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Zelenskyy plans to visit Washington as Congress is debating $24 billion in aid for Ukraine

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 15:58:31 GMT

By STEPHEN GROVES, LISA MASCARO and MATTHEW LEE (Associated Press)WASHINGTON (AP) — Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy is expected at the White House and on Capitol Hill next week as he visits the U.S. during the United Nations General Assembly.Zelenskyy’s trip comes as Congress is debating President Joe Biden’s request to provide as much as $24 billion in military and humanitarian aid for Ukraine as it fights the Russian invasion.Jake Sullivan, the president’s national security adviser, on Friday confirmed that the U.S. president will host Zelenskyy at the White House on Thursday. It will mark the third time that Biden and the Ukrainian leader have met at the White House. “It certainly comes at a critical time, as Russia desperately seeks help from countries like North Korea for its brutal war in Ukraine, as Ukrainian forces continue to make progress in their counteroffensive, and just after the next Ukraine defense contact group meeting that (Def...

Patriots WR JuJu Smith-Schuster addresses knee health, Week 1 playing time

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 15:58:31 GMT

FOXBORO — After playing a limited role in last Sunday’s season opener, Patriots wide receiver JuJu Smith-Schuster said Friday he is not bothered by his lack of playing time.“No, I’m not frustrated at all. I’ve been in this league way too long,” Smith-Schuster told reporters in front of his locker. “When the time is called, the opportunity is called for me, I’ll be ready.”Smith-Schuster played 54% of the Patriots’ offensive snaps versus the Eagles, fewer than sixth-round rookie Kayshon Boutte. Another sixth-round rookie, Demario Douglas, replaced Smith-Schuster in the slot during the team’s final drive to try and win the game. Douglas (40) and backup tight end Mike Gesicki (36) finished with more receiving yards than Smith-Schuster, who totaled 33 yards on four catches.Related ArticlesNew England Patriots | Patriots Christian Gonzalez now takes on even more important role vs. Dolphins New England Patriots | Dolphins’...

3 cheers (and recipes) for leftover Rosh Hashana brisket

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 15:58:31 GMT

Gretchen McKay | (TNS) Pittsburgh Post-GazetteRosh Hashana, the Jewish New Year, is almost upon us. Celebrating the holiday with family and friends probably means a few sure things when it comes to dinner. There will be sweet foods like apples dipped in honey and honey cake to ensure a sweet and happy new year. The supper table also will feature pomegranates, a symbol of fertility with its many red seeds, along with rounds of braided challah to signify the circle of life.But the one food many look forward to above all else during the two-day celebration that begins Friday, Sept. 15, is the ultimate Jewish comfort food: sweet and sour slow-cooked brisket.Braised with onions and tomato until it’s melt-in-your mouth tender, brisket is the Jewish equivalent of ham on Easter or turkey with all the fixings at Thanksgiving. No Jewish feast is complete without the humble cut of beef, and eating it means it’s probably a special occasion. It also goes without saying that your bubbe’s recipe i...

Patriots Christian Gonzalez now takes on even more important role vs. Dolphins

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 15:58:31 GMT

FOXBORO — Cornerbacks aren’t typically known to quietly go about their business.Check out one of Deion Sanders’ news conferences as Colorado’s head coach if you’re looking for evidence.But Christian Gonzalez fits more into the personality mold of soft-spoken ex-Patriots cornerback Stephon Gilmore, and the rookie’s play spoke loud and clear in a seemingly impossible NFL debut matchup against A.J. Brown and Devonta Smith. Gonzalez let up seven catches on 10 targets for 71 yards against one of the NFL’s best wide receiver duos while breaking up a pass on fourth down and providing quality support in the run game. He was one of three Patriots defenders to be on the field for 100 percent of snaps.Related ArticlesNew England Patriots | Patriots WR JuJu Smith-Schuster addresses knee health, Week 1 playing time New England Patriots | Dolphins’ Tyreek Hill isn’t afraid of Patriots double teaming him in Week 2 ...

Massachusetts pot boss suspended by State Treasurer Goldberg

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 15:58:31 GMT

Treasurer Deborah Goldberg has suspended the state’s top cannabis boss, an office spokesperson has confirmed to the Herald.Shannon O’Brien, the $181,722 chairwoman of the Cannabis Control Commission, was suspended on Thursday, according to Andrew Napolitano, director of communication for the Office of the Massachusetts State Treasurer.Napolitano did not provide any other information aside from confirmation that O’Brien has been suspended.“We cannot comment on a personnel matter,” Napolitano said.The suspension comes just over a month after O’Brien apologized for an outburst, saying she was too blunt in saying the state’s legal weed rollout was in a “crisis.”The Bay State hit a new one-month high in legal weed sales — $136 million in July.O’Brien, the former state treasurer, oversees a commission which regulates the $3 billion cannabis industry.She surprised the commission during the middle of a regulator discussion in July when she announced Executive Directo...

