Kadary Richmond slowly but surely showing he can be ‘one of one’ for St. John’sNone
NoneAlberta Health Minister Adriana LaGrange has signed a deal with her federal counterpart to expand access to medication for people with rare diseases. LaGrange joined federal Health Minister Mark Holland in Edmonton to announce millions in spending on both emerging and proven drugs, as well as on diagnostics and screening. The drugs include Poteligeo for treating Sézary syndrome, Oxlumo for hyperoxaluria type 1 and Epkinly for large B-cell lymphoma. LaGrange says the move will help support Albertans living with rare diseases and open the door to potentially life-changing treatments. Holland says the deal is a step toward building a stronger public health system for Albertans and aims to give Albertans with rare diseases the “best health outcomes possible.” Alberta is the third province behind B.C. and Newfoundland and Labrador to sign onto a federal deal under the National Strategy for Drugs for Rare Diseases.Did you know with a Digital Subscription to Belfast News Letter, you can get unlimited access to the website including our premium content, as well as benefiting from fewer ads, loyalty rewards and much more. Kate Hoey was reacting to comments from the CEO of the Commonwealth Games Northern Ireland , Conal Heatley, in an interview with the News Letter. Mr Heatley had said that one of the reasons he wanted to drop the flag as the official emblem of Team NI was because it had been placed on the homes of ethnic minority people as part of a bid to force them out, and “that is not something we want to be associated with”. Advertisement Advertisement He said that the flag is offensive to “a considerable section of the community”, and had prepared to discuss a replacement for the Ulster Banner at the body’s AGM on Wednesday night. Baroness Hoey is an independent member of the Lords who had served as the Labour government’s minister for sports from 1999 to 2001. Reacting to Mr Heatley, she said: “The comments by the chief executive of the Commonwealth Games Northern Ireland were insulting to the vast majority of people in Northern Ireland who see the Ulster Banner as the flag to rally round in many sporting events. "We all shared in Rory McIlroy’s gesture of draping himself in the flag when winning a major golfing championship and the Northern Ireland football team celebrations with the flag in achieving qualification for the Euros. Advertisement Advertisement "There will always be a tiny minority who disgrace the flag but that is no reason to change its use in the Commonwealth Games. “The Republic of Ireland has chosen not to be one of the 56 independent countries of the Commonwealth, yet those athletes in Northern Ireland who choose to compete for Ireland in the Olympics are still able to compete for Northern Ireland in the Commonwealth Games. "I have yet to hear of any past eligible team members refuse a place because of the Ulster Banner flag. Rather the opposite: there is great enthusiasm to represent Northern Ireland in every Commonwealth Games from every sport. “Mr Heatley would be better spending his time ensuring that everyone in Northern Ireland has the right to choose who to compete for, as currently in many sports there is no option to compete for the British team at the Olympics unless moving to GB, because of the all-Ireland governing bodies of the sports. Advertisement Advertisement "I know of tennis clubs in Northern Ireland who would prefer to be affiliated to the Lawn Tennis Association in Britain rather than, or as well as, Tennis Ireland, but cannot because it is an all-Ireland governing body.” Mr Heatley said he did not wish to respond to Baroness Hoey. Making similar comments earlier on Wednesday was the leader of the DUP, Gavin Robinson. Speaking on Good Morning Ulster, he too had been asked about Mr Heatley’s remarks on racism and the flag. Advertisement Advertisement "I think that last comment was an appalling comment to make. Remember, there'd been a protest in front of City Hall during the summer on race issues, and a gentleman was holding an Irish tricolour, yet I don't hear such political commentary in that direction. "I think in Northern Ireland we've recognised over many years that sport unites people. And yet here we have somebody who's charged wth encouraging success through sport engaging in politics in the most unhelpful way. "I don't think this is a good initiaitive on his part. I don't think this assists in sport, nor does it assist in bringing people together, when this chief executive appears to believe it's his role to pick scabs on identity. "There are people in Northern Ireland who have the proud ability to showcase their talent be it for Northern Ireland at the Commonwealth Games, Team GB in the Olympics, or Team Ireland – and they do that without any thought whatsoever about constitutional politics. "He should leave it to politicians.” Advertisement Advertisement In his News Letter interview, published on Wednesday, Mr Heatley had been asked if he was planning to drop the Ulster Banner because of an upsurge in requests to do so. "There's always been chatter,” he said. "I'm trying to choose my words very carefully. "The Ulster Banner of late, and I'm sure people would be very aware of that, has been misappropriated by a small number of people. "And I refer to newcomers. We've had newcomers, NHS staff, chased out of their homes by having the Ulster Banner put on their windows. That is not something we want to be associated with. "And that's been part of the thought process where we need to be looking and saying 'How can we have something that is inclusive? How can we invite these people to take part in our sports and our clubs if that's the imagery that's around it?’" Advertisement Advertisement Mr Heatley told BBC News NI today that his organisation had received some “threatening and abusive language on social media” over the past couple of days since news of his flag plans had emerged. “For the safety of staff and the public who may be using the office, we have decided to keep it closed for the next few days and have reported those to the police,” he said.
