Biden details plan for COVID-19 vaccine rollout
President-elect Joe Biden delivers remarks on his administration’s plan to vaccinate Americans against COVID-19.
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A legendary figure in the world of hockey who carried a love of his hometown wherever he went has died. Art Berglund, a well-known hockey legend both at home and in the U.S., where he is remembered for spending years helping to build the sport, died Saturday, December 19 in Colorado Springs, Colo. He was 80 years old. The news of Berglund's passing was shared by the Fort Frances Sports Hall of Fame, where Berglund served both as an inspiration and a two-time honoree, having been inducted as part of the Hall's inaugural class in 2015 for his individual contributions, and then again in 2017 as a member of the team that won the 1959 Manitoba Schoolboy Curling Champions, alongside teammates Peter McLeod, Bob Grattan and Leonard McQuarrie. Due to an injury at the time of his induction, Berglund was unable to attend his second ceremony in person, though he was patched into the festivities via FaceTime. In its email sharing Berglund's passing, the Sports Hall of Fame committee celebrated Berglund for his influence and his longtime love for his hometown. “Art was the inspiration for our local hall of fame,” the release read. “After being inducted to several prestigious halls of fame, Art made the following statement: 'Don’t get me wrong, this is all very nice, but do you know where I’d really like my picture hung? Fort Frances!'” In addition to finally having his picture hung in the town's own Sports Hall of Fame, Berglund was also honoured with inductions into the Northwestern Ontario Sports Hall of Fame in 2004, the Colorado College Athletic Hall of Fame in 2006, the Colorado Springs Hall of Fame in 2008, the International Ice Hockey Federation (IIHF) Hall of Fame in 2008 and the Colorado Sports Hall of Fame in 2011. Additionally, Berglund was also awarded the National Hockey League's (NHL) Lester Patrick Award in 1992 in recognition of his “outstanding service to hockey in the United States” according to a statement released by the league in recognition of his death. NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman noted in a release on NHL.com that without Bergland, the game of hockey in the United States would likely been left sorely lacking in talent and scope. “We are saddened to learn of the passing of Art Berglund, one of the true builders of the game in the U.S. for more than 40 years,” Bettman said. “So many NHL players have had the opportunity to star on the world hockey stage playing for their country because of the passion, dedication and commitment that Art brought to USA Hockey. We owe him a large debt of gratitude for his countless contributions to the growth and development of the game at all levels. The game has lost a dear friend.” While Berglund got his start in Fort Frances, his professional playing career brought him to Switzerland and Austria before he returned to the States to take a job at the Broadmoor World Arena in Colorado Springs, where he served as a manager for 13 years. During that time Berglund also managed the 1973, 1974 and 1975 national teams, and took on his first Olympic team assignment in 1976, when he served as the general manager. He was also appointed to the Olympic team again in 1988 and was serving as the director of player personnel for the men's Olympic team when they won the silver medal at the 2002 Olympics in Salt Lake City, Utah. Berglund also served as the general manager for the United States National Junior Team eight times, including the first official team in 1977. (Though the U.S. sent teams to World Junior tournaments in 1974 and 1975, those tournaments and the one held in 1976 are not considered official by the IIHF.) Apart from Olympic hockey, in the 1970's and '80's Berglund also served as a scout for the St. Louis Blues and the director of player recruitment for the Colorado Rockies, the former NHL team that eventually became the New Jersey Devils in 1982. As part of the USA Hockey organization, Berglund was named the director of national teams and international activities in 1984, a role he served in for 11 years before becoming the senior director of international administration in 1996. Berglund retired from his full-time work for the organization in 2005, but continued to serve as a consultant to the international department of USA Hockey for several more years. USA Hockey executive director Pat Kelleher expressed his condolences over Berglund's passing and underlined his significance to the greater world of the sport of hockey. “Art's passing is mourned not only by USA Hockey, but the entire hockey world,” Kelleher said. “His influence on both American hockey and the international game was profound and his charisma and passion will never be forgotten. Our heartfelt condolences go out to his entire family, but especially his step-daughters Jossie and Cathy and his niece Linda.” Ken Kellar, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, Fort Frances Times
The Labour party’s motion for the Government to extend the £20 Universal Credit uplift for a year was approved after Tory MPs followed Boris Johnson’s order to abstain. The non-binding motion pressing the Government to maintain the increase was approved by 278 votes to zero, majority 278. The standard Universal Credit allowance, which is claimed by more than 5.5 million households, was increased by £20 a week in April 2020 as part of Chancellor Rishi Sunak's early Covid economic response.
The new president-elect wants to save the soul of this nation, and many are now urging him to consider a pardon for his predecessor. But the country is safer with Trump tied up in court
Martin Luther King, Jr. Day was like no other from year's past in D.C. amid the threat of inauguration violence and the COVID-19 pandemic.
Vanderbilt's women's basketball program has decided to stop playing with the Commodores struggling with a depleted roster. The Commodores currently are 4-4, 0-3 inside the Southeastern Conference. The start of their season featured three cancellations, and they've played two games since having a game canceled and two others inside the SEC postponed.
