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Bridge: Oct. 21, 2023

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:12:36 GMT

“Simple Saturday” columns focus on basic technique and logical thinking.Nobody likes unpleasant guesses, but today’s declarer arranged matters so that he had one. Against 3NT, West led the jack of spades, and declarer won with the king and led a diamond to finesse with dummy’s queen. East took the king and returned a spade.Declarer then came to his hand with a high club and led another diamond. West followed low. South delayed the evil moment but finally played the ten from dummy. East produced the jack, and the defense ran the spades for down one.FOUR TRICKSSouth started with two spades, a heart and two clubs. Since he needed only four diamond tricks to make 3NT, he could play safe. South should take the ace of diamonds at Trick Two. If East-West played low, South would come to his hand to lead a second diamond toward dummy.A safety play is like buying insurance. You give up the chance to win the maximum number of tricks but guard against a damaging loss.DAI...

El incidente en el que un buque de guerra de EE.UU. interceptó misiles cerca de Yemen duró 9 horas

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:12:36 GMT

(CNN) — Un buque de guerra estadounidense que interceptó drones y misiles cerca de la costa de Yemen este jueves se encontró con un bombardeo mayor y más sostenido de lo que se conocía anteriormente, derribando 4 misiles de crucero y 15 drones en un período de 9 horas, según un funcionario estadounidense familiarizado con el situación.El USS Carney, un destructor de clase Arleigh-Burke que atravesó el Canal de Suez en dirección sur el miércoles, interceptó los misiles y drones mientras se dirigían hacia el norte a lo largo del mar Rojo. Su trayectoria dejaba pocas dudas de que los proyectiles se dirigían a Israel, dijo el funcionario, una evaluación más clara que la opinión inicial del Pentágono.Un bombardeo sostenido de drones y misiles dirigidos a Israel desde muy lejos del conflicto de Gaza es uno de una serie de señales preocupantes de que la guerra corre el riesgo de escalar más allá de las fronteras del enclave costero.Además de las protestas en las embajadas de Estados ...

Justin Suh takes his first 54-hole lead on the PGA Tour into final round of the Zozo Championship

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:12:36 GMT

INZAI CITY, Japan (AP) — Justin Suh shot a 3-under 67 on Saturday to lead the third round of the Zozo Championship, the first time he’s the leader going into the final day of a PGA Tour event, and also looking of his first PGA Tour victory.Just one shot behind are fellow Americans Eric Cole and Beau Hossler, who are also seeking their first PGA Tour victories. Cole shot 66 and Hossler, the second-round leader, had a 68 on a sunny fall day at the Narashino Country Club just outside Tokyo.To make the three very uncomfortable, Collin Morikawa — the first-round leader — is just two shots back after a 66. Morikawa is looking to break a “mini-slump” since winning the 2021 British Open and the DP World Tour Championship later that year. He also won the PGA Championship in 2020.Suh played on the Korn Ferry Tour, the developmental feeder for the PGA Tour, and credits the experience there for his growing maturity.“Throughout this year I’ve put myself in this position a few times in some...

Los primeros camiones con ayuda entran en Gaza, pero el enclave asediado necesita desesperadamente más

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:12:36 GMT

(CNN) — Los primeros camiones que transportaban ayuda humanitaria entraron en Gaza este sábado, dos semanas después de que Israel lanzara un asedio completo del enclave en respuesta a los ataques mortales del grupo extremista islamista Hamas.Los camiones entraron por el cruce de Rafah, el único punto de entrada a Gaza no controlado por Israel, según lo visto por el equipo de CNN en el lado palestino de la frontera. El cruce se cerró rápidamente después de que pasaran 20 camiones.La gente en el lado egipcio de la frontera, donde las organizaciones de ayuda habían esperado durante días para recibir luz verde, estaban jubilosas cuando se abrió el cruce, celebrando con vítores y cánticos.Las oficinas de prensa del Gobierno controladas por Hamas dijeron que los camiones estaban cargados con medicinas, suministros médicos y una cantidad limitada de alimentos enlatados.Sin embargo, si bien estos suministros se necesitan desesperadamente, los trabajadores humanitarios dicen que son un...

Businesses are the biggest targets of financial crimes. Help is being offered in Prince George’s Co.

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:12:36 GMT

October isn’t even over yet and already fraud and scams have cost Prince George’s County, Maryland, residents and businesses more than $10 million.With the holiday shopping season almost upon us, there’s concern that the number will go up even more.“Because of their large balance sheets, businesses are at even a greater risk for financial fraud than citizens would be,” said Lt. Joseph Bellino, who leads the Prince George’s County Police Department’s Financial Crimes unit.“We’ve seen that with the transition of mobile banking and our kind of move to the digital age when it comes to the banking system. We found that financial tsunami … that local businesses are being targeted more and more frequently with financial fraud.”Different businesses are targeted by different groups of criminals, with different methods.“The most prevalent is mail fraud and check fraud. Any time that businesses are paying employees or paying partner businesses, their checks are being intercepted in the m...

