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US Supreme Court upholds California pork regulations

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:41:51 GMT

The Supreme Court upheld a California law that bars the sale of pork produced in other states unless the sow was housed in conditions that allowed her to move freely.The law was the brainchild of animal rights activists in the state, who worked for its passage saying it was necessary to reduce disease from crowded conditions. But the National Pork Producers Council brought a constitutional challenge to the law, arguing that it impermissibly regulates commerce between the states, because nearly all pork production occurs outside of California.The decision of the court was 5-4, with Chief Justice John Roberts and Justices Samuel Alito, Brett Kavanaugh and Ketanji Brown Jackson dissenting.“While the Constitution addresses many weighty issues, the type of pork chops California merchants may sell is not on that list,” said Justice Neil Gorsuch, writing for the majority.At issue is Proposition 12 — a California law that bans the sale of pork meat, no matter where it is produced, in the st...

Does the Fed need layoffs to cure inflation?

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:41:51 GMT

Is the Federal Reserve silently rooting for layoffs to help its battle with stubbornly high inflation?Well, let’s just peek at inflation rates and how they vary in a curious collection of 23 metropolitan areas tracked by the Consumer Price Index. My trusty spreadsheet tells me that places with high inflation rates also happen to have strong job markets.Remember that the Fed has two goals – keep employment high and inflation low. When cost-of-living increases hit levels not seen in four decades last year, the central bank deployed its key tool – surging interest rates – in an attempt to cool an overheated economy. It’s a less-than-subtle wink at bosses to slow hiring – at a minimum.Geography helps us see the Fed’s challenges in taming inflation. Mull over these 23 local economies, sliced into two groups ranking their latest monthly cost-of-living increases.You have high-inflation towns – Miami, Tampa, Phoenix, Seattle, Detroit, Atlanta, Dallas, Denver, Baltimore, San Diego and Chicag...

US immigration policy ‘Title 42’ expires tonight. Here’s what happens next

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:41:51 GMT

By Dakin Andone and Priscilla Alvarez | CNNThere are just hours left before the expiration of a pandemic-era public health restriction will significantly alter several years of US immigration policy, threatening chaos as an estimated tens of thousands of migrants mass near the US-Mexico border in anticipation.Issued during the onset of the Covid-19 pandemic, Title 42 allowed authorities to swiftly turn away migrants at the US borders, ostensibly to prevent the spread of the novel coronavirus. But that will change at 11:59 p.m. ET Thursday, when the public health emergency and Title 42 are set to lapse.Here’s how border crossings could be impacted after the order expires:Title 8 will be back in effectTitle 42 allowed border authorities to swiftly turn away migrants encountered at the US-Mexico border, often depriving deprived migrants of the chance to claim asylum and dramatically cutting down on border processing time. But Title 42 also carried almost no legal consequences for...

Adobe launches new semaphore puzzle contest atop downtown San Jose tower

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:41:51 GMT

SAN JOSE — High above downtown San Jose, Adobe has launched a new semaphore puzzle contest to serve as the tech titan’s latest tricky optical telegraph that challenges people to crack its code.The semaphore, atop Adobe’s Almaden Tower in downtown San Jose, is public artwork crafted by new-media artist Ben Rubin that challenges people to solve the mystery message hidden away in the ever-shifting patterns of the glowing wheels on the highrise.“The idea was brought to life in partnership with the San Jose Public Art Program whose mission it is to infuse art and innovation through the downtown area,” Adobe stated in a blog that the company posted Thursday. “As the Semaphore’s wheels turn slowly and come to rest, it transmits a message that is visible for miles (and online!)”The optical telegraph puzzle might be a tough mystery to unknot. Adobe’s previous San Jose Semaphore required about 4-and-a-half years to solve, the tech company said.I...

California sheriff’s sergeant switched drug evidence between cases, defense attorney alleges

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:41:51 GMT

An embattled Orange County sheriff’s sergeant has been accused in defense documents with taking drugs seized in one case and booking them as evidence in another, unrelated case.Sgt. Matthew LeFlore, already facing allegations of illegally eavesdropping on attorney-client phone calls, is now further accused of moving nearly 18 grams of methamphetamine from one case to another he was investigating. Also implicated in the alleged evidence swap is Sgt. Arthur Tiscareno, according to a court motion filed Wednesday, May 10, by Orange County Deputy Public Defender Tammy Nguyen.“This is the nightmare of every member of our community. But the reality is there are officers who will plant evidence and write false reports,” Nguyen said in a prepared statement. “There are officers who are absolutely convinced they are above the law.”Nguyen’s motion seeks all records related to the case against defendant Ace Kelley, including records from the Sheriff’s Department’s evidence tracking system, calle...

