Kochi, Dec 29 (PTI) Condition of Thrikkakara Congress MLA Uma Thomas who suffered severe head and spinal injuries from a fall off a gallery at Jawaharlal Nehru International Stadium on Sunday evening, continues to be critical, hospital sources said. Meanwhile, the Kochi city police registered a case on Monday against the organisers for alleged safety lapses in organising the event and setting up the stage without adhering to safety norms. Also Read | Kolkata Fatafat Result Today: Kolkata FF Result for December 30, 2024 Declared, Check Winning Numbers and Result Chart of Satta Matka-Type Lottery Game. Uma Thomas is in serious condition after sustaining head and spinal injuries, reportedly after falling from the VIP gallery of the stadium, approximately 15 feet high. She came to the stadium to attend 'Mridanga Naadam', an event where approximately 12,000 dancers, including actor-dancer Divya Unni, performed Bharatanatyam in a bid to set a Guinness World Record. Also Read | Shillong Teer Results Today, December 30 2024: Winning Numbers, Result Chart for Shillong Morning Teer, Shillong Night Teer, Khanapara Teer, Juwai Teer and Jowai Ladrymbai. The Palarivattom police registered an FIR against the organisers of the event and a Kochi-based event management firm. A detailed investigation is underway, police added. Earlier, Kochi City Police Commissioner Putta Vimaladitya inspected the accident site. Hospital authorities said the condition of the MLA, who has been placed on ventilator support, is still critical. According to a medical bulletin issued on Sunday by the hospital, injuries were found on the head and on the spinal cord. Due to the fractures sustained on the face and ribs, there was internal bleeding in the lungs, it added. She reportedly hit her head on the concrete ground after falling from the VIP gallery of the stadium, sources said. According to Congress sources, there was limited space between the front row seats and the edge of the gallery that was ‘barricaded' using a ribbon. An expert medical team from the Health Department would assess Uma's health condition, according to officials. The team, led by Kottayam Medical College Superintendent Dr Jayakumar, includes specialists from Kottayam Government Medical College and Ernakulam Government Medical College, along with the hospital's existing medical board. Congress leaders have alleged lapses in safety protocols at the stadium. (This is an unedited and auto-generated story from Syndicated News feed, LatestLY Staff may not have modified or edited the content body)When Nathan Hecht ran for the Texas Supreme Court in 1988, no Republican had ever been elected to the state’s highest civil court. His election foreshadowed a coming transformation of the court, civil legal procedure and Texas itself. Hecht is the longest tenured Supreme Court justice in Texas history. He won six reelections and led the court as chief justice for more than a decade. He heard more than 2,700 oral arguments, authored 7,000 pages of opinions, and retires now not because he’s had enough, but because state law requires him to. Late on a Friday afternoon, just two weeks before he hung up his robe, he was still in his office, his mind mired in the work that was left to be done. “This is always a really busy time for us, because the opinions are mounting up to be talked about,” he said. “It’ll be busy next week.” Hecht began as a dissenter on a divided court, his conservative positions on abortion, school finance and property rights putting him at odds with the Democratic majority and some moderate Republicans. But as Texas Republicans began dominating up and down the ballot, his minority voice became mainstream on one of the country’s most conservative high courts. In his administration of the court, Hecht has been a fierce advocate for the poor, pushing for more Legal Aid funding, bail reform and lowering the barriers to accessing the justice system. “If justice were food, too many would be starving,” Hecht told lawmakers in 2017. “If it were housing, too many would be homeless. If it were medicine, too many would be sick.” Hecht’s departure leaves a vacancy that Gov. Greg Abbott , a former justice himself, will get to fill. He may elevate a current justice or appoint someone new directly to the chief justice role. Whoever ends up in the top spot will have to run for reelection in 2026. In his typical understated manner, so at odds with the bombast of the other branches of government, Hecht told The Texas Tribune that serving on the court has been the honor of his life. “I have gotten to participate not only in a lot of decisions shaping the jurisprudence of the state, but also in trying to improve the administration of the court system so that it works better and fosters public trust and confidence,” he said. “So I feel good about the past,” he said. “And I feel good about the future.” Born in Clovis, New Mexico, Hecht studied philosophy at Yale before getting his law degree from Southern Methodist University. He clerked on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia and returned to Texas, where his reputation preceded him. As a young lawyer, Tom Phillips, a former chief justice and now a partner at Baker Botts, reached out to a Dallas law firm that had promised to hire him the next chance they got. “I called them a few months later and said, ‘So I assume you never got a vacancy,’” Phillips recalls. “And they said, ‘Well, we did, but we had a chance to hire Nathan Hecht, so you’ll understand why we went ahead and did that.’” Hecht was appointed to the district court in 1981 and quickly made a name for himself, pushing the court to modernize their stenography practices and taking the unusual step of writing opinions as a trial judge. He was elected to the court of appeals in 1986, and ran for Texas Supreme Court two years later. This race came at a low point for Texas’ judiciary, after a string of scandals, ethics investigations, eyebrow-raising rulings and national news coverage made several sitting Supreme Court justices household names — and not in a good way. Seeing an opportunity, Hecht challenged one of the incumbents, a Democrat who’d been called out in a damning 60 Minutes segment for friendly relationships with lawyers who both funded his campaigns and argued before the court. Hecht teamed up with Phillips and Eugene Cook, two Republicans who had recently been appointed to the court, and asked voters to “Clean the Slate in ’88,” separating themselves from the Democrats by promising to only accept small