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Morgan Rogers’ fourth goal of the season, an Ollie Watkins penalty and Matty Cash’s finish put Villa 3-0 up after 34 minutes. Mikkel Damsgaard pulled one back for Brentford in the second half but the damage had been done as Villa ended their eight-match winless run in all competitions. Emery was relieved to end the unwanted streak but quickly turned his attention to the next fixture against Southampton on Saturday. “We broke a spell of bad results we were having,” the Villa boss said. “We started the first five or 10 minutes not in control of the game but then progressively we controlled. “Today we achieved those three points and it has given us confidence again but even like that it’s not enough. We have to keep going and think about the next match against Southampton on Saturday. “The message was try to focus on each match, try to forget the table. How we can recover confidence and feel comfortable at home. Today was a fantastic match.” Tyrone Mings returned to the starting line-up in the Premier League for the first time since August 2023. Emery admitted it has been a long road back for the 31-year-old and is pleased to have him back. He added: “Mings played in the Champions league but it’s the first time in the league for a year and three months. “I think he played fantastic – he might be tired tomorrow but will be ready for Saturday again. “It was very, very long, the injury he had. His comeback is fantastic for him and everybody, for the doctor and physio and now he’s training everyday.” Brentford fell to a sixth away defeat from seven games and have picked up only a solitary point on the road this season. They have the best home record in the league, with 19 points from seven matches, but they have the joint worst away record. Bees boss Thomas Frank is confident form will improve on the road. He said: “On numbers we can’t argue we are better at home than away, but on numbers it’s a coincidence. I think two of the seven away games have been bad. “The other games we performed well in big spells. I’m confident at the end of the season we will have some wins away from home.” Frank felt Villa should not have been given a penalty when Ethan Pinnock brought Watkins down. He added: “I want to argue the penalty. I don’t think it is (one). I think Ollie kicked back and hit Ethan, yes there is an arm on the shoulder but threshold and all that – but that’s not the reason we lost.”More companies are calling workers back to the office. These tips can help manage disruptionPassenger Ferries Market Set to Reach USD 15 Billion by 2031 with a Robust CAGR of 7.1% | TMR Report 12-27-2024 05:24 PM CET | Advertising, Media Consulting, Marketing Research Press release from: Transparency Market Research Passenger Ferries Market The Global Passenger Ferries Market, valued at USD 8.1 billion in 2022, is projected to witness significant growth, reaching USD 15 billion by the end of 2031. According to industry analysis, this growth will be driven by advancements in ferry technology, innovative marketing strategies, and an increasing demand for sustainable and efficient passenger transport solutions. Passenger ferries have been a cornerstone of maritime transport for decades, offering efficient, cost-effective, and environmentally friendly transit options. The industry caters to a broad spectrum of services, including hydrofoils, hovercrafts, catamarans, cruise ferries, and cable ferries. These diverse offerings address varying customer needs, from short-distance commuter routes to luxurious long-distance voyages. Access key findings and insights from our Report in this sample - https://www.transparencymarketresearch.com/sample/sample.php?flag=S&rep_id=73733 As global passenger mobility increases, the demand for improved ferry services and technology is rising. The sector is evolving to meet customer expectations by enhancing safety measures, reducing environmental impacts, and offering advanced onboard amenities. Key Players and Competitive Landscape Major industry players are implementing innovative strategies to maintain a competitive edge. Companies such as FRS GmbH & Co. KG, P&O Group, Baleària Eurolíneas Marítimas S.A., and Interislander are expanding their product portfolios, enhancing customer experiences, and engaging in strategic partnerships and mergers. Incorporating advanced amenities, including Wi-Fi connectivity, premium seating options, and onboard entertainment, has become a priority for ferry operators to attract a broader customer base. Additionally, marketing efforts that highlight sustainability and unique travel experiences are redefining the competitive landscape. Key Market Drivers Several factors are propelling the growth of the passenger ferries market: 1.Growing Demand for Eco-friendly Transport Solutions: With governments and organizations focusing on sustainability, passenger ferries are increasingly adopting greener technologies, such as hybrid and electric propulsion systems. 2.Increasing Tourism Activities: Rising global tourism, particularly in coastal and island regions, has led to higher demand for ferries that offer comfortable and scenic travel experiences. 3.Urban Connectivity Needs: Ferry services are gaining traction as reliable alternatives to congested road and rail networks, especially in urban and suburban areas. 4.Technological Advancements: Integration of AI-based navigation systems, fuel-efficient designs, and real-time passenger communication systems are enhancing operational efficiency and passenger satisfaction. Challenges and Opportunities While the market holds immense potential, it is not without challenges. Rising fuel costs and stringent maritime regulations pose significant hurdles for operators. Additionally, competition from alternative transport modes, such as aviation and high-speed trains, requires ferry operators to innovate continuously. On the flip side, the market offers lucrative opportunities through regional expansion and infrastructure development. Emerging economies, especially in Asia-Pacific and Latin America, present untapped markets for ferry operators, driven by increasing tourism and government investments in marine transport infrastructure. Explore our report to uncover in-depth insights - https://www.transparencymarketresearch.com/passenger-ferries-market.html Regional Analysis The passenger ferries market exhibits varied growth dynamics across different regions: •North America: Strong demand for urban ferry services and leisure travel has made the U.S. and Canada key contributors to the market. •Europe: Dominated by established players, Europe leads in innovation and adoption of green ferry technologies. Countries like Norway and Greece are prominent hubs for ferry operations. •Asia-Pacific: The fastest-growing region, fueled by expanding tourism in countries like Indonesia, Thailand, and the Philippines. •Middle East & Africa: Developing ferry routes and increasing maritime tourism are contributing to steady market growth. Market Segmentation Ferry Type •Hydrofoil (50-60 kts) •Hovercraft (25-32 kts) •Catamaran (40-50 kts) •Cruiseferry (20-30 kts) •Cable Ferry (25-30 kts) •Others (Pontoon Ferry, Foot Ferry, etc.) Application •Commercial •Individual •Luxury/Tourism Sales Channel •Online •Web •App •Offline •Counter Tickets •Agents Payload Type •Pax •Cars •Trucks •Others Future Outlook The future of the passenger ferries market looks promising as companies continue to focus on sustainability, operational efficiency, and passenger comfort. Increased investment in electric ferries and AI-based maritime solutions is expected to reshape the industry landscape. By 2031, the market will likely witness a shift toward autonomous and fully electrified ferries, aligning with global sustainability goals. Access important conclusions and data points from our Report in this sample - https://www.transparencymarketresearch.com/sample/sample.php?flag=S&rep_id=73733 More Trending Reports: Excavator Rubber Track Market: https://www.transparencymarketresearch.com/excavator-rubber-track-market.html Microcar Market: https://www.transparencymarketresearch.com/microcars-market.html About Us Transparency Market Research Transparency Market Research, a global market research company registered at Wilmington, Delaware, United States, provides custom research and consulting services. The firm scrutinizes factors shaping the dynamics of demand in various markets. The insights and perspectives on the markets evaluate opportunities in various segments. The opportunities in the segments based on source, application, demographics, sales channel, and end-use are analysed, which will determine growth in the markets over the next decade. Our exclusive blend of quantitative forecasting and trends analysis provides forward-looking insights for thousands of decision-makers, made possible by experienced teams of Analysts, Researchers, and Consultants. The proprietary data sources and various tools & techniques we use always reflect the latest trends and information. With a broad research and analysis capability, Transparency Market Research employs rigorous primary and secondary research techniques in all of its business reports. Contact Us: Transparency Market Research Inc. CORPORATE HEADQUARTER DOWNTOWN, 1000 N. West Street, Suite 1200, Wilmington, Delaware 19801 USA Tel: +1-518-618-1030 USA - Canada Toll Free: 866-552-3453 Website: https://www.transparencymarketresearch.com Email: sales@transparencymarketresearch.com This release was published on openPR.
