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Hmong ‘J4’ Freedom Festival returns this weekend

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:00:22 GMT

For more than four decades, the Hmong International Freedom Festival has brought Hmong athletes from around the world to the McMurray Fields at St. Paul’s Como Park, where teams compete in soccer, volleyball, flag football and traditional southeast sports such as Kato and Top Spin. There’s even competitive cornhole.When the 41st annual “Hmong J4” tournament returns Saturday, researchers from the University of Minnesota Extension Service will be there to survey the crowds about how much fun they’re having and why.For Xinyi “Lisa” Qian, director of extension’s tourism center, the questions are far from frivolous. Some 57,000 visitors have been known to attend “J4” across two days, some from as far away as France and Thailand, making the festival the largest Hmong gathering in the world.Qian is one of the principal organizers of the U’s economic study of the Freedom Festival, which contracted with the U’s tourism c...

Storms cause significant damage in Columbia, Illinois

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:00:22 GMT

COLUMBIA, Ill. -- Severe storms tore through the Columbia Lakes subdivision, leaving behind a trail of destruction. Lakeshore Drive, one of the areas directly impacted, witnessed the power of the storm as trees were uprooted and fencing sustained damage.This area experienced a direct hit from the storms that were in the area before 7 p.m. Friday night. The aftermath reveals a fallen tree and fencing damage. The force of the storm was so intense that power poles were snapped, posing risks to residents. Authorities are urging caution regarding any downed power lines this morning. Severe storms may impact the St. Louis area Saturday Despite the ongoing power issues in the subdivision, the silver lining is that no injuries have been reported in this area or elsewhere. We spoke with residents who experienced the storm firsthand, and they described a sudden shift from a calm atmosphere to a rapidly changing and intense weather event.Stay informed about local updates and heed official wa...

Severe storms may impact the St. Louis area Saturday

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:00:22 GMT

ST. LOUIS -- Residents in the St. Louis metro area should be ready for another round of storms today, although the exact location of impact remains somewhat uncertain. The National Weather Service reports that the highest threat of severe weather is expected to be along and south of I-70. St. Louis radar: See a map of current weather here The timeframe for this round of storms is forecasted to occur during the afternoon and early evening, predominantly between 1 p.m. and 8 p.m. During this period, residents should remain vigilant and be prepared for adverse weather conditions.The primary threats associated with these storms include damaging winds, with gusts potentially reaching speeds of up to 70 mph. Additionally, large hail is possible, measuring up to an inch in diameter. While unlikely, the risk of a tornado cannot be completely ruled out.As always, staying informed and keeping a close eye on weather updates throughout the day is essential. Take precautions to ensure your sa...

Cardinals and St. Louis City SC games may bring crowds Downtown during severe weather

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:00:22 GMT

ST. LOUIS -- With more severe storms possible today, there are legitimate safety concerns due to the large number of people expected downtown. Two Major League Baseball games and one Major League Soccer game will have a lot of people outdoors when the storms are expected to sweep through the area.ST LOUIS, MISSOURI - JUNE 30: Fans wait out a rain delay prior to the the game between the St. Louis Cardinals and the New York Yankees at Busch Stadium on June 30, 2023 in St Louis, Missouri. he game has been postponed and will be played as a double-header on July 1, 2023. (Photo by Dilip Vishwanat/Getty Images)The Cardinals game against the Yankees Friday night was postponed ad will now take place today as part of a doubleheader at Busch Stadium. The first game of the doubleheader is scheduled to start at 1:15 p.m. followed by the second game at 6:15 p.m. Fans are advised to stay updated on any further changes to the schedule. St. Louis radar: See a map of current weather here In addit...

Storms cause widespread power outages in Illinois and Missouri

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:00:22 GMT

ST. LOUIS -- Strong storms moving through the St. Louis area have caused power outages. Ameren crews are working to restore power to the thousands of customers left in the dark.Power outage map from AmerenThere are around 13,000 Ameren customers without service in Missouri and 100,000 in the state of Missouri. The storm damage appears to be more significant throughout the entire state of Illinois, and not just in the St. Louis area.The utility posted the following statement on its website:"We are aware of outages and impacted customers following severe weather. Our Incident Management Team (IMT) has been activated to coordinate restoration of power outages caused by a strong line of thunderstorms that moved across our service territory.Make sure you're receiving important information and updates about your service. Check that your cell phone number and email address are up to date on your Online Account.Working to restore power after a storm can be complex."See a map of the outages ...

