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How Colson Whitehead’s childhood helped inspire crime novel ‘Crook Manifesto’

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 12:58:41 GMT

Colson Whitehead starts laughing when he hears the first question.Because the first question for the two-time Pulitzer Prize-winning author of “The Underground Railroad” and “The Nickel Boys” – and recent recipient of the National Humanities Medal – is about the films of low-budget movie producer Samuel Z. Arkoff, whose American International Pictures produced tons of successful, schlocky films in the ‘60s and ‘70s – from “Beach Party” and “Blacula” to the double-headers “The Thing With Two Heads” and “The Incredible Two-Headed Transplant.” Arkoff gets a nod in “Crook Manifesto,” Whitehead’s latest Harlem saga novel, set in the 1970s.“I was definitely raised on B-movies and TV. And as a young Black kid growing up in the late ‘70s, early ‘80s, there weren’t a lot of Black films where you saw yourself reflected,” Whitehead says during a recent phone interview. “Definitely, my love for pop culture comes from my youth – and part of that is incredibly terrible B-movies.”Related: Sign up ...

Mayo Clinic expert weighs in on WHO labeling aspartame sweetener as low, but possible, cancer risk

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 12:58:41 GMT

DeeDee Stiepan | (TNS) Mayo Clinic News NetworkA popular artificial sweetener that’s widely found in sugar-free foods and beverages is being labeled as a possible cancer risk by the World Health Organization (WHO). WHO’s cancer research agency, International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC), determined aspartame to be a possible carcinogen after reviewing and assessing the potential carcinogenic effect of the sweetener, but says it’s safe to consume in limited amounts.Dr. Donald Hensrud, a Mayo Clinic physician specializing in nutrition and the editor of “The Mayo Clinic Diet,” explains what this new classification means and why the risk is low.“This new decision of declaring aspartame a possible carcinogen is going to add some confusion. First of all, the level of risk is low, but consuming something over many years, even in a low amount, may possibly add to the risk,” says Dr. Hensrud.The four classifications of carcinogensA carcinogen...

Ocean Beach Pier reopens as maintenance continues

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 12:58:41 GMT

SAN DIEGO — The Ocean Beach Pier reopened Wednesday after closing on Monday for maintenance to the structure, the City of San Diego announced in a tweet.Crews have been working to repair the pier’s pump station the last two days, which was damaged during winter storms that battered San Diego.Though now reopened, the city says pier maintenance will continue into Wednesday. Officials hope to have water and sewer services restored by the end of the day. Defiantly delicious: New seafood eatery opens on Oceanside Pier This comes after the popular pier was closed for nearly six-months ahead of July. City officials closed the pier to visitors out of an abundance of caution until an assessment could be conducted following the blustery storm conditions. The city says only minor surface-level damage had been identified by a consultant during the inspection, specifically along on the pier’s railings, buildings and sewer pumps. The pump station is what crews are now working on repairing. The...

Iraqis are furious over their government’s demolition of a minaret that stood for nearly 300 years

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 12:58:41 GMT

BASRA, Iraq (AP) — For three centuries, the al-Siraji Mosque, with its minaret fashioned from weathered bricks and its pinnacle inlaid with blue ceramic tiles, was a distinctive feature of the city of Basra in southern Iraq. In recent years, it was one of the few tourist attractions in the oil-rich but neglected city, although locals complained that the minaret jutted out into the street, snarling traffic.In the early hours Friday morning, the 11-meter-high (33-foot-high) minaret was razed to the ground, with the governor of Basra attending the demolition, igniting a wave of social media backlash among advocates for the preservation of Iraq’s cultural heritage.Heritage sites in Iraq, home to multiple civilizations going back more than six millennia, have been hard hit by looting and damage over the decades of conflict before and after the U.S. invasion of 2003. Most notoriously, the militant Islamic State group demolished numerous ancient sites in northern Iraq, including Islamic sh...

Northwestern hazing scandal included multiple sports, men and women, according to attorneys

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 12:58:41 GMT

CHICAGO (AP) — Allegations of hazing in Northwestern’s athletic programs broadened Wednesday as attorneys said male and female athletes reported misconduct within two other sports and suggested sexual abuse and racial discrimination within the football program was so rampant that coaches knew it was happening.Civil rights attorney Ben Crump said he and other attorneys have received disturbing details from former baseball and softball players at the university, in addition to growing complaints of abuse in the football program, which players described as rampant and devastating.“This is a civil rights issue for me,” said Crump, who said 50 former Northwestern athletes — male and female — and one cheerleader have spoken to the Levin & Perconti law firm. “I think these players have the right to be respected and valued and not hazed, intimidated and retaliated.”Black football players appeared to have faced an additional layer of abuse.A lawsuit filed Tuesday accuses fired foot...

