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By Jason Howland Mayo Clinic News Network
“No. 1: You have to have proper stretching. When we get on the pickleball court, we think it’s a smaller court. It’s a slower sport. We don’t have to stretch. And forget about hand and wrist injuries, we see so many Achilles tendon injuries,” says Kakar. “Proper stretching starts from the feet up. And that includes the lower extremities, the back, the neck and the upper extremities.”
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2022-12-27T02:57:25Z
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www.unionleader.com
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Mayo Clinic Minute: How to prevent injuries when playing pickleball | Health | unionleader.com
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https://www.unionleader.com/news/health/mayo-clinic-minute-how-to-prevent-injuries-when-playing-pickleball/article_02619aa8-7542-54da-b8cc-2aacff0e8692.html
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https://www.unionleader.com/news/health/mayo-clinic-minute-how-to-prevent-injuries-when-playing-pickleball/article_02619aa8-7542-54da-b8cc-2aacff0e8692.html
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Daily screen time for children has been climbing since at least 2011, according to Quartz, citing a media usage survey.
The study, conducted by researchers at the University of California San Francisco, included 9,204 children aged 9 to 10, according to a news release from EurekAlert. Participants were asked about how much time they spent on devices with screens and they averaged 3.9 hours per day.
Two years later, in 2021, the group was reevaluated for OCD symptoms and diagnoses, according to the news release.
“Children who spend excessive time playing video games report feeling the need to play more and more and being unable to stop despite trying,” said Dr. Jason Nagata, the lead author of the study, according to the news release. “Intrusive thoughts about video game content could develop into obsessions or compulsions.”
Social media use, texting and video chatting were not linked with OCD, according to researchers, though results could be different for older teens.
“Although screen time can have important benefits such as education and increased socialization, parents should be aware of the potential risks, especially to mental health,” Nagata said. “Families can develop a media use plan which could include screen-free times including before bedtime.”
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2022-12-27T02:57:31Z
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www.unionleader.com
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Screen time increases chances of OCD in preteens, study finds. Every hour ups the risk | Health | unionleader.com
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https://www.unionleader.com/news/health/screen-time-increases-chances-of-ocd-in-preteens-study-finds-every-hour-ups-the-risk/article_980eb21e-2cbf-5124-960d-8956d6b23c05.html
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https://www.unionleader.com/news/health/screen-time-increases-chances-of-ocd-in-preteens-study-finds-every-hour-ups-the-risk/article_980eb21e-2cbf-5124-960d-8956d6b23c05.html
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To the Editor: The op-ed by Maria Devlin and Roy Tilsley was both accurate and sad. To try to blame the encampment issue on one of the very few organizations making a difference with the homeless is wrong in so many ways. While I can only imagine how frustrating the encampment issue is to so many people, to target an organization that works so hard day in, day out to provide help for “the least of”, and does it with grace and dedication…shame on those who would point fingers at them for something that is not their issue to deal with in the first place.
As a board member of 1269 Cafe, I have seen first hand the dedication and selfless efforts that so many people — mostly volunteers — make to try and help carry the weight of the difficult issue of homelessness. I would recommend that those who are critical of the efforts put forth by FIT and the shelter spend a night or two volunteering to oversee those they serve. It might make some of the criticisms seem significantly misplaced.
EDWARD HIERS
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2022-12-27T06:43:44Z
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www.unionleader.com
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Letter: FIT a scapegoat for city's homeless problems | Letters to the Editor | unionleader.com
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https://www.unionleader.com/opinion/letters_to_editor/letter-fit-a-scapegoat-for-citys-homeless-problems/article_29987f71-5621-5479-8607-8cddeb49d74e.html
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https://www.unionleader.com/opinion/letters_to_editor/letter-fit-a-scapegoat-for-citys-homeless-problems/article_29987f71-5621-5479-8607-8cddeb49d74e.html
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Paula Werme
IT SHOULD be obvious in 2023 that domestic violence and child abuse cause long-term negative effects for women and children. In New Hampshire’s family courts, those involved in domestic violence and child abuse are regularly forced — either by judicial fiat or mandatory mediation — into 50/50 custody agreements. Making matters worse, when a battered woman seeks a trial on the issue of domestic violence or child abuse, the courts are authorized to hand-pick the guardians ad litem and other selected evaluators.
The system invites corruption and facilitates ongoing judicial abuse. Parental witnesses are excluded if they even attempt to produce them.
The statutory purpose of the parenting statute incorrectly states:
”I. Because children do best when both parents have a stable and meaningful involvement in their lives, it is the policy of this state, unless it is clearly shown that in a particular case it is detrimental to a child, to:
(a) Support frequent and continuing contact between each child and both parents.
(b) Encourage parents to share in the rights and responsibilities of raising their children after the parents have separated or divorced. . . . .
II. This chapter shall be construed so as to promote the policy stated in this section.”
This statement is printed — with omitted material — verbatim on parenting forms, but not the factors judges must consider in arriving at a custody decision, including evidence of domestic violence or child abuse and the impact on the children.
It is decidedly untrue in the case of domestic violence and child abuse. Research over many years show that exposure to domestic violence and child abuse harms women and children, including long-term health complications and psychological trauma. The New Hampshire Child Protection Act assumes it.
“Parental alienation,” a long discredited theory proposed by Richard Gardner in the 1980’s has not undergone scientific scrutiny in our state courts, because the judiciary made the Rules of Evidence in Family Court optional.
The New Hampshire case of Miller v. Todd, (2011), states a “finding” of “alienation” warrants throwing out best interest of the child. In reviewing more than 100 cases, I found little evidence that courts are weighing the impact of abuse of domestic violence and children and much evidence of them weighing “evidence of alienation” over actual domestic violence or child abuse. A Judge stated in a hearing, “That case cited by Judge Foley, Miller v. Todd, is a case that talks about alienation at the highest degree, and the impact on the child, and the Supreme Court of New Hampshire concluded that it’s just as insidious as physical abuse or sexual abuse, so, what it does is that it undermines the child’s whole base of reality and parenting relationships and it’s really hard to recover from.”
The court did not state that in Miller v. Todd, but it did cite that “Although obviously well intended, the court’s decision effectively condoned a parent’s willful alienation of a child from the other parent. Its ruling sends the unacceptable message that others might, with impunity, engage in similar misconduct. Left undisturbed, the court’s decision would nullify the principle that the best interests of the child are furthered through a healthy and loving relationship with both parents.”
In 2008, the National Council of Juvenile and Family Court Judges state otherwise: “The discredited ‘diagnosis’ of PAS (or an allegation of ‘parental alienation’), quite apart from its scientific invalidity, inappropriately asks the court to assume that the child’s behaviors and attitudes toward the parent who claims to be ‘alienated’ have no grounding in reality.”
Since “alienation” is not accepted in the scientific community, the principle that the best interests of the child are furthered through a healthy and loving relationship with both parents” is not true in cases of abuse or domestic violence, therefore, the opinion itself is seriously flawed.
I conducted a partial audit of old and active cases, and cases on the Rockingham County Complex Case Docket over a period of 2.5 months in 2022. Domestic violence cross-referenced cases are rampant among these cases. While I did not have access to the confidential GAL reports filed in cases, I found ample evidence that mothers are regularly chastised, impoverished, or outright losing custody for seeking to protect their children.
Nationally, the proponents of “parental alienation” have tried for 25 years or more to get it included in the list of psychological diagnoses — the DSM. They failed, but “legal abuse syndrome” in the meantime, widely cited as happening in family courts all over the U.S. and the world, has made into the DSM.
There are bills introduced in 2023 to correct the horribly flawed Statement of Purpose and to protect battered women and children in the context of custody cases. I urge Granite Staters to support the bills. It’s long past time for the Family Division to stop abusing already battered women and children.
Paula Werme is a retired attorney living in Milford.
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2022-12-27T06:43:56Z
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www.unionleader.com
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Paula Werme: Both parents involved isn't always in a child's best interest | Op-eds | unionleader.com
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https://www.unionleader.com/opinion/op-eds/paula-werme-both-parents-involved-isnt-always-in-a-childs-best-interest/article_f793f1ca-672a-560b-83eb-8672706b8aa5.html
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https://www.unionleader.com/opinion/op-eds/paula-werme-both-parents-involved-isnt-always-in-a-childs-best-interest/article_f793f1ca-672a-560b-83eb-8672706b8aa5.html
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'Groucho & Cavett': Recalling a friend and mentor
IT’S WISE TO LISTEN to our elders. Even when they repeat themselves, they impart stories of a lifetime that preceded our own, tales we might share, or at least remember, long after they’re gone.
The “American Masters” (8 p.m., PBS, TV-PG, check local listings) presentation “Groucho & Cavett” is a story about a young man, now grown old, who befriended a show business giant as he entered his twilight years. Dick Cavett, now 86, first met Groucho Marx as a writer in his 20s, when Marx had just turned 70. They would remain close, and Cavett would host him on his several talk shows for the next 17 years.
This story of their mutual admiration is touching and funny on many levels. Cavett often plays the star-struck fan, and Marx the affectionate if wisecracking grandfather figure. This is also a friendship between a performer and his writer. Cavett got his start writing for “Tonight Show” host Jack Paar and others. Marx caught the show the few times Cavett came out on stage to help Paar with a routine. The elder comedian noticed that Cavett emphasized his Nebraska roots, playing up a hayseed demeanor polished by Yale. Cavett’s habit of name-dropping his alma mater became a recurring, predictable bit. Marx saw the cultural contradictions as comedy gold, and Cavett obviously listened.
The talk show host had the good sense — or perhaps the complete lack of control — to allow Marx to ramble on at random, frequently interrupting other guests with vaguely obscene innuendos and quips. Marx would reach back to his vaudeville days to break into songs, from Irving Berlin to Gilbert and Sullivan, and sing them in their entirety. We also catch a clip of Yip Harburg telling Cavett how he composed “Lydia (The Tattooed Lady)” just for Groucho.
This remarkable friendship coincided with an interesting inflection point in popular culture. As the period of Hollywood’s Hays Code receded and viewers flocked to more adventurous and sexually explicit films, students and young audiences rediscovered the pre-code comedies of Mae West, W.C. Fields and the Marx Brothers, among others. They embraced these ancient flickering figures as kindred spirits.
Cavett was also following the tradition of French director Francois Truffaut and American upstart Peter Bogdanovich, whose path to making movies was writing about their heroes (Orson Welles and Alfred Hitchcock) as critics and acolytes.
The end of “Groucho & Cavett” gets a little sad, as Marx’s talk show performances become a bit more scattered and confused. We hear of a much younger love interest whose reckless disregard for Marx’s health and stamina may have contributed to his demise.
In an interview with Cavett conducted shortly after Marx’s death in 1977, Woody Allen recalls being awed by his encounters with his hero but also struck by the fact that he resembled a wisecracking Jewish uncle, somebody common to many families, who might misbehave at a wedding or bar mitzvah. Even legendary figures have their very human side.
• A possible bias attack on “FBI” (8 p.m., CBS, r, TV-14).
• “Ocean Emergency: Currents of Hope” (8 p.m., CW) documents a crisis beneath the waves.
• An undercover operation gets messy on “FBI: International” (9 p.m., CBS, r, TV-14).
• Young talent hopes to modernize an old-school San Francisco dining institution on “Chef Dynasty: House of Fang” (9 p.m., Food, TV-G).
• An oligarch vanishes on “FBI: Most Wanted” (10 p.m., CBS, r, TV-14).
After discovering a trick to win the state lottery, a retired couple (Bryan Cranston and Annette Bening) use their windfall to revitalize their Michigan town in the 2022 true-life account “Jerry & Marge Go Large” (7:20 p.m., Showcase).
“The Wheel” (8 p.m., NBC, TV-PG) ... On two episodes of “The Resident” (Fox, r, TV-14), documentary now (8 p.m.); a very slow pulse (9 p.m.) ... “Celebrity Jeopardy!” (8 p.m., ABC, r, TV-PG) ... On two episodes of “Lopez vs. Lopez” (NBC, r, TV-PG): a reconciliation (9 p.m.); still arguing (9:30 p.m.) ... On two episodes of “The Rookie: Feds” (ABC, r, TV-14): an engineer’s murder (9 p.m.); a moving target (10 p.m.) ... “The Wall” (10 p.m., NBC, r, TV-PG).
John Krasinski and Sarah Polley are booked on “The Late Show With Stephen Colbert” (11:35 p.m., CBS, r) ... Jimmy Fallon welcomes Anya Taylor-Joy, Glen Powell, Patti Smith and Bruce Springsteen on “The Tonight Show” (11:35 p.m., NBC, r) ... Michelle Obama and Marc Maron appear on “Jimmy Kimmel Live!” (11:35 p.m., ABC, r) ... Lea Michele and Janelle James are scheduled to visit “Late Night with Seth Meyers” (12:35 a.m., NBC, r).
China will relax its infamously strict coronavirus restrictions for entry into the country starting Jan. 8, according to a lengthy list of new policies issued Monday by its National Health Commission. It is the most significant move so far to reopen borders that have been all but closed for …
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2022-12-27T15:46:01Z
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www.unionleader.com
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'Groucho & Cavett': Recalling a friend and mentor | | unionleader.com
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https://www.unionleader.com/groucho-cavett-recalling-a-friend-and-mentor/article_5f743352-4301-51be-b69c-6c4aeaa41c7a.html
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https://www.unionleader.com/groucho-cavett-recalling-a-friend-and-mentor/article_5f743352-4301-51be-b69c-6c4aeaa41c7a.html
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Rep.-elect George Santos of New York after speaking at a Republican Jewish Coalition meeting in Las Vegas on Nov. 19.
By Ellen Francis The Washington Post
"GOP Congressman-elect George Santos, who has now admitted his whopping lies, should resign," tweeted Rep. Ted Lieu (D-Calif.), urging Republican House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy to call a vote to expel Santos if he does not quit.
Rep. Joaquin Castro (D-Tex.) said that if Santos takes his new seat, it would set a precedent encouraging others to seek public office by falsifying their credentials, while Rep. Eric Swalwell (D-Calif.) accused Santos of "defrauding the voters of Long Island about his ENTIRE resume."
Now that Santos has apologized "if I disappointed anyone by résumé embellishment" - and acknowledged publicly on Monday that he did not graduate from college or work at certain companies that had been listed in his biography - questions remain about what action if any the incoming House majority leader will take. Santos's win helped Republicans secure a narrow majority in the next term.
Democrats have called for a House ethics probe since the Times report, and the New York attorney general's office has said it was "looking into a number of issues" surrounding Santos.
The representative-elect has remained defiant about his future: In an interview with New York's WABC radio, he said, "I will be sworn in. I will take office."
In his admissions on Monday night, Santos sought to explain his claims by saying that "a lot of people overstate in their résumés," and he downplayed the impact of his actions. He did briefly address how his wealth has skyrocketed in recent years, allowing him to lend hundreds of thousands of dollars to his campaign.
Santos told City and State NY that after different jobs, he opened his own firm and "it just worked because I had the relationships and I started making a lot of money. And I fundamentally started building wealth."
"I decided I'd invest in my race for Congress," he added. "There's nothing wrong with that."
The Times report raised questions about whether Santos had fabricated much of his biography and noted that Santos claimed he had worked for Goldman Sachs and Citigroup. Spokesmen for the two companies confirmed to The Washington Post that they had no record of his employment. Santos said in the radio interview Monday that the language in his résumé stated he had "worked 'for,' not 'on' or 'at' or 'in.'"
He said that he learned a lesson - but that it doesn't mean "I'm some fictional character."
Santos also said in an interview with the New York Post that, contrary to his biography that claimed he was a Baruch College graduate, he had not graduated "from any institution of higher learning."
"We've seen people fudge their resume but this is total fabrication," Castro tweeted, arguing that the congressman-elect should be "investigated by authorities."
The Washington Post's Michael Kranish, Azi Paybarah and Hannah Knowles contributed to this report.
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2022-12-27T15:46:31Z
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www.unionleader.com
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Democrats call for George Santos to resign seat over résumé 'lies' | National | unionleader.com
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https://www.unionleader.com/news/politics/national/democrats-call-for-george-santos-to-resign-seat-over-r-sum-lies/article_9ef14554-7150-5f8f-8e4a-8854e1c3a696.html
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https://www.unionleader.com/news/politics/national/democrats-call-for-george-santos-to-resign-seat-over-r-sum-lies/article_9ef14554-7150-5f8f-8e4a-8854e1c3a696.html
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Medical workers attend to patients at the intensive care unit of the emergency department at Beijing Chaoyang hospital, amid the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) outbreak in Beijing, China December 27, 2022.
By Niha Masih and Joyce Lau The Washington Post
Arrivals into China with negative nucleic acid tests will be able to "enter society," in a drastic change to the current practice, which sees all entrants at airports - foreign visitors and Chinese citizens alike - tested by hazmat-clad workers and ushered onto buses headed for quarantine hotels, where they stay for several days in isolation. Arrivals who continue to test negative will not have their movements restrained by China's digital health passes.
Meanwhile, outbound travel for Chinese citizens, who have largely not left their country since 2020, will be "resumed in an orderly manner," the policies said. Upon release of the news, searches for international air tickets spiked in China, with Thailand, Japan and South Korea emerging as the most popular destinations, Chinese state-affiliated media reported.
The new policies are meant to help the resumption of travel for business, study and family reunions. However, there is no word on whether China will reopen for tourism.
The move comes after an incremental loosening of domestic restrictions Dec. 7, which did away with the mandatory testing that caused hours-long waits outdoors in the cold, lockdowns that saw people physically barred inside their homes and the use of mass quarantine camps for even mild cases.
Officials had previously locked down entire cities in pursuit of China's "zero covid" strategy, which aimed to completely stop the virus from spreading. Those restrictions led to angry demonstrations in November, which spread fast and wide from universities to factories.
Outside China, Monday's announcement gave hope to tens of thousands of international students who have spent nearly three years locked out of the country and the universities where they are enrolled. This group, which has been advocating under the hashtag #TakeUsBackToChina, have faced difficulty in receiving visas, booking flights or getting onto locked-down campuses.
China has in recent years emerged as an affordable higher education destination, attracting nearly half a million students from overseas in 2018.
Shahroz Khan, 22, a medical student from India, had been studying in China when he returned to his home country in 2020. He had no idea that the Chinese border would remain closed for years, and that he would not be able to return to campus. He ended up completing his degree online, but still needs to return to China to complete an internship requirement.
"For the past 2 1/2 years, we have heard the same reply: Either there is a lockdown or restrictions or rise in cases," he said by phone from India.
Khan's university in Jiangsu province had previously asked students to refrain from trying to come back before February 2023. With the restrictions eased, he hopes to get back to China sooner.
"The inconsistent treatment of international students has been a soft power failure for China," said Curtis S. Chin, a former U.S. ambassador to the Asian Development Bank who is now chair of the Milken Institute Asia Center.
He added that many students had returned to the United States and parts of Europe after those regions opened up. "The contrast with the situation in China is striking," he said.
Chin added that China may continue to draw international students to its low costs and relative quality, but it may have to offer scholarships and financial assistance to be an attractive higher education destination.
Andy Mok, a research fellow at the Beijing-based Center for China and Globalization, said China's coronavirus containment strategy had been successful but "costly in economic, social and emotional terms with foreign students, business executives and tourists largely unable to enter or return to China for several years." Now, the government's focus would be on economic recovery with the shift of covid strategy, he said.
But even as China loosens its entry rules, countries such as Japan and India are increasing restrictions for travelers from China as cases there soar.
On Tuesday, Japanese media said the authorities will tighten restrictions for those traveling from China. In India, the health minister announced last week that the New Delhi airport had begun testing travelers from some countries, including China.
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2022-12-27T15:46:43Z
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www.unionleader.com
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China to open borders, sparking hope for those locked out for years | World | unionleader.com
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https://www.unionleader.com/news/world/china-to-open-borders-sparking-hope-for-those-locked-out-for-years/article_16163625-5af9-51b3-b1de-57d37c11f46a.html
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https://www.unionleader.com/news/world/china-to-open-borders-sparking-hope-for-those-locked-out-for-years/article_16163625-5af9-51b3-b1de-57d37c11f46a.html
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Spasskaya Tower is seen through trees, decorated for Christmas and New Year celebrations in the Red Square in Moscow, Russia December 20, 2022.
Women look at a mobile phone at a Christmas market on Manezh Square in Moscow, Russia December 26, 2022.
In street interviews in the center of the capital, some also said they were noticing the scarcity of Western goods this year as they shopped for food and gifts.
Jewelry maker Evgeniya, however, said her sales at a seasonal market had sharply increased from last year.
A young woman, Natalia, said she had noticed far fewer cheeses were available, and she couldn't buy her favorite Portuguese wine.
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2022-12-27T15:46:50Z
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www.unionleader.com
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Ukraine weighs heavy on minds in Moscow as New Year holiday nears | World | unionleader.com
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https://www.unionleader.com/news/world/ukraine-weighs-heavy-on-minds-in-moscow-as-new-year-holiday-nears/article_d06ec7c0-271f-5cc2-ba24-8b0f69b2db60.html
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https://www.unionleader.com/news/world/ukraine-weighs-heavy-on-minds-in-moscow-as-new-year-holiday-nears/article_d06ec7c0-271f-5cc2-ba24-8b0f69b2db60.html
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By Megan Gray Portland Press Herald, Maine
Then Gillespie heard about the Firefly Wedding Chapel in Kittery. "It was just what we were looking for," she said.
Firefly Wedding Chapel caters to couples who want more than a courthouse ceremony but don't want to spend thousands of dollars on their big day. The average cost of a wedding in Maine is more than $29,000, according to wedding website The Knot, making the state pricier than most. Firefly's four packages range from $950 to $2,100.
"I'm a firm believer that you shouldn't go into debt for your wedding," said Price.
"The traditional ways of doing things are going like gangbusters post-pandemic, and I don't think there's been a decline," he said. "But I think people are a little more budget-conscious and thinking a little more critically about where their dollars are going."
Firefly Wedding Chapel isn't the drive-thru you might be picturing. Couples schedule their ceremonies in advance, even if only by hours or days. The guest list can be as small as two witnesses (the minimum required in Maine) or as large as 30 people. There's no kitsch, or at least it's optional.
"Everybody says, 'Like Elvis?' " said Gonzalez Pallares.
Price added, "We would be happy to bring in an Elvis impersonator if someone really wanted one. But that's not really what we're doing."
Firefly's owners were inspired by their own experience.
"People who have big weddings, they hire coordinators," said Price. "But people who don't have big weddings, they need help too."
"Retail just generally around the country is taking a huge hit on the larger properties, but when you're dealing with these outlet centers, I think service is part of the new market," he said.
Couples can bring in a photographer or pick their own song, but the packages at Firefly include music and keepsake pictures. In one of the two private dressing rooms, there's a small sign: "Forgot your bouquet? Don't dismay." The chapel's borrow-a-bouquet option has three arrangements of fabric daisies, in white, pink and orange, to use if needed. The white one was Price's.
"I felt silly when I wrote this," said Price of the rhyme. "And then, lo and behold, someone forgot their bouquet."
So far, the chapel has hosted only a handful of weddings. The owners said they know who their target audience is, but they're still figuring out the best way to advertise to them. Firefly's couples might not attend a big wedding expo, for example.
"Most of them have found us just by googling 'micro weddings' or 'small affordable weddings,' " said Price.
After going over some basics about the wedding in a call with the Firefly owners, Poro and Gillespie married on Oct. 8. They had a few guests and went out for a seafood dinner with Gillespie's parents. The only stressful moment came in the middle of the ceremony when Poro suddenly wondered if he and his about-to-become wife were supposed to have written their own vows. (You can, but you don't have to.) Price, as the officiant, guided them through the rough spot.
"There was no stress at all," said Gillespie. "All I remember feeling is happy."
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2022-12-27T15:46:56Z
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www.unionleader.com
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A big day, a small budget -- but no Elvises at this Kittery wedding chapel | Lifestyles | unionleader.com
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https://www.unionleader.com/nh/lifestyles/a-big-day-a-small-budget----but-no-elvises-at-this-kittery/article_5c25d2be-29f7-5b8b-94bf-232204931390.html
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https://www.unionleader.com/nh/lifestyles/a-big-day-a-small-budget----but-no-elvises-at-this-kittery/article_5c25d2be-29f7-5b8b-94bf-232204931390.html
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Kim Kardashian apologized after a comment she made about how to succeed in business, which offended many working women.
Amanda Andrade-Rhoades/Washinton Post
Matthew Perry offended some - and likely confused more - by rhetorically asking in his memoir why Keanu Reeves still “walks among us” while his friends Chris Farley and River Phoenix died young.
Jelani Rice/Washington Post
By Ashley Fetters Maloy The Washington Post
Apologizing. As any couples therapist worth their hourly fee will tell you, it's virtually always worth doing when someone's feelings have been hurt. Although as any couple will tell you, that policy sometimes results in some pretty ridiculous apologies. Celebrities, of course, have a relationship to maintain with the public - an entity with infinite feelings that can be hurt at any moment. Their apologies, accordingly, can be deeply weird, bizarrely specific and pretty entertaining in their own right.
Sure, plenty of people apologized for genuinely hurtful actions. Beyoncé and Lizzo apologized for using insensitive lyrics. Taylor Swift and Marlo Thomas apologized after accusations that they had fueled fatphobia. Candace Cameron Bure ... only kind of apologized for excluding same-sex couples from the Christmas programming on her Great American Family network. And yet, elsewhere in the mix were some truly silly statements of regret. Featuring repeat offenders like Bob Dylan, Kim Kardashian and James Corden, here are the 10 weirdest things celebrities had to apologize for in 2022:
Asking why Keanu Reeves still 'walks among us'
In October, "Friends" actor Matthew Perry apologized after a section of his memoir, "Friends, Lovers, and the Big Terrible Thing," attracted attention for all the wrong reasons. In an excerpt published by multiple outlets ahead of the book's release, Perry, 53, wrote about his late friend, River Phoenix. "River was a beautiful man, inside and out - too beautiful for this world, it turned out. It always seems to be the really talented guys who go down," Perry wrote. "Why is it that the original thinkers like River Phoenix and Heath Ledger die, but Keanu Reeves still walks among us?" Perry repeated the question later in a section of the book about the 1997 death of his friend Chris Farley. "I punched a hole through Jennifer Aniston's dressing room wall when I found out. Keanu Reeves walks among us," he wrote.
When Perry apologized, he told "People" that he had simply chosen the name of the first actor he'd thought of. "I should have used my own name instead," he said.
In March, the New Zealand film director Jane Campion won a Critics' Choice Award for best director for her film "The Power of the Dog." During her acceptance speech, she looked toward American tennis greats Serena and Venus Williams, who were in attendance to support "King Richard," the biopic about their father, and said, "Serena and Venus, you are such marvels. However, you don't play against the guys, like I have to."
The backlash was swift; "King Richard," after all, was a movie about the racism and sexism the two women had endured to rise to the top of their sport. Campion released a statement to Vanity Fair and other outlets. "I made a thoughtless comment equating what I do in the film world with all that Serena Williams and Venus Williams have achieved. I did not intend to devalue these two legendary Black women and world class athletes," Campion said. "The fact is the Williams sisters have, actually, squared off against men on the court (and off), and they have both raised the bar and opened doors for what is possible for women in this world. The last thing I would ever want to do is minimize remarkable women."
Spamming everyone's iTunes in 2014 with a free album
On Sept. 9, 2014, U2's album "Songs of Innocence" was automatically uploaded to iTunes libraries everywhere as part of a promotional deal with Apple. Some listeners were delighted; many, many more were not. The megasuccessful Irish rock band has never lived it down.
To be clear, frontman Bono had apologized before. But perhaps the fact that he felt the need to do it again just indicates the degree of lingering annoyance. "I'd thought if we could just put our music within reach of people, they might choose to reach out toward it. Not quite," Bono, 62, wrote in his memoir, "Surrender: 40 Songs, One Story," released in December. "As one social media wisecracker put it, 'Woke up this morning to find Bono in my kitchen, drinking my coffee, wearing my dressing gown, reading my paper.' Or, less kind, 'The free U2 album is overpriced.' Mea culpa."
Being a nightmare brunch patron at New York City's Balthazar
It started with an Instagram post, and it ended with an apology that was ... half-excuse? In October, Keith McNally, the owner of the restaurant Balthazar in New York's SoHo, posted on Instagram to complain about late-night host James Corden's antics on two occasions when he'd dined there. On one occasion, McNally wrote, Corden, 44, came in with his wife, who ordered an "all-yolk omelet." According to McNally (who cited a manager's report about the incident), Corden sent the omelet back because it contained a smidgen of white; after the kitchen remade the omelet, Corden yelled at the service staff. "You can't do your job! You can't do your job!" Corden shouted, according to McNally. "Maybe I should go into the kitchen and cook the omelet myself!"
On his show, Corden apologized. Sort of: He explained that his wife has a "serious allergy," which he said they had explained to the waitstaff. "As her meal came wrong to the table the third time, in the heat of the moment, I made a sarcastic, rude comment about cooking it myself," he said. "It is a comment I deeply regret." (In a New York Times profile, however, Corden called the whole kerfuffle over his conflict with McNally "silly.")
Causing a scene on San Francisco's Bay Bridge ... circa 1996
In a red-carpet interview about his comeback film "The Whale," Brendan Fraser told SF Gate this fall that he always regretted how a particular stunt on his 1997 film "George of the Jungle" was shot. The comedy features one scene where George rescues a parachutist tangled in the bridge's uprights.
"It brought traffic to a standstill on either side of the bridge," said Fraser, 54. "There's this dummy parachutist hanging from it. I had the TV on, and 'Oprah' got interrupted because there was a special news report with helicopters saying a parachute is dangling on the bridge. And I'm going, 'Wait a minute.' I'm looking at the helicopters and TV: 'Somebody didn't pull a permit. Somebody's going to get in trouble with the mayor's office.' So I can only apologize for that."
(To be fair, Fraser went on a long hiatus from Hollywood just a few years after "George." Kudos to him for apologizing when the opportunity finally presented itself.)
To many, the gag seemed distracting; Kimmel took the hint and apologized to Brunson on his show later that week. "They said I stole your moment, and maybe I did and I'm very sorry if I did do that. I'm sorry I did do that, actually," Kimmel said. "And also, the last thing I would ever want to do is upset you because I think so much of you."
Brunson graciously accepted the apology - after, of course, taking the opportunity to interrupt Kimmel's opening monologue with the parts of her acceptance speech that had been lost to the distraction of Kimmel's presence. "You know how when you win an Emmy, you only have 45 seconds to do an acceptance speech? Which is, like, not that much time?" she said. "And then you get less time because someone does a dumb comedy bit that goes on a bit too long?"
In a March profile of the Kardashian sisters and their mother, Kris Jenner, Kim Kardashian told "Variety," "I have the best advice for women in business: Get your f---ing a-- up and work. It seems like nobody wants to work these days."
Predictably, receiving such a directive from a reality TV star whose parentage was her original claim to fame rubbed many people the wrong way. So in an appearance on "Good Morning America," Kardashian, 42, apologized and said her words were "taken out of context." "It wasn't a blanket statement towards women, or to feel like I don't respect the work or think that they don't work hard," she said. "I know that they do. It was taken out of context, but I'm really sorry if it was received that way."
In November, some 900 fans paid for signed copies of Bob Dylan's new book, "The Philosophy of Modern Song," costing $600 each. In each copy was a signed letter from Jonathan Karp (chief executive of the book's publisher, Simon & Schuster) confirming its authenticity, but when fans started to examine closely, they realized that the signatures looked exactly the same.
Dylan, 81, came clean soon afterward in a Facebook post: He had used an autopen, a device that replicates a signature, to get all the books signed. "In 2019 I had a bad case of vertigo and it continued into the pandemic years. It takes a crew of five working in close quarters with me to help enable these signing sessions, and we could not find a safe and workable way to complete what I needed to do while the virus was raging. So, during the pandemic, it was impossible to sign anything and the vertigo didn't help. With contractual deadlines looming, the idea of using an auto-pen was suggested to me, along with the assurance that this kind of thing is done 'all the time' in the art and literary worlds," he wrote. "Using a machine was an error in judgment and I want to rectify it immediately. I'm working with Simon & Schuster and my gallery partners to do just that."
Did he have an affair? Or did Adam Levine just flatter an Instagram model named Sumner Stroh in one of the weirdest ways imaginable? It remains the mystery of the year - to some people, probably.
In September, Stroh accused Levine, 43, of cheating on his pregnant wife, the model Behati Prinsloo, with Stroh. On TikTok, Stroh claimed that she and Levine had been seeing each other for about a year before the fling ended a few months before. She posted screenshots of Instagram DMs from Levine: "It is truly unreal how f---ing hot you are. Like it blows my mind," one read. "Ok serious question. I'm having another baby and if it's [a] boy I really wanna name it Sumner. You OK with that? DEAD serious," read another.
Levine issued a hybrid half-apology and half-denial on - where else? - Instagram. "A lot is being said about me right now and I want to clear the air. I used poor judgment in speaking with anyone other than my wife in ANY kind of flirtatious manner," he wrote. "I did not have an affair, nevertheless, I crossed the line during a regrettable period in my life. In certain instances it became inappropriate; I have addressed that and taken proactive steps to remedy this with my family."
Firing an actor for having "dead eyes"
"Marvelous Mrs. Maisel" actor Connor Ratliff, 47, remembers the day so vividly he named his podcast, "Dead Eyes," after it: Tom Hanks, as Ratliff tells it, fired Ratliff from the esteemed actor's 2001 directorial project "Band of Brothers" because Ratliff had ... well, you can guess.
When Ratliff told Hanks, 65, the story on the aforementioned podcast, Hanks said that "not a single moment of this rings a bell." Nevertheless, Hanks was aghast, and apologized accordingly. "This is a bone-chilling story, just bone-chilling," he said, and added that he took "full responsibility" for what happened. "This was without a doubt the act of the director, and that was me."
Follow Carl Perreault
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2022-12-27T17:48:31Z
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The 10 most bizarre celebrity apologies of 2022 | Back Page | unionleader.com
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Adam Fox, one of 13 men arrested on Oct. 7, 2020 on charges of conspiring to kidnap the Michigan governor, attack the state legislature and threaten law enforcement, is seen in a Kent County Sheriff's Office police mugshot.
KENT COUNTY SHERIFF'S OFFICE/VIA REUTERS
The ringleader of the failed plot by right-wing extremists to kidnap Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer (D) in 2020 was sentenced in federal court Tuesday to 16 years in prison, far below the life sentence sought by federal prosecutors in what was the highest-profile domestic terrorism case in recent years.
Adam Fox, 39, was convicted in August on two conspiracy charges relating to the kidnapping scheme and another to obtain and use a weapon of mass destruction. Federal prosecutors pegged Fox as the "driving force" behind the 2020 plan to kidnap Whitmer from her vacation home, blow up a bridge to distract responding police and provoke a civil war ahead of the 2020 presidential election.
More than a dozen people were initially arrested by state and federal authorities during an October 2020 sting that involved the use of informants and undercover FBI agents who embedded with the men, who were drawn together by their association with a militia group known as the "Wolverine Watchmen."
Fox declined the opportunity to address the court before his sentencing, telling the judge, "I'm satisfied with what my lawyer said."
Federal prosecutors described Fox as an extremist-minded rebel who felt violent action was not only justified by necessary to overthrowing an oppressive government, while defense lawyers argued a sharply different portrayal: A lonely, down-on-his luck "loser" who was influenced by federal informants.
"There's a reason this happened, here in Michigan, because Mr. Fox was the indispensable man," Assistant U.S. Attorney Nils Kessler said during Tuesday's hearing, adding that Fox did much of the recruiting for the group from states including Ohio, Wisconsin and Virginia and spearheaded the reconnaissance mission on Whitmer's house.
"Does anyone think these kidnappers wanted to keep me or ransom me?" she said. "No. They were going to put me on a trial and then execute me. It was an assassination plot, but no one talks about it that way. Even the way people talk about it has muted the seriousness of it."
