l swertres result today
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Sports on TV for Nov. 23 - 24Haiti gangs fire on journalists covering a planned hospital reopening, leaving casualties
I consider President Anura Kumara Dissanayake’s (PAKD’s) post-appointment address to the Cabinet, as an address to the nation, local political parties, the diaspora, media, and political powerpacks abroad – near and far. It is because he has conveyed the conceptual crux of his approach to nation-building and Sri Lanka’s potential revival, countering the economic, political, and social challenges. His wish for “collective responsibility to achieve the goals that will uplift our nation,” is an invitation to all stakeholders. Last Thursday’s Policy Statement is an endorsement of the address to the Cabinet of Ministers. The first statement resembled the political path, expectations, and advanced advice to use power with restraint to execute the Policy Statement. The latter dealt in detail with the approaches with specific references to actions. It fitted well to achieve the humongous task of proving that the victories echo the “decisive turning point in Sri Lankan politics.” The conversion of a poll of 42% at the Presidential election to two-thirds plus Parliamentary power narrates such echoing. What he did not specifically say is the change of the north and east minority electoral mindset, between the two elections. A friend who visited Jaffna before the Parliamentary election predicted that NPP would poll between 50,000 to 100,000 in Jaffna in the Parliamentary poll, as against 27,086 at the Presidential election. He expected its repetition in the hill country due to civilians’ frustration with politicians. Both happened as predicted. Regarding north, east, and the estate sector, I guess there was another hidden strategic reason. It is the electors’ silent adherence to Indian National Security Advisor Ajith Doval’s pre-presidential advice given to Tamil politicians to negotiate with a winnable candidate and secure Tamil aspirations through negotiations. PAKD’s victory paved the path for these voters to the winner, not only a winnable candidate. Doval is a respected strategist! The communities across the divide would have thought similarly to shed the excessive baggage carried on their shoulders. It is these responses that opened space for PAKD to say that the whole country, irrespective of traditional differentiations, has been united to adhere to the change he wished. It was not an easy shift. In an interview, PAKD has said: “I thought I would die as a man who struggled to achieve this end, and not a man who accomplished it. We did not think that during our lifetime we would get power and the opportunity to change. Then, on my sick bed, I was thinking – struggling, struggling, struggling – how to achieve this change. But now that we have the opportunity to change, I like to die as a man who finished that task.” It is not a rhetoric five-year term job. It is vast as seen in the NPP manifesto. The relevant issue is how PAKD’s cadres, Cabinet, bureaucracy, military, trade unions, civil society, media, political parties of all hues, bilateral and multilateral agencies, foreign countries, etc. accept the change of mindset of the electorate and cooperatively contribute to the achievement of this arduous task. Many in these stakeholder groups would have been onlookers or crossed PAKD’s efforts in the past. Hence, there is a need for massive psychological and attitudinal change in them too. Further, elsewhere when the International Monetary Fund (IMF) salvaged bankrupt economies, the recommended reforms were not heart-warming, pleasing, or palatable. Since the IMF program is continuing, PAKD and these stakeholders must be prepared for unpopular decisions. PAKD should possess bundles of guts and patience, to live with them. The Policy Statement dealt with the details of PAKD’s action plans. Expansion of producing goods and services was highlighted, resulting in trickling economic gains to the producers. It fitted into his explanation to the IMF team concerning the importance of building public confidence in his Government. He emphasised the IMF team regarding the people’s urgent needs, i.e., especially social security measures assisting vulnerable groups that match the Policy Statement. Prioritising essential welfare initiatives (e.g., Aswesuma), eradicating child poverty, and malnutrition, and supporting individuals with disabilities also were in policy initiatives. PAKD’s officials successfully reaching the Staff Level Agreement last Friday differed from the pre-election rebellious anti-IMF NPP rhetoric slogans. The Policy Statement detailed how the State would play a role in controlling a segment of the market through regulatory actions, insinuating hidden space for ventures in energy management, financial markets, mineral value addition, etc. Similarly, export agriculture and new technological strategies are to serve the farmers. He expected four million tourists in a year, earning eight billion dollars, and dollar five billion revenue from Information Technology by engaging 200,000 persons. These must be private-sector ventures. Revenue generation must increase to finance other promised salary increases, taxation adjustments, and more. Hence, compensatory alternatives must follow. It is there this “struggle” is not personal to PAKD but to everyone mentioned. The IMF, bilateral, and multilateral agencies, and individual investors, financiers, lenders, et al will keep eyes open on the government’s behaviour. Positive responses have already reached us from the World Bank and Asian Development Bank and the Staff Level Agreement reached will bring more. Perhaps, as a starting point of bilateral assistance to the NPP Government, one may expect Prime Minister Modi to be generous to PAKD on his first visit to Delhi, as he did to President Gotabaya Rajapaksa, and Heads of State from Bhutan, Nepal, Maldives, etc. in their past first official visits. Many policy initiatives require the engagement of the public service in large numbers, which includes poverty alleviation, social service administration, malnutrition reduction, small and medium businesses, etc. Obtaining motivated State employees’ cooperation is essential as PAKD stated in the Policy Statement and addressing Finance