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CHICAGO (AP) — As begins to take shape, those on both sides of the abortion debate are watching closely for clues about how his picks might affect reproductive rights policy in the . offer a preview of how his administration could handle abortion after he repeatedly on the campaign trail. He attempted to distance himself from anti-abortion allies by deferring to states on abortion policy, even while boasting about nominating three Supreme Court justices who helped strike down the constitutional protections for abortion that had stood for half a century. In an NBC News interview that aired Sunday, Trump said he doesn’t plan to restrict medication abortion but also seemed to leave the door open, saying “things change.” “Things do change, but I don’t think it’s going to change at all,” he said. The of his , including nominations to lead health agencies, the Justice Department and event the Department of Veterans Affairs, has garnered mixed — but generally positive — reactions from anti-abortion groups. Abortion law experts said Trump’s decision to include fewer candidates with deep ties to the anti-abortion movement could indicate that abortion will not be a priority for Trump’s administration. “It almost seems to suggest that President Trump might be focusing his administration in other directions,” said Greer Donley, an associate law professor at the University of Pittsburgh School of Law. Karen Stone, vice president of public policy at , said while many of the nominees have “extensive records against reproductive health care,” some do not. She cautioned against making assumptions based on Trump’s initial cabinet selections. Still, many abortion rights groups are wary, in part because many of the nominees hold strong anti-abortion views even if they do not have direct ties to anti-abortion activists. They’re concerned that an administration filled with top-level officials who are personally opposed to abortion could take steps to restrict access to the procedure and funding. After Trump’s ambiguity about abortion during his campaign, “there’s still a lot we don’t know about what policy is going to look like,” said Mary Ruth Ziegler, a law professor at the University of California, Davis School of Law. That approach may be revealed as the staffs within key departments are announced. Trump he would nominate anti-vaccine activist to lead the Health and Human Services Department, which anti-abortion forces have long targeted as central to curtailing abortion rights nationwide. Yet Kennedy shifted on the issue during his own presidential campaign. In campaign videos, Kennedy said he until , which doctors say is sometime after 21 weeks, although there is no defined timeframe. But he also “every abortion is a tragedy” and a national ban after 15 weeks of pregnancy, a stance he quickly walked back. The head of Health and Human Services oversees Title X funding for a host of family planning services and has sweeping authority over agencies that directly affect abortion access, including the Food and Drug Administration and Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services. The role is especially vital amid legal battles over a federal law known as EMTALA, which President administration has argued requires emergency abortion access nationwide, and FDA approval of the abortion pill mifepristone. Mini Timmaraju, president of the national abortion rights organization Reproductive Freedom for All, called Kennedy an “unfit, unqualified extremist who cannot be trusted to protect the health, safety and reproductive freedom of American families.” His potential nomination also has caused waves in the anti-abortion movement. Former Vice President , a staunch abortion opponent, urged the Senate to reject Kennedy’s nomination. Marjorie Dannenfelser, president of the national anti-abortion group Susan B. Anthony Pro-Life America, said the group had its own concerns about Kennedy. “There’s no question that we need a pro-life HHS secretary,” she said. Fox News correspondent is Trump’s pick to lead the FDA, which plays a critical role in access to medication abortion and contraception. Abortion rights groups have accused him of sharing misinformation about abortion on air. , a staunch anti-abortion conservative, has been nominated for director of the Office of Management and Budget. Vought was a key architect of , a right-wing blueprint for running the federal government. Among other actions to limit reproductive rights, it calls for eliminating access to medication abortion nationwide, cutting Medicaid funding for abortion and restricting access to contraceptive care, especially long-acting reversible contraceptives such as IUD’s. Despite distancing himself from the conservative manifesto on the campaign trail, Trump is with people who played central roles in developing Project 2025. Trump acknowledged that drafters of the report would be part of his incoming administration during the Sunday interview with NBC News, saying “Many of those things I happen to agree with.” “These cabinet appointments all confirm that Project 2025 was in fact the blueprint all along, and the alarm we saw about it was warranted,” said Amy Williams Navarro, director of government relations for Reproductive Freedom for All. , Trump’s choice to lead the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, is a who has been accused of dubious medical treatments and products. He voiced contradictory abortion views during his in 2022. Oz has described himself as praised the Supreme Court decision , claimed and referred to abortion as But he also has Trump’s states-rights approach, arguing the federal government should not be involved in abortion decisions. “I want women, doctors, local political leaders, letting the democracy that’s always allowed our nation to thrive to put the best ideas forward so states can decide for themselves,” he said during a Senate debate two years ago. An array of reproductive rights groups opposed his Senate run. As CMS administrator, Oz would be in a key position to determine Medicaid coverage for family planning services and investigate potential EMTALA violations. Related Articles As Florida’s attorney general, defended abortion restrictions, including a 24-hour waiting period. Now she’s Trump’s . Her nomination is being celebrated by abortion opponents but denounced by abortion rights groups concerned she may revive the , an anti-vice law passed by Congress in 1873 that, among other things, bans mailing of medication or instruments used in abortion. An anti-abortion and anti-vaccine former Florida congressman, has been chosen to lead the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, which collects and monitors abortion data across the country. Former Republican congressman is Trump’s choice to lead the Department of Veterans Affairs amid a over and funding for troops and veterans. Collins voted consistently to restrict funding and access to abortion and celebrated the overturning of Roe v. Wade. “This is a team that the pro-life movement can work with,” said Kristin Hawkins, president of the national anti-abortion organization Students for Life.How did leaders of the Army Reserve respond to the many, clear warning signs about the Lewiston shooter, a part-time soldier who was in a dangerous, downward spiral? And why didn’t they take further action? The Army has acknowledged some failures but also cast blame elsewhere. Maine Public Radio , in partnership with the Portland Press Herald and Frontline PBS, presents “Breakdown:” a limited-series podcast about the deadliest mass shooting in Maine history. In Episode 3, we look at questionable medical decisions, missed communication and lack of follow up by the Army. Finally, we’ll learn why the shooter’s family believes the military could do more to prevent brain injuries in troops. Audio transcript KEVIN MILLER, HOST: A note to listeners: this episode deals with gun violence and suicide. If you or someone you know is experiencing a mental health crisis, help is available 24 hours a day by calling or texting the national Suicide and Crisis Lifeline at 9-8-8. [sound of knocking on door] FIRST TROOPER, UNIDENTIFIED: “Robert? Robert, this is [redacted] with the State Police. Can you open the door for me, please?” [ambient guitar music fades up] HOST: It is July of 2023 and a crew of New York state troopers is at a military hotel near West Point. [sound of knocking again, door opening] FIRST TROOPER: “Thank you, my man. You wanna throw a shirt on and come in and talk to you?” HOST: Leaders of an Army Reserve unit have called the troopers to help with a reservist who’d been hearing voices and picking fights. He’s locked himself in his room. And he insists that everyone — friends, family and total strangers — are spreading lies that he’s gay and a pedophile. SECOND TROOPER, UNIDENTIFIED: “What, what was it that caused the issue last night?” In this image taken from New York State Police body camera video, troopers interview Army reservist Robert Card at Camp Smith, in Cortlandt, N.Y., July 16, 2023. New York State Police ROBERT CARD: “Uhhh, they keep saying shit behind my back, I confront them and they pretend like I’m hearing stuff.” SECOND TROOPER: “OK. ... You say that they’re talking about you behind your back, but you actually hear them saying these things, or ... ?” ROBERT CARD: “Yeah, I’m hearing ’em.” HOST: Army Reserve Sgt. 1st Class Robert Card sits perched on the edge of the bed in a cinder block room strewn with clothes and shoes. He’s a 20-year veteran, lean and fit. He’s wearing matching Army shorts and T-shirt — plus a fresh buzzcut. His unit is on a two-week training stint at West Point. Card’s specialty is showing hundreds of cadets, one by one, how to toss live hand grenades. Card’s mental health has been deteriorating for at least six months now. And something is clearly off with him this weekend. ROBERT CARD: “It’s happening everywhere. I’m hearing bits and pieces of all of it and it’s just getting old. And I confront people and it doesn’t stop.” SECOND TROOPER: “OK, we’ve talked to a few of them today and they’re — they’re saying like nothing like that is happening.” HOST: The troopers tell Card that he’s been directed by his Reserve commanders to get a psych evaluation — that very day. It’s an order, not a request. [ambient music fades up] CARD: “Is it going to help anything? No. I would rather have people stop talking, stop looking at me. I’m a fucking private person. I don’t like fucking my shit out there.” HOST: And then this exchange happens. THIRD TROOPER, UNIDENTIFIED: “These guys, I mean, I hope you understand that they are concerned enough about your welfare that they called us.” ROBERT CARD: “Because they’re scared because I’m gonna friggin’ do something. Cause I am capable.” HOST: “I am capable.” The state trooper seizes on the phrase. THIRD TROOPER: “Like, what do you mean by that?” ROBERT CARD: “Huh?” THIRD TROOPER: “What do you mean by that?” ROBERT CARD: “Nothing. No.” HOST: “I am capable.” In the months leading up to this, Robert Card had been making threats. Just about everyone he was close to was worried about him. And months later, he would go into two nightspots in Lewiston, Maine, with an assault rifle. He’d kill 18 people and wound 13 more in the deadliest mass shooting in Maine history. Two days later, he’d be found dead from a self-inflicted gunshot wound. This police body cam footage, released by the New York State Police in response to a public records request, is one of the only recordings of Card to surface publicly since the shooting. And when a coworker and I watch it, we both get chills hearing those words from the future gunman. Reserve 1st Sgt. Kelvin Mote was in the hallway that day at the hotel near West Point. He overheard what Card said. KELVIN MOTE, COMMISSION: “’I am capable.’ That was enough for me. At that moment, I decided he was going to the hospital, one way or the other.” Army Reserve First Sgt. Kelvin Mote gives testimony Thursday, March 7, 2024, in Augusta, Maine, during a hearing of the independent commission investigating the law enforcement response to the mass shooting in Lewiston, Maine. Robert F. Bukaty/Associated Press [xylophone music fades up] HOST: Last episode, we heard about the missed opportunities — especially among local police — to prevent the tragedy in Lewiston. In this episode, we focus on the military. I’m Kevin Miller and for the past year my colleagues and I have been looking into how the Army Reserve responded to the many clear warning signs about a soldier in a dangerous, downward spiral. We were there as members of the Army and Army Reserve testified under oath for more than 15 hours about that July incident. We talked to dozens of people about what happened in the months before — and after. We analyzed investigative reports from the Army and a state commission. And we spoke to members of Congress who are pressing the military for changes after Lewiston. Army Reserve leaders have acknowledged some failures. They’ve also cast blame onto local police and criticized a private psychiatric hospital. And that July morning ... This could have been a turning point. Reserve unit leaders took the initiative to get Card help. But the help never came. Instead, what followed were questionable medical decisions ... months of miscommunication and military red tape — with tragic consequences. Those mistakes have raised questions about how the Army manages mental health concerns within its ranks. And it’s highlighted disparities between the regular military and the Reserves. JODY DANIELS, BRIEFING: “I mean, I, we’re doing the best that we can in terms of understanding what did transpire and then make changes for the future.” ED YUREK, COMMISSION: “It’s clear that it wasn’t just a hunch and that Sgt. Card had legitimate issues.” CARA LAMB, INTERVIEW: “None of us should be allowed to say that we did enough in this scenario, in this situation.” HOST: From Maine Public Radio, the Portland Press Herald and Frontline PBS, this is Breakdown. Episode 3: Dereliction of duty. Like most reservists, members of the 3rd Battalion, 304th Infantry Regiment typically spend one weekend a month in uniform plus a two-week “active training” mission. For the 304th, that mission happens at West Point. [archival tape about West Point, ambient piano music fades up] HOST: The two-century old military academy overlooking the Hudson River has churned out scores of future generals and even a few presidents. And for several decades now, those future military leaders learn how to literally shoot straight with help from the Maine-based 304th. Robert Card was regarded as a quote “solid and reliable” member of the unit and an Army Reserve evaluation from earlier in 2023 described him as a “consummate professional.” But he had been losing his hearing for years. And Card’s mental health was already on the radar of his unit leaders by the time he arrived at West Point that July. Two months earlier, in May, a sheriff’s deputy in Maine had contacted a Reserve leader after Card’s ex-wife and son raised concerns that he seemed to be hearing voices, and about his erratic behavior and his access to guns at home. As we heard in previous episodes, there was talk of getting him treatment and working with other family members to remove his guns. But ultimately little was done and Card continued showing up for drills. Yet Card had tried to get out of the West Point training. He had served 20 years in the Reserve and was eligible for retirement. And Card had already accused other unit members of talking trash about him. The state troopers who showed up at Card’s room that day gave him two options for getting to West Point’s military hospital: either ride quietly with other reservists — or in handcuffs with troopers. FIRST TROOPER: “Yeah, we don’t, we don’t want to do that, alright? So if you give me your word that you’ll go with them.” ROBERT CARD: “I have over 20 years, I shouldn’t even be here. I fucking tried to get out of this fucking AT. ‘No, you have to fucking come.’ Ugh.” HOST: Card is driven to the hospital in an SUV with three other noncommissioned officers. It’s part of a four-vehicle caravan that includes two state police cruisers. Card tears up at one point. He’s otherwise silent as he stares out of the window. Maj. Matthew Dickison appears remotely in July 2024, before the commission investigating the mass shooting in Lewiston last fall. Zoom screenshot At Keller Army Community Hospital, Card tells psychiatric nurse practitioner Maj. Matthew Dickison that people everywhere are talking about him, calling him a pedophile and gay. He’s angry. Card doesn’t make specific threats, but Dickison remembers him saying that if people don’t stop, quote, “something was going to happen.” [soft piano music fades up] Dickison spoke publicly at a commission created by Maine’s governor and attorney general that spent months looking into the shooting. DAN WATHEN, COMMISSION: “We have convened this evening for the purpose of interviewing and hearing from Maj. Matthew Dickison, who I believe is with us.” HOST: For months, my colleagues and I pressed military officials for specifics about their dealings with Robert Card and his mental health treatment. They wouldn’t agree to interviews but shared general information. This past summer, they also released a 115-page internal investigation that identified multiple failures, which we’ll get to a bit later. And we have hours of public testimony before the state commission from members of the Army and Army Reserve. Maj. Matthew Dickison testified that it took him less than a hour to declare Robert Card unfit for duty. MATTHEW DICKISON, COMMISSION: “Mr. Card was exhibiting psychosis and paranoia. And I actually had safety concerns because he was actually assigned with his unit, running a range where he had access to weapons and munitions. ... My recommendation was that he be moved to a higher level of care for further assessment.” HOST: Keller hospital wasn’t equipped at the time to offer Card the intensive, around-the-clock psychiatric care that Dickison says he needed. So Card was transferred to a private facility, called Four Winds Hospital, located about an hour away. Master Sgt. Ed Yurek was attending the West Point training that weekend, too. ED YUREK, COMMISSION: “It’s clear that it wasn’t just a hunch and that Sgt. Card had legitimate issues and it was getting addressed. We were all high-fiving each other because it was the perfect scenario: we got him to where he needed to be, they identified it, ‘Yeah, you are right,’ and they brought him to a place where he was supposed to be treated. We were very happy with the way it turned out, as far as the unit was concerned.” U.S. Army Reserve Ed Yurek gives testimony in front of the commission investigating the Lewiston mass shooting Thursday, April 25, 2024. Shawn Patrick Ouellette/Portland Press Herald [ambient music fades up] HOST: Here’s where things start to get murkier. We know that Card spent 19 days at the private hospital. But the details remain sketchy a year after the shooting and his suicide. That’s because the Army couldn’t force Four Winds Hospital to participate in its investigation. Maine Public Radio, the Portland Press Herald and FRONTLINE’s team reached out to the hospital more than a dozen times. They responded twice, referring us to a communications staffer and an outside attorney, neither of whom replied. Members of Maine’s shooting commission did talk to the psychiatrist who treated Card at Four Winds. But that questioning took place in private because, even though the former patient had died, there were quote, “legal concerns” stemming from New York state’s medical privacy laws. A commission spokesman also confirmed that Four Winds shared Card’s medical files, but up until now, the panel hasn’t released those documents publicly. In its 215-page final report, the commission devoted just a few paragraphs to Card’s time at Four Winds and their interview with the psychiatrist. As for why, Commission chairman Dan Wathen hasn’t publicly said. DAN WATHEN, COMMISSION: “We set forth the facts as we determined them to be and they are in the report. And I’d let the report speak for itself in that regard.” [piano music] HOST: Here’s what we do know, though, based on details in the Army and state commission reports. Card’s hospital intake paperwork said he was suffering from paranoia, psychosis, auditory hallucinations, aggression and “homicidal ideations.” He also told Four Winds staff he kept a quote, “hit list.” Card occasionally cooperated at Four Winds. But the Army’s internal investigation shows that Card became quote, “irritable and agitated” when Four Winds staff asked about the guns he had at home — at least 10 of them. He said he struggled with social anxiety and might consider taking medication. He denied any serious mental health problems — yet insisted that even hospital staff were talking about him. The state commission report says that more than a week into his stay at Four Winds, Card let the staff know that he wanted to leave. In response, the hospital asked a court to make him stay. They wanted to involuntarily commit him. But the day before the court hearing, both Card and the hospital dropped their competing requests. So on Aug. 3rd, Robert Card walked out of Four Winds. He had his discharge instructions — but no follow-up appointments scheduled. Had he been involuntarily committed, federal law would have prohibited Card from owning guns when he was eventually released. His sudden departure shocked many, including the Army nurse practitioner, Maj. Dickison, who first evaluated him. MATTHEW DICKISON, COMMISSION: “For me personally, yeah, sure I was a little surprised.” HOST: and Master Sgt. Yurek, who heard the news from Card’s older brother, Ryan. ED YUREK, COMMISSION: “We thought that he was going to be there for a very long time. And when Ryan Card called me and said he was out, I said, ‘That can’t be true.’ And he said — actually how naive I was, I said. ‘Well then he’s all better.’ And he said, ‘No no, he’s still the same.’ And I said ‘I don’t believe that the hospital released him the same way they got him, I just don’t believe that.’ And he said ‘He is the same.’” [guitar strumming music] HOST: According to the state commission, Card’s attending psychiatrist said she didn’t think a court would agree to have him committed. Card had shown progress, said he would take his meds and participate in therapy after release. Four Winds staff worked out a quote, “safety plan,” with members of Card’s family. However, details of that plan have not been released. They also tried several times to reach him, according to the Army report, but were not successful. One answer may come from Card himself. Sean Hodgson drove six and a half hours from Maine to pick up his fellow reservist and friend. SEAN HODGSON, INTERVIEW: “I thought I had to go talk to somebody and I pulled up and I saw him waving through the window and the door. Thought that was odd. And I was like, Alright, I parked my car. And I walked up. And they just let him out the door with his bags. And he’s like, ‘You want me to drive?'” In May 2024, Sean Hodgson, the friend who warned officials of the threats Robert Card made against the Army a month before the Lewiston shooting, visits the site where Card ditched his car on the night of the shootings. Derek Davis/Portland Press Herald HOST: On the way home, Card bragged about “playing the game” to get released. He told Hodgson how he threatened to sue and how hospital staff were quote, “abusing his rights” by keeping him there. SEAN HODGSON, INTERVIEW: “He just started telling me everything all over again, and what happened in the hospital, how he pretty much played them, played the game. He told them straight out. He knew exactly what to say to get out.” [ambient music fades up] HOST: Card arrived back in Maine 20 days after he left for New York. The commission report states that, before his release, Card assured Four Winds staff that he would take the prescribed drugs, get treatment and seek support from family and friends. But they were all empty promises. He never made any appointments and stopped taking his medications within days of getting home. Robert Card lived with his dog in Bowdoin, Maine. It’s a farming community about 40 miles from Portland — but a world away, with about 3,000 people and one convenience store. Card was raised there. His family owns hundreds of acres of farmland and woods in the tight-knit community. Card got home from the hospital in New York 12 weeks before the mass shooting. He was back in civilian life. And according to the Army’s own investigation, that was a failure by the military. [guitar music fades up] HOST: To better understand why, I need to explain the difference between the Reserves and active-duty military. The regular Army, Navy, Air Force, Marines or Coast Guard is a full-time job. You can be deployed at any time. You are subject to military law. That’s why when an active-duty soldier or sailor is busted for, say, driving drunk on a Saturday night, the military justice system might demote or imprison them. They could be ordered to undergo treatment or even kicked out. That’s active-duty. Reservists, on the other hand, are only soldiers part time. During weekend “battle assemblies” or the annual two-week training, reservists are “on duty.” That means they’re under the command of their unit leaders and anyone above them. But as soon as they arrive home, they become civilians again and their Reserve leaders have no real authority over them. And that’s what happened with Robert Card. Card was on “active duty” during the 19 days he spent at the hospital. That ended when he reached his home in Maine. JODY DANIELS, BRIEFING: “A U.S. Army Reserve soldier is only in a duty status for about 38 days per year. And outside of that duty status, unit commanders have no legal authority to compel soldiers to undergo medical treatment, to execute follow-on care or surrender personally owned weapons regardless of the circumstances. This is a complex challenge ...” Lt. General Jody J. Daniels, administers the oath to new members of the military during a ceremony at an NFL football game between the Minnesota Vikings and Washington Commanders, Sunday, Nov. 6, 2022, in Landover, Maryland. Julio Cortez / Associated Press HOST: Lt. Gen. Jody Daniels was the top-ranking general of the U.S. Army Reserve Command in July. That’s when the Army released a report after they investigated Card’s case. The report found that Reserve leaders or staff at Keller Army hospital should have kept him on active-duty status. Card was hospitalized for more than 24 hours while on a training mission, so under military rules that should have triggered an investigation. If his mental illness was caused or aggravated by his service, the government should have kept paying for his care. But none of that happened. What did happen next reveals alarming gaps in the mental health support system for soldiers and their families. [piano music fades up] HOST: Roughly a week after returning home, Card stopped answering calls and messages from an Army psychological health case manager. They were supposed to keep tabs on his progress and help connect him with services. But he ignored them. And at the end of August, the case manager simply closed Card’s file. The Army investigator criticized that decision. But they also acknowledged that it was entirely consistent with Army Reserve policy. At that time, the Reserve’s psychological health program could close a case after five unsuccessful attempts to reach someone over three weeks. So again — five unanswered calls, emails or text messages, and it’s case closed. SUSAN COLLINS: That program is supposed to follow up with soldiers who have mental illness. HOST: Sen. Susan Collins is the senior member of Maine’s congressional delegation and the top Republican on the powerful Senate committee that controls military spending. Collins says it was quote, “inexplicable” that the psychological health case manager would close the case or that the policy would allow it. SUSAN COLLINS: And yet to me, it’s difficult to think of a greater warning sign than his failure to respond to repeated inquiries from medical professionals. That suggested that he was not taking his medication and that he was not complying with the discharge orders. HOST: Lt. Gen. Daniels told reporters during the July press conference that the Army Reserve has since changed that policy in response to what happened in Maine. JODY DANIELS, BRIEFING: “Just because someone is non-responsive doesn’t mean that we don’t need to have additional contact with them. ... So we don’t want to close it just because they didn’t, didn’t, answer the phone. So we’re making that change.” [ambient music fades up] HOST: But the Army’s own report laid out more than a half-dozen other failings in the months before the mass shooting in Maine. Four Winds and the military hospital each thought the other was responsible for making sure Card was taking his medication and continuing therapy. The result, according to the Army investigator, was “no one adequately followed up” on Card’s care after his release. West Point’s military hospital should have formally “handed off” Card to his Reserve unit. That’s what’s supposed to happen after a Reservist is commanded to get a psychological evaluation. But it didn’t. And the Army report says that Card’s unit leaders didn’t try reaching the military hospital in West Point either. And there were also delays in communication. It took the private hospital eight days to fax Card’s psychological assessment and treatment recommendations to the Army hospital. And then it took the military hospital another 10 days to upload those documents into the military health system. There were also weak links within the Reserve unit’s chain of command. Here again is Lt. Gen. Daniels. JODY DANIELS, BRIEFING: “While unit leadership took several consistent and sustained actions to address Sgt. Card’s deteriorating mental health ... there were also a series of failures by unit leadership.” HOST: According to the Army investigator, Card’s commanders were supposed to investigate after he was hospitalized for more than 24 hours. They should have filed a critical information report or notified the Army’s “insider threat” program after Card threatened to shoot up the Reserve complex. None of that happened. Card’s commanders believed that the federal health policy law known as HIPAA prevented them from accessing his medical files. But it doesn’t. In the end, three leaders of Card’s unit were charged with “dereliction of duty.” Their names were redacted throughout the report, and when pressed by reporters, Daniels would not elaborate on their punishments other than to say she had taken quote, “administrative actions” that could prevent those officers from advancing further in their military careers. They could also be discharged. [guitar strumming music] HOST: Like the Army’s internal review, the special commission in Maine investigating the mass shooting found plenty of fault in how the Reserves handled Robert Card’s deteriorating mental health. The commission created by Gov. Janet Mills weeks after the shooting was stacked with retired judges, prosecutors, criminal investigators and mental health experts. Mills, who is a former attorney general, also made sure Maine lawmakers granted the commission the power to use subpoenas to make people testify. Ellen Gorman (center) and the commission investigating the Lewiston shootings listen to testimony in April. Derek Davis/Portland Press Herald HOST: I sat through dozens of hours of these commission hearings. They were solemn and oftentimes tense affairs as the panel heard from law enforcement who responded to those horrific scenes and led the ensuing two-day manhunt. They heard from people who survived the shootings — and loved ones of those who didn’t. And Robert Card’s family testified tearfully about their unsuccessful attempts to get him help. These kinds of investigations aren’t unusual after a mass shooting. What is unusual about the process in Maine is that the public could watch most of the testimony because it was live streamed and open to the press. Over a half-dozen meetings, the commission heard from members of the Army and the Army Reserve. The proceedings sometimes felt like court trials. DAN WATHEN, COMMISSION: “Do you swear that the testimony you will give in the matter now in hearing will be the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth, so help you God?” MATTHEW DICKISON, COMMISSION: “I do.” HOST: One by one, commanders from the Army and Army Reserve raised their right hands and swore to truthfully answer the commission’s questions. Often, they had military lawyers, or JAG officers, sitting beside or close behind. On occasion, they brought their own attorneys. Some of the tensest exchanges involved the commanding officer of Card’s Reserve unit, Capt. Jeremy Reamer, who was subpoenaed twice by the commission. Member and retired judge Ellen Gorman pressed Reamer on what HE should