"As horrible as the intended outcome was here [ …], nothing ever happened," Jonker said, crediting law enforcement for diffusing the plot before it could be fully executed.
Earlier this month, Joseph Morrison, Pete Musico and Paul Bellar were sentenced to 10 to 42 years, 12 to 42 years, and at least seven years in prison, respectively. Croft, who faces life in prison and was considered the "ideas guy," according to prosecutors, faces sentencing Wednesday.
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2022-12-27T17:48:33Z
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Ringleader in plot to kidnap Mich. governor sentenced to 16 years | Crime | unionleader.com
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According to the State of Nursing Survey from 2021, 84% of nurses believe they were underpaid, and 83% reported their mental health suffered.
Nurses interested in technology will be hooked up in 2023, according to Forbes. Options might involve working at a startup in health care tech, like Walmart or Amazon.
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2022-12-27T19:46:59Z
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5 nursing industry predictions for 2023 | Business | unionleader.com
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Developer Steve Duprey plans to have a Friendly Toast on the first floor of his new 5-story downtown building. The building was approved by the planning board last week.
The new building will feature an outdoor courtyard with a "Container Kitchen" or food truck. The space might be used as an ice skating rink in the winter.
The fifth floor of the proposed building is expected to include a restored 1940s diner.
A five-story, mixed-use building will bring a new vibe to downtown Concord with a rooftop bar and a patio on the ground level for pop-up restaurants.
A Friendly Toast restaurant and patio along the sidewalk on South Main Street are also part of the plan.
Developer Steve Duprey said city planners pushed him to “think a little bigger” after first proposing a two-story building at 20 S. Main St., which is located between the Concord Food Co-op and Bank of New Hampshire Stage. A Victorian home built in 1854 on the property will be demolished or moved.
The fifth floor is expected to house a fully restored, prefabricated 1940s diner in an event space to be managed by the Grappone Conference Center, also owned by Duprey. The diner was once owned by Michael Dingman, a former New Hampshire businessman and one-time Ford Motor Co. director. The diner was restored in Ohio before being moved to New Hampshire.
The roof deck will include a bar and space with artificial turf where games such as bocce and cornhole can be played. A retro Airstream camper will be lifted onto the roof to be used as a bar.
The planning board unanimously approved the project last week, but Duprey will return if changes are made to the design.
Duprey bought the property from Families in Transition, which ran a consignment shop out of the Victorian home, around the same time he bought the old Concord Theatre, 16 S. Main St., across from the Hotel Concord. The Concord Theatre was transformed into the Bank of New Hampshire Stage.
“They asked if I’d consider buying it and I did,” Duprey said in a phone interview. “That enabled us to make the Bank of New Hampshire Stage without worrying about the negative impact it would have on Families in Transition.”
He did a number of studies about what to do with the property, including redeveloping the Victorian home or building apartments. He explored a possible new hotel, but owning a few others in city he knows the market.
“None of those seemed to make great sense,” he said.
About three years ago, Duprey offered $100,000 toward relocating the building to a new lot. A move will be challenging given the utility cables. He said there is one other option he is looking at to move it.
The house was built by the owner of the bakery where the Bank of New Hampshire Stage is now. During the Civil War, the bakery produced hardtack biscuits for the Union Army.
“I wanted to save the building,” Duprey said. “I’ve saved more old buildings than I’ve had to tear down.”
If the home can’t be saved, he will collect historic elements to be displayed in the lobby of the new building, like he did with the “Smile Building” and “Love Building” across from the Capitol Center for the Arts.
Duprey said he’s impressed with the owners of Friendly Toast and wanted to bring the chain to the Capital City. The chain started in Portsmouth and now has 10 locations across New England.
“I’m always in search of getting more retail and more restaurants in downtown Concord, because it further helps make it a destination stop,” he said.
The plans call for a courtyard in the rear of the building, which will include a Container Kitchen or food truck.
“It is not a huge space, but it will be fun,” said Erin Lambert, P.E.. Associate Vice President at Wilcox & Barton Inc.
The alley will be reconstructed to draw pedestrians. An ice skating rink might be installed in the winter, Duprey said.
The building will have five floors for economic reasons. No tenants are lined up for the 15,000 square feet of office space, which Duprey admits is a risk.
A poll was conducted along with the Chamber of Commerce on what the building should look like. The survey drew more than 1,100 responses.
“The opinions were very wide and far,” Duprey said. “Some said, ‘It looks too much like Portsmouth.’ Others favored the most traditional design.”
The Architectural Design Committee favored something with brighter colors and less traditional, he said.
Renderings show a green patina to resemble copper, but will likely change to a “Dartmouth green,” which won’t be as drastic.
“I think we kind of split the difference,” he said. “We don’t want a building that 20 years down the road you go, ‘What were they thinking?’”
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2022-12-27T19:47:05Z
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New Concord building to bring Friendly Toast, rooftop bar | Business | unionleader.com
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https://www.unionleader.com/news/business/new-concord-building-to-bring-friendly-toast-rooftop-bar/article_fe681140-c424-5f68-9f4a-132864d698e5.html
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BUFFALO, N.Y. -- Thousands of western New Yorkers were digging out from under four feet of snow dumped during a deadly Christmas blizzard, even as the National Weather Service predicted a final two inches of snow on Tuesday.
"This is probably the last of the snow," added Oravec, who is with the NWS Weather Prediction Center in College Park, Maryland. "It'll be warming up soon. By Thursday the high will be 46. By Saturday it'll be 54."
But Tuesday remained cold, with a high of 28 F and a low of 20 F, Oravec said.
Buffalo, New York state's second largest city, was ground zero for the blizzard that took shape on Friday. Gov. Kathy Hochul called it an "epic, once-in-a-lifetime" weather disaster.
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2022-12-27T19:47:42Z
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Warmer weather on the way for western New York after deadly blizzard | News | unionleader.com
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By Emily Burnham Bangor Daily News, Maine
BANGOR, Me. -- There are lots of cultural touchstones specific to Bangor. Stephen King, naturally, who made Bangor renowned worldwide for its killer clowns. Paul Bunyan, who we maintain — despite Minnesota's protests — was born in the Queen City. Onion and meat subs, a.k.a. the Coffee Pot sandwich, our pungent and delicious take on the classic New England Italian.
And, of course, the Bangor ball drop, which sees Bangorians in various states of sobriety gather in West Market Square just before midnight on New Year's Eve to watch people huck a beach ball covered in string lights off the roof of 26 Main St., the home of Irish pub Paddy Murphy's.
It all started in 2004, when Steve Smith, a trial lawyer now based in Augusta, was living and working out of 26 Main St. He and his wife, Milva, were relatively new to the city, and didn't have any plans for New Year's Eve. Smith watched a news clip about the Times Square ball drop in New York City, with its famous geodesic orb covered in millions of dollars of Waterford crystal.
"I thought to myself, 'How could you tell at a distance?'" he said. "I then figured how to re-create the effect by taping Christmas tree lights to a cheap purple beach ball."
"When we lived downtown it was before the big revival people see nowadays. We would look out our windows at night over the main intersection and there wouldn't be any lights — even streetlights," Smith said.
In 2005, Smith invested a whopping $10 more and purchased a slightly bigger beach ball and a few more lights at Marden's. He invited Gov. John Baldacci to do the ceremonial hucking of the ball. That time, around 1,000 people showed up to watch.
Buoyed by the unexpected popularity of the event, in 2006, the Downtown Bangor Partnership started the Downtown Countdown, a First Night-style event with entertainment in several venues across downtown. That event continues today, though it wasn't held in 2020 and 2021 due to the pandemic.
The ball drop itself wasn't held at all in 2020, in fact, though in 2021 it came back to a small but enthusiastic crowd. At its peak years in 2014 and 2015, the event drew more than 4,000 people downtown.
In 2011, Smith sold 26 Main St. to John Dobbs, who had opened Paddy Murphy's in the building with his wife Rachel in 2007. Dobbs and pub staff took over ball drop operations that year, and have gradually increased the size of the beach ball and the amount of lights on it. Most years,
Bangor's city council chair — unofficially called the city's mayor — helps toss the ball, along with Dobbs and other local dignitaries.
"Milva and I have always been very proud of the event and, although we live near Augusta now, have always looked back at our time in downtown Bangor as some of the fondest memories of our marriage," Smith said.
This year will be the 18th year of the Bangor ball drop, accounting for the missed year in 2020. Despite downtown having grown dramatically in size and vitality over the past nearly two decades, the technology behind the ball drop has hardly changed. Neither has the law of gravity, as the actual "drop" takes about 0.8 seconds, with the ball dangling from its giant extension cord from the side of the building as the crowd cheers, before the ball-huckers reel it back to the roof.
Bangor doesn't need Waterford crystals or Ryan Seacrest or lip-syncing pop stars in Times Square. All it really needs is a beach ball from Marden's with some lights taped to it. Maybe some hot cocoa, or a nip of whiskey. Definitely some hardy fellow souls gathering in the center of town, ready to say goodbye to another year and welcome a new one.
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2022-12-27T21:37:46Z
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Maine city drops its own New Year's ball -- a beach ball | Back Page | unionleader.com
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By Will Katcher masslive.com (TNS)
Researchers on the summit of Mount Washington said they recorded wind gusts of roughly 150 mph Friday morning during an hours-long barrage that saw winds reach consistent speeds of 120 mph, according to a report of summit conditions.
While the White Mountains of New Hampshire are regularly at the mercy of extreme weather, Mount Washington earns special distinction. Often referred to as the “Home of the World’s Worst Weather,” the summit can be hammered by hurricane-strength winds — at least 74 mph — more than 100 days each year. One of the strongest wind gusts ever recorded on Earth was measured on Mount Washington in 1934: a staggering 231 mph.
The winds ratcheted up in New Hampshire and across a wide portion of the United States last week as a mass of arctic air rushed south into the country, stirring a massive winter storm that stretched from the Great Lakes to the Rio Grande on the Mexican border.
Temperatures plunged as the front of cold air stormed southward. And as winds picked up, the wind chill temperatures in many parts of the country dipped even further, well below zero degrees, to “potentially life-threatening” levels, the National Weather Service said. The wind chill in Wichita, Kansas, dropped to 32 degrees below zero, the coldest there since at least 2000, when reliable record-keeping began, local news media reported.
As of 2 p.m., the summit felt 40 degrees below zero, the product of a negative-4-degree air temperature and winds consistently blowing over 60 mph. Visibility on the mountain Sunday morning was 25 feet amid a freezing fog, summit researchers reported.
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2022-12-27T21:37:52Z
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Mount Washington researchers record 150 mph wind gusts | Back Page | unionleader.com
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The storm evoked memories of a deadly 2021 winter blast that caused widespread blackouts in Texas. But while that system hit a region unaccustomed to extreme cold, this one spread across the Midwest and Northeast -- two areas that should be well-prepared. The fact that they weren't highlights the flaws of a system that's facing limited natural gas supplies and the unpredictability of solar and wind power.
Supplies of natural gas, the nation's primary heating and power-generation fuel, plunged the most in more than a decade as wells froze and pipelines failed, sending prices skyrocketing. The nation's largest power grid was on the brink of forced rotating outages, while power was knocked out at least briefly to some customers in at least 24 states. Storm-related deaths reached at least 27 in Buffalo, New York.
It was the sheer size and scale of the storm that made it so unusual, along with temperatures as cold as -50 degrees in some places. An extreme dive by the jet stream across North America drove the wedge of cold air across a huge swath of the country. With cold blasting so much of the nation at once, power grids weren't able to rely as much on neighboring systems to help bolster supplies. It's the kind of event that could become more common -- sharp kinks in the jet streams are a hallmark of the changing climate.
On Dec. 23, U.S. natural gas production suffered its worst one-day decline in more than a decade, with roughly 10% of supplies wiped out because of well freeze-offs. Output was as low as 84.2 billion cubic feet on Saturday, a 16% decline from typical levels, before a slow recovery started, according to BloombergNEF data based on pipeline schedules.
Supplies from Appalachia to the Tennessee Valley and the Midwest more than halved from typical levels, according to pipeline flow data compiled by BloombergNEF. Issues were exacerbated by mechanical problems at pipeline infrastructure, including at a compressor station in Ohio operated by Enbridge Inc.'s Texas Eastern Transmission Co., which invoked force majeure on some gas supplies, freeing them from meeting their delivery obligations. The Tennessee Valley Authority, a federally owned power provider to several southern states, and Duke Energy were forced to order rolling blackouts to conserve energy.
On Friday, physical deliveries of gas at a hub supplying the Carolinas and Virginia traded at $60 per million British thermal units, up nearly 650% from only two days earlier. That's also more than eight times the price for gas delivered into the Henry Hub in Louisiana, the U.S. benchmark. By Saturday, gas topped $100 in Washington and parts of New England.
PJM Interconnection, the largest U.S. grid operator with lines spanning Illinois to New Jersey, declared a rare emergency on Christmas eve, requiring some of its 65 million customers to curtail demand while warning for the possibility of rotating outages. The grid also appealed to households to conserve over the weekend. In Texas, the Energy Department granted an emergency waiver to allow power plants to keep running without violating emissions limit.
Systemwide impacts for natural gas and electricity are "making it difficult to dismiss February 2021's Winter Storm Uri as a one-off event," said Eli Rubin, an analyst at EBW AnalyticsGroup.
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2022-12-27T21:37:58Z
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Deadly winter storm exposes deep flaws of U.S. energy system | Business | unionleader.com
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President Vladimir Putin launched his invasion of Ukraine on Feb. 24, calling it a "special operation" to "denazify" and demilitarize Ukraine, which he said was a threat to Russia. Kyiv and its Western allies say Moscow's invasion was merely an imperialist land grab.
The coalition of countries opposing Russia's invasion in Ukraine -- from NATO members to U.S. allies such as Japan and Australia -- has proven resilient, defying predictions that rising energy prices in part caused by the war could fracture the grouping.
He added that Washington's "confrontational anti-Russian course is becoming more and more acute and comprehensive."
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2022-12-27T21:38:17Z
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Russia's Lavrov: West and Ukraine want to destroy Russia | News | unionleader.com
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By Yimou Lee and Ann Wang Reuters
TAIPEI -- Taiwan will extend compulsory military service to one year from four months from 2024 due to the rising threat the democratically governed island faces from its giant neighbor China, President Tsai Ing-wen said on Tuesday.
"As long as Taiwan is strong enough, it will be the home of democracy and freedom all over the world, and it will not become a battlefield," Tsai told a news conference announcing the decision to extend the conscription period, which she described as "incredibly difficult."
China a "major concern"
Tsai is overseeing a broad modernisation program, championing the idea of "asymmetric warfare" to make the island's forces more mobile, agile and harder to attack.
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2022-12-27T21:38:23Z
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Taiwan to extend conscription to one year, citing rising China threat | News | unionleader.com
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Sen. Maggie Hassan, D-N.H., co-wrote a new federal law that requires posting an anti-human trafficking hotline in all U.S. restrooms inside airline, bus and rail stations . Here she took questions from reporters outside the Red Arrow in Manchester after winning reelection last month.
WASHINGTON — A bipartisan bill Sen. Maggie Hassan, D-N.H., co-wrote that President Joe Biden signed Tuesday will require posting a human trafficking hotline in the restrooms of all airplane, bus and train stations throughout the U.S.
The National Human Trafficking Hotline is a toll-free service connecting victims and survivors to federal support and resources. Free telephone and text lines are available 24 hours daily, year-round with help available from interpreters that speak more than 200 languages.
“Restrooms are often the only time that a victim will have the opportunity to get away from traffickers, making it one of the first lines of defense in getting someone the help that they need,” Hassan said in a statement.
“I’m pleased that our bipartisan bill to help prevent human trafficking was signed into law, and I will continue to work across the aisle to crack down on these heinous crimes.”
Sens. Marco Rubio, R-Florida, James Risch, R-Indiana, and Jacky Rosen, D-Nevada, had signed onto the bill with Hassan.
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2022-12-27T23:22:57Z
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New law requires anti-trafficking hotline posting in restrooms | National | unionleader.com
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Nathan Eovaldi of the Boston Red Sox has a laugh in the dugout before a May 5 game against the Los Angeles Angels at Fenway Park.
Report: Eovaldi heads to Rangers
Eovaldi was originally acquired from the Rays in a trade at the 2018 trade deadline then emerged as one of Boston’s best starters down the stretch that season. He posted a 3.33 ERA in 12 games (11 starts) during the regular season then logged a 1.61 ERA in six postseason games, including an iconic six-inning relief performance in Boston’s Game 3 loss in the World Series. After helping guide the Sox to a ring, Eovaldi re-signed with the club on a four-year, $68 million contract that ended this year.
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2022-12-28T01:10:40Z
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Report: Eovaldi heads to Rangers | Red Sox | unionleader.com
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https://www.unionleader.com/sports/red_sox/report-eovaldi-heads-to-rangers/article_70136be8-f516-530e-bb19-3f05065079bf.html
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A Southwest jet sits at the gate at Manchester-Boston Regional Airport on Tuesday. More than half of Southwest's flights at MHT were canceled because of logistical problems around the country caused by the weekend winter storm.
Cancellations have been common for Southwest Airlines flights at Manchester-Boston Regional Airport since the winter storm slammed cities across the country over the weekend.
Passengers wait to check on the status of their flights at the Southwest counter at Manchester-Boston Regional Airport.
At the gate
Brenna Fitzgerald walked out of the Manchester-Boston Regional Airport Tuesday with a $200 voucher and a promise of some sort of reimbursement from Southwest Airlines, but no way to get home to Virginia Beach.
Her flight had been set to take off early Wednesday morning to make it back to work in time. She flew into town before the storm hit to spend Christmas with family in Manchester.
Southwest, which is the largest carrier at MHT, could not rebook her until after the new year, Fitzgerald said.
“There is nothing they could really do,” she said.
Fitzgerald was not alone. Southwest has struggled to recover from harsh winter weather that has wrecked holiday plans for many. As of Tuesday morning, the low-cost carrier had canceled 2,523 flights nationwide. That was 30 times as many as Spirit Airlines, the carrier with the next-highest number of cancellations.
Spirit canceled its 11:55 a.m. flight from Manchester to Orlando on Tuesday.
At the Southwest counter at MHT, the board showed four of six flights on Tuesday afternoon and evening canceled. In all, 15 flights were canceled as of 11:45 a.m. Tuesday.
“I always know there is a risk traveling this time of year,” Fitzgerald said. “That it can be a nightmare.”
After her flight was canceled, Fitzgerald tried to book one on American Airlines only to find out it would cost $1,000. Southwest told her they would reimburse some of the cost of a ticket on another airline but didn’t offer specifics.
Fitzgerald planned to try to rent a car and drive home.
Approximately 15% of flights at MHT have been canceled since Dec. 17, according to a statement from the airport. Most were caused by the winter storm, which brought heavy rain, snow and high winds to much of the country.
“We remain in close contact with our airline partners and expect that it will take several more days to get operations back on track. We’d like to thank our passengers for their patience and understanding,” the statement said.
Other headaches included lost luggage and travelers scrambling to find hotel accommodations.
“We highly encourage passengers to check with their airlines before heading to the airport and to reach out to their airlines if they need to rebook or reschedule travel,” the airport statement read.
Fitzgerald’s mother, Joan, said most of Southwest’s business is done online, making it difficult to reschedule flights. Instead of trying to call, they drove to the airport.
Nationwide, Southwest scrapped another 2,474 flights for Wednesday, compared to seven by Frontier Airlines and five by Delta, according to tracking website FlightAware.
The arctic blast has caused Southwest to eliminate more than 12,000 flights since Friday.
Southwest earns most of its profits on domestic travel, and unlike other large U.S. carriers, it relies more on point-to-point service than a hub model. That leaves its crews vulnerable to being stranded in case of disruptions.
“The other airlines likely had manageable cancellations and delays, and actually appear to have recovered (in time to get everyone home),” Cowen analyst Helane Becker said in a note.
Airline plans draw scrutiny
Southwest said on Monday it had decided to continue operating a reduced schedule by flying roughly one-third of its planned flights “for the next several days.” It declined further comment on Tuesday.
In total, as of Tuesday morning, U.S. airlines had canceled more than 5,000 flights for Tuesday and Wednesday.
Another person, who was trying to get to Aruba, bought a JetBlue ticket out of Boston after their New Year’s Eve Southwest flight from Manchester was canceled in advance. She was glad she could talk to someone at the Southwest counter because the airline’s app wouldn’t give her a reimbursement.
“They are still trying to stabilize things,” the desk agent told the customer.
Brenna Fitzgerald’s headaches mounted as she remained stranded.
“I have someone watching my dog, I have my car at the airport garage,” she said. “I have to work on Thursday.”
The rental car might be the only way to get home in time.
“Or convincing my mom to drive down with me,” she said.
Material from Reuters was used in this report.
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2022-12-28T02:49:05Z
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Southwest cancels flights out of MHT as part of national ordeal | Transportation | unionleader.com
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https://www.unionleader.com/news/business/transportation/southwest-cancels-flights-out-of-mht-as-part-of-national-ordeal/article_93f15dee-5f6d-51f5-90e4-234574134054.html
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Sal Patalano
The Manchester Health Department has hired a director of overdose prevention to lead the city’s response to drug-related overdoses and fatalities, the city announced this week.
Manchester has been selected as one of 20 communities by the National Association of County and City Health Officials, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and the National Center for Injury Control and Prevention, to receive a $300,000 funding award to bolster local overdose prevention strategies, according to a news release issued Monday.
Andrew Warner, whose most recent position was community education manager in Manchester, Portland, Boston and Lowell, Mass., for Better Life Partners, begins his new role Jan. 3.
“With continued drug overdoses and fatalities persisting in Manchester, this new position has been created and filled to help lower that trend,” the city said.
Warner’s work creating and overseeing treatment programs includes work as a consultant for Dartmouth Hitchcock’s Levy Incubator, a coordinator for tele-health therapy.
“My chief focus is to work with the array of resource providers in Manchester to create and implement a strategic plan to prevent drug-involved overdoses,” Warner said in a statement.
According to American Medical Response — the ambulance service for Manchester and Nashua — the number of suspected opioid overdoses in Manchester increased in November and decreased in Nashua.
There were 63 suspected opioid overdoses between Nashua and Manchester during November, bringing the total for 2022 to 879, the Union Leader reported earlier this month.
AMR medics responded to 48 suspected opioid overdoses in Manchester. Suspected opioid overdoses in Manchester increased by 14 from October numbers.
American Medical Response reported there have been 656 suspected overdoses and 71 suspected overdose deaths in Manchester as of November 2022, the city cited in its release.
Anna J. Thomas, the city’s public health director, said “strategic, data-driven efforts” will save lives.
“Tapping into the expertise from our national public health leaders and communities across the country that have gone before us in preventing overdoses and fatalities, plus bringing on seasoned professionals such as Andrew and strike team members to implement best practices, is a formula for success” Thomas said in a statement.
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2022-12-28T02:49:11Z
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Manchester Health Department hires overdose prevention director | Health | unionleader.com
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https://www.unionleader.com/news/health/manchester-health-department-hires-overdose-prevention-director/article_33f5780b-74fb-5577-a3c2-0ebeba94d927.html
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https://www.unionleader.com/news/health/manchester-health-department-hires-overdose-prevention-director/article_33f5780b-74fb-5577-a3c2-0ebeba94d927.html
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Leslie Webb said one of the final wishes of her husband, Robert Webb, was to return a historic granite watering trough to the town of Exeter.
Provided by the town of Exeter
A granite watering trough dating back more than a century was recently returned to the town of Exeter.
Provided by the Webb family
A watering trough that was once used for horses sat near the old Exeter Town Hall for decades, but has spent the last 44 years in the possession of the Webb family.
Provided by Exeter Historical Society
Members of the Webb family gather during a Dec. 9 ceremony in Exeter to dedicate the return of a historic watering trough to the town.
Town of Exeter
“It was my husband’s decision. It was his wish that it go back to the town. He loved local history and he made sure that he took care of it,” Webb’s widow, Leslie, said following a ceremony held on Dec. 9 to dedicate the antique trough, which has found its new home outside the Exeter Town Office building.
Her research suggests that the trough was designed by architect Henry Bacon when he was hired to design the bandstand. Bacon also designed the Lincoln Memorial in Washington, D.C., and was described by Rimkunas as a premier architect of the beaux arts movement.
By 1978, the trough had made its way to a scrap yard, which is where it was found by Robert Webb, who purchased it and brought it home to his family farm in Exeter, known as Beech Hill Farm. The trough remained at the farm until 2001, at which point it was moved to the Webb home in Brentwood.
“It’s solid granite, and it’s also very breakable if you drop it so we had to be careful. I’m just glad it’s back,” Perkins said.
Several members of the Webb family joined other town officials and community members at Friday’s ceremony.
Pam McElroy, senior executive assistant to Town Manager Russ Dean, led the ceremony and offered a brief history of stone troughs, which date back thousands of years and were used as feeding and watering troughs for livestock as well as washing and bathing tubs. They were used on farms and placed along popular routes for horses making long journeys.
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2022-12-28T02:49:18Z
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Family returns historic granite watering trough to town of Exeter | Human Interest | unionleader.com
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Longtime journalist and outdoorsman John Harrigan of Colebrook died Monday at age 75.
John Harrigan, who for decades wrote about furry critters and human characters in the North Country, died Monday at age 75 after receiving an advanced cancer diagnosis in early November.
“His sense of place was informed by the culture of the people who inhabited it and that was particularly true of the people up north,” said Jack Savage, president of the Society for the Protection of New Hampshire Forests.
The former publisher of The News and Sentinel in Colebrook, Harrigan was inducted into the New England Hall of Fame by the New England Newspaper and Press Association in 2020.
He was a Pulitzer Prize finalist in 1998 for his account of the 1997 murders of colleague Dennis Joos at the newspaper office and longtime friend Vickie Brunell, a district court judge who was gunned down as she raced out of the newspaper office, which also housed her office.
Killed elsewhere in Colebrook that day were state troopers Scott Phillips and Leslie Lord. Authorities later killed the gunman in Vermont.
The opening line of Harrigan’s story the following day in The News and Sentinel began:
“It was a crime of unbelievable proportions that left at least five people dead, a newspaper and a police fraternity in shock, and a community stunned to its core.”
Harrigan was much more comfortable writing about everyday life.
“On the way downtown the other day I saw a lone partridge (ruffed grouse) in the road, just around a sharp curve, and, as I slammed on the brakes, realized that there were a whole bunch — maybe six or seven birds.
“I’m glad that the brakes on an F250 do a good job of stopping such a hulk of machinery, else I’d have wiped a whole flock of siblings, and maybe the hard-working Mom that had raised them since spring.
“Never mind that I filed the incident in my mind’s Quick Retrieval folder, and with 20-gauge shotgun in hand would be looking for those same birds in a few days, on the opening weekend of bird season,” Harrigan wrote in October 2014 in his “Woods, Water & Wildlife” column in the New Hampshire Sunday News. He began writing it in 1974.
“I considered John a personal friend to me, a friend to all things wild and wonderful in New Hampshire, and an extraordinary newspaperman,” former New Hampshire Union Leader Publisher Joseph W. McQuaid wrote on Tuesday.
In 2015, Harrigan penned his last “Woods, Water & Wildlife” column for the New Hampshire Sunday News.
“I left the Lorden Lumber Company in Milford in 1968 for my first newspapering job at the Nashua Telegraph — first-year college dropout, no newspaper experience whatsoever, couldn’t even type,” Harrigan wrote then. “What a ride it’s been.”
Harrigan was an important voice of opposition to the Northern Pass transmission line project, which regulators scuttled in 2018 in a decision the state Supreme Court reaffirmed the following year.
Northern Pass supporters talked about new jobs and economic benefits to communities along the route.
“However, a scar is still a scar, especially across countryside that doesn’t already have one, so if it’s okay (and thanks!) I guess I’ll pass on the offer of nearly forty (that’s 40) miles of a totally new scar from the Canadian border down to Groveton,” he wrote in a Union Leader opinion piece in late 2015.
“But if Northern Pass would just do us this one teeny tiny little favor on that 40-mile business, and bury the whole thing along existing rights of way, I’d be for it,” he wrote.
Calling hours will be 1 to 5 p.m. Friday at Jenkins & Newman Funeral Home in Colebrook. Those wishing to reminisce can meet at the Black Bear Tavern after 4 p.m.
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2022-12-28T02:49:24Z
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Longtime columnist John Harrigan dies at age 75 | Human Interest | unionleader.com
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RAYMOND WIECZOREK
Allegra Boverman/Union Leader file
GARY SINGER
Wendy and Stephen Reid were found shot to death near a popular Concord walking trail on April 21.
PROVIDED BY CONCORD POLICE
A funeral Mass for Emily Sotelo, who died last week while hiking in the White Mountains, was held Thursday in Westford, Mass.
Provided by Blake Chelmsford Funeral Home
Joseph Eggleston, 53, of Randolph, fell to his death after hiking Mount Willard on Saturday
By Michael Cousineau • Union Leader Staff
New Hampshire in 2022 lost community leaders and sports figures, people victimized by violence and two longtime Union Leader journalists who influenced the state’s sports and political scenes for decades.
While this roll call of those who died is incomplete, here are some of the notable Granite Staters who passed away this year.
Ray Wieczorek, 93, former mayor of Manchester, jumpstarted the Millyard and downtown revitalization during the 1990s and pushed to build what is now the SNHU Arena. He also served as an executive councilor. Died Nov. 22.
Lincoln Soldati, 73, was a former Strafford County attorney, mayor of Somersworth and congressional candidate. Died Nov. 6.
Joe Grandmaison, 79, of Portsmouth, served as state Democratic Party chair and ran for governor and Congress. He played major roles in the campaigns of Sen. George McGovern for president in 1972; Michael Dukakis for Massachusetts governor in 1974; Sen. John Glenn for president in 1984; and Gov. Bill Clinton for president in 1992. Died June 13.
Judy Reardon, 64, of Manchester, spent most of her career working with U.S. Sen. Jeanne Shaheen, from the state Senate and the governor’s office to the Senate. She worked on campaigns for state candidates and was a consultant for Stop the Northern Pass. Died Dec. 19.
Others served their communities without the advantages of elective office.
Ed Garone, 79, Derry, was Derry’s police chief for 50 years — and a police officer for another seven years — making him the longest-serving full-time chief in Granite State history. Died Oct. 11.
Scott McNeil, 63, worked as an officer of The Salvation Army in Manchester and Laconia, and was promoted to the rank of major the day he passed away. Died June 9.
Richard “Dick” Hamilton, 86, was a tireless promoter of White Mountains tourism and a driving force in remembering the Old Man of the Mountain after its 2003 collapse. Died July 20.
Dick Cyr, 85, of Ludlow, Vermont, was the founder of David’s House, a refuge for families with sick children in Lebanon. Died July 24.
Alfreda “Freda” Smith, 94, of Windham, served as a state representative and president of the Laconia State School. In 1978, she was instrumental in a class-action suit against the state over deplorable conditions at the institution. Died Oct. 1.
John DiStaso, 68, of New Boston, who wrote a must-read political column for the Union Leader for three decades and later worked at WMUR-TV, interviewed four sitting presidents and countless candidates. He covered 11 New Hampshire primaries. Died April 21.
Charles “C.J.” McCarthy, 69, of Manchester, spent more than 40 years working for the Union Leader, mostly as a sports reporter and then as a sports editor. His stepson Ryan Day, a star quarterback at Manchester Central and the University of New Hampshire, is the head football coach at Ohio State University. Died Jan 19.
John Harrigan, 75, of Colebrook, chronicled both humans and wildlife in the North Country for five decades. He also was a finalist for a Pulitzer Prize for writing the story for The News and Sentinel newspaper about the 1997 murders of its editor, Dennis Joos, Harrigan’s longtime friend and district court judge Vickie Bunnell and state troopers Scott Phillips and Leslie Lord. Died Dec. 26.
P.J. O’Rourke, 74, of Sharon, was editor-in-chief of The National Lampoon and reported from far-flung locales for Rolling Stone. The 22 books he authored included best sellers “Parliament of Whores” and “Give War a Chance.” His publisher called him “one of the major voices of his generation.” Died Feb. 15.
Mish Michaels, 53, started her career as a television meteorologist at WMUR-TV in 1991 before working at WHDH-TV and WBZ-TV in Boston as well as The Weather Channel. Died in mid-March.
George Larkin, 84, Manchester, served as dean of students and was a vice president at Southern New Hampshire University. He helped turn the former New Hampshire College from a business school with an Elm Street storefront into a liberal arts university at its current Manchester-Hooksett campus. Died Feb. 9.
Gary Singer, 67, Manchester, chaired the board of the family-owned Merchants Automotive Group and was part of a family who generously gave to the community. Died Nov. 15.
Dr. James Squires, 85, of Hollis, was founder of NH’s first HMO, the Matthew Thornton Health Plan, served as state senator and was the founding president of the Endowment for Health. Died Dec. 9.
Victims of violence
Kassandra Sweeney, 25, of Northfield and her two children, Benjamin, 4, and Mason, 1, were murdered in their home. A juvenile was charged in their killings. They died Aug. 3.
Stephen Reid, 67, and Djeswende “Wendy” Reid, 66, of Concord, were found fatally shot on the Broke Ground trails near their Concord Heights home. Authorities six months later charged a Vermont man in their murders. Died on April 18.
Quarius Dunham, 8, who attended Little Harbour School in Portsmouth as a third grader and played basketball with the NH Spartans, was killed by a gunman who sprayed bullets into random vehicles in South Carolina, where the boy was visiting family. Died May 30.
Hiking tragedies
Hikers enjoy New Hampshire’s mountains and scenery throughout the year, but misfortune occasionally leads to a hiker’s death. Here are two recent examples:
Emily Sotelo, 19, of Westford, Mass., died while hiking Mount Lafayette. She was found Nov. 23 after a four-day search on what would have been her 20th birthday. She was closing in on her goal of climbing all 48 4,000-foot mountains in New Hampshire. Died Nov. 20.
Joseph Eggleston, 53, of Randolph, who worked as an engineer for the Cog Railway, fell 300 feet to his death from the summit of Mount Willard in Crawford Notch while taking photos with his wife during a hike. Died Dec. 10.
Ryan McGonigle, 47, of Concord, was a longtime youth baseball coach in Concord. In 2018, he coached a Concord team that advanced to the Babe Ruth World Series. Died July 24.
Jake Crouthamel, 84, of Hanover, was a star running back at Dartmouth College who went on to a four-decade career as a football coach and college athletics administrator. Died Nov. 7.
The remains of the U.S. Army Sgt. Alfred Harry Sidney of Littleton were identified this year. Sidney was 23 when he died in North Korea on July 31, 1951. His remains were returned home with a military escort for burial in Littleton on Dec. 8.
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2022-12-28T02:49:30Z
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Notable deaths in 2022 | News | unionleader.com
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https://www.unionleader.com/news/notable-deaths-in-2022/article_40512487-372e-57d8-a7e6-b5ceacfc4d27.html
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https://www.unionleader.com/news/notable-deaths-in-2022/article_40512487-372e-57d8-a7e6-b5ceacfc4d27.html
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For families expecting family members to be flying in, or out, it was that much tougher.
It appears to us that New Hampshire power suppliers have learned in recent times to be better prepared for the kind of hellacious storm that landed here after slugging much of the lower 48 states last week. Out-of-state crews were called in ahead of time. Combined, they were at work all weekend in some pretty rough and cold weather to restore power to many thousands of customers.
It wasn’t perfect. Some customers complained of poor estimates as to just when the lights would go on again. But this storm’s wind gusts knocked down a lot of trees and tree limbs. Some missed guesses were understandable.
Still, folks here had it much better than in other storm-hit places, such as Buffalo, New York. And we were and are much better off than the people of Ukraine, who are wondering what the mad Russian, Putin, will do next to destroy not only their power but their very lives.
