
I got it! I had been looking for a theme or thread that is relevant to President-elect Donald Trump’s appointments to high-level positions. Today, after hearing about his recent selections, I think I found it. It is a multifaceted thread but seems to work. To get appointed there is firstly the requirement of complete fealty. This is assured and evidenced in a variety of ways, from large donations (often associated with family connections and pardons to yourself or family members) and a relationship of prior endorsement of the president-elect or a mutually beneficial business connection. Oh, I forgot, it also helps if you have been accused of sexual assault (usually of women) or have treated or used women in a despicable fashion. Since Trump wants no normal vetting of his candidates by the FBI, there is the obvious attempt to conceal any misdeeds not yet revealed by the media. I apologize, and I won’t waste your time going into details (after all, I try to keep my columns short and suggest that you just check the details yourself by googling the partial roster of felons, crooks, and low-lifes who will be running our government.) I think my favorite miscreant is Jared Kushner’s daddy, our soon-to-be ambassador to France. I won’t bore you with the facts about Jared being given billions of dollars by the Saudis and his total lack of experience as a hedge fund manager (and his over $100 million in fees to date, with no investments yet). Papa was in jail for almost two years (he pleaded guilty to 16 counts of tax evasion and lying to the Federal Election Commission and retaliating against a federal witness) but, as typical of Trump ‘s supporters, was pardoned by Trump in the last days of his presidency and was a major donor to his 2024 campaign. What is appalling to me (and I don’t “appall” easily, being a criminal and civil litigator for decades) is what Charles Kushner did to retaliate against his brother-in-law for cooperating with the government. Charles hired a prostitute to seduce his sister’s husband (women are sometimes useful to Charles), a witness at the time in a federal campaign-finance investigation. He video taped it and sent a copy to his sister. What a guy—I wonder if the families still spend Thanksgiving together. This paragon of virtue will now be responsible for discussions with French President Emmanuel Macron on everything regarding NATO and European and French relations with the U.S. Another recent selection was Kash Patel as head of the FBI. His main qualification is that he believes that national law enforcement and much of the national security apparatus must be brought to heel since they have been part of the “Deep State” and must be held accountable for the improper investigations and prosecutions of Trump and his minions (most of the minions were pardoned or given executive clemency by Trump: Paul Manafort, Roger Stone, Steve Bannon, etc.). A Harvard Law School study of Trump pardons showed 84 out or 94 pardons had a personal or political connection to the president. Patel was a low-level prosecutor and public defender in the Department of Justice, with no management experience. In his book “Government Gangsters,” he has argued for dismissal the top management of the bureau, that journalists be investigated and prosecuted, and that the agency’s Washington, D.C., headquarters be closed. The independence of the FBI is crucial. This appointment is basically firing Mr. Wray, the current director. We will see what will happen to this appointee, who has stated: We will go out and find the conspirators not just in government, but in the media. Yes, we’re going to come after the people in the media who lied about American citizens, who helped Joe Biden rig presidential elections ... We’re going to come after you. Whether it’s criminally or civilly, we’ll figure that out. Just think, another four years of investigations into whether the 2016 election was stolen, after 63 separate cases in federal and state courts around the country determined there was not even substantial enough evidence to justify a fact-finding hearing. The final appointee I want to address was someone I wrote about in my last column , where I laid out his lack of qualifications and bizarre worldview. Pete Hegseth, the Fox News anchor nominated for secretary of defense, has been accused of assaulting a woman and then paying her a settlement, but I didn’t mention that, although I probably should have because he opposes women in the combat arms and his background may be relevant to how he would treat women in the military. Now we have more information, thanks to a letter from Hegseth’s own mother obtained by The New York Times : ... You are an abuser of women — that is the ugly truth and I have no respect for any man that belittles, lies, cheats, sleeps around, and uses women for his own power and ego. You are that man (and have been for years) and as your mother, it pains me and embarrasses me to say that, but it is the sad, sad truth. ... but your abuse over the years to women (dishonesty, sleeping around, betrayal, debasing, belittling) needs to be called out. ... On behalf of all the women (and I know it’s many) you have abused in some way, I say... get some help and take an honest look at yourself... Mom Hegseth’s mother has admitted she sent it but did so in anger when he and his wife were going through a divorce. Just as information, active duty military members can be subject to prosecution for adultery under the Uniform Code of Military Justice. The sordid details of Mr. Hegsth’s life can be easily googled, but my original article showed my concern that he successfully lobbied Trump to pardon military personnel who were tried and convicted after court martial of war crimes. Maybe he feels that military justice should only apply when he feels