Tide will field five likely first-round NFL draft picks in this game after none decided to opt out. The talent gap between the two teams is vast, and motivation does not seem to be an issue for Alabama, as it has been in the past when the Crimson Tide doesn’t make the College Football Playoff.
In Glendale, Ariz.
In the College Football Playoff for a second straight season, Michigan (13-0) had only two of its 13 wins decided by single digits (yes, the Wolverines’ schedule was not particularly difficult). The Horned Frogs (12-1), meanwhile, led a charmed season until their luck ran out in an overtime loss to Kansas State in the Big 12 title game. Three of TCU’s wins came after scores with less than two minutes remaining or in overtime.
Key personnel losses: Michigan running back Blake Corum, who finished seventh in the Heisman Trophy voting, will miss the game with a knee injury. Edge rusher Mike Morris missed most of the Wolverines’ final three games but still was named Big Ten defensive lineman of the year; his status for the semifinal is unknown. Michigan expects defensive tackle Mazi Smith, a first-team all-Big Ten selection, to play after he pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor gun-possession charge. TCU has not lost any players of note.
Pick: Under 58.5. Both teams run the ball more than teams usually do in average situations, and the Wolverines operate at one of the slowest paces in the nation (they rank 123rd in seconds per play and 118th in offensive snaps per game). The Horned Frogs feasted on lenient Big 12 defenses: Only three of TCU’s opponents ranked higher than 70th in terms of defensive SP+, a measure of overall efficiency; the Wolverines rank fourth.
No. 1 Georgia (-6.5) vs. No. 4 Ohio State
After demolishing Oregon, 49-3, to begin the season, the Bulldogs (13-0) quietly went about their business, winning all but one game by double digits. Despite ranking only 18th in passing yards per game, Georgia led the nation in passing success rate, suggesting a very potent if methodical attack. The defense, meanwhile, allowed more than 22 points in a game only once this season, when LSU put up some garbage-time scoring in the SEC title game. The Buckeyes (11-1) back-doored their way into the semifinal after their season-ending loss to Michigan, and that wasn’t the only concerning performance late in the season: Ohio State labored to beat Northwestern, one of the worst Power Five teams in the country, on Nov. 5 and trailed Maryland at halftime before pulling away on Nov. 19.
Key personnel losses: Ohio State running back TreVeyon Henderson, second on the team in carries and rushing yards, will miss the game after undergoing season-ending foot surgery. He didn’t play in three of the Buckeyes’ final four regular season games. Leading rusher Miyan Williams, meanwhile, seems likely to play despite a late-season leg injury, as is starting guard Matt Jones, who suffered a late-season ankle injury. Georgia leading receiver Ladd McConkey and starting tackle Warren McClendon both missed the end of the SEC championship game with injuries, and it’s unclear whether either or both will play against the Buckeyes.
Pick: Ohio State +6.5. There’s very little statistically that separates these two teams, and what would this spread be if Ohio State didn’t play one bad half against Michigan? Certainly not nearly a touchdown. The underdog keeps it close enough. | 2022-12-31T11:21:21Z | www.washingtonpost.com | How to bet the College Football Playoff games - The Washington Post | https://www.washingtonpost.com/sports/2022/12/31/college-football-playoff-betting-preview/ | https://www.washingtonpost.com/sports/2022/12/31/college-football-playoff-betting-preview/ |
The tragedy of Pope Benedict XVI
Pope Benedict XVI at St. Peter's Basilica on Feb. 13, 2013. (Gabriel Bouys/AFP/Getty Images)
Five days before his death in 2005, Pope John Paul II came to his window overlooking St. Peter’s Square to deliver what would have been his final Easter Sunday message. But when he opened his mouth, nothing came out. Many in the square, and millions more watching on television, were moved to tears as he repeatedly attempted, in palpable pain, to deliver his Easter blessing before finally sinking back into his chair, banging his fist in frustration.
In that instant, carrying on through his agony, John Paul stood as a rebuke to a utilitarian world that increasingly embraces a culture of death that discards the weakest among us — from the unborn to the elderly — treating them as a burden and inconvenience. With his silent witness, John Paul affirmed the intrinsic value of every human life, including those who are infirm, isolated and abandoned by society. As his suffering intensified in his last years, he had been asked: Why do you not simply resign? Because, he reportedly said, “Christ did not come down from the cross.”
His successor, Pope Benedict XVI, chose to come down from the cross.
As his own health worsened in 2013, Benedict relinquished the chair of St. Peter “for the good of the church.” No doubt Benedict, who died Saturday at age 95, did it out of a selfless love for God’s people, whom he felt he could no longer adequately serve. But nearly a decade later, we know his abdication was a terrible, tragic mistake.
David Von Drehle: Benedict was America's pope
Benedict never wanted to be pope. In fact, he wanted to resign during John Paul’s papacy but could not abandon his longtime friend and close collaborator. He said his election by the college of cardinals felt “like a guillotine.” He had hoped to retire to a quiet life studying theology.
But God had other plans — so Benedict became one of the greatest theologians ever to be named pope. This became apparent to the world even before his election when, as Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger, he delivered his now famous homily at John Paul’s funeral, warning of “a dictatorship of relativism that does not recognize anything as definitive and whose ultimate goal consists solely of one’s own ego and desires.” We must not be like children “tossed about by the waves” of “trends of fashion and the latest novelty,” Ratzinger said; rather, we must pursue a deeply rooted “friendship with Christ” that “opens us up to all that is good and gives us a criterion by which to distinguish the true from the false, and deceit from truth.” Truth and love are inseparable, Ratzinger said, because “love without truth would be blind; truth without love would be like ‘a clanging cymbal.’”
Throughout his papacy, he preached the Gospel of love in truth — teaching that “to defend the truth, to articulate it with humility and conviction” is an indispensable form of charity because “only in truth does charity shine forth, only in truth can charity be authentically lived.” He embraced tradition, and restored access to the pre-Vatican II liturgy, while continuing John Paul’s ecumenical outreach and leading the church in the modern world. And his message of doctrinal clarity delivered in charity inspired a new generation of young men to discern their vocations to the priesthood.
But Benedict’s extraordinary papacy is blemished by his fateful decision to resign. His abandonment resulted in the election of a new pope, Francis, who has sown confusion instead of clarity.
The papacy of Francis is in so many ways the antithesis of Benedict’s. Benedict was like the good doctor who, out of love, tells his sick patient the hard truth: You need to change your life — stop smoking, drinking and sinning — or you will die. Francis is like the bad doctor who won’t tell the sick patient the depth of his illness, allowing him to persist in his self-destructive ways — and thinks his silence is an act of mercy. It isn’t. In our deeply confused world, where we are urged to reject truth in the name of love, we need the church to teach boldly, as Benedict did, that “truth and love coincide in Christ.” In the wake of Benedict’s resignation, this teaching has been absent — and the dictatorship of relativism has taken an even deeper hold over society.
Just as Benedict did not follow the example of his predecessor, who showed in his continued service the salvific power of suffering, Francis has not followed to the example of his predecessor, who warned us of the dangers of separating truth from love. The church and the world have been impoverished as a result.
Benedict will be remembered with deep affection and gratitude by millions across the world. We give thanks for his far-too-brief pontificate, and pray for the repose of his soul. But the tragedy of his papacy is that he has passed, at age 95, as pope emeritus, rather than the supreme pontiff. | 2022-12-31T11:30:05Z | www.washingtonpost.com | Opinion | The tragedy of Benedict XVI's all too short papacy - The Washington Post | https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2022/12/31/pope-benedict-death-francis-confusion/ | https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2022/12/31/pope-benedict-death-francis-confusion/ |
The talented Mr. Santos: A congressman-elect’s unraveling web of deception
Even by the low standards for truth-telling in politics, the scope of the falsehoods from the newly elected House Republican has been breathtaking
Before George Santos, 34, made a name for himself in politics, he had insisted on being called Anthony — one of his middle names — and often used his mother’s maiden name, Devolder, eventually incorporating a company in Florida with that name.
“He hated that we called him George,” a former friend and onetime co-worker said, speaking on the condition of anonymity to avoid being associated with him publicly. “His whole family called him Anthony. He wanted to be called Anthony. He would use the name Anthony Devolder.”
With echoes of the fabulist protagonist at the heart of “The Talented Mr. Ripley” book and movie, Santos has spun an elaborate web of lies and deceptions about his identity and his past, according to acquaintances, public records, media reports and, in some cases, by his own admission. He also claims to have suddenly come into millions of dollars in wealth over the past 18 months, even as the financial data company Dun & Bradstreet estimated in July that his private family firm, the Devolder Organization, only had $43,688 in revenue.
He said he is part Black. He said he is the grandson of Holocaust survivors. He claimed he helped develop “carbon capture technology.” He claimed to have worked at companies that never employed him. He claimed to be a graduate of two universities, only to admit that he has no college degree at all. He even said his parents’ financial hardship forced him to leave the prestigious Horace Mann School in the Bronx “months” before he could graduate. But that claim and numerous others have either been shown to be false or lacking evidence by The Washington Post and other news organizations.
Even by the low standards for truth-telling in politics, the scope of Santos’s falsehoods has been breathtaking. It has surprised Democrats who researched him and missed so many details, as well as Republicans who vouched for him.
In an unsuccessful House race in 2020 and his successful race for New York’s 3rd Congressional District in November, Santos pitched himself as a gay man of Brazilian descent at home in the Republican Party of Donald Trump. He spoke at a rally in D.C. on Jan. 5, 2021, telling the assembled crowd one day before the deadly attack on the U.S. Capitol: “Who here is ready to overturn the election for Donald Trump?”
In interviews as a congressional candidate, he described himself as “the American Dream.”
He told Lara Trump in an interview this year, “I’m a business guy. I’ve done private equity for 11 years in New York,” adding that he “had the privilege of doing business” with the Trump Organization. He told another interviewer, “I’ve gone up the chains of Wall Street. I’ve developed many companies. I’ve opened my own business.” His campaign website said he had previously worked at Goldman Sachs and Citigroup, and had degrees from Baruch College and New York University.
On Dec. 19, the New York Times reported that Goldman Sachs, Citigroup, Baruch College and New York University had no records of him. On Monday, Santos spoke about the revelations for the first time, telling WABC he was guilty of “résumé embellishment” but insisting the larger story about his life is true: “I’m not a criminal who defrauded the entire country and made up the fictional character and ran for Congress.”
Rep.-elect George Santos acknowledges 'résumé embellishment' but offers few answers on finances
Later, Santos’s claims of having Jewish ancestors who fled persecution during World War II were challenged by a report in Jewish Insider. An undisclosed marriage, and divorce, to a woman was revealed by the Daily Beast. He also wrote on Twitter that “9/11 claimed my mothers life”; she actually passed away in 2016.
“I’ve never seen anything like this,” said Gerard Kassar, chair of the Conservative Party of New York State. “His entire life seems to be made up. Everything about him is fraudulent.”
Caucasian and black
The offices of New York Attorney General Letitia James (D), Nassau County District Attorney Anne T. Donnelly (R) and Queens District Attorney Melinda Katz (D) each said they are examining whether Santos broke any laws in their jurisdiction. ABC News reported that the U.S. attorney’s office in the Eastern District of New York, which covers Long Island, was also examining Santos’s activities; spokespeople for the office declined to comment when contacted by The Post.
Last week, Santos gave a handful of interviews that only raised more questions. Still unknown is the exact source of the $700,000 he claimed to have loaned his campaign in 2022, just two years after filing a financial disclosure report that said he had no major assets or earned income. The Times also reported suspicious spending by Santos’s campaign.
“They are not going to let something like this just happen,” he said.
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) told reporters on Wednesday that Santos is now “tattooed” on Republicans in Congress. House Republican leaders, as well as Reps. Lee Zeldin (R-N.Y.) and Elise Stefanik (R-N.Y.), who endorsed Santos, did not respond to messages seeking comment about him. Rep. Pete Sessions (R-TX.), chair of the National Republican Congressional Committee, told the Washington Examiner that he is not supportive of Santos joining their conference.
Rep.-elect Nick LaLota (R-N.Y.) said in a statement that Santos should be investigated by the House Ethics Committee and “if necessary, law enforcement, is required.” Rep.-elect Mike Lawler (R-N.Y.) said in a statement that Santos should “cooperate fully” with the investigations. And Nassau County Executive Bruce Blakeman (R) told CNN that Santos needs to address the “emotional issues” that led to his lying.
“A normal person wouldn’t do that,” Blakeman said.
The North Shore Leader, a small paper on Long Island, had raised questions about Santos in September, but those threads were largely ignored by other outlets. Robert Zimmerman, the Democrat whom Santos defeated in November, and whose campaign spent thousands of dollars on research, told The Post that “frankly a lot of folks in the media are saying they didn’t have the personnel, time or money to delve further” into the story.
Kassar, the Conservative Party of New York State’s leader, said he spoke with Santos soon after the first Times story was published. “When I spoke to him, he clearly told me he had no intuition of running again and I told him that was a good idea and the Conservative Party would have a hard time endorsing him,” he said.
When Santos’s mother died on Dec. 23, 2016, he collected money from people at a church in Queens after saying he had no money for a funeral, according to a priest who spoke with CBS News.
In June 2020, Santos wrote on Twitter that he is the “grandson of Holocaust refugees.” This month, Jewish Insider cast doubt on that claim, noting that the dates Santos cited for his grandparents departure from Belgium to Brazil do not line up, nor do immigration records support his version of his family’s history. The Republican Jewish Coalition, which featured Santos as part of its annual November conference in Las Vegas, denounced his false claims about his heritage and said that “he will not be welcome at any future RJC event.”
In March, Santos said in a podcast interview that he was “raised Catholic, born to a Jewish family — very, very confusing religious background.” Last week, he told the New York Post: “I never claimed to be Jewish.”
Even early parts of Santos’s life story were fabricated by him.
In an October 2020 interview, Santos recalled an allegedly painful childhood experience. He said of his parents: “They sent me to a good prep school — which was Horace Mann Prep in the Bronx. And in my senior year of prep school, unfortunately, my parents fell on hard times.” Santos went on to say that at the time, his family couldn’t “afford a $2,500 tuition” and “I left school [with] four months till graduation.”
After the school was contacted by The Post and provided with several variations of Santos’s name that he has used in public, Ed Adler, a spokesman for Horace Mann, wrote in an email: “George Santos or any of the aliases you [cite] never attended HM.”
In that same March podcast interview, Santos also said, “I’ve been to Moscow many times in my career.” He also referred to “carbon capture technology” as something “that I’ve helped develop and fundraised for in my career. I’ve had a very extensive role in gas and oil in this country.” Santos and his representatives have provided no proof of those claims.
“[A] lot of people overstate in their résumés or twist a little bit,” he said. He said he worked with Goldman Sachs, and Citigroup, just not as an employee at those companies. “I did extensive work on the LP side with Goldman Sachs in my time at LinkBridge,” he said, referring to a one-time employer. “I did extensive work with Citigroup, in my time in the LP position in LinkBridge Investors, just like I did work with firms on the GP side of things like Blackstone, and Deloitte, and Robbins, Geller, Dowd and so many other big firms in the industry of private equity.”
A spokesman for Robbins Geller Rudman & Dowd, a corporate law firm, told The Post, “We cannot verify this claim. We have no record of Mr. Santos or his business having any business relationship with our firm.”
Sarah Ellison, Camila DeChalus, Marianna Sotomayor and Alice Crites contributed to this report. | 2022-12-31T12:13:46Z | www.washingtonpost.com | The Talented Mr. Santos: A congressman-elect’s unraveling web of deceptions - The Washington Post | https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2022/12/31/george-santos-deception-house/ | https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2022/12/31/george-santos-deception-house/ |
New Year’s Eve countdown specials 2023: How to watch the festivities
Miley Cyrus and Dolly Parton will host NBC's New Year's Eve special. (NBC)
We end this truly landmark year in celebrity drama with an effort to stave some off: CNN has asked the co-hosts of its annual New Year’s Eve special to refrain from drinking on air.
The program has become known for its alcohol-fueled shenanigans; while ringing in 2022, Andy Cohen ranted about Bill de Blasio’s “horrible” years as New York mayor and managed to insult fellow TV host Ryan Seacrest, too. Seacrest, who helms “Dick Clark’s New Year’s Rockin’ Eve” over on ABC, said in a recent interview that he supports CNN’s decision to limit the drinking.
“There’s some pretty respectable people or at least one, right? I think there’s a serious journalist and then a friend of mine who has a lot of fun, but it’s probably a good idea,” Seacrest told Entertainment Weekly earlier this month, adding: “Although the viewers probably wish they would drink more.”
With alcohol out of the picture, whose live special will reign supreme? (Some other offerings — such as PBS’s “United in Song 2022: Ringing in the New Year Together,” co-hosted by soprano Renée Fleming and actor-performer Chris Jackson — are pretaped.) There is a bit of an underdog to consider: singer Miley Cyrus, who hosted her NBC program for the first time last year alongside comedian Pete Davidson. This year, Cyrus will instead celebrate with her godmother, Dolly Parton.
Here is a breakdown of major 2023 countdown specials available to watch this New Year’s Eve.
When: 8 p.m. to 2 a.m., with a break for local news from 10 to 10:30 p.m.
Hosts: Ryan Seacrest, Liza Koshy and Jessie James Decker
Performers: Performances in Times Square include Duran Duran, j-hope, Jax and New Edition.
Extras: “New Year’s Rockin’ Eve” will once again feature other locales such as Puerto Rico, featuring co-host Dayanara Torres and a performance by singer and rapper Farruko; Los Angeles, with co-host D-Nice and performances by Dove Cameron, Finneas, Wiz Khalifa and more; New Orleans, where co-host Billy Porter will return to perform his own music; and the Disneyland Resort, where co-host Ciara will introduce pretaped segments such as performances by Aly and AJ, Halle Bailey and Fitz and the Tantrums.
“Miley’s New Year’s Eve Party” (NBC or Peacock)
When: 10:30 p.m. to 12:30 a.m.
Performers: We expect Cyrus and Parton to perform — hopefully together! — but know for sure that they will be joined by singers Fletcher and Sia, groups Liily and Rae Sremmurd and rapper Latto. “Saturday Night Live” stars Chloe Fineman and Sarah Sherman will also appear as a show of NBC solidarity.
Extras: Hoda Kotb and Jenna Bush Hager will host NBC’s “A Toast to 2022!” special ahead of Cyrus’s party, beginning at 8 p.m. According to Deadline, the look back at this year will feature celebrity interviews and appearances from Cyrus, Parton and comedians George Lopez and Kenan Thompson, among others.
“New Year’s Eve Live With Anderson Cooper and Andy Cohen” (CNN or CNN.com)
Performers: Cooper and Cohen will be accompanied in Times Square by actress Jean Smart and comedian Cheri Oteri. Pop star Ava Max will sing in New York, while Usher will perform from his Las Vegas residency. There will also be appearances by Kevin Hart, Ellie Goulding, Patti LaBelle, REO Speedwagon, Nick Cannon, Jenifer Lewis, John Stamos, Tenacious D’s Jack Black and Kyle Gass, and more.
Extras: Don Lemon, also more sober than usual, will take over in New Orleans at 12:30 a.m. Eastern time.
“All-American New Year 2023” (Fox News)
When: 10 p.m. to 1:30 a.m.
Hosts: Will Cain, Rachel Campos-Duffy and Pete Hegseth
Performers: In addition to a comedy set by Jimmy Failla, the special will feature a live performance by country music singer Brantley Gilbert. Fox News correspondents will be stationed around the country at different New Year’s Eve celebrations.
Extras: Failla, Emily Compagno and Griff Jenkins will co-host a pre-show at 9 p.m.
“New Year’s Eve Live: Nashville’s Big Bash” (CBS or Paramount Plus)
When: 8 p.m. to 1:30 a.m., with a break for local news from 10 to 10:30 p.m.
Performers: This is quite a star-studded affair, featuring Jason Aldean, Kelsea Ballerini, Luke Bryan, Little Big Town, Sheryl Crow, Flo Rida, Thomas Rhett and Zac Brown Band, among many, many others.
Extras: CBS is advertising “more than 50 back-to-back performances.” What more do you want?
“Felix 2023” (Univision)
When: 10 p.m. to midnight
Where: New York, Los Angeles, Puerto Rico and Mexico
Hosts: Raúl de Molina, Alejandra Espinoza, Clarissa Molina and Borja Voces in New York; Lili Estefan, Omar Chaparro and Karina Banda in Los Angeles; Roberto Hernández in Puerto Rico; Galilea Montijo in Mexico.
Performers: Daddy Yankee, Gloria Estefan, Natti Natasha, Eva Luna, Gabriel Soto and others.
Extras: A pre-show titled “Así Sonó El 2022” will air ahead of the special, from 8 to 10 p.m. | 2022-12-31T12:18:08Z | www.washingtonpost.com | New Year’s Eve countdown specials 2023: How to watch the festivities - The Washington Post | https://www.washingtonpost.com/arts-entertainment/2022/12/31/new-years-eve-countdown-specials-2023/ | https://www.washingtonpost.com/arts-entertainment/2022/12/31/new-years-eve-countdown-specials-2023/ |
We told their stories in 2022. Here’s what happened after we published.
By William Wan
(Hailey Haymond for The Washington Post; Craig Hudson; Maansi Srivastava)
The D.C. lightning strike survivor
Stranded on I-95 during a snowstorm
Life after terror at Edmund Burke School
A former plantation unveils a family’s history
Students catch up after virtual learning
Regrets after joining the ‘People’s Convoy’
Protesting outside Kavanaugh’s home
The nature of daily journalism is that for readers and reporters alike, attention is often fleeting. A story that dominates the news one day can be gone the next and soon forgotten.
As 2022 came to a close, Washington Post reporters revisited some of the people in our region whose lives were forever changed this year — and whose stories took on new meaning and understanding after the public’s attention shifted elsewhere.
She doesn’t remember the rain, the tree she took refuge under, nor the lightning that struck her and three others on Aug. 4, steps from the White House, but Amber Escudero-Kontostathis’s body bears reminders of it all. Along her right leg are burn marks that look like red ferns. The constant pain can make it hard to think.
Sometimes it feels like a knife is being shoved into the outer bones of her foot. Other times it feels like 10,000 grains of sand shifting slowly through her leg. Often, it’s like a large screw or gear is stuck, twisting in her ankle.
Equally intense, however, is her sense of gratitude, as the only one under the tree that day who survived.
“I’m the person who got to make it. I’m the lucky one,” Escudero-Kontostathis said. It doesn’t seem fair to her, she said, but she wants to live in a way that honors the others.
Her doctors say her intense pain is a result of damaged nerves in her leg. The mixed signals they send also sometimes read to her brain as water, heat or cold.
“It’s like that burning feeling when you put your feet in snow and then into a hot Jacuzzi,” Escudero-Kontostathis said. “That’s how my foot feels all the time.”
In the immediate weeks after the strike, the pain was so intense she couldn’t walk and then could only hobble with the use of a metal walker. She’s studying for her master’s in international relations at Johns Hopkins University, but she’s only able to attend half the courses she’s supposed to because of the limits on her body.
On good days, her pain level hovers at a 5 or a 6. Bad ones, it shoots up to 8 or 9.
It’s not clear what the permanent effects of the lightning will be, or whether she will ever get to zero. Escudero-Kontostathis has been working with doctors, trying different medications and treatments. To reteach her legs and brain, she sometimes soaks her feet in warm water, then cold.
“I’ll be better soon,” she said. “I’m just focusing on one day at time, one minute at time.”
— William Wan | Read the original story.
Twenty miles into their trip from Union Station to Williamsburg, Va., Uber driver DaVante Williams and his teenage passenger were stuck on an icy stretch of Interstate 95, stranded in one of the region’s worst travel meltdowns in recent history.
Williams, 33, tried for nearly six hours to reroute his blue BMW off the highway to get his passenger home. The temperature and his fuel gauge were dropping. Finally, he said, “a little spirit spoke to me,” and he hatched a new plan: After talking to his passenger’s parents, he drove her back to D.C., where he paid for a hotel room for her to rest. He offered to pick her up again the next day, when I-95 reopened, and take her the 2½ hours to Williamsburg for free.
Williams’s actions earned him headlines around the world, turning him into “America’s favorite Uber driver,” no matter that his passenger’s parents arranged another ride home instead. He went on “The Ellen DeGeneres Show,” where he received $10,000. He started getting recognized.
“A lot of people are like, ‘Wait a minute, you’re that Uber driver?’ ” said Williams, a D.C. native who lives in Northwest Washington. “And I’m like, ‘Yeah, that’s me.’”
The “Ellen” money helped pay for a second car he uses to drive for Uber, and it inspired him to apply for a passport to travel internationally. He went on a week-long trip to Tulum, Mexico, in October.
“This year has been extremely memorable,” he said.
Williams keeps a day job as a property manager and real estate agent, but he still drives for Uber. Now, for snowy days, he keeps a warm blanket in the trunk.
— Luz Lazo | Read the original story.
Edmund Burke School security guard Antonio Harris watched quietly as four students — survivors, like him, of a sniper’s rampage — lit a candle in early December. It was a silent act to shed light on gun-violence prevention, and to recognize the school’s staff and students who on April 22 joined the long list of people scarred by mass shootings in 2022.
More than 100 people raised voices unified in song and ritual at Temple Sinai, in Northwest Washington. Ancient pleas of peace from Psalms and Deuteronomy and the Torah mingled with secular speeches that urged action across faiths and communities.
Just standing at the service was a near-miracle for Harris, a retired D.C. police officer who works security at the synagogue and at private schools. That April afternoon at Burke, minutes before the end of the school day, an outburst of gunfire hit the school, leaving three adults and a juvenile wounded. A single AR-15 round tore through the right side of Harris’s torso, permanently damaging his liver and causing the loss of a kidney and part of his intestines.
Three surgeries were needed to save his life, including one that lasted 20 hours.
The crowd clapped loudly after the students lit the candle. Harris smiled broadly behind a KN95 mask as he shook the hands of the boys and hugged a girl. He posed for photos with school students and staff. Attendees lined up to shake his hand.
“I had to accept that bad things can happen to good people,” Harris said. “In the end, I had to shake it off and fight for my life.”
— Clarence Williams | Read the original story.
When Fredrick Miller bought a house two years ago in the southern Virginia community where he was raised, he had no idea how much it would change his life. And he had no idea how much it had already shaped it.
Soon after buying the home in Gretna, Miller and his extended family learned it was a former plantation that had once been home to at least 58 enslaved people. After digging deep into census and court records, the family made another startling discovery: Their great-grandmother, Sarah Miller, was born to parents who were enslaved at Sharswood.
A few days after their story appeared in January, Fredrick Miller was contacted by “60 Minutes,” which produced a two-segment episode that aired in May.
The months since the stories ran have been emotional, Miller said in a recent interview. “It’s just amazing how many people have heard of the story and have so many good things to say about it,” he said. “The story gives a lot of people like me hope they can find out a little bit about their ancestors.”
In November, Miller moved back to Virginia from California to be closer to the property. He started a nonprofit organization called the Sharswood Foundation, to educate people in southern Virginia about the plight of enslaved people in the area and to restore a slave cabin on the property.
Earlier this year, the family discovered an overgrown graveyard as part of the former plantation site, where boulders serve as headstones for several dozen graves. The site, Miller believes, is where his ancestors and other enslaved people from Sharswood were buried.
“I have a vision to bring it back to a place of dignity,” he said.
— Joe Heim | Read the original story.
Sixteen-year-old Xavier Byrd likes school this year. He shows up every day on time. He has an A average. He is in two clubs that meet regularly after school. And he has friends. Lots of them.
Xavier, a Dunbar High School junior, had spent the end of eighth grade and his entire freshman year stuck at home and sleeping through virtual school, becoming one of the millions of children across the country who fell behind socially and academically during the pandemic. By the time he entered the Dunbar building in Northwest Washington for the first time his sophomore year, he had forgotten how to do algebra. He didn’t have friends at school and didn’t feel confident interacting with his peers.
The academic, mental health and school staffing challenges persist across the country even as students have been back in their classrooms full time. But Xavier is a success story.
“It’s fun. I like talking to people and learning stuff,” he said in an interview this month. “I know more people, and I’m better at talking to people at school.”
Dunbar Principal Nadine Smith and her administrators had invested deliberately in the growth of kids such as Xavier by using their share of federal pandemic aid. They signed Xavier up for Saturday school and pushed him to join the robotics club. He worked on his writing every weekend with virtual tutors. The robotics club teacher became a mentor. Xavier and a friend spent their afternoons at school building a go-kart.
A year later, Xavier is a leader in the robotics club and has joined a competitive mountain biking club at school, something he had never tried before. His writing has improved, too.
His rough freshman year had made him start to doubt his dream of becoming an aerospace engineer. Now it feels possible again.
“It’ll be hard,” Xavier said. “But I know if I tried to do it, I could do it.”
— Perry Stein | Read the original story.
Stacy Williams’s marriage nearly fell apart. Her family could not afford rent without her income, and they lost their home. Her daughters were separated, living with a boyfriend and a friend. Her husband had to live in his truck.
All of that happened, Williams said, because she drove off in her Subaru Outback in late February from Three Rivers, Tex., to join the “People’s Convoy,” which protested vaccine mandates and aired other right-wing grievances by driving around the D.C. region for over three weeks. Ten months later, Williams, who was one of the convoy’s regional leaders, said she is not sure what they accomplished.
“It’s fantastic that that large number of people stood up and said, ‘Hey, we’re not okay with this,’” Williams said, referring to coronavirus vaccination mandates. “But I think it would be safe to say that there are quite a few of us that look back and say, ‘What was the point? We accomplished nothing. We made some noise, and that was about that.’”
Williams, 40 and a self-employed blogger, was among the demonstrators who slept at the Hagerstown Speedway. She said she saw how dedicated other people were to the cause, sleeping in tents through cold weather, and how they also “pretty much lost everything being out there.”
“I do wish we had accomplished more,” she said. “Could we have gathered picket signs and flags and marched on the National Mall? Sure, we could’ve. But I don’t think it would have actually changed anything.”
Williams is still unvaccinated, but she isn’t protesting anymore. She has no plans to join another convoy, has reconciled with her husband and is focusing on being a mom to her daughters.
“It was very easy to get swept up into that momentum and the excitement and coming across the country,” Williams said. “I don’t regret going, but I regret allowing myself to get so swept up in it that I caused damage to myself and my family.”
— Ellie Silverman | Read the original story.
Lacie Wooten-Holway was used to standing alone. Not many other people in her Chevy Chase neighborhood were comfortable protesting a neighbor — even if he was Supreme Court Justice Brett M. Kavanaugh.
Wooten-Holway, 40, had organized protests outside Kavanaugh’s home after the justices heard arguments in December on the constitutionality of a Mississippi 15-week abortion ban; in January on the 49th anniversary of Roe v. Wade; and again in March, during International Women’s Month. For Wooten-Holway, who has had an abortion and is a survivor of sexual assault, it was not just a political disagreement — it was personal.
Fellow protesters showed up after a story ran in May about Wooten-Holway’s protests following the leak of a draft opinion that indicated the Supreme Court was poised to overturn Roe. There were dozens of protesters at one demonstration, including a neighbor who was an abortion provider. For the first time in a while, she felt hopeful.
But then came the backlash. There were antiabortion activists outside Wooten-Holway’s home on Mother’s Day, and many people — even some who agreed with her politics — argued that it was inappropriate to protest outside a private home. Strangers sent written threats to her family and her workplace. She hired private security, resigned from her job, moved her family out of their home for an extended period and took a break from protesting.
In June, the justices officially overturned Roe.
“We had legal abortion, and we lost it,” Wooten-Holway recalled thinking. But the mother of a 17-year-old daughter and 7-year-old son reminded herself: “As survivors, we rest, but we don’t quit.”
When she returned to the D.C. area, she got back out on the streets. Her actions inspired others to organize regular protests outside Kavanaugh’s home and those of other conservative justices. She was encouraged by the midterms, in which voters, even in heavily Republican states, demonstrated strong support for abortion access.
When antiabortion activists converge in Washington in January to celebrate the downfall of Roe at the annual March for Life, Wooten-Holway plans to be there in opposition. She will keep marching on the National Mall and near the White House.
And she will continue, she said, to show up outside Kavanaugh’s home.
Most popular in 2022
As Mega Millions hits $1 billion, winning doesn’t mean a happy ending | 2022-12-31T12:18:10Z | www.washingtonpost.com | Revisiting DC’s stories of 2022: From lightning strike to I-95 meltdown - The Washington Post | https://www.washingtonpost.com/dc-md-va/2022/12/31/top-news-dc-maryland-virginia-2022/ | https://www.washingtonpost.com/dc-md-va/2022/12/31/top-news-dc-maryland-virginia-2022/ |
2022 was the year of the multiverse — but it has a 2,000-year history
By Theo Zenou
Somewhere in the vastness of the cosmos, there are planets resembling Earth. And on these planets live other versions of you, who have made radically different life choices.
So says the theory of the multiverse. It posits that our universe is but one among myriad other universes, some of which are populated by our doppelgangers.
This tantalizing idea has hijacked pop culture this year. Take “Everything Everywhere All At Once,” a critically acclaimed thriller about a woman with the power to access parallel realities. Or Marvel’s “Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness,” in which a sorcerer takes a wondrous journey across universes, battling his “multiversal selves” along the way.
But for all the recent multiverse rage, the concept actually dates back thousands of years, and its history is nearly as convoluted as anything Doctor Strange encountered on his adventures.
A novel predicted the metaverse (and hyperinflation) 30 years ago
As documented by Tom Siegfried in his 2019 book “The Number of the Heavens,” the idea of the multiverse began more than two millennia ago in ancient Greece, with the philosopher Democritus, who speculated that there were an infinite number of universes. Centuries later, a Roman scholar, Lucretius, took the idea and ran with it, writing that “there are other orbs of earth in other regions of space, and various races of men and generations of beasts.”
But the multiverse bombed in the ancient marketplace of ideas. Plato and his disciple Aristotle offered a simpler, more logical proposition: There’s a single universe, the one we live in. This became the conventional wisdom.
The Bible pushed that same belief, so when Christianity took over the West, church leaders doubled down on the theory of the singular universe. It reigned supreme until the Middle Ages.
