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RFK Jr. denies making antisemitic comments as congressional Republicans give him a platform

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 18:55:41 GMT

WASHINGTON (AP) — Robert F. Kennedy Jr. worked to defend himself Thursday against accusations that he traffics in racist and hateful online conspiracy theories, testifying at a House hearing on government censorship despite requests from outside groups to disinvite the Democratic presidential candidate after his recent antisemitic remarks.The Republican-led Select Subcommittee on the Weaponization of the Federal Government is amplifying GOP claims that conservatives and others are being unfairly targeted by technology companies that routinely work with the government to try to stem the spread of disinformation online. Democrats argued that free speech comes with responsibilities not to spread misinformation, particularly when it fans violence. In opening remarks, Kennedy invoked his famous family’s legacy in decrying the complaints of racism and antisemitism against him.“This is an attempt to censor a censorship hearing,” said Kennedy, the son of Robert F. Kennedy and the nephew of ...

Senate Judiciary approves bill to impose stronger ethics standards on Supreme Court justices

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 18:55:41 GMT

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Supreme Court would have to abide by stronger ethics standards under legislation approved on Thursday by the Senate Judiciary Committee, a response to recent revelations about donor-funded trips by justices. The bill faced united opposition from Republicans, who said it could “destroy” the court. The legislation has little chance to make it through the full Senate.The panel voted along party lines to set ethics rules for the court and a process to enforce them, including new standards for transparency around recusals, gifts and potential conflicts of interest. Democrats first pushed the legislation after reports earlier this year that Justice Clarence Thomas participated in luxury vacations and a real estate deal with a top GOP donor — and after Chief Justice John Roberts declined to testify before the committee about the ethics of the court. Since then, news reports also revealed that Justice Samuel Alito had taken a luxury vacation with a GOP donor. And The A...

Fire crews lose control of blaze near Athens as southern Europe heat wave keeps communities on alert

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 18:55:41 GMT

LOUTRAKI, Greece (AP) — Evening winds fueled a major wildfire west of Greece’s capital Thursday, triggering a series of new evacuations outside Athens as authorities braced for more of the extreme weather that has brought searing heat to southern Europe.Authorities had declared the huge blaze contained overnight and Greece’s Fire Service intensified water drops with the help of extra firefighting aircraft deployed from France and Italy. But firefighters lost control of the fire when the wind picked up, Fire Service officials said.The fire has been raging since Tuesday and already burned 35 square kilometers (13.5 square miles) of forest and scrubland.Some residents ignored latest evacuation orders to try and save their homes. Chrysoula Renieri, 72, said relatives had helped her try to save the family home near Loutraki, a resort town 81 kilometers (50 miles) west of Athens, but the wildfire cut off water in the area. “It’s all gone. We have suffered too much damage...

Hazing remains ingrained in team sports and experts say they see increase in sexualized attacks

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 18:55:41 GMT

Georgia coach Kirby Smart remembers having his head shaved when he was a freshman football player at his alma mater back in the mid-1990s and busing tables after team meals.Older players putting the newbies in their place by hazing remains ingrained in team sports at all levels in the United States. That is not the way Smart wants to run the Bulldogs, who have won two straight national championships.“Now, those freshmen, the guys we sign, they have to play,” Smart said this week at Southeastern Conference media days. “So when you create this separation of, they have to do this and they have to do that, they’re not ready to play. They’re like a different team.”While major college sports programs have become multimillion-dollar, high-stakes businesses run more like professional teams, ritualistic hazing remains a problematic tradition within them. School rules forbidding hazing, more than 40 state laws against it and horror story after horror story have not stopped it.“I think it’s h...

Bernardo’s move to medium security was ‘sound’ but victims’ families needed more info, review finds

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 18:55:41 GMT

A Correctional Service of Canada (CSC) review into the transfer of notorious serial killer Paul Bernardo to a medium-security prison concluded that the transfer “followed all applicable laws and policies” but said the CSC could have done more to inform victims’ families.Bernardo, who is serving a life sentence for the kidnapping, assault and murders of 15-year-old Kristen French and 14-year-old Leslie Mahaffy in the early 1990s near St. Catharines, Ont., was transferred from Millhaven Institution, a maximum-security facility, to La Macaza Institution, a medium-security prison, on May 29, 2023.The move sparked outrage and calls from the Conservatives for Public Safety Minister, Marco Mendicino, to resign.In a statement addressing the findings of the review, Anne Kelly, Commissioner of the Correctional Service of Canada, said that “even though CSC went above policy in this case to notify victims, additional steps could have been taken to provide more informatio...

