VP Harris praises cadets’ sacrifice in West Point’s 1st commencement speech by a woman

Published Sun, 29 Dec 2024 20:12:05 GMT

VP Harris praises cadets’ sacrifice in West Point’s 1st commencement speech by a woman NEW YORK (AP) — Vice President Kamala Harris, the first woman to deliver a commencement speech at West Point, lauded graduating cadets Saturday for their noble sacrifice in serving their country, but noted they were entering an “unsettled world” because of Russian aggression and the rising threats from China.“The world has drastically changed,” Harris told the roughly 950 graduating cadets. She referred to the global pandemic that took millions of lives, as well as the fraught shifts in global politics in Europe and in Asia.“It is clear you graduate into an increasingly unsettled world where longstanding principles are at risk,” she said.As the U.S. ended two decades of war in Afghanistan, the longest in the country’s history, the vice president said, Russia soon launched the first major ground war in Europe since World War II when it invaded Ukraine.“At the same time, autocrats have become bolder, the threat of terrorism persists, and an accelerating climate crisis cont...

3 men hospitalized after drive-by shooting in Auburn Gresham

Published Sun, 29 Dec 2024 20:12:05 GMT

3 men hospitalized after drive-by shooting in Auburn Gresham CHICAGO — Three men are in the hospital after a vehicle approached them and opened fire in Auburn Gresham shortly before noon Saturday, according to the Chicago Police Department.Police said officers were called to the 7900 block of South Ashland Avenue around 11:58 a.m. and when they arrived, they found three victims with gunshot wounds.A 26-year-old man was shot in the shoulder, while a 34-year-old man was shot in the left arm and a 55-year-old man was shot in the back. The 26-year-old self-transported to Stroger Hospital, while the 34-year-old and the 55-year-old were taken to the University of Chicago Medical Center.All three men are listed as being in good condition. 12 shot, 3 dead in overnight shootings in Chicago ahead of weekend According to police, initial investigations showed an unidentified vehicle approached the group in the 7900 block of South Ashland Avenue and opened fire in their direction before fleeing the scene. Police have no one in custody.If you or someone ...

Southwest pilot gets locked out of plane, needs to climb through cockpit window

Published Sun, 29 Dec 2024 20:12:05 GMT

Southwest pilot gets locked out of plane, needs to climb through cockpit window SAN DIEGO (KSWB) – A Southwest Airlines pilot had to take an unexpected measure to get onto a Sacramento-bound plane at San Diego International Airport Wednesday: He climbed through the cockpit window.Matt Rexroad, a passenger on Wednesday's 5 p.m. flight, snapped a picture of the pilot squeezing through the window of the front of the plane ahead of the flight's departure, which he then posted to Twitter.The pilot of a Sacramento-bound plane at a gate in San Diego International Airport climbs through a window after getting locked out on May 24, 2023. (Courtesy of Matt Rexroad)The pilot had been locked out of the cockpit after a customer accidentally closed the door during the boarding process, according to a statement from a Southwest spokesperson." … while other customers and flight attendants were onboard, a customer opened the forward lavatory door and inadvertently pushed the flight deck door closed (which locked) while the pilots scheduled to operate the flight were preparing t...

Lynx need consistent aggression out of star forward Napheesa Collier

Published Sun, 29 Dec 2024 20:12:05 GMT

Lynx need consistent aggression out of star forward Napheesa Collier On the opening day of training camp this spring, Lynx star forward Napheesa Collier noted coach Cheryl Reeve had a simple request for her this season: “Attack.”“Just making sure that I’m being really assertive with what I’m doing,” Collier told reporters. “Using the skillset that I have and keep expanding my game.”Collier is the Lynx’s best player, and No. 2 isn’t all that close. So, as the 6-foot-1 forward goes, so too do the Lynx. That was evident in Minnesota’s loss to Atlanta this week, as the 26-year-old out of UConn scored 20 points in 25 minutes, carrying the offense in the process.Collier took six shots in the final quarter of that game before fouling out with 2 minutes, 20 seconds to play. The Lynx didn’t score another point after her exit. That’s how imperative she is to what Minnesota is attempting to accomplish.So things won’t work on nights like Thursday, when Collier scored just eight points on nine shots in the Lynx̵...

Gamers pack Ballpark Village for Gateway Legends tournament

Published Sun, 29 Dec 2024 20:12:05 GMT

Gamers pack Ballpark Village for Gateway Legends tournament ST. LOUIS - One of the largest e-sports competitions in the St. Louis region returns this weekend, expected to bring thousands to Ballpark Village through Sunday. Saturday marks the second day of the Gateway Legends tournament, a three-day e-sports extravaganza sponsored by Fair St. Louis. Winners will have a chance to earn up to $10,000 in prize money. Judge to keep Chesterfield teen in D.C. jail for now Gamers are putting their talents to the test through the Nintendo Switch game Super Smash Bros. Ultimate. Organizers say the game is "the perfect balance of cooperative, competitive [and] energetic" to bring the best out of gamers. Some gamers were lucky enough to have their matches played on the large LED screen on Bally Sports Live! Hundreds are facing off on monitors in the Crown Room. High school and middle school teams started Friday and some are still competing into Saturday for the MOSEF State Championship. More than 500 regional, national and international gamers are expe...