have done to ensure Card was getting help after he left the hospital. ELLEN GORMAN, COMMISSION: “You have said on a couple of occasions that you expected the law enforcement here in Maine to do their job.” JEREMY REAMER, COMMISSION: “Mmm hmm.” ELLEN GORMAN, COMMISSION: “Was it your job to complete the developmental counseling form?” JEREMY REAMER, COMMISSION: “That was a requirement of me, yes.” Capt. Jeremy Reamer, center, of the Army Reserve in Saco, sits before the Lewiston Commission taking questions in April 2024. Ben McCanna/Portland Press Herald ELLEN GORMAN, COMMISSION: “Did you do that?” JEREMY REAMER, COMMISSION: “I did not.” ELLEN GORMAN, COMMISSION: “And was it your job to ensure that Card followed through with the mental health treatment that had been ordered him, that he had been ordered to comply with by the Army? ... That was your job.” JEREMY REAMER, COMMISSION: “Part of my job. Yes.” ELLEN GORMAN, COMMISSION: “Did you do that?” HOST: Reamer goes quiet here. His lips move but he hesitates as he appears to scan his memory, searching for an answer while under oath. After about ten seconds, with a pained expression on his face, he says. [guitar and piano music fades up] JEREMY REAMER, COMMISSION: “I, personally, did not follow up with him regarding that.” HOST: Reamer has not spoken publicly beyond the commission testimony and did not respond to messages requesting comment for this episode. He did testify that he didn’t have the power to force Card into mental health treatment and that he believed that local police and Card’s family would remove Card’s weapons. This exchange took place in April and by this point Capt. Reamer was no longer leading the Reserve unit. He told the commission that it was his time to cycle out of that position. Reamer is never named in the Army report. Lt. Gen. Daniels said one of the three unit leaders punished for dereliction of duty was a captain. The Reserves made other changes, big and small. As of late-October, the Pentagon is still reviewing whether to stop working with Four Winds and a contracting agency for potential sub-standard care and for not following procedures. And no more five tries and you get to close a case. Even if they can’t reach a reservist who’s in their care, Army health care providers have to consult with unit leaders first — and notify other higher-ups — before closing a case. Lt. Gen. Daniels says she also directed Reserve leaders to be re-trained in the HIPAA health privacy law and about their options for safely storing private guns at Reserve facilities. JODY DANIELS, BRIEFING: “I mean, We are doing the best that we can in terms of understanding what did transpire and then make changes for the future.” HOST: Maine Sen. Angus King says the Army has quote “made all the right noises” with its planned changes. But King, who serves on the Senate Armed Services Committee, says he wants more than just rhetoric. ANGUS KING: I had a call with the Secretary of Defense about a month ago and that was my blunt message: The reports are good, the recommendations are good, but I want to be sure that the word gets down all the way to the command level, that this isn’t just something that just sitting in a report somewhere in the Pentagon. So I will reserve judgment until I see the actions that are taken as a result of all of this work. [guitar strumming music] HOST: In mid-October, less than two weeks before the one-year anniversary of the shooting, attorneys representing dozens of survivors and families of Card’s victims formally notified the federal government of their intent to sue the Army and West Point’s military hospital over how the Army handled Card’s deteriorating mental health. Attorney Travis Brennan: TRAVIS BRENNAN, PRESS CONFERENCE: “The Army bureaucracy failed Robert Card. The Army bureaucracy failed this state and community and it failed our clients.” HOST: Robert Card’s ex-wife, Cara Lamb, is infuriated by the finger-pointing she’s seen among law enforcement and Reserve leaders. CARA LAMB, INTERVIEW: “None of us should be allowed to say that we did enough in this scenario, in this situation.” Cara Lamb, ex-wife of Robert Card, in July 2024. Michele McDonald/Portland Press Herald HOST: Lamb, along with Robert Card’s son, then a high school senior, were the first to alert local police to their concerns about Card’s deepening paranoia and access to guns. That was in May of 2023 — more than five and a half months before his rampage. CARA LAMB, INTERVIEW: “All of these people saying that it wasn’t their, their job because it’s such a different life between military and civilian life, that you only have so much control over the soldiers after they leave drill. But you do have a say, you do have a connection to that person still. And you have a requirement, many requirements.” HOST: In tearful testimony, other family members like Robert Card’s sister, Nicole Herling, told the state commission that they wished the family had pushed harder. Even after Card answered their knocks on his door with a gun. And especially after he gradually stopped communicating with most family members. NICOLE HERLING, COMMISSION: “I acknowledge my responsibility as Robbie’s sister. I wish I had done everything in my power to get him the help he needed. My pride prevented me from seeking help after facing rejection.” HOST: Herling and her other brother, Ryan, had tried to get him into treatment. She told the state commission about the countless hours trying to navigate the assistance programs that are supposed to be available to military personnel and their families. NICOLE HERLING, COMMISSION: “Despite exhaustive online searches, I couldn’t find clear information on where to report my concerns. The information I did come across was outdated. And despite leaving numerous voicemails, none were returned.” HOST: She and her husband, James, told commission members that Card was a quiet but loving father, brother and uncle before something went horribly wrong inside his head. Before he became convinced that even his family was part of a massive conspiracy against him. JAMES HERLING, COMMISSION: “This is not an excuse for the behavior and action that Robbie committed. It was a wrongful act of evil. My brother-in-law was not this man. His brain was hijacked.” [ambient piano music] HOST: Exactly what happened to Card’s brain has been the subject to a lot of debate and speculation. Maine’s medical examiner sent Card’s brain tissue to a lab at Boston University’s medical school that studies brain injuries among athletes, like pro football players, and among military personnel. The lab found Card had significant degeneration, inflammation and damage within his brain, and those results were consistent with injuries in other veterans who were repeatedly exposed to blasts. The Boston University lab would not discuss Robert Card’s brain tissue analysis for this series. In a statement earlier this year, lab director Dr. Ann McKee said she could not say “with certainty” that Card’s behavioral changes were caused by the damage her team observed. But she added that based on the lab’s previous work, quote, “brain injury likely played a role in his symptoms.” It’s not possible, scientists say, to definitively link brain injuries to specific behaviors. But Card’s family believes his injuries likely led or at least contributed to his mental health deterioration. The Army’s internal investigation agrees that Card likely suffered a traumatic brain injury — but it raises a different theory. Card fell from his roof and broke his neck in 2008, the report says, quote, “possibly leading to a traumatic brain injury.” Military experts are still reviewing Card’s case. And during her July press conference, Lt. Gen. Daniels deferred to Army medical experts on the issue. But she also seemed to dismiss the possibility that hand grenade blasts may have injured Card’s brain. JODY DANIELS, BRIEFING: “So the fall from the house on a ladder, I believe, is that injury that took place. The amount of exposure that he had to other shock is relatively minor.” HOST: Since then, the Pentagon has announced new safety provisions for soldiers including quote, “baseline cognitive assessment” for all new military recruits — including Reservists. Nicole Herling told the commission that her brother may have been exposed to up to a thousand shockwaves from grenade blasts during his years training West Point cadets. Now, she and other family members say they are working to raise awareness about mental health in military personnel and are encouraging other veterans to get involved with a national nonprofit that advocates on brain injuries. The goal is to push the military to do more to protect all service members both during combat and training. [piano music fades up] NICOLE HERLING, COMMISSION: “They fought for us. Now we fight for them. This is our call to action.” Nicole Herling and her husband, James, on Saturday, Nov. 16, 2024. Shawn Patrick Ouellette / Portland Press Herald HOST: In the aftermath of the Lewiston mass shooting, Maine lawmakers passed a slate of gun reform measures, but they stopped short of overhauling the state’s process for keeping guns away from dangerous people. DAVID TRAHAN, INTERVIEW: “It wasn’t the system that failed, it was the people in the system.” JANET MILLS, PRESS CONFERENCE: “This tragedy was caused by a colossal failure of human judgment by several people on several occasions.” HOST: Next time on Breakdown, we’ll explore the political dynamics over gun control in Maine — a place where firearms and hunting are ingrained in the state’s culture and history. Breakdown is a collaboration between Maine Public Radio, the Portland Press Herald and Frontline PBS, with support from Rock Creek Sound. Our reporters are Susan Sharon, Steve Mistler and Patty Wight. The producer is Emily Pisacreta. The show is edited by Ellen Weiss and Keith Shortall. Our executive producers are Mark Simpson and Erin Texeira. Sound design and mixing are by Benjamin Frisch. Fact checking by Nicole Reinert. Legal support from Dale Cohen. Rick Schneider is the President and CEO of Maine Public Radio. Lisa Desisto is the CEO and Publisher of the Portland Press Herald. Raney Aronson-Rath is the executive producer and editor-in-chief of FRONTLINE. Breakdown is produced through FRONTLINE’s Local Journalism Initiative, which is funded by the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation. For an upcoming video translation of the podcast in American Sign Language, go to frontline.org. For additional reporting about Lewiston, visit mainepublic.org/breakdown, pressherald.com and frontline.org, where you can also stream an upcoming documentary. If you are in crisis, please call, text or chat with the Suicide and Crisis Lifeline at 988, or contact the Crisis Text Line by texting TALK to 741741. We’re a new podcast and the best way to help us get discovered is to leave a five-star review wherever you get our show, and tell your friends. I’m Kevin Miller, thanks for listening. This story is part of an ongoing collaboration with FRONTLINE (PBS) and Maine Public that includes an upcoming documentary. It is supported through FRONTLINE’s Local Journalism Initiative , which is funded by the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation. Breakdown: Turning anguish into action | Podcast Ep. 1: Did we really survive this? Breakdown: Turning anguish into action | Podcast Ep. 2: ‘I believe he is going to snap’ Watch ‘Breakdown: Turning anguish into action,’ a discussion on Lewiston shooting Breakdown: Read our series on Maine’s deadliest shooting Comments are not available on this story. Send questions/comments to the editors. « Previous Next »
