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The Quebec Liberal Party (PLQ) wants to ban supervised drug consumption sites within 150 metres of schools and daycares in Montreal, and within 250 metres elsewhere in Quebec. Liberal MP Marwah Rizqy tabled Bill 892 on Wednesday in response to the controversy surrounding , located near an elementary school in the city’s St-Henri neighbourhood. Since the centre opened last April, neighbourhood residents have reported dozens of incidents: theft, violence, crack use, nudity, public defecation. “Many of you have written to us to ask for legislation to ensure that supervised drug consumption centres are not set up near schools and daycares,” wrote Rizqy on the X platform. “I stood up in the House to challenge the Legault government on this issue a year ago. Last September, Premier François Legault finally admitted that we cannot ask children to live with intoxicated people. “The parliamentary session is coming to an end. The PLQ is offering the bill to the government. You can even erase my name; the important thing is to legislate promptly,” added the Liberal MNA from Saint-Laurent. The bill would give organizations that offer supervised drug consumption services two years to comply with the ban. However, it is extremely rare for the government to decide to enact an opposition bill. On Wednesday, the minister responsible for Social Services, Lionel Carmant, said he was aware of the issues. He assured that he was working on his own bill that he should table sometime in the spring of 2025. “We are already working on this with the legal affairs department,” he said. “I have already said that we want, yes, the distances, but also to facilitate access to care for drug addicts. “We will study what she presented to us, but we want something a little broader,” he added. Ontario recently decided to ban supervised drug consumption sites within 200 metres of schools and daycares. In 2023, in Toronto, in neighbourhoods near these sites, assaults were 113 per cent higher and robberies were 97 per cent higher than rates in the rest of the city, the Ontario government said.College GameDay Announces Celebrity Guest Picker for Texas-Texas A&MSign up for The Brief , The Texas Tribune’s daily newsletter that keeps readers up to speed on the most essential Texas news. Texans who worked with Jimmy Carter remembered him as a principled and compassionate leader — the last Democrat to win the state in a presidential election. Carter died Sunday afternoon at his Georgia home at age 100. The peanut farmer turned politician was praised for philanthropic efforts that continued well into his ninth decade after a single-term presidency that began with his 1976 defeat of Republican President Gerald Ford. “He’s exactly the kind of human being that needs to be president,” John Pouland, Carter’s state coordinator for the 1976 Democratic primary, said soon after learning that Carter would receive hospice care. “He lived the life that he felt was the right way to live as a Christian.” Born and raised in Plains, Georgia, Carter actively served in the Navy for eight years before returning to his home state to take over the family’s peanut-growing business after his father’s death in 1953. Carter went on to serve in the Georgia Senate and as governor before winning the 1976 presidential election. Texas’ 26 electoral votes helped put Carter over the top, a victory he couldn’t repeat in his landslide loss to Republican Ronald Reagan in 1980. Carter became the first sitting U.S. president to visit Brownsville during a campaign stop in the closing days of the 1980 election season. He praised the area’s farmland, viewed during a low-altitude plane trip from Houston; extolled his record on education; and boasted about appointing more than 200 Hispanic Americans to senior positions, “more than any other previous administration in history.” With the polls pointing toward defeat, his speech in Brownsville also veered into the philosophical, with Carter speaking about the burden of making “the final judgment in the loneliness of the Oval Office.” “Sometimes it has been a lonely job, but with the involvement of the American people, it’s also a gratifying job,” he said in the Nov. 1, 1980, speech. He ended up losing Texas by nearly 14 percentage points, starting a losing streak for Democratic nominees that has lasted through the next 10 presidential elections. A pair of Texans may have played a part in that defeat. In 1980, former Texas Gov. John B. Connally Jr., ran for the Republican nomination to challenge Carter. When Connally lost, he threw his support behind GOP nominee Ronald Reagan. That summer, Connally and former Texas Lt. Gov. Ben Barnes took a trip to the Middle East, meeting with heads of state in various capitals. In the midst of the campaign, the Carter administration was embroiled in the Iranian Hostage Crisis, in which 52 Americans were held captive in Iran. Nightly news of the crisis strained Carter's support and left him vulnerable to charges of ineptitude. During the trip, according to Barnes, Connally told the Middle Eastern leaders to deliver a message to Iran that Reagan would give them a better deal if they waited to release the hostages until after the election. Barnes kept silent about the trip for decades, only revealing it to the New York Times in March after it was announced that Carter had entered hospice care. Connally died in 1993. Connally told an Arab leader in their first meeting, “‘Look, Ronald Reagan’s going to be elected president and you need to get the word to Iran that they’re going to make a better deal with Reagan than they are Carter,’” Barnes told the Times. “He said, ‘It would be very smart for you to pass the word to the Iranians to wait until after this general election is over.’ And boy, I tell you, I’m sitting there and I heard it and so now it dawns on me, I realize why we’re there.” Former Carter aides have speculated that they might have won if they had returned the hostages before the election. The 52 Americans were released on the day Reagan took office. Texans were introduced to Carter in the 1976 Democratic primary, when he faced U.S. Sen. Lloyd Bentsen, a politically established Texan. “The ‘Jimmy who?’ line was not made up,” Pouland said. “We probably heard that refrain more than anything.” Carter defeated Bentsen — the Georgian was established as the party’s standard bearer by the time Texas held its primary — and Pouland attributed Carter’s success to his Navy service and Christian values, characteristics that appealed to Texas voters. At the time, Texas was at the tail end of a century-long, post-Civil War era of domination by Democrats in state politics. There were 133 Democrats in the 150-member state House, and 28 in the 31-member state Senate. The most significant political divides were among liberal and conservative Democrats, not Democrats and Republicans. But in presidential politics, Republicans had made inroads. Richard Nixon had won the state by 33 percentage points four years earlier, breaking a streak for three straight Democratic victories. Carter won the state with 51% of the vote. But the state was changing fast as conservatives flocked to the GOP. The state elected its first Republican governor since Reconstruction, Bill Clements, two years after Carter was elected. Pouland said Carter served as a model for attracting moderate Southern Democrats, something former President Bill Clinton tried but failed to replicate. Garry Mauro, a former Texas land commissioner who worked for Carter’s 1976 presidential bid, remembered the candidate as genuine and earnest. Mauro said it never occurred to Carter to filter people out, and he didn’t restrict access to himself even as his campaign built momentum. Mauro recalled numerous occasions when he dialed a campaign number, only to have the candidate’s wife, Rosalynn Carter, answer the phone. “He really was the people’s president,” Mauro said. Carter’s influence on Texas Democrats was immense, reshaping the state party’s power base to accommodate new faces on his team, Mauro said. “Jimmy Carter empowered a whole new generation of leadership in Texas,” Mauro said. His many years in politics did not change Carter’s altruistic outlook, Pouland added, and Carter took an active role in advancing human rights through his nonprofit organization, the Carter Center, after leaving office. Carter, Pouland said, “went to his same church, worked on his same farm, kept his same friends and continued to live his life as an example for the very thing that he was an advocate of, and that was compassion.” Though Carter was the last Democrat presidential candidate to win Texas, his legacy is still evident in the party, said state Rep. John Bryant , D-Dallas. “He was committed to human rights and gave Democrats the confidence to be for human rights and for peace and for honesty in government,” said Bryant, who served as Carter’s campaign manager in Dallas County during Carter’s first presidential campaign. Bryant points to Carter’s post-presidential years as some of his most impactful. “Instead of serving on corporate boards, or making big speaking fees, or playing golf, he was going to Habitat for Humanity. He was at the [Carter Center]. And he wrote 30 books, the proceeds of which went to nonprofits,” Bryant said, adding that Carter was “just a great example for how to live a life devoted to the public interest. “He lived his faith. He practiced what he preached,” Bryant said. “That’s very important for the country to see that.” In August 2007, Carter joined South African Archbishop Desmond Tutu in calling Texas to stop the execution of Kenneth Foster, an inmate who was on death row for acting as the getaway driver during a killing. Then-Gov. Rick Perry commuted Foster’s sentence to life in prison hours before the execution was scheduled. After the devastation of Hurricane Harvey, Carter joined four other former presidents — Barack Obama, George W. Bush, Clinton and George H.W. Bush — in appealing for donations to help in the recovery. The effort raised more than $41 million in response to the costliest natural disaster of 2017 , when extreme flooding in Houston and the surrounding area caused more than $125 billion in damage. Carter maintained his commitment to service through his life, helping to build and repair Dallas homes for Habitat for Humanity as a 90-year-old in 2014. “No matter what your faith may be, we are taught to share what we have with poor people,” he told The Dallas Morning News at the time. “It’s very difficult to cross that divide between people that have everything and people that have never had a decent house. Habitat makes it easy to cross that line.”haha 777 games 。

SAN FRANCISCO — A former OpenAI researcher known for whistleblowing the blockbuster artificial intelligence company facing a swell of lawsuits over its business model has died, authorities confirmed this week. Suchir Balaji, 26, was found dead inside his Buchanan Street apartment on Nov. 26, San Francisco police and the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner said. Police had been called to the Lower Haight residence at about 1 p.m. that day, after receiving a call asking officers to check on his well-being, a police spokesperson said. The medical examiner’s office has not released his cause of death, but police officials this week said there is “currently, no evidence of foul play.” Information he held was expected to play a key part in lawsuits against the San Francisco-based company. Balaji’s death comes three months after he publicly accused OpenAI of violating U.S. copyright law while developing ChatGPT, a generative artificial intelligence program that has become a moneymaking sensation used by hundreds of millions of people across the world. Its public release in late 2022 spurred a torrent of lawsuits against OpenAI from authors, computer programmers and journalists, who say the company illegally stole their copyrighted material to train its program and elevate its value past $150 billion. The Mercury News and seven sister news outlets are among several newspapers, including the New York Times, to