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Opinion: Conspiracy theorists still a danger to our elections and election workers

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 16:56:00 GMT

Rigged voting machines, stealthy Deep State operatives, wily foreigners, masterfully devious Democrats, and treacherously complicit Republicans stole the 2020 election from Donald Trump and left no trace behind, some say. As conspiracy theories go, it’s a little ho-hum, I say. Add a chupacabra and some chemtrails. Over the past few years I have mercilessly lampooned Stop the Steal, Russian Collusion, Plandemic, and other theories as ridiculous. People can’t keep a surprise birthday party secret; odds they can pull off a successful, global-scale cabal are slim.While conspiracy theories make fun targets for derision, they can have consequences that are anything but funny. Misinformation, particularly in an age of distrust and fierce partisanship, motivates some people to act out in ways that are offensive or even violent. While a minority, their actions impact the lives of decent people and the broader society.It is not surprising to learn that a small but committed group of 2020 elec...

Single family residence in Fremont sells for $1.7 million

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 16:56:00 GMT

4919 Yellowstone Park Drive – Google Street ViewThe property located in the 4900 block of Yellowstone Park Drive in Fremont was sold on Aug. 17, 2023 for $1,730,000, or $890 per square foot. The house, built in 1960, has an interior space of 1,943 square feet. This single-story home has three bedrooms and three baths. Inside, a fireplace adds character to the home. In addition, the house comes with a two-car garage, allowing for convenient vehicle storage and additional storage space. The property’s backyard showcases a pool.Additional houses have recently been sold nearby:A 1,975-square-foot home on the 4900 block of Hyde Park Drive in Fremont sold in September 2022, for $1,630,000, a price per square foot of $825. The home has 4 bedrooms and 3 bathrooms.In April 2023, a 1,296-square-foot home on Yellowstone Park Drive in Fremont sold for $1,500,000, a price per square foot of $1,157. The home has 3 bedrooms and 2 bathrooms.On Seneca Park Loop, Fremont, in August 2023, a 1,809-squa...

Rep. Matt Gaetz is threatening to oust Speaker Kevin McCarthy. Here’s how that could happen.

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 16:56:00 GMT

By FARNOUSH AMIRI | Associated PressWASHINGTON (AP) — “How would you be different as speaker, compared to Mr. Boehner?” a reporter asked then-House Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy in September 2015 as the California Republican pursued, and eventually gave up, his first attempt at the speakership.McCarthy laughed while standing next to outgoing Speaker John Boehner — who had just stepped down after facing a threat of removal — and joked that he was from a different generation and wouldn’t be as tan.Eight years later, McCarthy is finding that there are fewer differences between them as he faces a conservative revolt against his speakership.“If somebody wants to remove (me) because I want to be the adult in the room, go ahead and try,” McCarthy told reporters Saturday.And his critics, namely Rep. Matt Gaetz, plan to do just that. On Sunday, the far-right Republican from Florida threatened to use a procedural tool — called a motion to vacate — to try and strip McCarthy of his office as s...

Nobel in medicine for work enabling creation of COVID-19 vaccine

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 16:56:00 GMT

By DAVID KEYTON and MIKE CORDER | Associated PressSTOCKHOLM (AP) — Two scientists won the Nobel Prize in medicine on Monday for discoveries that enabled the development of mRNA vaccines against COVID-19 and could be used in the future to create other shots.Katalin Karikó, a professor at Sagan’s University in Hungary and an adjunct professor at the University of Pennsylvania, and Drew Weissman, of the University of Pennsylvania, were awarded the prize for “their groundbreaking findings, which have fundamentally changed our understanding of how mRNA interacts with our immune system,” the panel that awarded the prize said.“The laureates contributed to the unprecedented rate of vaccine development during one of the greatest threats to human health in modern times,” the panel added.Karikó said her husband was the first to pick up the early morning call, then handed it to her to hear the news. “I couldn’t believe it,” she said. “I was very much surprised. But I am very happy.”Before COVID...

College Football Corner: Maryland and JMU open October undefeated

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 16:56:00 GMT

Dave Preston is an AP Top 25 voter. Read his latest rankings here.We’re only just getting started! Five fun weeks of September football is in our rear-view mirror, and what exactly have we learned? Heading into the season one thought that Maryland might be on to something special (they are), James Madison would learn how good it was during a three-game road trip (they did), while Virginia, Virginia Tech and Navy would be works in progress with plenty of hiccups and false starts (true, true, and true).The final Saturday of “Show Me Month” delivered examples of each, and as each of the schools enter the teeth of conference play one looks forward to the next 30 days.Twenty-two schools in FBS schools enter October unbeaten: They begin with two-time defending champ Georgia who staggered to another tough victory — this time by seven points at Auburn (no truth to the rumor Auburn boosters called for a 10-year contract extension for head coach Hugh Freeze in the first half...

