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George Mason University students petition against Youngkin as commencement speaker

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:32:02 GMT

George Mason University students are petitioning against the college’s decision to host Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin as the graduation commencement speaker in May.Senior Alaina Ruffin started the petition Thursday, one day after university president Gregory Washington announced that the Republican governor will speak before “the largest and most diverse class of graduates ever.” The petition has received more than 4,000 signatures since then.More Fairfax County NewsMore Virginia NewsMore Local News“George Mason University prides itself on being one of ‘the most diverse institutions in the Commonwealth.’ Yet by having Governor Youngkin as this year’s Commencement speaker, we believe that the University compromises its supposed values of centering students’ experiences and overall well-being,” Ruffin wrote in the petition.“When satiating its own desire to appease the powerful few, the University, once again, has abandoned the...

Mexico hopes to host Summer Olympics in 2036 or 2040

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:32:02 GMT

LAUSANNE, Switzerland (AP) — Mexico has declared its desire to host the Summer Olympics in 2036 or 2040 and says it already has most of the sports infrastructure required.Interest in hosting the 2036 Olympics had earlier been expressed by officials in countries including Egypt, England, India, Indonesia, Qatar and South Korea.Mexico City hosted the Summer Games in 1968.Mexican Foreign Relations Secretary Marcelo Ebrard and Mexican Olympic Committee president María José Alcalá met Friday with IOC president Thomas Bach. Ebrard delivered a letter of intent to Bach.A city or region wasn’t specified but Ebrard and Alcalá said a committee would be formed to support the initiative.Last October, International Olympic Committee director general Christophe De Kepper said they were talking to “10 interested NOCs and regions across four continents” regarding potential candidacies for future Summer Games. The 2036 edition is the next available to be awarded.___More AP coverage of the Paris...

Pennsylvania chocolate factory explodes; 5 dead, 6 missing

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:32:02 GMT

WEST READING, Pa. (AP) — An explosion at a chocolate factory in Pennsylvania on Friday killed five people and left six people missing, authorities said.The Pennsylvania Emergency Management Agency confirmed the increase in the number of fatalities Saturday morning after the blast just before 5 p.m. Friday at the R.M. Palmer Co. plant in the borough of West Reading. Chief of Police Wayne Holben said the blast destroyed one building and damaged a neighboring building. “It’s pretty leveled,” Mayor Samantha Kaag said of the explosion site. “The building in the front, with the church and the apartments, the explosion was so big that it moved that building four feet forward."The cause of the blast in the community about 60 miles (96 kilometers) northwest of Philadelphia was under investigation, Holden told reporters. Authorities are investigating the possibility that a gas leak may have been responsible, a spokesperson for the Pennsylvania Emergency Management Agency said.Eight people wer...

Raw Saturday ahead, dry Sunday

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:32:02 GMT

7Weather – Good morning! Here’s what we have going on this weekend. Half of the weekend will be cool and damp. The other half more mild and dry, but windy. That’s thanks to this weak center of low pressure moving through the Great Lakes region. The center of this area of low pressure stays north and west so that’s where the biggest impacts will be. In fact, Maine has Winter Weather Advisories and Winter Storm Warnings in place. For us, this will bring a cold rain for most of us and a mix of sleet and rain for higher elevations.Showers will move in by midday/early afternoon from west to east. We’ll reach our high temperatures by then in the upper 30s/low 40s with a breeze picking up out of the southeast. It’ll be a cold rain for most of us. Temperatures above us are slightly warmer, while it’s cooler closer to the surface, so we’ll get some sleet pellets mixing in mainly for higher elevations. This will not bring impacts to the roads in...