sue OpenAI in the past year. In an interview with the New York Times published Oct. 23, Balaji argued OpenAI was harming businesses and entrepreneurs whose data were used to train ChatGPT. “If you believe what I believe, you have to just leave the company,” he told the outlet, adding that “this is not a sustainable model for the internet ecosystem as a whole.” Balaji grew up in Cupertino before attending UC Berkeley to study computer science. It was then he became a believer in the potential benefits that artificial intelligence could offer society, including its ability to cure diseases and stop aging, the Times reported. “I thought we could invent some kind of scientist that could help solve them,” he told the newspaper. But his outlook began to sour in 2022, two years after joining OpenAI as a researcher. He grew particularly concerned about his assignment of gathering data from the internet for the company’s GPT-4 program, which analyzed text from nearly the entire internet to train its artificial intelligence program, the news outlet reported. The practice, he told the Times, ran afoul of the country’s “fair use” laws governing how people can use previously published work. In late October, he posted an analysis on his personal website arguing that point. No known factors “seem to weigh in favor of ChatGPT being a fair use of its training data,” Balaji wrote. “That being said, none of the arguments here are fundamentally specific to ChatGPT either, and similar arguments could be made for many generative AI products in a wide variety of domains.” Reached by this news agency, Balaji’s mother requested privacy while grieving the death of her son. In a Nov. 18 letter filed in federal court, attorneys for The New York Times named Balaji as someone who had “unique and relevant documents” that would support their case against OpenAI. He was among at least 12 people — many of them past or present OpenAI employees — the newspaper had named in court filings as having material helpful to their case, ahead of depositions. Generative artificial intelligence programs work by analyzing an immense amount of data from the internet and using it to answer prompts submitted by users, or to create text, images or videos. When OpenAI released its ChatGPT program in late 2022, it turbocharged an industry of companies seeking to write essays, make art and create computer code. Many of the most valuable companies in the world now work in the field of artificial intelligence, or manufacture the computer chips needed to run those programs. OpenAI’s own value nearly doubled in the past year. News outlets have argued that OpenAI and Microsoft — which is in business with OpenAI also also has been sued by The Mercury News — have plagiarized and stole its articles, undermining their business models. “Microsoft and OpenAI simply take the work product of reporters, journalists, editorial writers, editors and others who contribute to the work of local newspapers — all without any regard for the efforts, much less the legal rights, of those who create and publish the news on which local communities rely,” the newspapers’ lawsuit said. OpenAI has staunchly refuted those claims, stressing that all of its work remains legal under “fair use” laws. “We see immense potential for AI tools like ChatGPT to deepen publishers’ relationships with readers and enhance the news experience,” the company said when the lawsuit was filed. Jakob Rodgers is a senior breaking news reporter. Call, text or send him an encrypted message via Signal at 510-390-2351, or email him at jrodgers@bayareanewsgroup.com.

The world approved a bitterly negotiated climate deal Sunday but poorer nations most at the mercy of worsening disasters dismissed a $300 billion a year pledge from wealthy historic polluters as insultingly low. After two exhausting weeks of chaotic bargaining and sleepless nights, nearly 200 nations banged through the contentious finance pact in the early hours in a sports stadium in Azerbaijan. But the applause had barely subsided in Baku when India delivered a full-throated rejection of the dollar-figure just agreed. "The amount that is proposed to be mobilised is abysmally poor. It's a paltry sum," said Indian delegate Chandni Raina. "This document is little more than an optical illusion. This, in our opinion, will not address the enormity of the challenge we all face." Nations had struggled to reconcile long-standing divisions over how much rich nations most accountable for historic climate change should provide to poorer countries least responsible but most impacted by Earth's rapid warming. EU climate envoy Wopke Hoekstra said COP29 would be remembered as "the start of a new era for climate finance". Sleep-deprived diplomats, huddled in anxious groups, were still revising the final phrasing on the plenary floor hours before the deal passed. At points, the talks appeared on the brink of collapse, with developing nations storming out of meetings and threatening to walk away should rich nations not cough up more cash. In the end -- despite repeating that no deal is better than a bad deal -- they did not stand in the way of an agreement, despite it falling well short of what they wanted. The final deal commits developed nations to pay at least $300 billion a year by 2035 to help developed countries green their economies and prepare for worse disasters. That is up from $100 billion under an existing pledge but was slammed as offensively low by developing nations who had demanded much more. "This COP has been a disaster for the developing world," said Mohamed Adow, the Kenyan director of Power Shift Africa, a think tank. "It's a betrayal of both people and planet, by wealthy countries who claim to take climate change seriously." A group of 134 developing countries had pushed for at least $500 billion from rich governments to build resilience against climate change and cut emissions of planet-warming greenhouse gases. UN climate chief Simon Stiell acknowledged the deal was imperfect. "No country got everything they wanted, and we leave Baku with a mountain