Tonix Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:TNXP) Trading Down 2.6% – What’s Next?No. 22 Texas A&M beats Texas Tech 72-67 in 1st meeting of former conference rivals since 2012
After starting 2-0 in its inaugural Atlantic Coast Conference schedule, SMU looks to make the month even more special on Sunday, hosting Longwood in Dallas, Texas. The Mustangs seek a seven-game win streak in their final nonconference test before welcoming No. 4 Duke to Dallas on Jan. 4. In recent victories over Alabama State, Virginia, LSU, and Boston College, SMU (10-2) averaged 85.3 points per game, allowed just 66.0 ppg, and climbed to No. 30 in the NET rankings. "We're a different team right now than we were earlier in the season," SMU head coach Andy Enfield said at the beginning of December, his words ringing even truer as the season progresses. "They'd never been under pressure together until recently, so they're starting to learn and figure things out." Longwood (11-3) enters its third consecutive road game, having won five of its last six overall. That includes a major 82-67 win at North Carolina Central on Dec. 20. It was only the sixth nonconference home loss for NCC since 2016, and Longwood head coach Griff Aldrich saw it as a result of his team's growing cohesiveness. "We got great contributions from so many players," Aldrich said. "We have been working to play more and more connected, and this team has really taken positive steps this week." The Mustangs' Matt Cross is among the biggest threats to Longwood's defense, which allows just 66.6 points per game. A 6-foot-7 forward, Cross had 36 points over SMU's last two wins, including a 16-point, 16-rebound double-double against LSU. What Cross does with the ball in his hands is impressive -- he is averaging 13.5 ppg in December -- but it is also what he does off the ball that increases his value. "He's extremely tough," Enfield said after Cross' performance against LSU. "His wall up in transition, where (Corey) Chest came down, was going to dunk the ball, and he stood there and took the contact. ...That's a big-time basketball play." Longwood is paced by Michael Christmas, a veteran forward in his fourth year in the program. A hard-nosed wing who can score at all three levels, Christmas is Longwood's only returner who started at least 30 games on last year's NCAA Tournament team. He is averaging a team-high 11.9 points per game. "(He) loves this university, loves this town and community," Aldrich said of Christmas. "He opted to come back here to really invest in the program." --Field Level Media
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When schoolchildren across Texas return to classrooms next fall, thousands could encounter new, Bible-infused lessons. The Texas board of education voted Friday to approve “Bluebonnet Learning,” an optional, state-developed curriculum for public elementary schools that includes Christian teachings like the Gospel of Matthew and Jesus’s Sermon on the Mount. The 8-7 vote by Texas officials arrives as Christian nationalist groups nationwide intensify their efforts to inject religion into state curricula. Earlier this month, a federal judge temporarily blocked a Louisiana law requiring every public school classroom to display the Ten Commandments by January 1. Meanwhile, Oklahoma’s superintendent of public instruction, Ryan Walters, sent a memo in June ordering all 5th through 12th grade teachers to incorporate the Bible into their lesson plans. Similar directives have failed legal tests in the past. The U.S. Constitution’s First Amendment is widely interpreted to enshrine church-state separation, prohibiting the government from establishing a national religion or favoring one system of belief over another. But armed with a new conservative supermajority on the U.S. Supreme Court and a federal judiciary stacked with Donald Trump’s picks, the Christian far right sees a revived opportunity to overturn decades of legal precedent. “With more conservative leaders being elected, and with the U.S. Supreme Court becoming more conservative and issuing a series of decisions weakening the separation of church and state, all of that has emboldened Christian nationalist and other religious right groups,” said Alex J. Luchenister, associate legal director of Americans United for Separation of Church and State, a lead plaintiff in litigation over Louisiana’s Ten Commandments law and the Oklahoma superintendent’s Bible mandate. One of these decisions was issued in 2021, when the Supreme Court found that Maine had to include religious schools in its publicly funded education assistance program. The following year, shortly after issuing the landmark decision that overturned Roe v. Wade , the Supreme Court overturned another six decades of legal precedent in the case Kennedy v. Bremerton . Joseph Kennedy, a high school football coach, had established a practice of leading group prayers in the middle of the field after each game. After attempting to negotiate religious accommodations with Kennedy, the public school district in Bremerton, Washington, ultimately declined to renew his contract, citing fears that his conduct was unconstitutional. The Supreme Court found that the First Amendment protected Kennedy’s public school prayer and safeguarded the inclusion of religious institutions in state school voucher programs. Attorneys with the American