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On ‘Enlisted,’ country star Craig Morgan gets a little help from his friends like Blake Shelton

Published Thu, 26 Dec 2024 15:32:24 GMT

LOS ANGELES (AP) — In July, country music star Craig Morgan reenlisted in the Army Reserves on the historic Grand Ole Opry stage. At age 59, the process required a waiver and an extensive physical test. It also inspired the title for the new EP he had been working on: “Enlisted,” out Friday. The six-song collection includes two new tracks and a few reimaginations of his hits, alongside A-list and up-and-coming collaborators like Blake Shelton, Trace Adkins, Luke Combs, Lainey Wilson, and Jelly Roll.The Opry holds particular meaning to Morgan — it’s not only a stage he’s frequented, but it is also where he spent his last evening with his 19-year-old son Jerry, who drowned in 2016. “After what happened, happened, everything takes on a new meaning,” he says. “Us not having his physical presence, (he) was missed.”Previously, Morgan served 17 years in the Army and Army Reserve with the 101st and 82nd Airborne Divisions as an E-6 Staff Sergeant and Fire Support Specialist. He ...

Brothers charged in home renovation scam spanning Etobicoke

Published Thu, 26 Dec 2024 15:32:24 GMT

Toronto police have charged two brothers in an alleged home renovation scam across Etobicoke. Police said that between June and October, two men went door to door to speak to homeowners about exterior home renovations. The two men used the company name “Town and Country Paving” and would falsely advise homeowners of issues with their property. Related: Toronto seeing surge in home reno scams, likely due to warm weather, police say It’s alleged that the men would request a deposit for the renovations and would refuse to complete the job unless additional payments were made. The pair would leave jobs unfinished, and police said some properties were damaged.Investigators arrested 30-year-old Dominic Ward and 23-year-old John Ward, both of Milton. The two men face similar offences, including two counts of fraud over $5,000, mischief/damage to property not exceeding $5,000, mischief over $5,000 and the possession of property obtained by crime over $5,00...

One-on-one with Olivia Chow as she marks 100 days as Toronto Mayor

Published Thu, 26 Dec 2024 15:32:24 GMT

Friday will mark 100 days since Toronto Mayor Olivia Chow took office. CityNews has reviewed what she has managed to tackle in the first few months of her tenure, but how does Chow believe she has done and what will she be focused on next? Mark McAllister: We’re marking 100 days. Many would say it’s a bit of a honeymoon period those first few months. Have you had a chance to make an impact to this point, in your opinion?Olivia Chow: Honeymoon? That’s very sweet. I hope so. I’m focused on what I can do beyond 100 days, but looking back, public transit. We sorted services so that you don’t have to wait so long for buses and subways. And a lot of housing, whether it is funds to buy some of the buildings to prevent people from being renovicted, creating affordable housing in the meantime.McAllister: There’s also been things that haven’t quite gone your way necessarily, when it comes to refugees, for instance, being able to try and find...

Garcelle Beauvais teams with Kellogg Foundation for a $90M plan to expand ‘Pockets of Hope’ in Haiti

Published Thu, 26 Dec 2024 15:32:24 GMT

NEW YORK (AP) — Humanitarian donations to conflict-ravaged Haiti have dramatically declined since the assassination of its President Jovenel Moïse in 2021, but the W.K. Kellogg Foundation wants to reverse that with a new $90 million campaign it calls “Pockets of Hope.”The initiative, which the foundation launched in September with a commitment of $30 million over three years, will focus on community-level efforts to provide education, health care and economic development, said La June Montgomery Tabron, the foundation’s president and CEO. She hopes the foundation’s success in providing support to communities in Haiti even while gang violence escalates in the country will convince other nonprofits to help as well.“Part of this campaign is to help other funders understand that there is an ecosystem in Haiti that is functioning,” Montgomery Tabron said. “It’s about the local organizations. We’re trying to explain to partners that we can help connect them to those plac...

Former Blue Jays manager Cito Gaston on Baseball Hall of Fame ballot

Published Thu, 26 Dec 2024 15:32:24 GMT

Former Toronto Blue Jays manager Cito Gaston is one of eight names on the National Baseball Hall of Fame’s Contemporary Baseball Era managers/executives/umpires ballot for the class of 2024.A candidate needs 75 per cent of votes to be elected.The results will be announced Dec. 3, with the ceremony next year in Cooperstown, N.Y.Managers Davey Johnson, Jim Leyland and Lou Piniella, umpires Ed Montague and Joe West, and baseball executives Hank Peters and Bill White also are on the ballot.Promoted to manager in 1989 after serving as hitting coach, Gaston led the Blue Jays to their first and only World Series titles in 1992 and 1993. He was let go late in the 1997 season.The Blue Jays rehired Gaston as manager midway through 2008 and he stayed in that role through the 2010 season.The 79-year-old compiled an 894-837 record as a major-league manager across 12 seasons.