Ministry officials. Concurrently, the policies are combined with other operational reforms in the energy sector, restructuring State-Owned Enterprises (SOEs), efficient tax administration and duty policies, pruning the state sector, etc. Operationalisation of these reforms will require courage because reforms in the energy sector or SOEs or state sector employment are politically very sensitive, and on another hand, the NPP stood against these proposed reforms before elections. It is best if the NPP, as advocated by PAKD, develops the guts to move away from political rhetoric slogans and prioritise effective governance. These reforms are essential to sustain multilateral involvement in restructuring the economy. Additionally, some reforms may require broad systemic changes and approaches that have been delayed for decades, e.g., Free Trade Agreements, trading, and economic rephrasing (e.g., ‘restructuring’ vs. ‘privatisation’). The JVP/NPP and several others had opposed some of these and to support now may be embarrassing. Fortunately, protestors are less now. Nevertheless, there is no shame in course correction. Governance and corruption issues were key components of the IMF dialogue for which the IMF even conducted a special study on governance for the first time in Southeast Asia, a stinking record for a country. Anti-corruption was a grand attraction during election campaigns. Therefore, the NPP’s commitment to combating corruption and enhancing good governance must be firmed up. Its success could compensate for criticisms emanating from other failures, if any. In this regard, the electorate was given voluminous hope that the corrupt would be taken to task and any “illegally repatriated dollars” would be brought back soon, and this charge against former government functionaries swelled the NPP vote bank. However, the process of pursuing corruption issues is overly complex. Even the UN and World Bank’s Stolen Assets Recovery Initiative (StAR) interventions may succeed slowly, and the repatriated full amounts may not be recovered. Hence, the Government must prove its credible commitment publicly by immediate transparent actions. The electorate is impatient. Best wishes PAKD! PAKD has explained to the IMF the steps taken to enforce strict rules and regulations, strengthen legislative and institutional frameworks, and ensure transparency and accountability in these efforts. This is not the first time we hear of such positive promises. I am reminded of the Urdu saying “The elephant has two sets of teeth, one for chewing and the other for the show” and PAKD, unlike others must chew, and show too! Society is impatient. The current economic, social, and political problems in the north and east are a continuation of the past military, political, and resultant economic baggage. There were three opportunities the country had to solve this issue, one in 2002 with the Ceasefire Agreement, 2009 after the conflict was over, and one in 2015 with the Yahapalana Government, but all were wasted due to splits, biases, and obstinacy of some. Now, we have an unexpected, exceptional fourth opportunity with a total national mandate, for the rights of everyone to be honoured equally. If we fail to overcome the challenges, the result will be our becoming a failed state, chaos-filled, maybe even with bloodshed. Let us keep this in mind and not consider NPP’s success a victory only for PAKD or NPP, but a guideline for the Nation, saving the degeneration of a generation. Let us reflect on the possible reasoning behind the reflexes of northern, eastern, and hill county elector mindsets. It has issues like poverty, the collapse of essential services delivery (health, energy facilitation), failed elitist politics, dissatisfied youth, unending corruption, Human Rights violations, leaders ignoring peoples’ aspirations, etc. This is cumulative of decades of deterioration of political standards and was common to other areas too. In both statements, PAKD diagnosed the historical Sri Lankan political landscape, fuelled by mistrust and division, and highlighted those affected groups on language, religion, culture, etc., and the isolation of such groups, whose equal rights, and identities were pruned in these processes. Now the regional electorate has placed confidence in PAKD and NPP, it is natural for the President to directly speak to the affected promising democratic governance and actions to massage their wounded hearts. His reference to the investigation of leading emblematic criminal cases will satisfy the affected by offering long-awaited justice and punishments to the perpetrators. PAKD has beaten all Heads of State in the past by loudly promising formulation and implementation of laws, investigation, respect for the Rule of Law, most shied accountability, acting against racial discrimination, and criminalisation, and not keeping anyone above the law. This will be a massive reward to people searching for justice on behalf of the disappeared, tortured, murdered, etc., and a happy message to the humanitarian rights law troubleshooters. He exemplifies the highest moral courage by doing so. This bold response when executed must satisfy the internationals who demand a “comprehensive accountability process for all violations and abuses of human rights committed in Sri Lanka by all parties....) (UNHRC Resolution 51/1). Concurrently, the President’s statement upholds a basic democratic right of Sri Lankans under Articles 11, 12, and 13 of the Constitution, and not on UNHRC or Core Group cajoling. PKAD may review the draft Bill prepared by the former President on the Truth, Unity, and Reconciliation Commission to reinforce his actions on justice to the affected, which include the thousands who lost their lives in JVP uprisings. Most importantly, when the perpetrators are punished it will register as a satisfactory domestic accountability tool, instead of an international accountability mechanism. If the prosecution fails due to whatever reasons (e.g., non-availability of evidence) it will prove the difficulties of punishing perpetrators by court action, whether domestic or international. Then the NPP government could suggest other compensatory actions, through the Reparation Office or otherwise. Rather than raking negative issues, convincing the affected of the ground realities must be undertaken