of work still to do. So this is no time for victory laps," he said in a statement. The United States and EU have wanted newly wealthy emerging economies like China -- the world's largest emitter -- to chip in. The final deal "encourages" developing countries to make contributions on a voluntary basis, reflecting no change for China which already provides climate finance on its own terms. Wealthy nations said it was politically unrealistic to expect more in direct government funding. Donald Trump, a sceptic of both climate change and foreign assistance, returns to the White House in January and a number of other Western countries have seen right-wing backlashes against the green agenda. The deal posits a larger overall target of $1.3 trillion per year to cope with rising temperatures and disasters, but most would come from private sources. Wealthy countries and small island nations were also concerned by efforts led by Saudi Arabia to water down calls from last year's summit in Dubai to phase out fossil fuels. The main texts proposed in Baku lacked any explicit mention of the Dubai commitment to "transitioning away from fossil fuels". A number of countries had accused Azerbaijan, an authoritarian oil and gas exporter, of lacking the experience and will to meet the moment, as the planet again sets temperature records and faces rising deadly disasters. bur-np-sct/lth/tymSuriname rules out state funeral for ex-dictator Bouterse

FORT WORTH, Texas, Dec. 13, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- CorVel Corporation (NASDAQ: CRVL) announces that its Board of Directors approved a three-for-one forward stock split of its common stock. The Board also approved a proportionate increase in the number of authorized shares of common stock to accommodate the stock split. The Board did not approve an increase in the number of authorized shares of preferred stock. The implementation of the stock split and authorized share increase is subject to the filing of an amendment to the Company’s Fourth Amended and Restated Certificate of Incorporation with the Secretary of State of the State of Delaware, which the Company expects to file on December 24, 2024. “Our stock price has seen extraordinary growth over the past several years fueled by our strong financial performance and the successful execution of our strategic plan. We believe it is the right time to effect a forward stock split to increase the accessibility of our stock to potential investors while maintaining our focus on delivering our customers enhanced technological solutions for the management of their healthcare needs,” said Michael G. Combs, the Company’s President, Chief Executive Officer and Chairman of the Board. Following the filing and effectiveness of the amendment, every one share of common stock outstanding or held in treasury on December 23, 2024, the record date for the stock split, will be split into three shares of common stock. Subject to final approval by the Nasdaq Global Select Market, trading is currently expected to begin on a post-stock split adjusted basis at market open on December 26, 2024. Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking Statements This Press Release contains "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of the safe harbor provisions of the U.S. Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995, which statements are subject to considerable risks and uncertainties. Forward-looking statements include all statements other than statements of historical fact contained in this Press Release, including statements regarding the implementation and timing of the stock split and authorized share increase, and the timing of trading on a post-stock split basis. Forward-looking statements involve known and unknown risks and uncertainties that may cause our actual results to differ materially and adversely from those expressed, assumed, or implied by the forward-looking statements. Some of the risks and uncertainties that may cause actual results to materially differ from those expressed or implied by these forward-looking statements are described in the section entitled “Risk Factors” in our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended March 31, 2024, as well as in our Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q and other filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Any forward-looking statement made in this press release is based only on information currently available to the Company and speaks only as of the date on which it is made. Except as required by applicable law or the listing rules of the Nasdaq Global Select Market, the Company expressly disclaims any intent or obligation to update any forward-looking statements, or to update the reasons actual results could differ materially from those expressed or implied by these forward-looking statements, whether to conform such statements to actual results or changes in expectations, or as a result of the availability of new information. Contact: Melissa Storan Phone: 949-851-1473 www.corvel.com

Pull the other one, John! Swinney ridiculed for claiming health minister Neil Gray took limo to glitzy premiere because movie 'was about addiction' Click here to visit the Scotland home page for the latest news and sport By TOM GORDON DEPUTY SCOTTISH POLITICAL EDITOR Published: 21:52, 27 November 2024 | Updated: 21:53, 27 November 2024 e-mail View comments John Swinney has been branded ‘desperate’ after claiming under-fire health secretary Neil Gray attended a glitzy film bash because the movie touched upon addiction. The First Minister said Mr Gray needed to be chauffeured in a ministerial car to the opening of the Edinburgh International Film Festival as it was ‘relevant to his portfolio’. The Scottish Tories accused Mr Swinney of ‘clutching at straws’ but the First Minister doubled down in his defence of his beleaguered colleague after the Mail revealed Mr Gray had taken an official limo to and from the gala event. Mr Gray’s wife Karlie also attended the star-studded premiere at the Cameo cinema on August 15. The