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2022-12-28T06:04:02Z
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www.unionleader.com
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Power outages: A tough couple of days | Editorials | unionleader.com
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https://www.unionleader.com/opinion/editorials/power-outages-a-tough-couple-of-days/article_051af1e1-ead6-537b-b328-932095e820f1.html
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https://www.unionleader.com/opinion/editorials/power-outages-a-tough-couple-of-days/article_051af1e1-ead6-537b-b328-932095e820f1.html
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To the Editor: Some English Christmas carols written in the 1700s refer to Jesus as King. Isaak Watts’ “Joy to the World” describes Jesus’ birth as “Let Earth receive her King.” Similarly, Charles Wesley’s “Hark the Herald Angels Sing” has “Glory to the newborn King.”
Our American Revolution was fought to free us from the rule of repressive English King George, who “taxed us without representation.” The U.S. Constitution, ratified in 1789, replaced the king with our president, whose power is limited by Congress and the courts.
Like our Constitution, “Oh Little Town of Bethlehem” does away with kings: “For Christ is Born of Mary” and “Oh Holy Child of Bethlehem.” Phillips Brooks, of Trinity Church in Boston, authored it in 1866.
Why did American composer Katherine K. Davis’ 1958 song “Little Drummer Boy” refer again to Jesus as a “newborn King”? Could this be a premonition of democracies being replaced by more authoritarian governments?
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2022-12-28T06:04:05Z
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Letter: Christmas carols: Why 'king' again? | Letters to the Editor | unionleader.com
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https://www.unionleader.com/opinion/letters_to_editor/letter-christmas-carols-why-king-again/article_90e6a931-db5b-509b-affd-c4fab125f9d5.html
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https://www.unionleader.com/opinion/letters_to_editor/letter-christmas-carols-why-king-again/article_90e6a931-db5b-509b-affd-c4fab125f9d5.html
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George, 5, a migrant boy from Venezuela who is traveling with his family and trying to seek asylum in the United States, plays with a Captain America doll at the border between Mexico and the United States, while members of the Texas National Guard stand guard on the banks of the Rio Bravo river, with the purpose of reinforcing border security and inhibiting the crossing of migrants to the United States, seen from Ciudad Juarez, Mexico, December 27, 2022.
By Robert Barnes and Ann E. Marimow The Washington Post
WASHINGTON - The Supreme Court on Tuesday blocked the Biden administration's plans to end a pandemic-era policy allowing the quick expulsion of migrants from U.S. borders without the opportunity to seek asylum, as officials warned of a crisis along the southern border.
A federal judge had ruled that the Trump-era policy, known as Title 42, should expire last week, but the court's action extends a pause Chief Justice John Roberts imposed to give the high court more time to weigh the issue.
In Tuesday's order, five conservative justices sided with Republican officials in 19 states, including Texas and Arizona, who sought to maintain Title 42, which has been used to expel migrants more than 2 million times since it was implemented in March 2020.
In effect, the Supreme Court's action keeps the status quo in place by blocking the district judge's order until the court can consider the dispute in late February. But the court said it will consider only whether the objecting states have the legal standing to intervene.
While the majority did not provide reasoning, which is common in emergency requests, dissenting Justice Neil Gorsuch said the order would "effectively require the federal government to continue enforcing the Title 42 orders indefinitely." He suggested that the majority was buying time in hopes the political branches would reach a compromise.
It is the latest example of the escalating legal and political battles among the Biden administration, immigration advocates, and Republican officials in states along the border and elsewhere who say they bear the brunt of illegal crossings. Texas Gov. Greg Abbott (R) last week sent busloads of migrants to be dropped off in freezing temperatures outside Vice President Kamala Harris's residence.
White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said the administration will comply with the Supreme Court's action but added that "Title 42 is a public health measure, not an immigration enforcement measure, and it should not be extended indefinitely."
She called for Republicans in Congress to "move past political finger-pointing and join their Democratic colleagues in solving the challenge at our border by passing the comprehensive reform measures and delivering the additional funds for border security that President Biden has requested."
Abbott, meanwhile, tweeted that "Texas is stepping up while the Biden Admin fails to do its job. Texas National Guard is adding more barriers with razor wire & stationing humvees along the border to stop illegal crossings."
The court's order was unsigned, but the court's three liberal justices, along with the conservative Gorsuch, objected.
Gorsuch wrote that he did not doubt the states' argument that there was a crisis at the border but that the legal issue in front of the court was not the way to solve it.
Gorsuch's statement in the emergency matter was joined by liberal Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson. Justices Sonia Sotomayor and Elena Kagan noted that they would have turned down the request from the states but did not give their reasoning.
Those notations mean that the majority was composed of Roberts and Justices Clarence Thomas, Samuel Alito, Brett Kavanaugh and Amy Coney Barrett. They did not provide a reasoning for extending the stay of the lower court's order.
Official border crossings are essentially closed to asylum seekers while Title 42 remains in effect. That has helped fuel an influx of thousands of migrants crossing the border outside legal entry points, hoping to turn themselves in to border police and request asylum proceedings that would allow them to stay - at least temporarily - in the United States.
In November, a trial court judge in D.C. vacated Title 42, siding with immigrant advocates who had sued the government during the Trump administration, saying the policy put migrants in danger and there was no evidence that it protected public health. U.S. District Judge Emmet G. Sullivan said the order from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention - introduced as a way to stem the spread of the coronavirus - was "arbitrary and capricious" under federal law.
"It is undisputed that the impact on migrants was indeed dire," Sullivan wrote.
The Biden administration agreed that the policy should end even as it has struggled to deal with the influx of migrants. U.S. Solicitor General Elizabeth Prelogar told the justices that the federal government recognizes that lifting Title 42 "will likely lead to disruption and a temporary increase in unlawful border crossings." But she wrote that the solution to that immigration problem "cannot be to extend indefinitely a public-health measure that all now acknowledge has outlived its public-health justification."
The government, she wrote in a court filing, is prepared to increase resources and to "implement new policies in response to the temporary disruption that is likely to occur whenever the Title 42 orders end."
Republican state officials asked the Supreme Court to intervene in the case and to block the Biden administration's plans to terminate the policy. The officials said a large increase in migrants crossing the border would burden their states with added costs for law enforcement and services such as health care.
"No one reasonably disputes that the failure to grant a stay will cause a crisis of unprecedented proportions at the border," the filing says. "The idea that the States will not suffer substantial irreparable harm as a result of the imminent catastrophe that a termination of Title 42 will occasion is therefore fanciful."
In April, the CDC determined that Title 42 was no longer needed to protect public health. The Biden administration told the Supreme Court last week that the state officials do not have valid legal grounds to challenge the change in immigration policy. If state officials are unhappy with the immigration system Congress created, the government said, "their remedy is to ask Congress to change the law - not to ask this Court to compel the government to continue relying on an extraordinary and now obsolete public-health measure."
With the fate of the policy unclear, and migrants continuing to pour across the border, Republican governors have mobilized National Guard troops and attempted to create border barriers and impediments of their own. Abbott deployed more than 500 soldiers along the Rio Grande in El Paso last week, where they blocked migrants with spools of concertina wire. Social media footage showed border-crossers diverting around the hazards to arrive on U.S. soil and surrender to Border Patrol agents, the first step in seeking asylum.
In Arizona, Gov. Doug Ducey (R) has agreed to begin removing thousands of empty containers his administration stacked along the Mexico border over the past several months. The Biden administration sued Ducey in federal court, arguing that the installation of the huge metal boxes was inflicting damage on national forest land and other property that does not belong to the state of Arizona.
Arizona governor-elect Katie Hobbs, a Democrat, will succeed Ducey next month. Hobbs has criticized the installation of the shipping containers as wasteful and ineffective.
ACLU attorney Lee Gelernt, the lead lawyer in the Title 42 lawsuit, said in a statement that his organization will "continue to challenge this horrific policy that has caused so much harm to asylum seekers and cannot plausibly be justified any longer as a public health measure."
The Washington Post's Nick Miroff and Maria Sacchetti contributed to this report.
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2022-12-28T12:11:11Z
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www.unionleader.com
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Supreme Court leaves in place Title 42 border policy for now | Courts | unionleader.com
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https://www.unionleader.com/news/courts/supreme-court-leaves-in-place-title-42-border-policy-for-now/article_ed0740ed-c0ac-50ae-b7b8-546aac5094be.html
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By Judy Harrison Bangor Daily News, Maine
After he was charged with making the threats, the case was reassigned to U.S. District Judge Paul J. Barbadoro and the U.S. attorney's office in Concord, New Hampshire. While the threat case has been pending, Melycher has continued to make threats against those handling his case in the Granite State, according to federal prosecutors.
"Generally speaking, over the course of his pretrial detention, the defendant's letters have gone from plaintive and pleading, to desperate to, more recently, violent and threatening," Falk said in his sentencing memorandum in the sex case.
A week later, the court received a profanity-laced letter that said: "I swear to god you better f------ kill me Woodcock. I'm going to f------ murder you one day and you deserve it." In other letters, Melycher told the judge to "go hang himself."
During that time, Melycher pressured the victim to send sexually explicit images despite knowing the victim was only 13, according to the U.S. attorney's office. Melycher initially told the victim he was 19.
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2022-12-28T12:11:17Z
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www.unionleader.com
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Connecticut man earns more prison time for threatening to kill judge, prosecutor and others | Crime | unionleader.com
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https://www.unionleader.com/news/crime/connecticut-man-earns-more-prison-time-for-threatening-to-kill-judge-prosecutor-and-others/article_56c465a7-0ef3-52e0-b1a1-85d79e46abc3.html
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https://www.unionleader.com/news/crime/connecticut-man-earns-more-prison-time-for-threatening-to-kill-judge-prosecutor-and-others/article_56c465a7-0ef3-52e0-b1a1-85d79e46abc3.html
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LOWELL, Massachusetts — On what should have been the merriest of days, tragedy struck when Lowell police found two bodies in a home located at 57 Beacon St. in Lowell's Centralville neighborhood.
"At approximately 1:38 p.m., Lowell Police responded to a home on Beacon Street," the statement said. "Upon arrival, police located a 60-year-old male and a 55-year-old female, husband and wife, dead from apparent gunshot wounds."
"All the doors are locked. We don't have any way to get in," a fire department crew team reported to dispatch, according to the transmission. Dispatch responded that, "I tried calling the number to reach him (Jose Santiago) and it goes to voicemail."
Police requested "permission to enter" from the incident commander, after which they broke down the door. Shortly after gaining access, the on-scene officers requested a commanding officer respond to the scene.
Neighbors were still reeling from the news of the carnage that took place on Sunday. A nearby resident, who asked that her name not be used, said she was leaving for work when she saw all the emergency vehicles. She said she rarely saw the couple, who had just moved into their house this fall. She mentioned that she had heard it was a murder-suicide, and said for some people, "the holidays are tough."
Another neighbor, who said she'd been on Beacon Street for four years, said she sometimes saw the residents going out to their cars, but had never interacted with them. She called the news "so sad."
The company, located in Mansfield, Massachusetts, and Londonderry, N.H., specializes in biohazard cleaning and remediation, and its website says they offer the "Newest technology and equipment available in the bioremediation industry."
The investigation is being conducted by the Middlesex District Attorney's Office, Lowell Police and Massachusetts State Police Detectives assigned to the District Attorney's Office.
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2022-12-28T12:11:23Z
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www.unionleader.com
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Murder-suicide stuns Lowell, Mass. neighborhood | Crime | unionleader.com
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https://www.unionleader.com/news/crime/murder-suicide-stuns-lowell-mass-neighborhood/article_6a755c65-9831-5116-9a15-19a64efde25e.html
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https://www.unionleader.com/news/crime/murder-suicide-stuns-lowell-mass-neighborhood/article_6a755c65-9831-5116-9a15-19a64efde25e.html
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People practice shooting at a gun range in Southern Maryland in July that was later essentially taken over by a group calling itself Moorish Americans.
Eric Lee/Washington Post
Firearms at the gun range in July.
Matt McClain/Washington Post
Liswa Hawkins, 27, center, shows people how to shoot during a Handgun Qualification License class at the gun range in July.
Mark Manley holds a rifle at the gun range in July. He is now seeking another home for his operation.
The mansion in Bethesda, Md., that was occupied by Moorish Americans in 2013.
Tracy A. Woodward/Washington Post
William Tomlinson, 75, complained about excessive gunfire from a neighboring gun range, which eventually led to a decision by Charles County officials to shut it down.
Peter Jamison/Washington Post
Booking photo of Lamont Butler from a decade ago.
Courtesy of Prince George's County Police Department
By Peter Jamison The Washington Post
moorish-americans
WELCOME, Md. - The complaints about the property on Fire Tower Road were urgent but not too far out of the ordinary in this rural stretch of Southern Maryland: Earsplitting gunfire, endangered cows, a stray bullet that pierced a neighbor's equipment shed.
Yet it was after county officials took action, deeming the site an unlawful firing range and filing an injunction to stop it from operating in September, that events took several unexpected turns. That was when a group calling itself Moorish Americans - an offshoot of the extremist "sovereign citizen" movement whose members believe they are immune from dealings with U.S. legal and financial systems - essentially took over the range, declaring it "protected under the consular jurisdiction of Morocco."
There followed arrests, flurries of spurious legal documents and hundreds of thousands of dollars in fines, all to the accompaniment of what neighbors describe as an ongoing din of gunfire on weekends. Things escalated last week when sheriff's deputies raided the property, seizing what Bell said were about a dozen firearms.
William Tomlinson, who owns a farm that backs up to Bell's property, said decisive action by law enforcement was long overdue. Tomlinson said many rounds zipped through the air on his property, chewing up a stand of timber trees and forcing him to move his small herd of cattle to a pasture where they aren't at risk of stopping a stray bullet.
Tomlinson, who owns guns himself, said he sometimes has friends over for target practice. But it's not comparable to what goes on at Bell's place, he said.
"We're not over here with fully automatic weapons, 40-round clips, shooting thousands of rounds," Tomlinson said. "It's a completely different situation. I would use the term reckless endangerment."
"Everybody shoots around here. So why you going to have me stop shooting?" Bell said. "I thought it was about these people telling me what to do with my land."
Yet even Bell, speaking to a Washington Post reporter in his home hours after he had sat there in handcuffs while sheriff's deputies searched the premises, acknowledged that things had gone too far.
"It just went overboard," he said.
Bell began hosting shooting days on his land in 2021. The events were organized by Mark "Choppa" Manley, a social media influencer and former D.C. security guard who promoted the site as home to the "Choppa Community" - an incubator of firearms education and ownership for African Americans.
On Sundays, amid the aroma of grilling burgers, kids would take classes in basic gun safety with plastic pistols while the grown-ups lined up for target practice with 9mm handguns and AR-style rifles. Manley catered in particular to Black residents of the District and Prince George's County who were seeking to arm themselves for protection amid spikes in violent crime. Visitors were not charged, although ammunition was sold, as well as classes for concealed-carry licenses.
"It was like a family day," Manley said.
Yet some of Bell's neighbors didn't share that view. Disturbed by the noise and risk of errant gunfire, nearly 40 of them supported a petition demanding that the range be shut down, the Southern Maryland News reported. Tomlinson, in particular, said he feared for his safety, since his farm sits downrange from a backstop for bullets on Bell's property that he called "totally ineffective."
"I have moved my animals to the other side of the farm," he said. "I don't want them shot."
Tomlinson said he first brought his complaints to the county about a year ago. But it was not until September - in anticipation of an especially large crowd for Manley's birthday on Sept. 11 - that government officials took decisive action. On Sept. 9 the county attorney's office filed an emergency petition for an injunction against shooting on the property.
In an attached affidavit, the county's planning supervisor said regulations prohibited the gun range unless it was granted a special exception to operate in an area zoned for agricultural conservation. No application for such an exception had ever been filed, she said.
The county attorney's office declined to discuss the case with The Post. Charles County spokeswoman Jennifer Harris said in a statement that officials' "top concern is for the health, safety, and welfare of the community. We achieve that through the enforcement of regulations that must be followed by property owners."
Judge Karen Abrams granted the order, stating that the shooting happening at the range was illegal and that a failure to enforce the zoning laws "encourages citizens to ignore the very regulations that are implemented to protect them and others."
Manley cleared out and started looking for a new site in Virginia. "I could tell Charles County wasn't going to let up," he said.
Yet around the same time, county officials came up against a new challenge. It was heralded by the filing of perplexing documents - adorned with symbols including the star and crescent and the pyramid-tip "Eye of Providence" that appears on the back of the dollar bill - asserting that the dispute over Bell's land was subject to the terms of an 1836 treaty between the United States and Morocco.
Among those documents was a "writ of error" signed by a man identifying himself as Lamont Maurice El and claiming that he was the consul general of the "Morocco Consular Court at the Maryland state republic."
The consul, whose real name is Lamont Maurice Butler, had some experience with Maryland's judicial system. In 2013, he was convicted on multiple charges stemming from his attempt to occupy a 12-bedroom Bethesda mansion. The ideology that had fueled that escapade was the same he later brought to bear in the legal wrangling over the property on Fire Tower Road.
Moorish Americans, also known as Moorish sovereign citizens, believe themselves to be the inheritors of a fictitious empire that they say stretched from the present-day kingdom of Morocco to North America, with Mexico and Atlantis thrown in for good measure. They claim the same protections from U.S. legal proceedings that are granted to foreign citizens, while simultaneously asserting their rights to take over properties - often well-appointed homes owned by other people - that they say are still part of the "Moroccan Empire."
Bell declared his Moorish American citizenship in September, according to court documents. He told The Post that he was still struggling to understand much of the group's doctrine but that he found it "very educational."
Among the things he had learned, he said, was that he should consider himself exempt from the county's legal actions - in part because government officials did not refer to him in court documents by the Moorish variant of his name, Byron David Bell-Bey.
"They weren't really talking to me," he said.
Butler, who had attended the weekend shooting gatherings when they were overseen by Manley, joined with other Moorish Americans to reopen the range, charging $25 a head and promising that "security will be in full force for everyone's safety and protection" under Moroccan consular jurisdiction.
On Nov. 13, Butler and another Moorish American, George Neal-Bey, tried to intervene when Charles County sheriff's deputies pulled over a third member of the group. In a video that the Moorish Americans later posted online, Butler - wearing a camouflage uniform, dark headscarf and a pistol on his hip - can be seen approaching the deputies on the side of the road. Four of them then abruptly wrestle him to the ground while a fifth stands by with his gun drawn.
On the morning of Dec. 21, Bell said, he and his wife, Chrystal, were awakened by a loud knocking, followed by the busting in of their door. A group of sheriff's deputies then searched his home, he said, taking away his guns and a computer.
The warrant shared with Bell - which he showed to The Post - contains few details but indicates that the search was conducted as part of an investigation into possible possession of illegally owned or modified firearms, such as machine guns or short-barreled shotguns.
The sheriff's office declined to comment.
Bell said the officers who searched his home were "very cordial."
"They could have tore the house clean up," he said. "But they didn't."
"You got to follow the rules," Bell said.
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2022-12-28T14:16:16Z
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Moorish Americans take over a rural gun range, sparking a strange showdown | Back Page | unionleader.com
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https://www.unionleader.com/news/back_page/moorish-americans-take-over-a-rural-gun-range-sparking-a-strange-showdown/article_ec72bc25-d469-5b4c-98b0-940a0629a7e8.html
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https://www.unionleader.com/news/back_page/moorish-americans-take-over-a-rural-gun-range-sparking-a-strange-showdown/article_ec72bc25-d469-5b4c-98b0-940a0629a7e8.html
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Buffalo Niagara International Airport is closed, following a deadly Christmas blizzard, in Cheektowaga, New York, U.S., December 27, 2022.
ROBERT KIRKHAM/REUTERS
By Andrea Sachs The Washington Post
Fortunately, the retail department manager at Buffalo Niagara International Airport was able to rustle up enough prepackaged food options - plus such Sunday football fare as chicken fingers and french fries - to feed the nearly 200 people stranded at the facility during Western New York's deadliest blizzard in 50 years.
"We were thinking, okay, if this [storm] continues, at some point we are going to run out of grab 'n go sandwiches. As a last resort, we were going to crank out peanut butter and jelly sandwiches, because peanut butter and jelly can get you through the day," said Maida, who manages the airport's shops for Delaware North, which runs food service and retail operations in nearly two dozen U.S. airports.
When Maida showed up at work Friday morning, he was not prepared for what would transpire over the next three days: Caring for 196 travelers (according to the Niagara Frontier Transportation Authority's count) who were trapped at the airport with few resources beyond the items packed in their luggage or stuffed inside their winter coat pockets.
But he rose to challenge. Even though Maida's expertise is in retail, not food service, he assumed an emergency response role while the streets were impassable and the airport was shuttered. Buffalo Niagara International was finally scheduled to reopen Wednesday morning.
"At the end of the day, this all comes down to doing the right thing," said Maida, who started working at the airport last June. "Their care and welfare were basically in our hands. They're relying on us."
When the weather started to turn dreadful Friday, Maida locked up all but one store - Jet Set West - and sent his five employees home. Around 11:30 a.m., about 90 minutes before NFTA officially closed the airport, he attempted to drive home. Like many in the city, he was on the road despite a travel ban. Sheets of ice and blankets of snow thwarted his escape.
In the whiteout, Maida ended up at the Enterprise car rental site, following a pair of blinking hazard lights back to the airport. He called Samhan Kahn, a retail supervisor for Delaware North, who had fallen asleep in his car in the parking lot after his overnight shift, and urged him to return to the safety of the airport. The pair then shifted their focus to the passengers congregating in the lobbies before the security checkpoints.
"It was just a matter of us getting the food out to the people that were rescued, and it was just nonstop," he said.
Maida and Kahn initially served sandwiches to about 60 passengers whose flights had been canceled earlier that day. By midafternoon, the number had swelled to 196, after first responders started bringing in motorists rescued from the airport perimeter. According to Helen Tederous, a NFTA spokeswoman, the authority's police, firefighters and airfield crews spent Friday saving people trapped in their vehicles and providing them with such basic necessities as food, water and shelter.
"Everyone at the airport went into a live-saving mode," she said. "NFTA employees did whatever they had to do to help."
Maida and Kahn, who had all of Delaware North's bars, restaurants and retail outlets at their disposal, checked the company's food and beverage stocks and started meal-planning. Fortunately, they had received a delivery that morning and had enough premade sandwiches on hand to stretch several days.
"Grab-and-go inventory really carried us," Maida said. "We were able to feed even the fire department and the NFTA police."
A call out for anyone with restaurant experience landed them two travelers who knew their way around a commercial kitchen, especially the fryer. At around 4 p.m. on Friday and Saturday, they offered chicken tenders and french fries from the Anchor Bar. The sole vegetarian in the group dined on chicken Caesar salad with the protein plucked from the greens.
"This was us doing what we can to make sure people can survive," Maida said. "We would not charge anybody."
In addition, Maida assembled a Christmas care package for a family of six who were hunkered down at the nearby firehouse. The ad hoc Santa sent the four little ones, who ranged from 8 years old to nine months, a Melissa & Doug activity book, stuffed plush buffalo, rubber buffalo stress ball and a onesie in the Buffalo Bills team colors of red, white and blue.
"He had all of the support from us," said Chris Chila, vice president of operations for Delaware North's travel division. "We could not be more proud of Erik and Sam."
"My family was really upset when they woke up Sunday morning. They said it just did not feel like Christmas," he said. Later, Maida said, his wife and 9-year-old son told him "it literally felt like Christmas" when they knew he was finally on his way back.
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2022-12-28T16:09:10Z
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www.unionleader.com
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Airport workers trapped by Buffalo blizzard rallied to feed travelers | Back Page | unionleader.com
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https://www.unionleader.com/news/back_page/airport-workers-trapped-by-buffalo-blizzard-rallied-to-feed-travelers/article_e059e261-74eb-5251-b808-2bba40a56388.html
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A young adult from Auburn suffered serious injuries Tuesday night when he stopped his car on a Manchester road and tried to help a stranded motorist, authorities said.
Jonathan Griffin, 18, suffered serious injuries when struck by a 2016 Volkswagen Jetta on Raymond Wieczorek Drive about 10:30 p.m. Tuesday, New Hampshire State Police said.
Griffin had stopped his 2016 Honda Civic to assist a pickup truck that was disabled near the center median of Wieczorek Drive, just west of Roundstone Drive.
The Jetta stuck the pickup truck and ultimately Griffin, who was outside of his car at the time, state police said. The Jetta driver remained on scene and is cooperating with the investigation, police said.
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2022-12-28T16:09:23Z
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Auburn man struck on Manchester road trying to help stranded motorist | Public Safety | unionleader.com
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https://www.unionleader.com/news/safety/auburn-man-struck-on-manchester-road-trying-to-help-stranded-motorist/article_e9ea3c1d-d5cc-57ba-bbe1-3d3f223c75bd.html
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https://www.unionleader.com/news/safety/auburn-man-struck-on-manchester-road-trying-to-help-stranded-motorist/article_e9ea3c1d-d5cc-57ba-bbe1-3d3f223c75bd.html
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A Hooksett man pleaded guilty Wednesday in U.S. District Court in Portland, Maine, to conspiracy and robbery charges stemming from a violent home invasion in York, Maine.
In August, 2019, Derek Daprato, 34, and three other co-conspirators met in Hooksett, New Hampshire and planned a home invasion of a York residence to rob marijuana and marijuana sale proceeds from the home’s resident, said the U.S. Attorney's Office for the District for Maine, citing court records.
The group traveled to the York home, where two co-conspirators, armed with handguns and wearing masks, waited in the woods for the victim to return, according to a news release. When the victim arrived, accompanied by two others, a violent physical altercation ensued.
During the fight, a firearm was discharged, and the bullet struck the victim in the lower abdomen. The two co-conspirators fled. Police arrived approximately 15 minutes later, and the victim was rushed to the hospital where he underwent surgery to remove a .45 caliber bullet from his lower abdomen.
The FBI, in conjunction with the York Police Department and the York County Sheriff’s Office, investigated the case.
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2022-12-28T18:05:01Z
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www.unionleader.com
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Hooksett man pleads guilty to York, Maine, home invasion | Crime | unionleader.com
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https://www.unionleader.com/news/crime/hooksett-man-pleads-guilty-to-york-maine-home-invasion/article_b9b87ecc-f825-5cb8-9080-43d30ebb10d8.html
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https://www.unionleader.com/news/crime/hooksett-man-pleads-guilty-to-york-maine-home-invasion/article_b9b87ecc-f825-5cb8-9080-43d30ebb10d8.html
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Kosovo police officers patrol in the northern part of the ethnically-divided town of Mitrovica, Kosovo, December 28, 2022.
By Misha Savic and Kamil Kowalcze Bloomberg
The standoff between the wartime foes has brought the region to the verge of a renewed conflict. The minority Serb community in Kosovo is backed by the government of neighboring Serbia and President Aleksandar Vucic, who has traded accusations with the Kosovo government led by Premier Albin Kurti.
"We call on everyone to exercise maximum restraint, to take immediate action to unconditionally de-escalate the situation, and to refrain from provocations, threats, or intimidation," the U.S. State Department and the E.U. said in a joint statement on Wednesday. "We are working with President Vučić and Prime Minister Kurti to find a political solution."
The Pristina-based administration accuses Serbia of fomenting the protests in a bid to thwart Kosovo's sovereignty after it declared independence from Serbia in 2008. Serbia, whose troops were driven out of Kosovo after a 1998-1999 war, refuses to recognize Kosovo as a country.
Kosovo's Foreign Ministry advised travelers to avoid the main road entry from Serbia at Merdare, where a new blockade was erected late on Tuesday, and accused "Serbian criminal groups" of staging the protest, according to a message on Facebook.
"The institutions of Kosovo will not talk and cooperate with criminals, but will arrest them," Kosovo's government said in a statement Wednesday.
Vucic has accused Kosovo's government of trying to force remaining ethnic Serbs to flee their homes. He put his nation's military on high alert on Monday to respond if violence erupts between neighboring Kosovo's Serb minority and its ethnic-Albanian authorities.
He toured army units in an area bordering Kosovo late Tuesday and thanked them for "courage and dedication in preserving vital interest of our country and survival of Serbian people in Kosovo."
Germany, meanwhile, called on Serbs to dismantle "illegal" barricades on Kosovo's border that expanded overnight to a key crossing. A spokesman for Germany's Foreign Ministry said that the government in Berlin is "very concerned" and called on Serbs to dismantle "the illegal barricades."
"The Kosovo Serbs should immediately clear these barricades in Kosovo," spokesman Christofer Burger told reporters in Berlin.
"All dialogue obligations must be fully implemented without delay," E.U. and U.S. officials said in their statement.
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2022-12-28T18:05:25Z
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www.unionleader.com
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U.S., E.U. call for 'maximum restraint' as Kosovo tensions rise | Military | unionleader.com
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https://www.unionleader.com/news/military/u-s-e-u-call-for-maximum-restraint-as-kosovo-tensions-rise/article_85f8b563-61f5-5000-afd4-4e7b35bfeca3.html
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https://www.unionleader.com/news/military/u-s-e-u-call-for-maximum-restraint-as-kosovo-tensions-rise/article_85f8b563-61f5-5000-afd4-4e7b35bfeca3.html
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Kennedy Center honors; how old is too old?
AN ANNUAL TREAT traditionally broadcast between Christmas and New Year’s, “The 45th Annual Kennedy Center Honors” (8 p.m., CBS) inducts its latest “class” of artists and individuals who have contributed in their singular ways to American culture.
This year’s group includes actor and director George Clooney; contemporary Christian pop singer/songwriter Amy Grant; soul music legend Gladys Knight; Cuban-American composer and conductor Tania Leon and Irish rock band U2.
Each inductee has a lead “storyteller” to introduce them, as well as colleagues and friends to sing their praises. Look for Julia Roberts to extol Clooney’s virtues. The actors recently appeared together in the box office romance “Ticket to Paradise.” Conductor Michael Tilson Thomas and LL Cool J introduce Knight, who is serenaded by Garth Brooks, Mickey Guyton, Ariana DeBose and Patti LaBelle.
Katie Couric and Sheryl Crow celebrate Amy Grant’s career. Anna Deavere Smith is on hand to introduce Leon to those who do not know the composer. Sean Penn and Sacha Baron Cohen, a curious duo, introduce U2.
In another tradition, these proceedings gather both an artistic crowd and official Washington, making the audience resemble a blend of the Golden Globes and a State of the Union Address. Most prominent among the guests is Paul Pelosi, the husband of the departing House Speaker, making his first public appearance since being attacked in his own home by a deranged political terrorist.
The Kennedy Center Honors were taped earlier on Dec. 4.
• The original cast of an Oscar-winning animated musical reunite for a rousing performance of songs in “Encanto at the Hollywood Bowl,” captured live on film and streaming on Disney+. Look for a special introduction by Lin-Manuel Miranda, writer of eight of the featured songs.
• A cranky musical producer (Jack Nicholson) falls for his younger girlfriend’s mother (Diane Keaton) after suffering a heart attack in the 2003 romantic comedy “Something’s Gotta Give” (7:50 p.m., Showtime). Fans of Jack can continue in a cantankerous vein with the 1997 comedy “As Good as it Gets” (10 p.m., Showtime), co-starring Helen Hunt and Greg Kinnear.
Nominated for 12 Oscars and winner of three, Nicholson was once a staple of Tinseltown’s awards season and a courtside regular at Lakers games. Now 85, he’s largely vanished from the public scene and hasn’t appeared on screen for more than a decade. Nicholson’s rough contemporary Gene Hackman (92), has also made a conscious decision to step back, and hasn’t appeared on screen since 2004.
Knowing when to retire, or when to fold ’em, as Kenny Rogers once sang, is an art in itself. I thought of this subject while watching Harrison Ford (80) in the first episode of the “Yellowstone” prequel “1923.” As a man with a cowboy hat, a gun and a badge, he’s supposed to project “the law” with a whiff of menace. He can still deliver his lines with authority, but one has the sense that his action hero days should be in his rearview mirror.
• Netflix imports the second season of the Turkish docudrama “Rise of Empires: Ottoman.” Put your feet up and watch!
• North Carolina and Oregon clash in the San Diego County Credit Union Holiday Bowl (8 p.m., Fox). Oh, for the days when these events were named for simple things like roses, oranges and cotton.
• Hawkins and Violet grow closer on “Chicago Fire” (9 p.m., NBC, r, TV-14).
• “The Gift: Kindness Goes Viral With Steve Hartman” (10 p.m., CBS) looks at the ripple effects of simple acts of generosity and the notion that there may be a “science” of charity.
• A killer hijacks a prison van on “Chicago P.D.” (10 p.m., NBC, r, TV-14).
• Undercover to catch a killer on “The Rookie: Feds” (10 p.m., ABC, r, TV-14).
A convalescent photographer and voyeur (Jimmy Stewart) suspects that his neighbor across the courtyard (Raymond Burr) has disposed of his wife in the 1954 Alfred Hitchcock thriller “Rear Window” (8 p.m., TCM, TV-PG).
“The Wheel” (8 p.m., NBC, TV-PG) ... “Celebrity Jeopardy!” (8 p.m., ABC, r, TV-PG) ... On two episodes of “Abbott Elementary” (ABC, r, TV-PG): hard truths about a soft drink (9 p.m.); sugar shock (9:30 p.m.).
Michelle Williams, Phil Keoghan and Dierks Bentley are booked on “The Late Show With Stephen Colbert” (11:35 p.m., CBS, r) ... Jimmy Fallon welcomes Samuel L. Jackson, Neal Brennan and Wizkid on “The Tonight Show” (11:35 p.m., NBC, r) ... George Lopez, Haley Lu Richardson and Madi Diaz appear on “Jimmy Kimmel Live!” (11:35 p.m., ABC, r) ... Chris Hayes and Charlotte Nicdao visit “Late Night With Seth Meyers” (12:35 a.m., NBC, r).
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2022-12-28T19:51:45Z
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www.unionleader.com
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Kennedy Center honors; how old is too old? | | unionleader.com
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https://www.unionleader.com/kennedy-center-honors-how-old-is-too-old/article_e19f3883-54f2-510e-9762-817842a1d33b.html
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https://www.unionleader.com/kennedy-center-honors-how-old-is-too-old/article_e19f3883-54f2-510e-9762-817842a1d33b.html
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David Wayne DePape appears in U.S. District Court before U.S. Magistrate Judge Alex Tse for a hearing on federal charges over the attack on Paul Pelosi, husband of Speaker of the House, Nancy Pelosi, in San Francisco, California, on Nov. 15 in a courtroom sketch. REUTERS/Vicki Behringer/File Photo
DePape pleaded not guilty on Wednesday to all charges and denied all the allegations, San Francisco District Attorney Brooke Jenkins said in a statement.
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2022-12-28T21:39:24Z
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www.unionleader.com
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Accused Paul Pelosi attacker pleads not guilty to state charges | Courts | unionleader.com
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https://www.unionleader.com/news/courts/accused-paul-pelosi-attacker-pleads-not-guilty-to-state-charges/article_0f378e4d-38d6-52b8-b0ee-4bef32829de4.html
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https://www.unionleader.com/news/courts/accused-paul-pelosi-attacker-pleads-not-guilty-to-state-charges/article_0f378e4d-38d6-52b8-b0ee-4bef32829de4.html
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A woman helps jump start an abandoned car after it was towed to a parking lot following a winter storm in Buffalo, New York,Wednesday. REUTERS/Lindsay DeDario
Darnell Saunders of Buffalo checks his car, following a deadly Christmas blizzard, in the western portion of New York, U.S., December 27, 2022. REUTERS/Robert Kirkham
A man carries a propane tank and heater to a friend following a winter storm in Buffalo, New York, U.S., December 27, 2022. REUTERS/Lindsay DeDario
BUFFALO, N.Y. -- Police and National Guard members were going door-to-door Wednesday to check on residents of some Buffalo neighborhoods following the deadly Christmas blizzard that dropped about 55 inches of snow on New York's second largest city.