by political, civil society, international, and Diaspora interlocutors. Two other questionable issues are the devolution of land and police powers. For decades, these issues were negated without any governmental positive commitment. The JVP and NPP did not, and I think do not show interest in the 13th Amendment (13A). Despite this, the North and East have ignored such and voted NPP to power. To many citizens there, 13A is another sobered demand now, unknown to Letchchamies and Nadarasas, overtaken by economics, humanitarian rights, return to homes, and gaining access to lost assets like land. Hence, the past of JVP and the present of NPP’s attitudes do not seem to matter. For want of space let me focus on devolution of land powers only. Irrespective of the past of JVP/NPP, let us review whether we could explore, taking the island as one unit benefitting from the devolution of land powers. By such expansion, operational biases are reduced because the common application of systems is negotiable. The usual criticism had been that land power devolution can affect military installations, High-Security Zones, possession of acquired lands, and southern high population cannot be alienated land in the north and east, etc. Northerners and Easterners complain of land use by the military affecting their livelihoods, and the effect on ethnic demographic proportions. Nevertheless, PAKD in the campaign trail assured the possible release of lands held by the military, and to avoid haphazardness, formulating a policy for such is important. Releasing land is now a compulsory presidential obligation and a constitutional power he possesses. This could be managed by the provisions in Appendix II of the 13A. To wit, PAKD can appoint the National Land Commission (NLC) to formulate a National Land Policy in consultation with Provincial Councils (Supreme Court determinations apply.) All related concerns will be discussed at the NLC, and the best national policy finalised, sans political and communal biases, again as expected by law. This will ensure what PAKD stated as the “responsibility to consistently protect and elevate the rights of citizens within the democratic framework.” He considers these election results as symbolising an invitation to freedom for the oppressed, who longed for such freedom to escape the oppression. It must drive him and his teams to think anew. Of course, this will require course correction among members who had been negative on these issues, if he wishes to “create a more liberated environment for the people of this country.” His request to move away from political principles and slogans after the elections and to measure the success of the quality of governance must also be compulsorily applied to attitudinal change in some on top of his administration, worshipping election slogans. Concisely, the two statements reflected PAKD’s governance approach. The Policy Statement orchestrated PAKD’s philosophy and approach on racist politics, democratic governance, building national unity, maintaining the dignity of the Parliament, efficient State service and an overarching diplomatic service, supremacy of the Rule of Law, stabilising the economy, and continuing with the IMF program, key economic strategies to promote qualitative, economic activities, Clean Sri Lanka Program, etc., ending with a plea for cooperation from everyone to successfully perform for nation building. What more can be expected from a Policy Statement? However, we find different evaluations in the West; and domestically, as usual. Peaceful elections, the IMF Staff Level Agreement last week show that suspicions on the PAKD Government are currently ill-founded. Concerning developing nations, the West always has measures of political philosophies, human rights, and humanitarian approaches and how such nations stand with them to achieve their ends. I think PAKD has adequately addressed those. Probably with prophesied suspicion of PAKD’s political origins – i.e., Marxist, the Western media had been lukewarm, unlike the Indians in Karan Thapar in The Wire or Meera Srinivasan in The Hindu. It cannot be that the West is unconcerned with the surprising change taking place in Lankan politics. It does not match the way the Western media behaved during the Aragalaya in 2022, where we saw teams of journalists mingling with the youth participating in the Aragalaya at Galle Face Green, and when Arugam Bay “happened” recently. I hope the West will shed the baggage from last week, as PAKD sheds Lankan traditional politics, and support him as an accomplisher of much-needed change. He needs the overall acceptance and good wishes of his Sri Lankan counterparts and stakeholders to shoulder his responsibilities in the name of the nation and its future generations. Give him a chance to accomplish his mandate. If he fails the country will end up in misery. Sri Lanka may not have a fifth chance! Lest I am misunderstood, one short quip: Though I know PAKD, I am not a JVP or NPP Comrade, am only a concerned senior citizen.By ADRIANA GOMEZ LICON FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. (AP) — President-elect Donald Trump promised on Tuesday to “vigorously pursue” capital punishment after President Joe Biden commuted the sentences of most people on federal death row partly to stop Trump from pushing forward their executions. Related Articles National Politics | Elon Musk’s preschool is the next step in his anti-woke education dreams National Politics | Trump’s picks for top health jobs not just team of rivals but ‘team of opponents’ National Politics | Biden will decide on US Steel acquisition after influential panel fails to reach consensus National Politics | Biden vetoes once-bipartisan effort to add 66 federal judgeships, citing ‘hurried’ House action National Politics | A history of the Panama Canal — and why Trump can’t take it back on his own Trump criticized Biden’s decision on Monday to change the sentences of 37 of the 40 condemned people to life in prison without parole, arguing that it was senseless and insulted the families of their victims. Biden said converting their punishments to life imprisonment was consistent with the moratorium imposed on federal executions in cases other than terrorism and hate-motivated mass murder. “Joe Biden just commuted the Death Sentence on 37 of the worst killers