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Blinken says no cease-fire until Ukraine has upper hand

Published Sun, 29 Dec 2024 12:01:52 GMT

By Susie Blann and Matthew Lee | Associated PressKYIV, Ukraine — U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said Friday the United States won’t support peace talks in the war in Ukraine until Kyiv holds the upper hand, possibly after a Ukrainian counteroffensive that appears to be taking shape.Blinken said heeding calls from Russia and others, including China, for a ceasefire and negotiations to end the war now would result in a “Potemkin peace” that wouldn’t secure Ukraine’s sovereignty and territorial integrity or enhance European security.“Potemkin Village” was a tactic Russia’s 18th century government minister Grigory Potemkin used to build brightly painted village fronts to create an illusion of prosperity for Russia’s empress.In a speech in Finland, which recently joined NATO and shares a long border with Russia, Blinken repeated the U.S. view that “a cease-fire that simply freezes current lines in place” and allows...

Pedestrian killed on Concord highway

Published Sun, 29 Dec 2024 12:01:52 GMT

CONCORD — A woman walking on state Highway 242 died after she was struck by a car Thursday night, the California Highway Patrol said.Her name was not immediately released, pending confirmation of her identity and notification of relatives.The CHP said the collision happened about 11:30 p.m. Thursday in the southbound lanes of Highway 242 south of Clayton Road.Related ArticlesCrashes and Disasters | Suspected drunk driver being pursued by East Bay police dies in crash Crashes and Disasters | Man burned wife’s car after hit-and-run that killed 12-year-old girl Crashes and Disasters | Northern California solo car crash kills 2 children and adult, injures 7 other children and another adult Crashes and Disasters | ‘Hostile architecture’: Fatal Fremont crash raises new questions about boulder ‘minefield’ Crashes and Disasters | Woman dies of injuries suffered in May 12 Fremont crash ...

Could a Republican, maybe even former MLB star Steve Garvey, win California’s Senate seat in 2024?

Published Sun, 29 Dec 2024 12:01:52 GMT

With all the votes counted in California’s U.S. Senate race, the results were clear: The Republican candidate won by a nearly 9% margin.That was 1988, and Sen. Pete Wilson had won re-election to what would be his final term before becoming California’s governor.And that was the last time a Republican was elected to represent California in the U.S. Senate.But with former Dodgers star Steve Garvey meeting with GOP officials and weighing a 2024 bid for Sen. Dianne Feinstein’s open seat, the question remains: What would a Republican need to do to have a shot at one of California’s two Senate seats?Democrats held sizeable advantages over Republicans in more recent U.S. Senate contests in California — if a GOP candidate even made it to the general election since California’s top two vote-getters advance in the primary, no matter the party.Pete Wilson, former governor of California and member of the Board of Trustees of the Ronald Reagan Presidential Foundation and Institute, speaks during...

Maybe Elizabeth Holmes could join Jen Shah’s popular abs class in Texas prison

Published Sun, 29 Dec 2024 12:01:52 GMT

The last the world saw of Elizabeth Holmes, the once high-flying Theranos CEO was smiling and “laughing with guards” as she walked into the federal minimum-security prison in Bryan, Texas, Tuesday to begin her 11-year sentence for defrauding investors of her failed blood-testing startup.If Holmes’ smiling face dropped into uncertainty and anguish once she traded in her casually stylish sweater and frayed jeans for a prison uniform, she could look to another celebrity prisoner for ideas on how to cope with the harsh reality of her new circumstances.May 30, 2023: Disgraced Theranos CEO Elizabeth Holmes, left, is escorted into a Federal Prison Camp in Bryan, Texas, where she will spend the next 11 years serving her sentence for overseeing an infamous blood-testing hoax. (AP Photo/Michael Wyke) Jen Shah, the former star of “The Real Housewives of Salt Lake City,” who preceded Holmes into the Bryan prison camp, has done all she can to stay busy, her friends h...

US Army rebranding: Fort Bragg becomes Fort Liberty

Published Sun, 29 Dec 2024 12:01:52 GMT

By Hannah Schoenbaum | Associated Press/Report for AmericaFORT LIBERTY, N.C. — Fort Bragg shed its Confederate namesake Friday to become Fort Liberty in a ceremony some veterans said was a small but important step in making the U.S. Army more welcoming to current and prospective Black service members.The change was part of a broad Department of Defense initiative, motivated by the 2020 George Floyd protests, to rename military installations that had been named after confederate soldiers.The Black Lives Matter demonstrations that erupted nationwide after Floyd’s killing by a white police officer, coupled with ongoing efforts to remove Confederate monuments, turned the spotlight on the Army installations. A naming commission created by Congress visited the bases and met with members of the surrounding communities for input.“We were given a mission, we accomplished that mission and we made ourselves better,” Lt. Gen. Christopher Donahue, the commanding general of the ...