like it. If I were a woman (or a man, for that matter) in the armed services, or thinking of enlisting, this apparent abuser would not be my choice as an ethical secretary of defense. His qualifications are abysmal at best, but his morality and bias are equally disqualifying. Anyway, you can do more research yourself. It is fascinating reading, but the qualifications of those selected are equally terrifying.SAN JOSE – The San Jose Sharks activated center Nico Sturm off injured reserve Monday and made room for him on the 23-man roster by loaning defenseman Jack Thompson to the AHL’s San Jose Barracuda. The transactions mean that the Sharks, at the moment, are carrying 14 forwards, six defensemen and three goalies in Mackenzie Blackwood, Vitek Vanecek and rookie Yaroslav Askarov. Sturm’s return to the Sharks’ active roster was believed to be imminent after he showed signs of improvement last week and practiced with the team on Sunday. He also took part in the Sharks’ morning skate on Monday, when he was officially considered a game-time decision by coach Ryan Warsofsky. The Sharks play the Los Angeles Kings on Monday night in the second game of a four-game homestand. Warsofsky said he had a few players who were “nicked up” and considered game-time decisions, although it would be a surprise not to see Sturm, a mainstay as the Sharks’ fourth-line center, play against the Kings. Sturm, who was injured in the Sharks’ game against the New York Rangers, is the Sharks’ faceoff leader by percentage and is one of the team’s leading penalty killing forwards. Please check back for updates to this story.The rise of data centers and their quest for renewable energy to power AI technology will boost the growth of renewables even under President Donald Trump, the Americas head of Japan’s biggest bank, Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group, told Reuters. “The new administration will be more constructive on fossil fuels, but that doesn’t mean renewables go away,” Kevin Cronin, Regional Executive and CEO for The Americas at MUFG, said in an interview. Surging demand from data centers will boost renewables growth in America and projects will continue to be developed as they take years and multiple election cycles from the planning to the operational stage, according to Cronin. There have been concerns in the renewables sector that it would suffer under Trump who has vowed to rescind many of the climate and clean energy policies of President Joe Biden. Trump’s transition team is said to be preparing radical changes to U.S. policy toward electric vehicles and tailpipe emissions. These could include axing the EV incentives and the government mandate for federal EV fleets, and rolling back the Biden Administration’s rules on tailpipe emissions and fuel economy standards, Reuters reported earlier this week, citing a draft document it has seen. In a sign of what the energy industry can expect, Trump last month picked a shale boss, Chris Wright, chief executive of Liberty Energy, as his nomination to lead the Department of Energy. The nomination of Doug Burgum, the Governor of North Dakota, to be the interior secretary and head of a new National Energy Council at the White House, is also a signal to the industry that America’s leadership in fossil fuel production and exports is also high on Trump’s agenda. Read also: Nigeria to electrify 3,700+ healthcare centres with renewables “The common thread in the thinking on energy expressed by both Wright and Burgum is that they want to boost production of all types of energy, including fossil fuels,” commented Ed Crooks, Senior Vice President, Americas, at Wood Mackenzie. Abuja in darkness as vandals attack Shiroro-Katampe transmission line Some parts of the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja, have been thrown into darkness as vandals, again, destroyed the 330-kilovolt Shiroro-Katampe Transmission Line. Ndidi Mbah, TCN spokesperson, disclosed the disruption on their official X (formerly Twitter) page, stating that it occurred at approximately 11:43 PM. She further explained that the 330kV Shiroro–Katampe circuit experienced an outage in the power supply, and despite attempting a trial reclosure, the line tripped again immediately. In an investigation carried out by a TCN line patrol team dispatched from the Abuja Regional Office, it was discovered that the vandals had stolen part of the conductor between towers T216 and T218. “The TCN lines maintenance crew has since mobilized to the site and is working assiduously to replace the vandalized 330kV power conductor. Restoration of bulk power supply through the affected line is expected soon.” “We appeal to the general public to assist in identifying and reporting suspicious activities around power transmission infrastructure. Your vigilance and cooperation are crucial in helping us to prevent acts of vandalism or apprehend the culprits.” She stated This year has seen a troubling rise in vandalism targeting Nigeria’s critical infrastructure. In response, the Federal Government has already spent an alarming N8.8 billion on repairing transmission towers destroyed by vandals highlighting the significant economic burden of recurring infrastructure damage. Instead of investing in the expansion and modernization of the power sector, the government is forced to allocate resources to address the damage caused by these destructive acts. These substantial repair costs are diverting much-needed funds away from essential development projects, further hindering efforts to strengthen the national grid and improve electricity access across the country. As more funds are spent on repairs, the ability to improve and stabilize the electricity supply becomes increasingly difficult, prolonging the challenges of unreliable power supply across the country.
