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Miss Manners: Would the wedding gift my husband suggested be an insult?

Published Sat, 28 Dec 2024 00:30:27 GMT

DEAR MISS MANNERS: We received a last-minute virtual invitation to a wedding from a family from out of state with whom we used to be close.They had previously advertised the wedding on social media, including the date, and we wondered if we would be invited. We weren’t, which was totally fine because of our limited budget.Then, two weeks before the wedding date, we received an email inviting us to watch it virtually. We already had plans that night, but because we care for this family, we tried to bend things so we could watch it. Unfortunately, the video feed for the reception was all goofed up. We couldn’t really see it, and then we just got a replay reel at the end.What would you say the suggested gift amount is in that situation?Related ArticlesAdvice | Miss Manners: I tried to fix the shoddy bouquet and ended up embarrassing my friend. Was I in the wrong? Advice | Miss Manners: I want to talk about my problems, not listen to theirs Ad...

Dear Abby: My mom dressed me funny, and it screwed me up for years

Published Sat, 28 Dec 2024 00:30:27 GMT

DEAR ABBY: Throughout my childhood, my mother was controlling in many ways. One of them was my clothes.She dressed me in ridiculous outfits that I found humiliating. If I expressed an opinion about anything, I was treated as being “bad.” It affected my mental health, which resulted in me hating the way I look.I went through multiple eating disorders and addiction, and I had plastic surgery 15 years ago. After many years of therapy, I am now doing better emotionally.I also endured many years of heart-shattering infertility, but I am finally a mother, working hard to give my child a better life than I had.Related ArticlesAdvice | Dear Abby: This woman moved into my house, and now I’m not allowed to go downstairs Advice | Dear Abby: Our new neighbor is trouble, and my girlfriend thinks he’s great Advice | Dear Abby: The man I was cheating with won’t apologize for cheating on me Advice | Dear Abby: ...

Estos son algunos de los “500 estadounidenses” a los que Rusia prohíbe la entrada

Published Sat, 28 Dec 2024 00:30:27 GMT

(CNN) — El expresidente de Estados Unidos Barack Obama, el presentador de televisión Stephen Colbert y Erin Burnett, de CNN, son algunos de los “500 estadounidenses” a los que Rusia ha prohibido entrar al país.Rusia anunció el viernes que prohibiría la entrada en el país a “500 estadounidenses”, muchos de ellas figuras destacadas del poder ejecutivo estadounidense, “en respuesta a las sanciones regulares antirrusas impuestas por la administración de Joe Biden”, según un comunicado del Ministerio de Asuntos Exteriores ruso.La lista incluye a Obama, al exembajador estadounidense Jon Huntsman, a varios senadores estadounidenses y a quien se prevé que sea el próximo presidente del Estado Mayor Conjunto, Charles Q. Brown Jr.También incluye a los presentadores estadounidenses de late night TV Jimmy Kimmel, Colbert y Seth Meyers.El comunicado dice: “La ‘lista-500’ adjunta también incluye a aquellos en el gobierno y en las agencias...

Focus on coalition horse-trading as Greek election looks unlikely to deliver a strong winner

Published Sat, 28 Dec 2024 00:30:27 GMT

ATHENS, Greece (AP) — Sunday’s Greek parliamentary election looks likely to be a dress rehearsal for a new round of voting in the busy summer tourist season — barring a surprise coalition deal by dissonant opposition parties.Opinion polls indicate that Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis’ center-right New Democracy could rake in about 35%, some 6 percentage points ahead of leftwing former prime minister Alexis Tsipras’ Syriza party.But ND still wouldn’t have enough to govern alone, and sharp divisions between the two main contenders and the four smaller parties forecast to enter parliament all but preclude a functioning coalition under either ND or Syriza.A second election on July 2 seems likely. It would be held under a new electoral law giving the winner a boost of up to 50 of Parliament’s 300 seats, which the current system doesn’t. With the economy rebounding after the 2009-2018 financial crisis, military tensions with neighboring Turkey — whic...

Giants host the Marlins on 4-game home win streak

Published Sat, 28 Dec 2024 00:30:27 GMT

Miami Marlins (23-22, second in the NL East) vs. San Francisco Giants (21-23, third in the NL West)San Francisco; Saturday, 4:05 p.m. EDTPITCHING PROBABLES: Marlins: Braxton Garrett (1-2, 5.40 ERA, 1.53 WHIP, 36 strikeouts); Giants: Logan Webb (3-5, 3.66 ERA, 1.14 WHIP, 58 strikeouts)FANDUEL SPORTSBOOK MLB LINE: Giants -167, Marlins +142; over/under is 7 1/2 runsBOTTOM LINE: The San Francisco Giants host the Miami Marlins trying to continue a four-game home winning streak.San Francisco has a 21-23 record overall and a 14-10 record at home. The Giants have the 10th-ranked team on-base percentage in the NL at .319.Miami has a 9-11 record on the road and a 23-22 record overall. Marlins hitters are batting a collective .249, which ranks eighth in the NL.Saturday’s game is the fifth meeting between these teams this season. The season series is tied 2-2.TOP PERFORMERS: Michael Conforto leads San Francisco with eight home runs while slugging .410. Casey Schmitt is 16-for-40 with two ...

