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Blue Jays’ GM Ross Atkins outlines plans with trade deadline looming

Published Sun, 23 Feb 2025 11:00:00 GMT

The Toronto Blue Jays appear set in their position as buyers, something general manager Ross Atkins reaffirmed during an afternoon availability on Wednesday.As far as the details and where the Blue Jays hope to improve, that much is a little bit less certain.“We’ve had such good performances from our position player group across the board,” Atkins told reporters. “You look at every position and feel really good about the contributions we’re getting.”“Thinking about how to potentially upgrade is really difficult when you also believe in the people that are here and that they’re going to continue to have progress and make strides.”That doesn’t mean that Atkins and the Blue Jays don’t intend to upgrade, especially on the pitching side.The return of Alek Manoah — despite a shaky outing on Tuesday against the Padres — and the impending arrival of Hyun-Jin Ryu give the Blue Jays confidence that they’ll hav...

First Nation loses homes in wildfire near Cranbrook, B.C., Eby says

Published Sun, 23 Feb 2025 11:00:00 GMT

VANCOUVER — A First Nation community in southeastern B.C. has lost homes because of a fast-moving wildfire, and Premier David Eby says the provincial and federal governments are teaming up to provide emergency response. Officials have not yet confirmed how many people or homes have been affected on the Aq’am First Nation near Cranbrook, however Chief Joe Pierre told the CBC several homes have been lost in the fire. The BC Wildfire Service says the St. Mary’s River fire was human-caused, is eight square kilometres in size and is considered out of control.The Regional District of East Kootenay issued an evacuation order on Monday for 52 homes, and another 43 properties remain on evacuation alert. Eby says the provincial and federal governments will help the First Nation with the eventual rebuilding and recovery process.He says his government is also focusing on partnering with Indigenous people and firefighters to provide a more “prompt” and “effective re...

Netflix’s 2Q subscriber growth surges in a sign that crackdown on password sharing is paying off

Published Sun, 23 Feb 2025 11:00:00 GMT

SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — Netflix enjoyed its biggest springtime spurt in subscribers since the early days of the pandemic three years ago, providing the latest sign that a recent crackdown on password sharing and the rollout of a cheaper version of its video streaming service are paying off.The video streaming service added 5.9 million subscribers during the April-June period, according to numbers released Wednesday along with its latest quarterly financial results. The gains easily surpassed the roughly 2.2 million additional subscribers that analysts surveyed by FactSet Research had anticipating. Netflix ended June with 238.4 million worldwide subscribers.Investors seemed unsatisfied, perhaps rattled by management commentary in a shareholder letter warning “quite a competitive battle” continuing to unfold against the backdrop of ongoing strikes by both the writers and actors union in the U.S. that is already bogging down much of Hollywood and threatening to clog the pipelines feeding ...

Convicted fraudster who had sentence commuted by Trump is now facing new charges

Published Sun, 23 Feb 2025 11:00:00 GMT

TRENTON, N.J. (AP) — A New Jersey man who was twice convicted of defrauding investors out of $230 million and whose lengthy prison sentence was commuted by President Donald Trump is once again facing fraud charges, federal prosecutors in New Jersey announced Wednesday.Eliyahu “Eli” Weinstein, 48, of Lakewood, who is also known as Mike Konig, is among five men accused of defrauding dozens of investors out of $35 million, according to an arrest complaint unsealed in federal court in Trenton. The five are charged with wire fraud conspiracy and conspiracy to obstruct justice, and each could face up to 25 years in prison. Philip Sellinger, the U.S. Attorney for New Jersey, said Weinstein used a fake name and falsely promised access to deals involving scarce medical supplies, baby formula and first-aid kits supposedly destined for wartime Ukraine. “These were brazen and sophisticated crimes that involved multiple conspirators and drew right from Weinstein’s playbook of fraud,” Sellinger s...

American soldier’s dash into North Korea leaves family members wondering why

Published Sun, 23 Feb 2025 11:00:00 GMT

KENOSHA, Wis. (AP) — Family members of the U.S. Army private whosprinted across the border into North Korea said Wednesday that he may have felt overwhelmed as he faced legal troubles and his possible looming discharge from the military.Relatives described Pvt. Travis King, 23, as a quiet loner who did not drink or smoke and enjoyed reading the Bible. After growing up up in southeast Wisconsin, he was excited about serving his country in South Korea. Now King’s family is struggling to understand what changed before he dashed into a country with a long history of holding Americans and using them as bargaining chips.“I can’t see him doing that intentionally if he was in his right mind,” King’s maternal grandfather, Carl Gates, told The Associated Press from his Kenosha, Wisconsin, home. “Travis is a good guy. He wouldn’t do nothing to hurt nobody. And I can’t see him trying to hurt himself.”King was supposed to be returned to the U.S. this week to face military discipline after ...

