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Coggin: Is that rescue dog really a trafficking victim?

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:31:15 GMT

If you’re thinking about adopting a rescue dog, good for you. But you should also do your homework.The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recently declared an extension of a suspension of dog imports from 110 countries. The move is designed to mitigate the risk of animal diseases accidentally spreading.According to the Agriculture Department, 1 million dogs are imported every year and regulations are lax. That’s convenient if you take your pet dog on a trip. But the lack of regulations has also given rise to pet trafficking, often under the guise of “animal rescue,” and a serious risk of disease outbreak.According to the CDC, “Many dogs are bred irresponsibly in large numbers in ‘puppy mills’ overseas, where the risk of congenital abnormalities and disease is high. Importers then fly them as cargo in large batches, claiming them as ‘rescue’ dogs, valued at $0 on their paperwork, and allowing the importers to evade entry and broker fees.”In June 2020, a Ukrainian Internationa...

Editorial: The meter’s running on Bay State shelter crisis

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:31:15 GMT

House Speaker Ronald Mariano wants to get a handle on the state’s emergency shelter crisis and migrant surge, asking for “hard numbers” before acting on a $250 million funding request from Gov. Maura Healey.It’s perfectly reasonable to want to know how much things cost, where the money’s going and how much more is going to be needed going forward.Unfortunately for Mariano, Healey and Massachusetts taxpayers, the cost of the shelter crisis is a moving target.The state is caught in the crossfire of two converging emergencies: 1. the rise in the number of local homeless residents and 2. the influx of new migrants.Either situation on its own would be formidable to solve, but together, the ship of state is taking on water, fast. The Massachusetts housing department estimates we could see 1,000 families enter the emergency shelter system each month. More than 6,500 families are staying in the emergency shelter system as of Tuesday.The Bay State’s “right to sh...

Lucas: Diehl dresses down Healey over migrant crisis

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:31:15 GMT

Would Gov. Geoff Diehl be dealing with the state’s growing illegal immigration crisis any better than Gov. Maura Healey?Perhaps not, but we will never know.Because the Trump-supporting conservative Republican did not become governor. He was soundly defeated in the November election by progressive Democrat Healey.So, it is her problem, not his. But Diehl does have a few comments to make about it, one of which is accusing Healey of “adding fuel to the fire” by calling for work permits for the migrants which will only urge more to come.And while several issues were highlighted during the 2022 campaign for governor, like Diehl’s support of Trump, illegal immigration was not one of them, even though some 50 migrants, mostly Venezuelans, had just landed at Martha’s Vineyard in September.The migrants arrived on two planes provided by Florida Gov. Ron DiSantis to make a point, and he did.  And that was to show how welcoming to illegal immigrants liberals can be as long as they don’t end up ...

Raise a glass to Oktoberfest fun

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:31:15 GMT

If you love fun, festivals and maybe a little beer, you know what this time of year means: Oktoberfest.Greater Boston and New England at large is at no shortage of Oktoberfest choices. From cityscape to mountainside to overlooking the sea, you can find the perfect Octoberfest for you.While Oktoberfest is centered around great brews, it’s not just about the beer. Great Octoberfests marry brewing and brats, kegs and camaraderie. It’s a kind of festival atmosphere that yes, does celebrate beer, but works more as an Autumn outdoor party.City setting: Boston is a beer bonanza, to be sure, and perhaps the king (unless you’re old enough to recall the days of Haffenreffer), is Sam Adams and the Boston Beer Company. While they celebrate everywhere with their annual Oktoberfest beer, you can mark the festivities with them at their annual Oktoberfest Sept. 22-24 at their Boston Taproom and their brewery in Jamaica Plain.You’ll find live music (plenty of Oompah bands) and DJ’s, festival-inspire...

Dear Abby: Son chooses possessive GFs over aging mom

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:31:15 GMT

Dear Abby: My son’s former wife was difficult — manipulative, spoiled and possessive. I tried to get along with her, but no matter what I did, she gave me no respect and turned my son against me. They have been divorced for six years. He began dating a few years ago, and each woman is a carbon copy of the ex-wife. He falls right back into the same pattern of ignoring me and letting his girlfriends “possess” him. I’m deeply hurt. I don’t understand why he feels he has to choose between them and me. He is my son, and I shouldn’t have to compete for his love.I’m getting older now and have asked him for some help, but he refuses. I would just like a regular phone call and to see him. I am no longer invited to his house for holidays, nor does he randomly call just to talk. He has a new girlfriend, and it’s back to the same old pattern. Please advise me. — Low Priority in OhioDear Low Priority: Please accept my sympathy. I know y...

