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North Korea says US soldier bolted into North after being disillusioned at American society

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:15:32 GMT

SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — North Korea asserted Wednesday that a U.S. soldier who bolted into the North across the heavily armed Korean border last month did so after being disillusioned at the inequality of American society.It’s North Korea’s first official confirmation of the detention of Private 2nd Class Travis King, who entered the North while on a tour of a Korean border village on July 18. He became the first American detained in the North in nearly five years.The North Korean official news agency, KCNA, said King told investigators that he had decided to enter North Korea because he “harbored ill feeling against inhuman mistreatment and racial discrimination within the U.S. Army.”It said King also expressed his willingness to seek refuge in North Korea or a third country, saying he “was disillusioned at the unequal American society.”KCNA is a propaganda arm of North Korea’s dictatorship and often releases statements and articles carefully calibrated to refle...

Young environmentalists won a landmark climate change ruling in Montana. Will it change anything?

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:15:32 GMT

BILLINGS, Mont. (AP) — Young environmental activists prevailed in a closely watched Montana lawsuit that said state officials weren’t doing enough to protect them from climate change.Legal observers called it a landmark victory for the 16 plaintiffs: It marks the first time a court in the U.S. has declared that a government has a constitutional duty to protect people from climate change.Here’s what to know about Monday’s potentially groundbreaking ruling that followed a first-of-its-kind trial earlier this summer:WHAT DID THE RULING SAY?State District Judge District Judge Kathy Seeley said officials violated Montana’s highly protective constitution by refusing to consider the impacts of greenhouse gas emissions when they’ve approved coal mines, oil drilling and new power plants.Attorneys for Montana argued the state’s emissions were too small to make much difference in climate change.Seeley rejected the argument, saying essentially that every ton ...

Special prosecutor will examine actions of Georgia’s lieutenant governor in Trump election meddling

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:15:32 GMT

ATLANTA (AP) — A Georgia state agency said Tuesday that it will name a special prosecutor to consider whether the state’s Republican lieutenant governor should face criminal charges after former president Donald Trump and 18 of his allies were indicted Monday for working to overturn the state’s 2020 election results.Lt. Gov. Burt Jones was one of 16 Republican electors who falsely claimed that Trump won Georgia. As a state senator, he also sought a special session of Georgia’s Legislature aimed at overturning President Joe Biden’s narrow win in the state. But Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis was barred by a judge from indicting Jones. Superior Court Judge Robert McBurney agreed with Jones that Willis, an elected Democrat, had a conflict of interest because she hosted a fundraiser for the Democrat who lost to Jones in the 2022 election for lieutenant governor.McBurney said in a hearing that Willis’ decision to host the fundraiser was a “what are you thinking?&#...

Judge calls new Texas election law unconstitutional; state says it will appeal ruling

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:15:32 GMT

HOUSTON (AP) — A judge on Tuesday called unconstitutional a new law passed by the GOP-led Texas Legislature that will dictate how elections are run in the state’s most populous county, which is a Democratic stronghold and home to Houston.The law, which would abolish a position that oversees elections in Harris County, was temporarily blocked by state District Judge Karin Crump in Austin after county officials filed a lawsuit earlier this month.But the judge’s order, issued Monday, was short-lived. It was put on hold on Tuesday after the Texas Attorney General’s Office filed a notice that it will appeal to the Texas Supreme Court. The new law, set to take effect Sept. 1, was pushed through by Republican lawmakers who accused Harris County officials of mismanaging recent elections. Democrats accused Republicans of singling out the county because, like other large urban areas around the state, it has increasingly voted Democratic.In a statement, the Texas Attorney General’s Office said...

Victim walks into hospital with life-threatening injuries after Rexdale shooting

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:15:32 GMT

Toronto police say a male has walked into a hospital with life-threatening injuries after a shooting in Rexdale on Tuesday. Police were called after shots were fired in the Finch Avenue West and Martin Grove Road area at around 4 p.m.Initially it was believed that no one was hurt in the incident, but in a follow up police said a male victim attended hospital on his own. His injuries are critical. No further details were immediately available. More to come

