Watkins and the Trojans (4-1) fell behind early and were down 21 points in the fourth quarter. She had 24 points, six rebounds and five assists. Hidalgo came out shooting well, hitting 5 of 8 from the floor in the first quarter and had 16 points at the break. She added six rebounds and eight assists. Hidalgo's backcourt mate, Olivia Miles, added 20 points, eight rebounds and seven assists for the Fighting Irish (5-0). Even though Hidalgo outshone her, Watkins’ imprint was all over the game. A documentary about her life aired on NBC leading into the nationally televised game. A buzz arose when Snoop Dogg walked in shortly before tipoff wearing a jacket in USC colors with Watkins' name and number on the front and back. Her sister, Mali, sang the national anthem. Takeaways Notre Dame: The Irish struck quickly, racing to a 20-10 lead in the opening quarter. Even after cooling off a bit, they never trailed and stayed poised when the Trojans got within three in the second and third quarters. USC: The Trojans were without starting guard Kennedy Smith, whose defense on Hidalgo would have proven valuable. It was announced shortly before tipoff that she had a surgical procedure and will return at some point this season. Key moment The Trojans got within three points three times but the Irish remained poised and never gave up the lead. Key stats Notre Dame's defense forced the Trojans into 21 turnovers, which led to 22 points for the Irish. Watkins, Kaleigh Heckel and Talia von Oelhoffen had five each. USC was just 1 of 13 from 3-point range Up next Notre Dame plays TCU on Nov. 29 in the Cayman Islands Classic. USC plays Seton Hall in the Women's Acrisure Holiday Invitational on Nov. 27 in Palm Desert, California.
FBI Director Wray says he intends to resign before Trump takes office in JanuaryTrump taps Rollins as agriculture chief, completing proposed slate of Cabinet secretariesWords on ammo in CEO shooting echo common phrase on insurer tactics: Delay, deny, defend A message left at the scene of an insurance executive’s fatal shooting echoes a phrase commonly used to describe insurer tactics to avoid paying claims. The words “deny,” “defend” and “depose” were written on the ammunition used to kill UnitedHealthcare's CEO. That's according to two officials who spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity Thursday. The words are similar to the phrase “delay, deny, defend.” That's how attorneys describe insurers denying services and payment, and the title of a 2010 book critical of the industry. Police haven’t officially commented on the words. But Thompson’s shooting and the messages on the ammunition have sparked outrage on social media and elsewhere, reflecting frustration Americans have over the cost and complexity of getting care. Bitcoin has surpassed the $100,000 mark as the post-election rally continues. What's next? NEW YORK (AP) — Bitcoin has topped the $100,000 mark, extending a rally in the world’s most popular cryptocurrency sparked by the election of Donald Trump. The milestone comes just hours after the president-elect signaled a lighter regulatory approach to the crypto industry with his choice of crypto advocate Paul Atkins to be the next chair of the Securities and Exchange Commission. Bitcoin has soared to unprecedented heights since Trump won the election Nov. 5. The cryptocurrency has climbed dramatically from $69,374 on Election Day and rose to more than $103,000 before falling back below $100,000 by Thursday afternoon. US judge rejects Boeing's plea deal in a conspiracy case stemming from fatal plane crashes DALLAS (AP) — A federal judge has rejected a deal that would have allowed Boeing to plead guilty to a felony conspiracy charge and pay a fine for misleading U.S. regulators about the 737 Max jetliner before two of the planes crashed, killing 346 people. The ruling on Thursday by U.S. District Judge Reed O’Connor in Texas creates uncertainty around the criminal prosecution of the aerospace giant in connection with the development of its bestselling airline plane. O’Connor’s decision was almost certain to please many relatives of the passengers who died in the crashes, which took place off the coast of Indonesia and in Ethiopia less than five months apart. McKinsey subsidiary will pay $122M for scheme to bribe South African officials, US says WASHINGTON (AP) — An African subsidiary of the consulting firm McKinsey & Company Inc. will pay a criminal penalty of more than $122 million to resolve a U.S. Justice Department investigation into a yearslong scheme to bribe South African government officials. The Justice Department says the scheme involved bribes to officials with South Africa’s state-owned and state-controlled custodian of ports, rails, and pipelines, as well as its state-controlled energy company. It netted McKinsey Africa and its parent company $85 million in profits between 2012 