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2022-12-28T21:39:30Z
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www.unionleader.com
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As Buffalo begins to thaw, police check for victims house to house | National | unionleader.com
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https://www.unionleader.com/news/national/as-buffalo-begins-to-thaw-police-check-for-victims-house-to-house/article_2f00b773-e7fa-5428-96fc-381ce08c4950.html
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https://www.unionleader.com/news/national/as-buffalo-begins-to-thaw-police-check-for-victims-house-to-house/article_2f00b773-e7fa-5428-96fc-381ce08c4950.html
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Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelensky delivers his annual speech to lawmakers during a session of the Ukrainian Parliament, amid Russia's attack on Ukraine, in Kyiv, Ukraine December 28, 2022. Ukrainian Presidential Press Service/Handout via REUTERS ATTENTION EDITORS - THIS IMAGE HAS BEEN SUPPLIED BY A THIRD PARTY.
MOSCOW -- The Kremlin on Wednesday dismissed Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky's 10-point peace plan, saying that proposals to end the conflict in Ukraine must take into account what it calls "today's realities" of four Ukrainian regions having joined Russia.
President Zelensky has been promoting his 10-point peace plan, which he first announced in November, discussing it with U.S. President Joe Biden among others, and urging world leaders to hold a Global Peace Summit based on it.
The plan envisions the withdrawal of Russian troops from Ukraine's internationally-recognized territory, which would mean Russia giving up both the four regions it claims to have annexed, and Crimea, which it seized in 2014.
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2022-12-28T21:39:36Z
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www.unionleader.com
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Kremlin says any Ukraine peace plan must include annexed regions | Politics | unionleader.com
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https://www.unionleader.com/news/politics/kremlin-says-any-ukraine-peace-plan-must-include-annexed-regions/article_b94fd673-97bb-5de9-9b9f-d3c05130f8b9.html
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https://www.unionleader.com/news/politics/kremlin-says-any-ukraine-peace-plan-must-include-annexed-regions/article_b94fd673-97bb-5de9-9b9f-d3c05130f8b9.html
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Boston Celtics assistant coach Damon Stoudamire led the team in head coach Joe Mazzulla's absence for Tuesday's game against the Rockets.
Damon Stoudamire didn’t have time to text or call anyone. His mom was in the crowd, and he didn’t even have time to tell her. He barely had time to think.
Ten minutes before opening tip on Tuesday, the Celtics assistant coach’s night took a sudden turn. Interim head coach Joe Mazzulla was out because of an eye irritation, and Stoudamire was thrust in for his full game as an acting NBA head coach. As a staff, the Celtics had prepared game plans for the Rockets. But Stoudamire wasn’t exactly prepared for this.
“But in a lot of ways it’s better that way,” Stoudamire said. “Just go out there and do what we’ve been doing.”
“For me it was just a matter of going out there and truly not messing it up,” he added.
With a pregame vote of confidence from Mazzulla, Stoudamire kept things rolling for the Celtics, who overcame some early sluggishness to take care of the lowly Houston Rockets with a 126-102 victory at TD Garden.
But then, like a switch, the Celtics finally woke up. Maybe sensing what could have been an embarrassing loss, the C’s picked up their defensive energy. Despite their shooting struggles, they were playing a team inferior enough that it didn’t matter. Behind a second-half surge fueled by Jaylen Brown and Jayson Tatum, the Celtics figured it out when it mattered.
Brown had 39 points, Tatum added 38 and the Celtics got massive contributions from Robert Williams, who had 11 points and 15 rebounds in 21 minutes. The Celtics, once reeling on this homestand, have now won three in a row.
The Celtics players didn’t know about the coaching switch until pregame introductions, when it was announced by TD Garden’s public address announcer that Stoudamire – who’s been on the coaching staff since last season – was stepping in.
“Damon (is) one of my favorite people in the organization,” Brown said. “It was fun to go out there and get a win for him.”
“The only difference was Joe wasn’t over there chewing the (expletive) out of some gum,” Tatum joked.
Without Mazzulla, the Celtics didn’t flinch on the principles that have pushed them to the best record in the NBA. They even took it up a notch, as they shot a season-high 56 3-point attempts. But a game after they seemed to find their shooting stroke, their outside struggles resurfaced. They went 8-for-29 from 3 in the first half, and were struggling to put away an inferior Rockets team.
But in the halftime locker room, Stoudamire stressed defense. They felt that if they could get some stops, they would take off. That’s exactly what happened late in the third quarter. The Celtics led by just five when Brown took over and scored eight points in 39 seconds to force a Houston timeout. His dunk to cap the run seemed to re-energize TD Garden and the Celtics, who took off from there.
Brown was hit in the head during a play in the first half, and he said that helped get him going in the second half.
“Sometimes you get smacked in the face is exactly what you need in the middle of the game,” Brown said. “Like Jaylen, what the hell are you doing? Smack in the face, and then proceed to score the ball.”
The Celtics led by 21 after Brown’s pull-up 3-pointer, Tatum’s dunk and another Rob Williams alley-oop before their regulars were taken out. They headed to the bench as they helped Stoudamire clinch his first career victory as a head coach.
“He did good,” Tatum said. “I mean, it’s kind of like when somebody’s out, somebody’s just gotta step in and fill that void. It’s not just a one-person job, we got a coaching staff that helps each other and we’re all on the same team, essentially. When a coach is out, it’s just a next man up mentality.”
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2022-12-28T21:39:54Z
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www.unionleader.com
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Damon Stoudamire steps in as head coach, Celtics surge late to blow out Rockets | Celtics | unionleader.com
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https://www.unionleader.com/sports/celtics/damon-stoudamire-steps-in-as-head-coach-celtics-surge-late-to-blow-out-rockets/article_e74bb7fa-b6b9-5a84-a6dd-9e2dd52ee17c.html
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https://www.unionleader.com/sports/celtics/damon-stoudamire-steps-in-as-head-coach-celtics-surge-late-to-blow-out-rockets/article_e74bb7fa-b6b9-5a84-a6dd-9e2dd52ee17c.html
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How to get reimbursed after Southwest cancellations
By Tristan Smith masslive.com (TNS)
People who’ve had to pay unforeseen expenses for food, hotels or rental cars due to Southwest Airlines’ cancellations or lengthy delays over the past few days can now request to have their additional travel expenses reimbursed.
Affected travelers who have flight cancellations or significant delays between Dec. 24, 2022, and Jan. 2, 2023, may submit their receipts for reimbursement consideration to Southwest’s email page, according to the airline’s website. The airline did not specify the minimum length of a “significant” delay. Reimbursements will also be considered on a case-by-case basis, the airline said.
Refunds are also available for affected Southwest travelers. People caught up in the debacle can request a formal refund on Southwest’s travel disruption page or call customer support at 1-800-435-9792. Refunds can only be issued for an unused airline ticket.
Due to the thousands of holiday travelers experiencing disruptions with Southwest, the high demand is impacting the airline’s ability to connect customers with support staff. Anyone traveling within the next 72 hours is urged to call support at 800-435-9792 immediately.
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2022-12-29T02:31:24Z
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www.unionleader.com
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How to get reimbursed after Southwest cancellations | Business | unionleader.com
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https://www.unionleader.com/news/business/how-to-get-reimbursed-after-southwest-cancellations/article_ad140770-7bca-59d7-b3ed-1f810683e074.html
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https://www.unionleader.com/news/business/how-to-get-reimbursed-after-southwest-cancellations/article_ad140770-7bca-59d7-b3ed-1f810683e074.html
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“Frozen shoulder exists in three stages, and the symptoms and treatment options depend on which stage you’re in. So the first one is an inflammatory stage,” Camp said.
“... is what we call thawing, which means it finally starts to relax, loosen up and gain motion back again,” Camp said.
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2022-12-29T02:31:48Z
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www.unionleader.com
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Mayo Clinic Minute: Tips to help a frozen shoulder | Health | unionleader.com
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https://www.unionleader.com/news/health/mayo-clinic-minute-tips-to-help-a-frozen-shoulder/article_6d8c68d5-4241-5cef-af28-f375f503b065.html
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https://www.unionleader.com/news/health/mayo-clinic-minute-tips-to-help-a-frozen-shoulder/article_6d8c68d5-4241-5cef-af28-f375f503b065.html
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Law enforcement officers searched for evidence in the median of Interstate 93 in Northfield in connection with the murders of a mother and her two sons in August. A juvenile was later arrested in the case.
Working on the Harmony Montgomery disappearance, police exchanged refrigerators during a search at an apartment on Union Street in Manchester on June 14. In October, Harmony’s father, Adam Montgomery, was charged with the murder of the little girl, who had not been seen since late 2019.
People upset with the not-guilty verdict gathered outside following the trial of Volodymyr Zhukovskyy of West Springfield, Mass., at Coos County Superior Court in Lancaster on Aug. 9. Zhukovskyy was charged with negligent homicide in the deaths of seven motorcycle riders in a 2019 crash in Randolph. After the verdict, Zhukovskyy, a Ukrainian national, was taken into custody by immigration authorities.
Armando Barron was convicted Thursday of first-degree murder in the 2020 death of Jonathan Amerault of Keene.
Meghan Pierce/Union Leader Correspondent
Record high home prices, record low unemployment
Home prices soared to a record $460,000 median price in May and June before the market showed signs of slowing near year’s end. Unemployment hit a record low 2% for three straight months over the summer before creeping up.
Democrats voted to demote the nation’s first presidential primary, pushing New Hampshire after South Carolina and on the same day as Nevada on the 2024 nominating calendar. Local Democratic leaders say a state law mandates New Hampshire hold the first primary. The GOP maintains the traditional voting of Iowa followed by the Granite State in ’24.
Twelve days before his family was murdered, Sean Sweeney found weapons in their garage and surrounding woods and told police he feared for his children’s safety, according to town police logs.
Many people faced increases in electric bills of 50% or more, as utilities paid more to purchase fuel. Gas prices nearly hit $5 a gallon in June before falling below $3.50 near year’s end.
The shooting deaths of Concord couple Stephen and Djeswende “Wendy” Reid in April triggered fear in the community until authorities six months later arrested Logan Levar Clegg in Vermont. Clegg, who was charged with two counts of second-degree murder, was caught with $7,150 in cash and had planned to escape using a one-way ticket to Germany, authorities said.
William Loeb’s stepdaughter, Nackey Gallowhur Scagliotti, 76, in an interview with the New Hampshire Sunday News, said William Loeb, the late iconic publisher of the Union Leader, sexually molested her repeatedly when she was 7 years old. The abuse, she said, happened over a year’s time, after she went to live with her mother and stepfather in Nevada in early 1953.
Newspaper stories, including ones published in the New Hampshire Union Leader, highlighted how little information the New Hampshire Board of Medicine publicly discloses about doctor misdeeds. The Attorney General’s Office launched an investigation. A legislative oversight committee held hearings and said legislators would propose two bills, including one to set up a medical transparency oversight commission to study the issue.
In March, Goldhardt was offered the superintendent’s position at Carson City, Nevada, but he withdrew his candidacy citing concerns over the $170,000 contract he was offered and what he called “slanderous” comments made by school officials. In May, he was hired as superintendent in Laramie, Wyoming.
State regulators in May scuttled a proposal to combine two of the state’s largest hospital systems over concerns that it would hurt competition and could result in higher prices for care.
Barron shot Amerault after his wife refused Barron’s order to shoot the man.
Britany Barron confessed to helping to dispose of the body out of fear. She later pleaded guilty to three charges of falsifying physical evidence, one involving sawing Amerault’s head from the corpse. She was paroled in April.
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2022-12-29T02:31:54Z
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www.unionleader.com
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Topping the news ... A review of some of the stories that made big headlines in New Hampshire this year | Human Interest | unionleader.com
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https://www.unionleader.com/news/human_interest/topping-the-news-a-review-of-some-of-the-stories-that-made-big-headlines-in/article_ca342cbb-afb5-5200-ba01-420ca6da62f0.html
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https://www.unionleader.com/news/human_interest/topping-the-news-a-review-of-some-of-the-stories-that-made-big-headlines-in/article_ca342cbb-afb5-5200-ba01-420ca6da62f0.html
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Due to ticket demand, Joe Gatto, known for his decade-long stint on the hidden-camera prank show “Impractical Jokers,” added a second show to his standup comedy tour stop tonight at the Capitol Center for the Arts in Concord.
MACKENZIE STROH
Joe Gatto on 'Impractical Jokers,' getting into standup, and why he detests 'hot gum'
By Julia Ann Weekes • NHWeekend Editor
For 10 years, Joe Gatto literally went to any lengths to make people laugh with purposefully cringe-worthy pranks on the hidden-camera show “Impractical Jokers.”
But the past 12 months have been a learning curve for Gatto as he moved from the ensemble cast with three lifelong friends into a solo standup career, working up from small comedy clubs into larger theaters.
“I was 25% of the fun up there, but now it’s 100% on me, so it’s an interesting challenge. I really enjoy it,” Gatto explains in a lively Zoom interview last week.
“It’s been so great to get in front of everyone and laugh, especially now when we all need it,” he says of his ongoing tour, which includes two shows tonight (Thursday) at the Capitol Center for the Arts in Concord. “I’ve been very fortunate. It’s just been a wild ride.”
Still, Gatto is glad that 2022 is just about in the rearview mirror.
“Oh, I had a rough year,” he admits wryly. “I’m looking forward to starting over in 2023 on a better foot.”
Who: Joe Gatto’s Night of Comedy
Where: Capitol Center for the Arts, 44 S. Main St., Concord
When: 7 and 9:30 p.m. today, Dec. 29
Tickets: $39.75-$59.75; meet-and-greet add-on package is $100
Info: ccanh.com or 603-225-1111
At this time last year, Gatto was grappling with two dramatic changes in his life: He and his estranged wife, Bessy, decided to split, and he made a much-publicized exit from “Impractical Jokers,” posting via social media that he wanted to focus on co-parenting his two children, Milana, 7, and Remo, 5.
The response from diehard “Jokers” fans was immediate.
“‘Impractical Jokers’ has been a part of people’s lives for a decade, so they want the band back together. But I always say (fellow Jokers) are just not my work friends anymore. They’re my real-life friends,” Gatto said.
“Impractical Jokers,” which premiered on TruTV in 2011, featured Gatto, James “Murr” Murray, Brian “Q” Quinn and Sal Vulvano taking turns putting one another in embarrassing situations while feeding quirky, gross or creepy dialogue and instructions into a mic in the player’s ear. The lowest point-getter in each challenge has to endure an equally uncomfortable punishment.
Gatto rarely shied away from a challenge, which often involved appearing grossly underskilled at any particular task or just being just plain awkward around others. As a store clerk, he helped a customer try on a shoe while leaning in for a sniff of her socked foot. As a mock White Castle hamburger employee, he alternately shouted his responses at customers and narrated his actions like a play-by-play sports broadcaster. He applied for jobs with resumes that would leave any employer dumbfounded, taught exercise classes with extreme enthusiasm, and vaulted his way into the books as quite possibly the worst gymnastics instructor.
“That’s the biggest thing people worry about, that our friendship is gone, and that couldn’t be more untrue. I literally had a holiday dinner with Q last night. I see the boys all the time. It’s just that chapter together has ended. Who knows what the future holds.”
Gatto also has teamed up with comedian and actor Steve Byrne for the “Two Cool Moms” podcast, a nod to each having had strong mothers who taught them a thing or two about dispensing maternal advice. They delve into pet peeves, race off on tangents, discuss parenting tactics and tackle fan-submitted questions.
It’s a mixture of the emphatically ridiculous, sprinkled with philosophical musings and some good old-fashioned common sense.
“(Steve and I) got into it about hot gum — when somebody has gum in their pocket too long and then they offer you a piece. That kind of person you shouldn’t even associate with. If you ever get offered warm gum, that person should be off your Christmas card list,” Gatto says.
Gatto serves up these tidbit in an amiable yet lightning-fast stream of thoughts.
On tour, he’s also sharing glimpses of his life, including growing up in a tight-knit community on Staten Island, where kids played outside from dawn to dusk.
“It wasn’t the nicest neighborhood but it had a huge back yard, and so did my neighbors, so my house was pretty much where everyone came to play. My mother and father were like the neighborhood (parents). There was always an extra plate at the table. It was a very nice childhood.”
Gatto met his fellow Impractical Jokers at the Catholic, all-boys Monsignor Farrell High School, where the self-professed “nerdy” Gatto was on the math and bowling teams. It’s also where he was introduced to improv, a game changer.
“I found comedy in my junior year, and discovered it was fun to make people laugh,” Gatto says. After high school, the guys went their separate ways for college, then got together in 1999 to form the improv comedy group The Tenderloins, which paved the way for “Impractical Jokers.”
Those ties remain. Gatto and the three remaining Jokers, who also are out on tour in the new year, have made unannounced visits to one another at shows over the past year.
“I surprised Sal down in Birmingham, Alabama, and Murr, when he was in my neck of the woods, at the Paramount Theatre in Huntington, New York, and (Murr) came to my show when I was in Richmond, Virginia,” Gatto says.
Meanwhile, Gatto has made changes to his performance schedule to allow him set times to be at home with the kids. He’s on the road Thursdays or Fridays through Sundays two or three long weekends a month. It allows him more time to spend more time at home doing school drops-off and pickups and supervising homework and sleepovers.
“My daughter is quirky. She is me. She definitely has my personality. She’s much an extrovert. I surprised her and … brought her for the weekend to Cincinnati. She came out on stage and took a bow and just had a blast,” he says.
In a video Gatto posted, she runs onto the stage from the wings and leaps up into his arms. He tucks her on a hip while the crowd cheers.
His son is a bit more shy, but starting to get into formulating his own materias. He’s latched onto the fact that cows say “moo,” so that’s pretty much the punchline to all his jokes.
“What did the cow say? ‘MOOOve over!’ It’s super sweet,” Gatto says with a hint of pride.
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2022-12-29T02:32:13Z
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www.unionleader.com
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Joe Gatto on 'Impractical Jokers,' getting into standup, and why he detests 'hot gum' | A&E | unionleader.com
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https://www.unionleader.com/nh/arts_and_ent/joe-gatto-on-impractical-jokers-getting-into-standup-and-why-he-detests-hot-gum/article_e1a69624-f039-5af1-bd26-b5d3050d7cb8.html
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https://www.unionleader.com/nh/arts_and_ent/joe-gatto-on-impractical-jokers-getting-into-standup-and-why-he-detests-hot-gum/article_e1a69624-f039-5af1-bd26-b5d3050d7cb8.html
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Dr. Richard B. Friedman
AS ONE of the first board certified geriatricians in New Hampshire, I have spent years caring for patients on Medicare. I have had many discussions with patients during their illnesses and have seen how important they felt having Medicare has been. As a former medical director of Blue Cross Blue Shield of NH and director of health care quality at Blue Cross Blue Shield of Massachusetts, I know how important health care insurance is.
Medicare was an important issue in the past New Hampshire Senate and District 1 campaigns. Unfortunately, there were many incorrect, misleading and vague statements made by Republican candidates who support either a privatization of Medicare, a reduction in services, or significant changes to a program that has and is providing comprehensive health insurance to millions of seniors in our country and more than 300,000 citizens of New Hampshire. It is important for Granite Staters to know the true facts regarding these claims and how these proposals will impact the Medicare program.
Republican candidates in New Hampshire made claims regarding the need to change the Medicare program because it is inefficient, not providing adequate care or simply because the government shouldn’t provide health care. They believe it should be left to private insurance companies. These are the same claims that have been made in the past, even before the passage of the Affordable Care Act (Obamacare) more than 10 years ago and which continues today.
Candidate Don Bolduc stated during a debate this year the following: “Listen, anything that the government’s involved in is not good and doesn’t work, period.” Candidate Karoline Leavitt stated at campaign events that she supported a free market for health care as she believes it would create transparency in pricing and bring costs down with competition. She supported repealing the Affordable Care Act.
Let’s look at some of the complaints the Republicans have about the Medicare program. First, is it inefficient? Multiple estimates of administrative costs show these costs for Medicare are significantly lower than any private insurance program, 2.5-5% for Medicare and 13-17% for private insurance companies. This translates into less money for health care and more money for administration and profits. So how would privatization as advocated by these candidates improve care for our senior citizens or save money? They don’t provide any answers to that question.
Secondly, should Medicare be able to negotiate with companies? Republicans opposed the Inflation Reduction Act. This act, supported by Senator Maggie Hassan and Representative Chris Pappas, will allow Medicare to negotiate with pharmaceutical companies for better prices. It capped prices for insulin at $35 dollars a month for Medicare patients, capped total pharmacy costs at $2,000 dollars a year for all Medicare patients, and prevented pharmaceutical companies from increasing prices faster than inflation. Republicans opposed this legislation and have pledged to undo it.
Lastly, should Medicare be privatized? Currently some Medicare patients have chosen what are called Medicare Advantage Insurance Programs, programs run by private insurance companies that differ from regular Medicare. These programs provide coverage for hospital, outpatient and drug costs and may provide additional coverage in some areas, but they also require subscribers to only use their network of providers, not all Medicare providers. These plans have higher administrative costs and may have various “hoops” patients need to “jump through” for certain drugs or to see specialists out of their network. There is no evidence at present that Medicare Advantage plans save significant money or cost less. Republicans support this privatization and imply it will reduce prices for consumers. However, private insurance costs in our country have continued to rise faster than Medicare. Is privatization a solution or a way to channel money to private business?
During my years of medical practice, I have seen the many benefits of having a secure, affordable health care program like Medicare provided my patients. It has kept many elderly patients out of poverty due to high medical bills. Of course, Medicare is not perfect but with the support of people like Sen. Hassan and Rep. Pappas it has evolved, expanding benefits, improving coverage for preventive tests, and developing innovative payment systems to reward more efficient and better quality care.
Sen. Hassan and Rep. Pappas have been working these past years to improve Medicare, making it more effective and efficient while preserving patient choice of physicians.
Their decisions have improved the care Medicare patients in New Hampshire receive and as a physician I support their continued work. Sending them back to Washington, D.C. to continue their efforts was a win for our older citizens.
Dr. Richard B. Friedman, M.D. lives in Bedford.
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2022-12-29T05:42:18Z
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www.unionleader.com
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Dr. Richard B. Friedman: The truth about Medicare | Op-eds | unionleader.com
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https://www.unionleader.com/opinion/op-eds/dr-richard-b-friedman-the-truth-about-medicare/article_689fa0fa-c279-5924-8941-d8fd915a0173.html
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https://www.unionleader.com/opinion/op-eds/dr-richard-b-friedman-the-truth-about-medicare/article_689fa0fa-c279-5924-8941-d8fd915a0173.html
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Rep. Wendy Thomas
EARLIER THIS year I had a double mastectomy after being diagnosed with breast cancer. Soon, I will undergo surgery to remove my ovaries and fallopian tubes as my doctors confirmed that I am at a higher risk for ovarian cancer because of exposure to dangerous PFAS chemicals released into our community’s water supply. Today, it seems that this is the price of living in southern New Hampshire — sacrificing parts of your body so that corporate polluters can make a profit.
PFAS (per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances) are man-made chemicals commonly used to make products more resistant to heat, water, and staining. They are incredibly toxic when ingested, associated with severe health problems such as cancer, and referred to as “forever chemicals” due to the length they continue to pollute an environment. In my town of Merrimack, PFAS contamination in the water supply has caused residents’ PFAS levels to grow several times higher than the national average, putting public health at risk.
Thankfully, urgently needed relief from this water crisis is coming. Last year, President Joe Biden signed the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, a comprehensive investment in our nation’s safety and economic development. This legislation allocates $10 billion for PFAS treatment to communities across the nation, which means that thousands of Americans will finally regain access to safe water. I took my oath of office to serve in New Hampshire’s state house in December and I look forward to working with my colleagues to maximize the impact of this funding and protect Merrimack’s citizens from corporate pollution.
In southern New Hampshire, a multinational corporation called Saint-Gobain has long manufactured a variety of products using PFAS chemicals. Yet court records now indicate that Saint-Gobain provided false information to both state regulators and the public over the years falsely claiming that the Merrimack plant had never used pure PFAS chemicals, which are far more dangerous pollutants than diluted chemicals. Saint-Gobain has denied wrongdoing in its handling of information and in its communications with state regulators.
The PFAS chemicals released from this plant have been found in the water supply of thousands of homes in multiple communities. A government report recently found that “Most of the private wells evaluated in the five towns of Merrimack, Litchfield, Londonderry, Bedford, and Manchester were contaminated with PFAS.”
I first learned about the dangers of PFAS in 2016 attending a meeting hosted by Merrimack Citizens for Clean Water, a local group formed to discuss contamination in the water supply around Saint-Gobain. My family lives three miles from the plant. We were told we should be safe at that distance, but we had our home’s private well tested to be safe. The results were shocking: the PFAS contamination was so severe that we had to shut off our well until we put in a filtration and reverse osmosis system. Yet because these “forever chemicals” continue to spread through the groundwater, our well’s PFAS levels are higher now than in 2016. Six years later we still cannot drink the water.
After I was diagnosed with cancer last spring, I received a blood test for PFAS chemicals, including several in the group referred to as PFOS. My PFOS levels are 38 times the amount safe for humans. My husband also has elevated PFAS levels, which doctors suspect contributed to high cholesterol levels and quadruple heart bypass surgery at age 55. I can’t help but wonder if our sons’ and daughters’ autoimmune conditions could be related to the contamination.
Studies have shown that cancer, high cholesterol, and autoimmune conditions are all associated with PFAS exposure. In Merrimack, researchers have found residents have elevated PFAS levels and higher rates of cancer than similar communities without comparable PFAS exposure. While we cannot definitively prove that these health conditions are linked to the PFAS chemicals that came from the Saint-Gobain plant, the science speaks for itself.
Clean water is a fundamental right, and a terrible injustice has been done in denying the people of southern New Hampshire access to it. After spending six years unable to drink the water from my home, it is a relief to know that assistance is finally coming to Merrimack and other communities. I am grateful to my fellow “water warriors” who have worked tirelessly to highlight the importance of this issue and to elected officials like Senators Jeanne Shaheen and Maggie Hassan, who have been instrumental in securing over $72 million from the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act to improve water infrastructure and implement PFAS remediation in our state.
We can never undo the damage caused by PFAS pollution, but these funds from the Infrastructure Investments and Jobs Act are critical to making our community safe again for future generations. As a state representative, I intend to continue this work to make sure that no Granite Stater ever has to fear the water coming from their faucet.
Rep. Wendy E.N. Thomas (D) was recently elected to represent Hillsborough District 12. She lives in Merrimack and is a litigant in a class-action lawsuit against Saint-Gobain.
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2022-12-29T05:42:24Z
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Rep. Wendy E.N Thomas: Infrastructure Bill will help mitigate 'forever chemicals' | Op-eds | unionleader.com
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https://www.unionleader.com/opinion/op-eds/rep-wendy-e-n-thomas-infrastructure-bill-will-help-mitigate-forever-chemicals/article_57007222-a4d2-5a5d-9a90-599eb5e6fd5b.html
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https://www.unionleader.com/opinion/op-eds/rep-wendy-e-n-thomas-infrastructure-bill-will-help-mitigate-forever-chemicals/article_57007222-a4d2-5a5d-9a90-599eb5e6fd5b.html
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Gervonta Davis denied striking the mother of his young daughter.
Katherine Frey/Washington Post
By Des Bieler The Washington Post
According to a Broward County police report (via the Associated Press), the 28-year-old is accused of hitting a woman with a "closed hand type slap," causing a small wound to her lip. He was arrested Tuesday afternoon in Parkland, Fla., and was released from jail Wednesday afternoon (per ESPN) after a hearing set his bail at $1,000.
In a 911 call shared Wednesday by TMZ Sports, the woman is heard pleading for help and alleging Davis "attacked" her and was "going to kill" her. She says she is "trying to go home" in her car, which she says also contains her young child.
"I never put my hands on [them]," he wrote in all-caps, adding, "I'm not a monster."
He added that the woman only sounded upset on the 911 call because he "wouldn't give her my truck." He later deleted the post.
A native of Baltimore and a five-time world champion in three weight classes over his career, Davis is set to face Hector Luis Garcia on Jan. 7 at Capital One Arena in Washington. The Showtime platform, which is featuring the fight as a pay-per-view event, told ESPN it is looking into Tuesday's arrest.
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2022-12-29T15:21:06Z
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Boxer Gervonta Davis arrested on a domestic violence charge | Crime | unionleader.com
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By Brittany Shammas The Washington Post
Additional screening revealed a reason for the unease: Wrapped around the off-duty Mesa Airlines attendant's abdomen was a package containing more than three pounds of fentanyl, according to a complaint filed by a Homeland Security Investigations agent. White initially claimed it was a weight loss pack.
White's guilty plea comes as illegal fentanyl, a synthetic opioid, floods the United States and fuels a deadly epidemic. A recent Washington Post investigation found that it has become the leading cause of death for Americans ages 18 to 49. The Drug Enforcement Administration announced last week that it had seized more than 379 million doses of fentanyl in 2022 - an amount DEA administrator Anne Milgram said was enough "to kill everyone in the United States."
According to her plea, White flew from Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport to San Diego International Airport on Oct. 4. She left the secure area of the San Diego airport and then returned to security with plans of flying to Boston.
"Drug traffickers use air, land and sea for personal gain, putting people's lives in danger," DEA Special Agent in Charge Shelly Howe said in a news release. "We will continue the great work with our partners to bring traffickers to justice and keep our community safe."
Fentanyl's explosion in the U.S. followed the DEA's crackdown on the domestic opioid industry, as Americans addicted to prescription painkillers found them suddenly difficult to obtain. Mexican drug cartels filled the void, producing fentanyl in covert labs.
San Diego has emerged as ground zero for trafficking the drug into the U.S., The Post found, with more than half the fentanyl seized along the southern border found there.
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2022-12-29T15:21:12Z
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www.unionleader.com
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Flight attendant admits she tried to smuggle fentanyl at airport | Crime | unionleader.com
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https://www.unionleader.com/news/crime/flight-attendant-admits-she-tried-to-smuggle-fentanyl-at-airport/article_34085ad1-9d01-5636-9029-fa21ff986c82.html
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https://www.unionleader.com/news/crime/flight-attendant-admits-she-tried-to-smuggle-fentanyl-at-airport/article_34085ad1-9d01-5636-9029-fa21ff986c82.html
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A view shows Saint Peter's Dome, the day after the announcement of the worsening condition of former Pope Benedict's health, in Rome, Italy, December 29, 2022.
VATICAN CITY - Former Pope Benedict's condition remains "grave" but stable, the Vatican said on Thursday, adding in a statement that he had rested well during the night and was lucid and aware.
(Reporting by Philip Pullella; Editing by Alison Williams)
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2022-12-29T15:21:37Z
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Former Pope Benedict's condition remains grave but stable | Religion | unionleader.com
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https://www.unionleader.com/news/religion/former-pope-benedicts-condition-remains-grave-but-stable/article_9638a4a3-9371-526d-92f4-abeba8b2a149.html
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https://www.unionleader.com/news/religion/former-pope-benedicts-condition-remains-grave-but-stable/article_9638a4a3-9371-526d-92f4-abeba8b2a149.html
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By Cameron Morsberger The Sun, Lowell, Mass.
LOWELL, Massachusetts — A trip to Disney World is every kid's dream, but it can quickly turn into any parent's nightmare: Big crowds in an overstimulating environment means young children could easily get lost.
"The dad side of me doesn't like that combo," he said.
But Paquin, who was born and raised in Lowell, is now developing a device to hopefully alleviate his and other parents' worries. CharlieTag — named after his daughter — is a unique QR code that contains contact information for a child's parents or guardians in the event the child becomes separated or goes missing.
The Manchester, N.H. resident intends for children at parks, fairs, amusement parks and other busy spaces to wear the code — which will be contained in a locket, on a keychain or even a sticker on the skin — so that someone can scan the code and know how to help the lost child. The parents' guardians would then be alerted that someone scanned the code.
"An AirTag, where it's broadcast to all iPhones around the area... those are just open, but you don't want necessarily your information getting in somebody else's hands," Paquin said. "It's all black box technology already in existence today, and I was surprised that nobody had really pushed for something like that."
Five prototypes exist so far, Paquin said, as he's given one to his daughter's teacher at Billerica Public Schools, a restaurateur in Lowell and other friends and family who can help spread the word. Paquin said he also hopes to introduce a premium subscription service, with added features and security measures.
It's a passion project for him and the other "working dads," Paquin said, and though he isn't set on pricing for the service, he wants to keep it accessible for everyone.
"I grew up in Shaughnessy Terrace. Very humble beginnings, growing up in the projects," Paquin said. "I wanted to do this because I feel like I can do a lot of good, not just with the product and services, but the freedoms that it'll give me to give back with that success."
Orlando Diaz, of Haverhill, who runs CharlieTag's marketing and customer engagement, has been on board for about three months now.
As a father of four, his youngest being only 3 years old, Diaz understood the mission of CharlieTag immediately. His "number-one priority" has always been ensuring the safety of his kids, he said, especially his toddler.
"She's still learning how to talk and everything, but being in a situation where she can't communicate her basic needs and things of that nature though, that doesn't sit well with me," Diaz said. "The whole idea behind CharlieTag spoke to me in that sense."
At the Deerfield Fair, Paquin recalls hearing the loudspeaker announce a missing child "at least seven times."
"I see a big need," he added.
Preston Conner, the head of CharlieTag's tech operations, said he remembers being a kid who would occasionally go unsupervised and get into trouble. But now, as a parent, he wants different for his kid.
"I've been hearing about child trafficking and other trafficking things," Conner said. "I figured (CharlieTag) would be really good, it would help out a lot."
"She had an awesome time," he said.
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2022-12-29T15:21:46Z
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Manchester man develops personal safety device for missing children | Public Safety | unionleader.com
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https://www.unionleader.com/news/safety/manchester-man-develops-personal-safety-device-for-missing-children/article_a185446c-2f79-5e25-8ecd-40c9a7c14fa6.html
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https://www.unionleader.com/news/safety/manchester-man-develops-personal-safety-device-for-missing-children/article_a185446c-2f79-5e25-8ecd-40c9a7c14fa6.html
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Residential homes in Teaneck, New Jersey, on Nov. 24, 2022.
While home prices have slipped from the peak reached in June, they're still rising from year-earlier levels - a double whammy for shoppers still in the hunt for something affordable. At current mortgage rates, the buyer of a median-priced home would pay about $2,100 a month without taxes or insurance, roughly 60% more than last year, according to Ratiu.
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2022-12-29T19:06:51Z
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Mortgage rates in the U.S. rise for the first time in seven weeks | Homes & Garden | unionleader.com
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https://www.unionleader.com/news/homes/mortgage-rates-in-the-u-s-rise-for-the-first-time-in-seven-weeks/article_80ddc7ac-fd14-556e-8e51-69538d2ad2d1.html
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https://www.unionleader.com/news/homes/mortgage-rates-in-the-u-s-rise-for-the-first-time-in-seven-weeks/article_80ddc7ac-fd14-556e-8e51-69538d2ad2d1.html
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FILE PHOTO: U.S. Representative-elect George Santos, a New York Republican who acknowledged lying about his education and employment history while running for Congress, appears in an undated still image from a political campaign video in New York, U.S.
GEORGE SANTOS CAMPAIGN/VIA REUTERS
But as the representative-elect has come under increasing pressure to explain himself after it was revealed that he lied about his business experience, education and family ancestry, Santos is now facing questions about what appear to be conflicting accounts of his mother's death.
In two 2021 tweets from Santos that were first reported by journalist Yashar Ali late Wednesday, the Republican suggests that Devolder died at different times. In July 2021, Santos replied to a Twitter account titled, "9/11 was a victimless crime."
"9/11 claimed my mothers life . . . so I'm blocking so I don't ever have to read this again," Santos wrote.
Last December, Santos tweeted to reflect on the five-year anniversary of his mother's passing in 2016.
"December 23rd this year marks 5 years I lost my best friend and mentor," he wrote. "Mom you will live forever in my heart."