Civil Liberties Union wrote in an analysis that, together, these two rulings could render “the lines between church and state hopelessly blurred, if not eliminated altogether.” As a lawyer with Americans United, Luchenister has been fighting the religious right’s attacks on public education for more than 20 years. But, he told Truthout , the organization has seen “much more aggressive efforts by Christian nationalist groups” in the last year alone. “Before that, we weren’t really seeing these kinds of efforts to just defy existing precedent and directly try to push religion into the classroom in a very overt way,” Luchenister said. So far in 2024, Americans United has tracked at least 91 state bills that would promote religion in public schools, including protecting school prayer. That’s nearly double the amount of similar bills that were proposed last year. But in chipping away at foundational constitutional protections, Christian nationalist groups stand to win more than prayer in schools or Bible-based lesson plans. The legal battles playing out in federal courts could give rise to anti-LGBTQ violence and state-sanctioned discrimination against religious minorities. “Children can be made to feel that they’re marginalized, made to feel like outsiders or ostracized by their peers if there’s any indication that they don’t believe in the majority religion,” Luchenister said. “These actions threaten the most vulnerable among schoolchildren in these states.” Still, Luchenister said he thinks that Supreme Court precedent remains a sound bulwark against Christian nationalists’ latest legal attacks, particularly in the Louisiana Ten Commandments lawsuit. After all, the Court already issued a ruling in a near-identical case, Stone v. Graham . In 1980, the justices found that a Kentucky statute requiring public schools to post copies of the Ten Commandments was unconstitutional and violated the First Amendment. Why, then, might state legislators attempt to blatantly defy such clear constitutional protections? Luchenister said Louisiana’s legislation was likely “passed with the intent of trying to trigger a lawsuit” that would make its way through the federal courts, in the hopes that SCOTUS would eventually take it up and overturn the Stone precedent. Indeed, Louisiana has already appealed the district court’s ruling to the 5th Circuit. “We think the Supreme Court continues to recognize the fundamental principle that public school students should not have religion forced upon them in public schools,” Luchenister said. “But maybe we’re overly optimistic.” A report by the Center for American Progress, a progressive policy institute, called the 5th Circuit Court of Appeals, “rogue.” In recent years, the 5th Circuit, which oversees Louisiana, Texas and Mississippi, has issued a series of decisions that have “allowed extremist lower court judges to issue sweeping, politically fraught rulings.” This approach, the report’s authors write, “has helped undermine the separation of powers, established precedent, and principled legal reasoning to accomplish right-wing policy goals.” The far right groups pushing for legislative change are also well-funded and highly coordinated. The First Liberty Institute, a nonprofit Christian law firm, raked in nearly $25 million last year and has served as co-counsel in several major Supreme Court victories, including Kennedy v. Bremerton . The Alliance Defending Freedom, a far right Christian advocacy organization classified by the Southern Poverty Law Center as an anti-LGBTQ hate group, says it is involved in “more than 1,000 active legal matters” at any given moment. Both, First Liberty Institute and the Alliance Defending Freedom, serve on the advisory board of Project 2025, a conservative coalition led by the Heritage Foundation that has drafted an extremist policy blueprint for Trump’s second term. “There is a much larger, broader movement that is attempting to erode and destroy the wall between church and state using schools as the vehicle,” said Colleen McCarty, founding executive director of the Oklahoma Appleseed Center for Law and Justice, a co-plaintiff in the lawsuit against Oklahoma state superintendent Walters, the Oklahoma department of education and the members of the state’s school board. In a CNN interview last week, Walters decried “gaslighting from the left” and “hatred for this country pushed by woke teachers’ unions.” In addition to his Bible education mandate, Walters has demanded that Oklahoma schools screen a video for students that begins with him praying for president-elect Trump, and he recently announced that the first batch of Trump-endorsed “God Bless the USA” Bibles had arrived for public instruction. “President Trump has a clear mandate: He wants prayer back in school. He wants radical leftism out of the classroom,” Walters told the CNN host. “His agenda is crystal clear.”Okeanis Eco Tankers (NYSE:ECO) Shares Down 2.9% – Here’s What Happened