Indy Autonomous Challenge Returns to CES 2025: Showcasing the Future of Physical AI with Multicar Racing and Groundbreaking Collaborations
After Trump’s win, Black women are rethinking their role as America’s reliable political organizers
After Trump’s win, Black women are rethinking their role as America’s reliable political organizersISRO to study how crops grow in space on PSLV-C60 mission
AP Sports SummaryBrief at 5:47 p.m. ESTAfter Trump’s win, Black women are rethinking their role as America’s reliable political organizers
KYIV, Ukraine — NATO and Ukraine will hold emergency talks Tuesday after Russia attacked a central city with an experimental, hypersonic ballistic missile. escalating the nearly 33-month-old war. The conflict is “entering a decisive phase,” Poland’s Prime Minister Donald Tusk said Friday, and “taking on very dramatic dimensions.” Ukraine’s parliament canceled a session as security was tightened following Thursday’s Russian strike on a military facility in the city of Dnipro. In a stark warning to the West, President Vladimir Putin said in a nationally televised speech the attack with the intermediate-range Oreshnik missile was in retaliation for Kyiv’s use of U.S. and British longer-range missiles capable of striking deeper into Russian territory. Russian President Vladimir Putin speaks Friday during a meeting with the leadership of the Russian Ministry of Defense, representatives of the military-industrial complex and developers of missile systems at the Kremlin in Moscow. Putin said Western air defense systems would be powerless to stop the new missile. Ukrainian military officials said the missile that hit Dnipro reached a speed of Mach 11 and carried six nonnuclear warheads, each releasing six submunitions. Speaking Friday to military and weapons industries officials, Putin said Russia will launch production of the Oreshnik. “No one in the world has such weapons,” he said. “Sooner or later, other leading countries will also get them. We are aware that they are under development. “We have this system now,” he added. “And this is important.” Putin said that while it isn’t an intercontinental missile, it’s so powerful that the use of several of them fitted with conventional warheads in one attack could be as devastating as a strike with strategic — or nuclear — weapons. Gen. Sergei Karakayev, head of Russia’s Strategic Missile Forces, said the Oreshnik could reach targets across Europe and be fitted with nuclear or conventional warheads, echoing Putin’s claim that even with conventional warheads, “the massive use of the weapon would be comparable in effect to the use of nuclear weapons.” In this photo taken from a video released Friday, a Russian serviceman operates at an undisclosed location in Ukraine. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov kept up Russia's bellicose tone on Friday, blaming “the reckless decisions and actions of Western countries” in supplying weapons to Ukraine to strike Russia. "The Russian side has clearly demonstrated its capabilities, and the contours of further retaliatory actions in the event that our concerns were not taken into account have also been quite clearly outlined," he said. Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán, widely seen as having the warmest relations with the Kremlin in the European Union, echoed Moscow’s talking points, suggesting the use of U.S.-supplied weapons in Ukraine likely requires direct American involvement. “These are rockets that are fired and then guided to a target via an electronic system, which requires the world’s most advanced technology and satellite communications capability,” Orbán said on state radio. “There is a strong assumption ... that these missiles cannot be guided without the assistance of American personnel.” Orbán cautioned against underestimating Russia’s responses, emphasizing that the country’s recent modifications to its nuclear deployment doctrine should not be dismissed as a “bluff.” “It’s not a trick ... there will be consequences,” he said. Czech Republic's Foreign Minister Jan Lipavsky speaks to journalists Friday during a joint news conference with Ukraine's Foreign Minister Andriiy Sybiha in Kyiv, Ukraine. Separately in Kyiv, Czech Foreign Minister Jan Lipavský called Thursday’s missile strike an “escalatory step and an attempt of the Russian dictator to scare the population of Ukraine and to scare the population of Europe.” At a news conference with Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha, Lipavský also expressed his full support for delivering the necessary additional air defense systems to protect Ukrainian civilians from the “heinous attacks.” He said the Czech Republic will impose no limits on the use of its weapons and equipment given to Ukraine. Three lawmakers from Ukraine's parliament, the Verkhovna Rada, confirmed that Friday's previously scheduled session was called off due to the ongoing threat of Russian missiles targeting government buildings in central Kyiv. In addition, there also was a recommendation to limit the work of all commercial offices and nongovernmental organizations "in that perimeter, and local residents were warned of the increased threat,” said lawmaker Mykyta Poturaiev, who