and 2016, officials said. McKinsey said in a statement that it “welcomes the resolution of these matters and the closure of this regretful situation.” EPA hails 'revitalized' enforcement efforts as Biden administration heads to exit WASHINGTON (AP) — The Environmental Protection Agency says it concluded more than 1,850 civil cases this year, a 3.4% increase over 2023, and charged 121 criminal defendants, a 17.6% increase over the previous year. The agency also issued $1.7 billion in financial penalties, more than double last year's total. Thursday's report was the final one account of Biden-era enforcement actions before President-elect Donald Trump takes office in January. Enforcement efforts included first-ever criminal charges for a California man accused of smuggling climate-damaging air coolants into the United States. Engine maker Cummins Inc. paid more than $2 billion in fines and penalties after it was found to use illegal software to skirt diesel emissions tests. Work-life balance isn't working for women. Why? NEW YORK (AP) — About half of working women reported feeling stressed “a lot of the day,” compared to about 4 in 10 men, according to a Gallup report published Wednesday. The report suggests that competing demands of work and home comprise part of the problem: working women who are parents or guardians are more likely than men who are parents to say they have declined or delayed a promotion at work because of personal or family obligations, and mothers are more likely than fathers to “strongly agree” that they are the default responders for unexpected child care issues. But changing workplace culture and prioritizing well-being can improve the problem, according to Karen Guggenheim, creator of the World Happiness Summit. From outsider to the Oval Office, bitcoin surges as a new administration embraces crypto NEW YORK (AP) — Bitcoin burst on the scene after trust had withered in the financial system and Washington’s ability to protect people from it. Now, it’s Washington’s embrace of bitcoin that’s sending it to records. Bitcoin briefly surged above $103,000 after President-elect Donald Trump said he will nominate Paul Atkins, who's seen as friendly to crypto, to be the Securities and Exchange Commission's next chair. The crypto industry, meanwhile, did its part to bring politicians friendly to digital currencies into Washington. It's a twist from bitcoin's early days, when it was lauded as a kind of electronic cash that wouldn’t be beholden to any government or financial institution. Stock market today: Wall Street edges back from its records as bitcoin briefly pops above $100,000 NEW YORK (AP) — U.S. stocks edged back from their records as Wall Street counted down to a big jobs report that’s coming on Friday. The S&P 500 fell 0.2% Thursday. The Dow Jones Industrial Average lost 0.6%, and the Nasdaq composite sank 0.2% from its own all-time high. The crypto market had more action, and bitcoin briefly burst to a record above $103,000 before falling back toward $99,000. It's climbed dramatically since Election Day on hopes President-elect Donald Trump will be more friendly to crypto. Airline stocks were strong, while Treasury yields held relatively steady in the bond market. Key members of OPEC+ alliance are putting off production increases amid slack crude prices FRANKFURT, Germany (AP) — Eight members of the OPEC+ alliance of oil exporting countries have decided to put off increasing oil production as they face weaker than expected demand and competing production from non-allied countries — factors that could keep oil prices stagnant into next year. The OPEC+ members decided at an online meeting to postpone by three months production increases that had been scheduled to take effect Jan. 1. The plan had been to start gradually restoring 2.2 million barrels per day over the course of 2025. That process will now be pushed back to April 1, 2025 and production increases will gradually take place over 18 months until October 2026. Fox News loses bid for Smartmatic voting-tech company's records about Philippines bribery case NEW YORK (AP) — Smartmatic does not need to give Fox News any information about U.S. federal charges against the voting machine company’s co-founder over alleged bribery in the Philippines. A New York judge on Thursday also turned down Smartmatic’s request to question two Fox Corp. board members. It already has questioned others. Smartmatic is suing Fox News for $2.7 billion. The election-technology company says its business was gutted when Fox aired false claims that Smartmatic helped rig the 2020 vote. Fox says it was just reporting on newsworthy allegations. Fox maintains the Philippines bribery allegations are pertinent to Smartmatic’s business prospects and claims of losses. Florida-based Smartmatic isn’t charged in the criminal case and says it's irrelevant in the defamation suit.
