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Louisiana island town to repeal ordinance, let driver fly vulgar anti-Biden flag

Published Wed, 25 Dec 2024 17:12:48 GMT

NEW ORLEANS (AP) — A resort island town on the Louisiana coast will repeal an anti-obscenity ordinance and let a contractor fly a flag from his truck that carries an obscenity aimed at President Joe Biden, under the terms of a lawsuit settlement filed Friday in federal court. The settlement came in a lawsuit the Tulane First Amendment Law Clinic filed in January against the town of Grand Isle on behalf of Ross Brunet of Cut Off, Louisiana, who works on the island regularly. The suit said he repeatedly flew three flags from his truck. One promoted breast cancer awareness. Two bore vulgarities aimed at Biden and people who voted for him. Brunet was ticketed seven times, according to the lawsuit. He successfully defended himself against four tickets. Despite winning those cases, he was later ticketed three more times. The last three cases were dropped after the town adopted an ordinance stating that signs on vehicles “shall not contain language deemed offensive and vulgar nor obscene i...

Man convicted of bomb threat outside Library of Congress sentenced to probation after year in jail

Published Wed, 25 Dec 2024 17:12:48 GMT

WASHINGTON (AP) — A man whose bomb threat near the U.S. Capitol forced evacuations and sparked an hourslong standoff with police in 2021 was sentenced to five years of probation Friday. Floyd Ray Roseberry was experiencing a mental-health crisis at the time of the threat, and during the year that he served in jail after his arrest he stopped a violent assault on a guard, U.S. District Judge Rudolph Contreras said. “I’m very optimistic that this was the worst day of your life and nothing like this will ever happen again,” Contreras said. In August 2021, Roseberry, of Grover, North Carolina, drove a black pickup truck onto a sidewalk near the Library of Congress and began shouting to people in the street that he had a bomb, authorities said. It came as Washington was still on edge months after the attack on the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021, and his threat forced many of the same workers to again flee from their offices. Roseberry, 52, professed a litany of antigovernment grievan...

U.S. judge orders Argentina to pay $16 billion for expropriation of YPF oil company

Published Wed, 25 Dec 2024 17:12:48 GMT

BUENOS AIRES, Argentina (AP) — A U.S. judge ruled that Argentina must pay $16.1 billion to minority shareholders of state-controlled oil company YPF due to the government’s 2012 nationalization of a majority stake in the firm.U.S. District Judge Loretta Preska in New York issued final judgment Friday detailing the dollar amount that the South American country would have to pay.Preska on Friday ordered Argentina to pay $14.38 billion to Petersen Energía, including $7.5 billion in damages and $6.85 billion in interest and $1.7 billion to Eton Capital, including $897.75 million in damages and $816.58 million in interest. Interest will continue to accrue if Argentina fails to pay, Preska said.Argentina, which is currently suffering dire economic woes that include a low level of Central Bank reserves, rising poverty and a galloping inflation of more than 100% per year, has vowed to appeal the ruling.A week earlier, Preska had made clear it was siding with the plaintiffs in the long-runni...

Martin Truex Jr. in staring down elimination from NASCAR playoffs after winning regular season title

Published Wed, 25 Dec 2024 17:12:48 GMT

A shell-shocked Martin Truex Jr. has slumped into Bristol Motor Speedway fighting for his season.Truex won the regular-season title but two bad races to open NASCAR’s playoffs has him on the brink of elimination headed into Saturday night’s race at Bristol, Tennessee. The bottom four drivers in the 16-driver field will be cut from the championship sprint and Truex, winner of three races this season, is 13th — below the cutline. A cut tire three laps into last weekend’s race at Kansas — and an 18th-place finish in the playoff opener at Darlington — has Truex in serious trouble headed into one of his weaker tracks. In 32 previous starts on Bristol’s concrete configuration, a winless Truex has a meager four top-10 finishes. “It’s obviously a terrible spot to be in,” Truex said Friday. “Last week we didn’t even get a chance to race, which was disappointing. Coming off a tough Darlington race, and then, you know, two laps in (at Kansas) you feel ...

Detroit high schools produced the most NFL players in opening week with 19

Published Wed, 25 Dec 2024 17:12:48 GMT

Sauce Gardner’s hometown is practically an NFL factory.There were 19 players from Detroit high schools on NFL rosters for opening week, the most of any city. Bradenton, Florida, had the second-most players (17), followed by Houston with 16 players.“Detroit football is tough, it’s real gritty and grimy there. There’s a lot of talent, though,” said Gardner, the New York Jets’ All-Pro cornerback, who attended Martin Luther King Jr. Senior High School in Detroit. “Lots of people with a story. The majority of people that I know in the league from Detroit, they worked really hard to get out, and they made it.”Las Vegas (15), Miami (14) and Atlanta (14) were next on the list. Overall, Texas had the most players of any state with 187. Florida (178) and California (173) were next. Georgia (150) was the only other state with more than 100.“High school football is the bedrock for advancement in our great game,” said Roman Oben, the NFL’s vice president of football development. “Recently, we ha...