said it's not the first time such a threat has been received. Ukraine’s Main Intelligence Directorate said the Oreshnik missile was fired from the Kapustin Yar 4th Missile Test Range in Russia’s Astrakhan region and flew 15 minutes before striking Dnipro. Test launches of a similar missile were conducted in October 2023 and June 2024, the directorate said. The Pentagon confirmed the missile was a new, experimental type of intermediate-range missile based on its RS-26 Rubezh intercontinental ballistic missile. Thursday's attack struck the Pivdenmash plant that built ICBMs when Ukraine was part of the Soviet Union. The military facility is located about 4 miles southwest of the center of Dnipro, a city of about 1 million that is Ukraine’s fourth-largest and a key hub for military supplies and humanitarian aid, and is home to one of the country’s largest hospitals for treating wounded soldiers from the front before their transfer to Kyiv or abroad. We're all going to die someday. Still, how it happens—and when—can point to a historical moment defined by the scientific advancements and public health programs available at the time to contain disease and prevent accidents. In the early 1900s, America's efforts to improve sanitation, hygiene, and routine vaccinations were still in their infancy. Maternal and infant mortality rates were high, as were contagious diseases that spread between people and animals. Combined with the devastation of two World Wars—and the Spanish Flu pandemic in between—the leading causes of death changed significantly after this period. So, too, did the way we diagnose and control the spread of disease. Starting with reforms as part of Roosevelt's New Deal in the 1930s, massive-scale, federal interventions in the U.S. eventually helped stave off disease transmission. It took comprehensive government programs and the establishment of state and local health agencies to educate the public on preventing disease transmission. Seemingly simple behavioral shifts, such as handwashing, were critical in thwarting the spread of germs, much like discoveries in medicine, such as vaccines, and increased access to deliver them across geographies. Over the course of the 20th century, life expectancy increased by 56% and is estimated to keep increasing slightly, according to an annual summary of vital statistics published by the American Academy of Pediatrics in 2000. Death Records examined data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to see how the leading causes of death in America have evolved over time and to pinpoint how some major mortality trends have dropped off. According to a report published in the journal Annual Review of Public Health in 2000, pneumonia was the leading cause of death in the early 1900s, accounting for nearly 1 in 4 deaths. By the time World War I ended in 1918, during which people and animals were housed together for long periods, a new virus emerged: the Spanish Flu. Originating in a bird before spreading to humans, the virus killed 10 times as many Americans as the war. Many died of secondary pneumonia after the initial infection. Pneumonia deaths eventually plummeted throughout the century, partly prevented by increased flu vaccine uptake rates in high-risk groups, particularly older people. Per the CDC, tuberculosis was a close second leading cause of death, killing 194 of every 10,000 people in 1900, mainly concentrated in dense urban areas where the infection could more easily spread. Eventually, public health interventions led to drastic declines in mortality from the disease, such as public education, reducing crowded housing, quarantining people with active disease, improving hygiene, and using antibiotics. Once the death rates lagged, so did the public health infrastructure built to control the disease, leading to a resurgence in the mid-1980s. Diarrhea was the third leading cause of death in 1900, surging every summer among children before the impacts of the pathogen died out in 1930. Adopting water filtration, better nutrition, and improved refrigeration were all associated with its decline. In the 1940s and 1950s, polio outbreaks killed or paralyzed upward of half a million people worldwide every year. Even at its peak, polio wasn't a leading cause of death, it was a much-feared one, particularly among parents of young children, some of whom kept them from crowded public places and interacting with other children. By 1955, when Jonah Salk discovered the polio vaccine, the U.S. had ended the "golden age of medicine." During this period, the causes of mortality shifted dramatically as scientists worldwide began to collaborate on infectious disease control, surgical techniques, vaccines, and other drugs. From the 1950s onward, once quick-spreading deadly contagions weren't prematurely killing American residents en masse, scientists also began to understand better how to diagnose and treat these diseases. As a result, Americans were living longer lives and instead succumbing to noncommunicable diseases, or NCDs. The risk of chronic diseases increased with age and, in some cases, was exacerbated by unhealthy lifestyles. Cancer and heart disease shot up across the century, increasing 90-fold from 1900 to 1998, according