donations. “Party politics were changing in the state at the same time, but the broader issue on our court at the time was to ensure that judges were following the law,” Hecht said. “That was a driving issue.” Since Phillips and Cook were incumbents, Hecht was the only one who had to take on a sitting Supreme Court justice. And he won. “It really was a sea change in Texas political history,” Phillips said. “He was the first person ever to do that in a down ballot race, to defeat a Democrat as a Republican.” Republican dominance swept through the Supreme Court as swiftly as it did Texas writ large. The last Democrat would be elected to the court in 1994, just six years after the first Republican. But even among Bush-era Republicans filling the bench, Hecht’s conservatism stood out. In 2000, he wrote a dissent disagreeing with the majority ruling that allowed teens in Texas to get abortions with a judge’s approval if their parents wouldn’t consent, and a few years earlier, ruled in favor of wealthy school districts that wanted to use local taxes to supplement state funds. His pro-business bent stood out next to the court’s history of approving high dollar payouts for plaintiffs. Alex Winslow, the executive director of Texas Watch, a consumer advocacy group, told the New York Times in 2005 that Hecht was “the godfather of the conservative judicial movement in Texas.” “Extremist would be an appropriate description,” Winslow said. “He’s the philosophical leader of the right-wing fringe.” The only other justice who regularly staked out such a conservative position, according to the New York Times, was Priscilla Owen, who President George W. Bush appointed to the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in 2005. Hecht and Owen, who now goes by her maiden name, Richmond, wed in 2022 . Wallace Jefferson, Hecht’s predecessor as chief justice, said Hecht’s sharp intellect and philosophical approach to the law improved the court’s opinions, even when he ultimately didn’t side with the majority. “He was a formidable adversary,” said Jefferson, now a partner at Alexander Dubose & Jefferson. “You knew that you would have to bring your best approach and analysis to overcome Nathan’s approach and analysis ... You had to come prepared and Nathan set the standard for that.” Hecht briefly became a national figure in 2005 when he helped Bush’s efforts to confirm Harriet Miers to the U.S. Supreme Court. As her longtime friend, Hecht gave more than 120 interviews to bolster Miers’ conservative credentials, jokingly calling himself the “PR office for the White House,” Texas Monthly reported at the time . This advocacy work raised ethical questions that Hecht fought for years, starting with a reprimand from the State Commission on Judicial Conduct. Hecht got that overturned. The Texas Ethics Commission then fined him $29,000 for not reporting the discount he got on the legal fees he paid challenging the reprimand. He appealed that fine and the case stretched until 2016 , when he ultimately paid $1,000. Hecht has largely stayed out of the limelight in the decades since, letting his opinions speak for themselves and wading into the political fray mostly to advocate for court reforms. While Democrats have tried to pin unpopular COVID and abortion rulings on the justices in recent elections, Republicans continue to easily win these down-ballot races. Hecht is aware of the perception this one-party dominance creates, and has advocated for Texas to turn away from partisan judicial elections. In his 2023 state of the judiciary address , Hecht warned that growing political divisions were threatening the “judicial independence essential to the rule of law,” pointing to comments by both Democratic politicians and former President Donald Trump. But in an interview, Hecht stressed that most of the cases the Texas Supreme Court considers never make headlines, and are far from the politics that dominate Austin and Washington. “There’s no Republican side to an oil and gas case. There’s no Democrat side to a custody hearing,” he said. “That’s the bread and butter of what we do, and that’s not partisan.” Unlike its federal counterpart, the Texas Supreme Court is often a temporary port of call on a judge’s journey. Many, like Abbott, Sen. John Cornyn and U.S. Rep. Lloyd Doggett , leave for higher office. Others, like Owen and 5th Circuit Judge Don Willett, leave for higher courts. Most, like Phillips, leave for higher pay in private practice. But Hecht stayed. “I didn’t plan it like this,” Hecht said. “I just kept getting re-elected.” Hecht had been considering retirement in 2013, when Jefferson, the chief justice who replaced Phillips, announced he would be stepping down. “He wanted me to consider being his successor,” Hecht said. “So I did, and here I am. I didn’t say, ‘Let’s spend 43 years on the bench,’ but one thing led to another.” In 2013, Hecht was sworn in as chief justice by then-U.S. Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia, another great dissenter whose views later became the majority. While the Texas Supreme Court’s political makeup has changed largely without Hecht’s input, the inner workings of the court have been under his purview. And that, many court watchers say, is where his greatest legacy lies. Hecht ushered in an era of modernization, both to the technology and the rules that govern justice in Texas. He led a push to simplify the appellate rules, removing many of the trapdoors and procedural quirks that led to important cases being decided on technicalities. The court scaled back how long cases could drag on by limiting discovery, including how long a deposition can go. And he ensured every case was decided before the term ended, like the U.S. Supreme Court. “I think people generally don’t understand the impact the rules can have on the equitable resolution of disputes, but they’re enormous,” Jefferson said. “Nathan recognized that at an early juncture in his career.” Hecht pushed Texas to adopt e-filing before many other states, which proved prescient when COVID hit. Hecht, who was then president of the national Conference of Chief Justices, was able to help advise other states as they took their systems online. Hecht also dedicated himself to improving poor Texan’s access to the justice system, pushing the Legislature to appropriate more funding for Legal Aid and reducing the barriers to getting meaningful legal resolutions. He helped usher through a rule change that would allow paraprofessionals to handle some legal matters like estate planning, uncontested