Single family residence sells in Oakland for $1.5 million

Published Sun, 29 Dec 2024 12:01:52 GMT

5062 Dublin Avenue – Google Street ViewA 1,707-square-foot house built in 1947 has changed hands. The property located in the 5000 block of Dublin Avenue in Oakland was sold on April 14, 2023. The $1,510,000 purchase price works out to $885 per square foot. The property features two bedrooms, two bathrooms, and a garage. The unit sits on a 5,015-square-foot lot.Additional houses have recently been purchased nearby:A 2,841-square-foot home on the first block of Woodside Glen Court in Oakland sold in March 2023, for $1,820,000, a price per square foot of $641. The home has 4 bedrooms and 3 bathrooms.On Braemar Road, Oakland, in October 2022, a 2,498-square-foot home was sold for $2,000,000, a price per square foot of $801. The home has 3 bedrooms and 3 bathrooms.In November 2022, a 1,780-square-foot home on Castle Park Way in Oakland sold for $1,185,000, a price per square foot of $666. The home has 2 bedrooms and 3 bathrooms. 

Former California underwear model gets 2 years, 8 months for role in Capitol riot

Published Sun, 29 Dec 2024 12:01:52 GMT

A former Beverly Hills model and actor, who along with an anti-vaccine doctor joined in the breach of the U.S. Capitol in 2021, was sentenced this week to two years, eight months in federal prison and three years of probation for his role in the insurrection.A federal jury in Washington, D.C. last year found John Strand guilty of a felony count of obstruction of an official proceeding, as well as several lesser counts that included entering a restricted building and disorderly conduct.Strand, 40, was also ordered on Thursday, June 1, to pay a $10,000 fine, according to court records.Model John Strand attends Star Scene Stealers Event at Tropicana Bar at The Hollywood Rooselvelt Hotel on October 1, 2013 in Hollywood, California. (Photo by Michael Buckner/Getty Images for Star Magazine/File) During the pandemic, Strand — a former underwear model and actor — served as a spokesman for the anti-vaccine group America’s Frontline Doctors. The organization was founded by Simone Gold, a...

‘Like you’re seeing it for the first time’: ‘Wizard of Oz’ reborn on downtown SF stage

Published Sun, 29 Dec 2024 12:01:52 GMT

When you’re off to see ‘The Wizard of Oz,” you might think you have a pretty good idea what to expect.But the wild, flamboyant version now onstage at San Francisco’s American Conservatory Theater promises to blow away expectations like a farmhouse in a tornado.“Everybody in the world knows ‘There’s no place like home,’ ‘Toto, we’re not in Kansas anymore,’ all of those things,” says Danny Scheie, who plays the Scarecrow. “It’s deep inside of us. And this production I think excavates it fully and makes it completely new. It will feel like you’re seeing it for the first time, because nothing will be tired and familiar.”With a stellar and diverse lineup of almost entirely local actors, ACT’s staging is directed and choreographed by Sam Pinkleton, the Tony-nominated choreographer of “Natasha, Pierre, & the Great Comet of 1812.” He also choreographed “Soft Power” next door at the Curran Theatre and the musical adaptation of “Amelie” that...

Catalytic converters, narcotics found in Benicia traffic stop; 2 arrested

Published Sun, 29 Dec 2024 12:01:52 GMT

(KRON) -- Two men were arrested Wednesday after a traffic stop in Benicia led to the discovery of catalytic converters, narcotics and drug paraphernalia, according to the Benicia Police Department. Officers saw a car with an expired registration at about 4 p.m. on East 5th Street, police said. 4 teens found with 5 stolen catalytic converters in SF arrested: police As officers made contact with the vehicle's driver, narcotics and drug paraphernalia were visible in the car. A further investigation turned up several catalytic converters and electric saws, police said. Both the men in the vehicle were arrested and booked into Solano County Jail without incident. The names of the men arrested were not released by police.

Tropical Storm Arlene, the first named storm of the Atlantic hurricane season, has formed in the Gulf of Mexico

Published Sun, 29 Dec 2024 12:01:52 GMT

MIAMI (AP) — Tropical Storm Arlene, the first named storm of the Atlantic hurricane season, has formed in the Gulf of Mexico.Source