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Boston Mayor Wu answers questions after email invite to ‘Electeds of Color Holiday Party’ mistakenly sent to entire city council

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:30:45 GMT

During the final Boston City Council meeting of the year, Mayor Michelle Wu gives gifts to outgoing councilors. Not everyone was in the mood to celebrate on Wednesday, though, after the city disinvited white councilors to an upcoming holiday party. “You don’t want me at a party, I’m not going to come to a party,” District 3 Councilor Frank Baker said. 7NEWS obtained an email sent to all city councilors Tuesday. The email was from one of the mayor’s staffers and read “I cordially invite you and a guest to the Electeds of Color Holiday Party.”Fifteen minutes later, another email went out, with the staffer clarifying “I did send that to everyone by accident, I apologize if my email may have offended or came across as so.” “I think we’ve all been in a position at one point where an email went out and there was a mistake in the recipients,” Wu said Wednesday. “So, it was truly just an honest mistake.”The upcoming party was scheduled to be held at the city-owned Parkma...

Red Sox to showcase top prospects as part of new MLB Spring Breakout event

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:30:45 GMT

A team comprised of the Red Sox top prospects will take the field next spring as part of an upcoming Spring Breakout showcase announced Wednesday by Major League Baseball.As part of the four-day event, which is scheduled to run from March 14-17, each MLB club will field a team of their top prospects to play an exhibition game against another club’s top young stars. The Red Sox showcase will take place on Saturday, March 16 at JetBlue Park at 1:05 p.m. against the Atlanta Braves prospects.The showcase was conceived as a way to better familiarize fans with the game’s up-and-coming stars, expanding on other events like the Futures Game over All-Star Weekend.“Spring Breakout will provide a new opportunity to showcase the future stars of the game as they continue on their journey to the Major Leagues,” said Commissioner Rob Manfred in a statement. “Our fans will get unique opportunities to meet our best prospects, get autographs, and see the next generation of Maj...

MIAA committee vote: Wins column won’t be added to power rankings system

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:30:45 GMT

Coaches and athletic directors who have an appetite for adding a wins proponent to the current power rankings system will be starving.The MIAA Tournament Management Committee voted 11-5 against a motion which would have added a fourth column to the current formula for the present power rankings. A later motion to allow football to have a wins proponent on a two-year trial basis was defeated 12-4.“I just don’t want to have a knee-jerk reaction to things,” said TMC chairman Shaun Hart, the athletic director at Burlington. “Jim Clark has put a lot of time and effort into the rankings and the data shows it is working.”One of the biggest advocates of adding a wins proponent is Wellesley athletic director John Brown. Representing District 7, which consists of schools from the Bay State Conference, Hockomock League and Tri-Valley League, Brown was adamant schools within his representation are in favor of putting more emphasis on wins.“The Bay State Conference had nine state champions...

Former SDSU punter Matt Araiza speaks out after rape claims dismissed

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:30:45 GMT

SAN DIEGO — Former San Diego State and Buffalo Bills punter Matt Araiza spoke out for the first time during a press conference Wednesday morning after sexual assault allegations levied at him were dismissed from an ongoing lawsuit.Alongside his attorneys, Araiza, 23, reflected on how the lawsuit, which stemmed from a claimed gang rape of a then-underage girl at an off-campus house party in October 2021, changed the trajectory of his life.“It has changed me a lot," Araiza said of the time after the lawsuit was filed about a year and a half ago, in August 2022. Shortly following the complaint's filing, the punter was released from the Bills. Second lawsuit filed in USD hazing allegations case: report “My name, my reputation — this will be tied to me forever, that won’t go away," he continued. "It was tough to watch the pain that it caused my family, because I have been proven innocent but they for sure had absolutely nothing to do with this."According to the lawyers for both parties...

Look up! Here's how to watch the Geminid meteor shower from San Diego

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:30:45 GMT

SAN DIEGO — San Diegan stargazers are in for a treat this week, as the best celestial display in the year will be lighting up the night with bright and colorful meteors.The annual Geminid meteor shower, which historically peaks in mid-December, will be at its most visible Wednesday and Thursday night. According to NASA, the Geminids — named after the constellation they appear to come out of — are considered one of the most reliable and active showers, with reputations for its vibrant color as the fiery rocks cross the sky.Unlike other meteor showers, the Geminids are not associated with a comet, rather an asteroid known as 3200 Phaethon. La Jolla Children’s Pool set to close this week for seal pupping season When the conditions are right, observers will be able to see up to 120 Geminid meteors per hour at its peak. The meteors are known for moving at especially high speeds and, with its distinctive yellow color, its crossing creates a shooting star effect.For those in San Diego th...