Scottish Government has insisted Mr Gray was performing ‘ministerial duties’, which justified his use of taxpayer- funded transport. But the premiere was also attended by Culture Secretary Angus Robertson, who met with the film’s star, Saoirse Ronan , and the festival’s director and chair. That has raised questions about why Mr Gray, who is already under-fire over football trips, went as well – other than as a ‘jolly’. Government records state Mr Gray discussed ‘culture’ at a ‘reception’ held at the premiere with film quango Screen Scotland, but the First Minister yesterday claimed he went because of his health brief. Neil Gray was driven in a ministerial car to attend the film bash with his wife Karlie The event to promote movie The Outrun was already being attended by Culture Secretary Angus Robertson who met with the film's star Saoirse Ronan, above Asked by the Mail why Mr Gray needed to attend when Mr Robertson was already at the screening, Mr Swinney said it had been for ‘government business’. Asked what Mr Gray added, the SNP leader replied: ‘Well, he was attending a film which is addressing the issues of drug addiction and alcohol addiction. ‘And mental health and well-being are therefore relevant to his portfolio interests as the Cabinet Secretary for Health.’ The opening night featured the UK premiere of The Outrun, a film based on Amy Liptrot’s memoir about recovering from alcoholism in Orkney, where Mr Gray grew up. Click here to visit the Scotland home page for the latest news and sport Advertisement The Airdrie and Shotts MSP had raved on social media about how much he was looking forward to seeing The Outrun before he took on the health portfolio. While economy secretary last December, he wrote ‘Cannot wait to see this!’ and ‘Cannot wait!’ about the film, two months before he was moved to health after Michael Matheson quit over an expenses scandal. The Scottish Conservatives said Mr Gray was guilty of a ‘pattern of behaviour’ and appeared to have simply been on a ‘jolly’ at the premiere. Deputy leader Rachael Hamilton: ‘This is a desperate defence from John Swinney of his Cabinet colleague. He knows fine well that there was no justification for Neil Gray to be at this event and is clutching at straws. ‘Taxpayers are sick and tired of the SNP taking them for a ride. Honest John should have had the decency to be upfront with the public over Neil Gray’s behaviour, instead of giving this absurd response.’ Mr Gray apologised to parliament earlier this month after using his ministerial limo to attend eight football matches, four of them involving his favourite club, Aberdeen. He admitted that he had given the impression of being ‘more of a fan and less as a minister’ and said he should have ‘attended a wider range of games and not just Aberdeen’. He was also chauffeured to four Scotland international matches at Hampden Park in Glasgow. Half of the eight games were when he held the economy brief. Mr Gray, a father-of-four, took a family member or guest to five of the matches in his official car, but insisted that it had not cost the taxpayer any extra. The government has refused to say if Mr Gray used his car to pick up his wife before they attended the premiere together. A government spokesman said: ‘Ministers attend sporting and cultural events as part of their ministerial duties.’ John Swinney SNP Share or comment on this article: Pull the other one, John! Swinney ridiculed for claiming health minister Neil Gray took limo to glitzy premiere because movie 'was about addiction' e-mail Add comment10,673 Shares in Arhaus, Inc. (NASDAQ:ARHS) Purchased by Intech Investment Management LLC

Bill Reichart was honored with the Mayfly Award in recognition for his lifelong serviceto conservation. DOYLE DIETZ/CONTRIBUTING PHOTOGRAPHER Dedicated flintlock muzzleloader deer hunters are willing to brave the elements to takepart in the special season that is in its 50 th year. DOYLE DIETZ/CONTRIBUTING PHOTOGRAPHER Hunters are once again able to enjoy pheasant hunts at Martz’s Gap View Preserve whichovercame an outbreak of Avian Flu early this year. DOYLE DIETZ/CONTRIBUTING PHOTOGRAPHER Anglers crowd the shore to find their favorite fishing spots on the opening day of theBetty Dietz-Bruce Schneck Memorial Fishing Event. DOYLE DIETZ/CONTRIBUTING PHOTOGRAPHER Bill Reichart was honored with the Mayfly Award in recognition for his lifelong serviceto conservation. DOYLE DIETZ/CONTRIBUTING PHOTOGRAPHER There were many memorable outdoors-related events in 2024. In no particular order, hereis a look back at some of them. Bill Reichart presented with Mayfly Award Bill Reichart says his first ever “conservation project” was when he was 8 years old and agroup of locals tried to pump out the lower level at Auburn Desilting Dam in 1956 tosave the fish before they pumped the dredged material into the lower level when the damwas dredged.Since then he has spent his life dedicated to promoting clean water projects, including theworks of Schuylkill River Greenway and promoting efforts to improve the SchuylkillRiver Watershed. Some of his efforts that have had the most impact in our watershed are:Understanding, educating people on, and addressing water quality issues – especially inthe upper watershed; Leading the Porter Floodplain restoration project and associatedSchuylkill River Trail–Auburn Bridge connection that fills the gap in the SRT betweenBerks and Schuylkill counties; and The Schuylkill River Acts and Impacts YouthExpedition.This year Reichart was recognized for his lifelong work by the Pennsylvania AbandonedMine Reclamation when it presented the Schuylkill Headwaters Association presidentwith its annual Mayfly Award. A symbol of clean waters, the award is presented annuallyto someone who focuses on maintaining the health of local waterways.Anglers owe a debt of gratitude to Reichart being instrumental in getting a significantamount of fish habitat into Sweet Arrow Lake near Pine Grove. He got 100 porcupinecribs built and sunk, got many tons of rock installed by the Pennsylvania Fish and BoatCommission, had hundreds of