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Editorial: Boston voters have opportunity to change City Council

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 12:00:25 GMT

Boston has a chance to hit the reset button in Tuesday’s Boston City Council primary.Are residents happy with the status quo in which scandal-plagued councilors put career before constituents, or do Bostonians want an injection of experience, character and dedication to public service?In the race for District 5 race, Ricardo Arroyo, instead of stepping down when his ethics violation tarnished the council by association, is instead running for re-election. There have been calls for his resignation, but Arroyo lets those go to voicemail.The city has a problem with gun violence, lack of affordable housing and the opioid crisis at Mass and Cass. The progressive agenda has done little to nothing to fix these issues. What Boston needs are more voices of reason on the council, and for District 5, that is Jose Ruiz.This 29-year Boston Police officer knows about crime on our streets and how it hits our neighborhoods. Ruiz has an impressive resume of working to build stronger communitie...

Dog was fine, now has kidney failure

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 12:00:25 GMT

Dear Dr. John,I had three dogs, but I lost the oldest to a coyote a few months ago. I was devastated. Over the past few days, my nine-year-old Miniature Schnauzer started acting strange. He became quite lethargic, stopped eating, and started drinking a lot. I took him to my vet who ran blood tests and said that he was in kidney failure. His values were very high. What does that mean? They suggest I bring him in for fluids for four hours every day for the next five days. My dog was fine until a few days ago and I have no idea what might have caused this. Could it be diet, chewing the grass, or eating a white flower in front of my house? How does one know what kind of chances he might have for getting better or a longer life? What do you recommend? S.S.Dear S.S.,One does need to be wary in areas where coyotes roam and I’m sorry for your loss. Renal or kidney failure can be classified into three basic types: acute, subacute, and chronic. One needs to look at the specific blood values a...

TV Q&A: Are soaps exempt from Hollywood strikes?

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 12:00:25 GMT

You have questions. I have some answers.Q: My wife is a devoted “General Hospital” fan. With the writers and actors on strike, we assumed ABC would have to start reruns at some point but they haven’t. Did soap operas get some sort of waiver from the striking unions so they could stay in production? And, when not affected by strikes, what is the normal length of time between a soap’s taping of an episode and when it airs?A: Issues like this are not simple, so I will turn to Deadline.com, which offered an explanation as the actors strike loomed: “Soap actors are employed under the SAG-AFTRA National Code of Fair Practice for Network Television Broadcasting (aka Network Code). It is different than the film and TV collective bargaining agreement that SAG-AFTRA is currently negotiating with the AMPTP. Negotiated between SAG-AFTRA and the Big 4 broadcast networks as well as other producers, the National Code covers soaps as well as morning news shows, talk shows, variety, reality, g...

Schoen: The southern border remains Biden’s Achilles heel

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 12:00:25 GMT

Unfortunately for the Biden administration, immigration – a considerable Achilles Heel for the president – figures to be a significant issue in the 2024 presidential election. This is surely an unwelcome development for Biden’s reelection prospects, as the president continues to struggle with balancing voters’ demands for border security with the left’s calls for a more sympathetic immigration policy.To be clear, while the economy and inflation will surely be the top priorities when voters go to the polls next November, immigration will not be far behind. In fact, roughly one-quarter (24%) of registered voters say immigration is the most important issue facing the country, just slightly lower than those saying the economy (26%), and inflation (34%) – the top concern – according to a recent Harvard-Harris poll.Moreover, immigration is one of Biden’s biggest vulnerabilities. Only 31% of Americans – including 27% of Independents – approve of how Biden has handled immigration. Comparati...

Pooch pooper scoopers bag pretty big bucks

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 12:00:25 GMT

Fendi, the 3-year-old golden retriever who can’t get enough cuddles, stared at the expanse of Mullica Hill, New Jersey, lawn where she does her business.There in the grass, which she’s been using as her personal privy, walked an intruder — Emily LaBeaume, a professional poop scooper and co-owner of Big Business Scoopers of Pitman.Using a rake and a bucket with a long handle, LaBeaume was picking up what Fendi had been putting down.Fendi’s owner, Taylor Kemery, 31, a pediatric nurse practitioner pays LaBeaume’s company around $20 a week. “This is a great convenience,” she said. “I never enjoyed picking that stuff up. Ever.”If you can pony up bucks for someone to cut your lawn, deliver your groceries or assemble Ikea furniture, why not throw money at a practitioner who performs an unceasingly odious task?“Customers are either grossed out, physically unable, or don’t have the time,” said Tim Stone, 36, of Dallas, preside...

