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Why progressive lawmakers are fighting against a TikTok ban

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:11:27 GMT

Progressive lawmakers are emerging as the fiercest defenders of TikTok on Capitol Hill as the push to ban the popular video sharing app heats up in Washington.A handful of left-leaning lawmakers — including members of the so-called “Squad” — have voiced support for TikTok and opposition to banning the platform, taking on a vocal coalition of bipartisan members who believe the app should be prohibited in the U.S.The anti-TikTok ban crowd — while recognizing that the app poses concerns — has advocated for a broader conversation about data privacy and social media, arguing that zeroing in on TikTok would not alleviate the issues at hand. Members have also pointed to free speech concerns and the practical and political positives that come with the platform.“I think what you’re seeing is [the] progressive caucus coming out, you know, one, on behalf of the First Amendment, two, more importantly, that we want to do something across all social media platforms around priv...

Tesla is opening a Megafactory for huge batteries in China

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:11:27 GMT

(CNN) — Tesla will open a Megapack battery factory in Shanghai, it said on Sunday, as it doubles down on its investment in China even as political tension rises between Beijing and Washington.The news was announced just days after Airbus unveiled plans for a second final-assembly line in the country’s north, with officials publicly rolling out the welcome wagon for foreign investors.The Tesla factory will be able to produce 10,000 Megapacks, which are very large batteries used to store huge amounts of electricity, the company said in a tweet. It announced the new factory with a picture of a signing ceremony in China.“Tesla opening Megapack factory in Shanghai to supplement output of Megapack factory in California,” Elon Musk said on Twitter.Megapacks are meant to be used as massive batteries to help stabilize energy grids. Each unit can store enough energy to power an average of 3,600 homes for one hour, the company says. They are designed for utilities and l...

Nearly 2,000 people have searched for mom who’s been missing for over a week

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:11:27 GMT

(CNN) — Nearly 2,000 people have searched this week for a missing woman in Minnesota, authorities said in a Facebook post, Friday.Madeline Kingsbury, 26, was last seen the morning of March 31, according to the Winona Police Department.Searchers include volunteers, first responders, and members of the fire department.Kingsbury did not show up at work as expected the day she disappeared, and did not answer calls from family and friends, police said. She then didn’t pick up her kids from daycare that afternoon or make other arrangements.“All of this is extremely out of character for her,” police said.Authorities said they’re searching for video that might show where Kingsbury’s van, a 2014 dark blue Chrysler Town and Country, might have gone.Police said they believe her vehicle may have traveled from Winona to eastern Fillmore County on the day of her disappearance. They have asked residents in that area to check their “video cameras, doorbell ...

Marine experts investigate after more than 30 dead Kemp Ridley sea turtles wash up on Southern Mississippi shores

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:11:27 GMT

GULFPORT, Miss. (WSVN) — Experts at the Institute for Marine Mammal Studies (IMMS) received several calls of over 30 endangered Kemp Ridley sea turtles found dead along the shorelines of Jackson, Hancock and Harrison counties in Southern Mississippi. Although finding dead sea turtles are common during stranding season, which occurs between the months of February and August, IMMS stranding coordinator Theresa Madrigal said these numbers are above average. “Once we receive a report about a stranded sea turtle, we mobilize our team here and we go out,” she said. “What we do is collect photographs and basic data on the animal. We are looking at the scene basically like a crime scene.”The institute normally finds the remains of 60 dead sea turtles during the stranding season, but Madrigal believed the winds on the coast could be a factor in the high number of deaths.“The winds have been pretty high the last few days in the direction to push carcasses o...

‘He was such a nice guy’: Hopkinton community mourns man killed in house fire

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:11:27 GMT

The Hopkinton community is mourning the loss of a man who was killed in a house fire early Sunday morning.Crews responding to a reported fire on Hayward Street around 1:15 a.m. found heavy fire coming from the house and immediately requested mutual aid, according to Hopkinton Fire Chief William Miller.When they learned that there were still two people in the house, crews made an aggressive internal search and found an older man in a hallway and an older woman in a bedroom, Miller said.Officials say the man was pronounced dead at Milford Regional Medical Center. The woman was taken to a Boston hospital to be treated for her injuries.A dog also died in the fire.“He was such a nice guy,” said Tom Smith, a friend of the victim. Smith said he was supposed to see his friend Easter morning. “I was just at the coffee shop because he has coffee with a bunch of us guys at Dunkin Donuts, and I said ‘I hope it wasn’t near Don’s house,'” Smith said. R...