in our Country,” he wrote on his social media site. “When you hear the acts of each, you won’t believe that he did this. Makes no sense. Relatives and friends are further devastated. They can’t believe this is happening!” Presidents historically have no involvement in dictating or recommending the punishments that federal prosecutors seek for defendants in criminal cases, though Trump has long sought more direct control over the Justice Department’s operations. The president-elect wrote that he would direct the department to pursue the death penalty “as soon as I am inaugurated,” but was vague on what specific actions he may take and said they would be in cases of “violent rapists, murderers, and monsters.” He highlighted the cases of two men who were on federal death row for slaying a woman and a girl, had admitted to killing more and had their sentences commuted by Biden. On the campaign trail, Trump often called for expanding the federal death penalty — including for those who kill police officers, those convicted of drug and human trafficking, and migrants who kill U.S. citizens. “Trump has been fairly consistent in wanting to sort of say that he thinks the death penalty is an important tool and he wants to use it,” said Douglas Berman, an expert on sentencing at Ohio State University’s law school. “But whether practically any of that can happen, either under existing law or other laws, is a heavy lift.” Berman said Trump’s statement at this point seems to be just a response to Biden’s commutation. “I’m inclined to think it’s still in sort of more the rhetoric phase. Just, ‘don’t worry. The new sheriff is coming. I like the death penalty,’” he said. Most Americans have historically supported the death penalty for people convicted of murder, according to decades of annual polling by Gallup, but support has declined over the past few decades. About half of Americans were in favor in an October poll, while roughly 7 in 10 Americans backed capital punishment for murderers in 2007. Before Biden’s commutation, there were 40 federal death row inmates compared with more than 2,000 who have been sentenced to death by states. “The reality is all of these crimes are typically handled by the states,” Berman said. A question is whether the Trump administration would try to take over some state murder cases, such as those related to drug trafficking or smuggling. He could also attempt to take cases from states that have abolished the death penalty. Berman said Trump’s statement, along with some recent actions by states, may present an effort to get the Supreme Court to reconsider a precedent that considers the death penalty disproportionate punishment for rape. “That would literally take decades to unfold. It’s not something that is going to happen overnight,” Berman said. Before one of Trump’s rallies on Aug. 20, his prepared remarks released to the media said he would announce he would ask for the death penalty for child rapists and child traffickers. But Trump never delivered the line. One of the men Trump highlighted on Tuesday was ex-Marine Jorge Avila Torrez, who was sentenced to death for killing a sailor in Virginia and later pleaded guilty to the fatal stabbing of an 8-year-old and a 9-year-old girl in a suburban Chicago park several years before. The other man, Thomas Steven Sanders, was sentenced to death for the kidnapping and slaying of a 12-year-old girl in Louisiana, days after shooting the girl’s mother in a wildlife park in Arizona. Court records show he admitted to both killings. Some families of victims expressed anger with Biden’s decision, but the president had faced pressure from advocacy groups urging him to make it more difficult for Trump to increase the use of capital punishment for federal inmates. The ACLU and the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops were some of the groups that applauded the decision. Biden left three federal inmates to face execution. They are Dylann Roof, who carried out the 2015 racist slayings of nine Black members of Mother Emanuel AME Church in Charleston, South Carolina; 2013 Boston Marathon bomber Dzhokhar Tsarnaev ; and Robert Bowers, who fatally shot 11 congregants at Pittsburgh’s Tree of Life Synagogue in 2018 , the deadliest antisemitic attack in U.S history. Associated Press writers Jill Colvin, Michelle L. Price and Eric Tucker contributed to this report.
The Shrimpers host Ebbsfleet United at Roots Hall on Boxing Day. And Maher is desperate to send what promises to be another big crowd home happy. “You always get a big crowd in for Boxing Day and I think everyone has been indoors for 24 hours so they want to get out to watch football and their team,” said Maher. “It’s a tradition and it’s one I enjoy. “They’re normally local games as well that families all go to and enjoy their day. “Our job is to make sure they do enjoy it by getting the right result.” Blues, who sit 16th in the standings, will be favourites for the game against their rock bottom opponents. But Maher knows Ebbsfleet will also be fired up for the clash. "They're having a difficult time but anyone coming to Roots Hall knowing there's 7,000 or 8,000 there will be up for it and a lot of teams are," said Maher. "Our job is to deal with that and put on a good performance to get a good result. "Ebbsfleet will be wanting to improve and it's our job to make sure that doesn't happen. "We've got to go and win the game." The Shrimpers will be bidding to bounce back from Saturday's 3-0 defeat at York City. And Maher has made sure the players quickly forgot about the setback. "There's obvious disappointment from Saturday in terms of the result," said Maher. "We review it, go through it and look at what we can do better but you've got to get over it quickly because you have to prepare again and train properly like we've done today" However, Maher also felt there were some positives to take from Saturday's game. "You have to take away the good stuff too," said the Blues boss. "The disappointing thing is the goals we conceded and how quickly they came put the game out of sight. "The positive spin is that for 65 minutes we've gone to a team who full of confidence and been a match in certain areas. "We've been competitive and had our moments which if they go the way you want then the games changes but it didn't and we've got to do better."