PBS spotlights ‘The Busing Battleground’ in Boston

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 12:00:25 GMT

On Sept. 12, 1974, Boston stepped into the nation’s spotlight when Black and white students were, for the first time, bused between neighborhoods as ordered by a federal desegregation court.As “The Busing Battleground,” a 2-part, 2-hour documentary airing Monday on “American Experience” on PBS (GBH) vividly recounts, the intense and violent reaction saw protestors heaving rocks and epithets and children unfortunate targets.Directed by screenwriter Sharon Grimberg and Cyndee Readdean, “Busing” illuminates how Boston’s school integration issues went back decades.It begins on national TV in August 1963 as President John F. Kennedy declared civil rights a moral issue and being Black meant you were never given an equal chance. For decades, the all-white Boston school committee never made an effort to upgrade segregated Black schools. That court order was a last resort.“It’s a very resonant coincidence that there was that school meeting and JFK on television at the very ...

Dear Abby: Had it up to here with pal’s hostile hubby

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 12:00:25 GMT

Dear Abby: I’m writing for advice about my best friend “Eva’s” husband. I have known her more than 25 years. Her husband, “Dan,” doesn’t get along with me, but we both agreed to remain civil and neutral for the sake of the friendship. When there are get-togethers at their home, Dan usually stays in the basement. I stay away from him and don’t say a word to him.The last time I was there, he made rude and insulting comments directed at me. I didn’t react. Eva and I have agreed to not let him get in the way of our friendship. I’m not sure how to handle this, because Eva asked me not to respond, but Dan is pushing me to a point where it’s hard to not say something. When I told Eva about the situation, she said she’d talk to him. She never got back to me, and I feel she just brushes it off. Please help. — Stuck Friend in IllinoisDear Friend: It’s time for another chat with Eva about the treatment you are ...

'We got lucky': Aircraft makes emergency landing into Gillespie Field fence

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 12:00:25 GMT

EL CAJON, Calif. -- One person was slightly injured during an aircraft emergency near Gillespie Field Saturday morning, authorities confirmed.The Heartland Fire and Rescue Department responded to the scene at Airport Drive and Magnolia Avenue around 11 a.m., fire officials told FOX 5.The airplane crashed into the fence surrounding Gillespie Field, narrowly missing a vehicle on the road, Heartland Fire Battalion Chief Dave Hardenburger said. Officials say two people -- a pilot instructor and his student -- were on board the aircraft at the time of the incident. Police shooting involving a 16-year-old prompts road closures in Carlsbad One person reported to have slight injuries and the other walked away uninjured. Heartland Fire says both refused transportation to a medical facility. Fire crews respond to an aircraft emergency near Gillespie Field on Saturday, Sept. 9, 2023. (KSWB)Fire crews respond to an aircraft emergency near Gillespie Field on Saturday, Sept. 9, 2023. ...

Moroccan villagers mourn after earthquake brings destruction to their rural mountain home

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 12:00:25 GMT

MOULAY BRAHIM, Morocco (AP) — The ground shook with a force few had ever felt, thundering through the remote Moroccan village in the dark of night. When the earthquake was over late Friday, the town carved into the Atlas Mountains lay in devastation — possibly dozens dead, scores of homes crumpled and walls reduced to rubble. Soon crews were listening for desperate sounds of life within the ruins of Moulay Brahim.A village of fewer than 3,000 people, Moulay Brahim attracts tourists and outdoor enthusiasts with its stunning vistas and proximity to Marrakech. Streets brimmed with small hotels and cafes overlooking gorges and green valleys.But after the 6.8-magnitude earthquake that killed more than 2,000 across Morocco, the scene in the village is bleak.People in the poor rural community about 45 kilometers (28 miles) northeast of the quake epicenter live in homes made of clay brick and cinder block, many of which are no longer standing or safe to inhabit. Fallen walls exposed the inn...

G20 leaders pay their respects at a Gandhi memorial on the final day of the summit in India

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 12:00:25 GMT

NEW DELHI (AP) — G20 leaders paid their respects at a memorial site dedicated to Indian independence leader Mahatma Gandhi on Sunday — a day after the forum added a new member and reached agreements on a range of issues but softened their language on Russia’s war in Ukraine. India, this year’s Group of 20 leading rich and developing nations host, ended the first day of the summit with diplomatic wins. As the first session began, India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced that the group was adding the African Union as a member — part of the Indian leader’s drive to uplift the Global South. A few hours later, India announced that it was able to get the disparate group to sign off on a final statement, but only after softening language on the contentious issue of Russia’s war in Ukraine.With these major agenda items taken care of, Canada’s Justin Trudeau, Australia’s Anthony Albanese and Japan’s Fumio Kishida, among others, shook hands Sunday and posed for photos with Modi at...