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North Carolina GOP closes in on transgender athlete ban

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 16:00:55 GMT

RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) — A prohibition on transgender girls playing on female sports teams in North Carolina schools cleared a second legislative chamber this week when the state Senate approved a bill Thursday. The passage means the Republican-dominated General Assembly appears poised to work out in the coming weeks a final compromise that would limit athlete participation and send it to Democratic Gov. Roy Cooper, who is a strong supporter of LGBTQ+ rights. The House approved a similar bill Wednesday. Legislators who back the competing measures expressed optimism that differences can be hammered out. “I believe that the Senate sponsors and the House sponsors will be able to work through that,” House Speaker Tim Moore told reporters.Cooper’s office didn’t respond to an email request for comment on the legislation. The GOP now holds veto-proof majorities in both the Senate and House after a former House Democrat switched parties earlier this month. The margins on this week&#...

Top Google exec says ‘everybody loses’ with online news bill at House committee

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 16:00:55 GMT

OTTAWA — A top Google executive told a House of Commons committee today that the Liberal government’s online news bill would create a situation where everybody loses. Google’s vice president for news, Richard Gringas, says the bill’s passage would incentivize clickbait content over high-quality local journalism, and likely require the company to pay publishers for non-factual or misleading content.Gringas says the company would prefer to contribute to a media fund that would align with the government’s policy goals while funding local journalism.He appeared alongside Google’s president of global affairs Kent Walker at the heritage committee, which is studying the actions of the Silicon Valley giant after it ran a five-week test that blocked news links to some of its Canadian users as a potential response to the bill.Walker says if Google had to pay news publishers for linking to their content, the company would lose money with every click — and it would...

Officer told not to make handwritten notes after death of Myles Gray, inquest hears

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 16:00:55 GMT

BURNABY, B.C. — A Vancouver police officer says a senior member of the force who was acting as a union representative told him not to make any handwritten notes about the confrontation that resulted in the death of 33-year-old Myles Gray in 2015.Const. Joshua Wong told the British Columbia coroner’s inquest into Gray’s death that he was sitting at the department with his notebook out when the union representative told him not to make notes.Wong said he typed up a statement when he got home, and he was instructed months later to upload it to a police database.Gray died following a beating by several officers that left him with injuries including a fractured eye socket, a crushed voice box and a ruptured testicle.Wong testified that he doesn’t know why the union representative told him not to make notes, and he doesn’t recall who it was, but it did seem like an odd request.He told the inquest Gray was “actively fighting” one of three officers alread...

Muslims end Ramadan, begin holiday amid war, reconciliation

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 16:00:55 GMT

BEIRUT (AP) — Large parts of the Muslim world marked the end of the fasting month of Ramadan at sundown Thursday and ushered in the holiday of Eid al-Fitr, but the festivities were overshadowed by raging battles for control of Sudan and a deadly stampede in Yemen.In other parts of the region, the holiday came against the backdrop of reconciliation and rapprochement between former rivals.The Islamic calendar is lunar and depends on the sighting of the moon — something Muslim religious authorities tend to disagree on. Ramadan sees worshippers fasting daily from dawn to sunset, ending with Eid al-Fitr celebrations. This year again, the holiday comes amid fighting and devastation, particularly in the Middle East. In Sudan, the holiday was eclipsed by raging battles between the army and its rival paramilitary force, despite two attempted cease-fires. The fighting since Saturday has killed hundreds of people and wounded thousands. In Yemen, the Arab world’s most impoverished nation,...

Quebec ministers sorry for broken promise on ‘third link’ vehicular tunnel in capital

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 16:00:55 GMT

QUEBEC — A parade of government ministers took turns Thursday issuing sorrowful regrets for breaking a major election promise to build a multi-purpose vehicle tunnel linking Quebec City to its south shore.Transport Minister Geneviève Guilbault confirmed the tunnel would instead be reserved for public transit only, saying reduced car traffic in the region since the COVID-19 pandemic couldn’t justify the project. “This project was necessary at one time, but the pandemic has changed our lives so much that at the moment there is no need for a highway tunnel,” Guilbault told reporters.The so-called “third link” across the St. Lawrence River — after the Pierre Laporte Bridge and the Quebec Bridge — was a key promise of Premier François Legault during the 2018 and 2022 election campaigns to woo voters in the capital region.But new feasibility studies showed that efficient public transit would reduce road traffic — and make the Quebec City area more competitive, Guil...

Tornado Watch issued for most of area until 8 p.m.

