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Debate over rebuilding of Toronto’s Gardiner Expressway reignited prior to mayoral by-election

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 20:10:25 GMT

With work completed on the reconstruction of the Gardiner Expressway and millions of dollars spent, a potential mayoral candidate and various community groups want to revisit the budget and kill the project, framing it a byelection issue.The construction and rehabilitation of the Gardiner Expressway have felt neverending, with plans to continue the massive project along the eastern portion for the next few years. That includes rebuilding the section between Cherry Street and the Don Valley Parkway, a bit further north, as part of what was once called a “hybrid” option to free up space near the Port Lands.“We want to get the facts about the Gardiner. There’s still time to change and adjust course and work. What we’re lacking at this point are facts around the costs of the construction in terms of the ramps,” said Gardiner Expressway Transparency spokesperson Albert Koehl.The debate over whether the work should be happening dates back nearly a decad...

Ohio State asks court to hear Title IX issues in abuse suits

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 20:10:25 GMT

COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) — Ohio State University is asking the U.S. Supreme Court to consider questions about the law known as Title IX in a case that affects whether more than 230 men can proceed with lawsuits against the school over decades-old sexual abuse by a team doctor, the late Richard Strauss.The petition filed Tuesday urges the high court to hear the case and review two aspects: When does the clock start ticking on the legal time limit for filing Title IX claims, which in this case are about the university’s alleged “deliberate indifference” toward sexual harassment? And does the right to bring such claims apply to people who aren’t students or employees there, such as fans attending football games or visitors touring campus?The school argues the divided appeals court that revived the unsettled lawsuits against OSU reached the wrong conclusions on both elements.“Together, these rulings arm virtually anyone who has visited Ohio State over the past 40 years with a pot...

SAFE-T Act, elimination of cash bail is before Illinois Supreme Court

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 20:10:25 GMT

SPRINGFIELD, Ill. — A controversial part of the SAFE-T Act goes before the Illinois Supreme Court on Tuesday.The act's elimination of cash bail is at the center of the case before the justices in Springfield. A Kankakee judge ruled in favor of state's attorneys who believe getting rid of the cash bail system is unconstitutional. Now, the state's highest court will begin the process of making the decision to possibly eliminate the entire law.Gov. JB Pritzker and the attorney general are urging the court to reject constitutional theories from prosecutors challenging the measure. They believe eliminating cash bail puts dangerous criminals back on the street.Those against the SAFE-T Act are using a specific part of the Illinois constitution that guarantees people bail by sufficient sureties.The issue is whether sureties automatically means money. Illinois’ SAFE-T Act explained The attorney general's office argues lawmakers have the right to reform pretrial court procedures.However, op...

The Ultimate Chicago playlist: 400 songs from local artists

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 20:10:25 GMT

CHICAGO — Just like food and architecture, Chicago has always been a hot bed for music.The Second City is second to none with the variety of music that has been produced here.The creative explosion first started with The Great Migration from the South. That led to legends like Muddy Waters pioneering Chicago blues and the city gaining a reputation as a place to play and record music.Of course, Chicago just isn't known for blues. DJs here in the late 70s literally invented house music and the city has one of the most influential hip hop scenes since the turn of the 21st century.Bands here started playing the Empty Bottle, Double Door and Metro and eventually ended up playing international music festivals.Below are some examples highlighted in a 400-song playlist featuring only Chicago area artists. Any artists from the metro area, or if they spent significant time in the area, were considered. WGN's Ultimate Chicago Playlist (click the heart icon to save) 1950s: Dinah WashingtonDin...

Another house collapses into the ocean on North Carolina's Outer Banks

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 20:10:25 GMT

RODANTHE, N.C. (WAVY) – Another house has collapsed into the ocean in Rodanthe on the Outer Banks of North Carolina. The home was located at 23228 East Point Drive, just off the Jughandle Bridge. The National Park Service says it's communicating with the owner to coordinate the removal of the house and all related debris on the beach. Cape Hatteras National Seashore visitors are asked to be cautious of potential debris on the beach and in the water. County looking for federal, state help after homes collapse into the ocean Monday's house collapse is just about a mile north from Ocean Drive, the site of several collapses last year. Two of the homes collapsed on the same day back in May. In January of this year, Dare County officials held a meeting about the issue and said they're looking at all options, including state and federal help, to deliver beach nourishment to the area. A study outlining how much the project may cost was expected to be released this month.

