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Ticker: Some OPEC+ members will cut the oil that they send to the world to try to boost prices; Drivers would pay $15 to enter busiest part of NYC under plan to raise funds for mass transit

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:28:10 GMT

The OPEC oil cartel led by Saudi Arabia and allied producers including Russia made another big swipe at propping up lagging crude prices Thursday, expanding some output cuts into next year and bringing up-and-coming oil supplier Brazil into the fold.Lower oil prices have been a good thing for U.S. drivers, who have been able to fill their gas tanks for less money in recent months. But it’s bad news for OPEC+ countries whose oil income bolsters their economies and who have faced setbacks in pushing prices higher despite initial fears that the Israel-Hamas war could affect oil flows.The OPEC+ oil ministers came out of an online meeting with more than 2 million barrels per day in voluntary cuts through the first three months of next year and declared that Brazil would join the bloc in January, bringing one of the world’s fastest-growing oil producers into an alliance that is trying to rein in global supply.Drivers would pay $15 to enter busiest part of NYCMost drivers would pay $15 to ...

Fairhaven rides a record-setting performance by Justin Marques to Div. 6 title

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:28:10 GMT

FOXBORO — There was no secret to how Fairhaven planned on winning the Division 6 Super Bowl against Salem on Thursday: Put the game in the hands of Justin Marques and a powerful offensive line.That plan worked almost to perfection. Marques set a Super Bowl record with 46 carries en route to 228 yards and four touchdowns and a 26-22 victory over the Witches.“Our offensive line was so powerful and was blowing people off the ball,” Fairhaven coach Derek Almeida said.The dominance of Fairhaven’s line was told in the final stats as 71 runs accounted for 371 of the Blue Devils’ 377 total yards.“That offensive line is the reason we are state champions,” Marques said. “They believe in each other and we’re so good.”The Fairhaven defense also stepped to the fore, holding Salem 14 points below its season average and forcing three turnovers, two which they turned into touchdowns.“What killed us was the turnovers, something that we haven’t done all season,” Salem coach Matt Bouchard said. ...

Investors buying up homes in Massachusetts at red-hot pace: report

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:28:10 GMT

An investor purchased one in every five homes sold between 2004 and 2018 across Greater Boston, a recent finding that housing advocates say is not surprising and one that confirms what they’ve seen anecdotally in their communities over the past decade.The Metropolitan Area Planning Council released a report this week, dubbed “Homes for Profit: Speculation and Investment in Greater Boston,” showing that investors accounted for 21% of total home sales in the region during the period.Roughly 87% of the transactions involved single-family homes and condominiums, with investor activity increasing from 16% of purchases in 2004 to 23% in 2018, the report found.The number of housing units being flipped over in less than two years came as a surprise to MAPC Executive Director Marc Draisen. Researchers found that large and institutional investors flipped nearly a quarter of single-family homes and a fifth of two-family homes that they purchased, compared to rates of just 8 and 9%, respectivel...

Push for professional soccer stadium in Everett dropped from Beacon Hill budget bill

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:28:10 GMT

A push to develop a soccer stadium in Everett stalled out on Beacon Hill Thursday after state lawmakers chopped a proposal from a multi-billion budget bill, putting ice on an idea that had drawn support from Robert Kraft.House lawmakers pushed for the proposal last year and the Senate included language connected to a professional soccer stadium in the city in a nearly $3.1 billion supplemental budget this session that has since become the subject of a procedural battle on Beacon Hill.But as Democratic negotiators announced a deal on the budget bill, it became clear that the soccer stadium language was dropped. House budget writer Rep. Aaron Michlewitz said lawmakers had a “lot of unanswered questions” about what environmental impacts a potential stadium could have on the city.“There was a lot of confusion coming from the environmental groups. Some said they supported it, some said they were against it. I think we still have a lot of things to iron out and flush out,” Michlewitz said...

Entertainment consultant killed by woman who stalked his film director friend, prosecutors say

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:28:10 GMT

By STEFANIE DAZIO and CHRISTOPHER WEBER (Associated Press)LOS ANGELES (AP) — A high-profile entertainment marketing consultant was targeted by a woman who had been stalking and threatening a film director friend of his before she fatally shot him after her forcing her way inside his Los Angeles home, according to prosecutors and court records obtained Thursday.This week’s slaying of Michael Latt sent shockwaves through Hollywood as the suspect faces charges of murder and burglary. Latt, 33, had worked on projects with filmmakers including Ryan Coogler and Ava DuVernay, as well as rap artist Common.He was pronounced dead Monday at a hospital. Prosecutors allege that Jameelah Elena Michl, 36, knocked on his home’s door and forced herself inside once it was open. She had sought out Latt’s home “after she targeted him for being friends with a woman she had been stalking,” the Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office said in a news release T...