Ironically, it was a bishop who in 1277 plucked the multiverse out of the dustbin of history. That fateful year, the Bishop of Paris, Étienne Tempier, issued 219 “condemnations” to theologians, basically telling them which opinions they should never espouse, under punishment of excommunication. Number 34 forbade them from claiming that God “could not make several worlds.” Tempier’s rationale made sense: If the Almighty is truly omnipotent, as the Bible teaches, then he can create an infinite number of universes.
But the divine was in the details. Christian scholars argued that God could create multiple universes, not that he had actually done so.
Fast-forward to the Renaissance, however, and that’s pretty much what Italian polymath Giordano Bruno contended. In “De l’infinito universo et mondi,” published in 1584, he wrote: “Thus is the excellence of God…he is glorified not in one, but in countless suns; not in a single earth, a single world, but in a thousand thousand, I say in an infinity of worlds.”
Bruno ended up burned at the stake, sentenced to death by the Inquisition, which tells you how well his musings on the multiverse were received.
In 1973, ‘Soylent Green’ envisioned the world in 2022. It got a lot right.
Throughout the next centuries, the concept of the multiverse floated around. Immanuel Kant even toyed with it. But few scholars were willing to dedicate their careers to it — until the 1950s and an iconoclastic American physicist named Hugh Everett III.
As recounted in a biography by Peter Byrne, in 1953 Everett started his PhD at Princeton, with a focus on quantum mechanics, or how particles behave at the microscopic level. The equations of quantum mechanics hold that a particle can be in two or more locations at the same time. But when physicists use machines to detect a particle, they see it in only one location — a conundrum known as the quantum measurement problem.
“[It] was a kind of taboo subject in physics for about 50 years,” said David Wallace, a physicist and philosopher at the University of Pittsburgh and a leading expert on the multiverse. In Everett’s day, as Wallace put it, physicists devised “a fudge” to explain the quantum measurement problem: “The equations of quantum mechanics only apply when no one’s looking.”
The biggest proponent of that explanation was Nobel laureate Niels Bohr. As one physicist quipped, in the field of quantum mechanics, “Bohr was God.”
Everett disagreed with God. His PhD thesis offered a radically new explanation for why a physicist never sees a particle in multiple locations at once. It isn’t because the laws of quantum mechanics suddenly change. Instead, as Everett argued, it’s because “the observer himself has split into a number of observers, each of which sees a definite result of the measurement.”
In other words, as the physicist sees the particle, he gets instantly cloned. Each of his clones then observes the particle in a different location. If the scientist doesn’t appear to have divided into multiple clones, that’s because the clones don’t inhabit the same physical reality. Each one is spawned into a distinct and closed-off universe. Crucially, the clone is never aware that he’s just been cloned.
Everett’s theory is dubbed the many-worlds interpretation of quantum mechanics. Its implications are staggering: We live in a multiverse where new universes — parallel realities — are constantly springing up. This means there are universes where you have another profession, married another person, or weren’t even born.
And this has been going on for billions of years. Therefore, there are also universes where evolution unfolded differently and the human species doesn’t exist. As Wallace said: “Probably most of the multiverse has non-human, non-hominid, God-knows-what creatures!”
Almost no one took Everett seriously back in the ’50s. Predictably, when Bohr got wind of Everett’s theory, he hated it.
Everett’s PhD supervisor, John Wheeler, admired Bohr. While recognizing his student’s brilliance, Wheeler had Everett delete three-quarters of his thesis.
Dejected, Everett quit academia and got a job in the arms industry. He later struggled with alcoholism and died at 51 in 1982. His theory was rediscovered in the ’70s by physicist Bryce DeWitt and later found devotees at Oxford. Wallace, who studied and taught there, is among them.
Today, Wallace said, the multiverse is hotly debated by physicists. But it’s more widely accepted than ever. Some cosmologists and string theorists have also posited its existence, though each has a different conception of the multiverse.
One question remains: Could we, like Doctor Strange, travel to other universes and meet our other selves?
“The equations of quantum mechanics say that it can’t be,” explained Wallace. “There’s a property called linearity in the equations. … What linearity means is that once you’ve got a separation of branches [parallel realities], you can never transfer information from one branch to a different branch.”
Wallace mused that “maybe the next generation of physics will add a non-linearity to the equations, which would allow communication across branches.” But don’t get your hopes up that you might someday cross into another, better universe. Wallace cautioned, “There’s absolutely no reason to expect that.” | 2022-12-31T12:18:11Z | www.washingtonpost.com | The multiverse was all the rage in 2022, but it goes back millennia - The Washington Post | https://www.washingtonpost.com/history/2022/12/31/multiverse-history-doctor-strange-everything/ | https://www.washingtonpost.com/history/2022/12/31/multiverse-history-doctor-strange-everything/ |
Buffalo demonstrates how disasters expose cities’ racial divides
By Pete Saunders
Buffalo resident Anthony Stevens works to dig out his driveway on Thursday after the blizzard. (Derek Gee/AP)
Pete Saunders is an urban planner in the Chicago area and the editor-publisher of the Corner Side Yard, an urbanist blog.
The recent Christmas blizzard in Buffalo was one for the ages, dropping more than 50 inches of snow — and putting the city over 100 inches for the season, a bit more than its average annual total. Now many Buffalo residents are making legitimate complaints about how unevenly the weather and the snow have affected Black and White residents.
Most tragically, Black people have been overrepresented among the dead. Community leaders point out that Buffalo’s whiter neighborhoods and suburbs were better prepared for the weather. And in the aftermath of the storm, their streets were cleared of snow more quickly than those in Black neighborhoods.
This is hardly a new phenomenon. It is how structural racism — some call it “racism without racists” — works. In many cities, patterns established during the bygone days of virulent, interpersonal racism remain embedded in the infrastructure, and these become most evident in times of crisis. Buffalo is only the most recent illustration.
Great Lakes cities are as familiar with segregation as they are with snow. The region is well-represented on lists of the country’s most segregated cities, especially when it comes to Black-White segregation. Which city is the most segregated? It doesn’t matter. Sometimes it’s Detroit. Or Milwaukee. Or Chicago. Or Cleveland. Others in the broader region are not exempt: St. Louis, Indianapolis, Cincinnati, Minneapolis and, yes, Buffalo. All have troubling legacies of segregation. And all suffer economically as a result.
This is rooted in the arrival of Black Southerners to Northern cities in the early 20th century — escaping Jim Crow violence and seeking manufacturing jobs — and efforts by White city leaders to impose space between the migrants and themselves. Over decades, an array of policies — restrictive deed covenants, exclusionary zoning, redlining, “blockbusting,” public housing and interstate highway development, among others — formed a starkly segregated region.
To be sure, the Rust Belt is not the only part of the United States with separate neighborhoods for Blacks and Whites. Crises have exposed similar disparities in the South and West — for example, Houston’s uneven recovery from Hurricane Harvey and the decades-in-the-making water crisis in Jackson, Miss.
Racism embedded in city maps and unequal treatment cannot be undone overnight, of course. But one first step is to acknowledge its effects and see that they have political consequences.
Consider what happened in Chicago nearly 44 years ago. In January 1979, a series of snowstorms pummeled the city, and by the end of the month a record 47 inches of snow lay on the ground, rapidly turning into compacted ice and crippling the city’s transit system. Snow piled up on tracks caused trains to break down, rendering service infrequent at best. Especially hard hit was the Dan Ryan Line (now the Red Line), a major transit artery for the city’s South Side. At that time, the Dan Ryan Line was connected to the Lake Street Line (now the Green Line), which serves the city’s West Side. The two lines connected Chicago’s largest Black communities with downtown.
The Chicago Transit Authority, straining to remove snow from tracks, established a temporary express service on the Lake-Dan Ryan combination for three days. The move made sense: Shutting down the entire system for even one day would mean a drastic loss of revenue. But Mayor Michael Bilandic didn’t consider how South and West Side residents would see it. For three days, Black Chicagoans watched trains packed with Whites whiz by on a direct trip from the 95th Street or Harlem Avenue terminals to the Loop.
In late February, they took their anger to the polls, coalescing behind candidate Jane Byrne in the mayoral primary and bumping Bilandic out of office. It can be argued that the movement that eventually elected Harold Washington as Chicago’s first Black mayor in 1983 started with the blizzards of ’79.
Clearly, unequal support for Black and White neighborhoods is not uniquely a Buffalo problem. Nor can it be solved simply by electing Black leaders. Buffalo has had a Black mayor, Byron Brown, since 2006. Black voters have long since learned that solving a systemic problem requires far more than changing who’s in office.
Eliminating structural racism will require individual acknowledgement of its effects, a deep and society-wide shift in thinking about urban planning, and leaders who can steer their cities toward equity and inclusion. | 2022-12-31T12:18:28Z | www.washingtonpost.com | Opinion | Buffalo demonstrates how disasters expose cities’ racial divides - The Washington Post | https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2022/12/31/buffalo-blizzard-inequality-segregation-cities/ | https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2022/12/31/buffalo-blizzard-inequality-segregation-cities/ |
China’s covid explosion shows why we need a genomic early warning radar
A health worker administers a dose of CanSino Biologics inhalable coronavirus vaccine in Bijie, in China's southwestern Guizhou province, on Dec. 29. (AFP via Getty Images)
The U.S. government’s decision to require inbound air passengers from China to show a negative test for the coronavirus starting Jan. 5 might reassure the public, but is probably of limited practical use. It might delay transmission of a new variant, although China is now afflicted mostly with omicron, which is already widespread in the United States and elsewhere. A second decision announced Wednesday by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is more significant and underscores the urgent need for genomic viral surveillance.
That second decision was to expand the traveler-based genomic surveillance program, or TGS, which can detect and characterize new variants of the virus that causes covid-19. The program takes nasal swabs, volunteered by travelers at major U.S. international airports, and tests them for the coronavirus. If the coronavirus is detected, the virus genome is sequenced to identify any new variants. The samples are kept anonymous. On Wednesday, the CDC expanded it to Los Angeles and Seattle, for a total of seven airports, covering 500 flights from at least 30 countries, including about 290 weekly flights from China and surrounding areas. About 80,000 travelers participated from November 2021 to December 2022. The program has also begun aircraft lavatory wastewater surveillance. This effort ought to be expanded into a national and eventually global radar system keeping watch for emerging viruses and bacteria.
Even the current, limited sentinel has value, especially at this moment. China is undergoing an explosion of cases after the abrupt lifting of its “zero covid” policy. Its elderly are under-vaccinated, and the population lacks natural immunity to omicron. The danger is that its escalating toll of infections could generate new variants that might be more transmissible or cause more severe disease, and thus become a threat to the entire world. However, because China refuses to be transparent about the cases, deaths and genomics, the only way to detect variants is to be vigilant outside its borders.
When two flights landed in Milan this week from China, Italian health authorities reported that half the passengers tested positive for the coronavirus. Fortunately, subsequent sequencing showed they were infected with omicron, not a new variant. On Thursday, the European Center for Disease Prevention and Control said the variants spreading in China are already circulating in Europe, which has built up both natural and vaccination immunity.
But China is not the only worry. Variants can emerge from anywhere. An aggressive new offspring of omicron, XBB.1.5, is now taking hold in New York and the Northeast. CDC models say the XBB variants represent about 40.5 percent of the total infections in the country. According to epidemiologist Katelyn Jetelina, XBB.1.5 appears to be similar to others in terms of being evasive of immune systems; it has more capability to stick to human cells, but in laboratory tests, it is not yet clear that it is more transmissible.
Tighter scrutiny of passengers coming from China is a short-term measure that can buy time. In the longer run, the nation and the world need to build a system of early warning by viral genomic surveillance. | 2022-12-31T12:18:34Z | www.washingtonpost.com | Opinion | China’s covid explosion shows why we need a genomic early warning radar - The Washington Post | https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2022/12/31/china-covid-cdc-genomic-viral-surveillance/ | https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2022/12/31/china-covid-cdc-genomic-viral-surveillance/ |
A cholera outbreak compounds Haiti’s agony
A woman takes an oral cholera vaccine in Port-au-Prince, Haiti, on Dec. 19. (Ralph Tedy Erol/Reuters)
The world has turned its back on Haiti and the political and humanitarian crises there triggered by the still-unsolved assassination of President Jovenel Moïse in 2021. The poorest nation in the Western Hemisphere is also among the most vulnerable to a ghoul’s gallery of public health threats.
One health menace, cholera, has seized hold of Haiti over the past three months, sickening thousands and killing hundreds. Its resurgence occurred after three years in which not a single case had been reported in the island nation. Washington could do more to impede the spread of what is ordinarily a highly treatable sickness.
Heedlessness is self-defeating for the Biden administration, which has faced an unprecedented flood of illegal border crossers over the past year, including waves of Haitians. Now, cholera’s rapid advance might only deepen Haitians’ desperation to leave their country and make their way to the United States.
The spiraling crises in Haiti since Moïse’s killing in July 2021, including the country’s woeful humanitarian deterioration, should not be a surprise. The assassination left a vacuum of political legitimacy. A president lacking popular support, Ariel Henry, was installed with the backing of Washington and Haiti’s other international stakeholders. The government, already weak, became ineffectual. It has been impotent to combat violent criminal gangs, affiliated with Haitian commercial interests, that have seized control of key parts of the country, including an estimated 60 percent of the capital.
The quiet departure of nongovernmental aid organizations, including ones based in the United States, has compounded the country’s humanitarian emergency, leaving the poorest and sickest segments of the population without help. The results are mounting chaos and deteriorating public health in a country where nearly 90 percent of the 11.5 million people live on less than $7 a day, and 30 percent struggle on a daily income of barely more than $2. Nearly half of the population lives with what the United Nations regards as acute food insecurity, and some 20,000 more face famine. The gangs have shut down swaths of territory and facilities, including many of the nation’s schools, and played havoc with the transportation of basic goods.
In mid-September one of the most notorious gangs, known as G9, paralyzed the area around the main fuel terminal in Port-au-Prince, the capital. The blockade of the fuel terminal was the trigger to the cholera epidemic, according to international health authorities. With transport largely frozen, deliveries of potable water collapsed. Today the number of suspected cases — probably a fraction of the real total, given poor public health coverage and spotty reporting — is approaching 15,000; nearly 300 people have died, according to the World Health Organization. Cholera has now spread to every significant population center in the country.
The Biden administration’s efforts have been lacking. Starting in mid-October, the U.S. Agency for International Development deployed a disaster response team. Yet with just seven people on the ground in Haiti, its capabilities are inadequate. That team needs additional resources and personnel.President Biden has also failed to nominate an ambassador to Haiti, or even assign a senior-level diplomat to Port-au-Prince.
Cholera is a relatively easy disease to treat. Access to safe drinking water and sound sanitation, along with decent health care, has made it rare in most countries. Oral vaccines, were they widely available, would also be effective in controlling the outbreak in Haiti. Yet it was only in mid-December, two months after the government detected cholera’s outbreak, that oral vaccines arrived in the country. And the gang-propelled chaos that has seized so much of Haiti means it is unlikely those vaccines will be distributed much beyond the capital. Inevitably, more Haitians will die needlessly.
The need for an aggressive response to Haiti’s cholera outbreak is especially acute, given the lessons of recent history — more than 800,000 cases were reported in the country between 2010 and 2019, after the disease was introduced there by U.N. peacekeepers from Nepal. More than 9,000 people died in one of this century’s worst outbreaks of the disease.
That was a reminder of Haiti’s extreme susceptibility to cholera’s ravages — and also that the United Nations still bears the moral burden of upgrading Haiti’s manifestly inadequate water and sanitation infrastructure. The international community, especially the Biden administration and other wealthy neighbors, cannot in good conscience avert its eyes from a fresh outbreak. | 2022-12-31T12:18:46Z | www.washingtonpost.com | Opinion | A cholera outbreak compounds Haiti’s agony - The Washington Post | https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2022/12/31/haiti-cholera-outbreak-biden-administration-response/ | https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2022/12/31/haiti-cholera-outbreak-biden-administration-response/ |
Social Security’s failure to modernize hurts taxpayers and the disabled
Sean Dooley, who lives in his sister's garage. carries a load of laundry to do at his sister’s house in Pennsville, N.J., on Dec. 21. Dooley is appealing his denial of Social Security disability payments. (Mark Makela for The Washington Post)
The Social Security Administration uses a list of obscure and obsolete jobs, based on labor market data that hasn’t been updated since 1977, to deny thousands of claims annually for disability benefits. What’s worse is that the federal government has spent more than $250 million creating a new system over the past decade, but the agency isn’t using it — a breathtaking lapse in a $200 billion system that sends checks to 15 million Americans every year.
The Post’s Lisa Rein shared stories of people who have been denied benefits because Social Security claimed they could do jobs such as nut sorter, egg processor or dowel pin inspector that, for all intents and purposes, don’t exist in this country today. Also on the list: microfilm preparer, telephone quotation clerk, sack repairer, tube operator, eyeglass frame polisher, touch-up screener for printed circuit boards and stem mounter for lighting fixtures. Appeals courts increasingly overturn these decisions, which are based on jobs that are not really available because they either no longer exist, are now automated or have been offshored.
All of this traces the embarrassing inability of the bureaucracy to modernize its vocational system. After abandoning its Depression-era Dictionary of Occupational Titles in 1991, the Labor Department developed a new jobs database by 1998. However, after studying that system for a decade, Social Security decided in 2008 that this didn’t work for its purposes. It took an additional four years for the agency to sign a contract with the Bureau of Labor Statistics, which is part of the Labor Department, to design a separate system.
The good news is that, after various delays, this system has been built. It is based on a national sample of 60,000 employers and 440 occupations that cover about 95 percent of the economy. The bad news: Social Security hasn’t instructed staff on how to use it. Acting Social Security commissioner Kilolo Kijakazi declined to be interviewed about why her agency hasn’t yet implemented the superior alternative, and a spokeswoman for the agency wouldn’t answer Ms. Rein’s questions about a timeline for putting to use the modern data.
Ms. Kijakazi is among six acting commissioners, in addition to three Senate-confirmed leaders, over two decades. To the Trump administration’s credit, the last commissioner who was actually confirmed tried to fix this problem, but he was fired by President Biden after alienating advocates for the elderly and disabled with his efforts to tighten eligibility for benefits. Specifically, this commissioner, Andrew Saul, wanted to employ modern jobs data to make the case that disabled people could learn new skills and go to work in an economy that offers more sedentary jobs.
Social Security still plans to pay for the Bureau of Labor Statistics to refresh the new jobs database every five years, even though it is not currently being used. Auditors have found that the next phase, scheduled to start in 2023, will cost $167 million. But Ms. Rein reported that congressional staff have not been briefed on the project in at least three years. It is time for Mr. Biden to nominate a commissioner who is capable of taking the Social Security Administration into the 21st century. | 2022-12-31T12:19:05Z | www.washingtonpost.com | Opinion | Social Security’s failure to modernize hurts taxpayers and the disabled - The Washington Post | https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2022/12/31/social-security-failure-modernize-disability/ | https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2022/12/31/social-security-failure-modernize-disability/ |
Miami Dolphins quarterback Tua Tagovailoa has left the field with injuries repeatedly throughout his football career. (Wilfredo Lee/AP)
I never want to see Tua Tagovailoa on a football field again. My wish is that he announces his retirement soon, following this latest concussion. And with his loving, and expanding, family by his side, I hope he’ll say something like how wants to watch his little boy grow up, that they’ll all live happily ever after back in Hawaii, just like he promised his grandfather.
He should leave the game while he can. It seems like a lot of us agree on this matter — wanting the best for Tua, and believing that we know what’s best for him.
So, from our keyboards, we have broadcast our diagnoses for his latest head trauma, as well as our plans for his future. The words “tua” and “retirement” have gained traction on Twitter. Analysts inside TV studios have offered the Dolphins and Tagovailoa, their franchise quarterback selected with the fifth overall pick in the 2020 draft, definitive next steps. This week, former NFL player Emmanuel Acho, sermonizing while staring into a FS1 camera, even tried speaking directly to Tagovailoa.
There’s a belief that our opinions should count when it comes to Tua’s personal agency over his body and his career, that we somehow know what’s best for him. But why? Simply because we cringed when a Buffalo Bills defender threw Tagovailoa down like a doll that’s lost its stuffing, and we prefer not to feel that uncomfortable again while enjoying our entertainment? Or because we scrolled a few tweets on a neuroscientist’s timeline or read a couple lines of an article about head injuries, and now feel informed enough to share our medical expertise?
In his documentary, “Tua,” he casually recalled the November 2019 injury he suffered while the star quarterback for Alabama. Though 'Bama led by 28 points, Tagovailoa was still on the field in the third quarter against Mississippi State when he was pressured out of the pocket and crushed by two tacklers. | 2022-12-31T12:19:35Z | www.washingtonpost.com | Tua Tagovailoa's NFL future has to be up to him - The Washington Post | https://www.washingtonpost.com/sports/2022/12/31/tua-tagovailoa-head-injuries-walk-away/ | https://www.washingtonpost.com/sports/2022/12/31/tua-tagovailoa-head-injuries-walk-away/ |
Made-in-China labels become a problem for Meta’s anti-China stance
The company needs China’s factories as it pushes to become a hardware producer
Christian Shepherd
Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg. (Drew Angerer/Getty Images)
SAN FRANCISCO — For more than a year, Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg has made a point of stoking fears about China. He’s told U.S. lawmakers that China “steals” American technology and played up nationalist concerns about threats from Chinese-owned rival TikTok.
But now Meta has a growing problem: The social media service wants to transform itself into a powerhouse in hardware, and it makes virtually all of it in China.
So the company is racing to get out.
That transition has been harder than expected. While hardware giants like Apple have moved some production to places like India and Vietnam in recent years — responding to growing tariffs, former president Donald Trump’s trade war, and rising wages in China — Facebook has hit walls, say three people familiar with the discussions, who spoke on the condition of anonymity to describe internal conversations.
Until recently, the people said, Meta executives viewed the company’s reliance on China to make Oculus virtual reality headsets as a relatively minor concern because the company’s core focus was its social media and messaging apps.
All that has changed now that Meta has rebranded itself as a hardware company, the people said. Beyond last year’s name change from Facebook to Meta, the company has undertaken a broad internal reorganization, launched augmented-reality smart glasses, and is building a connected device that could be worn on a person’s wrist. In October, the company introduced Meta Quest Pro, the first in a new line of headsets built for collaboration.
Inside Zuckerberg’s $1,500 headset, the metaverse is still out of reach
Internal concerns about the hardware push intensified last year, when some executives worried that the anti-China strategy — crafted by executives in Washington and Menlo Park during the latter years of President Donald Trump’s administration — would hurt its business ambitions and be viewed by the public and regulators as hypocritical, given the company’s growing reliance on China for its plans.
The executives discussed ways to shift components and manufacturing for a planned smartwatch from China so the company could demonstrate to U.S. customs authorities that it merited a Made in Taiwan label — instead of one that says Made in China. They thought a Made in Taiwan label would save the company on tariffs and be a better look politically. But doing so was very difficult because the supply chain for smart electronic devices is in China, the people said, and countries such as Vietnam, Taiwan and India are only starting to develop those capabilities.
Company leaders also hoped to obtain a Made in Italy label for its smart glasses, made in partnership with Ray-Ban, but doing so also wasn’t feasible, the people said. Executives also looked, unsuccessfully, for ways to move manfucturing of Oculus to Taiwan.
“Meta is building a complicated hardware product. You can’t just turn on a dime and make it elsewhere,” said one of the executives.
Meta acknowledged that it was seeking new places to locate its manufacturing. While the original smartwatch plan was abandoned, the company continues to work on a wearable device for the wrist, according to two people familiar with the company’s plans.
“At present, Meta’s consumer electronics hardware is manufactured in China but we are constantly reviewing and exploring supply chain opportunities around the world,” spokeswoman Ha Thai said.
In reponse to questions about whether the company had concerns about retaliation from China due its strategy, she said, “We believe the U.S. needs to rise to the competitive moment. That means ensuring we create an environment that promotes the innovation and investment needed to compete and win in defining the future of the Internet.”
Facebook’s public criticism of China began in 2019 when Zuckerberg warned, in a speech at Georgetown University, that China was exporting a dangerous vision for the internet to the rest of the world — and noted that Facebook was abandoning its efforts to break into that country’s market. The anti-China stance has since extended into a full-blown corporate strategy. Nick Clegg, the company’s vice president for global affairs, wrote an op-ed attacking China in The Washington Post in 2020, the same year Zuckerberg attacked China in a congressional antitrust hearing. And quietly, Meta has funded a nonprofit, American Edge, that runs online advertising and other campaigns that are critical of the country and of TikTok, the Chinese-owned social media app.
Facebook quietly bankrolled small, grass-roots groups to fight its battles in Washington
Meta’s attacks have enraged Chinese commentators allied with the government’s agenda. Nationalists in China have accused Zuckerberg of cynically using geopolitics to ward off regulatory scrutiny at home, and some Chinese analysts have argued that Meta was resorting to desperate measures because it feared TikTok owner ByteDance’s growing dominance in short video.
Analysts say that so far, it’s unclear if China would retaliate against Facebook’s fledgling hardware business for its statements on China. The business is still relatively small compared to players such as Apple and Tesla, and Chinese manufacturers tend to be very tight-lipped about business dealings. And, even though Chinese consumers are not allowed to use the social network, Chinese companies spend heavily on Facebook advertising to reach consumers around the world.
Ming-Chi Kuo, an analyst at Hong Kong-based TF International Securities who speaks regularly to GoerTek, a Chinese supplier to Meta, and other companies, said that Meta’s Chinese partners were watching the situation closely. GoerTek declined to comment.
KC Quah, senior director analyst with Gartner, a technology research and consulting firm, said Meta had reason for concern. “How do they not get perceived as talking out of both sides of their mouth, buying heavily from China to establish a hardware business while having an anti-China strategy?” he said. Eighty percent of smartwatches and 80 percent of smartphone components, he noted, are made in China.
At one time, Facebook was one of the companies that worked hardest to gain access to China’s massive market for consumer technology. As recently as 2016, Zuckerberg posted photos of himself jogging mask-free in Beijing’s smog-filled Tiananmen Square in 2016 and gave a speech in Mandarin.
But China ultimately rebuffed efforts by Facebook and other U.S. consumer tech companies to gain entry to its market, and by 2018, many had given up. In his 2019 Georgetown speech, Zuckerberg conceded that the China dream was over. “I worked hard to make this happen. But we could never come to agreement on what it would take for us to operate there,” he said. He warned there was “no guarantee” that American values of free expression would win out.
The company’s China stance had changed dramatically. Soon Zuckerberg would dig in further.
As Washington wavers on TikTok, Beijing asserts control
At the antitrust hearing in Congress in 2020, Zuckerberg used his opening remarks to attack China in terms that went much further than his industry peers. He said it was “well-documented that the Chinese government steals technology from American companies,” and repeated that the country was “building its own version of the internet” that went against American values. He described Facebook as a “proudly American” company and noted that TikTok was the company’s fastest-growing rival.
Political opportunism was a big impetus for the speech, said two of the people. Executives in the company’s Washington office thought they could deflect growing criticism of the company by pointing a finger at China, they said.
The executives also were interested in finding ways to align themselves more closely with the anti-China wing of the Trump administration, which had launched a trade war with China, imposed tit-for-tat tariffs, and was pursuing its own campaign against TikTok, the people said.
“They were trying to find things that [Zuckerberg] could agree with Trump on, and it’s a pretty slim list,” said one of the people, describing how the company landed on its anti-China strategy. “If you’re not going to try to be in this country anyway, you might as well use it to your political advantage by contrasting yourself with Apple and TikTok.”
The Biden administration so far has largely kept Trump’s tariffs in place. Analysts say, with anti-China sentiment seeming relentless among both major political parties in Washington, that is unlikely to change because the president doesn’t want to risk being accused of being soft on China.
Executives are still hoping the hardware-focused rebranding will shift the conversation away from criticism of its social media business, said two of the people.
But they are well aware that relying on China for a growing suite of virtual reality headsets, smartwatches and other hardware will invite a new set of political challenges. Companies dependent on China for manufacturing have faced criticism over shipping jobs overseas as well as environmental and labor rights issues, and have had their businesses impacted by trade wars and other political escalations.
“You trade in one set of problems for another,” said one of the people.
Shepherd reported from Taiwan. Lyric Li in Seoul contributed.
Cameras struggle with dark skin. Here’s how Apple, Samsung and Google phones stack up | 2022-12-31T12:19:48Z | www.washingtonpost.com | Facebook’s hardware ambitions are undercut by its anti-China strategy - The Washington Post | https://www.washingtonpost.com/technology/2022/12/31/facebook-china-label/ | https://www.washingtonpost.com/technology/2022/12/31/facebook-china-label/ |
Here’s a region-by-region forecast for New Year’s weekend
Western U.S. to see most of the bad weather through holiday weekend
A storm in the western U.S. is forecast to progress eastward this weekend. (Tropical Tidbits) (NWS)
The long New Year’s weekend wraps up the holiday season and falls during a time often plagued by challenging weather. While several regions face the potential of precipitation pestering festivities, that possibility is greatest in the West this year.
A slew of weather alerts are active in the western half of the Lower 48 as a series of storm systems targets the region. Meanwhile, there’s a chance of rain in much of the East Coast for New Year’s Eve and into early New Year’s Day.
Snow is mainly expected in mountainous areas of the West through Sunday, before some spills into the Plains and Midwest as a low-pressure area spins up over the South on Monday.
Let’s take a deeper look at four broad regions across the Lower 48, moving from west to east.
California faces the brunt of the worst weather in the country for New Year’s weekend.
As Capital Weather Gang’s Matthew Cappucci covered in more detail, another powerful atmospheric river is pointing its fire hose at the West Coast. It focuses on central and southern California as the year ends.
In anticipation of torrential rainfall, a large chunk of California is under a flood watch through Sunday. The National Weather Service in Sacramento is forecasting 1 to 4 inches of rain in typically drier valley areas of central California, and up to 9-plus inches in the mountains.
This storm is a little warmer than the ones that delivered copious amounts of snow to the state in December. Snow will accumulate at elevations at or above 7,000 feet, with totals of 3 to 5 feet of snow possible in the highest peaks, where travel will be treacherous to impossible. A heightened risk of mountain snow slides has also led to avalanche watches and warnings in parts of the Sierra.
Intermountain West
Skiers in the Rockies will be enjoying fresh powder for the new year. Some locations in Utah, Wyoming and Colorado are likely to see several feet of snow in the days ahead, adding to an already substantial snowpack.
The Weather Service is forecasting more than 60 inches of snowfall in the highest peaks of Utah, to the southeast of Salt Lake City, through Monday evening. Neighboring states will see similar accumulation in the highest elevations, as well.
As the gyrating storm in the West pivots eastward, a big chunk of Arizona — including Phoenix and the Interstate 10 corridor — is at risk of excessive rainfall Sunday, according to the Weather Prediction Center.
About 1 to 2 inches of rain is expected across much of the state, with some spots seeing 3 inches or so, which could lead to flash flooding. More than 2 feet of snow is forecast to fall from Sunday into Monday across the highest elevations in central Arizona and western New Mexico.
Snow will persist into Monday, especially in Colorado and into the Plains, leading to difficult travel at lower elevations in that region. By late Monday, low pressure is forecast to develop over the south central U.S., which will send remaining snow into the central Plains and Midwest.
The year will wind down with an area of occasionally moderate to heavy rain exiting the Mid-South and northern Gulf Coast. Showers could linger in the Ohio Valley, with the potential for rain or snow in the Upper Midwest and lower Great Lakes. Minor snow showers may fly in and around the Great Lakes to open the new year Sunday.
Temperatures are generally expected to remain on the mild side for this time of year.
Showers and potentially severe thunderstorms will likely develop across the southern Plains and toward the lower Mississippi Valley on Monday, in a region roughly bounded by Interstate 40 to the north and Interstate 20 to the south. Severe weather threats include damaging winds and tornadoes.
“The greatest risk potential is focused from northeast TX into central/southern AR and northern LA late Monday afternoon into Monday night,” wrote the Storm Prediction Center on Friday morning.
Snow on the northwest side of the storm system may affect general travel Monday. Places forecast to be hit include Nebraska along Interstate 80 and northwest Kansas into Colorado along Interstate 70. Snow will likely move northeast toward parts of South Dakota and southern Minnesota from Monday afternoon into Monday night.
Showers and thunderstorms should be ongoing in parts of the Southeast on Saturday morning, including in places like Atlanta and down into the Florida panhandle. The rest of the East Coast into the Northeast will eventually see showers as well.
Any rain that falls along the Interstate 95 corridor through the afternoon and evening will tend to wane by late evening in the Carolinas and up toward Washington. Showers are more likely to persist closer to the ball drop in New York City, as well as in Boston and into northern New England.
Unseasonably warm conditions should preclude the chance of much snow, with the only real chance of light accumulation in northern New York and northern Maine from snow showers on New Year’s Day.
Sunshine and mild weather are likely to make a reappearance in much of the East for Sunday and Monday travel. | 2022-12-31T12:19:49Z | www.washingtonpost.com | A region-by-region weather forecast for New Year’s weekend - The Washington Post | https://www.washingtonpost.com/weather/2022/12/31/new-year-forecast-snow-rain-regions/ | https://www.washingtonpost.com/weather/2022/12/31/new-year-forecast-snow-rain-regions/ |
FILE - Pope John Paul II places his hands on the shoulders of West German Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger, archbishop of Munich and Freising, on Oct. 22, 1978, during the solemn inauguration of his ministry as universal Pastor of the Church in Vatican City. As John Paul’s right-hand man on doctrinal matters, Ratzinger wrote documents reinforcing church teaching opposing homosexuality, abortion and euthanasia, and asserting that salvation can only be found in the Catholic Church. Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI, the German theologian who will be remembered as the first pope in 600 years to resign, has died, the Vatican announced Saturday Dec. 31, 2022. He was 95. (AP Photo, File) (Uncredited/AP) | 2022-12-31T12:20:01Z | www.washingtonpost.com | Benedict's lasting mark on papacy will be his resignation - The Washington Post | https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/benedicts-lasting-mark-on-papacy-will-be-his-resignation/2022/12/31/a52681b0-88fd-11ed-b5ac-411280b122ef_story.html | https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/benedicts-lasting-mark-on-papacy-will-be-his-resignation/2022/12/31/a52681b0-88fd-11ed-b5ac-411280b122ef_story.html |
Pope Benedict XVI dies at 95: Remembering the life of the 265th pope of the Catholic Church
Pope Benedict XVI, who died on Dec. 31 at the age of 95, spent less than eight years as the head of the Catholic Church. But he still managed to leave a complex legacy on the 2,000-year-old institution.
Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger was chosen to succeed Pope John Paul II in 2005 — a selection many observers at the time saw as an affirmation of rigid religious orthodoxy.
But in 2013, Pope Benedict did something radical: He became the first pontiff in 600 years to step down, citing ill health. The resignation opened the way for his more liberal successor, Pope Francis.
Pope Benedict XVI — then Joseph Ratzinger — is shown in the second row, third from left, with his third-grade classmates at Aschau am Inn elementary school in Germany in 1935.
Winfried Ess/DPA/AP
Benedict and his classmates were drafted into the German antiaircraft corps in 1943. Here, he is shown as a German Air Force assistant during World War II. Because of a badly infected finger, he never had to fire a gun.
Benedict was born in Germany’s Bavaria in 1927 and was drawn to the church early in life. His family opposed Nazi rule, but the young Benedict was soon conscripted into the Hitler Youth and then the German antiaircraft corps.
He deserted his unit and was briefly held by U.S. troops in an internment camp. Once released, he entered Saint Michael Seminary in 1945 along with his brother. Both were ordained six years later.
Benedict, right, and his brother, Georg, together joined the seminary after the end of World War II. Here, the brothers are shown after their ordination to the priesthood in Freising, Germany, in 1951.
Archdiocese of Munich and Freising/DPA/AP
An undated photo of Benedict's family in Freising, north of Munich. From left, his sister, Maria; his brother, Georg; his mother, Maria; Benedict; and his father, Joseph.
German Catholic News Agency KNA/Getty Images
Benedict, then Father Joseph Ratzinger, celebrates an open-air Mass in Ruhpolding, Germany, in 1952, soon after he was ordained into the priesthood.
DPA/AP
Benedict established himself as an academic theologian, working at several German universities. But he also rose rapidly through the church and was appointed archbishop of Munich and Freising in 1971, and was made a cardinal by Pope Paul VI in 1977.
Benedict greets hundreds upon his arrival in the Bavarian capital on May 23, 1977, after being appointed archbishop of Munich and Freising.
Pope Paul VI places a ring on the finger of Benedict upon his elevation to cardinal at St. Peter's in Vatican City in 1977.
AP/Pool
Before Benedict moved permanently to Rome in 1981, he is shown here attending Mass with Mother Teresa in Freiburg in 1978.
German Catholic News Agency KNA/AP
Benedict with Pope John Paul II at the Vatican in 1978. The charismatic John Paul was a mentor to Benedict and led the church for 26 years.
Benedict quickly became an important figure within the Catholic Church, moving to Rome in 1981 and remaining there afterward. He pushed a traditional view of Catholicism, rejecting the increasing secularization seen across Europe and North America.
One of the leading Catholic theologians of his time, Benedict was the longtime head of the Vatican’s powerful Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith and a vastly influential cleric forging church policy.
Benedict, seen in 1985, was the longtime head of the Vatican’s powerful Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith and a vastly influential cleric forging church policy.
BRUNO MOSCONI/AP
As the head of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith in 2000, Benedict attends a news conference with Monsignor Tarcisio Bertone at the Vatican.
MARCO RAVAGLI/AP
Pope John Paul II, a mentor to Benedict, died in 2005 at the age of 84 after a long battle with Parkinson’s disease. The charismatic leader had led the church for more than 26 years, making it the Roman Catholic Church’s third-longest papacy.
Benedict later told pilgrims that he had no interest in taking the position himself and that he hoped instead to live out his final days in peace. But when the 115 cardinal electors gathered behind closed doors at the Vatican’s Sistine Chapel, he emerged as the favorite.
He officially became Pope Benedict XVI on April 19, 2005, two weeks after the death of John Paul.
Benedict blesses the coffin of Pope John during his funeral in St. Peter’s Square in Vatican City on April 8, 2005.
Benedict waves from a balcony of St. Peter's Basilica in the Vatican after being elected pope by the conclave of cardinals.
ARTURO MARI/AFP/GETTY IMAGES
Benedict celebrates a mass in St. Peter's Basilica at the Vatican for members of the Italian armed forces in 2005.
At 78 years old, Benedict was the oldest pope to be elected since 1730. To his supporters, he was viewed as an intellectual champion of the conservative theology espoused by John Paul II.
However, his stance on issues like divorce, women in the church and same-sex marriage, as well as the alleged mishandling of child-abuse scandals in the church, meant he was a controversial leader.
Benedict arrives for a prayer at the death wall in the courtyard of Bloc 11 during a visit to the Auschwitz death camp in Oswiecim in 2006.
Benedict is shown walking with President George W. Bush at the White House in 2008 during a six-day visit to the United States.
Benedict and his brother, Bishop Georg Ratzinger, walk through the garden of Benedict's holiday residence in Brixen, Italy, in 2008.
President Barack Obama and first lady Michelle Obama exchange gifts with Benedict at the Vatican in 2009.
Chris Helgren/Pool/AP
Benedict, wearing a sombrero, waves from the popemobile as he arrives to celebrate mass near Silao, Mexico, in 2012.
Benedict enters a darkened St. Peter's Basilica to begin an Easter vigil service in 2012.
Benedict is shown his first Twitter message, using the handle @pontifex, at the Vatican in 2012.
But in 2013, after multiple scandals, Benedict bucked his lifelong conservatism and upended the rules for modern popes. He announced that he would retire from office, in the first papal abdication since Gregory XII in 1415.
At 85, Benedict cited the failing strength in his “mind and body” as motivation for stepping down.
The resignation of Benedict is featured on the front page of a newspaper in Manila on Feb. 12, 2013.
TED ALJIBE/AFP/Getty Images
Benedict waves for the last time as head of the Catholic Church, from the window of Castel Gandolfo in Italy on Feb. 28, 2013.
After a papal conclave, the Jesuit Cardinal Jorge Mario Bergoglio was selected as the new pope. The 76-year-old Argentine became Pope Francis, the first pope in over a millennium to hail from outside Europe.
Francis’s comparatively liberal view of the faith marked a change from Benedict, who continued to wear papal white and use his papal name. On Dec. 28, Francis asked a general audience to pray for Benedict and asked God to console and sustain his predecessor “until the end.”
Benedict is greeted by his successor, Pope Francis, as he arrives at St. Peter's Basilica in 2014.
Francis greets Benedict during a meeting with newly named cardinals at the Vatican's Mater Ecclesiae Monastery in August.
Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI, who resigned the papacy, dies at 95 | 2022-12-31T13:06:12Z | www.washingtonpost.com | Remembering the life of Pope Benedict XVI - The Washington Post | https://www.washingtonpost.com/photography/interactive/2022/pope-benedict-death/ | https://www.washingtonpost.com/photography/interactive/2022/pope-benedict-death/ |
D.C. afterschool programs on edge after city closes grant competition
Some groups have had to reduce the number of students they serve and scale back programming.
Global Kids, Inc., which provides out-of-school activities to students in D.C., had to cut programs at Anacostia High School due to a lack of funding. (Evelyn Hockstein/for The Washington Post)
D.C.'s state education agency paused applications for a federal grant program this year, a decision that has frustrated nonprofit organizations that serve the city’s most vulnerable children.
The funds are part of the Nita M. Lowey 21st Century Community Learning Centers grant programs, which support out-of-school activities — such as tutoring, mentorship, art and athletics — throughout the country. In D.C., those dollars are managed by the Office of the State Superintendent of Education, which typically invites nonprofit organizations to apply for funds over the summer, announces grantees in September and begins making funds available for programming when the fiscal year starts on Oct. 1.
But that process didn’t happen this year, forcing some groups that had hoped to apply for much-need funding to scale back the number of students they serve — all at a time when city leaders have repeatedly leaned on out-of-school programming as a key to helping students recover from pandemic-era learning loss.
DC SCORES, which incorporates soccer, poetry and academic support into out-of-school programming, has reduced its number of summer camps and has not restarted a morning soccer program that was canceled last year due to lack of funding. Global Kids, Inc., specializing in globally focused youth development, could not resume programming at four high-poverty schools.
Officials said they are redesigning the way it runs the federal program, referred to as 21st CCLC, so they put it on hold. Organizations that are in the midst of their funding cycles — grantees receive the money over three years — will continue to get funding. But groups that had hoped to apply (including new nonprofits and organizations that had previously received funding and wanted to renew) did not have an opportunity.
“It was unexpected,” said Ryllie Danylko, a policy analyst at DC Action, a youth advocacy group. Many groups did not learn about the redesign until after the fact. “These are really crucial dollars that serve a really important purpose in young people’s education and well-being, and making sure they have a safe place to go when the school day is over.”
D.C. sees bump in high school grad rates, but absenteeism also rises
D.C. typically receives around $6 million in 21st CCLC dollars, and running the program has come with challenges. A third-party evaluation in June recommended that OSSE improve the way data is shared, refine how it assesses students’ progress and invest in professional development for staff, among other changes.
Officials at OSSE said they are redesigning the program with those recommendations in mind. They also plan to switch from a three-year cycle to a five-year funding model, something leaders said will allow the youth organizations to better plan activities for students and provide more time to document their progress.
The Education Department has also recommended a five-year grant cycle, according to OSSE officials.
Meanwhile, the cohorts that applied for funding in 2020 and 2021 will finish out their three-year cycles. OSSE plans to issue more than $11 million to those groups, including $6 million in 21st CCLC funds and $5 million in local dollars.
Among those groups is City Gate, Inc., which provides tutoring and other academic support to D.C. children. It also leads excursions — such as trips to the top of the Washington Monument and the National Aquarium in Baltimore — and summer camps.
“These are experiences that the kids, otherwise, would not have,” said Lynn Bergfalk, the group’s founder and president, adding that most of his children live in high-poverty neighborhoods. “Some of these kids don’t really get outside their neighborhoods very much.”
City Gate was also among the groups that got funding during fiscal 2019. But funding for some organizations from that cohort, including Global Kids, has not been renewed — which has raised questions about why some groups were selected to receive more funding and others weren’t.
Wida Amir, managing director of Global Kids, said the group had to cut programs in 2021 after its application for renewal was denied. Global Kids had received 21st CCLC funds for six years before its most recent round expired, she added.
This year, Amir hoped to apply again and finally resume the activities, which include global leadership programs at MacFarland Middle School, as well as at Anacostia, Ballou and Dunbar high schools — where at least 70 percent of students enrolled are homeless or in foster care, live in low-income households or have been held back at least one year.
“All of us were really ready and gearing up for the grant,” she said. “It was even more heartbreaking because … we had four really strong partnerships with schools that needed our programs the most and we, unfortunately, had to close our programming.”
OSSE has emphasized that organizations must compete for 21st CCLC funds. There is no guarantee of renewals.
Still, out-of-school-time program leaders say they are frustrated because they never had the chance to compete in 2022. There are also concerns about how funds will be distributed during the next fiscal year. Amir worries that “all the people who were rejected last year, and then folks who were waiting to apply again because their three years were completed” will be vying for a limited number of dollars when OSSE reopens applications.
Meanwhile, D.C. has continued to commit local funding to nonprofits. Mayor Muriel E. Bowser (D) recently announced a $16.4 million investment in 113 nonprofit organizations — including City Gate and Global Kids — for the 2022-23 school year, with an expectation of serving about 15,000 children.
“I know they are committed to looking out for the young people,” Amir said. “I remain hopeful.” | 2022-12-31T13:32:24Z | www.washingtonpost.com | D.C. pauses afterschool grant program causing some groups to reduce services - The Washington Post | https://www.washingtonpost.com/education/2022/12/31/dc-afterschool-programs-21st-century-grants/ | https://www.washingtonpost.com/education/2022/12/31/dc-afterschool-programs-21st-century-grants/ |
What child poverty in America really looked like in 2022
The small requests a Virginia organization receives offer a rare view into the issue, and show why Washington needs to prioritize reducing child poverty in 2023
The 12-year-old had seen too much.
That’s how a message sent to a Virginia organization about the girl began.
“She’s in counseling but still harbors a lot of anger,” it explained. “Her therapist recommends she try boxing to release the negative energy but Mom can’t afford the gloves, headgear and proper shoes.”
All the requests for help that come into the Alexandria-based nonprofit Alice’s Kids contain a small ask and an explanation for the need. They come from teachers and social workers who work with children across the nation and hope the organization will send gift cards to cover expenses those children’s families cannot. They write about clothes that are too small, hair that has been neglected for too long and school events that cost too much for paychecks that have been stretched too thin.
On their own, the requests offer intimate and at times painful glimpses into the lives of low-income students.
Taken together, they provide what statistics on child poverty in America can’t: a view of what it really looks like.
“I have a student that is not making any progress in school,” reads one request. “When I asked her if I could do anything to make her feel better or do something special for her birthday she replied, ‘My mom had to cancel the wet cat food order for our cats because of not having enough money. If I could be gifted something, it would be wet cat food. Because I know this would make my cats happy.’ I want to request a gift card to Petco.”
In the past year, I have written often about the inequities that exist among children in the Washington region and across the country. I have done that because I believe that to do nothing about child poverty is to accept lost human potential — and because for me the issue is personal. I grew up attending schools in neglected neighborhoods and have witnessed how a lack of resources can change the trajectory of lives. It doesn’t just derail plans. It also prevents plans from ever being made. It keeps children from reaching and hoping.
That I made it from a low-performing high school to a high-ranking university made me an exception, and when you occupy that rare space, you remain forever aware that the norm meant many students who were equally deserving did not get to go to college.
During the second year of the pandemic, something surprising occurred with child poverty across the nation: The rate went down. Recent findings from the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities show that during a time when the country experienced massive losses of jobs and lives, government policies and actions helped drive a reduction in child poverty to a record low.
The stunning drop in child poverty is a huge story
“This is stunning progress — in 2018 nearly 1 in 4 Black children lived in families with incomes below the poverty line. In 2021, fewer than 1 in 10 did,” reads a statement about the findings. “Progress was similarly large among Latino and American Indian and Alaskan Native children, who also had child poverty rates well above the rate for children overall prior to the pandemic.”
Those findings are significant because they show that when the nation chooses to reduce child poverty it can. They show that Washington lawmakers hold the power to make that happen, if they want.
In 2023, it will fall to Washington lawmakers to decide whether to make reducing child poverty a priority. The expanded child tax credit was found to have kept millions of children above the poverty line, and when lawmakers allowed it to expire, millions fell below it. Letting that happen was a choice.
When we talk about child poverty, we usually turn to the data, but numbers can’t show what’s at stake on a day-to-day level. That’s why I reached out to Alice’s Kids.
A 5-year-old wanted a birthday party. A 6-year-old needed school uniforms. Both were among the wishes this Virginia group granted.
I first told you about the nonprofit in 2019. At the time, its funding and reach were relatively small. Since then, it has grown its national network, social media presence and budget. In 2022, it provided more than $750,000 in gift cards to thousands of students across the nation. The organization provides gift cards so that adults in those children’s lives can buy them what they need, allowing those adults to be the heroes and those children to not know they received charity.
I asked Ron Fitzsimmons, the executive director of Alice’s Kids, if I could see the requests the organization received in 2022, and he sent me many. I decided to share some with you — while removing all identifying details about the children — because they are telling. They offer a rare window into what children around us have been experiencing, including many who live just miles from the lawmakers who hold the power to change their fates.
“Child is essentially raising herself now,” reads a request about a 12-year-old girl in Virginia. It describes her as losing the grandmother who raised her and living with a father who doesn’t interact with her. “She is resilient but experiencing depression due to the loss of her grandmother and current living situation. Child is excited to be part of our running club but doesn’t have any of the clothing or appropriate running shoes. We would like her to be able to get one full running outfit with sweatshirt for the winter, sports bra, and running shoes.”
“The student is soft-spoken and a bit shy,” reads a request about a girl in Maryland. “The student is in need of a sketch book for her art class. She had saved up the money to purchase it on her own but unfortunately that money has been stolen. The student needs the sketch book in order for her work to be graded in class.”
“The child is incredibly smart, talkative, and curious,” reads a request about a 5-year-old in D.C. whose mom works as a teacher’s aide and attends a university. The request describes the family as struggling to pay bills. “She is inspired by her mother to do well in school. … The child needs to attend a summer camp program so that she does not fall behind her peers. Additionally, there isn’t anyone to watch her at home during the summer while her mother works, so she would be spending her time alone in her apartment if she cannot attend summer camp.”
Running shoes. A sketchbook. Summer camp. The lack of those basic things is what child poverty in America looked like in 2022.
It looked like an 11-year-old girl who needed to go to a lice clinic after home treatments didn’t work.
It looked like an autistic boy who couldn’t afford a ticket to a school football game he wanted to attend to watch his best friend play.
It looked like three siblings who not only had to mourn the sudden loss of their cousin but worry they wouldn’t have anything nice to wear when they served as pallbearers at his funeral. | 2022-12-31T14:11:43Z | www.washingtonpost.com | What child poverty in America really looked like in 2022 - The Washington Post | https://www.washingtonpost.com/dc-md-va/2022/12/31/child-poverty-alices-kids/ | https://www.washingtonpost.com/dc-md-va/2022/12/31/child-poverty-alices-kids/ |
The hidden meanings of Pope Benedict XVI’s ruby-red shoes
His traditional wardrobe choices were in line with his vision of church leadership
The shoes of Pope Benedict XVI on July 28, 2008 in Brixen, Italy. (Johannes Simon/Getty Images)
Were they really Prada? In the end, after all those rumors and all that tongue-clucking, no. But were Benedict’s red shoes still worth all the hype and attention they garnered? Arguably, yes.
When Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger became Pope Benedict XVI in 2005, observers across the globe noted with interest that he had opted for red outdoor shoes, reviving a centuries-old tradition that had lately gone dormant. Red dress shoes, worn by anyone, are a statement. But for Pope Benedict XVI, who died Saturday at 95, the statement may have been about his relationship with the Catholic church — and how he saw his role in it.
Historically, all popes wore red shoes — before Benedict’s predecessor, Pope John Paul II, whose tenure lasted nearly three decades, exercised his right to opt out and switched to a more demure burgundy. (They also wore red indoor slippers, before Pope Paul VI discontinued the practice, for good, in 1963.)
The color has a variety of significances: Some believe it is a reminder of Jesus’ bloodied feet when he was crucified, while others believe it represents the spilled blood of Catholic martyrs. Ancient kings are said to have worn red as a symbol of status, since the dye required to make it came from rare sea snails; aristocrats and royalty continued the tradition, and some believe the church adopted the color as a way for popes to assert their equal “worldly authority.”
When Benedict opted to revive the red-shoes tradition, they were a sensation. Rocco Palmo, the Philadelphia-based editor of the Catholic news site Whispers in the Loggia, still remembers seeing them for the first time in person in 2008. “My first thought to myself was, ‘Oh my God, those shoes are really red.’ Despite having been quite familiar with them, there was something in the flesh that made them pop,” he says now, with a laugh.
The Prada rumor, which originated in the Italian press, Palmo says, “was kind of the beginning of, you know, the internet being able to say something, regardless of the veracity of it.”
The Vatican later clarified that the shoes were custom-made for him not by Prada but by other Italian cobblers. Some were by Antonio Arellano, based in Rome. Others were by Adriano Stefanelli, in the northwest Italian city of Novara. Stefanelli shared with The Washington Post a 2005 letter from the Vatican officially inviting him to design shoes for the new pope. “The Holy Father wears shoes in size 42, normal,” it reads, in Italian, “and has no foot problems whatsoever.”
When Esquire named Pope Benedict to its list of Best-Dressed Men in 2007 and specifically called out his footwear, Stefanelli tells The Post in an email, it “made me famous across the world, which fills me with pride.”
Benedict would go on to revive a few other papal clothing traditions as well. In 2006, he wore a red cappello romano sun hat (also known as a saturno), a style that hadn’t been worn since before John Paul II. And that came a year after what Vatican-watchers remember as a rare internet-breaking pope fashion moment: the Christmas camauro of 2005. A few days before the holiday, at a special outdoor edition of his weekly “general audience” appearance, Benedict wore a traditional papal winter head-covering, historically made of red velvet with a white ermine trim. Which looks — uncannily, adorably — like a Santa Claus hat. The style had not been worn by a pope since John XXIII, who died in 1963.
Many have taken Benedict’s returning-to-traditions clothing choices as evidence of his staid, returning-to-traditions approach to Catholic doctrine. Palmo sees it slightly differently.
Benedict was much more introverted and scholarly than his charismatic predecessor, Palmo notes, and once called his vast book collection his “old friends.” Of the Christmas camauro, Palmo posits that the weather was cold and the pope simply reached for something that had been stashed away in the archives of the church. But to Palmo, that in itself was telling: “I think it did speak to — to a degree, at least — his theological emphases,” Palmo says, “in that the church has a lot hanging around that could be useful.”
From 2008: The philosophical threads woven into papal garments
Palmo also interprets Benedict’s journeys into the deep recesses of the Vatican costume closet as statements of his commitment to putting the papacy before the pope. Others, like John Paul II and Francis, have incorporated their own personal styles into what they wore on the job. Benedict, in contrast, wore the vesture like a uniform, emphasizing his notion of the papacy not as a glamorous appointment but as the humble, humbling job of leading the Catholic church. The approach is fitting, Palmo notes, for the first man in a thousand years to resign from being the pope, leaving the office not like a king but like someone whose tour of duty has concluded.
Upon his resignation, Benedict retired his red shoes in favor of brown leather loafers made in León, Mexico. How a pope emeritus should dress, of course, was a question without an established answer; as Palmo puts it, “the whole concept of the Pope Emeritus was invented on the fly.” But Benedict’s eventual uniform was clearly aimed at creating distance from the new pope. He also ditched the mozzetta (a cape traditionally worn over the shoulders of the pope) as well as the pope’s traditional sash.
“For a church with a long history, including a history of rival claimants to the papacy, setting careful precedents was important,” Arthur P. Urbano wrote in America magazine in 2013. “Putting aside red shoes reserves the privileged combination of white and red for the new pope.” Pope Francis, however, has made black orthopedics made by Argentinian shoemaker Carlos Samaria his signature look.
Traditionally, popes have been buried in their ceremonial red shoes. Will the once-in-a-millennium pope emeritus be buried in them, too? Palmo speculates so. “The shoes will, in all likelihood, be there.”
Stefano Pitrelli contributed to this report.
More stories on fashion
Queen Elizabeth, fashion icon? Yes. | 2022-12-31T14:42:18Z | www.washingtonpost.com | The red shoes of Pope Benedict XVI, and their many hidden meanings - The Washington Post | https://www.washingtonpost.com/lifestyle/2022/12/31/red-shoes-pope-benedict/ | https://www.washingtonpost.com/lifestyle/2022/12/31/red-shoes-pope-benedict/ |
The significant — and controversial — statements that shaped Pope Benedict XVI’s legacy
Pope Benedict XVI attends his weekly general audience at the Vatican in 2005. (Vincenzo Pinto/AFP/Getty Images)
Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI took the reins of the Catholic Church in 2005 from his much more charismatic predecessor, John Paul II. A German theologian, he led the church as a traditionalist.
But his papacy was buffeted by the church’s sexual abuse scandal and by existential questions about the role of the institution in the 21st century.
Ultimately, the most significant move Benedict made was to resign from the role: In 2013, citing his “advanced age,” he announced that he would step down — the first pontiff in 600 years to do so. The decision ushered in the era of Pope Francis, a reformer who has taken the papacy in a different direction, even as Benedict continued to live in the Vatican and occasionally opine from retirement.
He died Saturday at the age of 95.
His statements on subjects from papal celibacy and Protestantism to sexual abuse and the HIV/AIDS crisis advanced Catholic orthodoxy and a belief in the faith as a bedrock in a changing world.
Here are some of his most significant — and controversial — comments.
On reforming the church
“The impression grew steadily that nothing was now stable in the Church, that everything was open to revision”
Benedict was known for suggesting the church of the future could resemble a “mustard seed” — consisting of a smaller core of orthodox believers to serve as a Christian witness in the world, rather than an expansive body that tried to be all things to everyone. The Second Vatican Council (Vatican II), the series of meetings of Catholic leaders in the early 1960s to consider the place of the church in the modern world, ushered in major changes intended to ensure the institution’s continuing relevance, including a move away from Latin and toward local languages in the Mass and a greater effort at outreach to people of other denominations and faiths.
Benedict, who as a young priest had served as a theological adviser to Cardinal Josef Richard Frings at Vatican II, later came to believe that the changes had weakened the church.
“The impression grew steadily that nothing was now stable in the Church, that everything was open to revision,” he wrote in his 1988 memoir, “Milestones,” written while he was still Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger.
He rejected liberation theology in Latin America, and as pontiff, said Protestant communities could not properly be called churches in the Catholic sense of the word — a stance Protestant leaders said set back relations between Christian communities. Benedict also permitted Catholics to celebrate Mass with the Latin Rite that Vatican II had nixed. The decision angered Jews, since one prayer casts Jews as blind to Christian truth.
Francis, Benedict’s successor, reimposed restrictions on the Latin Mass, provoking a backlash among traditionalists.
Benedict, meanwhile, occasionally voiced opinions from retirement in an effort to sway Francis’s decision-making. When Francis was weighing whether to allow married men to become priests in the Amazon region, Benedict defended clerical celibacy in a book published in 2020: “The ability to renounce marriage to place oneself fully at the disposal of the Lord has become a criterion for priestly ministry.”
Francis ultimately backed away from the issue. This year, he called clerical celibacy a “gift.”
How Benedict’s death could reshape the Catholic Church
On sexual abuse
“I can only share in the dismay and the sense of betrayal that so many of you have experienced on learning of these sinful and criminal acts”
When Benedict became pope in 2005, the Catholic Church was grappling with a sex abuse scandal that had rippled across the world and shaken the faith of many adherents. In 2008, Benedict spent six days in the United States, where he met with victims of abuse by Catholic priests and apologized for the abuse. Addressing American bishops, Benedict admitted that church leaders had mishandled abuse allegations and called for spiritual renewal.
“It is your God-given responsibility as pastors to bind up the wounds caused by every breach of trust, to foster healing, to promote reconciliation and to reach out with loving concern to those so seriously wronged,” he said.
Benedict offered a similar message two years later in Ireland, after summoning Irish bishops to Rome to press them about their handling of sex abuse allegations and hold “frank and constructive” discussions about learning from past mistakes.
Benedict apologized for the abuse in a pastoral letter to the Catholics of Ireland in 2010.
“I can only share in the dismay and the sense of betrayal that so many of you have experienced on learning of these sinful and criminal acts and the way Church authorities in Ireland dealt with them,” he wrote. He directed Irish church leaders to acknowledge the abuse and work to protect minors in the future.
Benedict also drew criticism for claiming that pedophilia among priests was an outgrowth of the 1960s sexual revolution and a symptom of a breakdown of church teaching. “Why did pedophilia reach such proportions?” he asked in a 2019 letter, six years after his resignation. “Ultimately, the reason is the absence of God.”
The pope expressed “profound shame” after a German investigation accused him of “wrongdoing” in his handling of abuse cases while he headed the archdiocese of Munich between 1977 and 1982.
On HIV/AIDS
“You can’t resolve it with the distribution of condoms. On the contrary, it increases the problem.”
Benedict sparked an uproar in 2009 when he said condoms were not an effective means of fighting HIV and AIDS in Africa and instead exacerbate the epidemic. Speaking to journalists on his flight to Cameroon for a six-day trip, the pope said HIV/AIDS was “a tragedy that cannot be overcome by money alone, that cannot be overcome through the distribution of condoms, which even aggravates the problems.” Instead, he urged abstinence.
Health workers trying to fight the spread of the condition were not happy. An estimated 22 million people in sub-Saharan Africa were infected with HIV/AIDS at the time, according to the Guardian.
The pope had claimed on an earlier trip to Africa that condoms were among the forces threatening life on the continent.
“It is of great concern that the fabric of African life, its very source of hope and stability, is threatened by divorce, abortion, prostitution, human trafficking and a contraception mentality,” he said.
Though Francis is seen as a reformer, he has hewed to the official Vatican line prohibiting birth control. During his papacy, the Vatican has partnered with the United Nations to work to eliminate HIV infections among children.
Relations with Muslims and Jews
Benedict had rocky relationships, at times, with members of other faiths.
He angered Jewish leaders when he signed a decree in 2009 that allowed Pope Pius XII, who served from 1939 to 1958, to become a candidate for sainthood. Pius is accused of failing to do enough to stop the Holocaust, and rabbis called on the Vatican to refrain from beatifying him. Benedict also drew ire from Jewish leaders that year for lifting the excommunication of a British bishop, Richard Williamson, who denied that Nazis had killed Jews in gas chambers during the Holocaust. The pope said the Catholic Church rejected antisemitism and called on Williamson to recant his comments.
The moves drew particular scrutiny because the German-born pope had been required to enroll in the Hitler Youth, which indoctrinated young people in Nazi ideology. (He skipped the meetings.)
During a lecture at a German university in 2006, Benedict quoted a Byzantine Christian emperor who claimed that the Muslim prophet Muhammad brought “things only evil and inhuman, such as his command to spread by the sword the faith he preached.”
That quote sparked protests in Muslim countries and the killing of an Italian nun in Somalia. Benedict repeatedly voiced his regret over the speech and emphasized that he respected Islam. But he had already alienated many Muslims. John Paul II, in contrast, is remembered in Muslim communities for his commitment to interfaith dialogue.
Francis has espoused a more expansive vision than Benedict of the church’s role in the world and relations with other faiths. “We who are descended from Abraham, the father of peoples in faith, cannot be concerned merely with those who are ‘our own’ but, as we grow more and more united, we must speak to the entire human community, to all who dwell on this earth,” he told Muslim leaders gathered in Bahrain in November.
On the decision to resign
“My strengths, due to an advanced age, are no longer suited …”
Benedict shocked the church when he unexpectedly announced at a ceremony with cardinals in February 2013 that he would step down as spiritual leader of the worldwide church. Then 85, he said he had “repeatedly examined my conscience before God” and decided he was no longer up to the task of guiding the church in the modern world, “subject to so many rapid changes and shaken by questions of deep relevance for the life of faith.”
No pope had resigned his office since Gregory XII in 1415. Benedict’s decision is seen as having established a precedent that could make it easier for subsequent pontiffs to give up their roles.
In his final homily as pope, Benedict bemoaned the sometimes “disfigured” face of the Church. “I am thinking in particular of the sins against the unity of the church, of the divisions in the body of the church,” he said.
Anthony Faiola, Michelle Boorstein, Jacqueline L. Salmon, Matthew Hay Brown, Chico Harlan and Stefano Pitrelli contributed to this report. | 2022-12-31T15:08:31Z | www.washingtonpost.com | Key quotes that shaped Pope Benedict XVI’s legacy - The Washington Post | https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/2022/12/31/pope-benedict-legacy-quotes/ | https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/2022/12/31/pope-benedict-legacy-quotes/ |
‘Woke’ Is a Political Term With a Long and Complicated History
396139 04: A rally participant displays her demonstration sign while holding her small alarm clock during a nurse’s rally in front of Cook County Hospital October 19, 2001 in Chicago. Rally participants set-off numerous alarm clocks as part of a “wake-up call” to urge the hospital industry to address an understaffing crisis. According to the SEIU (Service Employees International Union, AFL-CIO, CLC) Nursing Alliance, hospitals have severely cut back on the number of nurses and other caregivers they keep on staff. (Photo by Tim Boyle/Getty Images) (Photographer: Tim Boyle/Getty Images North America)
I keep reading that 2022 was the year of peak woke. If true, the surmise will spark either joy or sorrow, depending on predisposition. For the wordsmith, however, the intriguing question is not whether wokeism is on the decline; it’s how the word acquired its current social and political significance.
As it turns out, most sources get the origin wrong.
Dictionaries tell us that woke refers to a sensitivity to injustice, racial and otherwise. This definition is incomplete. Yes, what divides the woke from the unwoke (and the fake woke) is often the tough question of what constitutes injustice; but experience suggests that the dividing line is more often about the appropriate response once injustice is spotted.
Like so many words we twist to political advantage — “patriotism” comes to mind; so does “un-American” — “woke” possesses a daunting fluidity. What the word encompassed yesterday will be enlarged when tomorrow dawns. Depending on where you sit, this aspect may be a feature or a bug. For the wordsmith, it presents an irresistible challenge.
Those who’ve searched for woke’s origin have coalesced around a particular story. In this tale, the trail stretches backward from the present day to a 1962 article in the New York Times Magazine by the novelist William Melvin Kelley, then to a 1940 quotation from a Black United Mineworkers official, next to a 1938 song by Huddie Leadbetter, known as Lead Belly, in which he advises his listeners to “stay woke” lest they run afoul of White authority, and then to a 1923 volume of Marcus Garvey’s aphorisms in which he beseeches his readers,“Wake up, Ethiopia! Wake up, Africa!”
Given this origin story, some observers have berated progressives for appropriating a term coined by Black activists. Kelly’s 1962 essay in the Times addressed this very subject. Titled, “If You’re Woke You Dig It,” the piece argued that Black people living in a White world needed a way to talk to each other that outsiders would not understand. Each time a word entered the mainstream, he wrote, “the Negro knows that part of his code is being broken.”
Kelly’s point is powerful, but the etymology of “woke” doesn’t quite fit his thesis. Even granting the proposition that a race can “own” a word, a better description of where the term came from would acknowledge that it’s been traded back and forth.
To begin with, Garvey isn’t relevant. True, the phrase appears in the aforementioned 1923 volume, but there’s no evidence that “woke” was associated with him by the Black public of the day. Small wonder, given that Garvey was merely borrowing a term Black leaders had long ago adopted. Examples abound. “Wake up, wake up!” cried a 1904 editorial in the Baltimore Afro-American on the subject of voting rights. “Race in Chicago Must Wake Up!” was the headline on a 1912 essay in the Chicago Defender, arguing that there was more Black activism in Florida than Illinois.
