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Letters: Too much grace | A war indeed

Published Wed, 25 Dec 2024 05:26:55 GMT

Submit your letter to the editor via this form. Read more Letters to the Editor.10 mph grace istoo much for speedersRe: “Map: Speed cameras are likely to be placed on these San Jose streets” (Nov. 20).With the decision to install speed cameras, San Jose city leaders are finally deciding that combatting speeding should be a priority. These cameras are a force multiplier in the battle against distracted speeders and speed demons alike and will reduce accidents.However, allowing a cushion of 11 mph over the limit before a citation is issued will change the de facto speed limit on every roadway to 10 mph above the posted limit. This is too generous for serious speed enforcement. Sixty in a 50? Thirty-five in a 25? The cushion should be 10% of any posted limit, or at most 5 mph over the limit. Remember, this is not a point on a driving record, just a civil fine. And allowing a warning before issuing a fine? Ridiculous.Drivers are responsible for their actions, especially spee...

Penguin parents sleep for a few seconds at a time

Published Wed, 25 Dec 2024 05:26:55 GMT

By Christina Larson | Associated PressWASHINGTON — It’s a challenge for all new parents: Getting enough sleep while keeping a close eye on their newborns. For some penguins, it means thousands of mini-catnaps a day, researchers discovered.Chinstrap penguins in Antarctica need to guard their eggs and chicks around-the-clock in crowded, noisy colonies. So they nod off thousands of times each day — but only for about four seconds at a time — to stay vigilant, the researchers reported Thursday in the journal Science.These short “microsleeps,” totaling around 11 hours per day, appear to be enough to keep the parents going for weeks.“These penguins look like drowsy drivers, blinking their eyes open and shut, and they do it 24/7 for several weeks at a time,” said Niels Rattenborg, a sleep researcher at the Max Planck Institute for Biological Intelligence in Germany and co-author of the new study.“What’s surprising is that they’re able to func...

NYC real estate firm gains full control of big chunk of San Jose land

Published Wed, 25 Dec 2024 05:26:55 GMT

SAN JOSE — An East Coast real estate firm has taken full ownership of a huge chunk of land in south San Jose, but it’s unclear if the property will ever be developed.DLJ Real Estate Partners, acting through an affiliate, has bought about 115 acres in south San Jose near the corner of Yerba Buena Road and old Yerba Buena Road.Vacant land totaling about 115 acres near the corner of Yerba Buena Road and Old Yerba Buena Road in south San Jose, shown within the outline. Evergreen Valley College is visible on the left side of the image. Boundaries are approximate. (Google Maps)New York City-based DLJ Real Estate paid $5 million for the vacant land, documents filed on Nov. 29 with the Santa Clara County Recorder’s Office show.Before the property purchase, San Mateo-based Legacy Partners, Chicago-based Walton Street Capital and DLJ Real Estate all had ownership stakes in the property.With the transaction complete, DLJ’s affiliate is the sole owner of the propert...

Kissinger’s legacy draws praise, scorn from across the globe

Published Wed, 25 Dec 2024 05:26:55 GMT

By Foster Klug and Geir Moulson | Associated PressTOKYO — The death of former U.S. Secretary of State Henry Kissinger drew both admiration and scorn Thursday from political leaders around the world, highlighting the complicated legacy of Kissinger’s views about what it meant to serve America’s interests during the Cold War — and how the country should exert its influence.Kissinger, who died Wednesday at 100, was one of America’s most powerful diplomats. During his years serving under Presidents Richard Nixon and Gerald Ford, he shaped the country’s foreign policy in ways that led to breakthroughs, including normalizing U.S.-China relations and advancing detente with the Soviet Union.But during Kissinger’s tenure the U.S. also overlooked the rise of brutal regimes in other countries, and critics argue his approach ran counter to democratic ideals and left lasting damage throughout the world.U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken, who said he was among th...

Jimmy and Rosalynn Carter never tried to hide the effects of growing old

Published Wed, 25 Dec 2024 05:26:55 GMT

There’s no downplaying the fact that Jimmy Carter didn’t look like the man that Americans had long come to know when he attended two memorial services this week for his wife, Rosalynn Carter, who died Nov. 19 at age 96.Gone was the energetic, nonagenarian former president, the Nobel Peace Prize-winning humanitarian and recent builder of homes for Habitat for Humanity. In that man’s place was a gaunt, frail, 99-year-old man who arrived at both services in a wheelchair.  At Tuesday’s service in Atlanta, his face was pale, his mouth hung open and he did not make eye contact with many mourners, the New York Times reported.Former President Jimmy Carter departs after a tribute service for his wife, former first lady Rosalynn Carter, at Glenn Memorial Church, Tuesday, Nov. 28, 2023, in Atlanta. (AP Photo/Andrew Harnik) “He’s coming to the end, and he’s very, very physically diminished,” his grandson, Jason Carter, told the New York Times in an interview before ...

