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Opponents compete to square off against Venezuela’s powerful leader

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 15:26:14 GMT

CARACAS, Venezuela (AP) — Leaders of Venezuela’s fractured opposition are shaking voters’ hands and promising — yet again — that they will defeat President Nicolás Maduro at the ballot box. Maduro is backed by the all-powerful United Socialist Party of Venezuela, which has controlled the nation and its oil wealth for a quarter-century. The party was led for 15 years by Hugo Chávez and has been behind Maduro for a decade, all the while tilting the electoral system in its favor and using government benefits as incentives to vote for it. Despite the sky-high odds against them, opposition leaders say that giving up would be worse, so they’re holding an Oct. 22 primary to decide who will take on Maduro next year. They are getting a lukewarm reception from dispirited voters who were told for years to boycott elections.Interested candidates could officially enter the race starting Tuesday but many election basics — such as who will vote, how and where — remain undetermined. Still, so far a...

As conservatives target schools, LGBTQ+ kids and students of color feel less safe

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 15:26:14 GMT

NOLENSVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — The first encounter with racism that Harmony Kennedy can remember came in elementary school. On a playground, a girl picked up a leaf and said she wanted to “clean the dirt” from Harmony’s skin. In sixth grade, a boy dropped trash on the floor and told her to pick it up, “because you’re a slave.” She was stunned — no one had ever said anything like that to her before.As protests for racial justice broke out in 2020, white students at her Tennessee high school kneeled in the hallways and chanted, “Black lives matter!” in mocking tones. As she saw the students receive light punishments, she grew increasingly frustrated.So when Tennessee began passing legislation that could limit the discussion and teaching of Black history, gender identity and race in the classroom, to Harmony, it felt like a gut punch — as if the adults were signaling this kind of ignorant behavior was acceptable.“When I heard they were removing African American history, banning LGBTQ, I alm...

Bottomless supply? Concerns of limited Canadian hydropower as U.S. seeks to decarbonize grid

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 15:26:14 GMT

HARTFORD, Conn. (AP) — Policymakers seeking to make the U.S. electric grid less reliant on fossil fuels have long looked north to Canada and its abundant surplus of hydropower, advocating for new transmission lines to bring more of that cheap, clean electricity south.But with demand for green energy growing north of the border, too, there are new concerns that Canada’s hydro supply isn’t as bottomless as it once seemed.A study published in May by the Montreal Economic Institute predicted that Quebec, now home to one of the world’s largest hydroelectric systems, will over the next decade fall short of the generating capacity needed to meet increasing demand for power in the province.Some New England lawmakers are questioning the wisdom of plans to construct new transmission lines across their states, despite Canadian energy giant Hydro-Québec’s insistence it can still meet its energy obligations.“They have their own energy needs,” Maine state Sen. Nicole Groho...

Quebec wilderness outfitters hit hard by Quebec fires and forest access ban

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 15:26:14 GMT

MONTREAL — Quebec’s massive forest fires have forced most of the province’s wilderness outfitters to shut down during one of their busiest seasons. While some have been closed due to active fires, dozens of others have been forced to cancel reservations by a government order limiting access to forests in much of the province. Dominic Dugré, the president of Fédération des pourvoiries du Québec, an industry association, said that of the more than 500 outfitters who operate in Quebec’s forests, 350 have been forced to close. “These are the best weeks of the year,” he said in an interview Tuesday. “It’s the peak for trout fishing, walleye, bear hunting, so those are precious weeks for the profitability and sustainability of the operations.”Dugré said only one outfitter’s operation has been confirmed to have burned, but it’s impossible to know whether others in the fire zones have been damaged or destroyed.“There is insur...

Missing Mount Rainier climber’s body found in crevasse; he was celebrating 80th birthday

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 15:26:14 GMT

MOUNT RAINIER NATIONAL PARK, Wash. (AP) — Search crews on Mount Rainier have found and recovered the body of a man matching the description of an 80-year-old solo climber reported missing last week, Mount Rainier National Park officials said.Dawes Eddy of Spokane, Washington, embarked on a solo climb on May 30 and was last seen that night heading up hill on an area of the 14,441-foot (4,402-meter) mountain known as Cathedral Gap, Park officials said Tuesday in a statement. He was hiking Rainier for the 50th time to celebrate his birthday, KING-TV reported. He told park officials he was hiking alone and was taking the Ingraham Direct route, which the park said is part of the most popular climbing route on the volcano.Park rangers were notified Thursday that Eddy had not come down the mountain as expected and began searching likely climbing routes. Days of searches by helicopter and on the ground along his likely climbing routes by multiple groups were unsuccessful, officials said.On ...