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 16:00:55 GMT

CHICAGO — The Chicago area has already seen a couple rounds of showers and thunderstorms, but another one Thursday afternoon and into the evening poses the threat of strong to severe storms. Clusters of thunderstorms as well as supercell storms are probably, with any storm, capable of producing damaging winds and hail. Just after 2 p.m. Thursday, a Tornado Watch was issued for the all Illinois counties in the area. A watch for Northwest Indiana has not been issued at this time. The watch is in effect until 8 p.m. Interactive Radar: Track showers and storm here A few tornadoes can’t be ruled out, especially with any sustained supercell storm. The severe weather threat is mainly from 3 p.m. to 9 p.m. across northeast Illinois, including Chicago.Thursday Forecast: Isolated afternoon storm chance, chance for storms again late day/evening with slight severe risk, South winds of 15-20 mph and gusts of 35 mph. There will be a high of 76.Thursday Night: Mostl...

May concert calendar: 10 shows to check out

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 16:00:55 GMT

CHICAGO — We're in a bout of dreary April weather after a glimpse of summer last week, but May kicks off what looks to be one of the busiest summers of live music in Chicago. Let's take a look at 10 great shows coming to the city next month.5/2 — M83, Riviera TheatreAnthony Gonzalez, better known as M83, has been recording since 2001 — but has been away from the stage since 2016.It was in 2011 that the native Parisian turned Los Angelite was launched into stardom by the critically and commercially-acclaimed hit "Midnight City." "Fantasy" is the follow up to 2016's "Junk," which got torn apart in some critics' circles despite being a really fun and upbeat album. His show at The Vic on that tour was nothing short of spectacular. M83 will look to bring the same energy nearly seven years later at "The Riv" next month.Listen in: Midnight CityNEW YORK, NY - OCTOBER 03: Anthony Gonzalez of M83 performs at Samsung Galaxy S III M83 performance in New York with a special appearance by Kat Mc...

It's finally happening. Twitter users bid farewell to blue checkmarks

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 16:00:55 GMT

(NEXSTAR) – After weeks of uncertainty, Elon Musk made good on his threats to remove blue checkmarks from the accounts of verified users on Thursday.From former President Donald J. Trump to celebrities LeBron James and William Shatner, users who didn't pay up to retain the blue badge lost them.The costs of keeping the marks range from $8 a month for individual web users to a starting price of $1,000 monthly to verify an organization, plus $50 monthly for each affiliate or employee account. Twitter does not verify the individual accounts to ensure they are who they say they are, as was the case with the previous blue check doled out during the platform’s pre-Musk administration. Judge tentatively OKs $725M Facebook settlement: How to apply for a payout Twitter had about 300,000 verified users under the original blue-check system — many of them journalists, athletes and public figures. The checks began disappearing from these users' profiles late morning Pacific Time.Converting what...

Stanley Black & Decker recalls 2 million sledgehammers over detaching heads

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 16:00:55 GMT

(WHTM) -- Millions of Stanley Black & Decker DeWALT, Stanley and Craftsman Fiberglass Sledgehammers are being recalled, according to the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission.According to the CPSC, around 2.2 million sledgehammers are being recalled because the sledgehammer heads can loosen prematurely and detach while in use and injure the user. Pennsylvania police department offers Doritos for dealers on 4/20 The sledgehammers weigh between 2 and 12 pounds and can range from 14 to 36 inches long.Consumers can find the model number for the DeWALT and Craftsman sledgehammers on the hammerhead. Consumers of the Stanley hammers can find the model number on a sticker on the handle.The recall involves the following model numbers:DWHT56141DWHT56142DWHT56143DWHT56146DWHT56147DWHT56148DWHT56024DWHT56025DWHT56026DWHT56027DWHT56029DWHT56030CMHT54163CMHT56011CMHT56019FMHT51297FMHT51298FMHT51308FMHT56006FMHT56008FMHT56009FMHT56010FMHT56011FMHT56019The company has received 192 reports w...

Pearl Jam will perform in Chicago in 2023

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 16:00:55 GMT

CHICAGO — A band very familiar with the "Windy City" is returning again in 2023 - this time for a pair of performances in the fall. Pearl Jam announced a new United States tour on Thursday afternoon, with Chicago being one of five stops. The rock band, which features Evanston native and noted Cubs fan Eddie Vedder as its lead vocalist, will play at the United Center on Tuesday, September 5, and Thursday, September 7. Pearl Jam will also make stops in Fort Worth, Indianapolis, St. Paul, Minnesota, and Austin, Texas. Ticket sales will begin through Ticketmaster Verified Fan Registration on Friday, April 28 at 10 a.m. central time, with fans required to sign up by Tuesday, April 25. Fans belonging to the band's "Ten Club" already have access to a pre-sale for tickets on the band's website. Formed in 1990, Pearl Jam has performed 23 shows in the Chicagoland area, according to their website. On March 10, 1994, they played the last concert at Chicago Stadium along with Urge Overkill and T...