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Tory anger as Wembley Stadium won’t light up in Israeli colors

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:37:06 GMT

LONDON — England’s Football Association (FA) has resisted appeals to light up London’s Wembley Stadium in the blue and white colors of Israel’s flag to commemorate those killed in the ongoing attacks by Hamas.In a move that has angered some U.K. ministers, English football’s governing body said instead that players in an England versus Australia match Friday will wear black armbands to mourn all those who have died across the region.“Our thoughts are with them, and their families and friends in England and Australia and with all the communities who are affected by this ongoing conflict,” the association said in a statement. “We stand for humanity and an end to the death, violence, fear and suffering.”In its press release announcing the move, the FA also announced it will only permit spectators to wear kit and wave flags of the competing teams, meaning Israeli and Palestinian flags will be banned.The decision comes despite calls from some Bri...

Negotiations suspended between Hollywood studios and actors’ union

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:37:06 GMT

(CNN) — The Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers said late Wednesday that negotiations with SAG-AFTRA — the union representing about 160,000 actors — have been suspended.“After meaningful conversations, it is clear that the gap between the AMPTP and SAG-AFTRA is too great, and conversations are no longer moving us in a productive direction,” the AMPTP said in a statement.The suspension came after the actors’ union presented its latest proposal to the AMPTP, according to the studios’ statement.AMPTP said the union’s latest offer “included what it characterized as a viewership bonus that, by itself, would cost more than $800 million per year — which would create an untenable economic burden. SAG-AFTRA presented few, if any, moves on the numerous remaining open items.”The actors’ union lashed out, accusing the Hollywood studios of offering a contract that lacked the actors’ critical demands on reining in AI and failed to deliver sufficient wage increases. The union ...

UAW expands strike, hitting Ford’s largest factory

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:37:06 GMT

(CNN) — The United Auto Workers union surprised Ford with a major escalation of its strike, ordering workers off the job at the company’s largest plant.Late Wednesday night, the union told 8,700 workers to strike at the Kentucky Truck Plant, which builds some of Ford’s most important vehicles, including the heavy duty version of its F Series pickup, as well as its full-size SUVs.“We have been crystal clear, and we have waited long enough, but Ford has not gotten the message,” said UAW President Shawn Fain. “It’s time for a fair contract at Ford and the rest of the Big Three. If they can’t understand that after four weeks, the 8,700 workers shutting down this extremely profitable plant will help them understand it.”A Ford official told media that the UAW had called for a negotiation session with Ford for Wednesday evening. He said that the union wanted a different offer from Ford from what it had presented before. After a very brief discussion that last only a few minutes, Fain ...

Veteran guard Alex Caruso finds his niche as an elite defender for the Chicago Bulls: ‘He just causes havoc’

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:37:06 GMT

Entering his seventh NBA season, Alex Caruso has forged his identity on doing the dirty work.He’s comfortable coming off the bench and accepts the challenge of playing every position from the one to the four. And even after earning his first All-Defensive Second Team selection last season, Caruso isn’t one to focus on individual accolades.“I’ve found individual success has always followed team success,” Caruso told the Tribune. “When we win games, when we perform well, I fall in line with that. When a team doesn’t do well, I usually don’t have as great a season or as great a performance as I can. So that makes it easy for me to just black out and lock into what we need to do night after night.”Even when the Chicago Bulls struggle, Caruso’s impact rarely is overlooked — even on the national stage.Caruso was the only Bulls player mentioned on this year’s NBA general manager survey — he was tied ...

MBTA workers widened faulty Green Line tracks during early morning operations

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:37:06 GMT

The MBTA resumed running trains on the Green Line Extension at full speed on Tuesday following a string of overnight maintenance efforts that involved physically pushing the tracks apart to restore an appropriate width.MBTA officials announced Wednesday that about a mile’s worth of slow zones had been lifted across the Green Line Extension’s Union Square and Medford branches, just a bit more than two weeks after the sudden revelation that trains were limited to 3 mph because of rails that were too close together.At first, it was unclear what work the agency had performed to allow trains to resume full-speed travel, but an MBTA official told the News Service that crews spent several recent nights widening sections of the rails to address the narrowness problems.The official, who communicated only on background, likened the process to resetting a door hinge. Workers removed screw legs holding down rail tie plates, then repositioned those plates.They then placed a device in...