Western intelligence specialists have been sounding the alarm for months about Russian sabotage in Europe. In past days, however, Moscow’s suspected campaigns to do everything from infiltrating U.S. military bases to jamming GPS and downing planes have reached “staggeringly reckless” levels, the head of the British intelligence service MI6 recently warned. That was shortly before a Chinese cargo ship departing Russia dragged its anchor last week, cutting communication cables on the accommodatingly flat, shallow Baltic Sea and raising concerns that Moscow could be teaming up with Beijing to create further chaos. Western allies will “step up” to address the sabotage, NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte said during a meeting of the alliance’s foreign ministers on Tuesday. “We cannot be naive,” he said. Though it is clear that Russian President Vladimir Putin, a former spy, makes a strategy of churning up uncertainty and fear, including through nuclear saber-rattling , it is possible that some of these latest suspected attacks were accidents, security analysts say. Still, even if there isn’t overt collusion, experts add, anything that creates damage and disruption in the West – and riles up its leaders in the process – is in the shared interest of China and Russia. Western intelligence specialists have been sounding the alarm for months about Russian sabotage in Europe. In past days, however, Moscow’s suspected campaigns to do everything from infiltrating U.S. military bases to jamming GPS and downing planes have reached “staggeringly reckless” levels, the head of the British intelligence service MI6 recently warned. That was shortly before a Chinese cargo ship departing Russia dragged its anchor last week, cutting communication cables on the accommodatingly flat, shallow Baltic Sea and raising concerns that Moscow could be teaming up with Beijing to create further chaos. Western allies will “step up” to address the sabotage, NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte said during a meeting of the alliance’s foreign ministers on Tuesday. “We cannot be naive,” he said. Though it is clear that Russian President Vladimir Putin, a former spy, makes a strategy of churning up uncertainty and fear, including through nuclear saber-rattling , it is possible that some of these latest suspected attacks were accidents, security analysts say. “It’s going to be rare that you’ll find the smoking gun,” says Keir Giles, a Russian military expert and senior consulting fellow at Chatham House, a London think tank. Still, even if there isn’t “actual, overt collusion,” anything that creates damage and disruption in the West – and riles up its leaders in the process – is in the shared interest of China and Russia, he adds. “So we shouldn’t be particularly surprised if they’re looking at each other and thinking, ‘Yeah, this is OK.’” Spies don’t generally seek out the spotlight. Still, as in the United Kingdom, Germany’s chief intelligence officer, Bruno Kahl, came forward in a public hearing to alert lawmakers to Kremlin efforts to drive U.S. military forces from Europe. Mr. Putin is also determined to “test the West’s red lines” through espionage and sabotage, Mr. Kahl said. To this end, Russia has taken to using amateur operatives for “snooping around Europe and causing mischief in all of our backyards,” raising the risk of accidental run-ins, Gen. Darryl Williams, head of U.S. Army forces in Europe and Africa, said in October. MI6 Chief Richard Moore, put it another way: Russian intelligence services, he said, have gone “a bit feral.” Particularly in more pacifist-learning Germany, some grumbled that these warnings are alarmist. But the point is getting the word out to the general public – with a dash of psychological operations, or psyops. After all, the recruitment of delinquents shows the desperate lengths Moscow must now go to with the Ukraine war draining its resources, Western intelligence officials point out. They add that potential recruits may be being duped into activities more dangerous and consequential than they realize. “Russia is actively looking for low-level criminals to use to do some sabotage actions and stuff,” says Julian Pawlak, research associate at the University of the Federal Armed Forces Hamburg in Germany. “They don’t need to be against the West or anything,” he adds. “But of course, behind this is a bigger picture, a bigger plan.” Such public awareness campaigns, like those launched post-9/11, have proved to be successful in the past, says Mr. Giles, who adds that people are more invested in vigilance when the safety of their water supply, plane travel, and connectivity is at stake. Adm. Pierre Vandier, a top strategic thinker for NATO in Norfolk, Virginia, told Defense News this week that, among other military moves, NATO is planning a network of underwater drones to act as “streetlights,” or CCTV cameras of sorts, to record criminal mischief in oceanic trouble spots. Better defending critical infrastructure has been a need “known to militaries and researchers, but it was not on the political agenda,” Mr. Pawlak says. Now, he adds, that’s starting to change. In the meantime, investigations into suspected sabotage continue. U.S. military bases across Europe were put on heightened alert for the first time in a decade this summer, reportedly after intelligence surfaced that Russia was plotting attacks on them. Mr. Putin has denied engaging in sabotage, but sources close to the Kremlin have suggested that