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Reform or die? If the US gets its way, the WTO might do both

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:13:53 GMT

GENEVA — The United States put the World Trade Organization into intensive care by single-handedly killing off its highest court four years ago — in so doing endangering the global rules-based trading system.Now Washington is — ever so quietly — floating the idea of a new-look appeals process that could help get the WTO off life support. And that is leading some trade diplomats in Geneva to question whether the patient would survive the operation that Joe Biden’s administration has in mind.“It’s reform or die,” one senior Geneva trade diplomat told POLITICO, setting out the scale of the task before the WTO and its director-general, Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala.“[Major powers] are contesting the norms, they are pushing the rules. And if we don’t accommodate and adjust and find a way to keep the big players in the system, then … we do fade into irrelevance,” they added.The creation of the WTO in 1995 represented the high-water mark of globalization and the liberal world order follo...

An 8-run 6th inning dooms the Chicago White Sox in a 12-5 loss to the Kansas City Royals

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:13:53 GMT

Dylan Cease believed he had a better feel for getting pitches in the strike zone Monday than he had in recent starts.“In that terms it was better,” the Chicago White Sox starter said, “but obviously the results were still not good.”The right-hander allowed a season-high seven earned runs as the Kansas City Royals throttled the Sox 12-5 in front of 9,814 at Kauffman Stadium.“This was a tough one,” Sox manager Pedro Grifol said. “We accomplished some things that we wanted to get accomplished, which was to get ahead in the count. Our (goal of) two out of three (strikes to a batter) was really high.“But when we got them on two strikes, we just couldn’t put them away. I think they got about seven hits with two strikes — three extra-base hits, including a homer and a couple doubles. That was the game right there.”One day after a blowout win against the Cincinnati Reds, the Sox suffered a blowout loss.In both cases, one big ...

Franks: We failed to learn 2008 banking crisis

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:13:53 GMT

How can billions of dollars be lost, and nobody can figure out who got the money or where it all went.In the last banking crisis in 2008 – which led to a crippling recession in America and around the world – a deep-dive investigation revealed that bankers knew exactly what they were doing when they made residential real estate red hot.They issued subprime loans to those with poor credit histories; held and sold artificially overvalued properties that went underwater – thanks to appraisers; and packaged bad or toxic loans which were doomed non-performing loans to unassuming investors and banks worldwide. As a result, the whole banking sector was a giant balloon just waiting for a pin to come along.So, why were hundreds of bankers not arrested during a banking crisis that led to our Great Recession from late 2007 to 2009? Apparently, the banks were deemed too big to fail and the bankers were too clever to get caught.When we do not show respect for the law, society crumbles. That is ex...

Robert Rodriguez brings indie flair to ‘Hypnotic’ sci-fi thriller

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:13:53 GMT

With Friday’s sci-fi thriller “Hypnotic,” Robert Rodriguez closes a circle with a scenario he created over 20 years ago.Set in Austin, Rodriguez’s hometown and central beehive where he films, edits and produces his movies, “Hypnotic” stars Ben Affleck as Danny Rourke, an Austin police detective haunted but never ever giving up the search for his missing three-year-old daughter.When Rourke busts an elaborate and bizarre bank robbery in progress he discovers Hypnotics — powerful hypnotists trained by a secretive government agency known as the Division that controls people’s minds.“I’ve always loved the story. It came to me very fast,” Rodriguez, 54, said this week in a phone interview.  “I wanted to do something like my favorite Hitchcock thrillers. But I kept getting on other projects and before you know it, like 15 years have gone by before I brought it back up.“What’s nice about a story if it hooks you like that and you keep going back to it, you know itR...

Editorial: Biden holds airlines accountable, but not himself

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:13:53 GMT

The Biden Administration and its Congressional allies are all for holding businesses accountable for harm inflicted on consumers – even if that harm is simply making a profit. But who is holding government responsible for its actions?Airlines are in the crosshairs as widespread flight delays and cancellations roiled the holidays last year. They’ve earned the ire of passengers and lawmakers.As reported, the White House said Monday it’s preparing new rules aimed at requiring airlines to compensate passengers for significant flight delays or cancellations when the carriers are responsible.“When an airline causes a flight cancellation or delay, passengers should not foot the bill,” U.S. Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg said in a statement.Well done. But when the president and lawmakers cause fiscal harm to Americans through actions which spur inflation and subsequent interest rate increases, why should we foot the bill?The Biden Administration’s tril...