divorces and consumer debt cases, without a lawyer’s supervision. “Some people call it the justice gap. I call it the justice chasm,” Hecht said. “Because it’s just a huge gulf between the people that need legal help and the ability to provide it.” Hecht said he’s glad this has been taken up as a bipartisan issue, and he’s hopeful that the same attention will be paid even after he leaves the court. “No judge wants to give his life’s energy to a work that mocks the justice that he’s trying to provide,” he said. “For the judiciary, this is an important issue, because when the promise of equal justice under law is denied because you’re too poor, there’s no such thing as equal justice under the law.” Despite the sudden departure of their longtime leader, the Texas Supreme Court will return in January to finish out its term, which ends in April. Among the typical parsing of medical malpractice provisions, oil and gas leases, divorce settlements and sovereign immunity protections, the high court has a number of more attention-grabbing cases on its docket this year. Earlier this year, the court heard oral arguments about the Department of Family and Protective Services’ oversight of immigration detention facilities, and in mid-January, they’ll consider Attorney General Ken Paxton’s efforts to subpoena Annunciation House, an El Paso nonprofit that serves migrants. They’ll also hear arguments over Southern Methodist University’s efforts to cut ties with the regional governing body of the United Methodist Church. Other cases will be added to the schedule before April. Phillips, who has argued numerous cases before the Texas Supreme Court since leaving the bench, said Hecht’s loss will be felt, but he expects the court to continue apace. “It’s not a situation like it might have been at some point in the past where if one justice left, nobody would know what to do next,” he said. “It’s an extremely qualified court.” As for Hecht, he’s tried to put off thinking too much about what comes next for him. He still has opinions to write and work to finish. He knows he wants to stay active in efforts to improve court administration nationally and in Texas, and he’s threatened his colleagues with writing a tell-all book, just to keep them on their toes. But beyond that, he’s waiting for the reality of retirement to sink in before he decides on his next steps. “We’ve got 3,200 judges in Texas, plus adjuncts and associate judges and others,” he said. “I really think it’s such a strong bench, and I am proud to have been a part of it. I look forward to helping where I can.” This story was originally published by The Texas Tribune and distributed through a partnership with The Associated Press.Former Fresno State quarterback Mikey Keene is transferring to Michigan with one year of eligibility remaining. Confirming earlier reports, Keene posted an image of himself in a Wolverines uniform on social media on Monday. Keene passed for 2,892 yards with 18 touchdowns and 11 interceptions in 12 games for the Bulldogs in 2024. Fresno State opened the season with a 30-10 loss at Michigan on Aug. 31, with Keene throwing for 235 yards with one touchdown and two picks. Including two seasons at UCF (2021-22), Keene has completed 67.8 percent of his passes for 8,245 yards with 65 TDs and 28 interceptions in 39 games. Keene's competition for the starting job at Michigan includes incoming freshman Bryce Underwood, the 247Sports Composite's No. 1 overall player in the 2025 recruiting class. --Field Level MediaMany places across the country reported heavy flooding Flooding at Moat Park in Dundonald, Belfast. Photograph by Declan Roughan / Press Eye This was the scene on the Hillhall Road in Lisburn which had been closed to traffic. Photo - Andrew McCarroll/ Pacemaker Press This was the scene on the Hillhall Road in Lisburn which had been closed to traffic this morning Paul Gray of Crosspoint Church A man walking his dog carefully avoids the folded pathway as he walks on the grass along the banks of the Waterworks Swan Lake in north Belfast . Photo: Liam McBurney/RAZORPIX Northern Ireland is beginning to recover from chaotic weather over the weekend. Storm Bert arrived on Saturday causing power cuts, travel disruption and flooding, and a strong winds continued to batter Northern Ireland today. The Department for Infrastructure said it responded to more than 500 incidents since weather alerts were issued on Friday night. Winds of up to 67mph were recorded in Ballypatrick, Co Antrim on Saturday. Roads across counties Tyrone, Down and Antrim were blocked by trees and flood waters on Saturday, and properties were flooded in Dundonald, Kilcoo, Coalisland and Ballinamallard as well a Royal Mail property in Mallusk. The weather is expected to calm down as we head into the new week but many across the country will be dealing with the aftermath of the devastation wreaked by Storm Bert for many weeks to come. This was the scene on the Hillhall Road in Lisburn which had been closed to traffic. Photo - Andrew McCarroll/ Pacemaker Press Homes near Moat Park in Dundonald, Co Down were affected by flooding. Some residents at Park Avenue were trapped in their homes by the floodwater, with around 18 properties damaged. Several homes in Coalisland, Co Tyrone, have also been damaged. A local community centre has been opened for those affected. Their homes are now unoccupied with many residents currently waiting for emergency accommodation. Paul Gray is a Pastor of the Crosspoint Church in Dundonald. He opened the churches doors for residents affected by the flooding. “I got a phone call first thing in the morning telling me that there was flooding and I should go check on the church,” he said. “I went out and the church was fine but you could see the street at Moat Park was flooded. “So I said I would keep the church open for anyone that needed it.” Mr Gray said many residents were trapped inside their homes while the NI Fire and Rescue Service (NIFRS) attempted to find the source of the flooding and pump water away from the homes. “Initially we only had one family come to us because a lot of them were stuck in their homes,” he said. “That must have been very hard for them because the power had been out from the earlier morning and they had to stay upstairs.” Paul Gray of Crosspoint Church As the NIFRS cleared the flooding more families were able to come into the church or see the damage the floods caused to their homes. “It’s awful. I’ve seen videos from people and the water was up to their ankles or knee