Moscow would be justified in attacking U.S. concerns in Germany, Poland, and Romania given that the White House allowed Ukraine to use U.S. long-range missiles to strike across the border into Russia . Berlin was already looking into fires caused by incendiary devices hidden in packages at a DHL warehouse in Leipzig, Germany, when a DHL cargo plane crashed in Vilnius, Lithuania, last week, killing one crew member. The crash was immediately suspected of being an act of Russian sabotage. But Lithuania’s defense minister – no fan of Mr. Putin – said last week that the initial investigation instead indicates a technical malfunction. As for the anchor-dragging Chinese vessel that cut internet links between Sweden and Lithuania last month, “Nobody believes that these cables were accidentally cut,” German Defense Minister Boris Pistorius said. The case echoed a similar episode last year, when a Chinese container ship, also dragging its anchor over the Baltic Sea bed, severed a Russian fiber-optic cable. The vessel’s location points to a potential accident or a “red-on-red fratricide” of sorts, says Mr. Giles. In fact, he notes, most of the estimated 150 to 200 cable breaks of similar scale around the world each year are accidents. Focusing on the Baltic Sea as a past and potential future target for Russia means that “Anything that happens there gets a lot of attention,” Mr. Giles says. “But let’s not rule out that this could simply be wild incompetence rather than actual, deliberate conspiracy.”Saints hope to ride the Rizzi factor back to relevance after their bye week
California Gov. Gavin Newsom is preparing to wage a legal war against President-elect Donald Trump, convening a special legislative session next month to try to “Trump-proof” the state. But it appears Newsom and California legislators won’t initially include artificial intelligence safeguards in that fight, even though AI regulations were a major preoccupation of the Legislature this year. Trump has promised to immediately rescind President Joe Biden’s executive order that had imposed voluntary AI guardrails on tech companies and federal agencies. The president-elect’s administration could also, immigrant advocates say, use AI tools to assist the mass deportation he has pledged to implement. While California adopted a number of AI regulations earlier this year, other issues are likely to take priority in Newsom’s special session, legislators told CalMatters. There are signs, though, that AI could — in the not-so-distant future — go from abstract concern to prominent political cudgel between the Trump administration and California’s Democratic leaders. It could be another high-profile way to challenge Trump and his newfound tech allies, some of whom have gleefully proclaimed a new, deregulated era for artificial intelligence products. “I think Newsom and the California Legislature have an opportunity to step into the gap that the federal government is leaving — to create a model environment for safe and rights-respecting technology and deployment,” said Janet Haven, executive director of the Data & Society Research Institute, a nonprofit that studies the social implications of AI and other technologies. “On the other hand, there’s no way to get around the fact that Big Tech is right there, and will be a huge factor in whatever the California Legislature and Newsom want to advance in terms of AI legislation.” AI safety advocates told CalMatters they’re not necessarily sweating the apocalyptic AI nightmares imagined by some doomsayers. Instead, they are focused on how AI tools are increasingly used in healthcare, housing, the labor force, law enforcement, immigration, the military, as well as other industries and fields prone to discrimination, surveillance, and civil rights violations — because there’s evidence that such tools can be unwieldy, inaccurate, and invasive . “We have documentation that shows how these AI systems are likely to do all sorts of things—they’re pattern-making systems, they’re not really decision-makers, but the private sector and the public sector are using them as a substitute for decision-makers,” said Samantha Gordon, chief program officer at TechEquity. “That’s not wise.” Santa Ana Democratic Sen. Tom Umberg told CalMatters that 2024 “was a bit of a testing year” for AI bills. California lawmakers outlawed sexually explicit deepfakes and certain election-related deepfake content, required tech companies to provide free AI detection tools, and stipulated that tech companies must publicly release data about their AI training tools. Gov. Newsom ultimately signed roughly 20 AI bills into law. But he also controversially vetoed a major bill by San Francisco Democratic Sen. Scott Wiener that would’ve instituted significant testing requirements on AI tools to make sure they avoid catastrophic outcomes such as major cybersecurity or infrastructure attacks, or the creation of weapons that could cause mass death. In his veto message, Newsom wrote that the bill risked curtailing innovation, but he added that he wanted to “find the appropriate path forward, including legislation and regulation.” Wiener told CalMatters he’s working on updated legislation that could garner “broader support.” Such a bill would presumably include additional buy-in from the tech sector, which the state is relying on for tax revenues , and which has a notable lobbying presence in Sacramento — Google just racked up the largest quarterly lobbying tab in a decade. Asked whether to expect more