Rockies Journal: Making the playoffs in 2025? Here’s what it would take

Published Sun, 29 Dec 2024 20:12:05 GMT

Rockies Journal: Making the playoffs in 2025? Here’s what it would take The Rockies don’t like the term “rebuilding.”“I hate that word,” owner Dick Monfort told me in January. “I guess the connotation on rebuilding is you just get rid of everybody. You try to draft low, which we’re not (going to do). We’re not trying to get the first pick. We’re not going to tank. We never have, never will.”OK, so if the Rockies aren’t rebuilding or tanking, what are they doing? Perhaps they’re in the midst of an HGTV-style extreme makeover. Whatever you call it, the renovation is going to take some time. Obviously, the postseason is beyond the Rockies’ reach this year. The playoffs in 2024 look like a pipedream, too.So 2025 looks like their next, best chance of making the playoffs. It would take a best-case scenario for it to happen. Meaning:• Someone, perhaps outfielder Zac Veen, must emerge as a genuine star. Veen, however, is having a tough season at Double-A  Hartford, slashing .230/.331/.345 with just one...

Suspect arrested in deadly shooting in Aurora; police cite road rage

Published Sun, 29 Dec 2024 20:12:05 GMT

Suspect arrested in deadly shooting in Aurora; police cite road rage A suspect has been arrested in connection to a fatal shooting in Aurora.Arturo Moreno Torres, 28, of Denver, was arrested Friday night on investigation of first-degree murder, according to an Aurora Police Department news release.The shooting happened May 1 in the 13100 block of East 13th Place, the Hoffman Heights area, according to police. The shooting stemmed from a road rage incident, and the suspect and the 28-year-old victim did not know each other prior to the shooting.Anyone with information on the shooting is asked to call Metro Denver Crime Stoppers at at 720-913-7867 (STOP). 

State Farm to stop offering property insurance in California

Published Sun, 29 Dec 2024 20:12:05 GMT

State Farm to stop offering property insurance in California State Farm General Insurance Company is no longer accepting applications for property insurance including all business and personal lines property in California, and casualty insurance, the company announced on Friday. The company says this decision, effective May 27, comes in response to “historic increases in construction costs outpacing inflation, rapidly growing catastrophe exposure, and a challenging reinsurance market.” “We take seriously our responsibility to manage risk,”  a company spokesperson said. “We recognize the Governor’s administration, legislators, and the California Department of Insurance for their wildfire loss mitigation efforts. We pledge to work constructively with the CDI and policymakers to help build market capacity in California.”  California has seen more than 600 landslides since the start of the year In 2021, California Insurance Commissioner Ricardo Lara announced new insurance protections, in effect for the summer wildlife season, that in...

Driver killed by falling cement bags on San Diego interstate

Published Sun, 29 Dec 2024 20:12:05 GMT

Driver killed by falling cement bags on San Diego interstate A woman is dead after bags of cement fell from a truck that overturned on an interstate offramp in San Diego on Friday afternoon, according to California Highway Patrol.The incident occurred around 1 p.m. The California Highway Patrol (CHP) said a Chevrolet pick-up truck with a one-ton stake bed was traveling from the southbound side of the freeway at about 60 miles per hour, toward the offramp. As the truck continued onto the ramp, CHP said the driver felt his load — which included bags of cement and other construction materials — shift in the bed of the truck. The driver then lost control of the truck, causing it to overturn. The cement bags spilled onto the roadway, and several fell from the ramp onto the Route 52 lanes below the offramp. One, or possibly two bags of concrete fell directly from the road onto the windshield of a black Mercedes traveling on Route 52, CHP said.The driver of a truck carrying cement bags and other construction materials lost control on Friday afternoo...

San Jose: Man in custody smashes out window, falls to death at O’Connor Hospital

Published Sun, 29 Dec 2024 20:12:05 GMT

San Jose: Man in custody smashes out window, falls to death at O’Connor Hospital SAN JOSE — Investigators are probing the death of a man who fell out of a window he shattered with a metal oxygen tank while in custody at O’Connor Hospital this week, authorities said.The man was taken into custody after he allegedly violated a court order, but was admitted to the hospital for a pre-existing medical condition, San Jose police said in a news release Friday. Around 2 a.m. Thursday, police said, he assaulted the officer who was guarding him, threatening to strike that officer and a nurse with a metal oxygen tank.After the officer and hospital staff retreated to call for additional resources, the man — then alone in the room — allegedly used the oxygen tank to smash the window and jump onto a ledge. He fell roughly 20 feet from the ledge, despite efforts from two security guards and the officer on site to intervene, and sustained life-threatening injuries, police said.The man received immediate medical care and was transported to a different trauma hospital, wher...