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4 Lessons for Trump From the ***’s Failed Rwanda Migrant Deportation Deal 4 Lessons for Trump From the ***’s Failed Rwanda Migrant Deportation Deal On Sunday, Rwanda’s foreign minister said his country was in “early stage” talks with the Trump administration about a deal to take in migrants deported from the United States. That news had a familiar ring in Britain, where the former Conservative-led government agreed to a deal in 2022 to permanently deport asylum seekers to Rwanda, then spent two years and hundreds of millions of pounds trying — largely fruitlessly — to make the plan happen. When Britain’s highest court ruled that the proposal broke human rights law, the Conservative government tried to use new legislation to override the judgment. But in the end, the policy proved an almost complete failure, and the new Labour government, which was elected last year, scrapped it, citing its huge expense and unworkability. Here are some lessons the British debacle may hold for the Trump administration. It could be expensive. The British government spent 715 million pounds, about $955 million, on the plan, which it claimed would deter ******** migration. As well as £290 million paid directly to the Rwandan government, millions more went on preparing deportation flights, readying detention centers and I.T. systems, and paying for staffing and legal costs. But in the end, only four migrants ended up being sent to Rwanda — and they went voluntarily and were paid £3,000 each to do so. Official documents show that the figures were a small fraction of what would have been spent if the deal had been fully carried out. The British government had agreed to pay Rwanda £150,000 for every person deported, a sum that would pay for a five-year “integration package” of accommodation, food, medical services and education. After the deal was scrapped, Rwanda said it would not pay any money back as there was no reimbursement clause. Yvette Cooper, the Labour home secretary, said that the Conservatives ultimately planned to spend more than £10 billion on the Rwanda policy over a six-year *******. The Conservatives argued that the cost was worth it because fewer people would try to come to Britain on small boats if they feared being sent to Rwanda. Rwanda probably can’t take large numbers of deportees. The Central African country is only about 10,000 square miles in size, about the same as Massachusetts. The Trump administration has not disclosed how many people it might want to send to Rwanda, which is already one of the world’s most densely populated nations. During a British Supreme Court hearing in 2023, a lawyer representing the government acknowledged that the number of asylum seekers that Rwanda could take was “initially low” and cited a need for “capacity building” in the country. British news reports at the time suggested that a maximum of 1,000 people in total could have been transferred from Britain to Rwanda over five years. In 2022, the year the deal was struck, at least 45,000 people arrived in Britain on small boats. Under an Israeli deal, migrants sent to Rwanda disappeared. Any agreement with Washington would be the latest in a series of migration agreements struck by Rwanda. The African nation already hosts hundreds of African refugees from Libya who are awaiting resettlement under a deal agreed to six years ago with the United Nations refugee agency and the African Union. The British treaty was never fully tested before being scrapped. But a secretive agreement signed with Israel in 2013 operated for five years before being ruled unlawful by the Israeli Supreme Court. Details of that agreement were discussed during the court battle in Britain. Under the Israeli deal, Eritrean and Sudanese asylum seekers who had sought refuge in Israel were deported to Rwanda with “explicit undertakings” that they would have their claims considered and would “enjoy human rights and freedoms,” according to documents provided in evidence during the British Supreme Court’s hearings. But the British justices found that Rwanda had not complied with those assurances and that asylum seekers deported by Israel “were routinely moved clandestinely to Uganda” by being driven to the border or put on flights. The Rwandan government did not immediately respond to requests for comment for this article. There could be legal challenges. The Trump administration has already shown a willingness to defy the courts, so far refusing to comply with orders to return at least two men wrongly deported to a notorious prison in El Salvador. But in the case of Britain, the fact that the plan would have breached multiple domestic laws enforcing human rights, as well as the United Nations Refugee Convention, contributed to the plan’s ultimate failure. Under the terms of the deal, Rwanda was to take in undocumented migrants and process their asylum applications. Even if the migrants were later found to qualify for refugee status, they were expected to be resettled in Rwanda and never return to Britain. The British Supreme Court ruled in November 2023 that the plan was unlawful because of the risk that genuine refugees could be sent back to the countries they had fled, putting their safety at risk. Abdi Latif Dahir contributed reporting. Source link #Lessons #Trump #UKs #Failed #Rwanda #Migrant #Deportation #Deal Pelican News View the full article at [Hidden Content] For verified travel tips and real support, visit: [Hidden Content]

Smokey Robinson under criminal investigation after ******* assault claims – BBC Smokey Robinson under criminal investigation after ******* assault claims – BBC Smokey Robinson under criminal investigation after ******* assault claims BBCView Full Coverage on Google News Source link #Smokey #Robinson #criminal #investigation #******* #assault #claims #BBC Pelican News View the full article at [Hidden Content]

Man who stabbed Salman Rushdie faces sentencing Man who stabbed Salman Rushdie faces sentencing The New Jersey man convicted of stabbing author Salman Rushdie on a New York lecture stage in 2022 is scheduled to be sentenced. Source link #Man #stabbed #Salman #Rushdie #faces #sentencing Pelican News View the full article at [Hidden Content]

DOGE’s Fraud Tracker at Social Security Turns Into a Massive Self-Own DOGE’s Fraud Tracker at Social Security Turns Into a Massive Self-Own How’s that for efficiency? Procedures implemented by the Department of Government Efficiency uncovered just two out of 110,000 calls to the Social Security Administration this spring had a “high probability” of being fraudulent, Federal Computer Week reported. That is a far cry from the 40 percent figure that was parroted by MAGA in recent months, including by DOGE’s recently departed leader, Elon Musk, and Vice President JD Vance. The real figure is about .0018 percent. The anti-fraud procedures were put in place by DOGE last month and have seemingly done more harm than good, according to an internal memo viewed by Federal Computer Week. While it reassured DOGE staff that fraudsters are not phoning the SSA every second, it reportedly slowed processing times at the administration by 25 percent and may soon be removed from protocol. DOGE’s anti-fraud procedures have seemingly done more harm than good. / Samuel Corum/Getty Images Such delays were described in a memo as a “degradation of public service,” which is the antithesis of DOGE’s supposed goal within the federal government. “No significant fraud has been detected from the flagged cases,” the internal document said, according to the magazine. DOGE’s anti-fraud protocol required a three-day hold to be placed on phone claims in order to check for fraud. This procedure “delays payments and benefits to customers, despite an extremely low risk of fraud,” the memo said. The 40 percent figure circulating in MAGA circles stems from a Fox News segment on March 27, where the DOGE engineer Aram Moghaddassi erroneously said 40 percent of calls made to the SSA to change direct deposit information are from fraudsters. In reality, Federal Computer Week reports that 40 percent of direct deposit fraud at the agency is associated with phone calls—not that four out of every 10 calls to the agency are from fraudsters. Likely based on the exaggerated fraud figures, the SSA announced in March that it would phase out allowing people to make account changes or claims over the phone. That policy was scrapped shortly after due to public backlash. Musk has been notably quieter the last month. / JIM WATSON/AFP via Getty Images Musk, who has been notably quieter the last month, did not immediately address his department’s face-palm on Thursday. Source link #DOGEs #Fraud #Tracker #Social #Security #Turns #Massive #SelfOwn Pelican News View the full article at [Hidden Content]