As for Lead Belly, his 1938 usage of “woke” was likely a repurposing of the key line in “Sawmill Moan,” a song recorded a decade earlier by the great blues artist Willard “Ramblin’” Thomas:
“If I don’t go crazy,I’m sure gonna lose my mind‘Cause I can’t sleep for dreamin’,sure can’t stay woke for cryin.’”(1)
Although on the surface the song laments a lost love, historians have suggested that the lyrics were a veiled protest against the atrocious conditions faced by Black workers in Southern sawmills, where Thomas and other blues artists often performed.
This interpretation makes sense, and not only because blues songs often included hidden meanings representing opposition to cultural norms, particularly norms about race. The timing is also right. Black mill workers had previously been transients whose principal occupation was farming, but by 1928, when Thomas’s song was released, they were flooding into the permanent workforce in the Southern lumber industry. There they suffered exactly the indignities one would predict. As the historian William P. Jones notes, mill owners believed “that the only way to secure labor from a Black man was to ‘keep him broke.’”
There’s an additional reason to give Thomas rather than Lead Belly the credit. The worry about pain so great that one cannot “stay woke” is consistent with the idiom of the labor movement of the day, which well before the song became popular had already adopted “wake up” as a common trope. A 1903 editorial in a socialist paper urged the working class to “wake up” and recognize “that you have nothing that they may have much.” In 1918, a union magazine celebrated a new contract with these words: “[A]fter being asleep for a long time, like Rip Van Winkle, we finally woke up.” And again, the time line fits: When Thomas’s song was released on the eve of the Depression, the 1912 massacre of protesting mill workers in Bon Ami, Louisiana, was still fresh in memory.
Thus, the proper way to understand the history of our current usage of “woke” is that the metaphor was popularized by the labor movement, then borrowed by Black activists early in the 20th century before bursting into blues music in the 1920s. But the word remained a part of labor discourse all along, and is still used by organizers today. Moreover, for all that we identify the metaphor with a particular politics, it carries much the same meaning in everyday conversation. (“Wake up and smell the coffee.”)
We study etymologies so that we might use language to unlock history. Here the history is far more complex than the commonly accepted origin story suggests. So whether or not wokeness has passed its peak, understanding how the word first came to be adopted by activists more than a century ago suggests it will remain a part of our political conversation in 2023 — and for decades to come.
• Do-Gooder Firms Should Unbundle ESG and DEI: Adrian Wooldridge
• After a Bad Year for Freedom, Try Liberalism: Andreas Kluth
(1) This line in turn might have repurposed by Caliban’s memorable soliloquy in The Tempest, Act III, scene 2. | 2022-12-31T15:21:37Z | www.washingtonpost.com | ‘Woke’ Is a Political Term With a Long and Complicated History - The Washington Post | https://www.washingtonpost.com/business/wokeis-a-political-term-with-a-long-and-complicated-history/2022/12/31/3b53193a-8914-11ed-b5ac-411280b122ef_story.html | https://www.washingtonpost.com/business/wokeis-a-political-term-with-a-long-and-complicated-history/2022/12/31/3b53193a-8914-11ed-b5ac-411280b122ef_story.html |
In 1910, an English aviator set his plane down next to the White House
Aviator Claude Grahame-White takes off from West Executive Avenue Northwest on Oct. 14, 1910. The English pilot had landed between the White House and what today is called the Eisenhower Executive Office Building. (Library of Congress) (Library of Congress)
Woe to any private pilot who wants to fly a light airplane anywhere near Washington these days. The airspace above the capital is a no-fly zone, off-limits to anyone desirous of slipping the surly bonds of Earth and gazing down at what, quite frankly, is a pretty handsome town.
But this was not the case on Oct. 14, 1910, when an English aviator named Claude Grahame-White not only flew over Washington, but put his plane down next to the White House. After landing his spindly biplane on West Executive Avenue Northwest, Grahame-White had lunch with other aviation enthusiasts, then climbed back into his aircraft and took off.
Hundreds of onlookers were captivated. And at least one photographer was there, making photographs of Grahame-White that are now held by the Library of Congress. One picture was taken just after he took off. Grahame-White is perhaps 40 feet above the street, his plane sandwiched between the White House grounds to the east and the ornately columned State, War and Navy Building to the west.
Grahame-White was in town to participate in a three-day aviation meet at the old Benning racetrack in Northeast Washington, part of a series of U.S. events that had made traveling from Britain profitable. There was another draw: The Washington Post had offered $10,000 to the first pilot to take off from Washington, fly around Baltimore, and return to the District. Grahame-White intended to get it.
The 31-year-old was born in Southhampton on England’s south coast and from a young age was into fast cars and fast boats. Early planes weren’t very fast — 60 mph was considered a good speed — but they were the next challenge. Grahame-White ordered a plane from France’s Louis Blériot — who in 1909 became the first person to fly across the English Channel — and even worked in the factory to familiarize himself with it.
Grahame-White arrived in the District on Oct. 12, accompanied by four “mechanicians.” He brought two planes to Benning, a Farman biplane and a Blériot monoplane. He demonstrated both to crowds, but it was the Blériot that wowed onlookers. The sleek Blériot, wrote The Post, was a “real, live habitue of the aerial levels.” The Post’s writer was compelled to point out the idiosyncrasies of the “surprising contrivance”: “The propeller is at the front and the operator sat above and between the wings, concealed from the spectators when he was aloft.”
The Blériot was as different from the Wright Brothers’ creation as Grahame-White was from the Wrights themselves. They were ascetic Midwesterners, simple in their garb, scientific in their outlook. He was a flashily dressed showman, eager to win prizes in the air.
But Grahame-White was as much a proselytizer for aviation as Orville and Wilbur. In a speech to the National Press Club, he touted the military possibilities of the airplane, predicting it would become “closely interwoven” with the army and the navy and render the greatest of the modern battleships “useless.” (American aviator Clifford Harmon went even further, saying airplanes would “abolish” war.)
Some sources suggest that Grahame-White’s flight to downtown Washington was a surprise, but it had been carefully planned. He first flew to the Washington Monument, circling it at an altitude of 1,000 feet, then headed north toward the White House. Two colleagues stood in the street — one waving a red flag, the other a white one — to indicate where he should land. He put his craft down gingerly and then accepted congratulations from military officials, including Admiral George Dewey. He enjoyed an hour-long lunch at the Metropolitan Club then headed back to Benning.
Alas, Grahame-White was unable to pocket The Post’s $10,000. Before he had a chance, he crashed both his planes. While he was flying his Farman, the line feeding fuel to the carburetor broke. He glided the plane down but landed hard, wrecking the aircraft’s frame. He didn’t want to disappoint the Benning crowd, so his crew wheeled out the Blériot. But it was caught in a stiff wind on take off and crashed, shearing off the propeller.
Many aviation pioneers were killed in those early airplanes. “I realize that the life of an aviator is a hazardous one,” Grahame-White told The Post. “There is scarcely a day that someone doesn’t get killed or maimed for life.”
Grahame-White would not be among them. Sensibly, he explained: “I have a hesitancy in trying to fly over a city such as Washington, locations which are unknown to me, in an aeroplane which has been hastily repaired, and which I haven’t been given sufficient time to test.”
He took the long view: “Both accidents merely demonstrate the unreliability of the present-day aeroplane. But give the aviators and inventors time to perfect their machines and a different tale will be told.”
Grahame-White died in 1959 at the age of 79, on land, not in the air.
A new year is upon is. Start it off right by making a donation to one of our Washington Post Helping Hand charities. All three — Miriam’s Kitchen, Bread for the City and Friendship Place — work to alleviate hunger and homelessness in the Washington area.
To give, visit posthelpinghand.com, choose the charity you’d like to support and click where it says “Donate Online Now.”
Reeling in the year: A look back at some 2022 characters | 2022-12-31T15:21:43Z | www.washingtonpost.com | Remembering Claude Grahame-White, aviation pioneer and the talk of D.C. - The Washington Post | https://www.washingtonpost.com/dc-md-va/2022/12/31/grahame-white-airplane-exploits/ | https://www.washingtonpost.com/dc-md-va/2022/12/31/grahame-white-airplane-exploits/ |
By Dana Hedgepeth, The Washington Post | AP
FILE - An invasive nutria rat stands in the marsh near Venice, La., on Feb. 27, 2021. After a two-decade-long, $30 million effort to trap and kill the invasive species, wildlife experts in 2022 have claimed victory in eradicating it from shores along the eastern side of the Chesapeake Bay, Va. (Sophia Germer/The Advocate via AP, File) | 2022-12-31T15:22:01Z | www.washingtonpost.com | How wildlife experts eradicated nutria from Chesapeake Bay - The Washington Post | https://www.washingtonpost.com/local/how-wildlife-experts-eradicated-nutria-from-chesapeake-bay/2022/12/31/b3a991e4-8913-11ed-b5ac-411280b122ef_story.html | https://www.washingtonpost.com/local/how-wildlife-experts-eradicated-nutria-from-chesapeake-bay/2022/12/31/b3a991e4-8913-11ed-b5ac-411280b122ef_story.html |
By Emmett Gartner, The Frederick News-Post | AP
Walkersville, Md. Elementary School fourth grader Liam Kalbskopf displays the can-stacking skills that helped earn him the Guinness World Record for most cans stacked into a pyramid in less than 30 seconds by a person younger than 16 (Bill Green/The Frederick News-Post via AP)
FREDERICK, Md. — Walkersville Elementary School student Liam Kalbskopf joked that he’s ready for a life of fame after breaking the Guinness World Record for most cans stacked into a pyramid in less than 30 seconds.
“I thought being a little bit famous was a great idea, as long as nobody is coming to my doorstep to get my attention,” Liam said.
Documenting this record-breaking achievement was a feat within itself, according to Liam’s mother, Sherri Lewis, who said Guinness required visual proof that the cans were unopened, a cover letter, a photo of Liam’s birth certificate, video of the attempt with a stopwatch in-frame and a witness statement.
“I wanted to feel a bit more special in the world,” Liam said.
Liam also recently completed a volunteering achievement known as the “50-yard challenge,” which invites youths to mow the lawns of 50 people in need of help in their community for free.
The challenge was created by Rodney Smith Jr., founder of the nonprofit organization Raising Men and Women Lawn Care Service, to inspire kids “to make a difference,” according to the nonprofit’s website.
“I felt really good about it because I was helping her out” and she can’t mow the lawn herself, Liam said.
“For him to push through (the 50-yard challenge), as hard as it was, I’m very proud of him,” she said.
Sherri said she is impressed with her son’s commitment to volunteering, an activity she didn’t do much when she was his age. She credits the communities around Frederick and Walkersville for inspiring him.
“Growing up in Baltimore, volunteering wasn’t very promoted around me. It was something you did through church,” Sherri said. “I’m always intrigued by all of the weird things that he wants to achieve. The community has cultivated this, not me.” | 2022-12-31T15:22:14Z | www.washingtonpost.com | Maryland boy breaks Guinness World Record for can stacking - The Washington Post | https://www.washingtonpost.com/local/maryland-boy-breaks-guinness-world-record-for-can-stacking/2022/12/31/a8e21e84-8913-11ed-b5ac-411280b122ef_story.html | https://www.washingtonpost.com/local/maryland-boy-breaks-guinness-world-record-for-can-stacking/2022/12/31/a8e21e84-8913-11ed-b5ac-411280b122ef_story.html |
By Matt McDonald, Delaware State News | AP
BOWERS, Del. — A piece of Delaware — and world — history once again floats. But plenty of hard work lies ahead.
The Maggie S Myers, one of the oldest surviving oyster schooners in the world, sank in Bowers. Days later she was raised back above the waves, thanks to the efforts of the schooner’s captain, Frank “Thumper” Eicherly; his stepbrother Brian Howard; and a team of workers that included a crane operator (and crane) and multiple divers.
“At 4 p.m. today, we officially declare Maggie S Myers free floating,” Mr. Howard said in an interview on a pier adjacent to the schooner.
The schooner, which was built in 1893, is no longer taking on water, he said — at least not any more than wooden boats ordinarily do. “(The recovery process) went a lot slower than we had hoped for, but (went) probably better than expected,” he added.
Raising the boat took more than a dozen people a long day’s work. Mr. Howard said he woke up at 3 a.m. and was on site at 6 a.m.
Delmarva power employees moved a service line to make room for the crane. Divers with oxygen hoses scouted out the damage, dug out mud around the sunken schooner and rigged slings underneath. The crane pulled from above; airbags helped push from underneath. The process took hour after careful hour to complete.
“She’s a landmark — you got to have her up,” Ms. Cubbage said.
The cause of the sinking is still unknown, Mr. Howard said. “And honestly, (with) these old boats, you might never know. She might keep that secret to herself.”
“If we take on more than two and a half feet of water in any bilge compartment, it’s going to scream to everybody. My brother will hear it from his house,” he said.
The rescue came at great expense to Cpt. Eicherly and Mr. Howard; the latter estimated that the combined costs of the effort were 75 cents a second. Much work remains, including cleaning the ship and halting the spread of rust. All of the schooner’s electronics are irreparably damaged. The two started a GoFundMe campaign to help pay for recovering the piece of history.
“This boat and Thumper (Cpt. Eicherly) have helped I don’t know how many people in our town,” she said.
“It’s going to take a lot of little bits (of support),” she said. “That’s all we need is a lot a little bits.” | 2022-12-31T15:22:20Z | www.washingtonpost.com | Historical schooner Maggie S Myers back above the water - The Washington Post | https://www.washingtonpost.com/national/historical-schooner-maggie-s-myers-back-above-the-water/2022/12/31/afd4bba2-8913-11ed-b5ac-411280b122ef_story.html | https://www.washingtonpost.com/national/historical-schooner-maggie-s-myers-back-above-the-water/2022/12/31/afd4bba2-8913-11ed-b5ac-411280b122ef_story.html |
Expect to hear Sean Payton's name over and over until he finally returns to the NFL. (Chris Graythen/Getty Images)
“That’s not a fit,” said one individual who is personally familiar with both the coach and quarterback. “That would be a strange one to me, but strange s--- happens in this league all the time.”
Cowboys defensive coordinator Dan Quinn, the former Falcons head coach, will be high on Paton’s list, as previously mentioned in this space — though ownership is clearly in charge here — and many were surprised Quinn didn’t land in Denver a year ago. But Quinn knows Wilson from Seattle, where he served as the defensive coordinator, and he also knows some of Wilson’s quirks. If there is no longer an elite QB rating to go along with the eccentricities, well, Quinn might prefer other options.
Finally, might 71-year-old Pete Carroll consider retirement in Seattle? “He’s having too much fun this year,” said one longtime colleague of his, who is not at liberty to speak for the coach. “He still has the bug.”
What of Sean Payton?
“The landscape a year from now might be more attractive for a multitude of reasons,” the agent said. “I wouldn't discount that. Particularly If you have a client in a position to pick and choose his spot.” | 2022-12-31T15:22:44Z | www.washingtonpost.com | NFL coaching openings and candidates are already creating a buzz - The Washington Post | https://www.washingtonpost.com/sports/2022/12/31/nfl-coaching-openings-sean-payton/ | https://www.washingtonpost.com/sports/2022/12/31/nfl-coaching-openings-sean-payton/ |
By Frances D'Emilio and Giada Zampano | AP
A person takes a picture of a portrait of Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI at St. Peter’s Cathedral in Regensburg, Germany, Saturday, Dec. 31, 2022. Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI, the German theologian who will be remembered as the first pope in 600 years to resign, has died, the Vatican announced Saturday. He was 95. (Armin Weigl/dpa via AP) (Armin Weigel/DPA) | 2022-12-31T15:23:21Z | www.washingtonpost.com | Wealth of tribute comes for Benedict, who desired simplicity - The Washington Post | https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/wealth-of-tribute-comes-for-benedict-who-desired-simplicity/2022/12/31/bfda9388-8912-11ed-b5ac-411280b122ef_story.html | https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/wealth-of-tribute-comes-for-benedict-who-desired-simplicity/2022/12/31/bfda9388-8912-11ed-b5ac-411280b122ef_story.html |
When and why did Pope Benedict XVI resign?
Pope Benedict XVI in St. Peter's Basilica at the Vatican on Feb. 9, 2013, four days before his final Mass. (Gregorio Borgia/AP)
In the past 10 years, the Catholic Church has been focused on Pope Francis, his rapid internationalizing of church leadership and shift of focus from matters of gender and sex to those of poverty, inequality and climate. But Pope Benedict XVI’s announcement in 2013 that he would essentially retire felt earth-shattering at the time.
He was the first pope to do so in many centuries, rocking his image as the ultra-traditionalist and opening the door to the idea of the papacy as a complex human job.
Here’s what we know about his resignation.
Was there more to his resignation?
Who became the next pope?
Who were previous popes who resigned?
Why are papal retirements so unusual?
What was his retirement like?
The death of Pope Benedict XVI
The latest: Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI died Saturday at the Mater Ecclesiae Monastery within Vatican City. His death could reshape the Catholic Church. Here’s a look at his life in pictures.
Benedict’s legacy: Benedict was the first pope to resign in 600 years and his decision to step down transformed his legacy. These are some his most significant — and controversial — quotes.
The funeral: The funeral Mass for Pope Benedict will take place on Thursday, Jan. 5, but not all papal funeral traditions may apply to an ex-pope. Here’s what we know about the funeral so far. | 2022-12-31T16:54:00Z | www.washingtonpost.com | When and why did Pope Benedict XVI resign? - The Washington Post | https://www.washingtonpost.com/religion/2022/12/31/pope-benedict-xvi-resignation/ | https://www.washingtonpost.com/religion/2022/12/31/pope-benedict-xvi-resignation/ |
Baileys Crossroads car shootings appear to be linked, police say
Organizers of a regular Tuesday night meetup said cars were shot with an air rifle.
Fairfax County police said Friday that three shootings linked to car meetups appear to be connected, after organizers of a meetup Tuesday night said a group was shot at with an air rifle.
Police said officers were in a parking lot in the 5500 block of Leesburg Pike at 8:46 p.m. Tuesday. After the officers cleared the lot, they discovered that several vehicles had been struck and that two people had suffered minor injuries.
Police said they’re still piecing together what happened, but a group called Capital Mischief, which organizes regular meetups called Taco Tuesday, said in social media posts that the shots appeared to come from a nearby apartment building.
“We are deeply saddened by what happened last night & will be taking steps to ensure you & your cars safety at every [taco] tuesday moving forward,” organizers Capital Mischief wrote on Instagram.
On Friday, police said they were treating the recent incident as connected to others in July and September. The first happened on the evening of July 16 at the same location. Police responded after someone reported his vehicle had been hit by a projectile as he was leaving a meetup. One person suffered a minor gunshot wound, police said.
Then on the morning of Sept. 23 officers went to the 3500 block of South Jefferson Street, which is near the parking lot, after two people said their cars had been struck by gunfire. No one was hurt in that incident, police said.
Another car meetup took place Friday night in Woodbridge. A spokesman for the Prince William County police said no incidents were reported. | 2022-12-31T18:16:27Z | www.washingtonpost.com | Baileys Crossroads car meetup shootings appear to be linked, police say - The Washington Post | https://www.washingtonpost.com/dc-md-va/2022/12/31/baileys-crossroads-car-meetup-shootings-mischief/ | https://www.washingtonpost.com/dc-md-va/2022/12/31/baileys-crossroads-car-meetup-shootings-mischief/ |
Police identify 32-year-old man fatally shot Friday on Capitol Hill
D.C. police have identified a man fatally shot Friday on Capitol Hill as Reekey Garner, 32.
Police continue to investigate Garner’s death as a homicide — one of four on Thursday night and Friday in the District.
No arrests in Garner’s killing have been made.
Shortly after 6 p.m., officers in the First District responded to gunfire in the 900 block of 12th Street SE, a few blocks north of Interstate 695. There they found Garner, who according to police lived in Northeast Washington, suffering from apparent gunshot wounds.
D.C. Fire and Emergency Medical Services determined at the scene that Garner was dead, and he was taken to the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner. | 2022-12-31T18:16:34Z | www.washingtonpost.com | Police identify 32-year-old man fatally shot Friday on Capitol Hill - The Washington Post | https://www.washingtonpost.com/dc-md-va/2022/12/31/reekey-garner-shooting-dc/ | https://www.washingtonpost.com/dc-md-va/2022/12/31/reekey-garner-shooting-dc/ |
Quarterback Tua Tagovailoa walks off the field following the Dolphins' loss Christmas Day to the Packers in Miami Gardens, Fla. (Jim Rassol/AP)
The league and the players’ union said in a joint statement Saturday that their review “established that symptoms of a concussion were neither exhibited nor reported” until the day after the Dolphins’ game against the Green Bay Packers, “at which time the team medical personnel appropriately evaluated and placed Mr. Tagovailoa in the concussion protocol.”
Tagovailoa missed two games in October after being diagnosed with a concussion. He was taken from the field on a stretcher and transported by ambulance to a nearby hospital after a hit during a Sept. 29 game in Cincinnati. Four days before that game, doctors had cleared Tagovailoa to return to a Sept. 25 game against the Buffalo Bills in Miami Gardens after the quarterback stumbled following a first-half hit. | 2022-12-31T19:39:27Z | www.washingtonpost.com | No protocol violations in latest Tagovailoa concussion case, NFL and NFLPA say - The Washington Post | https://www.washingtonpost.com/sports/2022/12/31/tua-tagovailoa-nfl-concussion-protocols/ | https://www.washingtonpost.com/sports/2022/12/31/tua-tagovailoa-nfl-concussion-protocols/ |
ATLANTA — Virginia blew away Georgia Tech with a 25-0 run that started at the end of the first half and carried over after the break, cruising to a win that pushed coach Tony Bennett into a tie with Terry Holland for the most in Cavaliers history.
FORT WORTH, Texas — Mike Miles Jr. scored 23 points, and TCU rallied in the second half for a win over Texas Tech in the Big 12 opener for both teams and its 10th consecutive victory.
LEXINGTON, Ky. — Oscar Tshiebwe had 24 points and 14 rebounds, Jacob Toppin added a career-high 24 points and Kentucky shot a season-best 60% to dominate rival Louisville. | 2022-12-31T19:57:42Z | www.washingtonpost.com | No. 22 Xavier breaks No. 2 UConn's undefeated start - The Washington Post | https://www.washingtonpost.com/sports/colleges/no-22-xavier-breaks-no-2-uconns-undefeated-start/2022/12/31/e867487e-8943-11ed-b5ac-411280b122ef_story.html | https://www.washingtonpost.com/sports/colleges/no-22-xavier-breaks-no-2-uconns-undefeated-start/2022/12/31/e867487e-8943-11ed-b5ac-411280b122ef_story.html |
College Football Playoff live updates Michigan faces TCU in semifinal
Michigan quarterback J.J. McCarthy and TCU quarterback Max Duggan will lead their teams in a College Football Playoff semifinal. (AP) (AJ Mast/AP and LM Otero/AP/AP)
The first semifinal of the College Football Playoff features the No. 2 Michigan Wolverines taking on the No. 3 TCU Horned Frogs in the Fiesta Bowl at State Farm Stadium in Glendale, Ariz. Michigan is back in the playoff for the second straight season, hoping to advance to the title game and win its first national championship since the 1997 season. TCU is making its first playoff appearance. Follow along for live updates and highlights from the game.
Michigan (13-0) plowed through a soft nonconference schedule and then dominated in the Big Ten, including a surprising 45-23 thumping of rival Ohio State. The Wolverines capped an unbeaten season by winning the Big Ten championship over Purdue.
TCU (12-1) won close game after close game in the competitive Big 12 and finished the regular season unbeaten behind Heisman Trophy finalist Max Duggan at quarterback. The Horned Frogs’ only stumble came in an overtime loss to Kansas State in the Big 12 championship game.
The winner of this semifinal will face No. 1 Georgia or No. 4 Ohio State in the national championship game Jan. 9 at SoFi Stadium in Inglewood, Calif.
What to know about Michigan and TCU making it to the playoff
TCU is the second Big 12 school (after Oklahoma) to appear in the playoff and the second overall (after Michigan last year) to be selected after being unranked in the preseason. | 2022-12-31T20:18:45Z | www.washingtonpost.com | Michigan vs. TCU: College Football Playoff live updates - The Washington Post | https://www.washingtonpost.com/sports/2022/12/31/michigan-tcu-college-football-playoff/ | https://www.washingtonpost.com/sports/2022/12/31/michigan-tcu-college-football-playoff/ |
5 interviews that show Barbara Walters was a master journalist
(And one that shows her at her worst)
Barbara Walters and Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat after their interview in 1977. Just incredible stuff. She was an oak tree, for sure. (Harry Koundakjian/AP)
Barbara Walters is dead and at last we can ask: What kind of tree was she?
Put another way, was Walters the razor-sharp reporter who got Katharine Hepburn to declare in the overtly homophobic 1980s, “I have lived as a man.” Or was she the empty-blouse TV host who in the same interview asked Hepburn without a hint of irony, “What kind of tree are you, if you think you’re a tree” — a question that Walters accurately predicted would be repeated in her obituary.
Below, we argue mostly for the former. Barbara Walters was the very best kind of journalistic tree — empathetic, perceptive, prepared and relentless. At least, that’s how she came across when she wasn’t recording movie promos for the Ninja Turtles.
Making Oprah Winfrey cry isn’t exactly a journalistic coup. Crying (or more accurately, inducing her audience to cry) is arguably Winfrey’s raison d’etre. Still, the moment when an interview subject’s voice first cracks is a litmus test for any journalist. A bad reporter might become uncomfortable and change the subject. An unscrupulous one will be tempted to play the moment for cheap emotion.
Walters, an extremely good reporter, we contend, demonstrates her savvy in her 2010 interview with Winfrey, who teared up while talking about her friend, Gayle King. Note the textbook competence with which Walters guides Winfrey from the mundane toward the metaphysical in the excerpt below: from recalling how King helped her buy a car on her birthday, to distilling the meaning of friendship into 33 perfect words (at which point the tears begin), and finally to Walters’s coup-de-grace: “Now tell us why you’re crying.”
Perspective | Barbara Walters, a ‘shining example of possibility’ for women in a man’s world
Winfrey: For my 42nd birthday we were on the way to the mall and I saw a Bentley parked in a car dealership, and I stopped and bought a Bentley. Because it was my 42nd birthday and I could do it. Gayle is in the car dealership trying to negotiate down the price of the Bentley! And when we left in the Bentley, she was more excited than I was.
Walters: A lot of women have close friends. Very few have friends as close as yours. Describe that friendship to me.
Winfrey: Hoo. Okay. Uh. [10-second pause.] She is the mother I never had. She is the sister everybody would want. She is the friend that everybody deserves. I don’t know a better person. [Raises hand and repeats:] I don’t know a better person.
Walters: Why is it making you cry?
Oprah: [Wiping eyes] Shoot, I’m going to cry here. It’s making me cry because I’m thinking about how much I probably have never told her that. [To backstage, abruptly:] Tissue please!
A good interviewer knows it’s not her job to toss a lifeline when the subject starts flailing. Walters demonstrated the maxim perfectly in 1987, when she pressed the Scottish actor Sean Connery on his past comments advocating for slapping women under certain circumstances.
“Remember that?” Walters asked Connery with understated scorn. “Yeah, I didn’t love that.”
Startlingly, Connery doubled down, remarking that he hadn’t changed his opinion. Walters remained incredulous but unflappable. Mostly, she just repeated Connery’s assertions back to him or posed clipped follow-up questions to keep him talking. As the James Bond star spiraled into full-blown chauvinism (with hints of nascent sadomasochism), Walters simply sat back and marveled as a screen icon torched his legacy in the opposite chair.
The excerpt below begins after Walters sets Connery up for self destruction with a deceptively simple question: “What would merit” a good slap?
Connery: Well, if you have tried everything else and — women are pretty good at this — they can’t leave it alone. They want to have the last word, and you give them the last word but they’re not happy with the last word. They want to say it again and get into a really provocative situation. Then I think it’s absolutely right.
Walters: To give a good slap?
Connery: Yeah, absolutely.
Walters: What if she gives you a good slap back?
Connery: Well, then you get into another area. Then maybe she’s getting to like it and it becomes something else. I don’t know. No, no, seriously — I think it’s the last resort. He’s not going to do it because he wants to do it.
Walters: Wait until people see this interview. You’re going to get mail.
Years after Donald Trump’s presidency ended in a bloviating anti-constitutional farce, the art of confronting his self-aggrandizing spin remains an imperfect science in journalism schools. Walters, naturally, was ahead of the curve when she sat down with Trump in 1990 and pressed him on his latest book, “Surviving at the Top.”
Walters had no time for softballs. She tossed a heater out of the gate by alluding to Trump’s massive debt at the time, cheekily suggesting that a more appropriate book title may have been “Failing at the Top.”
Pulling from his now overly familiar playbook, Trump immediately slid into a subject change: attacking the “dishonest” press and predicting an economic apocalypse through arguments too incoherent to diagram. But Walters had come prepared to defend her chosen trade. She calmly informed Trump that she had spoken with “several” of his bankers before the interview, and then set about puncturing the future president’s many logical fallacies.
Walters: Being on the verge of bankruptcy, being bailed out by the banks, skating on thin ice and almost drowning — that’s a businessman to be admired?
Trump: You say “on the verge of bankruptcy,” Barbara, and you talk on the verge and you listen to what people are saying.
Walters: I talk to your bankers.
Trump: Well, that’s fine. And what did they say? Depending on which banker you’re talking to, what did they say? The deal I worked out is in the process, the deal I worked out is something that I think is good for everybody. The economy is down the tubes. Nobody knows how bad the economy is. I listen to the people on Wall Street talking about the possibility of a recession. We’re not in a recession — we’re in a depression. Now, when you’re in a depression, you have to sort of go with the punches. You have to go see your banks, you have to deal with people, you have to work things out. And there are a lot of people. Unfortunately, I’m the only one people write about — they don’t write about other people.
Walters: You have a little more debt than most people. You’re something like $3 billion in debt.
Trump: I also have a little more assets than most people. It’s sort of an interesting phenomenon. I have many friends — they are negotiating with their banks the same as I am, and I always say to them, “How come you never get any publicity? You don’t end up on the front page of the various garbage tabloids.”
Walters: They weren’t on the front pages to begin with. [Gestures to the wall adorned with magazine covers featuring Trump’s face.] They don’t have 50 magazine covers behind them.
A chief responsibility for any interviewer is to serve as a conduit between the interviewee and audience. When Walters spoke to the “Keeping Up With the Kardashians” crew for ABC’s “10 Most Fascinating People” special in 2011, she preceded the segment by acknowledging the public outcry. “I have never heard more anger and dismay,” she said, “than when we announced that the people you’re about to see were on our list.”
In the below excerpt, Walters honored her audience’s skepticism by confronting sisters Kim, Khloé and Kourtney Kardashian and their mother, Kris Jenner about their lack of discernible skills. Walters introduced the notion of their ineptitude in such endearingly blunt fashion that Kourtney and Khloé seemed almost eager to agree that their family did not, in fact, have any talent.
Walters: You are all often described as famous for being famous. You don’t really act. You don’t sing. You don’t dance. You don’t have any — forgive me — any talent!
Khloé Kardashian: But we’re still entertaining people.
Kim Kardashian: I think it’s more of a challenge for you to go on a reality show and get people to fall in love with you for being you. So there is definitely a lot more pressure, I think, to be famous for being ourselves than to play a character.
Kourtney Kardashian: But I don’t think we disagree.
Khloé Kardashian: Like, none of us think we have talents. Like, none of us think we could sing or act.
Disarming the interviewee was another skill Walters exemplified under even the most uncomfortable of circumstances. There may be no more prominent example of this than her 1999 interview with Monica Lewinsky, in which she lulled the former White House intern into self reflection just a few months after Lewinsky’s sexual relationship with President Bill Clinton became public and led to the first presidential impeachment in 130 years.
In that “20/20” interview, some 74 million Americans watched as Walters assailed Lewinsky with a combo of straight-shot questions and timely levity. In the excerpt below, the host brings up a particularly lascivious rumor with such professed astonishment that Lewinsky can only laugh and tackle it head on.
Walters: You found yourself alone with Bill Clinton in the chief of staff’s office, and you lifted the back of your jacket and you showed the president of the United States your thong underwear. Where did you get the nerve? I mean, who does that?
Lewinsky: As I’m sure you know, and everybody who has ever been in any situation where there’s flirtation, it’s a dance. It’s sort of one person does something, and do you meet that person and raise the stakes? And that was how our flirtation relationship was progressing. I know that it sort of has been highlighted in everything in this past year, and I’m not going to demonstrate for you, but if you take my word for it, it was a small, subtle, flirtatious gesture and that’s me.
Walters: Was it saying, “I’m available?”
Lewinsky: Well, I think it was saying, “I’m interested, too. I’ll play.”
Walters wasn’t perfect, of course. All trees eventually tilt. She was often accused of failing to insulate her journalism from the culture of celebrity that entranced her. This newspaper panned her famous 2003 interview with Hillary Clinton as an “hour-long book plug masquerading as a news special,” for example.
Another example: during what must have been a particularly dry news cycle in November 1990, Walters and her production crew agreed to visit a movie studio in North Carolina. Once there, according to the Los Angeles Times, they set up shop in what Walters insisted to viewers was an “abandoned subway station under the streets of New York” and proceeded to “interview” four performers dressed as the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles about their franchise’s upcoming movie sequel, “The Secret of the Ooze.”
If you have $11.50 to spare, you can purchase a copy of the March 1991 edition of TV Guide on eBay and read the thing in full. Better, just skim the largely monosyllabic and strangely racially obsessed dialogue below, keeping in mind that the interview aired months after it was recorded, on Oscar night, three weeks after a group of Los Angeles Police Department officers beat Rodney King half to death in one of the worst episodes of racial violence the country had yet seen.
Walters: And now, as promised, we take you to an abandoned subway station under the streets of New York, to the home of those movie heroes in a half-shell, the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles.
[Donatello half-rises from a soil couch and kisses Walters’s hand]
Walters: Charming! You’re everything I heard you were.
Donatello: Yeah!
Michelangelo: Hey dudette. I love the dress.
Walters: Thank you so much. And Leonardo.
Leonardo: Yeah! It’s a pleasure to meet you, Ms. Walters. Mind, body and spirit.
Walters: Yeah, thank you. He’s a little much isn’t he, sometimes?
Raphael: Yo, Barbara!
Walters: Yo, Raphael. [Changing subject:] Not one of you was nominated for an Oscar. Why do you think that is?
Michelangelo: I think it’s prejudice. They don’t like people who are green.
