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Ukraine is the blind spot in Macron’s military splurge

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:12:49 GMT

PARIS — French President Emmanuel Macron wants to ramp up military expenditure to €413 billion over the next seven years, but critics say the 30 percent spending boost isn’t taking into account what’s happening on the ground in Ukraine.The Russian invasion of Ukraine has been marked by a voracious use of artillery and rockets — a return to a more traditional type of warfare that post-Cold War planners had eschewed in favor of smaller, high-tech and highly trained forces able to deploy far from home.The French military budget — which the National Assembly will begin voting on this week — still sticks to that pre-Ukraine war model by cutting back on heavy weapons like tanks and armored personnel carriers while boosting spending on France’s nuclear deterrent and investing in fighting new threats in areas such as space, cyber and the deep seas.A final vote is expected before July 14, France’s national day. “Many people advocated for … more Leclerc batt...

Celtics embarrassed in spineless Game 3 loss to Heat, now face 3-0 series deficit

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:12:49 GMT

MIAMI — As the Heat raced up court, continuing to run away from the Celtics on a play early in the third quarter Sunday night, Jimmy Butler watched as Gabe Vincent pulled up and drilled another 3-pointer.It put the Heat up 23 points. Joe Mazzulla, mercifully, called a timeout. And then Butler got on one knee in front of Al Horford, and flashed the “T” timeout sign at him, a response to what Horford did earlier in the series.The Heat were just trolling the Celtics at this point.They were already embarrassing them, humiliating them, whatever description you wanted to choose, and the worst hadn’t even come yet. The Celtics trailed by as many as 33 in the third quarter. They were thoroughly dominated. It looked as if they had quit. It was over well before Mazzulla pulled most of the starters out to start the fourth quarter, as they threw the towel.Not even the Celtics’ backups put up a fightWith their season on the line, the Celtics submitted their worst effort of the season in a spinel...

The 12TH Wounded Vet Run

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:12:49 GMT

Manitoba Public Insurance announces new leader amid review

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:12:49 GMT

WINNIPEG — Manitoba Public Insurance has replaced its president and CEO with an interim leader amid a review the province ordered last month of the Crown-owned insurer.Ward Keith, the chair of MPI’s board of directors, said in a statement posted on MPI’s website Sunday, that Eric Herbelin is no longer employed with MPI, effective immediately.Keith says Marnie Kacher has agreed to be president and CEO on an interim basis while the board of directors begins recruiting for a permanent leader.In early April, the Manitoba government ordered an external review of the automobile insurance provider following a sharp jump in the cost of technology upgrades and a steep rise in projected staffing levels. Kelvin Goertzen, the minister responsible for MPI, said at the time that there were other factors, including untendered contracts, and that the review should be complete by the end of the year.Keith says in his statement that Kacher has 12 years of experience with MPI, most recentl...

From 'Cats to Colts: 2 Former Northwestern players are ready to make an impact in the NFL

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:12:49 GMT

INDIANAPOLIS — Some four years ago, Adetomiwa Adebawore and Evan Hull arrived together in Evanston as fresh-faced recruits for Northwestern football — and now — both have arrived in Indianapolis, ready to make an impact as rookies for the Colts.Not only did Adebawore and Hull play together as Wildcats — while also being drafted in the fourth and fifth rounds by Indianapolis — they were both a part of the same recruiting class in 2019, and from their very first impressions of one another, two things stood out. Aura and mentality."My first impression of Adetomiwa was probably seeing a video of him power-cleaning 405 in high school, and just from then on out, he's just been a dominant force." Hull said in a Zoom interview with WGN. "He's always been somebody that you notice him when he walks into a room, for sure. He's got that energy. He's got that aura." PREVIOUS COVERAGE: NFL Draft Profile - Adetomiwa Adebawore As Hull alluded to, Adebawore is hulk-like. He's a big, fast, agile an...

New York 2023 legislative session extended

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:12:49 GMT

ALBANY, N.Y. (NEWS10) -Coming out of the state budget that was just over a month late, state officials are counting down the days left of the legislative session. The 2023 legislative session will be running later than scheduled as well. Currently, they are set to adjurn on June 9th due to topics such as housing and migrants.Housing in New York has been a topic of concern for lawmakers. From high prices to tenant safety, democratic Assemblyman McDonald says there is a lot to look into before session ends. Budget breakdown: Details on late State budget "We know that the solution is not that easy because if it was easy it would have been done by now. We need to be thoughtful. We need an all hands on deck solution looking to build more supply," stated McDonald.Governor Hochul's housing proposal was not a part of the passed 2023 budget. Her plans are being put into a standalone bill to rework during this session. The original proposal was to build 800,000 new homes over the next ten y...