BELTON — Leading from the beginning, East Texas Baptist University upset No. 2 Wartburg College at the UMHB Christmas Classic, 64-47, moving to 9-2 on the year. It is the biggest win in the program since defeating No. 6 St. Thomas (Minn.) in the 2018 NCAA Division III Sweet 16. ETBU has 10 wins over top 25 programs in the past four years, with four wins over top 10 teams. This is the first win over a No. 2 ranked team, with the program’s highest win against No. 6 St. Thomas (Minn.) in the 2018 NCAA Division III Sweet 16. It was the second time ETBU took on Wartburg as they last met in the 2018 NCAA Division III National Tournament Elite 8. Wartburg, who was also ranked No. 2 then, held off a valiant ETBU comeback, 65-61, as they went to the Final Four. Three players scored in double figures as Payton Hicks had 12 points, six rebounds, and three assists going 9-of-10 from the line. Kadia Ward also had 12 points with four rebounds. Madison Hurta added 10 points with seven rebounds, and Tiffany Bickford scored nine and posted nine rebounds. Hannah Ayala also poured in seven points with seven rebounds. ETBU shot 35% from the floor, 31% from the arc and 86% from the line. They hit 40% of their shots in the first half, making five 3-pointers. WC finished shooting 27%, making just 23% of their 3-pointers, and went 88% from the stripe. ETBU outrebounded WC 46-32, scoring 14 points off turnovers. Bickford scored the first basket of the game for the 2-0 lead, and Ayala swooshed ETBU’s first 3-pointer to make it 5-2 at 6:27. WC was within one, 7-6, at 3:35, but ETBU finished the quarter on an 8-2 run for a seven-point lead, 15-8. Bickford had five of the eight points as Hurta hit a 3-pointer. WC cut the lead to six, 16-10, just over a minute into the second quarter, but Sara Cowan nailed a 3-pointer at 8:34 to put the lead at nine, 19-10. Ward had a 3-pointer at 5:52, moving the lead to 10 points, 24-14, but four minutes later, WC was within three, 28-25, on an 11-1 run. Hicks went 2-for-2 at the line with 54 seconds remaining, giving ETBU a five-point lead at the half, 30-25. ETBU only scored 10 points in the third quarter but held the lead. Hicks made two more free throws at 7:07 for an eight-point lead, 35-27, but once again, WC fought back and tied the game at 37 at 3:32 on a 10-2 run. Hicks followed with a 3-pointer 20 seconds later at 3:11, making the final shot from the floor for both teams. WC made one free throw with 40 seconds left to come within two, 40-38. The fourth quarter became ETBU’s best, shooting 41% and scoring 24 points. At 7:38, WC had a 3-pointer to pull within three, 44-41. In the next four minutes, ETBU went on an 8-0 run for an 11-point lead, 52-41. Ayala started the run with a jumper as Hurt, Hicks and Ward made free throws. Tristan Smith put ETBU up by 11 with a bucket in the paint. WC scored 20 seconds later, but in the final two and half minutes of the game, ETBU went 10-for-10 at the line for a 16-point win, 64-47. ETBU will be off for 10 days on Christmas Break and will play again on Dec. 28 in San Antonio at Trinity University vs. No. 3 Illinois Wesleyan. McMurry 67, ETBU 56 Leading at halftime by three, East Texas Baptist University came up shy of a win over McMurry University, 67-56, at the UMHB Christmas Classic. Jayla Hall went 5-of-8 from the floor for 12 points with five rebounds. Madison Hurta added 10 points, shooting .500 from the floor. Payton Hicks then had seven points, eight rebounds, four steals and three assists. Hannah Ayala also scored seven points and five rebounds. ETBU shot 33% overall but made 42% in the third quarter, canned 31% of their 3-pointers, and was 10-of-15 from the line (66%). McMurry finished shooting 45%, 41% from the arc and 62% from the stripe. ETBU outrebounded McM, 44-34, but had 20 turnovers. Hurta hit a 3-pointer at 8:19 in the first quarter for a 5-1 lead. McMurry tied the game at seven with six minutes to go and went on a 5-2 run for a three-point lead by 2:44. Hall cut the lead to one, 14-13, on a jumper at 1:33 but McM scored the final four points for a five-point lead, 18-13. ETBU outscored McMurry, 17-9, in the second quarter, taking a three-point halftime lead, 30-27. McM shot just 26% in the quarter as ETBU made 46% from the floor. The Warhawks hit the first shot in the quarter for an eight-point lead, 21-13. For the next three minutes, neither team made a shot. Hall sparked a 12-2 run over two minutes to take back the lead, 25-23. Tristan Smith hit a 3-pointer at 4:23 for the lead as Tiffany Bickford had five points in the run. McM tied the game at 27 with 1:43 left, but Ayala hit a 3-pointer with eight seconds left for the three-point advantage, 30-27. McM shot 66 % in the third quarter to pull away from ETBU, scoring 26 points. ETBU tried to keep pace, making 42% of their shots, but fell behind 53-47 at the end of the quarter. ETBU was within one, 35-34, on a Matthews jumper at 6:31, but McM had an eight-point lead, 43-35, at 5:02. ETBU came no closer than three the rest of the quarter. Scoring only nine points in the final quarter, ETBU came up short of the comeback, shooting just 15 % from the floor. McM took a 10-point lead, 59-49, at 5:53 with their largest lead of 12 a minute later. ETBU came within seven with under a minute to go, but McM hit free throws to take the win.Should the U.S. increase immigration levels for highly skilled workers?
, /PRNewswire/ -- Tomorrow, AT&T's chief executive officer will participate in a fireside chat where he will discuss the Company's multi-year strategic growth plan. : AT&T is embarking on a multi-year strategic growth plan that centers around putting customers first and continued network investment. AT&T continues to make progress on becoming the best connectivity provider in America and remains on track to meet all of the financial and operational guidance shared during its 2024 Analyst & Investor Day. , chief executive officer, ( ), will speak tomorrow at the UBS Global Media & Communications Conference where he will provide an update to shareholders. Stankey is expected to cover key topics discussed below. As a result of the investment-led strategy announced at its , the Company expects to be in a differentiated position within the connectivity industry by the end of the decade. In Mobility, the Company is building a more efficient, high-capacity, programmable and open network. By 2027, it expects to have largely completed the modernization of its 5G wireless network with open technology, with deep mid-band 5G spectrum covering 300 million+ people by the end of 2026. In broadband, the Company already has the largest fiber broadband network in America. By the end of 2029, it expects to reach 50 million+ total locations with fiber . This includes expectations to pass about 45 million locations through its organic fiber deployment and to serve 5 million+ fiber locations through Gigapower, its joint venture with Blackrock, as well as through agreements with commercial open-access providers. These collective efforts increase AT&T's opportunity to serve customers how they want to be served, by one provider in a converged manner. While building the network of the future, the Company is actively working to exit its legacy copper network operations across the large majority of its wireline footprint by the end of 2029. As discussed during the Company's 2024 Analyst & Investor Day, it expects 2025 Free Cash Flow of $16 billion+, when excluding DIRECTV. The expected drivers of next year's free cash flow growth include Adjusted EBITDA growth, lower cash interest from lower debt balances, the absence of network termination fee payments in 2025 and lower working capital impacts in 2025 compared to 2024. These items are expected to more than offset an expected increase in cash taxes. AT&T expects its multi-year strategic plan to provide $50 billion+ of financial capacity over the next three years, largely through organic growth. Financial capacity represents anticipated free cash flow after distributions to noncontrolling interests, plus expected cash payments from the announced agreement to sell AT&T's stake in DIRECTV to TPG, as well as net borrowing capacity after the Company achieves its net leverage target. The Company continues to expect to achieve its net leverage target of net-debt-to-adjusted EBITDA in the 2.5x range in the first half of 2025 and maintain leverage within this range through 2027. The Company expects to return $40 billion+ of this financial capacity to shareholders through dividends and share repurchases. Under this capital return plan, the Company expects to maintain its current annualized common stock dividend of per share. This plan would result in $20 billion+ in total dividend payments, with capacity for about in share repurchases, from 2025-2027. The plan also contemplates approximately in incremental financial flexibility for items such as potential organic or inorganic strategic growth investments, debt repayment, redemptions of noncontrolling interests, or additional dividends or share repurchases. Tune in for the fireside chat with at the UBS Global Media & Communications Conference, scheduled to begin at . The webcast will be available live and for replay at To automatically receive AT&T financial news by email, please "Total locations" includes consumer and business locations (i) passed with fiber and (ii) served with fiber through commercial open-access providers. Information set forth in this news release contains financial estimates and other forward-looking statements that are subject to risks and uncertainties, and actual results might differ materially. A discussion of factors that may affect future results is contained