Donald Trump says he’ll be in court for a New York trial scrutinizing his business practices

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 16:56:00 GMT

NEW YORK (AP) — With control over some of his most prized real estate holdings in jeopardy, former President Donald Trump says he will make a rare, voluntary trip to court in New York on Monday for the start of a civil trial in a lawsuit that already has resulted in a judge ruling that he committed fraud in his business dealings.“I’m going to Court tomorrow morning to fight for my name and reputation,” Trump wrote Sunday night on his Truth Social platform.Trump lashed out in his post at New York Attorney General Letitia James, who is suing him, and Judge Arthur Engoron, who is presiding over the non-jury trial and made the fraud ruling last week.“THIS WHOLE CASE IS SHAM!!!” Trump wrote. “See you in Court — Monday morning.”The trial is the culmination of a yearslong investigation by James, who accused Trump and his company of habitually lying about his wealth in financial statements.Last week, Engoron resolved the lawsuit’s top claim before the trial even began, ruling that Tru...

South Africa wing Makazole Mapimpi is out of the Rugby World Cup with a fractured eye socket

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 16:56:00 GMT

TOULON, France (AP) — South Africa wing Makazole Mapimpi is out of the Rugby World Cup with a fractured eye socket, Springboks director of rugby Rassie Erasmus said Monday.Mapimpi was injured in a tackle by Tonga scrumhalf Augustine Pulu that led to the players clashing heads in Sunday’s Pool B game in Marseille. Mapimpi left the field right after.Erasmus said Mapimpi was facing 4-6 weeks out and might also have a fractured cheekbone.The 33-year-old Mapimpi was a Rugby World Cup winner with South Africa in 2019 but came to this tournament as a backup to first-choice wings Cheslin Kolbe and Kurt-Lee Arendse.The Springboks will call up an injury replacement but weren’t ready to name him yet, Erasmus said.South Africa beat Tonga 49-18 in its final pool game to move to the brink of the quarterfinals. The defending champions have to wait for the match between Ireland and Scotland on Saturday to be certain of a place in the last eight.___AP Rugby World Cup: https://apnews.com/...

Al menos 38 heridos deja el incendio en una comisaría de Egipto

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 16:56:00 GMT

Al menos 38 personas resultaron heridas este lunes de madrugada en un incendio en una comisaría en el norte de Egipto, según las autoridades. Los bomberos tardaron varias horas en extinguir las llamas.En un primer momento se desconocía qué había iniciado el fuego, que se extendió por el edificio de varias plantas en la provincia de Ismailia, donde se encuentra el Canal de Suez.El ministro del Interior, Mahoud Tawfiq, responsable de las fuerzas de seguridad, acudió al lugar en la ciudad de Ismailia, unas 77 millas al nordeste de El Cairo. Se había formado un comité para investigar el suceso, señaló.Doce de los heridos fueron atendidos en el lugar, mientras que otros 26 fueron trasladados a hospitales, según Hossam Abdel-Ghaffar, vocero del Ministerio de Salud. Todos salvo dos sufrían problemas respiratorios, y siete de los afectados fueron atendidos y dados de alta, añadió. Incendio mortal en discotecas de España: localizan con vida a cinco personas que estaban desapare...

Spain’s women’s team players Putellas, Rodríguez and Paredes appear before judge in Rubiales probe

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 16:56:00 GMT

MADRID (AP) — Two-time Ballon d’Or winner Alexia Putellas and two of her teammates in Spain’s women’s national team appeared before a judge Monday as witnesses in the investigation of former soccer federation president Luis Rubiales for his kiss on a player.Putellas, Irene Paredes and Misa Rodríguez all answered questions from the judge in Madrid. Rodríguez appeared in court in the Spanish capital, while Putellas and Paredes testified through video conference from Barcelona.Spanish state prosecutors have accused Rubiales of sexual assault and coercion for kissing Jenni Hermoso on the lips without her consent during the awards ceremony after the Women’s World Cup final in August.A couple of federation officials and former national team coach Jorge Vilda, who was replaced not long after winning the World Cup in Australia, have been summoned as investigated parties. They are set to appear before the judge next week. Vilda was among those accused of allegedly trying to convince Hermoso ...

Paddle boat for sale: Why an Eastern Shore town is looking for a new owner

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 16:56:00 GMT

The Town of Snow Hill is looking for someone to buy Black-Eyed Susan, the stern-wheeler paddle boat acquired by the town in 2020. (Courtesy Snow Hill)When the small Eastern Shore town of Snow Hill, Maryland, bought a 34-year-old paddle boat three years ago, the goal was to attract more visitors with it and see revenue spike.“On paper, it was a great idea,” said Mayor Michael Pruitt. “We wanted to get people from afar, ride that beautiful Pocomoke River and when you get done, walk back down to your car and say ‘Oh, there’s downtown Snow Hill.’”It worked for a while.But the plan soured last year, when the town learned that a five-year Coast Guard operating permit was about to expire. Before town leaders could renew the boat’s license, it needed an in-depth, costly inspection.The probe discovered at least $600,000 in repairs to make the vessel, called the Black-Eyed Susan, seaworthy and up to code. The tab is almost 25% of the town’s entire operating budget.What’s more, maintenance on ...