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E-cigarette rates drop for high schoolers, but tobacco use jumps for middle schoolers: ‘Our work is far from over’

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 08:00:00 GMT

E-cigarette and tobacco rates have dropped among high school students, while tobacco use has jumped for middle schoolers across the U.S.That’s according to a new study from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the Food and Drug Administration, which found that about 50% of students who ever tried e-cigarettes reported currently using them — a sign that many youth who try e-cigarettes remain e-cigarette users.The CDC and FDA study is based on the results from the 2023 National Youth Tobacco Survey. Students in the survey were asked whether they’ve used tobacco products in the last month.Among high school students, past 30-day use of any tobacco product declined from last year to this year — from 16.5% to 12.6%. That drop was primarily driven by a decline in e-cigarette use (14.1% to 10.0%).But middle schooler tobacco use went up significantly, according to the report. Past 30-day use of at least one tobacco product jumped from 4.5% last year to n...

Former MSA Chair Thomas Kelso: A flock of unanswered questions in Orioles deal | READER COMMENTARY

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 08:00:00 GMT

In response to Hayes Gardner’s excellent article, “‘Essentially gifting the land’: Economists pan land deal with Orioles; state says it will ‘reinvigorate’ Camden Yards” (Oct. 27), there are still many unanswered questions about the development agreement included in the memorandum of understanding between Gov. Wes Moore and Orioles Chairman and CEO John Angelos. These include:Is the state receiving adequate value for this agreement? Under the MOU, the state will lease the property to Angelos for 99 years and receive $94 million in rent over that time. Based on a present value analysis of the rents to be received over the term of the lease, $94 million is worth somewhere between $13 million and $20 million in today’s dollars. So how much are the state-owned properties included in the development agreement worth?Without a procurement process whereby the Maryland Stadium Authority would solicit proposals from qualified developers and with...

Craig Breslow returns to Red Sox ready for a challenge

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 08:00:00 GMT

“I’ve watched a lot of baseball games at Fenway Park. Some from the stands, some from the bleachers, but mostly from the bullpen. I know what it’s like to put on a Red Sox jersey, to jog through the bullpen gate across freshly-cut outfield grass. I know what it’s like to stand on the mound in front of tens of thousands of the most passionate fans in the game …“I know what it means to win in Boston.”That was how Craig Breslow began reintroducing himself on Thursday morning when the Red Sox officially welcomed him back to Fenway Park.The 43-year-old pitcher-turned-executive has officially come full circle, from underrated bullpen contributor to heading up Boston’s baseball operations. His return comes at a critical juncture for Boston’s baseball club, which has finished at the bottom of the standings in three of the last four seasons. He’s expected to right the ship, no small task for a first-time chief baseball officer.He sounds like the man for the job: a sterling reputation, a bril...

Haley’s Comet: Standing-room only in New Hampshire for Nikki

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 08:00:00 GMT

LONDONDERRY, N.H. — A quick stop for an early-afternoon lunch at Poor Boy’s Diner was simply not an option, nor was parking in their oversized lot or along the street leading into it, after the restaurant filled to capacity with Nikki Haley supporters.Yet more sat outside in the early-November cold, seated in an overflow area well before the former South Carolina governor made her way down Rockingham Road and into the double-parked lot. It was unclear if the large SUV she stepped out of would have room to leave.After entering through the eatery’s back door, the former U.N. Ambassador shook hands with diners for a few minutes Thursday before New Hampshire Gov. Chris Sununu took to a microphone and introduced her as “someone that fulfills on the commitment, that conservative agenda that we’ve all been talking about, but boy, we’ve been dying for for the last eight years.”“I just found that guy in the kitchen eating,” Haley joked after.Londonderry, NH - ...

FTX founder Sam-Bankman-Fried convicted of defrauding cryptocurrency customers

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 08:00:00 GMT

By LARRY NEUMEISTER (Associated Press)NEW YORK (AP) — FTX founder Sam Bankman-Fried’s spectacular rise and fall in the cryptocurrency industry — a journey that included his testimony before Congress, a Super Bowl advertisement and dreams of a future run for president — hit a new bottom Thursday when a New York jury convicted him of fraud in a scheme that cheated customers and investors of at least $10 billion.After the monthlong trial, jurors rejected Bankman-Fried’s claim during four days on the witness stand in Manhattan federal court that he never committed fraud or meant to cheat customers before FTX, once the world’s second-largest crypto exchange, collapsed into bankruptcy a year ago.“His crimes caught up to him. His crimes have been exposed,” Assistant U.S. Attorney Danielle Sassoon told the jury of the onetime billionaire just before they were read the law by Judge Lewis A. Kaplan and began deliberations. Sassoon said Bankman-F...