Lincoln Park mansion once owned by White Sox pitcher Jack McDowell sells for $2.1M

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:11:27 GMT

A five-bedroom, 6,100-square-foot vintage brick mansion in Lincoln Park that former Chicago White Sox pitcher Jack McDowell once owned sold on March 24 for $2.12 million.McDowell, 57, pitched for the White Sox from 1987 until 1994, and was a three-time All-Star and a Cy Young Award winner. After his 13-year Major League Baseball career ended in 1999, McDowell continued playing guitar in a rock band. In 2021, he managed a summer collegiate baseball team in Burlington, N.C. — not far from his home base in Charlotte.In Lincoln Park, McDowell paid $450,000 in 1991 for the two-story house. He sold it in 2002 for $975,000 to the couple who just sold it.The sellers expanded the mansion in 2005 with a 3,500-square-foot addition. Situated on an extra-wide, 38-foot lot, the mansion has 5-1/2 bathrooms, an attached and heated garage, custom woodwork, millwork, hardwood floors throughout, 10-foot ceilings on the main level, nine-foot ceilings elsewhere, an original front door and mantel a...

Chris Perkins’ 2023 NFL mock draft: Who will still be available when Dolphins make their first pick at No. 51?

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:11:27 GMT

The South Florida Sun Sentinel’s initial 2023 NFL mock draft features Dolphins columnist Chris Perkins making selections through pick No. 51, the Dolphins’ first pick. Trades, which are sure to happen, weren’t factored into this mock draft. The NFL draft is April 27-29 in Kansas City.1. Carolina Panthers (from Chicago): Bryce Young, QB, AlabamaTough choice between Young and Ohio State’s C.J. Stroud, and it’s always tougher to tell with Alabama quarterbacks because they’re surrounded by so much great talent.Top needs: QB, Edge rusher, ILB2. Houston Texans: C.J. Stroud, QB, Ohio StateThe Texans come away with a top-notch prospect in Stroud, although he might not be as NFL-ready as Young.Top needs: QB, Edge, WR3. Arizona Cardinals: Will Anderson Jr., Edge rusher, AlabamaArizona might trade out of this spot. If not, Anderson fits the bill as a high-quality pass rusher, a need with J.J. Watt retiring.Top needs: Edge, CB, OL4. Indianapolis Colts: Anthon...

Chicago baseball report: Is Pedro Grifol concerned with the White Sox pitching — and how will the Cubs celebrate home runs this year?

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:11:27 GMT

The Chicago Cubs and White Sox have started the season with plenty of drama, some of it unwanted.Cubs manager David Ross fended off Twitter critics after a questionable move in a loss in Cincinnati, while Sox manager Pedro Grifol dealt with pitching woes in a historically bad start by his staff.There’s a long way to go, but things are already off to an interesting start for both teams.Every week throughout the season, Tribune baseball writers will provide an update on what happened and what’s ahead for the Cubs and Sox.Cubs playing it old schoolEveryone has a gimmick these days for celebrating a home run hitter’s return to the dugout.The Milwaukee Brewers crown their guy with a cheesehead, and the Cincinnati Reds have a Viking theme. As former Cubs President Theo Epstein often said, it’s a copycat league.So what will be the Cubs’ home run celebration shtick? Or will this be a shtick-free season?“It has to be organic,” outfielder Ian Happ sai...

In mass rally, Israeli settlers march to West Bank outpost

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:11:27 GMT

JERUSALEM (AP) — Thousands of Israelis led by at least seven Cabinet ministers marched Monday to an evacuated West Bank settlement, in a defiant signal that Israel’s most right-wing government in history is determined to accelerate settlement building on occupied lands despite international opposition.The mass rally also threatened to further raise tensions that have been heightened by days of unrest across the region over a contested Jerusalem holy site. In new violence, Israel troops killed a 15-year-old Palestinian boy during an arrest raid in the occupied West Bank.Monday’s march took place in the northern West Bank — the scene of repeated violence in recent months. Thousands of Israeli police and army forces were reportedly deployed to secure the march, which added to the already combustible atmosphere that has accompanied the overlap of major Jewish and Muslim holy days. Tensions between Israelis and Palestinians have reached a fever pitch in recent weeks surrounding the...

New BOJ head says banks stable, rules out major policy shift

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:11:27 GMT

TOKYO (AP) — The new governor of Japan’s central bank signaled Monday that he plans no drastic changes in its ultra-low interest rate policy, sticking to earlier messaging on the topic. Bank of Japan Gov. Kazuo Ueda said Japan’s financial institutions are not facing the sorts of turmoil seen recently with bank failures in the U.S. and Europe. He pledged to do his utmost to maintain stability in both prices and financial systems in the world’s third-largest economy.“Markets have calmed and, as far as the impact on the Japanese system, we have maintained the easy monetary policy, and there is ample capital and fluidity,” Ueda said.Japan’s central bank is seeing its first leadership change in a decade, at a time when inflationary pressures around the world remain a risk and central banks are fighting back with big interest rate increases meant to slow economic activity. Ueda is taking over what many see as the unfinished work of his predecessor, Haruhiko Kuroda, whose second five...