Economy

Aaron Rodgers and a VP bid that never was: ‘That would’ve been really interesting’

Aaron Rodgers and a VP bid that never was: ‘That would’ve been really interesting’

OAKLAND — The quarterback wasn’t there. No mention of his name across two hours. Maybe there was no need.The mere prospect of a pairing had already served its purpose — driving news cycles, stirring speculation, drumming up intrigue around a longshot bid for the White House by an outsider intent on defying political norms. But Aaron Rodgers running for Vice President of the United States?This not only defied political norms, it strained credulity.It was all but impossible to envision Rodgers balancing the rigors of his day job as quarterback of the New York Jets with a high-stakes political campaign, particularly…
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Why Are Older Americans Drinking So Much?

Why Are Older Americans Drinking So Much?

The phone awakened Doug Nordman at 3 a.m. A surgeon was calling from a hospital in Grand Junction, Colo., where Mr. Nordman’s father had arrived at the emergency room, incoherent and in pain, and then lost consciousness.At first, the staff had thought he was suffering a heart attack, but a CT scan found that part of his small intestine had been perforated. A surgical team repaired the hole, saving his life, but the surgeon had some questions.“Was your father an alcoholic?” he asked. The doctors had found Dean Nordman malnourished, his peritoneal cavity “awash with alcohol.”The younger Mr. Nordman, a…
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Sex offender, ex-Jaguars employee who hacked jumbotron sentenced to 220 years in prison

Sex offender, ex-Jaguars employee who hacked jumbotron sentenced to 220 years in prison

A U.S. District judge in Florida sentenced a convicted sex offender to 220 years in federal prison for producing, receiving and possessing child sex abuse material, and for hacking the jumbotron in the Jacksonville Jaguars’ stadium after the team did not renew his contract upon learning that he was a registered sex offender.U.S. District Judge Brian J. Davis sentenced Samuel Arthur Thompson, 53, for the offenses Tuesday, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Florida said in a release. A federal jury convicted Thompson in November 2023 of the offenses, as well as of producing child sex abuse…
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A Very Royal Scavenger Hunt

A Very Royal Scavenger Hunt

Some members of the royal family, particularly the princes and princesses of its younger generation, are easy to slot into that victim role. They are wealthy, famous and photogenic, and their roles in public life make them beloved to many.Catherine, particularly, was a ready-made focus for a conspiracy narrative, not only because she is glamorous and widely liked in Britain (helped by favorable coverage in the tabloid press), but also because she has been more private about her life than many other royals. “Kate’s signature has been her composure, her discretion,” Arianne Chernock, a historian at Boston University who studies…
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Biden Administration Finalizes Rule Curbing Use of Short-Term Health Plans

Biden Administration Finalizes Rule Curbing Use of Short-Term Health Plans

The Biden administration announced on Thursday that it had finalized a new regulation that curbs the use of short-term health insurance plans that do not comply with the Affordable Care Act, reversing a move by the Trump administration to give consumers more access to cheaper but skimpier plans.Under the new rule, the short-term plans will be able to last for only 90 days, with an option for a one-month extension.In 2018, the Trump administration issued a rule allowing the plans to last for just under a year, with the option of renewing them for a total duration of up to…
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Ukraine qualify for Euro 2024: ‘The world is going to watch and see we never give up’

Ukraine qualify for Euro 2024: ‘The world is going to watch and see we never give up’

More than 40 members of Ukraine’s national-team party were spread around the centre circle of Wroclaw’s Tarczynski Arena.Players, coaches and backroom staff locked their gaze on the 30,000 spectators sporting blue and yellow as they revved up their version of the Viking thunderclap. Iceland, the architects of that celebration during the 2016 European Championship, could only listen in despair having lost this Euro 2024 play-off final to a late strike from Chelsea forward Mykhailo Mudryk.Strangers embraced. Families posed for photographs draped in Ukraine flags. Others video-called, possibly home to war-torn Ukraine, sharing the moment with others unable to experience first-hand…
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Venezuelan Opposition Blocked from Election, Dimming Democratic Hopes

Venezuelan Opposition Blocked from Election, Dimming Democratic Hopes

First, it was María Corina Machado, a popular former legislator. Then, it was supposed to be Corina Yoris, a little-known philosophy professor. Now, an opposition coalition has put forward a former diplomat, Edmundo González, as their third candidate to run against President Nicolás Maduro in elections scheduled in July.That is, at least for now.The coalition of opposing political parties, the Democratic Unity Roundtable, has been hoping for months to unite behind a single candidate who could make a viable challenger to Mr. Maduro.But as the rapidly shifting lineup of potential candidates makes clear, the Maduro government has been putting up…
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Orcas Are Considered One Species. Should They Be?

Orcas Are Considered One Species. Should They Be?

Killer whales are some of the most cosmopolitan creatures on the planet, swimming through every one of the world’s oceans. They patrol the frigid waters near both poles and periodically pop up in the tropics, in locations from western Africa to Hawaii.Although their habitats and habits vary widely, all killer whales are considered part of a single, global species: Orcinus orca. (Despite their common name, killer whales are actually part of a family of marine mammals known as oceanic dolphins.)Now, scientists have drawn upon decades of research to suggest that two killer whale populations often observed off the Pacific Coast…
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Stanford overcomes Iowa State in dramatic OT win, advances to women’s Sweet 16

Stanford overcomes Iowa State in dramatic OT win, advances to women’s Sweet 16

For the second-straight NCAA Tournament, the Stanford Cardinal faced a fourth-quarter deficit on their home court in the second round, staring down the possibility of a stunning upset.As the Pac-12 player of the year Cameron Brink spent most of the night in foul trouble against No. 7 Iowa State, the No. 2 Cardinal turned to their other twin tower to carry them home. After being limited to five scoreless minutes off the bench in the 2023 loss to Ole Miss, Kiki Iriafen scored 41 points, tied for ninth all-time in a single NCAA Tournament game, and added 16 rebounds and…
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