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Italy waters down its infamous bank windfall tax

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 00:27:59 GMT

The Italian finance ministry has quietly watered down its controversial windfall tax on banks’ “extra profits” following an intense round of discussions between rival political factions and the nation’s banks. According to the draft of a new amendment that will dramatically modify the tax before it goes to the Italian parliament for approval, banks will be able to cut their liability significantly in two new ways. The development is a big concession to the country’s banking lobby and its political ally, the Forza Italia party that is a junior partner in the current coalition government. It’s also a concession to the European Central Bank, which sharply criticized the original draft earlier this month. It also appears to thwart Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni’s hopes to narrow the country’s budget deficit with an opportunistic raid on a sector of the economy that — at least temporarily — is cash-rich. The banks will now be able to take one of two options: under one,...

Two children struck by car in Lynn

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 00:27:59 GMT

Authorities say two children are expected to recover after they were struck by a vehicle in Lynn on Monday morning.Officials with the Lynn Fire Department told 7NEWS the crash happened in the area of Holyoke Street and left two “elementary school-age” children injured.According to Lynn FD, the two children were transported to Mass General Hospital for what were considered non-life-threatening injuries.Details on what led up to the incident or if a driver was facing any charges have not yet been released.Authorities said an investigation into the crash is ongoing.This is a developing story; stay with 7NEWS on-air and online for the latest updates.

Lego drops plans to make bricks from recycled plastic bottles

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 00:27:59 GMT

London (CNN) — Lego has abandoned plans to make its famous bricks from recycled plastic bottles, saying that the manufacturing process would be more polluting than the current production of oil-based bricks.Lego made the decision — first reported by the Financial Times Sunday — after it spent years testing recycled polyethylene terephthalate (PET) as a more climate-friendly alternative to the acrylonitrile butadiene styrene (ABS) it uses in the majority of its toys.The toymaker has pledged to use only sustainable materials in its products by 2032 and, two years ago, unveiled a prototype brick made from recycled PET. The plastic was sourced from bottles that are typically used for water or soda.Since then, however, Lego has found that making bricks from the recycled material would require investing in new equipment and involve more steps, which would ultimately lead to more planet-heating pollution than the status quo, a company spokesperson told CNN Monday.L...

Bill Belichick not losing faith in Patriots RB Rhamondre Stevenson through early-season struggles

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 00:27:59 GMT

One of the few locks that the Patriots could seemingly count on heading into the 2023 season was Rhamondre Stevenson’s play as one of the NFL’s best young running backs.So, it’s been a pretty major surprise to see Stevenson struggle three games into the season.Related ArticlesNew England Patriots | Patriots TE Pharaoh Brown becomes unlikely hero in 15-10 win over Jets New England Patriots | Callahan: Beating the Jets buys the Patriots time, but little else New England Patriots | Patriots’ defense used old-school strategy to make Jets one-dimensional in win New England Patriots | Patriots credit captain Matthew Slater for motivational speech before Jets win New England Patriots | Patriots have three more key injuries to worry about after win over Jets Patriots head coach Bill Belichick is clearly standing by his 25-year-old ball carrier, however.“Yeah, I think Rhamondre reads...

Daywatch: White Sox shooting mystery deepens

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 00:27:59 GMT

Good morning, Chicago.A month after two women were hit by gunfire while sitting in the bleachers during a White Sox game at Guaranteed Rate Field, the shooting that stunned the city and made news around the country appears no closer to being solved than it was in the hours after the incident, sources said.Rumors and hearsay, peddled largely by content aggregators on social media, have done little to quell speculation about the shooting — which, in the nearly 150-year history of Major League Baseball, is believed to be perhaps just the fourth instance of a fan being shot while inside a big league ballpark.Investigators have been weighing whether the woman who sustained the more severe injuries was somehow able to bring a gun into the stadium that later discharged while she was in the left field bleachers, according to police sources not authorized to speak publicly about the investigation. That woman has not been cooperative with Chicago Police Department investigators in the w...

