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Putin fails again as Europe’s gas storage hits 90 percent

Published Mon, 16 Dec 2024 22:41:49 GMT

The EU’s reserves of natural gas hit a historic high Thursday, filling up well in advance of the winter heating season as the bloc continues its dash away from Russian energy dependence.That leaves the Kremlin scrambling to plug a gaping hole in its finances left by its decision to cut off European customers in the wake of its full-scale invasion of Ukraine last year.But less Russian gas also opens the EU to the bigger price fluctuations of the global market for liquefied natural gas (LNG).Gas Infrastructure Europe said Thursday that member countries’ gas stores are now at 90.12 percent capacity — breezing past the 90 percent filling target that Brussels is legally required to meet by November. “Today’s confirmation that we have met our gas storage requirements so far ahead of schedule underlines that the EU is well-prepared for winter and this will help to further stabilize markets in the coming months,” the bloc’s Energy Commissioner Kadri Simso...

Cardinal Sean O’Malley authorizes special collection for Hawaii wildfire relief 

Published Mon, 16 Dec 2024 22:41:49 GMT

Cardinal Sean O’Malley this week asked parishes in the Archdiocese of Boston to help support to those impacted by the recent wildfires in Hawaii, authorizing special collections to raise money for wildfire relief. O’Malley has asked parishes to hold a special collection over any of the next three weekends through the weekend of Sept. 2. Those contributing to a special collection are asked to make checks payable to their parish with “Maui Relief” in the memo line.  The Archdiocese in a statement on Thursday said all money raised through the collections will be processed to the Hawaii Catholic Community Foundation.Relief efforts, the archdiocese said, will in turn focus on community members impacted by the wildfires and “play a crucial role in helping to rebuild lives and restore hope.”Fire swept through part of the island of Maui beginning on Aug. 8, hitting the Lahaina and Upper Kula areas hard. More than a week later, the death toll from the fires had risen past 100 ...

Gregory Santos experiences the highs and lows of closing during the Chicago White Sox’s City Series split

Published Mon, 16 Dec 2024 22:41:49 GMT

Gregory Santos has been the Chicago White Sox’s most effective reliever.Recently moved into the closer role, he retired all five batters he faced on 16 pitches for the save in Tuesday’s 5-3 win against the Cubs in the City Series at Wrigley Field.Santos again got the call in the ninth Wednesday.“Things didn’t go my way,” he said through an interpreter.Christopher Morel hit a walk-off, three-run homer as the Cubs beat the Sox 4-3 in front of 40,869.“He’s been unbelievable for us all year long,” Sox first baseman Gavin Sheets said. “It’s certainly not on him at all. It’s the toughest part of being a closer. It’s not your fault, but sometimes it happens. It’s a tough loss.”Before the game, Santos discussed embracing the opportunity to pitch in the ninth. He has progressed from non-leveragesituations to trying to secure wins, and he entered Wednesday’s game with a 2.19 ERA and 53 strikeouts in his ...

Column: Chicago Cubs make a playoff push even if Marcus Stroman doesn’t return from his mysterious rib injury

Published Mon, 16 Dec 2024 22:41:49 GMT

In any other year, Marcus Stroman’s potential season-ending rib cartilage fracture would’ve had Chicago Cubs fans crying, “Why us?”But this has been a season unlike any other in recent Cubs history, a roller-coaster ride that no one could’ve seen coming back in spring training. They buried themselves on June 8 in Anaheim, Calif., falling 10 games under .500, only to bounce back into contention in the National League Central and wild-card race.Though the Cubs were only three games over .500 entering Wednesday’s City Series finale against the White Sox, which the Cubs won 4-3 on a three-run, walk-off home run by Christopher Morel, the atmosphere in Wrigleyville matched the giddiness of the summer of 2015, the turning point of Theo Epstein’s vaunted rebuild.So if anyone is worried the possible absence of Stroman for the final seven weeks of the season has spoiled the Cubs’ chances of making a postseason run, they mostly have kept their th...

Emmys 2023: Who will win from ‘Succession’? All the drama from the drama categories

Published Mon, 16 Dec 2024 22:41:49 GMT

Glenn Whipp | (TNS) Los Angeles TimesLOS ANGELES — Are all those great moments, big and small, from the final, glorious season of “Succession” — the grief, the backstabbing, the ludicrously capacious bags, the thick and chewy earlobes, the off-the-rack, Reagan-with-tweaks funerals, the “eldest boy” staring off into the Hudson River — still burned in your brain?Or have they faded, like the cosmic epiphanies you collected from the last time you tripped on mushrooms, the images now faint like the cross-veins on a dragonfly’s wings, the very same dragonfly that you felt at one with just moments ago and … (OK. I’m digressing here. Sorry.)If it’s the latter, A) I understand and B) just imagine how you’ll feel when you try to gather together your “Succession” flashbacks when the Emmys are handed out sometime next year — provided they are actually handed out next year. Fox has set Jan. 15 as the date for the ceremony, but tha...