Pakistan’s prime minister reacted angrily Monday to media reports of a text exchange between an Indian TV anchor and a former media industry executive that suggests a 2019 Indian airstrike inside Pakistan was designed to boost Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s chances for re-election. Imran Khan took to Twitter to respond to Indian media reports of an exchange on the WhatsApp messaging service between popular Indian TV anchor Arnab Goswami and Partho Dasgupta, the former head of a TV rating company.
The San Francisco 49ers promoted linebackers coach DeMeco Ryans to defensive coordinator and run game coordinator Mike McDaniel to offensive coordinator on Monday to fill openings on the staff after Robert Saleh left to take over as head coach for the New York Jets. Saleh was hired by the Jets after a four-year run as defensive coordinator in San Francisco and brought passing game coordinator Mike LaFleur with him as offensive coordinator.
KAMPALA, Uganda — The opposition party of Ugandan presidential challenger Bobi Wine said on Monday that police have prevented top officials from going to their headquarters in the capital, Kampala, as they prepare to launch a legal challenge to free Wine from house arrest. Police swooped in at dawn at the offices of Wine’s National Unity Platform, diverted traffic, and stopped people from entering, party spokesman Joel Ssenyonyi told The Associated Press. Wine, whose real name is Kyagulanyi Ssentamu, was the main challenger in presidential elections last week that electoral authorities say long-time leader Yoweri Museveni won with 58% of the vote. Wine, who took 34% of the vote, has rejected the official outcome as fraudulent and insists he will use all legal means to protest the allegedly “cooked-up” results. Wine can petition the East African nation's Supreme Court, but justices have been reluctant to rule against Museveni in previous election suits. Wine’s party has said it has video evidence of the military stuffing ballot boxes, casting ballots for people and chasing voters away from polling stations. Opposition lawmaker Medard Sseggona, an attorney for Wine, said he feared police would seize any vital information related to the polls that was kept at the party’s headquarters. Questions continue to swirl over the validity of the official election results, especially after the electoral commission on Monday acknowledged an account in the local press that results from over 1,000 polling stations had not been counted. The commission, trying to meet a constitutional deadline, concluded that the vote difference between Museveni and his closest challenger Wine "would not be overturned by votes from the remaining 1,223 polling stations,” it said on Twitter. The Daily Monitor newspaper reported that the vote-rich central district of Wakiso, widely seen as Wine's stronghold, was the most affected. Museveni has dismissed the claims of vote-rigging. “I think this may turn out to be the most cheating-free election since 1962,” when Uganda won independence from Britain, said Museveni in a national address on Saturday. But the election was marred by violence ahead of polling day as well as an internet shutdown that remained in force until Monday morning, when access was restored for most Ugandans. Social media sites remain restricted. Wine has been effectively under house arrest since he cast his vote and now is allegedly unable even to receive visitors. Police thwarted opposition officials who were trying to meet with Wine at his home outside Kampala in order to discuss the way forward, Ssenyonyi said. Lawmaker Francis Zaake has been hospitalized since Saturday after allegedly being assaulted by police who denied him access to Wine's house, and Wine tweeted late on Monday that the U.S. ambassador wanted to see him "but was turned away from my gate by the soldiers who have held me and my wife captive for the past five days.” The opposition party will seek a court order to end Wine's apparent house arrest, Ssenyonyi said. “His home is not a detention facility,” he said. Wine told reporters late Sunday that some of his followers “have been abducted and are missing. The military is conducting a massive campaign to arrest our agents. Many are on the run.” Ugandan police are holding at least 223 suspects over election-related offences, police said in a statement Monday. Police spokesman Fred Enanga said security forces are “maintaining a security presence” around Wine's home as a pre-emptive measure against possible rioting in the aftermath of the disputed polls. Wine is allowed to leave his home under “escort” in order to prevent his followers from “instigating riots and violent demonstrations," he said. Police similarly surrounded the home of opposition candidate Kizza Besigye after presidential elections in 2016, preventing him from going out after the official results of his loss to Museveni had been declared. Wine has said his campaign against Museveni is nonviolent and that his followers are unarmed. In a generational clash watched across the African continent that has a booming young population and a host of aging leaders, the 38-year-old singer-turned-lawmaker posed arguably the greatest challenge to Museveni, 76, since he came to power in 1986. Calling himself the “ghetto president,” Wine had strong support in Uganda’s cities, where frustration with unemployment and corruption is high. Museveni's support is concentrated in rural areas, where many still praise him for bringing stability. A long-time U.S. security ally once praised as part of a new generation of African leaders, Museveni at the start of his presidency criticized African leaders who refused to step aside but has since overseen the removal of constitutional limits on the presidency. Uganda’s elections are often marked by allegations of fraud and abuses by security forces. The U.S. State Department urged “independent, credible, impartial, and thorough investigations” into reports of irregularities. “We reiterate our intention to pursue action against those responsible for the undermining of democracy and human rights in Uganda,” it said. Rodney Muhumuza, The Associated Press