to CDC data. Following the post-Spanish Flu years, heart disease killed more Americans than any other cause, peaking in the 1960s and contributing to 1 in 3 deaths. Cigarette smoking rates peaked at the same time, a major risk factor for heart disease. Obesity rates also rose, creating another risk factor for heart disease and many types of cancers. This coincides with the introduction of ultra-processed foods into diets, which plays a more significant role in larger waistlines than the increasing predominance of sedentary work and lifestyles. In the early 1970s, deaths from heart disease began to fall as more Americans prevented and managed their risk factors, like quitting smoking or taking blood pressure medicine. However, the disease remains the biggest killer of Americans. Cancer remains the second leading cause of death and rates still indicate an upward trajectory over time. Only a few types of cancer are detected early by screening, and some treatments for aggressive cancers like glioblastoma—the most common type of brain cancer—have also stalled, unable to improve prognosis much over time. In recent years, early-onset cancers, those diagnosed before age 50 or sometimes even earlier, have seen a drastic rise among younger Americans. While highly processed foods and sedentary lifestyles may contribute to rising rates, a spike in cancer rates among otherwise healthy young individuals has baffled some medical professionals. This follows the COVID-19 pandemic that began in 2020. At its peak, high transmission rates made the virus the third leading cause of death in America. It's often compared to the Spanish Flu of 1918, though COVID-19 had a far larger global impact, spurring international collaborations among scientists who developed a vaccine in an unprecedented time. Public policy around issues of safety and access also influences causes of death, particularly—and tragically—among young Americans. Gun control measures in the U.S. are far less stringent than in peer nations; compared to other nations, however, the U.S. leads in gun violence. Firearms are the leading cause of death for children and teens (around 2 in 3 are homicides, and 1 in 3 are suicides), and deaths from opioids remain a leading cause of death among younger people. Globally, the leading causes of death mirror differences in social and geographic factors. NCDs are primarily associated with socio-economic status and comprise 7 out of 10 leading causes of death, 85% of those occurring in low- and middle-income countries, according to the World Health Organization. However, one of the best health measures is life expectancy at birth. People in the U.S. have been living longer lives since 2000, except for a slight dip in longevity due to COVID-19. According to the most recent CDC estimates, Americans' life expectancy is 77.5 years on average and is expected to increase slightly in the coming decades. Story editing by Alizah Salario. Additional editing by Kelly Glass. Copy editing by Paris Close. Photo selection by Lacy Kerrick. This story originally appeared on Death Records and was produced and distributed in partnership with Stacker Studio. We're always interested in hearing about news in our community. Let us know what's going on! Get local news delivered to your inbox!
and are expecting their first child, the Los Angeles Dodgers star announced. The took to Instagram to announce the news on Saturday and posted a photo of the baby's scan alongside his dog, Decoy, reported. "I can't wait for the little rookie to join our family soon!" Ohtani wrote in the post. The Japanese slugger, who will become a father for the first time, closes a year in which he has been constantly in the headlines. 2024: an unforgettable year for Shohei Ohtani with the , later married , was in the eye of the hurricane for a betting scandal involving his former interpreter, and helped his new team win the World Series in his debut season with the Angels. were married in a secret ceremony in early 2024. The Japanese baseball sensation, who is extremely private about his personal life, announced a few weeks later that he was married to the "mystery woman." "I started a new chapter in my career with the Dodgers, but I also started a new life with someone from my home country, Japan, who is very special to me," Ohtani posted on social media. Who is Mamiko Tanaka? who played in her country's top women's league. The couple was recently photographed together at an game between the and the in early December The Japanese couple's pregnancy announcement is a more than adequate end to a very busy year, but one that was marred by the aforementioned illegal gambling scandal. Shortly after signing with the Dodgers, news broke that , his personal interpreter, . Mizuhara was also a close confidant of the star baseball player, pleaded guilty and . After that dark episode in Ohtani's life, the 30-year-old carried an offense during the regular season and stayed healthy until Game 2 of the World Series, before injuring his left shoulder while trying to steal second base against the New York Yankees and ended the Fall Classic playing hurt. He underwent surgery a few days after the Dodgers celebrated their championship in early November. "I