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Montana says 1st-in-nation TikTok ban protects people. TikTok says it violates their rights

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:00:06 GMT

By AMY BETH HANSON and HALELUYA HADERO (Associated Press)HELENA, Mont. (AP) — Montana became the first state in the U.S. to enact a complete ban on TikTok on Wednesday when Republican Gov. Greg Gianforte signed a measure that’s more sweeping than any other state’s attempts to curtail the social media app, which is owned by a Chinese tech company. The measure, scheduled to take effect on Jan. 1, 2024, is expected to be challenged legally and will serve as a testing ground for the TikTok-free America that many national lawmakers have envisioned. Cybersecurity experts say it could be difficult to enforce the ban.“Today, Montana takes the most decisive action of any state to protect Montanans’ private data and sensitive personal information from being harvested by the Chinese Communist Party,” Gianforte said in a statement.TikTok spokesperson Brooke Oberwetter argued that the law infringes on people’s First Amendment rights and is unlawful. She ...

‘I thought I’m going to die’: Eloy Jiménez is pushing to return to the Chicago White Sox after an appendectomy

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:00:06 GMT

Eloy Jiménez was asked how he was feeling Wednesday afternoon.“A couple weeks ago I thought I’m going to die,” Jiménez said, “so I feel really good.”The Chicago White Sox outfielder/designated hitter spoke with reporters for the first time since undergoing an appendectomy May 6 at Cincinnati’s Good Samaritan Hospital.Jiménez said he woke up that morning and “all my abs hurt.”“It was bad,” he said. “I can’t even see or lay down or stand up. It was really bad for a moment. I really thought I was going to die, but now I’m here and I feel good.“Appendicitis never crossed my mind. I thought it was something that I ate, something funny. But as soon as we got to the doctor, they said right away it was appendicitis. At the beginning, I didn’t even want to have surgery, but you know, health comes first before baseball. So it was tough, but now I’m here and I feel good.”The ini...

Domingo German’s suspension puts Yankees in sticky roster situation

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:00:06 GMT

TORONTO — Domingo German began serving a 10-game suspension Wednesday after umpires tossed the Yankees’ starter from Tuesday’s contest against the Blue Jays following a routine sticky substance check.Such ejections come with an automatic suspension and undisclosed fine, and the Yankees can’t replace German on their roster while the right-hander is sidelined. German was able to appeal, but he opted not to.German expressed frustrations over a lack of clarity on how to prevent future ejections, and he insisted that he only used rosin against the Blue Jays on Tuesday. But crew chief James Hoye claimed the pitcher had “the stickiest hand I’ve ever felt.”“It’s not rosin. It was definitely not rosin,” the umpire said, per a pool reporter. “Because I’ve felt hands with rosin. That wasn’t rosin. It was extremely sticky. And rosin usually is kind of like a little tackiness. This was sticky, as in my fingers had a ha...

Yankees Notebook: Luis Severino set for 2023 debut

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:00:06 GMT

TORONTO — The Yankees lost a starter to suspension Wednesday, but they’re getting one back from injury this weekend.Luis Severino will make his 2023 debut against the Reds Sunday in Cincinnati, per Aaron Boone. Severino, who suffered a lat injury at the end of spring training, has made two rehab starts, including one for Double-A Somerset on Tuesday.Severino got knocked around a bit in that outing, totaling six hits, two earned runs, one walk and three strikeouts over 3.1 innings and 58 pitches. But Boone believes the right-hander is ready to rejoin the Yankees’ rotation as he continues building up.“All the stuff was there,” the manager said before the Yankees’ Wednesday game against the Blue Jays. “He was 95-98 [mph], slider, changeup, looked healthy. I think he’s ready to go.”Severino was an option for Sunday before the Yankees lost Domingo German to a sticky substance suspension, which he began serving Wednesday. German, who a...

Documents: Read the two federal investigations of Massachusetts US Attorney Rachael Rollins

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:00:06 GMT

Two federal agencies on Wednesday released reports on investigations of Massachusetts US Attorney Rachael Rollins.  Ahead of the release of the reports, on Tuesday, Rollins said through her lawyer that she would resign her office by Friday.A report by the Department of Justice Office of the Inspector General found that Rollins improperly used her office to influence the election in the race for Suffolk District Attorney. That report also concluded Rollins lied under oath to investigators, improperly attended a Democratic fundraiser featuring First Lady Dr. Jill Biden, and violated the policies of her office by improperly soliciting and receiving tickets to a Celtics game, among other things.A separate investigation by the Office of Special Counsel concluded she made an “extraordinary abuse” of the poower of her office in violation of the Hatch Act, which prohibits political activity by high ranking federal officials.You can read both reports below.Report from the Departm...