Mayo Clinic Q&A: Women and thyroid disease

Published Mon, 16 Dec 2024 22:41:49 GMT

Cynthia Weiss | (TNS) Mayo Clinic News NetworkDEAR MAYO CLINIC: I recently read that thyroid issues affect women more often than men. Can you explain what the thyroid is and how it affects my body? Can I do anything to prevent having issues with my thyroid as I age?ANSWER: The thyroid is a small butterfly-shaped gland at the neck’s base. The thyroid has a significant effect on the body in that it produces hormones that help regulate many of your body’s functions.The thyroid gland produces two main hormones: thyroxine (T-4) and triiodothyronine (T-3). These hormones keep your body’s metabolism consistent, aid in maintaining your body’s temperature, have an impact on how well your nervous system functions and can affect your heart rate as well as blood pressure. A third hormone, known as calcitonin, which aids in controlling the level of calcium in your blood, also is produced by your thyroid gland.Unfortunately, there are numerous disorders that can affect the...

Study finds ‘rare but real risk’ of tsunami threat to parts of Alaska’s largest city

Published Mon, 16 Dec 2024 22:41:49 GMT

ANCHORAGE, Alaska (AP) — Researchers have concluded there is a “rare but real risk” that an earthquake-produced tsunami could inundate parts of coastal Anchorage under certain conditions, a newspaper reported, a shift from the prior understanding of the risk posed to Alaska’s largest city.Previously, researchers said the shallow waters of Upper Cook Inlet would work to diminish the power of a tsunami wave. But that was not based on scientific modeling, said Elena Suleimani, an author of the report and a tsunami modeler with the Alaska Earthquake Center, the Anchorage Daily News reported.“Up until now, our understanding of the risk or level of hazard exposure was just anecdotal,” Suleimani said.The findings from the study by the University of Alaska Fairbanks and the Alaska Division of Geological and Geophysical Surveys — released Wednesday — stem from a first-time effort to model potential tsunami impacts on Anchorage based on various earthquake scenarios, according to the new...

More than 60 Senegalese migrants are feared dead on a monthlong voyage to Spain

Published Mon, 16 Dec 2024 22:41:49 GMT

DAKAR, Senegal (AP) — More than 60 migrants are feared dead after a Spanish fishing vessel rescued a boat off the Atlantic archipelago of Cape Verde that originally had more than 100 people aboard, authorities and migrant advocates said Thursday. Seven bodies were found on the boat and an estimated 56 people are missing at sea and presumed dead, said International Organization for Migration spokesperson Safa Msehli. According to Senegal’s foreign affairs ministry, 38 people were rescued earlier in the week near Cape Verde, about 620 kilometers (385 miles) off the coast of West Africa. The Spanish migration advocacy group Walking Borders said the vessel was a large fishing boat, called a pirogue, which had left Senegal on July 10.Families in Fass Boye, a seaside town 145 kilometers (90 miles) north of the capital, Dakar, reached out to Walking Borders on July 20, after 10 days without hearing from loved ones on the boat, group founder Helena Maleno Garzón said.Cheikh Awa Boye, presid...

Mexican investigators find decapitated and burned bodies possibly linked to horrifying video

Published Mon, 16 Dec 2024 22:41:49 GMT

MEXICO CITY (AP) — Mexican investigators said Thursday they have found four burned and decapitated bodies that might be related to the horrifying case of five kidnapped youths, one of whom was filmed apparently being forced to kill the others. Prosecutors in the western state of Jalisco said the bodies were badly burned and had not yet been identified. But the bodies were found inside a building near where the young men were kidnapped Friday and later photographed in captivity.The decapitations also matched details of a video that shows one member of the group apparently being forced to saw off his friend’s head with a knife.The families of the missing have said the clothing and appearance of the men seen in the photos and video matched their relatives.The gruesome video transported Mexico back to the darkest days of drug cartel brutality in the early 2000s. It also sparked a debate about whether President Andrés Manuel López Obrador heard — or pretended not to hear — shouted questi...

Paramount decides it won’t sell majority stake in BET Media Group, source tells AP

Published Mon, 16 Dec 2024 22:41:49 GMT

LOS ANGELES (AP) — BET won’t be sold after all: Paramount Global decided against selling the majority stake of the network.Paramount notified bidders late Wednesday night about its decision to conclude the BET Media Group sale process, said a person familiar with the decision who was not authorized to speak publicly. The person said the company determined maintaining a heavy stake in BET creates more value for Paramount than any of the proposals after consulting with a couple highly-experienced financial advisors.Some popular suitors included actor-director Tyler Perry, music mogul Sean “Diddy” Combs and businessman Byron Allen. At one point, some considered Perry as a leading contender based on the two successful series, “The Oval” and “Sistas,” airing on the network. He also owns a minority stake of the BET+ streaming service.Along with BET, the deal would have included the cable channel VH1.BET was originally started by Robert and then-wife Sheila Johnson in 1980. Robert Johnson ...