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Boston health officials say there are promising signs of COVID-19 cases decreasing

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 11:02:15 GMT

Boston officials say there are promising signs that COVID-19 cases are decreasing in the city. The Boston Public Health Commission says there’s been a 20 percent decrease in new cases. The commission also says the number of COVID-19 particles in the wastewater has dropped 42 percent over the past two weeks. This news comes as President Joe Biden’s COVID-19 vaccine mandate was blocked by a federal appeals court. The court ruled the president does not have the authority to require employees to be vaccinated, reversing the 2021 executive order requiring that all executive branch employees get a vaccine.

ASK IRA: Could division title prove significant to Heat as playoff tiebreaker?

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 11:02:15 GMT

Q: Ira,assuming the Heat beat the Knicks in their next game and they tie at the end of the season, what are the tiebreakers and who has the advantage? Also what if there is a three way tie including the Nets? – Joel.A: First, as we’ve learned with this season’s Heat, assumptions can be dangerous, whether it is discussing what happens if the Heat defeat the visiting Nets on Saturday or win Wednesday in New York. As we already know, the Heat have lost the tiebreaker to the Nets, down 0-2 in that three-game season series. A victory Wednesday in New York would leave that season series tied 2-2. The Heat then would have the tiebreaker as Southeast Division champions. In a three-way tie, a Heat Southeast title also would be the tiebreaker (since neither the Knicks or Nets will win the Atlantic). The only way the Heat do not win the Southeast is if they finish behind the Hawks. And if the Heat blow that four-game lead (plus that tiebreaker), then they wouldn’t be co...

Man drives into people in German airport garage, some hurt

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 11:02:15 GMT

BERLIN (AP) — A man drove into several pedestrians in a parking garage at the Cologne-Bonn Airport in western Germany on Friday and there were some injuries, police said.The man also drove into several cars, German news agency dpa reported. Police said there were indications that the man had mental health issues.No other details on the incident were immediately available.The Associated Press

King Charles III’s triumphal state visit hits French hurdle

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 11:02:15 GMT

LONDON (AP) — King Charles III’s first state visit as monarch was scaled back Friday, dashing hopes for a triumphal tour to win hearts and minds abroad just as his mother did so successfully during her 70 years on the throne.The visit by Charles and his wife, Camilla, to France was postponed amid mass protests in the country over President Emmanuel Macron’s plans to reform the pension system. The German leg of the trip will take place as planned.Charles’ initial plan to visit France and Germany, the two biggest countries in the European Union, was meant to rebuild ties with Britain’s closest neighbors after six years of squabbling over Brexit. But French domestic troubles put paid to that.“The king and queen consort’s State Visit to France has been postponed,” the British prime minister’s Downing Street office said in a statement. “This decision was taken with the consent of all parties, after the president of France asked the British government to post...

Philippines confronts Chinese diplomats over sea disputes

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 11:02:15 GMT

MANILA, Philippines (AP) — Filipino diplomats issued a slew of protests over China’s aggressive behavior in the South China Sea, including targeting a Philippine coast guard ship with a military laser, when they met Chinese officials Friday, an official said.Territorial disputes in the busy waterway have long loomed as a potential flashpoint in Asia and have become a sensitive front in the regional rivalry between China and the United States.Washington lays no claims in the contested waters but has challenged Beijing’s extensive claims including by deploying its warships and fighter jets and repeatedly warning that it would help defend the Philippines — a treaty ally — if Philippine forces, ships and aircraft are attacked. Vietnam, Malaysia, Brunei and Taiwan also have overlapping claims in the seaway, which sits atop vast deposits of oil and gas.A Chinese delegation led by Vice Foreign Minister Sun Weidong held two days of talks starting Thursday with Philippine counterparts ...