Girl stabbed in Vista; pursuit ends in suspect arrest

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 00:27:59 GMT

VISTA, Calif. -- A girl was stabbed Sunday night in Vista, and deputies arrested the suspect after a pursuit, authorities said.San Diego County Sheriff's Department received a call around 10:20 p.m. about a stabbing near Phillips Street and Civic Center Drive, near a SPRINTER station, the department said. The girl, who had been stabbed two to three times in her upper body, was taken to a hospital where she remained in stable condition Monday. Driver killed in North County rollover crash A deputy spotted a driver matching the suspect's description on a street in Vista, authorities said. A pursuit began but quickly ended when the driver crashed while attempting to get on state Route 76, authorities said. The driver got out of the car and ran, but was captured and arrested with the help of a K-9.The suspect was taken to a hospital and was then sent to Juvenile Hall, authorities said.It was not immediately known whether the suspect and victim knew each other.

COASTER service resumes after tree falls onto tracks

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 00:27:59 GMT

CARLSBAD, Calif. -- A fallen tree on train tracks in the Carlsbad area Sunday prompted a temporary halt to Coaster service, transportation officials said.The tracks closure was located between Carlsbad Village Station and Poinsettia Station, according to North County Transit District. Driver killed in North County rollover crash Around 9:56 p.m., FOX 5 arrived on scene and found that train service had resumed service.The service stoppage lasted for about an hour, leaving some riders stranded.

DeSantis makes stop in Coronado ahead of GOP debate

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 00:27:59 GMT

SAN DIEGO -- Florida Gov. and Republican presidential candidate Ron DeSantis visited Coronado Sunday for a veterans appreciation event.DeSantis made remarks to a packed Veterans of Foreign Wars Post 2422, which is just steps away from where DeSantis was stationed and where he returned home from war. “I’ll never forget flying back from Iraq landing at Naval Air Station North Island, right on the corner there,” DeSantis said. The Florida governor discussed the need to control the fentanyl crisis and his concern for a decline in military strength, something that hits close to Coronado residents. “We are not in a position to be able to defend this country from threats posed by China,” he said. DeSantis' visit comes ahead of the second Republican presidential debate on Wednesday at the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library in Simi Valley, California. First Lady Jill Biden visits San Diego for fundraiser; Mayor Gloria welcomes Several campaigns have said they've satisfi...

Photo giant Getty took a leading AI image-maker to court. Now it’s also embracing the technology

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 00:27:59 GMT

Anyone looking for a beautiful photograph of a desert landscape can find many choices from Getty Images, the stock photography collection. But say you’re instead looking for a wide angle shot of a “hot pink plastic saguaro cactus with large arms that stick out, surrounded by sand, in landscape at dawn.” Getty Images says you can now ask its artificial intelligence image-generator to make one on the spot. The Seattle-based company is taking a two-pronged approach to the threat and opportunity that AI poses to its business. First, it sued a leading purveyor of AI-generated images earlier this year for what it alleged was “brazen infringement” of Getty’s image collection “on a staggering scale.”But on Monday, it also joined the small but growing market of AI image makers with a new service that enables its customers to create novel images trained on Getty’s own vast library of human-made photos.The difference, said Getty Images CEO Craig Peters, is this new service is “comm...

Fresh fighting reported in Ethiopia’s Amhara region between military and local militiamen

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 00:27:59 GMT

KAMPALA, Uganda (AP) — Fresh fighting erupted in the second-biggest town of Ethiopia’s turbulent Amhara region as militiamen clashed with the military over government plans to disarm local forces. Fighters from a militia called Fano fought against military units Sunday in the town of Gondar, an important tourist and commercial hub, residents told The Associated Press. “It was very heavy,” said one person reached by telephone who declined to give their name because of safety concerns. Calm had mostly been restored by Monday morning, with the military back in control of the town, although sporadic gunfire could still be heard, residents said. Shops were shut and the streets were empty.Other areas of Amhara, including the regional capital Bahir Dar and Lalibela, another important tourist town, did not see fighting, residents said Monday. Violence gripped Amhara, Ethiopia’s second-most populous state, in early August, with Fano fighters seizing control of several major towns and protest...