People Who Made It “Weren’t Fans” People Who Made It “Weren’t Fans” Game adaptations have been pretty underwhelming for a long time, until recently. Some of them have done a great justice to the original material. A similar story goes on for comic-based adaptations as well, as they had janky beginnings. Take a look at older Marvel movies, before the MCU was a thing. Yeah, you know what’s up. Coming back to talking about video game adaptations, some were outright outrageous. For instance, Borderlands: The Movie, Hitman: Agent 47, and more. They have known characters, but they go way off when doing justice to the franchise. That is something Craig Mazin seems to realise, which made The Last of Us adaptation a success. Don’t talk about Season 2, it’s bad source material. The Last of Us showrunner slams other game adaptations for surface-level effort The first season did justice to the original material. | Image Credit: HBO Max Craig Mazin is a great director and writer when it comes to portraying stories. Not saying this because of the accuracy of The Last of Us adaptation, rather for his other works too, like Chernobyl, and Mythic Quest. Chernobyl remains a personal favorite for showcasing the entire story within five episodes. Craig took the project personally, as he played the game. He understands the feeling that every player went through. But that was long ago, when he was just a director of subpar comedy films like Superhero Movie, Scary Movie, and more. During an interview with Esquire, Craig shared his thoughts when he first played and completed the intro: I just was like, ‘What is this?!’ When it was over, I just thought, I’ve been playing video games my whole life. I never felt anything like that. That’s exactly when we wished to adapt this, as he was a director at heart. However, for this portfolio, he felt that Naughty Dog wouldn’t allow it. It is fair to think. Fast forward to 2019, Mazin created a wonder that left everyone stunned, Chernobyl. That series showcases the stark contrast between his old self and his new self. It is fair to say, Craig Mazin is a nerd at heart as well. All the parodies he has created have a lot of pop-culture references. For instance, the IMDB rating may say that, Superhero Movie was bad. Well, that was exactly the point. Creating a worse version of Spider-Man was the story, and he succeeded. Showing how disastrous it would be if that version ever existed canonically. His being a nerd is what makes it special. This is what he said about adaptations being bad: Everybody kind of laughed for a long time about how bad video game adaptations were, and there were a lot of bad ones. Mostly because the people doing the adaptation didn’t get it. They weren’t fans. They didn’t love it. But it’s changed. It’s an irony that a parody creator sees more details when it comes to creating adaptations. His parodies may not have been very impactful, but the replication of source material is always there. For creating adaptations, the creator has to be a fan to do it justice. Is it necessary for the creator of adaptations to be a fan? Not necessarily, but yes, to some extent. If you look at the past of game adaptations, they weren’t good at all. Of course, the creator through its for nerds. They just want to see characters do their special thing and call it a day. Sometimes, fans can create something with which fans may not agree. For instance, the Dark Knight trilogy by Christopher Nolan. It had all the key points for a Batman story, but a few things didn’t click with fans. Nevertheless, they were great adaptations. Glad that is changing now for video games. It should have happened at the same time as comic adaptations, but anyway. As they say, better late than never. There are some fantastic game stories that can shake the world, and some of them are in works, Ghost of Tsushima, Splinter Cell, and more. Hope they turn out good. What’s your favorite game adaptation? If you want an adaptation for a game, what would it be? Let us know in the comments below. Source link #People #Werent #Fans Pelican News View the full article at [Hidden Content]

Shein to set up huge Vietnam warehouse in U.S. tariff hedge, Reuters reports Shein to set up huge Vietnam warehouse in U.S. tariff hedge, Reuters reports People walk at the Shein office building in China on April 16, 2025. Tingshu Wang | Reuters Fast-fashion online retailer Shein is leasing a huge warehouse in Vietnam, two people familiar with the deal told Reuters, its first in the country, in a move that could reduce its exposure to unpredictable U.S.-China trade tensions. Shein, which was founded in China and sells products including $5 bike shorts and $18 sundresses, has agreed to lease nearly 15 hectares of industrial land for a warehouse near Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam’s commercial and trading hub, the two sources said, declining to be identified because the information was not public. The online retailer, which almost entirely relies on China-based suppliers to make garments for the United States and other markets, has been caught in the crosshairs of a ****-for-tat China-U.S. trade war that threatens to upend global supply chains, despite a recent de-escalation. One of the sources and a third person said Shein had been looking to rent more storage space in Southern Vietnam in addition to the large warehouse — equivalent to about 26 football pitches — which would store clothing and apparel from contractors before export. Reuters could not establish where products housed in the leased warehouse would come from. The retailer has previously flagged plans to source some products from Turkey and Brazil, and Shein suppliers from its traditional production base in southern China have told Reuters they are losing orders to Vietnam as some ******** manufacturers opened factories there. Shein, which is seeking a London listing, did not respond to questions from Reuters about the leasing of the warehouse space. It had previously denied it was shifting production capacity out of China. The area around Ho Chi Minh City hosts an international airport, Vietnam’s largest port for imports from China and another port that handles most seaborne exports to the United States. Under a U.S. threat of punitive tariffs, Vietnam is cracking down on some imports from China, which Washington has said have for long been illegally rerouted through Vietnam to the United States to avoid higher duties. Reuters had no access to the details of the warehouse lease and could not establish whether Shein would be able to revise its plans should U.S.-China trade tensions de-escalate further, reducing the appeal of diversification overseas. Given the ongoing instability of the situation, however, analysts say Shein has little choice but to reduce its reliance on China. “It would be dangerous for them not to diversify,” said Manish Kapoor, CEO and founder of e-commerce supply chain solutions firm Growth Catalyst Group. Army of Suppliers The fashion giant has built in China a formidable army of suppliers who can turn out crop tops and other fast fashion for a few yuan apiece to feed demand for cheap clothing from Gen Z consumers around the world. Shein has said it is expanding its network of contractors in China and is also investing 10 billion yuan ($1.37 billion) in industrial projects in the south of the country, including a $500 million supply chain hub near Guangzhou. The first phase of that hub, currently under construction, will span about 49 hectares, around the size of ******** City. Shein became a behemoth, selling more than $30 billion worth of goods annually on a foundation of cheap prices and advantageous trade rules, such as the U.S. “de minimis” exemption that allowed duty-free entry for low-cost imports worth $800 or less. The Trump administration scrapped that exemption for ******** products on May 2, effectively exposing Shein’s packages to a levy of 120%, before the U.S. agreement with Beijing earlier this week reduced the duties to 54% on parcels worth $800 or less, and to 30% for low-value commercial shipments. The U.S.-China thaw has caused concern in countries benefiting from those tensions, but current U.S. levies on Beijing keep Vietnam competitive as shipments from China’s neighbor still enjoy duty-free treatment if they are worth $800 or below. The reprieve could be short-lived, however. Kapoor says he is advising clients not to rely on drop-shipping “de minimis” imports from anywhere as a core part of their logistics strategy. “We’re advising people to expect that this “de minimis” exemption could be gone completely [before long],” he said. Vietnam’s other exports to the U.S. face a 10% tariff until July when the levy would rise to 46% if Hanoi does not otherwise reach an agreement with the White House. Source link #Shein #set #huge #Vietnam #warehouse #U.S #tariff #hedge #Reuters #reports Pelican News View the full article at [Hidden Content] For verified travel tips and real support, visit: [Hidden Content]

Kenneth Walker, 73, Journalist Who Bared Apartheid’s Brutality Kenneth Walker, 73, Journalist Who Bared Apartheid’s Brutality Kenneth Walker, an Emmy Award-winning journalist whose reporting for the ABC News program “Nightline” helped bring the brutality of South Africa’s racist apartheid system to the attention of the American public, propelling it onto the agenda of U.S. policymakers, died on April 11 in Washington. He was 73. His cousin and executor, Jeff Brown, said his death, in a hospital, was caused by a heart attack. It was not widely reported at the time. Mr. Walker’s weeklong coverage of South Africa’s often brutal policy of racial segregation — produced for “Nightline” with Ted Koppel, the program’s anchor, and a team of reporters — won a 1985 Emmy Award from the National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences for outstanding analysis of a news story. It was also awarded an Alfred I. duPont-Columbia Gold Baton. “In the way that only television can, ‘Nightline’ revealed for viewers the pain, anguish and rage that suffuses the struggles of this divided country,” the duPont-Columbia citation said. “Masterfully executed and exquisitely produced, it was perhaps the most powerful, certainly the most extraordinary, television of the year.” The National Association of ****** Journalists named Mr. Walker journalist of the year in 1985 for that reporting. The association had already given him an award for his work in print journalism — for his four-part series on apartheid for The Washington Star — and when he won the association’s top award for radio journalism in 2001, he became the first person to receive its highest honors for print, television and radio. The association later honored him further, with its Frederick Douglass Lifetime Achievement Award. During his four-decade career, Mr. Walker was a reporter for The Washington Star (from 1969 to 1981, when it folded), for “Nightline” (from 1981 to 1988) and for NPR, where he served as Africa bureau chief from 1999 to 2002. Mr. Koppel recalled in an interview that Mr. Walker “was one of a number of African American staffers at ‘Nightline’ who were gently, and not so gently, pushing for more attention being paid to Nelson Mandela when he was still in jail and was anything but a hero to millions of people, including the president of the United States” (Ronald Reagan at the time). Mr. Walker helped persuade ABC executives to spend about $1 million to send the “Nightline” production crew to South Africa for several weeks, Mr. Koppel said: “His legacy is that he was instrumental in helping to convince us that is something we ought to do. The program changed minds in the United States and South Africa, and won more awards than just about any program we’ve ever done.” But Mr. Walker didn’t limit his criticism to other countries. He was also outspoken about racism in America and the special responsibility of ****** journalists. In 2021, at the annual round table held by Richard Prince, the former Washington Post reporter and editor who writes the online column Journal-isms, Mr. Walker described the United States as an “active crime scene” that warranted a United Nations investigation into crimes against humanity because of numerous racist incidents that “the media, including most ****** journalists, are ignoring.” He favored reparations for slavery, and he criticized the negative portrayal of ****** people on television and in popular music. He also lamented the scarcity of ****** reporters; he wrote in a 2022 Facebook post that racist hiring practices had “made it impossible for the media to keep the public informed.” Kenneth Reginald Walker was born on Aug. 17, 1951, in Washington. His father, William, was a cabdriver; his mother, Lillie, was a government clerk. After graduating from Archbishop Carroll High School in 1969, he worked at The Washington Star as a copy boy while attending the Catholic University of America on a scholarship. He left school before graduating to support his growing family and became a reporter at The Star. Mr. Walker is survived by two stepsisters, Tabia Berry and Vikki Walker Parson, and three grandchildren. His marriages to Jacquelyn DeMesme and Ra’eesah Moon ended in divorce. A daughter from his first marriage, Maisha Hunter, died in 2017. As a reporter for The Star, Mr. Walker covered the White House and the Supreme Court, and also served as a national and foreign correspondent. While he was still at The Star, he began to work in TV, as the host of a weekend public affairs show on the ABC affiliate in Baltimore, focusing on issues of particular interest to ****** viewers. After The Star folded in 1981, he was hired at ABC as general assignment reporter. He went on to cover the White House and the Justice Department for the network. When “60 Minutes” broadcast a segment on apartheid in December 1984, Mr. Walker prodded ABC to also cover racial segregation in South Africa. (The “Nightline” team that eventually won an Emmy for that coverage included the executive producer, Richard Kaplan; three senior producers, William Moore, Robert Jordan and Betsy West; and two reporters, Mr. Walker and Jeff Greenfield.) “******* in the U.S. wrote and called ABC and the other networks en masse, something that doesn’t happen very often,” Mr. Walker was quoted as saying in “****** Journalists: The NABJ Story” (1997), by Wayne Dawkins. “Also, ****** South African resistance had escalated to the point where it could no longer be ignored.” Mr. Walker later briefly anchored “USA Today: The Television Series”; produced “The Jesse Jackson Show,” a syndicated talk show that aired in 1990 and 1991; and founded Lion House Publishing, whose books included “****** American Witness: Reports From the Front” (1994) by Earl Caldwell, a former reporter for The New York Times. After leaving NPR, Mr. Walker remained in South Africa, where he served as communications director for the humanitarian organization CARE. He returned to Washington in 2015, in need of a kidney transplant. A high school classmate, Charlie Ball, with whom he connected through an alumni group, proved a match and donated a kidney. “Charlie’s gift has also been as much a gift of spirit as one of life,” Mr. Walker said in 2019. “As a member of the last generation of the civil rights movement, I have spent my life on the front lines of America’s continuing struggle with its formerly enslaved citizens. Sometimes it seems as if that struggle is being won. Sometimes not. In my lifetime, it has never seemed more out of reach than it is today, when white supremacist terrorism is growing steadily.” Source link #Kenneth #Walker #Journalist #Bared #Apartheids #Brutality Pelican News View the full article at [Hidden Content]