After School Matters trains teens interested in emergency medicine

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 18:55:41 GMT

CHICAGO -- Teens on the South side are getting the opportunity to have hands-on training in emergency medicine. For the first time, After School Matters is offering an emergency medical responders program and possibly a career for teens between the ages of 13 and18.The program gives teens the opportunity to sound sirens, check speakers while also practicing triaging their classmates and testing torniquets. Superior Ambulance, which partners with After School Matters is a mobile classroom. After School Matters has been a Chicago staple for more than three decades, serving about 19,000 teens a year, giving them the opportunity to further their education and potentially giving them opportunities in the medical field as an EMR or emergency medical responder. "I never thought I’d be working on an ambulance, but I enjoy it," Morgan Mcdougle, one of the teens in training said. Million dollar Powerball ticket sold in Chicago suburbs Once the teens turn 18 and complete their six-week pro...

Man charged for threatening former Mayor Lightfoot appears in court

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 18:55:41 GMT

CHICAGO — The man accused of threatening former Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot appeared in court Thursday for a status hearing.William Kohles, 42, was charged with one felony count of threatening a public official back in December. He reportedly threatened to shoot Lightfoot if she did not reduce crime in the city.At a hearing Thursday, attorneys discussed the discovery process and the judge set another court date for Aug. 31.Lightfoot was in attendance at the court hearing, and issued the following statement in response:"I attended today’s hearing as I take this matter with grave seriousness. The defendant is alleged to have issued a death threat against me that included the repeated use of derogatory and offensive language. The alleged threat included use of the N-word, other racially offensive terms and repeated threats to ‘put a bullet in my head.’ We all know that criticism from the public and others comes with the job of being an elected official. But what doesn't come with...

Ex-McHenry County youth coach charged with grooming, soliciting minor

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 18:55:41 GMT

WAUKEGAN, Ill.  — A northwest suburban man who worked as a youth volleyball coach in the McHenry County area is charged with the indecent solicitation of a child. Phillip Bromley, 44, of McHenry allegedly communicated with an undercover detective online, posing as a girl under the age of 14 over several weeks.  Suburban middle school employee accused of distributing child pornography During the conversations, Bromley allegedly enticed the officer posing as an underage girl, to meet him for sex. Upon a pre-arranged meetup in Lake County, Bromley was instead met by detectives and taken into custody. The Lake County State’s Attorney’s Office charged Bromley with:Indecent Solicitation of a Minor (Class 3 Felony)Traveling to Meet a Minor (Class 3 Felony)Grooming (Class 4 Felony)Read more: Latest Chicago news headlinesBromley remains jailed in Lake County. Police ask anyone who may have been victimized by Bromley to file a report with their local law enforcement agency.

Children's cup recalled for excessive lead levels

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 18:55:41 GMT

(WHTM) – Two sizes of CUPKIN Stainless Steel Children’s Cups have been recalled for containing too much lead, the Consumer Product Safety Commission announced. Lead is toxic, and if consumed can cause negative health effects. The commission says consumers should immediately take the cups away from children and stop using them.According to the commission, no injuries have been reported.Photo: United States Consumer Product Safety CommissionPhoto: United States Consumer Product Safety CommissionThe recall includes both 8-ounce and 12-ounce CUPKIN Double-Walled Stainless Steel Children’s Cups that were sold in pairs. Tesla recalling nearly 16,000 Model S and Model X vehicles over seat belt issue The recalled products were sold in blue and green, pink and purple, blue and gray, peach and teal, black and white, coral and yellow, green and pink, polignac and potpourri, brown and peach, rust and salmon, aqua and periwinkle, and cobalt and mint. "Cupkin" is written at the bottom. The...

Big Mac, big bucks: Photo of McDonald's prices at Connecticut restaurant go viral on Twitter

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 18:55:41 GMT

DARIEN, Conn. (WTNH) — The McDonald's meals at a Connecticut location are going viral for all the wrong reasons — and no, it has nothing to do with the disturbing Grimace Birthday Meal TikTok trend.The meals — which included a Big Mac combo and a Quarter Pounder combo — were selling for $17.59 (Big Mac meal) and $17.99 (Quarter Pounder meal) at a McDonald's restaurant on Interstate 95 in the town of Darien, photos shared by Twitter user Sam Learner appeared to show.Just a Big Mac alone was going for $8.29, according to Learner's photos."This was at a rest stop, but these McDonald's prices are nuts right???" Learner wrote in his Twitter post, which has been viewed over 300,000 times since it was posted on Tuesday afternoon.He also provided a link to the restaurant's online menu, so other users could "see/gawk at the prices for yourselves."A photo illustration provided by Getty Images shows a Big Mac on a tray at a Miami McDonald's location in 2018. (Photo by Joe Raedle/Getty Images)...