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US boosts military presence in the Middle East after Iran seizes tankers

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 11:00:17 GMT

The U.S. military is working with allies to send more ships and aircraft to the Middle East as Iran escalates its seizures of merchant tankers, the National Security Council announced Friday.“Today, the Department of Defense will be making a series of moves to bolster our defensive posture in the Arabian Gulf,” NSC spokesperson John Kirby told reporters.The announcement comes after Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps seized a Panama-flagged oil tanker called Niovi on May 3, as the ship was traveling through the Strait of Hormuz. The tanker left Dubai, and moved toward a UAE port when a dozen boats from the IRGC navy forced the tanker to head into Iranian waters.Another incident occurred April 27, when the Advantage Sweet tanker ship belonging to the Marshall Islands was also seized after colliding with an Iranian boat, which injured several crewmembers, according to Iran’s state media.Over the past two years, the IRGC has attacked or disrupted 15 tankers as tensions between Ira...

After ‘humbling’ return to Triple-A, Kyle Stowers is searching for his role with Orioles

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 11:00:17 GMT

Kyle Stowers wasn’t surprised when he was sent down to Triple-A early in the season, but that didn’t make the demotion sting any less.“Those first couple days, it was kind of a tough pill to swallow,” he said. “It was humbling.”The Orioles outfielder entered the season with the opportunity to earn a larger role on an emerging team, one that has spent most of the season as the American League’s second-best. Instead, he was back in the minors less than two weeks into the year.Stowers was barely playing for the Orioles, totaling just six plate appearances in the club’s first eight games. At just 25 years old, Baltimore wanted the outfield prospect to get consistent playing time in Norfolk rather than wasting away on the big league bench.“Obviously, it was hard. Really hard,” Stowers said. “You want to be up in the big leagues and help the team win. Especially in a time that’s so fun right now with such a good group...

Battenfeld: Political polling now dominated by PR firms and special interests

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 11:00:17 GMT

Polls weren’t reliable before but now they are almost completely worthless — thanks to a proliferation of politically motivated polls, some funded by slanted special interests.Public relations firms like Democratic consultant Doug Rubin’s Northwind Strategies and organizations like the conservative Mass Fiscal Alliance are conducting polls now like the 2024 Senate matchup pitting Elizabeth Warren against Charlie Baker.Those polls not surprisingly produced vastly different results — with the Mass Fiscal poll showing Baker ahead and the Northwind survey putting Warren in the lead.And a recent poll by a super PAC supporting Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis showed shockingly that DeSantis is ahead of Donald Trump in Georgia.So what are voters to believe?Who sponsors a poll and why is very important.And it’s very easy to manipulate a poll to get the results that serve your interests or client. Slanted questions and weighted results can alter the poll in favor of the answers that the firm or org...

Haiti at risk of famine as farmers kidnapped, ‘extremely bad’ hunger fuels tumult

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 11:00:17 GMT

OTTAWA — Even as Canadian aid feeds thousands, the United Nations is warning that Haiti’s political chaos is putting the country at risk of famine, as farmers get kidnapped and the desperate turn to vigilante justice against gangsters.“This is not the usual chronic food crisis in Haiti. This is extremely bad,” said Jean-Martin Bauer, the World Food Programme’s country director for the Caribbean state.“It’s very difficult to organize a peaceful election with a starving population.”In an assessment last October, some 20,000 people in Haiti were classified as being in catastrophic food insecurity, which Bauer says is the first time that people in the Americas have been characterized as being at risk of famine.Bauer said the hardest-hit demographic live in Cité Soleil, a gang-controlled area of the capital, Port-au-Prince, where residents face conditions more often found in parts of Somalia and Afghanistan.Some five million people — half the cou...

‘Systemic difficulties’ hampered review of Canada’s cyberspy service: watchdog

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 11:00:17 GMT

OTTAWA — A culture within Canada’s cyberspy service of “resisting and impeding” independent review has frustrated efforts to ensure it is obeying the law, say newly released documents from the federal intelligence watchdog.The unusually candid National Security and Intelligence Review Agency records from 2021 are the latest evidence of the watchdog’s irritation at trying to scrutinize the operations of the Communications Security Establishment.The CSE and the spy watchdog say strides toward smoother relations have been made in recent months.The Ottawa-based CSE monitors foreign communications — from email and phone calls to text messages and satellite transmissions — for intelligence of interest to Canada. It also safeguards Canadian computer systems and engages in cyberoperations to counter threats from abroad.The agency is a key element of the intelligence-sharing network known as the Five Eyes: Canada, the United States, Britain, Australia and New Zealand....