Workers strike at all 3 Detroit automakers, a new tactic to squeeze companies for better pay

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 15:58:31 GMT

By TOM KRISHER, MIKE HOUSEHOLDER and JOHN SEEWER (Associated Press)DETROIT (AP) — Nearly one in 10 of America’s unionized auto workers went on strike Friday to pressure Detroit’s three automakers into raising wages in an era of big profits and as the industry begins a costly transition from gas guzzlers to electric vehicles.By striking simultaneously at General Motors, Ford and Chrysler owner Stellantis for the first time in its history, the United Auto Workers union is trying to inflict a new kind of pain on the companies in hopes of clawing back some pay and benefits workers gave up in recent decades.The strikes are limited for now to three assembly plants: a GM factory in Wentzville, Missouri, a Ford plant in Wayne, Michigan, near Detroit, and a Jeep plant run by Stellantis in Toledo, Ohio.The workers received support from President Joe Biden, who dispatched aides to Detroit to help resolve the impasse and said the Big 3 automakers should share their “reco...

Ask the Pediatrician: How can schools prepare for sudden cardiac arrest?

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 15:58:31 GMT

Dr. Alex B. Diamond and Dr. Stuart Berger | (TNS) American Academy of PediatricsDid you know sudden cardiac arrest is the main cause of death in young athletes? This fact may be surprising. But it has prompted 43 states to require cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) training for all high school students before graduation. In addition, many states now require automated external defibrillators (AEDs) in schools.What happens with sudden cardiac arrest?Sudden cardiac arrest is when the heart suddenly stops beating. It can cause death within minutes. Certain conditions can lead to sudden cardiac arrest, but not all the causes are known.Sudden cardiac arrest is rare in young people. When it happens, it’s often to young athletes during competition or practice. But sudden cardiac arrest can happen at any time to any young person, even if they aren’t in sports.When a person’s heart stops beating, quick action can mean the difference between life or death. CPR and AEDs save ...

Bird, Magic, Isiah and Michael are the basketball stars of Rich Cohen’s ‘When the Game Was War’

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 15:58:31 GMT

Rick Kogan | Chicago Tribune (TNS)Rich Cohen writes … and writes and writes and writes.This child of Glencoe, Illinois is among the most prolific writers on the planet and the wonder of it all is that not only does he provide a steady stream of books, they are very good books.There have been 16 so far, beginning with “Tough Jews” in 1998. Some have been based on his own interesting life, one about one of his sons in 2021′s “Pee Wees: Confession of a Hockey Parent” and another about his fascinating father, 2022′s “The Adventures of Herbie Cohen: World’s Greatest Negotiator.” He’s written about a pirate and a banana business mogul, and collaborated on the memoir of producer Jerry Weintraub in “When I Stop Talking, You’ll Know I’m Dead,” and written about Chess Records and the Rolling Stones.All the while he has written for such publications as Rolling Stone, Vanity Fair and the Wall Street Journal, where he is currently a columnist. He and his wife Jessica Medoff live in Connecticut w...

Dominican Republic closes all borders with Haiti as tensions rise in a dispute over a canal

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 15:58:31 GMT

DAJABON, Dominican Republic (AP) — The Dominican Republic shut all land, air and sea borders with Haiti on Friday in a dispute about construction of a canal on Haitian soil that taps into a shared river, as armed Dominican soldiers patrolled entry points and military planes roared overhead.Flights were canceled and border towns usually teeming with vendors and Haitians crossing daily to work in the Dominican Republic were subdued. Crowds of people on the Haitian side gathered under the shade of trees as they observed the scene on Friday. Nearby, a white flag fluttered in the breeze under a Haitian flag in a sign of peace.It was unclear how long the rare closure of the borders will last, with Dominican President Luis Abinader saying the measure will remain in place “as long as necessary.” The country’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs said in a statement that the canal project violates a 1929 treaty and “must be halted immediately before pursuing any other dialogue.”Abinader ordered...

Warnock calls on Atlanta officials to be more transparent about ‘Stop Cop City’ referendum

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 15:58:31 GMT

ATLANTA (AP) — Democratic Sen. Raphael Warnock on Friday urged Atlanta’s mayor to be more transparent in how city officials handle a petition drive led by opponents of a proposed police and firefighter training center, saying he is “closely monitoring” the issue.Warnock’s letter comes after weeks of calls from “Stop Cop City” activists who were furious that the state’s top Democrats had stayed largely silent over the city’s plan to adopt a signature-matching verification process. Activists and prominent voting rights groups have decried the restriction as voter suppression.“I am concerned by the past application of signature match in Georgia that likely led to discrimination and potentially the disenfranchisement of eligible voters,” Warnock wrote as he asked Mayor Andre Dickens more than a dozen specific questions, including why officials plan to use a signature-matching process and how residents can fix potential errors to prevent their petition from being ...