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Anti-LGBT protesters break up Pride festival in Georgia

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 21:25:43 GMT

Up to 2,000 anti-LGBT protesters broke up a Gay Pride festival in the Georgian capital Tbilisi on Saturday (8 July), scuffling with police and destroying props including rainbow flags and placards, though there were no reports of injuries.Organisers accused the authorities of actively colluding with the demonstrators to disrupt the festival, but a government minister said it was a difficult event to police as it was held in an open area, near a lake."The protesters managed to find... ways to enter the area of the event, but we were able to evacuate the Pride participants and organisers," Deputy Interior Minister Alexander Darakhvelidze told reporters."Nobody was harmed during the incident and police are now taking measures to stabilise the situation."The director of Tbilisi Pride confirmed that all the event's participants had been bussed to safety but criticised the authorities' policing of the Pride event, which she said had been held in private for a second consecutive year to re...

Miss Manners: She’s supposed to be a friend, but she drops innuendo about my marriage

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 21:25:43 GMT

DEAR MISS MANNERS: I am a married woman, over 65 years old, who has a number of platonic friendships with men.Having moved away from my hometown years ago, I often visit there, sometimes for a week or two at a time. An old friend who is a single man about my age has a comfortable home there and enjoys my company. Therefore, when I visit this city, I stay with him.Related ArticlesAdvice | Miss Manners: Is it tacky to bring pastries when I turn in my son’s school application? Advice | Miss Manners: Is it your hair? Or is it because you’re kinda mean? Advice | Miss Manners: I was smacked down for complaining about the gauche bachelor party Advice | Miss Manners: I say this young man is rude. My daughter says I’m the problem. Advice | Miss Manners: I just learned this rule about the anthem. Have I been wrong for 40 years? It is not a large space, but we have figured out solutions so that I ...

ANÁLISIS | Por qué la solicitud de Ucrania de ingresar en la OTAN es un dilema tan profundo para Occidente

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 21:25:43 GMT

(CNN) — El presidente Joe Biden dijo antes de un viaje crítico a Europa que Ucrania aún no está lista para ingresar a la OTAN. Más concretamente, la alianza aún no está lista para que Ucrania se una en un paso histórico que podría disuadir a Moscú pero que también podría aumentar el riesgo de una guerra entre Estados Unidos y Rusia.Biden ha apostado su legado de política exterior en armar a Ucrania para repeler la invasión rusa, más recientemente con una decisión polémica de enviar bombas de racimo. Sin embargo, envió un fuerte mensaje a Kyiv en una entrevista exclusiva de CNN de que es poco probable que su campaña cada vez más aguda resulte en una fecha determinada para el ingreso a la OTAN que surge de la cumbre de la alianza en Lituania esta semana.Si bien algunos miembros de la alianza en Europa del Este son optimistas sobre un cronograma temprano para dar la bienvenida a Ucrania, algunos estados de primera generación, incluido Estados Unidos, son más cautelosos, en parte ...

Chris Paul, formally introduced by Warriors, reveals plenty about his motivation

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 21:25:43 GMT

LAS VEGAS (AP) — Chris Paul worked out with new teammate Stephen Curry in Atlanta on Sunday morning before traveling to Las Vegas. His assessment of the session: They didn’t miss too many shots.Evidently, Paul’s time with the Golden State Warriors is off to a flying start.The veteran point guard revealed more than a few things in his first official interview session as a member of the Warriors: He isn’t ready to concede that he’s no longer a starter, he doesn’t expect this to be his final season as a player and he gleans the same joy from the game now as he did when he was a kid.And as for how it’ll all fit, he doesn’t expect that to be a problem.“Not to like sound crazy or whatnot, but at the end of the day, it’s basketball,” Paul said. “You know, it’s not brain surgery. I’m going into a situation with a bunch of guys who’ve been playing together for a long time.”Paul got traded twice this summer, first from Phoenix to Washington as p...

Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte says he will leave politics after an election sparked by his government’s resignation

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 21:25:43 GMT

THE HAGUE, Netherlands (AP) — Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte says he will leave politics after an election sparked by his government’s resignation.Source

New Zealand beats Vietnam 2-0 in a warmup game ahead of the Women’s World Cup

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 21:25:43 GMT

NAPIER, New Zealand (AP) — Co-host New Zealand pulled off a confidence-boosting win 10 days before facing Norway in the opening match of the Women’s World Cup, beating Vietnam 2-0 on Monday in its last warm-up game.The win was timely, ending the Football Ferns’ 10-match winless streak. Right back C.J. Bott scored from a corner in the 17th minute, firing home a shot from long range which was deflected by Vietnam defender Thi Thu Thao Tran.Jacqui Hand scored just before halftime to give New Zealand a 2-0 lead, which endured throughout the second half. Indiah-Paige Riley delivered a cross from the right and Hand had a simple tap in at the left post.New Zealand was more proactive in front of goal than it has been for some time under coach Jitka Klimkova, taking 19 shots to Vietnam’s one in the first half alone.While it couldn’t add to its lead in the second half, New Zealand continued to test the Vietnam goalkeeper.Both teams avoided any late injury concerns before the World Cup, being ...

Social media riot shutdowns possible under EU content law, top official says

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 21:25:43 GMT

Social media platforms like TikTok and Snapchat will face possible shutdowns when they don’t crack down on problematic content during riots under the European Union’s content law, Internal Commissioner Thierry Breton said Monday. Breton, a French politician, was responding in a French radio interview to comments by French President Emmanuel Macron that floated closing down some social media to clamp down on riots. Some critics likened this to measures seen in authoritarian states like China and Iran.“When there is hateful content, content that calls – for example – for revolt, that also calls for killing and burning of cars, they will be required to delete [the content] immediately,” Breton said in the interview on France Info, citing the Digital Services Act which will impose new requirements on large platforms from August 25. “If they fail to do so, they will be immediately sanctioned. We have teams who can intervene immediately,” he said. ̶...

‘Heartbreaking’: Frantic search continues for missing 7-year-old Lowell girl

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 21:25:43 GMT

The Middlesex District Attorney’s Office and Lowell police are turning to the public for help as emergency crews continue to search for a missing 7-year-old girl who is living with autism.Anna, who is autistic and nonverbal, was last seen between 2 and 3 p.m. Sunday afternoon in the area of East Merrimack Street in the Belvidere section of the city and may be riding on a bicycle. She is described as being a Black girl who is 4 feet, 7 inches tall and weighs 70 pounds. She was last seen wearing black shorts, a white vest, and a purple hair tie.Even before Middlesex District Attorney Marian T. Ryan used a Sunday evening news conference to urge area residents to come outside and assist in the search, dozens of neighbors could be seen fanning out across the area and calling out Anna’s name in the hopes of locating her.Officers on ATVs, bikes, boats, a helicopter, and others using a drone could be seen searching the Merrimack River and surrounding area late into the night....

Lengthy traffic delays expected as Sumner Tunnel closure enters second week

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 21:25:43 GMT

The Massachusetts Department of Transportation is warning drivers heading into Boston to be prepared for even more slowdowns as the two-month shutdown of the Sumner Tunnel enters its second week.Although the first week of the shutdown created some longer drive times for motorists in and around the city, MassDOT officials are reminding drivers that the levels were lower than usual because it was a holiday week. Commuters are being urged to use public transportation whenever possible.“People are going to be back from the holiday, that’s when you’re going to see most of your heaviest impacts,” MassDOT Highway Administrator Jonathan Glover said.The nearly 90-year-old tunnel is undergoing a $160 million project to repair its ceiling, pavement and lighting. Drivers are being diverted while the construction project continues through August.“We’re hoping that people don’t look at the traffic impacts this week and think well it’s not so bad I’m gonna jump on the road next week it’s gonna be ...

Teachers union looks into ballot question nixing MCAS graduation requirement

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 21:25:43 GMT

The MCAS graduation requirement debate may be coming up as a 2024 ballot question, the Massachusetts Teachers Association indicated, releasing poll results showing significant support for the idea.“We are exploring two questions — one eliminating the graduation requirement on MCAS and replacing it with a much better assessment system,” MTA President Max Page hold the Herald  Sunday.  “There’s a deadline for submitting proposals for 2024 ballot initiatives this August, and so we’ll be making our final decision whether to move forward on gathering signatures, which is the first big step.”The union released results from a Echo Cove Research poll of 800 registered voters aged 21 and older at the end of June showing 73% support for eliminating the MCAS as a graduation requirement.The potential ballot initiative effort would join the union and many legislators’ efforts to remove the graduation requirement through the proposed Thrive Act, whi...