What does Big Tech hope to gain from warming up to Trump?WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. (AP) — President-elect Donald Trump on Saturday threatened 100% tariffs against a bloc of nine nations if they act to undermine the U.S. dollar. His threat was directed at countries in the so-called BRIC alliance, which consists of Brazil, Russia, India, China, South Africa, Egypt, Ethiopia, Iran and the United Arab Emirates. Turkey, Azerbaijan and Malaysia have applied to become members and several other countries have expressed interest in joining. While the U.S. dollar is by far the most-used currency in global business and has survived past challenges to its preeminence, members of the alliance and other developing nations say they are fed up with America’s dominance of the global financial system . The dollar represents roughly 58% of the world’s foreign exchange reserves, according to the IMF and major commodities like oil are still primarily bought and sold using dollars. The dollar's dominance is threatened, however, with BRICS' growing share of GDP and the alliance's intent to trade in non-dollar currencies — a process known as de-dollarization. Trump, in a Truth Social post, said: “We require a commitment from these Countries that they will neither create a new BRICS Currency, nor back any other Currency to replace the mighty U.S. Dollar or, they will face 100% Tariffs, and should expect to say goodbye to selling into the wonderful U.S. Economy." At a summit of BRIC nations in October, Russian President Vladimir Putin accused the U.S. of “weaponizing” the dollar and described it as a “big mistake.” “It’s not us who refuse to use the dollar,” Putin said at the time. “But if they don’t let us work, what can we do? We are forced to search for alternatives.” Russia has specifically pushed for the creation of a new payment system that would offer an alternative to the global bank messaging network, SWIFT, and allow Moscow to dodge Western sanctions and trade with partners. Trump said there is "no chance" BRIC will replace the U.S. dollar in global trade and any country that tries to make that happen "should wave goodbye to America.” Research shows that the U.S. dollar's role as the primary global reserve currency is not threatened in the near future. An Atlantic Council model that assesses the dollar’s place as the primary global reserve currency states the dollar is “secure in the near and medium term” and continues to dominate other currencies. Trump's latest tariff threat comes after he threatened to slap 25% tariffs on everything imported from Mexico and Canada, and an additional 10% tax on goods from China, as a way to force the countries to do more to halt the flow of illegal immigration and drugs into the U.S. He has since held a call with Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum, who said Thursday she is confident that a tariff war with the United States can be averted. Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau returned home Saturday after meeting Trump, without assurances the president-elect will back away from threatened tariffs on Canada.
Colorado's Travis Hunter to enter draft, vows to be full-time CB and WR in NFL
UK families of some 240,000 people who died from COVID-19 have hung festive lights on a London wall, a symbol of love, anger and pain ahead of another Christmas overshadowed by loss. As the fifth anniversary of the global pandemic approaches, emotions still run raw across the UK amid lingering accusations that the then government responded too slowly to the crisis. Some 240,000 hearts have been painted by hand on the wall, nestled on the banks of the Thames, opposite the British parliament. Each heart on the 500-metre-long (540-yard) wall represents one of the UK victims of the disease, which shattered and disrupted lives around the globe after being first detected in China in December 2019. “We put up lights every Christmas, just as a way to reflect and remember those people who are not with us,” said Kirsten Hackman, 58, whose mother died from COVID in May 2020. “For many of us, there is that empty place at the table this Christmas,” she added. The wall is a collective “therapy session,” say volunteers. Since 2019 more than seven million people have been reported to have died from Covid worldwide, according to the World Health Organization. But the true toll is believed to be much higher. Thousands of messages written on the hearts on the London wall reveal the depth of the emotional toll and scars left by the pandemic on UK lives. “Mamy, love you forever,” reads one, while another says: “Phil, always in my heart”. The remembrance wall was originally meant to be temporary, and was constructed without permission in March 2021 in protest at then prime minister Boris Johnson’s handling of the pandemic. He faced accusations of being too slow to recognize COVID’s threat and then taking too long to lock down the country to try to prevent the spread of the highly infectious disease. The wall is an “outpouring of love, anger, rage”, Lorelei King, whose husband died of COVID in March 2020, told AFP. The 71-year-old is part of the “Friends of the Wall” group, a dozen volunteers who come every Friday to clean the monument, repaint the rain-washed hearts and rewrite the messages. “It’s quite meditative”, she said. The group continues to draw new hearts as COVID claims new lives. Wall ‘comforts me’ But on the Friday before Christmas, the volunteers met for another, more joyful mission: to hang lights along the wall. They illuminated them on Monday, and the decorations will remain in place until the beginning of January. Nearly five years after the start of the pandemic, the pain remains the same, said King, adding she was one of many who had not been able to grieve properly. “We weren’t able to have a real funeral,” due to lockdown rules, she explained, referring to the severe restrictions put in place on visiting loved ones in their dying hours, and then from holding large gatherings to mourn their loss. Instead, she focuses her energy on the wall. “It comforts me. And I don’t want the people we care about to be forgotten,” said King. “We are all in the same boat”, added Michelle Rumball, 53, whose mother died of COVID in April 2020. She was there on the first day that some hearts were painted, following a social media call by activist group Led By Donkeys. Over the next 10 days, hundreds of people who had lost loved ones showed up to add their tribute, despite risking arrest for damaging a listed wall. “I was very angry at that time. It was a demonstration,” recalled Rumball. The group is in discussions with the authorities to make the wall, whose upkeep depends on donations, “permanent” and officially recognized, meaning it could be better protected. And a few days before Christmas, they had a “very positive” meeting, King said. According to the WHO, more than 232,000 people have died with COVID in the United Kingdom. By comparison, there have been around 168,000 deaths in France.—AFPCalifornia 83, Sacramento St. 77