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China's mega hydel project along Brahmaputra serves as wake-up call for India's pending hydroelectric projectThe government is defending its economic record after a report found the forecast budget deficit is expected to be worse than predicted, with Australians experiencing the longest household recession since the 1970s. Analysts for Deloitte Access Economics estimate this year’s budget deficit, which Chalmers forecast in May to reach $28.3 billion, will be closer to $33.5 billion as commodity prices eat into company tax collections and inflation pushes up the costs of government services. Speaking on Nine’s Today , Social Services Minister Amanda Rishworth said the government had inherited a “pretty big economic mess” from the Coalition, pointing to the reduction in inflation under Labor. Host Karl Stefanovic interrupted to say that the government has had time to improve the economy, to which Rishworth said they had utilised that time to fight inflation, grow wages and tackle the cost of living. “The alternative would have been if Peter Dutton was the prime minister. He’s opposed every single one of the [cost of living] measures and we would be in a real recession right now if he had got his way on so many policy issues.” Nationals Senator Briget McKenzie said it was the government’s fault that Australians feel poorer. “Australians are feeling poorer because they actually are poorer under Albanese. And it is this government’s fault that the economic situation is as it is,” McKenzie said. “It’s been warned and warned about government spending. That’s why in comparable nations our numbers are in the toilet comparatively. That that is just not right.” Click here for more details on the Deloitte Access Economics report, and the treasurer’s response. The bill to ban social media for children under 16 will be a “test” for Peter Dutton’s leadership, says Social Services Minister Amanda Rishworth. Speaking on Nine’s Today , Rishworth said there was bipartisan support for the bill, but that Dutton was losing control of his caucus. “Just a couple of weeks ago, Peter Dutton said he would facilitate this important piece of legislation and support the government. And now we see our senators defying him,” she said. “So this is a test for Peter Dutton and his leadership.” Also on Today was Nationals senator Bridget McKenzie, who said there were still concerns about digital ID laws and privacy. “Given the [is] censoring the Australian public bill from the Senate this week, we want to make sure we get strong, robust laws that don’t damage privacy and make compulsory Australians having to have digital IDs,” she said. “We do want strong, robust laws to protect kids under 16 on social media platforms. We’ve been out of the blocks before the government on this. We need to get the legislation right so it does actually get the outcomes we want. And we need to make sure that those protections exist in the legislation.” Read more about the debate within the Coalition on the ban here. An alternative proposal to the social media ban on children under 16 has been put forth by independent MP Zoe Daniel, who claims a ban doesn’t tackle the underlying issues that harm young people. Daniel’s bill would implement an overarching statutory duty of care on social media companies, with the goal being “safety by design”. “What you need to make that work is the companies to assess the risks, mitigate the risks, and be transparent about how they’re doing that,” Daniel told ABC News Breakfast. “The bill also has a provision to enable users to have control over the algorithm as exists overseas, particularly in the EU, enabling users to either reset or turn off their algorithm if they wish.” Independent MP Zoe Daniel. Credit: Alex Ellinghausen Daniel says her work in the space began with tackling eating disorders, with a working group revealing the damage the algorithm was doing to sufferers by delivering them more content about eating disorders. She says the same trend is seen in a range of public health issues including gambling. “The problem with the algorithm is that in many ways, it compounds negative behaviour, and particularly for young people - that can send young people into a real spiral,” Daniel said. “The legislation is based on international best practice, so in effect, it cherry-picks the best of legislation that is already in place in Europe and in the UK.” The Goldstein MP said the government have been responsive to her proposal, and flagged they would consider duty of care eventually. But Daniel hopes the government will consider her bill now. “I understand why they want to do [the under 16s social media ban] because it is a lever to pull now and it makes parents feel better, but it actually makes zero difference to what is happening on the platforms. It doesn’t manage the algorithm or force the platforms to do anything about what is happening in their environment.” Social media companies, including Snapchat, TikTok, and Meta, have taken aim at the “rushed” consultation process for the ban on children under 16. Communications Minister Michelle Rowland introduced the world-leading reform to parliament last Thursday, which she said would make the online environment better for young people. The consultation period for groups and individuals to make submissions closed on Friday. A Senate committee held a one-day hearing on Monday and is due to report back on Tuesday. In submissions to the inquiry, several groups, including social media companies, pointed to the short notice period. Snap Inc. wrote that “the extremely compressed timeline” had allowed stakeholders little more than 24 hours to provide a response, which “severely” constrained thorough analysis and informed debate. X, formerly Twitter, also