On his campaign website, Santos's team acknowledged that while "George's mother was in her office in the South Tower on September 11, 2001, when the horrific events of that day unfolded," she was not among the more than 2,700 people killed at the World Trade Center.
"She survived the tragic events on September 11th, but she passed away a few years later when she lost her battle to cancer," the campaign website reads.
While many first responders and people around Ground Zero later developed health problems due to exposure to the contaminated air, including cancer, critics were quick to draw attention to the latest inconsistency in Santos's personal story, as well as point out how 15 years was more than "a few years later."
"This guy has to be an op," Ali tweeted. "My god."
Santos's campaign did not immediately respond to a request for comment early Thursday.
Nassau County District Attorney Anne T. Donnelly (R) on Wednesday announced she was opening an investigation into Santos for "the numerous fabrications and inconsistencies associated" with Santos that "are nothing short of stunning."
He also pushed an unsupported claim that four of his employees were killed in the Pulse nightclub shooting in Orlando in 2016. Santos later said to WABC that the four people "were going to be coming to work" at his company. And despite previous public comments about his Jewish heritage, he later told the New York Post that he never claimed to be Jewish. Instead, he said he referred to himself as "Jew-ish."
Even after he acknowledged in interviews this week - including a contentious segment with former congresswoman Tulsi Gabbard on Fox News - what he described as "résumé embellishment" Santos said that he's not a criminal and intends to serve in Congress.
Born on Dec. 22, 1962, in Rio de Janeiro, Santos's mother immigrated with her family to the Jackson Heights neighborhood of Queens and "gave up everything to provide for George and her family," according to the Santos campaign's website. Devolder was described by the Times as having worked as a housekeeper.
"George's drive, commitment and determination were inspired by the legacy set and left by his mother," the campaign website reads. "She delivered the American Dream to George, a debt that he wants to repay to the rest of his neighbors and constituents."
After the past tweets from Santos about Devolder's death were resurfaced, the representative-elect was faced with fresh criticism from Democrats. Among them was Rep. Ritchie Torres (D-N.Y.), who tweeted a list of the fabrications Santos has been linked to in recent days.
"Am I missing anything?" he asked.
The Washington Post's Azi Paybarah and Aaron Blake contributed to this report.
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2022-12-29T19:07:09Z
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www.unionleader.com
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George Santos said 9/11 'claimed my mother's life.' She died in 2016. | National | unionleader.com
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https://www.unionleader.com/news/politics/national/george-santos-said-9-11-claimed-my-mothers-life-she-died-in-2016/article_1e066d27-aaa0-5e15-8822-ccaa9fa6f367.html
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https://www.unionleader.com/news/politics/national/george-santos-said-9-11-claimed-my-mothers-life-she-died-in-2016/article_1e066d27-aaa0-5e15-8822-ccaa9fa6f367.html
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WHERE DID 2022 GO? As far as television goes, the year offered several milestones, not all of them positive.
For at least a decade now, we’ve seen an upward trend in the number of scripted series produced, broadcast or streamed. In 2022 that number declined, a clear sign that the streaming arms race may be over. Giant mergers, like the mashup of Discovery and HBO Max, have finally shown their impact.
At the same time, there is still so much content sloshing about that any “trend” in television content is met by an equal and opposite reaction.
Seen from one perspective, 2022 was the year of the gargantuan epic, with series like HBO’s “House of the Dragon” and Prime Video’s “The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power” costing hundreds of millions and attracting a large cult audience. The race to “franchise” fantasy series has resulted in some very expensive epics that may not justify their price tags.
Are people talking about Netflix’s “Slumberland”? How about Disney+’s “Willow”? This is the year that HBO/Discovery canceled “His Dark Materials” and gave “Westworld” the cruelest cut. Not only was that expensive head-scratcher canceled, it was yanked from HBO Max’s library. There’s nothing epic about trying to save money on residuals.
While 2022 may be remembered as the year of the epic, it also saw the market flooded with any number of true-crime docuseries. These bingeable shows are notoriously cheap to make, consisting of talking-head interviews, home movies of the victims and news footage of authorities or villains in the docket. There’s no need to spend millions on a CGI dragon when you can just show an old cassette recorder unwinding evidence from the 1970s.
This trend toward cheap and dirty programming reached an apotheosis of sorts with Netflix’s “Harry & Meghan,” a six-part series seen as either a direct attack on the House of Windsor or a six-hour nothingburger.
Other contradictions abound. In a TV landscape filled with clutter, Apple TV+ has distinguished itself with a few of the year’s more interesting dramas, from “Severance” to “Slow Horses.” Unlike its big streaming rivals, Apple doesn’t have an enormous backlog of old series and “stuff.” Its spare catalog allows individual releases a chance to stand out and catch on.
Between mergers and the decline in series production, it’s easy to see 2022 as the year when TV’s golden goose stopped laying eggs.
While the terrifying and sexually explicit adaptation of “Anne Rice’s Interview With the Vampire” was among the most-watched series of 2022, its parent company (AMC/AMC+) is hemorrhaging money. Still seen as a traditional “cable” network, it has seen profits and viewership decline as millions of viewers cut their cords and jump ship to streaming, which brings in a fraction of cable’s advertising revenue. Despite its history as the cradle of “peak TV” and the home of “Mad Men,” “Breaking Bad” and the just-departed “The Walking Dead,” AMC just laid off a big percentage of its staff. Former basic cable giants TNT and TBS have abandoned original programming entirely.
As 2023 brings even more changes to our viewing landscape, I will endeavor to make sense of it for my gentle readers — a task more bewildering every day.
• The Dallas Cowboys and Tennessee Titans meet on Thursday Night Football, streaming on Amazon Prime (8:15 p.m.).
• Change on the menu on “Restaurant Impossible” (8 p.m., Food, TV-G).
• Child-rearing becomes a contest on “The Parent Test” (9 p.m., ABC, r, TV-PG).
Gregory Peck, Ava Gardner, Anthony Perkins and Fred Astaire star in the chilling 1959 Cold War drama “On the Beach” (10 p.m., TCM, TV-PG).
Serious doubts on “Young Sheldon” (8 p.m., CBS, r, TV-PG) ... “The Wheel” (8 p.m., NBC, TV-PG) ... “Hell’s Kitchen” (8 p.m., Fox, r, TV-14) ... “Celebrity Jeopardy!” (8 p.m., ABC, r, TV-PG) ... An old haunt on “Ghosts” (8:30 p.m., CBS, r, TV-PG).
On two episodes of “So Help Me Todd” (CBS, r, TV-PG): mother superior (9 p.m.); a lucky break (10 p.m.) ... On two episodes of “Law & Order: Special Victims Unit” (NBC, r, TV-14): mean teens (9 p.m.); a pop star’s bad patch (10 p.m.).
Poultry on “Welcome to Flatch” (9 p.m., Fox, r, TV-14) ... Maternal urges on “Call Me Kat” (9:30 p.m., Fox, r, TV-14) ... “Celebrity Wheel of Fortune” (10 p.m., ABC, r, TV-PG).
Dr. Anthony Fauci and Cody Keenan are booked on “The Late Show With Stephen Colbert” (11:35 p.m., CBS, r) ... Janelle Monae, Sadie Sink, Rita Wilson and Smokey Robinson are scheduled to appear on “Jimmy Kimmel Live” (11:35 p.m., ABC, r).
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2022-12-29T19:07:28Z
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www.unionleader.com
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Where were you in 2022? | | unionleader.com
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https://www.unionleader.com/where-were-you-in-2022/article_40d243c0-17c6-5b5f-8111-4c7347b16dbd.html
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https://www.unionleader.com/where-were-you-in-2022/article_40d243c0-17c6-5b5f-8111-4c7347b16dbd.html
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By Andrew Downie Reuters
Several aspects of his youth are obscured by myth, including the origin of his famous nickname. As Pele (sometimes) told it, he often played as goalkeeper in neighborhood games, and kids began comparing him to a local player named "Bile" -- and the letters got twisted over the years.
Whatever the truth, he was soon dazzling scouts not as a goalkeeper but as an attacking forward -- a prototype number 10.
Over a glittering 18-year spell at the club he won every honor in Brazilian football as well as two Copa Libertadores -- the South American equivalent of the Champions League -- and two Intercontinental Cups, the annual tournament held between the best teams in Europe and South America.
His talent was soon recognized by the national team and he was chosen for the Brazil squad heading to the 1958 World Cup in Sweden -- although a team psychologist called the 17-year-old "obviously infantile" and advised against playing him.
Pele went on to score a hat-trick within one half of the semi-final against France, and another two goals in the final against the host Swedish team -- helping Brazil to its first-ever championship.
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2022-12-29T20:52:37Z
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Pele, Brazil's sublimely skilled soccer star who charmed the world, dead at 82 | Back Page | unionleader.com
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https://www.unionleader.com/news/back_page/pele-brazils-sublimely-skilled-soccer-star-who-charmed-the-world-dead-at-82/article_cd49e211-820a-5455-bfa4-b39b38c18f60.html
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By Gabriel Araujo Reuters
SAO PAULO -- Pele, the legendary Brazilian soccer player who rose from barefoot poverty to become one of the greatest and best-known athletes in modern history, died on Thursday at the age of 82.
Pele, whose given name was Edson Arantes do Nascimento, joined Santos in 1956 and turned the small coastal club into one of the most famous names in soccer.
He took home three World Cup winner's medals, the first time as a 17-year-old in Sweden in 1958, the second in Chile four years later -- even though he missed most of the tournament due to injury -- and the third in Mexico in 1970, when he led what is considered to be one of the greatest sides ever to play the game.
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2022-12-29T20:52:43Z
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www.unionleader.com
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Brazilian soccer legend Pele dies at 82 | Sports | unionleader.com
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https://www.unionleader.com/sports/brazilian-soccer-legend-pele-dies-at-82/article_9b05282f-2be1-59a5-a619-b1d1c11551a5.html
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https://www.unionleader.com/sports/brazilian-soccer-legend-pele-dies-at-82/article_9b05282f-2be1-59a5-a619-b1d1c11551a5.html
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Men's hockey: Dartmouth, UNH get back on the ice
After a Christmas break, the state's two Division I men's hockey teams get back to work this weekend, highlighted by the Ledyard Bank Classic hosted by Dartmouth at Thompson Arena in Hanover.
The classic begins Friday at 4 p.m. when No. 12 Providence College of Hockey East takes on Yale of the ECAC. In the nightcap (7:30 p.m.), the host Big Green battle No. 6 Merrimack of Hockey East. The tournament continues Saturday with games at 4 p.m. and 7:30 p.m. No matter the situation -- championship or consolation -- Dartmouth will play in the nightcap on Saturday, against either Yale or Providence.
The Big Green take a 1-10-1 record into the tournament, formerly played as the Auld Lang Syne tournament beginning in the 1970s.
Meanwhile, UNH hits the road for a pair of nonconference games at ECAC member Union College in Schenectady, New York. The Wildcats and Dutchmen will play Friday and Saturday at 4 p.m.
In its last outing on Dec. 10, UNH broke a 13-game winless streak with a 5-4 overtime victory over Arizona State.
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2022-12-29T20:52:50Z
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www.unionleader.com
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Men's hockey: Dartmouth, UNH get back on the ice | College Sports | unionleader.com
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https://www.unionleader.com/sports/college/mens-hockey-dartmouth-unh-get-back-on-the-ice/article_0cf91649-b863-58b1-8b09-72702cd617fc.html
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https://www.unionleader.com/sports/college/mens-hockey-dartmouth-unh-get-back-on-the-ice/article_0cf91649-b863-58b1-8b09-72702cd617fc.html
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An aggressive bobcat recently terrorized several residents in a rural Connecticut town, officials said.
A resident of Columbia, a sparsely populated town about 25 miles east of Hartford, was bitten in the leg by a bobcat hiding underneath his pickup truck on Dec. 23, Mark Walter, the town administrator, told McClatchy News.
The man, who was leaving for work, began yelling and attempted to retreat into his house without allowing the cat to follow, Walter said.
Moments later, the man’s neighbor opened his garage door, and the bobcat bounded over and set upon him.
The neighbor, who was walking with crutches, defended himself by beating the animal with both crutches, Walter said.
“The wife finally came out and got a piece of plywood and threw it at the cat, which made it leave the garage,” Walter said.
The attacks did not result in any serious injuries, but the man who was bitten in the leg was administered rabies shots, Walter said.
Later on, someone walking in Mono Pond State Park, a nearby preserve, reported seeing the animal, Walter said.
The state’s Department of Energy and Environmental Protection (DEEP) was notified and an animal control officer later searched the area, but was unable to find the cat, a town news release stated.
Many of Columbia’s several thousand residents are now on high alert for the cat, Walter said. “On Facebook, it’s gone crazy and everyone’s keeping their eyes open.”
It was a “weird situation,” Walter added. “It’s not normal.”
Upon encountering a bobcat, town residents should slowly back away, make noise and spray the animal with water, if possible, Columbia officials said.
Though they predominantly prey on rabbits, squirrels, mice, birds and other wild animals, they occasionally eat small domestic animals, according to DEEP.
Connecticut’s bobcat population, once on the brink of disappearance, has recovered in recent decades due to reforestation and legal protections, according to DEEP.
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2022-12-29T22:33:16Z
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Man beats attacking bobcat with his crutches to fend it off, Connecticut official says | Back Page | unionleader.com
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https://www.unionleader.com/news/back_page/man-beats-attacking-bobcat-with-his-crutches-to-fend-it-off-connecticut-official-says/article_742f496f-7c54-5027-8126-85616480c873.html
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Litchfield Police Chief Benjamin Sargent has been charged with sexually harassing a female staff member after multiple phone calls on New Year’s Eve 2021, according to the Attorney General’s Office.
The complaints were filed by the American Civil Liberties Union in April and May. The charge is for official oppression when Sargent “knowingly committed an unauthorized act, which purported to be an act of his office, with a purpose to benefit himself or another or to harm another, by sexually harassing a subordinate in violation of official policy.”
According to court documents, Sargent initiated a phone call with the officer who was on duty and said he was stressed and drinking a lot over the holidays. He began to explain his “wife was not happy with him” and would leave him because of his drinking, according to the complaint.
He suggested on the phone that he had a crush on the officer and he should come to his house with a bottle of wine, “adding that if she did, he would tell her about ‘his feelings’ toward her in person,’” the complaint reads.
The employee described the chief as ”having slurred speech and near incoherent” in a call at 11 the next morning.
During a fourth phone call, Sargent spoke of his marital issues and how a repeated statement meant, “I love you.” He told her he knows he’s “short and fat.”
Sargent described himself as “legally intoxicated” during the phone calls.
Litchfield police chief on leave, subject of criminal investigation by AG's Office
Litchfield Police Chief Benjamin Sargent is on leave for an “indeterminate amount of time” and is the subject of a criminal investigation, the…
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2022-12-29T22:33:34Z
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Litchfield police chief charged with sexually harassing staff member | Crime | unionleader.com
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https://www.unionleader.com/news/crime/litchfield-police-chief-charged-with-sexually-harassing-staff-member/article_b5ccd87a-9409-58ae-a4fa-3f2a386e82c0.html
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https://www.unionleader.com/news/crime/litchfield-police-chief-charged-with-sexually-harassing-staff-member/article_b5ccd87a-9409-58ae-a4fa-3f2a386e82c0.html
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U.S. Air Force RC-135S Cobra Ball is pictured at Kadena U.S. Air Force Base on Japan's southwestern island of Okinawa in this photo taken by Kyodo in 2012. Mandatory credit. REUTERS/Kyodo/File Photo
KYODO Kyodo
WASHINGTON -- A Chinese military plane came within 20 feet of a U.S. air force aircraft and forced it to take evasive maneuvers to avoid a collision in international airspace over the South China Sea last week, the U.S. military said on Thursday.
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2022-12-29T22:33:41Z
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Chinese jet came within 20 feet of U.S. military aircraft | Military | unionleader.com
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https://www.unionleader.com/news/military/chinese-jet-came-within-20-feet-of-u-s-military-aircraft/article_72fa9ffe-7733-5dbd-bde2-340f8d44026e.html
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https://www.unionleader.com/news/military/chinese-jet-came-within-20-feet-of-u-s-military-aircraft/article_72fa9ffe-7733-5dbd-bde2-340f8d44026e.html
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Mikaela Shiffrin is shown in last month's World Cup slalom event at Killington Resort in Vermont.
Erich Schlegel/usa today sports
American Mikaela Shiffrin continued her sprint towards the history books on Thursday by claiming the slalom to complete a treble in Semmering, Austria, and move within two wins of compatriot Lindsey Vonn's women's World Cup record.
Shiffrin, who spent her formative years in Lyme, New Hampshire, finished 0.29 seconds ahead of fellow American Paula Moltzan to collect her 80th World Cup win in 1:43.26. Lena Duerr of Germany finished third in 1:43.60.
A fourth straight win caps a remarkable turnaround for Shiffrin in 2022, after the three-time Olympic medalist surprisingly left this year's Beijing Games empty-handed.
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2022-12-29T22:34:08Z
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Shiffrin sweeps events in Semmering for 80th World Cup win | Sports | unionleader.com
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https://www.unionleader.com/sports/shiffrin-sweeps-events-in-semmering-for-80th-world-cup-win/article_6e966fda-c5df-5eb1-8469-c79951460d63.html
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https://www.unionleader.com/sports/shiffrin-sweeps-events-in-semmering-for-80th-world-cup-win/article_6e966fda-c5df-5eb1-8469-c79951460d63.html
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UPDATE 6-Soccer star Pele, Brazilian legend of the beautiful game, dies at 82
The office of Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro, who leaves office on Sunday after four years in power, said in a statement that Pele was "a great citizen and patriot, raising the name of Brazil wherever he went."
Bolsonaro's incoming successor, President-elect Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, wrote on Twitter that "few Brazilians carried the name of our country as far as he did."
Pele, whose given name was Edson Arantes do Nascimento, joined Santos in 1956 and turned the small coastal club into one of the most famous names in soccer. A wake is expected to be held at Santos' Urbano Caldeira stadium, most commonly known as Vila Belmiro, on Monday, the club's press officer said.
Brazil's CBF soccer federation said "Pele was much more than the greatest sportsman of all time ... The King of Soccer was the ultimate exponent of a victorious Brazil."
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2022-12-29T22:34:15Z
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UPDATE 6-Soccer star Pele, Brazilian legend of the beautiful game, dies at 82 | Sports | unionleader.com
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https://www.unionleader.com/sports/update-6-soccer-star-pele-brazilian-legend-of-the-beautiful-game-dies-at-82/article_9b05282f-2be1-59a5-a619-b1d1c11551a5.html
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https://www.unionleader.com/sports/update-6-soccer-star-pele-brazilian-legend-of-the-beautiful-game-dies-at-82/article_9b05282f-2be1-59a5-a619-b1d1c11551a5.html
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Vapotherm’s respiratory therapy device was among five finalists for the New Hampshire Tech Alliance's Product of the Year in 2021. The Exeter company is moving production to Mexico to reduce manufacturing costs.
Provided by Vaptotherm/Union Leader file
An Exeter medical technology company will shut down its manufacturing facility Dec. 30 and move production to Tijuana, Mexico.
The company’s products help people suffering from respiratory distress.
Approximately 49 employees will lose their jobs because of the closure, according to an announcement made on Oct. 28 under the New Hampshire Work Adjustment and Retraining Notification Act.
Joseph Army, president and CEO, called 2022 a transitional year during an earnings call last month.
He said the closing of the 100 Domain Drive facility and move to Mexico is on track for the end of the year and expected to improve gross margins to 60% “once we work through our higher cost inventory and initial production builds.”
In 2020, Vapotherm Inc. announced plans to expand its manufacturing capabilities to dramatically increase production of its Precision Flow Hi-VNI system in response to the COVID-19 pandemic.
“The sudden onset of COVID in early 2020 was a significant benefit to Vapotherm because it demonstrated the efficacy of our technology, increased our visibility with customers and dramatically grew our install base.”
He said the drop in COVID and flu hospital visits in the first quarter of 2022 “took us by surprise.”
The company saw a net loss of $26.2 million in the third quarter.
Last year, the company saw a net loss of $59.8 million and $51.5 million in 2020, according to earning statements.
Army said the company is dealing with unsustainable cost and inventory structure even as business started to match pre-COVID levels. The company is working to “right-size” its cost structure.
The company hopes to drive 20% revenue growth increasing its revenue from $64-$66 million to $77-79 million.
He said the move to Mexico will reduce operating costs and higher revenue from new products. The goal is to decrease expenses from $100 million in 2021 to $60 million to $62 million in 2023, according to a news release. The company is also establishing a research and development facility in Singapore.
The company is also facing delisting from the New York Stock Exchange because the average closing price of the company’s common stock was less than $1 per share over a consecutive 30 trading-day period.
Vapotherm was a finalist for Product of the Year in 2021 by the New Hampshire Tech Alliance for its next generation HVT 2.0, a medical device developed for respiratory therapy in hospital and home settings.
At the time, the company employed 363 people, including 165 in New Hampshire. The company was founded in 1999.
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2022-12-30T00:10:19Z
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Vapotherm closes Exeter plant as production moves to Mexico | Business | unionleader.com
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https://www.unionleader.com/news/business/vapotherm-closes-exeter-plant-as-production-moves-to-mexico/article_a52ab7fe-8eb8-5907-a75d-01e0c89f2a70.html
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https://www.unionleader.com/news/business/vapotherm-closes-exeter-plant-as-production-moves-to-mexico/article_a52ab7fe-8eb8-5907-a75d-01e0c89f2a70.html
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A family warms up by the fire and poses for a signature framed photo after a previous First Day Hike at White Lake Park in Tamworth.
KATE WILCOX
A group of hikers poses for a framed picture during a previous First Day Hikes outing at Milan Hill State Park. The images are posted on New Hampshire State Park’s social media with the hashtags firstdayhikes and nhstateparks.
NEW HAMPSHIRE STATE PARKS
CONCORD — Start the new year on the right foot with New Hampshire State Park’s First Day Hikes program.
“Most people don’t think of coming out and exploring parks in the winter, but this gives people a wide range of options, from walking on a quarter-mile hike to a 3-mile loop,” said Eric Feldbaum, who is community recreation specialist for the New Hampshire Division of Parks and Recreation. “It’s for all skill sets.”
This year’s lineup includes seven parks, which are waiving entry fees for pre-registered participants.
They include: Greenfield State Park, White Lake State Park in Tamworth, Milan Hill State Park, Pisgah State Park in Cheshire County, Monadnock State Park in Jaffrey, and Odiorne Point State Park in Rye.
Frost Farm Historic Site in Derry, where famous New England poet Robert Frost lived from 1900-1911, is new to the list but all spots for the Jan. 1, 2023, day of hikes there already have been filled.
This is the 12th year New Hampshire and State Parks have participated in the First Day Hikes program. It’s part of a nationwide initiative led by America’s State Parks to encourage people to get outdoors.
The COVID-19 pandemic and some rain one year put a damper on a couple of years’ hikes, but at its height 1,300 people came through when just five sites were highlighted, Feldbaum said.
“We’re slowly climbing back up. Last year, 900 people participated,” he said.
All hikes on Sunday are rain, snow or shine. Wear layers and good winter footwear with micro spikes.
Leashed dogs are allowed at all sites except Monadnock and Odiorne parks.
Registration runs through Dec. 31; it can’t be done on the day of the hikes.
For information, go to https://www.nhstateparks.org/news-events/first-day-hike.
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2022-12-30T00:10:25Z
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Start the new year with a First Day hike | Holiday | unionleader.com
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https://www.unionleader.com/nh/lifestyles/holiday/start-the-new-year-with-a-first-day-hike/article_b25042f0-35c9-5228-bf10-8f85cb92be08.html
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https://www.unionleader.com/nh/lifestyles/holiday/start-the-new-year-with-a-first-day-hike/article_b25042f0-35c9-5228-bf10-8f85cb92be08.html
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Gail Fisher's Dog Tracks: Don't be shy about advocating for your dog
I was recently asked for advice from a friend who had observed a training class she was considering attending.
One of the things she observed was when the trainer tried to take a student’s dog to demonstrate an exercise. This is a common practice that we, too, use. The idea is that by showing the students that one of their dogs is capable of performing the behavior gives the rest of the class confidence that their dog will do it.
Unfortunately, that’s not what happened in the class my friend was watching. The young dog was a bit shy and reluctant to go to the trainer. Rather than err on the side of the timid dog, the trainer verbally chastised him and forced him to move to her. BIG RED FLAG! Do NOT attend this class!
An experienced trainer should know that forcing this dog to do something he was clearly afraid of would likely result in permanent “stranger danger” fears.
I knew I had written about the importance of advocating for your dog when you think something isn’t right. The following is a column I wrote six years ago, that explains the importance of being your dog’s advocate:
I got an email from a dog owner asking my opinion about advice she had gotten from a trainer in her area who had come to her home to do a behavioral consultation. I don’t second-guess another trainer’s advice without learning what led to their recommendation, but this email started me thinking about situations in which it’s good to question, get a second opinion before doing something you might regret, or stop something being done with or to your dog before it happens.
On occasion, I’ve met with an owner and their dog whose behavior has been worsened by incorrect treatment by someone — a visitor to the home, a friend or family member, or even a pet professional such as a groomer, trainer, or veterinarian. This has even happened to me.
Years ago, when I was breeding mastiffs, one of my dogs was in labor, and had delivered three puppies. I didn’t think she was finished and took her (along with the puppies) to the vet for a check-up.
I didn’t know the vet on duty, and he had never met my dog. With no greeting at all, he briskly entered the examination room and quickly approached my dog with the worst bedside manner possible, reaching over her head to examine her. His body language was (from a dog’s perspective) impolite, overbearing and frightening.
Startled and put off, my dog did what any self-respecting mother in labor would do — she growled. He jumped back and said that she had an unfit temperament, shouldn’t have been bred and recommended she be euthanized. Had I not known better, had I not known what a jerk he was and how badly he had behaved toward my dog, I might have followed his advice.
That wasn’t the end of this incident. Because of the impact of this vet visit, this dog was suspicious and nervous each time we went to the veterinarian’s. Had I known what he was going to do, had he given me a chance, I would have told him she was nervous because of her puppies (not all vets have experience in this area), that she was not overly friendly to strangers, and to please approach her with that in mind.
If I had been aware of what was about to happen, would I have done all of that? Would I have I had the self-confidence to give recommendations to a veterinarian I didn’t know in his own domain? With hindsight, sure I would have, but without the knowledge of such hindsight, my tendency, as with most people, is to be polite. Don’t make waves. Don’t offend. But our dogs count on us to protect them.
I’ll occasionally talk to a client whose dog had a bad experience with a training method or trainer. We can often help the dog learn that not all trainers (generalized to “strangers”), and not all training situations are fearful. Sometimes an owner tells us that they stopped the trainer before he or she did something objectionable to their dog. That’s the best! The owner was able to foresee, and had the self-confidence to step in and stop a potentially harmful training tactic before it was used on their dog.
I’ve also spoken with owners who have removed their dogs from classes in which the trainer did something to another dog that they wouldn’t want done to their dog. It can be difficult for some to risk embarrassment or confrontation, but for our dogs’ sake, we should be willing to take that risk.
The bottom line is that we are more than our dogs’ owners; we are also their advocates. It is our responsibility to foresee — as much as possible — a potentially dangerous or damaging situation, and protect the dog from it. It’s not always possible, easy or comfortable, and often we can’t recognize it until it’s too late, but if we have the opportunity and foresight, we need to protect our dogs. They deserve nothing less.
All of us at All Dogs Gym wish everyone a happy, healthy, joy- and love-filled 2023!
WASHINGTON — A Chinese military plane came within 20 feet of a U.S. air force aircraft and forced it to take evasive maneuvers to avoid a collision in international airspace over the South China Sea last week, the U.S. military said on Thursday.
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2022-12-30T01:50:23Z
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www.unionleader.com
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Gail Fisher's Dog Tracks: Don't be shy about advocating for your dog | | unionleader.com
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https://www.unionleader.com/gail-fishers-dog-tracks-dont-be-shy-about-advocating-for-your-dog/article_d06daac7-474e-5ec5-9ac1-690c5947bb7b.html
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https://www.unionleader.com/gail-fishers-dog-tracks-dont-be-shy-about-advocating-for-your-dog/article_d06daac7-474e-5ec5-9ac1-690c5947bb7b.html
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IN JUNE 2020, I published a column detailing my experience eating at a restaurant in downtown Manchester and how appalled I was by the number of homeless people begging me for money as I sat at an outdoor table, having dinner with a friend.
It was a horrible experience, and as someone who grew up in Manchester, I was extremely disappointed with the state of the city and how the problem was impacting local businesses.
My column was met with dismay, and I received a slew of emails and phone calls from readers, as well as public officials, condemning my column and respectfully pointing out that I had no solution to the problem, and that all I was doing was making Manchester and those responsible look bad.
Fast forward 2 1/2 years later and what do we have? The same problem. Except this time, Manchester’s homeless problem has garnered national attention, after a homeless woman gave birth to a baby in a tent and allegedly abandoned the baby in the freezing cold. It’s a story that makes you question how something like that could happen in today’s world. It’s really hard to comprehend. Fortunately, the baby appears to be OK and is expected to survive. I feel for the first responders, as that must have been a traumatic scene to witness.
Unfortunately, that story overshadowed another tragedy that occurred in Manchester on Christmas Day. A homeless woman died in her tent on a city sidewalk. Yes, you read that right, a tent on a city sidewalk. You’re probably wondering how people can legally pitch a tent on a city sidewalk and be allowed to stay there? Don’t worry, Manchester officials have the answer.
According to the City of Manchester Homelessness FAQ page, “Another recent court case found that an ordinance banning people from sleeping in public spaces (including sidewalks) violated the 8th Amendment, deeming it cruel and unusual punishment to ban people from sleeping outside in public spaces when they often do not have another option. Consequently, as the law now stands, the adoption of an ordinance would require that the City of Manchester, at the same time, offer every such individual a guaranteed shelter bed, which cannot be achieved at this time.”
Is that an acceptable answer to you? It sure looks like an excuse to me. If Manchester were to adopt an ordinance to prevent people from camping on city sidewalks, they would have to guarantee a bed for everyone. That doesn’t sound too complicated, does it? But city officials claim, “it can’t be achieved at this time.” Has anyone asked why it can’t be achieved?
The solution to homelessness is actually quite simple. Provide shelter. It doesn’t take a Harvard degree to figure that out. Why can’t we put an end to this embarrassing problem and develop housing for homeless people? It doesn’t need to be anything over the top. Why can’t the city build a complex of studio apartments? There are plenty of other public housing options for people in need, why not develop a program specifically for the homeless?
I know what I’m going to hear after people read this column. Chris, it’s more complicated than that. Chris, people have mental health and drug issues. Chris, people don’t want shelter. Chris, there are laws that prevent this. Chris, other New Hampshire cities are dropping off homeless people in Manchester. Chris, we just hired a new homeless initiatives director, give her time. And I’m sure there will be more new excuses I haven’t heard yet.
The solution is extremely simple. Number one, build enough public housing to support the homelessness problem. Number two, pass city ordinances and laws at the state level that prevent people from camping and living on public land without permission. Lastly, arrest people who don’t abide by the laws. How hard is that?
The other excuse people will have is funding. Who is going to pay for more housing? Nobody wants to pay more taxes. But I have a hunch that people wouldn’t mind giving a little more to prevent people from dying in tents on city sidewalks and newborn babies being delivered in tents and abandoned in the woods during the middle of winter.
City officials claim they have a housing strategy for “All People and All Incomes of the Queen City.” Well guess what? The “initiatives” are not working and change is not happening fast enough.
Perhaps a baby being born in a tent and a young woman dying in a tent on a city sidewalk will help create a greater sense of urgency.
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2022-12-30T01:50:35Z
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www.unionleader.com
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Closing the Deal: Manchester's homeless problem: Enough is enough | Business | unionleader.com
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https://www.unionleader.com/news/business/columns/closing-the-deal-manchesters-homeless-problem-enough-is-enough/article_bdac4003-f692-5fb1-a64a-0930f67b4fa8.html
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https://www.unionleader.com/news/business/columns/closing-the-deal-manchesters-homeless-problem-enough-is-enough/article_bdac4003-f692-5fb1-a64a-0930f67b4fa8.html
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Knowledge can make a difference, one that is highlighted as part of the FINRA Foundation’s recently released National Financial Capability Study, titled “Investors in the United States: The Changing Landscape” (tinyurl.com/ymsnak63). The report, which includes the 2021 Investor Survey, is done every three years. FINRA, the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority, regulates the U.S. brokerage industry.
One-half of the survey respondents had more than 10 years of experience as investors. About a quarter had two to 10 years of experience. The remainder had less than two years of experience.
When tested about very basic knowledge of investment principles (an 11-point quiz), FINRA found that knowledge was lacking, even with investors with more than 10 years of experience.
The survey found that, on average, respondents answered 4.7 of the 10 questions correctly. Yes, only 4.7 questions out of 10.
For younger investors (18 to 34) and those who had less than two years of investing experience, the number of incorrect answers either equaled or exceeded the number of correct answers — something that did not occur with the older age groups and the groups with more investing experience. (“Don’t know” also was a possible answer.)
The highest percentage of correct answers overall involved a stock definition question and a question about riskier investments tending to provide higher returns over time, each of which 73% got correct. A question about buying on margin scored the lowest (23% answered correctly).
Despite low quiz scores, 64% of investors overall rated themselves at the top end (5 to 7 on a 7-point scale) when it came to their own knowledge.
By the way, at this point, you may be hankering to try out your knowledge of basic investment concepts. If you are, here’s how: Go to tinyurl.com/md7azm73 and let me know how you did (email me at readers@juliejason.com).
While the top motivation for nearly all investors in the survey was to make money over the long term (96%), younger people were more likely to “engage in riskier investment behaviors.” For investors under the age of 35, 36% of them reported trading options, while 21% of the age group 35 to 54 and 8% of those 55 and older did the same.
When it came to a willingness to take substantial financial risks with an expectation of earning substantial returns, only 5% of those who had been investing 10 or more years were willing to do so, a much lower result than those who had been investing two to 10 years (20%) or less than two years (19%).
Thirty-nine percent of those with less than two years of investing experience expected their portfolio to perform better than the market as a whole, compared with 30% of those with two to 10 years of experience, and 23% of those with 10 or more years of experience.
Cryptocurrencies have had a volatile year-plus, with bitcoin dropping 76% from its November 2021 high. The survey, which was conducted between July and December of 2021, found that 71% of those 55 and older considered cryptocurrencies to be “extremely or very risky,” while only 42% of those 18 to 34 said the same. It would be interesting to survey their view of cryptocurrencies now.
Investing without a solid foundation is never a good idea. I encourage you to go to FINRA’s educational website at tinyurl.com/yc7hhwy3. It’s worth a visit.
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2022-12-30T01:50:41Z
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www.unionleader.com
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'Your Money': FINRA survey shows investors need more knowledge | Business | unionleader.com
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https://www.unionleader.com/news/business/columns/your-money-finra-survey-shows-investors-need-more-knowledge/article_49b0e061-a44b-5752-b1a4-14d7097781bf.html
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https://www.unionleader.com/news/business/columns/your-money-finra-survey-shows-investors-need-more-knowledge/article_49b0e061-a44b-5752-b1a4-14d7097781bf.html
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By Madison Muller Bloomberg
Italian health authorities said earlier Wednesday that they will begin testing all arrivals from China for COVID after nearly half of passengers on two flights to Milan were found to have the virus. Countries such as Japan, Malaysia and India are also ramping up tracking measures.
When the delta variant first emerged in fall 2021, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention partnered with Ginkgo Bioworks and other companies to collect and sequence samples from travelers who arrived from India. It later expanded to include samples collected from travelers from more than 27 countries and is run out of six major U.S. airports.