A melee broke out at midfield of Ohio Stadium after Michigan upset No. 2 Ohio State 13-10 on Saturday. After the Wolverines' fourth straight win in the series, players converged at the block "O" to plant its flag. The Ohio State players were in the south end zone singing their alma mater in front of the student section. When the Buckeyes saw the Wolverines' flag, they rushed toward the 50-yard line. Social media posts showed Michigan offensive lineman Raheem Anderson carrying the flag on a long pole to midfield, where the Wolverines were met by dozens of Ohio State players and fights broke out. Buckeyes defensive end Jack Sawyer was seen ripping the flag off the pole and taking the flag as he scuffled with several people trying to recover the flag. A statement from the Ohio State Police Department read: "Following the game, officers from multiple law enforcement agencies assisted in breaking up an on-field altercation. During the scuffle, multiple officers representing Ohio and Michigan deployed pepper spray. OSUPD is the lead agency for games and will continue to investigate." Michigan running back Kalel Mullings on FOX said: "For such a great game, you hate to see stuff like that after the game. It's bad for the sport, bad for college football. At the end of the day, some people got to learn how to lose, man. "You can't be fighting and stuff just because you lost the game. We had 60 minutes and four quarters to do all that fighting. Now people want to talk and fight. That's wrong. It's bad for the game. Classless, in my opinion. People got to be better." Once order was restored, officers cordoned the 50-yard line, using bicycles as barriers. Ohio State coach Ryan Day in his postgame press conference said he wasn't sure what happened. "I don't know all the details of it. But I know that these guys are looking to put a flag on our field and our guys weren't going to let that happen," he said. "I'll find out exactly what happened, but this is our field and certainly we're embarrassed at the fact we lost the game, but there's some prideful guys on our team that weren't just going to let that happen." The Big Ten has not yet released a statement on the incident. --Field Level MediaWhen the Chicago Bulls dealt Alex Caruso to the Oklahoma City Thunder in June, many fans scratched their heads. It was no secret that Bulls vice president of basketball operations Artūras Karnišovas was going to make some changes, but Caruso seemed like he’d made a new home in Chicago, a town that appreciates players who put their bodies on the line on a nightly basis. Caruso wasn’t just a fan favorite, but a two-time, All-Defensive Team player and a glue piece in the locker room. He was the 2023-24 winner of the NBA Hustle Award, which honors players whose contributions can’t always be seen in a box score — deflections, loose balls and charges among them. And with his adaptability and basketball IQ, Caruso easily could have fit into the new offensive scheme coach Billy Donovan was planning to employ and was also quite affordable at $10 million in the final year of his four-year, $37 million deal. But Karnišovas, who stood pat at the last three trade deadlines, made his first deal for a player since August 2021, sending Caruso to the Thunder for 21-year-old guard Josh Giddey. Caruso loved Chicago but understood the rationale. “That’s part of the business,” he said on opening night at the United Center in October. “When we don’t win, stuff has to change.” But did it have to be Caruso? Dealing popular athletes before their big payday has been a recurring theme of Chairman Jerry Reinsdorf’s two professional teams — the Bulls and the White Sox — and particularly so in 2024. Like Sox ace Garrett Crochet , Caruso was dealt before Reinsdorf had to reach deep into his pockets for an extension. Nothing personal. “Organizations win championships” wasn’t just a throwaway line by late general manager Jerry Krause. Reinsdorf’s teams typically operate as though the front office does the dirty work and the stars are interchangeable. Oklahoma City Thunder guard Alex Caruso passes the ball by Chicago Bulls guard Coby White in the second half of the Bulls home opener at the United Center on Oct. 26, 2024. (Chris Sweda/Chicago Tribune) Caruso’s defense has helped make a young and tough Thunder team even more dominant. With a 23-5 record, the best in the Western Conference and second overall to the Cleveland Cavaliers, a league-best defense and a brilliant coach in Mark Daigneault, the Thunder could be favorites to win their first NBA title in Oklahoma, and second in franchise history after the Seattle SuperSonics’ 1979 crown. As a reward for his contributions, Caruso last week was given a four-year, $81 million contract extension . Not bad for an undrafted player with a career average of 6.8 points per game. The Thunder used their Bird rights, which allows teams to go over the salary cap to sign their own free agents. The lucrative contract shows how much of a premium some organizations put on defense. The Bulls, who made defense a calling card during the Michael Jordan dynasty, are not one of those organizations. Coach Bill Donovan entered the 2024-25 season acknowledging there would be defensive “challenges” to overcome, and last month he conceded they still exist. “There were times last year like, ‘Oh my God, this is bad,’ and Caruso fixes it,” Donovan said. “We don’t have that.” Monday night’s 112-91 loss to the Milwaukee Bucks at the United Center was also one of those times when Bulls fans said: “Oh my God, this is bad.” But there was no Caruso to fix it, as the Bucks hit 41.9 % of their 3s (18-of-43) to the Bulls’ 20.8% (10-of-48). The loudest moment was the traditional cartoon race on the video board between the donut, bagel and the cup of coffee. Comcast subscribers felt fortunate not to have the Chicago Sports