Big Tech lobbying against regulatory efforts in California, Palo Alto Democratic Assemblymember Marc Berman said: “It’s going to be a good time to be a lobbyist. They’re going to do very well.” Though Wiener’s AI testing bill was batted down, as were a few other noteworthy AI bills that didn’t make it out of the Legislature, California is “far and away the center of AI regulation in the U.S,” said Ashok Ayyar, a Stanford research fellow who co-wrote a comparative analysis of Wiener’s bill against the European Union’s more comprehensive AI efforts. California is leading on AI in large part because the competition is basically non-existent. Congress hasn’t passed meaningful AI legislation. Asked about Trump and the incoming Republican majority, San Ramon Democratic Assemblymember Rebecca Bauer-Kahan said, “There isn’t much regulation to deregulate, to be honest.” Sans federal legislation, President Biden issued an executive order in October 2023 intended to place guardrails around the use of AI. The order built on five policy principles on the “design, use, and deployment of automated systems to protect the American public.” Biden directed federal agencies “to develop plans for how they would advance innovation in the government use of AI, but also protect against known harms and rights violations,” said Haven. Soon after Biden’s executive order, his administration created the U.S. AI Safety Institute, which is housed within the Commerce Department. Biden’s executive order relies on tech companies, many of which are based in California, to voluntarily embrace the administration’s suggestions; it also relies on agencies like the Department of Homeland Security, which includes Immigration and Customs Enforcement and Customs and Border Protection, to be transparent and honest about how they’re using AI technology and not violate people’s civil rights. Like most executive orders, Biden’s AI edict is loosely enforceable and fairly easy to reverse. Trump has already promised to repeal Biden’s executive order on day one of his term; the 2024 Republican platform argues that the executive order “hinders AI Innovation, and imposes Radical Leftwing ideas on the development of this technology.” Homeland Security and other executive branch agencies may be granted far more flexibility when Trump takes office, though advocates say the bar was already low; a June 2024 report from the nonprofit Mijente titled “Automating Deportation” argues the department hasn’t followed through on the Biden administration’s already relatively meager requests. After Trump clinched the 2024 presidential election, segments of the tech industry were jubilant about what they foresee for the AI industry—including an imminent uptick in government contracts. “Stick a fork in it, it’s over,” Marc Andreessen, the billionaire general partner of venture capital firm Andreessen Horowitz, wrote on X. “The US will be the preeminent AI superpower in the world after all.” If mass deportation of undocumented immigrants come to pass, as Trump has promised, that would require a wide variety of technologies, including AI tools. Homeland Security already employs an AI system called the Repository for Analytics in a Virtualized Environment, or RAVEn, a nine-figure government contract. The department also has access to an extensive biometric database, and monitors certain undocumented immigrants outside of detention centers via a surveillance tool that utilizes AI algorithms to try to determine whether an immigrant is likely to abscond. “We know from Trump’s first administration that there are going to be fewer guardrails with the use of this tech, and agents will feel even more emboldened,” said Sejal Zota, co-founder and legal director of Just Futures Law, a legal advocacy group focused on immigration, criminal justice and surveillance issues. “That’s one area where we’re going to see increased AI use to support this mass deportation agenda.” To the best of Zota’s knowledge, there’s little California lawmakers or courts could do to prevent federal agencies from using AI tech against vulnerable populations, including undocumented immigrants. “Is it an issue? Absolutely, it’s an issue,” said Sen. Umberg. “What can we do about it? What can we do about federal agencies using artificial intelligence? We can’t do much.” Estimates show there are at least 1.8 million undocumented immigrants in California. Another potential threat to California’s AI regulations is if the majority Republican Congress passes looser AI rules of its own, preempting state law. California lawmakers, including Assemblymember Bauer-Kahan and Sen. Umberg, said they don’t think significant AI legislation will make it to President Trump for his signature. Congressional gridlock is one reason Sen. Wiener said he’s pursuing AI regulation in the California Legislature in the first place: “I was very clear that if (the issue) were being handled statutorily at the federal level, I’d be happy to close up shop and go home,” he said. “But it wasn’t happening, and it’s certainly not going to happen under Trump.” Not everyone believes Congress will remain stagnant on this issue, however, particularly with one party now dominant in Washington. “I wouldn’t underestimate the creativity of this incoming administration,” said Paromita Shah, executive director of Just Futures Law. Added Haven: “I think it’s possible that with a Republican trifecta, we’ll see an attempt to pass a very weak data privacy law at the federal level that preempts state