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Larry Magid: Meta’s Threads is Twitter’s second biggest challenge

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 21:12:20 GMT

Meta’s new Threads service is the second biggest challenge to Twitter. The biggest challenge is the antics of its owner, Elon Musk.Related ArticlesBusiness | Magid: Looking back on 40 years of writing tech columns Business | Magid: Buying a large appliance online vs. local store Business | Magid: Could a smartwatch or fitness device save your life? Business | Larry Magid: Using AI and apps for summer travel plans Musk, who took over the company last year and has fired thousands of employees, including many of its moderators, disbanded its safety advisory council (which I was on) and has made life a lot easier for scammers and bigots and less pleasant for those who want to use it for civil online conversations.As a result, thousands of people have left Twitter or drastically cut down their use, creating a void that has been filled by several Twitter alternatives including Bluesky, Mastodon, Post, Spill, T2 and Donald Tru...

Dear Abby: If she calls me dowdy, can I point out she’s fat?

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 21:12:20 GMT

DEAR ABBY: I work from home, so I do not need to get dressed up every day. I wear T-shirts and athletic shorts because I usually coach my sons in after-school sports and want to be comfortable.Related ArticlesAdvice | Dear Abby: My wife says I’m too sensitive about her lovers Advice | Dear Abby: What can I do about my husband’s embarrassing sneeze? Advice | Dear Abby: My ex-wife says these kids are my grandchildren. I’m not so sure. Advice | Dear Abby: My brother has cut all ties, and I don’t even know what I did Advice | Dear Abby: I don’t want to make my husband jealous but I’m excited about this new hobby Every day, my wife complains about my appearance, comparing me with other fathers. She has no problem yelling about it in front of my kids or her family. This happens often.She says, “People won’t want to do business with you if you dress like that!R...

United Nations cites ‘credible information’ of mass grave found in West Darfur containing bodies of at least 87 people

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 21:12:20 GMT

GENEVA (AP) — United Nations cites ‘credible information’ of mass grave found in West Darfur containing bodies of at least 87 people.Source

The Struts rock sold-out 9:30 Club before launching The Atlantis

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 21:12:20 GMT

The members of the band The Struts. (Courtesy 9:30 Club) The members of the band The Struts. (Courtesy 9:30 Club) Hear our full chat on my podcast “Beyond the Fame with Jason Fraley.” toggle audio on and off change volume download audio WTOP's Jason Fraley previews The Struts at 9:30 Club at The Atlantis (Part 1) $(function () { $('.wtop-audio-container .fa-play').on('click', function(){ var...

Sorry Russia, the Baltic Sea is NATO’s lake now

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 21:12:20 GMT

VILNIUS — A resurgent NATO is set to tighten its grip on the Baltic Sea, complicating a vital transit route for Vladimir Putin’s navy in Russia’s backyard. This week’s alliance summit in Vilnius was Finland’s first as a NATO member. On the summit’s eve, Turkey agreed to back Sweden’s bid to join — paving the way for a strategic shift in a region Moscow once dominated. “[Sweden and Finland] make NATO much more geographically coherent. The Baltic Sea becomes a NATO lake, which is generally useful, also because of the Arctic’s increased importance,” said Ulrike Franke, a senior fellow at the European Council on Foreign Relations. NATO has steadily increased its control of the Baltic Sea — a crucial maritime gateway for the Russian fleet which has bases near St. Petersburg and in the heavily militarized Kaliningrad exclave. During the Cold War, only Denmark and Germany at the far western edge of the Baltic were in the alliance. Poland joining NATO in 19...