and everything they have is lost or water damaged,” Mr Gray said. “It clearly done a lot of damage to the homes.” He said the flooding has upset many residents. “It is a very distressing and stressful time for people because everything they have is ruined. “Some of them didn’t have house insurance and everything is gone. “One of the families has a five or six month old little baby and they were very distressed by everything.” Another family displaced by the flooding was an immigrant family who had only been living in Northern Ireland for a short time. “We have an Iranian family and they have only been here three or four months and they lost absolutely everything. They didn’t even have shoes,” Mr Gray said. “Their landlord came and sat with them, him and his partner sat with them for a long time and brought them some things they needed.” He said the local community in Dundonald had come together to support those affected by the flooding. “That is what the community is like here — we always come together. I had people volunteering here, people messaging me asking if we needed anything. “People were bringing down blankets, and cash donations and food. The local chip shop rang us up and said if we needed any food to just ring in and ask and they’d give it to us,” he said. The church quickly became a hub for residents to receive support from locals as well as the Housing Executive. “Not everyone came here. Some people just went and stayed with relatives but everyone that was here the council got them sorted with somewhere to stay for the next two nights before they get emergency accommodation sorted for them,” the pastor added. Mr Gray praised the local council, the Housing Executive and the NIFRS for their fast response to the flooding. “I can honestly say I think the response was flawless. They did everything they could as quickly as they could but it is very hard for the people affected, like they aren’t going to be back into their homes for months,” he said. This was the scene on the Hillhall Road in Lisburn which had been closed to traffic this morning An emergency payment scheme was activated at the weekend by Communities Minister Gordon Lyons, meaning householders who have suffered “severe inconvenience” from flooding can claim a £1,000 payment through their local council. The Met Office said the weather this week is expected to be much calmer than the weekend. It will begin cloudy and windy with some bright spells and scattered heavy showers. However they are not expected to be as strong as the heavy rainfall Storm Bert brought. The wind will ease and the showers gradually clear during Tuesday. This will leave Wednesday and Thursday mainly dry with bright spells and light winds, perhaps with rain later on Thursday. Into next weekend, we could expect to see light rain changing to overcast by lunchtime on Friday which will likely stay for the duration of the weekend. In the Republic, the storm, which landed overnight on Friday, flooded villages and roads, and disrupted travel. Torrential rainfall caused havoc across many rural communities with homes flooded, infrastructure damaged, roads left impassable, festive attractions closed and Christmas shopping interrupted. At its peak, over 60,000 homes and businesses were left without power as Storm Bert battered Ireland with torrential rainfall and high winds. A man walking his dog carefully avoids the folded pathway as he walks on the grass along the banks of the Waterworks Swan Lake in north Belfast . Photo: Liam McBurney/RAZORPIX Almost 50,000 people were successfully reconnected on Saturday evening as repair crews began operations once it was safe to do so. All businesses and householders were expected to be reconnected by last night. Thousands of customers also had water supplies hit by Storm Bert as treatment plants in Banteer, Fermoy and Dunmanway in Cork were impacted by the storm winds and flood waters. More than 100 roads nationwide, mostly rural, were left impassable on Saturday due to the combination of flooding, fallen trees and storm debris. In Co Donegal, Bridge Street in Killybegs was dramatically flooded, with homes and charities impacted, while the River Feale in west Limerick burst its banks. After alerts warning of rain, wind and snow lifted on Saturday, clean-up operations began and power supplies were restored to thousands of homes and businesses. However, the combination of damage to property and infrastructure, allied to the disruption of critical Christmas trade, is expected to see losses run to millions of Euro. Some traders fear they have suffered flood-related damage to much of their critical Christmas stock. Forecasters issued a low-level wind warnings for 13 counties across the island. Forecasters at Met Eireann said gusty winds will create a risk of fallen trees and difficult travelling conditions in these counties. Storm Bert also played havoc with public transport across Ireland with dozens of Iarnrod Eireann and Bus Eireann services either delayed or cancelled because of the conditions. A number of flights were also either delayed or diverted at the height of the storm. The public has also been urged to stay away from exposed coastal areas due to hazardous gusts which could continue for a couple of days.
Former Fresno State quarterback Mikey Keene is transferring to Michigan with one year of eligibility remaining. Confirming earlier reports, Keene posted an image of himself in a Wolverines uniform on social media on Monday. Keene passed for 2,892 yards with 18 touchdowns and 11 interceptions in 12 games for the Bulldogs in 2024. Fresno State opened the season with a 30-10 loss at Michigan on Aug. 31, with Keene throwing for 235 yards with one touchdown and two picks. Including two seasons at UCF (2021-22), Keene has completed 67.8 percent of his passes for 8,245 yards with 65 TDs and 28 interceptions in 39 games. Keene's competition for the starting job at Michigan includes incoming freshman Bryce Underwood, the 247Sports Composite's No. 1 overall player in the 2025 recruiting class. --Field Level MediaFrance's second woman premier makes surprise frontline return
