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Two Montreal Island towns file court challenge to Quebec language law reform

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 14:47:28 GMT

MONTREAL — Two Montreal suburbs filed a court challenge today to Quebec’s 2022 language reform, seeking to be exempted from several articles of the law commonly known as Bill 96.Hampstead and Town of Mount Royal say the articles, which limit government communications in languages other than French, contradict elements of the law that allow certain municipalities and government agencies to use other languages.The lawsuit also seeks to have the court declare unconstitutional a provision of the law that declares the French text of Quebec laws takes precedence over the English version if there is a discrepancy between the two.It also argues that the Quebec government cannot unilaterally change the Canadian Constitution — which states that French and English can be used in Quebec’s legislature and courts — to make French the province’s only official language.Both towns have bilingual status, allowing them to communicate with citizens in French and English, but they say ...

Four young firefighters heading home die in head-on crash on B.C. highway: RCMP

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 14:47:28 GMT

CACHE CREEK, B.C. — Four young men travelling home after helping in the battle against wildfires in central British Columbia are dead after a fiery head-on crash, police and provincial officials said Wednesday.RCMP Cpl. James Grandy said the crash happened on Highway 1 east of Cache Creek in the province’s southern Interior early Tuesday morning.A provincial statement said the men were heading home after aiding wildfire response efforts in the Vanderhoof area, west of Prince George.Grandy said the initial investigation suggests a Ford F-350 pick-up truck the young men were travelling in had failed to navigate a bend in the highway and slammed head-on into a semi-truck travelling in the opposite direction.The semi-truck caught fire, but the driver was able to escape before the vehicle was “engulfed,” the Mounties said in a statement.All four men inside the pick-up truck died at the scene. They have been identified as subcontractors for the BC Wildfire Service, polic...

Railroads work to make sure firefighters can quickly look up what is on a train after a derailment

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 14:47:28 GMT

OMAHA, Neb. (AP) — In the chaos after a Norfolk Southern train careened off the tracks and caught fire in eastern Ohio in February, it took roughly 45 minutes for firefighters to learn exactly which chemicals were involved.Now the railroad industry is trying to ensure that never happens again.Ever since that Feb. 3 derailment prompted concerns about rail safety nationwide, the major railroads have redoubled their efforts to make sure that more and more first responders can immediately look up the contents of any freight train. This week, the two counties that handled the initial response to the East Palestine, Ohio, derailment on the Ohio-Pennsylvania border were set up with the AskRail program that will allow dispatchers to look up everything a train is carrying as soon as they get one car number. That is part of an effort the Association of American Railroads trade group launched this spring to sign up emergency dispatch centers in the program. “It’s going to allow us to make bett...

Behind all the speechmaking at the UN lies a basic, unspoken question: Is the world governable?

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 14:47:28 GMT

UNITED NATIONS (AP) — Work together. Go it alone. The apocalypse is at hand. But the future can be bright. The squabbles never cease, yet here are human beings from all across the world — hashing out conflicts with words and processes, convening under one roof, trying to write the next chapter of a common dream. At the United Nations, “multilateralism” is always the goal. Yet so is the quest for a coherent storyline that unites all 193 member states and their ideas. Those two holy grails often find themselves at odds when leaders gather each September at the United Nations — a construct whose very name can be a two-word contradiction.You hear a lot about “the narrative” these days in politics (and everywhere else). It’s a way to punch through the static and make sure people are absorbing your message — and, ultimately, doing what you want them to do. But how to establish a coherent storyline when the very notion of many nations with many voices is baked into the pie to begin w...

UN chief warns of ‘gates to hell’ in climate summit, but carbon polluting nations stay silent

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 14:47:28 GMT

UNITED NATIONS (AP) — The head of the United Nations warned Wednesday that the “gates of hell” are at hand as climate change intensifies, and top international officials said the world’s leaders still aren’t doing nearly enough to curb pollution of heat-trapping gases. They pleaded with major emitting nations to do more.Those nations remained silent. They weren’t allowed to speak because, organizers said, they had no new actions to take. The only countries that touted their efforts — “first movers and doers,” the United Nations called them — were responsible for just one-ninth of the world’s annual carbon pollution.“Humanity has opened the gates to hell,” U.N. Secretary-General António Guterres said Wednesday, opening a special climate ambition summit with yet another plea for action. “ Horrendous heat is having horrendous effects. Distraught farmers watching crops carried away by floods. Sweltering temperatures spawning disease. And thousands fleeing in fear as hi...

