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Shakespeare and penguin book get caught in Florida’s ‘Don’t Say Gay’ laws

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:31:53 GMT

ORLANDO, Fla. (AP) — Students in a Florida school district will be reading only excerpts from William Shakespeare’s plays for class rather than the full texts under redesigned curriculum guides developed, in part, to take into consideration the state’s “Don’t Say Gay” laws.The changes to the Hillsborough County Public Schools’ curriculum guides were made with Florida’s new laws prohibiting classroom discussion about sexual orientation or gender identity in mind. Other reasons included revised state standards and an effort to get students to read a wide variety of books for new state exams, the school district said in an emailed statement on Tuesday.Several Shakespeare plays use suggestive puns and innuendo, and it is implied that the protagonists have had premarital sex in “Romeo and Juliet.” Shakespeare’s books will be available for checkout at media centers at schools, said the district, which covers the Tampa area.“First and foremost, we have not exc...

Viral TikTok video captures wheelchair-bound woman’s rescue in Fort Lauderdale

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:31:53 GMT

A woman confined to a wheelchair is expressing her gratitude to the Fort Lauderdale Fire Rescue team for their heroic efforts in carrying her up several flights of stairs to her downtown condominium when elevator services abruptly stopped.Haleigh Rosa, 34, a former television reporter in North Dakota, sustained a life-altering injury that left her paralyzed from the waist down. She has since dedicated her time to advocating for the rights of the disabled community. “I was injured in a car accident eight and a half years ago so I’m paralyzed from the waist down and I use a wheelchair,” said Rosa. On Monday, a flood within her downtown Fort Lauderdale condo resulted in the suspension of elevator operations, leaving Rosa stranded on the 31st floor of her building.“Apparently there was a pipe that had burst and created a flood in some units, I believe, in the hallway and the elevators flooded as well or had water damage so they were out of use,” said Rosa. ...

Weight loss drug sends Eli Lilly soaring

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:31:53 GMT

INDIANAPOLIS — Eli Lilly’s diabetes treatment Mounjaro, which is widely used for weight loss, raked in nearly $1 billion in second-quarter sales, or more than $200 million above what Wall Street had expected.Shares of the drugmaker soared to an all-time-high Tuesday, closing up more than 14% at $521.60 after Lilly said Mounjaro sales swelled more than 70% since the first quarter to $980 million.  Almost all of that came from the U.S., and the company said significant demand was leading to delays in filling orders for some doses.Analysts expected the drug to bring in about $740 million during the quarter, according to FactSet.Executives said they expect tight supplies will lead to some spot shortages of Mounjaro through year’s end. Lilly is building a new manufacturing plant in North Carolina and expanding at another location there.The U.S. Food and Drug Administration approved Mounjaro at the end of last year’s second quarter to treat type 2 diabetes, but analysts ...

Massachusetts spending $45M a month on programs for migrants, displaced families, Healey says

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:31:53 GMT

Massachusetts is spending more than $45 million a month on programs and emergency shelter for newly-arrived migrant and displaced families, Gov. Maura Healey said in a Tuesday letter to federal officials.The cost — which adds up to roughly $540 million a year — is the first clear sign of the total toll an influx of migrants has had on taxpayers in Massachusetts. The Healey administration has contracted with hotels and motels around the state and shelter management firms in a bid to open up more beds.Healey used the cost to emphasize the need for federal assistance in a message to U.S. Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas that also declared a state of emergency in Massachusetts.“Although Massachusetts is adding shelter units every week, without extraordinary measures, we fear we will be unable to add capacity fast enough to place all eligible families into shelter,” Healey wrote in a letter sent Tuesday. “Even though we are currently spending more than $45 milli...

Patriots rookies making wide receiver depth chart interesting in training camp

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:31:53 GMT

FOXBORO — Rookie wide receiver Demario Douglas’ 1-on-1 drills have been must-watch spectacles through the first two weeks of training camp.Douglas is undefeated — a perfect 8-for-8 — in the drills so far. The 5-foot-8 wide receiver can put his foot in the ground, break and suddenly gain a quarter-field of separation on his defender when matched up individually.Half of those wins have come against one of the quickest players on the team in cornerback Marcus Jones, who’s a brave soul for trying to take on Douglas any chance he can get.Related ArticlesNew England Patriots | Source: Patriots signing ex-DL Trey Flowers after workout New England Patriots | Bill Belichick mum on Matt Judon’s contract, Jack Jones leaving practice New England Patriots | Patriots training camp Day 13: Mac Jones can’t finish 2-minute drills over rainy, sluggish practice New England Patriots | Patriots extra points: Matthew Judon’...

Hip-hop greats weigh in on the music and its impact over the past 50 years

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:31:53 GMT

By George Varga, The San Diego Union-TribuneAs hip-hop celebrates its first half-century, it’s an opportune time to have performers in the field reflect on the genre, its evolution and its strengths and weaknesses.The following quotes are from interviews with San Diego Union-Tribune music critic George Varga.Kanye West (2005)“I talk about very serious issues (in my songs), and hide them behind similes and metaphors. My mother always taught me about the kings and queens of Africa, and about the sacrifices and the accomplishments of the people in the civil rights movement. My dad told me about many songs in the African-American community, and what they addressed and meant. He broke down how it was for me, when I was 12. When it was time for me to rap, a lot of that came out.”De La Soul’s David “Trugoy the Dove” Jolicoeur, who died early this year (1989)“We figured the more puzzling or humorous our music sounds, the more people will want to get into it. You don’t have to have a hard to...

Patriots CB Marcus Jones tight-lipped about offensive role, but ‘way ahead’ on defense

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:31:53 GMT

FOXBORO — Marcus Jones flashed something of a mischievous grin after the Patriots’ 12th training camp practice on Tuesday. The second-year, do-everything cornerback has, of course, practiced extensively in the secondary. He’s taken plenty of reps on special teams, where he was a first-team All-Pro as a rookie. But thus far, Jones has not seen a single snap on offense – where he showed promise in some opportunities last season, including scoring a touchdown on his first career offensive snap – during this camp.Jones was asked twice Tuesday how he may be preparing for a potential offensive role. If there, he’s keeping it a secret.“I find out when you guys find out. I can’t give you anything,” Jones said. “I don’t know anything right now, so whenever my number’s called, I’m going to make sure I’m going to be ready.”Has Jones had any conversations with Patriots offensive coordinator Bill O’Brien?“The most conversations I have with him is, ‘How’s your day going? My day’s going good,’” Jo...

Editorial: Under Biden, 401k accounts suffer

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:31:53 GMT

President Biden continues to stump for Bidenomics on the campaign trail, touting inflation-spiking measures as a good thing for the economy.In his Nothing But Malarkey roadshow the Inflation Reduction Act is working, and trillion-plus spending costs nothing.He has his administration cheerleaders to back him up: The economy is on a “good path” to bring down inflation without a major weakening in the labor market, treasury secretary Janet Yellen told Bloomberg.What Biden doesn’t have in his corner is reality.And Bank of America data served up a big, troublesome serving Tuesday, reporting that more Americans are tapping into their 401ks because of financial woes.The number of people who made a hardship withdrawal on their 401k in the second quarter jumped to 15,950, up 36% from Q2 of last year, according to CNN.It’s a “pretty troubling development” if some people are turning to hardship withdrawals, said Matt Schultz, chief lending analyst for Lendin...

Bruins’ Jeremy Swayman glad arbitration behind him

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:31:53 GMT

As a goaltender, Jeremy Swayman is as focused and methodical in his training and preparation as one can get.It sounded like he took the same approach to his arbitration case.Swayman spoke with reporters for the first time since an arbitrator handed him a one-year $3.475 million contract last week. And it appeared that notoriously prickly process left no scratches on the young Bruin netminder – at least no visible ones.“It wasn’t a process I wanted to go through but I understand that it’s a business and, in the end, I’m grateful that I went through it because I have so many things to be grateful for. The main thing is my agent Lewis Gross, Mark Toof and Jamie Bozzo and what they did for me and seeing how much they cared for me as a player,” said Swayman, who threw bouquets to the NHLPA lawyers as well.Just the same, Swayman is glad it’s behind him. And though he’ll be a restricted free agent with arbitration rights again next year, he hopes he doesn̵...

Fatal Cape Cod boat crash under criminal investigation

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:31:53 GMT

The boat crash into a jetty off a Cape Cod beach last month that resulted in the death of a 17-year-old girl is now the focus of a criminal investigation, the local district Attorney has announced.“Cape & Islands District Attorney Robert J. Galibois announced today that his office is conducting an investigation of the boat crash in Sesuit Harbor in Dennis,” the DA’s office said in a brief statement Tuesday. “Due to the ongoing nature of this investigation the Cape & Islands will not make any further comment at this time.”A boat carrying six people crashed at roughly 9 p.m. July 21 into the jetty off Cold Storage Beach, Sesuit Harbor, in Dennis, prompting a response from a slew of local and state authorities, according to the Massachusetts State Police. By 11:30 that night, the MSP said that the girl’s body had been found.One other boat passenger, a teenage boy, was transported to Cape Cod Hospital with a head laceration, according to MSP.Tuesday’s DA statement named several ...