Network, avoiding the ability to witness the carnage. Photos: Milwaukee Bucks 112, Chicago Bulls 91 It might be too early to call the Caruso-Giddey trade one-sided, but it’s obvious the Bulls have lost some intangibles since Caruso’s departure. Giddey , who sat again Monday with a right ankle sprain, is in the final year of his four-year, $27 million rookie contract with OKC. The Bulls declined to extend him before the October deadline, making Giddey a restricted free agent after the season. Reports have said he was seeking a deal averaging $30 million, which seems like an overreach considering his defensive liabilities and below-average 3-point shooting. But who knows? The Bulls will be able to match any contract offer, and perhaps someone else sees potential in a 22-year-old still learning. Chicago Bulls guard Josh Giddey chases Charlotte Hornets guard Isaiah Wong in the third quarter at the United Center on Dec. 13, 2024. (John J. Kim/Chicago Tribune) Donovan said Monday that Giddey was “starting to impact the team in a positive way” before the ankle injury, but still needs to learn to finish. He’s been on the bench at the end of most close games. “I definitely think without question he can be an important piece to us,” Donovan said. “I love the fact, the way he rebounds the basketball, at his size, (how) he can start the break. I think he’s recognizing now a lot of times with his size when he gets in the lane, his finishing has not been great, and there have been opportunities for him to spray the ball out ... “But I do think when you’re a guy with his skill set and strength and ability to pass the ball, coming into a new situation entirely, it does take time for players to adjust to him, for him to adjust to players.” Giddey’s ability to run a faster-paced offense makes him an important part of the Bulls’ attack, and there’s no debating they have to win high-scoring games to win. They averaged 117 points per game, but have been held below 100 points the last two games against the Boston Celtics and Bucks, with Giddey unavailable. Related Articles Chicago Bulls | Photos: Milwaukee Bucks 112, Chicago Bulls 91 Chicago Bulls | Column: Will the Chicago Bulls tank or go for it? The next month of play should provide the answer. Chicago Bulls | Alex Caruso signs a multiyear extension with the Oklahoma City Thunder Chicago Bulls | Chicago Bulls have no answer for Jayson Tatum, whose 43-point triple-double leads the Boston Celtics to a 123-98 win Chicago Bulls | Matas Buzelis set a high bar for his 1st Chicago Bulls season: Win as many games as possible. Then win Rookie of the Year. Coby White guessed the Bulls had as many as 35 wide-open 3s on Monday, but they hit only 10, an effort that was difficult to watch. Donovan told them to keep shooting 3s instead of going inside against the Bucks’ rim protectors, and Zach LaVine said the “live and die” by the 3 ethos didn’t work, and they “keeled over.” White is in one of the worst shooting slumps of his career. He hasn’t lost his confidence but acknowledged his shot isn’t falling. Over his last nine games, he’s shooting 34% and only 28% on his 3-point attempts. “I get cold, but I don’t ever get cold like this for as many games as it’s been,” he said. “I’ve had two or three or four and then I get back into rhythm. I’m a career 38-39% 3-point shooter, so it will all even back out.”’ The Bulls are 13-17 but looked worse in the last two games. Maybe they’re hitting the wall, or it could be just a blip. “I know y’all didn’t have us there, 13-17,” White said. “A lot of people didn’t. But we believe in each other. Every guy in the locker room wants to win. There’s going to be ups and downs, but I think we’re in a good spot. We’re building an identity.” That’s fine, but winning would be preferable.None
Not so long ago, you needed only the major over-the-air networks and a few cable channels to watch virtually any significant sporting event. No longer. Decisions by the NFL, NBA and other leagues have left fans reaching into their pockets to pay for subscriptions to a handful of streaming services, incurring costs they never needed to worry about just three years ago. And, for some, that trend will continue on Christmas, when Netflix will televise NFL games for the first time. The streaming giant, which has more than 270 million subscribers, made a big splash by paying $150 million to acquire rights to two Christmas NFL games: Kansas City-Pittsburgh at 1 p.m. and Baltimore-Houston at 4:30 p.m. CBS will produce both games but Netflix will use announcers from CBS, NBC, Fox, NFL Network and ESPN. Three CBS announcers — Ian Eagle and studio analysts Nate Burleson and J.J. Watt — will call the Chiefs-Steelers game. NBC’s Noah Eagle will call the Ravens-Texans game with Fox’s Greg Olsen. Netflix began dabbling in outside-the-box sports programming earlier this year, including a tennis exhibition between Spain’s two biggest tennis stars, Rafael Nadal and Carlos Alcaraz. A Nov. 14 Mike Tyson-Jake Paul fight was marred by technical errors and freezing, but Netflix has assured the NFL that won’t happen on Christmas. Per the Associated Press, the Tyson bout peaked at 65 million concurrent streams, including 38 million concurrent streams in the United States. Nearly 85,000 viewers logged problems with outages or streaming before and during the fight, per the website Down Detector. Netflix is the nation’s most profitable streaming service; in the first quarter of this year, it reported revenue of $9.4 billion and net income of $2.3 billion. A Netflix standard plan costs $6.99 per month with ads and $15.49 per month without ads. Besides landing two NFL games, Netflix made another big splash this week, landing rights to the 2027 and 2031 Women’s World Cup. Beyond Netflix, an update on what streaming services you’ll need to have access to all major sports between now and the end of next year: Amazon Prime Video — Cost: $14.99 per month or $139 per year. — What’s offered: If you prefer to spend on just one streaming service, this probably has become the most essential one for sports fans. Amazon is carrying a third season of “Thursday Night Football” and also acquired rights to a Saturday wild-card playoff game that streamed on Peacock last season. Amazon will carry Thursday NFL games again next season, including a Christmas night game. Al Michaels, 80 is expected to return on play-by-play. Also, Amazon is spending $1.8 billion annually for an NBA and WNBA package