Nuggets 119-107 Thunder (May 15, 2025) Game Recap – ESPN Nuggets 119-107 Thunder (May 15, 2025) Game Recap – ESPN Nuggets 119-107 Thunder (May 15, 2025) Game Recap ESPNHow Jamal Murray and Julian Strawther led Nuggets to Game 6 win over Thunder to force Game 7 The New York TimesNightly Pulse: NBA News & Highlights from May 15 NBADenver Nuggets prepare for another Game 7 CBS NewsNuggets deliver in 4th quarter to beat Thunder, send series to Game 7 in Oklahoma City Yahoo Sports Source link #Nuggets #Thunder #Game #Recap #ESPN Pelican News View the full article at [Hidden Content]

‘Bit of perspective’: Chalmers takes aim at $3m super doubters ‘Bit of perspective’: Chalmers takes aim at $3m super doubters Jim Chalmers has taken aim at critics of his $3m superannuation concession tax. During a press conference in former opposition leader Peter Dutton’s Dickson seat, the Treasurer fended off questions from reporters around his controversial change to the tax, calling the move modest. From July 1, the concessional tax rate on super account earnings in the accumulation phase will double from 15 per cent to 30 per cent for balances above $3m. “As always when you’re making changes like this there’s always a range of views,” Mr Chalmers said. “We are still providing concessional tax treatment for people with big super balances, it’s just less concessional. “I think we need a bit of perspective here and it still provides concessional tax treatment.” Camera IconJim Chalmers has taken aim at critics of his $3m superannuation tax change. Dan Peled / NewsWire Credit: News Corp Australia Mr Chalmers’ comments follow reports of wealthy retirees starting to sell their assets and restructuring their investment portfolios ahead of July 1. “This is an important part of our efforts to make the budget more sustainable and to fund our priorities, including strengthening Medicare, providing cost-of-living relief,” Mr Chalmers said. “It’s responsible, it’s modest, it only applies to a tiny sliver of people, and it’s still concessional.” NED-9175-Australia’s GDP When announcing the change back in 2023, Mr Chalmers said around 80,000 Aussies would be impacted or about 0.5 per cent of the population by wealth. But modelling from AMP deputy chief economist Diana Mousina shows the average 22-year-old today could retire with more than $3m when wages growth, inflation and compound interest are all factored in. According to forecasts, the tax will raise $2.3bn in its first full year of implementation (2027-2028) and rake in $40bn over the following decade. Camera IconThe tax could raise up to $40bn over the first 10 years of its introduction. Dan Peled / NewsWire Credit: News Corp Australia Experts and industry groups including the SMSF Association have called the system “flawed” due to also taxing unrealised gains. The Liberal Party has previously taken aim at the policy. Liberal senator Andrew Bragg slammed Labor for taxing unrealised capital gains in superannuation accounts, saying it will cause thousands of Aussies to go bankrupt. “It will destroy new ideas, it will destroy innovation because in one year you may have a paper gain, but in the next year you might have a paper loss. You’re going to pay the tax on the paper gain, but you don’t get any refund back on the loss,” Senator Bragg told Sky News business presenter Ross Greenwood. SMSF Association chief executive Peter Burgess, said there was a critical flaw in the proposed tax, as is its calculation of investment earnings, which inexplicably included unrealised capital gains, penalised SMSF members for paper profits that may never materialise. Camera IconCritics say the policy is flawed. Dan Peled / NewsWire Credit: News Corp Australia “No one disputes Treasury’s desire for a fair and equitable superannuation system, but to claim this tax only affects a ********* and serves the national interest is shortsighted. It ignores the broader ripple effects,” he said. “The government’s narrow focus is blind to the vital connections between superannuants, small business owners, primary producers, and angel investors. “This oversight is already destabilising the SMSF sector and threatens to disrupt the delicate balance of our economic ecosystem.” However, Mr Chalmers said the changes to superannuation tax would help the *********** budget. “This is a modest change, but it helps make the budget more sustainable and fund our priorities,” he said. Mr Chalmers also spoke about Labor’s submission to the Fair Work Commission to increase wages for Australia’s award workers. “After the *********** Labor Party advocated to the Fair Work Commission during the election campaign, today the government has also made a submission to the FWC recommending they award an economically sustainable real wage increase to Australia’s award workers,” he said. Mr Chalmers said Australia’s minimum wage had increased by $143 a week since Labor came to office, and the median wage had increased by $206 per week. Source link #Bit #perspective #Chalmers #takes #aim #super #doubters Pelican News View the full article at [Hidden Content]

Divorce Is a Gift Divorce Is a Gift We could have had a nice life together, but I wanted more for him. Source link #Divorce #Gift Pelican News View the full article at [Hidden Content]