US launches program to provide electricity to more Native American homes

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:15:32 GMT

ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (AP) — The U.S. Interior Department on Tuesday unveiled a new program to bring electricity to more homes in Native American communities as the Biden administration looks to funnel more money toward climate and renewable energy projects. The program will be funded by an initial $72.5 million. In all, federal officials said $150 million is being invested from the Inflation Reduction Act to support the electrification of homes in tribal communities, many of which have seen mixed success over the decades as officials have tried to address the lack of adequate infrastructure in remote areas.In 2022, the U.S. Energy Department’s Office of Indian Energy issued a report citing that nearly 17,000 tribal homes were without electricity, with most being in southwestern states and in Alaska. Assistant Secretary for Indian Affairs Bryan Newland testified before Congress earlier this year that 1 in 5 homes on the Navajo Nation and more than one-third of homes on the neighbo...

A Pennsylvania study suggests links between fracking and asthma, lymphoma in children

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:15:32 GMT

HARRISBURG, Pa. (AP) — Children who lived closer to natural gas wells in heavily drilled Pennsylvania were more likely to develop a relatively rare form of cancer, and nearby residents of all ages had an increased chance of severe asthma reactions, researchers said in reports released Tuesday evening.The taxpayer-funded research by the University of Pittsburgh adds to a body of evidence suggesting links between the gas industry and certain health problems. The researchers found what they called significant associations between gas industry activity and two ailments: asthma and a relatively rare type of cancer in children called lymphoma.The researchers were unable to say whether the drilling caused the health problems, because the studies weren’t designed to do that. Instead, the researchers combed health records to try to determine possible associations based on how close people lived to natural gas wells.Energy companies use hydraulic fracturing, or fracking, to capture natural ga...

Man with ties to Orland Park church named in indictment against former President Trump

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:15:32 GMT

CHICAGO -- A second person with Chicagoland ties has been named in the fourth indictment against former President Donald Trump.The former president and allegedly 18 allies "knowingly and willfully joined a conspiracy" to reverse the 2020 election totals in favor of Trump, according to the Fulton County District Attorney's Office on Monday. Meet the 18 people charged with Trump in Georgia indictment Stephen Cliffgard Lee, a public relations executive and pastor with ties to Living Word Lutheran Church in Orland Park, was named in the Georgia indictment along with former President Trump over their efforts to overturn his 2020 election loss in the state.70-year-old Lee has been indicted for violating Georgia's Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations (RICO) Act, two counts of criminal attempt to commit influencing witnesses and conspiracy to commit solicitation of false statements and writings influencing witnesses.The 98-page indictment alleges Lee, who is also reportedly a po...

'The honor of my life:' Chicago's former top doc speaks out after sudden firing

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:15:32 GMT

CHICAGO — Chicago’s former top doc is speaking out.As commissioner of the Chicago’s Department of Public Health, Dr Allison Arwady helped citizens navigate the many unknowns during the Covid-19 pandemic, regularly facing the community and media to provide guidance and answers. And while she doesn’t have all the answers when it comes to her sudden firing from the post she loved, she says she’ll always be a champion for public health and patients.“When I look back, I’m not thinking about the way it ended,” she said.She was always on call. The internal medicine specialist who chose public health over private practice showed her competence and commitment during the rigors of Covid.“It’s been really the honor of my life to be able to lead my team through this,” she said. “But it is a lot of the work that doesn’t get talked about as much that in many ways I am most proud of.” Mayor Johnson fires Dr. Allison Arwady as Chicago Department of Public Health Commissioner That work includes pr...

Skilling: Sunny, warm Wednesday before showers arrive

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:15:32 GMT

Skies have cleared amid gusty, full fetch NNE winds which have raced with cool temps (for this time of year) the length of Lake Michigan. As is typical with "full fetch" winds—i.e. winds which race southward the entire length of Lake Michigan----high waves and rip currents have resulted.  The rain tallies are in from Monday's storm system from across the Chicago metro area. The spread in totals with Monday storms was even evident between the big airports here in the city. MIDWAY recorded 2.81" reports Frank Wachowski, veteran National Weather Service observer responsible for the measurements there. On the city's Northwest Side at O'Hare, the city's official weather observation site, the Monday tally was 0.80".  Oak Park reported nearly 4" of rain while DeMotte, Lowell and Wheatfield, Indiana had rains measured in hundredths of an inch----typical of the wide spread in warm season rains which are so common.Gusts over the open lake have approached 40 mph Tuesday. The high tem...