Rockies’ pitching implodes as Giants win ninth straight over Colorado

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 15:26:14 GMT

The enormous scoreboard at Coors Field went on the fritz for a couple of minutes in the first inning Tuesday night. That was the first omen that the Rockies were going to lose their ninth consecutive game to the Giants.The second was right-hander Dinelson Lamet’s maddening lack of pitch command.And so it goes.The final: San Francisco 10, Colorado 4 in front of an announced crowd of 29,190, many of them cheering for the visitors. Colorado pitchers walked a season-high 11 hitters — one short of the franchise record —  in a truly ugly loss. Daniel Bard walked four in the ninth, forcing in a run.For the record, the Giants, who have won 15 of their last 20 games vs. the Rockies, climbed back to .500 with a 30-30 record.That Lamet needed 83 pitches (46 strikes) to wade through three messy innings tells you plenty about his performance. The fact that Colorado trailed just 3-0 when he departed was surprising, especially considering that the Giants had six hits off him, inc...

Hip-hop and history: The story behind one of L.A.'s most famous streets

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 15:26:14 GMT

In most major U.S. cities you will find common street names like Broadway, Market, Oak, Elm, First, Second, etc. But in Southern California, one unique street name found in two cities transcends real history and hip-hop history: Rosecrans.Rosecrans Avenue is a major, 27-mile thoroughfare in Los Angeles and Orange counties. It is also a bustling street in the Point Loma area of San Diego.So where does the name come from?William Starke Rosecrans (National Park Service)William Starke Rosecrans was born in Delaware County, Ohio in 1819. He was a brigadier general for the Union during the American Civil War and, according to the National Parks Service, “was largely responsible for the Union's early victories in northern Virginia at the Battles of Rich Mountain and Corrick's Ford.”Rosecrans’ military success, however, abruptly came to an end at the Battle of Chickamauga in 1863 – the second bloodiest battle of the Civil War behind Gettysburg.As the American Battlefield Trust explains, Ros...

Patrick Bailey’s first Coors Field game is a show-stopper as SF Giants set franchise record in rout of Rockies

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 15:26:14 GMT

DENVER — There is no lack of San Francisco Giants who enjoy hitting at Coors Field, and after their first game of the season in its mile-high setting, they can probably add at least one more player to the list.Rookie catcher Patrick Bailey quickly learned why the Colorado Rockies’ home is considered a hitter’s paradise, contributing a trio of extra-base knocks in a well-rounded rout Tuesday night in the first of three games between the NL West rivals. The Giants (30-30) won, 10-4, beating Colorado for the ninth straight game.Bailey doubled twice, scored two runs and collected his first career triple as the Giants got 14 hits, including at least one from all but one member of their starting lineup. San Francisco set a franchise record with eight doubles, including a pair from Thairo Estrada in addition to Bailey’s contribution.“It’s definitely got a reputation,” Bailey said. “That’s correct, I’d say. Definitely hitter friendly....

Evans’ 3-pointer late in OT helps lift Chicago over Indiana

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 15:26:14 GMT

CHICAGO (AP) — Marina Mabrey scored 18 of her 28 points in the first half, Dana Evans scored all 19 of her points after halftime and the Chicago Sky beat the Indiana Fever 108-103 in overtime on Tuesday night.Evans made a wide open 3-pointer with 50.1 seconds left in overtime to extend Chicago’s lead to 101-96. Indiana turned it over on its next possession for the 16th time and Evans sank a runner in the lane for a seven-point lead.Kahleah Copper added 24 points and Alanna Smith scored 18 for Chicago (5-3), which was coming off a stunning 19-point comeback against the New York Liberty on Sunday.All five starters for Indiana (1-5) scored in double-figures as well as Kristy Wallace’s 16 points off the bench. Boston finished with a season-high 25 points to go with 11 rebounds and Erica Wheeler had 12 points and 12 assists.ACES 90, SUN 84UNCASVILLE, Conn. (AP) — A’Ja Wilson scored 23 points and grabbed 10 rebounds and the defending champion Las Vegas remained undefeated, holding off Con...

Seattle rallies from 21-point deficit, beats Los Angeles 66-63

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 15:26:14 GMT

SEATTLE (AP) — Jewell Loyd had 25 points and eight rebounds and the Seattle Storm rallied from a 21-point first-half deficit to beat the Los Angeles Sparks 66-63 on Tuesday night.Seattle (1-4) avenged a 92-85 loss to the Sparks on Saturday with the second-largest comeback victory in franchise history.Loyd was scoreless after the first quarter when Seattle trailed 24-6, but she totaled 24 points over the next two frames to help build a 52-48 lead entering the fourth quarter.Los Angeles forward Nneka Ogwumike blocked a shot with 20 seconds left in the fourth and she headed the other way for a reverse layup, but it was blocked by Ezi Magbegor. Seattle secured the defensive rebound and the Sparks elected not to foul as time ran out.Rookie Jordan Horston scored a season-high 14 points and Magbegor had 13 points, 10 rebounds and three blocks for Seattle. Loyd became the third player in Storm history to reach 4,000 career points.Seattle only had four points through the opening nine minutes...