Another MSC cruise passenger arrested; Silversea cruise ship fined Another MSC cruise passenger arrested; Silversea cruise ship fined Violent altercations involving passengers sailing on multiple cruise lines have made headlines in recent weeks, and the trend grew more troubling with the latest incident, which remains under investigation. A 60-year-old man died on board MSC Cruises’ MSC Virtuosa on Saturday, May 3 following an altercation that happened shortly after the ship departed from Southampton, England, on a short weekend cruise to Bruges, Belgium. Related: US updates alarming *** travel warning as busy cruise season begins The deadly fight prompted British police to launch an investigation that led to a passenger’s arrest on suspicion of *******. Now, a second passenger has been arrested. British police have reassured concerned cruisers and local residents that the onboard incident appeared to be isolated, and thanked MSC Virtuosa crew members for their cooperation and assistance. Doug Parker shared more details on the ongoing cruise ship ******* investigation and other cruise news, including a Silversea cruise ship captain who crossed an environmental line, on the May 13th edition of Cruise News Today. Want the latest cruise news and deals? Sign up for the Come Cruise With Me newsletter. Second MSC cruise passenger arrested after deadly fight Transcript: Cruise News Today with Doug Parker. Good morning, here’s your cruise news for Tuesday, May 13th. A second man has been arrested after a passenger died following an altercation aboard the MSC Virtuosa. Now police say a 56-year-old man from Richmond was arrested on suspicion of manslaughter. This following a 57-year-old man who was previously arrested for suspected *******. Both men have already been released on bail. Related: MSC cruise ship fight leads to death; cruise crew members deported The incident occurred on May 3rd, shortly after departure from Southampton. Authorities say it appears to be isolated and are asking anyone on board at the time to come forward with information. And a luxury cruise ship has been fined for sailing into protected waters near Italy’s Capri island on May 3rd. Be the first to see the best deals on cruises, special sailings, and more. Sign up for the Come Cruise With Me newsletter. Silversea cruise ship captain fined for sailing too close to iconic rocks Silversea’s Silver Ray came within 500 meters of Faraglioni rock formations, violating environmental regulations. Smartphone footage and tracking data confirmed the breach, prompting an $1,100 fine and a warning to the captain from maritime authorities. The incident has reignited calls to designate the area a formal marine protected zone. And Carnival Miracle has returned to service in Europe after a major dry dock. Yeah, the ship launched its summer season from Lisbon on May 11th, featuring updates like a new Heroes Tribute Bar, a dedicated Chef’s Table, and refreshed public areas. The ship will sail 16 sailings this summer across Europe, including British Isles and the Med. Related: Carnival shares cruise loyalty news; Royal Caribbean cruiser fined And then, November it heads to Tampa for Caribbean and Bahamas cruises. Carnival Miracle was launched in 2004. And cruise stocks were up on Tuesday. Carnival Corporation: up 10%, 22.13. Royal Caribbean: up 4%, 242.18. Norwegian: up 8%, 19.15. And Viking: up 5%, 45.57. If you have a lead on a story, let us know. *****@*****.tld. Have yourself a great Tuesday. I’m Doug Parker with Cruise News Today. (The Arena Group will earn a commission if you book a cruise.) Make a free appointment with Come Cruise With Me’s Travel Agent Partner, Postcard Travel, or email Amy Post at *****@*****.tld or call or text her at 386-383-2472. Source link #MSC #cruise #passenger #arrested #Silversea #cruise #ship #fined Pelican News View the full article at [Hidden Content] For verified travel tips and real support, visit: [Hidden Content]

James Comey under investigation for posting — and deleting — “86 47” on Instagram, Noem says James Comey under investigation for posting — and deleting — “86 47” on Instagram, Noem says Former FBI Director James Comey has provoked an outcry from the Trump administration after he briefly posted a photo to Instagram that federal officials alleged was a call for violence against President Trump — a claim Comey pushed back on. The image shared by Comey — a longtime Trump foe — showed seashells in sand arranged to form the numbers “86 47,” according to screenshots shared by Trump administration officials. He did not make his meaning clear, but administration officials and some of his supporters interpreted the numbers as referring to Mr. Trump’s status as the 47th president and the slang term “eighty-six,” which has often been used to mean “eject” or “remove.” Comey later deleted the image. In a follow-up Instagram post Thursday night, Comey wrote that he “posted earlier a picture of some shells I saw today on a beach walk, which I assumed were a political message. I didn’t realize some folks associate those numbers with violence. It never occurred to me but I oppose violence of any kind so I took the post down.” CBS News has reached out to Comey’s attorneys for comment. Noem says post is under investigation Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem wrote on X that the issue is under investigation. She said Comey “just called for the assassination” of Mr. Trump, and added her agency and the Secret Service are “investigating this threat and will respond appropriately.” Current FBI Director Kash Patel said in a separate statement that, “We are aware of the recent tweet by former FBI Director James Comey, directed at President Trump. We are in communication with the Secret Service and Director (Sean) Curran. Primary jurisdiction is with SS on these matters and we, the FBI, will provide all necessary support.” A Secret Service spokesperson told CBS News in a statement it “vigorously investigates anything that can be taken as a potential threat against our protectees. We are aware of the social media posts by the former FBI Director and we take rhetoric like this very seriously. Beyond that, we do not comment on protective intelligence matters.” White House Deputy Chief of Staff Taylor Budowich wrote in his own social media post Comey’s message “can clearly be interpreted as ‘a hit’ on the sitting President of the United States,” and said it is “being taken seriously.” Comey and Trump have sparred for years. Comey served as FBI director from 2013 until he was fired by Mr. Trump in 2017, during the president’s first White House term. That firing ultimately set into motion Robert Mueller’s special counsel investigation into allegations that Russia interfered in the 2016 U.S. presidential election and that the Trump campaign coordinated with the Kremlin. Mr. Trump has repeatedly denounced those allegations as a “hoax.” For his part, Comey has been a vocal critic of Mr. Trump since his firing, calling him “morally unfit” to be president in a 2018 interview. Mr. Trump was the target of two assassination attempts during his presidential campaign last year. During a July 13 rally in Butler, Pennsylvania, a 20-year-old gunman opened fire on Mr. Trump, grazing his ear with a bullet. One rally attendee was killed and two more were wounded. On Sept. 14, a man was arrested on allegations he attempted to assassinate Mr. Trump at his golf course in West Palm Beach by aiming a rifle through shrubbery. What does “86 47” mean? It’s unclear what Comey meant with his Instagram post, but according to the Merriam-Webster dictionary, to “eighty-six” means to “throw out” or “get rid of” something. It originates from 1930s soda counter slang, which meant that an item was sold out, Merriam-Webster says. The term can also refer to people: To “Eighty-six” an inebriated bar patron is to kick them out or refuse service to them, the dictionary said. Joe Walsh Joe Walsh is a senior editor for digital politics at CBS News. Joe previously covered breaking news for Forbes and local news in Boston. Source link #James #Comey #investigation #posting #deleting #Instagram #Noem Pelican News View the full article at [Hidden Content]

Peace in South Sudan, a Nation U.S. Helped Build, Is Unraveling Peace in South Sudan, a Nation U.S. Helped Build, Is Unraveling Riek Machar, the vice president of South Sudan, has been detained at his residence in an upscale neighborhood of the capital, Juba, since March. Armored personnel carriers block the gate of the sprawling compound and security officers wielding AK-47s patrol the perimeter. Inside, Mr. Machar lives in isolation, his phones and laptop seized. His wife, a government minister, is staying separately in the compound. While she is allowed to cook for him, she is not allowed to deliver the meals herself. South Sudan is the world’s youngest nation. Its population of 11 million people gained independence in 2011 with the help of the United States. Two years later, the country was in a bloody civil war fueled by ethnic violence, with Mr. Machar on one side and Salva Kiir, the president of South Sudan, on the other. The two leaders agreed to form a unity government in 2020 that was meant to pave the way for future elections. Instead, South Sudan’s tenuous peace is on the verge of collapse, with Mr. Machar accused of inciting an antigovernment rebellion led by a militia known as the White Army. The group was linked to the downing of a United Nations helicopter in March. With no succession plan in place and violence surging, fears are spreading that oil-rich South Sudan will once again explode into war, setting off a mass exodus of refugees that would spill into neighboring nations like Ethiopia and Sudan, both burdened by war and famine. The turmoil has already drawn in Uganda, which deployed troops in March to back Mr. Kiir’s government. “South Sudan is at a critical and terrible juncture,” Puok Both Baluang, Mr. Machar’s acting press secretary, said in an interview. The vice president’s arrest, he said, “is a violation of the Constitution, his right to movement and his rights as a constitutional office holder with immunity.” The rivalry between Mr. Kiir and Mr. Machar has shaped South Sudan’s short independence, with both men accused of profiteering and war crimes. Mr. Kiir’s government has rejected mediation and blocked envoys from meeting with Mr. Machar. Many of Mr. Machar’s top associates have been arrested or disappeared, are in hiding or have fled the country, party officials said. Mr. Machar’s confinement is deepening mistrust within the government as Mr. Kiir seeks to consolidate power amid growing pressure for a succession, analysts say. Mr. Kiir is limited in his ability to appease rivals with payouts as his country grapples with a massive economic downturn stemming from the shutdown of its main oil pipeline, which runs north through war-torn Sudan. “The knives are out,” said Alan Boswell, the ***** of Africa project director at the International Crisis Group, a nonprofit. Opposition party leaders say Mr. Machar’s detention is a calculated move by Mr. Kiir to neutralize critics. Even before he was placed under house arrest, Mr. Machar was prevented from leaving Juba, meeting with his supporters or attending family funerals, according to interviews with ambassadors and senior party officials. The authorities have also accused him of collaborating with the White Army, whose members, like Mr. Machar, are mostly from the Nuer ethnic group. Mr. Machar’s party denies that he has links with the White Army. Regional observers say that he may have had some influence over the militia during the civil war, but that it has been sharply reduced in recent years. “In many respects, the White Army is openly dismissive of the opposition movement led by Machar,” said Mr. Boswell. A government spokesman did not respond to requests for comment. Mr. Kiir, 72, has worked to centralize power by marginalizing rivals and priming a handpicked successor. The president’s health has been the subject of speculation for years; in 2023, six journalists were arrested after they were accused of sharing a video that appeared to show the president wetting himself. In February, he appointed Benjamin Bol Mel as one of the country’s five vice presidents. (Mr. Machar, 72, is the first vice president.) A businessman and a close adviser to the president, Mr. Bol Mel has been sanctioned by the United States over his links to companies involved in money laundering. As succession talk intensifies, Mr. Machar’s detention and rising violence have added to the sense of unease. Cholera and other diseases are surging and civilians have been targeted in recent airstrikes. In mid-April, the authorities recaptured Nasir, a town in the Upper Nile State that had been overrun by the White Army. Despite its retreat, the militia has continued to mobilize, security analysts say, raising fears of more violence and civilian deaths. “So many people are exposed and we have very minimal access to them,” said Mohammed Ibrahim Abuanja, the South Sudan head for Doctors Without Borders. “This is truly an unacceptable reality.” Source link #Peace #South #Sudan #Nation #U.S #Helped #Build #Unraveling Pelican News View the full article at [Hidden Content]

