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Germany’s undertaker-in-chief

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:26:37 GMT

BERLIN — Olaf Scholz was dressing the corpse.“We’ve had a very successful track record this year and last,” the German leader insisted at the outset of a two-day retreat for his fractious Cabinet north of Berlin this week.No one bought it, least of all Scholz.As if to acknowledge as much, the chancellor wore a somber expression as he delivered his monotone “why can’t we all just get along” plea to the cameras.  “It would be good if everyone could use their communications strategies to contribute,” he concluded, with a lifeless functionality.  Standing at dusk in a dark raincoat next to a centuries-old linden tree, Scholz looked more like an undertaker than the chancellor of Germany.It was an apposite choice of clothing: Scholz might have another two years in office, but for all intents and purposes his government is a goner, its ambitious agenda bled dry.It was never going to be easy to mesh the priorities of Germany’s first multiparty national coalition in decades, espec...

Grant Shapps is Britain’s new defense secretary. What does it mean for Ukraine?

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:26:37 GMT

LONDON — With Ben Wallace’s exit as U.K. defense secretary Thursday, the original power duo who came out fighting for Ukraine are now both gone. While Boris Johnson gained grudging respect across the world for his rapid response to the Russian invasion — and bromance with Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelenskyy — Johnson’s old pal Wallace was equally lauded for standing four-square behind him and doing much of the legwork.Now Wallace’s replacement at the Ministry of Defense, Grant Shapps, must show he’s just as tough.Shapps is a well-established figure at the top of British politics, yet a surprise pick for defense secretary all the same. With the exception of one junior role in the department for international development, he has only ever held domestic portfolios over a long career in office which began back in 2010 under David Cameron’s leadership. The former business and energy secretary is also one of only three ministers without some form of milita...

Person hit in head by plane propeller at Norwood Airport

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:26:37 GMT

A person was taken to a Boston hospital Thursday after they were hit in the head by a plane propeller at Norwood Memorial Airport, fire officials said. Emergency crews responded to the airport Thursday night and were spotted on scene examining the plane involved in this incident after 9 p.m. Officials said the injured person had been trying to kickstart the propeller on a small-single engine aircraft at the time of the incident. The person’s injuries were considered non-life-threatening as of Thursday night, according to officials. Emergency crews had cleared the scene as of around 10 p.m. 

Patriots claim QB Matt Corral off waivers, place WR Tyquan Thornton on injured reserve

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:26:37 GMT

FOXBOROUGH, Mass. (AP) — Mac Jones time as the only quarterback on the Patriots’ active roster lasted for just one day.New England claimed quarterback Matt Corral off waivers from Carolina on Thursday after coach Bill Belichick cut both Bailey Zappe and Malik Cunningham while paring down his initial 53-man roster.Zappe and Cunningham have since been signed to the practice squad, but the addition of Corral slots him as Jones’ backup as the Patriots begin preparations for their Sept. 10 season opener against Philadelphia.Corral was the Panthers’ third-round draft pick in 2022 after starring at Mississippi, but never got on the field in the regular season. He missed his entire rookie season after suffering a foot injury in a preseason game against New England.Carolina moved up in the 2022 draft to select Corral, using the 94th overall pick it received in a trade with the Patriots in exchange for compensation that included a fourth-round pick (147th overall) that New England event...

Sand sculpture exhibition set to open in NH

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:26:37 GMT

As beach days dwindle, one company is giving sand a fall feel with an exhibition set to open in New Hampshire this weekend.Sculptured Sand: Tales of the Dark Forest will open in North Woodstock on Friday, featuring more than 25 unique sand sculptures. The sculptures by a variety of artists will depict fantasy creatures and characters along a winding trail through a scenic autumn forest. “Princesses, centaurs, trees that have come alive — every one is really a mural incorporating all sorts of different artistic elements and characters which is really exciting,” said Sculptured Sand Operations Director Jared Henningsen. “It’s something for the whole family.”The exhibition is one of the largest of its kind in North America. Once open, the exhibition’s sculptures will be on display through Oct. 29. Learn more on the sculptured sand website here.

Joe Battenfeld’s political columns

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:26:37 GMT

Click here for all of Joe Battenfeld’s political columns — there’s no one better.

UN chief warns that rise in global distrust and improvements in nukes are `recipe for annihilation’

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:26:37 GMT

UNITED NATIONS (AP) — An alarming rise in global distrust and division coupled with efforts by countries to improve the accuracy and destructive power of nuclear weapons is “a recipe for annihilation,” the United Nations chief warned Tuesday.In a statement marking the International Day Against Nuclear Tests, Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said that with nearly 13,000 nuclear weapons stockpiled around the world, “a legally binding prohibition on nuclear tests is a fundamental step in our quest for a world free of nuclear weapons.”The Comprehensive Nuclear Test Ban Treaty has 196 member states — 186 have signed it and 178 have ratified it, including eight in the last 18 months. But the pact has not taken effect because it needs ratification by the eight nations that had nuclear power reactors or research reactors when the U.N. General Assembly adopted the treaty in 1996.At a high-level meeting of the 193-member assembly to observe the day there was no indication that those eight c...

Woman seriously injured in midtown stabbing, man in custody

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:26:37 GMT

A man is in custody following a stabbing in midtown Toronto. Police were called to an apartment building in the area of Bathurst Street and St. Clair Avenue around 9:30 p.m. Thursday. When they arrived they found a woman suffering from a single stab wound. She was transported to a trauma centre with serious but non-life threatening injuries.Police say a man was arrested at the scene. There was no indication of the relationship, if any, between the man and the woman.

Trump-era rule change allowing the logging of old-growth forests violates laws, judge says

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:26:37 GMT

PENDLETON, Ore. (AP) — A federal judge has found that a Trump-era rule change that allowed for the logging of old-growth forests in the Pacific Northwest violates several laws. U.S. Magistrate Judge Andrew Hallman on Thursday found that the U.S. Forest Service violated the National Environmental Policy Act, the National Forest Management Act and the Endangered Species Act when it amended a protection that had been in place since 1994. The findings came in response to a lawsuit filed by multiple environmental groups over the change.Hallman recommended that the Forest Service’s environmental assessment and finding of no significant impact should be vacated and that the agency should be required to prepare a full environmental impact statement related to the change.“The highly uncertain effects of this project, when considered in light of its massive scope and setting, raise substantial questions about whether this project will have a significant effect on the environment,” Hallm...

2nd man charged in July shooting at massive Indiana block party that killed 1, injured 17

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:26:37 GMT

MUNCIE, Ind. (AP) — A prosecutor Thursday charged the second man arrested in a July shooting at a massive block party in central Indiana that left one person dead and 17 others wounded.Delaware County Prosecutor Eric Hoffman announced he charged Justin E. Bonner, 29, of Muncie with unlawful possession of a firearm by a serious violent felon.Bonner was arrested by Muncie police on Monday. Online court records did not list an attorney for Bonner who might comment on the allegations against him.His arrest was the second in the July 30 shooting, which occurred as hundreds of people were attending the block party in Muncie, about 60 miles (100 kilometers) northeast of Indianapolis. Joseph E. Bonner III, 30, was killed and 18 others were injured, including a woman who was run over by a car while running from the scene.The Bonners are brothers.An affidavit states Justin Bonner told police he fired a handgun at the other man charged in the case, John L. Vance Jr., 36, after seeing Vance sho...