Georgia agrees to pay for gender-affirming care for public employees, settling a lawsuit

Published Thu, 26 Dec 2024 15:32:24 GMT

ATLANTA (AP) — The state of Georgia will start paying for gender-affirming health care for state employees, public school teachers and former employees covered by a state health insurance plan, settling another in a string of lawsuits against Georgia agencies aiming to force them to pay for gender-confirmation surgery and other procedures. The plaintiffs moved to dismiss their case Thursday in Atlanta federal court, announcing they had reached a settlement with the State Health Benefit Plan. The December lawsuit argued the insurance plan illegally discriminated by refusing to pay for gender-affirming care.“There’s no justification, morally, medically, legally or in any other way for treating transgender healthcare as different and denying people access to it,” David Brown, a lawyer for the plaintiffs, said in a phone interview Thursday.The state Department of Community Health, which oversees the insurance plan, did not immediately respond Thursday to an email seeking comment.The sta...

Canada has pulled most envoys out of India due to diplomatic immunity threats: Joly

Published Thu, 26 Dec 2024 15:32:24 GMT

Foreign Affairs Minister Mélanie Joly says Canada has removed most of its diplomatic presence from India after New Delhi threatened to strip diplomatic immunities from them and their families.Joly says New Delhi threatened to remove immunities on Friday, so Canada called back 41 diplomats and their 42 dependents, leaving just 21 diplomats in the country.She decried the threat as a violation of international law that escalates tensions between the two countries and would have made it unsafe for diplomats to stay, and she said Canada would not reciprocate the move.Joly says Canada’s high commission in New Delhi remains operational, but Ottawa has paused in-person services at consulates in Chandigarh, Mumbai and Bangalore. Immigration Minister Marc Miller says the lower staff levels will hamper the issuing of visas and permits.Relations with New Delhi have hit a deep freeze since Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced a month ago that Canadian intelligence services were inv...

Alderwoman, staffer assaulted during migrant site construction protest in Brighton Park, statement says

Published Thu, 26 Dec 2024 15:32:24 GMT

CHICAGO — Alderwoman Julia Ramirez (12th Ward) issued a statement Thursday that said she and a staffer were assaulted at a protest of Mayor Brandon Johnson's plan to construct a temporary migrant shelter at 38th Street and California Avenue.Ramirez's statement said, in part, "Residents contacted my office this week and asked that I attend [the protest] to hear their concerns. I wanted to engage directly with my community to address misinformation being spread about my involvement in the plan, and how we should move forward as a community. After having a few conversations, it became clear that most of the protestors did not want to engage in a peaceful dialogue with me ... As I was leaving the protest, a group of protestors surrounded me and my staffer and began assaulting us."The full statement can be read at the bottom of this article.Ramirez confirmed in the statement that she is "ok," but her staffer was taken to the hospital and is in good condition.Earlier Thursday, the Mayor's...

More than 300 arrested in Capitol Hill protest urging cease-fire in Israel-Hamas war

Published Thu, 26 Dec 2024 15:32:24 GMT

WASHINGTON (AP) — More than 300 people were arrested for illegally demonstrating and three people were charged with assaulting police after protesters descended on Capitol Hill to call for a cease-fire between Israel and Hamas. Hundreds of demonstrators from Jewish advocacy groups, including Jewish Voice for Peace and If Not Now, poured into a congressional office building on Wednesday. They wore shirts that read “Jews say cease-fire now” and they chanted “let Gaza live” and “not in my name" before they were detained by Capitol Police. Alderwoman, staffer assaulted during migrant site construction protest in Brighton Park, statement says Demonstrations are not allowed inside Capitol buildings, and police said they warned the crowd gathered in the rotunda of the Cannon House Office Building to stop before they began making the arrests. The 305 people arrested for illegally demonstrating were subsequently released and those charged with assault were held in custody pending an appear...

Taco Bell testing new chicken nuggets in this Midwest city

Published Thu, 26 Dec 2024 15:32:24 GMT

(WXIN/NEXSTAR) – The powers that be at Taco Bell have chosen one city — and one city only — as the testing ground for a new chicken item.Customers in Minneapolis are the first (and currently only) in the nation with the option to order Taco Bell's new Crispy Chicken Nuggets, according to a menu update shared by Taco Bell last week.The white-meat nuggets, which are marinated in jalapeno-spiced buttermilk before being breaded and fried, are served with a choice of two sauces: a signature “Bell sauce” for dipping (made with tomato, red chili, onion and garlic) or a jalapeno-flavored honey mustard.Don't get your hopes up, everybody: Taco Bell's new nuggets are only available in Minneapolis at the moment. (Taco Bell)Orders come in two sizes: five pieces (with one sauce) for between $3.99 and $4.99, or 10 pieces (with both sauces) for between $6.99 and $7.99. (Prices vary between locations, according to Taco Bell). Yes, Olive Garden sells its cheese graters — and so much more A represen...