criticised the “unreasonably short time frame of one day”, writing that it has “serious concerns as to the lawfulness of the bill”. Meta, which owns Facebook, wrote that there had been “minimal consultation or engagement” and urged the government to wait for the results of the age assurance trial before progressing with the legislation. TikTok said that despite the “time-limited review”, there was a range of “serious, unresolved problems” that the government must clarify to ensure there wouldn’t be unintended consequences for all Australians. AAP Labor has gained a crucial concession from the Greens after a year of dispute over a $5.5 billion plan to help young Australians buy their first homes, securing the policy with a stunning back down from the minor party. The decisions late on Monday delivered a big victory to the federal government in the final week of parliament for the year, but other bills are on the brink of defeat after Senate crossbenchers blasted Labor for trying to rush through changes on the environment, political donations and other issues. Read more about the status of the bills on the brink, including the social media ban, political donation changes and environmental reforms, here. Good morning and welcome to the national news blog. My name is Josefine Ganko, and as always, I’ll lead our coverage for the first half of the day. It’s Tuesday, November 26. Here’s what’s making news this morning. Let’s get into it.JALEN HURTS THREW for two touchdowns and ran for another as Philadelphia outlasted upset-minded Carolina on Sunday while Minnesota routed Atlanta as both 11-2 teams neared an NFL playoff berth. Hurts completed 14-of-21 passes for 108 yards and ran eight times for 59 yards to hold off stubborn Carolina, which fell to 3-10. He scored on a 1-yard plunge early in the second quarter, connected with DeVonta Smith on a 4-yard touchdown pass 14 seconds before half-time for a 14-10 lead. After the Panthers grabbed the lead on Chuba Hubbard’s 1-yard touchdown run in the third quarter, the Eagles answered with 75 seconds elapsed in the fourth quarter on a 4-yard Hurts touchdown pass to Grant Calcaterra and a 2-point conversion run by Saquon Barkley, who ran 20 times for 124 yards. At Minneapolis, Vikings quarterback Sam Darnold completed 22-of-28 passes for 347 yards and five touchdown to power Minnesota over the Atlanta Falcons 42-21. The Vikings spoiled the return of ex-Minnesota quarterback Kirk Cousins, who threw for 344 yards but was intercepted twice. Minnesota needs losses by the Arizona Cardinals to Seattle and the Los Angeles Rams to Buffalo in later games to clinch a playoff berth. The Eagles need only an Arizona loss to secure their spot in the post-season. Later games also include the defending champion Kansas City Chiefs (11-1) entertaining the Los Angeles Chargers (8-4). Tua Tagovailoa threw a 10-yard touchdown pass to Jonnu Smith in overtime to give the Miami Dolphins a 32-26 home triumph over the New York Jets. The Pittsburgh Steelers improved to 10-3 as Russell Wilson threw for two touchdowns and Najee Harris ran for another in a 27-14 home victory over Cleveland. Baker Mayfield threw for 295 yards and three touchdowns to spark the Tampa Bay Buccaneers over visiting Las Vegas 28-13. Derek Carr threw for 219 yards and a touchdown as the New Orleans Saints edged the host New York Giants 14-11 while Tank Bigsby’s 8-yard touchdown run with 6:46 remaining gave Jacksonville a 10-6 victory at Tennessee.
REGINA — The Saskatchewan legislature resumed Monday, with Premier Scott Moe’s government promising to do better on everything from health care to education -- and on civility in the house. The two-week sitting began with the election of a new Speaker – Melfort member Todd Goudy – and a throne speech outlining the priorities and goals of Moe’s governing Saskatchewan Party. Prior to the throne speech, Moe told reporters his caucus will no longer send the Speaker harassing text messages and are to follow the Speaker’s orders. “It's incumbent on me to ensure that I'm having the conversations with the team that I serve alongside,” Moe said when asked about texting issues. “We will be critical of policy at times, also complimentary of policy at times, but always be respectful of all the members in that assembly. “(The Speaker) is the arbitrator in the room, and as I would say, the most honourable position of all.” The last Speaker, Randy Weekes, accused members of Moe’s Saskatchewan Party caucus of intimidation and harassment through text messages. Weekes did not run in the last election. Goudy told the assembly he will put aside political biases in his new role and allow members to express opinions while preserving decorum. He said he hopes members will treat one another with respect. Moe said his caucus will lead by example. "With respect to what a new beginning looks like ... you're just going to have to watch us," he said. "The tone is going to be a respectful one, and the effort that we are going to bring forward is to really quantify and clarify what a brighter future in Saskatchewan looks like.” The start of the legislative session comes a month after the Oct. 28 election, which delivered Moe's party a slimmer majority with 34 seats in the 61-seat legislature. Carla Beck's NDP is to form the Opposition with 27 seats. The government's first piece of legislation is to be the Saskatchewan