Las Vegas man accused of threats against Jewish U.S. senator and her family is indicted

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:28:10 GMT

LAS VEGAS (AP) — A federal grand jury has indicted a Las Vegas man arrested last month on suspicion of making antisemitic threats against U.S. Senator Jacky Rosen and her family, along with the family of another U.S. senator, according to court records.Rosen, a Democrat from Nevada, is Jewish and has maintained a vocal pro-Israel stance, including support for U.S. aid to Israel. Though the indictment doesn’t identify her specifically, Rosen’s office confirmed to The Associated Press the allegation that she and her family were targeted.John Miller, 43, is charged with one count of threatening a federal official and two counts of influencing, impeding or retaliating against a federal official by threatening a family member. Miller is also accused of threatening the family of another unnamed U.S. senator, according to court records.The public defender representing Miller did not return an email request for comment on Thursday. Miller allegedly made several threatening calls...

Peruvian rainforest defender from embattled Kichwa tribe shot dead in river attack

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:28:10 GMT

LIMA, Peru (AP) — A Kichwa tribal leader has been shot to death in an area of the Peruvian rainforest that’s seen high tensions between Indigenous people and illegal loggers.Quinto Inuma Alvarado was attacked as he was returning from presenting at a workshop for women environmental leaders in the San Martín region of the Amazon on Wednesday, his son, Kevin Arnol Inuma Mandruma, told The Associated Press in a phone interview. Peruvian police confirmed his death.“He was travelling in a boat,” when assailants blocked the river with a tree trunk, Kevin Inuma said. “There were many shots fired.”The boat carried six people, said Kevin Inuma, including his mother, brother, sister and uncles. Quinto Inuma was shot three times in the back and once in the head, and Kevin Inuma’s aunt was wounded too, he said.Kevin Inuma was not on the trip. He said his brother and mother recounted the attack to him.Quinto Inuma had received numerous death threats over illegal logging, said Kevin Inuma.The log...

City Council in Portland, Oregon, approves $2.6M for police body cameras

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:28:10 GMT

PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) — The City Council in Portland, Oregon, approved $2.6 million for permanent police body cameras in a unanimous vote, a crucial step toward the city no longer being among the last major U.S. police agencies without the technology.All of the city’s roughly 800 uniformed officers who interact with the public will have body-worn cameras by the summer, after training and further negotiations with the police union, The Oregonian/OregonLive reported Wednesday. But only around 300 patrol officers will be required to wear them routinely on their shifts, the news outlet reported. Roughly 500 other sworn members, including detectives and sergeants, will put on their cameras when they interact with the public, said police spokesperson Mike Benner.The City Council’s approval for the cameras came after a 60-day pilot program that lasted from August to October and equipped 150 officers with cameras. The vote makes the pilot program permanent.Among the 50 largest pol...

Young humpback whale leaps out of Seattle bay, dazzling onlookers

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:28:10 GMT

SEATTLE (AP) — A humpback whale visiting the waters off Seattle dazzled onlookers Thursday morning with several breaches in they bay just beyond the city’s downtown area.The whale has been spotted for the last three days swimming around Elliott Bay. But on Thursday, the whale breached for about 40 minutes, also performing several pectoral fin slaps and dives.Local whale watching groups have identified the young humpback as the calf of an adult female with the identification BCY0995, better known as “Smiley.”It’s not unusual for humpback whales to visit the waters off Seattle as they migrate along the West Coast.Smiley’s last calf, Chip, was fatally struck by a Washington state ferry in 2020, according to the Canadian group Vancouver Island Whale Watch. On Thursday, personnel from Soundwatch Boater Education Program shadowed the whale for most of its time in the bay to alert other vessels of it. Jeff Hogan, co-coordinator of the program’s Seattle branch, said he cou...

Myanmar’s military is losing ground against coordinated nationwide attacks, buoying opposition hopes

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:28:10 GMT

BANGKOK (AP) — A major offensive against Myanmar’s military-run government by an alliance of three militias of ethnic minorities in the northeast has been moving at lightning speed, inspiring resistance forces around the country to launch new attacks. With Myanmar’s military falling back on almost every front, hope is rising among opponents that this could be a turning point in the struggle to oust the army leaders who toppled democratically elected Aung San Suu Kyi almost three years ago.“The current operation is a great opportunity to change the political situation in Myanmar,” said Le Kyar Win, spokesperson for the Myanmar National Democratic Alliance Army, or MNDAA, one of the three militias known as the Three Brotherhood Alliance that launched the offensive on Oct. 27.Caught by surprise by the attack dubbed Operation 1027, the military has lost more than 180 outposts and strongpoints, including four major bases and four economically important border crossings with China.Both si...