Tennessee Lt. Gov. 'pausing' social media use after liking LGBTQ posts

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 20:10:25 GMT

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WKRN) — Tennessee's lieutenant governor says he is taking a break from social media after being caught in a controversy on Instagram.Lt. Gov. Randy McNally, a Republican, released a statement Monday saying he will be "pausing" social media use in order to "reflect and receive more guidance on the use of social media."This comes less than a week after Instagram comments surfaced, showing McNally interacting with a young man who was posting nearly naked pictures on the social media platform.McNally, a Republican, initially stated last week that he “had no intention of stopping” when pressed about why he repeatedly commented on racy social media posts by the 20-year-old. He later issued an apology, saying it was not his intention to embarrass his friends, family or members of the legislature.However, the 79-year-old legislative leader has since received national attention — including being parodied on Saturday Night Live — with critics accusing McNally of being hypocr...

Meta laying off another 10,000 employees

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 20:10:25 GMT

(The Hill) -- Facebook parent company Meta on Tuesday announced it's cutting around 10,000 employees in another bout of massive layoffs as the tech sector struggles with a fraught economy. CEO Mark Zuckerberg said in a message to employees that the company is restructuring to become leaner, laying off around 10,000 more workers and not filling 5,000 previously open roles."Over the next couple of months, org leaders will announce restructuring plans focused on flattening our orgs, canceling lower priority projects, and reducing our hiring rates," Zuckerberg said in a post. Employees in recruiting will know if they're impacted this week, tech roles will know in April and business roles will learn in May, according to Zuckerberg. Paris Hilton says she ‘pretended’ to vote for Trump in 2016: ‘I didn’t vote at all’ The layoffs come four months after Meta announced that it would lay off more than 11,000 employees as part of its continued efforts to become "leaner and more efficien...

Paris Hilton says she 'pretended' to vote for Trump in 2016: 'I didn't vote at all'

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 20:10:25 GMT

(The Hill) -- Paris Hilton says she “pretended” to vote for Donald Trump in the 2016 presidential election, but didn’t actually cast a ballot for the future GOP president.The reality TV star and entrepreneur listed fibbing about voting for Trump among several things she’s “not proud of” in her “Paris: The Memoir," released on Tuesday.“I used to wear those horrific Von Dutch caps. I once went to a Playboy Mansion Halloween party dressed as Sexy Pocahontas,” Hilton, 42, said, ticking off a number of “mistakes” from her youth.“When I was put on the spot in an interview, I pretended I voted for Donald Trump because he was an old family friend and owned the first modeling agency I signed with,” she wrote.But, Hilton said in her book of the former New York real estate developer, “When I left to go to another [modeling] agency, he was furious and intimidated the s--- out of me on the phone.”When asked by an Australian TV station just days after the 2016 White House race if she had voted fo...

Is vaping making your kid a lifelong addict?

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 20:10:25 GMT

(NewsNation) — Vaping has taken hold of children and teens, over 2 million of whom indulge in the habit, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.Dorian Fuhrman, co-founder of Parents Against Vaping e-cigarettes (PAVe), told NewsNation's Chris Cuomo on Monday that no amount of nicotine is safe for adolescents with still-developing brains. The CDC says adolescent brain development continues into their early to mid-20s."Juul created the youth vaping epidemic," Fuhrman said of the troubled electronic cigarette maker.In December, Juul reached settlements covering thousands of lawsuits over its e-cigarettes.The company faced more than 8,000 lawsuits brought by individuals and families of Juul users, school districts, city governments and Native American tribes. The financial terms of the settlement were not disclosed.Juul rocketed to the top of the U.S. vaping market more than five years ago on the popularity of flavors like mango, mint and creme brulee. But ...

Most dangerous children's product recalls of 2022

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 20:10:25 GMT

CHICAGO — Kids In Danger (KID) has released its annual analysis of children's product recalls from the previous year.In total, 100 children's products were recalled in 2022, or more than 5 million individual units, which was the highest number of recalled children's items since 2013. Four children died due to unsafe products that had been recalled: two from asphyxiation while using the Pillowfort Weighted Blanket, one from being strangled by restraint straps of a 4moms MamaRoo baby swing, one by a Goalsetter Wall-Mounted Basketball Goal when it detached from the wall and fell onto the child.The analysis also found recalls for products with excessive lead increased notably to 19; the highest since 2013. Clothing recalls doubled from 2021 up to 32 products which were mostly due to failure to meet federal flammability standards. Nancy Cowles, executive director of KID, noted many of the recalls were for violations of established, lawful safety standards, and were primarily sold online ...