Rory McIlroy struggles with driver as debutant Gerard makes fast start to US PGA – The Guardian Rory McIlroy struggles with driver as debutant Gerard makes fast start to US PGA – The Guardian Rory McIlroy struggles with driver as debutant Gerard makes fast start to US PGA The Guardian2025 PGA Championship Round 1 leaderboard, live updates: Jhonattan Vegas jumps into solo lead as Rory McIlroy struggles Yahoo SportsTop stars have rocky PGA start after rare gaffes ESPN‘They were wrong’: Curtis Strange takes issue with PGA rules decision GOLF.com2025 PGA Championship: Rory McIlroy disappoints at Quail Hollow in first major round since Masters triumph CBS Sports Source link #Rory #McIlroy #struggles #driver #debutant #Gerard #fast #start #PGA #Guardian Pelican News View the full article at [Hidden Content]

A Funny Way to Meet the Parents A Funny Way to Meet the Parents “We sneaked around like high school kids,” he said, for a few weeks as his parents quarantined. One evening after Ms. Mastrocola drove up near his parents’ house to pick him up, his father, walking their Cairn terrier, knocked on the car window. After introductions, Ms. Mastrocola joined the family for dinner, and soon began spending a great deal of time with them. “It was a unique, but amazing way to get to know my husband’s family,” she said. In August 2020 the pair decided to take a trip to Newport, R.I., where they stayed at the Cliffside Inn overlooking the ocean. “We had the whole town to ourselves,” he said. Ms. Mastrocola fell in love with his parents’ tortoiseshell and calico cat Scooter, and in 2021 she adopted Zelda, a dilute calico, named for the Legend of Zelda video game that she and Mr. Barcelo often played. A month after she moved into his place in January 2022, they adopted another cat, a tabby named Neo. In March 2024, after a Boston Symphony concert featuring Beethoven’s Ninth Symphony, they drove to the Cliffside Inn in Newport. This time around, Mr. Barcelo got on one knee during a late night stroll on the moonlit cliff walk. On May 3, Scott Barcelo, the groom’s father, ordained by American Marriage Ministries for the occasion, officiated on a breezy afternoon at Belle Mer, an events venue on Goat Island in Newport, before 220 guests, some of whom enjoyed a clambake at Fort Adams nearby the night before. Source link #Funny #Meet #Parents Pelican News View the full article at [Hidden Content] For verified travel tips and real support, visit: [Hidden Content]

A Funny Way to Meet the Parents A Funny Way to Meet the Parents “We sneaked around like high school kids,” he said, for a few weeks as his parents quarantined. One evening after Ms. Mastrocola drove up near his parents’ house to pick him up, his father, walking their Cairn terrier, knocked on the car window. After introductions, Ms. Mastrocola joined the family for dinner, and soon began spending a great deal of time with them. “It was a unique, but amazing way to get to know my husband’s family,” she said. In August 2020 the pair decided to take a trip to Newport, R.I., where they stayed at the Cliffside Inn overlooking the ocean. “We had the whole town to ourselves,” he said. Ms. Mastrocola fell in love with his parents’ tortoiseshell and calico cat Scooter, and in 2021 she adopted Zelda, a dilute calico, named for the Legend of Zelda video game that she and Mr. Barcelo often played. A month after she moved into his place in January 2022, they adopted another cat, a tabby named Neo. In March 2024, after a Boston Symphony concert featuring Beethoven’s Ninth Symphony, they drove to the Cliffside Inn in Newport. This time around, Mr. Barcelo got on one knee during a late night stroll on the moonlit cliff walk. On May 3, Scott Barcelo, the groom’s father, ordained by American Marriage Ministries for the occasion, officiated on a breezy afternoon at Belle Mer, an events venue on Goat Island in Newport, before 220 guests, some of whom enjoyed a clambake at Fort Adams nearby the night before. Source link #Funny #Meet #Parents Pelican News View the full article at [Hidden Content] For verified travel tips and real support, visit: [Hidden Content]

IPL: Josh Inglis still weighing up concerns over returning to tournament as Mitchell Starc pulls out IPL: Josh Inglis still weighing up concerns over returning to tournament as Mitchell Starc pulls out Josh Inglis is still yet to decide whether or not he will return to India for the hasty resumption of the IPL, just two days out from his team’s next match, but another *********** star has pulled out. Source link #IPL #Josh #Inglis #weighing #concerns #returning #tournament #Mitchell #Starc #pulls Pelican News View the full article at [Hidden Content]