don't have full range of motion yet, but I feel much better," he said. "There is no pain. Obviously there is still a little bit of tightness, but slowly it's getting better." Ohtani is also pitching in the 70 mph range, which is typical for pitchers at the beginning of the offseason.NEW YORK (AP) — If you're planning on ringing in the new year quietly at home, you're not alone. A majority of U.S adults intend to celebrate New Year’s Eve at home, according to a new poll by The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research . “As I’ve gotten older over the last few years, it’s like if I don’t make it to midnight, it’s not a big deal, you know?” says Carla Woods, 70, from Vinton, Iowa. Nearly 2 in 10 will be celebrating at a friend or family member’s home, and just 5% plan to go out to celebrate at a bar, restaurant or organized event, the poll found. But many U.S. adults will celebrate the new year in a different way — by making a resolution. More than half say they'll make at least one resolution for 2025. There's some optimism about the year ahead, although more than half aren't expecting a positive change. About 4 in 10 say 2025 will be a better year for them personally. About one-third don’t expect much of a difference between 2024 and 2025, and about one-quarter think 2025 will be a worse year than 2024. Kourtney Kershaw, a 32-year-old bartender in Chicago, often fields questions from customers and friends about upcoming events for New Year's Eve. She said this year is trending toward low-key. “A majority of who I’ve spoken to in my age range, they want to go out, but they don’t know what they’re going to do because they haven’t found anything or things are just really expensive,” she said. “Party packages or an entry fee are like a turnoff, especially with the climate of the world and how much things cost.” As expected, younger people are more interested in ringing in the new year at a bar or organized event — about 1 in 10 U.S. adults under 30 say they plan to do that. But about 3 in 10 older adults — 60 and above — say they won’t celebrate the beginning of 2025 at all. Anthony Tremblay, 35, from Pittsburgh, doesn't usually go out to toast the arrival of the new year, but this year he's got something special cooked up: He and his wife will be traveling through Ireland. “I don’t do anything too crazy for New Year’s, usually. So this is definitely a change,” he said. “I wanted to do something unique this year, so I did.” Woods will be working New Year’s Eve and New Year’s Day. She answers calls on The Iowa Warmline, a confidential, noncrisis listening line for people struggling with mental health or substance use issues. “Holidays are really hard for people, so I don’t mind working,” she said. “I’m passionate about it because I have mental health issues in the family and so being able to help people is rewarding to me.” Every New Year's also triggers the eternal debate about resolutions. A majority of U.S. adults say they intend to make a New Year’s resolution of some type, but millennials and Gen Z are especially likely to be on board — about two-thirds expect to do so, compared to about half of older adults. Women are also more likely than men to say they will set a goal for 2025. Tremblay hopes to lose some weight and focus more on self-care — more sleep, meditation and breathing exercises. “It’s probably a good year to focus on mental health,” he said. Many others agree. About 3 in 10 adults choose resolutions involving exercise or eating healthier. About one-quarter said they'll make a resolution involving losing weight and a similar number said they'll resolve to make changes about priorities of money or mental health. Woods' resolutions are to stay social and active. As a mental health counselor, she knows those are key to a happy 2025 and beyond: “Probably one of my biggest resolutions is trying to make sure I stay social, try to get out at least once a week — get out and either have coffee or do something with a friend. That’s not only for the physical but also for the mental health part.” Kershaw, the bartender, says weight loss and better health are the top resolutions she hears people make. “Mental health is the new one, but I think it’s high up there as well as with regular health,” she said. She prefers more goal-oriented resolutions and, this time, it's to do more traveling and see more of the world: “I don’t know if that’s really a resolution, but that’s a goal that I’m setting.” And how will she welcome the arrival of 2025? Usually, she takes the night off and stays home watching movies with plenty of snacks, but this year Kershaw has a different plan, maybe one of the most Chicago things you can do. This die-hard sports fan will be at Wrigley Field on Tuesday watching the Chicago Blackhawks take on the St. Louis Blues. “Hockey’s my favorite sport. So I will be watching hockey and bringing in the new year,” she said. The AP-NORC poll of 1,251 adults was conducted Dec. 5-9, 2024, using a sample drawn from NORC’s probability-based AmeriSpeak Panel, which is designed to be representative of the U.S. population. The margin of sampling error for adults overall is plus or minus 3.7 percentage points. Sanders reported from Washington.