2 San Diego spots rank among top pan dulce places in US: Yelp

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:31:15 GMT

SAN DIEGO -- Pan dulce, which means "sweet bread" in Spanish, is a popular pastry in the Hispanic culture.Yelp recently ranked the top 20 pan dulce spots in the U.S., with two San Diego spots making the list.Panchitas Bakery in Golden Hill ranked No. 15, while Cafeina Cafe in Teralta East came in at No. 20.Panchitas Bakery offers a variety of pan dulce on its menu such as Terrones, Ladrillos, Campechana and Piedras. 2 local ‘Bachelorette’ contestants among 5 saved after boat sinks on fishing trip "Authentic panadería. Fresh, no-nonsense. Delish and fresh!!! Located in the heart of Golden Hill. This is a real Mexican bakery," Yelper Jeffrey E said.Cafeina Cafe has a rotating menu with partner Split Bakehouse, a vegan bakery in La Mesa."This place is a hidden gem. The coffee was delicious and the pan dulce was amazing! I would have taken a pic but everything was gone so quickly I didn't have time. Will definitely be returning!" Yelper Patricia G commented.Yelp's methodology for the ...

Testimony begins in officers’ trial over death of Elijah McClain, who was put in neck hold, sedated

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:31:15 GMT

BRIGHTON, Colo. (AP) — Prosecutors were set to call their first witnesses Thursday in the trial of two Denver-area police officers charged in the 2019 death of Elijah McClain, a Black man who was put in a neck hold and injected by paramedics with a powerful sedative in a case that became a rallying cry for protests and spurred police reform.In the first of several trials stemming from McClain’s death, opposing lawyers used opening statements Wednesday to paint contrasting pictures of the fatal struggle after he was stopped by police in Aurora. Prosecutors said officers Randy Roedema and Jason Rosenblatt ignored McClain’s pleas of “I can’t breathe” and failed to follow their own training. Defense attorneys said the death was a tragedy but it was not the officers’ fault as they sought to shift blame to the paramedics. The officers approached McClain, a 23-year-old massage therapist, as he walked home from a convenience store on Aug. 24, 2019, carrying only his phone and a plasti...

Russian strikes cities from east to west Ukraine, starting fires and killing at least two

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:31:15 GMT

KYIV, Ukraine (AP) — Air alerts sounded again and again in Kyiv and residents headed to shelters early Thursday morning, as a massive Russian attack on at least six cities across Ukraine killed at least two people, started fires and wounded at least 21.In the southern city of Kherson, near the front lines, two people were killed dead and at least five injured after a strike hit a residential building, said regional Governor Oleksand Prokudin.Seven people were injured in Kyiv, including a 9-year-old girl, reported Mayor Vitalii Klitschko, and some residential and commercial buildings were damaged.At least six strikes hit the Slobidskyi district of Kharkiv, damaging civilian infrastructure damaged, said regional Governor Oleh Syniehubov. The city’s mayor added that two people had been sent to hospitals.Seven were injured and at least one person was rescued from under rubble in Cherkasy, in central Ukraine, according to Ihor Klymenko, Minister of Internal Affairs of Ukraine.An industri...

Iran’s president says US should ease sanctions to demonstrate it wants to return to nuclear deal

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:31:15 GMT

UNITED NATIONS (AP) — Iran’s President Ebrahim Raisi said Wednesday that relations with the United States can move forward if the Biden administration demonstrates it wants to return to the 2015 nuclear deal, and a first step should be easing sanctions.He told a news conference that the Americans have reached out through several channels “saying they wish to have a dialogue, but we do believe that it must be accompanied by action.”“So talk alone is not going to do it,” Raisi said. But action on sanctions can be “a solid foundation for continuing” discussions.The Iranian leader added: “We have not left the table of negotiations.”Raisi reiterated that the American withdrawal from the 2015 agreement, aimed at reining in Iran’s nuclear program, trampled on U.S. commitments including on sanctions.Then-President Donald Trump unilaterally pulled the U.S. out of the accord in 2018, restoring crippling sanctions. Iran began breaking the terms a year later, including by enriching uranium to h...

Inside a Ukrainian brigade’s battle ‘through hell’ to reclaim a village on the way to Bakhmut

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:31:15 GMT

ANDRIIVKA, Ukraine (AP) — The Russian bullet struck the sergeant just above the left ear. The leader of the Ukrainian platoon was down. Headquarters radioed a battlefield promotion to the private who had called him “brother” — a man known as Courier.Courier knew the platoon’s orders were to move forward through the forest, on the road to Bakhmut. He hesitated for 30 seconds near his mortally wounded commander. Maybe a minute. Then he decided: There would be no turning back. “Forward!” he howled.He fired toward a trench just ahead until he was sure the Russians inside would never shoot again. Then the men stumbled through the charred spindles of trees toward the village of Andriivka — the objective of the 3rd Assault Brigade since the start of Ukraine’s counteroffensive this summer, about 6 miles (10 kilometers) south of the city of Bakhmut.The sergeant, Gagarin, and other injured soldiers could only be evacuated after dark, because the Russians were also hunting downed Ukraini...