Pfizer reports North Carolina pharmaceutical plant damaged by tornado, no serious injuries

Published Sun, 23 Feb 2025 11:00:00 GMT

PHOENIX — A tornado heavily damaged a large Pfizer pharmaceutical plant in North Carolina on Wednesday, the latest in a string of extreme weather events plaguing the U.S. on a day when floods deluged communities in Kentucky and scorching heat smothered Phoenix and Miami. Pharmaceutical company Pfizer confirmed that a large complex was damaged by a twister that tore through the Rocky Mount area, but said in an email that it had no reports of serious injuries at the facility.The Pfizer plant stores large quantities of medicine that were tossed about by the storm, Nash County Sheriff Keith Stone said, adding, “I’ve got reports of 50,000 pallets of medicine that are strewn across the facility and damaged through the rain and the wind.”Pfizer is one of the largest employers in Nash County, where the sheriff’s office also confirmed damage to several homes. Meanwhile, an onslaught of searing temperatures and rising floodwaters continued to strike other areas of the U.S., with Phoenix break...

US Interior Department chooses new water and science deputy to focus on drought resilience

Published Sun, 23 Feb 2025 11:00:00 GMT

WASHINGTON (AP) — The U.S. Interior Department has tapped an official with the federal government’s water management bureau to serve as a deputy assistant secretary for water and science. The Department announced the appointment of Michael Brain on Wednesday. He replaces Tanya Trujillo, who recently resigned after playing a key role in negotiations over the shrinking Colorado River.The leadership change comes as the states, cities and farmers that rely on the Colorado River struggle to decide how to reduce their use. In August, the Interior Department will offer its annual analysis on the health of the river and announce if there will be additional cuts in the coming year.In recent years the federal government has lowered some states’ water allocations and offered billions of dollars to farmers, cities and others to cut back. But key water officials — including Trujillo — didn’t see those efforts as enough to prevent the system from collapsing. In his new role, Brain will help the I...

Recent resignations suggest industry has too much sway with Health Canada: NDP

Published Sun, 23 Feb 2025 11:00:00 GMT

OTTAWA — The resignation of a scientific adviser from the federal pesticide regulator is yet another example of industry having too much influence at Health Canada, the NDP’s health critic is alleging. Dr. Bruce Lanphear, a health-sciences professor at Simon Fraser University, stepped down as co-chair of the department’s scientific advisory committee on pest control products late last month.He cited concerns over the role the pesticide industry plays in the regulatory process, pointing to a tendency to favour industry-provided data over broader, independent studies.NDP heath critic Don Davies said the issues Lanphear raised in his resignation letter are alarming and dangerous.Davies noted that in February a board member and the executive director of Canada’s drug-price regulator also resigned, alleging that industry pressure stalled reforms to lower the cost of patented medicines.He said in a statement that Lanphear’s decision to leave is “yet another h...

Man shot and killed during robbery in Humboldt Park

Published Sun, 23 Feb 2025 11:00:00 GMT

CHICAGO — A 32-year-old man was robbed and shot to death early Sunday morning in Humboldt Park.Marshall Russell, 32, was leaving California Clipper around 2:30 a.m. when several people in a silver sedan got out, robbed him and someone shot him multiple times. Woman killed, 2 critical — including suspect— after South Side shooting "It's sad when you're trying to go out and enjoy your life and have a good time," Tatianna Morales said. "It's sad. You turn around and lose your life."A friend of Russell's said he was a server at Owen and Engine in Logan Square and was leaving on a Divvy Bike.The owner of Owen and Engine told Block Club Chicago Russell was a kind and passionate person and a dedicated employee. An alleged Chicago brothel operator is sentenced to probation, home confinement The restaurant closed earlier this week as co-workers processed this tragedy.One of those workers said Russell loved mixed martial arts fightingFriends said he lived right across the street from the ...

Lafayette police believe 3-year-old accidentally shot mother, man wanted for murder in foot

Published Sun, 23 Feb 2025 11:00:00 GMT

LAFAYETTE, Ind. — A Gary woman is being charged with neglect after police investigators believe her 3-year-old child got ahold of a gun and accidentally shot her and a man wanted for murder in the foot. Ja'Lynn Artis, 21, was charged in Tippecanoe County on Wednesday with two counts of neglect of a dependent, a Level 6 felony. Man dies from punching window of suburban bar after getting kicked out According to court documents, Lafayette police officers were called to Romney Meadows Apartment Homes on Mount Court at approximately 8:30 p.m. on May 18 on a report of a shooting. Officers arrived at the apartment and were told by the tenant that Ja'Lynn Artis and Trayshaun Smith, 23, had each been shot in the foot in the apartment and had driven to the hospital. Officers reported spotting blood in the apartment.Trayshaun Smith | Tippecanoe County JailThe tenant said she wasn't home at the time of the shooting but rushed back after hearing about the incident to watch Artis's two children...