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2022-12-30T01:51:06Z
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www.unionleader.com
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US to require negative coronavirus tests for travelers from China | Transportation | unionleader.com
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https://www.unionleader.com/news/business/transportation/us-to-require-negative-coronavirus-tests-for-travelers-from-china/article_04bbb497-1f03-5b05-b5ab-17fa9f92dffb.html
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https://www.unionleader.com/news/business/transportation/us-to-require-negative-coronavirus-tests-for-travelers-from-china/article_04bbb497-1f03-5b05-b5ab-17fa9f92dffb.html
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Southern New Hampshire University is turning to automated tools to bolster its adviser-student relationships, particularly among its huge online student population.
Thomas Roy/Union Leader/file
Chrislene Georges, seen here during a photo shoot in Boston, began pursuing a college degree after she graduated from Manchester Memorial High School in 2013. She said developing a relationship with her academic adviser helped her finish her degree.
Provided by Chrislene Georges
By Josie Albertson-Grove Union Leader Staff
Delivering support to a student body spread out around the world, without the opportunity to develop in-person relationships, was already a challenge, but university leaders say they are always working to keep students engaged, through a mix of tools to measure student engagement online, and old-fashioned relationships with the university’s corps of academic advisers.
At any institution, advisers are key to helping students graduate on time and with degrees. They make sure students enroll in the right classes and help them connect to support services like writing help and tutoring. Because most of the SNHU student body is not on campus, walking past the writing center and studying in the library, advisers have to be highly proactive about putting resources in front of students.
“Almost so they’ll trip over them,” said Matthew Thornton, the university’s vice president for customer experience.
More than 170,000 SNHU students are online only, compared with about 3,000 on campus. At conventional colleges, students who have declared majors are assigned a professor as their adviser. But at SNHU, only advisers have the job of advising students.
Thornton said many of SNHU’s academic advisers are recent college graduates themselves, many of them SNHU graduates. They have heavy caseloads — upward of 200 students, with as many as 250 students each.
He hopes advisers are getting the resources students need to succeed in college, but the work is a challenge.
Graduation rates at Southern New Hampshire University are substantially lower than for almost all of New Hampshire’s in-person colleges, with the difference especially stark for first-time college students.
Including the tens of thousands of online students along with the 3,000 students on campus in Manchester, SNHU has graduation rates lower than almost every other four-year college in New Hampshire, according to federal data.
Just under 40% of students graduate with a bachelor’s degree from SNHU within six years of starting college there. Compare that to the 78% graduation rate for the University of New Hampshire, or 62% at Keene State College. In New Hampshire, only New England College has a lower graduation rate, at 33%.
Adviser relationship
College was a winding road for Chrislene Georges, who began trying to get a degree after graduating from Manchester Memorial High School in 2013.
“I didn’t have enough help,” Georges said.
She started a health sciences degree at Fisher College in Massachusetts, considered changing majors to pre-law and transferred to Southern New Hampshire University. Then she switched to an online-only marketing program through SNHU and eventually finished an online associate’s degree in fashion merchandising at Middlesex Community College in Massachusetts.
It wasn’t until she transferred to community college that Georges found the support she needed and the right fit for her academic journey. Even though she was primarily an online student, Georges said developing a relationship with her adviser helped her finally finish her degree.
“It was really nice working with her,” Georges said, learning from her adviser’s experience in the fashion business and feeling supported through her classes.
Thornton said the advising model at SNHU is built around the adviser-student relationship. But that relationship is increasingly bolstered with automated tools, he said, especially as SNHU’s student body and advising caseloads have exploded in the past 10 years.
Although a national association for academic advisers does not mention standards for caseloads, adviser loads have more than quadrupled at SNHU, from 50 students per adviser in 2012, to more than 200 today, though Thornton noted that most advisers take on between 10 and 50 new students each term.
The university also can use real-time information it collects on students’ progress through assignments, and Thornton said SNHU is looking at ways to send an automated nudge to remind the student to post on the online class forum or submit an assignment to the writing center for editing.
“We like to measure engagement with our students in a slightly different way,” Thornton said.
Where an in-person professor might make note of how often a student participates during class, Thornton said SNHU tracks how often students respond when their advisers call, text and email. They track how often and how long students log into online classrooms, whether or not they download syllabi and assignments and even how long they spend with their digital textbooks open.
Advisers use these technological tools — not available to advisers of in-person students — to get a sense of how students are doing. Systems help advisers keep track of how engaged their students are and automatically pinpoint who might need more attention.
“We’ve got a lot of different data,” Thornton said.
Robot ready
The university also is exploring more automated supports for students who need help. Thornton said he thought students might be more willing to confide in a robot if they are having a hard time — and the robot can then direct them to the support they need, whether it be tutoring or health-related.
The SNHU approach differs from many smaller-scale colleges, where online and in-person students are paired with professors as academic advisers, who engage regularly with their students, though they may not have the same data on time spent with a textbook.
As Georges, the Manchester student, got closer to finishing her degree at Middlesex Community College, she said her adviser was critical to making sure she was on track to graduate. She knew the department and had worked in the field, so she had subject matter expertise in addition to knowledge about the college’s resources.
When Georges wasn’t able to land an internship during her last semester — a part of the major’s graduation requirements — her adviser helped her negotiate college bureaucracy to make sure she could still get her diploma.
Making the Grade is a reporting effort dedicated to covering education in New Hampshire. It is sponsored by the New Hampshire Solutions Journalism Lab at the Nackey S. Loeb School of Communications and is funded by the New Hampshire Charitable Foundation, Northeast Delta Dental, the Education Writers Association and the Institute for Citizens & Scholars.
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2022-12-30T01:51:12Z
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SNHU's challenge: helping remote, first-time students graduate | Education | unionleader.com
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Mountaineer, risk-assessment professional and author Ty Gagne speaks earlier his month in a Laconia coffee shop about the death of hiker Emily Sotelo in Franconia Notch.
A sign marks the start of the Old Bridle Path/ Falling Waters trails in Franconia Notch, near where Guopeng ‘Tony’ Li, 28, a hiker from Salem, was found dead on Christmas Day.
FRANCONIA — Following the recent deaths of two hikers in Franconia Notch, a mountaineer and risk-assessment expert is calling for compassion for the victims, increased awareness and responsibility among hikers, and continued emotional support for search-and-rescue workers.
Emily Sotelo, 19, of Westford, Mass., a sophomore majoring in biochemistry and chemical biology at Vanderbilt University, died of exposure on Mount Lafayette. Authorities said she had set out early on Nov. 20 with the goal of summiting Mount Lafayette and three other 4,000-foot plus peaks in Franconia Notch.
Sotelo, whose goal was to have climbed all 48 of New Hampshire’s 4,000 foot and taller peaks by her 20th birthday on Nov. 23, was found on her birthday on the northwest side of Mount Lafayette, at the northern end of Franconia Notch.
On Christmas Day, New Hampshire Fish and Game conservation officers located the body of Guopeng “Tony” Li, 28, of Salem, near the Falling Waters Trail at the southern end of Franconia Notch. Li had planned to do the 8.6 mile Bridle Path/Falling Waters Loop.
Each was hiking alone.
While Sotelo and Li had summertime hiking experience, Fish and Game officials said neither was familiar with nor prepared for the demands of hiking in winter in the White Mountains.
Following Sotelo’s death, and now Li’s, talk in the online hiking community included speculation, sympathy, questions about what happened and a fair amount of finger-pointing at the pair for their perceived poor choices that cost them their lives and endangered those who searched for them and later recovered their bodies.
“It’s a natural human reaction to judge. But when we do that, we stop learning,” said Ty Gagne, an accomplished hiker of the White Mountains and of mountains around the world.
Gagne, 54, is the author of the books “Where You’ll Find Me: Risk, Decisions, and the Last Climb of Kate Matrosova” and of “The Last Traverse: Tragedy and Resilience in the Winter Whites.”
Goal-obsessed
Based on his own shortcomings and on the misadventures of other hikers, Gagne said he discusses what went wrong “from a place of nonjudgment because I’ve made mistakes.”
He said he brings a unique perspective to those discussions: Since 2003, he has been the chief executive officer of the New Hampshire Public Risk Management Exchange, which provides property, liability and employment-related coverage for state municipalities.
More familiar with the events that led to Sotelo’s death than Li’s, Gagne said Sotelo frequently has been compared to Kate Matrosova, the subject of his book. Both women were extremely goal-driven and seemingly were unwilling or unable to alter their hikes for weather conditions.
Matrosova froze to death on Feb. 15 or 16, 2015, between mounts Madison and Adams while attempting a traverse of the Presidential Range. While she was an experienced winter hiker and carried a rescue beacon and a satellite telephone, like Sotelo in Franconia Notch, she was operating under an arbitrary deadline, Gagne said.
Matrosova gave herself a narrow window to complete the north-south traverse before returning to work as a trader at a New York City bank. Both women encountered high winds and frigid temperatures on their respective hikes.
They met the same fate.
“They came to the White Mountains with self-imposed deadlines and a predetermined itinerary,” Gagne said. They “took on a significant amount of risk” when they didn’t amend those plans.
Gagne, a frequent public speaker, said that when he addresses groups about what happened to Matrosova, he brings up how she needed a “rescuer.”
“And I’m not talking about the teams that went to search for her,” Gagne said, explaining that to him a rescuer, before or during a hike, “is that person who can put their hand on your shoulder and say ‘You’re too deep into this. Let’s have a conversation.’ ”
For some hikers, that conversation might include a strong suggestion to turn back, Gagne said.
He pointed out that “the White Mountains are within a day’s drive for 60 million people,” which make them an attractive place to hike. In Franconia Notch, “You can literally pull your car up to the trailhead without any knowledge of the terrain.”
A lot of the hikers who need search and rescue “overestimate their ability and underestimate the time, complexity and risk associated with hiking in the White Mountains,” Gagne said. “My goal isn’t to scare people, but to raise awareness of being prepared.
“Are you willing to modify your plans?” he said. “All of this comes down to human factors, to emotion. You can be overtaken just by the beauty of Franconia Notch, Mount Washington. They just draw us in and sometimes that emotion can overtake” common sense, Gagne said.
More education for hikers — in the form of public-service announcements and highway signs about summit conditions — could be helpful in preventing or reducing some hiking mishaps, he said.
Hiking is a physical and mental exercise, requiring the right equipment as well as “self- and situational awareness… knowing who you are even before presenting at the trailhead.”
“It’s having limits and knowing how much value you’ve placed on what you’re doing today and while you’re up there, it’s taking a self-inventory,” he said.
Gagne hopes that hikers can overcome “summit fever” — the obsessive goal to reach mountain peaks at all costs — and become increasingly mindful of the consequences of their actions on others, both professional and volunteers.
“Backcountry search-and-rescue members are first responders just as fire, police and EMS personnel are,” he said. “We can’t forget that they’re subject to the same types of emotional trauma and stress in the mountains as our public servants are in a more urban environment.”
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2022-12-30T01:51:36Z
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Death in the mountains: Summer hikers underestimate the danger of White Mountain winters | Public Safety | unionleader.com
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https://www.unionleader.com/news/safety/death-in-the-mountains-summer-hikers-underestimate-the-danger-of-white-mountain-winters/article_0fe76435-45b5-5d52-bd00-3aec093b714b.html
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Eckersley family 'utterly devastated' newborn was left in tent
The family of the homeless woman accused of leaving her hours-old baby alone in her Manchester tent and misleading a police search the day after Christmas said in a statement they were unaware of the pregnancy and “utterly devastated” by what happened.
Alexandra Eckersley, 26, is the daughter of former Red Sox pitching great Dennis Eckersley and his second wife, Nancy.
According to the statement, the family also called New Hampshire’s mental health system — along with those in other states — broken.
The baby boy who was born prematurely is recovering at Dartmouth-Hitchcock Medical Center.
“We are in the process of filing a guardianship petition so that we may receive information and have decision-making with respect to Allie’s son,” the statement reads. The family also asked for privacy.
Nancy Eckersley told a prosecutor her daughter has an open invitation to return home and live with her parents as long as she enters drug treatment. Alexandra refused.
The family said they were unaware of the pregnancy and are grateful for the work first responders did to save the baby.
“It is heartbreaking that a child was born under such unthinkable conditions and in such tragic circumstances,” the statement reads. “We learned with everyone else from news reports what happened and are still in complete shock.”
The tent consisted of one small tent inside a larger one. The sleeping area, where the baby was found, had a large amount of blood and several blankets. Alexandra and her boyfriend also decided to turn off the propane heat in the tent, which sheltered the baby, while they waited outside for an ambulance, according to court documents.
The family says Alexandra — who they call Allie — was adopted at birth.
“Though it is painful to share, we feel it necessary to offer greater context of Allie’s circumstances and background,” the statement reads. “Allie has suffered from severe mental illness her entire life. Allie was hospitalized numerous times for her illness and lived in several residential programs. We did our very best to get Allie all of the help and support humanly possible.”
Since she was 20, Alexandra has chosen to live on the streets in New Hampshire.
“Once Allie became an adult there was even less we could do because she was legally free to make her own decisions as long as she was not a danger to herself or others. Under existing laws, there was simply no way to force her to receive treatment. Nonetheless, we continued to support her as best we could,” the statement reads.
The family said the state has an inadequate amount of psychiatric beds.
“Without adequate inpatient beds for crisis, treatment and stabilization, a state mental system fails,” the statement reads.
“We have always offered Allie a path home but she has made other choices,” the statement reads. “We hope Allie now accepts the treatment she desperately needs for her mental health issues. We also hope that all those who have heard this tragic story withhold judgment about our daughter until all the facts come out.
Union Leader reporter Mark Hayward contributed to this report.
The homeless woman accused of leaving her hours-old baby alone in her Manchester tent was fearful of losing the tent, so she misdirected a pol…
The adopted daughter of Red Sox pitching great Dennis Eckersley faces a felony charge for allegedly leaving her premature newborn uncovered in…
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2022-12-30T01:51:42Z
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Eckersley family 'utterly devastated' newborn was left in tent | Social Issues | unionleader.com
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An employee scans passes for guests loading the Sunapee Express at the start of the holiday week.
For some of the best views of Lake Sunapee, take Skyway down from the Sunapee Express on your way over towards the Sunbowl.
Guests kick off their skis to enjoy the views and the warm fireplace in the Summit Lodge.
The Sunapee Express chairlift ushers skiers and riders to the mountain’s 2,743-foot summit in about seven minutes. The views of resorts to the west in Vermont aren’t half bad either.
Thanks to the snowmaking and grooming teams, Mount Sunapee offers guests packed-powder conditions despite the rollercoaster weather patterns typical of southern New Hampshire.
Skiers and riders congregate at the summit of Mount Sunapee, enjoying the packed powder conditions to kick off the holiday week.
NH Winter: Snowmaking keeps Mount Sunapee groomed for the season
ALTHOUGH IT WAS later than usual this year, it felt great wiping down my snowboard and getting back on the slopes for a new season.
I started the year at Mount Sunapee the morning after Christmas, a brisk but sunny day with a snowmaking cloud enshrouding trails around the Spruce Lodge at the base of the mountain.
Despite the past two months’ rollercoaster weather patterns, Sunapee opened on Nov. 22, tying for their second-earliest opening.
“We’ve oscillated between these extreme colds,” said General Manager Peter Disch, “so our snowmaking team’s been able to put a lot of snow out there in a short period of time.”
While snowmaking has been a critical part of the early-season mountain operations plan, Disch said that in the past week, the focus has increased on grooming in the aftermath of the last winter storm.
The storm brought every type of weather possible to the resort, from high winds to snow to rain and back to snow, with even a few lightning strikes mixed in toward the end.
“Our grooming team is incredibly skilled at being able to pull miracles out,” Disch said with a knowing smile.
A longtime patron of Mount Sunapee, Catherine Wittliff of Bow enjoyed the chilly start to the holiday break with her grandchildren.
“The conditions are excellent for this time of year because of their snowmaking,” Wittliff said.
Although she said it was hard to choose, Skyway is one of Wittliff’s favorite trails on the mountain, likely owing to the unmarred views it offers of Lake Sunapee to the north.
Another skier familiar to the resort, Bobby Arnold of Bow, has been skiing at Sunapee since 1964. He and a friend would take advantage of the state ski pass back then, starting their weekend mornings at Cannon Mountain before making it over to Sunapee in the afternoon to cruise around the mountain and socialize with friends (mostly girls, he confessed).
“Sunapee is a great cruising mountain,” Arnold said. “I always like the upper part of Bonanza. Before snowmaking, one part was ledge where ice would form. That was true New England boilerplate.”
Beth Dooly of Dunbarton prefers exploring the Sunbowl, an area of the resort that had just opened to guests when I visited at the beginning of the week.
“That section of the mountain gets nice and soft when the sun hits it,” said Dooly, who has been skiing and riding at Sunapee for 15 years.
“Sunapee is known for their grooming and trail maintenance,” she said. “The conditions always hold up even when Mother Nature is not holding up her end of the bargain.”
While it’s true that we could use some fresh snow to usher in 2023, the resorts are prepared to tackle that fickle New England weather.
They’re also prepared to reintroduce events that bring people together, an aspect of resort life lost during the pandemic.
“Really what we’re focused on this year is just bringing fun back to Sunapee,” Disch said. “The last two years have been focused on whether or not we can ski and how we can ski safely through the pandemic.”
At the end of last season, Sunapee was able to squeeze in the Slush Cup, an outdoor event featuring a pool skim for the daring. This year since opening, the mountain has hosted several movie nights to help raise money for a local ski club.
On Saturday, the resort is hosting a family-friendly bash to ring in the New Year. A bonfire with s’mores will begin out on Flyway (also known as “The Beach”) at 4 p.m. After dark, more than 60 community members will participate in Sunapee’s first torchlight parade, coming down the Eggbeater trail at the bottom of the mountain. The party will be capped off by live music at Goosefeather’s Pub.
“We all got really good at saying no to stuff over the last two years,” Disch said. “Now it’s like what can we say yes to and just have some fun together.”
Sunapee, which is on property owned by the state of New Hampshire, is operated by Vail Resorts, which took over the lease in 2018.
The publicly traded company operates 37 resorts in 15 states and three countries, including Attitash, Wildcat and Crotched Mountain in New Hampshire.
For more information about events this season, visit mountsunapee.com
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2022-12-30T01:52:01Z
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NH Winter: Snowmaking keeps Mount Sunapee groomed for the season | Winter Notes | unionleader.com
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https://www.unionleader.com/nh/outdoors/winter_notes/nh-winter-snowmaking-keeps-mount-sunapee-groomed-for-the-season/article_9c86018e-3d72-5ed8-9218-4deec3620e53.html
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Noah Baumbach adapts 'White Noise'
FRIDAY NIGHT DEBUTS include the 2022 drama “White Noise,” streaming on Netflix after a brief run in theaters and on the film festival circuit. Directed by Noah Baumbach, it represents an attempt to bring Don DeLillo’s decidedly unfilmable 1985 novel to the big screen.
Acclaimed as a masterpiece of postmodern fiction at the time, “Noise” centers around Professor Jack Gladney (Adam Driver) and his fourth wife, Babette (Greta Gerwig), who share a complicated blended family in a bucolic college town. Gladney teaches a popular Hitler Studies course and is good friends with Prof. Siskind (Don Cheadle) of the Elvis Studies department. In the novel, they hold a joint symposium on their two subjects which is a memorable sendup of trendy academic pretensions.
The good — or at least normal — life on campus gives way to apocalyptic fears after a massive train collision unleashes an “airborne toxic event” that makes vast swaths of America uninhabitable. The publication of “White Noise” happened around the same time as the Bhopal disaster, when a leak at a Union Carbide plant in India killed nearly 4,000 people living in the vicinity.
The film’s trailer puts great emphasis on its attention to period details, the clothes, hair and cars of the Reagan era. It also indicates a kind of slapstick evocation of DeLillo’s decidedly morbid humor.
It’s interesting to note that the novel’s rather sardonic take on the aggressively complicated families of the 1980s coincided with director Steven Spielberg’s efforts to sentimentalize fractured families in films like “E.T.” Scenes of the Gladney clan evading apocalyptic conditions seem more like a parody of Spielberg-inspired adventure films than an adaptation of postmodern fiction.
As stated, this novel is pretty difficult to adapt, so hats off to Baumbach for giving it the old college try. What will “Don DeLillo Studies” departments make of it?
• If “White Noise” sends up the trivialization of academia, the documentary “This Place Rules” (11 p.m., HBO, TV-MA) represents the “Jackass”-ization of American political journalism.
Promoted as a field trip into a divided America on the precipice of civil war, this film from Andrew Callaghan presents cinema verite interviews and interactions with extreme characters, from masochistic “influencers” who gain YouTube subscribers with painful and self-destructive stunts, to sign-wielding “experts” on the woes of circumcision, to those extolling the virtues of the 45th president as a kind of COVID-proof superhero.
It’s rather easy to depict the nation as a fever dream on the brink of catastrophe if you confine your interviews with deluded exhibitionists and the mentally ill. And those, like Alex Jones, who exploit their paranoia.
The most profound takeaway from this indulgent documentary is the notion that our former president had a superpower for “whispering” to the emotionally unstable, offering dog-whistles to the deranged, not unlike Dracula’s silent messages to Renfield.
• Streaming today on Prime Video after a brief theatrical run, the 2022 drama “Wildcat” follows a returning British veteran struggling with PTSD and depression.
• The spy thriller “Slow Horses,” starring Gary Oldman and Kristin Scott Thomas, streams the final episode of its second season on Apple TV+.
Tonight’s other highlights
• Tennessee and Clemson meet in the Orange Bowl (8 p.m., ESPN).
• Family stories offer inspiration on “The Great American Recipe” (9 p.m. and 10 p.m., PBS, r, TV-PG, check local listings).
• A sicko seizes a teen on a network showcase for “Criminal Minds” (10 p.m., CBS, r, TV-14), also streaming on Paramount+.
The king of the jungle helps the princess of the lost civilization of Palandria take on Nazi invaders in the 1943 franchise sequel “Tarzan Triumphs” (4:30 p.m., TCM, TV-PG), starring Johnny Weissmuller, Johnny Sheffield and Frances Gifford.
Body cam evidence casts a bad light on Hondo on “S.W.A.T.” (8 p.m., CBS, r, TV-14) ... “The Wheel” (8 p.m., NBC, TV-PG) ... “WWE Friday Night SmackDown” (8 p.m., Fox, TV-PG) ... “Shark Tank” (8 p.m., ABC, r, TV-PG).
Slow horses on “Fire Country” (9 p.m., CBS, r, TV-14) ... “Dateline” (9 p.m., NBC, r) ... “20/20” (9 p.m., ABC, r).
George Clooney and Alex G are booked on “The Late Show With Stephen Colbert” (11:35 p.m., CBS, r) ... Jimmy Fallon welcomes Miley Cyrus, Jesse Williams and Mary Mack on “The Tonight Show” (11:35 p.m., NBC, r) ... Brendan Fraser, Jalyn Hall and Weezer appear on “Jimmy Kimmel Live!” (11:35 p.m., ABC, r).
Billy Porter, Chelsea Handler and Andy Grammer appear on “The Late Late Show With James Corden” (12:35 a.m., CBS, r).
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2022-12-30T01:52:07Z
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www.unionleader.com
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Noah Baumbach adapts 'White Noise' | | unionleader.com
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https://www.unionleader.com/noah-baumbach-adapts-white-noise/article_622f965e-9a26-52c8-b66b-81547c187220.html
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https://www.unionleader.com/noah-baumbach-adapts-white-noise/article_622f965e-9a26-52c8-b66b-81547c187220.html
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Say what? The importance of deciphering medical jargon
Horripilation, borborygmus, and rhinorrhea are three perfectly respectable medical terms for everyday conditions (goosebumps, intestinal rumbling due to gas, and a runny nose). But, there’s little chance of knowing what on earth your doctor is talking about if he or she happens to use those words to describe what’s ailing you. And that’s just scratching the surface. (Maybe that itch is formication — the feeling that bugs are crawling on your skin!)
A study in JAMA Network Open reveals that medical jargon is often mysterious to patients, and it’s frequently misinterpreted to mean the opposite of its true definition. For example, while 80% of the study’s 215 participants recognized that “an unremarkable chest radiography” was good news, only 21% knew that if their doctor said their “chest X-ray was impressive” that it was probably bad news. Another example: 96% knew that hearing they had a “negative cancer screening” meant they didn’t have cancer. But only 79% understood “your tumor is progressing” was bad news. And a third of patients don’t tell their doctors if they don’t understand treatment recommendations (or disagree with them).
So where does this leave you, the perplexed patient? With the responsibility of asking your doctors — over and over — “Can you explain exactly what that means?” even if you think you know! As I explain in “The Great Age Reboot,” you need to speak up about how you’re feeling, your concerns, and what you don’t understand, if you’re going to take advantage of the incredible health and longevity boosters of today and tomorrow.
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2022-12-30T01:52:13Z
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Say what? The importance of deciphering medical jargon | | unionleader.com
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https://www.unionleader.com/say-what-the-importance-of-deciphering-medical-jargon/article_c64f796a-b3e2-57ba-a789-50da017661ba.html
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https://www.unionleader.com/say-what-the-importance-of-deciphering-medical-jargon/article_c64f796a-b3e2-57ba-a789-50da017661ba.html
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Brazilian soccer legend Pele stands next to a photograph of him by Patrick Lichfield at the opening of the “Pele Collection” in the County Hall, London, Britain, Oct. 9, 2003.
Pele, whose given name was Edson Arantes do Nascimento, joined Santos in 1956 and turned the small coastal club into one of the most famous names in soccer. A wake is expected to be held at Santos’ Urbano Caldeira Stadium, most commonly known as Vila Belmiro, on Monday, the club’s press officer said.
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2022-12-30T01:52:31Z
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Soccer star Pele, Brazilian legend of the beautiful game, dies at 82 | Sports | unionleader.com
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https://www.unionleader.com/sports/soccer-star-pele-brazilian-legend-of-the-beautiful-game-dies-at-82/article_9b05282f-2be1-59a5-a619-b1d1c11551a5.html
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https://www.unionleader.com/sports/soccer-star-pele-brazilian-legend-of-the-beautiful-game-dies-at-82/article_9b05282f-2be1-59a5-a619-b1d1c11551a5.html
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2023 BRINGS us a new session of the New Hampshire legislature. In looking at the list of committee chairs and vice-chairs posted on the state’s website, one has to ask what year Speaker Sherm Packard and his leadership team reside in.
The Granite State is known for being very women friendly when it comes to electoral politics. We have two women United States Senators and a female congressperson. We have had women serving as speaker of the House and president of the Senate at the same time — twice! At one time the state Senate had a majority of women.
Currently, the New Hampshire House of Representatives has 149 female members — more than 37% of the total serving.
Yet based on the list currently on the House’s website, Speaker Packard has appointed only eight women to be committee chairs or vice-chairs. That is less than 18%, half of what the number should be based on the House’s demographic makeup.
When Packard appointed five Democrats to serve as committee vice-chairs, he failed to appoint even one Democratic woman.
Not one committee has women serving in both the chair and vice-chair slots.
It is not just the blatant male gender bias that is eyebrow raising. Despite conciliatory murmurings of bipartisanship from Republican leadership after the significant loss of GOP seats in the House, Packard’s appointments reflect the continuing domination by the extreme right wing of his party. Exhibit A is the resurrection of Ken Weyler, Republican of Kingston, as chair of the Finance Committee.
Weyler made national news leading to his forced resignation as chair of that committee in 2021. He had circulated a report containing numerous falsehoods about COVID vaccinations, including a claim that there were creatures with tentacles in the vaccine. At the time, he was blocking $27,000,000 in federal funds for the state’s vaccination efforts.
Weyler claimed he had not read the entire document before sending it around and that he should have vetted it more thoroughly. In other words, Packard put someone in charge of writing the state budget who either believes in crazy conspiratorial garbage or can’t be bothered to read documents that he relies on in rejecting significant federal funding intended to promote the health and safety of the state’s residents.
That should make us all pretty wary of the state budget process.
Right around the same time that Weyler was pushing anti-vax fiction, another Republican state representative, James Spillane of Deerfield, was apologizing for his failure to engage in thorough research. In this case, he posted a meme on social media, which, according to press accounts, showed what appeared to be “Jewish men playing Monopoly on the backs of subservient men.” The Legislative Ethics Committee admonished Spillane.
Packard has made Spillane the chair of the Fish and Game and Marine Resources Committee. What makes this appointment even more questionable is that he lost his Fish and Game committee assignment in 2020 after he posted a picture of a squirrel carcass on social media, saying he had shot the creature that day with a muzzleloader. The Fish and Game Department subsequently warned Spillane that he should not be hunting out of season. Yet Packard decided to give Spillane a leadership position, despite these and other examples of poor judgment.
Packard continues his bromance with the Free State Project despite its losses in the November election, appointing Keith Ammon vice-chair of the Commerce and Consumer Affairs Committee. Ironically, Ammon favored privatization of the Gunstock ski resort, despite the outcry from Gilford area businesspeople and Gunstock customers. We can hope that this session he pays more attention to what Granite Staters want, and less attention to his radical libertarian ideology.
Not surprisingly, Packard also appointed Republican legislators who want to drain more money from public school districts as chair (Rick Ladd) and vice-chair (Glenn Cordelli) of the Education Committee. Both are sponsors of a constitutional amendment to permit use of taxpayer money to fund religious schools (currently, taxpayer funds are laundered through a “scholarship” program).
With 400 members, the House of Representatives surely has some qualified, competent representatives who exhibit good judgment — including women — who could have filled these positions. Unfortunately, Speaker Packard went in another wrong direction.
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2022-12-30T07:24:14Z
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www.unionleader.com
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Kathleen Sullivan: Packard appointments reward extremist cronies and shortchange women | Columnists | unionleader.com
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Nashua’s problem: Once more in ’24?
Nashua’s Ward 4 is said to be the most Democratic district in the Gate City. We are guessing this is a measurement of voter registration. Perhaps ward residents might want to welcome in some Republicans.
Thrice now the ward’s voters have elected to the Legislature a person described as the state’s first “openly transgender” person. Does this term suggest there are others?
Be that as it may, in Nashua the person is one Stacie Laughton. She is giving democracy and Democrats a bad name. Her first election came in 2012 but she didn’t take her seat, a previous criminal record having come to light. She was not allowed to run in 2014, her suspended sentence still being in effect. She was in trouble again in 2015, receiving another suspended sentence.
But Nashua voters opted to return Laughton to the Legislature in 2020. And they did so again this year, despite (or perhaps because?) she had again been arrested for multiple instances of non-emergency texting to an emergency number. Between the most recent election and the swearing in, however, Laughton was arrested yet again, this time on a stalking charge.
She has now resigned, again. Presumably yet another election will be held in the new year to fill the seat, though it may be best just to let it go dark for a while.
Meanwhile, state Democratic Party boss Ray Buckley has just two years to figure out his next move in Nashua. Laughton has announced that she will run once more in 2024.
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2022-12-30T07:24:33Z
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Nashua’s problem: Once more in ’24? | Editorials | unionleader.com
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Keep these reforms but nix loan foregiveness
To the Editor: There’s been a lot of talk in the news about the student loan forgiveness program proposed by President Joe Biden. There’s a lot at stake for my family as I have one son who graduated last year from college, and another in his senior year of college. $20,000 forgiven could go a long way.
Yet, keep the $20,000. It’s a headline-stealing sideshow. It would help, but when you owe more than $100,000, keep it. Besides, I agree with the detractors who say it’s not only expensive but unfair. We knew very well what we were getting into.
What is more appealing, however, are two other provisions that don’t get any attention. First, the minimum payment would drop from 10% of “discretionary income” to 5%. The Department of Education defines discretionary income as anything over the poverty level, which is a laughable $27,000 or so. Under this formula, our minimum payment is still far higher than any other debt except our mortgage. This plan would cut the minimum payment in half. It’ll take longer to repay the debt, but at least we can better budget for it.
The second provision is more nebulous but hopefully more important: a pledge to hold universities accountable for tuition increases that far outpace inflation. What that will look like, your guess is as good as mine, but I think this is something everyone can agree on — tuition costs and increases are out of control.
Let’s not throw the baby out with the bath water. Lose the expense debt cancellation, but keep the other parts that have merit.
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2022-12-30T07:24:39Z
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Letter: Hold universities accountable for tuition hikes | Letters to the Editor | unionleader.com
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https://www.unionleader.com/opinion/letters_to_editor/letter-hold-universities-accountable-for-tuition-hikes/article_6ae54197-e9c2-50cf-9e24-b114dd006ef2.html
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Thomas Houlahan
Thomas Houlahan: New Hampshire’s elections are fine the way they are
THERE IS NO difference between those on the right whining about voting fraud in New Hampshire that isn’t there and those on the left shrieking about “barriers to voting” that aren’t there. Each side is trying to manipulate the public and government into supporting changes in voting laws that it believes will give its party an edge. That’s the real conspiracy.
For months, Democratic “voter advocates,” usually disguised as nonpartisans, have claimed that New Hampshire is the most difficult state in the nation in which to cast a ballot. The source of this claim is a bit of political junk science called the Cost of Voting Index. In it, three college professors evaluated each state on how closely it aligned with their opinions on how to conduct elections and decided among themselves what laws should count for or against a state and by how much. Then they published what is little more than a political manifesto mixed with denunciation of states that don’t agree with them.
For example, as far as they are concerned, a requirement of any identification is an unreasonable barrier even if it isn’t strictly enforced (in New Hampshire, personal recognition by poll workers meets the requirement). A more open invitation to fraud can hardly be imagined, but we were penalized.
We don’t generally allow private individuals to distribute or collect absentee ballots because abuse of that privilege led to its abolition decades ago. We thus took a double hit on that. For similar reasons, with very few exceptions, we require people to register in person with the town clerk. For that, we were penalized the equivalent of five times.
We were also quintuple-penalized because pre-registration for 16-year-olds is not “enshrined” in our law. To the professors, that constitutes proof that we aren’t serious about registering young people. That’s their actual justification.
The fact that people could register and vote here on election day when more than half of the country couldn’t won us only a single point. These are just a few representative samples of the many crazy demands and grading quirks of these professors.
A balance has to be struck in every state between making voting as easy as possible and ensuring the integrity of the voting process. Voters in New Hampshire seem reasonably happy with the balance that has been struck here. A post-election UNH poll found that 96% of our voters overall had found voting easy. This is in line with our regularly having among the highest percentages of the voting-age population actually voting. At 91%, our voters have more confidence in our elections than those in Vermont (88%) or Maine (86%), where many of the changes in voting law the professors demand have been implemented, have in theirs. Our system may be old fashioned, but our voters like it the way it is because it works.
Voters on the left aren’t even clamoring for these changes. The UNH poll found that 99% of registered Democrats, 98% of self-identified socialists, 98% of self-identified liberals and 98% of self-identified progressives responding found voting in New Hampshire easy. Yet, these radical left “voter advocates” insist that until we implement the professors’ demands, we stand disgraced before mankind.
I think outlandish election claims from the left are actually more dangerous than those from the right. The latter, when they are covered by the media here at all, are treated with the scorn they deserve. Those from the left, however absurd, tend to be treated with utmost solemnity. I was astounded when Andrew Vrees, president and general manager of WMUR, trumpeted the “findings” of the Cost of Voting Index and voiced concerns about our process based on them on the air.
Not wanting to finish low in a ranking is a ridiculous reason for changing voting laws that are working well. Running elections isn’t a contest or a game. Elections need to be fair. That means that people who want to register and vote can, and that election results are an accurate reflection of the voters’ will. A desire to get a higher grade from whoever decides to publish a ranking shouldn’t enter into it. Suppose some professors of a right-wing bent released a “study” that ranked us near the bottom in election integrity because they felt that allowing college students originally from other states to vote constituted vote fraud. Should we clamp down just to move up in their rankings? No.
The state government would be letting down the public if it allowed itself to get played by people or groups working a partisan angle the way the New Hampshire media regularly does.
Thomas Houlahan lives in New London and is a former member of the New Hampshire House of Representatives. He led one of the three international vote monitoring efforts in Pakistan’s 2008 elections.
