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Opponents make last-ditch effort to stop French pension law

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 00:47:31 GMT

PARIS (AP) — Opponents of a law that would raise the retirement age in France from 62 to 64 are making last-ditch plans to prevent the change that is set to take effect in September. The country’s main labor unions on Tuesday called for another round of nationwide demonstrations and strikes on June 6. May Day protests across France on Monday drew either 800,000 people — that’s according to French authorities — or 2.3 million people, which was the estimate given by organizers. France’s top constitutional body is expected to rule Wednesday on a request from opposition lawmakers to start a lengthy process that could ultimately lead to a bill or a referendum to restore the minimum retirement age of 62. With President Emmanuel Macron having demonstrated his determination to press on with the unpopular pension reform, here’s a look at the next steps for his government and the plan’s opponents.A LONG SHOT AT A REFERENDUMThe Constitutional Council’s role is to ...

Orillia mourns hometown legend Gordon Lightfoot, makes books of condolences available

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 00:47:31 GMT

ORILLIA, Ont. — The Ontario city of Orillia is mourning hometown legend Gordon Lightfoot, saying the famous folk musician had an immense impact on the community and beyond. Lightfoot died of natural causes at Toronto’s Sunnybrook Hospital on Monday at 84.Orillia Mayor Don McIsaac said Lightfoot was highly regarded in the city. “His homecoming concerts at the Orillia Opera House and appearances at the Mariposa Folk Festival have always been celebrated by Orillians as they welcomed him home,” the mayor wrote in a statement. “Many of us who knew him will remember his soft-spoken demeanor, generous personality and infectious laugh.”There are reminders of Lightfoot throughout Orillia, McIsaac said, noting that the singer’s name graces a city auditorium stage and a trail, while a bust of him sits at the Orillia Opera House and a bronze sculpture honouring him stands in a city park.“His deep roots in our city are woven into the fabric of Orillia,&#...

Stock market today: Wall Street drops as banks tumble again

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 00:47:31 GMT

NEW YORK (AP) — Stocks are falling Tuesday as shares of beleaguered banks tumble again and worries about a possible recession worsen. Rising fear has Treasury yields sinking in the bond market, as Wall Street also waits for the Federal Reserve’s latest move on interest rates and Washington edges closer to what would be a catastrophic default on U.S. government debt. The S&P 500 was 1.6% lower, with losses accelerating as the morning progressed. The Dow Jones Industrial Average was down 520 points, or 1.5%, at 33,531, as of 11 a.m. Eastern time, while the Nasdaq composite was 1.4% lower. Some of the sharpest drops came from smaller- and mid-sized banks, which have been under heavy scrutiny as the banking system shows cracks under the weight of much higher interest rates. PacWest Bancorp dropped 36.1%, Western Alliance Bancorp fell 24.2% and Comerica dropped 11.6%. Three of the four largest U.S. bank failures in history have come in quick succession since March, and investors have...

CPKC railway hit with violation notice after derailment in Maine

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 00:47:31 GMT

MONTREAL — State authorities in Maine have hit Canadian Pacific Kansas City Ltd. with a violation notice over fallout from its cleanup efforts after a freight train went off the tracks last month.On April 15, a CPKC train hit a track washout in a wooded area near Moosehead Lake in northwestern Maine, some 220 kilometres southeast of Quebec City, setting several cars ablaze.Government officials say they sent a notice of violation to the railway after heavy construction equipment deployed to access the crash site crushed culverts and caused a significant amount of sediment to enter streams, in violation of a pollution control law.Melanie Loyzim, commissioner of the state’s Department of Agriculture, Conservation and Forestry, sent a second letter instructing CPKC to implement erosion control measures immediately.CPKC said last month that locomotives and four derailed lumber cars went up in flames, with crews using booms — absorbent, tubelike barriers — to contain spilled diesel ...

Illinois State Police update after at least 6 dead, more than 30 hospitalized in I-55 crash

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 00:47:31 GMT

DIVERNON, Ill. (AP) — Both lanes of I-55 reopened Tuesday morning hours after a windstorm in central Illinois causing numerous crashes that killed at least six people Monday, police said.Six people were killed in a 72-car pileup late Monday morning near mile marker 76, between Diveron and Farmersville, about 20 miles south of Springfield. Multiple tractor-trailers were among the vehicles involved, two of which caught fire, Illinois State Police Maj. Ryan Starrick said.More than 30 people on both sides of I-55 were transported to hospitals with injuries.Authorities held a news conference Tuesday morning and said they are seeking the public's help to identify two of the victims killed in the crash. State police believe one person was driving a blue Chrysler 300 and one person was driving a Hyundai, color not known. Anyone with any information is asked to call authorities at 618-346-3653. ISP needs help identifying two adult victims from the crash on I-55 Monday. One victim was driving...