Homeowners hope St. Charles County gov't comes through with buyouts

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:12:49 GMT

ST. CHARLES, Mo. – Homeowners in a St. Charles subdivision are crossing their fingers and hoping the county government lives up to its promise of a buyout. At least two homeowners are fearful of their houses sliding down the hill.St. Charles County Executive Steve Ehlmann had promised there would be buyouts for homes in danger of sliding down the hill, but homeowners said they’re not getting much reassurance, even as their retaining walls are sinking."Yeah, I've asked but I haven't heard anything. No specific answers about when I asked should we be talking about a buyout. I mean, is my house in jeopardy of being demolished like my neighborhoods was?” Tara Rath said.The county executive would not go on camera to address residents’ concerns. His office told FOX 2, “The county has provided you with all the information we have.” Driver killed after semi-truck smashes into train in rural Missouri But back in February, Ehlmann said the county would make buyouts available to those homes ...

Downtown St. Louis visitors worried following brazen carjacking

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:12:49 GMT

ST. LOUIS – St. Louis police are continuing their search for a main they say held a woman at gunpoint Saturday and stole her car.According to a police spokesperson, the carjacking happened while the woman was stuck in traffic at the intersection of Walnut and 4th Street, when a man walked up to her 2011 BMW 328i, pointed a gun at her, and stole the car."You'd like to think that you'd be aware and that you'd be able to drive off before it happened, but I guess you never know," said Mark Varwig.He and Sherry Winenger were recent victims of crime in downtown, when their car was broken into during a Blues game. Driver killed after semi-truck smashes into train in rural Missouri "They broke the passenger window. Police said they were looking for a gun. I don't have a gun in the car, so nothing was stolen. But it was a hassle," Varwig said.Fans leaving Sunday's baseball game said lately they are more aware of their surroundings when they visit downtown."It makes us sad to see the disres...

2 dead after 2 separate overnight shootings in Oakland

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:12:49 GMT

(KRON) -- Two people died after two separate shootings Sunday overnight in Oakland, the Oakland Police Department (OPD) confirmed to KRON4. The two shootings, which happened roughly four hours apart, are being investigated. OPD did not say whether or not these shootings were related. No arrests have been made in either shooting. Man yelling racial slurs on I-880 in viral video arrested Shooting 1The first shooting happened around 11:45 p.m. in the 7600 block of Bancroft Avenue. Officers arrived after the shooting and saw a victim suffering from at least one gunshot wound. Despite paramedics treating the unidentified victim, they died at the scene. The Oakland Fire Department (OFD) was also at the scene in response. Shooting 2Around 3:30 a.m. on Sunday, OPD responded to its second shooting in about four hours. This happened on the 10000 block of C Street.Officers arrived and saw a victim with at least one gunshot wound. The victim later died at the scene.The shootings on C Street...

Heat roll past Celtics 128-102, take 3-0 lead in Eastern Conference finals

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:12:49 GMT

MIAMI (AP) — Gabe Vincent scored a career-high 29 points, Duncan Robinson added 22 and the eighth-seeded Miami Heat moved one win from the NBA Finals after rolling past the Boston Celtics 128-102 on Sunday night in Game 3 of the Eastern Conference title series.Caleb Martin scored 18, Jimmy Butler finished with 16, Bam Adebayo had 13 and Max Strus added 10 for Miami, which leads the series 3-0. Every team in NBA history that has won the first three games of a best-of-seven has ultimately prevailed; the Heat are 8-0 in that situation.Jayson Tatum scored 14 and Jaylen Brown added 12 for the Celtics, who won three times on Miami’s floor on the way to winning last season’s Eastern Conference finals — but simply never had a chance in this one and basically emptied the bench for the fourth quarter.Grant Williams and Payton Pritchard each had 12 for Boston. Game 4 is Tuesday in Miami.The NBA Finals start June 1, and the way things are going, that might mean the league is about to go a few d...