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2022-12-30T07:24:45Z
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Thomas Houlahan: New Hampshire’s elections are fine the way they are | Op-eds | unionleader.com
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https://www.unionleader.com/opinion/op-eds/thomas-houlahan-new-hampshire-s-elections-are-fine-the-way-they-are/article_5c8f26ff-1cb8-56a5-b9c8-f2fd1b305e72.html
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https://www.unionleader.com/opinion/op-eds/thomas-houlahan-new-hampshire-s-elections-are-fine-the-way-they-are/article_5c8f26ff-1cb8-56a5-b9c8-f2fd1b305e72.html
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UCLA football coach Chip Kelly calls a play against Cal on Nov. 27, 2021.
UCLA coach Chip Kelly reports no opt-outs, says players 'love to play football'
By Jerry DiPaola The Tribune-Review, Greensburg
EL PASO, Texas — UCLA coach Chip Kelly met with reporters Thursday, less than 24 hours before he sends his team onto the field at Sun Bowl Stadium to play Pitt.
The Bruins will play a Pitt team that will line up without six starters/contributors who have elected to opt-out — college football's dirty word during bowl season.
Asked pointedly if he anticipates any players opting out even at this late date, Kelly indicated everyone will play.
Why so lucky, coach?
"It's the type of players we have," he said. "They love playing football.
"I think all situations are individual. So I can't comment on what Pitt's situation is. Our guys are excited about playing the game. Really, it's as simple as it is."
Just to be sure, a reporter asked again if everyone will play, and Kelly graciously answered.
"As long as we get to (Friday) at noon kickoff and they don't get tripped up in the parking lot," he said.
Earlier in the news conference, he answered, "Yep," when asked if everyone was at practice Thursday.
There has been speculation that UCLA's offensive stars — quarterback Dorian Thompson-Robinson and running back Zach Charbonnet — would follow so many others around the country and opt-out of the game.
Pitt coach Pat Narduzzi said Pitt prepared for multiple starting quarterbacks in its most recent game when no one was sure Miami quarterback Tyler Van Dyke would play.
"We're not worried about it," he said. "We're preparing for their starters. If they're not in there, it will probably be a little bit easier. They got great players, starters, backups. It doesn't matter. Their quarterback's athletic. He can run. We'll figure it out."
When Narduzzi was asked, jokingly, if his "spies" had offered him any inside information about UCLA's personnel, Narduzzi went along with the joke and said, "I wish I had spies. Chip was my best spy."
"I was talking to him (Thursday) night. He didn't give me any scoops. I wish I had some scoops. They kept it pretty tight over there, which doesn't matter to us. We left ours pretty open, let our kids make their decisions and put it out there."
Narduzzi competed against Kelly three decades ago when he was at Rhode Island and UCLA's coach was on New Hampshire's staff.
"Chip's got a great offensive mind. He's going to change things up. He will scheme you up," Narduzzi said. "He's just got one of those minds that he's going to come up with something different we have not prepared for. I say that every week, but that's a guarantee with the time he's had (to prepare)."
Kelly doesn't believe Pitt (8-4) will change much on defense, even with injured consensus All-American defensive tackle Calijah Kancey not playing and defensive end Deslin Alexandre, middle linebacker SirVocea Dennis and safety Brandon Hill opting out.
"Pat's defensive scheme is Pat's defensive scheme," Kelly said. "He's done such a great job of recruiting to it that we anticipate the same scheme. The scheme is difficult because they do such a good job of it."
UCLA is a 7 1/2 -point favorite, based on multiple factors, chiefly the Bruins' powerful offense that ranks third in the nation and is one of only four averaging more than 500 yards per game (507.8).
Thompson-Robinson has thrown for 2,883 yards and 25 touchdowns and rushed for 631 (after sacks) and 11 touchdowns. Charbonnet has rushed for 1,359 yards.
Meanwhile, Pitt's quarterback/running back combination of Kedon Slovis and Izzy Abanikanda, the ACC's rushing champion, is transferring and opting out, respectively.
Kelly, a former coach with Oregon, the Philadelphia Eagles and San Francisco 49ers, has taken a team that was 10-21 in his first three seasons at UCLA (2018-2020) and has it at 9-3, one victory short of the school record.
He credits UCLA's emphasis on academics with the turnaround.
"(Players) understand what our school is about," he said. "They accept the challenge of going there academically. We have 20 graduates on our team.
"This team does it on the field and off the field. When you have those type of guys together, the success we've had, both in the classroom and on the field, I always think they correlate. As our academics have increased, our win totals have increased."
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2022-12-30T14:41:51Z
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UCLA coach Chip Kelly reports no opt-outs, says players 'love to play football' | College Sports | unionleader.com
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A view shows a fragment of a munition, what Belarus' defence ministry said was part of a Ukrainian S-300 missile downed by Belarusian air defences outside the village of Harbacha in the Grodno region, Belarus, December 29, 2022.
BELTA/VIA REUTERS
"There is little reason to believe that it entered our airspace by accident. By all appearances, it seems some plan was being realized here."
Belarus' defense ministry said on Thursday its air defense forces had shot down a Ukrainian S-300 surface-to-air missile near the village of Harbacha in the Brest region, some 15 km (9 miles) from the Belarus-Ukraine border.
He compared it to an incident in November, when an S-300 believed to have strayed after being fired by Ukrainian air defenses landed on the territory of NATO-member Poland, triggering fears of an escalation that were rapidly defused.
Ukraine's defense ministry said it would investigate the incident, suggesting it was a Russian provocation and reserving the right to protect its own skies.
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2022-12-30T17:25:55Z
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Belarus official: 'Unlikely' downed Ukrainian missile entered by accident | Military | unionleader.com
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U.S. Rep. Chris Pappas, D-N.H., said a bipartisan bill he co-authored that President Biden has signed should speed up payments to survivors of recently-deceased veterans.
The legislation cuts in half the time the Veterans Administration has to make payments such as life insurance proceeds to a spouse or surviving child.
WASHINGTON — A new bipartisan law should speed up payments to hard-to-find survivors of recently deceased veterans, according to U.S. Rep. Chris Pappas, D-N.H., who co-authored the measure.
President Joe Biden signed the Faster Payments to Veterans’ Survivors Act last Tuesday before heading off for a New Year’s holiday vacation with his family to St. Croix.
When a veteran passes away, the surviving spouse or child are eligible to receive certain benefits, such as life insurance proceeds.
The U.S. Veterans Administration often struggles to identify, locate and pay these families or beneficiaries in a timely fashion.
The legislation cuts in half the time that the VA has to make the payment of life insurance benefits to survivors.
The current limit is two years for a primary beneficiary and four years for those who become alternate beneficiaries if the primary person cannot be located.
"By ensuring that family members and spouses have the resources and support that they need, we continue to honor and pay tribute to those who have sacrificed for our country,” Pappas said in a statement.
As of September 2020, approximately 15,000 individuals remain undisbursed with more than $155 million in life insurance benefits owed to veteran families. By the VA’s own account, that equals about $10,500 per family.
Better marketing of online tool
The measure also requires the agency to better publicize an online tool that now exists to allow families to search for whether they qualify for survivor benefits.
The legislation instructs the agency to report to Congress six months from now on the progress of improving this program.
“I remain committed to fighting to guarantee our veterans and their families get the care, support, and respect they have earned and are owed,” said Pappas who serves on the House Veteran Affairs Committee.
Pappas and Rep. Nancy Mace, R-South Carolina, introduced the bill the House last July. Senators John Boozman, R-Arkansas, and Sherrod Brown, D-Ohio, presented an identical version in the Senate.
A coalition of veteran groups had supported this effort including the Veterans of Foreign Wars (VFW), American Legion, Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America (IAVA), Vietnam Veterans of America (VVA), Military Officers Association of America (MOAA), Modern Military Association of America (MMAA), and Paralyzed Veterans of America (PVA).
Survivor Benefits
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2022-12-30T17:26:01Z
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Pappas bill to speed vet survivor benefits becomes law | National | unionleader.com
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Russia's President Vladimir Putin holds talks with China's President Xi Jinping via a video link from Moscow, Russia, December 30, 2022.
By Francesca Ebel The Washington Post
Putin stressed the importance of Chinese-Russian relations on the world stage, calling them "a model of cooperation between major powers in the 21st century," and said that Moscow hoped to strengthen military cooperation between the two countries.
Russia and China conducted joint naval drills last week, which Russia's defense chief, Valery Gerasimov, described as a response to "aggressive U.S. military build up" in the Asia-Pacific region. And last week, Putin oversaw the inauguration of a gas field in Siberia that aims to boost Russia's energy exports to China as the West has worked to cut its energy dependence on Moscow.
"Military and military-technical cooperation, which contributes to ensuring the security of our countries and maintaining stability in key regions, occupies a special place in Russian-Chinese cooperation," Putin said Friday. "We aim to strengthen cooperation between the armed forces of Russia and China."
Xi said that the leaders were regularly "in close, strategic contact" and noted that bilateral relations between Moscow and Beijing had expanded significantly this year.
"In the face of a difficult and far from unambiguous international situation, we are ready to build up strategic cooperation with Russia, provide each other with development opportunities, and be global partners for the benefit of the peoples of our countries and in the interests of stability throughout the world," Xi said.
In recent years, Beijing and Moscow have found common ground over a shared frustration with the global dominance of the United States. Both Putin and Xi see Washington as a hindrance to their geopolitical and economic ambitions and have sought to forge a "no-limits" relationship that acts as a counterweight to American international primacy.
On Friday, Putin highlighted Russia and China's expanding trade partnerships, claiming that this year Russia had become one of the leading oil exporters to China despite what he called "the unfavorable external situation, illegitimate restrictions and direct blackmail by some Western countries." He claimed that Sino-Russian trade is set to increase by 25 percent.
Putin invited Xi to pay a state visit to Russia in spring 2023, saying that the meeting would become the "main political event" of the year.
On Thursday, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters that after opening remarks, the leaders would meet privately to discuss "the most acute regional problems."
Moscow and Beijing are also mutually beneficial trading partners, with China importing Russian oil and gas, military technology and other mineral resources in exchange for high-tech Chinese goods. In 2019, Xi described Putin as his "best friend," and since the war in Ukraine, the Chinese leader has swerved efforts to bring him in as a mediator between Putin and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky.
China has blamed NATO for provoking Russia's invasion and has supported Putin's security concerns, which Chinese foreign minister Wang Yi described last January as "legitimate."
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2022-12-30T17:26:13Z
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Putin, Xi highlight Russia, China cooperation against backdrop of war | World | unionleader.com
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By Brooke Baitinger The Charlotte Observer
It happened after dark about 6:30 p.m. on Wednesday, Dec. 28 on U.S. Highway 191, just north of West Yellowstone, police chief Mike Gavagan confirmed to McClatchy News.
“The stretch of road north of town is plowed,” but was icy and covered in packed snow at the time, Gavagan told NBC Montana.
No one in the cars or semi were injured, he said.
American bison is the national mammal of the United States, according to the U.S. Department of Interior. “What makes Yellowstone’s bison so special is that they’re the descendants of early bison that roamed our country’s grasslands, the department said. “In 2021, Yellowstone’s bison population was estimated at 5,450 — making it the largest bison population on public lands.”
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2022-12-31T00:17:25Z
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13 bison killed in crash with semi near Yellowstone National Park entrance, cops say | Animals | unionleader.com
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By Lizzie Johnson Washington Post
Two Moorish Americans - who claim to be sovereign citizens of a fictitious North African empire - were scheduled to make their first appearance in front of Judge Monise Brown for several gun-related charges.
Lamont Butler and George Neal-Bey were arrested after a confrontation with Charles County sheriff's deputies during a traffic stop last month. Both men were armed at the time. Butler was also charged with resisting arrest.
The men - part of a group of Moorish Americans who have tried to take over a Southern Maryland gun range - had no lawyers and were representing themselves. They believe they are immune from U.S. legal and financial systems, including the Charles County officials who are currently holding them without bail at the county's detention center.
"Calling all Moorish American Nationals to be physically present on 12/30/2022," a notice on the group's website read in the weeks leading up to the Dec. 30 hearing. "We need every one of you (near or far) to show up!!!"
This wasn't Butler's first brush with the law. In 2013, he tried to occupy a 12-bedroom Bethesda mansion worth $6 million and was charged with breaking and entering, fraud and attempted theft.
But Butler - who claims to be the consul general of the "Morocco Consular Court at the Maryland State Republic" - argued that the mansion fell under an 1836 treaty between Morocco and the United States and actually belonged to him. It didn't work.
On Friday morning, the judge had barely spoken when Butler made his first objection. He went by a different name - Lamont Maurice El - and did not consent to standing in for this other person, even though that "other person" was legally him.
As Butler spoke, four Moorish-Americans dressed in red filed into the courtroom.
"Do you have a home address?" Judge Brown asked.
"I object," Butler said.
"I can't have you speaking when I'm speaking, sir," she said. "Only one of us can speak at a time. ... I speak, and then you speak, and we will go back and forth until we are completed."
Butler said he had a representative in the courtroom. But the woman wasn't a lawyer, so Judge Brown asked her to sit.
"Unless you're licensed in the state of Maryland, you cannot speak on anyone's behalf," Judge Brown said.
When the woman refused to sit down, sheriff's deputies tried to usher the entire group out. But they balked at the idea of leaving and refused to budge.
"If you're willing to sit quietly, I'm happy to have you here," the judge said.
The courtroom quieted.
Brown tried to move forward with the hearing, going over Butler's charges - which include possession of a firearm with a felony conviction - and advising him that he had a right to legal counsel.
"I'm not making an appearance, first of all," Butler replied. "As long as the grass grows green, as long as the water runs downhill, as long as the sun rises in the east and sets in the west, we will never come together. We are separate people."
The judge asked if he'd like a referral to the Office of the Public Defender.
"Objection," he said.
"I have to mute you, because you're talking while I'm talking," she said.
His next court date, she said, was scheduled for Feb. 3. Though he'd objected, she was going to send him a referral for a public defender.
In the back of the room, the group of Moorish Americans stood, attempting to speak on Butler's behalf. They refused to quiet down.
"Please remove them from the courthouse," the judge said. "... Once you're removed, I'll come back."
"This is treason!" one man shouted.
"You don't have to put your hands on me," an older man with gray hair said to a sheriff's deputy, pulling his mask down to talk. He gripped the red flag.
"You cannot touch me and harass me by grabbing me," shouted another woman in a long green coat.
"I am invoking my treaty right," he immediately said, referencing Morocco, a country 4,000 miles away.
"Only one of us can talk at a time," the judge chided.
"I am not consenting to an appearance," Neal-Bey said.
"Objection," Neal-Bey said.
On Zoom, Neal-Bey's screen went dark.
"Can we call our next case?" the judge asked.
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2022-12-31T00:17:31Z
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Moorish Americans facing gun charges create disarray in Maryland courtroom | Back Page | unionleader.com
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Bryan Christopher Kohberger, 25, poses for a jail booking photograph at the Monroe County Correctional Facility in Stroudsberg, Pennsylvania, U.S. December 30, 2022.
MONROE COUNTY CORRECTIONAL/VIA REUTERS
By Marisa Iati and Emily Wax-Thibodeaux The Washington Post
Police announced the arrest Friday of a 28-year-old man who stands accused of killing four University of Idaho students, the result of a seven-week search that led law enforcement to the opposite side of the country from the off-campus home where the victims were found.
Bryan Christopher Kohberger was arrested in northeastern Pennsylvania in the investigation of the fatal Nov. 13 stabbings that rattled the 9,000-person campus and prompted the university to increase security and offer a remote learning option for the rest of the fall semester. The arrest comes after the slayings brought national attention, speculation from internet sleuths and false accusations related to what happened that night.
Kohberger was taken into custody by Pennsylvania State Police and is being held in a Monroe County, Pa., jail while awaiting his Tuesday extradition. Kohberger was charged with four counts of murder and one count of burglary, Moscow Police Chief James Fry confirmed at a Friday news conference.
He was listed as a PhD student in Washington State University's department of criminal justice and criminology before the page was taken down Friday.
Fry said Idaho authorities are limited by state law regarding what information they can release until the suspect's initial appearance in Idaho court.
"This was a very complex and extensive case," Fry said. "We evolved a clearer picture over time. We'll stand assured that the work is not done. It has just started."
A probable-cause affidavit remains sealed until Kohberger is extradited to Idaho, Latah County Prosecutor Bill Thompson said Friday. Kohberger's next court appearance is scheduled for Tuesday afternoon in Pennsylvania.
"This is not the end of the investigation. In fact, this is a new beginning," Thompson said.
On the Saturday evening before they were killed, Mogen and Goncalves were at a downtown bar, while Chapin and Kernodle - a couple - were at Chapin's fraternity house before they all returned to the women's King Street home at about 1:45 a.m.
When two surviving housemates woke up later that morning, they saw one of their roommates on the second floor and believed that the person had passed out. They called friends to the home, and people used one of the surviving housemates' cellphones to report an unconscious person to a 911 dispatcher.
An autopsy by the Latah County coroner's office later revealed that each student was stabbed multiple times and that some showed signs of having tried to fight their attacker. There were no indications of sexual assault.
During the search for a suspect, investigators at times faced scrutiny for issuing confusing or seemingly contradictory updates about the case. Police initially assured the public that it was not in danger, but later reversed course and said they could not rule out the possibility of a threat to the Moscow community. They repeatedly called the killings "targeted" but struggled to clarify what they meant by that term.
On Nov. 30, students gathered in the University of Idaho's indoor athletic stadium for a candlelight vigil to honor the victims. Stacy Chapin, Ethan Chapin's mother, told the crowd that her triplets had enrolled at the school because of its beautiful campus, Greek system and "small-town feel."
The family knew they had made the right choice, she said - never imagining what was to come.
"The circumstances that brought us here tonight, they're terrible," Stacy Chapin said. "The hardest part? We cannot change the outcome."
Chapin was a freshman from Conway, Wash., majoring in recreation, sport and tourism management. Kernodle, a junior from Post Falls, Idaho, and Mogen, a senior from Coeur d'Alene, Idaho, were studying marketing. Goncalves was a senior from Rathdrum, Idaho, pursuing a major in general studies. All belonged to a sorority or fraternity.
The Washington Post's Nick Parker contributed to this report.
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2022-12-31T00:17:37Z
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Man linked to killings of 4 Idaho students is arrested in Pennsylvania | Crime | unionleader.com
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By Lauren Kaori Gurley and Rachel Siegel The Washington Post
The measures are included in the sprawling omnibus bill that funded everything from defense spending to emergency aid for Ukraine to election reform. Provisions for working mothers aren't expected to affect overwhelming swaths of the workforce - fewer than 2 percent of all workers in the United States are pregnant each year, according to estimates from the National Women's Law Center. But experts say these provisions will help close the gender wage gap and improve conditions for pregnant workers, especially in physically demanding jobs - such as janitors, home health aides and waitresses - who also tend to be lower-wage workers and women of color.
Pregnant workers did have some legal protections from the landmark Pregnancy Discrimination Act of 1978, which specified that pregnant workers should be treated the same as those who are "similar in their ability or inability" to work. But under the law, workers with severe morning sickness and other serious conditions such as preeclampsia, a potentially life-threatening blood vessel disorder, have been denied pregnancy accommodations because they have been unable to identify co-workers in similar roles with the same accommodations they are asking for.
The Pregnant Workers Fairness Act requires employers to provide reasonable accommodations for all pregnant workers, unless it would cause the employers "undue hardship." The law is modeled after the Americans With Disabilities Act, which requires employers to make reasonable accommodations for disabled workers but doesn't apply to most pregnant workers. Pregnancy is not considered a disability.
"For decades, women have been fired, passed over for promotion, or forced out on leave when they become pregnant, when they simply required a modest accommodation to continue working without jeopardizing their health," Rep. Jerry Nadler (D-N.Y.), one of the leaders of the bill, said in a statement. "Guaranteeing pregnant workers reasonable accommodations will erode pernicious discrimination against pregnant women, strengthen our economy, and keep women and children healthy and safe."
"When I got the news that the law passed, I cried and cried and cried," Jackson said. "I have two daughters and I have nieces. I am so grateful that they won't have to choose between starting a family or keeping their jobs."
The measures drew bipartisan support, plus backing from workers rights groups and the U.S. Chamber of Commerce. In a letter, the big business group wrote that the Pump Act would improve current law by protecting small businesses, since the rule does not apply to employers with less than 50 employees where compliance would present an "undue hardship."
But the measures had a few critics. Speaking on the Senate floor earlier this month, Sen. Thom Tillis (R-N.C.) argued that the rules could compel employers to make accommodations "such as leave, to obtain abortions on demand under the guise of pregnancy-related conditions."
Tillis ultimately voted in favor of the measure helping pregnant women, which got attached to the overall omnibus, after its sponsors added "clarifying language" that addressed his concerns, his office said.
Twenty-four Republican senators voted against the amendment.
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2022-12-31T00:17:43Z
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Congress expands protections for pregnant and nursing workers | Health | unionleader.com
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By Emily Pauls Daily Item, Lynn, Mass.
His wife, Jules Gray, has taken to Instagram to ask for aid in the search for her husband.
"I'm humbly coming on here to ask for help. At this point my husband could be anywhere he is adventurous and loves the outdoors so I have reason to believe he could be anywhere from Massachusetts, maine, New Hampshire or Vermont," Jules Gray wrote in an Instagram post on Dec. 27. "At this point I will try anything and I am just trying to bring the most awareness around this and hopefully get as many people to see it as possible."
The Peabody Police Department tweeted on Dec. 12, seeking the public's help in finding Michael Gray.
"Michael was reported missing from a family member on 12-11-2022 at 10:33 am. Mr. Gray was last seen after being locked out of his vehicle on Saturday night. Mr. Gray called the Peabody Police for assistance in opening his vehicle, but after entry could not be gained, he was given a ride to a family member's place of employment on Main st in Peabody, MA," the tweet said.
His car was found at Spring Pond with a broken window and was towed in.
In an Instagram story, Jules Gray said he "presumably" smashed the window of his car to get the keys and called his friend who is a police officer in Peabody and was on duty at the time. He was driven to his sister's place of work to retrieve her car, which he had permission to use.
"His intention was to sleep at his moms house that evening and never showed up and that was the last time anyone has seen him — or her car," she wrote in the Instagram story Dec. 28.
The car he was last seen in is a black Ford Escape with Massachusetts license plate 7AF 586, according to an Instagram post from Jules Gray.
Michael Gray does not have his wallet or driver's license on him, as they were found by two people at Spring Pond in Peabody. His phone has not been used or turned on since Dec. 10.
If you or anyone you know has information regarding the whereabouts of Michael Gray, contact the Peabody Police Department at 978-531-1212.
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2022-12-31T00:17:55Z
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Peabody, Mass. police looking for missing man who may be headed for NH | Public Safety | unionleader.com
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CNN has barred its New Year's Eve hosts from getting sloshed
Over the last few years, CNN's annual New Year's Eve special has become the go-to place to see your favorite serious journalists down shots of alcohol and get sloppy, or, as New York magazine put it, to "get looser than you'd expect."
A seemingly buzzed anchor Don Lemon got his ear pierced on live television on New Year's 2017. CNN anchor Anderson Cooper, one of the network's most decorated and well-respected journalists, squawked like a bird after downing a tequila shot to ring in 2019 and cried, "it's like burning your lungs!"
And for New Year's 2022, a beverage-holding Lemon told his critics they "can kiss my behind," while Bravo TV star Andy Cohen took a shot and went on rant about Bill de Blasio's "horrible" tenure as New York City's mayor. ("I will not be shamed for having fun on New Year's Eve," Cohen, who has co-hosted the show for five years, said later.)
But, things will be a bit different on Saturday night, the first New Year's Eve special under new CNN boss Chris Licht. A network source confirmed to The Washington Post that Licht has asked his hosts, Cooper and Cohen in New York City before handing it over to Lemon in New Orleans at 12:30 a.m., not to drink on air this year.
Licht first told CNN employees to expect a more restrained New Year's Eve program during a company meeting in November. "I'm not looking for a bunch of my respectful talent to be out there all night doing shots," Licht said, according to a recording of his remarks obtained by The Post. "That will be different. I don't think that builds credibility."
After Licht's mandate leaked out, Lemon appeared on "The Late Show with Stephen Colbert" and took a tequila shot with the host to make up for his dry New Year's Eve. "I don't know what the hell I'm going to do this year," Lemon told Colbert. "You're going to get me in trouble."
Cohen's booze-fuel tirade against de Blasio - not to mention a dig at Ryan Seacrest - at the dawn of 2022 got him into a bit of trouble. A CNN spokesperson acknowledged at the time that "Andy said something he shouldn't have on live TV," but confirmed that Cohen would be invited back for New Year's 2023. The de Blasio rant "may be why we're not allowed to" drink this year, Cooper joked on Colbert earlier this month.
Licht had actually called Cooper's drinking "so adorable" during the staff meeting in November and told employees that Cooper and Cohen would be allowed to drink this year. But CNN later clarified that the executive was joking and that the prohibition applied to them.
CNN did not make anyone involved with this year's special available for an interview. While some have derided CNN's plan for a sober New Year's Eve ("While other networks are dialing down the fun, here at Fox News our party is just getting started," Fox News host Rachel Campos-Duffy told viewers this week), several current and former CNN staffers expressed relief to The Post. Some of the inebriated antics had lately gone too far for them, they said.
"I never liked the idea of anchors getting tipsy on air," said former CNN anchor Carol Costello, who now teaches journalism at Loyola Marymount University. "Maybe I'm old school, but I don't want to see the person informing me about civilian deaths in Ukraine and why they're happening sloshed."
Lisa Napoli, who wrote a 2020 book about the founding of CNN, said the network's early bosses would have heavily frowned upon the idea of journalists drinking on air, or even showing aspects of their personality. On the other hand, she said, there was plenty of drinking going on behind the scenes in those years.
But anchors and reporters "are not just news people anymore," Napoli told The Post. "They are personalities, too," she said. "They have to have this persona, so if part of that persona involves watching how [they] let loose on New Year's Eve then I guess that's part of the brand building that everybody sadly has to engage in."
Frank Sesno, a former Washington bureau chief at CNN, argued that journalists taking shots on television is "simply out of character with personalities they try to be the rest of the year." Network journalists "don't need to be doing shots to have personality, get into the assignment, and have fun, " he added. "It's New Year's Eve, after all."
Costello said she is all for the ban on on-air drinking, though she's glad it doesn't apply to her. "Thankfully, I can freely drink with no guilt since I am no longer a CNN anchor," she said.
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2022-12-31T02:17:25Z
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An American flag flies with the Texas state flag outside the Texas State Capitol building in Austin.
By Madlin Mekelburg Bloomberg
A Texas woman admitted embezzling more than $29 million over the past decade from the prominent Dallas family that employed her as a bookkeeper, according to the Department of Justice.
"Not only did Ms. Chalmers brazenly abuse the trust the family placed in her, but she also stole millions of dollars from a charitable foundation dedicated to improving the lives and health for so many in need in the Dallas community," Ephraim Wernick, an attorney for the family, said in a statement.
Court records show that Chalmers held various roles involving financial record-keeping for entities owned by Collins's descendants, and the family itself. The entities include the Collins American Capital Corp., International Family Investors LTD and the James M. Collins Foundation.
The family discovered the fraudulent activity last year, after the death of Collins's wife, Dorothy Dann Collins Torbert, who had previously owned and managed the family's corporate entities. When her descendants took over ownership of the family businesses, they reviewed bank statements and identified "several alarming red flags involving Chalmers," according to a lawsuit they filed against their former bookkeeper in 2021.
The red flags included dozens of unauthorized checks written to Chalmers from various accounts in the two years prior to Torbert's death totaling more than $5.7 million.
But the total theft was significantly larger, and involved years of fraudulent activity beginning in 2012. During that time, Chalmers wrote 175 checks to herself from the family's accounts and then provided false paperwork to tax professionals with inaccurate figures for the entities' year-end cash-on-hand values in order to cover her tracks, prosecutors said.
As much as $25 million of the stolen funds went to Chalmers's construction company, identified in court records as W.O.E. Construction, Inc.
"Ms. Chalmers' actions compounded what was already an incredibly difficult time for the family," Wernick said. "With today's announcement, the Collins family begins the process of healing, but this is only the first step towards accountability for all those who contributed to this massive fraud."
Two of his and Torbert's children, Michael James Collins and Dorothy Collins Weaver, later founded the hedge fund firm Collins Capital Investments.
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2022-12-31T02:17:31Z
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Prominent Texas family has $29 million embezzled by bookkeeper | Back Page | unionleader.com
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Scott Smith, a doctor based in South Carolina, said he only treats patients for a legitimate medical purpose, usually for depression, anxiety or post-traumatic stress disorder.
Gavin McIntyre/Washington Post
This doctor prescribes ketamine to thousands online. It's all legal.
By Daniel Gilbert The Washington Post
In the past two years, Scott Smith has become licensed to practice medicine in almost every U.S. state for a singular purpose: treating depressed patients online and prescribing them ketamine.
The sedative, which is sometimes abused as a street drug, has shown promise in treating depression and anxiety. But instead of dispensing it in a clinic or under the strict protocols endorsed by the Food and Drug Administration, the South Carolina physician orders generic lozenges online for patients to take at home. He says this practice, though controversial, has benefited more than half of his 3,000 patients. "People are beating a path to my door," he said in an interview.
Smith is part of a wave of doctors and telehealth start-ups capitalizing on the pandemic-inspired federal public health emergency declaration, which waived a requirement for health-care providers to see patients in person to prescribe controlled substances. The waiver has enabled Smith to build a national ketamine practice from his home outside Charleston - and fueled a boom among telehealth companies that have raised millions from investors.
As the urgency around covid-19 subsides, many expect the waiver to expire this spring. Companies are lobbying to extend it, and patients are bracing for a disruption to purely virtual care.
"I would not have wanted to do this if I had to go to a clinic," said Steve, a Chicago resident who works in public relations and who spoke on the condition that his last name be withheld because of the stigma around the drug. Ketamine has helped his bipolar disorder more than any other medication, he said, and he wants to continue taking it. "It's just not going to happen, if that regulation changes."
The Drug Enforcement Administration in 2020 temporarily waived the requirement that prescribers meet patients in person before treating them with several classes of drugs, from opioids to antidepressants. A DEA spokesperson said the agency is working on regulations to allow this permanently, but declined to provide details or a timeline.
At least eight companies have begun providing ketamine by telehealth since the start of the pandemic. Between just Smith and two of the better known companies, Nue Life and Mindbloom, more than 10,000 patients have been treated at home. Virtual ketamine start-ups say they're making the treatment vastly more accessible and improving patients' lives. But many psychiatrists - including those who believe in ketamine's promise for treating mental illness - worry that having patients taking it outside a doctor's direct supervision is a step too far, too soon.
Smith, who thinks the federal waiver should be made permanent, is unbothered by critics who question the wisdom of mailing ketamine to patients at home. "I'm like a medic running around on the battlefield taking care of wounded people, and ketamine helps the people I'm taking care of," he said.
Ketamine has long been used in hospitals for anesthesia and abused recreationally for its mind-altering properties. But in recent years, it's shown promise for delivering rapid relief to patients with mental health conditions who've tried conventional antidepressants without success.
The FDA approved a nasal spray derived from ketamine, Spravato, in 2019 to treat severe depression. But that approval came with strict guardrails to ensure patient safety, a nod to known side effects such as altered consciousness and increases in blood pressure.
The FDA requires that patients be monitored by health-care professionals for two hours after they take Spravato, in addition to mandating certain steps for clinics and pharmacies.
Those safety measures may have an unintended consequence, some ketamine scholars say: Rather than go through the extensive FDA requirements, more patients and doctors may turn to what is known as "off-label" ketamine, ordering the generic variety the FDA has approved for anesthesia to instead treat depression. Ketamine clinics have opened up across the nation to provide the generic version through an IV infusion.
Now, with the federal waiver of requirements to treat patients in person, more health-care professionals - and venture capital-backed start-ups - are prescribing ketamine in the form of dissolving tablets that patients can take at home.
The growing use of off-label ketamine outside direct medical supervision has aroused concern among some psychiatrists who worry there isn't enough evidence to show it's safe.
"I'm very concerned about treatments that deviate too far from the standard recommendations given by the FDA," said Gerard Sanacora, director of the Yale Depression Research Program who led a team that pioneered ketamine to treat depression. "I really do believe that it is one of the major advances of psychiatry in the past half-century," he said of ketamine, "but we have to be very careful to continue to develop this responsibly."
"I understand the concern," said Juan Pablo Cappello, chief executive of Miami-based Nue Life, launched in 2021 to provide virtual ketamine therapy. "But what I really spend my time thinking about is suffering that's going on today and how to alleviate it," he said.
Among telehealth ketamine companies, the details vary but the model is similar: Patients meet with a doctor virtually to determine whether ketamine therapy is appropriate. If so, a provider orders generic ketamine lozenges from a pharmacy. The patient is mailed a dose, with instructions to have a "sitter" present while they take the ketamine and how to follow up after the experience. Prescribing practitioners work with patients to adjust the dose and monitor their symptoms.
The telehealth model allows ketamine providers to offer the treatment at a lower cost than infusion clinics, which can run hundreds of dollars per session.
"At-home ketamine has increased accessibility for those who may not have access to ketamine clinics due to physical location, cost and time commitments," Ryan Magnussen, chief executive of ketamine provider Wondermed, said in a statement.
Beyond pitching their affordability, telehealth providers are trying to translate their patients' experiences into scientifically rigorous proof that ketamine is safe and effective to take at home. Company websites highlight research findings alongside images of blissful-looking people in warm hues, though the scientific claims at times lack context.
Nue Life, for instance, cites an American Psychiatric Association publication that ketamine's effects are "rapid and robust" without mentioning another passage in the same paper: "we strongly advise against the prescription of at-home self-administration of ketamine." The association still maintains this view.
Wondermed proclaims that "over 90%" of patients see an improvement in anxiety and depression - but that is among those who have reported on their well-being, and some 40 percent have not.
Mindbloom similarly touts that 89 percent of its clients report improvement for these conditions, but that figure comes from a study where more than half of participants didn't report any follow-up data.
Despite the incomplete data, the study is a point of pride for Mindbloom. Dylan Beynon, Mindbloom's chief executive and a ketamine patient himself, said it is the largest-ever peer-reviewed study on ketamine therapy, showing that 63 percent of 1,247 patients had a clinically significant improvement in their anxiety and depression and fewer than 5 percent reported side effects.
The study had significant limitations. It didn't compare ketamine treatment with a control group receiving a placebo, the gold standard for gauging a drug's safety and impact.
Sanacora, the ketamine specialist at Yale, objected to the conclusions of the Mindbloom study, which described ketamine by telehealth as "safe and effective." In a letter to the journal that published the study, he and a colleague wrote, "We think the authors' conclusions go well beyond the data."
Mindbloom said the study was open about its limitations. "It's also important to understand how well a treatment works for people in the real world," the company said in a statement attributed to Thomas Hull, the paper's lead author.
The company CEOs uniformly believe that telemedicine is here to stay but are preparing for the expiration of the federal waiver, including making plans to open physical clinics.
Mindbloom, one of the more established ketamine telehealth firms, reports operating in 35 states and Washington, D.C. But even that reach doesn't match one doctor in South Carolina.
As a doctor working in an emergency room in the early 1990s, Scott Smith knew ketamine as a drug he used to sedate patients. His understanding began to shift with the experience of his wife, who after suffering from depression tried ketamine infusions.
"I had lost the person I had married," he said. After her ketamine treatment, "I got my college girlfriend back. That was a life-changing event."
Smith describes himself as a "person who gets obsessed with things." He took up quilting after watching "Project Runway" and acquired five sewing machines. When he got into gardening, he threw himself into researching plants that could thrive in his completely shaded yard. He bought a fixer-upper house and did the electrical and plumbing work himself, he said. Ketamine is his latest fixation.
