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EU to deploy mission to Moldova to combat threats from Russia

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 22:11:21 GMT

The EU will send a civilian mission to Moldova to help the Eastern European nation combat growing threats from abroad, officials have confirmed, following a string of reports that the Kremlin is working to destabilize the former Soviet Republic.In a statement issued Monday, the bloc’s top diplomat, Josep Borrell, said that the mission, under the Common Security and Defence Policy, would step up “support to Moldova [to] protect its security, territorial integrity and sovereignty” against Russia.Officials confirmed that the mission will focus on “crisis management and hybrid threats, including cybersecurity, and countering foreign information manipulation and interference.”In February, the president of neighboring Ukraine, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, said Kyiv’s security services had intercepted Russian plans to “break the democracy of Moldova and establish control over Moldova.” The country’s pro-EU leader, President Maia Sandu, ...

Small Massachusetts town bars drag show; ACLU fires back

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 22:11:21 GMT

NORTH BROOKFIELD, Mass. (AP) — Officials in a small Massachusetts town have revoked permission for a local group to hold a Pride event because it included a drag show, drawing a sharp rebuke from the American Civil Liberties Union, which said the town is trampling on the organization’s constitutional rights.The North Brookfield select board at a meeting in March at first approved a request by the Rural Justice Network to hold a “Small Town Pride Day” on the town common in June.But the three-member board voted 2-1 at its April 11 meeting to pull permission, ruling that a drag show violated the town’s restrictions on “adult entertainment.” They said the event could go on without the drag show.The ACLU in a letter dated April 18 asked the board to restore full permission for the event and asked for a response by Wednesday in order to “avoid potential litigation.”“We call on North Brookfield and all communities in Massachusetts to recognize that discrimination ag...

Scratch Tix Push Lottery’s March Sales Past Half A Billion

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 22:11:21 GMT

Instant ticket sales surged well into the black in March, further buoying the Lottery’s financial performance three-quarters of the way through the fiscal year. The Lottery sold $366.4 million in instant tickets last month, about $57.5 million more than in March 2022, Interim Executive Director Mark William Bracken told the Lottery Commission on Tuesday. He called it a “very strong increase.” That burst helped fuel total sales of $519 million in March and represented the majority of Lottery growth over the same stretch a year earlier. All other games besides Mega Millions and Lucky for Life saw decreased sales in March compared to March 2022. Instant tickets are the most popular Lottery product and typically make up 65 to 70 percent of all sales. For much of fiscal year 2023, instant tickets have sold more slowly than last year, but March’s performance pushed the year-to-date instant ticket haul to $51.3 million, or 1.7 percent more than the same stretch in F...

John Travolta’s white ‘Saturday Night Fever’ suit fetches $260K at auction

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 22:11:21 GMT

(CNN) — The white three-piece suit worn by John Travolta in “Saturday Night Fever” fetched $260,000 at a California auction.The monochromatic ensemble went under the hammer as part of the “Hollywood: Classic & Contemporary” sale organized by Julien’s Auctions and Turner Classic Movies (TCM) over the weekend. (TCM, like CNN, is owned by Warner Bros. Discovery.)In the 1977 dance drama, Travolta plays Tony Manero, a young Italian-American from Brooklyn who tries to escape the realities of his life by dominating the dance floor at the local disco. The hit movie helped to popularize disco music around the world and Travolta received a Best Actor Oscar nomination for his groovy performance.According to auction organizers, the polyester suit worn by Travolta in the movie’s famous dance competition scene is one of only two used during the production of the film. The jacket features exaggerated peak lapels with pick stitching and two ov...

Elusive type of black hole has a messy star-snacking habit

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 22:11:21 GMT

(CNN) — Black holes have a reputation for snacking on stars, but some of these celestial garbage disposals may be messier than others, according to new research.Astrophysicists used 3D computer models to show that intermediate-mass black holes take a few bites out of wayward stars before tossing away the stellar crumbs and leaving a cosmic trail.Researchers made the discovery while running simulations on black holes of various masses and sending sun-size stars past them. The clues uncovered in the experiment might help astronomers find intermediate-mass black holes by searching for evidence of their behaviors.During the simulations, the intermediate-mass black hole snagged the star in its orbit, and each time the star made another lap, the black hole took another bite out of it. When only the dense, misshapen core of the star was left, the black hole discarded it and sent it flying across the galaxy.A study describing the modeling analysis has been accepted for ...