Jayden Daniels and the offense stalling have the Commanders on a three-game losing streak
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Franco Colapinto Cleared for Las Vegas Grand Prix After CrashingKandi Technologies stock hits 52-week low at $1.07
WASHINGTON (AP) — FBI Director Christopher Wray told bureau workers Wednesday that he plans to resign at the end of President Joe Biden's term in January, an announcement that came a week and a half after President-elect Donald Trump said he would nominate loyalist Kash Patel for the job. Wray said at a town hall meeting that he would be stepping down “after weeks of careful thought,” roughly three years short of the completion of a 10-year term during which he tried to keep the FBI out of politics even as the bureau found itself entangled in a string of explosive investigations, including two that led to separate indictments of Trump last year as well as inquiries into Biden and his son. Javascript is required for you to be able to read premium content. Please enable it in your browser settings.Stocks closed higher on Wall Street, giving the market its fifth gain in a row and notching another record high for the Dow Jones Industrial Average. The S&P 500 rose 0.3% Friday. The Dow added 1%, and the Nasdaq composite tacked on 0.2%. Retailers had some of the biggest gains. Gap soared after reporting quarterly results that easily beat analysts’ estimates. EchoStar fell after DirecTV called off its purchase of that company’s Dish Network unit. European markets closed mostly higher and Asian markets ended mixed. Treasury yields held relatively steady in the bond market. Crude oil prices gained ground. THIS IS A BREAKING NEWS UPDATE. AP’s earlier story follows below. Stocks rose on Wall Street in afternoon trading Friday, keeping the market on track for its fifth straight gain. The S&P 500 was up 0.2% and was solidly on track for a weekly gain that will erase most of last week's loss. The Dow Jones Industrial Average climbed 333 points, or 0.8%, and the Nasdaq composite was essentially flat with a gain of less than 0.1% as of 3:07 p.m. Eastern. Markets have been volatile over the last few weeks, losing ground in the runup to elections in November, then surging following Donald Trump's victory, before falling again. The S&P 500 has been steadily rising throughout this week to within close range of its record. “Overall, market behavior has normalized following an intense few weeks,” said Mark Hackett, chief of investment research at Nationwide, in a statement. Several retailers jumped after giving Wall Street encouraging financial updates. Gap soared 10.8% after handily beating analysts' third-quarter earnings and revenue expectations, while raising its own revenue forecast for the year. Discount retailer Ross Stores rose 1.5% after raising its earnings forecast for the year. EchoStar fell 2.4% after DirecTV called off its purchase of that company's Dish Network unit. Smaller company stocks had some of the biggest gains. The Russell 2000 index rose 1.8%. A majority of stocks in the S&P 500 were gaining ground, but those gains were kept in check by slumps for several big technology companies. Nvidia fell 3.3%. Its pricey valuation makes it among the heaviest influences on whether the broader market gains or loses ground. The company has grown into a nearly $3.6 trillion behemoth because of demand for its chips used in artificial-intelligence technology. Intuit, which makes TurboTax and other accounting software, fell 5.6%. It gave investors a quarterly earnings forecast that fell short of analysts’ expectations. Facebook owner Meta Platforms fell 0.8% following a decision by the Supreme Court to allow a multibillion-dollar class action investors’ lawsuit to proceed against the company. It stems from the privacy scandal involving the Cambridge Analytica political consulting firm. European markets closed mostly higher and Asian markets ended mixed. Crude oil prices rose. Treasury yields held relatively steady in the bond market. The yield on the 10-year Treasury fell to 4.41% from 4.42% late Thursday. In the crypto market, Bitcoin hovered around $99,000, according to CoinDesk. It has more than doubled this year and first surpassed the $99,000 level on Thursday. Retailers remained a big focus for investors this week amid close scrutiny on consumer spending habits headed into the holiday shopping season. Walmart, the nation's largest retailer, reported a quarter of strong sales and gave investors an encouraging financial forecast. Target, though, reported weaker earnings than analysts' expected and its forecast disappointed Wall Street. Consumer spending has fueled economic growth, despite a persistent squeeze from inflation and high borrowing costs. Inflation has been easing and the Federal Reserve has started trimming its benchmark interest rates. That is likely to help relieve pressure on consumers, but any major shift in spending could prompt the Fed to reassess its path ahead on interest rates. Also, any big reversals on the rate of inflation could curtail spending. Consumer sentiment remains strong, according to the University of Michigan's consumer sentiment index. It revised its latest figure for November to 71.8 from an initial reading of 73 earlier this month, though economists expected a slight increase. It's still up from 70.5 in October. The survey also showed that consumers' inflation expectations for the year ahead fell slightly to 2.6%, which is the lowest reading since December of 2020. Wall Street will get another update on how consumers feel when the business group The Conference Board releases its monthly consumer confidence survey on Tuesday. A key inflation update will come on Wednesday when the U.S. releases its October personal consumption expenditures index. The PCE is the Fed's preferred measure of inflation and this will be the last PCE reading prior to the central bank's meeting in December. Damian J. Troise And Alex Veiga, The Associated Press
