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Alabama library mistakenly adds children’s book to “explicit” list because of author’s name

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:52:47 GMT

HUNTSVILLE, Ala. (AP) — An Alabama public library mistakenly added a children’s picture book to a list of potentially inappropriate titles because the author’s last name is “Gay,” the library’s director said. “Read Me a Story, Stella,” a children’s picture book by Canadian author Marie-Louise Gay, was added to a list of books flagged for potential removal from the children’s section of the Huntsville-Madison County Public Library because of “sexually explicit” content. But the book, which is about a pair of siblings reading together and building a dog house, should not have been on the list and was only added because of the keyword “gay,” Cindy Hewitt, the library’s executive director told AL.com on Sunday. The book was one of 233 books set to be reviewed and potentially moved. “We wanted to be proactive and allow our library staff to look at our collection and make decisions about moving material to an older age group and not have someone from ou...

Casino industry spurs $329 billion in US economic activity, study by gambling group shows

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:52:47 GMT

ATLANTIC CITY, N.J. (AP) — The casino gambling industry in the U.S. generates nearly $329 billion a year in economic activity, according to a new study by the industry’s national trade association.The American Gaming Association released a study Monday showing the industry’s economic impact in 2022 was up 26% from 2017, before the COVID-19 pandemic hit.Commercial and tribal casinos support 1.8 million jobs, including 700,000 jobs at casinos themselves or related businesses, about the same as in 2017. Those jobs generated $104 billion in wages across the country, up 40% from 2017, according to the study.The industry paid $52.7 billion last year in taxes to federal, state and local governments, up 29% since 2017, the report said.The report was the first such study released by the association since 2018, which presented 2017 data. Bill Miller, president and CEO of the association, said the numbers show the casino industry’s “resiliency and continued strength” since th...

Tropical Storm Max makes landfall in Mexico as country braces for Lidia

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:52:47 GMT

MEXICO CITY (AP) — Tropical Storm Max made landfall in Mexico’s southern Pacific coast Monday, as the country braces for a second punch from Tropical Storm Lidia, expected to hit Tuesday as a hurricane in a different part of the country.Max was located about 40 miles (65 kilometers) east of the resort town of Zihuatanejo with winds of about 60 mph (95 kph) and was moving inland at about 7 mph (11 kph). Mexico’s Civil Defense office said Max was causing “torrential” rain in the states of Guerrero and Michoacan. The storm was expected to quickly weaken.However, the U.S. National Hurricane Center and Mexican authorities warned of the possibility of flash floods from both systems.Lidia was gaining strength farther north off Mexico’s western Pacific coast and was expected to make landfall Tuesday as a hurricane on a stretch of coast north of the resort of Puerto Vallarta with winds of up to 100 mph (160 kph).Hurricane warnings were in force for the resort of Puerto Vallarta and the...

Former Texas Rep. Will Hurd suspends long-shot GOP 2024 presidential bid, endorses Nikki Haley

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:52:47 GMT

WASHINGTON (AP) — Former Texas congressman Will Hurd suspended his Republican presidential bid Monday, abandoning a brief campaign built on criticizing Donald Trump at a time when his party seems even more determined to embrace the former president. Hurd said on X, the platform formerly known as Twitter, that he was endorsing Nikki Haley, a former U.S. ambassador to the United Nations, for the GOP nomination.“While I appreciate all the time and energy our supporters have given, it is important to recognize the realities of the political landscape and the need to consolidate our party around one person to defeat both Donald Trump and President Biden,” Hurd wrote. He said Haley “has shown a willingness to articulate a different vision for the country than Donald Trump and has an unmatched grasp on the complexities of our foreign policy.”Hurd was the last major candidate to join the already crowded Republican primary field when he announced his run in late July. He leaves the race afte...

Police search for missing man last seen in Loop

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:52:47 GMT

CHICAGO — A search is underway for a missing 75-year-old man who police say may be in need of medical attention.According to the Chicago Police Department, the Area Three Special Victim's Unit is searching for Ronald Hill. Police say Hill was last seen in the 2800 block of South Michigan Avenue in the Loop on Sunday, Oct. 8. He was last seen driving a black 2013 Volvo 850 with an Illinois license plate with the tag number "P940361." 2 dead after shooting inside convenience store in Englewood Hill, who has grey hair and brown eyes, stands 5-foot-10 and weighs around 185 pounds, police say.Officers notified the public about Hill's disappearance in a news release sent out on Monday, Oct. 9.Anyone with information on the whereabouts of 75-year-old Ronald Hill is asked to call CPD Area Three SVU Detectives at 312-746-8251 or dial 911. Tips for police can also be filed at CPDtip.com. Tips can be left anonymously.