Opinion editor’s note: Strib Voices publishes a mix of material from 11 contributing columnists , along with other commentary online and in print each day. To contribute, click here . ••• Although America’s divisive presidential election is now behind us, casting votes did not do much to heal our country’s deep philosophical and political divides. We remain a polarized people, with about half the nation pleased about the electoral outcome and the other half perplexed by it. In a healthy democracy, there will always be vigorous debate and disagreement about what policy prescriptions are best for our cities, states and nation — and who is best equipped to lead them. A consensus is always hard to find in a country as geographically, racially and socioeconomically diverse as ours. But self-rule requires societal self-assessment. And an honest reflection on the worrying level of political enmity that exists today reveals we must do better for American democracy to thrive. The hostility on both sides of the aisle is not conducive to a free society functioning well, as it makes substantive discourse between disagreeing parties impossible and instills fear in many that exercising First Amendment rights will get them in trouble at home or at work. Democracy requires reflection, rigor and reason. It calls us to be calm, attentive and courteous. All things sorely lacking in recent ballot box contests. So how can this caustic political climate be reset? One potential simple solution: friendship. When we hold true friends who vote differently from the way we do, we can empathize with what motivates those on the other side of causes we care about. And that understanding allows for a more thoughtful approach to and investigation of our own views. By humanizing our public policy adversaries, politically diverse relationships help hold us back from using the cheapest and most destructive partisan tool: demonizing the opposition. My own anecdotal observations along with recent studies confirm that Americans are more and more segregating their relationships based on politics. An Axios poll of young adults revealed 33% of respondents would “definitely not” or “probably not” befriend someone who voted for a different presidential nominee. And according to a study by the Survey Center on American Life, 15% of people torpedoed acquaintances over political disagreements alone. It’s not hard to understand this troubling trend. Life can be a lot easier if one silos among people who see the world the same way. Let’s be honest: It’s gratifying to have our views affirmed and much harder to have them challenged. It’s effortless just to reject the political opposition as morally reprehensible and much more difficult to impersonally advocate one’s ideas with good argument and data instead. But failing to interact on a personal level with people we disagree with coarsens our politics, eliminates the philosophical and factual accountability that comes from respectful disagreement and makes us too strident with each other. Conservatives are a rare breed in my hometown of St. Paul, and if I chose my friendships based on partisan leanings I’d be a very lonely guy. But most of my best friends and neighbors here are dyed-in-the-wool Democrats. They are smart and well informed, and they deepen and enrich my own views by arguing their side of things with me. We listen to and learn from one another — and even though our minds are rarely changed, our opinions are refined for the better. But, more importantly, my left-of-center friends in the Saintly City are interesting, kind and of good character. How foolish it would be to cut such people out of my life simply because they vote differently. And I am grateful they keep me in theirs. While maintaining friendships across party lines sounds like a good idea in theory, it can be tough work. It requires of us a decision to love each other even in the face of disagreement and to honor our friends’ right to freedom of speech and thought. And while we can confront our friends’ views and preferred political candidates, we also must be willing to be the one who is challenged and to welcome such confrontation. A bipartisan friendship commands intellectual humility and leaves open the idea that we might be wrong. If one cannot do this and lacks friendships with significant political differences, it’s strong evidence one is an ideologue, which is not a good thing to be. Philosophically intolerant dogmatists have trouble getting along with those they conflict with on matters of political profundity. That type of intolerant attitude does not work well in a system of self-government that requires a free flow of ideas and discourse. And it’s an unhealthy and unhelpful characteristic to have if one wants to be productive and happy in a pluralistic society. “Everyone notionally understands his or her own fallibility,” the conservative Princeton Prof. Robert P. George, who enjoys a well-known and close friendship with Democratic Socialist Cornel West, wrote in a recent social media post. “But notionally isn’t enough. The test comes when someone disagrees with you about something you regard as profoundly important — when someone dissents from your deepest, most cherished, even identity-forming beliefs ... It takes genuine strength of character and courage — truly, and not merely notionally, to recognize our fallibility. Fellow truth-seekers can be friends because they recognize their own fallibility and are willing to be challenged, as well as to challenge. They’re eager to learn from each other. Unlike ideologues, they don’t allow infatuation with their own opinions to impede pursuit of truth.” Don’t we all want to be truth-seekers? Dogmatism seems like a downer. Sunny Hostin, the liberal-leaning co-host of the television program “The View,” encouraged her Democratic viewers to cut off contact with family and friends that voted the other way during the upcoming holidays. What daft advice. Our relationships with loved ones should always surmount politics, no matter what. And we can all help unite our fractured nation after this bruising election by committing to respectfully engage with those we disagree with and listen more earnestly to ideas we do not like. Loving those who think differently from us can also truly be one of life’s great treasures. Don’t rob yourself of it.A young Edmonton woman is accomplishing dreams that are out of this world. At 21 years old, she has already worked for NASA for half a decade — and that’s just scratching the surface. For Madison Feehan the sky isn’t the limit — it’s the destination. Her passion for things beyond Earth’s orbit sparked when she was a kid. “Going into space exploration and space science was not something I would have predicted for my career,” she said. “Ever since about the 9th grade, I’ve shown a very strong interest in it and have been trying to commercialize ideas with NASA ever since.” Since then, she has gone nowhere but