NEW YORK (AP) — The huge rally for U.S. stocks lost momentum on Thursday as Wall Street counted down to a big jobs report that’s coming on Friday. The crypto market had more action, and bitcoin briefly burst to a record above $103,000 before pulling back. The S&P 500 slipped 0.2% from the all-time high it had set the day before, its 56th of the year so far, to shave a bit off what’s set to be one of its best years of the millennium . The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 248 points, or 0.6%, while the Nasdaq composite slipped 0.2% from its own record set the day before. Bitcoin powered above $100,000 for the first time the night before, after President-elect Donald Trump chose Paul Atkins, who's seen as a crypto advocate, as his nominee to head the Securities and Exchange Commission. The cryptocurrency has climbed dramatically from less than $70,000 on Election Day, but it fell back as Thursday progressed toward $99,000, according to CoinDesk. Sharp swings for bitcoin are nothing new, and they took stocks of companies enmeshed in the crypto world on a similar ride. After rising as much as 9% in early trading, MicroStrategy, a company that’s been raising cash just to buy bitcoin, swung to a loss of 4.8%. Crypto exchange Coinbase Global fell 3.1% after likewise erasing a big early gain. Elsewhere on Wall Street, stocks of airlines helped lead the way following the latest bumps up to financial forecasts from carriers. American Airlines Group soared 16.8% after saying it’s making more in revenue during the last three months of 2024 than it expected, and it will likely make a bigger profit than it had earlier forecast. The airline also chose Citi to be its exclusive partner for credit cards that give miles in its loyalty program. That should help its cash coming in from co-branded credit card and other partners grow by about 10% annually. Southwest Airlines climbed 2% after saying it’s seeing stronger demand from leisure travelers than it expected. It also raised its forecast for revenue for the holiday traveling season. On the losing end of Wall Street was Synposys, which tumbled 12.4%. The supplier for the semiconductor industry reported better profit for the latest quarter than analysts expected, but it also warned of “continued macro uncertainties” and gave a forecast for revenue in the current quarter that fell short of some analysts’ estimates. American Eagle Outfitters fell even more, 14.3%, after the retailer said it’s preparing for “potential choppiness” outside of peak selling periods. It was reminiscent of a warning from Foot Locker earlier in the week and raised more concerns about how resilient U.S. shoppers can remain. Solid spending by U.S. consumers has been one of the main reasons the U.S. economy has avoided a recession that earlier seemed inevitable after the Federal Reserve hiked interest rates to crush inflation. But shoppers are now contending with still-high prices and a slowing job market . This week’s highlight for Wall Street will be Friday’s jobs report from the U.S. government, which will show how many people employers hired and fired last month. A report on Thursday said the number of U.S. workers applying for unemployment benefits rose last week but remains at historically healthy levels. Expectations are high that the Fed will cut its main interest rate again when it meets in two weeks. The Fed began easing its main interest rate from a two-decade high in September, hoping to offer more support for the job market. In the bond market, the yield on the 10-year Treasury edged down to 4.17% from 4.18% late Wednesday. The S&P 500 fell 11.38 points to 6,075.11. The Dow sank 248.33 to 44,765.71, and the Nasdaq composite lost 34.86 to 19,700.26. In stock markets abroad, indexes were mostly calm in Europe after far-right and left-wing lawmakers in France joined together to vote on a no-confidence motion that will force Prime Minister Michel Barnier and his Cabinet to resign. The CAC 40 index in Paris added 0.4%. In South Korea, the Kospi fell 0.9% to compound its 1.4% decline from the day before. President Yoon Suk Yeol was facing possible impeachment after he suddenly declared martial law on Tuesday night. He revoked the martial law declaration six hours later. Crude oil prices slipped after eight members of the OPEC+ alliance of oil exporting countries decided to put off increasing oil production. AP Business Writers Yuri Kageyama and Matt Ott contributed.No. 8 Kentucky flying high ahead of Western Kentucky meeting
Do we want patients consulting trapos (traditional politicians) for health assistance? It might become the norm as social health insurance (the Philippine Health Insurance Corp., better known as PhilHealth) gets defunded in favor of a medical assistance program that reeks of patronage politics. We hear politicians singing hosannas for the Medical Assistance to Indigent Patients (MAIP) run by the Department of Health (DoH), which allows politicos to dole out Guarantee Letters (GLs) from their share of MAIP funds. MAIP only had a budget of P1.8 billion when it was created in 2015, but it is now the fastest growing item in the DoH budget. By fiscal year 2025, it will grow over 40 times its original budget when Congress soon approves a P74-billion MAIP budget. On the other hand, the budget for indigents (the premiums of indirect contributors) in PhilHealth has declined from P79 billion in 2023 to P40 billion this year and will stay below its budget level in 2023, with the Senate contemplating a budget of P47 billion for indigent premiums in 2025. This situation is not a new development, as politicians have always curried favor with constituents through ayuda (assistance) programs since COVID-19 hit in 2020. But this time the scale of health patronage is clearly exceeding the public health system’s regular funding. PhilHealth’s Social Health Insurance Program for indigents has suffered the most under this unwritten policy. The health system embodied in Universal Health Care is being