The Taliban government runs on WhatsApp. There’s just one problem.

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:00:22 GMT

KABUL, Afghanistan — Late one night two months ago, a team of Taliban security officers assembled on the outskirts of Afghanistan’s capital to prepare for a raid on an Islamic State group hideout.As the zero hour approached, the men fiddled with their automatic rifles while their leader, Habib Rahman Inqayad, scrambled to get the exact location of their target. He grabbed his colleagues’ phones and called their superiors, who insisted they had sent him the location pin of the target to his WhatsApp.There was just one problem: WhatsApp had blocked his account to comply with U.S. sanctions.“The only way we communicate is WhatsApp — and I didn’t have access,” said Inqayad, 25, whom The New York Times has followed since the Taliban seized power in August 2021.He was not alone. In recent months, complaints from Taliban officials, police and soldiers of their WhatsApp accounts being banned or temporarily deactivated have become widespread, disruptions that have illuminated how...

No. 1 again: Keenan Hayes tops bareback world rankings

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:00:22 GMT

Pro Rodeo’s top bareback rider in the world once again hails from Northwest Colorado.Related ArticlesSports | What to do in Denver this weekend: “Star Wars” celebs at Fan Expo, Greeley Stampede Hayden’s Keenan Hayes has been in a back-and-forth battle for the No. 1 bareback ranking all season against Leighton Berry of Weatherford, Texas. But after a three-rodeo weekend, Hayes for now has taken back the lead.A top ranking is something the 20-year-old has worked for since he was a child growing up in Routt County, and he said it means the world to see himself in the top spot once again.“It’s been something I’ve been working for my entire life and you just have to keep working at it,” Hayes said. “It’s pretty awesome to see, especially being so young and that being my main goal for my whole life.”Full story via Steamboat Pilot & TodayWant more sports news? Sign up for the Sports Omelette to get all our analysis on Denver’s teams.

Grading The Week: Broncos need to move some preseason camp practices to Empower Field

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:00:22 GMT

The Broncos say talk to Arapahoe County. Arapahoe County says talk to the Broncos. South Metro Fire says rules are rules.New owners. New coach. New staff. New camp. No longer can you roll outta bed on a Tuesday and decide at half-past 9 in the morning that you feel like driving over to Dove Valley before lunch to see if your secret fears about Elliott Fry are somehow justified. Sean Payton’s inaugural training camp will ring a few more firsts: (free) ticketed entry for fans — no more than four tickets per fan account — and a cap of 3,000 visitors per practice.Now it turns out that last number was always the designated capacity for the facility — insiders say that, like holding, local officials in the past generally chose not to call the Broncos out for occasionally stuffing the hill. The first weekend practice of Nathaniel Hackett’s Club Med ‘22 last July drew 7,121 into a space that’s reportedly only supposed to house about half that number.So, yeah, safety comes first,...

Ukrainian businesswoman warns of corrupt seizures of assets in fog of war

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:00:22 GMT

Alona Lebedieva is a highly successful Ukrainian businesswoman. Her company supplies freight cars for use on her country’s rail network and also owns a factory in the Sumy region producing water pumps. However, her assets have been seized and she was sanctioned by presidential decree in May 2023. Her story illustrates how far short of European standards the country’s legal system remains, writes Political Editor Nick Powell.Alona Lebedieva maintains that she is not alone and that there are a thousand cases like hers, but it is an example of how a country with a weak legal and judicial system can be exploited, especially amid the fog of war. An allegation that her company had supplied 16 water pumps used by the Russian military first emerged in November 2019, when it was investigated by the Security Service of Ukraine and no violations of the law were found.Although Russian forces have been on Ukrainian territory since 2014, trade in goods not considered to have a potential military ...

Opinion: Court’s affirmative action decision is height of judicial activism

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:00:22 GMT

For decades, conservatives have railed against judicial activism, but Thursday’s decision striking down affirmative action by colleges and universities in admissions was the height of conservative judicial activism. The court rejected almost half a century of precedents, overturned decisions made by public and private universities across the country, and ignored the history of the 14th Amendment of the Constitution.The experience of California — where affirmative action was eliminated by Proposition 209 in 1996 — shows that it still will be possible to have diversity in higher education, but it will take sustained effort and it will be difficult.In 1978, in University of California v. Bakke, Justice Lewis Powell wrote the pivotal opinion and explained that colleges and universities have a compelling interest in having a diverse student body and may use race as one of many factors in admissions decisions to benefit minorities and enhance diversity. The Supreme Court reaffirmed this i...