law. Then it’s a game of whack-a-mole between the state legislature and the federal legislature.” Newsom has to date signed many AI bills but turned back others he says go too far and risk inhibiting an industry he has sought to cultivate as a government partner . A spokesperson for Newsom did not directly respond to CalMatters’ questions for this story, instead providing a statement highlighting the state’s role in shaping the future of so-called “generative AI,” a recent and innovative form of the technology behind tools like ChatGPT, DALL-E, and Midjourney: “California has led the nation in protecting against the harms of GenAI while leveraging its potential benefits,” said spokesperson Alex Stack. President-elect Trump’s team did not respond to written questions from CalMatters. Dan Schnur, a political analyst and professor at UC Berkeley and other campuses, predicted the governor will save his political capital for other clashes. “Newsom’s incentive for strengthening his relationship with Silicon Valley is probably stronger than his need for yet one more issue to fight over with Donald Trump,” Schnur said. Florence G’Sell, a visiting professor at Stanford’s cyber policy center, cautioned Newsom against clinging to the deregulatory side of Silicon Valley. “There is really a very strong movement that wants to highlight the risks of AI, the safety questions,” G’Sell said. “If I were the governor, I wouldn’t be insensitive to this movement and the warnings.” Lawmakers are eyeing other avenues to shore up Californians’ redresses against AI technology. Assemblymember Bauer-Kahan previously told CalMatters she plans to reintroduce a stronger version of a bill, which failed to advance past the Legislature last session, to crack down on discriminatory AI practices. Another top AI priority, according to Menlo Park Democratic Sen. Josh Becker, is less sexy, but perhaps just as important: “closely monitor the implementation of this year’s regulatory framework (that we just passed),” he wrote. California’s next AI regulatory steps were always going to be intensely analyzed. That’s even more so the case now, with Trump returning to office—a challenge state lawmakers are embracing. “One of the things that is somewhat amusing to me is when folks come to me and say, ‘Whatever you do in California is going to set the standard for the country,’ Sen. Umberg said. “As a policymaker, that’s catnip. That’s why I ran for office.”Bitcoin storms above $100,000 as Trump 2.0 fuels crypto euphoria
India rate call in focus, political crises cool
THUNDER BAY – Nearly 48 hours after making history, the realization of their accomplishment is still setting in for the Hammarskjold Vikings senior girls’ basketball team. The program became the first Thunder Bay squad to win an OFSAA hoops championship on Saturday night in North Bay, as they beat the E.L. Crossley Cyclones of Pelham with a score of 59-33 in the ‘AA’ title game. “We’re all obviously extremely excited but I proud is probably the best word that I can use to describe what we’re all feeling,” Vikings coach John Clouthier said after the team arrived at Thunder Bay International Airport on Monday afternoon. “It’s been an unbelievable ride this season with these girls and all the things they’ve overcome. The adversity that we’ve had through injuries and things both on and off the court ... this is just an unbelievable way to end the year.” Sara Clouthier, who returned to the Vikings for her fifth year of high school along with her twin sister Kirsten, said that the emotions hit her as the clock was winding down on Saturday night. “I started crying because I just couldn’t believe it,” Sara said. “I looked up at the score and the time that was left and said ‘Wow, this is crazy.’” After winning the city title on Nov. 11 over the St. Ignatius Falcons and capturing the NWOSSAA crown at home over the Fort Frances Muskies on Nov. 16, the Vikings arrived in North Bay as the fifth overall seed. They dominated their competition in their five victories as they outscored their opponents by a margin of 353-165. Hammarskjold’s closest game was in the semifinal round as they beat the E.S.P. Louis-Riel Rebelles of Ottawa by 13 points. “It was surprising that we had those big wins but we also had a really good team this year,” Kristen said. “I expected us to have a chance of doing well this year because a lot of us have played for a long time. ‘Iggy’ was a pretty good team too, so when we beat them, that gave us a bit of confidence that we could do well at OFSAA.” The win was also a special one for the Clouthier family as John got to coach his twin daughters and their younger sister Kate. The siblings have all battled back through various aliments. Kirsten tore her ACL and missed her entire Grade 11 season; Kate had a foot injury a year-and-a-half ago and Sara is back on the court after missing time due to a head injury. “We never actually had all three of us playing on a team together until this year,” Kirsten said. “So it’s amazing to have this season happen with our dad as our coach and our mom (Jami) in the stands watching us.” Looking towards the future, coach Clouthier hopes that the Vikings’ success is the start of more strong showings for schools throughout the region at OFSAA basketball championships. “We kind of use our distance as an excuse as to why we can’t compete with the rest of Ontario and why we can’t produce those top-level athletes, particularly in basketball,” John said. “I hope that this showing can shed some