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Raja the elephant, a big draw at the St. Louis Zoo, is moving to Columbus to breed

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:15:09 GMT

ST. LOUIS (AP) — Raja the elephant has been one of the biggest attractions — literally and figuratively — at the St. Louis Zoo for decades. Now, he’s moving away.The zoo announced Thursday that the male Asian elephant born at the zoo nearly 31 years ago will be relocated to the Columbus Zoo and Aquarium in Ohio, probably in about a year. The hope is that he’ll bond with four females in Columbus, breed, and mentor a young male there.Raja was the first elephant ever born at the St. Louis Zoo, and the 10,000-pound animals’ birthday on Dec. 27 is a big deal each year, complete with treats, songs and lots of visitors signing an oversized birthday card.“This news is bittersweet for all of us,” Michael Macek, director of the St. Louis Zoo, said in a statement. “We know Raja is dear to his fans and to the Zoo family and he’ll be missed here, but we know this is for the best for Raja and the survival of this species.”The World Wildlife Fund says Asian elephants are en...

Top Polish leaders celebrate Hanukkah in parliament after antisemitic incident

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:15:09 GMT

WARSAW, Poland (AP) — Top Polish leaders joined members of the Jewish community for a Hanukkah celebration in parliament Thursday after a far-right lawmaker used a fire extinguisher to put out burning candles on a menorah earlier this week.The attendance of the president, speaker of parliament and other top legislative officials sent the message that there is no tolerance in Poland for the kind of antisemitic behavior that erupted in parliament halls Tuesday, shocking the country and drawing widespread condemnation across the political spectrum. A woman was injured in the incident and was still in a hospital two days later.Rabbi Shalom Ber Stambler of the Chabad community, who has organized the Hanukkah event in parliament for the 17th straight year, told those gathered that the candle lighting symbolized a celebration of tolerance and freedom of religion.“We will dispel darkness through light, and we are lucky that a little light can dispel a lot of darkness,” Stambler said.Preside...

Lawyer highlights Giuliani’s continued false claims as election workers’ damages trial nears a close

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:15:09 GMT

WASHINGTON (AP) — An attorney for two former Georgia election workers suing Rudy Giuliani for defamation highlighted during the trial’s closing on Thursday that the former New York City mayor has not stopped repeating the false conspiracy theory asserting the workers meddled in the 2020 presidential election. During his closing arguments, attorney Michael Gottlieb played a video of Giuliani outside the courthouse earlier this week repeating the false claims about his clients, Wandrea “Shaye” Moss and her mother, Ruby Freeman, who brought the action against Giuliani. Giuliani had previously conceded in court documents that he made public comments falsely accusing the women of ballot fraud. “Mr Giuliani has shown over and over again he will not take our client’s names out of his mouth,” Gottlieb said. “Facts will not stop him. He says he isn’t sorry and he’s telegraphing he will do this again. Believe him.”Gottlieb described Freeman and Moss as “heroes,” adding that “after every...

The average long-term US mortgage rate dips below 7% to its lowest level since early August

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:15:09 GMT

LOS ANGELES (AP) — The average long-term U.S. mortgage rate dropped below 7% to its lowest level since early August, another boost for prospective homebuyers who have largely been held back by sharply higher borrowing costs and heightened competition for relatively few homes for sale.The average rate on a 30-year mortgage dropped to 6.95% from 7.03% last week, mortgage buyer Freddie Mac said Thursday. A year ago, the rate averaged 6.31%.Borrowing costs on 15-year fixed-rate mortgages, popular with homeowners refinancing their home loan, edged up this week, lifting the average rate to 6.38% from 6.29% last week. A year ago, it averaged 5.54%, Freddie Mac said.The latest drop in rates is the seventh in as many weeks. Mortgage rates have been easing since late October, when they reached 7.79%, the highest level since late 2000.The pullback has echoed a decline in the 10-year Treasury yield, which lenders use as a guide to pricing loans. The yield, which in mid October surged to its hig...

Depressed or anxious about finances amid inflation and rising rates? You’re not alone

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:15:09 GMT

As rent, mortgage payments, grocery bills and the cost of just about everything else rises, more and more Canadians are feeling the weight — not just on their budgets, but also on their mental well-being. Canadians are grappling with what a November report from MNP Ltd. called “inflation isolation”: loneliness brought on when avoiding the expense of social events means less time with friends. Two in five are feeling stressed or anxious because of inflation and higher interest rates, the report found. But financial and mental health experts say it’s crucial to break out of the cycle of shame and avoidance that money struggles can cause and ask for help, whether from friends and families or from professionals. “The best thing that we can do for ourselves is to treat financial stress in the same way you would treat any other stress,” said Megan Rafuse, a registered social worker and psychotherapist, and CEO and co-founder of online mental health practice Shift Collab. “Ask ...