All Blacks score 11 tries in big win over Namibia blemished by first Rugby World Cup red card

Published Wed, 25 Dec 2024 17:12:48 GMT

TOULOUSE, France (AP) — Scrumhalf Cam Roigard and flyhalf Damian McKenzie scored two tries each and made a strong bid for first-team roles as New Zealand beat Namibia 71-3 in the Rugby World Cup on Friday.Roigard had his double inside the first seven minutes of his World Cup debut and provided assists in first-half tries by McKenzie and Leicester Fainga’anuku, and in the second half to David Havili. The All Blacks scored 11 tries in all. McKenzie converted eight for a 26-point haul.The New Zealand lineup wasn’t second string but featured nine changes from the team which lost to France 27-13 in the first match of the tournament, including the new halves pairing of Roigard and McKenzie. Both may need to be considered at least for bench roles in the All Blacks’ top lineup later in the tournament.Roigard showed a sharp nose for opportunities and, despite rain which sometimes was torrential in the first half, McKenzie kept the ball in hand more often than playmakers Beauden Barrett...

Leverkusen strikes late to hold Bayern 2-2 in Munich to declare itself a Bundesliga title contender

Published Wed, 25 Dec 2024 17:12:48 GMT

MUNICH (AP) — Exequiel Palacios scored a penalty in injury time for Bayer Leverkusen to hold 11-time defending champion Bayern Munich 2-2 away and declare itself a Bundesliga title contender on Friday.Dayot Upamecano scored with the last kick of the game for Bayern, but the France defender was confirmed offside by a video review and Thomas Tuchel’s team had to settle for a point against the only other side to have started the league with three wins.It seemed like Leon Goretzka had earned Bayern a late win to maintain the champion’s perfect start.Bayern substitute Mathys Tel crossed from the left and found Goretzka free in the middle to fire what many presumed was the winner in the 86th minute.But Alphonso Davies was penalized through VAR for a foul on Jonas Hofmann and Palacios scored the equalizer in the fourth minute of stoppages.Harry Kane earlier scored again for Bayern. The club’s record-signing was left free at the far post to head in the opener from a corner in the seve...

Norfolk Southern CEO promises to keep improving safety on the railroad based on consultant’s report

Published Wed, 25 Dec 2024 17:12:48 GMT

OMAHA, Neb. (AP) — Norfolk Southern’s CEO pledged to continue working to improve safety after consultant the railroad hired following the fiery Ohio derailment recommended making sure that safety is truly a priority at all levels and continuing many efforts it has already begun.CEO Alan Shaw told the railroad’s employees in a letter Thursday that Norfolk Southern will take several immediate steps in response to the initial report Atkins Nuclear Secured delivered including strengthening the way it responds to any safety incident and establishing a dedicated team to work on implementing the consultant’s recommendations.The railroad industry has been in the spotlight ever since the February derailment in East Palestine, Ohio, near the Pennsylvania border prompted evacuations, health worries, a massive ongoing cleanup and calls for reforms.“I know that each of you feels as strongly as I do that we need to do everything we can to prevent accidents that can impact commun...

Denver weather: Sunshine and warmer temperatures return this weekend

Published Wed, 25 Dec 2024 17:12:48 GMT

DENVER (KDVR) — Thanks to the latest round of showers and thunderstorms, Denver weather records now show enough rain to get totals back on track for September. And Denver is still running more than 6 inches ahead for an entire year's rain total.Now, enjoy a great weekend that will be perfect for football, according to Pinpoint Weather, Colorado’s Most Accurate Forecast.Rocky Mountain Showdown forecast Saturday nightBroncos forecast at Mile High SundayWeather tonight: Clearing and coolShowers and thunderstorms will end through the evening across southern parts of the state. Skies will be clearing from north to south. The wind will be light and it will be cool across the Eastern Plains and in metro Denver, with overnight readings in the 40s. It will be cold in the Colorado mountains, with most places in the 30s and some close to or even below freezing.Overnight lows by Saturday morning across ColoradoWeather tomorrow: Sunny and warmerSkies will be sunny across the state on Saturday wi...

Oregon launches legal psilocybin amid hopes for improved mental health care

Published Wed, 25 Dec 2024 17:12:48 GMT

EUGENE, Ore. (AP) — Psilocybin tea, wind chimes and a tie-dye mattress await those coming to an office suite in Eugene to trip on psychedelic mushrooms. For roughly six hours, adults over 21 can experience what many users describe as vivid geometric shapes, a loss of identity and a oneness with the universe.Epic Healing Eugene — America’s first licensed psilocybin service center — opened in June, marking Oregon's unprecedented step in offering the mind-bending drug to the public. The center now has a waitlist of more than 3,000 names, including people with depression, PTSD or end-of-life dread. What is the black Colorado license plate and how much does it cost? No prescription or referral is needed, but proponents hope Oregon's legalization will spark a revolution in mental health care.Colorado voters last year passed a measure allowing regulated use of psychedelic mushrooms starting in 2024, and California’s Legislature this month approved a measure that would allow possession an...