light on the fact that we can use those challenges as fuel and we can get out there and keep grinding on the courts. We can travel to these other places and make it happen instead of kind of sitting back and letting it happen.”Even with access to blockbuster obesity drugs, some people don’t lose weightThe Detroit Lions will play without two high draft picks in rookie cornerbacks Terrion Arnold and Ennis Rakestraw Jr. while possibly getting back veteran Emmanuel Moseley against the host Indianapolis Colts on Sunday. Arnold was downgraded Saturday from questionable to out because of a groin injury. He was limited at practice on Thursday and participated in a full practice on Friday. The Lions drafted Arnold with the 24th overall pick of the 2024 NFL Draft out of Alabama. Arnold, 21, has started all 10 games and has 38 tackles and six passes defended. Rakestraw (hamstring) was placed on injured reserve after not practicing all week. He already had been ruled out for Sunday's game. Detroit picked Rakestraw in the second round (61st overall) out of Missouri. He has played in eight games and has six tackles. Rakestraw, 22, has played on 46 defensive snaps (8 percent) and 95 special teams snaps (42 percent). Moseley had full practice sessions all week and was activated from injured reserve on Saturday but was listed as questionable for Sunday. The 28-year-old is in his second season with Detroit and appeared in one game last season before going on IR in October 2023. He was placed on IR on Aug. 27 with a designation to return. Moseley played from 2018-22 for the San Francisco 49ers and had 162 tackles, four interceptions -- one returned for a touchdown -- and 33 passes defensed in 46 games (33 starts). Detroit elevated linebacker David Long on Saturday for game day. Long, 28, signed with the practice squad on Tuesday after the Miami Dolphins released him on Nov. 13. He had started six of eight games for the Dolphins this season and had 38 tackles. In other Lions news, the NFL fined wide receiver Jameson Williams $19,697 for unsportsmanlike conduct for making an obscene gesture during a touchdown celebration in last Sunday's 52-6 home win over the Jacksonville Jaguars, the NFL Network reported Saturday. Williams, 23, scored on a 65-yard pass from Jared Goff with 12:55 remaining in the third quarter. --Field Level Media
Texas Tech 78, New Orleans 70
OLD SAYBROOK, CT and VANCOUVER, BC / ACCESSWIRE / November 27, 2024 / BluSky Carbon Inc. (CSE:BSKY)(OTCQB:BSKCF)(FWB:QE4/WKN A401NM) ("BluSky" or the "Company"), an innovative entry into the carbon removal clean technology sector is pleased to announce, further to its news release dated September 6th, 2024, that it has extended its strategic marketing agreement with Euro Digital Media LTD ("EDM") (71-75 Shelton Street. Covent Garden, London, UK WC2H 9JQ; email: info@eurodigitalmedia.co.uk ) for an additional term of approximately one month, commencing immediately, provided that the term of the marketing services may be extended or shortened at the discretion of management. EDM will continue to, as appropriate, create campaigns, ad groups, setup and manage remarketing campaigns, optimize keyword options, create landing pages for ad campaigns and generally bring attention to the business of the Company. The promotional activity will occur on a http://www.wallstinvest.co.uk/ landing page, and via Google ads and native advertising. The landing page(s) developed by Euro Digital Media Ltd have been reviewed and approved by the company and its legal team.
Cornelious Brown IV throws 5 TD passes to lead Alabama A&M past Mississippi Valley State 49-35MENLO PARK, Calif. , Dec. 5, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- The Meta Platforms, Inc. (Nasdaq: META ) board of directors today declared a quarterly cash dividend of $0.50 per share of the company's outstanding Class A common stock and Class B common stock, payable on December 27, 2024 to stockholders of record as of the close of business on December 16, 2024 . Contacts Investors: Kenneth Dorell [email protected] / investor.fb.com Press: Ryan Moore [email protected] / about.fb.com/news/ SOURCE Meta
PRAGUE, Czech Republic (AP) — When the referee whistled for the free kick just outside the area, Atletico Madrid forward Julián Álvarez quickly picked up the ball and moved in position to take the shot. “When I saw the free kick, I told Rodri (Rodrigo De Paul) that I felt confident with the shot,” Álvarez said. “And it was a great goal.” Álvarez, Atletico's main signing in the offseason , has not been lacking confidence lately. The Argentina forward curled in the free kick shot in the 15th minute for the first of his two goals in the team’s 6-0 rout of Brest in the Champions League on Tuesday — the team’s biggest ever away win in European competitions. “We'll keep rotating who takes the free kicks,” said Álvarez, who also found the net in the 59th. It was Álvarez’s seventh goal in the last 10 matches, and third in his last three games across all competitions. The 24-year-old had a slow start to his first season with Atletico, scoring twice in 10 matches. “It was a matter of time before we started connecting well with each other,” said Álvarez, who joined Atletico after two seasons at Manchester City. “We have to stay on this path to keep improving.” Ángel Correa also scored two goals for Atletico, with Marcos Llorente and Antoine Griezmann adding one each. “We know that in this format of the competition we need to keep adding the three points and scoring goals," Álvarez said. "It's important to get the points and the goals.” Atletico was sitting in 13th place in the 36-team league standings. AP soccer: https://apnews.com/hub/soccerA voting machine firm suing Fox News now wants to probe Murdoch family trust fight
