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Opinion: Congress should freeze historically high Pentagon spending

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 17:16:10 GMT

The debt ceiling deal reached by President Joe Biden and House Speaker Kevin McCarthy has now been passed into law, and the winner is – the Pentagon.While the rest of the federal discretionary budget is slated to be frozen at roughly this year’s level, the Pentagon and related spending on nuclear weapons at the Department of Energy will be exempted from the freeze. Military spending has been set at $886 billion, the amount requested by the Biden administration for fiscal year 2024. This represents an historic high – hundreds of billions of dollars more than at the peaks of the Korean or Vietnam wars or the height of the Cold War, adjusted for inflation.An analysis of the agreement by the Wall Street Journal demonstrates that the Pentagon and veteran’s spending – neither of which will be subject to the freeze – will top $1 trillion, while all of the remaining discretionary programs will be left to split $637 billion. This means that public health, environmental protection, nutrition,...

There are ways to deal with the overwhelming weight of being a successor trustee

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 17:16:10 GMT

Regarding your March 24, 2023, column titled “Successor trustees need to recognize the value of presale seller inspections” on The Mercury News and East Bay Times websites:Question: My elderly aunt passed away in March. As the successor trustee to my aunt’s estate, I’m overwhelmed by the volume of paperwork, personal property and preparing the property for sale. The home is as she left it. It is full of belongings, furniture, art, clothes, et cetera. She had exquisite taste, but there might not be a market for her possessions.Many of my relatives named in the will believe my deceased aunt’s possessions are valuable. I question that belief. The elder law attorney says we must appraise the home “at the time of death” and all personal property. The thought of storing or shipping items to designated relatives is disconcerting. How do we appraise the personal property while emptying my aunt’s whole house during our 12-day stay at a nearby hotel? Answer: I’ve seen many successor trustees ...

Minjee Lee shoots 8-under 64, shares 2nd-round lead with Cheyenne Knight at Liberty National

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 17:16:10 GMT

JERSEY CITY, N.J. (AP) — Minjee Lee matched the tournament best with an 8-under 64 for a share of the lead Friday in the LPGA Tour’s weather-delayed Mizuho Americas Open.Cheyenne Knight had a 68 in the inaugural event to join Lee at 7-under 137 atop the tightly bunched leaderboard that features five top-10 players and promising newcomer Rose Zhang.Play was suspended late in the afternoon for 1 hours, 47 minutes because of dangerous weather conditions near Liberty National and the last groups barely finished before darkness on the course adjacent to the Hudson River with a spectacular view of the New York City skyline and the Statue of Liberty.The fifth-ranked Lee, from Australia, birdied eight of the first 12 holes in a bogey-free round that moved her from 55th to the top spot. Her score was nine shots better than her opening round.“I think Liberty National is kind of a course where if you play it more, the better idea you have,” said Lee, an eight-time winner on the LPGA Tour...

Los científicos están “estupefactos” por unas misteriosas estructuras halladas en la Vía Láctea

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 17:16:10 GMT

(CNN) — Un equipo internacional de astrofísicos descubrió cientos de misteriosas estructuras en el centro de la Vía Láctea.Estos hilos cósmicos unidimensionales son cientos de filamentos horizontales o radiales, cuerpos delgados y alargados de gas luminoso que potencialmente se originaron hace unos pocos millones de años cuando el flujo de salida de Sagitario A*, el agujero negro supermasivo central de la Vía Láctea, interactuó con los materiales circundantes, según un estudio publicado el viernes en The Astrophysical Journal Letters.Los filamentos tienen una longitud relativamente corta, de entre 5 y 10 años luz cada uno.Los hallazgos se producen casi 40 años después de que Farhad Yusef-Zadeh, autor principal del estudio, y otros investigadores descubrieran otra población de casi 1.000 filamentos unidimensionales, verticales y mucho más grandes, de hasta 150 años luz de longitud cada uno, cerca del centro de la galaxia.Yusef-Zadeh y sus colaboradores también hallaron otros ci...

Biden set to sign debt ceiling bill that averts prospect of unprecedented federal default

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 17:16:10 GMT

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Joe Biden is expected to sign legislation on Saturday to raise the debt ceiling, dodging Monday’s deadline when the Treasury warned that the United States would start running short of cash to pay all its bills.The bipartisan measure, passed by the House on Wednesday and the Senate on Thursday, averts the potential of an unprecedented government default that would have rocked the U.S. and global economies. Raising the nation’s debt limit, now at $31.4 trillion, will ensure that the government can borrow to pay debts already incurred.“Passing this budget agreement was critical. The stakes could not have been higher,” Biden said from the Oval Office on Friday evening. “Nothing would have been more catastrophic,” he said, than defaulting on the country’s debt.The agreement was hashed out by Biden and House Speaker Kevin McCarthy, giving Republicans some of their demanded federal spe...