Mookie Betts’ return to Fenway highlights intriguing second half slate for Red Sox

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 21:12:20 GMT

All season long it’s felt like the Red Sox are walking a tightrope. As injuries have piled up there’s been a sense among portions of the fanbase that doom is lurking just around the corner.And yet, here they are, still in the hunt past the season’s midway point.For all the bad vibes that have surrounded the Red Sox at times, all of the club’s goals are still within reach. Boston goes into the second half still last in the AL East, yes, but also five games over .500 at 48-43 and only two games out of the last AL Wild Card spots. The club is also getting healthier, so it’s entirely possible we could look up a week from now and the Red Sox could be not only back in the postseason field, but pushing the Baltimore Orioles for a chance to host a first-round playoff series.The next few months are shaping up to be really interesting, so here are a few storylines to follow as the Red Sox move into the second half.Save the datesIn a little over a month Mookie Bet...

Sudan’s neighbors meet in Cairo at summit seeking to end raging conflict

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 21:12:20 GMT

CAIRO (AP) — Leaders from Sudan’s six neighboring countries met in Cairo on Thursday for the most high-profile peace talks since conflict erupted across the northeastern African country in mid-April.The meeting, hosted by Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sissi, was attended by the leaders of Ethiopia, South Sudan, Chad, Eritrea, the Central African Republic and Libya.Sudan has been rocked by violence since Apr. 15 when tensions between the military and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces burst into open fighting.The conflict has killed more than 3,000 people and wounded more than 6,000 others, Health Minister Haitham Mohammed Ibrahim said last month. The actual death toll is likely much higher, doctors and activists say.The fighting has forced more than 2.4 million people to flee their homes for safer areas inside the country, according to the International Organization for Migration. Around 738,000 others have crossed into neighboring countries, the agency said.Thursday’s meeti...

Tens of thousands of doctors in England start ‘longest’ strike in health system’s history

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 21:12:20 GMT

LONDON (AP) — Britain’s state-funded health care service is facing what is being described as its longest-ever strike as tens of thousands of doctors in England launched a five-day walkout over pay on Thursday.So-called junior doctors, those who are at the early stages of their careers in the National Health Service in the years after medical school, started their latest strike at 7 a.m., with many of them making their case for a 35% pay rise in picket lines outside hospitals across England.The British Medical Association, the doctors’ union, has asked for a 35% pay rise to bring junior doctors’ pay back to 2008 levels once inflation is taken into account. Meanwhile, the workload of England’s 75,000 or so junior doctors has swelled as patient waiting lists for treatment are at record highs in the wake of the coronavirus pandemic.“Today marks the start of the longest single walkout by doctors in the NHS’s history, but this is still not a record that needs to go into the h...

Driver in hospital with serious injuries after crashing into tree in Forest Hill

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 21:12:20 GMT

A woman is in hospital with serious injuries following a single-vehicle crash in Midtown Toronto.Officers responded to the collision at Spadina and Archer Road around 8 p.m. for reports of a vehicle crashing into a tree.The driver was taken to hospital with serious but non-life-threatening injuries. Paramedics confirmed the victim was a woman but would no specify her age.There is no word on what led to the crash.COLLISION: (UPDATE)Spadina Rd & Archer Rd7:58pm– victim has been transported to hospital with non-life-threatening injuries#GO1623085^se— Toronto Police Operations (@TPSOperations) July 13, 2023

Kevin Spacey testifies in his own defense in his sexual assault trial at a London court

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 21:12:20 GMT

LONDON (AP) — Kevin Spacey testified Thursday in his sexual assault trial, swearing in a clear and loud voice to tell the “full truth and nothing but the truth” in what could be the most consequential speaking part of his life.Spacey began by discussing how he got involved in the theater, joking that his mother would say he began acting the moment he emerged from the womb.The testimony provided some light history on his life before delving into the serious matter before the court. Four men have accused the two-time Oscar winner of sexually assaulting them between 2001 and 2013, describing disturbing encounters that escalated from unwanted touching to aggressive crotch grabbing.One man who called Spacey a “vile sexual predator” said he passed out or fell asleep at the actor’s London flat and woke up to find the actor performing oral sex on him.Spacey has denied the charges and is expected to provide a vigorous defense.The 63-year-old American actor was one of the biggest stars of the...