A woman’s grisly death inflames debate over how California manages problem ****** bears A woman’s grisly death inflames debate over how California manages problem ****** bears Patrice Miller, 71, lived by herself in a small yellow house beneath towering mountain peaks on the edge of a burbling river in this Sierra County village. She doted on her cats and her exotic orchids, and was known to neighbors for her delicious homemade bread. One fall afternoon, after Miller had failed for several days to make her customary appearance at the town market, a store clerk asked authorities to check on her. A short time later, a sheriff’s deputy found Miller’s lifeless body in her kitchen. Her right leg and left arm had been partially gnawed off. On the floor around her were the large paw prints of a bear. Months after her death, officials would make a stunning disclosure, revealing that an autopsy had determined that Miller had likely been killed by the animal after it broke into her home. It marked the first known instance in California history of a fatal bear attack on a human. But amid the contentious politics around ****** bears and other apex predators in California, not everyone accepts the official version of how she died. “We don’t believe the bear did it,” said Ann Bryant, executive director of the Bear League in the Tahoe Basin. “And I will go on record as saying that. … We’ve never had a bear kill anybody.” The story of Miller’s grisly end — and the increasingly heated battles around predators in California — have come roaring into the state Capitol this spring. Lawmakers representing conservative rural districts in the state’s rugged northern reaches argue that their communities are under attack, and point to Miller as one example of the worst that can happen. One solution they have pushed is changing the law to allow people to set packs of hunting dogs after bears to haze them. A similar measure has been floated — for now unsuccessfully — to ward off mountain lions considered a threat. Wildlife conservation advocates are aghast. They say turning dogs on bears is barbaric and won’t make anyone safer. They contend the proposed laws don’t reflect a scientifically backed approach to managing wild populations but instead are pro-hunting bills dressed up in the guise of public safety. The real solution, they say, is for humans living near bears to learn to safely co-exist by not leaving out food or otherwise attracting them. “These people are using [Miller’s death] to try to start hounding bears again,” said Bryant, who maintains that Miller, who was in poor health, must have died before the bear came into her home and devoured her. “She would roll in her grave if she knew that in her death people would create a situation where people were going to mistreat bears, because she loved bears.” In a recent report, the Department of Fish and Wildlife estimates there are now 60,000 ****** bears roaming California and notes a marked increase in reports of human-bear conflicts. (John Axtell / Nevada Department of Wildlife) Founded in 1849, Downieville, population 300, is one of California’s oldest towns, and also one of its quaintest. Colorfully painted wooden buildings sit at the junction of two rivers, beneath majestic pines and mountain peaks. Along with tourists, who flood in in the summer for rafting and mountain biking, the town also receives frequent visits from bears and mountain lions. More recently, wolves have arrived with deadly force, snatching domesticated cattle off the open pastures that stretch across the plains on the other side of the mountains east of town. Miller wound up here about a decade ago, at the end of a rich, complicated life. She had worked in an oil refinery, and also as a contractor. She was a master gardener, expert at transplanting Japanese maples, according to her neighbor, Patty Hall. She was a voracious reader and a skilled pianist. But she was also in poor health and had struggled with substance abuse, according to neighbors and officials. Longtime residents in the area were used to the challenges of living among wild animals. But in the summer of 2023, Sierra County Sheriff Mike Fisher said he started getting an overwhelming number of calls about problem bears. “We had three or four habituated bears that were constantly here in town,” said Fisher. “They had zero fear. I would say, almost daily, we were having to go out and chase these bears away, haze them.” But bears have a sharp sense of smell, a long memory for food sources and an incredible sense of direction. If a tourist tosses them a pizza crust or the last bits of an ice cream cone, or leaves the lid off a trash can, they will return again and again, even if they are relocated miles away. That summer, Fisher said, no matter what he did, the bears kept lumbering back into town. It was unlike anything he had experienced, he said, and he had grown up in Downieville. “A police car with an air ***** or the siren, we would push the bear up out of the community. Fifteen minutes later, they were right back downtown,” he said. Founded in 1849, Downieville, population 300, is one of California’s oldest towns and also one of its quaintest. (Myung J. Chun / Los Angeles Times) And then there were the bears harassing Miller and her neighbors. “There were three bears,” recalled Hall, who lives just up the hill from the home Miller rented. “Twice a night they would walk up and down our [porch] stairs. The Ring cameras were constantly going off.” Fisher said some of Miller’s neighbors complained that she was part of the lure, because she was not disposing of her garbage properly. Some also alleged she was tossing food on her porch for her cats — and that the bears were coming for it. Miller’s daughter later told sheriff’s officials that bears were “constantly trying” to get into her house, and that “her mother had physically hit one” to keep it out. One particular bear, which Miller had nicknamed “Big Bastard,” was a frequent pest. Fifty miles from Downieville, in the Lake Tahoe Basin, the Bear League was getting calls about Miller, too. The organization, which Bryant founded more than two decades ago, seeks to protect bears by helping residents coexist with them. This includes educating people about locking down their trash and helping to haze bears away from homes. “We got calls [from her neighbors] that told us she had been feeding the bears, tossing food out to them, and let them come into her house,” Bryant said. She added that some thought, erroneously, that the Bear League was a government organization, and “maybe we had the ability to enforce the law” against feeding bears. Hall, Miller’s friend, told The Times that Miller was not feeding bears. Still, the problems continued. Eventually, officials with the California Department of Fish and Wildlife were called and told Miller she could sign a “depredation permit,” after which authorities could kill bears trying to get into her house. But Miller declined to do so, Fisher said. In early November, Miller stopped showing up around town, prompting calls for a ******** check. A little before 3 p.m. on Nov. 8, 2023, Deputy Malcolm Fadden approached Miller’s home, which was a short walk from the sheriff’s office. The security bars on the kitchen window had been ripped off. The window itself had been busted from the outside. “I knocked on the door,” Fadden wrote in his report, but got no answer. Patrice Miller was found dead in her rental cottage in November 2023. Bear advocates take issue with an autopsy report that said she probably was killed in a bear attack. (Jessica Garrison / Los Angeles Times) Through the window, he saw blood streaked across the living room floor. He took out his gun and burst into the house, where he was greeted by a giant pile of bear *****. He found Miller in the kitchen, her half-eaten body surrounded by food and garbage, which, Fadden wrote, had been “apparently scattered by bears.” Fisher was horrified. Already frustrated at what he saw as the Department of Fish and Wildlife’s lackluster response to the escalating bear incursions that summer, now he wanted the bear that had fed on Miller to be trapped and killed. He said the department told him that for the bear to be killed, “the person who lives at the house has to sign the [depredation] permit.” Fisher said he responded: “How many times do I have to tell you the person who lives at that house was eaten by the bear?” This was the start of a long-running conflict between the sheriff and agency officials that would complicate the release of the autopsy findings about Miller’s death, and also convince Fisher that more aggressive steps were needed to protect his community. Eventually, Fisher managed to get a depredation permit for the bear that had fed on Miller; his deputies tracked down her landlord, who as the homeowner could sign it. Wildlife officials set up a trap near Miller’s house, and in short order, a bear was caught. But, according to Fisher, officials initially said it wasn’t the same bear. They said DNA tests showed that the bear who had eaten her was male, and the bear they had caught appeared to be female. They intended to release the bear, he said. Fisher padlocked the cage, and threatened to call the media. In response, he said, wildlife officials sent a biologist, who determined the bear in the trap was male. It was shot that night. At that point, few people, including Fisher, believed that the bear had actually killed Miller, as opposed to feeding on her after she died of natural causes. Though there are recorded instances of fatal ****** bear maulings in other U.S. states, they are rare, and there had been no reports of one in California. Fisher issued a news release saying that the death was under investigation, but that “it is believed that Patrice Miller passed away before a bear, possibly drawn by the scent or other factors, accessed the residence.” After performing an autopsy, however, the pathologist on contract with Sierra County came to a different conclusion. She issued a report that found that Miller had “deep hemorrhage of the face and neck“ as well as “puncture injuries (consistent with claw ‘swipe’ or ‘slap’).” These injuries, she noted, were “characteristics more suggestive of a vital reaction by a living person.” In short: The pathologist found that Miller was probably killed by the bear. Because of Fisher’s feud with Fish and Wildlife, that autopsy report, dated Jan. 4, 2024, wouldn’t become public for months. Fisher said the state agency was refusing to provide him with copies of the DNA analysis of the bear that had been trapped in Miller’s yard. He wanted to see for himself that it matched the DNA evidence collected at her home, saying he hated the thought that a bear that had feasted on a person might still be roaming his town. “I requested DNA from Fish and Wildlife, and they refused to provide it to me,” he said. “So I withheld the coroner’s report. We stopped talking.” He said he verbally told department officials that the pathologist believed Miller had been killed by the bear — a seemingly noteworthy development. He said that officials responded: “I guess we’ll see when we get the report.” In an email to The Times, state wildlife officials confirmed that Fisher had verbally shared the results of the autopsy report, but said they felt they needed to see the report to do their “due diligence before making an announcement about the first fatal bear attack in California.” The agency had sent an investigator to the scene after Miller’s death, who like Fisher and his deputies, thought the evidence suggested she had died of natural causes, said agency spokesperson Peter Tira. By the time Fisher got the autopsy report, it was deep winter in the mountains, and bear activity decreased. Then came spring, and along with the blossoms, the bears came back to Downieville. Bears were knocking over trash cans and breaking into cars. In May, residents on Main Street reported that a bear had broken into multiple houses, including one incursion that involved a bear standing over 82-year-old Dale Hunter as he napped on his couch. A few days later, a bear tried to break into the cafeteria at Downieville High School while students were at school. Fisher declared the bear a threat to public safety. Fish and Wildlife eventually issued a depredation permit, and the bear was shot. That led to a story in the Mountain Messenger, the local paper. In it, the sheriff dropped a bombshell: “Miller was mauled to death after a ****** bear entered her home,” the paper reported. The story went on to say that the sheriff had made “numerous attempts” to inform Fish and Wildlife “about Miller’s death and more recent dangerous situations.” After the story ran, state Sen. Megan Dahle, a Lassen County Republican who at the time served in the Assembly, set up a conciliatory meeting between Fish and Wildlife and Fisher. They have been meeting regularly ever since, Fisher said. Fisher got his DNA results confirming that the bear trapped in Miller’s yard was the same bear that had eaten her. And Fish and Wildlife officials finally got a copy of the pathology report, which said Miller was probably alive when she encountered the bear. The revelation made headlines around the state. “We’re in new territory,” Capt. Patrick Foy of Fish and Wildlife’s law enforcement division told the San Francisco Chronicle. Bryant and other bear advocates found the release of such a significant finding so long after the fact confounding. “I absolutely do not believe it,” Bryant said. If the bear had killed her, Bryant added, “the evidence should have been so clear, like immediately.” “We don’t believe the bear did it,” Ann Bryant, executive director of the Bear League, says of Patrice Miller’s death. “We’ve never had a bear kill anybody.” (Max Whittaker / For The Times) The Downieville saga unfolded as bears seemed to be making news all over California. To many, it seemed there were just many more bears encroaching on human settlements. A Fish and Wildlife report released last month estimated there are now 60,000 ****** bears roaming the Golden State, roughly triple the figure from 1998, the last time the department issued a bear management plan. That’s the highest population estimate for anywhere in the contiguous U.S., although the report also suggests that California’s bear population has been stable for the last decade. In the Lake Tahoe area, where 50,000 people live year-round and tens of thousands more crowd in on busy tourist weekends, bears were breaking into houses and raiding refrigerators; they were bursting into ice cream shops and strolling along packed beaches. State and local officials went into overdrive, trying to teach residents and tourists how to avoid attracting bears. The state set money aside for distribution of bear-proof trash cans and “unwelcome mats” that deliver a jolt of electricity if bears try to break into homes. The Bear League will loan Tahoe Basin residents “unwelcome mats” that deliver a little jolt of electricity to bears if they try to break into homes. (Max Whittaker / For The Times) The Bear League stepped up its efforts. From a small office on Bryant’s property, the organization’s 24-hour hotline was ringing, and volunteers were rushing out with paintball guns to haze bears and to advise people on how to bear-proof their houses. The tensions continued to escalate, nonetheless, between people who wanted to protect bears at all costs and those who wanted some problem bears trapped and relocated — or killed. In 2024, after a homeowner in the Tahoe area fatally shot a bear he said had broken into his home, many people were outraged that the Department of Fish and Wildlife declined to file charges. Advocates also complained that the state has fallen behind in its efforts to help people and bears coexist. In recent years, the state had hired dedicated staff to help people in bear country, but the money ran out and some of those people were laid off, said Jennifer Fearing, a wildlife advocate and lobbyist. “We have the tools to minimize human-wildlife conflict in California,” Fearing said. “We need the state to invest in using them.” In Sierra County, the sheriff had come to a different conclusion. “We’ve swung the pendulum too far on the environmental side on these apex predators,” Fisher said. Earlier this year, Fisher found common cause with newly elected GOP Assemblymember Heather Hadwick. “Mountain lions, bears and wolves are my biggest issue. I get calls every day about some kind of predator, which is crazy,” said Hadwick, who represents 11 northern counties. In February, she introduced a bill, AB 1038, that would allow hunters to sic trained dogs on bears to chase them through the woods, but not kill them. While California has a legal hunting season for bears, it is strictly regulated; the use of hounds to aid the chase has been banned since 2013. Hadwick argued that hounding bears would increase their fear of humans, which she said some are starting to lose: “We’re keeping them in the forest, where they belong.” Bears have a long memory for food sources and an incredible sense of direction. If a tourist tosses them a pizza crust or leaves the lid off a trash can, they will return again and again. (California Department of Fish and Wildlife) Wildlife advocates showed up in force last month to oppose Hadwick’s bill in an Assembly committee hearing. Sending hounds after bears is cruel, they said. Plus, hounding bears in the woods would have no impact on the bears knocking over neighborhood trash cans and sneaking into ice cream stores. Fisher testified in favor of the bill, and spoke of Miller’s death. Lawmakers listened, some with stricken looks on their faces. But in a Legislature controlled by Democrats, Hadwick did not garner enough votes to send her bill on to the full Assembly; it became a two-year bill, meaning it could come back next year. Fisher returned to Sierra County, where he has continued to advocate for locals to have more power to go after predators. The current situation, he said, is “out of control.” Sign up for Essential California for news, features and recommendations from the L.A. Times and beyond in your inbox six days a week. This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times. Source link #womans #grisly #death #inflames #debate #California #manages #problem #****** #bears Pelican News View the full article at [Hidden Content]

