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Despite market slump, high rates dim homebuyer affordability

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 10:38:00 GMT

LOS ANGELES (AP) — Homeownership is likely to remain a pipe dream for many Americans this spring homebuying season.The nation’s worst housing slump in nearly a decade stoked hope among prospective buyers that homes could be scooped up more easily. But while prices appear to have peaked last summer, they still ended 2022 higher than they were at the end of 2021. And the median U.S. home price has increased 42% since 2019.A series of interest rate increases by the Federal Reserve last year is making matters worse for homebuyers, pushing mortgage rates to their highest level in two decades.The average long-term rate on a 30-year mortgage reached a two-decade high of 7.08% in the fall. Rates eased in December and January, but have been climbing since early February. The average rate hit 6.73% last week, the highest level since early November. A year ago, it averaged 3.85%. That rate translates into a roughly 49% increase in the monthly payment on a median-priced U.S. home than a year ag...

Italian’s espresso machine a hit at World Baseball Classic

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 10:38:00 GMT

TOKYO (AP) — Old-time baseball players would be appalled. Italy’s dugout at the World Baseball Classic comes outfitted with an espresso machine. And it’s getting lots of attention.“We are kind of shocked, actually, because this is something in Italian culture that’s sort of like water. I mean, coffee would be right after water,” Italy manager Mike Piazza said.Piazza said he was content with the Nespresso machine in the dugout, but dissatisfied the coffee was being served in a paper cup and not a ceramic one.“I don’t like espresso out of a paper cup. It’s kind of sacrilege,” Piazza said. “But when it’s the only option you have, you have to deal with it. Maybe next time we’ll bring the metallic machine with the copper eagle on the top and someone in there knocking espressos out. You have to make the most with the tools you have.”Andre Marcon, the president of the Italian Baseball Federation, said he was content with the exposure Italian baseball was getting — even fo...

Indonesia arrests 4 foreigners for alleged drug smuggling

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 10:38:00 GMT

JAKARTA, Indonesia (AP) — Indonesian authorities said Wednesday they have arrested four foreigners for allegedly trying to smuggle drugs into the country, including a Nigerian man who had swallowed dozens of capsules filled with more than a kilogram (2.2 pounds) of methamphetamine.A Brazilian man and three Nigerian men were arrested separately between January and March at Soekarno-Hatta international airport in Jakarta and several apartments in the capital, police spokesperson Trunoyudo Wisnu Andika told a news conference in Jakarta.Indonesia is a major hub for drug trafficking in Southeast Asia and has strict drug laws, with convicted smugglers sometimes executed by firing squad.Gatot Sugeng Wibowo, chief of customs at Soekarno-Hatta, said officers arrested Malachi Onyekachukwu Umanu, a Nigerian who arrived at the airport from Ethiopia on March 5 with no suitcase or bag.His suspicious behavior prompted officers to check his body, and an X-ray turned up some 64 capsules inside his s...

AI child-welfare tool may flag parents with disabilities

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 10:38:00 GMT

PITTSBURGH (AP) — For the two weeks that the Hackneys’ baby girl lay in a Pittsburgh hospital bed weak from dehydration, her parents rarely left her side, sometimes sleeping on the fold-out sofa in the room.They stayed with their daughter around the clock when she was moved to a rehab center to regain her strength. Finally, the 8-month-old stopped batting away her bottles and started putting on weight again.“She was doing well and we started to ask when can she go home,” Lauren Hackney said. “And then from that moment on, at the time, they completely stonewalled us and never said anything.”The couple was stunned when child welfare officials showed up, told them they were negligent and took their daughter away.“They had custody papers and they took her right there and then,” Lauren Hackney recalled. “And we started crying.”More than a year later, their daughter, now 2, remains in foster care. The Hackneys, who have developmental disabilities, are struggling to understand how taking t...

Capital Region snow emergencies for March 13-15 storm

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 10:38:00 GMT

ALBANY, N.Y. (NEWS10) -- A winter storm is set to hit the Capital Region starting Monday night into Tuesday. According to Meteorologist Jill Szwed, this will be the biggest storm of the season yet. Get all of the latest news, weather, sports, and entertainment delivered right to your inbox! The entire NEWS10 area is under a Winter Storm Warning between Monday afternoon and Wednesday morning. The high impact, long duration winter storm will bring heavy wet snow and gusty winds. Power outages are expected.Albany County Executive Dan McCoy has declared a state of emergency for the county due to the impending storm starting at 8 p.m. on Monday. The order directs all Albany County departments and agencies "to take whatever steps necessary to protect life and property, public infrastructure, and provide such emergency assistance deemed necessary." 03/13/2023: Gearing up for a big nor’easter Schenectady County has also declared a state of emergency. The emergency restricts travel ...