gutted to fund MAIP. Indigent patients have always been intimidated by large public hospitals, which they can only go to if they have money in their pocket. Political patronage through MAIP may now mean indigents going to the politicians first before they even think of entering an emergency room or consulting a primary care physician. COMPARING PHILHEALTH AND MAIP PhilHealth serves 17 times more patients than MAIP. In 2023 the number of patients assisted by PhilHealth was 12,675,634. In comparison, based on available data from the DoH website, MAIP served 737,280 patients, in a similar period from July 2022 to June 2023. On average, PhilHealth paid out an average of P4,900 per patient claim in 2023. In comparison, using Region 12 (Soccsksargen) as example, where data are publicly available, we note that DoH’s MAIP provided P3 billion to private hospitals and assisted 140,200 patients with an average of P21,398 per claim in the first nine months of 2024. In short, given the limited data available to us, we can estimate that PhilHealth was able to serve 17 patients for every patient under MAIP (with Region 12 as comparator) with roughly the same amount of funds. GOODWILL OPPORTUNITY Unregulated MAIP funds provide an opportunity for politicians to gain goodwill to the detriment of the health system. MAIP fund support is entirely discretionary on the part of the approving authority (politicians and government executives). The goodwill generated by the generous persons in authority is highly valued, and this translates to political support or votes from the beneficiary who now has a feeling of utang na loob (debt of gratitude) for the political benefactor. This type of political patronage in health is probably more appealing to politicians who want to avoid the “share of percentage” from pork barrel projects paid back to them by favored contractors out of fear of a paper trail of corruption. The politician can exert influence through an apparently “corruption-free” manner through this type of health ayuda . But it is still essentially corruption, for it is a form of bribing voters. MAIP started as an exclusive program for indigents who would have to show proof of indigency from the barangay captain where the beneficiary resided to be covered by the program. However, since mid-2023, the DoH has loosened this requirement to allow financially incapable patients to avail themselves of MAIP (now renamed Medical Assistance to Indigent and Financially Incapacitated Patients or MAIFIP). This expansion of MAIP to non-indigents allows political patronage to reach an even broader segment of the population, something that is most important during election seasons. TWO SYSTEMS Two systems of financing healthcare are emerging. While PhilHealth provides a similar package of assistance to all its 91 million registered members (as of June 2024) in need regardless of financial capacity, MAIFIP provides assistance to 17 times fewer beneficiaries without regulatory constraint and dependent only on what the approving authority will allow. The emergence of two systems of health financing in the country is more than worrisome, primarily because one system feeds off the other and may end up with the health sector being saddled by two competing programs which increases ine ff iciency. The DoH has noted that benchmark indicators of population health have yielded poor results: • Infant mortality went up to 22/1,000 live births in 2022 (from 21/1,000 the previous year); • Maternal mortality rate increased to 154/100,000 in 2021 (from 149/100,000 in 2021; and, • Neonatal mortality is now 15/1,000 live births (increasing since 2013). The recent decline in the above health indicators is evidence that our primary and secondary levels of health provision (mainly under local government control) have been severely tested by the pandemic and continue to underperform. Such weakness will put a heavy strain on higher levels of care run by provincial, regional, and National Governments and providers in the private sector. The alarm bells are ringing for our healthcare system. The poor and underserved Filipinos feel the crisis. Our highest authorities have remained deaf. It is high time civil society raised a hue and cry about the dismantling of Universal Health Care. Jeepy Perez, a doctor of Medicine, specializes in public health administration, primary healthcare, and has worked with nine Health Secretaries and three National Economic and Development Authority Secretaries since 1992. He was undersecretary for Population and Development and executive director of the country’s Commission on Population and Development up to Sept. 8, 2022, when he retired. He occasionally writes for Action for Economic Reforms.By SHAWN CHEN NEW YORK (AP) — It’s time for the holidays, which means robust family conversations and seemingly never-ending courses of food. But for the more tech-savvy among us, the journey home could also mean we’ll be called on to provide a backlog of tech support to parents, grandparents and other family members. And with generative AI being used to supercharge some major cyber scams this year, it’s also a good time to teach and not just fix. Here are some tips on how to manage your tech encounters this holiday season : Whether it’s Windows , macOS , iOS or Android , simply keeping your operating system and apps up-to-date will help protect your family’s computers and devices against a surprising number of security threats, such as malware, viruses and exploits. Most operating systems, especially those for mobile devices and their app stores, typically have auto-updates turned on by default. Be sure to double-check the device to make sure it has enough storage space to carry out the update. (More on this below.) Keeping apps updated may also reduce the number of “Why isn’t this app working?” type of questions from your relatives. Chances are someone in your family is going to have a completely full mobile device. So full, in fact, that they can no longer update