Aramco says it has U.S. tie-ups worth up to $90 billion amid Trump Gulf tour Aramco says it has U.S. tie-ups worth up to $90 billion amid Trump Gulf tour Saudi Aramco logo and stock graph are seen through a magnifier displayed in this illustration taken September 4, 2022. Dado Ruvic | Reuters Saudi Aramco said on Wednesday it had signed 34 preliminary deals with major U.S. companies, potentially worth up to $90 billion in a push to deepen commercial ties with the United States on the back of President Donald Trump’s visit to the kingdom. The announcement was made a day after Riyadh pledged $600 billion in U.S. investments. Still, most tie-ups listed by the state oil giant were memorandums of understanding without a value attached. Some deals have also been previously announced, such as the agreement to buy 1.2 million tons of LNG per year for a 20-year term from NextDecade. The agreements underscore Saudi Arabia’s efforts to strengthen its energy partnerships and attract foreign investment as it looks to balance oil dominance with broader industrial and technological growth under Vision 2030. “The U.S. is really a good place to put our investment,” Aramco CEO Amin Nasser said on Tuesday at the U.S.-Saudi Investment Forum in Riyadh. The forum coincided with Trump’s four-day tour of the Gulf, marked by lavish receptions and a series of business deals, including $142 billion in arms agreements. Aramco is the economic backbone of Saudi Arabia, generating a bulk of the kingdom’s revenue through oil exports and funding its ambitious Vision 2030 diversification drive. Its shares have fallen almost 9% this year. Flurry of signing The company said the agreements, struck through its Aramco Group Companies, aim to build on its longstanding ties with U.S. companies, enhance shareholder value, and expand collaboration in energy and other strategic sectors. A memorandum of understanding with tech heavyweight Nvidia aims to establish advanced industrial AI infrastructure, including an AI Hub, an engineering and robotics center, and workforce training programs. Aramco also signed an MoU with ExxonMobil to evaluate a significant upgrade to their SAMREF refinery, with plans to expand it into an integrated petrochemical complex. It also inked a non-binding agreement with Amazon Web Services to collaborate on digital transformation and lower-carbon initiatives, while an MoU with Qualcomm focuses on collaboration in enhancing industrial networks and AI capabilities. “Our U.S.-related activities have evolved over the decades, and now include multi-disciplinary R&D, the Motiva refinery in Port Arthur, start-up investments, potential collaborations in LNG, and ongoing procurement,” Nasser said in a statement. Aramco said on Tuesday it would invest $3.4 billion to expand the Motiva refinery in Texas. Beyond energy, the state oil giant has become a key vehicle for industrial development, digital transformation, and foreign investment. It expanded existing relationships with several high-profile U.S. suppliers including SLB, Baker Hughes, GE Vernova and Honeywell. On the financial services front, it has forged agreements with asset management giants PIMCO, State Street Corporation and Wellington. It also signed a deal for short-term cash investments through a unified investment fund, named ‘Fund of One’, with financial heavyweights BlackRock, Goldman Sachs, Morgan Stanley and PIMCO. Source link #Aramco #U.S #tieups #worth #billion #Trump #Gulf #tour Pelican News View the full article at [Hidden Content] For verified travel tips and real support, visit: [Hidden Content]

Maryland mislabeled 41 homicides involving police restraint, audit finds – The Washington Post Maryland mislabeled 41 homicides involving police restraint, audit finds – The Washington Post Maryland mislabeled 41 homicides involving police restraint, audit finds The Washington PostDozens of deaths in police custody were misclassified in autopsies, Maryland officials say PBS36 Deaths in Police Custody Should Have Been Called Homicides, Report Finds The New York Times36 cases of in-custody deaths “should have been classified as a *********,” audit finds WMAR 2 News BaltimoreForensic failures: 36 police-custody deaths should have been ruled a *********, audit finds The Baltimore Banner Source link #Maryland #mislabeled #homicides #involving #police #restraint #audit #finds #Washington #Post Pelican News View the full article at [Hidden Content]

Nuggets down OKC, send playoff series to Game 7 decider Nuggets down OKC, send playoff series to Game 7 decider Denver have beaten Oklahoma City by 12 points to stretch their Western Conference semi-final series to a deciding Game 7. Source link #Nuggets #OKC #send #playoff #series #Game #decider Pelican News View the full article at [Hidden Content]

A college student disappeared without a trace over 50 years ago. His remains were just found. A college student disappeared without a trace over 50 years ago. His remains were just found. Remains found in Salt Lake City belong to a University of Utah student who disappeared without a trace more than 50 years ago, police officials say. Douglas Brick, a former student at the University of Utah, disappeared on Oct. 12, 1973, according to information from police and the school in Salt Lake City. Brick was reportedly last seen leaving his dorm. Major Heather Sturzenegger with the University of Utah Police told USA TODAY that Brick − a Pocatello, Idaho native − was a 23-year-old senior when he went missing. The case went cold for years but in 2022, according to a university news release, crime data analyst, Nikol Mitchell reopened the cold case while working in Utah’s Statewide Information and Analysis Center. And in 2024, hunters found unidentified remains including a skull fragments in foothills near the school, and reported it to police. On April 30, results from an out-of-state lab confirmed the fragment found matched one of Douglas Brick’s living relatives, Sturzenegger told USA TODAY. “It seemed impossible that he could ever be found,” the university wrote in an announcement of the discovery. “After 51 years, six months and 19 days, University of Utah Police finally has some answers to its only known cold case.” The major said police notified Brick’s family about the results on May 3. “We never stopped hoping for answers about Doug’s disappearance,” Brick’s family said in a statement, according to the university. “Many years ago, we pushed for the cold case to be reopened with the addition of DNA evidence. We are relieved to finally have some answers. After 52 years, this result, while sad, is nothing short of a miracle.” University of Utah student’s brother: ‘He just took off’ The victim’s brother, David Brick, told ABC4 that Douglas had traveled to Utah from his hometown of Pocatello, Idaho. David Brick was in Europe when he learned his brother had vanished. “We really don’t know why he just took off and disappeared,” he told the outlet in 2022. Sturzenegger said the motive in Brick’s disappearance remained under investigation. Anyone with information about the case is asked to call police at 801-585-2677. Natalie Neysa Alund is a senior reporter for USA TODAY. Reach her at *****@*****.tld and follow her on X @nataliealund This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: A Utah student disappeared 53 years ago. His remains were just found. Source link #college #student #disappeared #trace #years #remains Pelican News View the full article at [Hidden Content] For verified travel tips and real support, visit: [Hidden Content]