up. For the past five years Feehan has worked for NASA, most recently as part of the NSPIRES, NASA Solicitation and Proposal Integrated Review and Evaluation System. She is an executive panellist and peer reviewer. “It was a bit of a culture shock for sure,” Feehan said. “Not something that I was trained for or something that I expected. “When one of these technology ideas comes in, it is my job to review the technology, see if it has the merit to go to space and the relevance to any upcoming NASA missions.” But something Feehan might be even more passionate about is her company Space Copy , of which she is the CEO and founder. The company builds 3D printers that can create scalable infrastructure in extreme environments, like on Earth and in space. Feehan said the transportation and creation of resources needed for astronauts in space puts a massive strain on the budgets of companies like NASA. 3D printing locally, using on-site materials, could reduce up to 70 per cent of those costs. “We’ve come up with a formula for converting lunar soil into usable infrastructure,” Feehan said. “That ranges from anything to bricks for habitats, to launch pads and roadways to precision tools and repair parts to make living in space much easier.” Feehan showed Global News a little brick (above) as an example of the work the company is doing. It was created from a lunar soil stimulant sourced just outside the Kennedy Space Center. “It is 99.7 per cent accurate to what was recovered during the Apollo 16 mission,” Feehan said. In the past two years alone, Feehan has attended more than 60 conferences around the world showcasing the company. Earlier this year, Space Copy was selected as the winner of the (Buzz) Aldrin Family Foundation Global Innovation Award. By 2031, the company plans to send a 3D printer to the surface of the moon coinciding with the upcoming Artemis mission. For all these accomplishments at just 21 years of age, the Edmontonian sometimes has to remind herself to stay down to Earth. “Sometimes we just cannot believe — my team and I — that we’ve gone this far, this fast,” she said. “It’s an absolute privilege to be able to work in an ecosystem that many say is extremely challenging, or nearly impossible, especially for young women.”
JERUSALEM: Israel’s attorney general has ordered police to open an investigation into Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s wife on suspicion of harassing political opponents and witnesses in the Israeli leader’s corruption trial. The Israeli Justice Ministry made the announcement in a terse message late Thursday, saying the investigation would focus on the findings of a recent report by the “Uvda” investigative program into Sara Netanyahu. The program uncovered a trove of WhatsApp messages in which Mrs. Netanyahu appears to instruct a former aide to organize protests against political opponents and to intimidate Hadas Klein, a key witness in the trial. The announcement did not mention Mrs. Netanyahu by name, and the Justice Ministry declined further comment. But in a video released earlier Thursday, Netanyahu listed what he said were the many kind and charitable acts by his wife and blasted the Uvda report as “lies.” It was the latest in a long line of legal troubles for the Netanyahus — highlighted by the prime minister's ongoing corruption trial. Netanyahu is charged with fraud, breach of trust and accepting bribes in a series of cases alleging he exchanged favors with powerful media moguls and wealthy associates. Netanyahu denies the charges and says he is the victim of a “witch hunt” by overzealous prosecutors, police and the media.Our community members are treated to special offers, promotions and adverts from us and our partners. You can check out at any time. More info Wayne Rooney left fans of I'm A Celebrity... Get Me Out of Here 's spin-off show gobsmacked as he hinted at a future stint in the jungle while his wife Coleen is currently braving the elements. The former Manchester United and England footballer made an appearance on I'm A Celebrity: Unpacked on Saturday night to discuss Coleen's journey so far, but admitted he wouldn't mind taking part in the ITV reality show himself. Wayne's revelation came after he urged viewers to vote for Coleen to undertake a Bushtucker Trial, believing she would relish the opportunity to "put herself to the test". The 39 year old expressed his pride in how Coleen was handling the Australian jungle on X, formerly Twitter, ahead of Saturday's episode. The childhood sweethearts, who started dating when they were 16, are parents to four sons – Kai Wayne, Klay Anthony, Kit Joseph and Cass Mac. "Proud of @ColeenRoo on @imacelebrity she's doing great," he posted on X, sharing a collage of photos from her time on the show. "Me and the boys would love to see her doing a trial and we know she'd want to put herself to the test. If you can download the #ImACeleb and let's get voting! " At the end of Saturday's episode, it was announced that Coleen would be facing the next Bushtucker Trial alongside BBC Radio 1 presenter Dean McCullough. Wayne then light-heartedly added to his social media post: "Think I could be in trouble here. Good luck @ColeenRoo #ImACeleb." During an appearance on I'm A Celeb spin-off Unpacked, alongside Joel Dommett, Kemi Rodgers, and Sam Thompson, Wayne confessed that he was missing Coleen, revealing it was the longest they'd been apart since childhood. "I think it's the longest, you know, I've been without speaking to her since we were kids," he shared, reports the Manchester Evening News . He also mentioned the challenges of being away from the children, but expressed gratitude for Coleen's parents, who were lending a helping hand while he was in Plymouth for work. Despite the distance, Wayne admitted to voting for Coleen to participate in trials, as hinted on his social media, saying: "Yes I would love for her to do a trial. It's all part of the experience, and I think she'd be great as well." Additionally, he revealed plans to welcome Coleen back with a heartfelt poem, stating: "I've always liked doing and writing poems and expressing my feelings in a different way as well. And yeah, so there'll be one waiting for her for sure." Wayne opened up about his wife's appearance on the show, expressing his pride in how people are seeing the 'real' Coleen: "She's a nice person, a warm person and a very caring person. And I think that's coming across, you know, I think she's probably in the middle of the older ones and the young ones, so she's probably bridging that gap a little bit. But I think she's absolutely shown her personality, character, and I think that's coming across strong. So, it's great to see it in there and see her settling in as well over the last few days." He also revealed their love for the program: "I think Celebrity is the best one. And the one which we always said, if we were ever going to do one, that's the one we do. And obviously Coleen's gone out there to test herself," Wayne shared, before addressing whether he'd participate: "Maybe, if I'm not working, I would like to do it. But at the minute, obviously, that's not possible."