Road repair projects continue in these San Diego areas

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:37:06 GMT

SAN DIEGO -- As roads continue to be repaired across San Diego, city officials announced Wednesday that crews will start resurfacing streets as early as this week in some areas.Over the next three weeks, streets in and around Valencia Park, University Heights, Hillcrest, Ridgeview and Emerald Hills will be resurfaced as part of the Transportation Department’s ongoing Slurry Seal Project.To explain that further, slurry seal is the application of a mixture of water, asphalt emulsion, very small crushed rock, and additives to an existing asphalt pavement surface to help preserve and protect the underlying pavement structure. It also provides a new driving surface. Escondido prepares for proposed water rate hikes Slurry seal is often completed in phases over several days or weeks. The city says multiple slurry seal projects are happening across San Diego simultaneously.Through the month of October, the following roads will be resurfaced as part of this project:Vermont Street Rich...

‘It was intolerable’: Ottawa local testifies at trial of ‘Freedom Convoy’ organizers

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:37:06 GMT

OTTAWA — Local Ottawa resident Sarah Gawman told an Ottawa courtroom today that the sound of horn honking during the “Freedom Convoy” was incessant and intolerable.Gawman is the first civilian witness to testify in the criminal trial of protest organizers Tamara Lich and Chris Barber.She says she lived in a high-rise condo building downtown Ottawa when the protest began last year, and trucks and other vehicles lined up in her neighbourhood as far as the eye could see.The Crown intends to call five local residents as part of its case, as well as an employee for the National Arts Centre and an employee for OC Transpo, the local public-transit operator. The Crown says it plans to ask the witnesses about the turmoil they observed during the protest, in an effort to tie disruptions to Lich and Barber.Justice Heather Perkins-McVey says she will make sure the witnesses stick to the things they observed first-hand, and won’t allow them to stray into the ways the protest af...

A youth football coach was shot in front of his team during practice at a park in St. Louis

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:37:06 GMT

ST. LOUIS (AP) — A youth football coach was shot in front of his players during practice at a park in St. Louis, sending him to the hospital in critical but stable condition, authorities said.The 30-year-old coach was shot multiple times Tuesday evening at Sherman Park. Daryl Clemmons, 43, later turned himself in, police said. He was charged Wednesday with first-degree assault and armed criminal action. Clemmons does not yet have an attorney who could speak on his behalf, according to Missouri’s online court-reporting system. A call to a phone number listed for him went unanswered.Alderwoman Sharon Tyus told KMOV-TV that the shooter and the coach got into some type of altercation, which led to “gunfire in front of the children.” Police have not said if Clemmons was a parent or if the altercation was related to the football team. Police have not disclosed the ages of the players.“For someone to take out a gun and to lose their cool, it easily could’ve been something more tragic,” Tyu...

Hunting for decent returns with low risk? Here are the basics of GICs

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:37:06 GMT

TORONTO — As interest rates have risen, so has the popularity of guaranteed investment certificates. Here are the basics:What is a guaranteed investment certificate?A guaranteed investment certificate offers a set rate of return while keeping the original amount of money invested safe, making it an attractive option for investors with a low risk tolerance. One of the key features to be aware of with GICs is your money is typically locked in for a specific period of time, referred to as a term. Terms are usually one-, three- or five-years, although shorter and longer terms are available. GICs can be held in virtually all investment accounts, including a tax-free savings account and registered retirement savings account. What are the main pros and cons of GICs?One of the biggest attractions of a GIC is the fact that the money you invest and the rate of return are, as the name implies, guaranteed.There are a variety of terms and interest rate options available to investors and deposits...

Rising GIC returns broadening their appeal to younger investors

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:37:06 GMT

OTTAWA — Rising interest rates have pushed up costs for borrowers and made mortgages, car loans and other debt more expensive, but the flip side for savers is the better rates for investments such as guaranteed investment certificates.While among the safest forms of investment, GICs had fallen out of favour due to the paltry returns in recent years. Now, experts say higher rates have made GICs more appealing.Gabriel Lalonde, president of MDL Financial Group, said GICs are now a more attractive investment for retirees and those approaching retirement.“Most people have a portion of fixed income in their portfolios, unless they’re really, really young and, up until now, we haven’t really looked at GICs because the interest rates were not very good,” Lalonde said. Unlike a stock, your original investment in a GIC is guaranteed. They are also eligible for protection under the Canada Deposit Insurance Corp. and provincial deposit insurers.But that safety came with ...