Walters: Do you think it’s that you’re a little green and slimy and cold? Do you think they’re anti-turtle? [Offended crosstalk.]
Walters: Guys, your first movie was a huge success. Now you’ve got another one out and it looks as if that’s also going to be a big smash. Can I ask you one more question? Uh. Do you know who your parents were?
[What appears to be saline tear fluid begins to squirt through Donatello’s eye holes onto Walters’s blouse while she laughs or pretends to laugh hysterically.]
Donatello: Someone help me, I’m dehydrating | 2022-12-31T20:49:20Z | www.washingtonpost.com | Barbara Walters death: her best 5 and 1 worst interview. - The Washington Post | https://www.washingtonpost.com/media/2022/12/31/barbara-walters-top-5-worst-interviews/ | https://www.washingtonpost.com/media/2022/12/31/barbara-walters-top-5-worst-interviews/ |
Barbara Walters, a ‘shining example of possibility’ for women in a man’s world
The pioneering broadcaster was "the first woman I can remember who was widely respected for her career,” said one admirer, "demonstrating how a woman could self-actualize.”
Perspective by Margaret Sullivan
Former columnist
Barbara Walters on the set of NBC's “Today” show in June 1976. (Dave Pickoff/AP)
They streamed onto the set, a high-gloss, high-heeled, perfectly coifed, sheath-dressed parade of glory to honor their godmother. Oprah announced their household names: Connie Chung, Jane Pauley, Katie Couric, Savannah Guthrie, Gretchen Carlson, Gayle King, Maria Shriver, Diane Sawyer, Hoda Kotb and a dozen others, the women who had come to dominate and define television news.
It was 2014, and Barbara Walters was retiring from ABC’s “The View,” which she had created and produced as well as co-hosted — her final game-changing move in a five-decade streak as a nearly constant presence on television. Amid the air kisses and genuine hugs from her fellow broadcasters during her on-air farewell to the daytime talk show, there were words of appreciation about how much Walters had mattered to them, and their careers.
And matter she did. Not just to the women at her own rarefied tier of the television industry but to men and women alike across the media business — and to millions of women worldwide who saw her as an example of possibility and distinction in a man’s world.
“Barbara was the first woman I can remember who was widely respected for her career,” my friend Priscilla Eshelman, a baby boomer who works in digital advertising sales, told me in a text message Saturday morning. That made Walters a “shining example of possibility, demonstrating how a woman could self-actualize.”
It helped that Walters was famous not for beauty-pageant looks but for her talent. Eshelman would grow into the kind of 1970s teenage girl who would latch onto the fledgling Ms. magazine as a feminist lifeline, but before that, there was Walters.
She led by her mere prominence, the very fact of her existence.
Walters, who died Friday at 93, made history by being the first female anchor on a TV news show (on ABC News in 1976) and conducting some of the most watched interviews of all time. Her fame was so complete that “Saturday Night Live’s” Gilda Radner impersonated her as “Baba Wawa,” fondly mocking those blurred “r’s” of hers. (Early on, Walters had been told, by none other than Don Hewitt — who would launch CBS’s “60 Minutes” — that she’d never make it as an on-air presence because of her unusual speech patterns and her relatively ordinary looks.)
Katherine Rosman, a star features writer for the New York Times, recalled being aware of Walters well before coming to New York City as a “coffee-fetching assistant” for Elle magazine in the mid-1990s.
“Back when I was a young journalist trying to imagine a career for myself, Barbara Walters was an avatar of what was possible,” Rosman told me. A key component was the wide range of Walters’s work. She not only interviewed a multitude of entertainment figures but also world leaders, politicians and business moguls.
In 1989, Walters went to Tripoli for ABC’s “20/20” to interview the Libyan dictator Moammar Gaddafi, memorably telling him at one point that some people thought he was crazy. In 1990, she challenged New York City real estate developer Donald Trump about his finances, noting that his glowing accounts of his success did not align with the perspective of the bankers she had checked with.
Even those endless interviews with celebrities were rarely pure froth. In 1987, she got Sean Connery to expound on his shameful conviction that women sometimes deserve a little slapping around, indicating to her audience with her gape-mouthed response that she was appalled even as she continued to coax more damning detail out of Connery.
“The signal to women reporters had long been that you could be serious or you could be interesting,” Rosman reflected. “She refused to be pigeonholed like that, and she allowed for many women who came after her to be both.”
She had the gift of being able to make an intimate connection with her wide-eyed gaze and soft voice while never shying from the uncomfortable question — in fact, it became her trademark. She once pointed out to a gaggle of Kardashians that their fame was confounding, given their apparent lack of any real talent.
On Twitter late Friday, Monica Lewinsky recalled both aspects of Walters’s approach.
“I knew Barbara for over half of my life,” she wrote, describing meeting her in the spring of 1998 in the midst of the furor over the former White House intern’s affair with then-president Bill Clinton, ultimately leading to his impeachment. “I remarked that this was the first time I’d ever been in serious trouble … got good grades, didn’t do drugs, never shoplifted.”
Walters, “without missing a beat,” Lewinsky wrote, offered her some advice: “Monica, next time shoplift.”
Lewinsky said they kept in touch for many years; over lunch a few years ago, Walters peppered her with questions in the signature Walters style: “so tell me, Monica, how do you feel … ?”
Toward the end of her storied career, Walters seemed to recognize that television wasn’t necessarily bringing us the best of journalism and sometimes suggested she might even feel responsible for its slide into mindless sensationalism. Her work spawned a legion of less talented copycats in the increasingly tawdry world of infotainment, yet she clearly hoped to inspire higher standards.
When Michele Martin of NPR asked her in 2008 what women in the media business should be doing to follow up on Walters’ accomplishments (“Is there anything that women of my generation should be doing to build on what it is that you started, that you would like to see us do?”) the veteran broadcaster gave voice to some qualms while also giving credit where due.
“I think you are. I think you are in all fields. I think you’re in every war zone,” Walters replied. But she added that she deplored the apparent lack of interest by most Americans in world affairs or global leaders: “We’re so celebrity-oriented, and I just didn’t want to do those stories any more.”
She added that she hoped women journalists would do more meaningful work — “the kind of journalism that really makes a difference, that isn’t just screaming and yelling and opinions and so forth.”
Whatever fuel Walters may have provided for that raging fire, her legacy should be seen largely as a positive one. Driven, ambitious, indomitable, seemingly undeterred by the inevitable ups and downs of half a century in a cutthroat business driven by ratings and corporate profit, she succeeded wildly and memorably. And more than that, she served as a vivid example of persistence and accomplishment. For those who would become famous and those who merely were forging their own quieter paths, Barbara Walters inspired. | 2022-12-31T20:49:26Z | www.washingtonpost.com | Barbara Walters, a ‘shining example of possibility’ for women in a man’s world - The Washington Post | https://www.washingtonpost.com/media/2022/12/31/barbara-walters-tribute-inspire-women/ | https://www.washingtonpost.com/media/2022/12/31/barbara-walters-tribute-inspire-women/ |
Murder charge for suspect who fled Secret Service and struck pedestrians
A Maryland man has been charged with second-degree murder and aggravated assault after he struck two pedestrians with a car near the White House while fleeing from the Secret Service.
Spiro Stafilatos, 35, was ordered held without bond during an appearance Saturday in D.C. Superior Court. A defense attorney asserted that Stafilatos had not intended to hurt anyone when he drove away from the traffic stop Friday and should be released as he awaits trial.
But Judge Sherry Trafford rejected that argument, noting among other things that Stafilatos had driven directly into a busy intersection without braking as he sought to escape from police.
“The reckless disregard is apparent here,” Trafford said.
Stafilatos has a lengthy criminal history in the District, Maryland and Virginia, records show. He has previously been charged with robbery, assault, destruction of property and being a fugitive from justice.
Newly filed court documents provided additional details in the incident that left one woman dead and another critically injured late Friday afternoon in downtown Washington.
Stafilatos, driving a Buick LeSabre, first came to the attention of uniformed Secret Service officers patrolling the area around the White House on bicycles, according to an arrest affidavit submitted in the case. The officers noticed that the car’s front tag was missing and that the rear tag was missing a sticker. After Stafilatos stopped to let a passenger out they approached and asked him for his license.
Stafilatos — who had not taken the car out of drive and had beside him “an open container that resembled a beer bottle,” according to the affidavit — instead drove away. He fled up 15th Street NW before turning the car east onto New York Avenue. A marked Secret Service car flashing its emergency lights followed, the affidavit states.
Stafilatos then ran a red light at the intersection of New York Avenue and 14th Street NW, where his car was struck by a southbound Chevrolet Sonic. His Buick spun around and hit two pedestrians in the intersection’s east crosswalk. Stafilatos stepped out of his car and walked to the sidewalk, where he was arrested, according to the affidavit.
One of the two pedestrians was admitted to George Washington University Hospital in critical condition with trauma to the body and head. The second victim, whom police have not yet identified, was pronounced dead at MedStar Washington Hospital Center.
In an interview with police after the incident, Stafilatos made seemingly contradictory statements about why he had fled, according to the affidavit.
At one point he said he believed one of the bike officers who interacted with him was “an armed robber,” while at other times he expressed incredulity that police would seek to arrest him over a missing sticker on his license plate. He said he took “five different mental health meds.” After the incident he tested positive for cocaine and marijuana, the affidavit states. | 2022-12-31T23:35:20Z | www.washingtonpost.com | Murder charge for suspect who fled Secret Service and struck pedestrians - The Washington Post | https://www.washingtonpost.com/dc-md-va/2022/12/31/secret-service-crash-14th-street/ | https://www.washingtonpost.com/dc-md-va/2022/12/31/secret-service-crash-14th-street/ |
A man broke into a high school to shelter dozens from Buffalo blizzard
Jay Withey, pictured with overalls, poses with some of the nearly two dozen strangers he brought into the school on Dec. 24. (Photo provided by Jay Withey) (Jay Withey)
After knocking on more than a dozen doors to plead for a place to shelter from the historic blizzard that hit the Buffalo area last week, Jay Withey trudged to his truck, bearing bad news.
No one had agreed to let him and another stranded man spend the night of Dec. 23 in their Cheektowaga, N.Y., homes as the storm made travel untenable.
Resigned, the men spent the night inside the truck and pulled in a stranded woman. They were using precious fuel to maintain the heater while the overnight temperature averaged 9 degrees.
By morning, Withey wasn’t sure how much longer she could take without food and water.
“I look on a map on my on my phone and I see there’s a school nearby,” Withey, 27, said Friday in an interview with The Washington Post. He told the woman: “ ‘I’m breaking into that school. I know there’s heat in there, I know there’s a bathroom and I bet there is food.’ ”
His desperate decision may have saved dozens of lives during a storm that stranded hundreds of people in a major metropolitan area that was still assessing the damage more than a week later.
Outside the Cheektowaga high school, EDGE Academy, the woman worried they’d get in trouble for breaking in. Withey figured he’d need to explain his decision to school officials and authorities later, but he made a case that this was the trio’s best chance of surviving the blizzard. The three of them eventually got into the building after Withey smashed a side window with a brake pad he found in his truck.
Once both strangers had settled inside, Withey walked up to other cars stranded nearby, offering their occupants a place to spend the night.
“I didn’t want anyone else to suffer,” Withey said. “I got put in a position to save a whole bunch of people. I got as many people as I could.”
Buffalo is no stranger to snow. Why was the storm so deadly?
By the end of the weekend, Withey had offered shelter to about two dozen strangers, including children and two dogs. He left behind a handwritten note explaining the break-in.
It read: “To whoever it may concern, I am terribly sorry about breaking the school window and for breaking in the kitchen. Got stuck at 8 p.m. Friday and slept in my truck with two strangers just trying not to die. There were 7 elderly also stuck and out of fuel. I had to do it to save everyone and get them shelter, food and a bathroom. Merry Christmas — Jay.”
Like Withey, hundreds of people were stranded in their cars and homes as the snowstorm hit western New York, prompting a travel ban, upending holiday plans and leading to criticism of the area’s leaders.
The blizzard — Buffalo’s deadliest disaster in a decade — left at least 39 people dead in Erie County, a number authorities said is expected to climb as emergency responders are able to access other areas in the coming days. The majority of those killed were people of color.
But as the city was digging itself out of the snow, stories of strangers lending a hand continued to emerge.
DeMario Johnson and his mother Addie Johnson were also stranded near the Cheektowaga school. They were on their way to a relative’s house on Dec. 23 — escaping Addie Johnson’s electricity-deprived home — when their car got stuck in the mud, DeMario Johnson, 50, told The Post.
The storm made it impossible for them to be rescued, emergency responders told them, so they and Addie’s 3-year-old Shih Tzu, DJ, spent the night inside their car.
“To whoever it may concern, I am terribly sorry about breaking the school window and for breaking in the kitchen. Got stuck at 8 p.m. Friday and slept in my truck with two strangers just trying not to die. There were 7 elderly also stuck and out of fuel. I had to do it to save everyone and get them shelter, food and a bathroom. Merry Christmas — Jay.”
By the time Withey found them on Dec. 24, Addie Johnson, 71, didn’t think they’d make it out of the blizzard alive, her son told The Post.
Withey said he planned to use the school as a shelter for the blizzard, but Addie Johnson was worried about getting into trouble.
“We’re going to jail,” she told her son.
“Maybe not,” DeMario Johnson replied.
They accepted Withey’s offer.
Once inside, Withey managed to open the cafeteria and found cereal, juice, water and coffee for the group. He cooked pizza for lunch and meatballs for dinner. The group spent the hours in the cafeteria eating and getting to know one another. They shared what Christmas meant to everyone, where they’d gone to school, what they did for a living and how they ended up stranded in a blizzard on Christmas Eve.
“We just enjoyed that we had shelter, we had food and we had a new family,” Addie told The Post. “On Christmas morning, we all woke up and said Merry Christmas to everybody.”
At one point in the weekend, Withey found the set of master keys and opened a room to get a TV so the group could watch movies in the cafeteria. When night came, some slept on chairs and others on the ground. Once the weather improved, the men helped Withey clear the snow from their cars with a snowblower he found in the school.
Before the last person left on Christmas Day, the crew of strangers created a group chat titled the “Blizzard Survivors,” where they made plans to gather for a summer picnic. They cleaned the school, washed the dishes and took out the trash before parting ways.
They wanted to make sure they left things as they found them, a show of gratitude to the school that sheltered, fed and entertained them.
After reviewing security footage, the school grounds and the handwritten note, the Cheektowaga police called Withey’s actions “heroic” and said it would file no charges related to the break-in. The school district, which said Withey had acted “out of desperation,” thanked the quick-thinking man for his “selfless, lifesaving and courageous efforts” to whisk people to safety.
Have a story for Inspired Life? Here’s how to submit. | 2022-12-31T23:52:48Z | www.washingtonpost.com | Jay Withey broke into a school to save strangers from Buffalo blizzard - The Washington Post | https://www.washingtonpost.com/lifestyle/2022/12/31/buffalo-blizzard-jay-withey-rescue-school/ | https://www.washingtonpost.com/lifestyle/2022/12/31/buffalo-blizzard-jay-withey-rescue-school/ |
I hate to write an article that sounds like one of those family history narratives that arrive with a Christmas card, i.e., “We lost our beloved turtle, Oscar, on July Fourth when…” but after the disastrous plague year of 2020 and the strange uneven year of 2021, one has to take stock — again. Our lives could drive the plot of a dystopian novel.
There was some hope at the start of 2021 since the vaccine for COVID-19 had been developed. There was also unrest when the former president refused to concede to Joe Biden after Christopher Krebs — Donald Trump’s own man — announced a “secure and safe election.” Then came the even greater shock when misguided American citizens became a mob and assaulted their own Capitol. Had it come to this? Fortunately, the “steal” was stopped and Joe Biden was sworn in.
Will former President Trump share a page in history with Aaron Burr? In 1807, Burr used an army of U.S. planters, politicians and military officers to establish an independent country in Texas, Louisiana and parts of Mexico.
Burr was arrested, tried for treason and exonerated, but it destroyed his reputation. Former President Trump has been luckier … so far.
Despite the appalling confrontation at the Capitol, there was a grace period that promised hope. Stores, schools, concert halls and theaters opened. Many got vaccinated, and as the rate of infections and deaths dropped, we saw street concerts beginning, again, including our local Revive @ 5. It was nice to be out of quarantine and free among the people sharing some much-needed music, food, dancing and drink. A record hot summer filled with black smoke from unprecedented ubiquitous fires, however, changed everything — and rapidly. It is natural that Americans are fatigued with the virus and restrictions.
According to a recent ABC News/Ipsos poll, President Joe Biden received heavy criticism from the American public for his handling of the economy, COVID-19 and gun violence. I disapprove of some of Biden’s decisions, but we have to remember that President Biden’s polls were high in March when 72 percent of Americans approved of his presidency. In all fairness, many of the terrible setbacks are not Biden’s fault, including the refusal of so many to get vaccinated after a second and now third variant of COVID hit, sending the infection rate and deaths soaring. Among the dead are people I knew who rejected the science.
A pandemic destroys an economy, here and abroad. It is ironic that the American economy is actually overheating and needs to cool down. Wages are higher, but inflation mitigates any gain. The president can’t always be blamed for inflation, a fluctuating economy or if citizens believe misinformation (climate change is a hoax) or think vaccinations will help the government track dissidents.
Biden’s approval rating for handling crime is low, but the federal government has yet to find a solution to the irrational surge in gun-related violence. I find it painful that so many senseless shootings erupted in schools. Did we learn nothing from Columbine, Sandy Hook or current on-campus assaults? I believe one answer is a thorough background check to at least attempt keeping guns out of the hands of people who shouldn’t have them: terrorists, felons, criminal elements, gangs and people who are emotionally disturbed, seeing murder by gun as a release.
I know, it is more complex than that.
Polls only reflect the current moment, and President Joe Biden’s rating may rise in 2022 if things turn around. By the time you read this article, after a few sparse celebrations and nervous toasts, perhaps a brighter year will lie ahead.
One can hope. | 2022-01-01T19:05:39Z | www.idahostatejournal.com | What will 2022 bring? | Columns | idahostatejournal.com | https://www.idahostatejournal.com/opinion/columns/what-will-2022-bring/article_96208f88-3e84-5b59-b2a7-530d0124a888.html | https://www.idahostatejournal.com/opinion/columns/what-will-2022-bring/article_96208f88-3e84-5b59-b2a7-530d0124a888.html |
All of East Idaho's roads are now open after a winter storm bombarded the region for much of the week.
But on the heels of the storm dangerously cold wind chill has arrived.
The National Weather Service has extended its Friday night-Saturday morning wind chill warnings for East Idaho to Saturday night through Sunday morning.
Conditions will again feel like they're as cold as minus 30 degrees due to extreme wind chill Saturday night through Sunday morning across the region.
Please don't go outdoors unless you're properly dressed for the elements and do not leave your pets outdoors.
Conditions this cold could give you frostbite on exposed skin in less than 10 minutes in addition to posing a deadly hypothermia risk.
The extreme wind chill caps off a week in which East Idaho was battered by a winter storm that arrived late Tuesday night and continued dumping snow on the region until Saturday morning.
The storm temporarily shut down several East Idaho roads including Interstate 84, which reopened Saturday.
No precipitation is in the forecast for East Idaho on Saturday and Sunday but another winter storm could hit the region on Monday night or Tuesday morning.
Outside of East Idaho, winter weather warnings calling for snow and/or extreme cold remain in effect in most of the rest of the state as well as in all surrounding states. | 2022-01-02T01:19:14Z | www.idahostatejournal.com | Wind chill warnings in effect for East Idaho after snowstorm that temporarily shut down roads | Freeaccess | idahostatejournal.com | https://www.idahostatejournal.com/freeaccess/wind-chill-warnings-in-effect-for-east-idaho-after-snowstorm-that-temporarily-shut-down-roads/article_d92927d0-fad3-53b4-91c2-529deb7c96bd.html | https://www.idahostatejournal.com/freeaccess/wind-chill-warnings-in-effect-for-east-idaho-after-snowstorm-that-temporarily-shut-down-roads/article_d92927d0-fad3-53b4-91c2-529deb7c96bd.html |
Omega Roofing owners Dylan Winmill, left, and Zachary Sayles talk with customer Kevan Yogt. Omega Roofing was chosen as one of four small businesses in the country to participate in a Homebase video series called “Grit and Greenlights” with Matthew McConaughey.
PHOTO COURTESY OF HOMEBASE
Omega Roofing Owners Zachary Sayles, left, and Dylan Winmill during the filing of a video series “Grit and Greenlights” in September.
RUPERT — When the COVID-19 pandemic forced the closure of a roofing sales and insurance office, two Mini-Cassia men turned the loss into opportunity and launched their own business.
Omega Roofing, owned by Zachary Sayles of Rupert and Dylan Winmill of Burley, was one of four businesses chosen to have their stories told in a Grit & Greenlights video series by Homebase, a national organization that helps small businesses manage their teams.
Sayles learned the roofing trade from his father and uncles.
“My dad was a roofer and I was around the business as a little lad,” Sayles said. “I would go and help clean up the shingles and the ground.”
As he got older, he never thought roofing would become his career.
As a boy, Sayles asked his parents what the difference was between hourly, salaried and commissioned employees — and he liked the idea of not having a cap on commission earnings.
As an adult, he began working in sales positions and learned the art of a deal, but selling an alarm or satellite system, he said, was much different than closing the deal on a $20,000 roofing job.
Sayles went to work for a Salt Lake City roofing company that started a Twin Falls office, and he and his partner learned how to sell retail roofs and insurance.
During the pandemic in August 2020, the company they worked for decided to close the office and they were given the option of working out of Salt Lake City.
Sayles and Winmill had both recently learned their wives were expecting babies, Sayles said. They were born three weeks apart.
“I was like, ‘We can’t stay in Salt Lake City. Let’s quit and start our own company,’” Sayles said. “We quit the next day.”
He has never been afraid to take risks.
“Having my own business makes me feel more in control and it actually feels like less risk to me,” Sayles said.
The pair temporarily worked a sales blitz for a company to raise some quick capital to start Omega Roofing and while doing that they started incorporating the business and getting the required licensing.
“I didn’t want to rely on anyone else,” Sayles said.
They contacted four customers that their prior company had not served.
“After those first four, we started knocking on doors and haven’t stopped,” Sayles said. “We’ve been going roof to roof ever since.”
One of the biggest challenges, Sayles said, was getting a good crew in place, which has now been accomplished.
The company has six employees, including the two partners, and also uses subcontractors.
Sayles wanted to make sure everything in the business was done properly, so he signed up for the Homebase small-business services.
After completing a customer satisfaction survey he was contacted by the company about interviewing for the “Grit & Greenlights” video series, which features conversations with Matthew McConaughey and small businesses that thrived during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Winmill said at first they did not know the interview would be with McConaughey.
“When I heard it would be with him I was ecstatic,” he said. “It was really cool that it was with someone we looked up to.”
The interview was filmed in September over Zoom and a production crew came and spent three days with them.
“What I liked most about it was that they just let us be natural. I was afraid it would be staged,” Winmill said.
“Small businesses are the heart and soul of our communities,” McConaughey, a Homebase investor, said in a press release. “And behind every one are people taking risks, overcoming challenges, and staying true to themselves in the process. In my book Greenlights, I talk a lot about red lights, those moments of strife that stop us in our tracks — like the pandemic did to thousands of main street business owners and workers. In my experience it’s how we choose to adapt or persist through these challenges, the kinds of challenges every small business owner faces every day, that we turn red lights into green. These are stories of hard work and resilience. These stories need to be told.”
The three other businesses chosen for the series include Fuzzy Goat yarn and knitting boutique, owned by Cadence Kidwell in Thomasville, Georgia, Antique Taco restaurants, owned by Ashley and Rick Ortiz in Chicago’s wicker Park and Bridgeport neighborhoods, and The Blind Goat and Xin Chao restaurants, owned by Christine Ha in Houston, Texas.
The series can be viewed online at joinhomebase.com/stories.
“We’re proud to support over 100,000 local businesses and their teams who overcome incredible challenges to serve their communities every day,” John Waldmann, founder and CEO of Homebase said. “Small businesses touch the lives of everyone. It’s the reason I started Homebase. And every single one has a unique story to tell. We’re excited to work with Matthew to highlight the owners of four of those businesses who can be a true inspiration to us all.”
Zachary Sayles
December East Idaho Business Journal | 2022-01-02T03:55:47Z | www.idahostatejournal.com | Actor Matthew McConaughey features Rupert business in new video | Small Business | idahostatejournal.com | https://www.idahostatejournal.com/business_journal/small_business/actor-matthew-mcconaughey-features-rupert-business-in-new-video/article_2821da05-4a37-5691-ac1d-866981eeeb34.html | https://www.idahostatejournal.com/business_journal/small_business/actor-matthew-mcconaughey-features-rupert-business-in-new-video/article_2821da05-4a37-5691-ac1d-866981eeeb34.html |
Idaho State guard Estefania Ors puts up a layup Saturday afternoon against Montana State.
Idaho State guard Tomekia Whitman launches a 3-pointer Saturday afternoon against Montana State.
Idaho State guard Callie Bourne puts the ball on the floor Saturday afternoon against Montana State.
Idaho State guard Tomekia Whitman tries to beat the buzzer with a half-court shot on Saturday against Montana State.
Ors erupts for career day as Idaho State tops Montana State, 67-57
Estefania Ors may not be a superstitious player, but she has one hunch she can’t shake. The better she shoots in warmups before games, she’s noticed, the worse she shoots in games. So for the Idaho State guard, the opposite is also true: The worse she shoots in warmups, the better she shoots in games.
“And today, I literally didn’t make any 3s in shootaround,” Ors laughed.
Chalk up Ors’ career-best 33-point outing, which helped Idaho State secure a 67-57 win over Montana State Saturday afternoon at Reed Gym, to all manner of factors: Superstition, overhelping, the hot hand, whatever. What matters is that Ors got hot. Really hot.
She splashed a whopping seven triples — to just four misses — and the location didn’t particularly matter. On one occasion, Jordan Sweeney came up with an offensive rebound and pitched it back to Ors, who hit her first triple. On another, Ors splashed a long ball on a simple catch-and-shoot action. Later in the game, on a transition opportunity, Callie Bourne found Ors in the corner. Another hit.
As the game wore on and Idaho State started to decipher Montana State’s zone defense, which explains how the Bengals opened the fourth frame on a 9-2 run, it became fairly clear: This was going to be a big one for Ors.
“I got open so many times and my teammates were looking for me, so I just shot it,” Ors said. “Open shots, shoot it. That’s what Coach says. Anybody on the team — you’re open, shoot it.”
That’s the thing, though. For awhile, the Bengals were open. They were shooting. They just weren’t making them. Early in the game, Montana State raced to an 8-5 lead, and Idaho State couldn’t get its offense off the ground. Turnovers surfaced at the worst times. The open looks just weren’t going down.
Eventually, the Bengals started to figure things out. The Bobcats switched defenses occasionally, which gave the hosts chances to find the shots they liked: A layup from Ellie Smith, who hit a jumper on the very next possession. A triple from Tomekia Whitman, who totaled 13 points. An easy one from Ors on a soft lob from Whitman.
All told, Idaho State (7-6, 3-1 Big Sky) shot a solid 41% from the field and used a four-point fourth-quarter advantage to pull away and win its fifth straight contest.
“You have to trust one another, starting with trusting our coach,” said Whitman, who added eight rebounds, six assists and three steals. “He’s obviously watching what they’re doing, watching what we’re doing that’s not working, so getting out there and having the chemistry with one another and trusting that we’re going to be in the right spots.”
“They were changing their defense all the time,” Ors added.
So at halftime, after Montana State had trimmed Idaho State’s lead to 27-22, the Bengals’ coaching staff put their heads together. How do we adjust to a team vacillating between zone and man looks?
Idaho State made the math look easy in the third frame. The Bengals turned stops into transition chances. Diaba Konate, who registered nine points, seven rebounds and three assists, used her speed to push the pace and her vision to find teammates open for layups.
“For Estefi and for all our people on the perimeter,” said assistant Ryan Johnson, “they’re doing so much overhelping, so much sagging. We were going to have to be ready to shoot more 3s and just be ready. You’ve got to be ready to make them.”
But even when the hosts missed, they kept possessions alive, turning 14 offensive rebounds into 17 second-chance points. Whitman, Bourne and Montana Oltrogge each logged eight rebounds. Konate had her seven. Ors snagged six.
All that helped soften the blow of the absence of Dora Goles, Idaho State’s starting point guard who has now missed two straight games with a finger injury. Head coach Seton Sobolewski said Thursday that Goles’ finger isn’t broken, just jammed hard earlier this season.
For the Bengals, the good news on that front is that Goles will get time to rest. So will the rest of the team. Idaho State won’t return to action until next Saturday, when the club will visit Weber State for a matinee. By then, the team hopes, Goles’ finger might start to feel better.
Either way, the Bengals have adjusted to life without one of their best players. Goles gives Idaho State a lot — shooting, playmaking, a high IQ on both ends of the floor — so while they miss her, the Bengals have also found ways to adjust to her absence. Five straight wins might be all the evidence they need.
Callie Bourne
ASC Jan | 2022-01-02T03:56:00Z | www.idahostatejournal.com | Ors erupts for career day as Idaho State tops Montana State, 67-57 | Pocatello | idahostatejournal.com | https://www.idahostatejournal.com/pocatello/ors-erupts-for-career-day-as-idaho-state-tops-montana-state-67-57/article_bb32fd9e-11db-5bca-8f2d-6d0216f03f23.html | https://www.idahostatejournal.com/pocatello/ors-erupts-for-career-day-as-idaho-state-tops-montana-state-67-57/article_bb32fd9e-11db-5bca-8f2d-6d0216f03f23.html |
Another blast of winter weather is forecast to hit East Idaho Monday night through Tuesday night and beyond that snow remains in the region's forecast through Saturday.
The National Weather Service has issued a special weather alert warning the public about the Monday night through Tuesday night storm that will bring anywhere from a trace to 3 inches of snow to East Idaho. Higher snowfall amounts are possible depending on the storm's severity.
The weather service said a bigger problem than the snow will likely be the storm's powerful winds that will create blowing and drifting snow. Visibility could be dramatically reduced, making driving on the region's roads even more hazardous.
The incoming weather system comes on the heels of a barrage of winter storms that have pounded East Idaho since before Christmas, shutting down numerous roads including freeways.
Elsewhere in the state, winter storm watches and wind advisories are in effect in south central and southwest Idaho and winter storm warnings and winter weather advisories are in effect in northern Idaho. | 2022-01-02T20:31:41Z | www.idahostatejournal.com | Winter storm forecast to bring snow, powerful winds to East Idaho starting Monday night | Freeaccess | idahostatejournal.com | https://www.idahostatejournal.com/freeaccess/winter-storm-forecast-to-bring-snow-powerful-winds-to-east-idaho-starting-monday-night/article_6f913272-07aa-57eb-b271-9c4185a090be.html | https://www.idahostatejournal.com/freeaccess/winter-storm-forecast-to-bring-snow-powerful-winds-to-east-idaho-starting-monday-night/article_6f913272-07aa-57eb-b271-9c4185a090be.html |
Lanora Robinson, the owner of Black Swan Esthetics in American Falls, is pictured with her husband, Dave, and their five children.
Photo courtesy of Lanora Robinson
AMERICAN FALLS — Among the nitty-gritty agricultural and mechanical businesses in American Falls sits a new shop that offers to clean up unwanted spots and blemishes — on skin, that is.
Black Swan Esthetics recently moved into 450 Lincoln St. in order to cater to a different set of needs that owner Lanora Robinson noticed needed to be filled.
“I wanted to bring my services here in hopes to help those of all ages and skin types and conditions,” Robinson said, who has lived in American Falls for six years and is an esthetician and permanent makeup artist.
Many services she provides include permanent make-up applications, cellulite and skin tightening, teeth-whitening, micro-needling to treat hair thinning and baldness and much more. One of the more popular services she offers is the Thermoclear treatment that targets epidermal skin blemishes such as skin tags, acne and spider capillaries.
With this treatment she’s able to apply radio frequency that zaps these imperfections away, leaving the skin cleaner and fresher looking. And despite the beauty industry predominantly being used by women, she has had men pop in for a Gentleman’s Facial treatment and the back facial.
“I would say probably about 30 percent of my clientele are men,” she said. “And a lot of them love the back facial with hot stones because it is very relaxing and men tend to suffer more from back (acne) than women do, and sometimes they just want that relaxing hot stone on their back.”
With her services Robinson also sells skin-care routine products that are pharmaceutical-grade and FDA-approved and are topical lotions that don’t tear skin like commercial-grade products one might fight at a dollar store do.
“The beads in (commercial-grade) just kind of scratch your skin and create more damage,” she explained, while also expressing the importance of following her clinical treatments with daily skin care routines. Just like a bad diet can damage exercising efforts to become healthier, a bad skin care routine can decrease the effectiveness of a clinical treatment.
“If you don’t have a good skin care routine, everything we do here gets erased,” she said.
Luckily she opts for skin care products that are quick and easy to use for those with busy lives, and she tries each treatment and product before she offers it to her clients.
“Everything I have, I try it on myself first,” she said. “I make sure that (it’s) very comfortable.”
Since opening in September, Robinson has been surprised by the amount of out-of-town clients who swing by to receive treatment. Some of them travel as far as Twin Falls, Jerome and Buhl for her services.
Robinson, who has five children with her husband, Dave, explained that the drive to become an esthetician began after she suffered several miscarriages and wanted to focus on doing something she could put her talents toward.
“Going back to school and getting my esthetics (license), that’s what got me through that loss was being able to concentrate on something,” she said. “And I finally felt good with where I’m at and I’m going to do what I want to do now.”
Call 208-312-1237 for more information about the treatments Robinson offers.