Police searching for robbery suspect who stole wedding ring in Roxbury

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 17:16:10 GMT

Boston police are seeking a suspect in a robbery in Roxbury last Sunday, when a man stole a woman’s late husband’s wedding ring outside a church, according to officials.The suspect ripped a woman’s chain with the ring from her neck and attempted to steal her purse on Blue Hill Avenue around noon. The woman defended herself until the suspect fled on foot toward Maywood Street, police reported.Police describe the suspect as “a Hispanic male in his mid-twenties with a stocky build, wearing white shirt and denim shorts with a large bruise on his left leg and may walk with a noticeable limp.”

Melrose city councilor allegedly harassed for wearing her hijab, appears in court

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 17:16:10 GMT

A woman was called to court after allegedly attacking a Melrose city councilor.Prosecutors said Joan Ditomaso confronted Councilor Maya Jamaleddine at a gas station for wearing a hijab last year.Prosecutors said when the councilor’s husband intervened, Detamaso shoved him. Jamaleddine said this case is an opportunity for accountability.“I truly hope that they learn their lesson, at least… acknowledge and be accountable and responsible for their acts.” Jamaleddine said she’s disappointed that prosecutors declined to file hate crime charges in the case.

Fellow broadcasters weigh in on what makes Howie Rose and Gary Cohen great

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 17:16:10 GMT

Before Kevin Burkhardt was calling Super Bowls, before he was manning the Citi Field sidelines for SNY, and even before selling used cars in New Jersey, he was doing what so many others did every summer: Listening to baseball games on the radio.The players on the team came and went. Games were won and hopes were dashed. Throughout franchise history, almost nothing has remained constant, except for the broadcasters.“To me, Gary and Howie are the Mets,” the FOX Sports broadcaster told the Daily News.Gary Cohen and Howie Rose have mastered the art of baseball storytelling like few others. They’ve become as integral to the fabric of the organization and the fan experience as the Home Run Apple. The Mets will cement the legacy of their beloved broadcaster this weekend by inducting the two into the team Hall of Fame.But their legacy extends far beyond Citi Field. Rose and Cohen have become legends in their industry for how they do their work and how they treat people.The...

Bob Raissman: Be a shock if Tom Brady bailed on Fox TV gig to return to the field

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 17:16:10 GMT

When May turned into June, Aaron Rodgers had company when it came to generating NFL buzz. There was Patrick Mahomes and questions about whether he is capable of building a dynasty in Kansas City.Then there was the man who supposedly won’t set foot on the field again — the budding TV star, Tom Brady. Suddenly, after he purchased a stake in the team, and because of Jimmy Garoppolo’s physical iffiness, speculation bubbled about Brady ending up quarterbacking the Las Vegas Raiders.On Thursday, even after Brady told Sports Illustrated’s Robin Lundberg: “I’m certain I’m not playing again…..” it didn’t deter some of the football cognoscenti from speculating that once training camp rolls around, Brady could get the itch to return to the field.Brady wants to shut the spec down, but the hubbub is terrific for his nascent TV career at Fox Sports, where he’s currently the number-one-game-analyst-in waiting, scheduled to enter the...

Rain brings much-needed relief to firefighters battling Halifax-area wildfires

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 17:16:10 GMT

Officials in Nova Scotia say the Halifax-area wildfire that forced thousands of residents from their homes over the past week is now considered held.David Steeves, a technician of forest resources with Nova Scotia’s Department of Natural Resources and Renewables, says the fire is about 85 per cent contained, sits at 9.5 square kilometres and is unlikely to grow due to a combination of firefighting efforts and long-awaited rain.But he says a number of areas of concern remain and crews continue to closely monitor hot spots and the fire’s perimeter.The blaze that broke out Sunday in the Halifax area raced through a number of subdivisions, consuming about 200 structures — including 151 homes — and forcing the evacuation of more than 16,000 people.Halifax Regional Fire and Emergency Deputy Fire Chief Dave Meldrum says rain has brought relief today, but notes it also raises the risk that firefighters could be hurt from slips or falls and makes for a tough working d...