Jonas Brothers to play Wrigley Field this summer

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 00:47:31 GMT

CHICAGO - For the first time, the Jonas Brothers will get the chance to play at the Friendly Confines this summer. On Tuesday, the Cubs announced that the pop rock band will play a concert at Wrigley Field on Friday, August 25. This will be the Jonas Brother's first performance at the iconic ballpark and will be part of a 35-show "Five Albums. One Night" tour across the United States and Canada that was announced on Tuesday. See the day-by-day lineup for Lollapalooza 2023 Tickets for the concert at Wrigley Field will go on sale to the general public on Friday, May 12 at 10 a.m. central time at Ticketmaster. There is a verified pre-sale for the show that will take place at 10 a.m. on Tuesday, May 9 at 10 a.m. central time and requires registration.Formed in 2005, the group consists of brothers Joe, Kevin, and Nick Jonas, first gaining notoriety with their appearances on the Disney Channel. They've released five studio albums with their sixth, titled "The Album," set to be released ...

The List: Pat and Paul guess past celebrity guests

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 00:47:31 GMT

A lot of celebrity guests have visited WGN Morning News throughout the years and there's a strong chance that Paul had no idea who they were. In this week's List, Pat and Paul guess past celebrity guests.Love the WGN Morning News? We love you, too. And you can have all the hijinks delivered to your inbox every weekday morning. Sign up and subscribe to our WGN Morning News newsletter.

'Motherhood' influencer convicted of lying about attempted kidnapping on social media

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 00:47:31 GMT

(KRON) – An Instagram influencer was found guilty by a jury in California after she made a viral video about a fake kidnapping, prosecutors said. Kathleen "Katie" Sorensen, 31, went viral in 2020 when she told her Instagram followers that two strangers tried to kidnap her children while she was shopping in Petaluma, in Sonoma County.The jury convicted Sorensen on one count of knowingly making a false report of a crime. After the verdict was reached, Judge Laura Passaglia remanded the "influencer" into custody and set bail at $100,000.Sorensen is now facing a maximum sentence of six months in jail. Questions remain in Bob Lee homicide case "This verdict will enable us to hold Ms. Sorensen accountable for her crime, while at the same time helping to exonerate the couple that was falsely accused of having attempted to kidnap two young children," Sonoma County District Attorney Carla Rodriguez said. "The case is also important in that it illustrates the importance of using social medi...

Toddler with rare condition is called 'Little Ninja Turtle'

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 00:47:31 GMT

(NewsNation) — A Florida family has nicknamed their toddler "Little Ninja Turtle" due to a growth on his back that once resembled a turtle shell. James McCallum was born with giant congenital melanocytic nevus, a condition in which pigment cells don't develop correctly. In his case, it caused the 20-month-old to have a large raised area on his back that his parents said looked like a turtle shell.His parents, Kaitlyn and Tim McCallum, from Clearwater, noticed something was different about their son when he was born. "It was just a different tint, a different color, there was some kind of scabby-type things on his upper back," Tim McCallum said.Kaitlyn McCallum said it looked like "a birthmark with scabbing.""At the time, you're on that mommy feeling of just having your baby, and you're just excited for him to be here," she said. "You don't think anything and then over a couple of days, you start to, you know, notice everything, and you know, that's a big thing to notice for a little...

Federal judge rules Pennsylvania school district must allow After School Satan Club

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 00:47:31 GMT

(The Hill) -- A school district in Pennsylvania must allow students to convene an After School Satan Club, a federal judge ruled on Monday. “In a victory for free speech and religious freedom, a federal court has ruled that the Saucon Valley School District must allow the After School Satan Club to meet in district facilities,” the ACLU announced.In a Monday filing, issued in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania and shared by the ACLU, a judge found that “here, although The Satanic Temple, Inc.’s objectors may challenge the sanctity of this controversially named organization, the sanctity of the First  Amendment’s protections must prevail.” The school district must allow the After School Satan Club, which is sponsored by The Satanic Temple, to meet during the school year on three previously agreed-upon dates, but it won’t have to distribute permission slips for the club for students to take home, according to the filing.  DeSantis signs ...