Pittsburgh Pirates and Arizona Diamondbacks meet in game 2 of series

Published Sat, 28 Dec 2024 00:30:27 GMT

Arizona Diamondbacks (25-20, second in the NL West) vs. Pittsburgh Pirates (24-20, second in the NL Central)Pittsburgh; Saturday, 4:05 p.m. EDTPITCHING PROBABLES: Diamondbacks: Brandon Pfaadt (0-1, 8.59 ERA, 1.57 WHIP, 11 strikeouts); Pirates: Mitch Keller (5-1, 2.38 ERA, 1.04 WHIP, 69 strikeouts)FANDUEL SPORTSBOOK MLB LINE: Pirates -137, Diamondbacks +116; over/under is 8 1/2 runsBOTTOM LINE: The Pittsburgh Pirates lead 1-0 in a three-game series with the Arizona Diamondbacks.Pittsburgh has a 24-20 record overall and an 11-9 record in home games. The Pirates have a 15-7 record in games when they did not allow a home run.Arizona has an 11-10 record on the road and a 25-20 record overall. Diamondbacks hitters have a collective .332 on-base percentage, the third-ranked percentage in the NL.The matchup Saturday is the second meeting between these teams this season.TOP PERFORMERS: Jack Suwinski leads the Pirates with seven home runs while slugging .482. Andrew McCutchen is 11-for-34 wit...

St. Louis Cardinals face the Los Angeles Dodgers Saturday

Published Sat, 28 Dec 2024 00:30:27 GMT

Los Angeles Dodgers (29-17, first in the NL West) vs. St. Louis Cardinals (19-27, fifth in the NL Central)St. Louis; Saturday, 7:15 p.m. EDTPITCHING PROBABLES: Dodgers: Noah Syndergaard (1-3, 5.94 ERA, 1.38 WHIP, 26 strikeouts); Cardinals: Miles Mikolas (2-1, 4.91 ERA, 1.57 WHIP, 41 strikeouts)FANDUEL SPORTSBOOK MLB LINE: Cardinals -110, Dodgers -110; over/under is 9 1/2 runsBOTTOM LINE: The St. Louis Cardinals host the Los Angeles Dodgers on Saturday.St. Louis has gone 9-15 in home games and 19-27 overall. The Cardinals are 16-6 in games when they have more hits than their opponents.Los Angeles has a 29-17 record overall and a 12-10 record on the road. Dodgers hitters have a collective .450 slugging percentage to rank second in the NL.Saturday’s game is the sixth time these teams square off this season. The Dodgers are up 4-1 in the season series.TOP PERFORMERS: Paul Goldschmidt has a .301 batting average to lead the Cardinals, and has 16 doubles and seven home runs. Nolan Ar...

Phillies aim to break losing streak in game against the Cubs

Published Sat, 28 Dec 2024 00:30:27 GMT

Chicago Cubs (20-24, third in the NL Central) vs. Philadelphia Phillies (20-24, fourth in the NL East)Philadelphia; Saturday, 4:05 p.m. EDTPITCHING PROBABLES: Cubs: Jameson Taillon (0-2, 6.29 ERA, 1.52 WHIP, 26 strikeouts); Phillies: Aaron Nola (3-3, 4.53 ERA, 1.11 WHIP, 43 strikeouts)FANDUEL SPORTSBOOK MLB LINE: Phillies -169, Cubs +144; over/under is 9 runsBOTTOM LINE: The Philadelphia Phillies play the Chicago Cubs after losing five games in a row.Philadelphia has an 11-8 record in home games and a 20-24 record overall. The Phillies have hit 45 total home runs to rank 10th in the NL.Chicago is 9-13 in road games and 20-24 overall. The Cubs have the fourth-ranked team ERA in the NL at 3.98.The matchup Saturday is the second time these teams square off this season.TOP PERFORMERS: Nicholas Castellanos has 14 doubles, five home runs and 26 RBI while hitting .300 for the Phillies. J.T. Realmuto is 13-for-34 with six doubles over the last 10 games.Nico Hoerner has eight doubles, a trip...

Cumbre del G7: Zelenskyy llega a Hiroshima mientras líderes sancionan a Rusia

Published Sat, 28 Dec 2024 00:30:27 GMT

HIROSHIMA, Japón — El presidente de Ucrania, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, aterrizó el sábado en Hiroshima para mantener conversaciones diplomáticas con los líderes de las democracias más poderosas del mundo que han endurecido las sanciones para castigar a Moscú y cambiar el curso de su invasión de 15 meses a Ucrania.Japón dice que la decisión de Zelenskyy de visitar Hiroshima se deriva de su “fuerte deseo” de participar en conversaciones que influirán en la defensa de su nación contra Rusia.Un funcionario de la UE, que habló bajo condición de anonimato para informar a los periodistas sobre las deliberaciones, dijo que Zelenskyy participará en dos sesiones separadas el domingo. La primera sesión será solo con miembros del G7 y se centrará en la guerra en Ucrania. La segunda sesión incluirá al G7, así como a las demás naciones invitadas a participar en la cumbre, y se centrará en “la paz y la estabilidad”.El asesor de seguridad nacional de Estados Unidos, Jake Sullivan...

French minister warns of resumption of ‘Islamist terrorist’ threat in Europe

Published Sat, 28 Dec 2024 00:30:27 GMT

There’s a risk of a “resumption” of the “Islamist terrorist” threat in Europe, France’s Interior Minister Gérald Darmanin said during a visit to the U.S. Stressing the importance of anti-terrorism collaboration between intelligence services from both sides of the Atlantic, Darmanin said in an interview with Agence France-Presse that “for Europeans and for France the primary risk is Sunni Islamist terrorism.” While pointing to concerns facing the U.S., including shootings and white supremacism, Darmanin said Americans mustn’t forget “what appears to us to be the primary threat in Europe,” which the minister said was Sunni terrorism. Darmanin also highlighted the risk of people carrying out a “Bataclan-type attack,” referring to the Paris attacks in 2015 that saw 130 people killed, including 90 at the Bataclan theater. France has seen several terrorist incidents in recent years, including the stabbing of a police officer in 2021, which led President Emmanuel...