Lanora Robinson
Local dog groomer reflects on 17 years of caring for furry friends | 2022-01-03T19:26:02Z | www.idahostatejournal.com | New esthetician in American Falls offers wide range of beauty services | East Idaho | idahostatejournal.com | https://www.idahostatejournal.com/business_journal/east_idaho/new-aesthetician-in-american-falls-offers-wide-range-of-beauty-services/article_744d41d3-a075-569a-85fc-4b52d0375ec3.html | https://www.idahostatejournal.com/business_journal/east_idaho/new-aesthetician-in-american-falls-offers-wide-range-of-beauty-services/article_744d41d3-a075-569a-85fc-4b52d0375ec3.html |
Let them drop the plow
I watched as two healthcare workers tried to make home visits in Pocatello during the Thursday snow storm. Sadly, neither of them could get their cars up the unplowed street. The combination of two storms and no plowing was too much and they were slipping and spinning their wheels. Eventually, one of them dared to park in the drifts and walked to see her patient. The other one parked for a moment but then backed down the street drove away. I hope their patient does not suffer too badly, or for too long.
This problem could have been prevented by plowing after the first storm. But the city has a policy not to plow my street. They occasionally send a truck to throw brine, but with the plow UP. I urge the city to let the drivers drop the plow! The street is fully paved, and as wide as other streets, so why not plow it? People on the street pay their city taxes as well as anybody else. Only plowing part of the city is like only mowing half of your lawn. Not plowing it is affecting people's healthcare. | 2022-01-03T19:26:39Z | www.idahostatejournal.com | Let them drop the plow | Letters To Editor | idahostatejournal.com | https://www.idahostatejournal.com/opinion/letters_to_editor/let-them-drop-the-plow/article_3989e910-936b-5928-96a0-d6ca69363377.html | https://www.idahostatejournal.com/opinion/letters_to_editor/let-them-drop-the-plow/article_3989e910-936b-5928-96a0-d6ca69363377.html |
The global milk supply is tight and farm-level milk prices are up, but so are production costs for Idaho dairy operators.
Milk supply tight and farm-level prices up, along with costs
The global milk supply is contracting and, from a price perspective, that bodes well for Idaho’s dairy industry, which has a large impact on the state’s overall economy.
“Global supply is contracting. Just about everywhere, we’re seeing milk supply contracting,” Dustin Winston, a dairy financial analyst based in Idaho, said Dec. 16 during a University of Idaho Ag Outlook Seminar presentation.
“Demand is in fact pretty strong. As supply becomes limited, there (is) a bidding war for … that supply that is out there,” he said.
Winston said milk prices paid to dairy operators will likely continue to be strong through at least June.
But while a tight milk supply means higher farm-level milk prices for Idaho dairies, the cost of production for those operations has also risen substantially over the past year.
That makes it tough for dairies to eke out a profit even with higher milk prices.
Idaho ranks No. 3 in the nation in total milk production and most of Idaho’s milk is used to produce cheese. That milk is known as Class II milk.
Class III milk futures are currently in the $19-20 per hundredweight (cwt) range for all of 2022.
The break-even price for most of Idaho’s dairy operations has been about $16 to $16.50 per cwt for the past several years.
But higher production costs have pushed that break-even level into the $18.50-$19 per cwt range, said Idaho Dairymen’s Association Executive Director Rick Naerebout.
He said the higher cost of feed has been the main factor behind higher production costs for dairy operations, and higher labor costs haven’t helped.
Despite the higher production costs, most Idaho dairies did make a profit during 2021, Naerebout said.
“Prices were above break-even for Idaho dairy operations in 2021 and they are making some money,” he said. “I expect the average Idaho dairy operation will have had a decent year in 2021.”
But, he added, the uncertainty surrounding production costs, the COVID situation, labor availability and other factors have added a tremendous amount of risk to the business and that has resulted in a number of smaller dairies being purchased by larger operations.
“The amount of risk in the business any more makes it tough for those smaller operations to stick around for another year,” Naerebout said.
Dairy is Idaho’s No. 1 agricultural commodity when it comes to total farm cash receipts, which is what the farmer gets directly for their commodity. Idaho dairies bring in about $3 billion per year in farm cash receipts.
When the hay, corn and other crops needed to feed cows is factored in, the dairy industry’s total economic impact on the state is considerable.
According to the U.S. Dairy Export Council, Idaho’s dairy industry has a $9.1 billion economic impact on the state, contributes 5.7 percent to Idaho’s total gross domestic product, and supports more than $400 million in wages.
While global milk supply is expected to continue to contract, production costs are expected to continue to rise.
“The cost of milk production is rising and will likely rise again (in 2022),” Winston said. | 2022-01-03T19:26:45Z | www.idahostatejournal.com | Milk supply tight and farm-level prices up, along with costs | Dairy | idahostatejournal.com | https://www.idahostatejournal.com/postregister/farmandranch/dairy/milk-supply-tight-and-farm-level-prices-up-along-with-costs/article_273d21a3-7abf-550a-9aff-098c8698e0aa.html | https://www.idahostatejournal.com/postregister/farmandranch/dairy/milk-supply-tight-and-farm-level-prices-up-along-with-costs/article_273d21a3-7abf-550a-9aff-098c8698e0aa.html |
City of Pocatello officials are celebrating recently completed access improvements to the Portneuf River and have announced additional projects.
City of Pocatello photo
Portneuf River access improvement projects completed; more to come
Pocatello officials are celebrating recent Portneuf River access improvements and are announcing additional projects anticipated to begin in the next year or so.
This past fall, the City of Pocatello’s Outdoor Recreation Division and Science and Environment Division, with the help of Idaho Fish and Game and funding from the Brennan family and the Idaho Parks and Recreation Grant Fund, installed two river access points at the end of King Street and at the Abraszewski Trailhead.
"These access points are huge additions to floating the Portneuf River in Pocatello and perfect for paddle boarding or kayaking, even at low flows," city officials said in a Tuesday news release.
Hannah Sanger, science and environment administrator for the city, called it "so exciting" to open up this stretch of the river to floating.
"These additional river access points allow floaters to safely get into the river just downstream of the concrete channel and navigate downstream taking-out at the Abraszewski Trailhead or further downstream, depending on their skill level," Sanger said, adding that she paddle boarded the section "without a fin last summer during the August drought and it was fantastic!"
Sanger said it took her a couple hours to float from King Street to Batiste Bridge. She's looking forward to doing it again now that there are "hardened river access points for easier entry and take outs.”
Now that those access points are completed, the City of Pocatello is looking to further expand the downstream river recreation corridor with two additional access points at Batiste Road and Douglass Lane.
"These proposed river access locations are downstream of spring water inputs and have water all summer long," the city wrote in a news release. "The Batiste Bridge river access is on FMC property, just northwest of the Batiste Bridge. The Douglass Lane river access is on city property and provides the last spot to take out before reaching the reservation, after which point a Trespass Permit is required. Both locations will be developed with gravel parking lots and will have hardened access down to the river for floaters."
City officials are applying for a grant through the Idaho Department of Parks and Recreation to fund these additional river access locations. If the city is successful, the projects would begin in late 2022 or 2023.
To comment or get involved in the efforts, contact Sanger at 208-234-6518 or via email at hsanger@pocatello.us.
Hannah Sanger
Portneuf River | 2022-01-04T19:04:18Z | www.idahostatejournal.com | Portneuf River access improvement projects completed; more to come | Local | idahostatejournal.com | https://www.idahostatejournal.com/news/local/portneuf-river-access-improvement-projects-completed-more-to-come/article_aaf53630-c6be-55b7-bd6a-f1e1822194f7.html | https://www.idahostatejournal.com/news/local/portneuf-river-access-improvement-projects-completed-more-to-come/article_aaf53630-c6be-55b7-bd6a-f1e1822194f7.html |
The third winter storm to hit East Idaho this week is forecast to continue to bring snow and powerful winds to the region through Thursday afternoon.
The storm arrived late Wednesday night in East Idaho and resulted in multiple school closures on Thursday morning.
One East Idaho road, Highway 34, is currently shut down because of the winter weather.
The storm is expected to hit hardest in the Emigration Summit, Wayan, Swan Valley, Palisades and Victor areas where winter storm warnings are in effect. Those areas are forecast to receive up to 11 inches of snow late Wednesday night through Thursday afternoon.
The rest of East Idaho including the Rockland, Malta, Holbrook, Albion, American Falls, Aberdeen, Burley, Rupert, Pocatello, Chubbuck, Fort Hall, Blackfoot, Shelley, Idaho Falls, Ammon, Dubois, Rexburg, Rigby, Sugar City and St. Anthony areas are expected to receive a rain-snow mix from the storm with very little snow accumulation.
The storm is forecast to bring winds of up to 45 mph to East Idaho late Wednesday night through Thursday afternoon that will create blowing and drifting snow. Motorists can expect possible white out conditions during the storm and dangerous roads.
The storm is the third to hit East Idaho this week.
The storms also shut down multiple local roads and as of Thursday morning Highway 34 between Soda Springs and the Idaho-Wyoming border remained closed due to drifting snow.
Once the Wednesday night through Thursday afternoon storm passes more rain and snow are expected through Saturday morning in East Idaho. Clear skies with no precipitation are then in the forecast for the remainder of the weekend in the region.
As of Thursday morning winter weather advisories and winter storm warnings were in effect in much of the rest of Idaho as well as in Washington state, Oregon, Montana, Wyoming and Utah. | 2022-01-06T17:02:03Z | www.idahostatejournal.com | Storm to continue bringing snow, wind to East Idaho through this afternoon | Freeaccess | idahostatejournal.com | https://www.idahostatejournal.com/freeaccess/storm-to-continue-bringing-snow-wind-to-east-idaho-through-this-afternoon/article_d2aefb8d-852e-5bb9-9e8a-654beeec0fe2.html | https://www.idahostatejournal.com/freeaccess/storm-to-continue-bringing-snow-wind-to-east-idaho-through-this-afternoon/article_d2aefb8d-852e-5bb9-9e8a-654beeec0fe2.html |
Art walk set for Friday in downtown Pocatello
By Historic Downtown Pocatello
POCATELLO — Please plan to join us in Historic Downtown Pocatello on Friday, from 5 to 8 p.m. for the first First Friday Art Walk of 2022. Come for a charming evening stroll through our shops and galleries featuring local and regional art, music, food, fashion and more. Plan to stay downtown for a delicious dinner, drinks and live music. There is always plenty of free parking.
The Elwen Cottage, 334 N. Main, has a shop full of treasures and arts and crafts supplies.
The Grecian Key, 314 N. Main, will host live music by Ray. Enjoy a delicious dinner and live music.
Enchantments, 233 N. Main, will be open, showing a variety of artwork and jewelry.
Star Route Brewery, 218 N. Main, will be hosting jewelry artist Hannah Schwartz.
Sixes, 206 N. Main, will be featuring owner and artist Josh Pohlman.
Poky Dot Boutique, 201 N. Main, is excited to start the new year. They will be featuring a variety of handcrafted items. Stop in and share some hot cider and visit.
Old Town Alley Outdoor Gallery, behind the 100 block of N. Main St., will be open to stroll through and experience the amazing talent in our community.
Cherub Capers Creations, 115 N. Main, is showing a variety of treasures and collections.
Brick 243, 243 W. Center, will be featuring smoked salmon crostini as the evening special for Art Walk.
MIP Life Designs, 147 S. Arthur, will be hosting a vision board creation workshop beginning at 5:30 p.m. Receive guidance to release blocks and intuitively receive your word for the new year while creating your vision board. $25 registration.
Kanda’s & Company, 159 S. Main, will host singer Lynette Neifert performing throughout the evening.
DNH Studios, Station Square Suite G, will be open with a shop full of handcrafted items.
A Family Affair Candle Company, 200 S. Main St., Suite Q, will be showing photography by David O’Riordan.
The Union Taproom and 313, inside the Historic Yellowstone Hotel, will be hosting BOGO happy hour from 4 to 6 p.m. and open mic beginning at 7 p.m.
The Elks Lodge, 410 S. Main St., will host music by Hillbilly Band from 7:30 to 10:30 p.m. Food and music are open to the public.
Barricade, 308 E. Center, is hosting artist Kiana Spillman, who will be showing fiber arts, watercolors, handmade paper and original paintings.
Portneuf Valley Brewing, 615 S. 1st, will be showing the work of Barking Goat Studio. Live music by Almost Famous in the loft from 8 p.m. to midnight.
The Gallows, 150 S. 4th, will be hosting a make-your-own shadow box event, plus an ugly sweater contest. Stop by for laughs and light holiday refreshments.
Craftology Company, 525 E. Center, will host a make-and-take art project. Stop in and create your own art.
First Friday '80’s exercise pub crawl gets underway at 7 pm. Start at the Union Taproom where you get a wristband and then head to the Elks Lodge, Star Route, Oasis Sports Bar and end at the First National Bar. Each of the participating bars will offer drink specials and raffle tickets for each drink you purchase. Tickets are turned in at the last stop for a chance to win some great swag. Entry proceeds go to a local non-profit and dressing up for the theme makes it even more fun.
For more information about all the exciting events coming up in Historic Downtown Pocatello, please visit www.historicdowntownpocatello.com. | 2022-01-06T19:16:54Z | www.idahostatejournal.com | Art walk set for Friday in downtown Pocatello | Community | idahostatejournal.com | https://www.idahostatejournal.com/community/art-walk-set-for-friday-in-downtown-pocatello/article_2b3495d3-c701-5505-bec4-817baa44cbd7.html | https://www.idahostatejournal.com/community/art-walk-set-for-friday-in-downtown-pocatello/article_2b3495d3-c701-5505-bec4-817baa44cbd7.html |
At the scent of water
This past week I received a wonderful new book written by Jim Parratt, a dear friend of ours who is a Scottish medical professor and researcher in Scotland. The book, entitled “A Scent of Water: Adventures in Faith and Science” is available from the Handsel Press Edinburgh.
"A Scent of Water" — what an interesting name for a book. What could it mean? As I read his introduction, he explained that the book’s title came from Job 14:7-9 (NJB): “There is always hope for a tree: when felled, it can start its life again; its shoots continue to sprout. Its roots may have grown old in the Earth, its stump rotting in the ground, but let it scent the water, and it buds, and puts out branches like a plant newly set.”
In this passage, Job is talking about hope. In the midst of his suffering and loss, Job wrestles with the issue of hope. He has lost his family, his financial resources, his farms and farming equipment, and most laborers. He has lost his physical health and is covered with boils on his skin. Where is God when life gets this bad? In the preceding chapter, 13:15 (NLT), Job hopes against hope, saying: “God might kill me, but I have no other hope. I am going to argue my case with Him.”
Job went through a lot worse problems than most of us could even imagine. Yet Job did not curse God nor blame him for his circumstances. In the passage regarding the scent of water, he seems to be implying that even a tree has more hope of regaining life after death than man. A tree can be cut down, its stump rotted, and be declared dead, but at the scent of water, life can again break forth from beneath the ground and new shoots emerge from the soil. Life-giving water can resurrect things thought dead and gone. Job lived thousands of years before the resurrection of Jesus. Yet his faith and logic seemed to be probing into the possibility of resurrection hope for humans. For if a tree can come back alive, perhaps God will make a way for human life to resurrect into new life as well. At the scent of life-giving water, new life can come.
Most of us have had an experience where a plant or bush that we thought was thoroughly dead and gone revived again. Several years ago I thought I had killed my grapevines. I pruned them back to almost nothing but stubs. When spring came, there was no life in them. I was discouraged. I went to Home Depot to buy some new vine starters. Three weeks later, the vines that I thought were dead and gone began to send out shoots, and we had the largest crop of grapes we ever had. If God can bring new life into grapevines that seemed deader than dead, can ge not raise you from the dead? If God can turn around a bleak hopeless scenario for plants or wildlife, can’t he do the same, or more, for we who are made in his image?
When Lazarus was sick and Mary and Martha sent for Jesus to come and heal him before he died, Jesus purposely delayed coming (see John 11:1-44). Jesus waited so that people would see the glory of God and see that God can raise a person from the dead. After raising Lazarus, Jesus said in John 11:25-26 (CSB): “I am the resurrection and the life. The one who believes in Me, even if he dies, will live. Everyone who lives and believes in Me will never die. Do you believe this?”
At the scent of the water that Jesus gives, our dead spirits are revived and infused with God’s living water, and we begin to thrive when God moves into our lives via the Holy Spirit. As Jesus explained to the woman at the well, in John 4:13-14 (NLT): “Anyone who drinks this water will soon become thirsty again. But those who drink the water I give will never be thirsty again. It becomes a fresh, bubbling spring within them, giving them eternal life.”
What area of your life seems dead and beyond hope? Are you spiritually dead? He can make you spiritually alive. Is your hope gone? He is the God of all hope. Are your visions or dreams crushed? He can open your eyes to see new possibilities.
In this New Year, why not tune your spiritual sensors to get a scent of God’s living water, which can infuse you with newness and the ability to live again?
Jim Parratt | 2022-01-06T19:17:00Z | www.idahostatejournal.com | At the scent of water | Community | idahostatejournal.com | https://www.idahostatejournal.com/community/at-the-scent-of-water/article_4b06c8d1-4a96-5f63-820d-7dd021b4f9fb.html | https://www.idahostatejournal.com/community/at-the-scent-of-water/article_4b06c8d1-4a96-5f63-820d-7dd021b4f9fb.html |
Kami McGann
Choose Joy Endowment established in honor of ISU alumna
POCATELLO — Choose joy.
Words you could hear not only spoken, but could also witness being lived and embodied by the late Kami McGann, a 2005 Idaho State University graduate, mother of two and medical laboratory scientist. To honor her life and memory, the new Kami McGann Choose Joy Scholarship Endowment created by Kami’s husband Scott, aims to share Kami’s love of medical laboratory science, her infectious joyful spirit and help with tuition costs for students at ISU.
Students enrolled in the medical laboratory science program at ISU are eligible for the scholarship, which provided $1,000 to one student in this, its initial year. In future years, two students will receive scholarships, thanks to an outpouring of funds provided by Kami and Scott’s business colleagues and friends, along with personal funds from Scott himself. Scott says he and their two young boys “wanted a way to recognize the phenomenal, amazing person that Kami was.”
Britney Black was selected to receive the inaugural Choose Joy scholarship this year, by the medical laboratory science Program Director Rachel Hulse and faculty in the program.
“The ISU MLS program is honored to be able to award the first scholarship from the Kami McGann Endowment to Britney Black,” Hulse said. “Britney is a hard-working Master’s student in the ISU MLS program, who is dedicated to serving her future profession, and she gets along well with her peers. In these ways, we find her to be a perfect recipient of this gift honoring Kami.”
The scholarship came as a surprise to Black, but is one that she is deeply honored to accept.
“When I got that email, it was the greatest surprise of my life. I am just so grateful to be in this program and be able to learn what I am learning. And I am incredibly grateful for the scholarship also, I am still mind blown about it. I would love to learn more about Kami and about her life,” she said.
Kami was lab manager and lead scientist for Valor Health in Emmett. During her 16-year career, it was not uncommon for her patients to report that they never bruised when Kami drew their blood.
Those that knew her repeatedly share the same sentiment as they recall memories and recount her story. “Always joyful, with an infectious smile.”
“Inspirational and able to choose joy in any situation.”
Brad Turpen, CEO for Valor Health and Kami’s boss, says it was her “choose joy” attitude that helped change the entire culture of the hospital staff, a mantra that Kami left as a lasting legacy that still perpetuates there today.
"Kami was a beloved member of our professional MLS community. Moreso, she was a friend to all. Kami embodied service, integrity, work-ethic, and kindness.”
In April 2019 Kami was diagnosed with triple negative breast cancer. After bravely conquering nearly two years of treatment, including seven types of chemotherapy, radiation and a lumpectomy, she passed away on Feb. 19. Throughout her treatment, and even amid the COVID-19 pandemic, she never missed a day of work and continued to provide meaningful care to her patients. And she did so with a positivity and cheerful optimism not typically expressed by those who have received a non-curable diagnosis.
“Kami was a beloved member of our professional MLS community. Moreso, she was a friend to all. Kami embodied service, integrity, work-ethic and kindness,” Hulse said.
Scott says Kami’s love of science and devotion to her work, along with an insatiable curiosity and spirituality were the driving force in her positivity.
“She just saw too much to miss out on to choose any other approach,” he said.
Britney plans to graduate in the spring of 2023 and, like Kami, looks forward to helping people in meaningful ways in her professional career.
“I really love people and want to help people,” she said. “I really enjoy hematology and phlebotomy. I have this passion for biology, and I think life is incredible, amazing and complex.”
To learn more about the medical laboratory science program at ISU, visit isu.edu/mls.
Joy Endowment
Britney Black
Rachel Hulse | 2022-01-06T23:20:33Z | www.idahostatejournal.com | Choose Joy Endowment established in honor of ISU alumna | Community | idahostatejournal.com | https://www.idahostatejournal.com/community/choose-joy-endowment-established-in-honor-of-isu-alumna/article_b5922df6-37e6-5d35-b0c7-453227c5ca57.html | https://www.idahostatejournal.com/community/choose-joy-endowment-established-in-honor-of-isu-alumna/article_b5922df6-37e6-5d35-b0c7-453227c5ca57.html |
Trevor Hawkins
IDAHO FALLS — At approximately 9:45 a.m. yesterday morning, Idaho Falls Police Officers went to an address in the 400 block of Call Avenue with the intent of serving an arrest warrant on Trevor Hawkins.
Hawkins failed to make a complete stop at two different intersections with clear stop signs in place.
Idaho Falls Police Officers in two separate police vehicles initiated their emergency red and blue police lights attempting to perform a traffic stop on Hawkins’ vehicle. Instead of complying with the stop, Hawkins abruptly changed lanes and made a turn from Broadway north onto Saturn Avenue.
Officers noted that Hawkins was driving too fast and did not appear to be paying attention to oncoming traffic. As a result, Hawkins struck another vehicle that was traveling west on Broadway.
Hawkins did not stop for this collision and continued onto Saturn Avenue where he accelerated away from the police vehicles behind him. Officers activated their emergency sirens as well and Hawkins continued to accelerate attempting to evade and flee from the officers.
Officers noted that Hawkins speed was approximately 50 mph, despite Saturn Avenue having a posted speed limit of 30 mph.
As Hawkins approached Grandview, he lost control of his vehicle and collided with a snowbank near Saturn Avenue and Vega Circle.
Hawkins fled from the vehicle on foot and was pursued by Idaho Falls Police Officers, also on foot, onto Grandview.
Officers yelled multiple commands to Hawkins stating that they were police officers and instructing him to stop.
Eventually Hawkins stopped running, followed officers’ instructions, and was taken into custody without further incident.
Trevor Hawkins, a 30-year-old Idaho Falls resident was ultimately arrested for a Bonneville County Felony Probation Violation Warrant, a Felony Bannock County Warrant, Felony Eluding/Attempting to Elude a Police Officer in a Motor Vehicle, Misdemeanor Resisting/Obstructing Arrest, Misdemeanor Failure to Stop for a Motor Vehicle Accident, Misdemeanor Possession of Drug Paraphernalia, and Misdemeanor Providing False Information to a Police Officer. | 2022-01-07T01:13:40Z | www.idahostatejournal.com | Police: Fugitive arrested after car chase, collision with other vehicle and foot pursuit | Freeaccess | idahostatejournal.com | https://www.idahostatejournal.com/freeaccess/police-fugitive-arrested-after-car-chase-collision-with-other-vehicle-and-foot-pursuit/article_e93d2cb2-dbfc-52d6-9cf9-1ec17901dc0a.html | https://www.idahostatejournal.com/freeaccess/police-fugitive-arrested-after-car-chase-collision-with-other-vehicle-and-foot-pursuit/article_e93d2cb2-dbfc-52d6-9cf9-1ec17901dc0a.html |
Pirate, formerly known as Daniel Selovich
POCATELLO — A transient man named Pirate with a face covered in Polynesian-style tattoos was ordered to pay $615 in fines Tuesday after pleading guilty to two misdemeanor counts of battery.
Pirate, a 43-year-old man who legally changed his name in 2013 from Daniel Lloyd Selovich, initially faced two counts of felony aggravated battery, two counts of misdemeanor battery and a felony enhancement for being a persistent violator for the Nov. 9, 2020 incident.
Pirate was accused of burning a Downey woman with a lit cigarette, ashing in her mouth and gagging her with his foot, the Idaho State Journal reported last year. Pirate was arrested at the Chubbuck Walmart on Nov. 11, 2020.
Pirate and his Pocatello attorney Stratton Laggis reached a plea agreement with Bannock County prosecutors in November that resulted in prosecutors dismissing all the felony charges against him on the condition that he plead guilty to the two misdemeanor battery charges, according to court records.
On Tuesday, Pirate was ordered to serve 180 days in jail for each of the two misdemeanor battery charges, though he received credit for time served, which totaled more than the 360 days that were ordered. Pirate was ordered to be released from jail following the sentencing hearing Tuesday.
Pirate was ordered to pay a total of $615 in fines and court costs.
Stratton Laggis | 2022-01-07T01:13:52Z | www.idahostatejournal.com | Man named Pirate released from jail after serving one year in relation to battery incident | Crimes & Court | idahostatejournal.com | https://www.idahostatejournal.com/news/crimes_court/man-named-pirate-released-from-jail-after-serving-one-year-in-relation-to-battery-incident/article_45fdae67-92eb-5cde-a0da-214d2f2af5f1.html | https://www.idahostatejournal.com/news/crimes_court/man-named-pirate-released-from-jail-after-serving-one-year-in-relation-to-battery-incident/article_45fdae67-92eb-5cde-a0da-214d2f2af5f1.html |
Matt Bringhurst Photo
By Idaho Department of Fish and Game
CHUBBUCK — Just after 9:00 am on Thursday, Jan. 6, Idaho Department of Fish and Game received several reports of a bull moose moving through neighborhoods near Chubbuck Elementary School off of Hawthorne Road.
One caller had seen the moose hanging out in yards along Joy Street and near Chubbuck Road. Other calls reported the moose in the field behind the elementary school.
Moose can sometimes be defensive if people approach them, and these large animals certainly can be a hazard to motorists when crossing streets.
Idaho Fish and Game personnel along with City of Chubbuck police officers and animal control officers responded to the area. Together they monitored the movements of the moose as it eventually worked its way south of the intersection of Siphon and N. Laughran Roads into the Portneuf River bottoms.
“When we first got the calls, we weren’t sure what our day was going to hold for us or the moose,” says Regional Conservation Officer Scott Wright. “Sometimes moose get set in their ways and won’t leave an area. In this case, the moose strolled through open areas and yards, across streets, from pasture to pasture, and right out of town. It was the perfect ending for a wildlife call like this one.”
Moose are quite often seen in the open spaces and pastures in the rural area to the west and south of Chubbuck, especially next to the river bottom. However, sightings in town are not as common. Fish and Game cautions the public to always give wildlife their space to avoid potentially dangerous encounters.
“A huge thanks goes to those who reported the moose as well as to the City of Chubbuck police and animal control officers who responded,” said Wright. | 2022-01-07T03:02:25Z | www.idahostatejournal.com | Bull moose on the loose in Chubbuck | Freeaccess | idahostatejournal.com | https://www.idahostatejournal.com/freeaccess/bull-moose-on-the-loose-in-chubbuck/article_7a4a4ccf-1046-5946-9159-d8b3e9ba9596.html | https://www.idahostatejournal.com/freeaccess/bull-moose-on-the-loose-in-chubbuck/article_7a4a4ccf-1046-5946-9159-d8b3e9ba9596.html |
Department of Homeland Security stock image
One more blast of winter weather is forecast to hit much of East Idaho on Friday before skies clear for the weekend.
The National Weather Service has issued winter weather advisories calling for up to 8 inches of snow Friday morning through Friday night in the Island Park, Driggs, Tetonia and Ashton areas and up to 4 inches of snow during the same time frame in the Emigration Summit, Wayan, Swan Valley, Palisades and Victor areas. The higher mountains in all of those areas could receive even more snow depending on the severity of the storm.
This final storm of the week will also bring 40 mph winds to East Idaho that will create blowing and drifting snow in the areas under winter weather advisories. Motorists should expect hazardous road conditions in those areas Friday morning through Friday night.
"Slow down and use caution while traveling," the weather service recommends.
The rest of East Idaho including the American Falls, Aberdeen, Pocatello, Chubbuck, Preston, Malad, Montpelier, Soda Springs, Lava Hot Springs, Blackfoot, Fort Hall, Idaho Falls, Ammon, Rexburg, Rigby and St. Anthony areas can expect a rain-snow mix on Friday with little snow accumulation.
Friday's winter weather will cap off a week of snow, strong winds and rain for East Idaho that led to numerous school closures and several roads being temporarily shut down.
As of Thursday night one road — Highway 34 between Soda Springs and the Idaho-Wyoming border — remained shut down because of snowy conditions.
It's possible some of the rain and snow might linger into Saturday morning in East Idaho but beyond that conditions are expected to be clear of any precipitation in the region through the rest of the weekend.
The weather service is also reporting that dangerous avalanche conditions exist in the mountains of Bear Lake and Franklin counties because of the multiple winter storms that have hit the region this week.
Outside of East Idaho, winter weather warnings are currently in effect in the central Idaho mountains and northern Idaho as well as in all of the states surrounding Idaho. | 2022-01-07T06:26:50Z | www.idahostatejournal.com | Winter weather advisories in effect for much of East Idaho on Friday | Freeaccess | idahostatejournal.com | https://www.idahostatejournal.com/freeaccess/winter-weather-advisories-in-effect-for-much-of-east-idaho-on-friday/article_95425859-d029-524a-8d4d-d093a1fcbb93.html | https://www.idahostatejournal.com/freeaccess/winter-weather-advisories-in-effect-for-much-of-east-idaho-on-friday/article_95425859-d029-524a-8d4d-d093a1fcbb93.html |
Interstate 15 southbound is completely shut down south of Pocatello.
Multiple wrecks involving semis occurred on the freeway Friday morning prompting state police to close all southbound lanes from the Portneuf exit near Century High School to the Inkom Port of Entry. At least one person was injured in the crashes.
Motorists are being encouraged to avoid the area until further notice.
We are receiving reports that conditions on the freeway are very icy. A rain-snow mix is in the forecast for the Pocatello area on Friday so motorists should use caution while driving. | 2022-01-07T15:13:11Z | www.idahostatejournal.com | INTERSTATE 15 SOUTHBOUND SHUT DOWN SOUTH OF POCATELLO BECAUSE OF WRECKS | Freeaccess | idahostatejournal.com | https://www.idahostatejournal.com/freeaccess/interstate-15-southbound-shut-down-south-of-pocatello-because-of-wrecks/article_be1f965b-d130-5dd1-82db-021a5c8f873f.html | https://www.idahostatejournal.com/freeaccess/interstate-15-southbound-shut-down-south-of-pocatello-because-of-wrecks/article_be1f965b-d130-5dd1-82db-021a5c8f873f.html |
Your 80-year-old mother goes to that same store for a loaf of bread but learns that the loaf that cost $2 last year now costs $3, and the tax has gone from 12 cents to 18 cents, an increase of 50 percent. Mom’s Social Security check has not gone up 50 percent, but the food tax sure has. The State Tax Commission just loves inflation at the checkout, where their cut grows with each price increase. Idaho’s food tax is imposed on all food, even if eaten by a senior.
Idaho is in the minority when it comes to food tax. Only five states impose a tax upon kids, seniors and all who eat. Only two states have a food tax higher than Idaho, making us the third-highest food taxing state in the country. That’s quite an honor, and this year you can thank Speaker Scott Bedke.
The food tax has been around for years but has always been a political hot potato (pun intended). Elected officials cover for each other to prevent the tax from being repealed. Five years ago, Gov. C.L. “Butch” Otter promised he would veto any food tax repeal, which allowed a majority in both the House and Senate to vote for the repeal, knowing that Otter would veto. Otter issued a late veto, giving everyone else cover, yet kept the tax in place. Congressional candidate Bryan Smith challenged Otter’s late veto, but the Supreme Court upheld the food tax. Great system.
Last year, Gov. Brad Little promised that he would sign a food tax repeal bill, sending a clear message to the Legislature that the repeal bill must not be put on his desk. Speaker Scott Bedke understood that message and single-handedly prevented any repeal bill from getting a committee hearing. Because no bill was considered in committee, no bill was passed, and Gov. Little didn’t have to sign. The system worked again, against all who eat food. All the food taxes you paid in 2021 were solely thanks to Scott Bedke. Even with a tax surplus of $1.5 billion, Bedke refused to even allow debate on food tax repeal. He must really want that 6 cents.
The legislative session begins Monday. Repeal of the food tax should be the first bill heard in the Revenue and Taxation Committee. When that doesn’t happen, you can thank Scott Bedke who now wants to be lieutenant governor. If Bedke makes kids and seniors pay at the grocery checkout, make him pay at the polls in May. Vote for anybody but Scott Bedke and his ridiculous food tax. | 2022-01-07T19:25:37Z | www.idahostatejournal.com | Bedke’s food tax must be repealed | Columns | idahostatejournal.com | https://www.idahostatejournal.com/opinion/columns/bedke-s-food-tax-must-be-repealed/article_712a52fd-856d-5611-b43a-60dfaecee04b.html | https://www.idahostatejournal.com/opinion/columns/bedke-s-food-tax-must-be-repealed/article_712a52fd-856d-5611-b43a-60dfaecee04b.html |
A quick lesson on the art of mowboard plowing is a good place to start this story. It’s considered antiquated nowadays with the GPS-controlled, almost drone-like farming methods, but it was the standard back in the good ole days.
We owned two of these magical implements. One was a five-bottom plow shear and the other one had six. The six-bottom was hydraulic powered, and the slightly smaller, older five-bottom had a rope pull that when you reached back with your right arm and tugged, it would activate it to either lift out of the ground or unlock to drop back into the dirt. Which one do you surmise I was always assigned? Yep, the manual rope pull!
These plows were led by the torque and horsepower of a Caterpillar D4D special application tractor. Maximum speed with the plow in the ground of 2 to 3 mph. You could not gain speed by cheating or partially lifting the thick gauged metal scoop-shaped mowboards out of the ground — it was all or nothing. They were only used one month of the year to till a few hundred acres of stubble-covered harvested grain fields. That left 11 months for them to sit and gather rust on the metal plow shears. Less than an hour of the scouring friction of the heavy clay soil brought them to a mirror-like sheen clear enough for shaving. The edges would actually attain a razor-like quality sharp enough to slice a tomato without producing juice!