Dancers at Los Angeles bar to become only unionized strippers in US after 15-month battle

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:00:06 GMT

NEW YORK (AP) — Dancers at a Los Angeles bar could soon become the only unionized group of strippers in the U.S.The Actors’ Equity Association labor union says owners of the Star Garden Topless Dive Bar in North Hollywood have withdrawn their opposition and agreed to recognize the strippers’ union.For 15 months, dancers at the club have sought safer workplace conditions, better pay and health insurance, among other benefits. But their unionization drive was stalled by objections and legal challenges from the club’s management.The union announced this week that management had agreed to a settlement. A formal vote count by the National Labor Relations Board has been set for Thursday. “We’re hoping what we’ve done to unionize this club will have laid the groundwork for any other stripper in the country who decides that they want to also have a voice in the way their workplace is run,” Lilith, a dancer at Star Garden, told The Associated Press. Lilith asked not to be identif...

Breaking ice jams, rapid snowmelt flood homes, businesses and roads across Alaska

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:00:06 GMT

Flooding across Alaska has inundated scores of homes, with several of them knocked from their foundations by large ice chunks, and shut one of the state’s few east-west highways down to one lane.Ice jams on the Yukon and Kuskokwim rivers caused most of the damage through a large swath of Alaska, while a quick melt of the snowpack caused Moose Creek to overflow near Glennallen, causing delays for motorists on the Glenn Highway which connects Anchorage to points east, including Canada.Multiple homes and buildings flooded in Glennallen, including a grocery store.The sewer system in Glennallen, about 180 miles (90 kilometers) northeast of Anchorage, was impacted by the flooding and portable restrooms were being brought in until repairs can be made, the Alaska Department of Homeland Security and Emergency Management said in a statement.“Large pumps are dewatering flooded areas, gravel is being laid for emergency access repair, and emergency sewer line repairs are underway,” the sta...

Powerful earthquake shakes deep beneath Guatemala, with no immediate reports of damage

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:00:06 GMT

GUATEMALA CITY (AP) — A powerful earthquake with a preliminary magnitude of 6.4 shook Guatemala on Wednesday, but there were no immediate reports of injuries.The U.S. Geological Survey said the epicenter was near Canilla, a town about 120 miles (193 kilometers) north of the capital. But it struck at a depth of 158 miles (255 kilometers) below the surface.People in the capital reported feeling the temblor, but there were no reports of damage.The Associated Press

Death toll from blinding May 1 dust storm crashes in Illinois rises to 8

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:00:06 GMT

SPRINGFIELD, Ill. (AP) — The death toll from numerous crashes on Interstate 55 that occurred amid a blinding May 1 dust storm has risen to eight, a coroner said Wednesday.Ruth Rau, 81, of Sorento, who was a passenger in a car that crashed in the dust storm, died of blunt force injuries Tuesday night at a Springfield hospital, Sangamon County Coroner Jim Allmon said.The crashes involved a total of 72 vehicles, with at least 37 people taken to hospitals.High winds had kicked up dangerous clouds of blinding dust off farm fields, police have said.The crashes closed I-55 in both directions in Montgomery County, 75 miles (120 kilometers) north of St. Louis. Gov. J.B. Pritzker described the scene as horrific. Winds at the time were gusting between 35 mph (56 kph) and 45 mph (74 kph), the National Weather Service said.The Associated Press

Connecticut lawmakers, shaken by death of a collegaue, pass bill to deter wrong-way drivers

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:00:06 GMT

HARTFORD, Conn. (AP) — Connecticut lawmakers, shaken by the death of a colleague killed in a wrong-way crash earlier this year, unanimously approved a bill Wednesday that attempts to curtail the growing problem of wrong-way drivers.The legislation calls for the installation of detection and notification systems on at least 120 high-risk highway exit ramps statewide. It also requires a new public education campaign to teach drivers how to reduce wrong-way incidents and handle an encounter with a wrong-way driver on the road.“This has been a difficult year for a lot of us. And it’s been a difficult year for a lot of Connecticut families across our state who have seen this dramatic increase,” said Democratic Rep. Roland Lemar, noting there were 13 wrong-way crashes in Connecticut in 2022, resulting in 23 fatalities. That was the most on record for the state. “I believe we have a bill before us that positions Connecticut to be proactive in addressing this issue,” the New Hav...