Affordability Act. The bill is to enact the Saskatchewan Party's election campaign commitments to address affordability issues, including personal tax relief to save a family of four more than $3,400 over four years. The province also plans to continue not charging the federal carbon levy on home heating, introduce a home renovation tax credit and increase benefits for those with disabilities and families with kids in sports and arts. On health care, Moe said he's promising to hire more family doctors and shorten surgical wait times by making sure 450,000 surgeries are performed over four years. He also said the province wants to open additional urgent care centres in Regina and Saskatoon, along with others in smaller cities. In education, the speech promises to expand a pilot program that would see 200 additional schools in Saskatchewan receive specialized support to deal with students with higher needs. The government also promises more funding to help children from kindergarten to Grade 3 improve reading skills. "A child's ability to read at a level by Grade 3 is the single greatest predictor of future academic success," Moe said. The government has already changed course on one election announcement. On the campaign trail, Moe announced that the first order of business of his government would be a policy that would ban “biological boys” from using school changing rooms with “biological girls.” After the election, Moe said that policy was no longer his first order of business and that he misspoke when announcing it. On Monday, he said Monday school boards are being consulted on a change room policy that would support all students. Beck has said the ban would put vulnerable kids at even greater risk. The NDP also plans to push the government to pause the 15-cent-a-litre gasoline tax. Beck has said her party is to introduce an emergency motion Tuesday that would call for a suspension of the gas tax by Wednesday. This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 25, 2024. Jeremy Simes, The Canadian PressBelieve it or not, Cowboys might have hope yet after chaotic win at WashingtonGeorgia Tech cruises past Alabama A&M
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COLUMBUS, Ohio -- A brawl exploded Saturday between Michigan and Ohio State when the Wolverines planted their flag at midfield in the Horseshoe following their stunning 13-10 upset of the second-ranked Buckeyes. Police eventually used pepper spray to quash the scuffle that lasted roughly five minutes. Players and coaches from both sides were left bloodied from the pushing and shoving. As the Wolverines gathered on the Block O logo in celebration, several Ohio State players rushed in throwing punches. Michigan players punched back. Wolverines coach Sherrone Moore and Ohio State athletic director Ross Bjork were among those who tried to break up the multiple skirmishes that broke out. Several police officers eventually stepped in and attempted to form a line separating the two teams. Editor's Picks Michigan stuns Ohio St. for 4th straight in rivalry 19m Associated Press Saturday Shocker: Michigan shocks No. 2 Ohio State to lead top 2024 upsets 1h ESPN Staff Ohio State University police said in a statement that "officers from multiple law enforcement agencies assisted in breaking up an on-field altercation. During the scuffle, multiple officers representing Ohio and Michigan deployed pepper spray." Ohio State police said it will continue to investigate the incident. Buckeyes coach Ryan Day later blamed Michigan for starting the melee by planting the flag. "I don't know all the details of it, but I know these guys are looking to put a flag on our field and our guys weren't going to let that happen," Day said. "I'll find out exactly what happened. But this is our field and certainly we're embarrassed of the fact that we lost the game, but there's some prideful guys in this team that weren't going to just let that happen." Moore said he wished both teams handled the incident better. "It was emotions on both sides," Moore said. "I did see they had the flag and guys were waving it around and their guys charged us. There's emotion on both sides. It can't happen. Rivalry games get heated, especially this one, it's the biggest one in the country, so we got to handle that one better." The Wolverines came in as 20.5-point underdogs, the second-biggest spread in the rivalry dating back to 1978. But after a scoreless second half, Dominic Zvada nailed a 21-yard field goal with 45 seconds remaining, giving Michigan its fourth straight win in the series. Wolverines All-American defensive tackle Mason Graham and Ohio State defensive end Jack Sawyer emphatically traded insults as the incident finally waned, with several Michigan players waving bye to the Buckeyes as they finally walked away. Kaleel Mullings, who rushed for 116 yards and scored the Wolverines' only touchdown, called the Buckeyes "classless" for trying to fight afterward. "For such a great game, you hate to see stuff like that after the game," he said. "This is bad for the sport and bad for college football, but at the end of the day, some people have got to learn how to lose. You can't be fighting and stuff just because you lost a game. All that fighting -- we had 60 minutes, we had four quarters to do all that fighting, and now, people want to talk and fight. ... People have got to be better."