Obama condemns 'brazen' attacks against Israel

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:52:47 GMT

(The Hill) – Former President Obama on Monday sharply condemned Hamas's “brazen terrorist attacks” against Israel, which have left hundreds dead in recent days.“All Americans should be horrified and outraged by the brazen terrorist attacks on Israel and the slaughter of innocent civilians. We grieve for those who died, pray for the safe return of those who’ve been held hostage, and stand squarely alongside our ally, Israel, as it dismantles Hamas,” Obama said in a post on X, formerly known as Twitter.“As we support Israel’s right to defend itself against terror, we must keep striving for a just and lasting peace for Israelis and Palestinians alike,” the former president added.Hamas, the militant group that controls Gaza, launched attacks over the weekend against Israel, which prompted a counterattack from Israeli forces. “We are at war,” Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said in a televised address on Saturday.The death toll has climbed to more than 1,000 in Israel and Gaza ...

San Francisco-area restaurants imposing 'vomit fee' on Sunday brunch-goers

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:52:47 GMT

SAN FRANCISCO (KRON) – Bottomless mimosas are fun, but drinking them until you hurl is never a good idea, and it could literally cost you $50. That's the fee some San Francisco Bay Area restaurants are now charging for Sunday brunch diners who drink one too many mimosas and end up tossing their eggs Benedict. Bay Area celebrity chef Michael Chiarello dies at 61 A sign posted at popular Oakland brunch spot Kitchen Story warns diners who indulge in any of the restaurant's five varieties of bottomless mimosas to "drink responsibly and know your limits." Otherwise, the sign warns, a $50 cleaning fee will be automatically added to the tab of any patron who throws up in a public area of the restaurant.Photo: Chris Culcasi/KRONKitchen Story isn't the only Bay Area restaurant cracking down on brunch-time vomiters. As reported in SFGate, Home Plate in San Francisco has implemented a similar policy with signs warning of a $50 "cleaning fee" for incidents resulting from intoxication.Some Bay...

'Horse manure': Texas representative fires back at Paxton over criminal complaints

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:52:47 GMT

AUSTIN (KXAN) — Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton announced Monday morning he intends to file criminal complaints against the 12 state representatives who led his impeachment trial. He claims they threatened him by publishing his personal information, including his home address, in a document release last week and broke a new state law. "The impeachment managers clearly have a desire to threaten me with harm when they released this information last week," Paxton said in a statement. "I’m imploring their local prosecutors in each individual district to investigate the criminal offenses that have been committed." Texas House releases new evidence not admissible during Ken Paxton’s impeachment trial Paxton said he will file the complaints in each of the managers' eight home counties. KXAN reached out Monday morning to all 12 state representatives for comment as well as visited their offices at the Texas Capitol. Rep. Andrew Murr, the Junction Republican who served as chairman of the...

Vadnais Heights lawmaker arrested on suspicion of DWI in Chisago County

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:52:47 GMT

A first-term state lawmaker from Vadnais Heights has been arrested on suspicion of drunken driving in Chisago County.According to county jail records, DFL Rep. Brion Curran, 38, was held in the jail Monday on suspicion of third-degree driving while impaired, a gross misdemeanor.No other details about the arrest were available Monday, and Curran hasn’t been charged. Her office couldn’t be immediately reached.Curran, who was elected last year, represents House District 36B, which covers Birchwood Village, Gem Lake, White Bear Lake, Vadnais Heights and parts of White Bear Township.Minnesota state Rep. Brion Curran, DFL, Vadnais Heights. (Minnesota House of Representatives)On her campaign website, Curran said she works for an east metro nonprofit serving people with developmental disabilities. Previously, she earned an undergraduate degree in criminal justice and worked briefly in 2018 as a sheriff’s deputy in Chicago County. She said that she voluntarily stepped down, citing post...

ALDS now a best-of-three series with Twins returning home to Sonny Gray on the mound

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:52:47 GMT

It’s a best-of-three now. The Twins have home-field advantage in two of those three games and they have their pitching rotation set so one ace, Sonny Gray, will pitch Game 3 and the other, Pablo López, is on track to start Game 5 back in Houston, if it’s necessary.All that has to be comforting to the Twins, who returned back to Minnesota in the early hours of Monday morning after squaring the American League Division Series against the defending World Series champion Astros with a win in Game 2 in Houston. Game 3 of the series will begin at 3:07 p.m. on Tuesday at Target Field with Gray squaring off against Astros starter Christian Javier.“We’ve got Sonny lined up, who arguably is top three (in the) Cy Young race this year. And then if we need a Game 5, we’ve got Pablo lined up on normal rest, so I think we like our chances,” Twins catcher Ryan Jeffers said. “We like our chances against anybody. It just so happens that we’re in a pretty good spot right now.”G...