Palantir and Shield AI forge strategic partnership for AI-driven autonomous flight
MISTRAS Group Appoints Natalia Shuman as President and Chief Executive Officer
“Last night and this morning, several of President Trump’s cabinet nominees and administration appointees were targeted in violent, un-American threats to their lives and those who live with them,” Trump transition spokesperson Karoline Leavitt said in a statement. She said the attacks “ranged from bomb threats to ‘swatting'”, adding: “In response, law enforcement and other authorities acted quickly to ensure the safety of those who were targeted. President Trump and the entire transition team are grateful for their swift action.” Swatting entails generating an emergency law enforcement response against a target victim under false pretences. The FBI said in a statement that it is “aware of numerous bomb threats and swatting incidents targeting incoming administration nominees and appointees, and we are working with our law enforcement partners”. It added: “We take all potential threats seriously, and as always, encourage members of the public to immediately report anything they consider suspicious to law enforcement.” Among those targeted was Elise Stefanik, Mr Trump’s choice to serve as the next ambassador to the United Nations. Her office said that she, her husband, and their three-year-old son were driving home from Washington for Thanksgiving when they were informed of a bomb threat to their residence in Saratoga County. “New York state, county law enforcement, and US Capitol Police responded immediately with the highest levels of professionalism,” her office said in a statement. “We are incredibly appreciative of the extraordinary dedication of law enforcement officers who keep our communities safe 24/7.” In Florida, meanwhile, the Okaloosa County sheriff’s office said in an advisory posted on Facebook that it “received notification of a bomb threat referencing former congressman Matt Gaetz’s supposed mailbox at a home in the Niceville area around 9am this morning”. While a family member resides at the address, they said “former congressman Gaetz is not a resident”, adding: “The mailbox however was cleared and no devices were located. The immediate area was also searched with negative results.” Mr Gaetz was Mr Trump’s initial pick to serve as attorney general, but he withdrew from consideration amid allegations that he paid women for sex and slept with underage women. Mr Gaetz has vehemently denied any wrongdoing and said last year that a Justice Department investigation into sex trafficking allegations involving underage girls had ended with no federal charges against him. The threats follow a political campaign marked by unusual violence. In July, a gunman opened fire at a Trump rally in Butler, Pennsylvania, grazing the then-candidate in the ear with a bullet and killing one of his supporters. The US Secret Service later thwarted a subsequent assassination attempt at Mr Trump’s golf course in West Palm Beach, Florida, when an agent spotted the barrel of a gun poking through a fence while Mr Trump was playing golf.The near-perfect socks that I buy in bulk every yearSri Lanka should be vigilant about the Adani power project in the island, experts said, after Federal prosecutors in New York indicted Group Chairman Gautam Adani and seven others on multiple counts of fraud. Sri Lanka has often seen cases of significant corruption in the country being exposed in other jurisdictions, according to Nishan De Mel, Executive Director of Verité Research, a Colombo-based think tank. He referred to the allegations of bribery in Sri Lankan Airlines’ purchase of aircraft from Airbus, which surfaced in a United Kingdom-based investigation a few years ago, and to the Pandora Papers that threw up names of local politicians and businessmen. “It is very important for Sri Lanka to redouble its efforts against corruption, to ensure that we are protected from corrupt deals,” he told The Hindu. After news on the alleged bribery scheme of the Adani Group surfaced on Thursday, many citizens and activists in Sri Lanka took to social media and called for greater scrutiny of the Group’s power project on the island. President Anura Kumara Dissanayake, who won the Presidency this September, and his National People’s Power [NPP] alliance, which secured a historic, two-thirds majority in the November 14 general election, have pledged to root out corruption. Days before his election win, Mr. Dissanayake vowed to cancel the “corrupt Adani deal” if his government came to power. Subsequently, Foreign Minister and Cabinet spokesperson of the interim administration said the government would “review” the project after the Parliamentary polls. The International Monetary Fund, too, in its ongoing programme with Sri Lanka, has underscored the need to arrest “corruption vulnerabilities”. Controversial deal Adani Green Energy is investing $442 million in a wind power project in Mannar and Pooneryn in northern Sri Lanka. From the time the former Gotabaya Rajapaksa government roped in the firm in 2022, the project has remained controversial. The main political opposition accused the conglomerate of “backdoor entry”, in the absence of an open call for tenders. The