posts for clusters installed and coordinated a mile of fishhabitat/stream bank improvements in Upper Little Swatara Creek. Martz’s Gap View Preserve recovers from Avian Flu outbreak to celebrate 70 years As the third-generation operator of Martz’s Gap View Hunting Preserve, Mike Martz hadbeen living the dream following in the footsteps of his grandfather and father.Unfortunately, that dream turned into the nightmare this year when Highly PathogenicAvian Influenza hit the business. HPAI was discovered in one of the pheasant pens at Martz’s, necessitating the ceasing ofall activities – including field hunts, Continental hunts and trap shooting. It was thehardest event to unfold on the third-generation farm, which caused the PennsylvaniaGame Commission to adjust its late-season pheasant stockings to help safeguard theagency’s pheasant program and better ensure it will continue next year in the 2024-25hunting seasons.Over the summer, however, Martz’s rebounded and opened for its 70 th year of business inSeptember. It is now once again providing field hunts and Continental hunts, as well astrap events. Steve Smith appointed new Pennsylvania Game Commission executive director Steve Smith, who had served as deputy executive director since February, was appointedto his new role of executive director by the Board of Game Commissioners in executivesession. Smith replaced Bryan Burhans, who served as the agency’s executive directorsince 2017. Burhans resigned his position, which was accepted by the board.“This is a critical time for the Game Commission and the future of hunting, trapping andthe conservation of wildlife,” Smith said. “The work we do now will have lasting impactsfor the generations to come, and ensure they will enjoy the same opportunities we havefor centuries. It is an honor to serve in this capacity.”A Berks County native, Smith graduated magna cum laude from West Chester Universitywith a degree in Political Science. He then received a law degree from the Penn StateDickinson School of Law. Smith joined the agency in 2008, after several years ofpracticing law. Hunters Sharing the Harvest continues to set record donations For Hunters Sharing the Harvest executive director Randy Ferguson hunter donations ofdeer this fall and early winter has created good news with another record on the horizonto the extent money is needed to pay processors for their role in the record-breakingnonprofit charitable organization.At the conclusion of last year’s hunting seasons Pennsylvania hunters broke their recordfor venison donations with 261,672 pounds of ground meat from 6,905 deer and six elkstatewide. That record resulted in more than 1 million individual servings of lean, high-protein venison, and Ferguson expects that record to fall again when the 2024-25 huntingseasons end.Hunters pay nothing to donate a deer at one of HSH’s 100-plus participating processorsacross the state. Instead, the organization reimburses those processors for every deerdonated, and last season, those reimbursement costs reached an all-time high ofapproximately $500,000.“While helping HSH feed more families, crop damage deer are the driving factor inHSH’s rising operational expenses, and a cause for increased financial need for theorganization,” Ferguson said “When I started in this role almost four years ago, we sawacouple hundred deer a year that we could identify as crop damage related.“Last year, that number was nearly 1,300 deer, and the crop damage category of donateddeer is doubling year over year. Deer donated during the regular archery and rifle seasonscontinue to grow at a healthy and manageable pace.” Swatara Cooperative Trout Nursery celebrates 25 years Bob Evanchalk, whose farm houses the Swatara Cooperative Trout Nursery, has spent 25years raising trout which are stocked in Sweet Arrow Lake and local Pine Grove Areastreams. In 25 years that comes to 139,866 trout — or about 5,600 trout per year.In 1999 a 50-foot long, 4-foot wide concrete raceway was constructed after thePennsylvania Fish and Boat Commission deemed the water source and site acceptable to house the nursery. The Schuylkill Conservation District applied to the Fish AmericaFoundation and was awarded $5,000 to make the nursery a reality.Sweet Arrow Lake and the main branch of Swatara Creek were two of the primarystocking locations as they were not on the PFBC trout stocking list. Later, the Upper (akaRoedersville) and Lower Little Swatara (aka Rock) Creeks were added.The PFBC supplies fingerling trout and technical assistance, and the nursery must findvolunteers and finances for expenses to raise the trout. Thanks to Evanchalk and somestalwart helpers the fish were in good hands, and the nursery was expanded to 90 feet in2000 and was covered with a metal lid to keep predators like herons, kingfishers, mink,snakes and other critters from enjoying an easy meal. Dietz-Schneck Memorial Fishing Event major attraction at Sweet Arrow Lake Planning is already underway for the 2025 Betty Dietz and Bruce Schneck MemorialFishing Event at Sweet Arrow Lake. Dean Skinner Ney has taken over administering theevent from Craig Morgan and Dean will also coordinate the food stand.Pioneer Pole Buildings last year of sponsorship is 2025, but Bob and Diane Green haveagreed to commit four more years at $2,500 per year match money. Also, the Friends ofSchuylkill Parks & Recreation have committed $5,000 in the past in matching funds.The Swatara Co-op Trout Nursery received $3,000 from the Sportsmen’s Advisory Boardlast year and this donation helps stock 2,000 really nice fish in the lake.The event is not a fundraiser, and it continues because of community support andparticipants, plus what Tevis Energy and Modern Comfort provide for Mentored YouthDay.DEP denies enhancement project for Sweet Arrow LakeIn 2022 the outdoors page of the Pottsville Republican Herald ran a feature article thattold of plans to enhance fish habitat and angler access to the resource at Sweet ArrowLake County Park. Since then, PennDOT was contacted about safer access through theguiderails, but the agency said nothing