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Paris mayor says she’s quitting Elon Musk’s ‘global sewer’ platform X as city gears up for Olympics

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 23:11:48 GMT

PARIS (AP) — The mayor of future Olympic host city Paris says she is quitting X, accusing Elon Musk ‘s platform previously known as Twitter of spreading disinformation and hatred and of becoming a “gigantic global sewer” that is toxic for democracy and constructive debate.“With its thousands of anonymous accounts and its troll farms, life on Twitter is the exact opposite of democratic life,” Mayor Anne Hidalgo said in a long post titled, “Why I am leaving Twitter.”“I refuse to endorse this evil scheme,” she wrote.An Associated Press request for comment emailed to X got an automated reply, “Busy now, please check back later.” Hidalgo’s office said posts on Monday in French and English that announced her departure from X would be the Socialist mayor’s last and that she will then close her account — which has 1.5 million followers — at the end of the week.Her office said that Paris City Hall is keeping its own separate account on X.Hidalgo’s withdrawal from X fo...

Puerto Rico opposition party will hold a gubernatorial primary after its president enters race

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 23:11:48 GMT

SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico (AP) — One of Puerto Rico’s biggest political parties will hold a gubernatorial primary after Rep. Jesús Manuel Ortiz of the Popular Democratic Party announced his candidacy Monday.Ortiz will face Puerto Rico Sen. Juan Zaragoza, who previously served as the U.S. territory’s treasury secretary.Ortiz, who is president of the Popular Democratic Party, listed conditions in Puerto Rico that he said were negatively affecting the island’s 3.2 million inhabitants. “Recovery funds that are not used effectively, anguish from waiting months for a doctor’s appointment, the daily battle with a crumbling electrical system, lack of employment opportunities, the deterioration of essential services and so many other problems,” he said. The winner of the Popular Democratic Party’s primary will face the winner of the New Progressive Party’s primary, in which Gov. Pedro Pierluisi faces Jenniffer González, the island’s representative in Congress. They also will face gubernatorial c...

Snow squall watch issued for northern parts of GTA

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 23:11:48 GMT

A snow squall watch has been issued for the northern reaches of the GTA with warnings in effect for areas further north of the city.The watch is in place for northern York and northern Durham regions, including Newmarket, Georgina, Uxbridge and Innisfil, with the peak snow expected Monday night into Tuesday morning.“The first significant lake effect snow squalls of the season are forecast beginning late tonight,” reads the alert from Environment Canada. “Strong westerly winds followed by northwesterly winds will accompany these snow squalls resulting in significantly reduced visibility at times in heavy snow and blowing snow.”The weather agency says 10 to 30 centimetres of snow is possible with snowfall of up to five centimetres per hour at times.Good Monday morning! It’s a cold,windy day for you. Snow squalls the main weather story in southern Ontario today and even parts of the GTA (Newmarket, Georgina, Uxbridge) could see 10-30cm snow overnight Monday and ...

Spain announces a 1.4 billion-euro deal to help protect the prized Doñana wetland from drying up

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 23:11:48 GMT

MADRID (AP) — National and regional authorities in Spain signed an agreement Monday to invest 1.4 billion euros ($1.5 billion) in areas around the treasured national park of Doñana in a bid to stop the park from drying up.Ecological Transition Minister Teresa Ribera said the plan was aimed at encouraging farmers to stop cultivating crops that rely heavily on water from underground aquifers that have been overexploited in recent years, damaging one of Europe’s largest wetlands.“This is an agreement with which we put an end to pressure on a natural treasure the likes of which there are few in the world,” Ribera said.Andalusia regional President Juan Moreno said farmers will receive financial incentives to stop cultivating and to reforest land in and around some 14 towns close to Doñana. He said farmers who wish to continue cultivating will receive less money but must switch to farming dry crops ecologically.As part of the agreement, Andalusia will cancel previously announced plans to ...

We can genetically modify pests. But should we?