Israel’s attorney general has ordered police to open an investigation into Benjamin Netanyahu’s wife on suspicion of harassing political opponents and witnesses in the Prime Minister’s corruption trial. The Israeli Justice Ministry made the announcement in a message late on Thursday, saying the investigation would focus on the findings of a recent report by the Uvda investigative programme into Sara Netanyahu. The programme uncovered a trove of WhatsApp messages in which Mrs Netanyahu appears to instruct a former aide to organise protests against political opponents and to intimidate Hadas Klein, a key witness in the trial. The announcement did not mention Mrs Netanyahu by name and the Justice Ministry declined further comment. Earlier on Thursday, Mr Netanyahu blasted the Uvda report as “lies”. It is the latest in a long line of legal troubles for the Netanyahus, highlighted by the PM’s ongoing corruption trial. Mr Netanyahu is charged with fraud, breach of trust and accepting bribes in a series of cases alleging he exchanged favours with powerful media moguls and wealthy associates. He denies the charges and says he is the victim of a “witch hunt” by overzealous prosecutors, police and the media.
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As with many people in Saskatchewan, Layne Matechuk has hockey in his blood. Growing up in Colonsay, the sport was a family affair which they all bonded over, having been coached by his father while his sister and mother watched and cheered proudly from the stands. Layne excelled in minor hockey and went on to play at some of the highest levels of hockey in Saskatchewan. He spent hours on the ice, perfecting his craft as a defenceman to one day fulfill his dream of playing in the NHL alongside his idol, Pittsburgh Penguins and NHL great Sidney Crosby. He grew bigger and stronger over the years, playing U15 AA in Humboldt and U18 AAA in Prince Albert. He even heard his name called at the 2015 WHL Bantam Draft, taken in the second round, 40th overall, by the Medicine Hat Tigers. Following a two-year stint with the Mintos in AAA, Layne returned to Humboldt for the 2017-18 season to play for the Broncos in the Saskatchewan Junior Hockey League (SJHL), where he netted five goals and three assists across 45 games in his rookie campaign. That year, the team finished the regular season fifth overall and after they defeated the Melfort Mustangs in the opening round of the playoffs, the Broncos faced off with the league leading Nipawin Hawks in the semifinals. However, while on their way to Game 5 in Nipawin, the unthinkable happened. The coach bus the team was travelling on collided with a semi-truck that ran a stop sign, resulting in 16 Broncos members losing their lives while 13 others, including Layne, suffered life-altering injuries. “I played hockey for 15 years,” Layne said. “Since the bus crash happened, I’m incapable of playing hockey anymore.” Layne was the final person found among the wreckage when first responders saw a foot move under a pile of debris. There, they found him lying face down under a portion of the bus roof. He suffered multiple serious facial fractures in the crash, along with a broken sternum, a double lung collapse, and a traumatic brain injury. He spent the next six months at Royal University Hospital in Saskatoon relearning all the basics: walking, talking, eating and basic mobility. Nine months after the crash, Layne returned to the ice for the first time with his family watching, all while continuing his road to recovery at various hospitals and centres across the country over the next few years. After 9 months @LayneMatechuk returned to the rink to skate for the first time since the accident. Thank you Greg Slobosian for helping Layne. Could not be more proud of Layne! #Believe pic.twitter.com/iD8gADwvXa — Kevin🇨🇦🇺🇦 (@KevinMatechuk) January 8, 2019 Fast forward to today, eight years after the accident, and Layne is now giving back to the sport that he’s loved his entire life. This time, he’s standing behind the bench and passing on his knowledge of the game to young players coming up through the ranks with the hopes of one day returning to Humboldt again. “I want to become a Humboldt Broncos head coach in the future,” Layne said with a smile. Now residing in Emma Lake, Layne has spent this season helping out with the Prince Albert Timberjaks of the Prairie Junior Hockey League (PJHL), an 11-team league at the junior B. level. “It’s been pretty good,” said Layne about his experience with the Timberjaks so far. “Since I can’t play hockey anymore, I’d love to be a coach and stay connected to hockey because I love hockey, so it’s good to get my foot in the door.” The coaching opportunity arose when Timberjaks head coach and general manager Steph Corfmat ran into some old friends at a charity golf tournament over the summer where they got to chatting. “Brian Munz with the Winnipeg Jets, he’s a buddy of mine and we were down at the Humboldt Broncos Memorial Golf Tournament and him and Laurie Strome approached me about maybe taking Layne on as a coach,” Corfmat explained. “He wanted to get back into the game and give back to what was good for him. We talked to his mom and dad, and he’s been coming out and helping us, and now he’s starting to come on the bench.” Since joining the club, Layne has been helping out both on and off the ice, skating during practices and giving his thoughts or some advice in the locker room between periods. Timberjaks president Ken Malenfant spoke about the kind of person Layne is, calling him a smart mind of the game and an inspiration to everyone. “He’s a great person, a pretty funny guy too once you get to meet him,” said Malenfant. “He’s still really passionate about hockey. He comes out whenever he’s available and shares his knowledge of being, what he calls himself, an undersized defenceman. He talks to the guys a little bit and he works with them, shares some