James Comey: Ex-FBI boss investigated for seashell photo seen as threat to Trump – BBC James Comey: Ex-FBI boss investigated for seashell photo seen as threat to Trump – BBC James Comey: Ex-FBI boss investigated for seashell photo seen as threat to Trump BBCJames Comey under investigation for post seen as potential threat to Trump’s life NBC NewsTrump Officials Say James Comey Is Under Investigation Over Social Media Post The New York TimesWhat Does “86 47”, Ex-FBI Director’s Post Hinting Trump Assassination, Mean NDTVSecret Service looking into ex-FBI Director James Comey’s ‘8647’ Instagram post USA Today Source link #James #Comey #ExFBI #boss #investigated #seashell #photo #threat #Trump #BBC Pelican News View the full article at [Hidden Content]

The Return to Religion is a Turn to Jesus – Even Among Its Skeptics The Return to Religion is a Turn to Jesus – Even Among Its Skeptics ANALYSIS Most of us can’t remember a time when belief in God was growing. For the last half-century, there has been a steady erosion of faith as secularism took root and grew in the soil of rebellion and doubt. But today, interest in religion is growing. And it’s growing fastest among Gen Z. Citing findings from the National Opinion Research Center, Christian Paz from Vox reports that the rise of the nones has stagnated, primarily due to the undeniable fact that Gen Z is “rediscovering faith.” There is no one explanation for this trend, but it’s clear that “members of this generation who feel isolated or lost might be finding community and friendship in organized religion.” A new Barna study agrees with these findings. Its research shows that belief in Jesus is on the rise, fueled by younger adults. According to Barna’s latest data, two-thirds of all U.S. adults say “they have made a personal commitment to Jesus that is still important in their life today,” marking a 12-point increase since 2021, a clear indication of “meaningful spiritual renewal in the United States.” ***Please sign up for CBN Newsletters to ensure you receive the latest news from a distinctly Christian perspective.*** Two significant indicators show how this trend is playing out in the lives of these younger adults, and both are at the heart of exactly how people are seeking answers in religion in general, and Christianity in particular. The first is an increase in ****** reading. “For the first time since 2021, we’re seeing an increase in both ****** use and scripture engagement, particularly among younger adults and in men,” says John Plake, the Chief Innovation Officer for American ****** Society. “People are curious about the ****** and Jesus.” As you might expect, this curiosity in ****** reading is leading to a tangible trend: ****** sales. According to data collected by BookScan, sales of Bibles rose 22 percent last year, a startling statistic considering that most other categories of book sales were flat. And just who is driving this dramatic increase in ****** sales and reading? You guessed it — Gen Z. The other indicator isn’t as measurable as ****** sales, but it is perhaps even more dramatic. Younger adults are looking for meaning and hope in something that transcends their everyday lives, something Lauren Jackson calls “spiritual longing.” And just where do people go when confronted with this longing? Jackson says it this way: “I want a god.” This desire for a god follows decades of loneliness, anxiety and growing dissatisfaction amid rising secularization. The rise of the “nones” — those who claim to have no religious affiliation — has made headlines for a long time now, while those who found meaning in religion shrank in numbers and influence. At least it seemed that way, as belief in God was overshadowed by the so-called “New Atheists,” epitomized by Richard Dawkins in his 2008 book, The God Delusion. “America’s secularization,” writes Lauren Jackson in a New York Times op-ed piece, “was an immense social transformation.” By 2021, nearly a third of Americans identified as “nones.” But this shift didn’t lead to more satisfying lives. Quite the opposite. Research shows that those who are less religious “rank lower on key metrics of well-being” than those who have some kind of belief. “They feel less connected to others, less spiritually at peace and they experience less awe and gratitude regularly,” writes Jackson. Especially among Gen Z — those born between 1997 and 2012 — the rates of loneliness and anxiety have skyrocketed. As Jonathan Haidt concludes in The Anxious Generation, social media bears much of the blame for this “epidemic of mental Illness.” Although Haidt is a self-described atheist, he uses spiritual terms to describe both the impact of and the solution for this destructive trend. “The phone-based life produces spiritual degradation,” he writes, “not just in adolescents, but in all of us.” And what does he suggest anxious and lonely people do to reverse this trend and improve well-being? Engage in “certain spiritual practices.” And more people are engaging in spiritual practice — and becoming genuinely curious about Jesus. One of the places people are apparently looking to satisfy this longing is the multi-season television series called The Chosen. In fact, one-third of all people who have viewed at least a portion of an episode are not believers at all. But they are curious about a show that is telling the greatest story about the greatest person in history. Reports indicate that people who may have left the Christian faith are returning, partly as they’re “reexploring Christianity” through The Chosen. Others are agnostics or even atheists who are seeking answers and appreciate the way the show portrays Jesus. By portraying Jesus and his chosen followers as real people with human traits we can identify with, The Chosen is introducing the faithful and curious alike to Jesus by simply inviting them into the story of God’s beautiful plan to offer hope to people living in a time when anxiety, loneliness, and despair are everywhere in our world. And this introduction comes at a critical time: A moment when more and more people desire and seek precisely such an invitation. “Nobody becomes a Christian because they lose the argument,” John Plake posted on his social media page. “It’s because they’re invited on the journey.” That’s what this “return to Jesus” is all about. People are curious, people are watching, and people are joining the journey Jesus invites us to take. Stan Jantz is the Global Ambassador for Come and See, a nonprofit with a vision to reach a billion people with the story of the authentic Jesus as told through The Chosen. Source link #Return #Religion #Turn #Jesus #Among #Skeptics Pelican News View the full article at [Hidden Content]

Algal bloom linked to surge in shark sightings Algal bloom linked to surge in shark sightings A sharp rise in shark sightings could be linked to an algal bloom that has killed about 100 species of fish and sharks amid a nine-month long marine heatwave across southern Australia. A shark attack at a popular Adelaide beach on Thursday, in which a swimmer aged in his 60s had his leg mauled, has focused attention on the growing number of sightings and strandings since the bloom formed in March. South Australia’s shark sightings log shows 195 reports so far in 2025, compared to 313 in 2024, 148 (2023), 153 (2022), 264 (2021) and 84 (2020). Since the microalgae bloom, karenia mikimotoi, was identified off the Fleurieu Peninsula in March, there have been hundreds of reports of marine deaths, ranging from sharks and penguins, to popular fishing species such as flathead, squid, crabs, and rock lobsters. Environment Minister Susan Close said the bloom had grown to an unprecedented scale, close to the size of Kangaroo Island, which is 4405sqkm, and as deep as 20m. “We’re talking about a very large algal bloom with a significant impact on marine life,” she said. The state government was “aware of community concerns” over sharks being sighted near shore, a Primary Industries and Regions SA spokesperson said, but it was “not uncommon” for white sharks to hunt other fish in near-shore areas. “Algal blooms of this size and nature are rare in South Australia – the last one was recorded in 2014 in Coffin Bay. As such, there is a lack of clear evidence of how algal blooms such as these affect the behaviour of marine life,” the spokesperson said. Earlier in May, authorities removed a dead white shark washed up on Henley Beach in Adelaide and two other sharks were reported dead at Port Willunga in Adelaide’s south and at Port Moorowie, on the south coast of Yorke Peninsula. Flinders University marine scientist Charlie Huveneers said the increased number of sightings and strandings was “unusual”, and likely related to the biotoxins from the algal bloom. “But we will only be able to confirm this and understand which toxin might have led to these strandings once toxicology results come back,” he said. The bloom is being driven by the marine heatwave that began in September 2024, with temperatures up to 2.5C warmer than usual, as well as relatively calm marine conditions with little wind and small swells. In its most recent update on May 13, the South *********** Research and Development Institute said there had been a slight decrease in sea surface temperatures across the state’s coastal waters, but they remained up to 2C above average. An Environment Department spokeswoman said “nothing can be done” to dilute or dissipate the bloom. “This is a dynamic situation as the bloom travels depending on weather and water conditions and the impact on people in these areas can therefore be unpredictable,” she said. The bloom, which is not toxic to humans but can cause skin irritations, is expected to remain until the arrival of strong westerly winds. Source link #Algal #bloom #linked #surge #shark #sightings Pelican News View the full article at [Hidden Content] For verified travel tips and real support, visit: [Hidden Content]