in AT&T's filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. AT&T disclaims any obligation to update and revise statements contained in this news release based on new information or otherwise. This news release may contain certain non-GAAP financial measures. Reconciliations between the non-GAAP financial measures and the GAAP financial measures are available on the company's website at . We help more than 100 million U.S. families, friends and neighbors, plus nearly 2.5 million businesses, connect to greater possibility. From the first phone call 140+ years ago to our 5G wireless and multi-gig internet offerings today, we @ATT innovate to improve lives. For more information about AT&T Inc. ( ), please visit us at . Investors can learn more at . © 2024 AT&T Intellectual Property. All rights reserved. AT&T and the Globe logo are registered trademarks of AT&T Intellectual Property. View original content to download multimedia: SOURCE AT&TCriticism of Israel or the war in Gaza doesn't amount to anti-Semitism, the foreign minister says, as Australia grapples with an increase in the vile sentiment. or signup to continue reading Many in Australia's Jewish community are feeling scared and unsafe and anti-Semitism must be rejected at every turn, Penny Wong says. "We know that cruel acts of anti-Semitism evoke some of the darkest episodes in the history of the Jewish people," she said in a major foreign policy speech at the University of South Australia on Monday night. "We condemn and reject anti-Semitism wherever it occurs - acts of hate have no place in Australia." But people needed to respectfully disagree on points of difference and avoid "misrepresenting views and exaggerating differences" to stop the conflict in the Middle East spurring friction in Australia, she said. "It's not anti-Semitic to expect that Israel should comply with the international law that applies to all countries," Senator Wong said. "Nor is it anti-Semitic to call for children and other civilians to be protected or to call for a two-state solution that enables Israelis and Palestinians to live in peace and security." Her comments followed Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu criticising the Australian government for holding an "extreme anti-Israel position" that he linked to a firebombing of a Melbourne synagogue. Mr Netanyahu and Jewish groups in Australia were critical of the federal government voting in support of a pro-Palestinian motion at the United Nations. The motion was supported by almost 160 members while only a handful, including the United States and Israel, voted against it. Australia's special envoy to combat anti-Semitism, Jillian Segal said it wasn't necessarily anti-Semitic for people to call for a two-state solution or the recognition of Palestinian statehood. The internationally accepted definition of anti-Semitism "makes it clear that criticism of Israel in a form that you would normally criticise another country, like its policies, is fine", she said. "But criticism of Israel, which damns it as a country that should be abolished, that should no longer exist, that all the Jews should disappear - that is anti-Semitic." It was the same definition Senator Wong referenced in her speech as both called for anti-Semitism to transcend politics and for the community to come together after the synagogue attack. People needed to avoid "exploiting the trend towards echo chambers where people only hear bad things about others and don't see for themselves what's good about others", Senator Wong said. In all the discussions of the Middle East, the Jewish community felt like the hostages taken by Hamas - scores of which remain captive in Gaza - have been forgotten. "There are these credibly important souls that have been suffering for an enormous length of time and they need to be at the forefront of our collective thinking to bring them home," Ms Segal said. DAILY Today's top stories curated by our news team. 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China vows ‘more proactive' fiscal stimulus measures, ‘moderately' looser monetary policyTrump has flip-flopped on abortion policy. His appointees may offer clues to what happens next
NEW ORLEANS (AP) — Saints quarterback Derek Carr was willing to risk his health to improve New Orleans’ chances of playing meaningful football in mid-December. Now the Saints, who’ve remained mathematically alive in the playoff race by winning three of four, might have to play without Carr again — and it didn’t go well the last time. Saints interim coach Darren Rizzi declined on Monday to rule out Carr for any of New Orleans' final four games because of his injured non-throwing hand or his concussion . Both injuries occurred when he tried to leap for a first down and crashed hard to the turf during the fourth quarter of New Orleans' 14-11 victory over the reeling New York Giants on Sunday. “We’re not going to rule him out just yet,” Rizzi said. “We have to see in the next day or two what the healing process is like and see if he can function. “The good news it’s not his throwing hand,” Rizzi said. “The bad news is we’re obviously dealing with an injury here that we have to kind of play it by ear.” Rizzi noted that Carr must clear the concussion protocol first. After that, he said, the Saints can see how well Carr can operate with his hand injury. “It's been done before,” Rizzi said when asked about the prospect of an NFL QB playing with an injured non-throwing hand. “It appears at moment that it's non-surgical, which is a big aspect of it. ... That's why we're going to discuss the options.” Last season, Los Angeles Chargers QB Justin Herbert played with a fractured finger on his non-throwing hand . Buffalo Bills QB Josh Allen has played part of this season with an injured non-throwing hand . If Carr can't play, his replacement will be either second-year pro Jake Haener or rookie Spencer Rattler. Rattler started three games earlier this season when Carr had an oblique injury — all losses by New Orleans, which was in the midst of a seven-game skid. “We've just got to surround whomever it is and pick him up and get him rolling with the rest of us,” guard Lucas Patrick said. “It's just another step of adversity in this long season that we’ve had.” New Orleans' interior defensive line is coming off one of its better games. Defensive tackles Bryan Bresee and Khalen Saunders accounted for both New Orleans' sacks in New York. The Saints also held the Giants to 112 yards rushing — a lower opponent rushing total than in seven other games this season. The Saints' 92 yards rushing offensively was their fourth-lowest total all season and the lowest in any of their victories. Running back Kendre Miller's future is looking a bit brighter now. He has played in just three games this season because of hamstring injuries and his lack of readiness was criticized by since-fired coach Dennis Allen earlier this season. Miller also has yet to rush for more than 36 yards in a game. But against the Giants, he earned praise for the speed, strength and elusiveness he was able to show on a couple of clutch runs, including an 8-yard run for his first and only touchdown this season. Patrick said Miller deserved credit on his scoring run for staying upright and continuing to push forward — with the help of some teammates — after he was met at the 5-yard line by a Giants defender. Patrick said if Miller didn't give the extra effort and stay on his feet, his teammates would not have had the chance to help push him across the goal line. “Kendre's definitely a bright, young runner and he's exciting to block for,” Patrick said. Blake Grupe was 0 for 2 on field goal attempts, although both were from beyond 50 yards and one was blocked. Those were Grupe's first two failures from beyond 50 yards this season. In addition to Carr, reserve linebacker D’Marco Jackson left Sunday's game with an ankle injury. 0 — The number of games the Saints have won when Carr does not play. They've gone 5-5 in his starts this season. The Saints are back home Sunday against Washington in what could be ex-New Orleans cornerback Marshon Lattimore's first game with the Commanders. The game also marks the return to Louisiana of quarterback Jayden Daniels, who won the Heisman Troply last year at LSU. AP NFL: https://apnews.com/hub/nfl
SPOILER ALERT: This article contains major spoilers from “ Squid Game ” Season 2 finale, now streaming on Netflix. Facing betrayal from an inside man infiltrating the Squid Games is nothing new for Seong Gi-hun ( Lee Jung-jae ) within the twisted “Squid Game” universe. When the first season of the Korean drama released on Netflix in 2021, watching Player 001, the old man Oh Il-nam (Oh Yeong-su), be revealed as the creator of the games came as a total surprise for both Gi-hun and the viewer. But in “Squid Game” Season 2, which dropped Thursday, the unexpected involvement of head game guard The Front Man ( Lee Byung-hun ), whose real name is In-ho, is handled quite differently when he joins the games as Player 001 upon Gi-hun’s reentry into the competition. In-ho uses the fake name Young-il when he introduces himself to Gi-hun, who has returned to the games in “Squid Game” Season 2 to try to take them down from the inside, and conceals his real identity and motives while slowly attempting to gain Gi-hun’s trust and build a group of likeminded players. “I think it’s kind of fun because only the audience knows that it’s him so it’s more tense for them to watch him in the game, forming this alliance with Gi-hun,” Lee Jung-jae tells Variety . “I think all the viewers will be thinking about is when Gi-hun will finally realize that he is The Front Man, or what game he can go until without revealing his identity.” When Lee Byung-hun first met with “Squid Game” creator and director Hwang Dong-hyuk to discuss possible directions for Season 2, they casually speculated over drinks about In-ho’s backstory. While Season 2 ultimately doesn’t show his past — choosing instead to give details through dialogue about In-ho’s late wife who died of illness when they were destitute — Lee Byung-hun kept thinking about how his character entered the Squid Game the first time he played and, like Gi-hun after him, won the competition, and how his spirit has changed since. “He’s really seen kind of the bottom pit of humanity and in the midst of the violence and desperation of Squid Game, his hope for humanity and the world has really dwindled,” Lee Byung-hun explains. “He has this very pessimistic view of the people in the world around him.” Another one of the returning “Squid Game” characters is detective Jun-ho (Wi Ha-joon), who teams up with Gi-hun at the beginning of Season 