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Netherlands to deliver first F-16 jets to Ukraine in 2024

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 11:37:44 GMT

The Netherlands is planning to deliver its first F-16 fighter jets to Ukraine at some point in 2024, the country’s defense minister, Kajsa Ollongren, said Tuesday.Before the jets can be delivered, pilots, crew and technicians all have to be trained to fly and fight in the jets, Ollengren said during an interview with MSNBC. She did not give an exact answer on how long the training would last, but estimated it would be between six and eight months.“These things do take time,” Ollengren said. “I think the most important thing is the signal we’re sending, not only to Kyiv but also to Moscow and the Kremlin. That is: We are there.”The Netherlands, Denmark and Norway all announced that they would provide Ukraine with F-16 fighter jets, following approval from the U.S. allowing Ukrainian pilots to be trained. The move was hailed by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, who spent months pressing the West to provide his forces with modern jets to repel Mosco...

Congress says it wants to avoid a shutdown. But the House and Senate are moving even further apart

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 11:37:44 GMT

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Congress is starkly divided over very different paths to preventing a federal shutdown — the Senate charging ahead with a bipartisan package to temporarily fund the government but the House slogging through a longshot effort with no real chance of finishing by Saturday’s deadline.With days remaining before a federal closure, the stakes are rising with no resolution at hand.A shutdown would furlough millions of federal employees, leave the military without pay, disrupt air travel and cut off vital safety net services, and it would be politically punishing to lawmakers whose job it is to fund government.President Joe Biden, who earlier this year reached a budget deal with Speaker Kevin McCarthy that became law, believes it’s up to the House Republicans to deliver.“A deal is a deal,” said White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre. “This is for them to fix.”Late Tuesday, the Senate pushed ahead in sweeping bi...

OBF: Mac Jones creates controversy with saucy confrontation

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 11:37:44 GMT

Albert Einstein taught us time is pliable.The faster one travels, the slower the minutes pass.Einstein’s general theory of relativity adds gravity as a mitigating factor affecting time.The more forceful the gravity, the weaker the clock.If you ever found yourself near a black hole, you might spend an hour or two before returning to Earth, where thousands of years have passed.This was a scientific version of the “doctrine of eternal recurrence” philosophy offered by Friedrich Nietzsche.Also known as “time is a flat circle.”The German philosopher Nietzsche predated Einstein and credible minds have argued that Einstein felt his influence.No matter your choice of explanation – scientific or philosophical – the Patriots have fallen into their own vortex of spinning time and energy.The clock has stopped.The red, white, blue, and black hole features a round trip to a place where the quarterback is an  alleged cheat, and the issue concerns potentially deflated balls.During the Patriots̵...

With Nationals long out of the race, are DC-area fans returning, at least for now, to their Orioles roots?

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 11:37:44 GMT

There’s a suspicion among DMV baseball fans that every Washington Nationals fan of a certain age secretly has an Orioles jersey or maybe a hat buried in their closet. It’s a sign of their original rooting interest. With the Nationals plummeting to the bottom of the National League East this year and the Orioles closing in on their first 100-win season in 40-plus years, some have begun digging for that orange evidence.“Before the Nats came, this region was all O’s fans,” said Mike Hicks, a St. Mary’s County native who turned 50 this week. “So when the Nationals came in 2005, I think it gave D.C. residents something more to root for. But they still got that Orioles jersey hidden somewhere.”Hicks found a workaround for that deception without hiding his fanhood.When he and his father, Jim, attend Orioles-Nationals games — they try to get to at least one matchup each season — Mike dons his custom-made top. A few years ago he too...

Two injured, including firefighter, as crews battle 4-alarm fire on Queen West

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 11:37:44 GMT

Two people are injured, including a firefighter, as crews battle a four-alarm fire in Toronto’s Queen West neighbourhood on Wednesday morning.Toronto Fire Services (TFS) says crews responded to a storefront on Queen Street West, just west of Bathurst Street, just after 1:30 a.m.Toronto Fire Capt. Bill Papakonstantinou says the fire began at 697 Queen St. W. and spread next door to buildings addressed as 695 and 699 Queen St. W., just west of Bathurst St.In a post to X, TFS says “heavy smoke and flames” were visible from the roof area of the building.TFS says one firefighter was injured during the response. A second person, an occupant one of the buildings, was being assessed by paramedics.Crews are still working to put out the fire.Residents are being advised to avoid the area.

Congress says it wants to avoid a shutdown. But the House and Senate are moving even further apart.