When Gary Payton II and Chris Paul could return for Warriors

Published Wed, 25 Dec 2024 05:26:55 GMT

SAN FRANCISCO — Gary Payton II and Chris Paul will miss the next few games, at least, nursing injuries suffered in Tuesday’s loss to the Sacramento Kings, the team announced.Payton, 30, has a strained right calf and will be re-evaluated in one week, sidelining him at least through the Warriors’ next three games against the Los Angeles Clippers — one at home, one on the road — and Portland Trail Blazers.Payton came up limping after a screen in the third quarter’s waning seconds against the Kings. He went straight to the locker room and did not return. Tuesday was Payton’s second game back from a left foot sprain that had sidelined him for three games.Paul, 38, will be re-evaluated on Monday with a lower left leg nerve contusion. He exited Tuesday’s game in the first quarter and it did appear that a particular play led to the injury.Andrew Wiggins will also be out for Thursday’s game against the Los Angeles Clippers nursing a sore ...

49ers QB Brock Purdy reveals his In-N-Out order

Published Wed, 25 Dec 2024 05:26:55 GMT

(KRON) -- In-N-Out is considered the premiere burger chain on the West Coast. There are dozens of locations across the Bay Area where many San Francisco 49ers reside. Ever wonder what starting quarterback Brock Purdy orders at the popular California-based burger chain?Purdy orders a Triple-Triple (also known as 3x3) with fries and a chocolate milkshake, the signal-caller said during a Q&A segment posted on the 49ers' YouTube channel. However, Purdy gets his burgers plain with just meat and cheese."I know it sounds boring," Purdy said of his burger order. How many of these In-N-Out secret menu items do you know? Before being drafted by the 49ers, Purdy played four years of college football at Iowa State in a state that does not have an In-N-Out. However, Purdy grew up in Arizona where there are a number of locations across the state. Purdy is currently on his four-year, $3.7 million rookie deal, making an average of about $870,000 per year. Despite being a star quarterback, Pu...

Members of Israel’s Ruling Likud Party Once Planned to Assassinate Henry Kissinger

Published Wed, 25 Dec 2024 05:26:55 GMT

Former Secretary of State Henry Kissinger died on Wednesday at the age of 100 — though if the predecessors of Israel’s ruling Likud party had their way, he may not have made it even halfway to the century mark.Despite his reputation as a geopolitical kingmaker, Kissinger was never able to fully impose total U.S. authority upon Israel, but he did seek to leverage U.S. influence — sometimes against what the right-wing Likud party viewed as its interests.In the 1970s, Kissinger was so hated by the Likud party, which now controls Israel’s far-right coalition government, that some of its members tried to have him assassinated, according to a news report from the time.“A die-hard clique of Israeli right-wingers has put out a $150,000 ‘contract’ for the assassination of Secretary of State Kissinger,” the New York Daily News reported in 1977, citing senior State Department officials. When reports of a possible hit on Kissinger first came out, it was believed to be the work of Palestinian mi...

Patriots sign K Matthew Wright to the practice squad as insurance after Ryland’s misses

Published Wed, 25 Dec 2024 05:26:55 GMT

FOXBOROUGH, Mass. (AP) — The New England Patriots have signed kicker Matthew Wright to the practice squad on Thursday and released receiver Mathew Sexton from the practice squad.Wright, 27, is 40 for 46 in 23 games over three seasons with the Steelers, Jaguars and Chiefs. He provides the Patriots with insurance after rookie Chad Ryland, a fourth-round draft pick, missed 35-yard field goals in back-to-back games, both Patriots losses in one-score games.Sexton, 26, had been signed to the practice squad on Wednesday.___AP NFL: https://apnews.com/hub/nflSource

Liverpool advances in Europa League. Aubameyang hat trick for Marseille includes overhead kick

Published Wed, 25 Dec 2024 05:26:55 GMT

Liverpool advanced to the round of 16 of the Europa League with a game to spare after Luis Díaz and Cody Gakpo scored early to set the tone in a 4-0 victory over Austria’s LASK on Thursday.Díaz headed in a cross from Joe Gomez for the opener in the 12th before Gakpo tapped in Mohamed Salah’s pass three minutes later at Anfield. Salah made it 3-0 early in the second half in what was his 199th goal for the Reds. Gakpo added his second in stoppage time.Liverpool is four points clear atop Group E with 12 points. Toulouse in second on eight after a 0-0 draw with Union Saint-Gilloise.Leverkusen remained the only team with a perfect record after five games. Victor Boniface and substitute Patrik Schick contributed a goal apiece for a 2-0 victory at Hacken in Group H and a place in the round of 16.Tomáš Souček struck late again to help West Ham beat TSC Bačka Topola 1-0 and advance to the knockout stage.The midfielder met Maxwel Cornet’s cross at the far post to volley home the winner in the...