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China appoints a new defense minister after months of uncertainty following sacking of predecessor

Published Fri, 27 Dec 2024 10:41:24 GMT

BEIJING (AP) — China has appointed a new defense minister after months of uncertainty following the firing of his predecessor for reasons still unexplained. The official Xinhua News Agency announced former navy commander Dong Jun would serve in the largely ceremonial role, but offered no comment on the reasons for the switch or the current circumstances of previous minister Li Shangfu, who has not been seen or heard from since August. The uncertainty surrounding the leadership of the world’s largest standing military comes as Washington and its Asian allies are offering stronger resistance to China’s bid to assert itself as the dominant military power in the region.The Associated Press

Silver Alert issued for missing 74-year-old Kyle man

Published Fri, 27 Dec 2024 10:41:24 GMT

KYLE, Texas (KXAN) -- A Silver Alert was issued late Thursday night for a man reported missing from Kyle. The Kyle Police Department is searching for Leonard Diggs, 74, who has a diagnosed cognitive impairment.Diggs is described as a Black man, 177 lbs, 5'07" in height, with black hair, brown eyes, and was last seen wearing a gray jacket with yellow stripes, a green shirt, black jeans, and black and brown shoes. According to police, he was last seen at 5 p.m. on Thursday, Dec. 28 at 5695 Kyle Parkway, Kyle, TX 78640 in a Red, 2019 Hyundai Santa Fe with TX License Plate 2PYKV.Law enforcement officials believe Diggs' disappearance poses a credible threat to his health and safety.Silver Alert flyer for Leonard Diggs, 74, reported missing from Kyle Dec. 28, 2023. (Photo: Kyle Police Department) If you have any information regarding this missing senior citizen...

West metro bakery Muddy Paws Cheesecake has closed — but is asking for donations to help reopen

Published Fri, 27 Dec 2024 10:41:24 GMT

Muddy Paws Cheesecake, a 30-year-old bakery in St. Louis Park that boasts over 200 flavors of cheesecake, closed this week — possibly permanently, unless it can pay down significant debts within the next couple weeks.And it’s asking the public for donations to help stay afloat.The cheesecake bakery was founded in the early 1990s by Tami Cabrera and once had storefronts on Snelling Avenue in St. Paul and in Maple Grove and Uptown Minneapolis, before transitioning to its St. Louis Park flagship in the mid-2000s.Muddy Paws has made more than 480,000 cheesecakes over the past three decades, including on the Food Network, at the White House and for TV host Al Roker, according to the company’s website. The business has also donated cheesecake, money and volunteer hours to a variety of local nonprofits, theater organizations and community support networks.In an extensive post on the bakery’s website, Cabrera outlined the “snowball” of how the bakery ended up in nearly a half-million ...

Wabasha County bookkeeper accused of embezzling $3.75M after falling victim to online romance scam

Published Fri, 27 Dec 2024 10:41:24 GMT

LEWISTON, Minn. — A Wabasha County woman who claims to be the victim of an ongoing online scam is being accused of stealing more than $3.75 million from her Lewiston employer and, separately, from a vulnerable adult.According to a warrant and criminal complaint filed last week in Wabasha County District Court, Sharon Schmalzriedt, 61, of Wabasha, faces a felony theft charge for allegedly using her employer’s funds to pay someone she met online.According to the criminal complaint:Schmalzriedt worked for the Lewiston company remotely from Wabasha, doing bookkeeping, payroll and accounts payable.The complaint said she was having marital problems and, in October 2019, began an online relationship with a man identifying himself as Erik Lockwood.According to message transcripts, Lockwood and another person identifying themself as Lockwood’s attorney told Schmalzriedt that Lockwood was owed $7 million for work he did in Dubai. They told Schmalzriedt that Lockwood needed to borrow money to ...

Binyamin Appelbaum: Why do we build houses in the same way we did 125 years ago?

Published Fri, 27 Dec 2024 10:41:24 GMT

BUENA VISTA, Colo. — In 1969, the federal government announced that it would hand out millions of dollars in subsidies to companies willing to try something new: build houses in factories.Then as now, America was in the throes of a housing crisis. There weren’t enough places to live. Mass production provided Americans with abundant and cheap food, clothing, cars and other staples of material life. But houses were still hammered together by hand, on site. The federal initiative, Operation Breakthrough, aimed to drive up the production of housing — and to drive down the cost — by dragging the building industry into the 20th century.It didn’t work. Big companies, including Alcoa and General Electric, designed new kinds of houses, and roughly 25,000 rolled out of factories over the following decade. But none of the new homebuilders long survived the end of federal subsidies in the mid-1970s.Last year, only 2% of new single-family homes in the United States were built in factories. Two d...

