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Robert Rodriguez brings indie flair to ‘Hypnotic’ sci-fi thriller

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 18:26:42 GMT

With Friday’s sci-fi thriller “Hypnotic,” Robert Rodriguez closes a circle with a scenario he created over 20 years ago.Set in Austin, Rodriguez’s hometown and central beehive where he films, edits and produces his movies, “Hypnotic” stars Ben Affleck as Danny Rourke, an Austin police detective haunted but never ever giving up the search for his missing three-year-old daughter.When Rourke busts an elaborate and bizarre bank robbery in progress he discovers Hypnotics — powerful hypnotists trained by a secretive government agency known as the Division that controls people’s minds.“I’ve always loved the story. It came to me very fast,” Rodriguez, 54, said this week in a phone interview.  “I wanted to do something like my favorite Hitchcock thrillers. But I kept getting on other projects and before you know it, like 15 years have gone by before I brought it back up.“What’s nice about a story if it hooks you like that and you keep going back to it, you know itR...

Editorial: Biden holds airlines accountable, but not himself

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 18:26:42 GMT

The Biden Administration and its Congressional allies are all for holding businesses accountable for harm inflicted on consumers – even if that harm is simply making a profit. But who is holding government responsible for its actions?Airlines are in the crosshairs as widespread flight delays and cancellations roiled the holidays last year. They’ve earned the ire of passengers and lawmakers.As reported, the White House said Monday it’s preparing new rules aimed at requiring airlines to compensate passengers for significant flight delays or cancellations when the carriers are responsible.“When an airline causes a flight cancellation or delay, passengers should not foot the bill,” U.S. Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg said in a statement.Well done. But when the president and lawmakers cause fiscal harm to Americans through actions which spur inflation and subsequent interest rate increases, why should we foot the bill?The Biden Administration’s tril...

Dear Abby: Readers relate to grieving widow’s actions

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 18:26:42 GMT

Dear Abby: “Unsure How To Feel” (Jan. 24) was upset about changes her sister-in-law was making after the death of her husband. Within months, the widow had given away the husband’s belongings and begun making changes to their home. I saw myself in that column. I lost my beloved husband unexpectedly at the age of 47. Seeing his clothes and belongings in our closets every time I opened the doors was painful. They were a constant reminder of what I’d lost.After selecting a few meaningful items, I also began giving his belongings to close family members and then to charities. When my daughter became upset, I realized that we all process our grief in different ways. She wanted to preserve everything the way it was. Neither reaction is wrong.And as for the SIL’s remodeling, I did exactly what she did. For me, it was a way to regain control of my life. My husband’s death was shocking and heartbreaking. Having a project gave me something to focus on other...

Palomar College in San Marcos lockdown lifted after reported shooting at nearby sports complex

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 18:26:42 GMT

SAN MARCOS, Calif. -- Palomar College in San Marcos was temporarily placed on lockdown Monday night after reports of shots fired at a nearby sports complex, school officials said.The call came in at 7:46 p.m. about a shooting at Mission Sports Park, located at 931 Bailey Court, according to the San Diego County Sheriff's Department.Palomar College in San Marcos was forced to lock down around 8:11 p.m., but later lifted the lockdown at 9:28 p.m., Julie Lanthier Bandy with the North County school told FOX 5. SR-78 officially reopening for drivers after extended closure Deputies searched the area, but they did not find any victims, the sheriff's department said. Authorities are continuing to search for evidence at the sports complex.Check back for updates on this developing story.

Pennsylvania House battle hinges on Philadelphia suburbs

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 18:26:42 GMT

HARRISBURG, Pa. (AP) — Democrats who reclaimed the Pennsylvania House majority in November and clung to a one-seat margin by sweeping three special elections earlier this year face yet another contest for control of the chamber next week, when voters will fill a vacancy in the Philadelphia suburbs.At stake in the Delaware County special election is whether freshman Democratic Gov. Josh Shapiro will have at least one chamber to aid his agenda going into the final month of budget negotiations. The result could also affect a proposed constitutional amendment on abortion rights that legislative Republicans are one House vote away from putting before voters as a referendum.The seat became open when Democratic Rep. Mike Zabel resigned in March, a week after a lobbyist accused him by name of sexual harassment.A win by Republican candidate Katie Ford, a military veteran, school volunteer and behavioral therapist, would likely give the House GOP a 102-101 majority and the power to reclaim co...

Toll of northeast India clashes now 60 dead, 35K displaced

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 18:26:42 GMT

GUWAHATI, India (AP) — Security measures are keeping the peace in a remote northeast Indian state where 60 people were killed and 35,000 civilians were displaced in rioting and ethnic clashes last week, officials said.Manipur state’s chief minister, N Biren Singh, told reporters late Monday that around 230 people were injured and about 1,700 houses were burned by protesters after fierce fighting broke out when members of tribal groups clashed with a non-tribal group over the economic benefits and reservation status extended to some tribes.Singh said thousands of civilians, escorted by security personnel, were now returning home after the situation was brought under control by police and army who patrolled the streets and enforced a curfew that is still in place. On Monday, India’s Home Minister Amit Shah told India Today news channel that the situation in Manipur was under control and appealed to the people to maintain peace. Violence in Manipur, which borders Myanmar, broke out las...

Pro-DeSantis super PAC ramps up hiring into Super Tuesday

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 18:26:42 GMT

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — The super PAC promoting Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis plans to have dozens of staff in place in the first 18 states on the Republican presidential primary calendar in the coming weeks, a move indicating that his expected 2024 announcement is drawing closer.The plans, shared with The Associated Press, are part of the group Never Back Down’s strategy to begin political organizing for DeSantis all the way through Super Tuesday on March 5 and point to a novel approach the super PAC is attempting ahead of a likely DeSantis run. In Iowa, where the leadoff GOP caucuses are expected to begin the 2024 voting, the group has placed about a half-dozen staff, including the former chief of staff to Gov. Kim Reynolds, as part of a broader strategy to handle on-the-ground organizing for DeSantis, a function typically done by a candidate’s campaign staff.The concept has been tried in previous election cycles, though less ambitiously and with little success.Ahead of th...

Deal or default? Biden, GOP must decide what’s on the table

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 18:26:42 GMT

WASHINGTON (AP) — Before President Joe Biden and congressional leaders can even try to avert an unprecedented U.S. government default, their initial challenge on Tuesday will be to agree on what exactly they’re talking about as they hold their first substantive meeting in months.With the government at risk of being unable to meet its obligations as soon as June 1, raising the specter of potential economic calamity, Republicans are coming to the White House hoping to negotiate sweeping cuts to federal spending in exchange for allowing new borrowing to avoid default. Biden, on the other hand, is set to reinforce his opposition to allowing the country’s full faith and credit to be held “hostage” to negotiations — and to affirm his willingness to hold talks on the budget only after default is no longer a threat.The chasm between these diametrically opposite postures is fomenting uncertainty that is already roiling financial markets and threatens to turn into a tidal wave that swamps the...

Stock market today: Asia shares trade mixed ahead of reports

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 18:26:42 GMT

TOKYO (AP) — Asian shares traded mixed Tuesday as investors took a wait-and-see view on the week ahead that’s full of reports on some of the market’s biggest worries, including stubbornly high inflation across the economy. Japan’s benchmark Nikkei 225 gained 0.7% in morning trading to 29,141.93. Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 slipped 0.2% to 7,258.80. South Korea’s Kospi shed 0.4% to 2,503.80. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng lost 0.3% to 20,241.95, while the Shanghai Composite edged up nearly 0.2% to 3,399.98. On Wall Street, the S&P 500 edged up by less than 0.1% to 4,138.12, coming off its worst week in nearly two months. The Dow Jones Industrial Average slipped 0.2% to 33,618.69 while the Nasdaq composite added 0.2% to 12,256.92. A strong reading on U.S. jobs, which calmed worries about a possible recession but raised concerns about high inflation, and fears about smaller and mid-sized banks dominated the previous week. Weighed down by much higher interest ra...

In dog show world, details obvious and subtle rule the day

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 18:26:42 GMT

NEW YORK (AP) — Doe-eyed dachshunds, push-faced French bulldogs and other nonsporting breeds circle the hallowed rings. A bracco Italiano receives a jowl massage. Spaniels get blow-dried. Everyone is prepping — lovingly, meticulously — for a hoped-for big moment. With more than 3,000 dogs competing this week at the annual Westminster Kennel Club dog show, one of the world’s most prestigious, sometimes it’s a competitor’s confident gait or self-possessed gaze that sets it apart from the pack.“Like all things, beauty is subjective,” said Ann Ingram, who traveled from Cork, Ireland, to New York City to judge several events. “A dog’s attitude in the ring can help. If the dog loves itself, you can tell. He kind of has that attitude of, you know, ‘I’m a winner.’” In short: There are the obvious characteristics — the quantifiable ones — and then there are the intangibles. The show is being held this year on the 40-acre (16-hectare) grounds of the U.S. Open tennis tournament, wh...