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 11:37:44 GMT

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Congress is starkly divided over very different paths to preventing a federal shutdown — the Senate charging ahead with a bipartisan package to temporarily fund the government but the House slogging through a longshot effort with no real chance of finishing by Saturday’s deadline.With days remaining before a federal closure, the stakes are rising with no resolution at hand. A shutdown would furlough millions of federal employees, leave the military without pay, disrupt air travel and cut off vital safety net services, and it would be politically punishing to lawmakers whose job it is to fund government.President Joe Biden, who earlier this year reached a budget deal with Speaker Kevin McCarthy that became law, believes it’s up to the House Republicans to deliver.“A deal is a deal,” said White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre. “This is for them to fix.”Late Tuesday, the Senate pushed ahead in sweeping bipartisan fashion to break the stalemate...

Killing's Danes entering new season with a chip on their shoulder

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 11:37:44 GMT

ALBANY, N.Y. (NEWS10) -- The University at Albany men's basketball team held its' first practice of the season Tuesday, and the Danes are looking to bounce back from a last-place finish in the America East a year ago. Get the latest news, weather, sports and entertainment delivered right to your inbox! Anchored by the return of the conference Rookie of the Year, forward Jonathan Beagle, and spark plug guard Marcus Jackson, the Danes are out to earn some respect in the 2023-'24 season."We need to have a chip on our shoulder to be a really good team, because there's some doubts," said head coach Dwayne Killings. "People doubt us...our program. "Can we pull this off?" When you look at Justin (Neely), Jonathan, Aaron (Reddish), we got a strong core. We just gotta get the most out of them.""I think we have a lot to prove as a group," added Jackson. "Not a lot of us have proven ourselves at this level, so (we) kinda got a chip on our shoulder - a little bit of edge. (We're) ready to get...

Siena men's basketball tips off official practices

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 11:37:44 GMT

LOUDONVILLE, NY (NEWS10) -- College basketball season is approaching, and the Siena men's basketball team is gearing up. The Saints held their first official practice on Tuesday. Get the latest news, weather, sports and entertainment delivered right to your inbox! The Saints will look to improve on a first round exit from the MAAC Tournament, and they'll be doing so with basically an entirely new starting lineup. The Saints feature seven returners, only three who played in more than ten games. Head coach Carmen Maciariello says this new look group passed his first test during summer workouts. "They earned the right to wear our logo, our 'S', by all the hard work they did in the preseason," said Maciariello. "All summer we had just plain Under Armour gear with no logos, no embroidery because they had to know what it meant to wear the jersey. Excited for a good first day. I think these guys have put in the time. I thinks it's a great group. They want to listen, they want to learn, ...

Danes carrying the high of a close win into conference opener with Villanova

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 11:37:44 GMT

ALBANY, N.Y. (NEWS10) -- It's been over a month since the University at Albany football team has played a game at Casey Stadium. After wrapping up a three-game road trip last Saturday at Morgan State, the Danes finally return home this weekend, and they'll be greeted by a familiar foe; and a challenging one at that. Get the latest news, weather, sports and entertainment delivered right to your inbox! Villanova comes to town for UAlbany's CAA opener. The Wildcats are the 16th ranked team in the FCS - fresh off a 35-9 beatdown of Rhode Island, which is also in the top-25. This matchup came down to the wire last year. The Wildcats thwarted a late Danes comeback with a game-winning field goal - one of five, one-score losses UAlbany had in 2022.But the Danes showed last Saturday they're capable of closing out close games, holding on for a double-overtime victory against the Bears - a win that gave the team a serious morale boost."They were buzzin'; it's a good feeling…the way they were...

Protecting environment and health: Commission adopts measures to restrict intentionally added microplastics

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 11:37:44 GMT

The Commission has taken another major step to protect the environment by adopting measures that restrict intentionally added microplastics to products under the EU chemical legislation REACH. The new rules will prevent the release to the environment of about half a million tonnes of microplastics. They will prohibit the sale of microplastics as such, and of products to which microplastics have been intentionally added and that release those microplastics when used. When duly justified, derogations and transition periods for the affected parties to adjust to the new rules apply.The adopted restriction uses a broad definition of microplastics – it covers all synthetic polymer particles below five millimetres that are organic, insoluble and resist degradation. The purpose is to reduce emissions of intentional microplastics from as many products as possible. Some examples of common products in the scope of the restriction are:The granular infill material used on artificial sport surfac...