same year, a top Ceylon Electricity Board (CEB) official told a Parliamentary panel that the project was given to the Adani Group after Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi “pressured” President Gotabaya Rajapaksa. The official subsequently resigned, after withdrawing his original statement. Regardless, the Ranil Wickremesinghe administration went ahead with the project, amid questions from corruption watchdogs. When the Adani Group came under the global spotlight in early 2023, and its stocks plummeted in the wake of U.S. short seller Hindenburg accusing it of pulling the “largest con in corporate history”, then Foreign Minister of Sri Lanka Ali Sabry said the Wickremesinghe administration was “very, very confident” of the future of the project, which it saw as a “government-to-government” deal with India. Earlier this year, environmentalists and Mannar residents moved Sri Lanka’s Supreme Court, challenging the project on grounds of potential environmental impact and “lack of transparency”. The case was taken up by a five-member Bench and the next hearing is scheduled on March 18 and 19, 2025, according to sources familiar with the proceedings. The renewable energy project is one of two projects that the Adani Group is executing in Sri Lanka. Its other major investment is the Adani Ports-led container terminal project in Colombo. In November 2023, the U.S. International Development Finance Corporation (DFC) announced a $553-million investment in the project, a $700-million joint venture among Adani Ports, Sri Lanka Ports Authority (SLPA), and Sri Lankan conglomerate John Keells Holdings. --Agencies
The Issue: Mayor Adams stating he wants to deport illegal migrants who have been accused of crimes. Well, I suppose it’s good to hear that Mayor Adams will be cooperating with President-elect Donald Trump’s border czar, Tom Homan ( “ ‘Cancel Me, I Don’t Care,’ ” Dec. 4). The Post shows how the mayor has had to maneuver various aspects of the migrant crisis. Still, I remember that President Biden did not meet with Adams when he visited Washington to plead for help. In spite of being ignored, however, Adams went on to endorse Vice President Kamala Harris. That was pure lock-step politics and very disappointing. I guess Adams has seen the writing on the wall and will assist with the removal of illegal immigrants. It’s only sad that he didn’t call out Washington politicians earlier. Sallyanne Ferrero Naples, Fla. Eric Adams is once again speaking with significant bluster, as he usually does when in a difficult situation. New Yorkers should listen to him but remain skeptical until his talk is matched with measurable results. The real achievements he generates often fall short of his verbal bravado. Hopefully, I am wrong this time, for the sake of New York. J. Mancuso Naples, Fla. It sounds like Eric Adams is doing a 180-turn, perhaps hoping for a future pardon from Trump. New York is a mess because Adams did nothing to stop the flow of illegal immigrants and then opted to house many of them in high-end hotels. This crisis has disrupted our health-care system and our public schools. The city is now accommodating tens of thousands of migrants, many of them unvetted. Adams must immediately cancel NYC’s sanctuary city status. J.R. Cummings Manhattan This is a classic example of too little, too late. Adams originally welcomed migrants with open arms, probably because he thought someone else was paying for it. His virtue-signaling stopped him from seeing the mess he was creating. The result? Crime, costs and more division. Now Adams wants deportations, typically changing his stance when he thinks it will make him look better. The mayor should feel ashamed for the damage he has caused. Chris Plate Waterloo President Dwight Eisenhower deported illegal immigrants by sending them to the center of Mexico, not just near our border. We should make it difficult and expensive to return here. John Phillip Jaeger Irvine, Calif. Two years ago, busloads of migrants were coming into New York, and Adams was greeting them with open arms. Now he is stating he wants to work with Tom Homan , who is slated to become Trump’s border czar, in deporting illegal-migrant criminals. Well, if that’s the case, then he needs to move forward. Talk is cheap and actions speak louder than words. Gene O’Brien Whitestone I want to thank Mayor Adams for saying he will work with Trump to deport migrant criminals. Adams has the courage to do the right thing and to keep us safe, unlike some other politicians. I will always vote for him. Reena Fettner Little Neck Mayor Adams fools no one. He allowed this city to be overrun by illegal immigrants, and our taxpayer money has been funding it. Companies and New Yorkers alike are fleeing like never before. Where has the mayor been for nearly three years through all this? Largely against deportation, calling NYC a sanctuary city. Now, for political expediency, he says he’ll work with Trump on deportations. Good luck with that, Adams, because you are politically finished. Dori Harasek Staten Island If it wasn’t for Trump’s victory, Mayor Adams wouldn’t be speaking strongly about the deportation of criminal migrants. This particular election was a blessing for New York City Democrats. I wonder if they will realize that. Ron Zajicek Cortland Want to weigh in on today’s stories? Send your thoughts (along with your full name and city of residence) to letters@nypost.com. Letters are subject to editing for clarity, length, accuracy, and style.