Officers kept Elijah McClain in neck hold despite pleas of ‘I can’t breathe,’ prosecutors say

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 14:47:28 GMT

BRIGHTON, Colo. (AP) — Two Denver-area police officers ignored Elijah McClain’s pleas of “I can’t breathe” when they put the Black man a neck hold before he was injected with a powerful sedative and died, prosecutors said Wednesday, in a 2019 confrontation that became a rallying cry for protests and spurred police reform.In opening arguments for the first of several trials stemming from McClain’s death, lawyers for the two sides painted contrasting pictures of the fatal struggle after he was stopped by police in Aurora. Officers Randy Roedema and Jason Rosenblatt approached McClain, a 23-year-old massage therapist, as he walked home from a convenience store carrying only a plastic bag with three cans of ice tea and his phone. A 911 caller had reported him as suspicious.If prosecutors can convince jurors the stop was unjustified, that would undermine any argument that McClain’s injuries were a result of the officers just doing their jobs.Roedema and Rosenblatt are both ch...

Search for former NFL player continues as police scour home of slain mother

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 14:47:28 GMT

MAYWOOD, Ill. — The search for missing Sergio Brown intensified Wednesday with authorities searching the home of his slain mother. Maywood police detectives in the 1000 block of Nichols Lane emerged from the home of Myrtle Brown with a white box after nearly an hour inside. Maywood police detectives emerged from the home of Myrtle Brown with a white box after nearly an hour inside. (Photo/WGN)PREVIOUS COVERAGE: Instagram post may shed new light in death of former NFL player’s motherThe individual who let investigators into the property declined to identify himself to WGN News.Wednesday’s new developments come as investigators examine the latest Instagram post of the man identifying himself as the missing Sergio Brown.    The bizarre clip shows a shirtless man, who strongly resembles Myrtle Brown's missing son, repeatedly saying, ‘Oh my God. If I die, I’m a legend.’ The discovery of Myrtle Brown’s body on Sept. 16 stunned friends and family. The Cook County medical examiner’s office...

Newsom-DeSantis debate happening? California governor ‘all-in’

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 14:47:28 GMT

(NewsNation) — California Gov. Gavin Newsom and Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis have agreed to debate each other, but it still hasn’t happened. Will it ever? "I'm all-in, I'm ready to go," Newsom said Tuesday on "CUOMO." Newsom said there had been a date set for the two governors to debate in November. However, a Republican primary debate has also been slated for that month, throwing into question whether the two governors would be able to meet to battle it out. Newsom started running GOP attack ads in Florida last year, which sparked lots of speculation he was prepping for a presidential run. While Gov. DeSantis is running for president, Newsom reasserted he is not. Why Gavin Newsom says he’s not running for president in 2024 “I have deep respect, reverence for Joe Biden as a person, his character, his decency and his capacity to do great things,” Newsom said in an interview with Chris Cuomo. “That’s why. I’m not worthy of that conversation. This guy deserves it, and we as members of...

Mount Bonnell Crime: Are the cameras working?

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 14:47:28 GMT

AUSTIN (KXAN) — Mount Bonnell is one of the most popular destinations for visitors, but when people leave their cars behind and head up to see the panoramic views, that's when criminals strike.This is just one of many popular locations that has had issues with car burglaries around Austin."We evaluated the crimes that were occurring in parks and within 50 feet of them and 70% of those crimes last year in 2022 were crimes against property," said LeAnn Ishcomer, park ranger program manager for the City of Austin Parks and Recreation Department."It is close by, it's convenient, it is just a beautiful area," said Laurie Darilek when talking about Mount Bonnell.While the beauty attracts visitors, the number of cars left behind as people hike to the top is attracting thieves."We were unaware of the break-ins," John Darilek said. Security cameras up at some Austin parks, trails as part of pilot program to curb break-ins A quick scan of the parking lot at Mount Bonnell and you will see sh...

What happens if your catalytic converter gets stolen while your car is at a repair shop?

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 14:47:28 GMT

AUSTIN (KXAN) -- Several catalytic converters were stolen from a car repair shop in Travis County, according to the sheriff's office. The agency received the report last week from the Service King in the Round Rock area, and could not provide further information in order to protect the integrity of the investigation."There's been something like a 300% to 400% increase in insurance claims taken out for catalytic converter theft," said Rich Johnson, director of communications for the Insurance Council of Texas.Law enforcement across the country have raised the alarm about a spike in catalytic converter thefts. The act prompted a law change in Texas issuing harsher penalties for people involved in such crimes. Bill passes Texas Senate that would crack down on catalytic converter thieves When it comes to the part getting stolen while your car is at the shop, "it is going to be on you," Johnson said."It's just like parking at a garage downtown or a lot, there are signs everywhere sayi...