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The BBC is under pressure over claims a well-known presenter paid a teenager for explicit photos

Published Sun, 23 Feb 2025 12:24:39 GMT

LONDON (AP) — Senior British politicians on Sunday called on the BBC to rapidly investigate claims that a leading presenter paid a teenager for explicit photos.The publicly funded national broadcaster is under pressure after The Sun newspaper reported allegations that the male presenter gave a youth 35,000 pounds ($45,000) starting in 2020 when the young person was 17.Neither the star nor the youth was identified. Amid speculation on social media about the identity of the presenter, several of the BBC’s best-known stars spoke up to say it wasn’t them.Though the age of sexual consent in Britain is 16, it’s a crime to make or possess indecent images of anyone under 18.The Sun said the young person’s mother had complained to the BBC in May. It was unclear what if any action the broadcaster had taken.In a statement, the BBC said “we treat any allegations very seriously and we have processes in place to proactively deal with them.”“If, at any point, new information comes to light or is p...

Brush fire in Hays County about 85% contained

Published Sun, 23 Feb 2025 12:24:39 GMT

HAYS COUNTY, Texas (KXAN) – A brush fire near Hilliard Road in Hays County is about 85 acres in size as of late Saturday, according to the Texas A&M Forest Service.Mike Jones, Hays County director of emergency services, said that emergency responders are calling it the "Vineyard Fire.""We've got plenty of water on hand," said Jones.No homes are currently at risk from the fire, and Jones said that his agency is not planning any evacuation of civilians. As of around 10:30 p.m. Saturday, the fire is 85% contained, according to the Texas A&M Forest Service.A brush fire near Hilliard Road in Hays County has reached nearly 150 acres as of 9 p.m. Saturday (Photo Courtesy Hays County Judge Ruben Becerra).A brush fire near Hilliard Road in Hays County has reached nearly 150 acres as of 9 p.m. Saturday (Photo Courtesy Hays County Judge Ruben Becerra).A brush fire near Hilliard Road in Hays County has reached nearly 150 acres as of 9 p.m. Saturday (Photo Courtesy Hays County Judge Rube...

Head of athletics for St. Paul Public Schools accused of sex discrimination, harassment

Published Sun, 23 Feb 2025 12:24:39 GMT

The man in charge of athletics for St. Paul Public Schools is the subject of numerous sex discrimination and harassment complaints lodged by people he supervises, but the school district has closed all investigations without taking any action.Monroe Denarvise Thornton, 54, was hired in December 2021 as the district’s first full-time districtwide athletics administrator.Monroe Denarvise Thornton Jr., 54, was hired in January 2021 as the first districtwide athletics director for St. Paul Public Schools. (Courtesy of St. Paul Public Schools)One of the co-worker complaints alleges that three months after he was hired, the married Thornton was drinking heavily during a state conference for athletics administrators in St. Cloud when he made “inappropriate passes” at a female vendor for a ticketing company, even calling her at 2 a.m.The woman was so uncomfortable that she asked another district employee to escort her back to her hotel, according to the co-worker, who said multiple people w...

St. Paul couple reminisce about Cold War-era road trip through the Ukraine, Russia, Poland, other corners of Eastern Europe

Published Sun, 23 Feb 2025 12:24:39 GMT

It was early 1984, still years before the dissolution of the Soviet Union and the official end of America’s Cold War with the Soviet Union, and Yuri Andropov was dying.Mark and Constance Kraby, now of St. Paul, with their orange Volkswagen at a dacha outside Moscow, one of many stops during a three-week road trip across Eastern Europe in 1984. (Courtesy of the Krabys)With the leader of the Russian superpower hidden from public view, the United States warned Americans abroad that regime change would be an especially bad time to visit America’s rival. But Mark and Constance Kraby had spent nine months arranging their two-car trip through Eastern Europe with three fellow ex-patriots who, like them, had made fast cash cleaning houses and U.S. military hotels in Munich, Germany.The five Americans felt young enough to be immortal, and just poor enough to insist on their money’s worth from a long-planned hotel-and-camping vacation throughout the U.S.S.R. With their two ri...

Skywatch: Great Summer Triangle will take you places

Published Sun, 23 Feb 2025 12:24:39 GMT

When you’re trying to make the stars your old friends and getting to know your way around the constellations, you need all the help you can get. Asterisms can be excellent tools to get the job done. Asterisms are large and obvious formations of stars that are very easy to find. They are not counted among the official constellations in the night sky, but they’re a heck of a lot easier to find because they’re all made up of bright stars and jump right out at you. They can be either part of a constellation or made up of several constellations.One example of an asterism is the Big Dipper, now hanging by its handle in the northwestern sky. The Dipper makes up the rear end and tail of the constellation Ursa Major, the Latin name for the Big Bear. Its stars are by far the brightest members of Ursa Major and can be seen even in light-polluted skies. The Big Dipper is the first step to seeing the rest of the Big Bear. It also acts as an excellent pointer to other constellat...