Each of the three wheels had a responsibility. One rode in the previously formed ditch or furrow. Another on the level ground close to the rear of the tractor hitch to keep the plow level, and the third trailed at the most posterior angle of the row of plow shanks forming a new fresh furrow. As the tractor crawled along at a feverishly boring and tedious speed, the row of sturdy scoops churned and literally tossed the stubble and soil into the rows formed as the plow dug deep into the ground. The goal being a smooth, level field free of "bath tubs" or "hog wallows."
When asked why this furrow-filling detail was so vital and in need of the watchful consideration by the “plow jockey,” my Dad explained it in summary like this: “Every spot where there is a bathtub, the harrow will miss and a weed will grow and rob the grain of water. SO KEEP THE WHEEL IN THE FURROW!” Just like Mom did not want weeds in her garden or flowers, mostly for aesthetic reasons, Dad did not allow weeds in his grain fields from a production philosophy.
You see where I am going with this story? The lesson may be about staying focused on your goals. Doing a thorough job of “keeping the wheel in the furrow” to reduce the chances of “weeds” or ineffectual outcomes. It requires your full effort and attention to slice through the boredom and fatiguing pace, much like that plow sliced through the soil. It will not be easy, it will seem endless, but in the end as you pull out of that field and look back over your shoulder at a clean, wholesome-smelling expanse of earth, it will all be worth it.
Thanks, Dad. Job well done!
Todd Thomas was born and raised in Preston. He's currently serving his fourth term on the Preston City Council and works full time as a physical therapist. He can be reached at toddt@prestonid.us.
Furrow | 2022-01-07T19:25:50Z | www.idahostatejournal.com | Keep the wheel in the furrow | Columns | idahostatejournal.com | https://www.idahostatejournal.com/opinion/columns/keep-the-wheel-in-the-furrow/article_8f610002-6703-56d2-9a6f-9b596092e585.html | https://www.idahostatejournal.com/opinion/columns/keep-the-wheel-in-the-furrow/article_8f610002-6703-56d2-9a6f-9b596092e585.html |
Belle's Mustard-Crusted Lamb Chops
A not-so-traditional dish that may become a new family favorite
Turkey, ham and roast beef are the traditional main dishes for this time of year, but why not try something different for the new year. Lamb is a rich and flavorful meat perfect for special occasions, and it’s relatively easy to make. Often lamb is paired with mint, and I love it that way, but my mustard-crusted lamb adds a special crunchy topping that gives the meat added flavor and juiciness. It’s a delicious and often underutilized meat that may become a new family tradition.
Belle’s Mustard-Crusted Lamb Chops
1 rack of lamb with 8 chops (1 ½ – 2 pounds)
¾ cup Italian dry breadcrumbs
1-2 tablespoons Dijon mustard
Trim the majority of the fat cap off the top of the lamb, then season with salt and pepper on both sides. Heat vegetable oil in a large skillet over high heat, then sear the lamb until browned on all sides. Mix the breadcrumbs, parsley, rosemary, salt and pepper in a shallow bowl. Drizzle the breadcrumb mixture with the olive oil and toss to coat. Place the lamb on a rimmed baking pan. Spread the mustard over the top evenly, then press the breadcrumb mixture on top. Gently pat the breadcrumbs down so that they stick and form a crust. Cover the bones with foil and roast, bone side down at 425 F for 10 minutes, then reduce the heat to 350 F and roast for about 15-25 minutes longer until the internal temperature reaches 130 F for rare, 140 F for medium-rare, or 160 for well done. Check it often, so it doesn’t overcook. An instant-read thermometer is vital. Remove from the oven and allow to rest for 5-10 minutes. Slice the rack into four sections (two chops each). | 2022-01-07T21:23:05Z | www.idahostatejournal.com | A not-so-traditional dish that may become a new family favorite | Community | idahostatejournal.com | https://www.idahostatejournal.com/community/a-not-so-traditional-dish-that-may-become-a-new-family-favorite/article_4d6890ef-8f6f-5fca-ab5c-a572b82d75a1.html | https://www.idahostatejournal.com/community/a-not-so-traditional-dish-that-may-become-a-new-family-favorite/article_4d6890ef-8f6f-5fca-ab5c-a572b82d75a1.html |
Tim and Sheri Forhan receive award for Outstanding Philanthropist for gift to United Way to help struggling families
By United Way of Southeastern Idaho
POCATELLO — Tim and Sheri Forhan of Blackfoot are the winners of the Outstanding Adult Philanthropist Award at Idaho Philanthropy Day in Eastern Idaho for their gift to help United Way of Southeastern Idaho assist struggling families.
Earlier this year, the Forhans gave $20,000 toward two innovative programs that the United Way of Southeastern Idaho is working on, a community resource locator called findhelpidaho.org (currently accessed as findhelp.org) and a new skills development center in Pocatello that will be located in the old car wash on 5th Ave. and is on track to open in 2022.
The community resource locator findhelpidaho.org will connect community agencies with the community members they serve. It will also allow "asset limited income constrained and employed" families to easily locate community resources in a single digital platform. Once complete, community members will no longer need to call service after service looking for help, which leads to frustration and re-telling traumatic stories. Instead, a process that once took days will be complete in a matter of hours.
Once community members receive the short-term help they need through findhelp.org, the United Way will work to help them achieve long-term stability. In partnership with Pocatello’s Housing Alliance and Community Partnerships, the skills development center will help housing voucher recipients gain the knowledge and skills to become more financially secure in our community.
“Sheri and I, along with the staff at United Way, believe that addressing the root causes of problems leads to more long-term solutions,” Tim Forhan said. “We believe in supporting a holistic and sustainable approach to making our community better, and we think these programs will make a big difference in the lives of our local families.”
Winners were chosen by the Idaho Philanthropy Day judges committee after studying each nomination to decide which ones best encompass the spirit of philanthropy, including time, talent, treasure and involvement in the community.
“The Forhans’ contribution merits special recognition because it was given during the very early stages of these programs, and that early investment shows a lot of courage and vision,” said Amy Wuest, community resources director for UWSEI. “It shows their commitment not just to the initiatives, but to the United Way as a whole and a belief in what our organization does and the hard work that we do to advance ALICE families across the Southeastern Idaho region.”
Idaho Philanthropy Day is celebrated statewide with award ceremonies to recognize the philanthropic work of nonprofit organizations, foundations, businesses and individuals nominated by their peers. | 2022-01-07T21:23:11Z | www.idahostatejournal.com | Tim and Sheri Forhan receive award for Outstanding Philanthropist for gift to United Way to help struggling families | Community | idahostatejournal.com | https://www.idahostatejournal.com/community/tim-and-sheri-forhan-receive-award-for-outstanding-philanthropist-for-gift-to-united-way-to/article_84354204-a4e3-5581-a4d3-3e04ef76ac50.html | https://www.idahostatejournal.com/community/tim-and-sheri-forhan-receive-award-for-outstanding-philanthropist-for-gift-to-united-way-to/article_84354204-a4e3-5581-a4d3-3e04ef76ac50.html |
We need to hear and accept the truth.
As I write this, President Joe Biden has just addressed the nation on the anniversary of the assault on the Capitol, Jan. 6, 2021. It is a date that might be added to other dates in American history marking tragic events: Pearl Harbor, 9/11, or Nov. 22, 1963, the day of President Kennedy’s assassination. In his scathing speech, President Biden condemned the violence and accused former President Doanld Trump of creating and spreading a "web of lies about the 2020 election."
Speaking in Statuary Hall just outside the House chamber, Biden said that "for the first time in our history a president not just lost the election, he tried to prevent a peaceful transfer of power as a violent mob breached the Capitol."
It was a forceful speech from President Biden, and it carried a warning: "We must make sure that never happens again."
The president also made a comment that is painful to consider. One insurrectionist who breached the Capitol building was carrying a Confederate flag. That has never happened, not even during the Civil War when Fort Stevens was attacked. The Capitol is the place where President Abraham Lincoln lay in state in an open coffin. Here is an observation from journalist Noah Brooks who watched from atop the new dome:
"Directly beneath me lay the casket in which the dead President lay at full length, far, far below; and like black atoms moving over a sheet of gray paper, the slow-moving mourners, seen from a perpendicular above them, crept silently in two dark lines across the pavement of the rotunda, forming an ellipse around the coffin and joining as they advanced toward the eastern portal and disappeared."
Have we come from this historical description of Abraham Lincoln lying in state to Jacob Chansley, a self-proclaimed shaman prancing around the Senate floor in face paint and a horned hat?
I know that many Trump supporters and even Republicans in office believe that the election was stolen by Biden and his supporters. Aside from the extreme difficulty of successfully executing such a massive conspiracy, President Biden made one point that is hard to refute. The ballot contains many candidates, not just one for president. If the national election was rigged, why did so many Republican candidates, except for Donald Trump, do so well? Should those results be questioned? It is important to note that some ballots were counted two and three times and Biden actually received more votes in the recounts.
Still, the “Big Lie” persists that Joe Biden is an illegitimate president, and even old friends have become enemies over the 2020 election results.
More violence like the invasion of the Capitol building could erupt, again.
Our democracy and voting rights are at risk, so I hope the midterm elections this year, regardless of the outcome, will be secure and keep the Constitution intact.
Noah Brooks | 2022-01-07T21:23:36Z | www.idahostatejournal.com | Biden’s address on a sad anniversary | Columns | idahostatejournal.com | https://www.idahostatejournal.com/opinion/columns/biden-s-address-on-a-sad-anniversary/article_cea2f096-d382-5742-aa7c-f127abdb1462.html | https://www.idahostatejournal.com/opinion/columns/biden-s-address-on-a-sad-anniversary/article_cea2f096-d382-5742-aa7c-f127abdb1462.html |
Jesse Robison
Fallible justice
By Jesse Robison
My decision to become a lawyer wasn’t driven by a desire to change the world or for the lure of making money. Cloudy vision more aptly describes my status when I was first sworn to uphold the law in Nevada. Truth is, I had no idea what lay ahead.
A speaker at my swearing-in-ceremony offered the following observation. He said we newbies assumed we had survived the worst of it because we had completed grueling studies and passed a tough bar exam. He assured us greater challenges would be confronted in the practice of law.
This highly successful attorney stated that we would confront circumstances during our careers where there would be no question what justice commanded, but that a court or other authority would render an unjust decision, and we would be powerless to change the outcome. He exhibited emotive sincerity when he said that accepting the weight of that injustice would be more painful than anything we had thus far endured.
I assumed the man was exaggerating the potential for injustice. Surely, if one did their job properly, justice should prevail. I was a naive rube starting what would become a tempestuous relationship with the practice of law. Those words were uttered in 1981, and 41 years later I can count on one hand my encounters with manifest injustice, but every one of them is burned into my soul.
Four unjust outcomes during a 41-year legal career is arguably a good track record, but that’s no comfort for people forever seared by judicial injustice. One client asked me if Idaho’s highest court could have been bribed. I assured him that wasn’t the case even though I struggled to comprehend their shallow decision. Idaho lawyers are charged to demonstrate “respect for the legal system and those who serve it, including judges,” and I have that general respect, but when manifest injustice occurs it’s a fair observation that no system is perfect where humans are involved.
The reality in our legal system is that fallible human beings reside under those robes. And the higher you ascend with those robes, the greater becomes the potential for grave injustice because tremendous and, at times, irreversible power is wielded. Injustice can occur at any level in our legal system, but my experience and opinion is that it’s far more likely to occur at the appellate level, which is the inverse of what laypeople might surmise.
When I attended law school, our constitutional law professor asked the class why the U.S. Supreme Court had overturned a sound precedent. No one had offered a logical explanation, so I raised my hand and suggested we consider the premise the court had been stacked with justices of a different political persuasion. The professor bristled and dismissed my suggestion, but several students approached me after class confirming their belief in that premise.
We are seeing this issue play out over the question of what the U.S. Supreme Court will do with Roe v. Wade. After watching Mitch McConnell’s manipulations, is there any doubt the court has been politically stacked with religious conservatives who could reverse a decision supported by a majority of Americans? Will it happen?
There have been some excellent columns written recently by local columnists regarding the issues around abortion rights, and there’s little to add to this complicated subject. I believe, subject to reasonable limitations, that women should have the right to choose not to carry an unwanted pregnancy. Whether it be from rape, incest or errant sex, this need will always exist. In a just society, that right should not be a prerogative granted solely to the wealthy.
However, columnist Trent Clark developed a sound thesis regarding the medical science that has developed since Roe v. Wade was decided. He credibly identified grounds that could warrant some tempering of the near 50-year-old decision.
It’s anybody’s guess, but I doubt the Supreme Court will fully reverse Roe v. Wade. That action would confirm the court’s stacking has delivered a bona fide political extension of the conservative state.
There is no other logical conclusion: The basic privacy right of choice for women has been determined and protected for 50 years. A full reversal would broadcast to the world that constitutional law in America is more about who sits under those robes than it is about dispensing justice.
Jesse Robison is a Pocatello native educated in Idaho. He works as a mediator and insurance claim consultant, but his passion is public art. Robison has spearheaded art improvements throughout Pocatello, including the Kizuna Garden located at the Pocatello airport, and serves on the Bistline Foundation. | 2022-01-07T21:23:42Z | www.idahostatejournal.com | Fallible justice | Columns | idahostatejournal.com | https://www.idahostatejournal.com/opinion/columns/fallible-justice/article_100afa57-ce90-59a5-b1c4-4de19e0cc426.html | https://www.idahostatejournal.com/opinion/columns/fallible-justice/article_100afa57-ce90-59a5-b1c4-4de19e0cc426.html |
Tim and Sheri Forhan received the Outstanding Adult Philanthropist Award at the recent Idaho Philanthropy Day celebration for Eastern Idaho, United Way announced on Friday.
The Forhans' donation is helping United Way establish a community resource locator called findhelpidaho.org, which is currently accessed at findhelp.org, as well as a new skills development center in Pocatello that will be located in the old car wash on Fifth Avenue, according to a United Way press release. The development center is expected to open some time this year.
The community resource locator will help agencies and those whom they serve connect with one another. Furthermore, it will help "asset limited income constrained and employed" families to access community resources electronically.
The Idaho Philanthropy Day judging committee sought to select award recipients who best encompassed the "spirit of philanthropy, including time, talent, treasure and involvement in the community." | 2022-01-07T23:16:11Z | www.idahostatejournal.com | Blackfoot couple receives philanthropy award from United Way | Community | idahostatejournal.com | https://www.idahostatejournal.com/community/blackfoot-couple-receives-philanthropy-award-from-united-way/article_84354204-a4e3-5581-a4d3-3e04ef76ac50.html | https://www.idahostatejournal.com/community/blackfoot-couple-receives-philanthropy-award-from-united-way/article_84354204-a4e3-5581-a4d3-3e04ef76ac50.html |
Southeastern Idaho Public Health urges everyone 12 years and older to get a booster
Southeastern Idaho Public Health press release
The CDC strengthened its booster recommendations by encouraging everyone 12 and older to receive a COVID-19 booster shot at least five months after the primary series of Pfizer-BioNTech. Initial data suggests that COVID-19 boosters help broaden and strengthen the protection against the Omicron variant.
At this time, only the Pfizer vaccine is authorized and recommended for everyone 12 years and older as a two-dose series taken three weeks apart. The booster dose is administered five months after a person completes the initial Pfizer vaccination series.
A third dose of the Pfizer vaccine was also approved for ages 5 to 11 years old if they are immunocompromised.
Please note that individuals 12 to 17 years old must have a parent/guardian present to receive the vaccine.
All eligible individuals over the age of 18 may choose which vaccine (Pfizer, Moderna or J&J) they would like to receive as their booster. According to the approval, people age 12 to 17 must receive the same vaccine they originally received.
Individuals can schedule a booster vaccine appointment online at siphidaho.org or call the COVID Hotline at 208.234.5875. The hotline is open Monday through Thursday from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. and Fridays from 9 a.m. to noon. | 2022-01-07T23:16:17Z | www.idahostatejournal.com | Southeastern Idaho Public Health urges everyone 12 years and older to get a booster | Community | idahostatejournal.com | https://www.idahostatejournal.com/community/southeastern-idaho-public-health-urges-everyone-12-years-and-older-to-get-a-booster/article_daf952a0-2d5c-5370-b2b2-9cf3db5d24b0.html | https://www.idahostatejournal.com/community/southeastern-idaho-public-health-urges-everyone-12-years-and-older-to-get-a-booster/article_daf952a0-2d5c-5370-b2b2-9cf3db5d24b0.html |
Photo courtesy of Matt Bringhurst
CHUBBUCK — Several people enjoyed a rare and memorable wildlife sighting in an urban setting on Thursday morning.
The Idaho Department of Fish and Game received reports just after 9 a.m. of a bull moose roaming through the neighborhood around Chubbuck Elementary School, off of Hawthorne Road.
Callers reported seeing the moose in yards along Joy Street and near Chubbuck Road, as well as in a field behind the school, according to a Fish and Game press release.
Officers from Fish and Game and the Chubbuck Police Department soon found the moose and monitored its movements, according to Fish and Game. The bull reportedly walked south of the intersection of Siphon and North Laughran roads and eventually worked its way into the Portneuf River bottoms.
“When we first got the calls, we weren’t sure what our day was going to hold for us or the moose,” Regional Conservation Officer Scott Wright said in the press release. “Sometimes moose get set in their ways and won’t leave an area. In this case, the moose strolled through open areas and yards, across streets, from pasture to pasture, and right out of town. It was the perfect ending for a wildlife call like this one.”
Fish and Game warned that moose can become defensive when people approach them and can also pose a hazard to motorists. They advised the public to give moose and other large wild animals plenty of space.
Moose are frequent visitors to open spaces in the rural areas west and south of Chubbuck, especially near the river bottom, but sightings in town are uncommon according to Fish and Game.
“A huge thanks goes to those who reported the moose as well as to the city of Chubbuck police and animal control officers who responded,” Wright said in the press release. | 2022-01-07T23:16:29Z | www.idahostatejournal.com | Bull moose roams through Chubbuck neighborhood | Freeaccess | idahostatejournal.com | https://www.idahostatejournal.com/freeaccess/bull-moose-roams-through-chubbuck-neighborhood/article_7a4a4ccf-1046-5946-9159-d8b3e9ba9596.html | https://www.idahostatejournal.com/freeaccess/bull-moose-roams-through-chubbuck-neighborhood/article_7a4a4ccf-1046-5946-9159-d8b3e9ba9596.html |
“If you are cheated out of a single dollar by your neighbor, you do not rest satisfied with knowing that you are cheated, or with saying that you are cheated, or even with petitioning him to pay you your due; but you take effectual steps at once to obtain the full amount, and see that you are never cheated again.” — Henry David Thoreau
At the one-year anniversary of the Jan. 6, 2021, election coup, the weeping and gnashing of teeth on the insurrection-that-wasn’t has once again reared its half-baked head. My intent here is not to discuss that as the focus of this article and so I’m not going to delve too far into that, but it is the assertion of this author that Jan. 6 was just another in a long line of coups by the Washington regime to save their bacon from the voters finding out what they had done in hijacking American elections. It was nothing more than an unfortunate trap that saw a million unarmed Americans redressing their grievances walk into a preordained riot. The elections are the focus here, so I will continue below on some of what we’ve uncovered in the last year, but if you would like to read more about January 6th, there were several thorough investigative pieces by Darren Beattie of Revolver News that point to a government operation to shut down electoral debate.
Joe Biden didn’t win. Despite a system intent on anybody but Trump and willing to look the other way for whatever personal or professional benefit complicit parties may have received, the gaslighting hasn’t worked. Joe Biden is exactly the disaster portended by the incontinent geriatric on the campaign trail who couldn’t muster enough courage to shake hands with prospective voters. As it turns out you don’t need to shake hands with real people when a good bloc of your voters doesn’t exist. Below I will touch on some of the more damning findings in the last year, focused predominantly on hotly contested markets. In these markets, we saw a collective tabulation pause between 10 to 11 p.m. on election night 2020, only for large dumps of votes for Joe Biden to drop in the late hours after counting had supposedly stopped for the evening. In every one of these markets the narrative repeats. Large Trump lead.. Secretive pause.. Joe Biden catapults Trump in every paused market by morning.
From Sharpiegate to a bizarre election-night call for Joe Biden with single digits reporting by Fox and the AP Newswire, Arizonans rightfully called foul on results that wouldn’t be officially called for eight days beyond the elections. Arizona’s most populous county, Maricopa, which had only gone to a Democrat once in 70 years turned blue. This kicked off the first full legislature-led forensic audit in the history of US elections in Maricopa County.
Despite state and local politicians refusing subpoenas for network equipment, a partially thorough audit was still able to be performed. The results? Nearly fifty-eight thousand illegitimate ballots in Maricopa County alone, in a state that saw Joe Biden win by fewer than eleven-thousand votes. Some of the results included duplicate votes, votes tied to out-of-state voters, votes attached to non-residential addresses and other varieties of phantom voters. Perhaps most damning was the tampering of digital election records, which by law are required to be kept untouched for 22 months. Results were sent to Attorney General Mark Brnovich for further investigation. The legislature has shifted its focus to a full forensic audit of Arizona’s second-most populous county, Pima and passed legislation to further limit mail-in balloting.
In Georgia, voters were treated to affidavits of malfeasance by poll watchers who were barred from vote counting in Georgia’s most populous county, Fulton. Fulton notoriously has trouble every election cycle, but this time voters would get a first-hand look at surveillance footage of State Farm Arena in which behind-the-scenes vote tabulation saw votes pulled out of suitcases from underneath tables and ran through tabulators multiple times, in a state that tilted to Biden by roughly twelve thousand votes. No valid explanation has been presented and lawsuits for full forensic audits persist but must go through the courts because the Georgia legislature lacks subpoena power. The state’s defense is that Ralph Jones, Sr., a county poll worker and the father of then-candidate Raphael Warnock’s campaign manager, was present. No conflict of interest here.
As a response, the Georgia legislature cracked down on loopholes in their voting regulation that saw ballot curing, harvesting, liberalization of mail-in ballot provisions, and private influence from Mark Zuckerberg’s Center for Tech and Civic Life (CTCL). These loopholes were established as a result of a Stacy Abram’s-led lawsuit and a consent agreement entered into by Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger, outside of the Georgia legislature that sets election law. This week Secretary Raffensperger opened an investigation into a criminal ballot harvesting operation based on the work of voter integrity organization True The Vote. Whistleblower testimony from a paid ballot harvester, cellphone tower ping data and video footage during the 2020 election has been presented showing more than 242 individuals making thousands of repeated trips to ballot boxes placed in urban centers by CTCL. Given Raffensperger’s CYA to date, critics are skeptical of meaningful outcomes.
Similar to Georgia, Michigan would experience a high number of affidavits to malfeasance from poll watchers who were barred from vote tabulation at hubs such as the TCF center in Detroit. Requests for surveillance footage of the TCF arena by independent journalists validated affidavits by former state Sen. Patrick Colbeck and Big League Politics’ Shane Trejo, of a 3 a.m. delivery of a truckload of ballots to the backdoor of the TCF Center, hours after returns were due. Official explanations of the video suggested meal deliveries for poll workers, which are clearly not the contents of this 3 a.m. drop.
Unlike other states involved in this collective pause, Michigan legislators have been less receptive to transparency and reviews of election night shenanigans and policy, merely playing lip service to election reviews. Much like other states, transparency has largely been hampered by Democrat-controlled Secretary of State offices and complicit Republicans in state legislatures. On a separate but related note, Michigan’s Senate Majority Leader, Mike Shirkey, was secretly filmed suggesting that the January 6th “insurrection” that ended the electoral debate, was a staged event by the government and that high-level Republicans were also involved.
In Pennsylvania, lawsuits from former Congressional Candidate Sean Parnell failed to gain traction regarding the Secretary of State usurping election authority to liberalize mail-in ballot policy. Prior to the election, the state’s liberal Supreme Court denied injunction stating that nobody had yet been harmed by the instituted electoral policy changes and thus lacked standing. After the election, the same state Supreme Court applied a policy of laches, stating that the suit was brought too late to change the outcome. It is apparent that illegitimate electoral policy would not be challenged or rectified in the courts.
In July of 2021, the Republican-led Pennsylvania Senate initiated a full forensic audit of their 2020 election and it is still under way. One major caveat is that election integrity lead, State Senator Doug Mastriano, was replaced on the audit by skeptical State Senate President Jake Corman, which brings into question whether they will get a legitimate audit or more CYA? As in other states, Democratic leadership at the state and local level have rejected subpoenas for election records, hiding behind privacy concerns, though in the United States we have a secret ballot. Pennsylvania’s Republican-led legislature passed election reforms to limit mail-in balloting and require voter ID, which was then promptly vetoed by Democratic Gov. Tom Wolfe.
Of all of the states in question, Wisconsin may have the most interesting results to date. Despite pushback from moderate state lawmakers, damning evidence has surfaced from two independent sources that may begin to explain not only Wisconsin’s questionable results but also the results of the election nationwide. First, Wisconsin saw a 300 percent increase in the number of ballots from indefinitely confined voters. Fully 244k voters claimed a disability status that did not permit them to vote in person and thus didn’t require proof of identification in voting. An independent investigation by the Racine County Sheriff’s office based on a complaint from the children of an incapacitated nursing home resident uncovered a directive from the Wisconsin Election Commission to ignore state law and have nursing home employees fill out ballots on behalf of residents without advocates present. Many residents who hadn’t voted in decades remarkably did this time. This directive was statewide and applied in the thousands of nursing and supplemental care facilities in Wisconsin. The Racine County Sheriff has submitted members of the Wisconsin Election Commission to the attorney general for criminal referral.
The second issue at hand is public records email communications between CTCL and select urban counties showing that CTCL was given direct access to servers and data feeds of real-time election returns. As a result, they were able to juxtapose ballot returns against census data and build a real-time ballot return map that could allow one to inject unvoted ballots and overcome deficits. CTCL also held similar agreements with every major market in which they traded millions of dollars in exchange for access to administering elections. This assertion of real-time ballot return access has been the contention in several sloppy lawsuits brought by bedding executive, Mike Lindell, and validates the work of physicist and statistician, Dr. Douglas Frank. Former Wisconsin Supreme Court Justice Michael Gableman currently leads election integrity investigative efforts at the statewide level.
There is no one-way of cheating that begins to explain the results of the 2020 election. It was a massive undertaking that relied on the chaos and fear of COVID for success. Guilty parties told us about it when they bragged to TIME magazine about how they achieved it. Of course, they explained it away as “fortifying democracy,” which was just their way of getting ahead of what would be uncovered and controlling the narrative to legitimize their actions. You will hear statements from complicit Republicans about the need to move on and do better in the future. They’re merely showing their hand and letting you know they either participated or got duped. I submit to you that a republic cannot survive with justifiable distrust of its very foundation and our future demands honest resolution. Never relent in demanding it. | 2022-01-07T23:16:54Z | www.idahostatejournal.com | Where are we on election integrity? | Columns | idahostatejournal.com | https://www.idahostatejournal.com/opinion/columns/where-are-we-on-election-integrity/article_13ba82f3-57f2-5133-8763-74205b1f8445.html | https://www.idahostatejournal.com/opinion/columns/where-are-we-on-election-integrity/article_13ba82f3-57f2-5133-8763-74205b1f8445.html |
By Tom Claycomb
I was supposed to fly to South Dakota on Monday but due to airlines laying off staff, they were short-handed and my first flight out of Boise was late which threw off all of my other connections.
Rebooked for Tuesday. Got up at 3:30 a.m. and Katy dropped me off only to discover that my flight was canceled.
Rebooked for Thursday morning only to have my first flight late again due to short staffing which threw off all of my connections. Again! Finally, I actually got out at 6 a.m. Sunday morning and am now sitting in the Minneapolis airport waiting for a flight to South Dakota. I think that I am finally going to make it on the fourth try!
So with that said, I have spent the week running back and forth to the airport, not getting a paycheck.
But with the above said, we’ll make lemonade out of the lemons provided by the layover. To begin, at least I was stuck in Idaho so I got to spend an extra week with Katy and Kolby. One day, Kolby was going to walk her new dog and wanted to know if I wanted to go along. Sure, I need to get in shape anyway. We took off down a trail and she showed me a house that had an apple tree. The owners weren’t picking them so I knocked on the door and asked if we could pick some apples. He said sure.
We picked a couple of bags worth and then came back later loaded for bear. We had plenty of bags and my backpack and picked 70 pounds of apples. If you’re like me then you’re wondering, aren’t they all frozen and ruined since it has been single digit weather for a while? Which is exactly why I am writing this article. No! They are salvageable!
So yes, they are frozen right now but if you have access to an apple tree, hustle out there and stock up for the winter! They are frozen so of course that has burst the cell wall structure so they will be mushy when they thaw out but still, you can do a lot with them. Let’s list out some options:
First and easiest, slice them and eat them frozen. They taste like a frozen apple-flavored popsicle and are delicious. I couldn’t believe how tasty they were.
Second option is to slice them and throw them in a blender with orange juice. This made an awesome juice drink for us at supper last night. I tried it later with a berry juice but that was a little weird so I’d recommend just mixing them with orange juice.
And I saved the best for last. Ever since my daughters were 6 to 8 years old, they made apple crisp using a recipe out of one of their kids cook books. They’ve since progressed to recipes off of the internet. But regardless, Kolby is about to founder us on apple crisp. To add a little more flair to it she throws on a few dollops of ice cream which makes it to die for. Here’s a recipe she shared with me that she got off of the internet by The Chunky Chef. We tweaked it a little.
Tom Claycomb lives in Idaho and has outdoors columns in newspapers in Alaska, Idaho, Utah, Nevada, Colorado and Louisiana. He also writes for various outdoors magazines and teaches outdoors seminars at stores like Cabela’s, Sportsman’s Warehouse and Bass Pro Shop. He can be reached via email at smileya7@aol.com. | 2022-01-07T23:17:00Z | www.idahostatejournal.com | An apple a day | Xtreme Idaho | idahostatejournal.com | https://www.idahostatejournal.com/outdoors/xtreme_idaho/an-apple-a-day/article_ff2e0f78-da17-504f-a046-9ff643a80b7f.html | https://www.idahostatejournal.com/outdoors/xtreme_idaho/an-apple-a-day/article_ff2e0f78-da17-504f-a046-9ff643a80b7f.html |
Exercise specialist and karate expert Colin Wolf has brought his business from Boise to Pocatello.
POCATELLO — A man who describes himself as a fitness and exercise influencer has brought his brand of world class exercise instruction to the Pocatello area.
Colin Wolf said in a recent press release that he started the Wolf Fitness Academy to provide a certified personal trainer, equipment and workouts for area residents.
Wolf’s release describes him as a world class black belt martial artist and health consultant.
He has won national championships and has a list of past clients that include actors, sports stars, politicians and everyday people.
Wolf, who came to Pocatello from Boise, grew up in Florida.
And he says he began his fitness journey as a child by getting involved in martial arts at a very young age.
Then he added weight training when he got into his 20s, according to his news release.
And once he began weight training he then became hooked on studying the science of muscle building to become more efficient and effective during his time in the gym.
And the work has paid off.
Wolf has been nominated by Mens Health Magazine for The Next Top Trainer.
And he will go the extra mile to benefit fitness clients.
“Not everyone feels comfortable exercising in front of other people or they just don't have the time in their busy day to drive to a gym,” he said.
So Wolf will bring his fitness knowhow to their home or business as needed.
And he says with the COVID-19 pandemic still ongoing that people who are concerned about exercising in a gym will find his Wolf Fitness Academy concept especially useful.
“I enjoy teaching and helping people,” Wolfe said.
He says that overall he has taught martial arts for more than 25 years and enjoys the crossover that weight training brings to enhancing overall health and mobility.
In addition, Wolf says his services are individually customized.
For example, does someone haven an injury to train around?
Are they maybe getting in shape for a wedding or other special occasion.
Or does a client want to learn self-defense and enhance their flexibility?
So he can adapt as needed to the requirements of clients.
Further, he says that all his services are science based to deliver the maximum results.
The services that Wolf provides include self-defense, weight loss, muscle building, nutrition counseling, virtual training, and rehabilitation exercise programs.
A complete list of his services are available from Wolf, who can be reached at the following number and addresses.
Fitness Academy at 850Fitness@gmail.com
https://www.instagram.com/wolffitness_academy
https://www.facebook.com/WolfAcademyFitness
Colin Wolf | 2022-01-08T01:04:49Z | www.idahostatejournal.com | Fitness instructor and influencer comes to Pocatello | Local | idahostatejournal.com | https://www.idahostatejournal.com/news/local/fitness-instructor-and-influencer-comes-to-pocatello/article_24df5939-b5dd-5218-971e-6b89e06ade79.html | https://www.idahostatejournal.com/news/local/fitness-instructor-and-influencer-comes-to-pocatello/article_24df5939-b5dd-5218-971e-6b89e06ade79.html |
Pocatello freshman Kennasyn Garza goes up for a layup Friday night against Century.
Pocatello senior Hallie Pearson loads up for a shot Friday night against Century.
Pocatello sophomore Taylor Bunderson puts up a 3-pointer Friday night against Century.
Pocatello guard Taylor Bunderson drives to the basket Friday night against Century.
The genius of this Pocatello team comes in waves. The Thunder are extraordinarily young, so the good stuff is usually sandwiched around the bad stuff, arriving in sequences that make you go no no no — yes!
Sometimes an offensive possession will look dead, sputtering out before the team can find a look they like. Except that’s when Taylee Rogers will float a beautiful pass inside to Alexia Tinno for an easy layup. Sometimes the Thunder will come this close to a turnover, letting the ball carom around from player to player, and that’s when Hallie Pearson will recognize she has space for a triple and knock it down.
They don’t do it on purpose — believe her, head coach Sunny Evans would much rather look like the Golden State Warriors — but this is the way the Thunder have already collected more wins than each of their previous two seasons combined, including Friday’s 46-32 victory over Century. It’s far from perfect. Messy at times, more than they would like. But it’s clear something is clicking.
“I think it’s mostly our energy,” sophomore guard Taylor Bunderson said. “In practices, we have so much energy. Our chemistry just keeps on building, and we all have fun being around each other, and that helps in the games.”
About Pocatello’s youth — the Thunder really are young. Their key cogs include freshmen Alivia Marshall, Taylee Rogers and Kennasyn Garza, plus sophomores Bunderson and Miah Lusk. Seniors Hallie Pearson and Alexia Tinno are the elder statesmen, supplying leadership and scoring punches, but that’s the thing — they’re the only seniors on the roster.