Smith closed his brick-and-mortar family practice during the pandemic to focus on ketamine by telemedicine, where patient demand was higher. People began reaching out to him on Reddit, where he posts under the handle KetamineDrSmith, to see if he could treat them.
With the federal public health emergency declaration, he could. It just took getting licensed in states where patients lived, he said. He went all in, obtaining licenses in 45 states in addition to South Carolina, according to a Washington Post review of state licensing databases. His Louisiana license expired in May. In July, an Alabama law required telehealth providers to meet patients in person to prescribe a controlled substance like ketamine.
Initially, "it was like building a bridge while you're driving across it," Smith said. Catherine Smith, his wife and medical assistant, added, "We're really saving more lives than we ever did in our primary care practice."
Smith estimates that about 5 percent of patients who come to him aren't good candidates for ketamine therapy, and he declines to treat them. Occasionally, younger patients will ask for a prescription simply because they want to try the drug.
"They think it's like an internet service," he said, "like there's a drive-through window at McDonald's for ketamine." Smith only treats patients for a legitimate medical purpose, he said, usually for depression, anxiety or post-traumatic stress disorder.
His patients generally pay $250 a month, which includes a supply of ketamine - 10 tablets at a time - and follow-up visits with a nurse practitioner, medical assistant or other members of his eight-person practice. More than half respond well, he said, and he will prescribe ketamine for six months and then encourage them to stop taking it.
Ketamine doesn't carry the same risk of addiction or overdose as opioids, but side effects can range from unpleasant, disorienting sensations - what some might call a "bad trip" - to being temporarily immobilized.
"So if somebody took a dose of ketamine that was way too high and their house caught on fire, they wouldn't be able to leave the house," Smith said.
At first, Smith scheduled virtual appointments with patients in the evening and would stay by his computer for 90 minutes. "It was so incredibly uneventful and such a poor use of my time," he said. "If a competent adult has somebody to sit with them, that's adequate."
By taking ketamine orally, patients absorb less of the drug, and more slowly, than they do when it is administered through an IV. Smith believes this reduces the risk of side effects, citing the Mindbloom study and another study by Nue Life.
Because he doesn't physically watch patients take ketamine, Smith acknowledges it is possible for them to use the drug inappropriately - taking multiple doses at once to get a high, for instance, or selling the ketamine to others. Still, he says, he has ways of holding patients accountable, such as having them do a "pill count' on screen to see if they are taking the doses as directed.
"This is a part of my job I take very seriously," he said. "I can have my medical license taken away. I can be fined, can do jail time for continuing to treat people" who are abusing ketamine, he said. Of some 3,000 patients, he said there have only been two who wanted to abuse the drug, and he stopped prescribing and arranged follow-up care for them.
Smith knows his practice is controversial but isn't concerned. "What is the risk versus benefit, is the question society needs to ask," he said. Rather than returning to pre-pandemic regulations where he would have to consult patients in person, Smith says the key to making ketamine therapy safer is for the DEA to create a registry and closely monitor the drug's prescribers.
"Put everybody under a microscope," he said.
But should the waiver that has allowed him to practice nationally expire, he has a plan: hit the road.
"I would buy an RV," he said, comparing the prospect of meeting his virtual patients to reunions with people he's come to know through internet games. "Nothing would thrill me more than to meet these people in person," he said.
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2022-12-31T02:17:43Z
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By Catherine Belton The Washington Post
When Vladimir Putin visited Minsk last week to discuss deepening cooperation, a sarcastic joke by his host, Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko, seemed to ring all too true. "The two of us are co-aggressors, the most harmful and toxic people on this planet. We have only one dispute: Who is the bigger one? That's all," Lukashenko said.
As Putin approaches New Year's Eve, the 23d anniversary of his appointment in 1999 as acting Russian president, he appears more isolated than ever.
More than 300 days of brutal war against Ukraine have blown up decades of Russia's carefully cultivated economic relations with the West, turning the country into a pariah, while Kremlin efforts to replace those ties with closer cooperation with India and China appear to be faltering the longer the war grinds on.
Putin, who started his career as a Soviet KGB agent, has always kept his own counsel, relying on a close inner circle of old friends and confidants while seeming to never fully trust or confide in anyone. But now a new gulf is emerging between Putin and much of the country's elite, according to interviews with Russian business leaders, officials and analysts.
Putin "feels the loss of his friends," said one Russian state official with close ties to diplomatic circles, who spoke on the condition of anonymity for fear of retribution. "Lukashenko is the only one he can pay a serious visit to. All the rest see him only when necessary."
Even though Putin gathered leaders of former Soviet republics for an informal summit in St. Petersburg this week, across the region the Kremlin's authority is weakening. Putin spoke with Chinese President Xi Jinping over video conference on Friday morning in Moscow in an effort to showcase the two countries' ties. Although Xi said he was ready to improve strategic cooperation, he acknowledged the "complicated and quite controversial international situation." In September, he'd made clear his "concerns" over the war.
India's Narendra Modi this month wrote an article for Russia's influential Kommersant daily calling for an end to "the epoch of war." "We read all this and understand, and I think he [Putin] reads and understands too," the state official said.
Among Russia's elite, questions are growing over Putin's tactics heading into 2023 following humiliating military retreats this autumn. A divide is emerging between those in the elite who want Putin to stop the military onslaught and those who believe he must escalate further, according to the state official and Tatyana Stanovaya, a senior fellow at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace.
Despite a media blitz over the past 10 days, with Putin holding carefully choreographed televised meetings with military top brass and officials from the military industrial complex, as well as a question-and-answer session with a selected pool of loyal journalists, members of the Russian elite interviewed by The Washington Post said they could not predict what might happen next year and said they doubted Putin himself knew how he might act.
"There is huge frustration among the people around him," said one Russian billionaire who maintains contacts with top-ranking officials. "He clearly doesn't know what to do."
The Russian state official said Putin's only plan appeared to lie in "constant attempts to force the West and Ukraine to begin [peace] talks" through airstrikes on Ukraine's critical infrastructure and other threats. Putin repeated the tactic this week by declaring on Christmas Day that he was open to peace talks even as Russia launched another massive missile strike just days later on Thursday, taking out electricity supplies in several regions. "But," the official said, Putin is willing to talk "only on his terms."
The billionaire, the state official and several analysts pointed to the postponement of Putin's annual State of the Nation address, when the Russian president generally lays out plans for the year ahead, and the cancellation of his annual marathon news conference as signs of Putin's isolation and an effort to shield him from direct questions since he has no map for the road ahead.
The news conference, in particular, could have proved risky given that hundreds of journalists are typically brought to Moscow from Russia's far-flung regions, which have been disproportionately affected by casualties and the recent partial mobilization.
"In the address, there should be a plan. But there is no plan. I think they just don't know what to say," the billionaire said. "He is in isolation, of course. He doesn't like speaking with people anyway. He has a very narrow circle, and now it has gotten narrower still."
In the question-and-answer session with the handful of journalists, Putin countered such assertions about the postponement of his speech to parliament. He said he had addressed key issues in recent public meetings, and it was "complicated for me, and the administration, to squeeze it all again into a formal address without repeating myself."
But his comments on the war have been short on details. He has gone no further than saying conditions in the four Ukrainian territories that he claims to have annexed, illegally, are "extremely difficult," and that his government would try to end the conflict "the faster, the better."
Putin again sought to lay the blame on the United States and NATO for dragging out the war, in what seemed almost a tacit admission that he had lost control of the process. "How can he tell us everything is going to plan, when we are already in the 10th month of the war, and we were told it was only going to take a few days," the state official said.
"He is a figure who in the eyes of the elite appears to be incapable of giving answers to questions," she said. "The elite does not know what to believe, and they fear to think about tomorrow."
"To a large degree, there is the feeling that there is no way out, that the situation is irreparable," she continued, "that they are totally dependent on one person, and it is impossible to influence anything."
Alexandra Prokopenko, a former adviser at Russia's Central Bank who resigned and left Russia in the weeks after the start of the invasion, said in an interview that her former colleagues "try not see the war in terms of winners and losers. But they know there is no good exit for Russia right now."
"There is a feeling that we cannot attain the political aims that were originally forwarded," the state official said. "This is clear to all." But no one knows how large a loss Russia can sustain before its leaders believe its existence is in jeopardy, he said.
Further underscoring the growing distance between the president and the business elite, Putin also canceled his annual New Year's Eve meeting with the country's billionaires, officially citing infection risks.
With such a huge question mark hanging over the year ahead, two camps have emerged within the elite: "The pragmatists who consider that Russia took on the burden of a war it can't sustain and needs to stop," and those who want to escalate, Stanovaya said.
Those in favor of escalation include Yevgeniy Prigozhin, the Putin ally who leads the Wagner Group of mercenaries and continues to publicly berate Russia's military leadership.
"We don't know what will happen in the future," said a longtime member of Russian diplomatic circles, who spoke on the condition of anonymity for fear of reprisal. "There might be another wave of mobilization. The economic situation in the next year will start to worsen more seriously."
Sergei Markov, a hawkish former Kremlin adviser who is still in contact with Putin's team, said it was clear Putin still did not have an answer to the principal question ahead of him. "There are two possible paths ahead," Markov said. "One is that the army continues to fight while the rest of society lives a normal life - as it was this year. The second path is as it was when Russia went through World War II, when everything was for the front and for victory. There was such a mobilization of society and the economy."
"The fact is that these 300,000 mobilized do not have enough weapons," Markov said. "When will they get the military technology? Putin also does not have the answer to this question."
According to Markov, who supports escalation, India and China's doubts have arisen because Putin did not win fast enough. "Privately they say, 'Win quicker, but if you can't win, we can't build good relations with you,'" he said. "You should either win or admit your loss. We need most of all for the war to end as fast as possible."
Others said the reason for the tepid relations with India and China's leaders was because they were clearly more worried about further escalation. "We hear there is a worry about the prospect of escalation to the nuclear level," the longtime member of Russian diplomatic circles said. "And here, it seems to me everyone spoke very clearly that this is extremely undesirable and dangerous."
In an interview last week with Russian daily RBK, Mikhail Zadornov, chairman of Otkritie, one of Russia's biggest banks, who served as finance minister from 1997 to 1999, noted that Russia had lost markets in the West that it had been building since Soviet times. "For 50 years, a market, mutual economic connections, were being built. Now they are destroyed for decades to come," Zadornov said.
On the whole, members of Russia's economic elite "understand this isn't going to end well," the Russian billionaire said. Prokopenko, the former Central Bank official, said the Russian elite, including many under sanctions, are watching the situation in horror: "Everything they built collapsed for no reason."
Russian President Vladimir Putin and Chinese leader Xi Jinping met remotely via video link Friday - an indication of Moscow's latest efforts t…
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2022-12-31T02:17:49Z
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Putin, unaccustomed to losing, is increasingly isolated as war falters | Military | unionleader.com
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FILE PHOTO: People queue to enter St. Peter's Basilica, the day after the announcement of the worsening condition of former Pope Benedict's health, at the Vatican, December 29, 2022.
VATICAN CITY - When Pope Gregory XII, the last pope to resign before Benedict, died in 1417, the world was not watching.
(Reporting by Philip Pullella Editing by Tomasz Janowski)
VATICAN CITY - Former Pope Benedict's condition remains "grave" but stable, the Vatican said on Thursday, adding in a statement that he had r…
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2022-12-31T02:17:55Z
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Rituals for Benedict's passing could be template for future ex popes | Religion | unionleader.com
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Hurricane Ian, which ravaged parts of Florida after making landfall on Sept. 29, will become one of the costliest hurricanes on record.
Ted Richardson/Washington Post
By Brady Dennis The Washington Post
While weather disasters strike the United States every year, 2022 brought the latest reminder that extreme events, fueled in part by the warming planet, are growing more intense and costly - both at home and abroad.
The number of "billion-dollar disaster" events as of mid-December, according to federal officials. While that number is mercifully lower than the record years of 2020 and 2021 - which saw 22 and 20 such disasters, respectively - it still represents a high amount of suffering.
"The lessons we are learning from these more frequent, more costly extreme weather events should be apparent now across many regions," said Adam Smith, an economist and scientist at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA). "There's no reason to expect that the trends will reverse or flat line."
"Twenty years ago, this would have been considered an above-normal season," said Jim Wallman, an NIFC meteorologist. But what is normal is changing. "This is like what would be considered an average season right now."
Wallman said that in the decade preceding 2005, wildfires burned an average of 6.3 million acres each year. By 2021, that 10-year annual average had risen to more than 7 million acres - a more than 10 percent increase.
A new analysis this year revealed that 1 in 6 Americans now live in an area with significant wildfire risk. That's nearly 80 million properties in the United States that face a real threat of exposure. In a hotter, drier world, scientists expect those risks to continue to intensify.
Two decades ago, if a fire burned 10,000 acres in a day, that was startling, Wallman said. "Now, when conditions are right, we are seeing that more frequently," he said.
The historic deluge - an event with less than a 1-in-1,000 chance of occurring in a given year - dropped startling amounts of rain on St. Louis and surrounding areas. Some areas northwest of the city saw rainfall totals up to a foot. Overwhelmed storm water drains and sewage systems overflowed and backed up into houses. Dozens of rescues took place amid the flash flooding.
"What happened was way more than the system - any system - can handle," Sean Hadley, spokesman for the Metropolitan St. Louis Sewer District, told The Washington Post at the time.
The crisis has depleted groundwater, melted annual snowpack and dried out critical lakes. It has led officials to fear for a "complete doomsday scenario" along the parched Colorado River, which serves roughly 1 in 10 Americans.
Ian was among the strongest hurricanes to make landfall when it barreled into Florida's southwest coast in late September, as a Category 4 storm with sustained winds of 150 mph. It obliterated coastal communities and caused massive inland flooding as it ambled across the state.
"Ian really delivered the trifecta of impacts to southern and central Florida - high winds, storm surge, and then flooding well inland," NOAA's Smith said.
Part of the reason that Ian was so destructive was the fact that huge amounts of people, homes and businesses lay in its path. Some of those same spots were hit again in November by Hurricane Nicole, a less powerful but still harmful storm that has not yet been deemed a billion-dollar disaster.
"It's a bad trend," he said. "It shows our vulnerability is high, our exposure is high, and the costs will continue to climb if we don't better seek to mitigate future damages."
What has become more common, and even expected, wasn't always the case. Dating back to 1980, government figures show 13 years that included a double-digit number of such disasters, when adjusted for inflation. Of those, 11 have come since 2011.
But, Smith told The Post this year: "Climate change is the 800-pound gorilla in the room."
"It's a horrible storm with too many deaths," Erie County Executive Mark Poloncarz said at a Wednesday news conference. "It's heartbreaking, it's a gut punch."
When officials tally the storm's destructive and widespread toll, it is likely to become the year's final billion-dollar disaster.
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2022-12-31T02:18:01Z
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The toll extreme weather took in the U.S. during 2022, by the numbers | Weather | unionleader.com
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By Jacob Bogage and Yiwen Lu The Washington Post
When the street cats of Chicago's Hyde Park get out of control, Frances Spaltro's neighbors know they can call her for help.
She shuttles the cats to foster homes, but there aren't enough for all the strays, which often aren't strays at all - just pets looking for their homes and the owners that turned them outside. During the worst days of the summer, when Chicago's oppressive heat drove abandoned animals to court strangers for food, water and air conditioning, Spaltro's rescue assisted 35 homeless cats from a neighborhood of fewer than 30,000 residents. One volunteer from Spaltro's Hyde Park Cats rescue keeps foster homes for six felines.
That story has played out across the country. Not too long ago, Americans opened their homes to a historic number of pets, a development comparable to the post-World War II baby boom in terms of its size. More than 23 million U.S. households - nearly one in five nationwide - have adopted a pet during the coronavirus pandemic, according to the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals. President Biden even adopted two pets: a dog, Major, and cat, Willow.
While most of those animals have remained with their adopters, animal welfare organizations are now scrambling to help some pet owners provide for their cats and dogs - or come up with the resources to care for animals given up under economic duress - lest some owners face an impossible decision: Surrender or abandon their animals so they can keep themselves and their human families afloat.
The overwhelming majority of pet owners who have fewer animals now than three months ago say it's because one of their pets died, APPA reported. But 14 percent said they could not afford to keep their pet, while 12 percent said their pet was re-homed and 9 percent said they could no longer take care of their pet for a variety of reasons.
"When the economy is struggling, families are struggling," said Lindsay Hamrick, director of shelter outreach and engagement at the Humane Society of the United States. "That shows up as surrenders."
Animal shelters across the country told The Washington Post that they have seen an influx of pet surrenders this year as inflation retains its chokehold on household budgets. Even though there has been some easing recently, gas and grocery prices remain high, as does most Americans' biggest expense, housing. The national median rent swelled 5.9 percent year-over-year in November and almost 18 percent in 2021, according to real estate broker Apartment List.
As Americans fall behind on rent, animal welfare groups have braced themselves for staggering numbers of pets on the street. In mid-October, 5.2 million households were behind on rent, according to the National Equity Atlas. While that's down from 6.2 million the year prior, it still puts 7.4 million pets on the verge of homelessness, according to a calculator developed by American Pets Alive, a nonprofit animal shelter advocacy group.
"This is unprecedented," Hamrick said. "It's not the students who are moving and leaving their animals. . . . It's people who were losing their jobs or losing their apartments, or maybe they didn't set aside enough time to figure out what they were going to do with their cats when they moved."
In Philadelphia's 10 lowest-income Zip codes, the number of stray dogs has jumped 53 percent in the past year, and surrenders are up 31 percent, said Sarah Barnett, co-executive director of ACCT Philly, the largest open-intake shelter in the region.
"We are just seeing people at a breaking point," she said.
"We are seeing more and more people coming to the shelter to surrender because of evictions . . . or no longer being able to afford it," said Michele Anderson, the shelter's public engagement manager. "Sometimes they can't afford food or they're having to make a tough decision between feeding their human children versus feeding their pets."
Anderson worries that if the tide of surrenders persists, the sheer amount of pets will overload shelters. At El Paso Animal Services, there are over 1,000 pets in the shelter and over 2,500 in foster homes. ACCT Philly takes in around 15,000 animals every year - some of them, Barnett said, were redirected from other limited-intake shelters that can reject a pet because of space or breed restrictions.
That's what happened to Baby Girl. In a picture circulating on social media in early May, the mixed-breed canine appeared to be tied to a fire hydrant in Green Bay, Wis., quietly sitting in the middle of the neighborhood, next to a backpack full of supplies. It was clear she was eagerly looking for someone.
"Financial distress is the number one reason people surrender," said Angela Speed, communications director at Wisconsin Humane Society. "That's ultimately the Baby Girl story."
Why do pet owners have fewer pets?
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2022-12-31T12:00:47Z
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People are giving up pets. Blame inflation. | Animals | unionleader.com
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As a child, his boredom was occupied by chess in hope of following his dad's footsteps as a great player because, he once said, "that's the only thing I want to do most." When he got bored with defeating adults, he turned to kickboxing, laying to waste opponents throughout Europe. And when he got bored with physical combat, he turned to verbal assault, becoming a men's rights influencer known for his extreme misogynistic, violent remarks against women. He went on to build online followings in the millions from the darkest corners of the web, making him one of the most watched personalities on social media by his mid-30s.
Tate, who along with his brother Tristan was arrested in Romania on Thursday and charged with human trafficking and forming an organized-crime group, is a self-described misogynist and sexist who has been dubbed "the scariest man on the internet" by critics and "the king of toxic masculinity" by fans. (A lawyer for the Tates could not immediately be identified Friday.)
The former kickboxing champion is known for his attacks against women - whether it's saying women who are sexually assaulted need to shoulder "some responsibility," claiming that women are "given to the man and belong to the man" or noting in online videos that he dates women who are 18 and 19 because he can "make an imprint" on them.
"I'm not a rapist, but I like the idea of just being able to do what I want," he once said in one of his videos about why he moved to Romania, according to Sky News, adding that "probably 40 percent of the reason" he moved to the country was because it might be easier to evade rape charges. "I like being free." In another video, he described how he would react if a woman accused him of cheating, saying, "It's bang out the machete, boom in her face and grip her by the neck."
Tate, 36, who has portrayed himself as a self-help expert for men and was regularly photographed smoking cigars in front of fast cars and guns, has seen his profile rise after chats with far-right figures such as Alex Jones and Mike Cernovich. He largely gained attention on TikTok - one of the many platforms that has now banned him for his repeated misogynistic remarks - where videos tagged #AndrewTate were viewed roughly 13 billion times as of August, according to NBC News. In July, Tate's name was a bigger search term on Google than some of the search engine's most significant queries, including former president Donald Trump, Kim Kardashian and covid-19, Forbes reported.
Days after Tate's back-and-forth with Thunberg dominated Twitter, he now finds himself detained by a Romanian anti-organized-crime unit that is seeking authorization from a judge to hold Tate, his brother and two Romanian suspects for up to 30 days, a spokesperson for the Romanian prosecutor's office told The Washington Post. One person also was charged with rape, but the spokesperson would not identify that person, citing local laws.
Romanian prosecutors said in a statement that they identified six people whom they allege were recruited and then sexually abused in Ilfov county, which includes the capital, Bucharest. Authorities say that the victims were coerced into participating in pornography for distribution on social media and that one of the suspects twice raped a victim in March. The statement, which did not name the Tate brothers, alleges that the victims faced "acts of physical violence and mental coercion."
"I know that I'm in the position to turn Andrew into a Bobby Fischer, but it's a common-sense dilemma," his father, Emory A. Tate Jr., the top-ranked chess player in Indiana at the time, told the South Bend Tribune in 1993, noting the lack of financial stability in becoming a chess master. While his father told the Tribune that he wished his son would pursue other interests, Tate said that he played so much because he was "bored all the time and that's the only thing I want to do most."
He later got into the world of kickboxing, where he became one of the most decorated light-heavyweight fighters in the world. Videos of his fights are listed under titles such as "Prime Andrew Tate Was An Absolute Beast!" After a brief run in mixed martial arts, he retired from combat sports.
His next chapter amplified his notoriety and criticism of his treatment of women. In 2016, Tate appeared as a housemate on the 17th season of "Big Brother" in the United Kingdom. Tate was kicked off the reality television show after a video surfaced that appeared to show him hitting a woman with a belt. (Tate and the woman in the video said what occurred was consensual sex, according to the BBC.)
From there, fans of the show discovered past tweets in which Tate used homophobic and racial slurs at users. The string of controversial behavior continued in 2017, when he falsely claimed that depression "isn't real."
Tate was denounced by critics and advocacy groups who said his mere presence on social media, and the following he was developing for his "extremely misogynistic" remarks, could present a "dangerous slip road into the far right." At the same time, he was promoting an online marketing program for a monthly membership of $49.99 that claimed he could give people "high-income skill development." ("Hustler's University," which one marketing professor likened to a social media pyramid scheme, shut down this year, despite having about 127,000 members, according to the Guardian.)
As backlash mounted, platforms took action against Tate this year. He was banned from Facebook and Instagram after violating Meta's policy on "dangerous organizations and individuals," NBC reported. TikTok, the platform where he grew his audience the most, also kicked him off for promoting content, the company says, "that attacks, threatens, incites violence against, or otherwise dehumanizes an individual or a group." YouTube suspended him for hate speech and covid misinformation after he amassed millions of dollars in ad revenue.
But on Twitter, his ban was lifted last month as part of new owner Elon Musk's changes that reinstated far-right firebrands. Tate's return to the platform set up the online confrontation with Thunberg, in which Tate tweeted that he wanted to send the climate activist "a complete list of my car collection and their respective enormous emissions."
When Thunberg trolled him in a tweet that's been viewed more than 259 million times since it was posted Wednesday, the attention was again on Tate.
But that didn't stop Thunberg from having some fun at the expense of "the most toxic man on the internet"
"This is what happens when you don't recycle your pizza boxes," she observed.
The Washington Post's Kelsey Ables, Taylor Lorenz, Amir Nadhir and Sara Sorcher contributed to this report.
BUCHAREST - Romanian prosecutors asked a Bucharest court on Friday to extend the detention of Andrew Tate by 30 days, after the divisive inter…
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2022-12-31T12:00:53Z
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Who is Andrew Tate, 'king of toxic masculinity' accused of trafficking? | Back Page | unionleader.com
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James Miron, 4, the grandson of Fran Miron, plays on the family farm in Hugo, Minn., in 2019. Fran Miron is the fourth generation to farm this land in Hugo. His grandfather is among the many farmers who objected to the Obama administration’s expansion of waterways regulation under the Waters of the United States rule.
By Scott Dance The Washington Post
The Biden administration on Friday imposed a rule expanding the definition of waterways that the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has authority to regulate, a move that reverses a Trump-era change and seeks to overcome nearly a decade of challenges to EPA powers, including a pending Supreme Court case.
The EPA said its rule strikes a balance it hoped would protect waterways as well as commerce, returning its Waters of the United States regulatory framework to something resembling its state before it became a focus of political debate in 2015. That year, the Obama administration significantly and controversially widened the scope of the Clean Water Act to cover even ephemeral streams and ponds; Trump dramatically weakened EPA's water pollution authority with a 2019 rule of his own.
In broadening EPA's powers once again, Administrator Michael Regan said the agency aimed "to deliver a durable definition of WOTUS that safeguards our nation's waters, strengthens economic opportunity, and protects people's health while providing greater certainty for farmers, ranchers, and landowners."
Environmentalists say the rule is central to efforts to restore the health of impaired waterways and fragile wildlife habitats because it gives federal and state governments powers to limit the flow of pollutants, including livestock waste, construction runoff and industrial effluent. The regulation determines how broadly the government can enforce the Clean Water Act, the landmark 1972 law credited with gradual, though sometimes inconsistent, improvement to the health of polluted and degraded rivers and lakes.
But the rule has been a flash point because advocates for industry and property rights say it is overly costly and impractical when applied to wetlands that can be difficult to define or streams that run only for part of the year.
Friday's announcement did not quell criticisms, with the U.S. Chamber of Commerce suggesting the Biden rule would only add to regulatory uncertainty and unpredictability it said could hinder the planning and construction of major government-funded infrastructure projects.
And although the Biden rule is less expansive than Obama's, Republicans quickly attacked it as onerous.
"The rule announced today is the latest round of regulatory overreach regarding what waters are subject to regulation under the Clean Water Act, and will unfairly burden America's farmers, ranchers, miners, infrastructure builders, and landowners," Sen. Shelley Moore Capito (R-W.Va.) said in a statement.
The Biden administration said it would redefine EPA oversight as covering "traditional navigable waters," including interstate waterways and upstream water sources that influence the health and quality of those waterways. The definition is based on legal framework established before 2015, with adjustments based on court rulings and newer science, EPA said.
The Department of the Army joined EPA in finalizing the new rule because the Army Corps of Engineers has authority over any actions filling regulated bodies of water with dredge spoils or other materials.
The Biden administration's action comes ahead of an expected Supreme Court ruling that could limit EPA authority. The Supreme Court heard a case in October concerning a home that Idaho couple Michael and Chantell Sackett planned to build but that EPA said would disturb wetlands. Members of the court's conservative majority raised concerns about the law's broad reach over development on private property.
The new Biden rule does not change EPA's approach toward such cases, in which the agency said its authority applied because the wetlands are next to a large lake. A court ruling that narrows the agency's power could require some regulatory revisions, but might not otherwise upend Biden's approach to water pollution, said Kevin Minoli, an attorney at Alston & Bird who served as a career attorney at EPA under four presidents.
The rule could nonetheless invite new challenges. It expands EPA's power over isolated wetlands and other bodies of water if the agency can argue they serve important functions such as storing floodwaters or providing habitat and food resources, he said. A 2001 Supreme Court ruling said the government could not use the presence of migratory birds to assert that the Clean Water Act applies to isolated bodies of water.
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2022-12-31T14:11:45Z
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EPA broadens protections for U.S. waterways, reversing Trump | Environment | unionleader.com
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FILE PHOTO: Pope Benedict XVI prays while holding a candle light as he arrives to lead a vigil mass during Easter celebrations at St. Peter's Basilica in the Vatican April 7, 2012.
FILE PHOTO: Pope Benedict XVI is transported in a gondola in the Gran Canal during his pastoral visit in Venice, Italy May 8, 2011.
FILE PHOTO: Pope Benedict XVI arrives by car in Naples to lead a mass October 21, 2007. In the background is the Maschio Angioino Castle.
FILE PHOTO: Pope Benedict XVI waves as he arrives for the Immaculate Conception celebration prayer in Piazza di Spagna (Spain's Square) in downtown Rome December 8, 2011.
FILE PHOTO: Pope Benedict XVI prays while holding a candle light as he arrives to lead a vigil mass during Easter celebrations in the Vatican
VATICAN CITY - Former Pope Benedict, who in 2013 became the first pontiff in 600 years to resign, died on Saturday aged 95 in a secluded monastery in the Vatican where he had lived since stepping down.
Earlier this week, Pope Francis disclosed that his predecessor was "very sick." Bruni said Benedict had received his last rites, called "the anointing of the sick," on Wednesday.
"We mourn the death of our Bavarian Pope," said Markus Soeder, premier of Benedict's home state. German Chancellor Olaf Scholz said on Twitter that the world had lost "a formative figure of the Catholic Church."
Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni hailed Benedict as "a great man who history will not forget," while Polish President Andrzej Duda called him "one of the greatest theologians of the 20th and 21st centuries."
French President Emmanuel Macron said Benedict had "worked with all his soul and intelligence for a more fraternal world."
He was elected pope on April 19, 2005 to succeed the widely popular Pope John Paul II, who reigned for 27 years. Cardinals chose him from among their number seeking continuity and what one called "a safe pair of hands."
He announced he was resigning in Latin at a routine meeting of cardinals. Many had no idea what he had said and it took time before the news sank in. He himself said he was no longer strong enough to lead the Church due to his "advanced age."
After his resignation he installed himself in a converted convent on the Vatican grounds and chose the title "pope emeritus."
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2022-12-31T14:11:51Z
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Former Pope Benedict dies aged 95, funeral set for Jan. 5 | Religion | unionleader.com
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FILE PHOTO: Mark Meadows talks to reporters on Capitol Hill in Washington, U.S., October 23, 2019.
By Meryl Kornfield and Kyle Rempfer The Washington Post
Mark Meadows, a former chief of staff to President Donald Trump, will not be charged for voter fraud related to his 2020 registration and absentee vote in North Carolina, the state's chief law enforcement official announced Friday.
Meadows and his wife, Debra, were under investigation after media reports that the former North Carolina congressman's voter registration listed a mobile home in Scaly Mountain, N.C., that he had never owned, stayed at or visited. But authorities were shown proof that the Meadows leased the home, Debra did stay there for short periods, and there was no evidence the couple "knowingly swore to false information considering the signed lease," said Attorney General Josh Stein (D).
Meadows is "explicitly excepted from certain residency requirements as a result of his service to the federal government," Stein added.
"The State Bureau of Investigation conducted an extensive investigation into the fraud allegations against Mr. and Mrs. Meadows concerning their registration and voting in the 2020 elections," Stein said in a statement. "After a thorough review, my office has concluded that there is not sufficient evidence to bring charges against either of them in this matter."
Meadows's spokesman, Ben Williamson, declined to comment about the prosecutorial decision.
In 2020, Meadows changed his registration after he sold his home in North Carolina's 11th Congressional District, which he represented from 2013 until that year. From March 2020 to January 2021, Meadows served as Trump's chief of staff. He had a condo in Virginia near Washington, but he did not own property in North Carolina.
The New Yorker, which first reported on Meadows's registered address, interviewed a previous property owner who said Meadows's wife had rented the property for a short period and spent only one or two nights there during each visit.
According to a state Department of Justice memo about reasons for declining to charge in the case, the Meadows provided investigators with a signed yearlong lease for the home that began on Sept. 1, 2020. Debra Meadows also shared cellphone logs for two days in October that showed her placing calls in the area.
Meadows was removed from North Carolina's voter rolls while the fraud investigation was ongoing. North Carolina State Board of Elections spokesman Patrick Gannon said Meadows was removed "after documentation indicated he lived in Virginia and last voted in the 2021 election there."
Although Stein said Meadows should not be charged with voter fraud, he criticized Meadows's history of supporting Trump's false claims of voter fraud in the 2020 election that stoked the Jan. 6 riot. Last week, the bipartisan panel investigating the storming of the Capitol by a pro-Trump mob released a report placing blame on "one man," Trump, but naming others in the former president's circle, like Meadows, who supported him.
"I urge federal prosecutors to hold accountable every single person who engaged in a conspiracy to put our democracy at risk," Stein said. "None of the matters involving January 6th, however, are relevant to the specific allegations of voter fraud concerning Mr. and Mrs. Meadows that were referred to my office for review."
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2022-12-31T16:15:29Z
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www.unionleader.com
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North Carolina will not prosecute Mark Meadows for voter fraud | Crime | unionleader.com
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https://www.unionleader.com/news/crime/north-carolina-will-not-prosecute-mark-meadows-for-voter-fraud/article_f960f1a8-7efb-5e62-a464-115da2b607e4.html
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https://www.unionleader.com/news/crime/north-carolina-will-not-prosecute-mark-meadows-for-voter-fraud/article_f960f1a8-7efb-5e62-a464-115da2b607e4.html
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By Ken Schott The Daily Gazette, Schenectady, N.Y.
SCHENECTADY, New York — Union couldn't kill any of New Hampshire's three second-period power plays, turning a three-goal Dutchmen lead into a tie score heading into the third period.
But the Dutchmen's special teams made some magic in the third period.
Freshman defenseman John Prokop scored his first collegiate goal, a power-play tally 5:11 into the third, and the Dutchmen killed a Wildcats' power play late in the third period and earned a 4-3 non-conference men's college hockey victory on Friday at Messa Rink in the first matchup of a two-game series. The teams play again at 4 p.m. Saturday.
"It was frustrating," Union head coach Josh Hauge said. "It's a situation where you have control of the game and you give a team that has a really good power play and has some good stick skill, ... all of a sudden they can hurt you, and that's what they did. They got all three. It's something we have to tighten up by tomorrow."
"It was a weird game," Souza said. "I thought we were playing really well. Their 5 on 5 chances were better than ours. ... But I thought overall, we were playing a good solid game. We found ourselves down 3-0, but we found a way to bounce back, so I guess that's a silver lining."
"Obviously not how we wanted to let them back in the game and make it a game where we felt like we could pull away," said Dutchmen senior forward Owen Farris, who scored the game's first goal at 4:23 of the first period. "We just didn't get our kills in that scenario, and we're going to go back and look at what we missed on each of them and hopefully come back stronger tomorrow."
"I think special teams can shift momentum dramatically throughout the game, and I think that goal is huge," said Prokop, who has 10 assists. "At the beginning of the third period, it set the tone for the rest of the period."
UNH got a fourth power play when Farris was called for tripping with 5:24 left. UNH got two shots on goalie Connor Murphy, who stopped both of them. The power play ended when UNH's Chase Stevenson was penalized for hooking with 3:42 remaining.
"I was watching from the [penalty] box, obviously, so it was a little nerve racking for me," Farris said.
"We were willing to sacrifice," Hauge said. "The guys sacrifice for each other and block shots, and when you do that, you can have some success defensively. All the pressure is on the offense. We've just got to take away the passing lanes and be willing to sacrifice."
Ryan O'Hara scored twice during Bowling Green's three-goal third period, and the Falcons overcame a 2-0 deficit to beat RPI 5-2 and sweep a two-game series in Bowling Green, Ohio.
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2022-12-31T16:15:41Z
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www.unionleader.com
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Union's penalty kill comes through at right time in men's college hockey win over New Hampshire | College Sports | unionleader.com
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https://www.unionleader.com/sports/college/unions-penalty-kill-comes-through-at-right-time-in-mens-college-hockey-win-over-new/article_ce99aa86-34be-52a9-a7f6-fbbedb2c89ca.html
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https://www.unionleader.com/sports/college/unions-penalty-kill-comes-through-at-right-time-in-mens-college-hockey-win-over-new/article_ce99aa86-34be-52a9-a7f6-fbbedb2c89ca.html
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