their phone or tablet without having to purge something first. There are many approaches to freeing up space. Here are a few you can easily take without having to triage data or apps. — Use the cloud to back up media: iPhone users can free up space occupied by songs and pictures by storing them on iCloud . Android users can use the Google Photos app to back up and store their photos on their user space. — Clear browsing data: Each major browser has an option to clear its data cache — cookies, search and download histories, autofill forms, site settings, sign-in data and so on. Over time, these bits take up a significant amount of storage space on mobile devices and home computers. So cleaning caches out periodically helps free up space and, in some cases, improves system performance. According to some admittedly unscientific studies, the average person has hundreds of passwords. That’s a lot to remember. So as you help your relatives reset some of theirs, you may be tempted to recycle some to keep things simple for them. But that’s one of the bad password habits that cybersecurity experts warn against. Instead, try introducing your forgetful family member to a password manager . They’re useful tools for simplifying and keeping track of logins. And if you want to impress a more tech-savvy cousin or auntie, you could suggest switching to a more secure digital authentication method: passkeys . As scammers find new ways to steal money and personal information, you and your family should be more vigilant about who to trust. Artificial intelligence and other technologies are giving bad actors craftier tools to work with online. Related Articles National News | The next census will gather more racial, ethnic information National News | As data centers proliferate, conflict with local communities follows National News | Fox News loses bid for Smartmatic voting-tech company’s records about Philippines bribery case National News | Gunman who killed UnitedHeathcare CEO left eerie message on bullets, NYPD sources say National News | Today in History: December 5, Nelson Mandela dies at 95 A quick way to remember what to do when you think you’re getting scammed is to think about the three S’s, said Alissa Abdullah, also known as Dr. Jay, Mastercard’s deputy chief security officer “Stay suspicious, stop for a second (and think about it) and stay protected,” she said. Simply being aware of typical scams can help, experts say. Robocalls frequently target vulnerable individuals like seniors, people with disabilities, and people with debt. So-called romance scams target lonely and isolated individuals. Quiz scams target those who spend a lot of time on social media. Check our AP guide on the latest scams and what to do when you’re victimized. Home internet speeds are getting faster, so you want to make sure your family members are getting a high-speed connection if they’ve paid for one. Run a broadband speed test on your home network if they’re still rocking an aging modem and router.Kansas City Chiefs back to winning ways against Carolina PanthersPARIS — Hell hath no fury like a driver scorned. Take the traffic-choked French capital as an example, where an attempt to reduce vehicle collisions, gridlock, emissions and noise on a highway encircling Paris has provoked a head-on political crash. The long-simmering dispute over what many see as Paris’s crusade against cars has come to a boil over a controversial decision to slash speed limits on a 35-kilometre highway known as . In some ways, it is the European equivalent of the fight between Toronto, , and the car-friendly Ontario government, which wants to and to ease gridlock. In one lane is Paris Mayor Anne Hidalgo. In a measure intended to cut noise, pollution, traffic jams and accidents on the Paris ring road she recently ordered speed limits reduced to 50 km/h from 70 km/h. It’s one step along the path to a more extreme transformation that reimagines the cars-and-concrete highway as a boulevard shared by buses, bikes and bipeds. In the opposite lane is a convoy of irate suburban commuters, motorcyclists, professional drivers like cabbies and truckers, and opposition politicians. They are now charting lawsuits, legislation and political campaigns, arguing that Hidalgo’s anti-car policies have now swerved recklessly across the median line. “What is very different with the 50 km/h (speed limit) compared to the other anti-car measures in Paris is that this affects many more people who did not vote for her, who did not choose her as their representative and who are deeply opposed,” said Alexandra Legendre, a spokesperson with the Drivers’ Defence League, a group that lobbies for the interests of motorists in France. The Paris ring road was built on the site of fortifications erected around the French capital in 1844 and torn down in 1919 at the end of the First World War. More than three decades later, work began on the circular highway intended to liberate drivers from the evils of traffic jams, letting them reach their destinations without having to negotiate the hustle and bustle of central Paris. “In a few days, getting around Paris without meeting a single red light will no longer be a dream,” ahead of the completion of the final section of the loop in 1973. Yet the work had barely been completed when began. Other, more serious problems soon appeared. Noise from the fast-moving cars has long been a nuisance for the 500,000 residents who live next to the highway and is believed to be linked to health problems, such as sleep loss, cardiovascular problems and stress, . And the 1.3 million cars that use it each day are , according to , an agency that tracks air quality in the greater Paris region. Naturally, there are also accidents, albeit very few fatalities, perhaps owing to the highway’s congestion, which keeps daytime speeds to a little over 30 km/h. To tackle these issues, officials have, over the years, installed sound barriers to cut the noise levels. In 2014, reduced the maximum