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 23:11:48 GMT

In today’s Big Story Podcast, picture it: Mosquitoes that don’t spread disease. Aphids and potato beetles that stay away from our crops. Biting insects that don’t bite humans. There’s an awful lot of good in a world where we can make those changes. There’s just one catch.In order to do those things, we have to genetically modify those creatures, using cutting-edge technology that allows us to basically rewrite their code. The upside is tremendous, so the work is being done. But there are ethical questions as well as safety concerns. Related: Scientific report urges debate on genetic modification to control insect pests Ben Matthews is a professor at the University of British Columbia, and a co-author of a report submitted to the Pest Management Regulatory Agency. He said whether Canada ends up being at the forefront of this technology of not, the United States will — and Canada will need regulation to address that.“I would say it’s...

20 armed robberies reported across Chicago on Sunday: CPD

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 23:11:48 GMT

CHICAGO -- Police are offering a warning to residents in several neighborhoods across the city after 20 people were robbed at gunpoint on Sunday.A 49-year-old woman was robbed at gunpoint in the Garfield Park neighborhood at the corner of fifth avenue and Sacramento Avenue. The suspects got out of a white SUV, showed a gun and demanded the woman's belongings.Police said the woman was shot in her upper abdomen and was transported to Mount Sinai Hospital in good condition. CPD: 14 people robbed at gunpoint in 3 hours Out of the 20 armed robberies that happened Sunday, at least five took place in the evening in the South Lawndale and Brighton Park neighborhood.Police said four men were spotted wearing dark-colored sweatshirts with hoods, black pants and black ski masks. Police believe the individuals responsible are between 18 and 25 years of age, standing between 5-foot-7 and 5-foot-10 and weighing between 140 and 160 pounds.Police said one of the victims was a food truck owner nea...

North Greenbush Police looking for missing woman

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 23:11:48 GMT

NORTH GREENBUSH, N.Y. (NEWS10) -- North Greenbush Police are asking the public for help in finding a missing woman. Emily Dziamba is 30 years old and was reported missing on Sunday. Get the latest news, weather, sports and entertainment delivered right to your inbox! Police say she last contacted family around 1:30 p.m. on Sunday. Police say the circumstances of her disappearance are under investigation. Law enforcement has provided an image of the car she may be in below. If you see this car or have any information on Dziamba's whereabouts, you're asked to call Detective Walsh at (518) 283-5323. Stick with NEWS10 as more information becomes available.

Vehicle fire on I-87 in Coxsackie cleared

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 23:11:48 GMT

COXSACKIE, N.Y. (NEWS10) -- According to 511 NY, a vehicle fire that blocked the right lane on I-87 southbound before Exit 21B in Coxsackie has been cleared. Drivers in the area can expect a regular commute at this time. Get the latest news, weather, sports and entertainment delivered right to your inbox! Stick with NEWS10 as more information becomes available.

Shelter-in-place lifted and roads reopened after man barricades himself in Jefferson County home overnight

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 23:11:48 GMT

A shelter-in-place issued early Monday morning has been lifted in Jefferson County after a man barricade himself in a house with a weapon, officials said.Deputies from the Jefferson County Sheriff’s Office responded to a situation with a suspect who had barricaded himself into a Lakewood home on South Holland Way with a gun early Monday morning, according to a statement from the department posted on social media.Around 4:54 a.m., the sheriff’s office issued a shelter-in-place warning for homes in the immediate the area and closed West Quincy Avenue from Garrison Street to Kipling Street, according to the social media post.Jefferson County’s SWAT team worked to deescalate the situation and 15 minutes later, at 5:10 a.m., the sheriff’s office announced that the incident had been resolved and there was no threat to the public.Related ArticlesCrime and Public Safety | Man hospitalized in Adams County after medical incident during arrest Saturday, sheri...

New CU Boulder administrator works to draw more Native students to university

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 23:11:48 GMT

Benny Shendo Jr. didn’t know he was supposed to fail.The odds were stacked against him — the result of generations of systemic barriers facing Native Americans after the U.S. government stole or forced the sale of their lands, banned their languages and religious practices, and attempted to strip their identities from them. The friends around him in Jemez Pueblo in New Mexico weren’t succeeding. They weren’t graduating from college, and in many cases even enrolling, in large part because they didn’t feel welcomed.“I just kept going and doing what I needed to do it and made it — despite all the obstacles and things that I could have easily walked away from,” Shendo, 59, recalls.That determination is what drives him now as he focuses on future generations of students. In October, he began working at the University of Colorado Boulder, returning to his alma mater as its first-ever associate vice chancellor for Native American Affairs. In ...