The family of Burton Winters is happy the inquiry into ground search and rescue in Newfoundland and Labrador is finally moving ahead, the lawyer representing them said. People have been calling for the inquiry since 2012 when 14-year-old Burton Winters died after going out snowmobiling near Makkovik. His snowmobile got stuck, and he walked 19 km before succumbing to the climate. Delays in the search for Winters prompted many questions about search and rescue in the province. Tom Williams represents the Winters family and said he’s been speaking to them about the Jan. 14 announcement that the inquiry has been formally established. “They’re pleased, they’re very pleased,” he told SaltWire. “This thing has been on and off and referenced over the last eight years. The need for an inquiry, whether they’re going to call an inquiry. The government had indicated they would, but it had never been a commitment. There was always one reason or another it was always being put off.” When retired judge James Igloliorte was appointed to lead the inquiry last June, Williams said, the family was excited it was happening. Now, with it officially moving forward, they’re looking forward to the weekends and months ahead. The inquiry, which will review all ground search and rescue in the province, will begin in Makkovik and members of the community will be given a chance to speak. Barry Andersen, AngajukKâk (mayor) of Makkovik, was part of the search for Winters and is still involved in search and rescue in the community. He said he didn’t want to go into much detail about the inquiry, since he may be called to testify, but said he, like many in the coastal Labrador community, hope some positive change can come from it. “I think the community, some of the people in the community, are happy to see it go ahead,” he said. “Generally, the community is looking forward to having this put behind them. It’s tragic, whatever way you look at it. Young Burton was lost and found deceased, hopefully, this can put some closure to it.” Something that was highlighted after the Winters tragedy was concern over jurisdictional issues in search and rescue. Both federal and provincial authorities are responsible for search and rescue, with missing people at sea handled federally and missing people on land dealt with provincially. In the Winters case, it involved both land and sea, and Williams said there need to be discussions, hopefully in this inquiry, about how that’s handled. “The whole thing between ground, marine, and air, while they are separate jurisdictions, there is interplay between them and I don’t think you can talk about one separate from the other.” Justice and Public Safety Minister Steve Crocker was asked by SaltWire if the federal government had committed to being involved in the inquiry. Crocker said they’d been in discussion with the feds as recently as a few days ago about their participation and there has been an agreement to cooperate in some ways. “We still haven’t got definite answers from them, but we do know they have offered to cooperate when it comes to questions around resources they would have,” Crocker said. Williams said he’s hopeful the federal government and the Department of National Defense will co-operate in the inquiry, which is hoped to be more policy-based and less adversarial than previous commissions of inquiry in the province. “It’s isn’t going to be there pointing fingers and assigning blame. This is about how we can improve the system so this doesn’t happen again,” he said. “I would hope they would look favourably on this and want to participate.” Dates for when the inquiry will begin have not yet been made public. Evan Careen, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, The Telegram
Groups nationwide are taking to grassroots efforts to ensure vaccine access for people of color, as early roll out shows disparities and inequities.
Messi's red mist shows a player lauded as deity is really only human. The first red card in his Barcelona career can be seen as the culmination of his club’s decline, and the kicking and barging he has endured for years
Retail has had a rough few years. Most retail subsectors have experienced slow, steady declines in demand even before the coronavirus pandemic shattered the retail market, forcing several retailers into bankruptcy or closure. Grocery stores serve an essential need in our economy: food.
Scotiabank (TSX:BNS)(NYSE:BNS) looks to be one of the better bargains in the Canadian banking scene after a brutal pandemic-plagued year. The post Scotiabank (TSX:BNS): A Dividend King That’s Way Too Cheap appeared first on The Motley Fool Canada.
Morning mail: overhaul of banking stalls, Trump's final pardons, RuPaul 'down under'Thursday: more than half the recommendations from the banking royal commission abandoned or delayed. Plus: will edible hemp get you high?
Here's how you can shop the look for yourself.
SAN FRANCISCO, CA / ACCESSWIRE / January 18, 2021 / Hagens Berman updates investors in the following publicly-traded companies and urges investors who have suffered significant losses to contact the firm. Further details about the cases, including important upcoming deadlines, can be found at the links provided.
Jesse Willms, an esteemed entrepreneur, was featured recently in BusinessBlogs, where he breaks down in detail how to successfully transform your business from a traditional to an online model.LAS VEGAS, NV / ACCESSWIRE / January 18, 2021 / Relevant now more than ever, when non-essential businesses must shut their doors amid the pandemic, entrepreneur Jesse Willms provides a step-by-step guide to help firms adopt an e-commerce framework.
SYCAMORE, IL / ACCESSWIRE / January 18, 2021 / Braden Counseling Center, a clinical program for those suffering from substance abuse, chemical dependency, and other ailments affecting mental health, is now open in Oregon Illinois. The new office provides the same services as its other locations in Bartlett, Geneva, Elgin, Rochelle, and Sycamore, except for DUI services which are pending licensed approval from the state of Illinois.