2 to try and find the Squid Game island again. Jun-ho made his way there in Season 1 searching for his missing brother, In-ho, later finding out that his brother has gone from a former competitor in the games to becoming The Front Man himself. Jun-ho was shot by his brother upon this revelation in Season 1 and barely survived falling off the cliffs of the Squid Game island. When he teams up with Gi-hun to try to get back to the island again and end the games in Season 2, he decides not to tell Gi-hun that The Front Man is his brother. Showing In-ho playing the games alongside Gi-hun, who still fights to believe in the best in people and humanity — despite the cruelty of the Squid Game — pits two opposing characters together. Lee Byung-hun was tasked to act out much of this subtly as In-ho (who watched Gi-hun from behind a mask in Season 1) studies Gi-hun through the various games while forming a bond with him and not letting his true thoughts out. Lee Byung-hun describes how “when [In-ho] meets Gi-hun, who is still trying to break down the system, who returns to the games to be able to change something, because he still has hope for humanity — I think In-ho really wants to break Gi-hun’s spirit, and that’s why you see him observing him throughout the games and very meticulously making a plan to dismantle a lot of what he is doing.” “Squid Game” Season 2 comes with a new set of violent games that test the alliances formed with a largely new cast of players. But it all starts off with the same “Red Light, Green Light” competition that kicked off the first season. While Lee Jung-jae says it was a difficult five-day shoot, he found it to be the most fun of the Season 2 games to film. Lee Jung-jae explains: “It’s very different because this time around, Gi-hun’s goal is to save as many people as possible. The ‘Red Light, Green Light’ game gave a big shock to fans in Season 1 but now, it has a totally different atmosphere.” Lee Byung-hun says that for In-ho, while he is participating in the games as Young-il, “you do find him almost momentarily enjoying the situation.” “And I think this is just a very small glimpse of his past self,” he added. The most challenging part of the season from an emotional standpoint for Lee Jung-jae was the rebellion scene in the Season 2 finale. In the final episode, Gi-hun watches his close friend, Jung-bae (Lee Seo-hwan), die at the hands of The Front Man , marking the end of any hope for the rising rebellion. The Front Man puts his mask back on out of sight, so Gi-hun does not know it is In-ho/Young-Il, who Gi-hun actually thinks has already been killed during this fight. Lee Byung-hun explains why In-ho makes the choice to kill Jung-bae in front of Gi-hun after going out of his way to save his life earlier during the bloody musical-chairs-esque Mingle game, where he killed another man with his bare hands to keep Jung-bae alive. “I would say that until the Mingle game, In-ho is still a participant or a member of this very tight-knit group with Jung-bae and Gi-hyun,” Lee Byung-hun said. “So despite the fact that he shows Jung-bae this very violent side of him by killing someone within the room, he still needs to maintain this air that he is one team with Gi-hun and Jung-bae. At the very end of Season 2, I really thought about, what is he feeling when he has to kill Jung-bae because at the end of the day, he’s still a human being, and he goes through the games together, and there has to be at least some kind of emotional bond that’s built between him and Gi-hun and Jung-bae. However, I do understand that him killing Jung-bae is a tool to be able to awaken Gi-hun to the reality of what is happening. And a conversation I had with director Hwang was, how does In-ho, or The Front Man, feel when he is killing Jung-bae? And I think it is a feeling of kind of bitterness, however, I think the way In-ho understands it is that he’s giving up something small for a bigger message to Gi-hun.” The Front Man’s actions (a betrayal that has yet to fully reveal itself to Gi-hun until he knows In-ho is the one behind the mask) sting even more as Gi-hun and his crew of friends come so close to pulling off the rebellion and escaping the games for good. “I think the finale did a good job maximizing the emotions for viewers so it feels like they are on an emotional roller coaster ride,” Lee Jung-jae says. “They’re left at the very peak.” Lee Byung-hun feels that In-ho’s betrayal confirms that “in the process of these really grueling and violent games, his feelings faded.” “Feelings of hope and joy are long gone in the In-ho you meet in Season 2,” he said. With “Squid Game” Season 2 only consisting of seven episodes versus the first season’s nine, and the major cliffhanger that the second-season story ends on, Lee Jung-jae isn’t sure how viewers will receive it. “Maybe they will curse us for stopping there at the finale,” he wonders with a laugh. While Season 2 leaves many questions unanswered, the installment was filmed back-to-back with the show’s third and final season, which is confirmed for a 2025 release. So fans won’t need to be cursing the team for too long before finding out how this showdown between Gi-hun and In-ho comes to an end. And it’s looking like it will be a very dark conclusion indeed, if In-ho has his way. “In-ho is a character that no longer has belief or hope in the outside world,” Lee Byung-hun said. “So it’s almost like he has nowhere to go, because that is not really a world that he feels like he’s a part of anymore. So it’s less so the fact that he wants to protect the world of Squid Game, it’s more so that he feels that it’s completely hopeless outside. All these people are going to die in a really kind of pathetic way anyway, so why not play the games, and why not give at least one person a new life and a sense of opportunity? Because he has this very pessimistic view of the world, he does feel like the world of Squid Game at least makes more sense than the world outside of it.”Isaac Guerendo is only seven games into his NFL career and has registered double-digit carries in just two of them. Still, San Francisco 49ers head coach Kyle Shanahan has seen enough from the fourth-round rookie to be confident he is ready for the opportunity that now awaits him. Guerendo will be the 49ers' lead back after Christian McCaffrey was placed on injured reserve, with Jordan Mason set to follow him because of a high ankle sprain. The former Louisville and Wisconsin back, who wowed at the Scouting Combine with an outstanding workout that included a 40-yard dash of 4.3 seconds, has sporadically displayed his big-play ability in his first season. Guerendo had a 76-yard run against the Seattle Seahawks in Week 6 and went for 85 yards and a touchdown in a win over the Dallas Cowboys two weeks later. Guerendo scored the 49ers' only touchdown in their blowout loss to the Buffalo Bills last Sunday and, speaking ahead of their Week 14 meeting with the Chicago Bears, Shanahan expressed faith in a player for whom San Francisco traded up in this year's draft. "I think he's ready to go," head coach Kyle Shanahan said on Wednesday. "He got off to a late start with injuries in preseason. I thought he finished in those games, especially that [93-yard] kick return he had versus the Raiders, I think. He did some decent things when he started out. Didn't get a lot of carries, had some ups and downs, but got better through everything. "And then, when he got the bulk of the carries—I want to say some more versus Seattle—he only got better, and he's gotten better throughout the year. So I think he's ready for this." Shanahan had specific praise for how Guerendo has developed in terms of his decisiveness hitting the running lanes, adding: "I think it takes guys some time. You start to get a feel for it, if you've got the right stuff, the more you get reps, the more you can adjust to it, how hard you got to hit stuff, how quick those holes close, how, when there is a hole, how you have to hit at full speed and can't hesitate at all or it closes like that. "So we've seen that stuff get better in practice, and we've seen it carry over to games." The 49ers on Tuesday claimed Israel Abanikanda off waivers from the New York Jets to help fill out their backfield, and they made more moves on Wednesday, promoting Patrick Taylor Jr. from the practice squad, to which they signed Ke'Shawn Vaughn. Their running back room looks substantially different than it did when the 49ers initially set about preparing for Week 1 still believing McCaffrey could play. But, with Guerendo leading the way, there's still optimism it can be a productive group over these final five weeks of the season. This article first appeared on A to Z Sports and was syndicated with permission.Ruud van Nistelrooy ‘disappointed’ and ‘hurt’ after cutting ties with Man UtdSome partners of athletes show up to game day in their SO's jersey to be supportive. Simone Biles saw that and said, “hold my stadium beer.” On December 26, the gymnastics GOAT watched her husband, NFL player Jonathan Owens , in a custom outfit with his name and face all over it, proving once again that she is four feet, eight inches of enthusiasm. The ‘fit by designer Kelly Daley , which Biles wore to watch the Chicago Bears (Owen's team) take on the Seattle Seahawks, has to be seen to be believed. The patchwork-inspired terrycloth sweat suit was covered in pictures of Owens in both his home and away jerseys. She accessorized the look with white heels and a tiny white Chanel purse, keeping her makeup simple and pretty. Simone Biles doesn't do anything halfway, WAG-ing included. While this may be the most overt, it's far from the first “Go Owens” outfit the gymnast has worn this season. Earlier in December, Biles showed off Owens sweatpants and “36” shades (his jersey number) in an Instagram post celebrating the friends she's made through the NFL, writing , “football 🫶🏾 swipe to see the besties football brought me.” Women who WAG together...have fun together. It doesn't rhyme, but it's still true. (Looks like those are her white game day boots.) Of course, Biles doesn't only support the athletes she's married to. Just this year, she's gone to bat for fellow gymnast Jordan Chiles amid the bronze medal controversy at this summer's Olympics, met up with tennis legend Serena Williams' daughter , and took in her first WNBA game , watching rookie phenom Caitlin Clark in action. Consider the sartorial bar for all athlete partners officially raised. I want Clark's boyfriend in a Caitlin onesie and Ciara wearing a photorealistic mask of Russell Wilson's face. And if the Bears make it to the Super Bowl? Simone Biles could quite literally flip.