Photos: Matthew McConaughey and more stars come out for Warriors-Lakers Game 5

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:41:51 GMT

A must-win situation for the Golden State Warriors vs. the Los Angeles Lakers drew some serious star power to the Chase Center Wednesday night. The Warriors rolled 121-106 to force a Game 6 on Friday night in Los Angeles.Draymond Matthew McConaugheyWarriors force a Game 6 with the home W pic.twitter.com/p2pJ9nBTEm— NBA (@NBA) May 11, 2023Actor Matthew McConaughey brought his son, a Warriors fan, who after the game stood in line to shake Draymond Green’s hand.E-40 high-fives comedian Dave Chappelle after the Golden State Warriors beat the Los Angeles Lakers 121-106 for Game 5 of the NBA basketball Western Conference semifinal playoff series at the Chase Center in San Francisco, Calif., on Wednesday, May 10, 2023. (Nhat V. Meyer/Bay Area News Group) Comedian Dave Chappelle was also on hand and said hi to Warriors superfan rapper E-40.Tom Izzo is in the house. pic.twitter.com/EMEFlmHgYL— Sporting News NBA (@sn_nba) May 11, 2023Spartans in the Draymond and Tom I...

Prep roundup: Granada’s Joshua Morano shuts out De La Salle in EBAL semifinals

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:41:51 GMT

NEW: PREP SPORTS MAILBAGThe Bay Area News Group is introducing a high school sports mailbag in May. Get your questions in as soon as possible. Our debut edition is an open forum. Got questions about spring sports playoffs, coaching changes, an early peek at football season, etc.? Send them to [email protected]. Please include “mailbag” in the subject line.BaseballEBAL playoffsWith “velo” being the name of the game for pitchers nowadays, it makes some sense Granada left-hander Joshua Morano hasn’t had major-league scouts knocking down his door this season.“Velo” is short for velocity, and if the radar gun isn’t popping in the 90s, many pitchers will be told to head off to college before they will be considered for the major-league draft, which this summer will be held in July.Morano seems to be OK with that. He has signed a letter of intent to pitch next season at Arizona, where former Campolindo star Chip Hale is the head coach. Hale, who played on some great teams at...

House Republicans aim to pass new asylum restrictions as Title 42 ends; Biden promises veto

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:41:51 GMT

WASHINGTON (AP) — House Republicans are seeking Thursday to pass a sweeping bill to build more U.S.-Mexico border wall and impose new restrictions on asylum seekers, creating a hard-line counter to President Joe Biden’s policies just as migrants are amassing along the border with the end of coronavirus pandemic restrictions.The bill has virtually no chance of becoming law. Democrats, who have a narrow hold on the Senate, have decried the aggressive measures in the bill as “cruel” and “anti-immigrant,” and Biden has already promised he would veto it.But the House GOP pointedly scheduled the vote for the same day as the expiration of Title 42, a public health emergency rule that allowed border authorities to quickly return many migrants who crossed the border illegally. Biden has conceded that the southern border will be “chaotic for a while” as migrants weigh whether to cross and U.S. officials use a new set of policies that aim to clamp down on illegal immigration while ...

NFL season kicks off with Super Bowl champion Chiefs hosting Lions; Rodgers on MNF

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:41:51 GMT

NEW YORK (AP) — The Super Bowl champion Kansas City Chiefs will host the Detroit Lions on Sept. 7 to kick off the 2023 NFL season.And NFL fans will get their first look at star quarterback Aaron Rodgers in a Jets uniform when New York faces the Buffalo Bills on “Monday Night Football” on Sept. 11, according to early details released Thursday on this year’s NFL schedule.The NFL will release the full schedule on Thursday night.On Wednesday, the NFL announced that Trevor Lawrence and the Jacksonville Jaguars will become the first NFL team to play two international games in the same season when they spend back-to-back weeks in London this year.The Jaguars will host the Atlanta Falcons at Wembley Stadium on Oct. 1 and visit the Bills at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium on Oct. 8. The Jaguars were set to play two designated home games in London in 2020 but the pandemic canceled those plans.The NFL also announced dates for three other international games. The Tennessee Titans will host the Baltim...

Project underway to transform old Georgetown heating plant into luxury Four Seasons Residences

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:41:51 GMT

The Georgetown Company and the Levy Group officially broke ground on the long-planned redevelopment of the old Georgetown West Heating Plant on Wednesday.The $300 million redevelopment as a Four Seasons Private Residences will include 70 for-sale units and is scheduled to be completed by 2026.The off-again, on-again redevelopment of the steam plant has been in the works for the past decade. The plant was officially decommissioned in 2000. The structure will be partially razed but the building’s original western facade, constructed in 1948, will be preserved.The building is designed by world-renowned architect Sir David Adjaye and Adjaye Associates, whose past projects have includes the Smithsonian’s Museum of African American History & Culture.Adjaye, D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser and former Mayor Anthony Williams were among the officials on hand for the groundbreaking, along with Richard Levy, CEO of The Levy Group.The project, at 1051-1055 29th Street NW, will also incl...