tricks and some ways to cheat as a defenceman. It seems like he’s just excited to be back in the game and we’re ecstatic to have had him and the opportunity to get to know him.” “Someone said something the other day about, ‘Oh, that’s great you’re giving back by bringing in Layne’. Actually, it’s the other way around, I think Layne is giving back [to us]. I think he’s happy to be able to be back into what was so passionate to him for all those years being a hockey player. [Steph and I] are both SJHL alumni and we also have Kim Issel who’s an ex-pro and Raider alumni, we’re here to give back and Layne is no different from us, just trying to be a part of Saskatchewan’s pastime.” Corfmat, a former Humboldt Bronco himself, echoed Malenfant and recalled how impressed he was when he watched Layne play in AAA. “It’s great to have him around. He’s quiet but as he’s coming out more and more. He’s getting more vocal and comfortable, and he knows the game. He’ll point something out and he’s bang on, like he got hurt physically but mentally, he’s still got the hockey IQ. I remember him from when he played here for the Mintos and I thought, ‘You know, he’s a pretty good player’ and with him being kind of a local now, it was a no brainer for us to bring him on.” Layne has yet to travel on a bus since the crash and with a bus being the primary transportation to and from away games, Malenfant said the team isn’t putting any pressure on him to get back onto one. “Our goal is to get him on some road trips with us, but everything is up to him. It’s going to be a nervous time for him, like we ride the bus for all the road games. I was talking with his mom and dad, and they said it’ll be a big step for him. We’re going to support him and try to make him feel comfortable again when that time comes.” Talking about his dream of becoming a Broncos head coach, Layne said he’s been in contact with current Humboldt head coach Brayden Klimosko and joked at maybe teaming up with him down the line. “He was a coach there when I was [affiliated] up in Humboldt. He seems like a great guy. I talked to him about the future, maybe [I’ll] become Humboldt’s assistant coach.” Layne is also still in close contact with his former Bronco teammates, where they plan a reunion trip someplace every year. “Nobody else is going to become a coach I don’t think, but me and my old teammates keep in pretty good contact all year. Once a year at least we all get together, like last year we went to Edmonton and we had box seats to watch the Oilers play the Carolina Hurricanes. It was so much fun, like honestly, we are all a team, but it’s almost like they’re all my brothers.” He added the group is looking at heading back to Edmonton this year to take in another Oilers game in a box suite. The Humboldt Broncos had quite the day on Thursday. 💚💛 #HumboldtStrong pic.twitter.com/X9bU6dp8KA — Sportsnet (@Sportsnet) December 7, 2018 Layne and the Broncos take in a Maple Leafs game in Toronto back in 2018. Entering the Christmas break, the Timberjaks are tied for fifth in the Bob Dybvig (North) Division standings donning a 7-16-3 (W-L-OTL) record. The team will return to action on Jan. 3 when they visit the Outback Thunder in Carrot River for a 7:30 p.m. puck drop. — loganc.lehmann@pattisonmedia.comBTO Stock Hits 52-Week High at $39.1 Amid Strong Yearly Growth
As the final seconds came off the clock last Friday night at Canvas Stadium and the Colorado State football team rushed across the field to get their hands on the Bronze Boot, it was only fitting that the longest tenured Ram, Dane Olson, got his hands on it first. Most Popular Trending NationallyDetroit Pistons @ Sacramento Kings Current Records: Detroit 13-17, Sacramento 13-17 When: Thursday, December 26, 2024 at 10 p.m. ET Where: Golden 1 Center -- Sacramento, California TV: FanDuel SN - Detroit Follow: CBS Sports App Online streaming: fuboTV (Try for free. Regional restrictions may apply.) Ticket Cost: $44.44 The Detroit Pistons' road trip will continue as they head out to face the Sacramento Kings at 10:00 p.m. ET on Thursday at Golden 1 Center. The Pistons pulled off an upset win in their last outing, and are hoping to pull that off once more against the 5.5-point favorite Kings. The Pistons will bounce into Thursday's match after (finally) beating the Lakers, who they had gone 2-8 against in their ten prior meetings. The Pistons narrowly escaped with a victory as the team sidled past the Lakers 117-114. For those keeping track at home, that's the closest win Detroit has posted since November 25th. Meanwhile, the Kings' recent rough patch got a bit rougher on Sunday after their fourth straight loss. Their bruising 122-95 defeat to the Pacers might stick with them for a while. It was supposed to be a close game, and Sacramento was supposed to come out on top, but clearly nobody told Indiana. Even though they lost, the Kings smashed the offensive glass and finished the game with 15 offensive rebounds. They easily outclassed their opponents in that department as the Pacers only pulled down six. Detroit has been performing well recently as they've won three of their last four contests, which provided a nice bump to their 13-17 record this season. As for Sacramento, their loss dropped their record down to an identical 13-17. The Pistons beat the Kings 133-120 in their previous meeting back in February. One of the biggest obstacles the team faced in that game was the Kings' Domantas Sabonis, who dropped a double-double on 30 points and 12 rebounds. Now that he's got a second chance to win this matchup, will the Pistons still be able to contain Sabonis? Check CBSSports.com after the match to find out. Sacramento is a solid 5.5-point favorite against Detroit, according to the latest NBA odds . The oddsmakers had a good feel for the line for this one, as the game opened with the Kings as a 5-point favorite. The over/under is 227.5 points. See NBA picks for every single game, including this one, from SportsLine's advanced computer model. Get picks now . Sacramento has won 6 out of their last 10 games against Detroit. Feb 07, 2024 - Detroit 133 vs. Sacramento 120 Jan 09, 2024 - Sacramento 131 vs. Detroit 110 Dec 16, 2022 - Sacramento 122 vs. Detroit 113 Nov 20, 2022 - Sacramento 137 vs. Detroit 129 Jan 19, 2022 - Detroit 133 vs. Sacramento 131 Nov 15, 2021 - Sacramento 129 vs. Detroit 107 Apr 08, 2021 - Detroit 113 vs. Sacramento 101 Feb 26, 2021 - Sacramento 110 vs. Detroit 107 Mar 01, 2020 - Sacramento 106 vs. Detroit 100 Jan 22, 2020 - Detroit 127 vs. Sacramento 106