5 things to know this Friday, December 29

Published Fri, 27 Dec 2024 10:41:24 GMT

ALBANY, N.Y. (NEWS10) -- Happy Friday! According to Meteorologist Matt Mackie, we'll see more showers with temperatures floating around the high 40s. Get the latest news, weather, sports and more delivered right to your inbox! A suspicious package was dropped off at Schoharie County Court on Thursday containing an unknown powdery substance. The Schoharie County Sheriff’s Office says the powder was found to be a possibly hazardous substance. Also, the driver who struck the Maple Ave Bridge was issued a ticket under town code for failing to obey a traffic sign. The news comes a week after a tractor-trailer carrying compressed natural gas hit the bridge, causing a massive explosion. These stories, and more, are covered in your five things to know this Friday morning. 1. SCSO: Suspicious package leads to hazmat investigationA suspicious package was dropped off at Schoharie County Court on Thursday containing an unknown powdery substance. The Schoharie County Sheriff’s Office says the...

Francis Howell District faces backlash over elective course controversy

Published Fri, 27 Dec 2024 10:41:24 GMT

ST. CHARLES COUNTY, Mo. -- The students of Francis Howell will still have access to black history and literature instruction next year, despite recent changes to elective courses. The school board's decision to eliminate social justice standards from these courses last week sparked concerns, but assurances have been made regarding the availability of black history and literature electives in the upcoming fall semester.The board is introducing a new curriculum described as rigorous and largely politically neutral. This shift in direction has raised skepticism among some parents, who question the sudden change in the board's stance. What to know about Mizzou’s Cotton Bowl game and how to watch In response to the board's decision to remove social justice standards, the NAACP has been actively advocating for the reinstatement of these courses. They organized a meeting to strategize protests against the board's move, effective from July 1 to 24. The school board, in a statement to Fox ...

St. Louis Police seek assistance in finding missing 32-year-old Brittany Webb

Published Fri, 27 Dec 2024 10:41:24 GMT

ST. LOUIS -- The St. Louis Police Department's Missing Persons Unit is seeking assistance in locating 32-year-old Brittany Webb, who was reported missing from St. Louis City on December 20, 2023, by her family.According to reports, Webb's mother last heard from her on November 15, 2023, and grew concerned about her whereabouts when she failed to appear for the Christmas holiday.During Thanksgiving, Webb's mother tried contacting her via phone, but a man answered, claiming to know Webb without providing further details. Following attempts by the police to trace Webb's phone, it was revealed that it had been turned off.Brittany Webb is described as a white female, standing at 5'3" and weighing 130 lbs. Anyone with information is urged to contact the Missing Persons Unit at 314-444-5738.

St. Louis wakes up to a blanket of snow: Friday forecast and weekend outlook

Published Fri, 27 Dec 2024 10:41:24 GMT

ST. LOUIS -- Light snow continues this Friday morning. Thanks to temperatures that have been at or above freezing, this snow continues to have a minimal impact as roads remain wet and white.Overnight, we’ve seen a bit more in the way of accumulations on grass to the northwest and west of metro St. Louis. A slightly more robust round of snow is dropping south at 3 a.m. and may bring some minor accumulations early this morning, again on grass, cars, or elevated surfaces. On Friday, snow will taper off to flurries for the afternoon, ending from north to south. The skies will stay cloudy. Temperatures will hold nearly steady in the 30s. Tonight, clouds will linger until daybreak. Overnight temperatures only fall to around 30.  More clearing into Saturday, partly cloudy and low 40s for highs. We’ll round out 2023 on Sunday with partly cloudy and slightly colder temperatures and highs in the upper 30s. New Year’s Day looks sunny and  cold.  

Ask Amy: A childfree woman struggles with friendship

Published Fri, 27 Dec 2024 10:41:24 GMT

Dear Amy: I am a woman in my late 30s. My husband and I don’t have children. Almost everyone we know does.We have demanding jobs with little time during the week to unwind.I love my friends’ kids, but I’m both exhausted from maintaining those friendships and deeply unsatisfied with their quality.On the weekends, in a search for some connection and rejuvenation, I find myself driving hours or taking expensive trips to other cities to visit friends, essentially expending a ton of effort for an hour or two with a friend, during which we have a few minutes of an adult conversation.These friends don’t have any capacity to travel to me because they have young kids, and while I don’t expect that, I’m feeling sad and neglected.I’ve stopped making the effort as much as I used to — I need time to recharge, and these visits are really depleting.We have tried very hard to make new friends nearby, as well. This is going OK, although even these friends are also having babies and cannot enga...