Julius Randle on Game 4 benching: ‘I just want to win — it’s Thibs’ decision’

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 22:11:21 GMT

As expected, Knicks All-Star Julius Randle was tight-lipped about his coach’s decision to bench him the entire fourth quarter of the team’s Game 4 victory over the Cleveland Cavaliers on Sunday.The Knicks star put forth a forgettable first three quarters — logging just seven points and two rebounds and missing all four of his three-point attempts through 27 minutes — before head coach Tom Thibodeau yanked him from the game.The Knicks proceeded to run off with the win, building an 11-point lead and winning, 102-93. They are now one win away from the franchise’s first playoff series victory since 2013.And not only has Randle shot poorly all series, but he watched the fourth quarter from the bench on Sunday. He said he isn’t upset with the coach’s decision, but didn’t further elaborate on his emotions.“At the end of the day, I just want to win,” he said at the team’s training facility in Tarrytown on Tuesday. “I...

6 men, 3 women chosen as jurors in rape suit against Trump

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 22:11:21 GMT

By LARRY NEUMEISTER and JENNIFER PELTZ (Associated Press)NEW YORK (AP) — A jury of six men and three women was chosen Tuesday to hear a former advice columnist’s lawsuit accusing former President Donald Trump of raping her in the 1990s. Opening statements were expected later in the day.The federal civil trial stands to tests Trump’s “Teflon Don” reputation for shaking off serious legal problems and to reprise accounts of the type of sexual misconduct that rocked his 2016 presidential campaign as he seeks office again. He denies E. Jean Carroll’s claim and all the others, saying they were falsehoods spun up to damage him.The jurors were selected after questioning about not only their background but their news-watching habits and more.They were asked whether they had made political donations, supported any of a roster of right- and left-wing groups, used Trump’s social media platform, read Carroll’s former Elle magazine column and even i...

Chris Perkins: There’s almost no way the Dolphins can screw up their second-round pick

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 22:11:21 GMT

It would be nearly impossible for the Dolphins to make a wrong decision with their second-round pick in this year’s NFL draft. Yes, nearly impossible.This offseason, the Dolphins have done such as good job filling needs in areas such as backup quarterback, running back and tight end that they don’t have any glaring needs entering the draft.That means the Dolphins have the luxury of taking the so-called BPA (Best Player Available), as opposed to filling a need, when they make their first selection at pick No. 51 in Friday’s second round.You know their recent history of good luck with second-rounders, so as long as the Dolphins don’t select someone with, say, sixth-round talent or select a punter, they almost can’t miss.Yeah, they could always select the wrong player. So technically, yes, it’s possible to screw this thing up. But I’ll refer you back to their recent second-round pick history. It’s pretty darn good. And they could use help...

Dolphins Deep Dive: What letter grade would you give Chris Grier, Dolphins in offseason?

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 22:11:21 GMT

South Florida Sun Sentinel’s Chris Perkins and David Furones discuss what letter grade they would give general manager Chris Grier and the Miami Dolphins so far this offseason. ()

Yosemite National Park: Massive snowpack brings thundering waterfalls

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 22:11:21 GMT

The massive snowpack in the Sierra Nevada this year has transformed California’s most famous park, Yosemite. And the impacts are likely to last all summer, and perhaps even longer.The park’s world-famous waterfalls are thundering now as billions of gallons of melted snow cascade 1,000 feet or more down sheer granite cliffs. Park officials say there is so much snow at higher elevations from the winter’s parade of atmospheric river storms that flooding in Yosemite Valley is likely between late April and early July, which could close the park at times.“All of the water is a huge change from the previous few years,” said Cory Goehring, lead naturalist for the Yosemite Conservancy, a San Francisco nonprofit group that runs outdoor programs in the park. “The meadows are wet and lush. The Merced River is rising. It’s raging. And the waterfalls? They are so loud, they sound like an airplane taking off with how loud they are.”High Sierra camps that are popular with backpackers and reserved t...