Boy, 15, charged after bomb threat at Mississauga high school

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:30:45 GMT

Peel Regional Police have charged a 15-year-old boy after a bomb threat was made at a high school in Mississauga.Police say the threat was made on Thursday, November 30 at around 8:28 at the school in south Mississauga.After an investigation, police determined the threat was unfounded.On Friday, December 8, police arrested and charged the teen suspect with one count of public mischief.He can’t be named under the Youth Criminal Justice Act.No further details were released.

New Mexico lawmakers ask questions about spending by university president and his wife

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:30:45 GMT

ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (AP) — Western New Mexico University President Joseph Shepard was peppered with questions about spending on overseas trips and his wife’s use of a university credit card during a hearing Wednesday before a group of powerful lawmakers.The Legislative Finance Committee — the state’s lead budget-writing panel — was hearing presentations from higher education officials on budget priorities when the focus shifted to Shepard and recent reports detailing tens of thousands of dollars in spending on international travel and high-end furniture.The questions come as higher education leaders press lawmakers to funnel more money to state-run colleges and universities, citing inflation and the need to boost faculty compensation to meet growing demands. Nationally, some universities are considering cutting programs as budget shortfalls grow and calls for greater accountability mount.Shepard told lawmakers during the hearing in Santa Fe that regents vet his spending requests...

Congressional group demands probe into Beijing’s role in violence against protesters on US soil

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:30:45 GMT

WASHINGTON (AP) — A congressional commission is asking the Justice Department to investigate the role of Beijing after protesters claimed they were beaten and harassed by Chinese government agents in November in San Francisco during an official visit by Chinese President Xi Jinping.The protesters, who were defending the rights of Hong Kong, Tibet and ethnic Uyghurs, said their attackers’ attire, coordination and strong reaction to anti-Communist Party rhetoric indicated official Chinese involvement. They provided no definitive evidence, but U.S. officials have previously accused Chinese operatives of targeting people in the United States.Rep. Chris Smith, a New Jersey Republican who chairs the Congressional-Executive Commission on China, said Tuesday it was demanding a thorough investigation to “find out why all of these wonderful people who were peacefully protesting were hit with poles, have scars that now you know will not go away.”The Chinese Embassy denied any involvement and i...

Tropical Cyclone Jasper weakens while still lashing northeastern Australia with flooding rain

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:30:45 GMT

CANBERRA, Australia (AP) — The first tropical cyclone to hit Australia in the current season weakened to a low pressure system but continued to lash the northeast coast Thursday with flooding rain and left almost 40,000 homes and businesses without power.Cyclone Jasper crossed the Queensland state coast late Wednesday as a category 2 storm on a five-tier scale that whipped the sparsely populated region with winds of up to 140 kph (87 mph).The cyclone crossed near the Aboriginal community of Wujal Wujal, 110 kilometers (68 miles) north of the city of Cairns, though many of its 300 residents evacuated before Jasper struck.Katrina Hewitt, who operates tourist accommodation at Wujal Wujal and did not evacuate, said the community was largely unscathed except for damaged trees.“It looks amazing. No flooding, no breakages of buildings,” Hewitt told Nine Network television.“It was a big waiting game. We just didn’t know what was going to happen,” she said.Hewitt expected Wujal Wujal would b...

How Canada’s UN vote breaks with long-standing policy — and what Israel says about it

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:30:45 GMT

OTTAWA — Canada shifted its long-standing stance at the United Nationsto join international calls for an immediate ceasefire between Israel and Hamas on Tuesday.It marked a departure from years of Canadabacking Israel at the international body, a policythat had come under renewed scrutiny during the latest Israel-Hamas war. The conflict was sparked when Hamas militants killed an estimated 1,200 people and took 240 more hostage in an Oct. 7 attack on Israel. More than 18,000 Palestinians have been killed since then amid Israel’s retaliation campaign in the Hamas-controlled Gaza Strip.Here’s a look at how Canada has approached its UN votes over time, and what Israel is saying about the policy shift. A LONG-STANDING POLICYIsrael is regularly subject to motions at the United Nations condemning its treatment of Palestinians. Many Arab countries argue that Israeli officials are violating international law. Israel rebuffs those claims, arguing it receives disproportionate scrut...