Skier rescued in Lake Placid

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 10:38:00 GMT

LAKE PLACID, N.Y. (NEWS10) -- A 67-year-old skier was rescued in Lake Placid by Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) forest rangers on Tuesday, March 7, around 11:05 a.m. Forest rangers say the skier hit a tree near the Penny Glades. Get all of the latest news, weather, sports, and entertainment delivered right to your inbox! Forest rangers reached the injured skier 15 minutes after receiving a report. They say they helped the 67-year-old, who is from Lake Placid, to his home and performed a medical evaluation. They noticed a large contusion on his hip, a laceration, and swelling on his face. An ambulance was called a short time after. Lake Placid Ambulance took the skier to the hospital at 11:47 a.m. Forest rangers did not comment on the skier's condition after the ambulance picked him up.

Queensbury's Brigid Duffy guiding Army lacrosse to hot start

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 10:38:00 GMT

WEST POINT, N.Y. (NEWS10) -- Brigid Duffy is the kind of player any coach would want on their team. That's why Army West Point has her on two teams. Get all of the latest news, weather, sports, and entertainment delivered right to your inbox! After making an instant impact on the Black Knights girls soccer team in the fall - her eight points were the third-most on the team - the Queensbury High School grad has emerged as one of the top freshman lacrosse players in the country.Duffy's team-high 32 points and 23 goals have paced Army to a 6-0 start, and a top-15 ranking, with two of those wins coming against top-25 squads.The star midfielder sits second in the nation among freshmen in points per game and goals per game. But she's not the only weapon the Black Knights boast; three other players join her in double figures in goals.While Duffy garners the majority of attention from opposing defenses, she believes it's that offensive balance that's led to the team's early-season success...

Opening: MEPs hold minute of silence for lives lost at sea and in train crash 

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 10:38:00 GMT

President Metsola led MEPs in a minute of silence in memory of the recent lives lost at sea and in the train crash in Greece, at the opening of the session in Strasbourg, Plenary session.With more lives lost at sea in the past few weeks, the president called on all those involved to match Parliament’s ambition and address this issue.Speaking of the train crash that shook Greece, President Metsola said the Parliament mourns with the people of Greece and the families of the victims. The EU stands ready to assist as required, she said.The UN Black Seas Grain Initiative, which could expire next week, has given millions access to food and basic supplies from Ukraine, said the President. The Parliament is calling for it to be renewed as quickly as possible - the situation is urgent and dire, she added.Changes to the agendaWednesdayThe title of European Council and Commission statements - Preparation of the European Council meeting of 23-24 March 2023 is changed into Conclusions of the Spe...

Bringing Human Traffickers to Justice in Sudan

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 10:38:00 GMT

In early January, notorious human trafficker Kidane Zekarias Habtemariam was arrested in Sudan – writes Carlos Uriarte Sánchez . Two years ago, Kidane was sentenced in absentia to life in prison in Ethiopia for human trafficking and extortion. Able to escape the authorities for the past two years, Interpol and police in the UAE, Sudan, Ethiopia, and the Netherlands cooperated behind the scenes to track him to Sudan where he was taken into custody and extradited to the UAE to face money laundering charges.Sudan’s participation in the international law enforcement initiative that led to the detainment of Kidane underscores Sudan’s commitment to halting human trafficking on its soil. Since 2017, Sudan has risen from a low Tier 3 – the worst rating for human trafficking – to a high Tier 2, as reported by the U.S. State Department. The United States and Sudan’s other allies and partners must continue to work with Sudan – which is critical to global anti-trafficking efforts given its...

Bridge: March 15, 2023

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 10:38:00 GMT

“I won’t say my partner is opinionated,” a club player told me, “but he dispenses advice by the bushel and takes it by the grain.”He showed me today’s deal.“I was South and opened 1NT. My partner used Stayman and raised my two spades to three. Naturally, I went on to game. West led the ten of clubs, and when I saw dummy, I was appalled.”East returned a club at Trick Two. Declarer ruffed in dummy, led a trump to his queen, returned a diamond to dummy’s king, finessed with the jack of trumps and cashed the ace.LAST TRUMP“I next led the A-K and a third heart,” South said. “East won and led another club, forcing out my last trump, and after I took my good heart, West won the last two tricks.“My partner said he made a winning bid. I think he’s nuts.”North’s two-club bid wouldn’t have occurred to me, but South could make four spades. After his second trump finesse wins, he must play three...