That makes their presence even more important. Who else is supposed to show the younger players the way? Who else can calm down the team and find a good look when things get chaotic, like they did Friday night?
“I can’t say enough about Hallie Pearson’s leadership this year,” Pocatello coach Sunny Evans said. “It’s been one of my proudest moments as a coach, one of the coolest things to see, the way she’s led our team.”
The thing about it is Pearson and Tinno may be the team’s only two seniors, but they provide much more than leadership. On Friday night, Pearson notched a team-best 14 points, helping the Thunder pull away and end a three-game skid. Tinno posted four points and helped guard Century forward Taylor Smith, who tallied a game-high 20 points.
She wasn’t the only one charged with doing that, though. Those duties also belonged to — surprise, surprise — a freshman: Kennasyn Garza, a towering rim protector. All night against Century, she used her size to make room underneath, where teammates slipped her quick passes for layups. On defense, she deterred Diamondbacks’ drives, and even when she didn’t block shots, she altered them. Heck, even when she didn’t do that, her mere presence discouraged Century players from making forays into the lane. Did we mention she’s a freshman?
So many of her teammates are, too. Marshall posted five points, Rogers added eight and Garza tallied 10. As the season goes on, that won’t be anything out of the ordinary, but it does underscore just how young this team is. When a Thunder player scores, it’s never a bad idea to wonder if she was a freshman.
Your next thought might be something along the lines of, How does Evans pull this off?
“I hold them accountable,” she said. “They’re ready for that, and they like it. They like the challenge, and they’re willing to take it on. They’re just, first and foremost, really solid people. So they’re OK with me coaching them. They understand that with that, there’s going to be some ups and downs as we learn and become comfortable with it.”
The ups and downs have certainly materialized. With Friday’s win, Pocatello improved to 7-9 overall and 1-1 in 4A District 5 play, tying Century for second in the conference. If that sounds lackluster, it shouldn’t. Last season, the Thunder produced one win. The year before that, they won three games.
So of all years, Pocatello is turning things around in the season when the club starts two freshmen and relies on a roster replete with young players.
To square those two realities, Evans points out players who have graduated, the ones she says “set a foundation.” Those players, she says, paved the way for this team to turn things around, creating habits like showing up when it matters most and coming to off-court events, where the team’s identity starts to come together.
Still, the Thunder have just played better. Players like Bunderson, Marshall, Pearson and Rogers space the floor and open up passing lanes to get the ball underneath to Tinno and Garza, and when things run smoothly, all they have to do is turn and lay it in.
Evans knows things won’t always look like that — Pocatello’s next matchup is against Preston, a home matchup set for Thursday — which is why she wants to see improvements: The Thunder can limit turnovers, run more efficient offense, really emphasize defense. The January iteration of this team, she hopes, won’t look like the one that surfaces in March. That’s the nice part about working with so many freshmen — who knows how much better they can get?
“I think the intangibles are going to be really key as we keep trying to peak at the right time and continue to improve,” Evans said. “Will they stay interested? I don’t worry about that, but it gets to be a grind, so can we keep them motivated? All those kinds of things. I don’t worry about that with this group. They respond so well.”
Hallie Pearson
Alivia Marshall
Alexia Tinno
Taylor Bunderson
Sunny Evans | 2022-01-08T07:49:26Z | www.idahostatejournal.com | How the Pocatello girls are turning things around — with such a young team | Preps | idahostatejournal.com | https://www.idahostatejournal.com/preps/how-the-pocatello-girls-are-turning-things-around-with-such-a-young-team/article_0067c4e1-842a-5bc0-b3c6-744fc03596eb.html | https://www.idahostatejournal.com/preps/how-the-pocatello-girls-are-turning-things-around-with-such-a-young-team/article_0067c4e1-842a-5bc0-b3c6-744fc03596eb.html |
Wyoming Game and Fish Department Photo/Mark Gocke via WyoFile
Elk drown after falling through ice on local reservoir
By Jennifer Jackson Idaho Fish and Game
Late in the afternoon on Dec. 26, Idaho Fish and Game conservation officers from the Southeast Region responded to a report of two bull elk that had broken through the ice on Treasureton Reservoir north of Preston.
Officers attempted to use a Fish and Game airboat to reach the elk with a plan to cut a channel through the ice for the elk to swim ashore. Unfortunately, the rescue effort was unsuccessful and the elk drowned.
The elk had broken through the ice about 50 yards from the shore of the reservoir and about 600 to 800 yards from where a boat could be launched. Temperatures were below freezing and ice depths varied from 2 to 5 inches, which made it difficult to navigate the boat along the frozen reservoir surface and get to where the elk were located.
“We were moving along on the top of the ice toward the elk, and then our boat broke through where the ice was thinner,” says District Conservation Officer Korey Owens of Preston. “After we maneuvered the boat back to the top of the ice, the water on the bottom of the boat froze us to the ice. We were stuck there.”
Using a chainsaw and shovels, it took two hours for the officers to break the ice and free their boat; however, conditions were too dangerous for their safety to continue the rescue effort.
This unfortunate incident serves as reminder that variable ice conditions like this are not just unsafe for wildlife, they are unsafe for people, too.
Korey Owens | 2022-01-08T18:54:51Z | www.idahostatejournal.com | Elk drown after falling through ice on local reservoir | Local | idahostatejournal.com | https://www.idahostatejournal.com/news/local/elk-drown-after-falling-through-ice-on-local-reservoir/article_e6239475-2d7d-514d-81aa-32054a84abd6.html | https://www.idahostatejournal.com/news/local/elk-drown-after-falling-through-ice-on-local-reservoir/article_e6239475-2d7d-514d-81aa-32054a84abd6.html |
Idaho State guard Montana Oltrogge puts up a shot Saturday afternoon against Weber State in Ogden, Utah.
Idaho State guard Diaba Konate drives to the basket Saturday afternoon against Weber State in Ogden, Utah.
How Montana Oltrogge hit the game-winner in Idaho State's 67-66 win over Weber State
OGDEN, Utah — If you didn’t know any better, you might think Montana Oltrogge had gotten into a bar fight. She wore a good bruise under her eye for a chunk of Idaho State’s road matchup with Weber State on Saturday, sporting a red mark from a collision with a teammate.
If it bothered her, she only showed it when she came out of the game. She blinked away pain from the eye. Trainers took a look at the injury, trying to ease the discomfort, but it was clear: It wasn’t anything serious.
“I’m more upset that my eyelashes fell out,” Oltrogge said.
Oltrogge proved it by delivering the knockout blow in Idaho State’s 67-66 win over Weber State, nailing the game-winning triple with three seconds left, good for the Bengals’ sixth straight win.
The play wasn’t drawn up for her, not exactly. Down two with 28 seconds left, Idaho State inbounded at halfcourt, where point guard Diaba Konate dribbled the clock down to about nine seconds left. That’s when Oltrogge came up to set a screen — only Konate didn’t use it. She dribbled to her right.
Still, it was enough to bother the Wildcats. Forward Emma Torbert emerged from her drop coverage and jumped to contest the shot, so Oltrogge pump faked and let her fly by. Then she unfurled a triple from the top of the key. Bottom. Idaho State took a one-point lead with three seconds left.
So all the Bengals had to do was procure a stop. On the other end, the Wildcats fed Torbert, who couldn’t hit. Oltrogge stood her ground at the rim. The buzzer sounded and Idaho State won again.
“I saw her coming after Diaba passed it, and I was like, ‘Don’t get blocked,’” Oltrogge laughed. “So I pump faked and it was open, so I shot it.”
That underscored the way Idaho State (8-6, 4-1 Big Sky) closed the game on an 8-3 run, using a 27-point outing from Estefania Ors and a career-best 13-assist showing from Konate to erase a late deficit. It was hardly pretty, not with the way the Bengals lost the rebounding battle and struggled to find stops when they needed them. But with this team, these finishes are less bug and more feature, the product of an experienced team turning things around when it matters most.
“We stayed encouraged,” Idaho State coach Seton Sobolewski said. “We hit enough shots down the stretch to win it.”
It wasn’t the first time this season Oltrogge knocked down a crucial triple. Earlier this season, the Bengals trailed by three in crunch time against Carroll College, so Sobolewski diagrammed an elevators door play — where two teammates let her through, then converged for a screen — and Oltrogge knocked it down.
That’s the thing about Saturday’s play, though. When Sobolewski designs a play for Oltrogge, he rarely asks her to do much, just catch and shoot. That’s what she’s best at. So against Weber State, when she maintained the composure to pump fake, relocate the rim and connect, it showed something: Another dimension to her game. An awareness to identify defenses.
“My teammates in practice know how to guard me, so sometimes I have to do that,” Oltrogge said. “I’ve gotten a little bit of practice in practice doing that. I was trying to be as confident as possible.”
The Bengals didn’t always look the part. They held a lead that hovered around three for most of the game, but in the fourth frame, the Wildcats seized a seven-point advantage. Watching them do it was like watching a replay of the same play: Miss, offensive rebound. Miss, offensive rebound. Sometimes Weber State turned them into putbacks. Sometimes they parlayed them into free throws, where the hosts shot 22-for-28. Either way, the effect remained: Idaho State looked exasperated.
It didn’t help that the Bengals played without one of their better rebounders, senior Callie Bourne, who sat out with a sling on her arm. She sustained a shoulder injury last week against Montana State, Sobolewski said, adding that “I don’t anticipate her being back any time soon.” X-rays will reveal more next week, but the injury is significant.
For Idaho State, the good news was that the team’s other injured star, Dora Goles, returned to action. Nursing a finger injury, Goles had sat out the Bengals’ previous two games, hoping that rest would lead to healing. On Saturday, Goles logged nine minutes, checking in for two- and three-minute shifts. Her only stats included one assist, two fouls and one turnover, but that’s an improvement on recent weeks, when she didn’t play at all.
“She should be on the up-and-up now,” Sobolewski said. “She’s got to get in practice a little bit more, get back in the feel of things. She’s just not quite there yet, but she’ll get there. I have a lot of faith in her. She’ll be ready to play a lot here pretty soon.”
Idaho State has found ways to become the Big Sky’s hottest team without her. With Saturday’s win, the Bengals remain in second in the conference, a half-game behind Southern Utah. On Thursday, the Bengals will visit Eastern Washington, which has two wins and sits in the conference cellar.
Before that, though, Oltrogge has an eyelash to fix.
“I already texted my lady,” she said.
Montana Oltrogge
Emma Torbert | 2022-01-09T01:39:23Z | www.idahostatejournal.com | How Montana Oltrogge hit the game-winner in Idaho State's 67-66 win over Weber State | Pocatello | idahostatejournal.com | https://www.idahostatejournal.com/pocatello/how-montana-oltrogge-hit-the-game-winner-in-idaho-states-67-66-win-over-weber/article_23d709e8-e8db-5bcb-a49a-ad8c54ec4a76.html | https://www.idahostatejournal.com/pocatello/how-montana-oltrogge-hit-the-game-winner-in-idaho-states-67-66-win-over-weber/article_23d709e8-e8db-5bcb-a49a-ad8c54ec4a76.html |
Cub Scouts watch Pinewood Derby races on Saturday at the Pine Ridge Mall in Pocatello.
Kyle Riley/Idaho State Journal
By Scott Kraus Idaho State Journal
CHUBBUCK — Kids and adults by the dozen packed the Pine Ridge Mall over the weekend during the Pinewood Derby races there.
The derby cars are crafted out of wood by Cub Scouts and are cut loose at the same time to run for the finish line, according to Ralph A. Oborn, one of the event organizers and Scouting leaders.
Cub Scout pack 315 was sponsored by the Holy Spirit Catholic Church. And Pack 1295 is supported by the Connor Academy in Chubbuck.
Oborn said kids had a number of creative cars to enter.
One entry was shaped like a wedge of cheese and was one of the fastest cars at the event.
Still other kids just enjoyed making a funny looking car, Oborn said.
"And that’s fun for them and their siblings and something the racers remember for years afterward," he said.
Oborn says when he was young he came in third in a Pinewood Derby race and he still recalls it.
And the event is open for both boys and girls.
“We work with boys and girls kindergarten age on up,” he said. “Girls are now able to be part of Scouting and they are able to do what their brothers do.”
Meanwhile, he notes that the organizers get a lot of help from parents who volunteer to help run the event.
He said that some people who come to help still even have their old Pinewood Derby cars.
“And we invite them to bring it in and race it,” Oborn said.
The races are competitive. He said that sometimes just fractions of seconds is the difference between winning and losing.
And Oborn, a physicist, offers a tip for racers who use lead in their cars.
Physics say to put the lead in the back, which makes the center of gravity a little higher, he said.
And he notes there are often conversations by former participants in the races about how one of them beat the other in a Pinewood Derby race 10 years ago.
But today they would have an edge due to the many videos on YouTube that people can watch on how to build faster Derby cars, Oborn said.
“There are people who get really involved in it,” he said.
Meanwhile, he notes that the Scouts are still recruiting members and kids who want to have fun.
There are about hopes to increase membership in Scouting, perhaps by as much as double.
Cub Scout Packs include 5 and 6 year olds up to the age of 10.
And he says all parents are welcome to come to the Scout meetings with their kids and do fun activities together.
Scouting is for families, and there are are currently around 15 to 16 adult volunteers, he said.
And the help would come in handy because the Scouts plan to start an activity soon for winter camping in the area.
Other activities can include woodworking, river rafting, and even ballroom dancing.
“If the kids want to do it we put it on the calendar,” Oborn said. “The kids run it and organize it.”
In fact, he knows of one person who was a young leader as a kid and is now an adult leader in the organization.
“It’s open to everybody,” he said.
Ralph A. Oborn | 2022-01-10T03:10:24Z | www.idahostatejournal.com | Cub Scouts hold local Pinewood Derby races | Local | idahostatejournal.com | https://www.idahostatejournal.com/news/local/cub-scouts-hold-local-pinewood-derby-races/article_cc1ca5f3-c796-57be-816a-d8567e637965.html | https://www.idahostatejournal.com/news/local/cub-scouts-hold-local-pinewood-derby-races/article_cc1ca5f3-c796-57be-816a-d8567e637965.html |
Medicare annual enrollment educational event set Thursday
CHUBBUCK — Come join us for our Medicare annual enrollment educational event regarding what Medicare means for you. We will be going over the A, B, C and D’s of Medicare, as well as your rights and options as a recipient. Bring your questions and a friend. We will be holding this event at the Portneuf Library, 5210 Stuart Ave. in Chubbuck Thursday at 5:30 p.m. | 2022-01-10T20:34:25Z | www.idahostatejournal.com | Medicare annual enrollment educational event set Thursday | Community | idahostatejournal.com | https://www.idahostatejournal.com/community/medicare-annual-enrollment-educational-event-set-thursday/article_4bff0802-57d6-5982-b45b-9957723c44a3.html | https://www.idahostatejournal.com/community/medicare-annual-enrollment-educational-event-set-thursday/article_4bff0802-57d6-5982-b45b-9957723c44a3.html |
Medicare annual enrollment educational event set for Thursday
CHUBBUCK — Come join us for our Medicare annual enrollment educational event regarding what Medicare means for you. We will be going over the A, B, C and D’s of Medicare, as well as your rights and options as a recipient. Bring your questions and a friend.
We will be holding this event at the Portneuf District Library, 5210 Stuart Ave. in Chubbuck, on Thursday at 5:30 p.m. | 2022-01-10T22:44:56Z | www.idahostatejournal.com | Medicare annual enrollment educational event set for Thursday | Community | idahostatejournal.com | https://www.idahostatejournal.com/community/medicare-annual-enrollment-educational-event-set-for-thursday/article_4bff0802-57d6-5982-b45b-9957723c44a3.html | https://www.idahostatejournal.com/community/medicare-annual-enrollment-educational-event-set-for-thursday/article_4bff0802-57d6-5982-b45b-9957723c44a3.html |
POCATELLO — Southeastern Idaho Public Health confirmed 908 new confirmed and probable cases of COVID-19 for the week of Jan. 4 through Jan. 10.
The total includes 546 cases in Bannock County, 206 cases in Bingham County, 85 cases in Franklin County, 23 cases in Caribou County, 15 cases in Power County, 13 cases in Oneida County, 12 cases in Butte County and eight cases in Bear Lake County.
There were also two additional deaths from COVID-19, both of which occurred in Bingham County. | 2022-01-11T00:46:51Z | www.idahostatejournal.com | Southeastern Idaho Public Health reports 908 new COVID-19 cases, two deaths | Local | idahostatejournal.com | https://www.idahostatejournal.com/news/local/southeastern-idaho-public-health-reports-908-new-covid-19-cases-two-deaths/article_98917072-12e0-509e-a0fb-2910c33ba3c0.html | https://www.idahostatejournal.com/news/local/southeastern-idaho-public-health-reports-908-new-covid-19-cases-two-deaths/article_98917072-12e0-509e-a0fb-2910c33ba3c0.html |
FILE — Former Idaho Supreme Court Justice Jim Jones speaks during a Reclaim Idaho town hall meeting in Eagle, Thursday, Aug. 15, 2019.
GOP rejects controversial proposals from Bonneville County Republicans
BOISE — The Republican Central Committee soundly rejected a pair of controversial proposals from leaders in Bonneville County during their annual winter meeting in Boise on Friday and Saturday.
A Bonneville County Republican Central Committee proposal that would have required party central committees to approve candidates before allowing them on primary election ballots was unanimously shot down.
The other controversial Bonneville County proposal that failed was a proposed resolution demanding that the state’s former attorney general and Supreme Court chief justice, Jim Jones, be removed from their party’s hall of fame.
The resolution also requested that Jones “voluntarily and formally disaffiliate as a Republican.”
The ballot proposal would have required candidates for statewide, legislative district and county-level races to receive approval from their respective Republican Central Committees to run. Currently, candidates in primary elections must gather a minimum number of signatures to become a candidate of a political party.
The Bonneville County Republicans argued the change is necessary to prevent Democrats from infiltrating their primaries, though Republican primaries are closed under Idaho law. | 2022-01-11T02:40:15Z | www.idahostatejournal.com | GOP rejects controversial proposals from Bonneville County Republicans | Local | idahostatejournal.com | https://www.idahostatejournal.com/news/local/gop-rejects-controversial-proposals-from-bonneville-county-republicans/article_3190a0f4-2cc8-55b4-9493-7303e351f301.html | https://www.idahostatejournal.com/news/local/gop-rejects-controversial-proposals-from-bonneville-county-republicans/article_3190a0f4-2cc8-55b4-9493-7303e351f301.html |
CHUBBUCK — A Saturday night fire within a local apartment complex injured one resident and forced the temporary evacuation of 39 apartment units, Chubbuck Fire Chief Merlin Miller said.
Miller said the 9:30 p.m. fire at the Pine Ridge Apartments, located in the 4300 block of Yellowstone Avenue, was confined to the living area of a single unit. A woman who was in that unit was transported to Portneuf Medical Center for treatment, he said.
Miller could not comment on her condition but said she was speaking before she was transported.
Chubbuck firefighters responded to the blaze and quickly extinguished the flames. Miller said occupants of all of the other units were allowed back in their apartments later that same evening.
The fire’s cause has not yet been determined but is under investigation. Miller said the investigation should be wrapped up relatively quickly after fire investigators visit with the occupant.
A few months ago, there was another fire in a unit inside of a different building within the same complex.
Miller emphasized that the smoke detectors and alarms activated properly. He said the Saturday fire doesn’t appear to be suspicious and the department can rule out wiring as a potential cause.
“This is leaning more toward an occupant issue than a building issue,” Miller said.
Merlin Miller | 2022-01-11T06:12:59Z | www.idahostatejournal.com | Chubbuck apartment complex fire injures woman, results in evacuation | Local | idahostatejournal.com | https://www.idahostatejournal.com/news/local/chubbuck-apartment-complex-fire-injures-woman-results-in-evacuation/article_84716c72-17e7-502a-ab40-71019fbc465f.html | https://www.idahostatejournal.com/news/local/chubbuck-apartment-complex-fire-injures-woman-results-in-evacuation/article_84716c72-17e7-502a-ab40-71019fbc465f.html |
Star-studded satire 'Don't Look Up' outlines political inaction to imminent crisis
How do you illustrate the seriousness of climate change, science denial, the corrupting influence of money in politics, the failure of the media to thoughtfully inform an audience, and the widespread cancer of misinformation and alternate facts? Our grim reality of propaganda, profiteering and political polarization has essentially stalled all meaningful discourse surrounding fact-based crisis solutions at a governmental level. With his latest feature, “Don’t Look Up,” comedic writer/director Adam McKay took the challenge of addressing these broader cultural critiques through a common apocalyptic movie trope; a planet-killing comet headed toward earth.
A Michigan astrophysicist named Dr. Randall Mindy (Leonardo DiCaprio) and his grad student Kate Dibiasky (Jennifer Lawrence) accidentally stumble upon a very large comet barreling toward earth, leaving only six months before the impact destroys all life as we know it. With security clearance and NASA on their side, the two must convince the divisive President Orlean (Meryl Streep) and her shambling administration to act upon the threat with immediate force. Unfortunately for them, midterms and a controversial supreme court nomination are just around the corner. This, along with a high-profile celebrity breakup story, has clogged the news cycle, and nobody can be bothered to deal with the scientist’s downer discovery.
McKay pivoted from farces like “Anchorman” and “Step Brothers” to pointed political take-downs. With his recent topical satires such as "The Big Short" and "Vice," McKay sells complicated, dry news events by injecting absurdism and breaking the fourth wall in an entertaining way to frame the story for an unengaged audience. Here, the surface of the plot is an absurd, high-stakes comedic premise, told through the lens of serious intent and contemplative allegory. The comet conceit allows enough room to hang the screenplay’s specific points of contention with the current governmental failings that allow catastrophe to prevail over political inconvenience. Bits such as the “Just Look Up” versus the “Don’t Look Up” messaging campaigns sting with the bitter truth that inspires nervous laughter. Other narrative threads, such as an aimless infidelity subplot, dull their edge on the lengthy runtime. Nevertheless, the huge cast sells every premise of this familiar social landscape.
Jonah Hill slings hilarious one-liners as the president’s underqualified son and chief of staff, Jason Orlean. Tyler Perry and Cate Blanchett co-star as feckless infotainment television anchors — channeling the brainless energy of “Fox and Friends” with the pandering nonsense of “Morning Joe.” But it's Mark Rylance who steals the show as the awkward Bezos/Musk/Gates style tech billionaire turned pseudo-philanthropist, Peter Isherwell.
Much ink has already been spilled about the love/hate relationship this film has inspired, both in critics and general Netflix streaming audiences, but it has certainly struck a nerve. Not all the joke land and some of the allegory is overcooked, but it’s undeniable that this is a zeitgeist picture, even if it's not as stylish or as groundbreaking as McKay’s most obvious filmic influence, Stanley Kubrick’s “Dr. Strangelove.”
Some could read this project as a hopelessly dark comedy, while others see the story’s fatalistic outcomes as overly optimistic, and it’s that exile into exacerbation that makes “Don’t Look Up” the appropriate comedy moment for the doomer generation.
Allegory
Jason Orlean | 2022-01-11T18:06:21Z | www.idahostatejournal.com | Star-studded satire 'Don't Look Up' outlines political inaction to imminent crisis | Movies | idahostatejournal.com | https://www.idahostatejournal.com/arts_and_entertainment/movie_reviews/star-studded-satire-dont-look-up-outlines-political-inaction-to-imminent-crisis/article_fdb5bfd5-9b3a-536e-be26-90c9baf6cd3e.html | https://www.idahostatejournal.com/arts_and_entertainment/movie_reviews/star-studded-satire-dont-look-up-outlines-political-inaction-to-imminent-crisis/article_fdb5bfd5-9b3a-536e-be26-90c9baf6cd3e.html |
A map of the Portneuf Valley Regional Trail System.
Regional trail system survey results out; working group members needed
POCATELLO — As the first step in developing a sustainable regional trail system, over 1,100 community members recently took a 10-minute trail user survey.
Responses overwhelmingly indicate community members and visitors love our local trails and public land for their ease of access, proximity, views, beauty, solitude, wildlife and variety. They go on these trails to observe nature, exercise, look at views, enjoy solitude and relax. These trails and public lands are a big influence on decisions to move/stay in Pocatello or visit the area (day trips and overnights). They also greatly impact purchases of bikes, off-highway vehicles, footwear, etc.
The survey indicates there is also work to be done. Trail maintenance, diverse recreational opportunities, wildlife habitat, water quality and access are the primary trail system issues mentioned. Additionally, trailhead restroom and garbage issues, trail maintenance needs, too few authorized trails/system expansion needed and trail user education are the most frequently named challenges and opportunities. The proliferation of user-created trails is considered to be generally problematic for the environment, trail maintenance and clarity of authorized trail use. These user-created trails are also appreciated for dispersing users and adding to the system. About 40 percent of trail users have experienced trail conflict, primarily due to high-speed travel, improper trail use (e.g. recreating on muddy trails) and dogs.
This survey was administered by Idaho State University (as part of their Career Path Internship program) on behalf of the city of Pocatello, and in partnership with the Forest Service and the Bureau of Land Management. The data gathered by this survey will be used by a Trails Working Group to develop a community-driven vision for a sustainable regional trail system. Working Group members will use that vision to assess local trails for vision compatibility, develop a regional trail map and create a prioritized list of improvement projects for public land managers to consider implementing.
Hannah Sanger, science and environment administrator for the city, noted: “We heard again and again and again how much local trail users value the variety of local trails, how close they are to our homes, the views, the wildlife on these public lands and the solitude you can experience up in the hills. These are values that we will ask the Trails Working Group to incorporate into a Regional Trails Vision and recommendations.”
Anyone wanting to participate in this Regional Trails Working Group is asked to complete a short questionnaire at forms.gle/FiQ9Nq12VMZtiCub6. The questionnaire will be open through Jan. 20 with members selected in early February. For more information, contact Drew Riemersma at driemersma@pocatello.us or 208-234-6519.
Regional Trails Working Group | 2022-01-11T20:03:51Z | www.idahostatejournal.com | Regional trail system survey results out; working group members needed | Community | idahostatejournal.com | https://www.idahostatejournal.com/community/regional-trail-system-survey-results-out-working-group-members-needed/article_a5463568-d802-5f54-a3c2-be219bc84435.html | https://www.idahostatejournal.com/community/regional-trail-system-survey-results-out-working-group-members-needed/article_a5463568-d802-5f54-a3c2-be219bc84435.html |
A recent Soda Springs Police Department investigation into what appeared to be a threatening list of student names and ways they could die found the threat to be unfounded.
SODA SPRINGS — A Soda Springs Police Department investigation this past weekend into a threatening note that listed students' names and possible ways those students could die found the threat to be unfounded, police said.
An officer with the department, who declined to disclose his name, said he did not know specifics about the note, its author or its discovery. Though, he confirmed that police investigated the list and found "nobody is in danger."
Soda Springs Joint School District 150 officials wrote in a message to Tigert Middle School parents after the investigation on Monday that the police department and school district looked into the list after it was reported.
"Your students are safe, and the situation has been handled. School policy has been followed," the message to families read.
No one from the school district could be reached for comment on Tuesday, and a request for comment from Tigert Middle School Principal Debra Daniels was not returned.
This weekend's incident is among several in recent months that have prompted a police response to the Soda Springs middle school.
Tigert Middle was locked down in November for reports of a threat made by a student, which police also determined to be unfounded.
Weeks prior to that on two separate occasions, police responded to the school for a student arrest and then for a student injury on the playground, according to the school district's superintendent Scott Muir.
Soda Springs Middle School
Tigert Middle School | 2022-01-12T01:30:06Z | www.idahostatejournal.com | Threatening list of student names prompts investigation at Soda Springs school | Local | idahostatejournal.com | https://www.idahostatejournal.com/news/local/threatening-list-of-student-names-prompts-investigation-at-soda-springs-school/article_9077a9ee-2797-5f53-b41b-bf01337788c9.html | https://www.idahostatejournal.com/news/local/threatening-list-of-student-names-prompts-investigation-at-soda-springs-school/article_9077a9ee-2797-5f53-b41b-bf01337788c9.html |
Bert J. Welch, top left, Janelle Ruth Valenzuela, top middle, Travis J. Schmidt, top right, Jordan Dee Barclay, bottom left, Katrice Breanne Gerhardt, bottom middle and Roberto Andrew Leyvas.
Photos courtesy of the Bannock County Jail
POCATELLO — The Pocatello Police Department arrested six people for felony methamphetamine possession in just over 24 hours, according to police and court records.
Janelle Ruth Valenzuela, 52, of Pocatello, has been charged with felony possession of the controlled substance, meth, and misdemeanor possession of drug paraphernalia following a traffic stop just after midnight on Sunday.
A Pocatello police officer observed a brown sedan traveling north in the 300 block of Jefferson Avenue with one working headlight and initiated a traffic stop, police said.
When the officer asked the driver of the car, Valenzuela, to provide her driver’s license, registration and insurance, he noticed her eyes were dilated and she was acting erratically, handing the officer cards and documents that he did not request, police said.
A K-9 was dispatched to the scene and positively indicated that there were drugs in the vehicle and the officers conducted a search of the car, according to Pocatello police reports.
Officers located a white crystalline substance that tested positive for meth and drug paraphernalia inside the car.
Valenzuela was arrested and booked into the Bannock County Jail in Pocatello.
She appeared in front of 6th District Judge David Hooste for an arraignment hearing Monday, during which she was released from jail to court services.
Bert J. Welch, 32, of Airway Heights, Washington, has been charged with felony possession of a controlled substance, meth, after police found him parked at the newly constructed Idaho Central Credit Union at the corner of South Fifth Avenue and East Benton Street around 4:45 a.m. Sunday.
A Pocatello police officer conducted a field interview on the black passenger car that was running and parked in front of the business, which was closed. The officer made contact with Welch, who was sitting in the driver’s seat, and noted Welch’s eyes were very red and glassy, police said.
When Welch was asked to step out of the vehicle to perform a field sobriety test, the officer observed a syringe in his coat pocket, police said.
Initially, Welch said he picked up the syringe because he doesn’t like to see litter on the ground, but ultimately admitted to using meth with the syringe and possessing a small amount of the drug, police said.
Welch was subsequently arrested and booked into the Bannock County Jail where he remains incarcerated with a $10,000 bond.
Travis J. Schmidt, 30, of Pocatello, has been charged with felony possession of a controlled substance, meth, and misdemeanor charges of possession of drug paraphernalia and resisting and obstructing arrest.
Pocatello police on Sunday received a report from Sportsman’s Warehouse in Pocatello of a man who fled the store after being confronted about a theft, police said.
Shortly after, a resident of the 800 block of Willard Avenue called police to report a man had hopped his fence, ran through his backyard and was hiding behind a dumpster at Comfort Care Dental on East Alameda Road, police said.
An officer responded to the area and could not locate anybody, but found a red jacket, camouflage hat and gray backpack behind the dumpster, which matched the description the Willard Avenue resident provided police.
Inside the backpack, the officer located an identification card belonging to Schmidt and a small amount of meth, police said.
The officer got into contact with a cab driver who had someone request a ride from Comfort Care Dental but could not locate anybody in the area and he provided her with a description of Schmidt, police said.
A while later the cab driver phoned police and said she had Schmidt in her car. The officer responded to the area and arrested Schmidt after a brief foot pursuit, police said.
Schmidt was transported to the Bannock County Jail in Pocatello where he remains incarcerated with a $20,000 bond.
Jordan Dee Barclay, 37, and Katrice Breanne Gerhardt, 31, both of Pocatello, were both arrested shortly after 7 p.m. on Sunday following a traffic stop in which officers located illegal drugs, police said.
An officer observed a driver of a vehicle fail to use a turn signal while changing lanes on Garrett Way in Pocatello and initiated a traffic stop. Inside the car, the driver identified himself as Barclay and a rear passenger, later identified as Gerhardt, initially gave police a false name.
When the officer informed Gerhardt that the person she identified herself as had active warrants in Bannock County, she provided her actual name, police said.
Barclay told police they would find meth and marijuana in the center console, which they did, police said.
Barclay was arrested and charged with felony possession of a controlled substance, and Gerhardt was charged with misdemeanor providing false information to law enforcement and arrested, police said.
A jailer at the Bannock County Jail removed a baggie that contained approximately 25 grams of a white crystalline substance that tested positive for meth from Gerhardt’s genital area before Gerhardt was booked into jail, police said.
Gerhardt was subsequently charged with felony possession of a controlled substance as well, police said.
Barclay and Gerhardt appeared in front of Judge Hooste on Monday, during which their bonds were set at $10,000 and $100,000, respectively.
Roberto Andrew Leyvas, 42, of Pocatello, was charged with felony possession of a controlled substance following a traffic stop on Monday, police said.
A Pocatello police officer observed a white Buick fail to stop at a stop sign and initiated a traffic stop. While speaking to the driver, identified as Leyvas, an officer observed a used syringe in the driver’s side door, police said.
Leyvas was ordered out of the vehicle and searched. Police said they located a small amount of meth in his front right coat pocket. He was arrested and booked into the Bannock County Jail in Pocatello where he remains incarcerated with a $25,000 bond.
Valenzuela, Welch, Schmidt, Barclay, Gerhardt and Leyvas are each scheduled to appear in court again on Jan. 18 for separate preliminary hearings in which prosecutors will attempt to prove there is enough evidence to elevate the cases from the magistrate to district court level for trial.
The maximum penalty for first offense felony drug possession charges if convicted is up to seven years in prison and a fine of up to $15,000.
Janelle Ruth Valenzuela
Travis J. Schmidt
Katrice Breanne Gerhardt | 2022-01-12T03:05:53Z | www.idahostatejournal.com | Pocatello police arrest six people on felony meth charges in nearly 24-hour span | Crimes & Court | idahostatejournal.com | https://www.idahostatejournal.com/news/crimes_court/pocatello-police-arrest-six-people-on-felony-meth-charges-in-nearly-24-hour-span/article_b0f2dc75-b9a7-51b9-a250-32f918ac383f.html | https://www.idahostatejournal.com/news/crimes_court/pocatello-police-arrest-six-people-on-felony-meth-charges-in-nearly-24-hour-span/article_b0f2dc75-b9a7-51b9-a250-32f918ac383f.html |
Subsets and Splits
No community queries yet
The top public SQL queries from the community will appear here once available.