Man killed, 1-year-old boy suffers fatal injuries in Montana shooting, suspects identified

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 08:00:00 GMT

BILLINGS, Mont. (AP) — A man was shot to death and a 1-year-old boy suffered fatal injuries after gunfire was sprayed into a residence in Montana’s largest city. Several suspects have been identified as the investigation continues, Billings Police said Thursday.Wednesday’s shooting, coming just four days after a Rocky Mountain College football player was shot and killed near campus, led police Chief Rich St. John and other officials to hold a news conference to talk about the city’s increasing gun violence and gang activity. They asked residents to do their part to help prevent crime — including securing their firearms.“We’re seeing 14- to 24-year-old young males who don’t know how to problem-solve without gun violence,” St. John said. On Wednesday, neighbors reported the occupants of a pickup truck fired multiple rounds into a residence before speeding away, St. John said. Responding officers found a 31-year-old man dead lying on top of the boy, who was unresponsi...

House GOP targets IRS in bill to provide emergency aid to Israel

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 08:00:00 GMT

WASHINGTON (AP) — House Republicans went after the IRS — long a GOP whipping child — when they decided that emergency aid for Israel should be coupled with cuts elsewhere in the budget.The aid bill that passed the House on Thursday — unlikely to be approved by the Democratic-controlled Senate — would cut $14 billion from the nation’s tax collector in exchange for providing assistance to Israel. President Joe Biden has said he would veto the bill if it reaches his desk.The IRS cutback would cost taxpayers billions of dollars, not save money, according to independent budget analysts.A Congressional Budget Office analysis released this week states that the move would decrease revenues by $26.8 billion over the 2024 to 2033 period, resulting in a net increase in the deficit of $12.5 billion. That’s because it would take away money that the agency dedicated to auditing the wealthy, which brings in far more than it costs. “All of those funds go to increased scrutiny on tax eva...

3 former New Mexico State basketball violated school sexual harassment policies, according to report

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 08:00:00 GMT

LAS CRUCES, N.M. (AP) — Three former New Mexico State men’s basketball players violated school sexual harassment policies, according to an investigation conducted by an independent contractor hired by the university to review sexual harassment allegations, a local newspaper reported.The Las Cruces Sun-News reported Wednesday that it obtained a copy of the investigation report completed for the university’s Office of Institutional Equity. According to the report, the three players violated school Title IX policies regarding sexual harassment, fondling and conduct resulting in a hostile environment and interferes with a victim’s academic or work performance. The former players and other parties have a right to appeal the determination. It was not immediately clear Thursday if any appeals had been filed.The independent contractor wrote in the notice of determination that the former players’ conduct would have warranted expulsion had they still be subject to NMSU jurisdictio...

Oregon man sentenced for LGBTQ+ hate crimes in Idaho, including trying to hit people with car

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 08:00:00 GMT

BOISE, Idaho. (AP) — An Oregon man who pleaded guilty in connection with LGBTQ+ hate crimes, including trying to hit people with a car in Idaho last year, has been sentenced to just over three years in prison. Matthew Lehigh was sentenced Thursday to 37 months followed by three years of supervised release and he must pay restitution, according to the U.S. Justice Department. Lehigh, 32, previously pleaded guilty to two felony charges of violating the Hate Crimes Prevention Act as part of a plea agreement. Last October, Lehigh punched and threatened a transgender librarian in Boise before trying to run over a library security guard with his vehicle, according to court documents. Days later, he saw two women he “assumed, based on their appearance and dress” were lesbians, documents said. Lehigh shouted threats and slurs at them and accelerated his car toward them. The women jumped out of the way and Lehigh’s vehicle hit the car belonging to one of the women, documents said.The Justice...

Ontario hospitals say data has been published following ransomware attack last week

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 08:00:00 GMT

Five Ontario hospitals affected by a recent ransomware attack, along with their shared IT provider, say data in connection to the cyberattack has been published.The attack caused an outage of some online services at Bluewater Health, Chatham-Kent Health Alliance, Erie Shores HealthCare, Hôtel-Dieu Grace Healthcare and Windsor Regional Hospital on Oct. 23.In a joint statement, the hospitals and TransForm, a non-profit group tasked with overseeing the hospitals’ IT systems, say they are investigating to determine exactly what data has been released.  The group says the ransomware attack affected operations as well as certain patient, employee and professional staff data – noting any individuals whose data was affected will be promptly notified.It also says that it decided, after advice from experts, that it would not yield to ransom demands.The group says it will continue working closely with law enforcement including local police departments, Ontario Provincial Police, Interpol ...