Jan. 6 charges against Trump would add to his mounting legal peril as he campaigns for 2024

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 12:58:41 GMT

WASHINGTON (AP) — Hush-money payments. Classified records. And now, his efforts to overturn the 2020 election that led to the Capitol attack. Already facing criminal cases in New York and Florida, Donald Trump faces increasing legal peril as investigations into his struggle to cling to power after his election loss appear to be coming to a head. A target letter sent to Trump by special counsel Jack Smith suggests he may soon be indicted on new federal charges, adding to the remarkable situation of a former president up against possible prison time while vying to reclaim the White House as the frontrunner for the Republican nomination. Smith’s wide-ranging probe into the chaotic weeks between Trump’s election loss and his supporters’ attack on the Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021, seems to be nearing an end just as another case could be on the horizon. A grand jury that was sworn in this month in Georgia will likely consider whether to charge Trump and his Republican allies ...

Stanford University president announces resignation over concerns about his research

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 12:58:41 GMT

SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — The president of Stanford University said Wednesday he would resign, citing an independent review that cleared him of research misconduct but found flaws in some papers he authored.Marc Tessier-Lavigne said in a statement to students and staff that he would step down August 31.The resignation comes after the board of trustees launched a review in December following allegations he engaged in fraud and other unethical conduct related to his research and papers.He says he “never submitted a scientific paper without firmly believing that the data were correct and accurately presented.” But he says he should have been more diligent in seeking corrections regarding his work.The review assessed 12 papers that Tessier-Lavigne worked on, five of them in which he was the principal author. He said he was aware of issues with four of the five papers but acknowledged taking “insufficient” steps to deal with the issues. He said he’ll retract three of the papers and correct tw...

Masks are out at In-N-Out after burger chain bans employees from wearing them in 5 states

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 12:58:41 GMT

NEW YORK (AP) — The In-N-Out burger chain will bar employees in five states from wearing masks unless they have a doctor’s note, according to internal company emails leaked on social media.In the memo announcing new guidelines for Arizona, Colorado, Nevada, Texas and Utah workers, the fast food chain pointed to “the importance of customer service and the ability to show our Associates’ smiles and other facial features while considering the health and well-being of all individuals.”The policy, which goes into effect Aug. 14, applies to all In-N-Out employees in those states, except for those who need to wear masks or other protective gear for job duties that require it, like painting. Employees could face disciplinary action, including being fired, if they do not comply, the memo says.California and Oregon both have laws in place preventing employers from banning masks.It is not the first time that the chain, based in California, has clashed with health experts over safet...

US approves $1.3 billion package of long-term military aid for Ukraine

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 12:58:41 GMT

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Pentagon announced a new $1.3 billion package of long-term military aid to Ukraine on Wednesday, including four air defense systems and an undisclosed number of drones.The new assistance comes on the heels of a meeting Tuesday by defense and military leaders from around the globe to discuss ongoing efforts to give Ukraine the weapons it needs in its battle to retake territory seized by Russian forces.Included in the aid, which is being provided under the Ukraine Security Assistance Initiative, will be funding for four National Advanced Surface-to-Air Missile System, or NASAMS, and munitions for them, as well as Phoenix Ghost and Switchblade drones. Unlike the presidential drawdown authority that the Pentagon has used repeatedly over the past 17 months to pull weapons from its own stocks and quickly ship them to Ukraine, the USAI-funded equipment could take a year or two to get to the battlefront. As a result, this new package will do little to help Ukraine in i...

Ex-officer Derek Chauvin to ask US Supreme Court to review his conviction in murder of George Floyd

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 12:58:41 GMT

MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — Former Minneapolis police Officer Derek Chauvin will ask the U.S. Supreme Court to review his conviction for second-degree murder in the killing of George Floyd, now that the Minnesota Supreme Court has declined to hear the case, his attorney said Wednesday.The state’s highest court without comment denied Chauvin’s petition in a one-page order dated Tuesday, letting Chauvin’s conviction and 22 1/2-year sentence stand. Chauvin faces long odds at the U.S. Supreme Court, which hears only about 100 to 150 appeals of the more than 7,000 cases it is asked to review every year.Floyd, who was Black, died on May 25, 2020, after Chauvin, who is white, pressed a knee on his neck for 9 1/2 minutes on the street outside a convenience store where Floyd tried to pass a counterfeit $20 bill. A bystander video captured Floyd’s fading cries of “I can’t breathe.” Floyd’s death touched off protests worldwide, some of which turned violent, and forced a national reckoning with police b...