North Carolina Rep. Nickel won’t seek reelection due to remapping, will consider 2026 Senate bid

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:15:09 GMT

RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) — Democratic U.S. Rep. Wiley Nickel said Thursday he won’t seek reelection to Congress next year, the result of congressional redistricting by Republican state legislators this fall that’s likely to shift North Carolina’s delegation to the right. And he said he’ll consider a U.S. Senate bid for an election that would be nearly three years away.The decision by the first-term congressman on the day before candidate filing ends for the March primary means three incumbent House Democrats from North Carolina won’t run in 2024. Each of them blamed the reconfigured lines by GOP lawmakers — now the subject of litigation — that they say make it futile for them to run.Democratic Reps. Jeff Jackson of Charlotte and Kathy Manning of Greensboro already said they wouldn’t seek reelection. Nickel’s decision should benefit national Republicans in their efforts to retain a U.S. House majority in 2025.“Republicans have rigged the system to favor ...

Liberal MPs ask universities if calling for genocide of Jews violates school codes

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:15:09 GMT

OTTAWA — Five Liberal members of Parliament are asking 25 Canadian university presidents to say whether calling for a genocide against Jewish people or the elimination of Israel violates their school policies. The letter, shared online by Montreal MP Anthony Housefather, comes amid a rise in antisemitism during the Israel-Hamas war, including on campuses.Former justice minister David Lametti, fellow Montreal MP Anna Gainey, Winnipeg representative Ben Carr and ex-public-safety minister Marco Mendicino also signed the letter. Housefather and Carr are Jewish, and the letter says all five MPs been hearing from students in their constituencies who are being harassed by peers or “subjected to hostile environments in some classrooms.” The heads of U.S. schools have been facing similar questions during recent congressional hearings about antisemitism on campuses.Former University of Pennsylvania president Liz Magill resigned amid controversy after telling lawmakers such a call ...

US officials block Elf Bar-maker from importing 1.4 million illegal e-cigarettes

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:15:09 GMT

WASHINGTON (AP) — U.S. agents recently seized more than 1.4 million illegal e-cigarettes from the Chinese manufacturer behind Elf Bar, a line of fruity disposable vapes that has become the top brand among American teens, officials said Thursday.Officials pegged the value of the e-cigarettes seized at Los Angeles International Airport at $18 million and said they included several related brands, including Lost Mary, Funky Republic and EB Create, according to a statement from the Food and Drug Administration. The agency announced the seizure with U.S. Customs and Border Protection, which helped conduct the operation.Many of the containers were deliberately mislabeled as toys, shoes and other household items in order to evade customs, the agencies said. FDA records show regulators intercepted the shipment on Nov. 6 from iMiracle Shenzhen, which makes Elf Bar and other disposable electronic cigarettes.It’s the first time authorities have reported successfully blocking the company ...

Indiana State Police K9 suffers gunshot wound Thursday morning; injuries not life-threatening

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:15:09 GMT

GARY — An Indiana State Police K9 suffered a gunshot wound Thursday morning during an incident in Northwest Indiana.According to Indiana State Police, the K9 suffered non-life-threatening injuries and is being treated at a local vet hospital.The incident occurred after Indiana State Police troopers pursued a suspect in a vehicle on Interstate-80/94. At some point, Indiana State Police say, the suspect left the vehicle and was pursued on foot.During the apprehension of the suspect, the K9 suffered a gunshot wound. At this time, it is not clear who fired the gunshot that struck the K9.Following the foot chase, the suspect was taken into custody in the area of Wisconsin and 21st in Gary.Indiana State Police is working to investigate the incident and the circumstances surrounding the K9 shooting.

Lawmakers call for gun safety measures on 11th anniversary of Sandy Hook

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:15:09 GMT

WASHINGTON (NEXSTAR) - Today marks 11 years since the massacre at Sandy Hook elementary school and some lawmakers are again calling for more gun safety measures.But any movement on this issue of gun safety or restrictions is unlikely given the makeup of Congress.Some lawmakers in Washington say the country still hasn’t learned lessons from Sandy Hook.House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries says, “The country said we must never allow it to happen, but this year alone there have been 635 mass shootings in the United States of America.” Democrats and the Biden administration say a renewed assault weapons ban is needed."I am absolutely in favor of the Second Amendment, and I am also in favor of an assault weapons ban, a universal background check," said Vice President Kamala Harris.But Republicans say that’s not the answer. Ohio Republican Senator J.D. Vance says, “They seem to be saying let's impose a new set of legal standards on law abiding gun owners. And as a law-abiding gu...