Long-awaited St. Croix River boat launch opening date set for summer 2024

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 11:00:17 GMT

Patience is crucial in fishing – and when it comes to waiting for a boat launch to be built in Oak Park Heights just downstream of the St. Croix River bridge.Officials originally thought the $1.2 million launch – part of the mitigation package to offset the environmental effects of the new bridge – would open in the fall of 2019 or spring 2020.Now, officials are shooting for summer 2024, said Kent Skaar, the senior project manager for acquisition and development for the DNR’s parks and trails division.“Good things take time,” Skaar said Friday, on the eve of the fishing opener. “This site remains the priority for the program and the department and has been the priority for past 30 years. We’ve made slow, but steady progress.”Plans call for a double-ramp boat launch, which will feature 35 angled boat-trailer parking slots.Access issuesThe biggest issues facing officials from the Minnesota Department of Transportation and the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources have been concern...

Ask Amy: In-law is riled over handicap parking permit

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 11:00:17 GMT

Dear Amy: I have been happily married for 39 years. The few “disagreements” we’ve had always seem to center around my husband’s family.The latest has to do with my brother-in-law.He has always had a very entitled attitude.When my mother-in-law passed away in 2020, the car she recently bought was taken over by him. I was fine with that.However, she also had a handicap parking permit that was issued to her by the state of New York due to her deteriorating health issues.My husband’s brother has chosen to use that permit illegally for the past two years.I have always suspected the fraud but didn’t want to accuse him and cause problems in the event that he had gotten his own permit.This past week he left the area to visit another relative and his car was left in our driveway while he was away.After checking the tag through the window, I confirmed that he has been illegally using my mother-in-law’s handicap permit tag. This left me furious.Not knowing where the keys to the vehicle were, I...

Bridge: May 13, 2023

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 11:00:17 GMT

My “Simple Saturday” columns focus on improving basic technique and developing logical thinking.It can be dangerous to make assumptions. (For instance, for what animal would you assume the Canary Islands are named?) But declarer must sometimes make an assumption about the way the defenders’ cards lie.Today’s North-South reached 3NT on a prosaic auction, and West led the deuce of spades. South ducked twice and won the third spade. He had seven winners — a spade, two diamonds and four clubs — and if the missing diamonds broke 3-2, South could concede a diamond to set up the suit. But then he would have too many losers: the defense would cash a third spade plus the ace of hearts.FINESSESo South had to make an assumption, unpleasant though it was. At Trick Four, he led a heart to finesse with dummy’s ten. When East had to win with the ace, South had nine winners and only four losers.The Canary Islands get their name from the Latin word “ca...

Word Game: May 13, 2023

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 11:00:17 GMT

TODAY’S WORD — ADMIRING (ADMIRING: ad-MIRE-ing: Regarding with great esteem.)Average mark 32 wordsTime limit 40 minutesCan you find 46 or more words in ADMIRING? The list will be published Monday.YESTERDAY’S WORD — FASTIDIOUS fast fiat fido fist foist fuss adios adit audio audit auto sadist said sift situs soda sofa soft staid stud studio suds suit toad tofu toss tufa idiot iota daft dais dust oasis oast oustTo purchase the Word Game book, visit WordGameBooks.com. Order it now for just $5 while supplies last!RULES OF THE GAME:1. Words must be of four or more letters.2. Words that acquire four letters by the addition of “s,” such as “bats” or “dies,” are not allowed.3. Additional words made by adding a “d” or an “s” may not be used. For example, if “bake” is used, “baked” or “bakes” are not allowed, but “bake” and “baking” are admissible.4. Proper nouns, slang words, or vulgar or sexually explicit words are not allowed.Contact Word Game creator Kathleen Saxe a...

Horoscopes May 13, 2023: Stephen Colbert, make health a priority

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 11:00:17 GMT

CELEBRITIES BORN ON THIS DAY: Candice King, 36; Lena Dunham, 37; Stephen Colbert, 59; Stevie Wonder, 73.Stevie Wonder (Photo by Willy Sanjuan/Invision/AP, File) Willy Sanjuan/Invision/Associated PressHappy Birthday: You can make a difference if you call people who can help you get things done. Make plans to take a trip that will enrich your life through learning, making connections or bringing you the peace of mind you desire. Make health a priority, along with helping others recognize the benefits of what you are pursuing this year. You’ll gain the most by practicing and endorsing what you learn. Your numbers are 8, 13, 22, 29, 38, 40, 48.ARIES (March 21-April 19): A premature move will cost you. Go through the process from beginning to end to avoid falling short of your goal. Don’t expect others to do things the way you want. Take pride in what you do, and do the work yourself. 3 starsTAURUS (April 20-May 20): Sign up for something that interests you, and it will ...