Luis Severino dealing with lat strain and won’t make scheduled first start of season for Yankees

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:32:02 GMT

Luis Severino is dealing with a right side, low-grade lat strain and won’t be able to make his scheduled first start of the season for the Yankees.Manager Aaron Boone said Severino felt tightness after his last start while he was performing his arm care routine and that tightness remained in the days since.Boone said this does not appear to be a long-term injury — calling it “subtle” — but said it was “probably an IL” situation for the righty.The Yankee skipper said Clarke Schmidt will likely start the second game of the season.Developing story, check back for details. ()

Bill Madden: Buck Showalter on the challenge of managing Mets without Edwin Diaz

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:32:02 GMT

PORT ST. LUCIE — Nobody has to tell Buck Showalter he’s going to have to manage his butt off this season if he is to get Steve Cohen’s $336 million Mets back to October and beyond. Quite simply it is going to be an Edwin Diaz-less adventure for 162 games.We were standing on the sidelines watching the Mets going through some pre-game drills at Clover Park the other day and, as it is with every conversation with the Mets manager this spring, it is hard not to bring up the elephant in the room. Showalter is moving on, as he has to, from the devastating turn of events of Diaz tearing the patellar tendon in his knee celebrating at the World Baseball Classic, but the void is immeasurable.“Look,” he said, “in my opinion, Edwin had the greatest season of any closer in the history of baseball last year. I would challenge anyone to come up with a greater one.”Certainly, in terms of dominance and value to the team’s success, Diaz’s 2022, in...

Mike Lupica: Surprising Knicks season will be a failure if they can’t win a playoff series

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:32:02 GMT

The Garden was once again a mecca this past week. That means the mecca of past basketball glory. Even in good times, and this current Knicks team has provided so many good times this season and so many big nights, the Garden, until further notice, is still just the capital of the good old days.It all came rushing back again because of the death of Willis Reed at the age of 80, heart failure taking him and his own great heart. So, of course, it was Game 7 against the Lakers again this week, and it was the last Knicks title, 50 years ago, the 1972-73 Knicks team that was honored not long ago. Some of them were there for the celebration. Walt Frazier was there, because he has become the ambassador of everything with the Knicks and the Garden, mostly because he is still here, and so wonderfully vocal, and so very present.Bill Bradley was there, and so was a fine and dear basketball gent named Earl Monroe, the Philly kid and the old Baltimore Bullet who by his grace and dazzling game, be...

St. John’s, N.L., airport closed after late night fire on 2nd floor forces evacuation

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:32:02 GMT

ST. JOHN’S, N.L. — A fire on the second floor of the international airport in St. John’s, N.L., resulted in the facility being closed late Friday night.The airport authority said today the main terminal building was evacuated due to a “significant event” on Friday at 11:30 p.m. No other details were immediately available.The authority said in a release today it is working with police and the fire department to ensure all protocols are being followed before reopening the building.The news release says the terminal building was expected to remain closed to the public until 6 p.m. on Saturday.Passengers are being advised not to visit the airport until there is a public advisory the terminal has reopened.This report by The Canadian Press was first published March 25, 2023.The Canadian Press

14-year veteran of Toronto police force facing impaired driving charges

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:32:02 GMT

A 14-year veteran of the Toronto police force is facing a number of charges including impaired driving.Toronto police say around 3:45 a.m. on March 20, an off-duty police officer was driving in the area of Shuter and Parliament streets when he struck a parked car on Shuter before continuing southbound on Parliament. Initially, the driver failed to stop when located by police before pulling over almost two kilometres later in the area of King and Sumach streets. Investigators say the driver refused to submit to a breathalyzer test after being placed under arrest. Const. Michael Juma has been charged with dangerous driving, failing to stop for police, refusing a breathalyzer, impaired driving and failing to remain at the scene of an accident. He has been suspended with pay and is scheduled to answer to the charges in court on May 2.

Taliban want control of more Afghan diplomatic missions

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:32:02 GMT

ISLAMABAD (AP) — The Taliban government is trying to take charge of more Afghan embassies abroad, a spokesman said Saturday, amid their continued international isolation because of restrictions on women and girls.The Taliban initially promised a more moderate rule after their takeover in August 2021, but instead imposed sweeping bans and other measures curtailing basic freedoms.The U.N. and foreign governments have fiercely condemned the restrictions on female education and employment, and the international community remains wary of officially recognizing the Taliban, although some countries retain an active diplomatic mission in Afghanistan, including Pakistan, Turkey, Qatar, and China.“The Islamic Emirate has sent diplomats to at least 14 countries and efforts are underway to take charge of other diplomatic missions abroad,” the government’s main spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid said in a video. “Diplomats of the former government are continuing their activities in coordination with t...