Russian strikes in Ukraine kill 10 civilians, wound 20 more

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 11:02:15 GMT

KYIV, Ukraine (AP) — Russian long-range strikes killed at least 10 civilians and wounded 20 others in several areas of Ukraine on Friday, Ukraine’s presidential office said, as a senior Moscow official warned that the Kremlin’s forces were prepared for an expected Ukrainian counteroffensive in the coming weeks.Five people died in Kostiantynivka, a town in eastern Ukraine’s Donetsk province, when a Russian missile hit an aid station. Ukrainian authorities last year established hundreds of so-called “points of invincibility,” where residents hard-pressed by the war could warm up, charge their cellphones and get snacks.Local prosecutors said the Russians attacked Kostyantynivka with S-300 anti-aircraft missiles. The civilians who died were refugees, according to Donetsk Gov. Pavlo Kyrylenko.As the mostly artillery war of the recent winter months stretched into its second spring, Russian forces also used air-launched missiles, exploding drones and gliding bombs in their atta...

EU leaders grapple with bank risks as economy weakens

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 11:02:15 GMT

BRUSSELS (AP) — European Union leaders gathered Friday to gauge the risk of a banking crisis developing from recent global financial turbulence and hitting the economy even harder than the energy crunch tied to Russia’s war in Ukraine.The deliberations by EU government heads in Brussels follow U.S. regulators shutting down two U.S. banks, including Silicon Valley Bank, and a Swiss-orchestrated takeover of troubled lender Credit Suisse by rival UBS.The emergency actions on both sides of the Atlantic revived memories of the 2008 global financial meltdown and the ensuing EU sovereign debt crisis, which almost broke apart the euro currency now shared by 20 European countries.“For the moment, we see no reason to be worried,” Belgian Prime Minister Alexander De Croo told reporters on his way to the EU meeting. “But we monitor it really closely, almost on a daily basis, because no one knows what can happen.”The European economy has been slowing rapidly since Russia invaded Ukraine 13...

Protests continue in France; British king’s visit postponed

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 11:02:15 GMT

PARIS (AP) — Protesters angry at French President Emmanuel Macron’s pension reforms continued with scattered actions on Friday, as the unrest across the country led officials to postpone a planned state visit by Britain’s King Charles III.Although no major protests were planned on Friday, train traffic was slowed, rows of trucks blocked access to Marseille’s commercial port and debris still littered the Paris streets following the previous day’s mass demonstrations. Over 450 protesters were arrested in Paris and beyond on Thursday as some 300 demonstrations drew more than a million people nationwide to protest against unpopular pension reforms.Interior Minister Gerald Darmanin said Friday that some 441 police and gendarmes were injured as violence marred some marches. He added that 1,000 trash bins were set on fire in the French capital during the previous day’s action. Amid a weeks-long refuse collectors strike, trash bins have become a symbol of the protest...

In Your Debt: Doing the bare minimum with debt can cost you

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 11:02:15 GMT

When you’re carrying a credit card balance, paying at least the minimum due each month is certainly a start. If those payments aren’t making your overall budget feel squeezed, you have all the more reason to put payments on autopilot and not think about the total cost of your debt.“Our pace of life has gotten really busy,” says Delia Fernandez, a certified financial planner and the founder and president of Fernandez Financial Advisory LLC in Los Alamitos, California. “There’s always something that’s more important, particularly for these people who are not in a financial crisis.”But that inertia can cost you, especially with average credit card interest rates reaching 20.4% as of November 2022, according to the Federal Reserve. NerdWallet’s 2022 American Household Credit Card Debt Study, conducted by Harris Poll, found that U.S. households with revolving credit card debt are paying an average of $1,380 in interest this year.There is good news, though: Dedicating even a small amount ...

Charges pending after 3 juveniles crash stolen vehicle on South Side

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 11:02:15 GMT

CHICAGO — Three male juveniles were injured in a crash involving a stolen vehicle on the city's South Side.The incident happened around 9:18 p.m. Thursday in the 8300 block of South State Street in the Chatham neighborhood.Upon arrival, officers observed two vehicles involved in the crash. According to police, further investigation revealed that a red sedan traveling northbound struck a vehicle heading eastbound on 83rd Street. 4 hospitalized after car crashes into Crystal Lake restaurant Police said the striking vehicle was later identified as stolen. The three male juveniles inside that vehicle were placed into custody and transported to Comer Children’s Hospital and St. Bernard Hospital in good condition with minor injuries. The driver of the other vehicle was not injured. Charges are pending.