Michael Cohen to testify at Trump fraud trial Tuesday with the former president expected in court

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:12:36 GMT

(CNN) — Michael Cohen plans to testify Tuesday at the Trump civil fraud trial in New York, Donald Trump’s ex-attorney said, with the former president expected to attend.“It appears that I will be reunited with my old client @realDonaldTrump when I testify this Tuesday, October 24th at the @NewYorkStateAG civil fraud trial. See you there!” Cohen posted on the social media site Threads.Trump is expected to attend the trial on Tuesday and Wednesday, according to two sources close to the former president, who said the details were still being finalized.Cohen was previously scheduled to testify this week but it was delayed after he cited a medical issue. Whenever he does appear, Cohen’s testimony will be the latest in a series of high-profile public clashes between Trump and his onetime “fixer” over the past several years.A longtime attorney of the former president before he occupied the Oval Office, Cohen had been one of Trump’s closest allies, famously pledging years ago that...

Patriots-Bills preview: How Bill Belichick can upset Josh Allen and Buffalo

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:12:36 GMT

For the third time in 30 years, the Patriots are two-score underdogs at home.The Bills (4-2) enter Foxboro as one of the NFL’s best teams, while the Pats (1-5) continue to flounder in a way few expected. Offensively, the Patriots snapped their games-long touchdown drought last week at Las Vegas, but again fell into an early hole. Staying competitive through the first half will be non-negotiable versus Buffalo, which has averaged more than 30 points per game against Bill Belichick’s defense the last three seasons.If the Pats fall behind by two scores, they’re done. But if they can create a couple turnovers, and win on the margins, they could find life at an unexpected time in an unforeseen season.Here’s what else to watch for Sunday:When the Patriots runFeed Zeke?Ezekiel Elliott ended the aforementioned touchdown drought by punching in a 2-yard score at Las Vegas last weekend. On that drive, the Patriots powered their way downfield with four first-down runs th...

NFL notes: How the Patriots and Bills switched places in the AFC East

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:12:36 GMT

Once upon a time, during a dynasty far, far away, the Buffalo Bills were an afterthought.A laughingstock.A doormat the Patriots, Dolphins and even Jets wiped their feet on during the season. No team failed quite like the Bills, a little brother’s little brother with a long history of bad quarterbacks, fumbled coaching searches and lost drafts.From 2001 to 2019, whenever Tom Brady started and finished a game against Buffalo, the Patriotss won. During one stretch spanning the late 2000s and early 2010s, the Pats beat the Bills 15 straight times. In all, the Patriotss went 34-4 in the division series during the Brady era.But at the end, Buffalo quietly began to gain significant ground. Head coach Sean McDermott arrived in 2017, and Brady threw more interceptions than touchdowns against McDermott’s defense over his last three seasons.Then Brady left, and Josh Allen, after struggling in his initial battles with Bill Belichick, took over. Over the past three years, Allen has t...

TTC bus service resumes along portion of Broadview Avenue this weekend

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:12:36 GMT

TTC riders in the east end will see the return of transit service along a stretch of Broadview Avenue between Gerrard Street and Danforth Avenue starting this weekend. Transit officials say the first phase of track replacement work has finished ahead of schedule meaning the 504 and 505 King/Dundas buses will begin running again every 10 minutes between Castle Frank station and Hennick Bridgepoint Hospital. However, Broadview station remains closed which means buses still can’t enter the station. That phase of construction work is expected to be completed by the third week of November. Streetcar service is not expected to resume until early 2024 after Toronto Water and TTC overhead work on Broadview Avenue is completed.

Company bosses and workers grapple with the fallout of speaking up about the Israel-Hamas war

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:12:36 GMT

NEW YORK (AP) — Starbucks accused a union representing thousands of its baristas of damaging the brand and endangering co-workers with a pro-Palestinian tweet. The CEO of a prominent tech conference is facing boycotts after he publicly suggested Israel was committing war crimes. Company bosses have vowed never to hire members of a university’s student groups that condemned Israel.Meanwhile, Islamic rights advocates say much of the corporate response has minimized the suffering in Gaza, where thousands have died in Israeli airstrikes, and created an atmosphere of fear for workers who want to express support for Palestinians. Jewish groups have criticized tepid responses or slow reactions to the Oct. 7 Hamas rampage that killed 1,400 people in Israel and triggered the latest war.The fallout from the Israel-Hamas war has spilled into workplaces everywhere, as top leaders of prominent companies weigh in with their views while workers complain their voices are not being heard. Peop...