Kathleen Collins: Biden’s Ukraine policy needs to be fixed, not ended

Published Sun, 23 Feb 2025 12:24:39 GMT

President Obama’s failed ideas about appeasing Russia and barring lethal military aid to Ukraine have taken hold among Republicans.A recent PEW study found that nearly 50% of Republicans and Republican-leaning independents believe the U.S. is giving Ukraine too much aid. Almost 60% of the same group believe that President Biden’s policy in Ukraine is wrong. Oddly, many of the same Republican leaders who lambasted Obama for being naïve about Russia now oppose “Biden’s war.” The “Ukraine Fatigue Resolution” or President Trump’s isolationism characterize the views of growing numbers.Let’s consider the major Republican critiques of aid to Ukraine.Republicans often argue that Ukraine is not a democracy, and thus doesn’t deserve our support. This outdated view ignores Ukraine’s past 20 years. Since 2004, Ukraine has held free, competitive elections. The 2014 Revolution of Dignity solidified Ukraine’s commitment to strengthening democratic institutions and to European integration. Indeed, ...

Letters: Don’t take free speech and the right to protest for granted

Published Sun, 23 Feb 2025 12:24:39 GMT

Free and braveCrowds across the nation came for celebrations for the Fourth of July. I wondered if they came for fireworks and entertainment, or came in the love and belief of our country.America has progressively been denigrated by other countries and our own citizens. There are many special interest groups that feel their needs are not being met. These groups have spoken out and protested about race, gender identity and environmental issues, to name a few. They should be grateful that only in America do they have the freedom of speech and right to protest, freedom and rights that many countries deny their citizens.Interestingly enough, if one agrees with some of the special interest groups and proposals, but does not accept all of their proposals, they are labeled, racist, homophobic and anti-environment.Political correctness has become so ingrained in our nation that if you do not support some agendas, you can be fired or your company boycotted. Why can’t opposing views be ...

Trudy Rubin: As we celebrated our independence, Ukrainians fought and died to keep theirs

Published Sun, 23 Feb 2025 12:24:39 GMT

As we celebrated the Fourth of July with hot dogs and fireworks, mourners gathered at Kyiv’s famous St. Michael’s Golden-Domed Cathedral. They were paying last respects to one of Ukraine’s most noted young writers.Victoria Amelina, 37, was fatally wounded by a Russian missile strike on July 1 on a large, well-known pizza restaurant in Kramatorsk, Ukraine. At the time, it was filled with journalists, humanitarian aid workers, local families, and probably some soldiers taking time out from the front lines. How like the Russians to bomb a pizza place.I didn’t know Amelina, but have several Ukrainian friends who did, including one who was at her hospital bedside as she lay in an irreversible coma.I’m writing about her not to guilt-trip those who enjoyed their backyard barbecue this past week, but because she inspired such admiration from her peers. She had paused her successful literary career to investigate and document war crimes in areas liberated by Ukr...

Spreading awareness on Postpartum Depression

Published Sun, 23 Feb 2025 12:24:39 GMT

ALBANY, N.Y. (NEWS10) — After one Massachusetts mom took her own life just nine days after giving birth to her twins last month, more health professionals want to help spread awareness about postpartum depression and how and when to seek help.Last year in the U.S., postpartum depression affected one in 10 women, according to the CDC., and about 61 percent of working mothers said that it was a challenge to return to work, according to The EPES Program. Now health professionals like Quoida Lauzon, CEO of The EPES Program, want to share more about the available symptoms and treatments. Get the latest, news, weather, sports and community events delivered right to your inbox! Lauzon said it’s crucial to do a postpartum screening for every maternity patient and that the patient would first visit their OB-GYN for the initial discussion. From there, they would be referred to a medical professional specializing in postpartum depression.“It’s essential and critical to have that done often t...

Ask Amy: Stylist’s client notices suspicious bruises

Published Sun, 23 Feb 2025 12:24:39 GMT

Dear Amy: I have been going to a hair stylist for three years. She is a delightful young woman with a 4-year-old son and a live-in partner.The first time I met her, she had severe bruises on her face, and explained that she was hit by a ball during a softball game. I believed her.In December last year, she again had facial bruises and said she had tripped over her little boy.At my next appointment, she had facial bruises once more, with another explanation about falling over her son.I have never noticed scrapes or bruises on her hands (had she tried to break her fall). She never goes to the doctor for treatment.I’m worried that something else is going on: domestic violence or alcohol abuse?I have no evidence beyond my suspicions, and wonder if I should ask more? If so, what do I say? If her stories are true, I will embarrass her greatly and that’s not my intention. What would you advise?— Concerned ClientDear Concerned: The next time you are in, you could leave a note, along w...