could be done.Also contacted was the Pennsylvania Fish and Boat Lake Habitat Management sectionfor assistance. An on-site meeting and boat tour of the lake produced an updated fishhabitat improvement plan that included a number of stone deflectors which also improvedangler access to the resource. The Schuylkill Conservation District submitted the GeneralPermit-1, Fish Habitat Enhancement Structure application to the Northeast Office of theDepartment of Environmental Protection for review and approval.The permit was denied, although the original fish habitat plan for Sweet Arrow Lakeapproved in 2011 included stone deflectors. The Pennsylvania Fish and Boat Commissiondesigned and many partners have installed hundreds of sawtooth deflectors inPennsylvania lakes.These sawtooth or stone deflectors are approved and used at lakes all over Pennsylvaniato prevent shore erosion, which according to DEP is not evident at Sweet Arrow Lake.However, DEP’s denial states that these deflectors are not approved for use in lakes.Clearly, this seems to be a case of double standards, especially when stone can be placedon lake banks to prevent erosion. PGC makes changes made in purchase of antlerless licenses When Pennsylvania resident hunters began purchasing hunting licenses this summer theywere able to also purchase their choice of antlerless licenses because of the changes madeby the Pennsylvania Game Commission. At that time antlerless licenses were availablefor only three Wildlife Management Units where demand is highest – WMUs 1B, 2G and3A.Licenses in these WMUs were sold on a first come, first serve basis until the allottednumber of licenses sells out, and only Pennsylvania residents may purchase antlerless licenses initially. Three days after sales opened on a Monday, antlerless licenses for theremaining 19 WMUs went go on sale to residents.Guaranteeing an antlerless license to a resident hunter for any other WMU from June 27to July 8 largely eliminates the need to stand in line, allows demand to be spread out overmore than a week and gives hunters greater flexibility to buy at a time that’s convenientfor them. Even then, there are sure to be plenty of licenses left in most WMUs. PGC tables plan to reintroduce American martens In a split vote the Pennsylvania Game Commission, the board of game commissionerstabled plans to reintroduce American martens into the state by a 6-3 vote. Voting fortabling the plan were commissioners Bob Schwalm, Scott Foradora, Allen Di Marco,Kristen Schnepp-Giger, Stanley Knick and Todd Pride, with commissioners DennisFredericks, Michael Mitrick and Haley Sankey voting for the plan.Schwalm, who represents Schuylkill County, said he still has questions about the merit ofthe plan even after PGC staff developed an American marten reintroduction andmanagement plan for Pennsylvania that outlines a long-term, 10-year strategy totranslocate the species back to the state. This would be followed by long-term monitoringto evaluate the reintroduction and includes strategies on communications, partnerengagement, costs and timelines. Flintlock season celebrates 50th year Pennsylvania remains the only state with a flintlock-only muzzleloader deer season, andthis is the 50 th year. According to Dave Ehrig, one of the people who wrote what becamethe Pennsylvania Game Commission regulations for the flintlock season and currenteditor oft he official National Muzzle Loading Rifle Association magazine “MuzzleBlasts,” the season came into existence without celebration and not a whole lot of interestin 1974 when the first year of this primitive deer hunt was held, being almost anafterthought.Just 65 deer – including four bucks – were taken with flintlock rifles in that inauguralyear of 1974 compared to 3,909 deer – including 1,572 bucks – taken by bowhunters.Back then there were only 30 State Game Lands statewide open to flintlock hunters, sothey were concentrated into specific areas where archery and rifle seasons had reducedthe available number of deer.In 1980 the season was one week, and flintlock stamp sales continued to rise.Pennsylvania was fielding 145,144 flintlock-only deer hunters, who took 8,069 deer–including 490 bucks. Flintlock season was then reduced to four days in 1982, and it wasadded to the end of the December 15-18 antlerless season.The current statewide season began Thursday, Dec 26, and runs through Saturday, Jan.20. (Dietz is a member of the Pennsylvania Outdoor Writers Association) Contact the writer: outdoors@republicanherald.com

VANCOUVER, British Columbia (AP) — Brayden Point scored twice and added two assists, and the Tampa Bay Lightning edged the Vancouver Canucks 4-2 on Sunday. Nikita Kucherov had a goal and two helpers for the Lightning, while Jake Guentzel scored on a power play late in the third period. Captain Quinn Hughes and Kiefer Sherwood found the back of the net for the Canucks. Tampa Bay’s Andrei Vasilevskiy stopped 22 of the 24 shots he faced and Kevin Lankinen made 28 saves for Vancouver. Lightning: Kucherov, who returned to the lineup Sunday after missing two games with a lower-body injury, added another potent piece to Tampa’s red-hot power play. The Lightning were 2 for 4 with the man advantage and scored a power-play goal for the sixth straight game. Canucks: Hughes took a stick to the face 55 seconds into the game, missed more than 11 minutes, then returned to open the scoring 16:08 into the first period. It was the 50th goal of the defenseman’s career and extended his points streak to seven games with three goals and 10 assists across the stretch. Tampa took the lead 6:29 into the second when Kucherov sliced a pass to Point at the bottom of the faceoff circle and the Lightning winger blasted it in past Lankinen for his 17th of the season. Kucherov put the visitors on the board just a minute and 49 seconds earlier. Point scored his league-leading 10th power-play goal of the season. He’s one away from becoming the third player to score 100 power-play goals for the Lightning. The Canucks continue a six-game homestand Tuesday against the St. Louis Blues. The Lightning visit the Oilers on Tuesday. AP NHL: https://www.apnews.com/hub/NHLMADRID (AP) — Real Valladolid beat Valencia 1-0 and rose off the bottom of La Liga on Friday. Moroccan forward Anuar scored with a solo effort after 19 minutes. “It's a sense of relief because we needed the three points,” Anuar said on broadcaster DAZN. “It was like a final, and fortunately, we managed to come out on top.” Valladolid's Juanmi Latasa was sent off 12 minutes from time after a video review showed he used an elbow, but the home side managed to hold on for the win against a toothless rival. It was a welcome three points for caretaker coach Álvaro Rubio and his first since replacing Paulo Pezzolano, who was fired at the start of December. Valencia replaced Valladolid on the bottom of the table. Valencia has only two wins in 15 league games, but two games in hand. AP soccer: https://apnews.com/hub/soccer