beginning in 2025-26. That Amazon NBA package includes six conference finals over 11 years, the NBA’s in-season tournament, the play-in games, a Friday night double-header and Thursday night games after NFL season ends, plus some exclusive playoff games. Also, Amazon’s NBA deal includes 30 regular-season WNBA games annually, a first-round WNBA playoff series each season, seven semifinals and three WNBA Finals series over 11 years. Beyond the NFL and the NBA, Amazon also has NASCAR races, NHL games in Canada and Champions League soccer in England, Italy and Germany. And at some point in 2025, Amazon will begin streaming FanDuel Sports Network cablecasts of some NBA and MLB teams, including the Heat and Marlins. Everyone, including Amazon subscribers, will be required to pay an additional undetermined fee to access Amazon’s streaming of local NBA and MLB games. Netflix, Amazon and Disney are the only streaming services with more than 200 million subscribers. But many of those subscribers have Amazon subscriptions primarily as a purchase platform, rather than for the programming content. As perspective, 33 million U.S. homes now have cable television and only 13 million have satellite service, mostly DirecTV or Dish Network. ESPN Plus — Cost: $11.99 per month or $119.99 a year. There’s also a bundle of ESPN Plus, Disney Plus and Hulu for $15 a month, with all three streaming services carrying ads in that package. — What’s offered: Many of the marquee events on ESPN Plus also air on ESPN or ABC, but there are exceptions. ESPN had one exclusive NFL game this season: Chargers at Arizona on Oct. 21. ESPN Plus has a full slate of exclusive NHL games and select WNBA games, plus international soccer events including the EFL Championship, U.S. Open Cup and Bundesliga; Ivy League, Big Sky and Atlantic 10 conference sports; some ACC and SEC football and basketball games that aren’t picked up by ABC, ESPN, ESPN2 or ESPNU; and select golf and tennis events. ESPN Plus allows subscribers to purchase UFC play-per-view events and access an extensive archive of on-demand content, including the entire 30 for 30 series and game replays. Apple — Cost: $9.99 per month. — What’s offered: Apple, which produces more original non-sports content than most streamers, owns rights to Major League Soccer and Friday night MLB games. MLS Season Pass — which carries the league’s matches on TVs, phones and other devices — costs $13 per month or $79 for the season if you’re already a subscriber to the Apple TV Plus streaming service. If you don’t subscribe to Apple TV Plus, MLS Season Pass costs $15 a month or $99 for the season. Apple also has carried several sports documentary series, including The Dynasty: New England Patriots; Messi Meets America; Real Madrid: Until the End and Stephen Curry: Underrated. Peacock — Cost: $7.99 per month or $79.99 per year. — What’s offered: Besides simulcasting NBC’s sports coverage (including all its NFL games), the network has acquired enough exclusive sports content to make itself more important for fans. Though NBC’s streaming service won’t have an exclusive NFL playoff game again this season, it had exclusive rights to the Eagles-Packers game from Brazil in Week 1. Meanwhile, NBC’s new NBA deal, which begins in 2025-26, will give Peacock an exclusive Monday night double-header and two Tuesday night NBA games, one of which will air on your local NBC affiliate. On Tuesdays beginning in the 2025-26 season, NBC plans to carry one NBA game at 8 p.m. that will air in the Eastern and Central Time zones on NBC affiliates and one game at 11 p.m. that will air in the Mountain and Western Time zones. Both games also will stream on Peacock, meaning viewers in the East will be able to watch the Western game on Peacock and vice versa. Peacock already owned exclusive rights to one Notre Dame game and a few Big Ten football games each season; Premier League soccer and select cycling, motorsports, golf, college basketball and rugby events. Peacock also streams some Olympic events that aren’t on NBC or NBC-owned cable networks. YouTube TV — Cost: $82.99 per month. — What’s offered: The streaming service is paying about $2 billion annually for NFL Sunday Ticket, the out-of-market NFL service which was carried on DirecTV before last season. (DirecTV still owns licensing rights for restaurants and sports bars.) YouTube has changed the price of Sunday Ticket depending on the time of year; before the season, it cost $449 for a standalone subscription through YouTube Primetime Channels. For an additional $40, subscribers can add NFL RedZone, which shows highlights from all Sunday NFL games. Next year’s prices haven’t been determined. Paramount Plus — Cost: $8 per month, or $13.00 per month for the Showtime plan, which includes access to Showtime’s live sports coverage, such as boxing and MMA. Those are also available as annual packages for $60 and $120, respectively. — What’s offered: Besides all CBS Sports programming, Paramount exclusively carries than 360 matches per year from Brazil’s Campeonato Brasileiro Serie A soccer league, as well as all matches from the Italian Serie A league. Other exclusive programming includes the UEFA Champions League, UEFA Europa League, UEFA Europa Conference League and soccer matches from the NWSL, FAWSL, and AFA. Paramount Plus also live streams the Masters (including coverage that’s not on CBS), PGA Tour event, the Argentine Primera Division and programming from CBS Sports HQ, which streams sports news content 24 hours per day. Bundle options In May, Comcast (which owns Peacock) announced it would offer its broadband customers a bundle of Peacock, Netflix and Apple Plus for $15 per month. Venu, a new sports streaming joint venture, planned to charge $42.99 per month for access to all sports programming from ABC/ESPN/ESPN Plus, as well as Fox and Turner Sports. But a federal judge blocked the planned launch of Venu, with a trial scheduled for February. Meanwhile, ESPN plans to launch a direct-to-consumer service at some point next year, which will allow viewers to cancel their cable or satellite subscriptions and receive all ESPN programming if they chose. The cost reportedly will be $30 or so a month. ©2024 Miami Herald. Visit miamiherald.com . Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.Column: Chicago Bulls are still looking for an identity while former Bull Alex Caruso gets rewarded for his
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