Dear Abby: Readers relate to grieving widow’s actions

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:13:53 GMT

Dear Abby: “Unsure How To Feel” (Jan. 24) was upset about changes her sister-in-law was making after the death of her husband. Within months, the widow had given away the husband’s belongings and begun making changes to their home. I saw myself in that column. I lost my beloved husband unexpectedly at the age of 47. Seeing his clothes and belongings in our closets every time I opened the doors was painful. They were a constant reminder of what I’d lost.After selecting a few meaningful items, I also began giving his belongings to close family members and then to charities. When my daughter became upset, I realized that we all process our grief in different ways. She wanted to preserve everything the way it was. Neither reaction is wrong.And as for the SIL’s remodeling, I did exactly what she did. For me, it was a way to regain control of my life. My husband’s death was shocking and heartbreaking. Having a project gave me something to focus on other...

Palomar College in San Marcos lockdown lifted after reported shooting at nearby sports complex

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:13:53 GMT

SAN MARCOS, Calif. -- Palomar College in San Marcos was temporarily placed on lockdown Monday night after reports of shots fired at a nearby sports complex, school officials said.The call came in at 7:46 p.m. about a shooting at Mission Sports Park, located at 931 Bailey Court, according to the San Diego County Sheriff's Department.Palomar College in San Marcos was forced to lock down around 8:11 p.m., but later lifted the lockdown at 9:28 p.m., Julie Lanthier Bandy with the North County school told FOX 5. SR-78 officially reopening for drivers after extended closure Deputies searched the area, but they did not find any victims, the sheriff's department said. Authorities are continuing to search for evidence at the sports complex.Check back for updates on this developing story.

Pennsylvania House battle hinges on Philadelphia suburbs

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:13:53 GMT

HARRISBURG, Pa. (AP) — Democrats who reclaimed the Pennsylvania House majority in November and clung to a one-seat margin by sweeping three special elections earlier this year face yet another contest for control of the chamber next week, when voters will fill a vacancy in the Philadelphia suburbs.At stake in the Delaware County special election is whether freshman Democratic Gov. Josh Shapiro will have at least one chamber to aid his agenda going into the final month of budget negotiations. The result could also affect a proposed constitutional amendment on abortion rights that legislative Republicans are one House vote away from putting before voters as a referendum.The seat became open when Democratic Rep. Mike Zabel resigned in March, a week after a lobbyist accused him by name of sexual harassment.A win by Republican candidate Katie Ford, a military veteran, school volunteer and behavioral therapist, would likely give the House GOP a 102-101 majority and the power to reclaim co...

Toll of northeast India clashes now 60 dead, 35K displaced

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:13:53 GMT

GUWAHATI, India (AP) — Security measures are keeping the peace in a remote northeast Indian state where 60 people were killed and 35,000 civilians were displaced in rioting and ethnic clashes last week, officials said.Manipur state’s chief minister, N Biren Singh, told reporters late Monday that around 230 people were injured and about 1,700 houses were burned by protesters after fierce fighting broke out when members of tribal groups clashed with a non-tribal group over the economic benefits and reservation status extended to some tribes.Singh said thousands of civilians, escorted by security personnel, were now returning home after the situation was brought under control by police and army who patrolled the streets and enforced a curfew that is still in place. On Monday, India’s Home Minister Amit Shah told India Today news channel that the situation in Manipur was under control and appealed to the people to maintain peace. Violence in Manipur, which borders Myanmar, broke out las...

Pro-DeSantis super PAC ramps up hiring into Super Tuesday

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:13:53 GMT

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — The super PAC promoting Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis plans to have dozens of staff in place in the first 18 states on the Republican presidential primary calendar in the coming weeks, a move indicating that his expected 2024 announcement is drawing closer.The plans, shared with The Associated Press, are part of the group Never Back Down’s strategy to begin political organizing for DeSantis all the way through Super Tuesday on March 5 and point to a novel approach the super PAC is attempting ahead of a likely DeSantis run. In Iowa, where the leadoff GOP caucuses are expected to begin the 2024 voting, the group has placed about a half-dozen staff, including the former chief of staff to Gov. Kim Reynolds, as part of a broader strategy to handle on-the-ground organizing for DeSantis, a function typically done by a candidate’s campaign staff.The concept has been tried in previous election cycles, though less ambitiously and with little success.Ahead of th...