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Azincourt Energy (CVE:AAZ) Trading 50% Higher – What’s Next?NEW YORK —The New York Department of State’s Division of Consumer Protection is providing tips to help consumers navigate return and refund policies. According to the National Retail Federation, this year’s holiday weekend from Thanksgiving Day through Cyber Monday set record levels for consumer spending. The State of Retail Returns 2024 Report states $743 billion dollars’ worth of merchandise were returned last year. However, policies vary from store to store, making returns and refunds a challenge at times. Consumers should be aware of laws that protect them so they can make informed decisions about holiday returns and understand what to look for when reviewing return and refund policies. “As the holiday shopping season comes to an end, both gift givers and receivers may have changed their minds about what they bought,” Secretary of State Walter T. Mosley said in a news release. “But depending on where you’re returning the items, there may be some limitations. It’s important for consumers to pay attention, prior to purchase, the return and refund policy so you can exchange that item you’ll never use for something you love.” The Division of Consumer Protection offers the following tips to help consumers navigate return and refund policies: Pay Attention to Return Policies: New York State law requires that stores post their refund policies conspicuously – on the item, at the store entrance or on or near the cash register. Retailers must provide a written copy of the store’s return policy when requested. New York State Law does not require retailers to accept returns; however, they must post a conspicuous notice visible to consumers before the point of sale, advising that no returns will be accepted.If the retailer does not post a return policy, the law requires the retailer accept returns of unused, undamaged merchandise within 30 days of the purchase date. The returned item must include a proof of purchase and the refund must be in the form of cash or credit based on the customer’s preference.Understand the Refund Terms: For retailers that allow returns, New York State law does not require refunds to be given in any specific manner. However, it does require the form of the refund – cash, credit or exchange – be clearly disclosed in advance of purchase. Retailers must also disclose any fees associated with the return. If no fee is listed, customers should inquire whether the store imposes a re-stocking fee for returned merchandise and determine prior to purchase if the item can be returned for a refund or only store credit. Retain Any Proofs of Purchase: Consumers should hold on to receipts in the event a product needs to be returned. If purchasing gifts, ask if a gift receipt is available. It is also advised to keep the packaging of an item, along with its confirmation number. Consumers having difficulty obtaining a refund are encouraged to file a complaint with the New York State Division of Consumer Protection. About the New York State Division of Consumer Protection Follow the New York Department of State on Facebook, X and Instagram and check in every Tuesday for more practical tips that educate and empower New York consumers on a variety of topics. Sign up to receive consumer alerts directly to your email or phone here. The New York State Division of Consumer Protection provides voluntary mediation between a consumer and a business when a consumer has been unsuccessful at reaching a resolution on their own. The Consumer Assistance Helpline 1-800-697-1220 is available Monday to Friday from 8:30am to 4:30pm, excluding State Holidays, and consumer complaints can be filed at any time at www.dos.ny.gov/consumerprotection. The Division can also be reached via X at @NYSConsumer or Facebook.

Musk Vows to Defend H-1B Visa Program Amid CriticismAzincourt Energy Corp. ( CVE:AAZ – Get Free Report ) rose 50% during trading on Friday . The stock traded as high as C$0.02 and last traded at C$0.02. Approximately 253,181 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 2% from the average daily volume of 259,671 shares. The stock had previously closed at C$0.01. Azincourt Energy Price Performance The stock has a market cap of C$4.48 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -1.50 and a beta of 2.78. The company’s 50 day moving average is C$0.01 and its 200 day moving average is C$0.02. Azincourt Energy Company Profile ( Get Free Report ) Azincourt Energy Corp., an exploration and development company, focuses on the alternative fuels/alternative energy sector in Canada and Peru. It explores for uranium and lithium deposits, as well as other clean energy elements. The company owns interest in the East Preston project covering an area of approximately 25,000 hectares located in Saskatchewan, Canada; and the Big Hill Lithium project covering approximately an area of 7,500 hectares located in southwestern Newfoundland, Canada. See Also Receive News & Ratings for Azincourt Energy Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for Azincourt Energy and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter .