New variant spread doesn't have to lead to new round of school closures, CDC director says, but 'youth sports' may have to go (for now)

The nation's tenuous progress in reopening classrooms for in-person instruction has encountered a new foe: the B.1.1.7 variant of the coronavirus, which is both more transmissible and more potent than the original, or wild type, strain that emerged in late 2019. Public health officials are trying to prepare school districts as B.1.1.7, which recently became the prevalent strain of the coronavirus in the United States, proliferates through Wisconsin, Michigan and other states. Speaking during a Friday briefing of the White House COVID-19 response team, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Director Rochelle Walensky made a distinction between cases that originate in schools, which is rare, and cases brought into schools from the outside community.

‘An enormous waste’: How stimulus checks play in red-state America

But as stimulus checks from President Joe Biden's $1.9 trillion COVID-19 relief bill make their way to 160 million American households, voters here are showing little enthusiasm for the extra money. These stimulus checks are just a way of making more people dependent on the government,” says Virginia Russell, who owns the Look of Xcellence hair salon in Oneonta. It's a view that's echoed across this conservative county, where former President Donald Trump won 90% of the vote last November, and where tattered Trump 2020 flags still line the central highway.

Reigning Mrs. World arrested over onstage melee in Sri Lanka

Police in Sri Lanka on Thursday arrested the reigning Mrs. World for pulling the crown off the head of the winner of a Mrs. Sri Lanka beauty pageant and allegedly causing injuries. Caroline Jurie, who won the Mrs. World 2020 competition, was accused of hurting Pushpika De Silva, who won the Mrs. Sri Lanka title at a televised pageant held in Colombo on Sunday. Moments after De Silva won the title, Jurie, who is also Sri Lankan, came on stage and snatched the crown from her, saying she was ineligible because she was divorced.

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  ShowBiz Minute: Prince Philip, GLAAD, Mrs World,

  Associated Press Videos
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  Sri Lanka Mrs World arrested over pageant bust-up

  BBC

Nikolai Glushkov: Putin critic's murder made to look like suicide, inquest finds

Nikolai Glushkov, a close friend of the deceased oligarch Boris Berezovsky, Mr Putin's one-time fiercest rival, was found dead in the hall of his property in New Malden, south-west London, a week after Sergei Skripal, a former Russian double agent, and Yulia, his daughter, were poisoned with a nerve agent in Salisbury. Glushkov, 68, the former deputy director of the state airline Aeroflot, said he feared he was on a Kremlin hit-list. Paramedics who arrived at Glushkov's home on March 12 2018 immediately raised concerns that he had been killed because of the way suicide paraphernalia appeared to be deliberately placed around the body.

U.N. atomic watchdog reports new Iranian breach of nuclear deal

The U.N. atomic watchdog on Friday flagged a new breach by Iran of its nuclear deal with major powers on the day those powers met to revive the agreement, a report by the agency seen by Reuters showed, likely raising tensions with Western powers. The International Atomic Energy Agency avoids saying Iran has breached the deal. The breach has to do with what counts officially towards Iran's stockpile of enriched uranium, a highly sensitive issue since that stockpile could be enriched further to weapons-grade material suitable for nuclear bombs if Iran chose to do so.

Southern African leaders concerned by Mozambique's rebels

Five southern African leaders expressed their concern at the extremist violence in northern Mozambique and said they will consider “a proportionate regional response” at another summit in three weeks. Issuing a communique in Mozambique's capital, Maputo, Thursday, the African leaders “noted with concern, the acts of terrorism perpetrated against innocent civilians, women and children” in the Cabo Delgado province and “condemned the terrorist attacks in strongest terms; and affirmed that such heinous attacks cannot be allowed to continue.” The presidents of Botswana, Malawi, South Africa, and Zimbabwe met with President Filipe Nyusi, following the prolonged assault in recent weeks on Mozambique's northern city of Palma.

Ukraine says it could be provoked by Russian 'aggression' in conflict area

Ukraine's defence minister said on Saturday his country could be provoked by Russian aggravation of the situation in the conflict area of Ukraine's eastern Donbass region. The minister, Andrii Taran, said Russian accusations about the rights of Russian-speakers being violated could be the reason for the resumption of armed aggression against Ukraine. "At the same time, it should be noted that the intensification of the armed aggression of the Russian Federation against Ukraine is possible only if an appropriate political decision is made at the highest level in the Kremlin," he said in a statement.

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  Kremlin says it fears full-scale fighting in Ukraine's east

  Associated Press
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  Analysis: Russian military buildup raises stakes as fighting in Ukraine intensifies

  Reuters

'Blue wall of silence' takes hit in Chauvin's murder trial

Police accused of wrongdoing can usually count on the blue wall of silence — protection from fellow officers that includes everything from shutting off body cameras to refusing to cooperate with investigators. But that's not the case with Derek Chauvin, with many colleagues quick to condemn his actions in George Floyd's death, some even taking the stand against him. Minneapolis Police Chief Medaria Arradondo testified that Chauvin's kneeling on the handcuffed Floyd's neck was “in no way, shape or form” in line with department policy or training.

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  George Floyd's breathing was so restricted that it was almost as if his lung had been removed, expert says

  Yahoo News
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  Breathing expert testifies George Floyd died from lack of oxygen while handcuffed, prone, and kneeled on

  INSIDER

NRA trial opens window on secretive leader's life and work

LaPierre's testimony revealed him to be an embattled executive defending his leadership and punching back against what he characterized as a political attack by New York Attorney General Letitia James. But he also tried to acknowledge enough mistakes and course corrections to avoid having the NRA's reins handed to a court-appointed overseer — a move he said would be a death blow to the 150-year-old group that claims 5 million members. The NRA declared bankruptcy in January, five months after James' office sued seeking its dissolution over allegations that executives illegally diverted tens of millions of dollars for lavish personal trips, no-show contracts and other questionable expenditures.

DeSantis-backed ‘anti-riot’ bill heads to Senate floor after heated, lengthy debate

With political pressure mounting, a GOP-led Senate panel on Friday voted to send a Gov. Ron DeSantis-backed 'anti-riot' bill to the full Senate floor after rejecting every Democratic attempt to narrow the scope of the legislation. Democrats on the Senate Appropriations Committee were unable to stop the bill, but they did manage to get support for a study that will look at the racial impact of the proposed law. The bill (HB 1) would enhance penalties for a host of crimes committed during protests that turn violent, and opponents have argued its broad definition could lead to racial disparity if the bill ultimately becomes law.

Coronavirus latest news: Johnson & Johnson blood clots 'extraordinarily rare', says Government adviser

Blood clots associated with the Johnson & Johnson vaccine are "extraordinarily rare", a scientist advising the Government on its coronavirus response has said. "We still don't know whether they are directly related and caused by the vaccine but it seems possible that they could be," Professor Peter Openshaw, a member of the Covid-19 clinical information network, told the Today programme. "It wouldn't be surprising to find the J&J, the Janssen vaccine, also causes rare blood clots because it's based on an adenovirus technology which is not that far away from the technology being used in the AstraZeneca vaccine."

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  Europe probes possible blood clot link with Johnson & Johnson COVID vaccine

  Yahoo Finance UK
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  Coronavirus: Everything you need to know about the AstraZeneca vaccine's blood clot risk

  Yahoo Style UK

Caitlyn Jenner considers run for California governor

The 71-year-old longtime Republican has been consulting with GOP advisers as she considers joining the field of candidates hoping to replace Democratic Gov. Gavin Newsom in a likely recall election later this year. Jenner has spoken to Dave Rexrode, executive director of the Republican Governors Association, about a potential run, a spokesperson for the organization said. The celebrity activist, who described herself as “economically conservative, socially progressive” in a People magazine interview last year, immediately would stand out in a field that so far has failed to attract a nationally known contender.

One person dead, multiple hospitalized in a mass shooting in Bryan, Texas

Lt. Jason James with Bryan Police said that the scene was secure, and victims were taken to the hospital. One person was killed and five other were injured in a shooting at Kent Moore Cabinets in an industrial park in Bryan, Texas, on Thursday afternoon. At a press conference Thursday, Lt. Jason James with Bryan Police said that the call came in at around 2:30 p.m. local time, and six ambulances responded to the shooting.

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  1 dead, 5 injured in wake of Texas cabinet plant shooting

  Associated Press
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  One killed, several injured in Texas shooting

  Reuters Videos

St. Vincent awaits new volcanic explosions as help arrives

Cots, tents, and respirator masks poured into the eastern Caribbean island of St. Vincent as officials expected to start distributing them on Saturday, a day after a powerful explosion at La Soufriere volcano uprooted the lives of thousands of people who evacuated their homes under government orders. Nations ranging from Antigua to Guyana offered help by either shipping emergency supplies to their neighbor or agreeing to temporarily open their borders to the roughly 16,000 evacuees fleeing ash-covered communities with as many personal belongings as they could stuff into suitcases and backpacks.

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  'Explosive' volcanic eruption rocks Caribbean island St. Vincent

  Reuters
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  Saint Vincent volcano: 'Explosive' Soufrière eruption sparks mass evacuation

  BBC

Corporations don't like voter suppression, so McConnell wants them out of politics. Seriously?

What's more, the GOP has been filling its campaign coffers with corporate donations for years and has even encouraged and publicly supported companies such as Hobby Lobby in their free speech efforts surrounding divisive political issues such as birth control and LGBTQ rights. But when the tables turn and companies speak out against the Republican Party and legislation it backs, the hypocrisy is astounding. As Republicans nationwide are furiously working to enact voter suppression bills in statehouses, Democrats in Congress are trying to enact campaign finance reforms and broaden voter access to thwart the restrictive state measures.

Why We Love a Small Loveseat

Supremely versatile, loveseats work as standalone pieces in studio apartments and as part of a seating arrangement in sprawling living rooms Originally Appeared on Architectural Digest

Prince Harry expected to return to UK for Duke of Edinburgh's funeral – but not Meghan

The Duke of Sussex is expected to return to the UK from the USA for the funeral of his grandfather, the Duke of Edinburgh, despite widespread travel restrictions. Prince Harry, 36, was extremely close to Prince Philip, although he is not thought to have seen him in person since the autumn of 2019. There is an exemption for people attending the funeral of a close family member, although Prince Harry would have to self-isolate at all other times.

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  Will Prince Harry return for Prince Philip's funeral?

  Yahoo News UK
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  Meghan Markle And Prince Harry Pay Tribute To Prince Philip: 'You Will Be Greatly Missed'

  HuffPost

DOJ veterans say the latest twist in the Matt Gaetz sex-trafficking investigation could be the most 'scary' one yet for the lawmaker

Florida Rep. Matt Gaetz has been in hot water since The New York Times reported the existence of a Justice Department investigation into whether he had sex with a minor and broke federal sex-trafficking laws. On Thursday, the pressure on Gaetz jumped another notch after lawyers representing Joel Greenberg, a former Florida tax collector who was indicted as part of the investigation, told a judge that Greenberg was close to accepting a plea deal. It's a seismic development that spells trouble for Gaetz, whose friendship with Greenberg dates back to at least 2017.

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  Plea deal could spell more trouble for Matt Gaetz

  Yahoo News
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  Indicted Matt Gaetz Associate Likely Cooperating In Federal Investigation

  HuffPost

95% efficacy for COVID vaccines doesn’t mean there’s a 5% infection risk. Here’s why

As more Americans line up to receive their COVID-19 vaccines, there's confusion over just how protective the shots are against the disease. Clinical trials showed the Pfizer and Moderna shots, for example, had efficacy rates of about 95% against symptomatic COVID-19 in lab settings. So, that means 5% of people who get vaccinated could still get sick, right?

'How many of us will be left?' Catholic nuns face loss, pain

At Christmas, she'd fill cloth sacks with simple gifts like towels and shampoo, and when a new sister arrived, she scurried to make them feel at home. When Sister Amala Jose, who is 44, came from her native India, Labik excitedly welcomed her and added mangoes, ginger paste and habaneros to the shopping list. Something she knows we like,” said Jose, who is a part of the Daughters of Mary community, but lives with the Felicians.

These Prefabricated Homes Showcase the Beauty and Innovative of Sustainable Living

A new book from Thames & Hudson explores the latest advancements in prefabricated housing Originally Appeared on Architectural Digest

A disgruntled ex-employee left a trail of destruction in a Walmart store when he drove his car through the front doors and up the aisles

A North Carolina man who had been fired by Walmart crashed his car into the store, police said. The incident caused "substantial damage" to merchandise but nobody was injured. A disgruntled former employee drove his car through the front door of the Walmart store that fired him, according to police.

Rep. Katie Porter calls Biden's move to split up his infrastructure package 'a big mistake'

Rep. Katie Porter of California called Biden's move to split his infrastructure plan 'a big mistake.' Last month, Biden noted that 2 millions women had left the workforce since the pandemic started. Democratic Rep. Katie Porter of California called President Joe Biden's decision to split up his infrastructure plan into separate jobs and family components a major error.