speed on the highway to 70 km/h from 80 — a measure that had positive effects on emissions entering the atmosphere as well as the fluidity of traffic. This was the same year that Hidalgo, a member of France’s Socialist Party, was chosen as mayor and launched what her opponents say has been a frontal attack against cars and drivers. Over a decade in power, she has shut down express lanes on the banks of the Seine River, reduced the number of downtown parking spaces, converted car lanes to bike lanes and pedestrianized city streets. Just recently, her administration designated the central core of downtown a limited traffic zone — barring through traffic by drivers seeking to quickly cut from one end of the city to the other. without an express purpose such as a medical appointment, tickets to a show, or getting to work. Residents have long grumbled about the inconveniences caused by Hidalgo’s car wars. However, when dissipated and she announced that the city would be moving forward with a long-planned cut to the speed limit on the city’s ring road, many saw it as a step too far. This photograph taken on November 11, 2024 shows a sign near the Louvre museum, indicating the limited traffic zone (ZTL), an aera in the central core of the French capital banning vehicles from transiting through it, in Paris. “They’ve put in place a policy where cars are excluded, but there has been nothing to compensate for the absence of cars,” said Séverine Manna, a Paris lawyer . She said city officials haven’t done the necessary studies to back up the new limits. She added that the restrictions have not been accompanied by a more robust public transport system to give people alternative ways to get to and from Paris in a timely manner. “They’re telling people: ‘There are no more cars — get used to it,’ ” Manna said. “We are all ecologists in our souls but there are times when there are realities that are not being heard.” Others have complained that Paris failed to consult with neighbouring municipalities before taking a decision that has a great impact on commuters from the suburbs. A regional elected official, Valérie Pécresse, has deemed the new speed limits “anti-social and ineffective” and urged Hidalgo to instead install sound barriers along the ring road or turn over responsibility for the road to the region. In addition to the war of words, a statistical battle has broken out. The city has started releasing a weekly bulletin showing drops in nighttime noise, traffic jams and accidents — though no significant reduction in emissions. In response, Pécresse ordered her own officials to begin tracking noise, pollution and traffic indicators along the route. The show reductions in every category, including pollution. Paris is hardly alone in wanting to transform its infrastructure to make it safer, greener or more amenable to the people who live and work in its vicinity. New York, Barcelona, Helsinki, Vancouver and many other cities around the world have all questioned the sustainability and uses of highways built for an era when the car was king and the environment was an afterthought. Before opting to the Gardiner Expressway Toronto, too, flirted with the idea of dismantling or burying its main east-to-west highway as a way to reconnect the city with its waterfront. The evangelists of highway transformation see no alternatives. “The question is: can we imagine that our highways remain as they are? We’re in a very deep climate crisis,” said Paul Lecroart, a senior urban planner for the Paris Metropolitan Region. “The question is how can we do things faster.” Paris Mayor Anne Hidalgo swims in the Seine, in Paris on July 17, 2024, to demonstrate the river’s cleanliness in advance of hosting Olympic swimming events later that month. Lecroart acknowledges that fear and the inconvenience of adopting new habits plays a big role in the public resistance to such large-scale change. The key to success is to provide ready-made alternatives and demonstrate their benefits. The main one, in Lecroart’s estimation, is “traffic evaporation.” “People give up on movements that are less useful,” he said. The shining example is South Korea, where 80 per cent of automobile traffic disappeared after the mayor of Seoul decided to demolish the six-kilometre , reclaiming and rehabilitating the stream that ran beneath the highway as a public space. In other cities, Lecroart said, traffic dropped between 20 and 25 per cent due to people opting instead for public transport. “They are never forced. We’re in a liberal system where everyone can do what they want. People can take their car downtown, but either we encourage it, (or) we discourage it,” he said. Paris hasn’t completely laid out its long-term vision for , perhaps for fear of raising the ire of its four-wheeled adversaries. But the French capital also has like-minded allies too. In the eastern suburbs, officials have drawn up a rather extreme that ushers motorists into and out of central Paris. It’s a slow-motion transformation that starts with the installation of dedicated public-transit lanes in 2026, continues with lowered speed limits in 2032 and cutting the space for cars by half in 2040. The project concludes in 2050 with a road — one lane moving at 30 km/h in either direction — in something resembling a nature park, surrounded by reclaimed and reforested land, bike paths, and picnic tables. Gaylord Le Chequer, a city councillor in Montreuil, said the initial reaction of residents was surprise and, for some, hostility — the sense that they were being deprived of something or punished. “For us, it’s important not to be seen as punishing people but to demonstrate, going step by step, that the transformations are useful — notably from an environmental perspective — and that they are possible,” he said. “Whether you are right or left ... there is a movement that is growing to say on behalf of the residents who live in proximity to this infrastructure, that we have real problems and so it’s time to act.”
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Judge officially dismisses election interference case against TrumpBudget Blinds Announces Strategic Changes to Executive Leadership TeamThe drillship 'West Capella' enters to load drilling materials in Busan, Dec. 9. Yonhap A drillship tasked with initiating the drilling operation for a major gas and oil exploration project in the East Sea arrived Monday at an offshore anchorage near the southeastern port city of Busan, the industry ministry said. The arrival comes amid growing uncertainties surrounding the incumbent administration's flagship projects, including the exploration, which have been fueled by President Yoon Suk Yeol's botched martial law attempt last week. The West Capella, operated by Norway-based Seadrill, will load necessary supplies over the next seven to eight days before launching its first operation, according to the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy and the state-run Korea National Oil Corp. The drillship is set to depart for the first drilling site around next Tuesday for the exploration project, which could potentially uncover between 3.5 billion and 14 billion barrels of gas and oil. "The large-scale ship cannot dock at Busan New Port due to its shallow waters. The West Capella will anchor at a distance where it will be faintly visible from the Yeongdo district of Busan," an industry official said. During an interview with Yonhap News Agency earlier this month, Industry Minister Ahn Duk-geun said that while a full analysis may take some time, the government is expected to confirm evidence of the presence of gas and oil in the first half of 2025. The government, meanwhile, only released photos and videos of the ship's arrival, refraining from holding other ceremonies or issuing press releases, apparently due to domestic political circumstances. The 228-meter-long West Capella was built by Korean shipbuilder Samsung Heavy Industries in 2008 and boasts a maximum drilling depth of 37,500 feet, or 11.43 kilometers. The exploration project, however, has faced hurdles as the main opposition Democratic Party of Korea has pledged to cut the entire 49.7 billion-won ($34.6 million) budget allocated for the drilling operation in 2025. Political turmoil has also created even greater uncertainties following Yoon's short-lived declaration of martial law last week, with his subsequent remarks suggesting he would leave all decisions, including the possibility of his term ending early, to the ruling People Power Party. (Yonhap) To remove this article -
Trump taps Rollins as agriculture chief, completing proposed slate of Cabinet secretariesKentucky will aim to improve upon its best start in seven seasons when it hosts Western Kentucky on Tuesday night in Lexington, Ky., in the final game of the BBN Invitational. The Wildcats (5-0) are ranked No. 8 in the latest Associated Press poll and are setting impressive offensive milestones even for a program as tradition-rich as Kentucky, which includes eight national championships. The Wildcats have scored 97 or more points in their first four home games for the first time in program history and eclipsed the 100-point mark in three of those games. Their lone trip out of state was a solid 77-72 victory over Duke in a matchup of top-10 teams in Atlanta. Kentucky has also made at least 10 three-pointers in each of its first five games of a season for the first time ever. "I think Kentucky attracts good people," Kentucky coach Mark Pope said after the Wildcats' 108-59 win over Jackson State on Friday. "It's the one place in all college basketball where you represent just a fanbase in a different, unique way." Otega Oweh and Koby Brea have led the Wildcats' early scoring outburst. Oweh, who is averaging 16.2 points per game, had 21 points on 8-for-12 shooting against Jackson State. "He gets us off to unbelievable starts every night," Pope told reporters after that game. "He's probably been our most consistent guy in games." Brea, who scored 22 points against Jackson State and is averaging 16.0 points per game, is leading the nation in 3-point accuracy at 74.1 percent. As a team, the Wildcats are shooting 42.3 percent from beyond the arc. And the few times they miss, Amari Williams has been doing the dirty work on the glass, averaging 10.8 boards in addition to 9.6 points per game. Kentucky faces a different challenge than it's had to contend with so far in the Hilltoppers (3-2), who have won three in a row after losing their first two games to Wichita State and Grand Canyon. Their up-tempo play hasn't exactly resulted in great offensive output, but in the Hilltoppers' 79-62 win over Jackson State on Wednesday, they shot 45.2 percent from 3-point range (14 for 31). "I was happy to see a lot of different guys contribute tonight and, hopefully, get their feet under them a little bit and get some confidence," said Western Kentucky coach Hank Plona, who is in his first season as head coach. "Obviously, Tuesday will be quite a test and challenge for us and we'll need them to be at their absolute best." Western Kentucky has an experienced group, which returned mostly intact from last season. The team is led by Conference USA first-team selection Don McHenry, who is leading the team with 17.2 points and 2.2 steals per game. McHenry is one of four Hilltoppers with scoring averages in double figures. Julius Thedford (11.4 points per game) and Babacar Faye (15.0) are each shooting 40 percent or better from 3-point range. Western Kentucky also figures to challenge the Wildcats on the boards as it enters the game ranked in the top 25 in defensive rebounding (30.4 per game). Faye leads the Hilltoppers in that department, averaging 7.8 rebounds per game and figures to battle Williams inside. "We're not the biggest team in the world, but our depth and our quickness are our strengths," Plona said. --Field Level Media
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